Valaith turns and smiles at Thurston as he approaches, but she immediately picks up upon his discomfort and at first she misplaced his awkwardness until he stumbles upon the words 'gorgeous'. Her eyes widen and she feels a strange flutter that explodes in her stomach as a dark grey blush settles into her cheeks. "Oh." Is all she can say at first, but she swallows the massive knot which stuck in her throat. "Of course you can train with me, Thurston. I would be honored to show you the ways of my people. You have the fierceness of a Kalukavi within you." She thinks back to the several times she'd seen him wade into the midst of battle completely nude as her eyes also trail downward along Thurston's. She suddenly realizes where her eyes were trailing as she starts to feel a warmth spreading from her. "We should..." she forces her eyes back up. "Just make sure you are prepared with your armor." She laughs a little too loudly, slapping him heartily upon the shoulder. "Come. Let's rejoin the others."

She was quiet as she pondered that interaction with Thurston. He was not unattractive, for a human, and he was a stoic warrior, but.... could something like that ever work? Perhaps they should just drown in dwarven ale and retire to one of their rooms to **** this out of their system. Such was the goliath way, but perhaps that was not how humans did such things? The wore rings upon their hands and made lifelong promises to be one together or some such nonsense. How could two people promise to always be faithful to the same person for their entire lives? People change as the years drag on. And what happens if your mate dies? Must you remain chaste forever after that? Humans had strange customs... she would need to make sure Thurston understand that should they romp together, it would be nothing more. She was not going to be chained to the same person for the remainder of her days... Yes, she would just explain that to him. He would understand... he was a warrior; their lives were too short for such things.

"My arm.." at first Thurston doesn't catch Val reference but then he understand "Hahaha" the laugh seems to relevive him but, did he saw her blush too? " Well I can even teach you how to fight in one! They could be a nuunsance sometimes.. not that you need one but... in case you want..." he grabs her from the waist as they walkl back to the others, lingering the touch on her skin for a moment too longer before they sit on the table with the others. 

Later talking with Aiden:

"I thank you for your words Aiden " he nods to the cleric " I would say that part of the problem is that I see her too much as a woman, not only a warrior... but there is wisdom in your advice. I would try to follow it." he gulps the rest of his ale. "Aaahh enough of it. Let me find us more of this!" 

Never allowing his sense to be dulled, Jex takes leave from the table early in the night. The experiences in the tombs and of breaking into the vault to free the god of death occupied his thoughts. Such a challenge was one that would give pause to even the greatest thief. He should up increase his training. He runs through his usual fitness routines, with even more vigour. Pulling himself up by his finger tips on the door frame, leaping to the bed and onto the window ledge, catching himself on his fingers. He pulls himself up to his elbows, easing himself outside, legs first, twisting and pushing himself up into a handstand on the window ledge. He climbs down the wall, landing with a flip next to his wagon. Creeping into the back he pulls on his trader clothes and heads for a merchant. One of the beautiful things about dwarven cities was that they never slept. With much underground and the inhabitants comfortable working at night you could always find something. It doesn't take long for him to find somewhere still willing to buy his goods. He pulls out a roll of looted weapons and a few moments emerges from the shop with a heavy purse of coins. Now on to try to buy a boar... Jex's senses feel heightened somehow, the cool mountain air invigourating him, the excitement and fear from the tomb, the argument in Vark, culminating as always in him being right, the thought of smacking Seid's smug face, knowing he would soon be back in the company of his one good friend from his past. For once a bright looking future, a budding business, a network of plans. He was more alive than ever, and better prepared to serve death.

Following directions Uglar had given him the night before, it doesn't take Jex long to find the breeders of the military riding boars. He walks in with a grin, ignoring the slight looks of mistrust from some of the dwarven officers and instead quickly evaluates the most amenable looking dwarf present. Apparently some recognised him from the battle for more than his embarrassing slip, and had heard about his heroics with the giants from Uglar. The purse from the store, supplemented by some of his own gold soon has Jex in possession of two large pigs, young and just about fully grown. These will do nicely. An hour later he has them hitched the the wagon and is ready to leave, walking into the inn in time for breakfast to greet his hungover friends.

Aiden rises early with only a slight headache to pay for his drinks last night. Dwarves and Norscans, he thinks as he rolls out of bed and dresses. A match made in Hymir's cauldron.

He kneels down to say his morning prayers and finds them more invigorating than they had been in weeks past. In fact, he can feel the thunder of the gods roaring within his chest. He suddenly feels like he could call down a storm with all the wrath and vigor of Thor himself. 

He finishes dressing and dons his armor and weapons, then heads down to the taproom to get water and some breakfast. Through the oft-opening door, he spies a set of dark clouds and feels a far-off rumble of thunder. Moving to the door, he stands outside and smells the pre-storm air. As always, he feels both empowered and also very small, like a 12 year old boy standing on the shore of Quenlan bay, watching the raider's longships come in. He pushes the thoughts out of his mind, and makes a note to attempt to magically contact Drea later in the day, should time warrant. It would be good to hear from her. 

He returns to his table and finishes his food, preparing for whatever the Archarnost has in store for him this day.

The next morning was late when Thurston finally woke up in his room. No doubt Ragnarok was upon them. the bright light that was hurting his eyes couldn't be other thing that Surtur's Sword, setting aflame the heavens. And the exucriating pain on his head could only mean that Jörmungard had open her jaws and hit him with her gargatuan tail on his head. 

Seeing him, with just one leg dangling on the sheets of the bed, and lying on the floor, one could say that he had been, indeed, hit by someone. 

"Odin's beard... " he said when he tried to stand up and the world decided to turn upside down. Stumbling with pieces of his armor, and the furniture of the room, he somehow managed to reach the door. Taking a moment to breathe leaning on the frame of the door after such titanic acomplishment, he started to walk down the alley, full of doors, towards the stairs. 

A maid opened a door just at his left side and saw him, checheck him upside down and said. 

"I thought no weapons were allowed at the inn... " she chuckled and Thurston looked at her confused. He had left Rikkazarik at the room, wasn't he? Then he noticed. The fresh air from the newly open door and window made him be aware that, once again, he was absolutely naked. 

"A..Apologies ma'am..." he was able to mumble as he turned back and head again to his room. 

"Anytime hun.." He wasn't able to reply to her. 

Once again in his room he found his trousres, for some reason they were hanging of the shutter of the window. He just put them on and retook the epic walk towards the exterior of the inn. Saying that he walked downstairs would be an overstatment, he took two steps, then slipped down the rest of the way to the bottom floor. The patrons of the inn and the members of the party that would be there only saw a big Norscan falling down the stairs and stumbling out of the inn with red eyes and not beign able to see nothing or noone except his goal, the door. 

Once outside he tried to block the punishing rays of Sól with his hand but took the ten steps that he needed towards his objective. In the trough there was two war boars and one horse that recoiled when a big norscan fell into it. The fresh and cold water was what he needed and it gave him solace from the pain on his head. 

"Ooh Thor have mercy of your servant..." he said when the sound of a passing wagon were like the sound of the forges of Wayland himself. Touching his forehead trying to ease the pain, Thor heard him and answered, helping him ease his pain. 

Feeling better, both for the bath and for the divine healing, Thurston came back to the inn, grunted a greeting to his friends as he passed by and went back to his room, closing the door behind him. 

When he was about to clean his face again, he looked down to his reflection on the water of the bucket. 

"Beign myself" he thought "I cannot be myself... Being me is what made them to exile me... my own family. But perhaps... perhaps Aiden is right. This people had accepted me for who I am. Perhaps I've found a new family with them and a new home in Sheercleft." With Val's help he could learn to tame the rage that he felt inside him every day, and Jex's could help him thinking things before put the muscle on it, Vark could teach him patience, and Bründir how to behave and to reach glory. Where was the dwarf anyway? He should look for him before lunch. What hour was again?  He poured the bucket over his head. 

Twenty minutes later he went down again, this time fully dressed and clean. Only bringing his hammer, his armour had been taken care of and was correctly displayed on the bed and polished, he joined his companions. 

"Mark my words friends " he said " never mix dwarven beer and norscan ale... At least not in the same mug..." 

Without him order nothing, the maid he encountered before brings a good plate of eggs and sausages to him to eat. "The beast needs to eat..." she said joking before returning to the ktichen. Thurston honestly didn't recognize her and hadn't a clue of what she was talking about. With a shrug he asked to those there. 

"Where are the rest? Had you seen Bründir? I haven't seen him since before we went to that vault, and is not proper of him to miss a party... perhaps we should go looking for him and see if he can have his eye fixed here. Then make some shopping I need a new smithing hammer and tongs, and we should be going back home. What do you think?" he said taking another bite of a sausage. 

"The shopping is sorted, I took care of it last night while you were evidently having a rather good time." Jex laughs. clapping Thurston on the back and speaking nice and loudly close to his ear. "You had better buy the smithing equipment if you need it though, I hadn't realised. Then I am ready to go."

All the camaraderie was enough to make Brundir sick with shame. Tales of victory, discovery, and challenges ahead drove his spirits through the bottom of his mug. He'd never lost the feeling that his near-mortal wound was a result of his own weakness and inability to contend with those around him. Hearing now of their progress without him furthered his spiral of despair. The dwarf resigned himself to the last inch of his drink, then to a quiet night alone where he would wait for morning to return home in defeat. 

As he began to consider accepting grief and planning a scarred life, a hand shook him back to awareness. "I know that look," Hurrig chided, "Slip that way, there's little that'll bring ye back up." The hand shook the morose dwarf once again, "Come on, I've got something I hope'll help." 

A moment later, the two were in Hurrig's room. It was an arm's length larger than most guest rooms , but it was enough to feel grand. In a corner sat a small shrine bearing a silver anvil and flame. Beside the shrine sat an armour stand bearing a familiar set of metal armour, Karakalad. "No shame in elf-made steel," Hurrig begins with a smile, "But it's no good fer one of yer...callin'." The priest stands before his personal hallowed space and gestures toward the armour.

"What in all hells're ye talkin' about?"

"Like or not, ye've been chosen fer a path; one chosen by th' All-Father, no less. It's no secret yer blade there is special. Hell, fer most it'd be just a hunk o' metal. But see, it chose you, so now it's time to decide. Ye've been a friend since I came t' Sheercleft, an' I won't push ye fer somethin' ye don' want. However, that blade wants you, and no one chosen in such a way should 'ave less'n armour of legends forged by dwarven hands."

Brundir's familiar shame began to well in his throat. This was too much.  Bad enough he felt everything of a failure, but now even Hurrig is pushing him to be something he can't be. "I...I can't-"

"Can't, or ye won't?" Hurrig snapped. The accusation was enough to paralyze Brundir. He'd wrestled with the reality this whole time, but to hear it so plainly stung deep.

"I'll die." Brundir squeeked in terror, "I was a fool t'think I could fight even a broken army myself. There's people we came with that're stuff of legends! I'm jus' a miner with a shiny heirloom."

A hand shoved Brundir's chest and, to his surprise, he saw it was attached to Hurrig, "Walk out of here with this on yer shoulders, yer sword hung, and yer head high. Do that fer a day, return to th' temple with an oriadok, an' decide then." The older dwarf waves his friend over to the armour on display, "Just a few hours. Get the feel, then yer free to go about as ye please."

In the morning, Brundir emerges in the common room to find Jex and Thurston seated. His new dressing makes him look ready to rush to war, but his face clearly betrays his discomfort at such a conspicuous appearance. "Good mornin' t'ye both," he mumbles rigidly, "What's left t'do b'fore we leave?"

Brundir approaches the table but hears Thurston reply to Jex's question even from the stairs. 

"OK!! WE CAN BUY THE TOOLS I NEED AND THEN HEAD BACK TO HOME! YOU ALRIGHT?! WHY DO YOU NEED TO SCREAM? DID THAT CREATURE MADE YOU DEAF OR SOMETHING?!" 

Aiden and Jex can see the immediate regret on his face when his head burnt into flames of pain. 

"Freya's hair... that was not a good idea... ooooohh I am going to be sick..." 

But he quickly recomposes himself when he sees Brundir coming towards them. He smiles and open his arms wide. 

"Brundir!!! So good to see you!! look at you!! We've certanly missed you my friend! come come, sit and have some breakfast! We have some dragonborn sisters to hunt and I wouldn't dare to go after them without you!!" 

Thurston's outburst drew the sparse room's attention immediately, and his redirected focus on the armoured dwarf shifted eyes just as readily. Under the Norscan's enthusiasm, Bründir caught hints of wonder and curiosity in the patrons. Most was likely direct at the armour, but the attention brought a feeling of purpose back to the wearer.

It took the short walk across the floor for Thurston's plan to sink in and Bründir's momentary respite from shame began to dissolve just as fast. There was a long pause, a choking in his throat, where the words he meant were caught against the words he wanted. More than any adventurous spur or sentiment of duty, Bründir found it painful to look at his friends and imagine letting them down for something like guilt. Wise dwarves in their late years, huddled around fires, with joints hard as granite and eyes glazed like quartz, might tell him it's right to follow duty and settle down back home. No matter how much he wanted it in the recent days, and still wanted it now, something swelled in him with recognition from this giant of a man.

The first laugh broke the dam in his throat and washed away his inhibitions almost to the point of tears, "Thurston, ya bastard, calm yer ass down b'fore I race ya there short an army and an eye! Give me a few hours, then I'll be set t'tear house down 'round'em."

Jex laughs hard at Thurston's falling into his trap, but smiles warmly as Brundir speaks, and to see him in Hurrig's armour.

"Glad to see you looking ready for business again. We've missed you." He sits up. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves though. That's serious business going aftrr them, and I'd sooner Sheercleft was ready for any repurcussions should we fall short of total victory."

Eventually Vark makes his way down from his room, an air of tension still hanging around him. “Good morning. W-we’re talking about what’s next? I agree we should go take care of those sisters right away. I- we’ve all grown a lot since we faced them before, and if we keep waiting there’s no telling how they might be preparing. Also... we need to do that before we go see Aury and... well I tried to talk to him last night but the spell didn’t work, like there was some sort of barrier. It might be something he put in place to protect himself but... well I really have no idea how he’s doing and we know he can help make sense of all this Matthew stuff. We should go take care of the dragonborns right after we get back to Sheercleft.”

Jex shrugs "I have an appointment with a very hard to meet person as a personal favour from the elven Lord, I would not like to damage reputations or relations by embarrassing him and not keeping the meeting."

"I'm sorry to hear, Vark. Let's settle up with the scaly wenches, then get t'yer friend." Bründir's mind drifts to the thought of laying in a ditch, riddled with goblin arrows, never to see home again. Just as a black cloud forms in his mind, a feeling of lightness washes over it and brings back memories of homecoming. Strange, he thinks, I didn't do that...

"Jex, settle yerself up too. Odd t'say I'm sad ye won't be with us, but do what ya must if it's important."

Aiden speaks up. "I am sure it is a long journey back to Sheercleft. We should get going before we lose the light, unless there is more we need to take care of."

"I know you travel faster alone and that you cannot be seen if you don't want to " Thurston says to Jex " But be careful my friend, we will wait for you at Sheercleft, and we will take care of the first arrival of materials. Be safe " he says to his friend putting a hand on his shoulder. 

"Vark, as you said your friend is an accomplished magic user. I am sure that we will find him safe. " he tries to reassure the young half-orc. 

Thurston ends his breakfast.

"I am ready then, are we all ready?" 

"Well..." Bründir's mind wandered back to the dwarven temple, where a jolly priest had referred him to a tinker nearby who traded in magical trinkets. "I've got one last thing t'pick up. Gimme an hour or so, then I'll be ready."

Before he takes his leave for the errand, Bründir catches a small thought at Thurston's words, "Wait, Jex, are ye goin' straight t'yer business? If yer not goin' t'Sheercleft first, should we have another wagon an' horses first?"

Jex sniffs, looking a little put out. "I had thought you might come with me, seeing as how that is what we had agreed. But as you all wish, if Thor's work comes after your personal gains." He stands up. "Aiden is right though, we should leave, and all roads go through Sheercleft, so for now at least you will remain blessed by my company."

"Thor put me in this path to aid you and this valley my good Jex. And the Marqueise remarked that the Morrigans were becoming a problem. If we want Sheercleft to be safe and prosper this must be done. I wonder if you could reach this person and conduct your bussiness vie one piece of parchment like the one we used to contact the elves, or a similar spell. That could make you finish the task and don't have to leave Sheercleft and could come with us to deal with these dragonborns." says Thurston while they stand and leave the inn, heading to the temple with Brundir. 

Jex shakes his head. "I will try, though the invitation was given to visit I should very much like to take it up. I will contact him as you describe though, and warn him of my delay that I may help you in defeating these morrigan before I go. I will need to buy a new scroll though."

 Without waiting for an answer he is back into the market streets, it doesn't take him long to find a store selling basic magic wares, run by a humourless dwarf that looks stressed and harried.

"Greetings sir, I am Jex, one of the saviours of Sheercleft, and more recently a defender of your great city. I seek a scroll of transcription to aid in our protection of the valley."

He gives a deep bow and a warm smile. The dwarf gives a frustrated sigh.

"Aye, got one of those in back. Ain't no call fer yer life story though. Me price is me price an it's fair, so don' be thinkin' o' callin in some kinda favour. You want the roll 1600. Take it or leave it." He drops it on the desk. Reluctantly, Jex reaches into his pocket and pulls out a purse, counting out the coins he places them on the counter.

"And enjoy your day too good sir." He says with a sarcastic smile and leaves.

Back in the safety of the inn, he pulls out the scroll of transcription and begins penning a message.

Dear Hamben,

My gratitude for your generous invitation. I would be very glad to take it up, though the journey is long and a pressing task pertinent to the security of the valley and Marqueise will delay my departure. I hope to be with you within a month. My requirements that I wish to discuss with you, that you may begin thinking on it, is for two giant goats, in tribute to Thor, mighty and fearsome and strong enough to pull a heavily laden wagon. I hope you would be able to help in this?

Kindest Regards,

Jex Blake

 During the night, Val's sleep is restless and plagued by strange premonitions of a blasted landscape of primordial ice and cold. The howling winds whips her thick hair and clothing about in a visceral display of violence as the ends pop and snap. All around is white and deep blues of ancient ice visible here and there as the snow rolls and curves in on itself. She stands between two frozen rivers and she finds herself filled with such a terrible hungry that it is nearly maddening. She needs to feed, but there is nothing around save ice and snow. She walks to the edge of one of the rivers in hopes that she could break through the thick ice for fish or shellfish... anything. Gods, she was hungry. As she looks down towards the ice to break through she spots her reflection staring back and the inky black pools of her eyes that she sees...

With a gasp, Val sits up, covered in a cold sweat and panting. She looks immediately to where Rook leans against the nearby wall and she spots several new runes burning down the haft of her hammer; one very large, chaotic display and five smaller ones beneath. She looks at the runes with concern. 'Larkin, what is inside our hammer? How do I master these runes?'