The Gale's Crescendo

[Luxury 1084]

A bright and determined soul, contained in a body that simply was not made to survive in the sub-zero tundra. This was an immutable fact of mortality, and the Celian Scholar felt this deeply the longer she remained. Even still she discovered that there was life in the north; And of course wildlife, albeit increasingly rare further from the sparse woods and the coast. There did drift a woeful denizen of the tundra; The mighty Polar Bear suited well to the terrain with hundreds of pounds of fat and muscle, and a glistening white coat that blended in with the snow. In fact the bear was miles away from food, and starving. 

 

She almost didn’t see it. It was almost the end.

 

 

This thread of fate was not to be cut short just yet. The arctic Bear’s attention was drawn to a band of warrior women. Human hunters who sought a tale of glory to recount around the hearthfire. The opposing forces sized each other up and soon fang and claw clashed with hard steel. A flurry of ice and blood ignited the air, as the encounter ensued. Rhae’lin knew better than to involve herself. She was out of her element by any stretch of the imagination, so she ducked off beyond a mound of snow and simply observed the calculated work of the hunters.

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… [Later]

An eventual conclusion left the Bear beheaded and the women turning tail to lick their to-be scars. This chance confrontation seemed to mark a sort of crossroads, as two Knightly personas arrived not long after, tailed by one in a mask and crimson cloak. This cobbled-together group shared their own pleasantries in the wake of the battlefield: A Redshroud Itulan, Two Sons of Horus Regnvalt and Lucas and Rhae’lin the Celian Scholar. Of them, only she stood gaunt, diminished and shivering. Sensing her weak constitution, the band of Horus’ men offered to aid her in carving and preparing a portion of the Bear’s hind quarter. This act of generosity would be well remembered. With the freezing temperatures constantly wearing down the body, there was rarely time to consider stopping to eat. Yet this meat would come to replenish the Elfess, effectively sparing her life and staving off starvation. Somehow in circumstances that most would have perished in, Rhae’lin managed to scamper by. Whether or not it was due to unknown forces that ruled the Material, it was apparent that she’d gotten very lucky.

 

 

Rhae’lin bade the men farewell, and took to the East as prescribed by the wayfinding feather gifted months back. A single feature marked the separation of where she was, and where she was to be going. A howling snowstorm, thick, gray and utterly blocking out the horizon. Her legs carried a battered body and spirit into its midst, with tears crusting upon her lower lid. And so did the pilgrimage come to an end, by death or success; whichever lurked just beyond the frozen gale.

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Shoutouts to _leyd, satinkira, FunTzu, Palebeast, and DevBug for making this a blast.

 

Spoiler

CONTINUITY

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/214656-the-rolling-breeze/?tab=comments#comment-1926697

 

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/214865-fleet-of-foot-and-unto-frozen-wastes/

 

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/214971-the-icebound-chauffeur/