The light was begining to fade when Jocasta admitted the obvious. She had absolutely no idea where she was. She climbed over a low woodfall and half climbed half slid down the embankment on the other side into another of the shallow gullies that seemed to ripple the woodlands. A crust of ice coated the bottom of the shallow depression with a scattering of snow, a few hardy snow berries thrust from between the rocks but Jocasta didn't know if they were edible. With Berry-en confusing any magical attempts the Lion's might use to track him, Beren would be safe but that did mean that she couldn't use her own arts to find him. She had a vauge plan that she should head towards Iskura. That was a laudible goal, but she had no idea where it was other than to the north. Which would have been useful information if she had any idea which direction north might be.

"You have a Campari crystal magicometer but no compass," she rebuked herself bitterly, blowing a leaf out of her hair. Her mind was about to turn itself to the problem of finding some kind of shelter for the night when she heard something crash through the undergrowth ahead of her. She froze in position and watched in horror as something roughly the size of a carriage crashed into the other end of the gully. It was misshapen, like a bear whose front arms were grotesquely long and covered in a long shaggy fur. It's jaw jutted out pugnatiously and its flat hairless face held eyes that glowed an angry green. It moved in an odd three limbed lope, both legs and one long arm, the other arm holding a club that looked to be most of an adolecent oak tree. It snartled something in a beastial language and then smashed its club into the ice, sending dirt and ice spraying in all directions.

Jocasta froze in place, her blood running cold. The thing glanced down the gulch, and for a moment its eyes slid over her. A sense of relief washed over her for about a second before the eyes swiviled back and pinned her in place. They narrowed and burned with brighter intensity. She had no doubt she had just come face to face with the arch-troll Qwarath.

"Shit," Jocasta said. The beast at the end of the gully let out a roar and leaped forward with shocking speed. Jocasta stood frozen in place as death rushed down on her. At the very last minute, as the club raised above her, instinct finally kicked in. She dived between the things three limbs, tumbling awkwardly and coming up on her feet before scrambling up the side of the gully. Qwarath spun and charged after her as Jocasta had hoped, while capable of a prodigious turn of speed, the strange gait did not lend itself to rapid turns. She made it to the treeline before the beast caught up with her, howling and frothing at the mouth. The stink of the thing was incredible, liters of stale sweat and dead animals mixed with sweat and something metallic. Jocasta ducked behind a tree as the troll swung his club. It hammered the trunk with a spray of bark and a delgue of snow from the upper branches. She danced back around another tree as Qwarath tried to grab her, long arm seeming as liquid as a snake. She dodged sideways, wishing she had time to draw her sword but unable to spare that much concentration.

"Diiiiie," the troll howled, spraying spittle in a wide cone. That word reminded her that this wasn't just some mindless beast.

"Wait!" she shouted, skipping back as the club whistled over her head, shattering a sappling into leaves and debris. She tried to duck behind the next tree but the troll was ready for it. He caught her in his free paw and lifted her up off the ground, fingers squeezing tightly.

"Killlll!" Qwarath roared.

"I know where Thurgrim Hamerson is!" she screamed. The troll seemed to freeze and one of its eyes bugged out enermously. It jumped up and down, dumping tons of snow across several acres as it shook the ground before pounding the earth with its clove in good measure.

"You tell Qwarath! You tell!" the beast howled. Jocasta wished she could claim she passed out as part of some clever strategem, but the truth was the troll was just squeezing her so hard she couldn't breathe. In any case, darkness closed in.