The work goes well. Ellesar easily finds enough dried moss and underbrush to form the foundation of a fire. He uses his tomahawk to divide up a few larger pieces of deadfall, providing more that enough fuel to keep a fire going throughout the night. He uses some branches to sweep away the rocks and pebbles littering the floor of your cave. He quickly assembles a windbreak to shelter the mouth of cave while still providing good views of the approach to the cave and the valley below. It's a very defensible position.

Stogie and Jake set off on a hunt but Smohalla steals some of their glory by swooping out of a tree and bagging a fat grouse. It's not enough for dinner and breakfast both, so Stogie continues his hunt. Before long Jake catches the scent of a deer. The trail is relatively fresh but it seems to lead over the ridge and out of sight. He looks back to Stogie, unsure of whether to follow it further or to pursue smaller prey, like squirrels, which seem plentiful.

Berry season has long since passed but there are plenty of winter mushrooms available, despite the recent dry spell. There are bellybutton hedgehogs, spreader hedgehogs, yellowfoot chanterelles, and black trumpets. Perhaps best of all are the candy cap mushrooms, which are sweet, almost maple-like. Less experienced woodsmen often confuse them with the deadly galerina, but those woodsmen are all dead due to the mistake so that's obviously not you. The candy caps will make a fine dessert and will be even more appetizing at breakfast once they've dried out a bit, concentrating the maple flavor.

Yeah, stay close today, Jake. We don't wanna end up half a night's walk away from the rest, with a deer to carry.

The squirrels seem awfully wary, almost as if they know what's going on. Stogie wonders for a moment, then shakes it off as paranoia. He does manage to gather some edible plants and fungi. As they return to the cave, Smohalla's find of a grouse is a welcome sight. "Hey, that bird looks good. We'll have a proper feast tonight, as long as 'feast' doesn't mean filling your belly to bursting."

He sets about preparing a fie and supper. "Cave looks good, too. Comfy and warm!"

Jake curls up by the front of the cave. His loud stomach grumble catches Stogie's attention. "Don't worry, boy. You'll get some of my share, and a bit of the trail bar, too."

"So. What do you guys make of the wolves and the Sisters? I hear a different story from the shapeshifter from the one our employer gave us."

Ellesar glances casually over at Jake, "That's to be expected. I see no point in assuming things about these sisters unless we see it ourselves. Everyone has thier own preconceived notions of others that won't get us anywhere."

Smohalla's capture of the prey is simplicity itself. The birds in this area aren't used to being hunted, apparently.

After scouting for a little bit, he returns with the news.

There does not seem to be water close by. I will take a container and return with some for drinking.

Gone momentarily clutching a water bottle in his talons, he returns with the full bottle and shifts into human form.

As the group settles in to their campsite, he joins the discussion about the Sisters.

I have found that the words of men are often not to be trusted.

Animals, plants, not one of Mother Earth's creatures lie. Except man - only man does this.

I wish to learn the truth of this, and will not have a clouded mind when I meet these Sisters.

But there is much more to this than a lie or not lie.

"It may be that we will have to find a way that meets our employer's requirements, and accommodates whatever the Sisters are on about. This could turn out to require some tricky negotiation."

And if the Sisters are as our employer says...they must be destroyed.

Any and all who aid them also.

Smohalla looks meaningfully outside at the wolves, dimly visible as shadows amongst the trees.

"Yes, well this may not yet be the time for that. We must rest up if we hope to have the strength to do much of anything."

"Well, personally I would rather not destroy if we don't have to. And as far as the wolves go, they seem like innocent tools, rather than partners. Tools with very sharp teeth, mind you."

We must be prepared tomorrow. As you say Warrior, we should rest.

Smohalla curls up with one arm over his head and closes his eyes.

Meanwhile in the astral, a small eagle settles on a branch outside, with an unobstructed view of the cave mouth and entryway.

Smohalla is the shaman but it turns out that, in the kitchen, Stogie is the wizard. His dinner is a revelation, and his grouse is just as good as the canard à la rouennaise at Tour d'Argent on the Left Bank. He cleans and dresses the bird, turning the bones and collected mushrooms (plus some water collected by Smohalla) into quick stock that soon becomes a savory velouté. He sears the breasts and legs, finishing them by poaching them in the prepared sauce, then crumbles his trail bar across the top. Shockingly, it adds a pleasing textural contrast to the minced mushrooms, plus a tone of sweetness that compliments the candy cap mushrooms. It's not from any recipe and it can probably never be duplicated, but you'll laugh telling stories about it for as long as you live, which is hopefully longer than tomorrow.

On that note, Smohalla conjures a strong spirit to watch over you. It looks capable and vigilant, and you feel that you could probably get away without rotating through shifts on watch overnight. As it is, the temperature is dropping and nobody really wants to move away from the fire. Elessar has is crackling, warming and illuminating the cave. The wind whips around outside but the windbreak does its job. There's even enough moss and underbrush to serve as some makeshift bedding. Under the watchful eye of the spirit, you're sure that the fire won't throw off any accidental sparks. Jake curls up against Stogie, his ears peeled but not hearing anything other than the sounds of the forest at night.

Thoroughly pleased with himself over the success of the meal, Stogie cleans up, then curls up with Jake, whose warmth is welcome in the evening chill. Absent-mindedly he picks a bit of meat from between two troublesome teeth. I really should get those fixed.

"I've been thinking. Who knows what the Sisters are going to tell us tomorrow, but I bet there will be some story justifying what they have done. Out and out taking them on tomorrow might be a bad idea, seeing as the wolves will likely be around, along with their alpha, and the Sisters, who will be expecting us, will likely have spirits of their own to protect them. If we take the time to check out their story, we may be able to find a way to stop their crusade, or whatever it is, without full warfare. At least, having checked out their base of operations, we may be able to make a plan that is a little smarter than 'draw weapons and start shooting'.

"Does that make sense to you guys?"

Smohalla's arm shifts, revealing his eyes gleaming in the firelight.

As ever Shepherd, your wisdom is greater than your years.

We would not win that fight that you describe.

They will know that we will sense their auras, if they are Defilers.

My friends, I will not lie to them about our information...or our intentions.

"Yeah, I've given up on getting you to even consider lying, Smohalla." Stogie chuckles at that. "Not that we could get away with it with three Sisters all of whom are likely to be able to read auras.

"Seems to me a useful tack might be to let the Sisters know people are getting pissed at their behaviour, and that maybe there's a way we can figure out how to remove the need for them to act the way they do, rather than removing them. Early on it should be made clear that if we disappear, something stronger will likely come in our place. Something less likely to be interested in talking. Be sort of ambassadors of trouble shooting, rather than terminators. Hell, they may have a legitimate beef for all we know.

"Having said that, I also believe we should be loaded for bear if things go wrong. The Sisters may not be the negotiating kind."

Smohalla nods.

For that, I can ask a powerful spirit to aid us in being prepared for conflict.

When we meet, I will tell the Sisters some of what I learned from the Cascade Orks.

The Ork shaman tells a tale that is similar to our employer's.

Smohalla pauses.

But they do not have to know everything the shaman told me.

I will not lie to them, but nor will I provoke them unless there is no other way.

Stogie sits up at that. "I've been thinking what you told us about what the Cascade Ork shaman said. Did he elaborate about where the logging and the mining were happening? Or who the companies might be? If we have Matrix access here, maybe we could find out more about those operations. I'm sure Jeff is up to that.

"That might be our key to avoiding a showdown with the Sisters. Find out exactly what about those industries is torquing them off, and deal with that. Though the idea that the Sisters murdered someone and his family is hard to swallow. I'd like to be sure they don't just keep terrorizing people. Terrorizing corps, now...." He sits back, letting that idea trail off.

If there is more information to this incident concerning Paul Longshanks in Cle Elum, I do not have it yet.

I will not take issue with the Sisters defending Mother Earth.

Only with what means they use in the defense.

If they are not Defilers, we must wonder about our employer.

How does he gain by having us investigate the Sisters?

"Always wonder about the employer. And now that I think of it, we didn't do much investigation about him before we shot off into the woods. I hope we don't pay for that haste. But didn't your shaman friend give much the same description of the Sisters' behavour as our employer?"

Yes...yes he did. And I trust him much more than our employer.

"So, if it turns out the Sisters are twisted, and we can't work something out, we are going to have to tread carefully around them. One hint that we are not 'with them' means we are 'against them'. And it looks like that can be a fatal place to be."

So it is settled.

We will hold palaver with these Sisters, nothing more.

If we determine they must be destroyed, we must do so at a later time.

If we determine them to be different than we have heard...

Then we must turn to understanding why our employer AND the Cascade Orks would say this.

"Sounds like a plan to me." Stogie settles in and tickles Jake's chin, eliciting a grunt of pleasure from the dog.

Halfway through the conversation Ellesar had gotten up and walked to the pile of sticks set aside for kindling. Selecting a few of the smaller ones from the pile, he returned to leaning against the shelter wall.

Slowly and with precision he sharpens the sticks, all the while listening to the conversation between Smohalla and Stogie. Finished sharpening the sticks on both ends he puts them into his backpack and lays down.

"A bad plan is better than no plan at all."

You put your heads together to discuss what you know. The shifter said that the Sisters are "a long walk" from here. That's maddeningly ambiguous: will you be hiking for days or is "long" a relative term, simply implying farther than the shifter usually travels in a day? You decide that since you didn't start walking right away, and instead are staying the night, then it must be someplace you could walk to within a day. But then there's the complication of who exactly is the measure for how far someone can walk in a day. Is it the shifter, who will presumably travel on four legs and will thus move quite a bit quicker than you do, or did he take into account the bipeds will be moving rather slowly in comparison? Oh, and over what type of terrain? Will you be going up and down hillsides, or walking up relatively gentle valleys? You could have a brutal day in front of you. (Well, for those of you who can't fly, that is.)

Just to give yourself someplace to start, you decide that a long day of walking could potentially cover 30 kilometers if the terrain isn't too intense. Your commlinks don't receive a signal where you are but they do have the maps of the area in their active memory. Looking around in a circle, 30km to the west would put you back in the Seattle Metroplex. Every other direction can be described as "mostly mountains". Mount Rainier - what's left of it after it erupted back in 2017 - is about 20km to the south, but there are no known settlements that way. It is, however, in the direction of the fire lookout that was burned, killing a student.

The only town within walking distance is Lester, which you know was also attacked. (More accurately, it was the airstrip outside of town that was attacked.) It is about 10km to the northeast of your current position, which, given the terrain, could qualify as a "long" walk. The Green River runs through the town, so that would be a ready supply of fresh water for anyone living nearby.

As for tactics, you're in a tough spot. You won't have the element of surprise, you'll be on their turf, and they'll likely have defenses in place - spirits seem like a good guess. If they're smart they'll disarm you before granting an audience. Even if they don't disarm you, you can't throw a stone around here without hitting a tree. If you meet outdoors then there will be ample opportunity for them to take cover and little opportunity for you to take a clean shot. And, you know, they're magicians. All they have to do is see you to send an evil thought your way. Then there are the wolves who will be escorting you. It doesn't take long to decide that the best strategy is "don't piss off the Sisters". It's an entrenched position and all the advantages are theirs.

Smohalla listens intently to everything that Ellesar has to say.

Warrior, Shepherd. It seems we must tread cautiously when we meet these Sisters.

But I have just had a thought.

If we believe the Sisters to have a logical purpose in their destruction, then what have they destroyed?

An airstrip, a fire outlook, and a town.

They have also killed a mine overseer, his family, and a university student.

Why did they kill no-one when they destroyed the town?

Why destroy the town in one place, and only the airstrip in another?

I would like to answer these questions when we have our meeting.

"I'm not sure that all the incidents we have on our list are related. Looking at the incidents one way, they can be divided into those that harmed someone and those that did not. Though maybe the death of the student in the tower was accidental.

"Looking at them another way, there are those that are directly related to mining, and those that are more about sight lines or accessibility. Maybe we are dealing with more than one set of actions."

Stogie sets about drawing a map for himself. "Maybe a picture will help."

"We are dealing with multiple sisters. For all we know they aren't very compliant with each other. Maybe one of them decided it was okay to kill people. Maybe there are other factors in this that we're not seeing. It doesn't matter because we won't really know anything until we meet them."

Ellesar turns and watches Stogie with a puzzled expression. "A picture? Were you scouting the land while we were getting supplies?"

"Not any more than one would read the land while hunting. I'm trying to figure out if the relative locations of the incidents to each other and to the countryside can tell me something."

A wise observation, Warrior.

It could be that these Sisters are not united of purpose.

We must watch, and learn.

After some perusal of his notes and map, Stogie packs them up with a sigh. "I can't see anything special. I'm turning in. Wake me when it's my turn on sentry duty." He turns over to one side and pillows his head as well as he can with his hands. Jake grunts, goes outside to relieve himself, and returns to curls up in the crook of Stogie's lap. One shaggy ear remains cocked.

Nobody would confuse sleeping in a cave on a freezing night with sleeping indoors, but under the circumstances you get a surprising amount of rest. If anything, your busy brains keep you awake longer than any concern about the elements or an ambush. The fire keeps you warm, the cave traps some heat and keeps the frost off you, and the watchful air spirit guards the entrance. All you're left to think about is what a long day it's been. It started at home, then the meet with the Johnson, followed by some driving, the ruin of Greenwater, some hiking, and a pack of wolves led by a shapeshifter who is either the key or the lock to this whole situation, you're not sure which.

The night is quiet except for the wind in the boughs of the evergreens outside the cave. An owl hoots occasionally, and in the distance a pack of wolves howl. Smohalla opens his eye and switches his senses to the spirit, which confirms that there is no reason for concern. The wolves aren't within sight. Either they've got you penned in from a distance or they don't particularly care if you wander off in the middle of the night.

It's still black outside when the spirit wakes Smohalla a little after 06:00. It informs him that day will break soon and that its service will be complete then. It obediently asks if there is anything it can do before it departs.

The morning air is sharp, probably a couple degrees below freezing. The wind has died down but there's a light freezing fog covering the valley outside of the cave. There's a frost on the ground and breath hangs in the air in front of you.

Fly with me, my brother, before you depart.

Let us see what the wolves have been up to during the night.

With this mental suggestion, Smohalla shifts into eagle form and flies into the pre-dawn sky.

Accompanied by his air spirit, the duo circle the cave in ever-expanding concentric circles.

As the first morning rays of sun peak over the horizon, Smohalla thanks the air spirit for it's help.

He returns to the cave entrance, a small rabbit clutched in either talon.

Shifting once again into human form, he dons his clothing and rejoins the group.

One rabbit is given to the humans for cooking or whatever they wish.

The other is shared raw with Jake.

You can almost see the exclamation mark over Jake's head as part of a fresh rabbit is offered him. He wolfs it down. Stogie chuckles at the dog's eagerness and whips up a quick breakfast for the rest of the team. Jake is not above showing interest in the cooked rabbit, too.

"Jake, that's enough. Keep an eye out and let me know when the wolves return." Jake hangs his head and moves outside the cave to get a sniff.

Smohalla's reconnaissance doesn't turn up much evidence of the wolves. Neither he nor the spirit find any wolves watching the cave, nor does he locate the den. The sharp-eyed eagle spies a few caves hidden among the trees on the mountainsides that could serve as dens, but he doesn't see the wolves.

Just as the sun is starting to peek above the mountains, Smohalla notices the shifter trotting toward the cave in wolf form. He's alone and doesn't seem to have any escort with him. He doesn't attempt to conceal his arrival. He walks straight to the entrance of the cave before transforming into human form. He sniffs a bit and looks to the spot where Jake relieved himself last night.

He turns back to you. "You are still here," he says, looking around the cave, noticing the remains of breakfast. "I was unsure if you would stay. But as you have, I will do as I said. We will go soon." He waits and watches as you prepare to leave.

Ellesar stands up, picking up his backpack and stepping out of the shelter. "Well then, let's be off."

Smohalla has shifted into human form and is fully dressed.

He takes up a position near the cave entrance, indicating he is able to leave.

His posture is relaxed as he waits.

He remembers that Stogie had assumed the role of alpha, the day before.

He scratches Jake absent-mindedly behind the ears.

Stogie packs up the last of the breakfast gear and heads out of the cave. The sunlight coming over the ridge paints the top of the trees. "Looks like a good day to get some answers."

He steps forward and addresses the shapeshifter. "We're ready. Show us the way." Jake, stay close and alert. Keep me informed. Stogie reminds himself for the thousandth time that he must figure out how 'informed' translates to a dog.

The shifter raises an eyebrow and gives Smohalla an incredulous look. Smohalla is looking back in the astral but can't quite pin down why the wolf looks suspicious, but given the direction of the shifter's gaze it might have something to do with Smohalla's clothes.

The shifter turns with a grunt and leans forward, seamlessly transforming into a wolf with his hands turning into paws before they hit the ground in full stride. He's huge; half as big again as a normal wolf, which around here are the size of a man to begin with. He's well over a meter at the shoulder, dwarfing poor Jake below.

He sets off to the south, the direction from which you came yesterday. He follows the trail you took in reverse, leading you back down to Greenwater. He crosses the river and walks through what remains of the town. Llewellyn isn't around, or if he is it's too early in the morning for him to be up. It's quite cold out and the walking doesn't completely keep the chill at bay.

The shifter crosses the highway that you drove in on. There's another river just a hundred meters south of the road. You know from your maps that this is the Crystal River and that it originates from what's left of the glaciers on Mount Rainier, 20km to the south. The shifter follows the river, heading toward the mountain.

Smohalla follows slowly, unaccustomed to travelling so far on foot.

I am old he thinks to himself.

He notes that they are heading in the same direction the Sisters are rumored to be.

This seems to be a promising sign.

As they travel, he keeps his eyes open and his mouth closed.

Ellesar whistles the tune to an old folk song as he follows the others. He is content with taking up the rear in case anything unexpected occurs.

As the team follows the wolves towards the mountain, Stogie remarks, "Mount Rainier, huh? Powerful place to set up shop." Jake would not for the world let it show, but Stogie can feel his twitchiness around the massive wolf-form. The dog's extensive training and his natural assertiveness keep him steady. Nevertheless, these things are way scarier than sheep!

Come here, boy. Stay by my side. Jake complies right away. As they walk, Stogie empowers Jake with his adept powers of empathy for animals and enhanced perceptions. Fighting would be foolish, but these skills may help you deal with these larger beasts if trouble comes.

On the astral, Smohalla notes this interaction.

His thoughts take a trip into the past.

I remember trying to eat Jake, the first time I met him.

Smohalla lets his mind briefly wander over the ideas of consciousness and sentience.

His inborn instincts, the meshing that has occurred with his supernatural awakening...

Perhaps these things can happen in more ways than one.

I'm glad that I did not succeed.

The shifter turns around from his leading position and looks back at the group. Being dual-natured, he can see Jake's unease, even if it's well-concealed. He's about to turn his head to face south when Stogie transfers some of his powers to Jake. This causes the shifter to do a double-take, and his front paw pauses midstep for a second as he reconsiders the upgraded version of the border collie. The change interests him, but after a moment he turns and continues to lead the group south.

What's left of Mount Rainier looms ahead. Between gaps in the trees you can see the giant crater from when the mountain blew its top 55 years ago. The trees on the northwest side of the mountain are all undersized compared to the centuries-old evergreens that surround you.

The shifter follows the river upstream. A few kilometers south of Greenwater you find yourselves in a distinct river valley, with sharp peaks jumping up from the valley floor on your right. Following the river, the terrain is relatively gentle and progress is steady. The shifter keeps you walking at a fast but not unreasonable clip.

The shifter pauses every five kilometers or so. He goes to the river and drinks, occasionally taking the opportunity to mark a tree or other boundary. The scent is almost overpowering to Jake's enhanced perception. Still, Jake can tell that you're not the only ones nearby. There are other large mammals in the area that come to drink at the river. Jake detects more than one bear along the route.

The process repeats itself three times. Based on your GPS, you figure that you've traveled about 15 kilometers. If you continue to follow this valley, you'll reach Rainier in another 10 or so. It's taken about three hours to get this far. It's late morning and the sun has chased away the morning frost and warmed things up a bit. It's about 5 degrees Celsius but you'll probably only get another 2 degrees before the high of the day.

At the third stop, the shifter sits. He watches you, expecting you to take a midday rest.

An honoured tradition since time immemorial, Jake sniffs out a tree marked moments before and adds his own message. Stogie calls him over and gives him a handful of kibble. Check out the neighbourhood, boy. But stay close. Jake begins a patrol of the periphery of the clearing in which they stopped. Stogie then breaks out the remains he had saved from the meal the night before. He passes out tiny portions to his teammates. He holds out a morsel to the shifter.

"Want some?"

Smohalla starts to grab for his portion of the food, before pulling back his hand.

Smiling at Stogie apologetically, he takes the proffered food politely and then devours it.

As his meal is done, he sits on a fallen log and rests his back with a barely-audible sigh.

Making sure the others are still around, he closes his eyes for a moment and feels the sun on his face.

Not quite as nice as feeling the wind on his feathers...but still nice.

Ellesar takes the food offered him. "Many thanks," he states as he finds himself a seat on the forest floor.

You've been walking through the trees since leaving Greenwater, following a path that parallels the river as it travels south. The shifter has selected a piece of rocky shore where you're resting now. Smohalla looks at the river a few meters away, wondering if the water might cool his overused feet. But to do that he would have to stand up, and right now his feet are happy enough not to have any weight on them.

Per his instructions, Jake does a quick loop of the scene, sniffing and inspecting. He finishes his brief tour and returns to the group to look for seconds. He goes to Ellesar and sniffs to see if he has leftovers. Then he goes to Smohalla and licks his hands, searching for some flavor.

Smohalla enjoys the sun and the dog licking his fingers for one final moment before a high cloud passes and sends a cold shadow over the shore. Jake stops licking and jerks his head to look north. His ears perk up and a deep growl rumbles within him. Stogie can feel what Jake's enhanced hearing detects: something large moving in the forest in your direction, more or less along the same path you just took. By sound, it's about a hundred meters away, but the trees are dense along the riverbank and its impossible to see half that distance. Jake thinks that it's roughly the size of a metahuman, but bigger than any of you. The wind isn't blowing the right direction for Jake to smell it. If it maintains its pace, you should see it in less than a minute.

The shifter doesn't seem to be paying much attention. He closed his eyes at some point and hasn't bothered to open them. He lays in a sphinx position on a boulder, paws in front, resting his eyelids.

Smohalla notices Wolf's apparent lack of interest.

The eagle shifter still feels uneasy, being on the ground, exposed.

He would much rather be in the air, looking down on it all.

Gathering his will, he sends a small amount of power in the direction of the disturbance.

Tell me as much as possible about what is causing the noise. is the mental command.

"Something big is coming our way back the way we came. Maybe following us here. Should be here in a minute or so." Jake, go over there by that log. Keep watch for anything else. Jake hunkers down behind the fallen tree, peering over the log.

Stogie takes a position by a large tree, ready to take cover if necessary. He watches the trail they made. "Our canine guides don't seem worried, but no point taking chances."

It wouldn't be quite accurate to say that Jake doesn't look worried. His head pops up over the log before lowering it, quickly checking around him, then taking another peek. He can't see or hear anything specific, but he generally seems ill at ease.

Smohalla cups his hands together and begins to concentrate on summoning a watcher. He thinks of the eagle he brought forth last night before changing his mind at the last minute and summoning a small version of Jake instead. It manifests in the palm of his hand, it's tongue hanging out and waving back and forth. Smohalla uses his finger to direct its attention toward the woods, then sends it forth. It vanishes into the astral and shoots toward the woods.

Smohalla tries to track it on the astral but there's so many trees and so much life in the forest that the tiny spirit is quickly lost in the background. Smohalla closes his eyes and focuses on the mental link that he has with the spirit so that he can track where it goes and what it finds. It's hardly gone five seconds before there's an unpleasant POP and the watcher is disrupted. It causes an twinge in Smohalla's head, followed by a mild headache. Whatever struck it didn't give the watcher a chance to see it.

There's silence from the woods. Whatever was moving is now quiet.