12-10-2014, 04:00 PM
Every second that passed was an unwelcome declaration of the foolishness of his recent decision to scale the Taliver Mountains by himself in the middle of a torrential downpour, but Trich was well aware that his decision-making process hadn't been too wise lately at all. Every drop of rain smacked against his face like a rock, continuing on to drip down his cheek in icy rivulets until they had completely soaked through his cloak and rendered it completely useless as far as warmth was concerned. His usual optimism was starting to dwindle; the need to find shelter was beginning to take priority over his current quest.
Besides, in this pelting deluge he could stumble right past the entire rebel camp and not even see them. Wouldn't that be horrible, to have made it all this way from Etruria, somehow by the grace of Elimine getting through the border because of his family ties, spending days going from town to town in search of any scrap of information he could find about Janys's whereabouts, finally happening upon evidence that she might be travelling with a group of Lycian dissidents hiding in the mountains, only to come within shouting distance of her and yet miss her entirely in the most unfortunate way - due to the weather! At least the chance that she might actually still be alive was enough to keep hope alive and burning in his spirit. Even so, it would surely help fan the flame if he could find a cave or someplace to escape from the freezing rain...
Suddenly, Trich was jostled from his thoughts as he found himself tumbling to the dirt, his foot having caught on a jagged, unseen rock in the path. His efforts to shield his body from the impact were no good, his rib and forehead smacking dully into the craggy mountain walkway. A little twinge shot through Trich's stomach as he brought his hand to his temple and was met with the warm sensation of blood on his fingertips. Dammit! That's hurts! Curse this godforsaken mountain, this godforsaken country! Once I find Janys and get her safely over the border, I'm never coming back to this place!
Further inspection showed that aside from a small gash on the right side of his forehead and some throbbing pain and likely bruising in his side there were no notable injuries. Thank Elimine. What a shame it would be to bleed out here on the side of the road. Might make an interesting story for whoever found me, though. Trich shook his head disapprovingly as he realized he hadn't brought any bandages or first aid supplies with him at all - he would have to be a little less impetuous in the future.
He lay there for a few seconds more to catch his breath before slowly rising to his feet. As he stood, his eye was suddenly drawn to a dim flickering light in the distance. Could that be... a fire? No way... Maybe it's the rebel camp? His spirits immediately lifted - albeit only a little - Trich immediately put all thoughts of his misfortune behind him and began ascending in the direction of the glimmering light. It was a good ways up the trail, and the incline was only growing steeper, but that didn't stop Trich from sprinting towards it as best he could. It was only as he closed the distance to within a couple hundred feet that the thought occurred to him that whoever had lit that fire might not be so friendly as he hoped, and he slowed his pace while he tried to gauge the situation.
The best Trich could tell, the the light was coming from within a small opening in the rocky mountainside, probably a tight, enclosed space with room for two or three people to take refuge, though maybe it was more open inside than it appeared from his vantage point. Probably not large enough to house an entire rebel unit, though, so perhaps he had come upon a group of unlucky travelers in a predicament similar to his own. Try as he might, he could not make out any figures inside the cave, nor outside. Nobody keeping watch? A little foolish, perhaps - yet who would be expecting company in a storm like this? He stood there pondering what to do for a couple of minutes before the pounding of the rain upon his head and cloak forced him to start making his approach to the cave entrance. Cautiously, he drew near to the opening and peered in. As he got closer, he began to hear what sounded like voices emanating from within the cave. Hmm, I can't hear what they're saying. Maybe if I lean in a little closer...
It was then that his foot - clumsy feet, these were - managed to catch on another loose rock in the mountainside, causing it to break off and cascade down the path with an unfortunately loud series of clacks. Shit! They have to have heard that! Can this day get any bloody worse? Trich rapidly whirled around, pinning his body against the rock wall just outside the opening, trying to think of a plan in case one of the occupants came outside in a manner that was less than friendly. It was a little too hasty of a situation to draw his bow, especially with the rain. Maybe... I hit them with a rock? A little crude, but it'll do. Besides, with this rain, maybe they won't even see me. With that thought, Trich stooped and searched the ground with his hand until his fingers closed around a moderately-sized rock that he could use as a last resort and stood back up, readying himself for whatever would happen next.
Besides, in this pelting deluge he could stumble right past the entire rebel camp and not even see them. Wouldn't that be horrible, to have made it all this way from Etruria, somehow by the grace of Elimine getting through the border because of his family ties, spending days going from town to town in search of any scrap of information he could find about Janys's whereabouts, finally happening upon evidence that she might be travelling with a group of Lycian dissidents hiding in the mountains, only to come within shouting distance of her and yet miss her entirely in the most unfortunate way - due to the weather! At least the chance that she might actually still be alive was enough to keep hope alive and burning in his spirit. Even so, it would surely help fan the flame if he could find a cave or someplace to escape from the freezing rain...
Suddenly, Trich was jostled from his thoughts as he found himself tumbling to the dirt, his foot having caught on a jagged, unseen rock in the path. His efforts to shield his body from the impact were no good, his rib and forehead smacking dully into the craggy mountain walkway. A little twinge shot through Trich's stomach as he brought his hand to his temple and was met with the warm sensation of blood on his fingertips. Dammit! That's hurts! Curse this godforsaken mountain, this godforsaken country! Once I find Janys and get her safely over the border, I'm never coming back to this place!
Further inspection showed that aside from a small gash on the right side of his forehead and some throbbing pain and likely bruising in his side there were no notable injuries. Thank Elimine. What a shame it would be to bleed out here on the side of the road. Might make an interesting story for whoever found me, though. Trich shook his head disapprovingly as he realized he hadn't brought any bandages or first aid supplies with him at all - he would have to be a little less impetuous in the future.
He lay there for a few seconds more to catch his breath before slowly rising to his feet. As he stood, his eye was suddenly drawn to a dim flickering light in the distance. Could that be... a fire? No way... Maybe it's the rebel camp? His spirits immediately lifted - albeit only a little - Trich immediately put all thoughts of his misfortune behind him and began ascending in the direction of the glimmering light. It was a good ways up the trail, and the incline was only growing steeper, but that didn't stop Trich from sprinting towards it as best he could. It was only as he closed the distance to within a couple hundred feet that the thought occurred to him that whoever had lit that fire might not be so friendly as he hoped, and he slowed his pace while he tried to gauge the situation.
The best Trich could tell, the the light was coming from within a small opening in the rocky mountainside, probably a tight, enclosed space with room for two or three people to take refuge, though maybe it was more open inside than it appeared from his vantage point. Probably not large enough to house an entire rebel unit, though, so perhaps he had come upon a group of unlucky travelers in a predicament similar to his own. Try as he might, he could not make out any figures inside the cave, nor outside. Nobody keeping watch? A little foolish, perhaps - yet who would be expecting company in a storm like this? He stood there pondering what to do for a couple of minutes before the pounding of the rain upon his head and cloak forced him to start making his approach to the cave entrance. Cautiously, he drew near to the opening and peered in. As he got closer, he began to hear what sounded like voices emanating from within the cave. Hmm, I can't hear what they're saying. Maybe if I lean in a little closer...
It was then that his foot - clumsy feet, these were - managed to catch on another loose rock in the mountainside, causing it to break off and cascade down the path with an unfortunately loud series of clacks. Shit! They have to have heard that! Can this day get any bloody worse? Trich rapidly whirled around, pinning his body against the rock wall just outside the opening, trying to think of a plan in case one of the occupants came outside in a manner that was less than friendly. It was a little too hasty of a situation to draw his bow, especially with the rain. Maybe... I hit them with a rock? A little crude, but it'll do. Besides, with this rain, maybe they won't even see me. With that thought, Trich stooped and searched the ground with his hand until his fingers closed around a moderately-sized rock that he could use as a last resort and stood back up, readying himself for whatever would happen next.
![[Image: JJjTQYR.png]](http://i.imgur.com/JJjTQYR.png)