[center][h1][color=Goldenrod] Noah Griffin [/color]
[color=8dc73f]Erin Céleste[/color][/h1][/center]

[hr][hr]

Noah exhaled and held his hands close to his mouth.

A faint, white mist escaped from his lungs to warm them. It was nippy down there, but not as bad as some Chicago winters. He pulled his coat tighter about himself. The longer he remained here, the weirder things become and homesickness washed over him. Chill hung in the air, worsened by time, threatening to pour into his very bones and freeze him in place. It felt like late fall now despite only a month passing. 

[color=goldenrod][i] ‘How much longer did they had to travel?’[/i][/color]

The question pounded deeper into his head with each slow, trudging step onward. Noah’s sleep deprivation had gotten worse. Now him to seem more like the walking dead than living now. Bags puffed under his eyes, his feet were lead and sleep bullied his focus. Being a construction worker, Noah worked long hours and late into the night sometimes. This was ridiculous even by that standard.  

Nothing in his job could've prepared him for the forced marches' brutality.

When night came, his thoughts wandered to Ethan and his father. Guilt settled in his heart over their future, one without him, taunted him. Thankfully his frustrations only affected his ability to sleep rather than his mood.

His half-closed eyes drifted to the others around him. Not everyone was equally fit for the temperature drop. Those from warmer climates or lacking in proper protection struggled to stay warm.

He inhaled and closed his eyes, shielding his conscious. At least from pushing him into doing something stupid.

As they advanced upon the mountain, his vision glanced upward to the darkish skies above him. A wind blew ferociously and loud across the gloomy landscape. Compared to the earth that threatened to swallow them up, it was far more welcoming. A heart-stopping thought whispered a dreadful question into the back of his mind.

[color=goldenrod][i] ‘What if I never see it again?’[/i][/color]

The terrible thought shivered through his system.

The lacking of sunlight blinded Noah for several moments. His eyes strained to adjust and managed barely.

Several individuals impulsively flipped open their devices to better illuminate the tunnel. The realization then swept over them that they were no longer in the world they knew. Any commodities they held had to last. Phones and various devices immediately snapped shut to conserve battery power.

Time passed in dead silence.

A defeat, fed by exhaustion and hunger, drove them deeper into the mountain. A dim, purplish light guided them through the seemingly endless path. To avoid infection and new wounds on his feet, Noah had the sense to slip his shoes beforehand. 

Everything about this new setting pushed Noah’s nerves into new paranoia levels. Adrenaline in his veins, the burly construction worker migrated alongside the others. All drawn by some sense of need he couldn’t understand.

When they came to the bizarre sight of the Naga, both bound to the gate and playing her harp, Noah’s eyes widened. His bravery had started to reach his limit by now. If it wasn’t for the fact he knew he wouldn’t get very far, the man would’ve tried to bolt long before now.

Now he stood, hiding his climbing emotions, there listening. The woman’s language seemed to fit the pace and oddity of one other of their group. Forcing his voice to remain steady, his peripheral vision caught someone pausing nearby.

[color=goldenrod] “Did you understand what she just said?”[/color] His hand gestured to the Naga’s rapid words. 

He wasn’t sure if the woman could understand them or not, but he certainly couldn’t.

Erin walked silently along with the rest of the group as they all entered the caves, sticking close to Carrie at the back of the crowd. The cave was dark, but that was about it for any ‘this is even worse than before’ kind of observation she could make. As far as she knew, the change in scenery was a good thing- hopefully it meant they were making progress towards their final destination. 

As the group got to a certain point though, everything stopped. Erin wound her way through the mass of people, until finally she could see what was happening. A woman, hanging from the ceiling, had stopped them at a gate. As she listened, Erin’s face lit up. This one knew Spanish! She paused as she watched the interaction between the Fae, and came up with what she would say when she got a chance to speak to this woman. She was about to start moving through the crowd again, until a man’s voice caught her attention.

[color=8dc73f]”Sss.. Yes. I understood her.”[/color] Erin hissed accidentally as she had to stop herself from saying “sí” to the man. English was “yes”, she had to remember that. [color=8dc73f]”She said: Kiron will be very interested… Many thanks my good Yin. Good night, and welcome to ‘Under the mountain’ humans.”[/color] She paused to think for a moment about the proper words before continuing.  [color=8dc73f]”She then asked the Generals for a payment, to enter the city.”[/color]

[color=8dc73f]”... No conozco a Kiron, probablemente es su nombre. Yo sé Yin es el Zorro.”[/color] A few seconds passed before she realized the lapse in her speaking. [color=8dc73f]”Sorry. Fox. Yin is a Fox. The woman may be Kiron. Names.”[/color]

[color=goldenrod] “English is hard for everybody, even me.”[/color] Noah replied his eyes stared forward, unable to pry his eyes from the scene. 

A deep, dark sensation spread through his chest to poison any positive notion he had left. Instinctively his hand raised to his neck back as he fought the vomit in his throat back. This was bad… This was bad. Over and over, the thought ran in circles in his head.   

[color=goldenrod] “I don’t like this… what does she mean by payment?”[/color]

[color=8dc73f]”Well..”[/color] Erin trailed off as she tried to think of any answer that might make sense. [color=8dc73f]”Money, hopefully. Normally that would be… normal.”[/color] Erin shook her head at herself before falling silent. 

Noah blinked then turned to Erin. A moment passed before he formulated something reasonable and easy to understand. This girl’s lack of English skills become apparent in her communication, but she had improved. Last time, he heard her screaming in Spanish. Now it was broken English. 

[color=goldenrod] “We can hope, but I sort of doubt it. Nothing about this place has been normal so far and I suspect it might just get worse.”[/color]  

[hider= Spanish Translations ]
[color=8dc73f]”I don’t know who Kiron is, that may be her name. I do know that Yin is the fox.”[/color]

[/hider]