• Graded • The Maze: Round 5: Ari'sora & Eric

[Pegasus]

Round 5

I can feel it coming in the air tonight...
...

Aesthetics, though, believes all Art
Intends to gratify the heart:
Rejecting disciplines like these,
Must I, then, go which way I please?......

Sleeping minds often find that there are snippets left behind. As though they seek to make more clear, what they saw, or what they hear. As the crow let out a cry, the slumbering man opened his eye. But yet, he had not fallen awake, sleeping still, his mouth agape...

The lights fell around the sleeping form of Anthropos Apteros - his time between worlds was lessening, he knew that. There was a moment, fast approaching, where his future ~ every future ~ hung in the balance. One of those coming towards him would choose. In choosing, they would decide. In deciding, they would act and that action?

..... it began a chain reaction which ended in judgement.

"Jim, are you seeing this?"
"...,"
"Jim? What's the... JIM!!"
"....."
"Immortals, Jim, say something!! MEDIC!"
"...."
"..."


Although she wasn't completely sure, Ari'sora held out the shard she already had in her hand. It could - maybe even should - have reflected the orb of light as well as the mirror which Eric held out - but for reasons which were not clear, it did not.

Eric lifted the mirror. It absorbed the light and the orb did not in any way impact him or his goat friend. But it also exploded in a massive explosion of light. It was like an incredible display, a light show the sort of which had never been seen on Idalos. Briefly, just for a few trill, it blinded him, and he heard the goat bleat in surprise, also.

Then, there was the music. Ghostly, haunting. Just out of his reach and beyond his grasp.

Which was a shame.

Because in there, the answer lay.

But for Ari'sora, it was a very different experience. As the ball of light hit her in the chest, she was literally lifted off her feet and landed, with a thump, on her bottom. Pain shot up her back as her landing was awkward and all the wind was knocked right out of her. Breathing out suddenly became something of an issue as Ari'sora lay, winded and disconcerted.

Confused.

As vision returned to the two of them, they noticed a number of things. One, it was dark. Pitch, night time, midnight black. It had happened in a blink of an eye, or a very short space of time.

Darkness wrapped around them, and yet, Ari'sora saw the winged man in front of her. Eric saw the wingless woman on the floor... they both felt off kilter, off balance.

It seemed that Eric was now a winged man, and Ari'sora, very much not winged any more.

"It's simple really," their animal companions suddenly spoke in an eerie, perfect unison. "A moment in time. A choice. Choose a direction," it seemed that left or right were their options there, "Choices now lead to consequences later.... "

Before them were two choices, indeed. Left or right?

As their companions motioned, both Ari'sora and Eric might notice....both of them had crystals which were, strangely, glowing. Hmmm.....



Rewards Achieved Last Round

1. Both of you: All Must Do Objectives from Round 4 met.

OOC Info

Things to note!

• Sincere apologies: for the delay. Normal service has now been resumed....
• I will post a plot post again this time next week: Wednesday 5th December
• For this round your companion may be NPCd by you in your post.
• Oh, yes. One last thing. you have swapped ownership of those wings. ....

Objectives

!	Message from: Must-Do Objectives
	Please note: You can use items you have previously picked up - they might help you! Explicitly state what you are going to do (if anything) about this whole "swap" Explicitly state which direction you are going. PLEASE NOTE: You need to both have crystals in order for you to progress (one each). From this point on, all your posts will be together, so this is your new (and final!) thread!

!	Message from: Can Do Objectives
	Write your post with every sentence starting with only vowels.

[Rei'sari]

In an instant, Ari'sora knew that her attempt to protect herself had failed. As the light struck her, it dealt her a powerful blow and sent her flying. Intense pain shot up her back as she landed, and she suddenly found it difficult to breathe. One bit passed. And another. And another. And in that time, all Ari'sora could do was lay gasping for air as she struggled to regain her wits.

Ari'sora saw a winged man standing over her. In her eyes, it seemed as though he was standing strangely...off balance. It was as though something was wrong somehow. As she stood slowly, she soon found that something was indeed wrong. Ari'sora staggered, and collapsed once more. It was impossible to keep her balance because something was missing. And that something was her wings.

As she stared at the man, she realized what had happened; he had her wings. Intense fear filled her heart, and stole any ability for rational thought. Ari'sora didn't know if the man had stolen her wings deliberately, or if some magic of the maze had stripped her of them and given them to him. It didn't matter. Only one thing did, and that was to put as much distance between her and the wing thief as possible before he could take anything else from her.

A choice had been laid before them. Ari'sora listened to Shadow as she mentioned consequences, but she was too paralyzed by fear to think of that. In the past, if Mi'zuri had wanted something from her, she got it. It had been rare since she had owned nothing anyone else might want, but there had been times when her sister had wanted her to do something, or to give up a meal if her sister wanted more than she had been given. As a result, Ari'sora knew it would do no good to cry or fight back against the loss of her wings. If she was lucky, gaining some distance would give her the chance to regroup, calm down, and think. Experience and panic drove her to flee, so she did.

Ari'sora saw the glowing crystal in her hand but panic consumed her. As she bolted to the right, desperate to get away, Shadow lingered a trill, glancing at her fellow animal companion for a trill before following. And as she ran, Ari'sora wished that whatever magic made the crystal glow would give her her wings back. It was a desperate wish...but one that she didn't truly believe would come true...none of her wishes had ever come true before, so why would they now?

[Eric Karlson]

It seemed the mirror had saved Eric from whatever the orb may have done had it hit him directly. Even if his eyes were temporarily void of anything but a blinding show of light and colour, it was like nothing he had ever seen before. It overwhelmed his senses until it was gone and replaced with darkness and a tune he couldn't quite make out. As it was it seemed the closest thing he could compare it too was his initiation, when he had heard the most beautiful of songs that he just could not remember or repeat. It was as close to that feeling he would get it seemed although it still did not compare, not even close.

As he found his bearings in the darkness he felt wrong, as if he was floating and unsteady. Eric was surprised to see the woman on the floor before him, she looked afraid and uncomfortable. It seemed she was almost as uncomfortable as himself, which suddenly made sense as he noticed the wings. Although they were attached to him they certainly weren't his, they felt foreign and strange almost as strange as the two animal companions speaking together.

Eric was somewhat distracted by the woman though, alone and afraid in the dark he was worried for her. Anything could have happened to her in this maze, it was impossible to predict it seemed and who knew how long she had been sat there. All of a sudden something drew his eyes away, it was the crystal he had found earlier and it was glowing.

Unsure what to think he was prompted to speak out. "Are you ok..." Eric was unable to finish his sentence before she took off, something must have spooked her and so he followed her down the path right.

Eric needed to know what was going on and whether she could help him with these odd wings, after all she was the only person around. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, please wait!" Eric continued to follow her hoping she would stop, he could hear Gorm chasing behind him as he wobbled in the air not accustomed to flying if that was what he was doing.

"I won't hurt you, I am lost in this maze and for some reason I have wings, please don't leave me here alone!" Uneasily he continued to fly after her hoping she would listen and give him a chance, he didn't want to be left alone again in this mess of a maze. After all he was sure they could help each other, they had too and he somehow felt as if they didn't they would never get out.

[Pegasus]

But my dreams, they aren't as empty, as my conscience seems to be...
I have hours only lonely. My love is vengeance that's never free...

Such reasoning is only true
If we accept the classic view,
Which we have no right to assert,
According to the Introvert.

His absolute pre-supposition
Is – Man creates his own condition:
This maze was not divinely built,
But is secreted by my guilt.

Anthropos Apteros grumbled in his sleep, almost awake and he saw them. Each of them as they grew closer and closer. He could almost taste them and he quivered with excitement and anticipation. They were on their way and soon, one of them would replace him. Become him.

And he would, at last, be free. Blue eyes fluttered, almost open for a moment and then, closed once again.

"What do you think happened here?"
"I don't know. But I'm going to miss Jim"
"Yeah, he was a good sort"
"Definitely"
"Whatever did this, it was some kind of monster, though"
"Yeah"
"I hope they catch him, soon."
"Yeah"


They moved, but they didn't move together.

First, Ari'sora ran and then Eric ran after her. One without wings, one with, but not on the right person, it seemed.

But, they did not move together.

Which meant that, for them, the Maze continued. They turned to the right, first one then the other, but they did not move in unison and so they found themselves in a long corridor of maze. It might seem almost never ending.

It was quiet. No sounds happened around them. Eric caught up with Ari'sora and they two of them got to communicate. But, until they did then it seemed that their little part of the world held its breath.


The world, it seemed, waited.


Rewards Achieved Last Round

1. You both met all "Must Do" objectives!
2. You also both met the "Can Do" reward at the end!!!

OOC Info

Things to note!

• Sincere apologies: for the delay. Normal service has now been resumed....
• I will post a plot post again this time next week: Friday 28th December
• For this round your companion may be NPCd by you in your post.
• You may post as many times as you like between now and my next post. Please make sure, however, to let me know very clearly what your characters DO - if you get to the point that you're moving in unison, please pick a direction, (left or right) and let me know what you're doing (if anything) with the crystals.

Objectives

!	Message from: Objectives
	The next post I make will take some of you into the middle of the maze to see the Wingless Man. It will have consequences for all, from both action and inaction. Where will you be? Please make sure to tell me what your character is doing - detail is important.

[Rei'sari]

Ari'sora heard the man who had taken her wings call after her, but Ari'sora was so lost in panic and despair that all she could do was give in to it, and flee. She ran until her legs burned with the effort, and felt too rubbery to hold her up. Then she sank to the ground, and cried. Shadow caught up to her first. She curled up in Ari'sora's lap, and purred reassuringly. The reminder that she wasn't alone reached her, and she held Shadow tightly until her panic calmed enough for her mind to kick in, allowing her to think rationally once more rather than just react.

By the time the man had caught up to her, she was looking around to get her bearings. They were in a long corridor that felt as if it might go on forever. It screamed trap to Ari'sora, even though she had no way of knowing why she felt that way. But then, after losing her wings, this entire maze felt dangerous, and frightening. It almost seemed as though the world was holding its breath. Something nagged at her mind, but she wasn't certain what it was.

Ari'sora looked up at the man warily. Now that she was thinking clearly again, she realized that his words had not been the words of a man who had stolen her wings by choice. Was it an attempt to make himself look innocent? Or was something else involved? Could the maze itself have stolen her wings and given them to him? Or perhaps the person who had created the maze? Did it really matter either way? No matter what the reason behind it, her wings were gone. Ari'sora felt the loss as a deep agony within her. Wings meant the ability to fly, and to fly was to be free. How many times had she longed to simply fly away from Ren'zar before he had been arrested? Back then, things had been different. Had she attempted to escape, Ren'zar would have tracked her down, and if she had survived the punishment that would have been hers for the attempt, she would have wished she had not. She had belonged to Ren'zar, and he kept what was his.

But now...now that she was free of him, her wings were a reminder of the freedom that was now hers. Even if she was still trying to figure out who she was now, and what she was to do now, her wings were a reassurance that no one could take her freedom away from her the way Ren'zar had. If they tried, she could just fly away. At least she could have until her wings were stolen from her. Still...if the man really hadn't stolen her wings, then he deserved some kind of an explanation.

"Those are my wings." she told him softly.

"At least...they used to be."

Shadow nodded to confirm her words. Ari'sora eyed the man warily, but he really did seem as uncomfortable with her wings as she was without them.

"If you didn't take them, then maybe the maze gave them to you...or the person behind the maze did. Will you give them back to me? Please?" she asked hopefully.

She would beg if she had to. Ari'sora glanced at the corridor around them warily. She was more certain than ever that she had done something wrong, and that whatever she had done had ended up with her here. She thought back to what had been said before they ended up in the corridor. In all of the stories she had read about magic adventures as a child, everything happened for a reason.

"Everything happens for a reason." she muttered, deep in thought.

"Maybe all those stories have something in common for a reason."

She looked up at the man again for a few trills. Then she stood and faced him.

"Our companions said that we had to choose back there. I thought that meant that we had to pick a direction. When I ran, we ended up here. But there was more to it than that. They said..."

Ari'sora's mind raced as she tried to think of exactly what their companions had said. When she glanced at Shadow, the cat seemed expectant, but said nothing.

"I think they said "A moment in time. A choice. Choose a direction."

Ari'sora glanced at Shadow, and the cat nodded in agreement.

"But they also said that choices now lead to consequences later. And they spoke in unison when they said all of that. I've read a lot of fantasy stories, and in every one that was about a magical adventure of some kind, everything that happened in the story happened for a reason. What if...what if there is some truth in that? Not in the stories themselves, of course, but in the one thing that they all have in common? If so...then everything happening here is happening for a reason, too. So if our companions were speaking in unison, then maybe we have to act in unison if we want to reach the center of the maze?"

Ari'sora glanced at Shadow to see if her friend could tell her if she was on the right track or not. Shadow simply watched her in silence, so she turned back to the man.

"It's worth a try, at least. I'm willing to try it if you are."

Ari'sora's eyes widened as she realized that she kept calling him "the man" in her head because she didn't know his name.

"My name's Ari'sora. What's yours?" she asked politely.

"Your crystals are still glowing." Shadow observed softly.

Ari'sora stared at the crystal in her hands. It was indeed still glowing. And if Shadow was pointing that fact out to her, it was probably important. Everything happened for a reason in a fantasy story, and her life seemed to have turned into one somehow.

"Everything happens for a reason..." she murmured softly as she stared at her crystal.

She turned back to the man.

"And our companions did say that we had a choice. What if it was more than what direction we went in? I don't think that our crystals were glowing before you got my wings somehow."

Or were they? Ari'sora couldn't be certain.

"What if they have something to do with this somehow? A choice...maybe trading them will fix this? Can we trade crystals? Please? What if trading them is making the choice our companions were talking about? I know it's selfish of me, but I want my wings back. If there's a way to do that..."

Ari'sora had no idea if this would work or not. Maybe deciding to keep the crystals was the right choice. But she wanted her wings back. They were a part of her, and they represented the freedom that she wanted to cling to with everything she had now that she was free. She was willing to try anything if it meant getting her wings back, and doing something felt better than doing nothing. If the man were willing to trade, she would think firmly in her mind that she chose her wings as she handed him her crystal. Then she would move in unison with him in any direction he wanted if he was willing to try that as well.

[Pegasus]

It seemed that the two of them were not in accord.

And their animal companions watched on. Neither one of them speaking, but both watching and with ~ it seemed ~ a growing air of concern. Urgency even.

Until the situation with the crystals was resolved, there was no moving forward for the pair.

OOC Info

Things to note!

• I will post a plot post again this time next week: 6th January
• We can not assume Eric's actions so, unless he posts, please assume that he does NOT swap crystals. At which point, the wings will remain with him.

Objectives

!	Message from: Objectives
	Please make sure that your pc moves forward. As and when they do, you may assume that they find the open clearing, filled with brambles. Fundamentally, assume you experience this post and react accordingly. Thanks!

[Rei'sari]

The man did not respond. Ari'sora didn't know if he couldn't respond for some reason...or if he didn't want to. Either seemed equally likely to her. He did have her wings, after all. Maybe she had misjudged the situation, and he wanted to keep them after all. It only made sense if that were the case. She certainly wanted her wings back. The lure of the skies was a powerful one. The freedom that could be had in flight was even more of one.

As she tried to figure out what she should do next...or if there even was anything she could do about the situation she was in, Ari'sora noticed that Shadow was watching her with a great sense of urgency. When she risked a glance at the man's companion, she noticed that it had a sense of urgency in its eyes as well. Was there danger for them here? Ari'sora looked around, but couldn't see anything that looked especially dangerous. But that didn't necessarily mean anything. What if the danger wasn't something that she could see? Or what if it was coming, but hadn't arrived here yet?

The longer she waited, the more anxious she felt. Finally, she couldn't take it any longer. If the man's crystal was within reach, and he didn't prevent her from doing so, Ari'sora would reach out and touch it, thinking about how much she wanted her wings back, and wishing she could get them back somehow. Then she called out to Shadow, and bolted once more. By now, she was convinced that even if the man hadn't taken her wings himself, he wanted to keep them. That, added to the growing sense of urgency in the air overrode her ability to think clearly, and drove her to flee once more.

Ari'sora ran until her muscles burned, and her breath came in pained gasps. As she struggled to catch her breath, she looked around, and found herself in a large, wide open area. If it weren't for the impossibly tall wall ahead of her, she would have thought that she had escaped the maze entirely somehow. The entire area smelled overwhelmingly of death, and decay. Ari'sora knew those scents all too well. They reminded painfully of a time that she really didn't want to remember. So much so that she dropped to her knees, fighting to remain in the present rather than become trapped in the memories that those scents stirred up in her mind.

When her grasp on reality was firm once more, she took a closer look at the space she was in. It was wide open, but it was dark, and dismal. Brambles and gnarled roots were everywhere, ready to snag an unwary person.

"Nearly there. Someone approaches Anthropos Apteros. He will awaken."

Ari'sora started at Shadow's words. Wasn't Anthropos Apteros supposed to be in the center of the maze? Did that mean that someone had reached him? Ari'sora looked around again. Aside from her companion, she was alone. So if someone had reached the center of the maze, it certainly wasn't her. Would everything be over once this Anthropos Apteros guy woke up?

Strangely enough, there was something that vaguely resembled a bramble covered path that led into the center of the clearing. One that Ari'sora had not noticed until now. Shadow started down the path, and since she didn't have any better ideas, Ari'sora followed her friend.

"The centre that you cannot find
Is known to your unconscious Mind;
You have no reason to despair
Because you are already there.

Your problem is how not to will;
They move most quickly who stand still;
You are only lost until you see
You're lost because you want to be."

Again, Shadow's words caught her off guard. When the cat stopped speaking, the world fell silent all around them. Shadow was silent. No wind blew through the brambles to create a comforting rustling sound. Even her breaths seemed to sound muffled. The silence was stifling, and for a trill, Ari'sora was tempted to scream at the top of her lungs just so she could hear something Instead, she distracted herself by thinking about what her friend had said. Shadow's words sounded important somehow, and Ari'sora was certain that they meant something.

The more she thought about it, the more Ari'sora was certain that she was supposed to do something. But what? The center she couldn't find was known to her somehow? She was already at the center? How could that be if she couldn't see Anthropos Apteros anywhere? She was lost because she wanted to be lost? That last didn't make any sense to Ari'sora at all. She most certainly did not want to be lost! So what did she do about it? While she thought, if Shadow would permit it, she would pick the cat up, and stroke her fur gently as she thought.

Well, if she wasn't lost, then that meant that she was found. And if she was found...well, to her, that meant that she was safe at home, back in Beacon. So she pictured herself there. She was sitting on her couch at home. There was a nice fire burning in the fire place, adding a gentle warmth to the room. The crackling sound as the flames danced merrily was very soothing. Shadow was curled up in her lap, and she had a book of fantasy stories in her hand. So she began to read them out loud so that Shadow could enjoy them, too.

When the scene became so real to her that she could feel the warmth of the fire as strongly as she could if she really was there, it shifted. She and Mi'zuri were in the kitchen, trying to bake some sugar cookies. Trying to, because Mi'zuri had thought it was a good idea to crack an egg on her head. Not willing to let that go without a fight, Ari'sora had dumped a handful of sugar down her sister's shirt. That had turned into a flour fight that left both them, and the entire room covered in flour. Shadow, who was now white instead of black, looked up at them in disgust before she began attempting to wash herself clean.

The scene shifted again. This time, Ari'sora was sitting at her table, surrounded by books. Shadow sprawled out on the table beside her, purring as she read a book about Rakahi. More scenes sprang to her mind, each one of her home in Beacon. Each one was just as real to her as the last. In each one, Shadow was nearby because in the short time Ari'sora had known her, she had come to see the cat as part of her family.

Ari'sora tried to lose herself in the scenes she was creating in her mind, hoping that if she could make them real enough, they would become a reality.

[Eric Karlson]

The Shepherd had blanked his mind going empty except from the sounds of the constantly faltering world he heard aorund him through his spark. He had become lost in the sounds for a while, lost in the illusions until something brought him back, confused and once again among the darkness her wings on his back as he looked down at her the crystal still in his hand. In his hand as he returned from his deep day dream to see the girl reaching out for his hand. Watching without even considering stopping her he let her touch it.

"I'm sorry." He said softly not only allowing her to touch the crystal but pressing it into her hand. He felt guilty, even if he hadn't been listening with his ears he had heard the signs in the frequency, seen her intentions to run away from him. "Take them back." Eric called out to her as she ran, watching her go and looking towards Gorm, he himself feeling quite gormless. "I don't understand, how?" Eric prided himself on seeing that beyond the normal human realm and yet he felt more blind than he ever had before. This truly was the maddest of days.

He made chase once again, silently now, wishing her to take back her wings. They still felt wrong on his back but he had to follow her now. And so he did arriving at the brambles and the strange path he looked at Gorm and then the girl and her animal companion. The animal went forward and the girl closed her eyes, she seemed to be lost in thought as Eric managed a dodgy landing.

"What is this place Gorm?" He looked around him in the open space and at the path before him stopping beside the girl and speaking. "Come with me, lets see if we can't get you these wings back where they belong." He offered her his hand, even as he saw her lost in her imagination he tried to coax her out. "We will get to the centre or we will get out of here, whatever comes first."

[Rei'sari]

Once again, the man confused her. Not only did he allow her to touch his crystal without protest, he had chased after her, telling her to take her wings back. If only she could! But she had no idea how to do so...or even if it was possible. The one idea she had on the matter was if they were to trade crystals. These thoughts kept intruding on her attempts to picture herself safe at home with Shadow. So when something startled her and she looked up to see the man standing over her and offering her his hand, part of her wasn't surprised. She looked at the hand hesitantly for a few trills, then took it, and stood up.

"I think we have to trade crystals." she said softly, repeating her earlier words.

"Right after you ended up with my wings, our companions told us to choose. I think that they meant more than just a direction. I think that maybe they meant we have to choose who gets to keep my wings. And since the crystals were glowing at the time...I think...I hope at least, that by trading our crystals, we will be making that choice. They're still glowing now. See?" she asked as she showed him her own crystal.

"Do you want to try trading our crystals?"

If the man agreed, she would happily offer him her crystal in exchange for her own. Either way, she looked around the clearing once more.

"Did your companion say anything when you got here? Shadow told me that someone is approaching Anthropos Apteros, and that he will awaken soon. I think that means that someone is either near, or at the center of the maze. At least I hope that's what it means. But she also said something else, as well."

Ari'sora glanced at Shadow.

"Can you tell..."

Ari'sora flushed when she realized that she didn't know who the man was.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Mine is Ari'sora."

After the introduction, she turned back to Shadow.

"Can you tell him what you told me? The thing about being lost, and knowing where the center is?"

Shadow repeated herself.

"I don't really know what all of that means...but I think that means that we have to decide that we don't want to be lost. Or that we aren't lost. Something like that, anyway. So I was imagining myself safe at home with Shadow. That's what not being lost means to me. Or do you think we should imagine ourselves at the center of the maze instead? Since we're supposed to already be there?"

[Eric Karlson]

"Do ya think so?" He looked at the glowing crystals with a shrug, he had no idea what they were but she had more of an idea than he did. She continued to explain her reasoning and in the placer they were it seemed as plausible as anything. In fact it made more sense than most of the things that had happened since he entered the maze. "Yes. Let's trade the crystals." Eric offered his own in return for hers, hoping it would return the girl her wings. After all, they felt completely wrong on him. Then he paused waiting to see if anything happened while he stood beside her in the clearing.

The petite girl spoke again and Eric shrugged, while Gorm was a useful companion he had taken to not really listening to the goats rambling. A lot of what he said sounded like nonsense to him after all, perhaps he should have paid some better attention to it after all. "He might 'ave mentioned sommat although I don't really listen to his malarkey no more." He gave Gorm an apologetic glance. "Sorry Gorm." He petted the goat who retaliated with an attempt to bite his fingers and a snide comment. "You'd do well to listen for once three eyes."

Eric looked back as Ari'sora asked his name and he chuckled as her cheeks flushed red. "My name is Eric or if this book is aught to go by then I'm The Three Eyed Shepherd." He'd almost forgotten about the book but not only that also the map, reminding him of how it had shown his home at the centre. He listened closely as Shadow spoke and could see Gorm rolling his eyes at him from the corner of his eye, clearly disappointed in the fact he had not listened in the first place.

"Well I don't know who this Anthropos Apteros bloke is but you seem to 'ave a better idea what's going on than me." He looked back at his map and then to the girl, she was clearly younger than him but apparently much wiser. Maybe seeing the world through an extra medium wasn't all it's cracked up to be. "If this map is aught to go off, I'd say we should think of our homes, mine is at the centre of mine after all." He smiled at her and then nodded.

Thinking of home he sighed. "It's a beautiful place me homestead, up in the foothills of the mountains." He thought of the approaching winter and the difficulties it would present to him. The time alone up there in the icy snow and when Cylus arrived he'd been stuck inside too, it was a lonely life at times and he often wished he had taken his fathers advice of finding a wife sooner. "See for miles on a clear day, it's lonely though, jus' me and the goats." He looked at her and smiled, there was something that always served to make you feel better when thinking of home.

"Tell me, what is your home like?" He listened happily, hoping she was right and that this would solve their dilemma.