Anaiya Thorn's Story

"I don't think any of us know," Sahlie said, looking Casren over critically as he climbed up. "But yeah, I'm pretty sure we all caught that. Whatever that was," he spat the word, shivering at the memory. That would go straight into repression. For now, at least.

To keep himself busy, the rope tied to the nearby rock suddenly became very interesting, and he walked over to it, putting himself to work untying it and curling it up. "Life is always like the movies. At least, you can learn a few things from them, so they're not all bad. Besides, I don't want to think about mind-blowing stuff until I get somewhere warm and with food."

"One of us? Assuming we all had same vision, I think it's pretty safe to say that it was more than one of us." His gaze flickered over to Cináed. "We both saw the temple, after all. And I saw him. So yeah. But I don't even want to try to guess at the reason."

At risk of sounding rude, he quickly asked, "So can we get a move on? Just because I've gotten used to the cold doesn't mean I fancy standing out here if we don't have to."

Entry 132. Crazy shit and I'm not even doing drugs. What does it mean, then? I should take my own advice and stop thinking about it. End entry.

Four hours? Delicious, just dandy. At least it wasn't six hours, or another day. Casren dusted the snow off of himself while the rope was coiled, listening to the others. Things were going strangely. He had a dream, a series of dreams, the same dream. Took off, and ran into othe-

You saw the temple as well?

Others who had the same dream. Could it be?

Now Casren certainly felt the chill of the mountain. This was no coincidence, them meeting here, the vision, the appearance of the figure. Was the pit involved? Paranoia seeped into his cranium. Casren had the worst feeling about continuing, especially after...Whatever had just happened. He had to clear this, and waved his arms in a fit

You saw the temple, in the dream?

He looked from face to face. Meeting another climber was one thing, but a dream?

Cináed smiled, "There's some sense there." he said as Sahlie protested philosophical discussions in the middle of a blizzard. Of course, he didn't feel the cold, but the wind was still damned distracting.

When Casren spoke, he nodded his head. "We both did. Dream of the temple, I mean. We varied on the details - Sahlie here actually dreamed of me!" He gave the other teen a sidelong grin, "In an abstract sorta way, at least."

Anaiya nodded her head, "I believe that it is the doing of those who live in the temple. The Patronus - I do not know if you have heard of them, but they are warriors who protect Terra's people from evils that would do them harm. You will learn more another time, now we should keep moving."

The doctor's eyes remained on the wolf looking over them. "The wolf, over there, you see it? The way it watches us. It seems... odd." She glanced over her shoulder at the way ahead, "It is not in the direction that we are going, though. Perhaps it is nothing."

Following the older woman's gaze, Cináed looked off up at the wolf. "Maybe it saw the being too?" he suggested, "And that's why it's staring at us?"

Anaiya shook her head, "Either way, we should keep moving. Inactivity for too long in weather like this can be fatal." she said, starting onwards again and gesturing for the others to follow.

The Patronus,

Indeed it was a name Casren hadn't heard for quite some time. Last time that had crossed his mind was in an old book, in their library. He had forgotten about that book completely.

Warriors who protect Terra? That was relieving, but what of...

What of all that had just happened? The ominous voice, guy, thing, daring them to continue? It had frozen time. Now, dreams were impressive, but time itself? Come now.

The Patronus told us this is not the way?

He was officially...Confused. They should keep moving, lest they die out here, but...Wait. Whaaaat's going on here? Casren looked between the others. Who were these people? Was he going mad?

Anaiya shook her head, "Either way, we should keep moving. Inactivity for too long in weather like this can be fatal." she said, starting onwards again and gesturing for the others to follow.

As the group made its way along their route, the wolf continued to watch on. It wasn't until they drew nearer to its location that it at last abandoned its vantage point. Turning away it paused to cast a look back over its shoulder before padding off through the rocks. Its trek took it out of sight as it made its way up a treacherous and winding trail of ice and rocky crevices that led away from the direction Anaiya was leading the group. As it again appeared overhead upon a boulder, it watched on expectantly.

They did have to keep moving.

Casren followed along with the group, keeping mostly to the interior of his head. Was this a good idea? He knew better than to disregard dreams and visions, however what when those were compromised by the appearance of...Of what?

These lands were strange, beings popping up out and in all over the place. But... Who was that? Who was that? Why did they appear, then, and could their message have meant anything else besides "Turn Back Now"?

The couldn't turn back now, or they might die. Perplexing.
Casren would be sure to ask questions as soon as they arrived...If they arrived. Keeping his eyes to the travelers ahead, he moved forth. Up ahead, he could of sworn he saw a wolf, but wasn't sure if the snow was just playing tricks on him.

This could, too, all be a mania caused by the Crawling Chaos. Giving up, Casren sighed. To the temple, indeed.

"No complaints here, I'm the one who suggest it first. Doesn't matter if something's watching us, I only need to freeze to death once to confirm I don't want to try it again. In case that wasn't clear. In general, dying isn't on my list of things to do."

Meanwhile, while continuing up the mountain, and despite his own words, Sahlie was pondering the meaning of the message they had all heard. It was a warning, but not one telling them not to continue, simply to be wary. Which the trickster was. He was always wary.

And again, leaving withou solving the mystery would have been a large waste of time, not to mention effort. The only choice left was to see this through to the end. Every once in a while, a look around would reveal suspicious shadows. Likely, one of them was the fur-covered watcher.

"And so we go. Up, up, and away," he mumbled to himself. It was still a long climb yet.

Anaiya turned her head away from the wolf as it turned from the path, losing sight of it and not seeing its actions from that point onwards. Her attention remained on the path, wary for any breaks in the rock or other hazards.

Cináed smirked at Sahlie, "You don't have to worry about that, tetchy." he said with a small laugh, "Nobody's gonna freeze while I'm around. If anyone does start to feel like they're gonna faceplant in the snow, do let me know, 'cause that's something I can deal with. I can't help you if you fall off the mountain before saying anything, though..."

The blonde teen followed after Anaiya, taking up a position behind her to once more clear the trail for those following - his aura of heat turning the ice to steam in an area around his feet.

They trod onward for some time, winding around the mountain through the falling snow. The wind pulled more viciously at them as they ascended towards the clouds, only adding to their discomfort as it chilled even through their clothing.

It was some time later that they reached a narrow pass between two steep, near-vertical ridges. They rounded a corner only for Anaiya to halt suddenly with a muttered oath. In their path, blocking the route forwards quite effectively was an enormous mound of rocks and snow - a landslide that had all but filled the pass, cutting them off from the way forwards.

"Of all the luck..." Anaiya muttered, "Some loose rock must have been dislodged in the blizzard. We'll have to turn back and find a way around."

Oh hell,

Casren muttered, as something somewhere within his clothing beeped. It beeped again, it beeped extensively.

Now what was this here, the way was blocked? He sighed. Of course the way was blocked, why wouldn't the way be blocked? There was always a freaking obstacle. Was this another sign? Casren glared at the sky.

Of all the luck indeed,

He shouted above the winds, which of course picked up. Luck, bah!

Is there anywhere, anywhere else closer than the temple we can go?

Casren was only mildly infuriated with the situation at hand, but the frustration grew as the incessant beep in his furs somewhere beeped on and on and on and on and on and would it ever shut up? He pat at his clothing, looking for the tiny Descorp cellular telephone device that plagued him.

Still following the monster's tracks, Rick rolled forward. As he rolled he continued to spout more insults at the monster that had evaded him for so long, "Insults" being questionable for he had used up all the good ones and had to start making up new ones which probably sounded more silly then insulting. "It's pointless you adopted, water gargling, grass eating, kilter grated, moo muffin! Why don't you just give up already!" he shouted into the virtual wall of snow. His loud voice caused some snow to tumble around him but hardly slowed him. Soon though he was able to detect forms of organic life ahead of him. An involuntary "There you are." was sounded as he rolled over to them. He starts to fake coughing and then says "Uhh I mean hello there, the names Rick! You wouldn't have happened to see a monster pass though here, would you?"

"I just don't fancy having it happen again, however likely it is. And what the hell is a tetchy?" he shot back at Cináed, "And if I'm in danger of falling off, I'll just grab onto you. Either we'll both go down or you'll save me. Isn't that a wonderful prospect?"

He was only joking. Well, mostly joking, at least. Sahlie followed after the other teen, walking in the cleared path. He didn't fancy any other accidents; it was better to be safe than sorry.

A scowl came across the trickster's face as he caught sight of the landslide. "Well, that's just great. How long is this detour gonna take?" he asked Anaiya, annoyed that it would take even longer to climb the mountain.

All the while, Casren's phone rang, furthering Sahlie's bad mood. He opened his mouth to snap at the other male, but caught himself and took a few deep breaths. "How does your phone even work up here, and who could possibly be calling."

Over the blizzard and his annoyance, he failed to notice or hear Rick.

Entry 133. Fuck detours.

"Signal in a snowstorm?" Cináed raised an eyebrow at Casren, "I need to swap to your provider."

Anaiya shook her head, "We've no choice but to press on. Don't worry yourselves too much, it'll take more than a little snow to stop us."

When Rick arrived, Anaiya turned to face him... or it with surprise. "Ah, hello Rick." she said. The doctor had limited experience with the more technologically grounded denizens of Terra, and as a result was somewhat taken aback.

Cináed took the initiative in her stead as she faltered, smiling to the turret thing. "Hi! I'm Cináed, er, nope. No monsters here. Just a weird winged blue guy, and a wolf, and us. You wouldn't happen to know a different way to the temple, would you? The main road is blocked, as you can see."

The blonde turned to prod Sahlie in the side. "Cheer up!" he said brightly, remaining cheerful despite the weather. "Or do you want me to hold your hand and be your personal radiator to make your climb more comfortable, Mr. Irritable?" Cináed laughed, shaking his head.

"A wolf?"

Casren had found the source of the noise, and had finally fished it from where it was in his swathings. Triumphantly, he read what was there. An e-mail, of some sort, from some...Oh hell. He fumbled with the damned thing, and was so frustrated that the world wolf completely took him off guard.

The phone plummeted into the snow. Fabulous. He looked up, more people. Great. More introductions.

"Casren," He sighed, descending to fish his phone from the snow. Blast all of this.

Upon hearing mention of his prey Rick's sides popped open to reveal his guns. "Where is it?" He swivels around be doesn't see the wolf. Failing that he turns back to the group, "Ahh I see you guys have gotten lost and are now suffering from mountain madness! Do Not Worry! I am a trained adventurer and not one of your disillusions! Please do not eat me. I know that in your madness filled minds that I may look like a nice juicy steak but I am in fact, not a steak. Now then if you will follow me, I will lead you to safety!" Rick turns around and rolls back down the mountain, his quest for the wolf pelt on hold.

Casren sighed, loudly, audibly, on purpose.

He was honestly tired of all of this. Tired of this trip, these people, and most of all the snow. It wasn't the travelling, it was the constant reminder from nature himself that he should turn back now. Bowls, appearances, gravity, slides, wolves? No.

He descended into the snow, brushing off his phone, and dully staring at his feet. When could they get on with it already? He was tired of this. Bored.

Meanwhile, back at base - or rather, simply a few feet away, Sahlie was as irritated as Casren, for similar reasons. He was pretty sick of it all, the snow, the climbing, the mountain, unexpected surprises, the cold, and the snow. Well, there may have been some redundacy as far as his annoyances went. Most of them had to do with the goddamn mountain the group was on right now.

Finally realising the turret was present, Sahlie turned to it. At this point, he was not surprised at anything they encountered. As such, the trickster simply sighed and nodded, more to himself than anyone or anything else. "Sahlie," came his curt greeting, mirroring that of the others. The damn thing presumed he was crazy. He really, really hoped he was. At least mountain madness probably didn't bring about whatever Rick was. It was too ridiculous to be false.

Even at Cinaed's prod, his expression was still negative, though his mood did lighten as he rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, hold my hand, please. While you're at it, carry me up to the temple, wouldja? If you could, you could look into marketing yourself as a heated ride. Probably make pretty good business for people who decide to go into cold places."

At this point, he had forgotten his previous irritation at Casren's phone. After all, it probably wouldn't do any good to worry about it, and the damn thing certainly wouldn't be a help, unless S.O.S. went this far out.

With that, the teen went back to trudging after his companions, who were now following the turret. Named Rick. Just because he wasn't surprised, didn't mean he couldn't be amazed at the pure ridiculousness of the situation.

Entry 134. Following a talking lump of metal. Really wish I had a journal now.

"Right. Mountain madness. What? No, nevermind." Cináed laughed slightly awkwardly, shaking his head. He decided it was better not to ask. Juicy steak, what? This was a strange robot... thing.

He and Anaiya exchanged a glance, and the doctor shrugged her shoulders. "He seems to be going in the same direction as the wolf," she mused, "Perhaps it was an omen, and we ignored it. Alas. It's in the right direction, at least. If I had to make a judgement call as to where we might find an alternate route, that's where I would have taken us."

Cináed nodded, "Alright, then! Let's go."

The still-cheerful teen bent down to grab Casren's arm, pulling the vampire to his feet determinedly. He used his free hand to snatch up Sahlie's arm as well, and set off at a brisk march after Rick between the two of them. He was determined to infuse them with some of his enthusiasm.

Anaiya shook her head with a smile and followed after the group.

It was only a couple of short hours later before the group approached the temple itself. It seemed their journey was finally coming to a close.

A short time later, another group arrived in the courtyard from the mountain trail. They were a ragtag band, consisting of a robot, a pair of teenagers, a vampire and an older woman. Anaiya, the healer woman who had taken the lead when they came closer to the temple, turned to look at the rest of the party with a smile. "Here we are. The Patronus' temple in all its glory. I hope you all find the resolution to your dreams here."

She inclined her head towards them respectfully, "I must get these medicines to the proper recipients. If you need me, I'll be here until tomorrow. After that you can find me in Windcrest, in my home. I'll no doubt be seeing you again soon."

And with that, she strode away towards the temple. She frowned faintly as she noticed the soldiers present, but trusted in the Patronus enough to not worry for her safety as she passed by and disappeared into the building.

Cináed finally dropped Casren and Sahlie's arms to wave after Anaiya as she left, "Thanks for all your help!" he called. The blonde teen spun on a heel to grin cheerfully at the pair, crossing his arms behind his back as he walked backwards. "See, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

He didn't notice the soldiers, having turned around, and so missed the tension in the air entirely. "What happens next, then?" he mused aloud. "Do we wait for a welcoming committee?"

It was in a flash of light that Noah appeared in the centre of the courtyard. Unconscious and coated in crimson, the young mage was on the edge of death, a large chunk of his body completely obliterated by the shot of the Taiyou snipers. Shouts went out as those within the courtyard noticed him, many recognising his face.

A cloaked figure was the first to run to his side, dark haired and stern faced. Anaiya crouched beside the young man, her shock giving way to practised professionalism as she took a moment to assess the damage. "We need to get him into the barracks immediately, we need the Aschen's medical prowess if we're going to have any chance whatsoever of saving him. Get me a stretcher!"

It was begrudgingly that Anaiya acknowledged the superiority of the Aschen's medical knowledge and capabilities, but she was a doctor, and if the best she could do for her impromptu patient was to pass them onto someone else, then so be it. It took only a short time for the stretcher to be retrieved from the medical centre that the barracks had become and with the help of the Aschen who had provided it, managed to manoeuvre Noah onto it and rush back to where he could receive medical attention.