View source for 1166/02 D-Point: Lost in the Snow

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2016/03/09
|Location=Somewhere in an Arctic Blizzard, on the way to D-Point
|Synopsis=Lost in the storm, a traveller finds shelter. But is that really such a good idea?
|Tinyplot=D-Point
|Cast of Characters=120,143
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>If there's one thing that's consistent about this place, it's the cold. It permeates everything. Even when there's no wind, just passing through the air sucks the heat out of your body. And right now, you do not lack for wind. Or for snow. Blizzard conditions are not a terribly common thing even this deep in the Arctic, but they are not unknown, either. <br /><br />And the group has had the misfortune to be caught in one. Several have sought shelter, but there is little to be found in this desolate wasteland. Little but yet more snow and ice. As the wind howls, however, you catch a brief sight of a flash of light and color. It's not bright or noisy enough to be an attack... perhaps it's a tent? Several people had brought them, just in case of situations like this. <br /><br />Finding it isn't hard. And it ''is'' a tent, a largish dome of nylon and fiberglass, one side heavily layered with snow deposited there by the storm.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Prism Keeper Yellow is not used to this kind of cold, which should come as no surprise. She's hugging herself, even as yellow stars glow near her head to give off a pleasant warm glow. It doesn't do enough, but it's better than nothing at all. And then she comes across a tent, she slowly walks her way there, shouting out, "Hey!" She doesn't wait for a response to get closer, but doesn't touch the tent, yet.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"C'mon in!" calls a voice from inside the tent. It's a young woman's voice, pleasantly warm, even a little cheerful. "It'll be good to have a friend to ride out the storm with." It looks like a nice fancy tent, it's even got a little 'lobby' at the entrance so you can be out of the wind when you open it up to get inside.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Yellow doesn't really have any particular knowledge of this voice, but since it doesn't sound mean, she huddles in, opening the flap to get in. "Hi, I'm Prism Keeper Yellow." She says, just in case this person didn't know. Poor girl has met so many strangers with magical powers lately.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>You're pretty sure you've seen the girl in the red coat before. She must have been with one of the other non-senshi groups that came along on the trek. "Call me Ruby, then, Yellow. Close up the flap before the heat all sneaks out." <br /><br />Inside, the tent is set up for warmth, with blankets lining the walls to form an extra barrier against the wind, and little cots set out to keep a sleeping person off the frozen ground below. A battery-powered LED lamp hangs from the peak of the ceiling, to shed some light on the interior. <br /><br />'Ruby' herself is seated on one of the cots, stirring up a mug of hot chocolate that she's apparently just warmed up with a bit of magic. "Here, have a little something to warm you up," she says, offering the mug to you. "It's colder than a witch's proverbial out there."

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Yellow takes the hot chocolate, holding it on to warm her before even taking a single sip. "Well it is the north pole, should've dressed a little warmer." She chastizes herself, even though it's hard to imagine her clothes being normal daily wear; "Thanks, miss Ruby." She takes a sip from the hot chocolate.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The chocolate is quite good, and it tastes a little of cinnamon. "Sorry there's no marshmallows or whipped cream. I'd offer to run to the store and get some, but." 'Ruby' waves a hand at the tent walls, obviously indicating the storm surrounding them. <br /><br />She stretches out for a moment, then starts making another mug of cocoa for herself. "I don't know how the Senshi get by, with those short skirts. They've got to be freezing in this, even with magic to keep warm."

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I don't know either, maybe you should ask them?" Yellow suggests, taking another sip out of the chocolate, enjoying the taste. "This is pretty good, did you make it yourself?" She asks, looking just a little guilty about it all. "I forgot to bring supplies..."

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Sort of," 'Ruby' explains. "I added some cinnamon and a little creamer to the store-bought packets. Helps to keep things from getting boring, you know?" She offers a pleasant smile. "I think I've got some protein bars in here, too," she muses, rummaging through her pack. At least someone came prepared. Eventually she finds one and offers it to you - one of those 'energy bars', with oatmeal and peanut butter and stuff like that.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Yellow shakes her head, "I'm not hungry, just cold, but thanks for the offer." She takes another sip off the chocolate she's been given, relaxing just a little more, "Have you done things like this often, miss Ruby?" She suppresses a yawn, she's tired herself out against Kunzite, and now it's getting later.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>'Ruby' nods, and tucks the bar away in one of her pockets. She takes a brief sip of her new-made hot chocolate, and glances briefly up at the ceiling, as if looking towards the stars above. "I used to camp out a bit, when I was young." Both in Denmark, and in the Silver Millennium, though she wouldn't mention either here - it would give the game away. "Never quite in this extreme of weather, though."

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Yeah, I don't think a lot of people come here. Wish we could see the sky though, I imagine the stars must be pretty out here." Prism Keeper Yellow can't help but think about astronomy, even in these kinds of circumstances, and the opportunities she's missing. "How old are you?"

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>This answer, at least, is true. For this life, that is. "Beautiful, I'd guess. But we'd never see them through the clouds, even if it wasn't snowing." She sips her cocoa, watching Yellow, her smile light and pleasant. "Fourteen, just last September." <br /><br />She reaches over to her pack again and pulls out a blanket. It's one of those thin, space-age weaves, not the shiny mylar kind, but akin to it. "Here, wrap yourself up in this. It'll help keep the warm in." Such a friendly girl. Lucky you found her out here.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I can't, I must stay awake." Yellow objects, there's a drive to it, and she seems afraid that getting too comfortable will make her fall asleep. She smiles, though, "But thanks." She looks around the tent a little bit, curious and interested. "I'm ten."

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Ruby nods. "I understand. As soon as the storm passes, everyone's going to want to get moving again." She tucks the blanket back where it came from. "It's still available if you need it, though." <br /><br />She looks down into her mug of chocolate and sighs. "Ten, huh? And you're still coming along on this? Good for you. We're going to need everyone who can step up and help out." It's a comfort to see that she approves. That she doesn't immediately think to try to send you back for being 'a little kid'. That would really suck. <br /><br />"I just hope they don't get the bright idea to attack in the middle of all this. All of us separated into little groups, isolated, unable to help each other..." She shivers a little, and you can feel a chill at the notion yourself. Good thing you're with her, and not alone.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"You're right." Yellow takes a message out of that which may be counterproductive to her aims, "We should go look for the others, so we can stick together better." She puts down her chocolate, clearly convinced this is the right idea. "We can take the tent with us, set it back up when we find the others."

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It would probably amuse Beryl, and almost all of her servants, immensely to hear that one of the Senshi's allies had gone wandering in the storm and gotten lost and frozen to death. Melanite has her own reasons for not wanting to see that just yet, however. And her own plans would be impaired, considerably, if the girl were to run out and die - or run out and actually find someone, for that matter. <br /><br />Which is why 'Ruby' has an excuse ready for such an impulse. "First off, setting the tent up in this was half a miracle in the first place, Yellow-chan," she starts off. "Taking it down and putting it back up without something getting lost or torn or worse in the process? Not a fun plan. Besides, the way this snow is coming down, they could be ten feet outside that door and we'd never find them. We'd just end up walking in circles until we gave up or ran into an ambush." <br /><br />She drains the rest of her cocoa, and wipes the mug out with a wet-nap. "Worst part is, I hear rumors there's someone new on the other side. Some sort of illusionist. If she's the one behind this storm, we could be walking right into a crevasse and not see it until we're falling to our dooms." She shakes her head. "Better to stay safe until the storm clears, ''then'' find the others. I doubt they'd risk an attack in this anyways. No way to coordinate."

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I can mark where I've been." Yellow points out, clearly thinking that this isn't such a problem at all, and pointing her wand at the cup she's holding, turning it a pleasant shade of Yellow, "And if there's someone 'on the other side' behind this storm then they're trying to separate us, which means we should find the others as fast as we can." She doesn't quite seem to think 'Ruby' is lying, but apparently the arguments are counterproductive. "And I can fly." She flutters the fairy wings on her back.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"In this wind?" Indeed, the wind is still howling outside. And shows no signs of stopping. "Okay, now you're worrying me, Yellow-chan. I don't ''think'' they can rustle up a storm like this. It'd take a massive amount of energy, and if they're stealing it from people... they aren't going to have a whole lot to spare from whatever they're using it for." She sighs again, refusing to give up the argument. And perhaps applying a little internal pressure to believe her, listen to her. It's very, very subtle, and she's good at making it feel like your own decision.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Maybe not in this wind." Definitely not in this wind, at best Yellow could slow down her fall; she's not great at flying in the best of circumstances. "But still, I think we should go look for the others. What if they need our help..." She sounds a bit less certain now, the pressure doing enough to make her doubt the urgency, but not quite getting rid of it. She's a headstrong girl.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Headstrong and stubborn indeed, for one so young. Perhaps Melanite is beginning to wonder if she chose the right target for this little trap. It wouldn't do to give herself away so early, however. "Well... hang on." She digs into the pack, coming up with a coil of rope. It's slender stuff, some sort of new climber's synthetic, by the look of it... if Yellow has any experience with such things to recognize it, that is. "We can tie this to the tent, go out to the end of it, then follow it back... how's that?"

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I mean, we could." Yellow finishes drinking that mug of chocolate, and gets up and starts heading out of the tent, clearly thinking Melanite will do that, "But if they're further away than that, that won't help. How long is that rope?" She asks the obvious question.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"A hundred feet," Ruby says, getting up to follow you. She leaves the light on behind the pair. "If they're further away than that, we're in trouble. It's too much area to search in this kind of storm." She keeps working on the girl, encouraging her to trust 'Ruby', to believe she only wants to help. "Be careful, okay? I don't want to have you drop down a crevasse on me."

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"If they're further away than that, we'll just have to look smarter." Yellow insists, using her wand to send stars flying in the sky, floating and shining like lamps. They fight against the storm to stay in place, doing a decent job for now. After each such star, she also marks something on the ground with Yellow. "If you don't trust it, I'll go looking on my own. It's too important."

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Good going, Melanite. Keep digging, you might even strike gold. Or oil, more likely. "Let's see what we can find this way first, before we start to get all over desperate, okay?" It seems like it's going to take more time than she'd like to properly influence the girl. She ''should'' have been a weak link, one of the youngest, but... <br /><br />The search goes on, and the pair trudge out towards the end of the line, then make an arc around the tent... and find nothing. There's some noise coming from not too far further on, however, about halfway around the circle, that just might be someone's camp. 'Ruby' doesn't seem sure it's real - but it might be.

:'''{{#var:143|Hoshi Kogane| (143)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Perhaps part of the problem can be found in Yellow's choice of language, her manner of speaking suggests she comes from money. Money so old that it's seeped into the way she talks, thinks and acts. "Looks like there is someone over there." The little girl smiles, and sets another star flying off into the air as she makesh er way closer.

:'''{{#var:120|Melanite| (120)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>'Ruby' nods. "Maybe. Maybe not." She pauses for a moment. "Look, if we let go of the line we lose the way back to the tent. And in this mess we'll never find it again." She's already clipped it to her belt, just to make sure. She knows by this point that she's not going to talk the girl into abandoning it without making what she's doing too obvious, though. <br /><br />She watches Yellow start away from her and sighs. "Alright, look. Send up one star if it's an ambush, and two if it's safe, okay? I'll try to follow you in once you do." Of course, she won't. The moment Yellow is out of sight, the blizzard will worsen again, and 'Ruby' will be gone as if she was never there. Fortunately, however, Yellow really will find some of her friends...
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