Shattered Wishes

[laraine]

Walking up the steep mountain path, the lanky figure fought off the icy breeze and light snowfall, each step was becoming harder than the one before. With only a cloak as warmth the figure drew it closer to their body, breathing out steam as the temperature continued to decline. Blue eyes glared ahead at the long road ahead.
"This...Is getting me nowhere.." the lanky figure muttered, breathless and getting colder by the minute. Another step foreword and the blue eyed figure stared down at the clothing they wore.

"Oh great, the snows melting through, I'm going to be soaked! I need to find a place for shelter.." Looking around, the hood suddenly flew back to reveal short black hair, framing a young face, no more than 16 or 17 years of age. At first glance the figure appeared to be male with such a young frame and no curves. The figure also wore young men's clothing, long beige pants and a long sleeved white shirt. However the voice that emerged was female.

"This is insane...there's no place here for miles?!" The young girl seemed distressed. Brushing a hand through her short hair, She looked frantically through the blinding snow. It was becoming harder to make out the road ahead, and she knew if she didn't find shelter soon, she would die of the cold. She narrowed her eyes. "I can't die...not here." She said, determined.

"Echo..."

The girl blinked, looking around. "Wait, who.." She blinked. "Master? Is that you?"

"Yes it is I, go to the west, you should find a place to rest there. But, I would beware. It seems there are bandits nearby waiting to rob travelers."

The girl, known as Echo smirked. "No worries My lord. You forget who you are talking to. I will be fine."

She walked the direction her lord indicated. It was hard to see through the snow as it continued to rain down upon her, but she used her other senses and heard a shift in the snow. She narrowed her eyes and spun around to face four figures.

"Well well well, lookie what we got here, a young lad. What are you doing out here boy?" One of the bandits slurred, obviously not on the sober side.

Echo froze, unable to draw her weapon as she noticed the two behind her. She was silent.

"Tch, looks like this lad needs to be taught a lesson." Another, more sober bandit hissed.

Echo bit her lip, trying to figure out the best way to use her powers. However, the way they were surrounding her meant she couldn't use them.

If only they'd back off, then I'd show them....

"Boy if you don't want to die, I say hand over whatever money you got." a third bandit threatened from behind her.

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang was disgusted with himself. He had taken a job away on the Blaze Mountain, knowing that it was the wrong time of year to be there, but wanting the money nonetheless. He had done the job and done it well, but he was not happy that he had not foreseen the trouble he was going to have in getting back to Tamasha.

The trek back had begun yesterday, but the snow and wind had made him gain little headway on the long distance between himself and the bottom of the dormant volcano. He had holed up early in the morning in a cave, trying to find ways to light a fire and dry out.

He had fallen asleep late in the morning and was just awakening now. He could see that it was still snowing. "Luckily I brought in more wood last night to dry or I would be freezing again tonight," Guang muttered. He stood up in the small space and stretched, his muscles sore from the cold.

He walked to the edge of the cave and looked out. It had been luck he had found it in the dark. Even in the daylight, the cave would be hard to see the way the rocks formed to make an odd niche that looked like nothing. Maybe the storm had been a lucky thing. He would have frozen on the mountain otherwise.

He was about to leave the cave for some more wood and possibly some food when he saw the figure climbing the trail some yards off. It looked like a young boy, freezing from the snow as well. Guang was about to step out once more when bandits surrounded the youth. Guang could not hear anything over the wind, but he knew what they were saying by the scared stance the boy had.

"Bandits," he growled. He reached back in the cave and picked up his small bow and his arrow quiver. He put the quiver on, snatched an arrow, and lined it up on the bow. He took a breath, held it, and let it out slowly. The arrow made a crisp Zing! as it left the bow. Seconds later, the bandit nearest the boy fell.

Guang was already lining up the second arrow and letting it loose before anyone was alerted. The second man behind the boy went down. Suddenly the other bandits were aware of company. Brandishing weapons, they charged the boy. Guang brought up his bow once more.Just changed the color to be consistent with the rest of Guang. ;D -

[laraine]

Echo blinked as the bandit nearest her suddenly hit the ground, and then another. She saw arrows sticking from their bodies and knew someone was nearby. Looking around, there was nothing but snow.

The bandits around her started to panic and pulled forth weapons. Echo took this chance and jumped a far distance away from the remaining bandits.

She took a breath and held out her arm towards the remaining bandits as they closed in on her.

"Hmph.." her lips curved into a smirk. A white glow surrounded her hand. Suddenly the wind around her began to pick up. Her cloak was yanked free and flew into the darkness. The wind began to swirl around her, then all of it abruptly changed direction, it headed towards the advancing bandits. Wind and snow crystals hit the men at high speeds, those who weren't thrown off their feet were blinded by the crystals of snow. Two men dropped their weapons. One man was swept off his feet and landed in a snow bank.

She spun her hand into a circle, and the wind trapped the men in a vortex of snow and air. Finally the remaining men were tossed from the area.

Echo waved. "And never come back!" She yelled.

Remembering that someone had saved her with those arrows, she turned around, looking through the slowly falling snow for the person.

To the average person, she appeared male, with her white long sleeved shirt and long beige pants. She also wore heavy boots and attached to her belt were two daggers. But she had long eyelashes and a obviously female voice.

"Whoever you are, thanks for the help!" She yelled, hoping the person could hear her from that distance.

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang had nocked another arrow, but before he could loose it, something strange happened. He watched as the wind picked up and seemed to hover strangely behind the young man. Suddenly, snow and ice seemed to dart at the bandits, striking them with a lot of force. The boy swirled his hand and they seemed to disappear.

Guang blinked several times and saw the boy talking, but couldn't hear him. Then he heard a thank you, but it sounded very feminine. Maybe the boy was younger than he looked from this distance. Guang took the arrow away from the bow and stuck it back in his quiver. He laid the bow down and stepped out.

"Over here!" he hollered, gesturing for the boy to see. "Hurry in and get some warmth." He gestured again and turned back inside the cave. He would need to start that fire soon. He knelt down and began to work on the fire.

[laraine]

Hearing the voice, Echo turned and saw a figure in the distance. She waved back, to let him know that she saw him. Then she started towards him. Instantly she felt the cold and fatigue, she ran to the cave.

She took a unsteady step into the cave and looked around. "Hello?"

Spotting him, she walked over, she waved. Her clothes were drenched with cold water from the snow. In fact her skin was slowly turning a pale color as the lack of heat began to take its toll. She took a step towards him, then suddenly fell to her knees. She blinked, surprised at her own body's movements.

"Sorry, I guess I'm a little tired.." She said with a small smile.

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang heard the boy come in and saw the wave from his peripheral vision. It was a few moments later that he heard him fall to his knees and talk about being tired.

Guang turned and looked at the young man a little more closely. "You're a girl!" Guang exclaimed at her. He shook his head to clear it.

"Sorry about that. I just thought you were a young man. Come over here by the fire. It will be warm soon." He blew on the wood and leaves, watching the fire start to glow.

[laraine]

Echo blinked as the strange man pointed to her and yelled she was a girl. She couldn't help but hide her smile behind her hand as she got back to her feet.
Feeling the warmth she slowly walked over to the fire and sat down. "It's alright. That's the reason why I wear this. I didn't mean to trick you, but I feel its better if people think I'm a boy rather than a girl." She looked over to him. "Oh by the way, thanks again for saving me. My name is Echo."

All at once her stomach growled and she made a face. "Oh not again...I'm sorry to ask this, but do you have any extra food handy? If not I can go try to find some myself.."

Echo tried to stand back up, but her legs wouldn't move. She seemed surprised by this, then sighed and stayed sitting. The cold and the fact she used her power had drained her energy. This was bad, if she used anymore energy she would pass out. If that wasn't enough, the wet clothes clung to her body, the fire was keeping her body temperature from plummeting, but she was still cold. And it would take a while for the heat of the fire to warm her body.

Great, I've really messed it up this time, I even lost my cloak...

[HoudiniDerek]

"That sounds pretty reasonable," Guang said, nodding as she came over to the fire. "Young women would be at the mercy of a lot of people, especially men with no morals." He grimaced at the thought and began rummaging around the cave.

He returned in a few minutes with a pan and some different ingredients. He went and gathered snow in the pot and let it melt. He hung the pot by a makeshift stand over the fire and began putting things in the pot to cook. "It's not much, but it will do for now. You look all done in."

Guang whistled softly while he worked. In a few minutes, the ingredients were in the pot and he was stirring slowly. "It's nice to meet you, Echo. My name is Guang of the Gnorash." He looked in the pot and nodded affirmatively.

"We will have to wait a while for it to cook, but that should give you time to heat up." He threw his blanket to her. "You can wear that to help ward off the chill." He turned his back to her before saying anything more. "You should probably take off your clothes and lay them out. With the fire and the blanket, you are not likely to freeze while you dry."

[laraine]

The blanket landed on top of her head and she blinked. Pulling it around her she nodded to Guang. She stood up and walked over to a corner of the cave. The blanket still wrapped around her, she shed her dripping clothes and wrapped the blanket against her body tighter. She set the clothes down to dry near the fire and sat down again, making sure her body was hidden underneath the blanket. She turned to the man who was almost finished making the meal and opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it. Staring at the fire, she shivered slightly. But for the most part the fire and blanket kept her warm. For that she was grateful. Something suddenly came to her and she looked over at Guang again.
Why is he helping me? To help a complete stranger? Most people don't do that anymore...

"So um, where you headed? If possible I'd like to repay you for your saving me before. So if there's anything you need. Let me know."

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang was watching her as she came back to the fire. He nodded to her and stirred the stew, adding a pinch of salt for flavor. "A few more minutes and it will be done."

Guang got out two bowls that he carried with him and started to dish the soup into the bowls. "I'm headed home. I have been working and the job is over." He handed her a bowl of soup and a small whittled sthingy. "I helped because you needed it. Bandits are scum and I'm not about to let them at someone if I can help it, boy or girl."

He settled down by the fire with his bowl of soup and took a couple of tentative bites. "What is a young girl like you doing up here in the Blaze Mountain?"

[laraine]

Echo smiled at his response about the bandits. But when he asked why she was up on the mountain, her face seemed to become distant. Her eyes held a deep sadness, and something else within them. she ate the soup for a while, gathering her strength before she could answer his question. "I am, looking for someone. No matter what, I have to find them at all costs. They came through this mountain pass, so I followed." She said, then swallowed the rest of her food in one gulp. "May I have seconds please?" She asked.

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang ate his soup slowly, studying the girl as she ate her meal. She seemed to be seeing something beyond him. When she spoke, it stirred his curiosity.

He took her bowl from her and ladled her more of the soup. He handed it back to her and settled back against the cave wall and continued to eat his.

"Who do you have to find? What was that person doing up on the mountain?"

[laraine]

Echo ate the food fast once more. It seemed as if she was a eating machine. she finished the soup faster than the first bowl. Yet when he asked that question, she wished he hadn't.

"Who knows what they are doing up at this mountain. Probably finding new ways to kill." She grit her teeth, her eyes alight with anger. She grasped the bowl tightly. Realizing what she was doing, she took a breath to calm herself down.

"The people I'm after, are a group of thieves and murderers. A group different from the ones we fought outside." She set the bowl down, standing up and looking outside as the snow continued to fall.

"This group goes from town to town, killing everyone they come across. They call themselves the God Slayers. I'm hunting them, to destroy every single last one of those monsters." She whispered.

[HoudiniDerek]

Guang watched in whimsical amusement as the girl slurped down her second bowl of soup. She must not have eaten for quite some time.

Guang was surprised when she spoke with such vehemence at first, but remembered how lost she had looked a few moments ago when he had asked why she was up in the mountain.

Guang didn't say anything, but quietly took her bowl and ladled her out the rest of the soup. He handed it back to her and sat back down, eyeing her curiously.

"I have heard of the God Slayers. I don't know much about them nor have we crossed paths. I can tell from the sound of it that I am lucky not to have and that you have before. Do you want to talk about it? Do you have a plan for catching them?"

[laraine]

Echo saw the food and instantly dug in again. She finished the soup and sighed in relief.

She looked thoughtful for a second, then shrugged. "I don't have much of a plan. But once I meet up with them, I will show no mercy. They will pay for what they've done. Either way, I suppose they are about a two or three days pace from here down the mountain. Though I wonder if I will make it in time before another village is destroyed." Echo shrugged, holding the blanket tightly against her body and suddenly yawning. " I think I need to sleep for a bit..that really wore me out.."