[Nogrod]

At places the snow had piled up in drifts as high as up to a man’s waist. The Rangers dug individual holes into these drifts to make the snow keep them covered and warm.

There was no need for five people staying up in an open place like this. The wolves could not make their mischief in secret like they had done the Night before in the shadows of the trees. And everyone was dead-tired so the more people could sleep the coming Night the better. So only Nienna, Sally and Kath stayed by the fire watching over the camp – if one could call it a camp. It was more like “nine men living in makeshift hobbitholes” as Fea had put it before crawling into his hole in the snow.

The wind showed no sign of getting weaker, nor the snowfall of ceasing. And the Night went on.


With the first shades of light increasing the three decided to wake the others. They should use all the sparse daylight they had.

“Rise and shine! We’re leaving in twenty minutes!” Nienna called walking around.

“Did you say “shine”?” Lommy asked cynically after pulling his head out from the hole and getting the biting wind to his face.

“I wouldn’t take this for a Day if I hadn’t your assurances… though I’m still wavering between that and the proof of my own eyes.” Gwath grumbled.

“Don’t be sulky mates, nothing happened during the Night!” Sally answered cheerfully. “Just grin a bit softer!”

“There was no sound, no movement during the Night.” Kath confirmed.

“Blessed be the Valar." Roa said and took his backpack "Lets’ get on with it then.” only to suddenly freeze motionless.

“What is it Roa?” Nienna asked passing him by.

“Have you seen Brinn?” Roa asked.

Nienna turned to look at Brinn’s hole. His sack and his weapons were there but it seemed there was nothing else.

“Wait, there’s a tunnel under the drift here!” Nerwen shouted suddenly stepping on it less than ten meters away from Brinn’s hole.

“Let’s follow it!” Legate called and started kicking the snow from around the place where Nerwen had bumbed into the tunnel.

After a few minutes of slowly following the tunnel in the blizzard they finally saw an odd shape in the drift in front of them.

Loslote was the first one to spot it and he ran forwards fighting the snow that had piled almost up to his chest. After throwing the snow around with his bare hands he finally yelled “It’s Brinn! …and he’s… naked…”

Greenie had followed in his trails and tried frantically to find a pulse. The other Rangers fought their way slowly around the body of their mate. After a minute or two of painful silence Greenie shook his head and turned towards the others. “He’s dead. Frozen to death.”

~*~

The Living:

Fea
Nienna
Sally
Kath
Loslote
Greenie
Nerwen
Roa
Lommy
Legate
Gwath


The Dead:

Nogrod (mod) - turned into a werewolf and butchered on N1.
Hakon (The Master Hunter) - stuck dead on D1.
Rune (Werewolf) - killed from the sword of the Master Hunter at the end of D1.
Macalaure (The Berserk Hunter) - eaten alive by the werewolves on N2.
Inzil (Ordinary Innocent) - decapitated by the Berserk Hunter on N2.
Boro (Ordinary Innocent) - left to Bree to inform others about the Company's tough fate on D2. (killed by the wolves travelling alone in the blizzard)
Valier (The Night-Traitor aka. The Cobbler) - killed by the Rangers while trying to flee on D2.
Brinn (Ordinary Innocent) – stunned, dragged through a tunnel, stripped naked and left to froze to death on N3.

It's Day 3 now.

It's your turn...