Snippet #2439329

A light misty rain fell on the pair of coaches as they rumbled along the narrow mountain road. The sky was cast in pinks as the sun sunk low in the sky, and a rainbow stretched across the corners of the earth. Ahead, the castle loomed, a black tower against the colorful sky. Pinpricks of light dotted the castle itself, where torches were lit in windows to ward off the gathering dark. The hardy horses the pulled the carriages snorted from time to time, but like their drivers, were silent for most of the trek. As they neared the castle, the rain had turned into a light fluffy snow, that danced on the early autumn breezes.

In one of these coaches sat the leader of the expedition, accompanied by the language expert, the anthropologist, and a man of the Catholic Church. In the other was the Engineer and his foreman, accompanied by the pair of women lucky, or unlucky, enough to have joined the expedition.

The trip was a long one, and the chill of the mountain height set in quickly, but there was little to do, save conversation....