snowblind | o, joining + hypothermia

[astre]

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KODIAK

THE FINAL CALL  | info | IS CALLING

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The vapors of Kodiak's breathing appeared in a ghostly form out of his nostrils, the cold air chilling the silver hyena's breath to form ghost-like steam patterns in the air.

He sighed deeply, looking down at his snow-covered paws as he tread the plains, away from the territory which he neared previously when traveling with Hana.

He’d been wrong.
About going back to his ‘normal life’ and abstaining from clan life. What ‘normal life’ did he lead? By no means was anything that Kodiak had experienced thus far ‘normal.’ What was he still doing in the cold by himself? He’d certainly die here alone.

What the hell was he thinking? Why would he reject such an offer from Hana, one which promised food, shelter, and above all: friendship?

He realized that parting ways from Hana was the worst decision he could have ever made. As if he thought he had a choice in what’s best for him. He wanted to turn back and catch up with Hana, tears welling up as he wanted her to take him back in as a friend, as a clan mate. For some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to turn around. His veins felt frozen, and his bones felt cold as ice.

Had the cold finally caught up to him?

No, it wasn't the cold that made him stop in his tracks -- yet, it did play a part in his temporary paralysis -- it was the pride of his bloodline.

He could feel the stern growl of his father echo through every chamber of thought in his mind. “Jio’ha ... If you are to survive in these lands, you must learn to trust no other. You belong to us, our pack. Accept yourself into any other, and your blood is invalid in the eyes of a Duskborn.” Pride slaughtered many souls that belonged to his family, his friends, and everyone in-between.

He wouldn’t give in this time.

His lungs began to contract, and his paws became numb. It was too late to have made this decision. Regretting everything, the slender hyena sank to the stark white below him, his vision growing dark, darker, yet darker. His thoughts began to slow, yet he was still able to muster enough energy to damn his pride and call for help, albeit quietly.

"Hana..."

The freezing temperatures lulled him into unconsciousness like a deadly lullaby.

[Character Graveyard.]

COLD NOSTALGIA ✧ Natasha — Snowbound — Warrior

Natasha had grown used to cold in Snowbound's territory. It reminded her of her first home, Russia. For many of her days in the group of Assassins that raised her, she had traveled in the snow.

When she had come across Kodiak, she had thought he was dead. So, the black lupine had approached him and listened to his heartbeat. He was alive. That was good. Natasha would heave the hyena onto her back and she would start heading towards the camp. He needed to warm up and awaken before they could ask him anything or check him for injuries.

© madi

[arcy]

In the end, it's not whoever Kodiak wanted that found the hyena, but instead Izuku. And Izuku -- was luckily not out in the snow anymore. He had been earlier but after finding nothing, and successfully getting a headache from the sheer brightness of the snow, he'd gone back. He'd even changed his bandages by himself, too! They weren't very good with just one paw, but it was good enough to hold. The injury was nasty -- he'd gotten very upset, seeing it, so he'd rushed with the bandaging a little and maybe that was why it was bad.
In any case ... Izuku was considering going back out into the cold. He liked the snow, despite the chill and his bandaging and the fact he just changed it. He'd probably be out  there a few hours enough to have to do it again, anyways. But then, just as Izuku walks a few feet from the cavern, snow and wind blowing against his fur -- was that Natasha? Why was she carrying a dead-looking hyena? Izuku's anxiety promptly spikes -- either they were dead and Natasha was bringing them back for something or another, or they were barely hanging on. In which case, Izuku didn't have time to ask if the hyena was dead, he had to do it now. "Natasha!! Bring them here, quickly!" Izuku calls, and it's kind of weird to say, but whatever. Immediately, the Tenderfoot spins on his paws hurries a little farther down the cavern -- one of the warmer rooms, basically. Not too close to the entrance but not far enough to get the chill from the deeper caves. There were already pillows in here, right? Right. Still, Izuku makes to conjure a bunch of blankets regardless, just to be sure the chill from the floor wouldn't affect whoever the hyena was. It was hypothermia, right? Izuku hadn't smelled any blood. He was just sticking with this, then.
//I HAD TO REWRITE MY ENTIRE POST BC U NINJAD ME :^((

☀ what was i worth

[melantha]

[align=center][div style="max-width: 600px; text-align: justify; font-family: georgia; font-size: 10pt;"][color=black]Unlike Natasha and Izuku, the young female is hesitant to bring the unknown hyena into their camp in spite of his obvious illness. Not out of hatred or prejudice, but out of paranoia. Three months in Snowbound has succeeded in mellowing out the once near-feral wildcat, but she still stubbornly clings to the life lessons which kept her alive during her long stint living in the Wilds. No parents, no friends, no one else but her to get her through the most challenging time of her life. Melantha can think of several different occasions during which she nearly died. Deep puncture wounds where a mother bear's powerful jaws closed around the back of her neck, just narrowly missing anything vital. An old scar on her shoulder where a human hunter's arrow passed clean through her flesh. And then there are situations that did not leave a physical mark, but an emotional one. Interactions that have lest her distrusting of strangers; suspicious of everyone and everything. Altercations that have prevented her from getting a good rest in the form of bone-chilling nightmares. Much like a callous, Melantha has hardened her exterior to prevent others from reaching the delicate person within.

She refrains from voicing her suspicions as she follows her clanmates, instead choosing to supervise the situation in the event that the hyena is pretending and attempts to attack her people. Her tail lashes with discomfort the deeper the group moves within the caverns. "Is there--" Mel grits her teeth, looking mildly uncomfortable with her words. "--anything I can do to help?" Maybe the guy really is on the brink of death. In that case, she thinks that maybe she should be a bit more sympathetic. But no matter how hard she tries, the young huntress cannot see Kodiak as anything other than a potential threat and a waste of resources.

[Character Graveyard.]

COLD NOSTALGIA ✧ Natasha — Snowbound — Warrior

Natasha would frown as Izuku had shown up, though relief could be seen in her eyes. She quickly raced inside the cavern, following Izuku in the room he had gone into. Natasha would allow the hyena to slow slide off her back and onto the blankets, before she put the blankets over Kodiak. Then she gently put the pillows under his head.

"Does he need any tea for when he wakes up? Maybe to warm him up some more?" Natasha asked the young Tenderfoot.

© madi

[astre]

[align=center]

KODIAK

THE FINAL CALL  | info | IS CALLING

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Dark, cold, and confused.

This same feeling wasn't unfamiliar to Kodiak. Hell, he lived it for countless months now. But... not like this. He felt incorporeal, weightless, and ... dead. He felt nothing but the dark depths of his mind at that very moment. Unconscious, thoughtless, hopeless. Though, he wasn't dead, luckily; the cold did just enough to knock him out though. He hadn't eaten in god knows how long, and his body decided to shut down to conserve what little energy he had left. Even his subconscious had given up hope on him when he needed it most.

He floated in his personal limbo, unaware of anything happening around him, unaware of his saviors and their efforts to revive the hyena, and unaware of his vitality in the real world. Have I finally died...? His unconscious consciousness floated to every corner of his mind, searching for answers. The darkness itself was blinding as it was the only thing visible. I can't see a damned thing... He could begin to feel the soreness of his body once more, albeit the only feeling, as the pain shot through his body. He winced -- both physically and mentally -- and attempted to gather his bearings. Definitely not dead... although, something isn't right here... what's happened to me?

Come on, damn you, wake up!

Seemed like coming to wasn't an option at the moment. Perhaps his own body knew what was better for him than his stubbornness did, as it attempted to conserve what little energy remained in the silver feliform's frail body.

The darkness in his mind felt endless, staggering and intimidating.

I've reaped what I've sowed. I deserve this.

An attempt was made by his body to shed a tear, but the effort was fruitless, saving the energy for his short, fragile breathing.

Wake up.

[arcy]

Luckily, Natasha doesn't hesitate. She even gets the blankets over the other, though Izuku conjures more to place over the Hyena, just in case. Melantha is offering to help, but Izuku just offers the other a smile. There's not a lot you can do for hypothermia besides warm them up and hope for the best. Unless their organs are failing or something. That would be ... bad.
"I'm not ... sure? All you can really do is warm them up," Izuku tells Melantha, somewhat uncertain. Could she help? Should he try and do more except hope for the best? Probably! But he's not really sure, so -- right, anyways, tea. Tea, tea, tea. "Tea would be great! Anything works, since it's just to warm them up, core temperature and all that," Hopefully. If this was anything else Izuku might've worried about herbs, but no, this was just hypothermia, it was just ... warming them up till you can check them fully. Though ... the hyena does seem seem a little more conscious now, more restless, maybe. Unlikely to wake up just yet, though probably within ... he's not sure, a few minutes, half an hour? A whole hour? Either way, Izuku finds himself restless as he moves to settle beside the hyena, as some sort of odd vigil. Being a medic was stressful. And to think he'd only started to do actual medical work a little while ago.

☀ what was i worth

[melantha]

[align=center][div style="max-width: 600px; text-align: justify; font-family: georgia; font-size: 10pt;"][color=black]A pair of sagacious olive eyes flicker over to the prone form of the hyena. The creature is restless, shifting in their unconsciousness. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she is reminded of when she first arrived in Snowbound. Cold, starving, and alone, she was on the brink of death. But she kept her head held high, too petrified of the death to allow herself to display weakness amidst strangers. Perhaps I should be more sympathetic... She should. Melantha is not much different from this creature, although she was considerably younger then than this stranger is now. So caught of in her thoughts is she that the girl nearly misses Izuku's response to her initial offer of aid. "Alright," Mel replies with a faint sigh. Oh well. The thing she dislikes more than trusting strangers is being useless, and now she is caught in the strange position of needing to do both at the same time. How cruel of the universe to toy with her in such a manner.

At the mention of tea, Melantha hesitates. Natasha was the one to offer the idea, so maybe she is going to fetch it? But the other female is busy with blankets, so the north american wildcat takes it upon herself to brew a comforting pot of green tea. Nothing too fancy for fear of aggravating any unknown allergies. See? Mel might be outwardly abrasive, but she is thoughtful in her own way. Even if it is partially motivated by the underlying desire to not have to deal with someone being both hypothermic and going into anaphylactic shock. "Here," she says upon her return. "I hope this is alright." Tea is easy enough to prepare, but Melantha is a perfectionist.

[Character Graveyard.]

COLD NOSTALGIA ✧ Natasha — Snowbound — Warrior

Natasha would put a few more pillows under the hyena's head, to prop up his head so they could give him the tea. She quickly muttered a "thanks" to Melantha before she took the cup of tea from the other female and took it over to Kodiak.

With her empty paw, she would lift the male's chin and prop open his jaws, slowly pouring the green tea into his mouth. Hopefully this would help the male. Natasha would turn back to Izuku and ask. "Is there any wood in here? We could get a fire started too?"

© madi

[arcy]

Okay, it would seem Melantha was taking over the tea. Izuku doesn't mind, just so long as it's done. Besides, he understands not wanting to stand around without contributing. Izuku got that same anxiety a lot, and so he just allows Melantha a wide grin. "Thank you, Melantha!" He chirps, tail giving a wag. He moves to take it, to put it aside till the hyena wakes up, but then -- Natsha takes it. And appears to be ... giving it to Kodiak. Right now. What -- no! Did -- did Natasha even know what she was really doing!
"Natasha!!" Izuku yelps, anxiety spiking. That's not how this worked!! Kodiak was unconscious!! And that just!! Hypothermia! "Thanks for trying to help, but that's not how you were supposed to do it!" He tries to pull himself together, but it's kinda hard. He doesn't wanna get angry at Natasha, because she was just trying to help, but still! That was dangerous! She could've asked what they were doing first! Okay, explanation time. "Okay, first, don't try to make unconscious people drink stuff! They might choke! Secondly, he has hypothermia! You can't give him that much tea at a time right now!" He's kind of stumbling over his words, considering how upset he was. It was only supposed to be a single sip of tea, and then you wait a minute, and then you can slowly let them have more. The contrast of heat was a lot, and everything was bad enough! However ... Izuku sighs. He won't linger. He gives Natasha a half-hearted glare -- it's not intended to be mean, just frustrated. "... It might be fine, but be more careful, please," He asks, tail giving a frustrated sweep. Okay, he'd just have to be more attentive to how the hyena was faring. ... Okay then, wood. A fireplace? It wouldn't be easy to make one now, and there's not a ton of wood around anyways. Izuku shakes his head. "Not that I know of. There's not enough trees here or nearby. Anything that can burn should be fine if you guys wanna fetch anything, though," Straw, cloth, anything spare. It didn't really matter, just so long as there was enough to keep it burning for more than a few minutes.

☀ what was i worth