Bjorn the Berserker


cullam

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Bjorn the Second, Day 31: 

Today Bjorn walks an easy path. He begins his journey to the Great Camp House, to begin the work of his coat and pants. Bjorn walks directly towards the tracks, but peers cautiously over the first hill: there is indeed a wolf there. Turning to seek another route, there is a snarl, and another wolf is upon him! This appears out of the very snow, but Bjorn catches is straight across the head with his axe. The creature breaks off its attack, and Bjorn is left largely in tact, although shaken. No serious damage, so still walking around the other hunter, he makes his way to the destination, taking a brief detour to search for hidden supplies. 

At the House, he works until dark. There is no food to be had, but he has not been hungry long. Finding a meal will be a project for tomorrow. 

Day 32: 

Bjorn wakes before sunrise. It is too dark to work, so he steps outside. Nary a star lights his way onto the ice. Growing increasingly worried about wolves, he lights his lamp. Sure enough, they are all around the nearest fishing hut. He crouches, cursing the cold, and painstakingly sneaks his way into the fishing hut. The cold has taken it's tole. He starts a fire, then cracks open the ice. Throwing on a coal, he boils water and goes to fishing. The first line snaps in minutes. Muttering a curse to Loki's jokes, he casts another. Success! But after two hours of fishing, there is but a single small fish in his sack. His food problem has not been solved in any meaningful way. 

He stokes the fire with more wood, and fishes another two hours. This time, he catches to fine specimens! Getting them past the wolves might be tricky. He peers out to see them still all around, but with a rising, whipping wind. Suspecting a blizzard coming to scare off his stalkers, he fishes a few more minutes. As he suspected, a storm has arisen! He steps out into the howling snows, to a shock: The wolves have not battened down, and are still circling! 

 

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Mayhaps they need some time. He throws another coal on, and puts out his sleeping bag. An hour nap might send them home bored. When he awakes, there's no sign of them, but it's hard to tell in such awful weather. To be safe, he heads to the edge of the lake, to not walk right through where he saw them. Straight away, he hears a bark! The tantalizing smell of fish is calling them, and leadening Bjorn's step. 

Shivering in the winds, Bjorn trudges on, head snaking back and forth between the creature hoping to eat him, and the safety of the Great Camp House. It is not letting up, but nor is it charging.  

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He finally slams the door of the house behind him. With a wolf on his door step, now would be a great time to slay it, where he can easily reach the carcass! Dropping the fish, he immediately steps back outside. But the beast has slipped away into the snow. Bjorn only has half of his health, but he has enough food to fill his stomach. He works on his coat until dark, then eats one of the great bass. 

By Thor's hammer! This fish has had no effect on Bjorn! His stomach is calm, his mind at rest. Bjorn can go to sleep, and heal through the night! 

Day 33: 

Bjorn was not quite drained enough to fully heal from his rest, but he's in excellent health. The light has not yet penetrated the house, so he re-sharpens his knife, and prepares his medicine. At first light, he gets back to work on the coat. At midday, he steps outside to check for any likely deer, but none appear. He turns back inside, and works until dark. Tonight he is not so lucky. The pair of fish only half fill his belly. As he passes into his tormented sleep, his passing thought is his pressing need to find a better food supply tomorrow. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 34: 

Bjorn works a few more hours in the morning, and praise be to all the gods, he has a fine coat to wear! Food is still in short supply, so he crosses the ice to the nearest fishing hut. No sign of wolves. He starts a fire and breaks through the crisp ice. As he has a pot on the boil, he places down his fishing line a moment to take the pot off. Once again, Loki's laughing at him, for just as he lays down his line to attend to his pot, he catching a bass! But it is too late, he has let the tension on the line go, and his dinner disappears into the blackness below the lake. Cursing, he put on another pot, and fishes for two more hours. In that time, he catches one small fish. Surely not enough for a meal. 

He leaves the ice hut, and ponders a moment. Perhaps the bear he saw across the lake is about? A tasty fish could be tempting for that lumbering beast, groggy from hibernation. He crosses the lake, and sure enough, there the beast stands! But while it may slowly lumber towards him, the wolves are much lighter on their feet. He gives up, and returns to the Great Camp House. He is one gut short to start on his pants! Clearly he should be been more careful when moving. He has extras in his cottage, but making the journey will not necessarily solve his food problem. 

After warming up, he steps back outside. He begins down the tracks to his main home, but there are wolves. Ah! He lets one get a sniff, then backs off to the camp house. He drops the fish on the ground in a nice clear space, then steps aside. As he'd hoped, the wolf is going for the easier meal. A quick shot with the bow, and the creature is down, nicely near Bjorn's shelter! He takes the meat, steps inside to warm up, then takes the rest. He fills his belly, takes his potion, and goes to sleep. 

Day 35: 

Having had a meal, Bjorn decides to head to his real home, to get to work on these pants. He crosses without incident, and even catches a rabbit on the way! Another lays in his trap, and he stones a 3rd next to it. He spends much of day sewing madly, before catching a proper nap to recover his strength. Stitch. Sew. Stitch. Sew. Sleep. 

Day 36: 

Such glory! Bjorn is a fully clad warrior at last! 

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Now he just needs to find himself his own Mjolnir for his other hand, and he'll be all set! 

He skins the rabbits he's caught, and boils some more water. There's not enough to fill his stomach, but it's a reasonable meal. He eats, takes his magic mushrooms, and sleeps. The time has probably come to pack up and leave this place. Where shall he venture next? What does he need? The skin of a bear, and a proper set of arrows would seem correct. A moose Satchel would be a good get too! Perhaps he will search for a forge, and look for some large game on the way. 

 

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Bjorn the Berserker, Day 37: 

Bjorn carefully reviews the items that he will take with him, and sheds down to 30 kg. It's late afternoon by the time he's on his way. He leaves through the cave into Milton, warming up the the valley. He pops up the rope on the other side, then sleeps cautiously in bursts in the hut. It would not do suddenly be sleeping in the cold! Partway through the night, it's gotten too cold to sleep here, but he's partially rested. He decides to just push forward. 

Slipping along the cliff sides, he forgoes trying to fight his way into the farm house in the dark, and goes directly to the rope. This may come back to haunt him... He's already freezing, so stops in the cave to be warmed, and to catch a short nap to recover his full carrying strength. Slightly rested, he glides down the second rope. 

Looking around, there is no sign of a moose, and Bjorn is getting desperately hungry. It will not be long until it weakens him. There is a deer, so he chases it across the lake, to be eaten by wolves. But none appear! He can hear them howling, but there's no sign of them, and he's getting bitterly cold! Fortunately, he finds a deer carcass at the end of the lake, but it only contains 0.8 kg of meat. He is tiring fast, and taking freezing damage. With each step, his load gets heavier, and the vicious cycle continues. He leaves the Milton basin, to try his luck at the March Ridge. 

As he stumbles down the rocky path, the wind and snow are picking up. It's dark, a blizzard is on its way, Bjorn can barely keep his eyes open, and he has no line on a real meal yet. He's lost half of his health, so stopping the freezing is the first priority. Bjorn gets into the cave tunnel, and immediately lies down, hoping to solve his food problem tomorrow.

Day 38:

When he wakes up, the storm is still raging. He darts out to the left, hoping to find a dead deer. Nothing. Yet more time must be passed in the cave to warm up, and Bjorn's energy has taken a massive hit from having gone too long without eating. But unlike last time he had this problem, he is not walking towards a bountiful home base; he must solve his problem in the unknown. Stepping back out, the blizzard is calming down, although it is still heavy snow. He checks two more likely spots, his health taking a beating from the cold. Still nothing. No live dear graze in the meddow. There are rabits, but Bjorn can't see any rocks. He finds a snare and immediately sets it, but that will not help him yet. 

Then, at last, good fortune! The snow clears, and suddenly there are birds in the sky once more! Trying to run, the lack of food is making him tire too quickly. When he arrives at his find, he immediately starts a fire. By the time it's warm enough to sustain him, he is down to 20% health! He takes a saw to the deer, and glorious day, 2.2kg of meat are pulled off! Bjorn is saved! But he still must return to the warmth of his cave, and this 2 hour fire is not warming him fast enough. He must eat, and he must not freeze. Bjorn waits a moment longer by the fire, before brandishing a torch from it, and heading for the cave. His feet are leaden, his small warmth diminishing with every step. The warmth runs out, before he arrives. His health is plummeting again, and he has none to spare! 

With held breath, Bjorn finally steps into the tunnel. Sweet, sweet relief! He lays out his bed, and begins to eat. One his belly is full, he takes his medicine and dives into sleep. 

Day 39: 

He awakens in the middle of the night. There is little way to avoid the fact that this day will be wasted. He can not afford to wander in the cold, and he must get a full sleep while he still has food in him. His health is in the red, so there is no room to spare! He steps out into the cold, and runs as much as he can, until stepping back in to warm up. He repeats this foolishness many times, until daybreak. But alas, he cannot do useful things in the light. He drinks an herbal tea, and goes back to sleep for another 10 hours. 

He wakes as night is coming down, mostly rested, and largely cured. With nothing else to do, he passes yet more time, and rests again. This open area Bjorn must travel will be difficult. He cannot carry food with him, and he must get to a proper shelter in order to eat. Tomorrow's journey will hopefully take him to the forge in the broken pathway, but it will not be easy. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 40: 

Coming out of his cave, Bjorn picks up another snared rabbit. Having now healed himself properly, and with a little food left over, he considers staying another day, to leave better prepared. But he'll need to find some more food. Since he needs to warm up, he wanders through the cave. A deer has met its end here! While not huge, it will supplement what he has nicely. And since he does not need to heal, he can set up his day to eat, sleep, then leave. He gets another rabbit, makes some more water, eats, and tosses and turns through the night. 

Day 41: 

Bjorn begins his journey. Carefully picking his way down the rock face, he is getting chilled already. There are mushrooms in vast quantities, but he leaves them alone. He has 35 doses right now, and will be coming back this way later. He stops by a hunting shelter to start a warming fire, and harvest a deer. He simply leaves the harvested parts where they are - perhaps they might be useful on his return trip. Drinking an energy potion to warm up and perk up, he continues. He reaches the tunnel to the broken path without further difficulty. 

Once through, he carries straight down the path. When he must deviate down by the river, it is guarded by a wolf. Bjorn lights a fire to scare the creature off, and while the fire falters, the wolf has already fled. It went the other way, so Bjorn crosses the tree bridge, un-molested. The cold is still troublesome, so Bjorn starts another fire. It will be dark soon, but his destination is close. His morning's food has warn off, so he'll have to prioritize getting it tomorrow. 

He clasps a torch and proceeds. A heavy mist has begun to descend. He passes through the old and emptied carts, as the path narrows. Then from out of the mist, he hears a growl. It's close. He throws the torch out in front of him. A wolf steps out of the mist, and walks right over it, suddenly charging at him! Bjorn has no time to react, so in an instant he's on the ground with the creature, desperately using his battleaxe. He managed so fight it back, taking no major injury, but the good health he'd worked so desperately for is down to 60%. 

As soon as he's satisfied himself that there are no wounds to tend to, there is another barking! Is this the same wolf?? With only a split second, Bjorn raises his boom stick, but he is too rushed, and misses! To fight two wolves is utter madness, but he desperately hacks and hammers away. 

Eventually, the wolf is bested - and once again, there are no immediate injuries to attend. But Bjorn is now down to a minuscule fifth of his health, with no food to help him heal, and walking into a place known to be a lair for these beasts. On a foggy evening, with darkness spreading. Bjorn is in grave danger... 

Making his way cautiously down the path, he stops in the little shelter. He's already freezing, so now he must decide between slowly dying of the cold as he crawls in, or quickly dying from a wolf as he runs. He opts to crawl half way, then make a break for it. As soon as he starts to run, he can hear the bark of a wolf, but he makes it in time! Crossing into the deeper part of the mighty hall, he is able to be warm.

The first desperate step is complete, but Bjorn is still in terrible danger. The yard is littered with junk, and patrolled by at least 3 wolves, and it's freshly night time. Sleeping through the night will warm and rest him, but he'll be starving the whole time! He would then have need of finding food, eating, sleeping, waiting, then sleeping again, before he could be saved! This shall be very difficult... 

He goes to sleep for a few hours, long enough to recover some rest, and to fully warm himself. He then returns to the outer hall. Curses! It is a black night, and there is no hope of safely hunting, not in his current condition. No wolf happens to wander by. He goes back inside, and rests some more. Two times, he gets up and checks on the darkness, but the blackness is absolute. He must wait until morning. 

Day 42:

With a mere 10% health, Bjorn steps out front again. He readies a fire, and makes it an offering of coal. Perhaps he can attract a wolf, then use the fire to confuse it? 

Three wolves are patrolling the yard, but they are all on the other side. The blasted debre everywhere makes finding one to attack difficult. He attracks one several times, but is never able to get a clear shot. He can never stray more than a few feet from the fire, as his warm is near empty, and the cold cannot be survived. But things are getting desperate... There are crows circling near by, but the yard is too densely guarded! Bjorn must slay a wolf, and do it near a door or fire. 

Try after try, he tries to get one close enough, but to not notice him and start running madly. Finally, in the afternoon, with his health in the red, Bjorn is able to align his sites on a beast, and fire. It drops 15 feet from the back door (which truthfully, Bjorn had thought was only usable from the inside). To stay warm, he takes the meat in three trips, running back inside to warm up after each. Checking to make sure he has not missed anything crucial, he finally eats, drugs, and sleeps. 

Waking in full blackness, Bjorn now must get himself tired enough to sleep again. He does an old viking dance, stumbling and cursing as he bumps into things in the acursed darkness. As light approaches, Bjorn finally drinks his tea, and goes back to sleep for 10 hours. He has survived another desperately harrowing trial. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 44 (43 was spent dancing and sleeping): 

Having finally returned to reasonable health, Bjorn begins to properly search through this place. Mostly, he finds food and clothing that are of no use. No sign of a hammer, although this wetstone will not go amiss. He crouches outside to a beautiful sunny day! With such clear skys, he can see FIVE flocks of crows circling! Such wonderous bounty! 

He carefully makes his way out of the yard. There is a dead wolf, just past the fence. Surely one of the ones he tangled with on his way here. With it being quite cold, he just quickly butchers 3kg from the frozen body. But as soon as he finishes the task, he is tested again. Two wolves are bearing down on him, seeking vengeance for their pack! Bjorn tries to drop the steaks and back off, but the ground is too uneven - by backing off, he can no longer see them. As they come over the hill, he learns that they are not taking the bait, but choosing to tear out his throat instead! In a desperate gnashing of teeth, claws, and axe, Bjorn fights them one by one. The battle is brutal, but in the end, Bjorn rises from the bloodied snow. 

He is bleeding from two nasty gashes across his chest. Once again, only a fifth of his health remains. He stops the bleeding and sprints back to the safety of the shed. 

A little over a killogram of meat is what he has on hand. Not enough to heal himself. Thinking on what to do next, he waits in bed for an hour to warm himself, then goes back outside. The steaks he dropped should still be there. As he finds them in the snow, he hears the barking and scurrying of paws once again! He cannot risk it; another battle would be a death sentence. He cracks a fire stick, and backs off. He returns to the shed with little difficulty. The light may not have been needed, but it wasn't worth any risk. Now he can work on the eating and sleeping to fix himself up. 

Bjorn tears into the first steak, and... nothing. Some fine fortune at last! With no poisoning, this changes things! Bjorn is not quite tired enough to properly heal, but with some food in him, he reads a book for two hours, then crashes for as long as he may. He wakes up muchly healed. 

This place is clearly a death trap. Bjorn should move on to the hunters lodge, and only return once he's found a hammer. Perhaps some of the wolves he fought will now lie dead upon the snow. But Bjorn is not hopeful for such luck. This place is cursed. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 45: 

It is far too dark to do much of anything when Bjorn wakes. He lights a lamp, and find some crates. These may be searched in the dark, so he shutters his light, and gets to work. Two crates later, something is amiss. A terrifying green light is seeping in from all the windows. Lighting crackles across the floor. Some wizarding trickery is at play... Bjorn mutters a prayer to Thor to keep him safe, and smashes another crate. When he's done, the terrible light has faded, and the dawn is breaking. 

He steps out into the light. Crows, crows everywhere. Today, Bjorn shall harvest! 

Beyond the yard, a little ways past the gap in the fence, are two wolves. Too far apart to only build one fire, but he should be able to run back and forth for the second one. He spends much of his day taking meat, running it back to the doorway, and returning to the fire. Another wolf is skulking around, but the fire keeps the beast at bay, although Bjorn is careful to always return to the shed at a dead run. The sky is graying, and Bjorn worries about a blizzard, and the safety of his fire. But the weather holds. 

One one of his trips back to the shed to drop off meat, the wolf barks at him and follows. This is not the first time this has happened. But this time, Bjorn decides to act. He lets the beast follow him into the yard, but the ducks into the shed. Crouching and readying his bow, he steps back outside. 

The wolf has lost his scent, but is still heading in his direction. But curse this awful yard, the ground is too rough, and there is too much garbage all around! Bjorn cannot line up a clear shot! Then the wolf sees him, and closes the distance in three steps! Once again, Bjorn is rolling on the ground with a mad creature, hacking and slashing for his life. When the beast breaks off, Bjorn slams the door to the shed behind him, gasping for breath. He's bleeding from multiple wounds, which he quickly treats. Between having not fully recovered from yesterday's tribulations, and having been running back and forth in the cold all day, this struggle has brought Bjorn to a fifth of his strength, yet again! At least this time he has food. Mid-afternoon be damned, he'll eat now and start his recovery. 

But the same fortune strikes again! Perhaps he grows used to these raw meats. With his stomach one third full, he reads for two hours, to make best use of the daylight, then sleeps for 11. One day, his plans will go smoothly... 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 46-50: 

Time is stretching and blurring. Bjorn cannot tell when one day ends and another begins. He explores the woods around the yard quickly, to avoid freezing, but there is little to find but sticks. Before he leaves, he'll have to do a more careful sweep for mushrooms. The shed itself has not yielded his mighty hammer, so Bjorn must consider looking elsewhere. There are still three wolves guarding the lake, but Bjorn shoots a straggler. T'would have been better had he introduced it to a deer first, but he does not wish another face to face encounter. 

After another day or so, he's harvested most of it, and decides it is time to search the hunting lodge. He has only 5 rounds left in his thunder staff, and he cannot make arrows without a hammer. The journey is uneventful, with one wolf catching his scent, but being easily dodged. The hunting lodge is grand, but is not guarded by a mighty moose, only a pair of wolves. Bjorn will look to them tomorrow. Today, he is still full enough to manage. He warms up by searching the place, and while he finds many a fine clothing item for a continental dandy, he is a warrior, and needs no such decadent items. 8 rounds for his staff, but, alas, no hammer. 

Peering back outside, he sees both wolves hunting rabbits. What luck! His hat has been badly damaged, and he hasn't seen a rabbit in many days. He lets them catch their prey, the ends them with an arrow. One runs away, but no matter. The beast will be dead by the morrow. He eats well that night, and spends his few waking hours the next day harvesting the rest of the meat and hides from the wolves, and even a deer he finds at the pond. Perhaps he will stay here until he can fix his hat - t'will only be 4 more days. And there are places abouts to search out. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 51-53: 

There is little to do while Bjorn waits for his rabbit skins to cure. He gathers all the mushrooms, boils some water, and reads a book on fur repair that he finds. One day he takes a trip to the nearby cave, gathering several more mushrooms, many sticks, and food from some deer carcasses. Even such relatively short distances are bitterly cold, so he returns to the lodge with ice in his veins. But it's nothing a good meal and two nights of sleep can't fix. Soon, he will have to return to the yard, to face down his demons. Such bitter work is not to be cherished. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 54: 

Bjorn waits, tapping his fingers, breaking up some dusty old furniture into piles and piles of unneeded firewood. There is little else to do. He peers outside, and down the cliff. A bear casually wanders by, far below. Bjorn wonders how good his aim might be, and brings out his bow. It's quite a distance. He tries to take the speed of both the arrow and bear into his mind, picks his mark, and lets fly. 

Close! Just behind the beast, his arrow strikes. The bear startles, and takes off into the woods. Bjorn will have to fetch that arrow later... 

He goes back inside, and waits a little longer. Then at last, he has both the rabbit and the guts to repair his hat and mittens. The mittens still have more than 2/3 thirds of their good left, but the hat is nearly halved. Bjorn repairs his hat, but bumbles the task of the mittens, leaving his rabbit hide and guts a useless ruin.

He looks to the cliff once again, and sees the bear. He adjusts his aim ever so slightly from his last attempt, and looses another arrow. 

Victory! The bear starts running, but this time, there is an arrow protruding from it! Satisfied, he eats a meal, and returns to his nightmares. Mittens dance through the hellscape, mocking him. 

Day 55: 

Bjorn looks to the cliff first thing, and there his quarry lies, scant meters from its cave. Not wanting to take the arduous journey around, Bjorn carefully picks his way straight down the cliff-side. There is far more food here than Bjorn can justify in this desolate place, so he cuts three quick steaks, and warms himself in the cave. He comes back again for the precious hide. Leaving the steaks for later, he makes his way to the frozen lake. No sign of wolves, so he darts accross to the foot bridge, and back around to the lodge. 

Here, the wolves have returned. No matter. Bjorn sneaks by, and leaves his prize out to dry. 

Day 56: 

Bjorn decides that he should take the trek around the high path. There might be mushrooms, and it would be foolish to leave this place without them! He thinks he shall never return, after all, and in this cold, it's no small journey. He moves swiftly past the wolves, and warms in the cave by the small valley. Taking a torch, he slides under the fallen trees. 

The hilltop path holds several saplings, most birch, some maple. No sign of mushrooms, but Bjorns supply is still ample. The torch goes out shortly before Bjorn reaches the end of the path. 

He almost doesn't see the wolf before it charges. He had not expected to find one here. The creature is on him straight away, and he must fight it desperately. He has bandages and remedies to heal, but his hat is scarcely better than when he looked to repair it! He is freezing, and the hunting lodge is too far removed, after this setback. He comes to the end of the path, and looks down the cliff face. 

A wolf is directly below. He readies his bow and fires, but the creature doesn't even react. Bjorn curses. He has but one arrow remaining, as his forging trip has been an utter failure. He adjusts, and fires. The wolf dies instantly. 

Bjorn climbs down the shear rock face, and grabs his arrows, ignoring the wolf. There is no time, and this place is dangerous! Looking to the nearby yard, he has a thought: what if he were to climb the bank? Could he drop into the yard, and sprint for the door before any hunter was the wiser?

It would appear so. Bjorn is through the door, without hearing so much as a growl. T'is only a little past mid day, but he immediately digs into the supply of meat he's kept outside - three pieces are devoured, and three remain. He takes his potion and goes straight to sleep. 

He awakes early in the night. He must tire himself before he's any hope of healing, so he breaks up the rest of the crates he finds about. Mayhaps one will contain a hammer? Alas, no. And now his skin is beginning to itch. He can't concentrate. The walls seem to be closing on him, even in so great a room. Like the sailors of old, trapped on their tiny boats of dragon prows, Bjorn's mind is beginning to reject the feeling of being trapped in this accursed shed. 

Day 57: 

Day breaks, and Bjorn sneaks out the back door. Rather than sleep in the shed, he will make his way to the bear cave. The cave is warm, and there is a supply of fine meat, ready for the taking. 

His leaving of the yard is uncontested. But approaching the pond, a wolf takes interest in him. There lies a great boulder between them, so Bjorn should have no trouble loosing the hunter on his tail. 

But it does not turn away, it follows him around, and does not break stride as he runs. Bjorn will simply have to make it to the safety of the cave. He reaches it with still a solid distance between him and his pursuer. Letting out a sigh of relief Bjorn lays out a bedroll, and drinks deeply. 

A moment later, he nearly spits the frigid waters across the cave. With a menacing growl, the wolf has followed him in. It's crossed the threshold, and is about to spring! There's no time to ready a longer weapon, so Bjorn is again entangled upon the ground with a fierce creature, composing poems to his gods, scribed with his axe in the blood of his enemies!

When the beast submits to his vigour, Bjorn is left panting, bedroll dirtied in two flavours of blood. His health is but a third of it's full potential, and Bjorn no longer has a full enough stomach to sleep the night entire! He eyes a bear steak, and considers rolling the bones... A cool head prevails, and he downs a cup of healing herbs. This will help him heal faster, and extend his useful rest by more than an hour. Bjorn wraps himself the in his sleeping cloth, and rests. 

Night is fallen when he awakens. His health is in far greater a state, but he is far from fully healed. He takes this warmth to see to the bear, and relieves the creature of 5 meters of oh so useful intestines. His water is diminished, so he stares into the fire, waiting for it to boil. Having originally only planned a small day trip, Bjorn does not carry his pot, but only a can. A wise adventurer knows to never leave camp without the crucial necessity, no matter how safe and simple a plan they posses! 

Day 58: 

The dawn is breaking, and the maddening itch in the back of Bjorn's eyes has faded. Looking around the cave, he takes up the three steaks, and the 5 guts. Moving them will be a risk, but he shall never get them to the maintenance shed. He will try his luck sneaking them past the lake. If need be, he is prepared to throw it all to the wolves! 

Before he even reaches the lake, he can hear their barking. He does not yet see them, so he casts down a piece of gut, and run to the lake, keeping the cliff as a shield. He sees a dart of fur out of the corner of his eye, and is satisfied that it has accepted his offer. Another one is racing towards him on the lake, but it shall not catch him! He scrambles across the bridge and slams the gate in its face! 

He's already freezing, but there should be only two more of these demons between him and safety, and he is relatively secure in his knowledge of the path. His expectations pan out, and while the wolves run at him from the small pond, they are too far behind, and will not catch him before he reaches the lodge. He dumps the 4 remaining guts on the floor, and rests easy. He goes to bed to sleep off the remainder of his breakfast, as well as his injuries. 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

(Cullam comes back to the game, after at least a week away)

Bjorn the Second, Day 59: 

Bjorn arises from slumber, and ponders on what to do next. Clearly, this mission of working the great forge is not going to go as planned. Mayhaps it's time to head back through the marshes, and try to seek a hammer at the cold forge. He dumps the unboiled water out of his can by the fire, gathers a few cured hides and saplings to transport, plus the great heavy sailor's rope, and slides on down the cliffside. He can see the wolves across the lake, so heads directly towards the yard, without harassment. He approaches the yard cautiously, but remains carefree. 

Good. There are still 8 slices of meat waiting here for him. He will not need to go for a hunt just yet. And look at this! Bjorn is up to FIVE cured wolf pelts! He applies his craft, and works on making a second coat until the darkness interferes. He takes three portions of meat from the snow outside, and returns to faltered sleep. 

Day 60: 

Before leaving this forsaken place, it would behoove Bjorn to venture down into the bowels, in search of treasure. With the light of day, Bjorn still has food in his belly, and will need to tire himself before he can recover farther. Slinging the rope over his shoulder, he checks the yard for wolves, and makes haste to the mighty crack in the earth. He secures the rope as his warmth leaves him. "T'will be a long climb back out" he thinks to himself, as he repels down the cliff face. 

Born hurries along. The remains of two deer, and even a wolf are ripe for the taking, but he resists. He is not short on food, or extra skins that he'll have to haul around. He find a fellow adventurer carrying an arrow, and a parchment giving some interesting tips on archery. At the far end of the ravine, he finds a large box, tangled amidst the twisted metal. He eagerly prys it open to discover... 

Dried beans, lamp oil, and remedies to bless bad water. While certainly a useful take, not exactly a triumph. 

The cold has been biting at him all this time, so he walks back to the rope. He'll need to rest on the climb, so he plans on saving his sleeping til then. He drops a little of the extra firewood he's found on this trip, and begins his ascent. As efficient as he's tried to make this trek, he's starting out with just over half of his wakefulness left, and it's a very long run. The half way ledge taunts him, much higher than he'd realized. When his strength gives out, he's not quite made it, but he crawls upwards. Numb fingers just barely scraping the icy rock, he finds purchase, and slides, panting, onto the rock shelf.

He slowly rolls over, wakefulness at but a tenth. It's early afternoon, and the sun is bright. He digs out his sunstone, and sees to the fire. Looking at his wood supplies, he decides that he might save a coal for his eventual weapon-crafting! He dumps two fir logs and 12 sticks into the fire. He now has over three hours of warmth, plus what his sleeping bag may offer. As long as the weather holds, he can regain his strength, his warmth, and a little of his health! 

But there is a problem. 

While tending the fire, Bjorn has noticed a grievous error. He does not have a can... But he's sure he took it! He remembers dumping the unboiled water and... and he must have left then and there, forgetting to actually pack it. So eager was he in his rush to leave, that he absent mindedly must have laid the can back by the fire. 

There is nothing for it now. Bjorn has a little over a litter of water on him, as well as various potions, if needs must. He calls on Thor to keep the fine weather steady, and sleeps for three hours. 

He awakes to a dead fire. He's not yet freezing, but it's near. No time to curse his luck, he must get back to warmth! He gathers his bedroll, and ascends the last of the climb. He makes his way swiftly to the yard, rushing his caution only slightly. He's cold, and in need of water. But there is still enough, so he sleeps away the last of his full belly, hoping to recover most of his health.

Day 61:

He awakens a few hours before the dawn. With little else to do, he breaks down the last crate in this shed. Again, there is no hammer, although this is no surprise. At daybreak, he makes for the hunting lodge. He sneaks through the yard, without quarrel, and avoids the wolves that guard the lake. He's freezing as he reaches the gate, but it's not far to shelter. 

As he passes the pond wolves, he sees one stalking with a look of determination in its evil eye. Bjorn takes pause with this, as he does not think he's close enough for the beast to have seen him. Sure enough, as Bjorn runs towards the hut, the wolf charges, but not at him! He hears a squeak from behind, and rather than barge straight through the door, he turns to see that wolf, now enjoying its tasty meal. 

Bjorns knows these evil creatures deserve no such pleasure, and fires an arrow into its shoulder. It runs away and the arrow breaks, so Bjorn retrieves his arrow head, and the rabbit, then walks into the lodge. 

There's his can! Bjorn makes water and tears every ounce of flesh from the wolf-rabbit. There are still steaks a'plenty outside, but an extra rabbit skin would be nice. With minimal overload, he should be able to take all the curing items from this lodge back to the yard tomorrow. While he has some coat work yet to face, and a great deal of curables to decide what to do with, the other forge awaits. Bjorns eats his fill, and returns to nightmares. He will conquer them, just as he's conquered this day and each before it. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 62: 

Bjorn gathers his belongings, and heads straight to the yard, via The Cliff of The Brave. There are 22 more hours of work to be done on this second coat, and he might as well complete them before leaving! He works until dark, eats, and sleeps. 

Day 63: 

Bjorn organizes his possessions. This place, he might one day return to, if needed, but he'd rather not leave anything particularly interesting. Travelling while overburdened might be dangerous, but perhaps he will brave it. Bjorn Finishes his lovely coat and a couple of new arrows, before heading to bed hungry. No need to heal tonight anyways! 

Day 64: 

Bjorn awakes to a horrid itching sensation. It's not yet day break, but his eyes are bulging, his palms are sweating, and he can't concentrate on anything. It's like this mighty viking has suddenly become a'feared of the dark. It is good that he plans on leaving today, as he does not think he could spend another moment inside! Sailors used to call it Cabin Fever, and it has fully taken hold of him! 

He steps outside into the waiting area. He begins to cross the yard, but a wolf comes charging at him. To avoid the creature, Bjorn backs into the vestibule. Once the wolf has lost interest, he shoots the beast with an arrow. Curses! He hit his mark, but the blasted thing ran off with his arrow!  Bjorn is already cold from this little sojourn. Perhaps this outside be may calm his itching nerves? There are vast supplies of wood from breaking up all those crates while bored of a night. Bjorn stacks them up, and starts a mighty blaze, right there in the room by the bed. Sleeping with the sounds of the outdoors is soothing, even if it's only for a quick nap to warm himself. 

As he comes to his senses, he can hear the wind starting to pick up. He warms an energy potion, and takes a torch from his fire. 

Is he living in a time vortex? Another wolf runs at him, from the same spot! He uses the exact same trick on it, and puts his arrow once again into the beast's hide, causing it to be carried away into the growing winds! 

Bjorn adds another broken hunk of wood to the fire, and rests to warm up. When he wakes, a full blizzard striking the world. There is little to do but boil water. If he ever returns, at least he will have plenty to drink. Bjorn gathers more wood from inside the shed. There is still ample supply. Eventually, there's nothing left but to stoke the fire and go to sleep. He eats a wolf steak, and has the great fortune of swallowing the flesh without incident. He sleeps dreamlessly in the outdoor bed by his cozy fire, as the night rages on. 

Day 65:

In the morning, the horrid weather still holds. Perhaps it passed in the night, but now it's back in force! Bjorn keeps his fire going, and waits, keeping a warm energy potion on hand. Eventually, the weather has cleared, although it's approaching evening, and the winds are still too high for the crows to mark his arrows. But he's waited long enough! 

He strikes out, and sees a downed wolf on the path ahead. One arrow returned! The other will just have to wait for him, in the wild. Coming to the track, he sees a train car in the distance that he had not yet explored, but it's guarded by two wolves. To Hel with it. If he returns, mayhaps it will be a bonus reward. But one of the wolves has already sniffed him out! He strikes a match and sets a fire. It does not catch, but the beast has already been scared by his sparks. 

Bjorn picks his way through the broken cars, and eventually comes to a rockfall blocking the path. He can climb over it, but the cold is getting to him, and this will be a more sheltered place than most. He sets a fire, and adds on offering of coal, once it will accept it. He leaves his energy potion out by the fire once more, and sleeps an hour at a time. It is a long journey, and it will pay to be fresh and warm. 

After three hours, night has fallen, but Bjorn is warm and toasty, and near his full strength. He drinks the warm liquid, takes a torch from the fire, and climbs over the avalanche. The dark is extreme, but he follows the path. The warm bean brew is greatly helping to heat his insides! By the time he reaches the tunnel, he's only a little beyond half way to freezing, despite carrying an unwise 42 kgs of supplies with him. He steps out, into the marshes. 

He quietly follows the slope to the right. His aim is to take the path along the mountain side, over to the forge. There's even a cave he can warm himself in, if he can reach it. Bjorn is freezing as he crosses the log bridge, and his potion has warn off. The terrible weight makes for a gruelling trudge. He sees the twisted broken metal of an old signal tower, guarded by a pair of glowing green eyes. Bjorn drops to a crouch, and painstakingly walks long the slope, feeling the life drain from him with each passing, freezing second. And while hunger will kill him slowly, it has been killing him for the last 20 hours, and his health is getting a little dangerous! 

But he finally drops from the ledge, and crawls into the cave. It is warm in the back! Bjorn is not very tired, and will eventually need to properly heal, so he simply passes time in his bedroll. The forge is near, but his life is draining dangerously low. He'll have to hunt for food, and heal, before he can dare to sneak by these wolves. 

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Bjorn the Second, Day 66:

As dawn approaches, Bjorn's cave begins to cool, to the point that even in his bedroll, t'is a little chilly. Not enough to worry, but it's something to keep in mind. There are 5 lumps of coal, which will be quite useful for the work that's to come. Bjorn has over the past weeks needed to burn far more of it than he's like, just to stay warm.

At the first of daylight, he peers outside. He must now rely on their being wolves outside! His health is less than a quarter. The cold is bitter, and he sees a wolf passing a rocky outcropping. This is no time to get fancy with a bow - a struggle now would almost certainly be a death sentence. He must remain hidden, and he's not yet had the practice with a bow to fire it from the ground. He shoulders his boomstick, and slowly crawls towards where he saw the best disappear.

The slow going means his warmth is leaving him quickly in the morning frost. He rounds the corner, and there it is, no more than 7 meters ahead of him! He takes quick, careful aim, and with a mighty thunder crack, the beast is slain. 

But Bjorn cannot relax yet! His warmth has all left him, and t'will be some time a'fore he can have a warm enough fire! He starts one in the morning sun, and removes 3 pieces of meat by the time it's been long enough for coal. Even with a piece of coal in the blaze, it still isn't warm enough! Curse this morning frost! He adds a log and a couple sticks. He won't gain enough warmth from this to make it back to his cave unscathed. 

The other wolf has smelled a fresh kill, but keeps running away from the fire. Bjorn removes the rest of the meat from the wolf, and ponders what to do next. After a moment, he dumps a bunch of the large items he's carrying. Speed is the order of the day! And he will pass this place on his way to the forge. His cave is a mere 80 meters away, and with a light load, he can sprint there. He gathers three of the wolf steaks, and makes a break for it.  

What little warmth he had did not last the whole way, but he eventually makes it to the comforting embrace of the earth. His health stands around 15%. Even back here, it's not quite warm enough, but with his bedroll, he should be OK. Daylight efficiency be damned, he downs the first steak. His stomach erupts into fire, and he chokes down the other two. He takes his medicine, and lets the nightmares take him. 

Bjorn wakes around dusk. The energy potion he'd been drinking to keep his night march going is now exacting its price, as he's still a ways from needing a full night's sleep. And with his health so low, he needs a full night's sleep! Bjorn alternates between dancing in the cave, to tire himself, and meditating.

He thinks of his ancestors. Would they be proud of him? Would they welcome him again when he returns to Valhalla? Not if he goes willingly, so he must fight and struggle. Life is struggle, and death only rewards those who fight to their last. 

At last, as a beautiful green permeates the sky, Bjorn is tired enough to sleep. He drinks a potion to help his wounds, and returns to his bedroll. 

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Day 67:

With the morning, there is a medium fog. Not so heavy that he can't see, but it certainly blankets the morning. He is muchly recovered from his harrowing journey. There is no sign of the other wolf. So Bjorn crunches over the snow, gathering his things, by the slain wolf. He leaves the meat for now - he's just fixed himself up, and he'll have to get by more wolves to reach the forge. 

Coming down the hill, he at last sees his destination. The wolves appear to be not guarding the entrance, and he makes it without contestation. And finally, laying here by a locker, is his Mjolnir! At last, Bjorn is a true viking! 

Given the cold, Bjorn must light a blazing fire. And since he's already doing that, he feeds more wood, and ample coal to the blaze. He works the bellows, and shapes the iron over the furnace, hour after hour. But before he goes to made making arrow heads, perhaps he should look to use one... Bjorn has not yet secured any food supply here. 

He steps out of the remains of the barn, leaving his fire blazing. Near enough, he is able to attract the attention of a local wolf, and lours it back towards the barn. See him take shelter in a man-made structure, the beast looses interest. But as soon as Bjorn draws his bow, it gets scared and high tails it away. A second attempt at finding some lunch produces the exact same result! Bjorn tries a third time, and this time is able to let the arrow fly. 

Another shoulder hit! Another wolf running off to die in the freezing cold, carrying Bjorn's arrow. 

On his fourth attempt, everything finally goes right, and Bjorn has a few kgs of meat to harvest from near his warm barn. He restokes the fire, and breaks down the crates, and cracks the safe. Nothing but fool's garments, and food fit for dogs. Oh well. He feeds it all to the fire. 

Day 68:

Bjorn's second day working the forge is largely uneventful. He makes arrowheads. He skins the wolf, just to change things up. Keep the fire roaring, he eats and sleeps, but in the constant light of the forge, Bjorn no longer even knows if it be day or night. Making a single arrow, away from the warmth of his furnace costs him more than a fifth of his health. Clearly, the crafting of arrows shall wait until he's in a better place! He returns to the forge, and sleeps again, while his belly is still full. At the end of the day, he has 19 arrow heads. 

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