Literally nothing she can do about that, thanks! If this is the part where they throw her in prison and sell her as a slave, or maybe try to sacrifice her to something, as novels suggest, well She Tried. She is out of Try.

Here they are. Another language is attempted. When that doesn't work a guy gets out a scroll and then very loudly and clearly, like she might understand this sentence, reads from the scroll.

Then the scroll shrivels up into nothing which might be interesting.

"-How by all fucks does it do that. Autoignitive pigment...? No, you- Obviously meant to do something. I'm sorry, I'm too cold to think clearly, I was in my workshop and a monster teleported me out into the snow." Point at the claw. "Not the one this came from, which was encountered and dispatched estimated - three, maybe four kilometers at one o'clock from perpendicular to the thing that's maybe a containment field- It was self defense, I assure you- I'm rambling."

"Dretch," about the claw. Affirmative nod at "containment field" and again at "self defense".

"-Oh, you understand me." That's not that far fetched as Sparkwork goes. "Yes, killed a dretch. How do I cooperate with your security protocols?"

(Of course they have security protocols. City Frostbound has security drills all the time, especially the gate guards, and these guys are some sort of equivalent.)

She frowns. "Right, one way. Uh. I don't wanna freeze or starve. I have the Spark*. I have received training in moderating its influence, though my ability to do so degrades under high stress. I'm willing to give up all tools and weapons given the danger an average Spark with tools and weapons represents. I presume you have regulations against a number of things but I do not... Know them. I promise to obey security-related instructions as best I understand them. Maybe I should - learn words for the most essential commands? Stop, yes, no, danger, warning..."

*Probably comes across as some kind of sorcery.

They seem to find this speech extremely reassuring. The guy who was doing other gestures-and-mutterings says stuff to the other guys. They motion her to follow them to the fortress.

And they're not taking her weapon (yet?) Odd.

(Call upon the barest embers of that audacious madness, thermal energy insufficiency of all things is not allowed to defeat me-)

She can stand and walk another couple hundred meters at least. There is enough left for that.

It is warmer inside. Not a lot warmer - they seem, on inspection, to have to make do with body heat and very miserly fires; everyone keeps their coats on indoors - but it's insulated, at least.

She looks beat. They direct her to a barracks-y room - it has blankets in it, and a sleeping person - and gesture encouragingly at a bed there.

-If they're sure?? "You don't want to use the remainder of the translation effect? Or check me for contraband? Or anything?"

She feels like she's getting away with something. But will, in fact, attempt to Become Warm and promptly fall asleep, probably.

The translation effect guy cups his ear when she says that, but if she doesn't actually have anything to say, she can sleep.

She feels surprisingly beat for what wasn't really all that long out in the freezing cold. Five or ten kloms hiking, and a brief period of higher exertion and calling the Spark.

It was the MURDERING a flesh and blood monster that did it, probably. It clearly had THOUGHTS. Which makes her a MURDERER.

She does something vaguely resembling sleep for about four hours, and then checks to make sure everything she laid down with is still there, the saw, the odd bits and bobs that always accumulate in worksuit pockets, the... Claw. And then looks around, feeling a bit lost as to What Now.

Her stuff is all still there. A different configuration of random people are sleeping in the room now. She could exit the room.

There aren't any CLOCKS or a SCHEDULE on the wall how is she supposed to know what to do

That bastard MONSTER probably destroyed all her hard work on the multitool arm

No. Stop. What are some useful thoughts?

She needs to find a source of steam or convert the saw to hand-power. Okay, that's something, there are a few ways to go about it, but-

-Probably not immediately relevant as those will require ~resources~ and she is not in City Frostbound anymore, not to mention her stack of heat stamp money would be useless here anyway.

Yeah, she will take her saw and exit the room and retrace steps entranceward, ready to stop if it seems called for by anyone.

Somebody spots her and waves her over and tries to beckon her thisaway further inside the fortress!

Oh, okay, here come the security procedures. She will nod and follow with, not exactly eagerness but at least purpose.

Through the mess hall - if she stares at the food she can have a food first.

Eh. She's more staring at the inefficient fires with vague annoyance and thoughts of improvements.

Also. A lot of anxiety about not knowing the rules or language.

Up a bunch of stairs, then, and into an office.

A man behind a desk extends his hand to her.

She hesitates, but: Handshake?

"Share Language."

This guy super reminds her of the Captain in a bad mood.

Processing.....

"Interesting. Thank you. What now?"

"Perhaps you would care to explain more about where you are from and how you came to be at the Worldwound."

Okay, she can do a report. Report cadence on.

"I am Waltana Hampson, from City Frostbound. A deliberately isolated community whose exact location is meant to be secret. I was having an ordinary day when in what I am guessing was either a bizarre accident or some sort of assassination attempt, a Huge snake with a mirror for a face appeared in the workshop I was using and began thrashing around. I confronted it- Unwisely, my - sorcery? - can drive me to unwise actions for all that I have done mental disciplines to control it. When the mirror touched me, I found myself inside the... Worldwound, inside the containment field. I walked towards the field edge and fought a - I think they said dretch- Along the way. And then here. I'm a bit surprised the soldiers allowed me to keep my saw?" It's hanging on the boiler suit belt now.

"It is not customary to deprive people of their weapons at the Worldwound unless they have done something very seriously concerning, being as there are demons around and they do not always consent to appear only at predictable moments. Being an unwise sorcerer who had a teleport accident and fought a dretch and did not attack human defenders of the border does not make you very seriously concerning."