Athletics D20 + 8 = 25 (17) The child tried to struggle out of Adam's arms, though he kept her close. She wailed and cried within them, blasting him with ice and snow. He looked to Klara and the rest of the group, who had stepped back and armed themselves. "What is she saying?' Adam asked. "She is telling you to unhand her," Klara replied, raising her shield. Adam then unwrapped an arm and pulled away from her, raising both of his hands either side of him. The little girl glared at him, her eyes darting quickly around before meeting his again. "Tell her I mean no harm," Adam said. "That I've come to help her." Klara did so. The girl stood and stepped back away from Adam, her cold eyes looking all across them. She opened her mouth to speak, but only air came out. She coughed, revealing how dry her throat was. Adam reached down for his waterskin, though her eyes snapped towards his hands and she opened her maw again, ready to blast him with ice. Adam froze and then lifted up his hands again. "I'm here to help," Adam said. "I have water." Klara translated for him. The girl eyed him suspiciously. Adam braved the ice blast, slowly reaching to his waterskin, and then held it out to her. When she did not take it, he placed it down and stepped back from it. The girl opened her hand and the snow underneath the waterskin shot it upwards towards her hand. She drank it thirstily, as though she hadn't drank in years. The architecture implied she hadn't drank in centuries. The girl finished with the waterskin and then clutched it tight to herself, her eyes narrowed at Adam. She whispered something at him, a whisper filled with paranoia. "What did she say?" Adam asked. "Who are you?" "My name is Adam. I'm an adventurer. I've been sent to help you." Klara translated it. The girl remained silent for some time, but then whispered something. "Who?" Klara asked. "Who?" Adam "Who sent me to help her?" "Yes." Adam stared into the girl's cold eyes. He had no idea how he should respond. "Arya, a goddess, who was asked by your mother." The girl remained silent for much longer. Then she looked around and noticed the empty sarcophagus. She walked over to it and then looked inside it before then looking around. She said something in giant. "Where is he?" Klara translated. "Where's who?" "My brother." "I don't know. It was open when we came here." She remained silent for much longer this time. Adam exchanged a look with Klara for a moment. He had no idea how to deal with the girl. "I have been ordered to protect you," Adam said. "Was he buried with you?" "I think so." "What's his name?" "I don't remember." "Do you remember anything?" "No. I don't remember anything." Adam looked back to Klara. "Ask her for her name." Klara did. "Freya," the girl said. "Right," Adam said. He had only known of one Winterdotr, and that had not been her name. "I'm hungry," Klara translated. "I'd imagine." Adam extended out a hand. The girl stared at it and then pointed at the hallway. Adam followed the others out, glancing back to make sure she was following. She was following from many metres away. When they finally returned to the pillar chamber, Freya stopped and looked all around. She eyed the mountain yaks with great hunger, though they wouldn’t fill her up at all since they were made of magic rather than meat. Though, Adam supposed, perhaps she could eat magic? Her eyes scanned the room for some time as the others convened. As they did, her eyes snapped back to them. She quickly approached them and then stopped a little ways away. She said something. “I’m hungry,” Klara said. “Right, yeah. Let’s cook something for her?” Adam looked to Inga. “The towers will be up for a long while, so we can enjoy them for a few more hours until we return back to the other room.” “I don’t want to stay here for long,” Klara said. “This place is filled with ancient magic, and I am uncertain whether the giants will reappear.” Adam thought of Joti and the others. “We should head to Muten.” “Do you know the way?” Klara asked. Adam paused. “No,” he said confidently, “I have no idea how to return.” “We will return to the south soon. You can remain with us until then.” “I appreciate that, thank you.” “Though we will be charging you accordingly,” Klara said. “I’m sure you will. Once I’m with civilization, I’ll try and message Joti and the others. I have a core that I could hand over, though…” Adam recalled that there were four cores from the giants. “I guess I could part with my share of the cores from the giants.” “If that is the compensation you are offering, we’ll accept,” Klara said. “You can keep the gem.” “Alright, sounds good.” Freya growled out again. Adam looked to Klara, who nodded her head. Mana 44 -> 41 Spell: Create Food and Water Adam offered Inga the food in order for her to cook it with the spices they had. The food was fairly bland by itself, though provided them with enough nourishment to sustain themselves on it. Freya took a bite of what looked to be chicken, but then spat it out with a look on her face as though she had bitten a spoiled mandarin. She glared at Adam with daggers in her piercing blue eyes, and Adam suspected she could shoot daggers of eyes out of them. “Just wait a moment,” he said. He had no rations to offer the girl, though soon Typ sauntered over to the little, but slightly taller than herself, girl and offered her own rations. Freya chewed on the dry and salted meats, though washed it down with plenty of water. She seemed to be quite thirsty for her size, and she had drunk plenty of water from the various containers within the dining room of the tower. Adam watched the girl chew on the jerky for a while, her eyes darting around before glaring at the group again. Adam sighed and rubbed his forehead, wondering what he was going to do with her. He recalled his task from Arya. He was to protect the girl, but also to assist her in her goals. What exactly were her goals? Adam assumed it had something to do with the other sarcophagus, most likely her brother, but she also had no idea of her past. She recalled her name and the fact she had a brother. That was all he knew. There was no way of knowing where her brother was, not with his currently abilities. Well, there was probably a way to figure it out, and there was no need to figure it out now. Freya was ravenous as she tore into the rations until the spiced chicken was brought to her. She tore into it too, like a savage beast. Her teeth weren’t different to his own, but Adam couldn’t help but think they were more like tiny daggers. When she was done, Klara spoke with the Winterdotr and the two walked off upstairs. Freya snapped her eyes towards the others, glaring at them for a moment, before continuing up. After a bath, the girl seemed so different. More relaxed, though she did continue glaring at the rest of them. The group returned to their previous dwelling, leaving the towers behind them. Once they had grabbed everything, they continued their way between the cliffs. Within a few hours they had managed to find a tower, which held a set of giant steps spiralling upwards. He noted how large the steps were, though there also seemed to be a set of half-steps, or what Adam would call normal steps, to one side. There, etched within the stairs, were dwarven runes. Adam dropped to one knee to read them. Here we dwarves, Whitebeards, give our eternal thanks to the giantfolk of Izmir, gentle of body and soul, and of thick beards like we. Forever will we, Whitebeards, remember their kind deeds, which had saved us in our darkest hour. It was in old dwarven, meaning that this was probably from thousands of years ago. Adam wondered if this had any connection with the golems, since it was the only thing he really knew about the ancient times of dwarves. They climbed up, though Inga stared at him with a queer look. Adam narrowed his eyes at her, though she did not speak her mind. Klara and Freya both seemed to talk up a storm. They continued up for a few hours until they were at the top, where there was a small outpost waiting for them. It was a giant outpost, but with the few beds around, it seemed that there were probably only two or three giants staying here at one time. Luckily for the group, that meant they could comfortably rest here. “Do you want me to summon my towers?” Adam offered. “If you wish,” Klara replied. “If you configure them to have the beds on the top floors then we can use them to keep an eye out on the horizon,” Hisan said. Mana 41 -> 38 Spell: Tower of Adam Mana 38 -> 35 Spell: Tower of Adam Adam summoned them, a bathroom for one of them, a dining room for the other, and bedrooms at the top. Though the fort was spacious, the elevated ground offered them more safety. Freya and Klara seemed to have become fast friends, with how they talked to one another. As they sat down to eat some more, utilising the leftovers of Adam’s spell, Typ leapt into the tower. “Dragon!” she quietly exclaimed to the group. Adam stood up straight. “What colour?” he whispered. “White. Blue eyes.” “Drakes?” Typ looked out. “Two.” Adam leapt to the window to see it with his own eyes. There, flying towards them, came three large shapes. “Oh no,” Adam whispered.