Amidst the autumnal beauty of Slovakia, an adventurer sought gold but found the true wealth in the bronze foliage and enchanting landscapes of Slatinka. From conservation efforts along the Slatina’s banks to the thwarted ascent of Mount Rysy, October’s journey unfolded with unexpected twists. The month concluded with a haunting encounter, marking nine months of volunteerism and a mountain of memories.
Greetings to you, my lords and ladies. Autumn is here. It’s probably raining outside. So sit down by the fire and let this stranger from a kingdom without sun or mountains, where the rain sings all year round, tell you about his adventures in the Slovak lands in October.
He came in search of gold. All he found was bronze foliage in the trees. Slowly, the beech and oak trees shed their leafy garb. And yet there was a whole enchantment about the place, especially the town of Slatinka.
Yes, only the willows were weeping, but the Slatina was singing. Not far from its banks, a group of brave volunteers were gathering wood and working in the meadows.
They had all come from the four corners of Slovakia, and even from the Kingdom of France, to save a precious treasure: biodiversity!
Two days of complicity and cooperation to give this piece of nature the royal care it deserves before winter.
To reward himself for these good deeds, the adventurer set off alone towards the Tatras, a crown of mountains separating two countries without a king. He set himself the goal of reaching the summit of Mount Rysy. And he walked. He walked for a long time, but was unfortunately slowed down by the merciless weather, which spat a terrible snow in his face. A snow that also liked to hide the waymarkers on the path.
The snow left a bitter taste of defeat in his mouth.
Two kilometres from the summit, he decided to turn back. Resigned… If only he’d had seven-league boots… However, at least he had good walking shoes and he used them, a few weeks later, to go exploring the Bratislava woods with three other young adventurers.
No snow, no storms. They arrived at the ruins of Pajštún Castle that same night. Darkness and relics of the past stood stoic against the distant lights of Bratislava glittering on the horizon. And the night cast a shadow over the place. The adventurers were proud of themselves! They were agree to said it was a great project. An idea they had during a meeting about Halloween, in the INEX’ guy manor, some days ago. This meeting was organized by one them : Amandine. Before this trip, it was interesting to learn about dark magic and the ghosts before and adventure like this.
However, the dangers are not always where you think. It was during this meeting that our adventurer was poisoned by the Specter of Autumn.
So, October was gone…
A new chapter was ending. Already 9 months as a volunteer. 9 like the rings of power given to the men. Nine like the members of the ring community. Although his objective was not the Mount Doom, he nevertheless had a mountain of memories inside him!
