260
The Shadow's Peak and Dragon's Maw
Dalejin
I arrived early, just how early? At first I wasn't sure. The moon was high and it was a cloudless night. A slight breeze drug it's icy cold fingers across the barren ground, fortelling all of what was to come. It russled my hair and rippled my cloak as my light blue eyes scanned the endless darkness, now illuminated by the moon. :: I feared for my future companions safety. We had agreed upon three day's time, and already  the second night was well into affect. I had expected his arrival by now. Where was he I  began to ponder.  I had come well equiped for a journey to the peaks. Full iron armor, made by my own hands.  At my forge in my cave hidden deep in the foothills of the land. A sword forged by the  gracious orc Groul who would not be joining us on this trip. A bow and arrows I had  scavenged off of countless skeletons that had attacked me through previous journeys.  A number of provisions, less we get trapped by the  fury of snow and drifts that are rumored to swallow houses whole in the night. A simple stone pick I had carried with me on a number of trips into caves, on the off  chance that we should stumble upon some iron. I was well equiped to face any dangers of  this treacherous journey, or so I thought. :: Qwert arrived, his breathing slightly labored.  He appeared to have just recently left the smithy where he spent much of his time.  The smell of smoke and molten metal clung to him strongly, clearly defining him as a dwarven  smith. Though having been an orphan he still retained much of his ancestral gifts. :: Having no sense of bearing or direction to head in, Qwert inquired of Lady Dawn and a man by the name of John  as to the location of The Peak as it was most commonaly known. So having set out from the city we quickly encountered snow, the likes of which Qwert  had never seen. But quickly we soon found ourselves encountering John again. Rumors abound  that he was once a Ranger but insulted the King of Oren and  was exiled for the insult. :: Qwert still facinated by the snow soon stumbled upon a large reed farm. The likes of whic h neither of us had seen before. Entering into Alstion we encountered large pine trees.  Another rarity that Qwert had yet to see. Farther down the road we stumbled upon a village. Made of pine, ash and stone. A half finished cobblestone wall surrounded the village and encompassed its borders. A sign said that this village was Snowy Fields, but like many things there are rumors that surround it. I had heard it may be named something else in the near future. At the time of our village everyone appeared to be absent or asleep in their beds. I went on ahead on the road, towards the Orc Outpost as Qwert in high spirits wandered through the village. To my assumption admiring the architecture of its builders. :: Night fell and we were caught out on the road between the village and the outpost. The monsters of the land soon set upon us, threatening to leave us weak and alone out in the icy valley. But through the attacks we never got seperated from each other, luckily though we were running low on provisions. A creeper and Skeleton were the last to ambush us before the Orcish Outpost. We had just reached the edge of the outpost when a figure on the road behind us drew our attention and we turned back to investigate. Traversing through Snowy Fields and out a small gate we ventured through the snow covered lands. We pursued the figure to a village built upon an island surrounded by ice. But lost him completly. The village appeared to be nothing but a palliside wall with a number of tents inside, But once more no one was home. The icy crags threatened to slay us as we descended the craggy walls of mountains. How foolish we had been to venture the lands openly, traversing mountains. A near fall by Qwert almost ended our adventure. But he quickly regained a surefooting and scrambled back to safety. Across a treacherous lake of ice lay the Orcs. For what we assumed to be the outpost was indeed Alstion. :: There looming up from the cliffs of the lake was their citadel. No outpost, this was the fabled Winterfell. The one that Sillion had asked about before our departure from the small village. We knew it may not be wise but we diligently explored the keep of Winterfell. Unafraid of the consequences for seeing the inner workings of this fabled place. :: We eventually left Winterfell in all its glory and splendor and set out again. A deep pit almosted sealed my fate as the snow caved in around it as I stepped to closely to its edge. Qwert with his great strength caught me hauling me back from the edge before I careened off into the abyssmal darkness. :: Taking a break from our adventures we rested at a cozy shelter and gathered a couple supplies from the pantry that the King had placed there for travelers such as ourselves.