"You did really good, Ember," Vesra said with a sigh of relief, giving her little flaming companion a big hug. "We couldn't do it without you."

The druid was apprehensive about making camp, but she was too relieved that they had made it through and too exhausted herself. As the others set up their bed rolls, she created a feast of goodberries and water. "It may not look like a lot," she blushed, holding out the ten tiny berries. "But I promise they're incredibly filling." After everyone had taken a goodberry, she filled their water skins with liquid she seemingly pulled straight from the clouds.

Vesra had wanted to talk to her sister, but Vasha was asleep before she had the chance. "I can take first watch then," she nodded to Ato, Ellangil, and Veythe, who were the only ones who hadn't immediately gone to bed. "You can get some rest."

Most of the group quickly falls asleep, exhausted from the day's recent events. Setting up a crude watch order, they take their turns throughout the night. Rumbling can be heard, though with the sky covered in ash, blotting out any light from the moon or stars, vision is substantially impaired [Darkness], as the only sources of light to provide vision are those created by the party. As the night grows longer, the temperature drops colder, though not as cold as the night previous, due to the heat being trapped between the earth below and the ashen clouds above.

A faint sound, like wooooomb, can be heard emanating from a nearby crystalline rock floating in the air, before it loses altitude and drops to the ground [6 on random encounters]. Offering little time to react to the situation, it plummets into the ground, crashing with the sound of shattering rock, as crystal shards launch in all directions [19 to-hit]. A good chunk of the crystals fly in the party's direction, pelting them and piercing through their skin in various locations, jolting them awake from the searing pain of crystals sticking into their flesh [11 piercing damage]. A squeak and pop is heard from the sky, as Sear's physical body gives way to the large crystal spike protruding through its chest.

Ato had not argued when Vesra volunteered for first watch.  He'd dealt well enough with the all but overwhelming heat as they crossed the lava field, but it still sapped his energy and the rest would be welcome. Accepting her conjured meal, the rejuvenating juice of the berries was wonderful. He gave the young druid a warm smile. "THAT is a truly amazing gift, Vesra. Thank you for sharing. They're much better than our dried rations, I'll tell you that!"

...Pain. So very much pain. Jolted from a dead sleep, Ato struggled to make sense of what was happening. It was as if needles and razors were flaying his body. He flailed his way out of his bedroll and grabbed blindly for the spear he'd left at his side, on his feet before he began to comprehend that they weren't under attack.  The crystal shards everywhere told the story once he could process the scene around him. He was bleeding freely from multiple cuts and gashes, and he could only assume the others were as well.  "Is everyone alright? What in the hells was that!" Still a bit addled, it wasn't quite making sense yet.

Something is happening! The voice in his head popped the goblin out of his sleep and he rolled up to a sitting position just in time to get a face-full of razor-sharp crystal shards. He barely felt the connection with Sear disappear, as right now all he could feel was the intense pain that wracked both of his bodies. "Ow ow owo wo woo," Kayn moaned, trying to move. Each movement seemed to bring on more pain and his gnarlid didn't fare much better. The gnarlid's fur was coated in the crystals with various shards spread throughout. 

Scanning the scene, he saw others fared just as badly. This was nearly catastrophic... a mountain had just landed in their camp! Kayn winces as he looks up at the sky, hoping a second one doesn't fall atop them. He sees the darkness of the sky and little else. Even some stars were blotted out from the floating islands. 

Kayn reaches for a torch and flicks it alight so others can see what had just happened. Ahead of them, very close to the camp, a giant shard of crystal lay smashed in ruins. One part of him hoped it brought treasure while the other just wanted the pain to stop! He stands to go inspect the mountain of crystal with torch in hand, walking cautiously as he does. 

"Kayn, wait, don't go out there alone," Ato calls out as he notices the goblin begin to head for the pile of shattered crystal. "Who knows what this chaos has attracted out of the night." He joins Kayn and the pair go to investigate the remnants of the huge crystal, searching among the shards by the flickering light of the torch. They make quite the pair, both still bleeding and in a bit of shock from the sudden, painful awakening.

After some time, Ato finally shakes his head in resignation. "Perhaps some of those other cyrstals still floating up there contain something of value, but there's just nothing here that seems of value to me.  The shards themselves are like razors, obviously," he touches one of his own wounds gingerly as he says this, "and we could perhaps fashion some sort of weapons from them in an emergency - use them like daggers to cut or throw - but no hidden gold here, my friend."

As they make their way back to camp, picking a path through the crystalline minefield, another thought suddenly pops into his head. "OH! We're ok, or will be, but what about your, uh.. creatures? Is that gnarlid going to make it? What about your bat. Sear, is it? I'm sorry, I didn't even think to ask before we left camp." 

Back at camp, Ato did what he could to bandage and tend to his own wounds.  Eventually he got mostly patched up and felt better as the pain subsided.

"Gnarlid will be ok if he can rest. Sear is back home and I can't bring him back until morning. Is ok. Thank you for asking." The goblin smiles at Ato as they make their way back to camp.

Kayn returns from his little inspection disappointed, but is met with Vessie and her soothing touch. "Thank you Vessie," he says. "You don't think another one will fall on us, do you?" He's still weary and tired and he needs to clean up the gnarlid, but he wasn't sure if he was up for moving the camp too far away. "Crystal mountains never strike same place twice, right?" 

He takes to the task of picking out the shards from the gnarlid, each once causing intense pain. He bandages up the largest of the wounds. It saddens him that Sear was struck, but he won't be able to summon him back until morning. He sees a few more shards sticking out of his tattered clothing and pulls them out, patching up the rest of his wounds while the group finds another place to camp. 

Vesra felt like she had just gone to sleep when he shattering of crystal awoke her. She only felt the pain for a moment, her body practically going numb from the wave of agony. The druid immediately sprang to her feet, taking stock of the situation. All of them were covered in shards of glass.

Vasha was screaming.

"Shhh, I have you," she whispered, holding her sister and healing her wounds. White mana surrounded her sister in a soft glow. Vasha tried to heal her, but she pulled away. "I'm fine. Please help Ember." Her poor familiar was in far worse shape than she. 

She needed more. More power so that she could heal everyone. She had to be able to help them all. Please, Zendikar... The druid's eyes suddenly glazed over white as the mana all around her began to flow through her. She had never tapped into this much energy, and the sheer beauty all around her made her gasp.

A minute later, she fell out of her trance, now feeling recharged. Vesra went and healed Veythe and Ellangil, but she still needed more to be able to heal the rest of them. She entered the trance again, this time more sure of herself. It was exhilarating to be able to tap into the nature all around her.

Vesra healed Kayn as soon as he and Ato returned. As the last bit of mana left her, a wave of exhaustion hit. "Give me a minute, I can get you too," she said to Ato, closing her eyes and attempting to trance again. This time, instead of being met with flows of mana, a voice in her head simply said Rest. "I'm- I'm sorry," the Kor stuttered. "It won't let me, I can't."

"I would sleep easier knowing that we were away from these," Vesra replied to Kayn softly. She wanted to curl up into a ball, but they needed to keep moving. "Maybe we can find a slightly better spot?" It didn't take long for her to find them a soft patch of ground outside of the minefield. Almost as soon as they got there, Vesra collapsed, finally able to rest.

Kayn shook the shards out of his bedroll before moving to the new camping spot. There he reminded everyone, "Sear will not be watching tonight, so we'll need some of us to continue the watch." Afterwards he curled up with the gnarlid and went back to sleep. He'd have to wake up early to summon Sear again, but that didn't bother him. He always felt uncomfortable when Sear was gone. He was like a security blanket for the goblin. 

The first thing Kayn did when the suns began to climb in the distance was to sit down and prepare the ritual of summoning for Sear. Luckily, a lot of the ingredients required were already in his pack due to the research he had been doing on spirit transference. The spirit was bound to Kayn by something that went past friendship, so it would always come. The form of a bat was something the spirit told him he preferred, so Sear the bat began to materialize as the ritual began. The body was shaped from mana, created in a practice that all young magicians learn to master during their training. 

When the ritual was done, Sear fluttered around a bit before landing atop Kayn's chitinous head. "I missed you too, Sear," Kayn says as he lets the bat nibble on his finger. "Sleep well." Kayn smiles as the bat de-materializes. He was happy to have Sear back. 

He spends the rest of the morning prepping the gnarlid for the journey. He made sure all the shards were out of the fur and that his paws we'rent too damaged from the lava fields. Satisfied, he saddles it up and places his pack on the saddle. "Ready!" He says. He was excited to see what surprises they'd find in day number two!

Vesra' ties to the land's white mana helped ease the recent wounds given to them by the floating spires of crystal and rock. Waking up the next morning, the day was grey and dull, due to the ashen clouds still lingering in the sky, the sun barely seeping through the ash to illuminate the ground around them. Brushing off the ash which had fallen on them as they slept in their new encampment, the ground ate, discussed plans for the new day, and set out.

The day was mild, both in temperature and experience. They meandered through a dried river bed, finding bits of vegetation still growing on the sides: a testament to the harsh environment, and the harsher forms of life which lived on its surface. Further into the afternoon, the group came across a wide, down-trodden path, as if thousands of people and beast walked in a large group, traversing through this area. Most in the group recognized the sign quickly: Goma Fada, the City that Walks, [an enormous caravan of thousands of wandering kor, humans, and a few elves that moves at a slow pace through Akoum] had made passage through this area. The trail of footsteps and trampled dirt seemed to extend forever, nearly a thousand feet, before the group reached the other side. Amazed at the sheer size of such a caravan, they continued onward, heading west, there goal growing larger and larger as they drew closer. What once were but spikes along the horizon had grown tremendously in size. While still another day or two journey's away, the western mountain range had grown tremendously, appearing as if they were the massive, jagged teeth of a long-forgotten titanic monstrosity.

The group, somewhat relieved at not being ambushed, notes that the sky is beginning to grow darker [dim light], as they realize the time is fast approaching for them to find a place to rest.

After sharing a conversation with her sister, Vesra packed up her things and took her place towards the front of the group as they made their trek. She felt lighter after talking to Vasha, because while things weren't great, they had been able to share. It meant everything to her to know that her sister was happy.

As they walked, she played catch with Ember. She would through flames at him, and he would run to catch them. He knew better than to try and throw them back to her, but he seemed in good spirits. It helped her keep from getting too bored during the long trek. 

When the sun began to set and the weariness in her limbs became too much to ignore, Vesra took it upon herself to find them a place to camp. After the night before, she thought it best not to leave it up to Kayn and Vasha again. It didn't take long for her to find a small, uninhabited cave. The thought of not waking up covered in ash was definitely a bonus, but it was also dry and sort of hidden. 

"Camp sweet camp," she beamed, casting goodberry and create water again to nourish the party. "Hopefully you aren't sick of the taste of goodberries already."

Kayn was just about to say, "This looks like a good place to camp!" When Vesra waved the group over to a comfy cave further out. "This is perfect!" He said instead, happy to have a nice shelter to sleep in.

When she offered him some more of her delicious berries, he happily obliged, grabbing one for himself and one for the gnarlid. They both gobbled them up quickly, sighed with relief, and let out a hearty belch. He grins at her and says, "These are the best, Vessie! I don't know how you make them, but they fill me up after a whole day of riding." 

He exits the cave momentarily to summon Sear, giving him instructions on when to wake him. He waves at the bat as it begins fluttering off and returns to the cave and his comfy bedroll. "I can take a watch tonight if you want," he offers. "Any one will do!" 

Ato joined the others in the cave, tired after the long day of travel. It wasn't particularly strenuous, but he was unused to the prolonged periods of walking. "Everyone should take a turn at watch through the night. That way we all get as much rest as possible, with only a couple of hours awake." Seeing Vasha settle in for the first watch, he merely indicates to wake him for his own shift later.

Settling into their temporary cave, the group quickly realizes the warmth of the ground. There must be some sort of geothermal activity beneath. The heat was soothing and relaxing to the group as they laid down: not too hot to scald, but warm enough to help relieve them of the aches and sores they had accumulated over the past few days of toil and trouble. The night passed by quickly and peacefully, the group taking their turns on watch, admiring the black landscape from the mouth of the cavern. A gentle rumble would occasionally resonate through the cavern, followed by a burst of lava off in the distance, jetting up from the ground before scattering its remains on the ground surrounding it. The terrain slowly lit up as dawn approached, the sun casting a faint glow upon on landscape. Its light barely pierced through the ashen clouds which hung in the air, painting their surroundings in an eerie light [dim light].

The members of the group arose one by one, each of them having been able to soothingly rest for a long time. Partaking of their rations and the leftover goodberries and water Vesra had so graciously conjured, they packed up and set out. Ellangil pointed out that if the map's distances were correct and they were travelling at the pace he had estimated, then they should reach the life bloom just before the evening. Curiosity buzzed through the group, wondering what such a life bloom might hold. Having travelled to Ora Ondar, the Impossible Garden, Vesra and Vasha would know that the place, while containing heavy vegetation and water, also brought with it a wide variety of different challenges. Carnivorous plants and hostile fauna were a guarantee, and on top of that they would have to handle the local Joraga elves which were rumoured to live within the forest.

The morning passed by quietly. Nothing seemed to move in the dimly lit landscape, as if the earth was still. The heat was beginning to taper off, suggesting that they were drawing closer to the border to Guul Draz and away from the super volcanic landscape of Akoum. Trekking through foothills for about an hour into the afternoon, they round the top of a hill and are greeted by a wave of green which cuts off the arid landscape. Secreted between the hill and the end of the mountain range, the life bloom wraps around the mountain and disappears from view. Past that, the border of Guul Draz is seen, the arid landscape slowly giving way the the Hanging Swamps. Massive, festering balls of vines and other vegetation float far off in the distance, hanging above the rotting swamp below.

The mere sight of trees made Vesra's heart sing. Lifeblooms were some of the most majestic locations in all of Zendikar, and it always felt like an honor to be in the presence of something so beautiful. The druid let out an excited squeal and made a beeline for the trees, running up to give one a big hug. 

As her arms wrapped around the beautiful tree's trunk, a random vine lashed out and strangled her. Thorns dug into her neck as the vine grappled her and held her immobile. "Hey friend," she choked out. "I'm sorry, I get that you don't want to be hugged. That was wrong of me to assume that everyone likes hugs as much as me."

As kayn approached the lifebloom his eyes were wide with wonderment. So huge! He sees Vesra rush up to the happy tree to give it a happy hug and smiles. Druids were always so good with nature. 

That's when the tree whipped a vine around her and returned her hug. He couldn't believe how well nature responded to her kindness. "I think the forest loves you too!" Kayn yelled to the druid.