Alone in the Snow (Talus solo):
Aug 28, 2017 0:37:50 GMT -6
Post by Talus on Aug 28, 2017 0:37:50 GMT -6
It was supposed to be a simple mission to Illia. Go find a friend of Victor's, Sprint, who had fought with him as part of a mercenary group, then give him a letter from the arena.
Instead, things went south faster than you could say "Blizzard."
Indeed, he was regretting he couldn't use fire magic that well.
As here he was in the middle of nowhere in Illia, caught in a snowstorm, without a horse, and only what he had on his back.
He hadn't gotten a horse because of how he figured that from where he started this morning he could use this path that he thought was a shortcut to get there quick enough to where he wouldn't need a horse and save himself that gold.
He wish he had been cautious and taken the long way instead, as well as buying a horse.
So now he was freezing, and he knew how cold it could get. He had a good idea of the odds of someone saving him now as well.
Yet still, he trudged on, praying for shelter.
He wasn't a believer much in religion, but if he survived this, he swore mentally that he'd start at least paying lip service to St. Elmine.
Unfortunately, it looked like it wouldn't be that way.
The cold had sapped his strength, and he felt his body fall.
"Is... this the end...? Never though i'd go out like this..." he thought, disturbingly calm, though that more might be because he no longer had the strength to cry.
Thoughts of his family, Victor, and his life rushed through his head. He had run out of ideas.
"I'm... sorry everyone... looks like this is the end... I guess not everyone gets to die heroically after all." he said, closing his eyes, accepting that this was his fate.
To die alone, away from home in the unknown, young, without glory and in the cold.
The thing that stung him most surprisingly, wasn't the fact that he was going to die young, without glory, and due to as something as stupid as bad luck in this weather.
It was that he was going to die alone.
"I... never cared about others... that's what I thought. I... I didn't want to die alone after all... is that why I... used to feel the heartache...?" he thought as his consciousness wavered. He remembered how he sometimes felt jealous about Victor's stories, even though he never understood why.
It was because he was never alone.
Talus... was.
Maybe if he wasn't alone, he wouldn't be in this bad situation right now. Another person would have meant that there would have been someone perhaps that could have gone for help before hand, someone that would have convinced him not to take what he thought would be a shortcut.
He had never understood why some people wanted to be stopped. After all, why would you actively wish for someone to stop what you were dead set on doing?
In those moments, he had understood why.
"I don't want to die..." was his last thought before he lost consciousness.
If he had the strength to, a tear would have fallen as well.
Thankfully, this is not where this life ends.
Instead, let us go ahead to several hours later, where he found himself awake in a church.
"I'm... alive?" he said after waking up, opening his eyes slowly.
"Oh, you're awake! Indeed you are. You're quite lucky to be alive. Someone managed to find you and bring you in here before you froze to death. You're in the Illia branch of the St. Elmine chapel." said a nearby priest who noticed.
At this, Talus went into deep thought over what had happened.
Then he started to sob softly.
He had nearly died the way he did because of bad luck- no, poor planning, and it was only by sheer, nearly miraculous luck that he was found. He must have collapsed on the edge of the snowstorm, and someone must have taken pity on him and brought him in.
After he was able to actively converse again after a few meals, he learned that he wasn't wrong for the most part. Indeed, someone had found him collapsed, and apparently, they had mistook him for a member of the clergy due to his robes, something that Talus eventually managed to set straight for the church people, which they took fairly well. (It might have helped that he revealed he was an Eturian citizen as well).
When they asked just why he had come out this far, he explained that he was on an errand for a friend, as well as the events leading up to his collapse in the snow.
As for his mysterious savior, the clergy had no idea who it was. All they knew was that it was a fairly tall person with a rather robust build and a deep voice, so he presumed it was a man who had come upon a rather powerful black horse. He wouldn't reveal who he was, only that he had found Talus while he was passing by collapsed, and so left him in the care of the church to help him. That person then left without further word as to any clues as to their identity, the only clue was that according to what he had said, he was merely passing through from Illia to Nabata.
Talus wondered if it was Victor before discarding the possibility, as Victor would still be in Bern in theory at this point in time.
Talus vowed to find and thank this stranger one day, and immediately decided that Nabata would be where he would head next.
After a while, he managed to fully his strength, having found all his belongings as well, which were brought in, and not a thing out of place. The clergy directed him to a nearby town, and he thanked them before he left, heading for the inn.
For you see, while he was recuperating, he began to rethink things.
Friends were a side thing until now.
Now?
He wanted them more than anything.
So, after getting a room at the inn, he headed off to the board where anyone could post announcements, he took a piece of paper, and nailed it on.
On it read a simple announcement:
Traveling Mage seeks travel companions for journey to Nabata.
Any treasures found will be split evenly amongst companions for pay.
Qualifications: None needed.
If interested, please ask for the inhabitant of room 9 of the Snowbound Inn for more details.
The effective date was from the day he nailed it up to about a week or so after.
Would anyone come?
He hoped so.
Maybe he'd get lucky.
But above all...
He just didn't want to be alone.
Now he understood what Victor meant. Not being alone made victories feel much sweeter.
He wanted to feel that feeling again.
After all, he must have been saved for a reason, right?
He shouldn't waste it.
Instead, things went south faster than you could say "Blizzard."
Indeed, he was regretting he couldn't use fire magic that well.
As here he was in the middle of nowhere in Illia, caught in a snowstorm, without a horse, and only what he had on his back.
He hadn't gotten a horse because of how he figured that from where he started this morning he could use this path that he thought was a shortcut to get there quick enough to where he wouldn't need a horse and save himself that gold.
He wish he had been cautious and taken the long way instead, as well as buying a horse.
So now he was freezing, and he knew how cold it could get. He had a good idea of the odds of someone saving him now as well.
Yet still, he trudged on, praying for shelter.
He wasn't a believer much in religion, but if he survived this, he swore mentally that he'd start at least paying lip service to St. Elmine.
Unfortunately, it looked like it wouldn't be that way.
The cold had sapped his strength, and he felt his body fall.
"Is... this the end...? Never though i'd go out like this..." he thought, disturbingly calm, though that more might be because he no longer had the strength to cry.
Thoughts of his family, Victor, and his life rushed through his head. He had run out of ideas.
"I'm... sorry everyone... looks like this is the end... I guess not everyone gets to die heroically after all." he said, closing his eyes, accepting that this was his fate.
To die alone, away from home in the unknown, young, without glory and in the cold.
The thing that stung him most surprisingly, wasn't the fact that he was going to die young, without glory, and due to as something as stupid as bad luck in this weather.
It was that he was going to die alone.
"I... never cared about others... that's what I thought. I... I didn't want to die alone after all... is that why I... used to feel the heartache...?" he thought as his consciousness wavered. He remembered how he sometimes felt jealous about Victor's stories, even though he never understood why.
It was because he was never alone.
Talus... was.
Maybe if he wasn't alone, he wouldn't be in this bad situation right now. Another person would have meant that there would have been someone perhaps that could have gone for help before hand, someone that would have convinced him not to take what he thought would be a shortcut.
He had never understood why some people wanted to be stopped. After all, why would you actively wish for someone to stop what you were dead set on doing?
In those moments, he had understood why.
"I don't want to die..." was his last thought before he lost consciousness.
If he had the strength to, a tear would have fallen as well.
Thankfully, this is not where this life ends.
Instead, let us go ahead to several hours later, where he found himself awake in a church.
"I'm... alive?" he said after waking up, opening his eyes slowly.
"Oh, you're awake! Indeed you are. You're quite lucky to be alive. Someone managed to find you and bring you in here before you froze to death. You're in the Illia branch of the St. Elmine chapel." said a nearby priest who noticed.
At this, Talus went into deep thought over what had happened.
Then he started to sob softly.
He had nearly died the way he did because of bad luck- no, poor planning, and it was only by sheer, nearly miraculous luck that he was found. He must have collapsed on the edge of the snowstorm, and someone must have taken pity on him and brought him in.
After he was able to actively converse again after a few meals, he learned that he wasn't wrong for the most part. Indeed, someone had found him collapsed, and apparently, they had mistook him for a member of the clergy due to his robes, something that Talus eventually managed to set straight for the church people, which they took fairly well. (It might have helped that he revealed he was an Eturian citizen as well).
When they asked just why he had come out this far, he explained that he was on an errand for a friend, as well as the events leading up to his collapse in the snow.
As for his mysterious savior, the clergy had no idea who it was. All they knew was that it was a fairly tall person with a rather robust build and a deep voice, so he presumed it was a man who had come upon a rather powerful black horse. He wouldn't reveal who he was, only that he had found Talus while he was passing by collapsed, and so left him in the care of the church to help him. That person then left without further word as to any clues as to their identity, the only clue was that according to what he had said, he was merely passing through from Illia to Nabata.
Talus wondered if it was Victor before discarding the possibility, as Victor would still be in Bern in theory at this point in time.
Talus vowed to find and thank this stranger one day, and immediately decided that Nabata would be where he would head next.
After a while, he managed to fully his strength, having found all his belongings as well, which were brought in, and not a thing out of place. The clergy directed him to a nearby town, and he thanked them before he left, heading for the inn.
For you see, while he was recuperating, he began to rethink things.
Friends were a side thing until now.
Now?
He wanted them more than anything.
So, after getting a room at the inn, he headed off to the board where anyone could post announcements, he took a piece of paper, and nailed it on.
On it read a simple announcement:
Traveling Mage seeks travel companions for journey to Nabata.
Any treasures found will be split evenly amongst companions for pay.
Qualifications: None needed.
If interested, please ask for the inhabitant of room 9 of the Snowbound Inn for more details.
The effective date was from the day he nailed it up to about a week or so after.
Would anyone come?
He hoped so.
Maybe he'd get lucky.
But above all...
He just didn't want to be alone.
Now he understood what Victor meant. Not being alone made victories feel much sweeter.
He wanted to feel that feeling again.
After all, he must have been saved for a reason, right?
He shouldn't waste it.