Pungo looks out over the cliffs edge. White. As far as the eye could see. A storm was brewing, far off out over the ocean. "Two days of scaling cliffs and rocks to look down upon this?" The penguin was up to his beak with this. "Come on you big ouphe, let's keep moving."
Jespar look up at Pengu from inside the small overhang of rocks he'd found. There must have been an old salt formation there, because Jespar had wandered off and was licking a rock. "Hey, hey! Stop that! You're going to get your tongue stuck again! Aaaah, Chad sack, just stop it already! You're like an child who's been dropped on his head. Drop it... DROP IT!"
Jespar dropped the rock reluctantly and crawled out from under the overhang. The penguin jumped up into Jespar arm and up clamored up onto the large man's shoulder.
To tell the truth, Jespar was, in fact, like a large child, and had, in fact, been dropped on his head. Well.... Rather smashed in the head by a frost giant, but the injury had resulted in dramatically reduced brain functioning. He was now operating at a level similar to a golden retriever or other small animal. Most Kobolds would be able to outsmart him with their eyes closed.
Pengu didn't know if the damage would be permanent, but he certainly has his hands full now: managing a large, dumb human, lost in the north, their rations run out, not a fresh fish for weeks and nothing but a strange crystal to show for the whole journey... Has this really all been worth it? Only the ice Rangers could say. And who knows where they are now.
Pengu kept a keen eye out from Jesper's shoulders as they lumbered along the edge of the great cliff.
Below them, the vast expanse of the icy bay stretched out. Pengu was happy this leg of the journey was behind them. While their party had been able to find what they were seeking, the trip has come at terrible cost to the Ice Rangers patrol. So far as Pengu knew, on he and Jespar had survived the halls of Frost Haven.... The others were all gone... Lost to the beyond now.
And even Jespar would never be the same.
After a few hours of trekking, Jespar stopped, dead in his tracks and froze, as if he was now aware of some new danger. Pengu, who had been lost in thought, snapped back to the present. "What is it boy? What you do sense?" He hopped down off the barbarians shoulder, and waddled ahead a few steps. Jespar now had his massive club in hand, ready for anything.
Then, they felt it: a low rumble at first, which grew louder. The ground began to shake under their feet.
"GLACIER WURM!!!!!"
Both turned and bolted across the snow packed terrain headed for the jagged rock face that was exposed just 20 metres away. Jespar was able to cover the distance quicky and with a few quick moves was half way up the rock face before Pengu could make it to safety.
Too slow: Pengu felt the snow beneath him give way and felt himself falling into the open jaws of the massive subterranean beast.
Jespar saw the massive beast explode out of the snow and ice, swallowing his friend whole.
Rage filled his tiny brain and something primordial kicked in.
From nearly 5 metres up the rock face where he clung, Jespar launched himself into the air, diving headfirst in gaping maw of the beast. His colossal club got caught in the creature circular mouth just as it was closing it, locking the creatures mouth open.
The fury of fists that followed was nothing short of luck & artwork: Jespar smashed both fists down into the meaty inside of the creature. Fists deep inside the flesh, his hands found one of the creatures massive rib bones, locked on and pulled with every ounce of this might.
The bone snapped free from the spine, and came lose in Jespars hands. The force of the mighty stroke, caused Jespar to lurch backward, swinging his new, broken bone weapon over his shoulder and sinking the sharp bone directly up into the creatures tiny brain.
It's last action in life was to violently vomit both Jespar and Pengu out onto the snow is a mess of grey and brown bile before collapsing onto the snowy landscape.
The whole attack was probably less than 10 seconds, but Pengu's whole life had flashed before his eyes.
Pengu Sat up, covered in the creatures disgusting fluids & blood. He was remarkably unhurt from the encounter.
Jespar was huddled beside the gargantuan corpse, licking a fresh wound. Surface scratch, thankfully.
They rested for a full day, using the tunnel cavity carved in the snow by the beast as shelter. Glacier Wurms are solitary creatures, thank goodness, so they were unlikely to encounter another for hundred of kilometers. And, their brain meat is actually considered a delicacy served raw at only the most luxurious office parties in the Red Wizard Capital or the casinos & strip clubs of the Pearl.
"A Hundred, thousand gold pieces worth of meat, and we are helping ourselves to seconds... Eat up you big lugg... It'll be frozen solid in a few hours if you don't."
Above them, they could hear a storm rolling in, the wild wind now whipped snow across the land, and from the safety of the tunnel, they could see the snow begin to pile up. It would be impossible to travel on the surface in this.
Infact, if not for the meat & tunnel provided by the ancient wurm, they would have perished from exposure, most certainly.
"Well, I guess we've only got one way we can travel now." Pengu looked down the tunnel that slopped slowly into the dark heart of the glacier. "No telling what that creature uncovered down here in the thousands of years of snow and ice..."
Jespar sat, next to Pengu, tongue hanging out of his mouth panting like an eager puppy. "Let's go boy, get your things. It's time to see where this next path takes us."
And with that, they descended into the darkness.
Entered by: 0x6809…e343
