B1 Chapter 1: The Lord of the Tundra

Once again Fenix tugged at his thick fur lined hooded woolen cloak that he wore. Seeking to adjust it so as to keep the smallest draft of frozen air from reaching his body within it's folds. For more then the thousandth time the Hobb wondered how he ever gotten it into his thick head. That it was a smart idea to travel to the far northern Coldlands in search of the hidden supposed treasure laiden Tomb of Axton. Now he just wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. So he could head south to warmer climes as fast as he was able.
With a gloved hand he gave a encouraging couple of pats on neck of the long haired gelding northern riding pony. That was named Sure Hooves. Looking around, he saw his companions seemed to be about as miserable as he was. Barely able to keep his teeth from chattering he said to no one in particular, he said. "Remind me again, who's brilliant idea was it to come to this Gods forsaken place? I just hope it's worth it!"

Belga nudges her pony a little faster to catch up with Fenix. She gives the Hobb a jaunty grin and takes a pull from the skin hanging from the saddle horn, then tosses it over. "Here. A little fire water from the undermountain might help take the edge off. And it's a sure sight better than fermented yak's piss."

She squints ahead into the distance. "So.... that must be the place, eh?" She tried to sound more confident than she felt. It hadn't been until they got fully out in the tundra that she began to feel how big the emptiness was, and just how small their little band was. Before that thought could fully take root, Belga shook herself out of her reverie, and turned back to the rest of her companions. "Looks like we're finally getting close!"

Theodore pushes his cloak’s hood back from his face at the sound of conversation starting. The bitter cold hits him and he raises his arm to shield his face from a frozen gale. "It’s about damn time too, feels like we’ve been riding round here for an age." Theodore takes his turn with the fire water, grunting as he swallows and feels the warmth hit him though it is short-lived. "I’ll be glad to have some shelter from this wind, that’s for sure" he says as he passes on the skin.

Peering onwards, Stoneshadow begins to take in the outcropping and just how much it stands out from the empty surroundings. The slightest beginnings of doubt start to form in his mind before he pushes them back down. Readjusting his position in the saddle and pulling his hood back tight, Theodore focuses his thoughts on preparing himself for the challenge to come.

Riding next to his companions, Thran remains wrapped in a sullen silence as thick as his woolen scarf, a behaviour somewhat unusual for the mild-mannered, soft-spoken elven mage.

His almond-shaped eyes, barely visible through the layers of clothing and glistening beneath the shadow of the fur-coated hood of his winter robes, stare at the approaching tumulus with intensity.
Finally, the secrets he had been hankering after were close at hand, yet he shivered both from the cold and the prospect of facing the perils within: he'd studied the legends attached to the place and couldn't share his companions' light-hearted banter.

They would be lucky to get out with their sanity intact !

Of course he could not, would not tell them the extent of what he'd read in the ancient tomes he'd poured over for weeks and months on end; why sap the little courage they'd been able to muster ?
One thing was clear: he had to conquer the tomb's mystical secrets and he'd do what was necessary to reach his goal, even at the cost of his own life. To complete the task he'd joined with like-minded individuals and after weeks of arduous journeying there they were, a most unlikely band of tomb robbers if there ever was one !

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and grabbed the reins of his chestnut mount a little tighter: they'd reach the place any moment now and there still were preparations to complete...

Snatching the not frozen liquid filled liquorskin out of the frigged air. Fenix opened it an took a small swig of what was inside. Feeling it burn all the way down from gullet to gut. Putting the stopper back in. He tossed it to Big Teddy, who had motioned for it. Muttering, "Thank's Belga, that really hit the spot! It's fermented yak milk, not piss. That is unless you have drank something different then I have!"

To her proclamation that claimed they were in sight of there destination, He somewhat sarcastically replied . "That's what you told us a half an hour ago! We are still riding along freezing our asses off! I can't wait until we get there and get a yak dung fire started, so we can warm up a bit."

"Making smoke or fire may not be the wisest of choices, Fen. At least not that close to the funeral mound. There exist in these places... things that are drawn to the heat like moths to the flame. Things long dead, who hunger for the warmth of the living and thirst after a life long gone. We have to remain on our guard as we approach these accursed grounds !"

Despite the alarming words, the elf spoke in his habitual melodious tones, his voice carrying across the frozen waste effortlessly, almost disturbingly so.

Thran’s words send a shiver down Theodore’s spine. He plays it off as being caused by the weather by pulling his cloak tighter, but also touches a hand to his sheathed sword. "Nothing that we can’t handle though, eh?" Theodore’s words continue the confident persona he’s displaying to the group.

Responding to the Elf, the Hobb said. "Then let them come! I'll be damned if fear of such will keep me from warming up by a fire. Because if I don't get warmer soon. The blood will start to freeze in my veins."

Withdrawing slightly from the conversation, a movement in the corner of his eye catches Theodore’s attention. Turning his head he sees a swarm of cavalry mere moments away. "Shit," Theodore yells, flinching at the sudden appearance, "incoming!"

Pulling at the reigns with one hand, he turns his horse whilst drawing his sword with the other. Bracing within the saddle, Theodore prepares to defend himself.