Atulon's Pass (Full)(Started!)

[Shapsters]

"I... thank you Otttie you are right. How astoundingly selfish of me to even consider doing such a thing to Yan. Clearly he has true feelings for me and sex would only strengthen those..." Aryana hanged her head, her ignorance toward relationships had almost cost one of her closest friends, "I'm ashamed of myself, what kind of a person am I? To use my friend in that way for my own personal gain?"

Aryana left it at that, she didn't wish to speak of this anymore and was glad to be appointed as a scout. She quickly rode away from Otlina and joined the two other scouts.

Her, Felon and Shilas slowly rode the path that lead to the top of the cliff, it was wide enough for all three horses to fit and the three scouts rode side by side. The visibility became clearer but the winds became more bitter as they ascended the path, the cold wind nipped at their faces and Aryana was forced to squint,

"What exactly will we see from here?" she asked the experience hunter and woodsman, "Will we be pleased or dissapointed?"

 

[Yorgmiester]

"Well, that depends on what you're wantin' to see." Shilas said in his raspy voice. The man's speech always seemed to have a sarcastic, slightly amused tone to it, no matter how good or bad the situation. He was cynical, yet satisfied, having neither a depressed nor overly cheerful outlook on life.

"If you're hopin' for a scenic vista, or a nice view of a pretty little town in the distance, then yea, you'll be sore disappointed." he drawled, as they rounded a switch-back and continued their climb. The horses were doing well, taking the incline with plenty of energy and speed. Having been cooped up so long in the stables made this trip an exciting excursion for them.

"But if you're hopin' for heaps and heaps o' fog and snow, and plenty of rocks, well then you'll be the happiest damn girl alive." he grinned at her, as if expecting his comment to amuse Aryana in some way. "Highburn's vale is gonna be all covered up right now, won't see a thing. Just some nice white. As for everything else, well, like I said, lot's o' rocks. You'll see when we get up there."

~~​

A loose stone slipped under Griger Lucas' foot, and he stumbled, leaping back from the edge of the path to avoid falling off the cliff. He rammed into a fellow villager, who in turned rammed into another, and a the wave effect which took place in any such crowded congregation began. Many shouts and complaints were heard as the entire caravan jumbled around slightly, then resumed moving.

"Damned cliffs." Griger muttered, rubbing the bandage over his nose. "Damned trail. Damned rocks. Damned everything!" he received several rebukes from around him, and went back to sulking. Pulling his jacket tighter around his face, he stumbled along the edge of the trail, his feet inevitably knocking many a loose stones over the rim.

Suddenly he slowed, then came almost to a stop, much to the annoyance of those behind him. A familiar chill had run up his spine, a slithering touch over his skin, a gentle and deadly caress over his senses. He had experienced the feeling all too often when out in the woods; the feeling of being watched.

"What was that?" he suddenly cried, staring out into the impenetrable whiteness opposite the cliff face. Others had felt it too, apparently, as many had abruptly stopped and were looking out into the snow just as he. The horses and other animals were spooked, their eyes wide and their ears laid back.

Something had passed by the caravan, out in the wind and snow, just out of sight. He could feel it, and so could some of the others. It was gone now, but a faint feeling of being watched remained. An apprehensiveness, a sense that some force had just observed them in their precarious, vulnerable position. After several moments of silence, they all started moving again, this time with a quickened pace.

~~​

The scouts up above felt it too, a passing presence out in the blizzard. Shilas stopped, gazing about with a concerned look, then shook his head and continued up the trail in silence, urging his horse into a trot. He just wanted to get off this cliff and back down into safer places. They were almost to the top.

~~​

 

[The Hairminator]

Yan had felt it, whatever it was, like many of the others. His horse had felt it as well. Vin's ears were pointing straight up, and he could feel the muscles in the large creature tense, all at once. He leaned forward, and whispered words of comfort into the horse's ear, despite his own fear. Luckily, the moment soon passed.

He didn't want to talk about what it could have been, but the silence that had fallen over the caravan after the particular moment was too palpable for someone of Yan's mentality not to break. Yan rode up to the head of the caravan, where Samuel and Rinus were riding together.

"Does anyone have the slightest idea what that might've been?" he said to the two men. Yan was slightly more nervous that he'd have preferred, and he gave Aryana a troubled thought, hoping she and the others would be alright up on the cliffs.

 

[Lost In The Void]

Felon looked out to the North, South and West. They were areas hostile to us all. The hunter hadn't been joking when he said the area was desolate. They continued to climb, but he had very little hope this scouting party would find much in this blizzard. The winds were powerful and he had to struggle to stay on his horse. Finally they were at the top and he was able to look to the East. For the most part the hunter was right; there wasn't much to see except for snow and rocks. However to the East, though hard to see appeared to be a black smudge of land that resembled the shape that a town usually took after years of growth. He spun to look at the hunter, "That looks like the town right there."

He looked out again. He couldn't see more than just the caravan and the town. It was unnerving to see so little since he had the feeling that something else was out there and he didn't like it. They had the high ground but most of the village didn't.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Emma had felt the horses spook around them and she was terrified. All the snow and ice and rocks were so hostile looking. She saw death and fear everywhere she looked. She tried to find solace in the fact that there were soldiers all around her, but she needed more than that. She walked up to who appeared to be the group's commander, "Sir, can I ask what's going on? People seem to be on edge and I think a little explanation could put a few minds at ease."

 

[Yorgmiester]

"No Yan. No clue." Rinus replied. That was all he had to say, as nothing else could be said. He honestly had no idea what had just transpired, all he knew was that he didn't like it. Not one bit.

"Sir, can I ask what's going on?"

Rinus looked down in surprise to see a young woman, barely even out of her teens, walking next to his horse, staring at up at him with questioning eyes. "People seem to be on edge and I think a little explanation could put a few minds at ease."

He automatically glanced at Samuel, then back at the woman, then strait ahead, his jaw working as he considered how much he should say or not say. Finally he spoke, after several moments of mulling it over. "If you mean this entire situation, then you shall find out tonight. Please be patient and understand that I cannot speak of it yet."

"As for this most recent occurrence," he added a few heartbeats later, looking to the east, at the blizzard, "I have no idea whatsoever."

~~​

"Yep, that's her alright." Shilas said, looking east. He had walked this trail many times before, and so knew where the town should sit on his vision. Thus he could tell, without much doubt, that the vague dark area far below was his home village. "I wonder how them that stayed down there are doin' about now."

He was silent for a long while, thoughts of the Ramparts heavy on his mind. Presently he stirred, and turned to the west, searching with eyes for a few moments before finally finding what he was looking for.

"There's Rickety." he said, pointing out the faint outline of a tower that loomed about a mile away. It faded in and out of visibility as the amount of snow between it and them fluctuated, making it look like some bizarre, ghost-like apparition; the spirit of a long-dead stronghold lost to the wilderness.

"It'll take us another day to get there." Shilas continued. "The terrain tween' us and the tower is pretty damned awful." The curtain of snow to the west seemed to pull back briefly as he said this, further revealing the rough, saw-tooth gullies and ridges that awaited the group. The trail continued over the edge of the cliff they stood atop, dropping down into the nearest valley and out of sight.

 

[Sporky111]

"A spirit of the wind, it was." Ochrem said out loud, though it was to nobody in particular. Mumblings surrounded the old man about the disturbance, and most of them were stories of dread. He didn't think the same.

"Shio appeared to us, this day." he said, "It is she who guides the winds of change, and guides us with them. Cruel it may seem to harry us this way, but one cannot stop the winds any more than they can stop the changing world. We have been blessed."

 

[The Hairminator]

"If that was a blessing I don't want to know what the curse is like..." Yan muttered to himself. Whatever the old man said, both he and everyone else knew that there were hardly anything good with whatever it was that had passed them. Even the horses had reacted, and it wasn't a good reaction.

No, whatever it was it wasn't good, at least that's how it felt to Yan. He saw only two explanations, Magic, which he didn't know enough about to make a statement on, or some kind of beast making their natural instincts go crazy. He didn't know which he would have preferred.

 

[Quad08]

Samuel clapped a hand on Rinus's shoulder

"I trust you will do whats right my friend"

He ignored the feeling of dread that passed, noting that others had felt it as well. Twas an unnatural feeling, one certainly born of some dark art. He sighed and shook his head.

 

[Shapsters]

Aryana shuddered, there was definitely something afoot but she quickly calculated the chances of it being some sort of threat, it was low. The forest was filled with animals sure, but certainly nothing to be weary of, there are plenty of well trained soldiers able to handle situations like that. It was probably just an especially chilly wind or something to that effect. At least, that's what she would tell herself,

"Can't see as much as I would have liked from here... but I suppose it's nice to get an up top perspective on things." Aryana looked at the rough terrain, "Is that a full day of good, hard travel? Or of fairly casual travel?"

She asked this question but her mind was elsewhere. It was a time of turmoil and trecherous danger, and here she was scouting on top of a cliff thinking about romance! She couldn't help herself, obviously she should be focusing on scouting, yet her mind was constantly wandering back to Yan, and how she should approach the sitation.

 

[Yorgmiester]

Spoiler: OOC

Hokay, we've been on this cliff for far too long, time to get things rolling.

Although Rinus wasn't sure whether or not he agreed with the old man's theory, he appreciated the positive outlook on things. With any luck, it would raise moral, at least until the simple villagers realized what the old man was actually saying.

~~​

"Well... it's hard to say." Shilas said, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "A single man, during the warm months, without much to carry, could probably do it in half a day if he pushed himself. We'll have to go slow, cuz of all the children and elderly, and of course the wagons." he grimaced visibly at the thought of getting the wagons through.

"So casual travel, I guess, if you can call it that." He directed his horse over to the eastern edge of the precipice so that he could look down on the caravan. "I just wish they'd hurry up."

~~​

Fortunately it only took the caravan a few minutes longer to reach the top, and as there was no cause for them to halt, they continued on, descending into the Gullies. Many of the villagers stopped briefly to gaze down into the blizzard, in the hopes of catching a slight glimpse of their home, but no such luck was had, and they were forced to keep moving.

The terrain was no more hospitable-looking from inside than it was from up above. Constantly closed in on all sides by either cliffs or drop-offs, the group followed a wickedly meandering path through the sloping valleys and tight grottoes. The way was meant for single travelers in here, not for large convoys. The very ground they walked on was so uneven that one had to watch where one planted their feet, and the elevation was constantly fluctuating to boot. They were always either climbing or descending.

The wagons took a particularly hard beating, and one of them, the very one that Rinus had opted to save just hours earlier, ended up smashed upon the rocks, broken beyond repair. The supplies were drearily handed out among the villagers and pack-horses, and the maimed cart was pushed over the edge of a high ravine, to dissuade any pursuers from finding it and thence judging the caravan's route. This particular action brought many raised eyebrows from the peasants, but Rinus remained stoic, simply stating that all would be explained soon.

Morning turned to noon, and noon turned to evening. The invisible sun slowly ambled across the sky somewhere overhead, and the temperature, which had grown slightly warmer once they entered the Gullies, dropped once gain with the absence of that warm orb. They had made good time, all things considered, but there were still a good five hours to go till they reached the tower.

They had survived the first day, at least.

"Halt! Here we take an hour's rest." Rinus' announced, stopping to look about them. It was as good a place as any they would find; cliffs on both sides, sheltered from the wind, relatively flat. Falling rocks could be a problem, but there wasn't much he could do about that. There were also risks to camping directly on the path, but he was not about to wedge them into some tiny grotto without an exit. At least this way they had somewhere to go if the worst should happen.

"You three, go back a little ways, to the edge of that ravine we just crossed." He said once he had gathered Yan, Aryana, and Krin together. "You'll be keeping watch behind us tonight." As they left he turned and gazed over the masses of huddled bodies and blankets that covered the valley floor, pondering when he should reveal their true plight.

Krin, Aryana, and Yan, (i.e. Nukey, Shapsters, and Hairminator) are being sent back a little ways, let's say around the nearest bend, to keep watch for an hour. All I mentioned was the edge of a ravine; beyond that your surroundings are up to you. Lot's o' cliffs and rocks and such.

 

[The Hairminator]

"Well, if all those rocks decide to attack us, at least we will have good warning." Yan said, looking out over the snow-covered landscape below the ravine.

There was small and large rocks, snow, a lone pine tree growing on a distant slope, and more snow. Not that Yan could see very far, with the white filer that was the blizzard surrounding his eyes. He turned to look at Krin and Aryana.

"I don't know, what do you guys think the odds of a rock attack tonight are?" Yan tried to joke, to remove at least some of the stress that was on all of them.

 

[Shapsters]

"Probably not very high Yan." Aryana remarked as she fiend a smile, not wanting Yan to think his attempt at lightening the situation was unappreciated, "In this weather I doubt the rocks can see where they are going."

Aryana didn't believe in fate. The notion that everything that happens in her life was predetermined and there was nothing anyone can do to change it was ridiculous in her mind. That being said, if she was a believer of fate, should would think it was certainly cruel. Every time she thought about Yan, her calm, calculated mind became flustered and worried, and now she had to spend a full hour with him? Sure Krin was there, but he wasn't exactly the kind of man to distract Yan from talking to her as Krin usually opted to stay quiet in situation like this.

She pretended to be calm as she stared out at the open terrain. It was white, that was just about all you need to describe what she could see. Sure if you squinted you could see some grey here, and a little bit of green there, but for the most part, white was all that could be seen.

 

[The Hairminator]

Yan realized his joke had been without effect, and maybe that there was something else going on with Aryana. He thought about it, might as well be the stress they were all feeling.
He took a moment to consider how he appeared to the others. Had they noticed his nervousness? Were they just pretending, and acting like they found him entertaining to not hurt his feelings? He didn't know.

Yan sighed loudly, Aryana was still starring out over the cliff, stubbornly, and Krin was his usual quiet self. If they wanted it that way, fine.

 

[Quad08]

Samuel made his way out into the caravan, his eyes looking over the people who gathered in small groups for warmth. Women, children, young and old. Many of them, he knew, would not make it. The few who did would most likely carry scars from there time here. It was a sad thing, but it was necessary. As a veteran soldier, he had seen much hopelessness before and this was not the worse he had seen. Most of these people still had fight, and hopefully the news of the invasion would help push them further.

He was a solider, not a word smith. The only thing he could do for these people was protect them from the animals and dangers around them. The rest was up to them

 

[Shapsters]

Aryana heard Yan's sigh.

Odd that he isn't talking to me... can he sense my unrest? Am I being that obvious about it? Should I engage him?

Aryana groaned, the last thing she wanted to do was talk to Yan and force her mind to become flustered. The only thing she could think of that was worse is him getting the idea she was thinking of him. She called him over,

"What do you think the reaction will be of the villagers when they find out the real reason of the evacuation?"

 

[The Hairminator]

"Well, most of them should already have guessed that something's up." Yan said, happy the silence was finally broken. "If they had payed any attention to what was going on during the last days they would at least have their guesses on what's going on."

He gazed out over the snowy landscape, but he had seen enough. Something was bothering her. Yan hoped to the gods it didn't have anything to do with him. Had he gone too far at some point? Did she dislike him?

"For many it will probably just be a confirmation, so to speak. If anything it will just motivate them more."

Yan soon chose to continue the conversation, if just to see how Aryana would answer. "Do you think they're following us?" he said with a low voice.

 

[Yorgmiester]

The "camp" was utterly quiet, and still. Only a few people, mostly soldiers, moved here and there. Now and then one of the villagers would stir or get up and shuffle to a warmer locale. All were bundled in whatever blankets or spare articles of clothing they could find, huddled together for warmth on the cold, stony ground. The crowd was concentrated around the wagons and animals, where a few tarps had been strung up for at least mild cover.

Dalder Morris sat with his back against the wheel of his own cart, surveying the scene with worried eyes. He was wrapped in not but his normal clothes and a thick coat; his blanket and other garments had gone to the old woman and child who were curled up next to him, just under the eves of the tarp, along with the other elderly and young. He felt sorry for the boy, who was completely bound up in heavy bandages, apparently to cover some hideous deformation.

"He's a strong lad." Dalder said, noticing that the woman was awake. "Few so young would endure life as he does; and fewer still would willingly take responsibility for his care. He must be special."

She looked up at him sharply, tugging her hood closer around her face so as not to let in the cold. After a moment she replied, in a haggard, gravelly voice. "He is special, yes." She said no more, instead turning away and hugging the child close under her blanket.

Dalder stared at the two for a few minutes, marveling to himself that the gods would allow them and so many like them to be in a place like this, in a situation like this. He had done plenty of bad things in his life, and probably deserved a few days stuck in the frozen wilderness, but not them. He couldn't think of one good reason that they should be here. If it was the will of some god, as that old man had so strongly proclaimed, then Dalder wanted nothing to do with the gods.

With these thoughts swirling through his brain, the lonely barkeeper roled over and shut his eyes, hugging his body with his arms, and tried to go to sleep.

 

[Sporky111]

Orson slowly walked around the group of villagers, leading his horse behind him. After the long ride his legs had started to numb from the cold and poor circulation, so he took the chance to walk it off.

As he surveyed the camp he watched for any stragglers. He doubted anyone would be sitting away from the bulk of the group, but he was still careful to watch. For a brief second he wondered how many would even survive til the next leg, since he figured it would be easier to succumb to the cold while in relative still and comfort. There may be deaths, even on the first day.

Shaking his head, he banished the thought from his mind. There was no good to be gained from such pessimism, and he preferred to stay at least a bit optimistic.

After a long circuit, he stopped his horse and pulled off his wool hat to scratch his hair. The wind and snow seemed much milder in the crevasse, so he was even able to see across to the other side of the group. They are strong folk, no doubt. he thought, seeing several children as well as elderly folk around.

 

[Shapsters]

Zieg sat in the snow, him and his mother were both bundled up and hugged each other for warmth. The weather was a bit more mild where they had stopped, but it was far from hospitable.

"Why are we out here ma?" he asked, speaking for the first time since they had left the town, "Are we gonna go back home soon?"

"I'm not sure sweetie, hopefully we will find out soon about what exactly is going on." his mother thought for a moment before answering the second question, se opted for honesty, Zieg was a smart child and he could see through lies, "I don't think we will be going home Zieg... but we will see."

He sadly nodded and looked up at the nearby soldier,

"Are we going home? Why are we out here? Why don't you wear a helmet?" he asked a flurry of questions directed at the young soldier, "How long are we here for? What's your horses name? Is he fast?"

*************************

"I suppose you're right, it shouldn't come as too much of a shock, not as though a town wide evacuation is normal..." she pondered the reaction of the townsfolk, how much Rinus would tell them would reflect upon their reaction, "I suppose knowing what it is could help encourage them to survive, flourish even."

She stared out into the silent abyss,

"Not yet, the other soldiers should be able to hold them off, they are brave and strong warriors." Aryana thought of how brave the men were, sacrificing their lives for the villiagers, "Those brave men are excellent fighters, they will save many lives in sacrificing their own..."

 

[Sporky111]

Orson looked down in surprise at the sudden flurry of questions. He smiled at the boy's enthusiasm, and crouched next to him.

"Well, first: I'm Orson." he started. He avoided the first two questions intentionally, hoping the boy wouldn't dwell on them. "I don't wear a helmet because I think being warm is more important out here. And...I think we're only going to be out here long enough to find shelter. We'll be moving on in a little while."

He swiftly changed the subject and pulled his horse down toward the boy. "This is Shiya, and she is very fast." Shiya snorted and nosed Zeig. Orson ran his hand across her jaw, knocking bits of ice and snow off her shaggy hair.