‘The cold doesn’t bother me so much. I’ll bring up the rear...’ volunteers Sirithal.

He strains his senses to make out any threats...

A shiver runs through her spine at the flashback of the encounter with the Owl, the strange image is still implanted inside her memory, clear and vivid as the first instance. She tries to dust them off her mind and puts emphasis on the current condition. The mouslings remain at play, Chwingas following them after devastating effects on their abode, presumably searching for a new one.

Ears pointing upwards, muscle tensed and pupil dilated while she is continuously searching for any hint of danger, trying her best to refrain from slowing down the pace of her teammates. If it's a Beast or a horde of Orc Scouts, she'll be the first one to be aware of their presence. But what if it's something else like a natural disaster?

Wisdom (Perception): 12

The patrol seems determined to push through the blinding snowstorm, despite the brutal wind and swirling snow; but Mistral has spent a great deal of time in the world above the snow, more so even than the mice in the guard. And he knows they will not survive if they remain exposed in these conditions.

Sirithal is not usually adversely effected by the cold, but the prevailing weather is beyond natural phenomena. Even he is not entirely comfortable with the idea of pressing onward through the blizzard. Bringing up the rear, through a brief gap in the swirling flakes, he spies what he very much hopes is a large rock, not quite a boulder. He only glimpses it for a second, then it disappears back into the continuous driving snow. Without digging in, it is the best possibility for shelter they have passed, since the storm picked up.

'Wait!' Sirithal shouts to the people in front of him. 'I see some shelter this way!' when everyone has responded and stopped he will make for the boulder...

As he is waiting for those in front of him to stop, he whispers a few arcane words, and the head of his staff begins to glow as brightly as a torch, but without being affected by the wind.

Blackbur heads after the shrlter they say is there

Visibility is drastically reduced, but the light does help some, and the patrol is able to locate Sirithal’s find. Thankfully, the dark mass jutting up out of the deep snow is, indeed, just a rock. It is only a few mouse-heights above the snowpack, but obviously much larger than what can be seen.

It is overhanging quite a bit on one side, creating an undercut area where they can find reprieve from the biting wind. A little exploration reveals that there is a recessed area in the back of the shelter, that is mostly protected from the snow.

Once everyone is in the shelter (he will count to make sure everyone is there), he starts to use his Mage Hand to move snow to better protect the group from the wind, supplementing it with Ray of Frost wherever he needs to re-freeze it, or strengthen it...

‘That’s the best I can do without resting...’ he says, feeling the drain of using so much of his arcane energies in so short a period of time. He settles deeper into his robes, and goes to sit at the back of the shelter...

"We must huddle together for warmth", Mistral says as hands out his remaining yellow-white berries to the mice and other assorted creatures. "Just one each now. Their magic will help sustain you".

Hurdrak scuttled in after the others.  He could already feel his legs joints starting hurt a little from the cold.  When Mistral recommends huddling he pauses.  No one willingly goes to the embrace of a spider, not even a spider's lover.  So, he took a berry, and ate it and just sat on the fringe of the group.

“Heidi, how are your family’s wounds?” Blackbur settles down next to them, attempting to huddle up and share the warmth.

Huddling together for warmth might be a good option for temporary relief, but they need a long term solution. Dixie pulls down her backpack and starts to examine it's contents- Torches, Waterskin with only 4 pints of water and Tinderbox! She tears apart a small portion of the damp cloth already soaked in oil. Then she tries to ignite fire, a controllable flame restricted to the recessed area and most importantly inaccessible to the tiny munchkins.

While the patrol is now sheltered from the elements outside, the howling wind without prevents smoke from escaping. Unfortunately, the torch must be extinguished.

Sirithal’s head-count is timely, as Kilmorrow had just untied from the group and was about to wander off into the storm. He is passive about being led inside, though he continues to mutter unintelligibly to himself. Once the patrol and its charges are all accounted for, the shrike squeezes in past Sirithal’s magics. Shaking its wings, it shrugs, then hunkers down and tucks its head under.

”Oh, Nirvel will be fine. Through and through, in the soft tissue. I cannot thank you and your brave lads enough, for saving my boys. Not sure what role they played in this.”

The healer gestures toward the Chwingas, who immediately disappear into the roof of rock. A few moments later, one pokes its head back out, then an arm, and a wave of warmth fills the small shelter. The others follow suit, dropping back in to add their own warmth to the chamber. It becomes almost comfortable!

Dixie is disappointed about the torch, but a few wisps as it is extinguished catch her attention. They are being drawn deeper, into the very back of the shelter. There is a small passage leading down, and there must be another opening somewhere. 

As the warmth of the Chwingas' magic touches his body and mind, Mistral follows Dixie's gaze to the passage. How could he not have seen it earlier? Full of contrition, he offers, "Shall I investigate? I am quite used to darkness."

Sirithal re-casts Light on a small pebble that he places in the centre of the space, before settling down to rest ‘Wake me when that light fades, I need to recover my energies...’ he whispers softly, before closing his eyes to meditate...

Blackbur draws his sword. 

“Careful now... we can ill afford the loss of life or risk an injury for curiosity.” 

Blackbur examines the chwingas curiously as they come and go. Would I know what these things are?

Hurdrak looks at the cave and then back at Mistral.  "I can accompany you.  I can see well in the dark and it's better to go in pairs.  Safety in numbers and all that..."

"Very well. We shall be most careful", Mistral takes the lead as he proceeds cautiously into the hole.

"I must have been daydreaming!" Dixie whispers to herself while listening to others. Then with a jerk of her head, she forces her senses to function better as if these were not exhausted. "Sure mate, you can proceed, and others can assist you", she gestures towards her friend Blackbur and the spider 'Hurdrak' who has already started to gain her trust as one of her companions. "I'm not sure if I can follow through all the way down".

Into the rabbit hole, indeed. It is a tight fit, a squeeze passage for Dixie, but she can follow after them for now. She is quite blind, however, once the light from the shelter chamber is left behind.

Mistral’s echolocation serves him well enough, even in the cramped tunnel; and Hurdrak can similarly feel the smallest of movements, through vibrations in the walls. Mice can really see only movement, should they delve into the pitch black of the small cave. 

Blackbur recalls Chwingas from childhood stories, mostly admonishing young mouselings not to follow them or mimic their behavior. Some say they are devils, but in most tales they are elemental or nature spirits. Not truly sinister, but mischievous, and sometimes curious to the point of carelessness, recklessness.

Two of the Chwingas are now admiring and petting the spotless white feathers of the capelet Erhard had taken, before the third tries to tug it away.

Thoroughly exhausted, mentally and physically, Heidi and her mouselings are already asleep in a huddle.

Hurdrak will continue forward and draw his blade.  Every so often he will make a mark in the tunnel pointing back the way they came.  So far its been straight but should they turn it will help keep the orientated to the exit.