The three women panted as they took a moment to recover from the run to the cave.
After a quick look around showed they weren't interrupting anything's sleep, An asked, "What do we do now? We found the raiders, but they've noticed us too, our reinforcements are on the other end of the valley, and the raiders outnumber us four to one."
Qillly picked up some snow from the mouth of the cave and muttered, "Still packable, good, good." She straightened. "I think I can do something to even the odds a bit, with your help."
A few minutes later, the three had constructed a crude simulacrum of a bear from snow, with jet eyes courtesy of one of Imnanna's necklaces, icicles for teeth and sharp shards of flint from the cave floor as claws.
"I get the idea," said Imnanna, "but don't golems take forever to enchant?"
Qilly smiled. "I have a shortcut." She pulled a small blue vial from her pack. "My grandmother's recipe...haven't used it in a while."
The mage uncorked the bottle with her teeth and poured the blue liquid along what would have been a spine for a real bear. It soaked in a moment, then spread out like blood in veins. Abruptly, the snow bear shook itself and roared, looking far more like a real bear than a crude statue.
"Just in time, too," said An. "The raiders have spotted our trail. You know, when next we go off on one of these missions, let's do it in the Taglug mines, so I can show off my special tricks."
Since I already have them in the Northlands...
After a quick look around showed they weren't interrupting anything's sleep, An asked, "What do we do now? We found the raiders, but they've noticed us too, our reinforcements are on the other end of the valley, and the raiders outnumber us four to one."
Qillly picked up some snow from the mouth of the cave and muttered, "Still packable, good, good." She straightened. "I think I can do something to even the odds a bit, with your help."
A few minutes later, the three had constructed a crude simulacrum of a bear from snow, with jet eyes courtesy of one of Imnanna's necklaces, icicles for teeth and sharp shards of flint from the cave floor as claws.
"I get the idea," said Imnanna, "but don't golems take forever to enchant?"
Qilly smiled. "I have a shortcut." She pulled a small blue vial from her pack. "My grandmother's recipe...haven't used it in a while."
The mage uncorked the bottle with her teeth and poured the blue liquid along what would have been a spine for a real bear. It soaked in a moment, then spread out like blood in veins. Abruptly, the snow bear shook itself and roared, looking far more like a real bear than a crude statue.
"Just in time, too," said An. "The raiders have spotted our trail. You know, when next we go off on one of these missions, let's do it in the Taglug mines, so I can show off my special tricks."