Songs of Reamere: The Frozen North

It had been nearly a week since the sea serpent’s attack, and the crew of the Nullarbor were now stranded in small boats, surrounded by what reminded of the ship, adrift in the frigid ocean. Anuk had warned Captain Wayre that this would happen as they were pulled further and further north, but the captain was too determined not to loose the beast, and sure enough, that morning they had collided with an iceberg, tearing a huge gash into the ship’s hull and leaving it to be reclaimed by the icy depths. It was lucky none of the ship’s crew had drowned, but once again, Samwell had wished they’d taken the sea sled instead. He knew well how to traverse these waters, but the ship’s lack of maneuverability, combined with their speed as the serpent pulled them along, had resulted in the Nullarbor’s undoing. Samwell noticed that much of the captain’s bluster had left with his ship. He sat shivering and wet from within one of the two small boats that they’d managed to keep afloat, his face looking downtrodden.

“We need to move to dry land so we might light a fire and warm them.” Anuk said to the sea lycan. The man’s thick narwhalion skin clothes had kept him relatively warm and dry, and he was used to the cold, but these other men were not so lucky, and would become ill with hypothermia soon.

“The shore if a little ways from here.” Samwell observed. “I’ll help swim them over with some wood.”

“Yes, very good. I think we can all make it in one trip if you are careful. You’ll need to be especially cautious not to spill anyone into the surf.”

Anuk then instructed the sailors to gather any wood planks they could, while Samwell dove down to the still sinking ship, from which he pulled away some ropes. The water there was dark and barren, the sea serpent having since vanished from his view, but he could still feel it’s vibrations, slowly fading away. Bringing the ropes back up to the surface, the freezing sailors helped to tie them to the boats, while Samwell held onto the center of them. Once they were secure, he ferried them over to the dark pebbled beach. By the time they’d reached it and gotten a fire going, the sun had set below the horizon, and ribbons of shimmering lights had begun to appear in the sky.

“The aurora borealis is especially beautiful tonight.” Anuk said to Samwell in his weathered voice. The sea lycan nodded, watching the sky while half propped onto the beach, the waves playing against his tail and back legs. The peaceful moment didn’t last long however. Wayre’s voice could be heard growing agitated as he argued with his men on what they should do next. Wayre was determined to continue north in pursuit of the serpent, while the majority of his men said that they aught to find the nearest town and find a means to return to their home village.

“How are we supposed to even find a town near here ay?” One of the men complained. “This far north, we could be wandering for days, even longer. We’re already freezing and it’s only going to get colder through the night.”

Anuk stepped forward and pointed north northwest from their location.

“There is a town further that way. It follows the river, a few hours journey from here. If you have dried yourselves sufficiently, Samwell can bring us there now. It is not safe to stay here through the night.”

The men grumbled amongst themselves but soon made their way back to the boats, huddling close with one another. Samwell took the ropes in his mouth once more and pulled them out to sea. His flippers had grown tired from so many days of swimming almost nonstop, and he was in desperate need of sleep, but if he didn’t bring the people to the town, it would be difficult for them to survive the night. The cold was growing deeper, and there was only a couple thin blankets to share between them from the wreckage. Despite the situation, it really was a beautiful night. There were no clouds in the sky, and the dancing lights of the borealis reflecting off the ocean’s surface. The air was especially quiet, the normal winds of the north having died down for the time being. He kept swimming parallel to the shore until a river came into view. Most of the men had fallen asleep by then, too exhausted to resist the gentle rocking of the boats. They were lucky this town was by the river. Had it been landlocked, Samwell would not have been able to bring them. He had a difficult time traversing land as it was, much less while pulling boats full of people, and the town was much too far for them to have walked.

Pulling into the river was a bit tricky, as the water was shallow and the boats scraped against the bottom. Samwell had to drag himself somewhat through it. Ice also had encrusted the top, which Samwell had to break through to pass. Some of the men were jostled awake as he did so, but soon enough the river became deep enough and wide enough for the sea lycan to safely swim through with the boats in tow. It would be another couple hours before the reached the town, but Samwell was relieved to know he would be able to rest soon enough. His stomach rumbled for lack of food. He hoped there would be food for him as well. It had been several weeks by then since he’d had a proper meal…

Some time into the journal, long after all the men but Anuk were fast asleep, Samwell heard a wolf’s cry in the distance. It was a chilling, lonely sound. After a few moments he spotted the creature on and snowy hill, it’s head lifted to the sky as it howled. It stopped and looked to them for a moment, then disappeared down the other side of the hill, leaving them to continue their journal alone.