The Wolf Spirit spirit tugs the faint blue bond toward a narrow path beyond the clearing. Asbjorn and the Shieldmaiden follow, while the Stranger, A Village Elder, and the Child remain beside the dying fire.
Pines close around the trail, swallowing the chant and leaving only the hush of snow-damp branches. The Wolf Spirit’s pale form slips between roots, its runic tether glowing softly.
The Shieldmaiden
The smoke fades quickly here. Whatever waits beneath those stones was meant to be hidden from the fire.
The path ends at a low cairn furred with moss. Weathered Ulfhethinn symbols mark the stones, their lines worn smooth by rain and years.
Beneath the cairn, a recently disturbed offering place gapes between loosened stones. Its carved basin is empty, but the hollow still carries the faint scents of blood and pine resin.
Asbjorn Bjornulfsson
The stones were moved recently.
The Shieldmaiden
Someone came before us, and took what was given. The wolf has led you to the absence, Asbjorn, not yet to its answer.
✓ Quest Accepted
Discover who took the offering
“I clinch my fists in rage at someone stealing the offering then I let out a sigh as I cut one of my fingers and draw on the runes with my blood as it glows red. Then the Wolf Spirit guides me and The Shieldmaiden to find someone performing Dark Seidr Magic in the name of the Fire Giants the darkness overwhelms me. "What sorcery is this?!"”
SUCCESS (Fair Willpower, rolled +3)
Asbjorn’s fists clench over the empty basin. After a hard breath, he performs the blood-marking rite, and fresh red runes kindle across the weathered stones.
The Wolf Spirit lowers its head. Its pale tether pulls through the pines, and Asbjorn and the Shieldmaiden follow into a hollow where the snow has blackened.
The Shieldmaiden
The air reeks of ash. Keep your eyes open, Asbjorn. This is no village offering.
Beyond a ring of scorched standing stones, a gaunt adult man in a soot-dark robe kneels before a brazier. His shaved scalp bears red paint, and firelight burns beneath his hollow stare.
Black smoke coils from the brazier without wind. It twists around the stones, swallowing the moonlight and pressing cold darkness through the hollow.
Asbjorn Bjornulfsson
What sorcery is this?!
The darkness surges over Asbjorn’s vision. The Wolf Spirit snarls soundlessly and braces against the red-lit bond, while the robed practitioner, his pale skin stark beneath the red paint turns toward them and raises both hands.
✓ Quest Accepted
Stop the Fire Giants' dark seidr
− Scene Quest Removed
Discover who took the offering
“I pull out my sword as I drive it deep into the mans heart afterward I rip his heart out as an offering to the gods as I look up as the skies part to reveal Freyja smiling as she speaks to me. "Freyja, Goddess of love, beauty, fertility, gold, war, and seiðr magic. I dedicate this sacrifce to you cleanse the dark magic that plagues the Ulfhethinn's coven." I feel a sense of peace wash over me and a warmth that heals me.”
SUCCESS (Good Melee Weapons, rolled -1)
Asbjorn draws his sword and drives it into the robed practitioner. The man collapses beside the brazier, and the black smoke breaks apart as the killing blow takes hold.
The offering is completed without lingering spectacle. Asbjorn raises it toward the scorched stones while the Wolf Spirit stands rigid beside him, its blue tether brightening.
Asbjorn Bjornulfsson
Freyja, goddess of love, beauty, fertility, gold, war, and seiðr magic, I dedicate this sacrifice to you. Cleanse the dark magic plaguing the Ulfhethinn's coven.
The clouds part above the hollow. Freyja appears in golden light as a regal adult woman with long amber hair, a deity with a tall, poised figure, fair skin, and sharp cheekbones, a falcon-feathered mantle, and a warm, knowing smile.
Freyja
Your offering is heard, Asbjorn Bjornulfsson. Let what is bound in darkness be loosened, and let the old stones remember clear purpose.
Gold-white radiance pours across the standing stones. The brazier’s smoke thins to harmless wisps, and the red marks on the stones fade beneath clean snow.
Peace settles through Asbjorn, followed by a spreading warmth that closes his hurts and steadies his breath. Freyja’s image fades, but her light remains in the runes.
Quest Complete
Stop the Fire Giants' dark seidr