Open - Fountain of memories

_____A chance to remember missed time, while it sounded almost too good to be true Kaede felt she owed it to herself to explore the chance she might regain what she lost. So many things did not make sense as things stood, woman seemed to know her yet she could never recall them. Men hated her or scorned her existence. Places always made her blush when they normally would not have for the same reasons all lost in her memory she could not reach. If she had to risk crossing dangerous creatures for the shot to know, was it not worth the price she paid for the information?

_____Her red cloak rustling loudly as the sharp cold winter winds lashed along the mountainside she climbed with steady pace. The clouds not far away from how far up she had gone so far and it slightly startled her to be honest. This location, the steep passageway along the mountain stung her memories heavily, the ringing deep inside her skull all too familiar as her mind trying to remind her yet blocked out by some unknown force. Pulling her cloak over her mouth and face to fight against the nibbing chill washing over her.

_____The ringing subsiding to beeping as Kaede noticed her meters starting to drop quickly, namely stamina and temperature. She had lost track of when she last rested or tried to keep her body temperature up. Scanning the area around her in hopes for something she could use to hide from the wind to start a fire or stop walking head first against the strong chill she was suffering from at the dealing of wind. The endless white blanket slope gave little sign to spare her such a fate, luckily, rather unlucky some might say as Kaede’s step brought forth a loud cracking sound.

_____The white snow began to rose, her mind fixing the thought as she fell down with shards of ice around her. Grey eyes scanning for the bottom or a place to slow her decent without success. The light from above fading out giving way to only darkness and the rush of wind as Kaede fell deeper from the surface. Her sense of direction scrambled as she kept trying to reach for something, anything around her. Softly however, the sound of rushing water broke the scramble as she had one sense to lock onto her hearing.

_____Body moving into dive feet first for the water, body locked tightly together as the sound got closer, a last chance to get as much air as she could before she hit the rapids and got swept along, the force of the impact knocking everything out of Kaede as she blacked out. The moments of her forced slumber breaking away the heavy locks on some of her memories, and why this place seemed so recent in her mind. She had been here before, and fell into the water last time also, but as she tried to dig more into the lost memory she woke.

_____The cold she once felt was nothing to the bone shivering chill she now suffered. Water rushing along her lower body, arms gripping tightly to land she could not see, her body still weak and aching with pain from her fall. This place, wherever she ended up was likely going to kill her, but not without a strong struggle. Muscles screamed out as Kaede forced them to work against their demands to rest, slowly clawing her way onto land where the water would not lash her body more. It was the first of many steps she needed to take.

_____More struggle as Kaede clenched her fist and opened her UI, hands shivering as she scrolled along her item list changing clothing, getting out wood and items for a fire and working with everything she had to get it going for both light and warmth. Her meters all screaming for replenishment or tending as the first few sparks gave way to flames. Careful breaths to kindle the fires to grow before she could see some distance around herself and soaked in the heat from the fire as close as she could get. Falling to her back she laid calmly.

”This… is… why… I Hate… Hiking… And mountains… Cold… and Unforgiving!”

_____Kaede’s teeth clattered as she spoke, her voice low despite the sharp yelling tone it tried to hold. The air was thin, rather the air stung her lungs from the cold and rawness of it all. This place, wherever she had fallen was not common place for people to end up, while it was both good and bad Kaede tried to mostly focus on the good note of it. It would likely mean less danger and without knowing how long she was swept by the current or how far she was forced to simply take things slowly.

_____Fist clenching once more to open her UI and take out some scarp foods and her water jug to try and tend to her needs meters while warming up beside the fire and allowing her body to relax as much as she could without sleeping in the unknown location. Her main focus for the moment was to simply survive, and so far she was doing just fine with such and hoped to keep it that way. Laying back down on the ground Kaede closed her eyes and relaxed some more.

”Hopefully there is a way out of here that is not death… But for now I think a small nap would be ok… Just to recover stamina and my sleep meters…”

Danger level: 1 deadly - 10 safe

Thrown die:

10

 

Celestine wrapped her warm scarf snuggly around her neck and chin as the cold air continued to poke at her cheeks. So this was the Hyland Mountains? Or… at least the outskirts of it. She wouldn’t dare go too far in. After all: this was just a little scouting mission out of curiosity. A peek at what was ahead. The answer: A WHOLE LOT OF COLD SNOW! Why on earth would the Explorer’s League choose now - of all times - to brave the Hylands?! Mountains were cold and perilous enough without adding WINTER WEATHER to the mix. Maybe it was all just for the thrill of firsties?

Cel shrugged. Whatever. From what she’d heard, there’d been a good chunk of funding coming in from various sources, so with any luck, they’d hire a bunch of people to bring firewood, pyromancy, and lots of cuddly people err…. ‘Clothes.’

“This is still looking to be a huge wasting of the times though,” she commented with a voice that was lost to the howling winds. On a less windy day, it might’ve echoed through the vast mountain ranges. A shame, really: echoes were fun.

“Okay, so my list of the things to do a buy of: scarves. Very thick, warm, snuggly winter clothes. Um... ” she paused to ponder it, whipping out her waterskin to take a sip. The ice-cold water within felt like a knife, all the way down and brought shiver along with it. “I wonder if this world is having a thermos to buy. Maybe I can be finding someone who can do me a Tinker. Hot chocolate would be great. Or cider of the apples. Either one. Let us see… what else can help me do a mountain…?”

Celestine brought her hand up to her forehead, almost like a salute, keeping the wind from her eyes so she could see better. Though she was intending to focus on the mountains, a big red ‘dot’ in the distance caught her attention instead. Like a drop of blood on the white canvas of sno-- wait… hadn’t she made that analogy before? Yeah, definitely. And it looked like it was the same person too, though it was a little hard to see. Why was she heading straight into the mountains alone?!

Celly watched as the distant red blob made its way through the snow and ice. “That might as well be doing a suicide without anyone to do a help. What is she possibly doing? Wait, huh…?” Then, just as suddenly as Cel had noticed her, the blob had vanished. It looked like she’d slipped down into the snow, except she wasn’t getting back up. Had she collapsed there?

“Mmmmm, I already did a check of ‘Help a damsel in distress,’ so I am not needing to do another help, but...” Celestine paced back and forth in the thick snow, slowly packing it down as she repeated the pattern. “I am of great curiosity. But I also cannot be doing a survive in this place for many of the times.” She took one last glance in the direction the red blob had vanished. “Okay, fine. I am of too many curiosities. I will do a check at least.”

With the conclusion reached, Celestine finally started in what was hopefully the right direction. It didn’t take her long to reach the chasm, and once she caught sight of that crack in the ground, suddenly this all made sense. Suddenly, this was a bit more exciting.

“Oooo! Doing an explore is of far more interest.”

With a quick wind spell, she slowly floated down to the bottom, shutting her eyes tight as she tried to ignore the painful chill that came from getting blasted with icy wind. On the other hand, it was far better than plunging into the icy river there. Definitely. After a few minutes of following the stream, a flickering light came into view. Fire. Warmth! Not wasting a second, she ran for it, full speed.

“Oh, is it the beheader of the goblins,” Celestine called as she immediately rushed closer to the small flame. “I was doing the thinking that it was you, but I was not doing a sureness from the great distances. Um...” she rubbed her gloved hands together as she asked, “What is it you are doing here? If you are wanting to do an explore, there is the expedition to do a join of later.”

 

_____Kaede’s nap broke with the sound of a familiar voice. Eyes opening slowly and she pushed off the cold ground and attempted to focus grey eyes on the direction of the voice, slowly coming into focus Kaede smiled gently and laid back down slowly. The girl did not pose much a threat from what Kaede knew of her and while her way of speaking took some adjusting it was nothing extreme that would not be able to be done while relaxing.

”Kaede, Kaede Hoshi is my name… I’m here on personal matters of my memory… But it seems I’ve once more ended up in the wrong place. Hard to explain it, but my head keeps ringing as if telling me to get out of here while I still can… but another part of me says this is where I need to be to find my lost memories…”

_____Kaede tried her best to explain things, but at the same time she did not want to give the girl the full truth behind her reason here or the feeling she was getting from this place. Almost deadly, a unseen hand wrapping tightly around her neck slowly choking away at Kaede the more she thought about it or got closer to whatever was the source.

”What brings you here Celestine? Early scouting mission?”

_____Kaede made an effort to change the topic as she moved to rest her hands behind her head. The less it was focused on Kaede’s reason to be here the better after all and that was something Kaede could do. From what she knew of Cel it would also not take much to distract the girl, she seemed to be constantly looking for a new focus so hopefully this change would be enough. Stretching her legs slowly Kaede tried to make herself slightly more comfortable while hopefully having a story to listen to.
@Celestine

Danger roll: 1 deadly 10 safe

Thrown die:

7

 

“Oh? I do not think you did me a telling of the last name of yours before,” Cel mentioned, trying to think back on it. Nope, the memory wasn’t there. Then again, she didn’t remember her first name either until she’d said it a moment ago, so there was that. “I do not know what the ‘Kaede’ is meaning, but I am knowing the ‘Hoshi’ is a star. Very much coolness.” She wasn’t about to admit she only knew it from various anime series, nor was she about to assume Kaede was Japanese. After all, Terrasphere was international now, and she - herself - had taken her name from a pretty looking rock.

Celestine sat alongside Kaede, warming herself by the fire. This was a cool little cave, and surprisingly warm compared to the outside; probably due to the fire burning for a while. Still, it wasn’t the most exciting place. Seen one winter cave, seen ‘em all.

“Yep,” Celestine answered Kaede’s question, blunt and quick. There wasn’t much more to say about it. She came. She stared at a mountain. She stared at snow.

…

Yeah, that was pretty much it.

Memory loss was far more interesting…

“I was not knowing you were doing a loss of the memories,” she mentioned, latching onto the infinitely more interesting topic. “Is it like the complete loss of the memories, or are you doing more of a loss of the detailings? Actually, you are of lucks, because I might be having a thingy for this...”

Swiping open her menu, she scrolled through several panels until she got to her mini pets. It was one she’d obtained just recently: “Ghost of Winstersday Past.” Of all the mini pets she could’ve got, it was hard for her to excuse having this one out on a regular basis. It was kinda cute, but it was downright disruptive with the random memories it brought up, and - as a ghost - impossible to cuddle. Still, as she looked over at Kaede, it felt like the perfect time.

Pressing down the ‘summon’ button, Celestine struck a strong, sturdy pose that looked like she was flexing and called out, “Just like we rehearsed! Prepare to do a facing of the power of my Stand!”

Suddenly, the ghostly, translucent figure of a small young woman phased out of Celestine and flew around the cave, dropping a bunch of snowflakes like a little cloud.

“So anyway,” Cel explained as the little ghost idly circled around her several times, “whenever I do look at her, she is giving me the strong memory feelings. Maybe she can do you a help?” The ghost, hearing her summoner’s wishes, floated over to Kaede and struck a cute little pose with a smile, hoping to be of help.

@Kaede Hoshi

 

”Kaede means Maple leaf, it’s not that cool to be honest. Both a Maple leaf and star are destined to fall or die out so not exactly comforting to be named after them in real life and since I lack creative ability in names… Just lost memories here mostly, something about my real life seems off also but I can’t ever get my finger onto the issue when I try to overthink it my head hurts from start to giving up so.”

_____Her Hopes shot down, but moving with little information and always looking to turn the topic was all Kaede could do from here on. She did not like to trouble others, rather it seemed she disliked to trouble other woman but she still had no real clue why she favored them over men so much on so many different things. But at the chance it might help Kaede tried to look at the ghost with a soft smile. The memory she got however was something a little heavy for short notice.

_____It started off nice, she was with someone she recently re-encountered @Ueno Mizuki However, it quickly took a turn for the odd. The things they did and what she said forced Kaede out of the memory and her face almost more crimson as her cloak as she covered her eyes and buckled up. To think she and Mizuki had been THAT close and she forgot all about the girl, not only did that sink an anchor into Kaede’s heart but made her feel extremely guilty.

”While that… was… Helpful… it was also a bit… well… Err… Nevermind…”

_____Kaede did not want to look again and be filled with more guilt, one fragment of her past was enough for now and there was no telling if the ghost would show her something new or more of that same memory. Thankfully Kaede would not have to worry so much as the area began to tremble slowly and a roar cut across the air sending more then chills down Kaede’s back and throughout her body. One thing was clear, she knew that roar and feared it more then she was embarrassed about the recalled memory.

”We need to get out of the open… Quickly!”

_____Kaede’s tone was filled with the fear she was starting to show, her mind flipping into sink or swim mode as she reached for one already ignited piece of wood and moved it aside. Pulling her cloak off and fanning out the fire leaving them with little light and fading warmth before she started moving away from where she assumed the sound had come from. Torch held as she tried to navigate the area as best she could.
@Celestine

Danger roll: 1 deadly 10 safe

Thrown die:

5

 

It wasn't yet time for the grand expedition that, funded by Astorea, explorers and adventurers alike, would be the beginning of the known civilized world becoming familiar with the so far isolated Hylands. Due to the location it had been unavoidable that there were some people who'd enter the high region, and there were some outposts on the outer skirts, but all in all this was the time that the Hylands as a whole would be explored, mapped out and turned from a land of unknown mysteries into a country of known but still strange mysteries. Mizuki personally had a lot of interest in the Caenis tribes that also lived in the region, wanting to meet the Caenii and learn more about their lifestyle and traditions. It had mostly been coincidence that caused her to become a Caenis herself, an urge she hadn't even been able to explain herself until it had already happened, but now that it had happened she wanted to live up to it.

Right now she was just hunting, however. She wasn't sure what exactly she was hunting, but she was searching for signs of anything big enough to be worth taking out and taking home as a trophy. The Monster Hunters wanted the new blood to show off, prove that they were worth paying attention to, which meant that hunting now had a completely new benefit aside from training and just enjoying the game.

Stepping through the snow Mizuki did her best to move silently, minimizing the crunching of snow underfoot while she kept low to the ground and turned her ears to see if she could catch any sounds which would lead her to prey. The sharp ears of a wolf had turned out to be very useful when hunting, especially when she combined them with her Hunting mastery to become even better at tracking and catching faint signs of other creatures being in the area. Right now she couldn't hear anything, however, as she slowly made her way through the fields of snow towards the mountains higher up. She wouldn't enter the actual Hylands, instead moving about in the outskirts to see if there was anything interesting around here. There probably wouldn't be anything nobody else had ever seen before, but she could start out slowly before building her way up to the truly interesting hunts.

As she made her way onwards she began to hear some sounds. However they appeared to be coming from down below, an echo-like tint making it clear that this came from some vast expanse... and there was no-one in sight. Mizuki peered at the horizon to see if there were any hints there, but it remained empty, and round here there weren't many places one could hide.

Closing her eyes she focused on the sound, making her way closer to the source until she could hear that it came out of a hole in front of her. Opening her eyes she knelt and carefully reached out, brushing away freshly fallen snow to reveal the hole through which at least one other person had already fallen. Mizuki hadn't come here to play rescue dog, but on the other hand if someone froze to death in there and Mizuki could have saved them she wouldn't feel right either. Which was why the wolfwoman carefully felt out the edges of the hole, then knelt there for a while thinking of how to approach the issue before jumping in.

The air whistled around her even though it had been harsher outside, the wolflike huntress tensing as she prepared to break her fall. She had spent enough time inside the game training her body that she could deal with pretty big falls by now, so when she finally hit the ground she managed to turn it into a roll to dissipate most of the force, although what remained still had her staggering for a moment as she went from a pretty deep fall to a nearly abrupt stop.

Once she had her bearings she looked around, in time to see a faint light move away. Not hesitating she walked after it, hastening her step despite the somewhat shaken feeling from the fall until she was close enough to recognize the person holding the torch, at which point the Caenis came to a halt and stared with shock and surprise. "Kaede? Is that you?" She didn't fail to notice the other person here, but it was Kaede that caught her attention and kept her staring as she tried to think of why Kaede was here.
@Kaede Hoshi @Celestine

 

Cel grinned and was about to open her mouth to make some snarky remark about why she’d name her character something she didn’t like… but shut it again, once she realized the implications of what she was saying. Riiiiight. That made more sense.

“I would-- Well I-- err...” Celestine was lost for words of advice. After all, she had been in the same boat before. Now she wasn’t. It was simple for her - if a bit awkward at times - but she wasn’t sure how it was like in… Japan? Maybe?

“If it does you the better feelings, I am doing a like of the Hoshi. The Kaede part is not of badness either. I would do it the rating of five. Five, out of one of the numbers that is higher than five.” Celly gave Kaede a thumbs up, trying to make up for her awkwardness with sheer confidence. “If you are not liking it, maybe you can do it the change. I did.”

As Kaede showed off such an extreme reaction to Ghosty, she floated backward in surprise, deflating as her friendly little hurt was crushed again. It was such a nasty curse for her: all she wanted was to make new friends, but every time someone looked, they just reacted like… well… that. Celestine was a little better in that regard: the summoner who rarely ever regretted anything. It was still obvious that she was affected just as much as everyone else though.

“Poor Ghosty,” Cel consoled, putting her hand inside the back of its head and petting the slightly-thickened air. She seemed to enjoy the sensation a bit, though it looked just plain weird from the outside-looking-in. “Was it really? You are not looking like a person of much difference. If anything, you are doing even more of the reds then you were doing before you did a Ghosty stare.”

Celly shrugged, then froze as the roar echoed throughout the cavern. “I am thinking it is time to do a leave,” she commented as Ghosty flew straight into her chest to hide. Celestine shivered. That never stopped being creepy.

With a quick wave of her hand, a powerful gust of air snuffed out the remaining embers Kaede couldn’t manage with just her cloak, and the two were off. It was actually pretty great, having someone beside her who was similarly fast to keep up with her air-blast speed.

“...and without even the help of the airs...” she commented, glancing to her side in astonishment.

It was then that she heard a voice directly in their path. She turned to meet the new face, but she could tell in an instant: they were approaching way too fast! It was either collide or blast her with enough air to pinball the new girl into the wall. She took the first option.

Bracing for impact, Celestine’s body slammed straight into the new girl like an MMA fighter coming in for a lower-body tackle. They were both slammed backward and continued to slide away on the ice.

“I am Celestine,” she greeted up from the girl’s lap with a painful grin as the two continued to slide along with a slight spin. If anything, she was relishing the awkwardness of it all. “Hopefully your insides are not doing too much of the hurts? Who is this woof person I did a bump of?”

As if to mirror her summoner's curiosity, Ghosty phased out of Celestine's torso and hovered there, inquisitively staring at the new girl.

@Kaede Hoshi
@Ueno Mizuki

 

_____Either fate was truly sadistic or Kaede did anot of bad things in this world or her past life to get such a bad turn of events. The moment she heard Mizuki’s voice Kaede’s heart freaked and when she could see the girl she could only see the memory flashing back causing her to whimper slightly and blush badly. Her frame trembling as she staggered backwards and started losing grip on the torch. With true flustered nimbleness Kaede not only failed to re catch the torch but dropped it into the water killing off their light.

”Shit! Why… gaa… that was my last spare log and i don’t have more flint…”

_____Kaede’s tone rang with panic, this was not going well and she greatly hated that fact. Not to mention her heart was freaking out twice as much knowing Mizuki was nearby. How does she even go about that, no memory of a girl she trusted enough to sleep with and do adult things… Now she had no idea who the girl was but her body seemed to remember more than enough about their relationship. Adding in the memory popping in her head as she slapped her cheeks to try and reign herself in.

_____Looking around in the darkness Kaede tried to move towards the faint source of light from above the group, where everyone had fallen into the cave from. While the light was not much it gave some view of things. Inhaling sharply Kaede tried to think, tried to remember anything about this place that could help her out. But as her mind shouted out to stop trying kaede was simply left with nothing as another roar crossed the cave, this time closer than before. As much as Kaede wanted to give up she was not just going to lay down and die.

”The exit is to high to jump, and I don’t know if we have time to try and support each other to get someone out to pull up the other, or if we even have the muscle to do such. I also don’t think whatever is making that sound is friendly so our best hope is to try and find another exit… Sadly the only thought I have for that is follow the water current.”

____Not exactly in the mood to debate with the others kaede started to follow the water downstream. She was seriously hopeful it flowed out of the mountain or into a smaller chamber the creature or whatever was behind them could not catch or pursue them further. The situation between her and Mizuki could hopefully be set on the back burner for the time being. Sadly, due to Kaede’s panicked state she could not hear the sound of something approach very quickly from the darkness.

____If nothing was done a black blur hurtle towards Kaede and send her flying as it continued it’s almost missile like projectile movement. A moment or two passing before a very faint crash sound seemed to indicate the end of the thrown object’s travel, with or without Kaede under it. The group seemed to have encountered something that was territorial, or had a personal grudge to Kaede as the roar resounded past the light if Kaede was split from the group.
@Ueno Mizuki | @Celestine

Danger roll: 1 deadly 10 safe

Thrown die:
5

 

Mizuki raised her eyebrows as the person who was with Kaede barrelled straight into something ahead of them, the sound of ice breaking resounding throughout the cave as it looked like in this ice cave even your own eyes couldn't be trusted, as what faint light there was down here was enough to send reflections of everything scattering throughout the walls of ice as if countless mirrors. From the looks and sound of it Kaede's companion had managed to charge straight into one of those mirrors, although thankfully rather than a solid wall it had been a sheet of ice created by years of water slowly dripping down from the ceiling and freezing once more as it reached the ground. The Caenis pursed her lips, uncertain whether she should help or not. Thankfully it didn't look like the... Felis? The Felis was hurt badly, although in this darkness one couldn't be sure.

"...Are you all right?" She called out, but before Celestine could answer Kaede had already dropped the torch and extinguished their main light source, leaving the Caenis hesitant about moving in case she collided with something in the darkness. While her Investigation Mode made it easier for her to navigate even in darkness it still wasn't as good as actually having a light with you.

Speaking of Kaede, Mizuki once again was reminded of the fact that Kaede wasn't the same person she was before, at least not entirely. She was sure the old redhead was still in there, but so far it seemed like her friend was dominated by uncertainty of not knowing about her past, making her appear as a much less confident and easily worried person. The wolfwoman wondered what this version of Kaede would be like if she was put in a situation where she was in her element: would she act the same as Kaede did in the past, or would she behave differently even when the situation favoured her strengths?

"Sorry for surprising you Kaede. I noticed that you had fallen down the hole, and I followed in case you were wounded and in need of help. Although in hindsight I hadn't planned for a way back out of the hole..." She followed her friend towards the hole high above, frowning as she realized that her plan had honestly been kind of silly. Of course you wouldn't just jump into a hole without some kind of idea for how you got out after. Jumping into a hole like that just because a friend might be in need of help wasn't even romantic, it was just shortsighted. She really dropped the ball with that.

"I might be able to get out that way, by climbing and using my claws..." She looked down at the dark metal claws attached to her hands, normally used for combat but certainly sturdy enough that she could use them as mountaineering tools as well if need be. However the roaring that had Kaede on edge also was making Mizuki wary. "But as you say I suspect we don't have the time for that, and you'd have a hard time using the notches left behind by my claws. Let's keep moving for now." If Celestine was all right Mizuki would follow Kaede immediately, if Celestine was having trouble getting up the Caenis would first pull the Felis back upright and then follow her red-themed friend.

Considering the situation Mizuki wasn't going to spend time asking Kaede about her memories, since that would just be a distraction in a situation where they very likely couldn't afford a distraction. Whatever that roar was, it didn't sound friendly in the slightest. The Caenis was also calmer than her friend, using her Investigation Mode to help keep her eyes and ears on the surroundings as they moved onward, which allowed her to notice the approach in time to react. "Watch out!" However she wasn't fast enough to alert Kaede and give the girl enough time to get out of the way, leaving Mizuki with little option but to jump forward, push Kaede aside, and cross her claws in front of her while gritting her teeth.

In time for the black blur to smash right into her, the Caenis's feet sliding over the slippery floor of the cavern as she did her best to resist being knocked over, holding her clawed hands up to catch some of the force as she bared her fangs, eventually unable to keep her footing with there being nearly no solid purchase as she fell backwards, grunting as her back hit the ground but managing to keep her arms, hands and claws in front of her in case the aggressor tried to attack her while she was falling.
@Kaede Hoshi @Celestine

 

Slowly but surely, the world began to quit spinning around at random, and was replaced by a more consistent image. Celestine had been smacked straight into a wall of ice by her own air power, and it seemed to knock her head pretty hard. Concerning, but at least she wasn’t dead, so that was nice!

“Bleh,” she called out, stumbling back up. “I am probably of the do in myself an okayness. Thankings of th— oof,” she held her head. Talking was hard. Thinking was hard. She slapped herself on the cheeks a few times with a few resounding whacking sounds. “Thank you,” she finally replied with more clarity.

“Mm, technically I can do a jump up of the hole, but I am not of the normal jumping, and I can only do so much of the helps.” Celes looked in the rough direction of the ear-piercing roar, catching only faint glimmers in the vast darkness before her. Spooky. “Who the heck is the new woof person anyway,” Cel asked as she followed the other two?

“Are you also doing a scout of the expe— OWW!”

Not able to really see where she was going, Celestine slammed into a rocky outcropping and promptly made her way around it. She barely regained her sense of direction in time to see a black ‘something’ fling itself at Kaede. Though she didn’t have the time to react herself, she gave a thumbs up as the unnamed woof person intercepted it.

Not that a thumbs-up meant anything in the dark…

“Keep doing a move!” Celestine called, helping the new woof person up briefly before continuing her run. “If we can do us a find of the source of the lights, we can it do a stand and a fight!” Celly was ready. She’d just got herself a fancy new book, and some new combat spells, and - more importantly…

“Hey! You back there!” Celestine flipped around to the source of the assault, still keeping up a quick backwards strafe. “You are doing Ghosty a scare! You had better hope I do not do a find of a source of the lights soon, or you will do a suffer, you inconsiderate hole of ass!”

She’d have given Ghosty a reassuring cuddle, but seeing as Ghosty was currently hiding inside of her body, that outta work just as well. Less satisfying from Cel’s perspective though. Having finished her threat, she gave the hole to the surface a longing glance, and turned back around to speed up again.

@Kaede Hoshi | @Ueno Mizuki

 

_____By the time Kaede was warned she felt herself get moved away and turned to see her friend get pushed away from the group. The image in her eyes flickering to see a similar event but a person she did not recall, was her past memory trying to warn her and simply behind schedule? Covering one eye Kaede rushed to the others, a faint glow behind her hand as she reached the other to help Mizuki up also before turning to where the attack had come from and could easily be seen trembling.

”This way…”

_____Kaede could not explain herself to them, but as she turned and started moving away quickly she was not giving herself the chance just yet while they remained in the open. After running some time without a rawr or object flying towards them Kaede began to slow down, her hand tracing along a wall of ice, the glow in her eye fading as she found a small hand indent and pressed it in as the wall shook and lowered.

”I got some memory back of the place… but not much helpful outside this hiding spot…”

_____Warm air would rush out as Kaede tried to wave for the group to quickly rush inside. Once everyone was inside Kaede would pull a lever and the wall would rise back to seal the area. Full darkness covering the group but the sound of Kaede fumbling around soon gave way to another lever moving and light from above showing the room clearly. Despite the cave it looked like a real compact house. Pulling her cloak off and setting it down Kaede fell to the ground crying.

”We might be able to get out from here… There should be a sort of harpoon device somewhere that can be powered by energy… But my task is still here… The creature… It’s guarding something and as much as i hate it… that is where my head keeps yelling for me to go to…”

_____Kaede moved from the ground as she wiped her eyes, walking around the area like it was her own home. Sad to say this had been a place she felt was home, one of the beds even showing sign of her taste with red blankets and a small bed beside it covered in wolf fur. Falling over on the bed and reaching out to pet an invisible wolf pup Kaede simply laid there regaining her composure.

”While I thank you both for worrying about me… You don’t have to risk anything more… But I can’t simply leave here just yet…”
@Ueno Mizuki | @Celestine

 

Listening to Celestine's strange manner of speech Mizuki blinked and stared, not sure what to make of it. A foreigner? She had to be, she couldn't imagine any accent which actually made you talk like that. It sounded strange even for a foreigner though, as if instead of just fumbling their way towards saying what they wanted to say she had just decided to learn some grammar and use only that grammar when talking. Maybe she had just settled into using that way of speaking English after she got tired of trying to figure out all the nuances? Admittedly English had a tendency to have some very annoying and complicated exceptions to its rules... Well, it wasn't that important although MIzuki would have trouble getting used to the Felis's speech pattern.

"I'm glad to hear that you're all right. In a place like this any wound could become a serious problem and I only have very limited talent as a healer." Honestly after she had started her exploration of Terrasphere as a purely physical fighter it still felt strange to have Nature Magic added to her arsenal, and she definitely still wasn't used to it.

Looking back up at the hole once more Mizuki squinted, gauging the exact height. "I could probably get out as well, but since we're trying to help Kaede us two getting out wouldn't really solve anything. That said I don't think you're obligated to help her so I wouldn't blame you if you decided that you would rather get out of the cold and back somewhere warm. As for who I am, I'm Ueno Mizuki, but it's Japanese so the family name is in front and the given name comes after, so Mizuki is what I'm called by." An explanation Mizuki had to give quite often, since most people who played Terrasphere were used to the naming order of Western society. Being called woof person was a bit odd and she wasn't sure if she was too fond of the term, but considering the circumstances they weren't exactly in the position to argue about that kind of thing. Better to first get to safety.

Fortunately after she was knocked back it looked like whatever had attacked her had decided to continue moving onwards rather than pressing the attack. That or its momentum had carried it over Mizuki and away. Either way Mizuki quickly accepted Kaede's help getting up and then followed the red-themed girl as she seemed to have an idea of where she was going. How she knew the Caenis was dying to ask, but it looked like Kaede was trying to focus on something despite the fear she was feeling so she went along silently, keeping her ears sharp in case another attack came from the darkness, either from the same creature or something else entirely. So far they'd only encountered the one thing, but who knew what was hidden in this cave of ice, which most likely hadn't been explored for years and years?

A hidden chamber, apparently.

She hadn't been expecting it, but it was a welcome reprieve both from the cold and from the unseen threat out there. Once inside Mizuki looked around, noting how complete the place looked. It didn't even look like something hastily constructed: someone had put in a lot of effort to make themselves a nice and cosy room in this cave even though Mizuki didn't know of anything important being anywhere close to this location. Together with Kaede noting how she had regained some memories... Just what had her friend been doing before she lost her memories?

Looking at Kaede the Caenis looked stunned when the red-themed woman began to cry, then hurried over and tried to comfort Kaede a little with a hug and by patting her on the back, until the tears dried and it looked like Kaede had managed to push most of the shock out of her head. Although when she mentioned that Celestine and Mizuki didn't have to risk themselves any further than they already had her heterochromatic eyes narrowed as her tail went up behind her.

"Maybe I don't have to by law, but I'm not leaving you alone here." She began to rummage through the room, searching for the harpoon device that Kaede had mentioned. "If you still need to do something here I'll do my best to help you, although you'll have to use the device yourself since I'm better at using my hands than relying on machinery or magic devices. My magic is still very undeveloped so I wouldn't be very good at powering it either." She didn't know what Kaede still needed to do here, but she'd do her best to make sure her Human friend would accomplish whatever it is she needed to accomplish.
@Kaede Hoshi @Celestine

 

_____With what seemed like the departure of Celestin Kaede’s mind grew flustered once again. She was alone with Mizuki, even if there was something trying to kill them outside it did not help calm the girl down as she watched the sky light and snowfall from above trying to recall anything else about this place and why it was holding her hostage in the fact she could not leave without hating herself for it. Hands pulling sheets away from the area she sat for clues without result and a sigh escaping her lips.

”I can’t think of anything more about this place… Gaa!”

_____Temper flaring as Kaede threw a pillow across the room at a shelf and growled loudly. Why the hell did she lose her memory and more so why did it annoyingly only give her bits of information back at random times? Slamming her butt down against the bed Kaede tried to think back again with another empty result. It would be dumb to go back out there without knowing where she needed to go or if there was a chance to stop the creature from killing Mizuki or herself.

_____Foot stomping the ground as her anger still held face while Kaede kept thinking. Her focus soon easing as she noticed a cross breeze. Quickly licking her finger and lifting it up as the chill confirmed it. The wind was not just coming in from above, but going out somewhere. Kicking off the bed Kaede began running her hands along the wall in the general direction needed.

”There is a place the wind is going out from… if I could just find it… Here, Mizuki help me move this.”

_____Kaede stopped at a large cabinet filled with provisions and began trying to push the item away from the curtain covered hole behind it. Without help it would simply take longer but once it was revealed it seemed like someone decided to make a perfect square hole going downward with ice as a slide and some stairs beside it. Blinking a few times without noticing the nostalgic smile on her own face. She did notice, however how she felt at ease being near the other pathway.
@Ueno Mizuki

 

Mizuki blinked as she failed to find Celestine. She had thought that the Felis had followed them into the hidden room, but given her sudden absence it looked like the strange girl had decided to leave instead. As Kaede had already mentioned it wasn't like she was obligated to stay with them, and with something attacking them out of nowhere it wasn't too strange that she'd rather not stick around. The Lupis just hoped that the Aeromancer would manage to get out of the cave without being attacked herself. While she and Kaede were now inside the secret room whatever it was that had attacked them was now out there together with Celestine. Maybe she should go out and search for the Felis and see if she was all right? No, that would just make it more likely that the thing would figure out where this secret room was, and beyond that it'd just increase the amount of people in danger of being assaulted from the darkness. The Felis would have to fend for herself until she managed to get out.

As for herself, she was having trouble finding the device that Kaede had mentioned. The Caenis muttered as nothing at first glance really looked like a harpoon gun, which meant that either it was hidden even in this hidden room or she'd have to ask Kaede just exactly what the thing looked like. However looking at Kaede it was clear the woman wasn't exactly in a good mood right now. Mizuki could hardly blame her: this wasn't how one would want to spend their day under the best circumstances, and with the memory loss included she was pretty sure her friend wasn't in the best of circumstances to begin with.

"Don't worry Kaede, we'll figure something out. Whatever it was that attacked us it wasn't so strong that it was willing to attack us after its initial attack had failed, so we aren't completely outmatched as long as we're careful."

Of course that wasn't the only issue they were dealing with right now, but it was at least a piece of good news that hopefully would help Kaede calm down a bit. They were being targeted by something, but it wasn't something that could kill them any time it liked. They had ways to deal with it.

However it looked like it would need more than that for Kaede to really relax, so Mizuki abandoned her search for the harpoon device to instead walk over to Kaede and sit down next to her, pulling her into a brief hug to try and provide some comfort while also curling her tail around her friend's waist.

"We just need to be careful and we'll be all right. We'll figure out what task it is that you need to complete and then we'll get out of here."

They could just have climbed out if it wasn't for Kaede feeling like she had something she had to do in this place, but it was too late to lament that. When the woman mentioned that the wind was going somewhere Mizuki looked thoughtful, quickly coming to the same conclusion as Kaede. If there was a wind blowing that meant there was an opening somewhere, and while it wouldn't guarantee that they wouldn't run into the creature again another opening might help avoid the thing for a while. Their objective was to find out why Kaede felt compelled to stay here, so fighting that thing was optional and preferably avoided.

She quickly got up to help Kaede move the cabinet away, noting how one of the advantages of this ice cave was that at least provisions kept for a long time... unless those provisions were stored here very recently. When the hole hidden behind the cabinet was revealed Mizuki kneeled in front of it and touched both the stairs and what looked like an ice slide, not noticing any abnormalities or seeing any signs of there being

"Better to take the stairs, even if it'll take longer... unless you just want to hurry up and get this over with as soon as possible."

Mizuki herself already stepped onto the stairs, sniffing the air and looking forward into the hole as she narrowed her eyes. The wind was indeed blowing in this direction.

"And with the wind blowing this way our scent will be carried forward, so I'd really rather not put myself in a position where I'd have difficulty defending myself if I found something waiting for me further down the slide."

Having made her decision she began to descend, turning around and beckoning for Kaede to follow, patiently waiting and even offering a hand to help the woman onto the stairs. While they weren't as smooth as the slide they were still stairs in an ice cave complex, so they'd have to be careful that they wouldn't fall.
@Kaede Hoshi

 

_____Even if what Mizuki said was reasonable, Kaede felt it would be fine. So with a faint smile she reached a hand to pull Mizuki over and moved to go down the slide, trying to move her friend to be behind her. It was almost funny how Kaede soon raised her hands up like she was on a roller-coaster while descending. As the amount of light seemed to fade, it began to increase on the other end of the tunnel leading to a cushioned area. Lowering her hands and rolling as she came off the slide Kaede began to laugh while laying in the pillows.

_____Her happiness however was short lived as she recalled another part of her memories about this area and rose up slowly. The slide was the last time they had fun before they fought the creature that guarded this area. The thing took her memories since she was an adventurer, a player… but the others who fought with her did not get the same fate. Fist clenching at her sides as Kaede looked towards a golden trim door and growled lightly. It was waiting inside, and this time Kaede fully planned to beat it and get her memories back.

”I lost my memories in there… if that creature gets us close to death it takes away our memories of the game… if your from the game…”

_____Kaede could not bring herself to recite what happen to the NPCs she fought alongside. This creature was a thorn in Kaede’s mind and needed to be killed. Even if it did not give back her memories in doing so, it had to pay for taking them. It had to pay for killing her friends, and it was going to. Moving forward and resting a hand against the handle of the door Kaede looked back to Mizuki. Her body trembling for a moment before she spoke up again.

”Last chance to avoid losing your memory… I can’t remember how it fights… so we are going in blind… but worst case you run… I’ve got little to lose this time around…”
@Ueno Mizuki