[center][abbr=Ace Cadet][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/190924/544c85ab5c75bc61a4bb5ce40dc0caa6.png[/img][/abbr]
[color=salmon][sub][i]Friday Midday?[/i][/sub]
Word Count: 1634 (+3 exp)
[u]Level[/u]: [b]9[/b] - [u]Total EXP[/u]: 623/90
[b]Location:[/b] Moon Mountain, The Frozen Highlands[/color][/center]
As the White Team got moving once more they did their best to prepare and sort out any last minute tasks that needed doing, such as actually dealing with that pile of spirits. In the end, Ace didn't pick any to fuse with or spirit bind - his preference was normally to itemize anyway, so he was more than happy to let someone else wear the toothy living hat to crush them into usable equipment. The results were passed around after being appraised by Sectonia for their less obvious functions, and as usual the Cadet eyed the weapons and armor with an appreciative gaze. Realistically he couldn't carry much more on him, especially bulkier items like that... but some window shopping never hurt anyone. Even the alien looking firearm drew his interest, but it wasn't until one of the spirits produced a pair of sleek metal weapons that Ace seriously considered claiming any of the horde. 

Yeah, that was the problem with window shopping - giving in and buying something after all. In this case, the hammer and hook combo. None of the items turned out to be a shield to replace his damaged one, but that hammer was just large enough to be close to the kind that Ace was used to wielding. He'd be trading defense for offensive in picking up the impact weapon, but it wasn't like his shield was in a usable state anyway. If he tried he could probably fit more into his mysteriously-more-spacious-on-the-inside backpack.

[color=salmon]"Mind if I take those off your hands?"[/color] Ace said, approaching Ganondorf who was currently inspecting them. The Gerudo obliged, as there were other items better suited to his tastes. The hooked weapon that apparently came in set with the hammer Ace could take or leave really, but... might as well take it. He wasn't sure if he'd get to use their rather unique trait -assuming he even remembered it- but it was nice to have the option. It had been a while since he'd used a polearm like that too, so it would be good to keep from being rusty.

[center][hider=For Ace Cadet][b]Dental Tools[/b]
Plain stainless steel dental hook and dental mallet, large enough to be wielded as a greathammer and polearm, respectively. Both deal respectable damage (in their respective pierce/impact damage types) and have high durability but require both strength and dexterity to wield effectively.  If the mallet is used on the hook while the hook has captured a target, these weapons can inflict the unique Split status affliction. This status harmlessly splits the target in half vertically. Each half has half stats but takes full damage, meaning that if both halves are hit with one attack, that attack deals double damage. Split targets are also unable to use active abilities until the halves are reunited.[/hider][/center]
Of course getting practice in was not anywhere close to a priority when the whole group still had to climb the path ahead of them in search of food, shelter, and the peak of Moon Mountain which was their ultimate destination. 

The trek up was rather solemn, and growing more so as they ascended and still hadn't found much to eat. What berries they did find were demolished quickly. There was still the weather to worry about too, so cold it was dangerous, with flurries coming and going. Mixed in with the snowflakes were flickers of black and shiny blue, and when they grew numerous enough to notice Ace looked up towards the mountain's peak to see if he could spot the source. Even though they were so close to their goal, it was still obscured by shadows. Had it really gotten that late, or had the persistent storm clouds just gotten that dark? 

[color=salmon]"Wonder what this stuff is,"[/color] he said aloud, attempting to catch a few of the different colored flakes in his hand. Though the wind had died down for the most part, the multi-colored snow swirled stubbornly out of reach whenever he tried to get a closer look. It seemed familiar though... really familiar. The hunter turned around to see if anyone else had an idea. [color=salmon]"What do you guys thi–"[/color]

But there was no one there, just more shadows. Ace had been towards the front of the pack, but he didn't think he'd been going fast enough for such a large gap to form. Surely the people behind him would have called out for the front runners to slow down if they were falling behind? 

[color=salmon]"Guys?"[/color] Ace tried, raising his voice enough for it to echo. No one called back. The blackness was starting to feel very unnatural now, spiking anxiety in Ace. Now that he thought about it, hadn't they been able to see the moon earlier? They were actually above most of the clouds now, so there was no way it should be this dark on the trail. 

He started trudging back the way he came, down the path. The cat that stuck by him uttered a confused 'mew?' at the change in direction, but both she and the humbee dutifully followed. They didn't get far before the wind suddenly roared back to life, throwing the blue and black flecks in front of them in such quantity that it blocked their path. There was not even normal snow anymore, and with this many... Ace threw an arm over his nose and mouth, already feeling his skin begin to irritate where it touched him. They were warm -hot, almost- and there was a smell to it as well, which was what really began to jog his memory. The black flakes gradually became outnumbered by the blue, and instinctively Ace took several steps back, away from the highest concentration of them. It wasn't snow, or pollen, or particles of some mineral higher up the mountain. 

It was [i]dander.[/i]

[color=salmon]"That's impossible...!"[/color] Ace said to himself. He kept backing up, head on a swivel to try and see through the darkness to where the source might be hiding. Sensing his tension, the two creature companions moved in close to him as his hands reached for his weapons. 

It really was impossible though. There was no way something that big would have gone unnoticed by the whole group, even when not taking their various perception abilities into account. This was not their natural habitat, but if one was around there would have been signs. 

A shift of movement just above the Cadet sent a few rocks tumbling down the mountainside. His head snapped in that direction, expecting to see the distinctive head piece of the Empress of Flame despite logic saying otherwise - but the silhouette that stood there, on a short rocky outcrop, was much smaller. It appeared to be a woman, calm features cast in shadow but still distinctive enough to make out the details in her shape. Tall and slim, the top half of long hair pulled back and tied behind her head. A staff in her hand and sleek, swooping pieces of armor adorning her body. The pair of large, non-functional butterfly wings at her back were particularly striking, though only Ace and his two new pets were there to see it. Dander swirled lazily around her feet, pouring down the side of the cliff towards the hunter. It had been ten years since he'd last seen her alive. 

Ace stared at her, mouth dry. He couldn't imagine how this was an illusion someone might have cast, but if it wasn't, then what? She was a ghost? That might be worse. While he stood frozen, the humbee and cat took both defensive and aggressive stances, sensing something that their chosen master didn't. When the woman took a step forward all three of them tensed, but the only thing she did was speak.

[i]"I'm happy you still remember me,"[/i] she said. 

Though he had no idea what was really going on, Ace found his voice. [color=salmon]"Of course I do! You're–"[/color]

[i]"Dead,"[/i] she interrupted. [i]"Because of you. Isn't that right?"[/i]

[color=salmon]"Me?"[/color] Her accusation genuinely caught him off guard. That day had changed his life, and even now he thought about it and that old village from time to time, but the grief had come and gone a long time ago. At least, that's what he'd thought. [color=salmon]"No, you- all of us knew the risks. And we all agreed to do it anyway."[/color]

He repeated some of the words the Gunner had said when they buried two of the hunters that had been with them, having taken her short speech to heart at the time. But he messed up the next part, falling into the shadow's trap when he said, voice strained, [color=salmon]"you can't blame me."[/color]

There was silence over the next moment, save the buzzing of the humbee's wings. Then, the woman took her staff in both hands. [i]"You don't really believe that!"[/i] she yelled down as she leapt from the stone, landing with a splash of snow and deadly dander in front of Ace and his companions. The cat arched its back as its fur fluffed up, and the humbee bared its stinger. The Cadet himself was loathe to fight the ghost, so he released his hold on his sheathed weapons and held his hands up low in front of him.

[color=salmon]"Mae,"[/color] he said, studying the shade's face as it became a little more clear. [color=salmon]"I don't know if you're real, or what's going on, but we don't have to–"[/color]

She didn't interrupt him verbally this time. Instead, the dander that surrounded them began to spark like the shrinking fuse of a bomb. The Cadet's stomach lurched, knowing what was coming. He scooped up the pets, tossing them out of the ring of blazing blue before turning to make his own escape. For one brief moment his heart stuttered when he stepped but felt nothing under his heel. In the dark he'd misjudged where the mountain path's edge was, and he'd just stepped right off of it. 

Ace disappeared over the ledge into pitch black with a strangled shout. The shaded figure stepped forward to peer down after him. The dander did not ignite, instead slowly dissolving into smaller black flecks and fading away. The ghost's shape flickered, melting back into shadow and slithering down the rock face. After a moment, Ace's cat and bee returned to the scene flustered. They looked at each other, sharing some sort of communication, before the humbee grabbed the cat in its four legs and flew the both of them down over the edge after their master.