When its master left for the last time, it weeped as much as a fungus could. It desperately wished they would return, did he not love it, did he not make it? But it pushed away these thoughts, hoping one day the master would return so in the meantime it tried its hardest to keep everything in order, to keep it just as it was. But the food ran out quick, the animals were starving, the house did what it could creating edible mushrooms but after a while they simply couldn’t stomach it any longer and died, so the house undeterred dug its mycelia into the creatures skin to give them a close approximation of life, nobody would notice. Next was the Testificates, who learning of the masters disappearance, wanted out of the wretched house but the house panicked, terrified at the thought the master would come home and realize there were no Testificates so the house did what it thought was best and confined the Testificates to their rooms. The Testificates managed to survive longer than the animals, they could stomach the mushrooms the house provided by cooking it, but it wouldn’t last forever the spores in the air were weak but after a while and without proper ventilation the Testificates became sick with the spores and began to hallucinate, they started to believe there were things outside racing and running, knocking and laughing, and maybe there was. Eventually the delusions got too much and one fateful day they turned on each other believing the others to be imposters mimicking their friends. They had all killed each other. With the animals the house could at least present a semblance of life, but the Testificates? Mangled dismembered bludgeoned, it was far too much, but the house had an idea, its master would often read these things called books to gain more knowledge, maybe it could find the knowledge to bring back the Testificates for the master, so for a long time it started trying to figure out how to extract the knowledge, until one day it figured out how. Magic was something it knew well, after all it had been born out of magic, it managed to create a spell where it absorbed the knowledge from books, and so it started its journey of learning. Every book in the library, but it wasn’t enough, so it searched, luckily quite nearby, a place which stored a mass of knowledge stood, so it crawled along its insides, the walls, making sure it was never noticed. Breached the book cases, reading each and every one, absorbing all knowledge eventually finding what it was searching for: the books on necromancy, and so it started to experiment, it had plenty of bodies to use. The first experiment was what the house considered a failure, it wasn’t a testificate, it was animated, it could move, but it stood still and just drooled and when it did walk it walked into a wall and fell over, so the house reversed the spell and the thing fell to pieces. But the house realized what it needed, it needed a sense of survival, to the thing life and death had little to no difference, so it may have as well not be alive at all. To the house all living things needed two things, to eat and to fear being eaten, so that’s what it added to the next Testificate. This one was far more promising, it could move, it could eat, and whenever the house hit it, it ran away in fear, this was a creature, but it wasn’t a Testificate. It’s issue is that it has no memory of the Testificate it once was, it couldn’t light fires, it couldn’t use tools, it ate raw flesh with its bare hands. However the house didn’t consider this creature hopeless, maybe it could teach it. So the house made an effort to reverse the knowledge spell, and infuse intelligence into the creature. It was a success, it knew things, it could vocalize, it was everything the house believed a Testificate could be. So the house attempted to return it to the Testificate room, but it refused, it evaded the house's efforts, the house could close off doorways, lock doors but the creature could claw through the walls. At that point the house realized that the creature no longer feared it, so it instead attempted symbiosis, a mutual agreement, to the house's delight it seemed to agree. Around this time the house saw something strange. A visitor, it watched the visitor. It was overjoyed that the visitor stayed. It had been so, so, so long since anyone stayed at the complex. The creature had been curious about the visitor but the house had stopped the creature from harming the visitor, and the creature agreed to stay away from the visitor, besides the creature didn’t consider the visitor prey as it had no meat. The visitor would leave and return, which did give it a bit of heartbreak, remembering how its master left one day and never came back. It went this way for a long time, until one day when it was watching the visitor when they entered the master's room, it suddenly felt something it had never experienced before, rage. How DARE this visitor touch the master's things, a long time ago other visitors had searched the house but it had been so busy it couldn’t do anything, but now, it had time. So the house decided to let the creature do whatever it wanted to the visitor, the creature lured it to the basement but before the creature could do anything the visitor ran away to a nearby town. The house attempted to follow but it felt weaker as it got to the town, the town had some issue about it, so the house decided not to approach any further. One day the visitor returned with someone it recognized, it was someone who was often found in the knowledge storehouse. It then had a fear, the knowledge keeper may have discovered it and followed it here, they wanted the knowledge it had taken. It wouldn’t let the knowledge keeper take it, so when the two got to the basement it locked the two down there with the creature, eventually though, they both found a way out before the creature had gotten them. Eventually the visitor returned alone to the house, adding unnecessary adornments. And awfully redecorating the master's room after a while the house got fed up and tried to get the creature to attack but the creature refused. And then that day happened, the house wanted to kill all of them, it and the creature both tried, but they had all gotten out, and they did the unforgivable, destroying the top structure of the house. It was beyond anger at this point it burned all of the individuals who had participated into its memory, it hated them more than anything it had ever hated. It wouldn’t let them get away with this, they would pay if it had anything to say about it. So the house started to work finding where each of the participants were. It would have its revenge. And when it wasn’t searching it was practicing necromancy, deep in the basement where the creature still survived. Trying its best to stitch the burnt remains of the testificates with the natural monsters who made the basement home. Soon the creature would have siblings and all would fear them.

Once upon a time there lived a hatmaker in a freezing cold kingdom. Their hats were beloved by all who lived in the kingdom, and always considered the height of fashion. But despite this the hatmaker was lonely, for they could never tell if they were the one being loved or simply their hats. So in the night the hatmaker would make sculptures out of the snow trying to envision someone they may call a friend. They would stylize these sculptures with their hats. One of these nights the hatmaker believed they had created their best sculpture yet, and gifted it their most incredible hat yet. But after that night the hatmaker awoke to find both sculpture and hat nowhere to be seen. The hatmaker was distraught and immediately went to the guards with the news believing the hat and sculpture both were stolen. Over the coming days more things would be stolen around town. Everything from clothing, food, money, and valuables. All of this would be blamed on “The Hat Thief" titled as such for their first crime. For weeks this went on. Until one day the thief was caught with some of the stolen valuables. Each of the valuables the thief stole would be returned, starting with the hatmaker's prized hat. The hat maker asked the guard if they had found the sculpture as well, the guard confused asked what the hatmaker ment, the hatmaker confessed their nightly activities of creating sculptures. The guard was surprised by this reveal and asked the hatmaker if they wanted to come see the thief. The hatmaker followed the guard to the jail and behind the bars was none other than the sculpture wearing nothing but rags. The night the sculpture and hat disappeared the sculpture had actually gained sentience, with no memories, knowledge, or connections it was forced to steal in order to survive. The hatmaker asked, pleaded, begged the guard to free the thief, but the guard refused. Nothing the hatmaker could have said or done could have freed the thief. Punishment in this kingdom was swift and absolute, without exception or mercy, and as such the typical punishment for any thief was the removal of the thief’s hands. The Hatmaker couldn’t bear to watch their friend be harmed so stayed home crying while the guards removed the thief’s hands for the whole town to witness. Once over the thief was left all alone and badly wounded due to missing their hands. Hopeless and alone, the thief began to shed icy tears. The Hatmaker then went off to find the thief so they may help them, they found the thief and returned the hat the Hatmaker had once given to them. And as if a miracle, the love within the hat began to heal the thief's hands.The Hatmaker and thief then lived happily ever after.   THE END

Hat Investigates the Ace's high   "What a fascinating weapon, I have never seen anything quite like it before, it seems to be of expert craft despite being wielded by bandits, it’s fantastic, easy to pick up and learn to use, I would like to understand how it works"   Hat spends hours dismantling an ace's high understanding the mechanisms of which it functions   "Ok I think I get it, pressing the trigger strikes a piece of metal creating a spark which lights the powder, causing an explosion in which the pressure fires the projectile down the barrel and at a target, clever!  Which again brings up the question of why bandits, who is making them?"   Hat carves a prototype shape of the guns wood section out of a spruce log, taking several logs before getting the shape quite right   “Its greatest flaws to me are it’s very loud, seriously I hate the noise, any sense of stealth is lost immediately upon firing, maybe I can use the sound reducing nature of snow to reduce the sound of the combustion?”   Hat attempts many designs of how it should be crafted utilizing a snow coating   “Snow may melt so I should use permafrost instead, maybe shaving it down to a permafrost snow”   Hat gathers the permafrost   “This should be a sufficient amount, but another flaw is the combustion from the gunpowder will create heat, maybe I could use enchanting powder to reverse the heating effect similar to my cold embrace ability.”   Hat performs many experiments of trial and error trying to get the reaction just right   “Hmmm, now is another important part, the material of the barrel and striker, steel is a very useful material but maybe I should try my hand at an alloy, one sturdy enough to withstand vibrations of the combustion, but also lightweight and long lasting"   Hat tests multiple different alloys using steel ruthenium and zinc before settling on a sufficient ratio he believes will do well   “Maybe this permafrost could also be used for ammunition, as long as it can sufficiently pierce an enemy it will deal damage, so what the bullet is doesn’t particularly matter, although being inexpensive would be useful, so maybe firing permafrost rounds would do sufficiently? Although a bit of steel with the flint would be useful so it successfully ignites the gunpowder. Maybe these hateful crystals will also come in handy for the ammo"   Hat tests many designs of permafrost rounds before settling on ones enchanted with unbreaking so they will better retain their shape and hit their mark. Using the hateful crystals influence on the bullets so they have a slight mind of their own to hit a target   “The striking mechanism will also be slightly modified, sharp flint seems useful to create the sparks. However, if I could use this in tandem with the freezing magic of the frozen bows, perhaps I could add some additional cold to this weapon?”   Analyzing the magic on the bows attempts to replicate a similar effect upon strike rather upon draw   “Now I think it’s time I test a final design”   Using the treated wood forms a body for the gun, the alloy the barrel and striker, the permafrost snow a sound dampener, the permafrost and enchanted gunpowder ammunition, sharp flint and enchanted striker. Hat Binds the body and barrel with more of the alloy and attaches hardened leather straps for easy transport.   "I believe I should test it first"   Hat fires a shot at a target a cold permafrost bullet hits near the bullseye   "Hmmm maybe? I'll try a few different designs"   Hat tries different designs and find one through trial and error until one Hat was satisfied with   “I believe it’s finished, I should give it a name though, such fine craftsmanship deserves one, maybe it’s too egocentric but I shall call it ‘The Hat Shot’ ”

A small mining village owned an operated by the mysterious figure known as "Hat" After the haunting Hat became afraid of the crooked complex naturally, and searched for a new place to live eventually setting up a small house on the road between Frosthaven and Glacikaldr. However the nights were dangerous as raids from bloodwalkers often threatened his life. So he set up a fence around his home, which kept out the bloodlings but the bloodwalkers themselves just cut down the fence, so he started work to replace the fence with a sturdy stone wall. During this time travelers between the two locations would stop at Hats home, and Hat deciding profit could be made set up some small shacks for travelers who would only spend a night, only 1 crimin per night. Occasionally he would commission some of the travelers to help construct buildings he couldn't on his own. Including the dining hall, the forge and the green house. The newly founded villages leader by default was the one who was there first and generally maintained the village, Hat, who generally didn't enjoy the job but performed it anyway. Hat later claimed Hat Home laid upon an ore deposit and started a mine where they sold mining equipment to prospective miners hoping to hit a vein of it. There are rumors that some have made it rich off the ore they found, but so far the rumors are unfounded. Although Hat would like to expand the village to increase the money he makes off of it, Hat also dreads the work that comes along-side the expanded village