Thin Ice

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Sosio: {41 - 18 (entrance) = 23}

After such a great gap in time, an evolution, and countless adventures, Sosio was back. Now with her newly-obtained fire-typing, hopefully this expedition wouldn't turn out as tragic as the last.

The cold was just as bad, if not worse, than how she remembered it. The snow that flurried down was like whipping shards of glass onto her skin, hurting each time the small crystallized water droplet hit her skin. The wind itself was buffeting enough to make her wince back at the strong squall that existed in the area as a seemingly everlasting storm. This was powerful to such a degree that the bird's lashing Joy Ribbon was prone to being swept right off of her or even leaving cuts on her, so she tied a thicker not that left no loose strands and continued on.

The snowstorm was so thick that the Fletchinder could hardly see anything beyond her beak but basic colors and shapes, squinting as so to prevent her eyes being damaged by the stinging frozen fragments, but the cold was surprisingly little of a problem. Her flame sac kept her nice and warm, and she was thankful for a useful ability that was Flame Body. Her greatest concern right now was traction; she could come across a sheet of ice, or even the river, at any time without notice, not to mention there were dangerous wandering Pokemon around. The Ember Pokemon decided to keep an open mind of these things, and continued on in hopes to finally complete her quest in reaching Aileron and its guild.

Rouge struggled onward to keep up with his bird friend. The cold felt increasingly bitter as their journey wore on. As he blinked he heard his friend call out that they were close to their destination. This was good, they would be out of the wind, perhaps it would be windless enough to start a small fire so the avian wouldn't need to warm them both for a while? He reached up to the nasal cavity of his helmet, finding the still dry tender inside. there wasn't much, but perhaps it would give them warm for an hour if they were lucky and used all of it? it would be a welcome respite from the cold, Rouge assumed. He looked up seeing on a brief glimpse of a rocky arch drawing near to them, He was ready to at least be out of the cold and frost.

Sosio: {23 + 1 (page) =24}

The bird looked admittedly goofy, bouncing one foot after the other in the necessity to lift her lanky legs high above the snow to even hope of being able to traverse the thick sheet of frost. Realizing she left her small companion in the dust, or snow to be exact, she whipped her head around quickly and shot a hearty ember into the snow, melting a hole down to the chilled earth below and sending the surrounding settled flakes flying.

She bounced and wobbled impatiently, hoping for the single sign of an earthy body appearing in the white. Though a fluffy fire type with plenty of heat to go around, the length of her legs made for difficulty in keeping warm when not flying, especially now that she had stuck them in the freezing snow. She cocked her head, and then resorted into shouting towards her newest acquaintance.
"Would you like me to carry you? It would be much faster," she suggested hurriedly, shivering in desperation to enter somewhere she could finally relax.

She hoped with all her heart that the cave wouldn't be too damp for a fire, or that there would be too many Pokemon there. Surely in a storm this severe, any native 'mon would've taken hostage in a closed shelter to escape from the extreme climate, no matter how well adapted to the cold. Sosio mentally prepared for anything at all, and she knew it would be enough of a task to protect her young companion. She just hoped she alone would be enough, because now she could depend on no one to protect her.

(Energy 4 + 1[new page] = 5)

Rouge fell into the snow as his avian friend left him behind. with a sigh he began swinging his bone wildly causing loose and packed snow to fly away making a trench until he found a small, recently made looking, hole. Just as he dusted the snow off him, he heard the avian shout out to him. Carry him? that would be nice at it would be much quicker... he started to ponder about how to get his friend to see him in this hole. this was the question as the hole was far enough down that she wouldn't be able to see him, and he had started chattering again, making speaking nearly impossible for his still awkward speech pattern. then it hit him, his bone club could reach and he had a shred of cloth he had found on the ground back in Grassveil.

Quickly he tied the cloth around one end of his bone and held up the bone to try and signal to the Sosio where he was so she would be able to come and pick him up. the small Pokemon shivered, he hoped this would work as he planned.

Sosio: {24}

Sosio squawked in realization that her buddy was not responding, and she now reverted to her bird-like behaviors, twisting her neck and lolling it as she searched fruitlessly in the blinding snow for the poor bone-wielding Pokemon she had left behind.

The Fletchinder bounded into the melted ring she created to help protect and guide the little fellow. She was filled with dismay, then shock, and finally flooded with relief when she spotted his bone waving like a flag, surrounded by the raging blizzard.

Come on, let's get you warm," Sosio chattered while gleaning the chilly fractals off her feathers in order to fit the small Lonely Pokemon under a wing, clutching him close to her side so he would be surrounded by her radiating warmth. Inside, however, she felt weak, and she didn't think she could invigorate her flame sac enough to produce any more physical fire. At the same time, she didn't want to snow hop or she could risk dropping her pal in the snow from the erratic movement. She took the only approach she could else imagine.

Stuffing her beak into the snow, she used her streamlined body to push her way through the tall piles of soft and icy fragments, acting as a drill without rotation, or an Empoleon breaking solid ice with a swift Drill Peck in the arctic. What was remaining of her heat energy helped soften the frozen water, but her face felt frigid shortly after shoving it through. At least the Cubone wouldn't feel a thing, completely encased in her wing.

Rouge instinctively snuggled into the warm wing as soon as it was wrapped around him. His eye were closed but he could hear her burrowing though the snow and ice as if she were some sort of drill. there wasn't any way he could see or feel what was happening, so he focused on staying still to try and not cause any problems for his avian friend. his breathing slowed so that his body would remain relaxed and stay in place. Rouge couldn't be sure how long it would take, but he did his best to stay awake so that way she wouldn't need to worry about waking him up once they were there.

Sosio: {24}

The bird continued to push both her body and willpower onward through the hardship, which was now her current obstacle. It was straining to be pushing through something that caused so much pain and acute numbness, and her entire body was begging her to give up and collapse, but her determination refused to give in just yet.

Finally, after a while of shoving her way through, the snow began to shallow as she reached the cavern, mouth wide and welcoming, the winds already dying down with the shelter of the mountain. Luckily for Sosio, this was just where the bird needed to be, even after completing her exploration with Rouge. Mt. Frostmeer would need to be traversed in order for the Fletchinder to continue on to the mountain ranges, and finally to her goal she's been traveling to all along. The Floating Islands have seemed unreachable for so long, but now the bird finally has reached the climax of her adventure. The peak of her highest mountain would be quite literally the apex of her journey, and just thinking about her nearing success filled her fiery feathers with warmth.

Gently placing the Cubone on the floor of the cave, Sosio invoked her newfound warmth to create a burning Ember. It took a few shots, but finally she got one to continue to burn. It might've seemed impossible to some to start a fire without anything to burn as fuel, but few know that fire-types produce their flammable oils, and when accumulated enough can allow a fire to burn for quite some time. Seeing what Rouge was able to do before, too, he could always scrape his bone alongside the walls of the cave to create a torch to provide both warmth and light to the adventuring duo. It was the ground type's time to shine now, anyway, in his exploration for what treasure he sought after.

Rouge felt the icy ground as he was placed down by his Avian friend. As he stood up he saw Sosio crate a self sustaining ember on the ground. This act amazed Rouge as he'd never seen such a thing happen. He looked to it with intrigue before pulling out the bundle of tender he had in his helmet's nose. thinking for a moment he took the cloth tied to his bone and used it to wrap the tender around one end of his bone crating a new torch, one he could fight with. Rouge was ready to start going in deeper, but thought for a moment looking to Sosio, perhaps they should rest for a while, she had just went though something very difficult for them. In the end Rouge sat down and patted next to him, the ground warmed enough to be bearable to sit.

Sosio: {24}

The bird collapsed her legs inward as to sit, resting her backside on the cold cavern floor. Her sore wings folded to her sides, her face now seeking the warmth of the fire to thaw the cold that had plastered and stuck to her fine feathers. Her flame sac warmed her inside, while the fire she created helped to heat every part of her body that was more difficult to account for. Sosio only hoped that the fire was good enough for her fleeting fellow, who seemed to be in a bit of a rush.

"So, what exactly do you plan on using this artifact-thingy for, anyway?" She inquired, having forgotten exactly what it was or if the tiny Cubone already answered that question for her. The Fletchinder really didn't want to strike up a conversation, but the fire inside her was like flint and steel, constantly creating sparks. She only hoped that she could actually comprehend the answer she would be given.

Rouge heard the question and closed his eyes for a moment. he hadn't thought about that, he was just more curious if it were true. For several moments, Rouge sat there silent, eyes closed, thinking about what he would do with it... try and burn it? destroy it? take it with him? until a single idea came into his mind. he would not just take it with him, but adorn his helmet with it. Yes the nonburnable stick coming out of his helmet would provide all the proof he would need that he had made this perilous journey. He was happy with this conclusion, opening his eyes and looking to his avian friend.

"T-ta-ak-ke s-st-ti-ick. a-att-at-ch t-to h-hel-elm-et." He stated, hoping the proof part was fully implied by this.