The large group headed north from Bree soon after their meeting. Cisel sat on top of her beloved Alex, a beautiful painted horse with a blackened brown and white spots. His eyes were a shimmering blue with a hint of mischief in them. Alex had a love for spooking people, nudging the back of their heads or pulling their hood off. He also had a tendency to lick their face, which happened a few times along the trip, as people were not paying attention.
The group ventured on before they were surrounded by Wargs. Cisel drew her bow, tying herself to Alex for balance. But before she could release an arrow, Fiontann’s orders came through the group, telling them to flee and leave him behind.
Cisel felt stunned as the others called out in protest, but Fiontann insisted they followed Rothrian and Mynna’s orders. He then left, the Wargs following behind him as Rothrian, in a blank and emotionless tone, yelled to them to follow her. Still, many protested, and part of Cisel shouted for her to do so as well and ride off after Fiontann. However, she remembered how she trusted him, and how she knew there must be a reason for his actions. If the company had fought, there was no doubt they would all have been slain. Perhaps that was Fiontann’s reason, and for that, Cisel knew she had to support Rothrian.
As people protested, Cisel snapped out, “Jus’ listen ‘n follow!”
The company moved on, away from the forest they stood, passing through ruins into an evil feeling area, into Fornost. As the entered, a shriek called out, spooking the company and Alex. Alex began to run, Cisel still tied to him as she clung to his neck. Alex was a very fast horse, faster than the ones Cisel had seen racing through the streets of Bree. He leaped through the foggy area, losing sight of the company as Cisel heard her name being called out behind her. Alex and Cisel wandered through Fornost for a bit, without anyone to accompany either one of them. It felt like centuries before she heard another soft neigh and the voice of Aeo calling out her name. At that time, Cisel had dismounted Alex, leading him by the reins before she shouted out to Aeo in relief. He and Pug rode up to Cisel, smiling softly to her as she mounted back to Alex and followed them to the camp.
The pain in Cisel’s side began to intensify as they stayed at the camp in the northern part of Fornost. To the point she could not stand, for she grew to dizzy for it. Bothilda, who became to Cisel a very close friend, snuck over to her as the two whispered back and forth. Cisel explained that she had a feeling that the wound on her side was infected. Panic flooded through Bothilda’s face as she helped Cisel away from the camp a bit, exposing the wound to show the flesh, darkened in color as it showed signs of infection. Then Bothilda ran back to the camp, leading the elf healer, Agarios, with her.
Agarios tended Cisel’s wound, telling her she was to tell him when she was wounded. Then he whispered something in a language Cisel did not recognize. The journey continued on as Cisel’s side felt a bit better before turning back to the pain. However when Fiontann returned to the company, he was injured and Cisel felt it was not her place to take up Agarios’s attention when others needed him more. So she spoke nothing of her wound until the elf departed for a bit. From the walking, Cisel felt more pain in her side, struggling with her steps as she used Alex as a balance. The company crossed from North-Downs into Evendim before Amyilyn, a close friend to Aeonid, noticed Cisel’s struggles. She then tended to the wound before the company headed northwards towards Ost Forod to rest.
A small band broke off from the rest of the company as they rested before returning, however with a riddle. As Cisel stood by Bothilda, she saw the scrambled letters. Though to be fair, almost every writing Cisel saw looked scrambled until she slowly sounded the letters out. Cisel, Bothilda, Fredericka, and Gungur all sat around the riddle for a while, trying to figure it out until in the end they did, sharing it with Mynna. From that, the company knew to travel north into Forochels, the frozen wastelands. Before that, however, they had to prepare, hunting for smoked meats and furs. Cisel caught thirteen rabbits with the help of her ferret, Alice. With her bow, she shot a deer. In the end, they had fifteen rabbits, three deer, and a bear that was dragged back to camp.
And then, the journey to the frozen mountains began.
