[SWP] don't get too close

[Random Events]

the earth will swallow you whole

After a time, the rains finally begin to slow. The sky still weeps from time to time, but the showers are scattered and infrequent, their fall light and easy. The clouds even begin to part, flashes of blue woven throughout the gloom, a ray of sunshine piercing the murk. 

But it only serves to shine light upon the destruction left in the storm’s wake. 

The flood waters are still high and raging, the streams flowing far past their banks and drowning the surrounding meadows. The swamp has become one big, stagnant freshwater ocean, downed trees hiding in the muck and waiting to knock horses off their hooves. But the greatest change lies in the Sussoro Fields, where the earth has seemed to collapse in upon itself, leaving holes several tens of meters deep.

Sinkholes have ravaged the ground, hidden tunnels broken and fallen. The ground is unsteady and prone to mudslides, every step treacherous and uncertain. The cries of horses and other animals can be heard, half-buried beneath the mounds of dirt and mud. But rescue itself is also uncertain, when every step might prompt another section of ground to fall suddenly fall away.

With the storm passing and the sinkholes beginning, you can’t help but wonder: is the true disaster finally over, or has it only just begun?

Up ahead is a small gathering of horses, growing by the second. You find yourself drawn to them, your own four hooves carefully picking closer, navigating through the destruction. They have gathered around a particularly big and deep sinkhole, talking amongst themselves in worried tones. Once you join them, you understand why: there are two foals trapped below, not yet yearlings. One is unconscious, and the other insists he has a broken leg. The onlookers seem to have no idea how to proceed with their rescue… perhaps you have an idea?

And they are not the only ones in need. The sinkholes have trapped many, horses and woodland creatures alike. The ground is rumbling, and for a second you could swear that you hear footsteps beneath the ground. Whatever has caused these holes and buried tunnels may still be lurking below, and based on the size of them, it was no mere groundhog. 

 

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