Herbalists' Cache damson

there were many herbs of use here; qiao waylaid the small party the evening before, instructing @Stormracer to keep @rowdy and @Riot occupied. the former had travelled poorly; more than once they halted their procession to ply him with cured meats spiced with sedatives. after meals, the little wretch was certainly more compliant. 

with her herb-wares running low, qiao left midmorning seeking starflowers. her task took her across a bright green cleft of hills that deepened into a cool valley. a rift of stone rose to the east, and there under the dappled shade of midmorning qiao saw a tall cluster of periwinkle flowers. 

harvesting them was not so easy; with the gnarled antler of her to’lang, the crone began to scythe down each stem, leaving the toppled rhizomes where they lay as she went. 

as she bent to her task, she kept her attention sharp — but the wolf in the copse had not yet ventured close enough to be detected.