One gnome glances at the other and then the pair turn their backs on the Acharnost muttering amongst themselves for a few moments.

"Very well!" The first declares, facing Bründir once more and extending a hand for the silver raven. "We will accept your tribute... for now."

Bründir should have left it alone. He should have just given the statue and been on his way without a word, but he felt the need to ask, "What d'ye mean, 'fer now'?"

"The deep ones shall judge the value of your sacrifice!" The second gnome declares loudly and both break out into a high-pitched ululating cry of hysteria and begin dancing in circles until they have disappeared back into the fissures of the gully's icy walls.

"By Hela's Breath..." curses Thurston " They are pretty crazy... must be for eating the mushrooms of that garden back there..." he says looking at Mateo 

"Hope you don't regret giving that raven to them my friend... but it seems that we can continue our path now..."

Matteo smiles at Thurston.

"I appreciate the concern. I really do know it comes from a good place, but I suspect their eccentricity comes from a rather more natural place. But for now, peace has won out, wouldn't you say it was the better way?"

Thurston grumbles something like "those two little mushrooms weren't even a pre-workout, much less a fight..." as he walks away towards their destination.

The shadows of the gully run deep and, on the far side of the narrow trail between its frigid walls, Mount Secrets rears up before the Acharnost. Neither sun nor moon cast their light upon this mountain's face. The trail is a crumble of shale across the steep slope of the peak, which stabs directly upwards. At its tip, something catches light, glinting like a jewel. The cold here is deep and those who keep secrets are not safe from the wind.

High above, some kind of flock circles, like slow-moving specks against the cirrus clouds.

“Whoa, what’s that?” Vark says as the circling flock and strange glimmering thing come into the Acharnost’s view. He motions for the group to stop and pulls out the crimson form of the codex. Though he’s never used the relic for this sort of remote viewing before, the memory of Aury’s scrying orb comes to him and he has no doubt the runestone can function somewhat similarly. He pulls the crystal up to his eye, intending to glance through it like a telescope, then pulls back as lights and runes flash across the surface. To his surprise the crystal not only shows a zoomed in view of the flying creatures, but it also displays information about them.

“They’re storm seals! They’re infused with elemental air… like me! And,” he shifts the codex, focusing on the thing which they circle around and his mouth drops open in wonder. “Is that… some kind of rift? We- I have to get a closer look.” He tucks the runestone away and pulls on Toivoa’s reigns, hurrying her forward down the ragged trail.

It takes some time for Toivoa to climb the mountain path and, as they draw closer to the mountain's peak, the flock of storm seals converges on the icy orb at its top. The swirl of their motion is like the gathering of a dark cloud.

Vark watches the murmurations of the elemental creatures with awe, dying to get closer but still cautious. As calmly as he can he dismounts his steed, then he takes a few steps up the slope before beginning to drift up towards them. As he floats, the wind blowing through the area shifts so that it blows past him and up. He wants them to catch his scent, hopefully easing any wariness the creatures might have. He calls out once he is close enough for them to hear, “Hello. Easy there, I just want to get a closer clook. I mean no harm.” the primordial tongue rendering his words as a soft whooshing breeze.

The storm seals descend towards Vark and at first it sounds as though thunder is rumbling in the skies above... but the lightning is nowhere to be seen. As the creatures draw nearer it becomes clear that the thunder is in fact the angry barking of hundreds of seals flying towards the half-orc with teeth and claws bared.

Vark’s expression turns from a gentle smile to a toothy grimace as the storm seals prove to be less than welcoming of his presence. Still curious about what the strange swirling phenomena is he holds his position and  studies the thing from afar, thinking he might risk teleporting in to get a closer look. But then it hits him. That’s a nest. 

Vark turns tail and flees. He rockets down the slope, jumping the last twenty feet through the aether and startling Toivoa as he appears back in her saddle. She rears up as he struggles to take hold of the reigns and call out to his companions. 

“Bad idea! It’s a nest! Let’s get out of here!” he shouts before snapping the reigns and sending Toivoa charging away.

Just as Val is about to shout out to Vark that he was charging into a nest she spots his form spin and hurtle back towards them quickly. She laughs as she also puts her heels into her own heavy horse. "One day, Vark, your curiosity is going to get the better of you! Not every mystery needs solving, my friend." She smiles, offering up some of the wisdom of her people.

The flock of seals swoops down towards Vark, but does not pursue the sorcerer beyond their nest, once it becomes apparent that he is flying away from it once more. Their protective barks crash across the mountainside provoking rumbling echoes from the stones.

Vark laughs as the Acharnost ride away.

”You’re probably right,” he admits. “But where’s the fun in leaving mysteries unsolved?”

By the time that the thundering of the storm seals fades into the distance behind the Acharnost, darkness has well and truly fallen and it is high time to make camp for the night. Up ahead, the trail crosses a ridge slung between two mist-shrouded peaks at the top of the pass. On a clear day, the Wentwood can be seen spread out below the mountains on the far side.

"That was an interesting day." Val says as they come to a clear point of retiring for the evening. She then glances over at Jex or Matteo... whatever his name is now... and grins as she has an idea. "My friend, what do you say to a little friendly competition? First one to find the best shelter for the evening gets to sleep through the night and the other must cover the other's watch?" She did not fully understand what was happening to him, but she had changed much herself in the months since she had come north into these strange lands. She did not know how to help him and so fell back to the thing she did know; good, old-fashioned competition.

Jex's eyes light up 

"Yes! That is definitely something good that I can do to help you all! A little competition could be great for the mood as well. Care to make it even more interesting? As well as covering a watch, if you win, you can have your choice of Jex's weapons, if I win, you must use a stick like mine and strike so as not to kill the next time we fight an intelligent enemy?"

His eyebrows raise as he issues the new terms and he fixes Val with a familiar, playful stare.

Val sits silently for a moment, pondering over the offer before nodding. "Fair!" She reaches out to shake in agreement.

The ex assassin reaches out to take the offered hand enthusiastically, only to have the giantess removed it at the last moment and push him onto his backside. He sits, shaking his head as Val runs off.

"Oh it's on."

He leaps to his feet and runs after her.