Can Reindeers Fly?

A Christmas Adventure for Loose Threads

Introduction

The Company is in the Arctic, a snowy and cold barren wilderness, with some green patches, with forests, glades and meadows here and there. The Company had gone there for some specific reason, perhaps looking for clues about their Heart’s Desires, maybe hearing something about Father Christmas and perhaps looking for some kind of magical help (or not). They stop at a local village near the Christmas Village, that they can spot in the middle of the white barren wild when the local people will mention that the villagers that works in the Christmas Village sounds worried.

If the Company talk with them, they will explain that Santa (another name for Father Christmas) is worried if his reindeer could not fly this year. They will explain that Santa’s reindeers are like any other reindeer found in the region’s glades and woods but treated in a special way with a special magic compound provided by the Fairies to give them their iconic magical abilities of flying and wondrous speed.

If the characters look for Santa, he will receive them in the Christmas Village and will explain that he would actually be unable to travel the world without resorting into the Fairy Dust provided by a friendly Fairy, the Sugarplum Fairy, which is mixed in the reindeer food of hay, carrots and sugar. But she couldn’t be found in recent times, and the power of the Fairy Dust is waning, which turns dangerous for him to travel through the sky as he could fall from the sky to death when the Fairy Dust magic wanes. But he will do it if needed, even if this could put his life under strife:

“I can not help but fulfill my obligations at Christmas, especially when many children see in me the only hope of some happiness, but I prefer to avoid the risks as far as I can. I’m also worried I took some action that bothered the Sugarplum Fairy and made me to lose her friendship. I would just like to understand what happened, if so.”

  • Problem: Santa needs to deliver the Christmas presents, but the fairy that provided the Fairy Dust needed for the reindeer flies did not contact him this year;
  • Solution: Find this Fairy and see what can be done until Christmas

Investigation

The Christmas Village’s Elves will say that the only one that can produce this Fairy Dust, the Sugarplum Fairy, looks like disappeared for some time. It is known that she and the Ice Queen have some old qualms, but they never thought that the Ice Queen would violate the old time traditions of nonviolence among Fairies.

If they return to the village they came before, the people there will say that some evil creatures had grown into activity in the region. Especially at those time of Eternal Nights, where the Sun is almost a magical blessing, evil creatures have always liked into attacking and doing mean actions nearby villages. And while the Christmas Village protects nearby villages, as many artisans in the area help the Elves to produce the toys that are distributed at Christmas, this year things had grown even more dangerous!

The villagers will mention also the Ice Queen’s castle, which lies off the region, as well as a Dark Forest. The Castle is Made of Pure Ice, and there she lives surrounded by her lackeys, like Trolls, Hags and other evil creatures. But the most terrible are the Cold Hearted: they are called this way because their hearts are frozen through the evil magical arts that she possesses and uses.

To turn things worse, all the villagers know that the Ice Queen hates the Sugarplum Fairy with all her strength: first, because the Sugarplum Fairy is the Master of the Midnight Sun and Northern Lights; And secondly because it is a known fact that the Sugarplum Fairy is much more powerful than the Ice Queen.

The villagers will also says that Sugarplum Fairy’s Hut is in the middle of the nearby Glen, halfway between Christmas Village and the Ice Queen’s Ice Castle.

In-Between - Arctic

The Arctic’s snowy wilderness surrounds and encompasses the various locations nearby the Christmas Village, and in this winter the Arctic it is Especially Frosty and Dangerous. There’s many things that can happen to those fool enough to not prepare themselves for the harsh environment. However, knowing the environment well, life can be somewhat easy and even enjoyable: some groups of hunters and shepherds of elk and reindeer lives in the area, the hunt for creatures such as wolves, elks, hares and rabbits being their way of life.

At certain points of the white wilderness, there are small woods where pines and redwoods and similar trees offer some shelter from the snow and cold, and some pine cones, almonds, and even occasional blackberries for food. However, here are risks too, in the form of packs of Wolves and Foxes looking for fresh meat.

Monsters

Hazards

Denizens

All the inhabitants of the Arctic are somewhat united, due to the region’s harshness. On the one side, they can be people in solidarity with the needy, even if occasionally suspicious; On the other hand, they may be cruel creatures, who are held together by a powerful and irascible leader.

Secret

The Sugarplum Fairy was actually captured by the Ice Queen: usually the Ice Queen would not be able to do this, but in a moment of carelessness at the beginning of winter, the Sugarplum Fairy took her bath and left her Magic Wand far enough for the Queen’s Wolves and Cold Hearted to abduct her from her house. The Fairy’s Hut is still all messed up and proper tests will reveal this story.

The Ice Queen had captured the Sugarplum Fairy for a simple motive: she desperately needs the Fairy Dust that only the Fairy can produce for her selfish ends, such as creating her lieutenants, the Cold Hearted, from children kidnapped from elsewhere by her evil forces, and to maintain her own young and pretty semblance.

In fact, the Ice Queen is a powerful and evil Fairy, already quite old. Her natural look was once as beautiful as the one she keeps using the Sugarplum Fairy’s Dust, but in fact her present semblance is the one of a horrible hag, almost as abominable as a Troll and more evil than one.

Without the characters’ knowing, the actual Fairy Dust stock is waning, and with it Sugarplum Faerie’s time: although she herself does not need the Fairy Dust, she would not go low and prepare some for the Ice Queen. The Dust stock that the Fairy had was stolen by the Ice Queen when she kidnapped her, and is already waning. Obviously, the Ice Queen will do terrible things with Sugarplum to try to get more Dust, or even better the Fairy Dust Recipe, which was not in any of the books that the Fairy had (and she stolen).

A Secret that the Fairy will be able to comment on with the Company if needed: there is a single copy of the Fairy Dust Recipe, buried in a special place underneath the floor of her hut, and hidden inside a small glass flask. However, the paper where the Recipe is written is a Magic Paper, laced with some magics by the Fairy to reveal its secrets only For those with the Fairy’s Mark, a special breath that she gives on those she trusts that contains part of her magic, enough for the Paper to know that the person in question may use this Recipe. It is possible, for a proficient Magic User, to try to reveal the secret by Force, but it will demand Magic tests. And a failure can result in the Paper being destroyed.

The Fairy is hoping to escape, but between giving Fairy Dust (or the Recipe) to the Ice Queen and dying, she will prefer the second option as a no-brainer.

Snags

The Ice Queen

A very cruel Wicked Fairy, the Ice Queen stole the position of the Old Ice Queen, a Mortal turned a Fairy by the Magic of the Seasons. While her predecessor preserved and respected the cycle of life, the current Ice Queen wants only power, and for that she wants to dominate all the creatures of the Arctic. And what better way to prevent than by subjecting them to Extreme Cold and making them cold creatures, both body and soul, the Cold Hearted.

However, she still faces an obstacle: Father Christmas, who still looks the hope of warmth even in the coldest winter! And there is also the Sugarplum Fairy, which does not offer her the powers she wants. To achieve her goals, she is capable of everything, including killing the Sugarplum Fairy if necessary

NPCs

Ice queen

Sugarplum Fairy

Jack Frost

The Grinch