Out in the Big Cold World

I couldn't even get to sleep last night.  I thought at first the night was just cold - so I put my outer clothes back on, they were the driest, although the wool is quite a bit rougher than the fine weave on my shorts and vest.  They're also very worn and tatty from my time in the cell, and some of the holes are in the wrong place to keep me warm .  I ended up wrapping that Gurgam cloak tight around me.  And then I still couldn't relax or get properly warm.

So I spent half an hour scratching around in the dark gathering up many of the fallen leaves in this woodland as I could find -  I'd wanted to cut some branches and build a temporary shelter to keep me warmer, but it wasn't possible in the dark.  Even though I didn't have all that many of them, the leaves really helped.  I thought they would be wetter than they turned out to be, and with not much effort I soon had a nest in them.

But I still struggled to get to sleep.  I wasn't particularly cold any more, I hadn't done enough to be warm, and I could have really used a blanket.  I was hungry.  I think I was also on edge, listening too intently for the sound of Gurgam trackers.  Every little sound off in the darkness had me instantly wide awake and listening hard.

I was up for hours laying awake, I watched the stars drift slowly across the sky, they track with the moon.  I got out of the warmth of my nest a couple of times to investigate the sounds of movement nearby, and the cool air didn't help me relax when I returned.  Eventually I dropped off.  The sleep didn't help me much, though. I awoke abruptly, with a light layer of frost.  I was freezing cold, and I had a sore head from too little sleep.

I was hungry when I awoke, too.  I thought I was in real trouble - no warmth, no food, no shelter.  And my underclothes that I'd left hanging nearby were stiff with the frost.  They'd still not dried out - I need a way to keep some dry clothes somehow.  I had no breakfast.  The last two of my raw rats were frozen - I'd left them on the cold floor.  They're only useful as bait now.

I went down to the river and splashed some of the water on my face and took a deep drink.  I'm still amazed at how fresh and sharp this water is.  The cold was staggering, though.  As I sat there, I thought about my predicament.  I decided to move out from this place - I am still too close to the Gurgam caves.

To get back to the delve I probably need to head upwards into the mountains, but if the nights are going to be cold, and if I don't know where I am, then this could be dangerous.  Food will be more scarce the higher we go, and there is the risk of running into Gurgam patrols.  My best hope for surviving the cold is to move down into the valley.  It will be a longer journey, but if I could  get down the mountains and find their western edge, I can make my way round to the ornamental entrance of Gora.

I've gathered my things, my frozen clothes, my bait and my weapons.  I am planning to follow the river which, as far as I can tell, is flowing from the south-east to the north-west.  The sun is breaking out, it might get a little warmer later, but for now we're still in the shadow of the mountains to the south.