Plotlogs
The Snow In Death Valley Sr Selina 240828
In the enigmatic stillness of Death Valley, Elias and Autumn found themselves on a nocturnal quest, embarking on a challenging climb toward Telescope Peak. The crystal-clear night sky and the absence of civilization’s glare allowed them a breathtaking view of the stars, setting a backdrop for their mission. Their journey, however challenging due to the relentless desert heat, was underscored by an encounter that would test their resolve.
Upon their path, Elias and Autumn encountered a man transformed into a grotesque elephantine form, pleading for help, yet unable to articulate his plight. An unexpected turn of events saw them confronted by a raucous band of youths on a hunt for the transformed man, misguidedly playing the role of hunters in their own rite of passage. Despite the inherent plea for empathy, Elias and Autumn decided against intervening, driven by the imperative of their mission, leaving fate to wield its cruel hand.
Pressing on, their ascent was marked by the physical and ethical challenges the desert imposed, embodying the harsh truths of nature and the consequences of choices. They persevered, undeterred by the daunting climb and the complexity of their task, reaching the peak with determination to fulfill their arcane ritual. With the ritual's completion, they invoked a powerful transformation, beckoning clouds to coalesce, rain to pour, and snow to blanket the unforgiving desert landscape, and in doing so, momentarily usurped the dominion of heat with a fleeting touch of winter’s chill.
Their success, however, was not without its specter; the presence of a draconic Eidolon, casting doubt and adversity through its mocking challenges. And yet, as the temperature plummeted and snow began to fall, even this spectral antagonist conceded, departing and leaving Elias and Autumn to witness the fruits of their labor. Snow in Death Valley—a paradox made possible through their efforts.
In the end, amidst the contrasting beauty of snow-covered sands, Elias and Autumn shared a moment of reflection, considering the worth of their arduous climb and the complex tapestry of consequences their actions wove. The scenery before them, a rare anomaly in a land known for its scorching desolation, served as a testament to their resolve and the ephemeral beauty that can arise from the most unlikely of places.
(The Snow in Death Valley(SRSelina):SRSelina)
[Thu Aug 15 2024]
On Near Telescope Peak in Death Valley
Death Valley at night is a scene of otherworldly beauty and quiet solitude. The vast desert landscape is bathed in a soft, eerie glow under the blanket of a star-studded sky, with the Milky Way often visible as a brilliant streak across the heavens. The air is cool, crisp, and still, a sharp contrast to the intense heat of the day.
It is night, about 85F(29C) degrees, There is a waxing gibbous moon.
It seems only two people need to make it to Death Valley for the fun out there. Regardless of how Elias and Autumn manage to make it to Death Valley, they find themselves at the base of trail leading up to the top of Telescope Peak, about 1.5 miles down the trail, where there is apparently a rest stop. There are other people about, quietly milling around, making preparations for the climb to the top, even at night, or to prepare for the night and possibly start the trip back down. Most are likely going to camp the night though at this point. The sky is completely clear though, and the lack of major lights in the area results in a wide open view of the night sky, sprinkled with stars and the waxing gibbous moon.
[OOC: Welcome to The Snow in Death Valley. If you have any questions, feel free to use STalk or replies via Tells. Please make use of the Think, Internal, Feel, Recall, and Attempt commands on this adventure. These will greatly enhance your experience and immersion, while also speeding things up for others. I try to do one post per person rotations, but if you want to do short bursts of rapid banter in appropriate situations, feel free. Text that is all colored in this color will be private, for you to act upon ICly. Now let's get started!]
Appearing to step out of nothingness as he leaves the path through the dark forest as he re-enters normal reality as a quick traveling method, Elias finds himself on the trail leading up to Telescope Peak. He hooks a thumb in his pocket, looking around at those nearby and his gray-blue eyes catch Autumn. He offers her a small smile, "I assume you are going to be my traveling companion for this? I am Elias." He says, holding a hand out to Autumn.
"Woah, it looks beautiful," Autumn speaks after her arrival, her head lifted to gaze at the stars while her backpack is strapped over her shoulder. "Sky would never look like that back in homeland." Looking back ahead, she spots Elias and gives him a small nod before she walks towards him. "I'm Autumn Lynx," she replies while she shakes his hand with one of hers. "Nice to meet you, Elias."
"Well, lets start making our way up this path." Elias says as he lets his gaze fall up the trail with a sigh, "It looks like we have a ways to go up and I didn't bring a sherpa." Adjusting the sling of his rifle in hopes to relieve some of hte pressure of his rifle on the flesh below his tactical clothing, "The longer we take, the more likely we will get noticed." And he starts making his way up the path, starting their journey.
Yes, one of the things city dwellers rarely know or comment on is just how clear the sky is above the supposed flyover states. Though Death Valley is technically in California, it is so far removed from civilization as to be honorarily a portion of the nearest flyover state, Nevada. One lesson to be learned is that there is often considerable beauty outside of mankind's densest populations.
Unfortunately, it's still also hot as the surface of the sun in Death Valley, with a temperature currently still easily in the 100s, probably closer to 110. It is one of the ten hottest places on the planet for a reason, and it shows it off quite well with that in mind.
The path to the peak is still 1.5 miles away, and has an elevation change of 3000 feet during that time. It is a hard hike, especially after the several miles to get to this point in the hike. Thankfully, supernaturally aware people have ways to skip some of that line, when they are in a hurry. Unfortunately, the imprecise nature of those travel methods makes this the closest they can get without having been there before. And who in Haven has been to the peak of a specific mountain in the hottest place in the United States before? Very, very few, if any. Still, the trail is at least somewhat cleared of most of the more dangerous and troublesome issues that would come up. Namely small rocks, pebbles, and vegetation. That does not mean it is completely clear however.
With another nod towards Elias, Autumn turns to follow him up the path. She is unfazed by the heat, even while wearing her fur cloak that covers most of her body, and she scans the area while she walks and takes care to not trip over any rocks in her way.
Tugging at the straps on his armor, Elias grumbles, "This heat, it is oppressive. I am a little out of my element in this one." He huffs as he keeps climbing up the path with.
"I can see how people back in town suffer in heat," Autumn tells Elias, carrying her bag with a tight grip. "It felt like Hell on Earth, as far as I remember."
Most of the other trail people have flashlights. Elias and Autumn may or may not have them handy. But they can at least see a little in the dark. Thankfully, with the celestial lights above, that is mostly enough to avoid any major catastrophes for the moment. The heat is just not going to give up. Perhaps this is why this place was selected for the ritual to begin with? Soon, the heat has started to suck moisture out of the two intrepid ritualists' bodies, whisking it away into the dry, desert air almost as soon as it forms on the skin. This does not provide much cooling though, as the evaporation is almost instant. Still, the trail is not crowded, and when people do come along, they tend to pass Elias and Autumn quickly. Almost all of them are heading down the trail, not up, hinting at how many fewer people will be at the peak, thankfully, by the time they arrive.
Continuing to scan the area around him as he climbs upward and onward, Elias keeps putting one foot in front of the other. Every step seems like it is hard than the one previously with ever growing huffs, "I wish we could have pathed closer. This climb is rough in this heat. It is hard to believe the sun already went down and it is still brutal. I wonder...."
"Usually, I thought deserts get cold at night," Autumn speaks, a couple pants in her voice while she glances up at the top. "But this one seems different. And pathing would have been good if we know what peak looks like."
Air conditioning has made life so much easier for Americans especially, being able to live in places with heat like this constantly, without ever getting exposed to it in longer bursts than it takes to mow a lawn. Elias could likely find a way to cool the air around the pair without taking much of his energy, as most cryomancers can do, in fact, though most tend to apply it in combat.
While the sun has gone down, it still takes a considerable amount of time for the heat of 12+ hours of sunlight and heat to dissipate. Same as a pot of boiling water stays really hot for some time even after the heat is turned off.
But thermodynamics lessons aside, the pair manage to make decent time, easily managing to get a half of a mile done in that first hour walking. It is about then that they spot something unusual... A man, off to the side of the trail, hiding. Perhaps waiting for them, or just in general. It is unclear, as he has not noticed them yet with the lack of lights.
Whether Elias can or can't modify the air temperature, he doesn't seem to do it for whatever reason. Instead it seems complaining was his method in this case, but has since gone silent his gray-blue eyes notice the man trying to hide. He reaches over his shoulder, pulling his rifle to more of a ready position, just in case.
Autumn stops in her tracks upon seeing the man and slowly opens her backpack. She takes out her bow and arrows and get into a guarding stance. "That must be bad dragon's agent," she murmurs to Elias in a low voice as she draws an arrow.
Despite Autumn's prediction, it is not, in point of fact, an agent of Gonthorian lurking in the shadows off the trail. As they get closer, the man notices them, and he starts to come out of the foliage off the trail (cacti and brush mostly, though there is an occasional tree like the one he was behind). About then the pair would notice, he is not quite a man. He is mostly a man. But his head is very much pachyderm shaped. Complete with a long trunk and large, flappy ears. Obviously scaled down to fit on a human-sized frame. An actually quite muscular human-sized frame in point of interest. One that is bare from the waist up, only wearing jeans and hiking boots. The man comes toward the pair with his hands lifted and says in an unhumanly twisted voice, "Help, please."
Glancing over to Autumn, Elias turns his attention back to the pachyderm shaped creature. He doesn't say anything, but he just pulls back the bolt on his rifle, inspecting the rounds within before letting it close back shut. Whether Elias intends on just shooting the man, it isn't immediately obvious at the moment.
"What is wrong?" Autumn asks of the pachy-man while she remains guarded. "You must have had body altered by someone." She doesn't fire her arrow yet while she examines the being.
Vocal cords are incredibly important in human speech, and the vocal cords of the fleshformed monstrosity before you have difficulty forming words, and while he managed to form the two important ones, he cannot manage to explain his situation much further. The words come out as wheezes and he lets out some disgruntled noises of displeasure from not being able to explain himself. He glances around as if trying to find something to help with explaining his situation just in time for the next exciting thing to happen.
Mad whoops and hollars can be heard up and down the trail, off to the sides a bit, in each direction, not unlike one might expect from a hunting party, but only if kids made those noises instead of adults. The oldest one might be fifteen. And they sound like they are starting to converge on Elias, Autumn, and Elephant Man's position.
The man's fingers reach up to touch his temple, rubbing lightly there. Elias takes a deep breath to compose the bits of frustration that start bubbling to the surface, "Alright, we are going to need to hide from these kids." He focuses on the fleshformed man, "You need to hide specifically, if you are seen the government will take you away and do experiments on you. You will spend the rest of your life in a lab, with needles and scalpels picking away at your flesh until the day you die." He explains to the man, "So hide, quickly. We will help you after they pass."
"Yes," Autumn says with a glance at Elias. "That and there is chance Sun Humans will capture you with their tech and use you as living weapon. So find place to hide and we'll deal with them."
Fleshformed and unable to talk, The Elephant Man is perfectly willing to do as Elias has instructed and tries to do a better job this time, going down to his stomach and wiggling under the biggest patch of brush he can find. It takes him a few seconds to get visibly concealed there. If anyone had infrared goggles or something, they would see him immediately, but in the dark, in the starlit night, with flashlights or night vision, he should be mostly concealed.
Young children and teens soon descend on the area, Like the cast of Lord of the Flies or a bad version of Peter Pan, the Lost Boys come, running around, beating the bushes, and shouting various commentary toward the poor Elephant Man. One of the leaders, the eldest who might be sixteen perhaps, approaches Elias and Autumn. "Either'v ya seen a beast man'n these parts, eh?" he asks, with traces of perhaps a Canadian accent mixed in there somewhere. He's about 5'6", no more than 160 pounds, dressed in hunting camo with a bow, arrows, a machete, and combat boots. Not the fiercest hunter, but certainly one in the making."
"Beastman? What kind of make believe game are you playing?" Elias says to the leader of the little gang, but there is a degree of coldness in his voice. He takes advantage of his military-style clothing he is wearing to try to put out a bluff, "Military maneuvers are being performed tonight, clear out before you are detained and your parents are notified." He holds his rifle at the ready as he gives the kid a very cold gaze.
"I am surprised you children loiter in such dangerous and hot place like this," Autumn tells the Canadian kid with a look at the other kids. "Yes, clear out of this place and play your games elsewhere." With one free hand, the dusky woman adjusts her cloak to reveal her body while her hazel gaze lingers.
Several of the boys make ooooh noises and back away from Elias like they are genuinely afraid of him before bursting into hysterical laughter to a one. The lead boy shakes his head and says, "Oh, there's none'v that around 'ere, eh? We're just lookin' for our lost elephant!" The crowd of boys laugh again, as obviously, they know the elephant is a man, and further, that elephants are not really indigenous to this part of the world, and that he was recently nearby. One of the children is sniffing the air like a hound on a trail, weaving around to get better angles for finding where the missing elephant man has gone. All the while, the elephant man is staying as still and quiet under his brush as he can, but he really cannot hide his smell at all. Not without a good long bath, which he certainly has not had out here in the middle of a desert on a mountain trail. If the pair wants to help him and still make it to the top of the peak, they may need to do something relatively soon.
[OOC: This is a good time for my usual mid-point break. If you wanna do your post, then take a ten minute break, feel free. Try to be back by 11:15, please!]
"You know what, fuck it." Elias says as he shrugs, looking over to Autumn, asking her, "Do you really care about these kids or the whole lot there? I say we keep going and let fate deal the cards it wants to deal." The dark haired man shifts his gaze back to the path forward.
"I can have Ifrit scare them away," Autumn tells Elias, scanning the kids for any aura. "These kids don't look like they would be roasted by heat."
"Ifrit? Weak ass summoner bull shit. Not even the best at dealing Fire Damage, and that's like his only thing," one of the kids shouts back toward the pair of adults visible on the trail. Several of the other kids jeer and josh with the kid for bringing up video games at a time like this, but they continue searching for the Elephant Man. The one that is sniffing the air is getting kinda close to where the fleshformed man is hiding. The other kids resume their activity of beating the bushes and bouncing around like mad children in their hunt for the elephant man. That leaves Elias and Autumn at a tipping point with three real paths forward: Help the Elephant Man, help the children hunting the Elephant Man, or just walk away entirely because they have a job to do out here.
"I am not going to get mixed up with fae children." Elias concludes over to Autumn as he starts walking up the path, "We have bigger fish to fry right now. I don't really play hero very well, most of all if it involves me getting myself killed in the process."
"I see," Autumn replies, letting out a sigh before turns towards the children. "Listen up! Search wherever you want. Elephant isn't here, and if you keep lingering here, you will get eaten by desert devils that prey on foolish children. This place isn't called Death Valley for nothing." Her eyes narrow as she turns to follow Elias. But she pauses, smirking before she gestures her left hand towards the leader and his clothes as her bracelet glows before she turns back towards the path up.
"Got him!" the sniffing nose kid shouts, even as the leader's clothing is lit on fire. He lets out a startled yelp and remembering the lessons from when he was a younger kid, stops, drops and rolls like a champ to start getting the flames put out. As soon as Elias and Autumn have their backs turned on the Elephant Man the hoops and hollars resume, and soon, the pained trumpeting of a wounded elephant begin to sound across the otherwise still night of the desert peak. There are stabbing noises, kicking, grunts, more shouts of victory, but it becomes clear relatively quickly that they are indeed killing the Elephant Man like little Lost Boys.
After the pair gets a bit further away from the grisly scene, the path becomes silent once more, and they are able to make some serious progress to make up for the distraction. They are about halfway to the peak, and a little bit of the heat has lifted. Not as much as either person on the trail would like, but it may only be 105 by now, maybe a little less this high up.
Not seeming bothered in the slightest at the cries behind him, Elias just presses on forward as makes his way up the path. He takes a momentary break to pull a flask out of a pouch, taking a drink from it before returning it to where he retrieved it from.
Autumn purses her lips upon hearing the cries behind her, her hand clenched yet she continues to follow Elias. "Cruel Earth kids," she mutters under her breath and looks up towards the peak.
Mission first, indeed. The pair put in a little more hustle into their giddy-up to get up the last leg of the mountain to get this ritual started. With only two arcanists and a magic crystal holding a bunch of energy from a crazy hail storm that rocked Haven for the better part of a week, it may still be a difficult ritual to perform, let alone finish without interruptions. But they will be giving it a shot here soon enough.
No distractions crop up for the next thirty minutes, putting the pair to within that last third of a mile. Possibly the hardest third, as it becomes even more sheer of a climb to get up the trail. At times, it requires literal climbing even. The grade for this particular hike is listed as 'dangerous' for more reasons than the heat (though that is actually a major contributing factor). With only twenty minutes or so left in the hike if they keep pace, they should be able to enact the spell and get back home before the witching hour. Sadly, they won't get the benefits of the witching hour, but still. They could when they get back!
The man finishes the last stretch of the trek, huffing and puffing. Elias slings his rifle back over he shoulder and works on prepping the crystal, whom ever is carrying that is, "Lets get this ritual finished. I will enjoy seeing this place frosted over."
"Right," Autumn replies, putting her bow away and looking inside a pocket of her backpack to make sure the crystal is safe before closing it. "Would be relieving heat." With a careful climb towards the peak, she waits until she's at the end to take the crystal out and begin the preparations.
After far longer than it should have taken to reach the peak, Elias and Autumn find themselves on top of the world, looking out, seeing the curves of the earth as the horizon expands forth out from their heavenly perch. The heavens above twinkle and shine, casting them in celestial hues of light beneath the nearly full moon. If there was ever a time to do a ritual like this, now would be the time. The sky is pristine and clear. The air is a little thin, and aside from the oppressive heat, more perfect conditions for a ritual could not be found in the wild.
It may get interrupted, so Elias and Autumn will need to work fast.
With Autumn baring the crystal, Elias works to aid her in the ritual to release its energies. He calls forth his own magical power to pour into the crystal to help the ritual along, but in the end, it seems Autumn knows the specific ritual required, so his role becomes more assisting than taking the lead with it for now.
Channeling her magic, Autumn closes her eyes and chants as she holds the crystal in her hands. She slowly lifts it up, keeping a good grip on it as she speaks.
Midway through the ritual, the oppressive heat returns in force. "You think that will harm me?" comes a gravelly, draconic, disembodied voice. "Do your worst," he says with a condescending chuckle. He remains, watching the ritual, but he cannot really interfere. Well, he could, but perhaps he just thinks he is that immune to whatever is coming down the pipe.
The ritual finishes, and the crystal blasts blue energy up into the sky. It ripples and rolls out from somewhere in the atmosphere, and in short order, clouds are rolling in. And soon enough, rain starts to fall. And the world becomes cooler almost instantly dropping ten degrees, then more as more rain comes. And soon, it is cold enough to need a light jacket, everywhere but the peak of course, where a certain Eidolon's presence is denying the ritualists the enjoyment of the cold. But before long, snow starts to fall. And with that, the Eidolon departs, letting the pair enjoy, at least for a few moments, the cool respite that their snowy blizzard has given them and the world. And hopefully, the storm will make it to Haven. Only time will tell...
"That is exactly what I wanted to see." Elias says as a broad smile crosses his face as he looks out over death valley as snow drifts down upon it, "It is a beautiful sight, isn't it?" He asks, glancing back to Autumn.
"Indeed," Autumn nods her head, looks down at the snowy scenery before the pair as she wraps the cloak back over her body. "Perhaps worth climb here."
[And that will bring us to a close. I will try to do a news post or something about it later. For now, lemme do the administrative stuff. Anyone need Awards?]
Upon their path, Elias and Autumn encountered a man transformed into a grotesque elephantine form, pleading for help, yet unable to articulate his plight. An unexpected turn of events saw them confronted by a raucous band of youths on a hunt for the transformed man, misguidedly playing the role of hunters in their own rite of passage. Despite the inherent plea for empathy, Elias and Autumn decided against intervening, driven by the imperative of their mission, leaving fate to wield its cruel hand.
Pressing on, their ascent was marked by the physical and ethical challenges the desert imposed, embodying the harsh truths of nature and the consequences of choices. They persevered, undeterred by the daunting climb and the complexity of their task, reaching the peak with determination to fulfill their arcane ritual. With the ritual's completion, they invoked a powerful transformation, beckoning clouds to coalesce, rain to pour, and snow to blanket the unforgiving desert landscape, and in doing so, momentarily usurped the dominion of heat with a fleeting touch of winter’s chill.
Their success, however, was not without its specter; the presence of a draconic Eidolon, casting doubt and adversity through its mocking challenges. And yet, as the temperature plummeted and snow began to fall, even this spectral antagonist conceded, departing and leaving Elias and Autumn to witness the fruits of their labor. Snow in Death Valley—a paradox made possible through their efforts.
In the end, amidst the contrasting beauty of snow-covered sands, Elias and Autumn shared a moment of reflection, considering the worth of their arduous climb and the complex tapestry of consequences their actions wove. The scenery before them, a rare anomaly in a land known for its scorching desolation, served as a testament to their resolve and the ephemeral beauty that can arise from the most unlikely of places.
(The Snow in Death Valley(SRSelina):SRSelina)
[Thu Aug 15 2024]
On Near Telescope Peak in Death Valley
Death Valley at night is a scene of otherworldly beauty and quiet solitude. The vast desert landscape is bathed in a soft, eerie glow under the blanket of a star-studded sky, with the Milky Way often visible as a brilliant streak across the heavens. The air is cool, crisp, and still, a sharp contrast to the intense heat of the day.
It is night, about 85F(29C) degrees, There is a waxing gibbous moon.
It seems only two people need to make it to Death Valley for the fun out there. Regardless of how Elias and Autumn manage to make it to Death Valley, they find themselves at the base of trail leading up to the top of Telescope Peak, about 1.5 miles down the trail, where there is apparently a rest stop. There are other people about, quietly milling around, making preparations for the climb to the top, even at night, or to prepare for the night and possibly start the trip back down. Most are likely going to camp the night though at this point. The sky is completely clear though, and the lack of major lights in the area results in a wide open view of the night sky, sprinkled with stars and the waxing gibbous moon.
[OOC: Welcome to The Snow in Death Valley. If you have any questions, feel free to use STalk or replies via Tells. Please make use of the Think, Internal, Feel, Recall, and Attempt commands on this adventure. These will greatly enhance your experience and immersion, while also speeding things up for others. I try to do one post per person rotations, but if you want to do short bursts of rapid banter in appropriate situations, feel free. Text that is all colored in this color will be private, for you to act upon ICly. Now let's get started!]
Appearing to step out of nothingness as he leaves the path through the dark forest as he re-enters normal reality as a quick traveling method, Elias finds himself on the trail leading up to Telescope Peak. He hooks a thumb in his pocket, looking around at those nearby and his gray-blue eyes catch Autumn. He offers her a small smile, "I assume you are going to be my traveling companion for this? I am Elias." He says, holding a hand out to Autumn.
"Woah, it looks beautiful," Autumn speaks after her arrival, her head lifted to gaze at the stars while her backpack is strapped over her shoulder. "Sky would never look like that back in homeland." Looking back ahead, she spots Elias and gives him a small nod before she walks towards him. "I'm Autumn Lynx," she replies while she shakes his hand with one of hers. "Nice to meet you, Elias."
"Well, lets start making our way up this path." Elias says as he lets his gaze fall up the trail with a sigh, "It looks like we have a ways to go up and I didn't bring a sherpa." Adjusting the sling of his rifle in hopes to relieve some of hte pressure of his rifle on the flesh below his tactical clothing, "The longer we take, the more likely we will get noticed." And he starts making his way up the path, starting their journey.
Yes, one of the things city dwellers rarely know or comment on is just how clear the sky is above the supposed flyover states. Though Death Valley is technically in California, it is so far removed from civilization as to be honorarily a portion of the nearest flyover state, Nevada. One lesson to be learned is that there is often considerable beauty outside of mankind's densest populations.
Unfortunately, it's still also hot as the surface of the sun in Death Valley, with a temperature currently still easily in the 100s, probably closer to 110. It is one of the ten hottest places on the planet for a reason, and it shows it off quite well with that in mind.
The path to the peak is still 1.5 miles away, and has an elevation change of 3000 feet during that time. It is a hard hike, especially after the several miles to get to this point in the hike. Thankfully, supernaturally aware people have ways to skip some of that line, when they are in a hurry. Unfortunately, the imprecise nature of those travel methods makes this the closest they can get without having been there before. And who in Haven has been to the peak of a specific mountain in the hottest place in the United States before? Very, very few, if any. Still, the trail is at least somewhat cleared of most of the more dangerous and troublesome issues that would come up. Namely small rocks, pebbles, and vegetation. That does not mean it is completely clear however.
With another nod towards Elias, Autumn turns to follow him up the path. She is unfazed by the heat, even while wearing her fur cloak that covers most of her body, and she scans the area while she walks and takes care to not trip over any rocks in her way.
Tugging at the straps on his armor, Elias grumbles, "This heat, it is oppressive. I am a little out of my element in this one." He huffs as he keeps climbing up the path with.
"I can see how people back in town suffer in heat," Autumn tells Elias, carrying her bag with a tight grip. "It felt like Hell on Earth, as far as I remember."
Most of the other trail people have flashlights. Elias and Autumn may or may not have them handy. But they can at least see a little in the dark. Thankfully, with the celestial lights above, that is mostly enough to avoid any major catastrophes for the moment. The heat is just not going to give up. Perhaps this is why this place was selected for the ritual to begin with? Soon, the heat has started to suck moisture out of the two intrepid ritualists' bodies, whisking it away into the dry, desert air almost as soon as it forms on the skin. This does not provide much cooling though, as the evaporation is almost instant. Still, the trail is not crowded, and when people do come along, they tend to pass Elias and Autumn quickly. Almost all of them are heading down the trail, not up, hinting at how many fewer people will be at the peak, thankfully, by the time they arrive.
Continuing to scan the area around him as he climbs upward and onward, Elias keeps putting one foot in front of the other. Every step seems like it is hard than the one previously with ever growing huffs, "I wish we could have pathed closer. This climb is rough in this heat. It is hard to believe the sun already went down and it is still brutal. I wonder...."
"Usually, I thought deserts get cold at night," Autumn speaks, a couple pants in her voice while she glances up at the top. "But this one seems different. And pathing would have been good if we know what peak looks like."
Air conditioning has made life so much easier for Americans especially, being able to live in places with heat like this constantly, without ever getting exposed to it in longer bursts than it takes to mow a lawn. Elias could likely find a way to cool the air around the pair without taking much of his energy, as most cryomancers can do, in fact, though most tend to apply it in combat.
While the sun has gone down, it still takes a considerable amount of time for the heat of 12+ hours of sunlight and heat to dissipate. Same as a pot of boiling water stays really hot for some time even after the heat is turned off.
But thermodynamics lessons aside, the pair manage to make decent time, easily managing to get a half of a mile done in that first hour walking. It is about then that they spot something unusual... A man, off to the side of the trail, hiding. Perhaps waiting for them, or just in general. It is unclear, as he has not noticed them yet with the lack of lights.
Whether Elias can or can't modify the air temperature, he doesn't seem to do it for whatever reason. Instead it seems complaining was his method in this case, but has since gone silent his gray-blue eyes notice the man trying to hide. He reaches over his shoulder, pulling his rifle to more of a ready position, just in case.
Autumn stops in her tracks upon seeing the man and slowly opens her backpack. She takes out her bow and arrows and get into a guarding stance. "That must be bad dragon's agent," she murmurs to Elias in a low voice as she draws an arrow.
Despite Autumn's prediction, it is not, in point of fact, an agent of Gonthorian lurking in the shadows off the trail. As they get closer, the man notices them, and he starts to come out of the foliage off the trail (cacti and brush mostly, though there is an occasional tree like the one he was behind). About then the pair would notice, he is not quite a man. He is mostly a man. But his head is very much pachyderm shaped. Complete with a long trunk and large, flappy ears. Obviously scaled down to fit on a human-sized frame. An actually quite muscular human-sized frame in point of interest. One that is bare from the waist up, only wearing jeans and hiking boots. The man comes toward the pair with his hands lifted and says in an unhumanly twisted voice, "Help, please."
Glancing over to Autumn, Elias turns his attention back to the pachyderm shaped creature. He doesn't say anything, but he just pulls back the bolt on his rifle, inspecting the rounds within before letting it close back shut. Whether Elias intends on just shooting the man, it isn't immediately obvious at the moment.
"What is wrong?" Autumn asks of the pachy-man while she remains guarded. "You must have had body altered by someone." She doesn't fire her arrow yet while she examines the being.
Vocal cords are incredibly important in human speech, and the vocal cords of the fleshformed monstrosity before you have difficulty forming words, and while he managed to form the two important ones, he cannot manage to explain his situation much further. The words come out as wheezes and he lets out some disgruntled noises of displeasure from not being able to explain himself. He glances around as if trying to find something to help with explaining his situation just in time for the next exciting thing to happen.
Mad whoops and hollars can be heard up and down the trail, off to the sides a bit, in each direction, not unlike one might expect from a hunting party, but only if kids made those noises instead of adults. The oldest one might be fifteen. And they sound like they are starting to converge on Elias, Autumn, and Elephant Man's position.
The man's fingers reach up to touch his temple, rubbing lightly there. Elias takes a deep breath to compose the bits of frustration that start bubbling to the surface, "Alright, we are going to need to hide from these kids." He focuses on the fleshformed man, "You need to hide specifically, if you are seen the government will take you away and do experiments on you. You will spend the rest of your life in a lab, with needles and scalpels picking away at your flesh until the day you die." He explains to the man, "So hide, quickly. We will help you after they pass."
"Yes," Autumn says with a glance at Elias. "That and there is chance Sun Humans will capture you with their tech and use you as living weapon. So find place to hide and we'll deal with them."
Fleshformed and unable to talk, The Elephant Man is perfectly willing to do as Elias has instructed and tries to do a better job this time, going down to his stomach and wiggling under the biggest patch of brush he can find. It takes him a few seconds to get visibly concealed there. If anyone had infrared goggles or something, they would see him immediately, but in the dark, in the starlit night, with flashlights or night vision, he should be mostly concealed.
Young children and teens soon descend on the area, Like the cast of Lord of the Flies or a bad version of Peter Pan, the Lost Boys come, running around, beating the bushes, and shouting various commentary toward the poor Elephant Man. One of the leaders, the eldest who might be sixteen perhaps, approaches Elias and Autumn. "Either'v ya seen a beast man'n these parts, eh?" he asks, with traces of perhaps a Canadian accent mixed in there somewhere. He's about 5'6", no more than 160 pounds, dressed in hunting camo with a bow, arrows, a machete, and combat boots. Not the fiercest hunter, but certainly one in the making."
"Beastman? What kind of make believe game are you playing?" Elias says to the leader of the little gang, but there is a degree of coldness in his voice. He takes advantage of his military-style clothing he is wearing to try to put out a bluff, "Military maneuvers are being performed tonight, clear out before you are detained and your parents are notified." He holds his rifle at the ready as he gives the kid a very cold gaze.
"I am surprised you children loiter in such dangerous and hot place like this," Autumn tells the Canadian kid with a look at the other kids. "Yes, clear out of this place and play your games elsewhere." With one free hand, the dusky woman adjusts her cloak to reveal her body while her hazel gaze lingers.
Several of the boys make ooooh noises and back away from Elias like they are genuinely afraid of him before bursting into hysterical laughter to a one. The lead boy shakes his head and says, "Oh, there's none'v that around 'ere, eh? We're just lookin' for our lost elephant!" The crowd of boys laugh again, as obviously, they know the elephant is a man, and further, that elephants are not really indigenous to this part of the world, and that he was recently nearby. One of the children is sniffing the air like a hound on a trail, weaving around to get better angles for finding where the missing elephant man has gone. All the while, the elephant man is staying as still and quiet under his brush as he can, but he really cannot hide his smell at all. Not without a good long bath, which he certainly has not had out here in the middle of a desert on a mountain trail. If the pair wants to help him and still make it to the top of the peak, they may need to do something relatively soon.
[OOC: This is a good time for my usual mid-point break. If you wanna do your post, then take a ten minute break, feel free. Try to be back by 11:15, please!]
"You know what, fuck it." Elias says as he shrugs, looking over to Autumn, asking her, "Do you really care about these kids or the whole lot there? I say we keep going and let fate deal the cards it wants to deal." The dark haired man shifts his gaze back to the path forward.
"I can have Ifrit scare them away," Autumn tells Elias, scanning the kids for any aura. "These kids don't look like they would be roasted by heat."
"Ifrit? Weak ass summoner bull shit. Not even the best at dealing Fire Damage, and that's like his only thing," one of the kids shouts back toward the pair of adults visible on the trail. Several of the other kids jeer and josh with the kid for bringing up video games at a time like this, but they continue searching for the Elephant Man. The one that is sniffing the air is getting kinda close to where the fleshformed man is hiding. The other kids resume their activity of beating the bushes and bouncing around like mad children in their hunt for the elephant man. That leaves Elias and Autumn at a tipping point with three real paths forward: Help the Elephant Man, help the children hunting the Elephant Man, or just walk away entirely because they have a job to do out here.
"I am not going to get mixed up with fae children." Elias concludes over to Autumn as he starts walking up the path, "We have bigger fish to fry right now. I don't really play hero very well, most of all if it involves me getting myself killed in the process."
"I see," Autumn replies, letting out a sigh before turns towards the children. "Listen up! Search wherever you want. Elephant isn't here, and if you keep lingering here, you will get eaten by desert devils that prey on foolish children. This place isn't called Death Valley for nothing." Her eyes narrow as she turns to follow Elias. But she pauses, smirking before she gestures her left hand towards the leader and his clothes as her bracelet glows before she turns back towards the path up.
"Got him!" the sniffing nose kid shouts, even as the leader's clothing is lit on fire. He lets out a startled yelp and remembering the lessons from when he was a younger kid, stops, drops and rolls like a champ to start getting the flames put out. As soon as Elias and Autumn have their backs turned on the Elephant Man the hoops and hollars resume, and soon, the pained trumpeting of a wounded elephant begin to sound across the otherwise still night of the desert peak. There are stabbing noises, kicking, grunts, more shouts of victory, but it becomes clear relatively quickly that they are indeed killing the Elephant Man like little Lost Boys.
After the pair gets a bit further away from the grisly scene, the path becomes silent once more, and they are able to make some serious progress to make up for the distraction. They are about halfway to the peak, and a little bit of the heat has lifted. Not as much as either person on the trail would like, but it may only be 105 by now, maybe a little less this high up.
Not seeming bothered in the slightest at the cries behind him, Elias just presses on forward as makes his way up the path. He takes a momentary break to pull a flask out of a pouch, taking a drink from it before returning it to where he retrieved it from.
Autumn purses her lips upon hearing the cries behind her, her hand clenched yet she continues to follow Elias. "Cruel Earth kids," she mutters under her breath and looks up towards the peak.
Mission first, indeed. The pair put in a little more hustle into their giddy-up to get up the last leg of the mountain to get this ritual started. With only two arcanists and a magic crystal holding a bunch of energy from a crazy hail storm that rocked Haven for the better part of a week, it may still be a difficult ritual to perform, let alone finish without interruptions. But they will be giving it a shot here soon enough.
No distractions crop up for the next thirty minutes, putting the pair to within that last third of a mile. Possibly the hardest third, as it becomes even more sheer of a climb to get up the trail. At times, it requires literal climbing even. The grade for this particular hike is listed as 'dangerous' for more reasons than the heat (though that is actually a major contributing factor). With only twenty minutes or so left in the hike if they keep pace, they should be able to enact the spell and get back home before the witching hour. Sadly, they won't get the benefits of the witching hour, but still. They could when they get back!
The man finishes the last stretch of the trek, huffing and puffing. Elias slings his rifle back over he shoulder and works on prepping the crystal, whom ever is carrying that is, "Lets get this ritual finished. I will enjoy seeing this place frosted over."
"Right," Autumn replies, putting her bow away and looking inside a pocket of her backpack to make sure the crystal is safe before closing it. "Would be relieving heat." With a careful climb towards the peak, she waits until she's at the end to take the crystal out and begin the preparations.
After far longer than it should have taken to reach the peak, Elias and Autumn find themselves on top of the world, looking out, seeing the curves of the earth as the horizon expands forth out from their heavenly perch. The heavens above twinkle and shine, casting them in celestial hues of light beneath the nearly full moon. If there was ever a time to do a ritual like this, now would be the time. The sky is pristine and clear. The air is a little thin, and aside from the oppressive heat, more perfect conditions for a ritual could not be found in the wild.
It may get interrupted, so Elias and Autumn will need to work fast.
With Autumn baring the crystal, Elias works to aid her in the ritual to release its energies. He calls forth his own magical power to pour into the crystal to help the ritual along, but in the end, it seems Autumn knows the specific ritual required, so his role becomes more assisting than taking the lead with it for now.
Channeling her magic, Autumn closes her eyes and chants as she holds the crystal in her hands. She slowly lifts it up, keeping a good grip on it as she speaks.
Midway through the ritual, the oppressive heat returns in force. "You think that will harm me?" comes a gravelly, draconic, disembodied voice. "Do your worst," he says with a condescending chuckle. He remains, watching the ritual, but he cannot really interfere. Well, he could, but perhaps he just thinks he is that immune to whatever is coming down the pipe.
The ritual finishes, and the crystal blasts blue energy up into the sky. It ripples and rolls out from somewhere in the atmosphere, and in short order, clouds are rolling in. And soon enough, rain starts to fall. And the world becomes cooler almost instantly dropping ten degrees, then more as more rain comes. And soon, it is cold enough to need a light jacket, everywhere but the peak of course, where a certain Eidolon's presence is denying the ritualists the enjoyment of the cold. But before long, snow starts to fall. And with that, the Eidolon departs, letting the pair enjoy, at least for a few moments, the cool respite that their snowy blizzard has given them and the world. And hopefully, the storm will make it to Haven. Only time will tell...
"That is exactly what I wanted to see." Elias says as a broad smile crosses his face as he looks out over death valley as snow drifts down upon it, "It is a beautiful sight, isn't it?" He asks, glancing back to Autumn.
"Indeed," Autumn nods her head, looks down at the snowy scenery before the pair as she wraps the cloak back over her body. "Perhaps worth climb here."
[And that will bring us to a close. I will try to do a news post or something about it later. For now, lemme do the administrative stuff. Anyone need Awards?]