February 13th
Tower of Fire
Twilight Isle
Up, up, up. Addie?s feet kept her moving further and further up the Tower of Fire?s stairs, climbing and climbing despite the fatigue that weighed her muscles down like concrete. She had to keep running though, no matter how much the hot tower sent rivulets of sweat dripping down her body, stinging her eyes and making her cut off t-shirt stick uncomfortably to her back. Finally she reached the summit and burst free from the stifling heat onto the tower?s roof. Slowing to a jog and then a trudge, she made it to the wall?s edge, her hands coming to grip the rampart for stability?s sake. The surrounding volcano?s temperature didn?t grant much of a reprieve but eventually Addie caught her breath and turned back around to make the descent back into the infernal pit that was the Fire Keeper?s domain. It was better than running on the beach. Alone. And so Adelaide kept up the established routine of exhaustive running and training and fighting with Hope as if doing so would keep her Sandalio?s memory pumping through her veins with every blow delivered. She took in one last lungful of fresh air, pulled the door shut behind her and hit the stairs once more.
Down, down, down. The deeper she went, the hotter it got. Brimstone tickled her nose and she pawed a hand across her face to swipe away sweat and the growing scent of decay that permeated through the tower?s bowels. The stench grew thicker and Addie found her eyes watering in ways that sweat couldn?t possibly have accounted for. It reeked. The half-dragon?s sensitive olfactory center found itself positively overwhelmed by a smell that typically meant only one thing. Death. Again Addie?s feet slowed in their rhythm, the iron gate before her proving a formidable barrier to her progress. Never before had she made it this far down into the dark depths where the fiery walls were something of an inky black accented by cracks of glowing scarlet, pulsing like veins circulating the tower?s lifeblood through its extremities. Whatever was beyond the gate was certainly the source of the smell, there was no question about that. The real question was whether Addie had it in her to explore further.
?M-Miss Hope?? Addie?s wavering voice came out but a choppy stutter, languishing and dying out in the dank humidity of the tower?s innermost realm. A faltering hand reached for the thick black cast iron gate?s handle, drawing away as quickly as it touched when she heard the hissing of sweat evaporating on heated metal. Again she passed her arm across her forehead, smearing moisture across her temple and diverting the steady trickles from further irritating her eyes. Her head was spinning, the combination of heat and putrid stench making it hard to breathe. Once more she reached, this time moving more quickly to pull hard on the gate, the screeching groan rewarding her with a slow creaking swing and enough of a gap for her to barely squeeze through. And so she slipped, making the last leap of faith into the tower?s final sanctum and toward whatever lay beyond.
Atop the spire adorned in flames Hope resided beside the dancing light within the inset fireplace. Shadows galloped and frolicked against the black stone walls behind her and down atop the desktop was the paper she struggled to fill with the rampant ideas between her ears. The sound of steps could be heard in the winding distance of the stairwell which fed directly to the twin oak doors, heavy as they were, propped open at the mouth of her chambers. Young as she may be Addie was shaping into a resilient thing with the way she assaulted the narrower paths of the slicked stone that forged the path from where it scraped the sky, to the pit below. Keep it up. She too had done that very fundamental work at one point, though it was at a different location and often included a boulder and a pond. She didn?t think that was fit for a girl Addie?s age though and was far happier to see the girl working up a sweat.
Maybe, just maybe Hope had turned up the heat during Addie?s jogging. She herself had to hide the sweat rolling down her so as not to give it away that this kind of atmosphere, well it was something that would prove formidable for anyone to run in. Through fire and crucible though, that was the philosophy of the silver-haired woman. As she passed back on that circuit heading past the torches, multi-hued in their own solitary dances, she set the pen down and scooted the chair back. Youth was something shrouded to her vision. An elusive thing that though she had seen and experienced it from her perspective, she was caught within a flux; young in experience, young in time but she felt as though it was a sand she could never hold. Most people had years to figure out what their niche was in life or where they could do the most benefit. Some even figured out where they might do the most harm but for her? Day to day she attempted to progress with the mindset so simple but true: be better than I was yesterday. The fire was all around her now, in Addie, in life itself. She leaned back on her chair lifting the front two legs as she looked at the mantle overhead and admired the three paintings, all combining to one mural of flowers. It was her favorite work and summoned a smile from her with strings tracing to her heart. As she smiled she could hear Addie?s voice echoing from below. She meant to respond truly but was lost in the sight before her. As her hands folded and rest upon her stomach she could feel a thousand needles strike her nerves as she heard the cry of the iron gate. The world froze.
Tower of Fire
Twilight Isle
Up, up, up. Addie?s feet kept her moving further and further up the Tower of Fire?s stairs, climbing and climbing despite the fatigue that weighed her muscles down like concrete. She had to keep running though, no matter how much the hot tower sent rivulets of sweat dripping down her body, stinging her eyes and making her cut off t-shirt stick uncomfortably to her back. Finally she reached the summit and burst free from the stifling heat onto the tower?s roof. Slowing to a jog and then a trudge, she made it to the wall?s edge, her hands coming to grip the rampart for stability?s sake. The surrounding volcano?s temperature didn?t grant much of a reprieve but eventually Addie caught her breath and turned back around to make the descent back into the infernal pit that was the Fire Keeper?s domain. It was better than running on the beach. Alone. And so Adelaide kept up the established routine of exhaustive running and training and fighting with Hope as if doing so would keep her Sandalio?s memory pumping through her veins with every blow delivered. She took in one last lungful of fresh air, pulled the door shut behind her and hit the stairs once more.
Down, down, down. The deeper she went, the hotter it got. Brimstone tickled her nose and she pawed a hand across her face to swipe away sweat and the growing scent of decay that permeated through the tower?s bowels. The stench grew thicker and Addie found her eyes watering in ways that sweat couldn?t possibly have accounted for. It reeked. The half-dragon?s sensitive olfactory center found itself positively overwhelmed by a smell that typically meant only one thing. Death. Again Addie?s feet slowed in their rhythm, the iron gate before her proving a formidable barrier to her progress. Never before had she made it this far down into the dark depths where the fiery walls were something of an inky black accented by cracks of glowing scarlet, pulsing like veins circulating the tower?s lifeblood through its extremities. Whatever was beyond the gate was certainly the source of the smell, there was no question about that. The real question was whether Addie had it in her to explore further.
?M-Miss Hope?? Addie?s wavering voice came out but a choppy stutter, languishing and dying out in the dank humidity of the tower?s innermost realm. A faltering hand reached for the thick black cast iron gate?s handle, drawing away as quickly as it touched when she heard the hissing of sweat evaporating on heated metal. Again she passed her arm across her forehead, smearing moisture across her temple and diverting the steady trickles from further irritating her eyes. Her head was spinning, the combination of heat and putrid stench making it hard to breathe. Once more she reached, this time moving more quickly to pull hard on the gate, the screeching groan rewarding her with a slow creaking swing and enough of a gap for her to barely squeeze through. And so she slipped, making the last leap of faith into the tower?s final sanctum and toward whatever lay beyond.
Atop the spire adorned in flames Hope resided beside the dancing light within the inset fireplace. Shadows galloped and frolicked against the black stone walls behind her and down atop the desktop was the paper she struggled to fill with the rampant ideas between her ears. The sound of steps could be heard in the winding distance of the stairwell which fed directly to the twin oak doors, heavy as they were, propped open at the mouth of her chambers. Young as she may be Addie was shaping into a resilient thing with the way she assaulted the narrower paths of the slicked stone that forged the path from where it scraped the sky, to the pit below. Keep it up. She too had done that very fundamental work at one point, though it was at a different location and often included a boulder and a pond. She didn?t think that was fit for a girl Addie?s age though and was far happier to see the girl working up a sweat.
Maybe, just maybe Hope had turned up the heat during Addie?s jogging. She herself had to hide the sweat rolling down her so as not to give it away that this kind of atmosphere, well it was something that would prove formidable for anyone to run in. Through fire and crucible though, that was the philosophy of the silver-haired woman. As she passed back on that circuit heading past the torches, multi-hued in their own solitary dances, she set the pen down and scooted the chair back. Youth was something shrouded to her vision. An elusive thing that though she had seen and experienced it from her perspective, she was caught within a flux; young in experience, young in time but she felt as though it was a sand she could never hold. Most people had years to figure out what their niche was in life or where they could do the most benefit. Some even figured out where they might do the most harm but for her? Day to day she attempted to progress with the mindset so simple but true: be better than I was yesterday. The fire was all around her now, in Addie, in life itself. She leaned back on her chair lifting the front two legs as she looked at the mantle overhead and admired the three paintings, all combining to one mural of flowers. It was her favorite work and summoned a smile from her with strings tracing to her heart. As she smiled she could hear Addie?s voice echoing from below. She meant to respond truly but was lost in the sight before her. As her hands folded and rest upon her stomach she could feel a thousand needles strike her nerves as she heard the cry of the iron gate. The world froze.