Solo [Hold Thread] The broken roof.

[Nemori]

52th of Summer, 516

The creaking was close and loud enough to wake Nemori and she blinked pale green eyes into the darkness. It was not that it was louder than anything else, more that she was struggling to sleep in the storm. Despite the incessant howling wind and cooing from the different animals the creaking was distinctive and weird enough that it caught her attention. It did not sound like the normal creaking or moaning from the old wooden stables, it sounded different. Bad different. She hesitated at the strangeness of the sound, waiting to see if she had merely imagined it. Soon enough another creak sounded. The noise made her uncomfortable. Was the wind louder? Was it colder in the stable? These things she was not certain but she definitely heard the noise once more. She attempted to stand, slowly. The blankets she had been laying on her in a jumbled pile and she did not wish to slip and hurt herself, or wake any of the other inhabitants who had gotten stuck in the stables through the storm. The air had been hot, stale and unpleasant from all the animals locked inside for so long. The few whisps of wind suddenly working through the building would almost be enjoyable if it was not so worrying.

Once she had freed herself from her temporary bed she started to scramble in the darkness for the lantern and matches. She was certain she had left them somewhere here. Had they been moved while she slept? She hoped not. Although the stable paths were mostly clear and well-tended she still did not wish to have to amble around in the dark. In her hurried searching she nearly gasped loudly as her fingers collided with the cold metal of the lantern. How long had she been trying to sleep for? The thoughts were pushed out of her head by another uncomfortable creek and she quickly found the matches. It took her a few attempts to get one to light but eventually the lantern was lit. She wrapped her hand around it, not wanting the light to wake anybody up. She could cover it enough that she could still see but it would not be glaring into the faces of anyone else.

She started to move towards the front of the building, worried that something had happened to the door. As she moved a few animals leaned over, investigating the movement and light. As she passed she would attempt to offer some whispered comfort to the animals. Occasionally they would seem calmed by her words, others looked on dispassionately. As she moved forwards she listened, waiting for the noise to direct her. It was not long before it sounded again. She changed her direction slightly, looking up as she moved. It sounded like it was above her. Was it the ceiling? She felt a flicker of fear at the idea, was the ceiling going to try and collapse in on them? It would be a disaster if that did happen. They were too many animals to move quickly and the storm would render injuries to many of them. The idea made Nemori feel uncomfortable, she was not prepared for such an eventuality and hoped it would not come to it. Her thoughts were distracted by yet another creek, they were getting closer together. However this time it sounded like it was more above her then the previous ones had. She lifted the lantern upwards, attempting to get a better view in the darkness.

The ceiling was high and coated in shadows, she was not really sure if she would be able to see anything. Next she started to look around, if she could climb up she would get a better view at what was wrong. Many of the walls were scalable and she moved towards a slightly more secure section, one that did not back onto an occupied stall. She placed the lantern on a hook above her then started to climb, finding handholds and footholds in the wood or planks that had been hammered into the side. She was thankful that they was lots of spaces she could use to climb. The stable had some storage up above and as a result had been built with climbing access in mind. Her eyes shifted into a deep purple as she climbed, carefully searching for the next step. She was aware that if she slipped it would be impossible to get medical help, she was aware she could not afford to mess up.

As she climbed higher she would occasionally have to move the lantern, casting its orange glow over a higher up part of the stable. Below her a few of the animals moans at the light, shuffling in their pens. She hoped that they would not start to cause problems, they was no way she could calm them from her position. Many of them were sensitive to the disposition of animals around them and would get riled up if the others were. Nothing about this was an ideal situation. Regardless she pushed upwards.

[Nemori]

Once she reached the top she pulled herself up. Taking a moment to rest and catch her breath before leaning down to grab the lantern. She was glad that she enjoyed climbing, someone inexperienced to it would likely have panicked and caused problems. She focused on her breathing, normalising it, before doing anything else. Some of the wood this high was rougher, having had less feet trampling it smooth or rubbing against it. The wind was louder up here, the whistling over the roofs becoming a prolonged howl.

After she caught her breath she leaned backwards and almost jumped as her hand came into contact with cold slush. She twisted around, moving the lantern to inspect the liquid. It looked like half melted snow. A dip in the wood had allowed it to gather and the rising heat had started to melt it. Some broken bits of wood were scattered around, it had been lucky that she had not leant onto any of them. Her eyes followed them upwards. Part of the ceiling had caved in, allowing the snow to fall through. Most of the heavy snow was being carried away by the wind, otherwise it would have been much worse. The hole was only small for now but she was sure had the wind not been as strong the heavy build-up of snow would slowly cripple the roof. Nemori new nothing about architecture or buildings, it had never been a part of her training nor anything that interested her. Despite this she was aware it was important to learn fast. The hole had to be covered up as secure as she could make it.

Pale green eyes started to scan around, searching for anything that could help her. A few boards and fabric pieces had been stashed up high for storage and she started to move towards it, crouching so as not to hit her head on the ceiling. As she moved she listened for any other creaks, any other signs of weakness in the roof. Most of the fabric was hole ridden or had tears in and she cursed internally, she needed something secure and without holes. A few of the boards looked small enough for her to move and she started to slide them towards the opening. They were mostly cut into long planks. Underneath where the planks were was a coil of rope that had been haphazardly tucked away. It was knotted in several placed and as she pulled it a few, but not all, of the knots came undone. The rope itself seemed sturdy despite having been hidden away for however long. This she also moved towards the hole before continuing her searching. Most of the remaining things were damaged beyond repair however she found some strange metal shapes with a hooked top. They looked almost like bells but had no ringer to make any noise.

[Nemori]

Nemori frowned as she considered her options, she had no hammer or nails to try and affix the boards in place and did not think she would be able to find any elsewhere. The hole had to be covered somehow, would the fabric do a good enough job? She pondered before moving back towards the missing part of the ceiling. The wind cut into the barn and broke the stifling heat. Nemori wished she had brought her coat with her, the barn was so warm it was impossible to wear it but the stormy air was the reverse. Nemori was thankful for her mark from Morwen, being able to tolerate the cold a little bit better was helpful right now.

She moved some of the fabrics, attempting to layer them up in a way that meant the least overall gaps in the sheets. She used three sheets of roughly equivalent size layered horizontally across each other. The rough sheet of fabric she created had a few smaller holes but she hoped that it would do a good enough job until the storm gave out. Her next task was to untangle the rope. Slipping the strands around each other until it became untangled. It took some time and lots of pulling the rope through each itself but she eventually managed it, letting some parts of the rope dangle over the side so that it was out of her way. Next she started to attach the rope to the sheets, partly in an effort to hold them together.

She used her knife to poke small holes into the edges which she would then thread the rope through in a repeating over-under pattern. Nemori had to fight back occasional shivers as she worked. It did not take her long before her hands started to hurt from the fine work. She was not practiced at sewing and despite the larger scale then sewing her hands still complained at the repetitive small motion. When she had finished threading the rope thought she paused and stretched her hands out a few times. Her eyes studied her work so far, it was very rough but she hoped it was good enough. Once her hands stopped hurting so much she tied one of the weird metal bell like objects to an end of the rope. The other she kept free for now. They was a plank of wood between two parts of the hole and she threaded to empty rope through, attaching the weigh to it now. She hoped it would be enough to hold it in place. Nemori picked up the other end and eyed the wind outside. It had gotten gentler since she had been working but that was no guarantee of anything.

She tossed the weight in her hand, uncertainly. A few moments passed as she thought. She grabbed the final weigh and attached it also to the rope, hoping that twice as much weight would keep it from being pulled up by the wind. Once she finished tying it she weighed them again. Part of her was still uncertain about it, the wind was strong after all, but she had little other choice. She slipped both of the weights onto the outside of the building, letting them slide down the roof until they pulled the fabric taunt across the hole. Nemori had to readjust the other end of the rope, typing the weight higher up so that it had less distance to pull. She stopped to check the work.

Already she could feel less of a breeze as the wind danced over the sheets instead of into the building. It would collect snow easily and eventually give way but if she came and emptied it out every so often it might just hold long enough. She made a mental note to come check back in a few hours as well as to remember to warn people once the storm had stopped. With that thought in mind she started to clamper back down the side of the stables, grabbing the lantern and slowly lowering it onto holds as she climbed. Each step was careful and slow so as not to trip.

[Prophet]

Grader :

Dear grader,

Nemori will receive a slightly used Atlatl for her work in this thread. It's value will be 2.25 GM and is described by the price list as "Sometimes called a spear-thrower, this tool uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart-throwing, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to temporarily store energy during the throw. The overall effect is that a spear or dart may be thrown with increased speed and power."

If this item is used frequently and no care is given to repair/condition it, the atlatl will break.

[Maro]

Nemori Skills +Animal Husbandry +1 +Climbing +3 +Construction +4 +Knot Tying +1 +Observation +2 +Stealth +1 +Wilderness Survival: Tundra +2 Lores -Creaking Timber: An Off Sound, A Bad Sound -Wilderness Survival: A Lamp is a Light and a Source of Heat -Stealth: Cover Sources of Light -Calming Animals in a Storm -Climbing: Looking for a Way Up -Ceiling Holes in Storms: Not Ideal -Construction: Use Whatever's Available -Wilderness Survival: Morwen's Mark Cuts the Cold -Untying Tangled Rope -Construction: A Knife Makes a Good Tool -Use Weight to Hold Down Tarps Loot Nemori has received an Atlatl (a spear thrower). It is slightly used and worth 2.25 gm. Care must be given to repair this tool regularly or it will lose effectiveness and eventually break. Notes : As always, well done, Nemori. It was a good simple thread that utilized your character's strengths while exploring some new skills. I will always feel new at grading, so if you think I missed something let me know. I won't be insulted. Please make sure to edit your request to 'graded' in the queue.