[Nogrod]

The boy had fallen asleep in the chair but woke up with the explosion. Then there was another one, and another. Pieces of concrete were falling on him when he took refuge in the corner of the pillbox crawling under one of the beds. The shards of the broken figurine of his mom he had still squeezed in his hand fell to the floor as he ducked underneath the bunk.

He was familiar with the sound. Enemy bombers were emptying their loads on their way back. But it had never been this near.

As the blasts drew away he crawled out from under the bunk and headed out to the trench and towards his home.

There were a few pillars of smoke in the air he could see from down below in the trench. One of them came from the direction of their house. He was distressed but also curious.

He managed to crawl up from the trench eventually only to see what he had anticipated. On the other side of the unsown field there was the house they had lived the last half a year after been evacuated from their home near the frontline.

It was burning.

People – looking like ants from the distance – were rushing in and out around it carrying buckets of water but it all seemed to be in vain. There was no stopping the flames that ate all they could touch.

Herbert crept silently towards the burning house using the treeline as a cover. He had to know what had happened even though he had no wish to be seen by his relatives or neighbours - and the least by the man who claimed to be his father.

As he got nearer he saw some people bowing over a bloodstained body of a woman. There was a man in an uniform kneeling beside her. And then he recognised his mother’s dress.

He ran back as fast as he could.

It was only when he had sat in the dark pillbox for an hour or so that he started searching for the candle. It had fallen on the map with figurines. He picked it up and relit it.

He stared at the figurines on the map with empty eyes swallowing the tears. Two of them had burned while the others were scattered here and there over the tabletop. It felt to him they were screaming. They were screaming at him. HE knew he was doing this but still it was not like he thought it would be. And why those two? He hadn't chosen them.

He wasn't on top of things. He knew it now too well but the anguish was coming back. He would kill more. He would kill his choice now.

He picked the burnt ones from the table and threw them to the floor. Then he reorganised the figurines.

He remembered a last winter’s day when the schools had been open for a short period between the two major offensives of the war this far. Even a little boy had learned that there might be a new one any day. The girls in the school had always followed the guys picking on him as he was skinny and not either rough or dandy as the other boys were.

The worst had been the one nicknamed Aggy. She had always been on him because she was physically stronger than he was. She used to challenge him to a wrestling match in front of everyone else. And she always won. He couldn’t count the bruises he had gotten from her – or the laughs that had followed.

He picked the figurine into his hand and moved it to the candle-light. It was a nice figurine. He had spent a lot of time carving it. But now it would burn.

Slowly he brought it to the flame and watched it getting black first, then starting to smoke.

Suddenly it lightened and burned his fingers.

Herbert yelled in pain and instinctively let go of it. It hurt.

The figurine burnt slowly at the floor until it was consumed by the tiny flames.




*~*

An open town council was called to convene and everyone came. Shasta and Greenie opened it as the remaining village elders even though there were some complaints about it.

There was a spectacular row between Roa and the phantom. After the two had had enough all the others wished to make their personal views heard as well. It was a cacophony of lectures, analysis, accusations and counter-accusations, quotes and misquotes, accusations of misrepresenting and counter-arguments to them – as well as jokes and banter to lighten the mood.

And as everyone had a lot to say and a lot to correct on what others had said it became a tiring day to all. Kath was busy providing people with Mac’s cider without her wench all alone.

Finally it was decided that Macalaure and Aganzir should be brought forwards. Even if old Shasta tried to cool the feelings with calling the children to play nice the final debate was hot and fiery.

The votes came one by one keeping both neck to neck. Macalaure seemed to have been half a sleep – probably from drinking too many pints of his own cider – even if it was quite near he was going to be sent to the gallows. Suddenly he woke up.

“I need to intervene, you're lynching your ranger…”

“Gah, I still have no idea. Think, think, think...” Cailín mumbled. “… What did you say? Hmm, I suppose I should trust him.

“Crap. Cailin vote Agan...quick!” Brinn yelled in.


So it was decided that Aganzir would be the one. And they would burn her.

”I am confident Lommy is a wolf!” Aganzir protested while she was being taken. She was tied by Mac and the phantom. “Heck I'm sorry Mac”, she tried her last but Mac was not moved. Cailín and Legate had built a pyre to the square where Lommy and Brinn dragged her.

“Good riddance wolf!” Lommy yelled as they threw her on top of the pile “I will dance a river-dance to your evil memory when you show your real qualities!”.

As the village elders, Shasta and Greenie lit the pyre.

The flames soon consumed her body and her skin started to melt. From underneath it a thick and hairy fur was revealed.

“Ggrrrraaaaaaahhhh!!!!!!” she bellowed as the ropes snapped and she rose up burning all over. She managed to jump off the pyre and went after Lommy.

“Stop the beast, stop the beast!” Nilp shouted as Lommy tried to run away from the werewolf.

It was not needed. The beast fell down beside the old oak tree burning brightly. But the fire took to the tree as well.

“Quite a firework” McCaber said.

“Yeah bro, we should have these more often” Gwath replied.


*~*

Alive:

+ A Little Green, a fortune-teller - folklorist - herb-grower - unofficial therapist, advisor and midwife, most presumably a witch, the gammer (the eccentric mother of Lommy & Mac)
+ Shastanis Althreduin, astrologer/fortune teller, gaffer (Greenie's husband, father of Lommy & Mac)
+ Isabellkaya, a gammer who loves asparagus and throwing knives (Shasta's sister)

+ Thinlómien, a bird tamer, adult (married to Nilp, Macalaure's sister)
+ Nilpaurion Felagund, a house-bound sandwich-maker, adult (married to Lommy)
+ Eönwë, Rikae's unofficial helper-person, 22 (their son)
+ Kath, tavern owner, 20 (their daughter, Brinn's life partner)
+ Satansaloser 2005, Lommy's assistant, 17 (their daughter)

+ Macalaure, apple farmer, adult (married to Rikae, Lommy's brother)
+ Rikae, a lumberjack, adult (married to Macalaure, Roa's sister)
+ the phantom, sheep herder with Legate, 21 (their adopted son, Di's brother)
+ Diamond 18, dissolute, 11 (phantom's pre-teen littlesister)

+ Cailín, guinea pig breeder, adult (Nilp's sister)
+ Lhunardawen, healer's apprentice, 20 (Cailín's daughter, good twin of Durelin)
+ Durelin, poisoner 20 (Lhuna's evil twin, daughter of Cailín)



+ Roa_Aoife, school teacher, adult (mother of Legate, Brinn and Kit, wife of Nogrod, sister of Rikae)
+ Brinniel, Greenie's apprentice, 21 (Legate's sister and Kitanna's twin sister, Kath's life partner)
+ Legate of Amon Lanc, sheep herder with tp, 19 (brother of Brinn & Kit, Sally's boyfriend, Agan's ex-bf)

+ Lalaith, chocolate maker, adult (sister of Nerwen, mother of Aganzir, Volo's daughter)
+ The Ka, a dog whipper (a fatherless and ageless little child of Lalaith)

+ Mormegil, adult (son of Volo, husband of Celuien, father of Gwath and McCaber)
+ Celuien, a candle maker, adult (wife of morm, mother of Gwath and McCaber)
+ Gwathagor, a highwayman, 20 (McCaber's big brother)
+ McCaber, a henchman, 18 (Gwath's little brother, dates Aganzir)


The dead:
Eomer of the Rohirrim, adult (Cailín's husband, Lhuna's and Dury's father); An innocent beheaded by the werewolves on Night1
Nogrod, the judge, adult (Roa's husband, father of Legate, Brinn and Kit); An innocent torn in two by werewolves on Night1
Nerwen, the healer, adult (sister of Lalaith, Volo's daughter); An innocent nailed to the oak-tree on Day1.
Volo, the guy who knows everything about staying alive, the gaffer (Father of Nogrod, morm, Nerwen and Lalaith); The seer mutilated and eyes pulled off on Night2.
Kitanna, a tavern wench 21 (Legate's sister and Brinn's twin sister); An innocent ripped into pieces and thrown into the well on Night2.
Aganzir, the little match girl, 15 (Lalaith's daughter, dates McCaber); A werewolf burnt alive on Day2.



Night3 has begun.

You know what to do… those who can do something… G’night everyone else!