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The night does not pass easily. A host of worries plague sleep that should be restful. It then ceases abruptly some hours before dawn in a spectacular manner. The most heart-rending screams throw the party awake. At first, it sounded like the dying scream of a child. So much so, you bolt awake and immediately rush to check on the youngest runners.
They lie closely together in a group, awake and shivering in horror at the screams. The relief on their faces when you check up on them is palpable. You then recognized the dying screams for what they truly were.
A red deer.
Tarn's own chosen animal.
An evil omen.
<span class="mu-r">You have 26 points</span>
"Tarn, Tarn, Tarn." You call out and summon the horns. Once again, the ghostly antlers erupt from your forehead, dribbling warm divine ichor down your face. The warmth of the ichor fogs the winter air and the range of your senses stretch outward. There is nothing close by. Confused, you roam the camp and the edge of the scarlet waters hurriedly. You are trying to discover the source of the screams.
Several veterans also call upon the divine horns to assist in the search. A waste of essence as their range is too short. Yet not even the grim Sage can summon the energy to reprimand them, Instead, he enlightens the frightened and ignorant.
"Listen and remember well, young ones. That scream is from a red deer. You'll never mistake that scream for any other animal."
You stare into the forest, the light of dawn only just starting to lighten the sky above. The weather is going to be sunny, and the air will be warmer today. Minos the bodyguard joins your patrol as you desperately stretch the border of the senses to detect the monster.
Yes, monster. It seems to have deliberately maimed a red deer and left it to die a slow death somewhere in the woods surrounding the scarlet sanctuary.
"Runners, pack up! Check your sledges! We leave in an hour!" You shout the order loudly without even looking back. Keen is the desire to keep danger away.
The dying screams of the red deer continue through the hour before silence rends the air. So sudden is the end of pain and despair, the loss of the screaming makes everything that much eerier. Not a sound beyond the pounding of red waters can be heard.
"Sofia, is that thing near?" Lady Aurelia asks and joins the circling patrol. In her hand is a bone knife, thankfully still sheathed safely in its scabbard.
"No. Also... what do you expect to do with that knife? Put it away."
You speed up the pace, gaining a bit of distance from the noble girl who looks a bit offended. The noble girl once somehow accidentally stabbed her uncle during training. You do not trust her with a weapon. Minos is not amused by his charge of deliberately coming into danger.
"My lady, please return your sledge--"
