[PQ] [RQ] from the fallen tree

Dantalion

how the fuck am I supposed to know

Danta has sent out a few feelers, requests, letters and so on for volunteers to help collect a good deal of firewood, and like any hopeful fisherman, he's staying optimistic for a catch. One would assume that it would be an easy thing to ask people to collect fuel that can also keep them all warm, but it is the Hollowed Grounds. And as much as he's growing to love the place for its quirks, it doesn't always make it easy to accomplish tasks.

Either way, the Maverick waits at the fringes of the Outer Brambles, clad in a heavy coat, scarf and gloves to ward off the cold, and with a number of handcarts and volunteers standing around with him. He's got axes, saws and any other number of tools they might need, too. This isn't just going to be some gathering of kindling - they'll need to fell trees to get it all done.

---

Welcome to the PQ to gather firewood! This will fulfil the following RQ requirement:

1. A PQ with at least 3 Grounders collecting suitable firewood & kindling within the Grounds

Please post your characters arriving, no post order!

1. Dantalion
2. Raelyn
3. Fox

if we're in love or if we're in pain?

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

FOX

He's already done this once for his own needs, so it doesn't bother Fox much to help out a second time. Especially, if this new theocrat speaks true, anyway, this will allow them something to keep Ancients warm in any season. It's with one Ancient in particular in mind that he sets off towards the Outer Brambles, and when he arrives, he's glad in similarly heavy clothing, though the walk has done much to keep him from succumbing to the cold.

Raising his hand in a wave to the Maverick and his gathered NPCs volunteers, Fox has brought his own axe, but he's glad to see a number of other tools available should they need them. "Ready when everyone else is," he declares.

---

Fox brings himself and an axe for choppin'.

astra inclinant, sed non obligant

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

I keep on messing with your head
You keep on messing up my bed

Raelyn arrived in a flurry of fur; in Deepfrost, she often preferred traveling in her shift, as it was warmer and more comfortable for the young woman than traipsing around in the snow as a human. When she found Danta and a stranger, she woofed a soft greeting before shifting into her human form. There, too, she was engulfed in fur - her jacket was fur-lined and warm, though her cheeks were still rosy from the cold.

Despite her warm clothes, she felt naked without her dogs accompanying her, but she'd left them at home for this particular task. "Hello," she said as she joined the men. "So, we're jusdt chopping firewood, yeah?" Well, it was a simple enough task, even if it wouldn't be particularly fun. Luckily, Danta seemed to have brought plenty of supplies, and she selected an axe, casting a keen eye over her options to select one of an appropriate size and heft for her slight frame.

------

Raelyn arrives!

I feel like we're two stoners, two loners
Who keep on forgetting everything they've said

Raelyn

Dantalion

how the fuck am I supposed to know

Danta's eyes crinkle over the top of his scarf with his smile to see Fox and Raelyn arrive; for his part, he's busy lighting a few torches to stand in the snow. They'll provide some warmth, give an indication of their little base of operations, and they'll also be a good source of fire for his magic. "More or less," he tells Rae, nodding to the volunteers to gather their tools.

"Unfortunately the way is blocked by the Deepfrost weather right now. If you'd be so kind, shall we shift some of this snow?" So saying, Danta gathers some of the fire from the torches, manipulating it to melt the ice and snow to make it easier to shovel.

---

First task is to shovel a path into the forest proper so there will be room to carry the firewood once it's been chopped! Feel free to use magic or shifts, and shovels are available too! No post order.

if we're in love or if we're in pain?

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

FOX

Having met neither Dantalion or Raelyn in person, Fox spares any verbal pleasantries and merely gives a polite nod instead, waiting for their instructions. His fellow Ancient is already doing what he can with the fire at their disposal, and so Fox opts for good old fashioned hard labour instead. "I'll help to shovel," he announces, grabbing a spade and joining a few volunteers in shifting the snow behind where Danta walks.

The going is never going to be easy given that they're literally doing physical work, but he finds it keeps his blood pumping and his bones warm, so he really has no complaints about it. Being careful to pile the snow at either side of their walkway, he hopes that soon enough they'll reach the deadfall of the treeline where walking will be easier.

---

Fox shovels!

astra inclinant, sed non obligant

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

I keep on messing with your head
You keep on messing up my bed

Raelyn had never been afraid of physical work. Having run her little farm on her own for years, she was well-accustomed to such things as shoveling snow. And breaking up ice in water troughs. And all manner of unpleasant winter chores. Shoveling, though - that wasn't so bad. Especially not when there was someone to share the burden with.

So Rae picked up a shovel and joined Fox, following along in Danta's footsteps to get rid of the melting snow. It was simple work, and her mind wandered as she shoveled. She'd heard that Danta was their new Theocrat, and she wondered what had made him want to stay. How much of the Grounds had he explored, she wondered? Maybe she should offer her services. That is, if he needed any help. Perhaps he'd explored all that the Grounds had to offer, and that had been enough to convince him to make it his home.

------

Raelyn shovels.

I feel like we're two stoners, two loners
Who keep on forgetting everything they've said

Raelyn

Dantalion

how the fuck am I supposed to know

As a trio they make good and steady progress, and with the addition of the volunteers Danta has recruited, before long they've made a wide, sturdy pathway into the forest. Once they're able to duck under the canopy of pines, the going is a lot easier, and there's wood in abundance. Unfortunately the Maverick doesn't have mindreading in his back pocket, so Rae's curiosities will have to remain just that. He does, however, have a lot of sharp tools to play with.

"Let's start felling," he suggests. "And someone should start collecting any fallen branches - they'll be good for kindling." If nothing else, being an Ancient means that Danta definitely knows how to make a good fire.

---

Two people to help fell trees and one person to collect fallen branches! Danta will take whatever is left - no post order!

if we're in love or if we're in pain?

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

FOX

Already able to feel his palms protesting from the shovel - not that blisters have ever done him any lasting harm - Fox is glad to discard it for a break. The axe will almost certainly cause the same amount of friction if not in different places, but that's what he's signed up for, after all. Shaking out his hands and taking up the tool, he nods at Dantalion's suggestion.

"I'll start over here," he says, making it clear which tree he's going to target. The last thing they need is for him to go toppling a huge trunk in the wrong direction, after all. Soon enough - and with the help of a few of the volunteers - the rhythmic sound of chopping fills the air.

---

Fox fells trees! Well, a tree.

astra inclinant, sed non obligant

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

I keep on messing with your head
You keep on messing up my bed

The shoveling was simply but fairly tedious, and Raelyn bored quickly as they worked. She always had to take frequent breaks at home when tasked with such mundane chores, but that wasn't an option when working with a large group, so she soldiered on. When they finally made their way into the woods, the snow cover thinned and the going got easier.

Raelyn leaned her shovel against a nearby tree and watched as Fox got started chopping a tree, her hands shoved into her pockets to guard against the cold. Between the Ancient and the various volunteers, it hardly seemed like they needed another woodcutter, so Rae waited until the wood began to fall before beginning to gather it up.

------

Raelyn gathers wood!

I feel like we're two stoners, two loners
Who keep on forgetting everything they've said

Raelyn

Dantalion

how the fuck am I supposed to know

Fox chops, aided by the volunteers, and Raelyn is adept at gathering the fallen branches. Assisting in this as well, Danta piles together the dead wood already littering the forest floor, making the pathway clear for them and loading the kindling onto one of the carts they've brought. Then, taking up an axe - and a few more volunteers - he commits to felling a tree of his own.

Fox is much better at it than he is - look at the difference between them, for Dygra's sake - and the other Ancient's tree falls first with a whining groan that echoes through the woods. Danta's isn't long behind, though, and although the Maverick is breathless, he's absolutely proud of himself. "Good," he huffs. "Let's hack these trunks into manageable pieces."

---

Two trees have been felled! Time to grab an axe and hack them up into nice, neat bits of firewood!

if we're in love or if we're in pain?

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

FOX

The grunt of falling trees and splintering wood is almost music to Fox's ears given the exertion of getting this far, the Ancient stepping back to catch his breath for a few moments. His hands are on fire and he looks forward to taking care of them once everything is finished here - but there's more to do yet. Feeling none of the Deepfrost chill thanks to the exercise, he nods at Danta's orders and takes up his axe yet again.

There should be more than enough firewood for the bonfire and then some by the time they're finished, and he works in short, blunt strokes to section up the trunk and begin cutting it into smaller logs. "Could probably make a store of kindling with what's leftover here," he remarks, though he's mostly focused on the task at hand.

---

Chop chop for Fox!

astra inclinant, sed non obligant

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

I keep on messing with your head
You keep on messing up my bed

Raelyn gathered wood as it fell from the trees, and Danta joined her in collecting that which already littered the forest floor. Between them - and the other volunteers - they made quick work of the task. Fox's tree fell, and then Danta's, and then there was more to do. This time, Rae grabbed an axe from the pile and began to chop at her own portion of a felled tree.

This was harder than Rae had expected. Though she was used to hard work, she didn't chop many trees, and parsing the larger trunk into smaller portions for firewood was much more time consuming than she'd thought, even with as many people as they had working. She grunted agreement with Fox's comment as she worked; they probably would have plenty of wood left over when they were done, judging by the amount of it that lay scattered on the forest floor.

------

Raelyn chops!

I feel like we're two stoners, two loners
Who keep on forgetting everything they've said

Raelyn

Dantalion

how the fuck am I supposed to know

At least this sort of work is likely to keep them all warm - a particular necessity for the Ancients of the group, Danta included. Manual labour is not his forte, as a general rule, but the Maverick does his best with the axe and, between the three of them and the volunteers, they do manage to get the tree trunks parsed up into firewood. "I think that should just about do it." He pants, straightening up and stretching his arms above his head.

"Let's load this onto the carts, and then I think we're about done." So saying, the volunteers are already doing their best with the logs, stacking them neatly onto the carts. Danta, tired of all of this physical work, returns to the pathway to check they won't have any troube getting the laden carts out.

---

Last round! One person to help load the wood onto the carts, and one person to help pull them!

if we're in love or if we're in pain?

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

FOX

It's with his muscles burning (and Danta is right - the heat of exertion is welcome in the snow) and his stomach threatening to rumble that their work comes to (mostly) an end, and Fox shakes out his hands in relief. "I can pull one of the carts," he volunteers, flashing a small smile to Raelyn and nodding to one of them still being loaded up with wood. If she can help finish that up, he can start pulling it towards freedom.

The volunteers help too, and with someone helping to push the cart at the back, Fox grabs the handles at the front and begins to manoeuvre through the snowdrifts that Danta has continued to clear. "Glad we won't have to do this again in a hurry," he grunts; with the eternal fire promised at the end of all of this, hopefully they can warm their palms whenever they need.

---

Fox takes the cart!

astra inclinant, sed non obligant

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!