[PRP] Chasing down the storm [Shelter & Lightning caller]

[Shaddaling]

Shelter shivered as the temperature dropped, eyeballing the forming cloud shelf. He switched his tail, picking his way closer and closer to the upcoming storm. The sky was darkening and it was going to break soon, he thought, as he hyped himself up to get in the middle of the storm. Ooh this was going to be so stupid. He knew others who would love to do this sort of thing. They were crazy.

Still. Storms happened, and while he was mostly interested in picking up the clues to find shelter before the storm broke, he liked remaining dry, and having his limbs attached, thank you. This... this was still important.

He glazed up at the sky, tail twitching uncertain as he near it.

Motherfather help him.

@Mima

[Mima]

[imgright]https://matope-swamp.com/images/araucan ... uncert.png[/imgright]Lightning Caller was the kind of kin who could feel storms in his bones and lightning in his nose, and the shards that stuck through him clinked and clattered like bone-chimes in the wind.

Unfortunately it was simply getting nearer and nearer the time where he needed to find his way back to the Obelisk, or else his sickness would start to sink in once more. Normally he wouldn't have set out from his den in such a storm at all, but there was no choice. So brave the storm he would. At least he had the feeling that while this storm would be powerful, it would not be catastrophic... Well, so he thought, anyway.

He wasn't much expecting any other kin to be out and about in this weather. But he was surprised to learn that in fact there was at least one- it seemed to be... an acha? Strange. A desert-dweller didn't seem much for... wetness.

"Are you alright, over there?" He called, a bit of genuine concern in his voice. It seemed the nerves from his rattling shards were already beginning to get to him, by his tone...

@Shaddaling

[Shaddaling]

@Mima

Was someone else out here? Ooh, they did not sound good at all. Sheltered paused, shifting around till he saw the totoma. Ooh a shard kin, like Eagle. "Are you okay? I did not expect anyone else to be out... most should be bedding down by now to ride it out, I would hope." He trotted over to the other concern clear in his voice and his movements.

"Are you well? Are you sick?" The shards were singing, perhaps reacting to the powerful winds that were picking up, or the totoma had left it for too long. "Do you need some help finding some shelter?" He did know a few places to lay low in the general area though getting to them would be a bit of a walk. He had a back up plan and that was hide.

Okay, a lot of his back up plans were hide. It was fine. Fleeing was a time honor tradition of not ending up dead. Shelter liked living. He just also really wanted to help people, and that meant doing things he didn't want to learn. Like navigating a storm. Or knowing how bad the storm was going to get. Or helping out the mountain dweller.

[Mima]

At least the acha seemed friendly, despite the predicament. Lightning Caller tilted his head, thinking a moment about the offer. "I can't say I expected anyone else to be out and about either," he replied honestly. Hopefully his instincts were right, for this acha's sake as well as his own, and this would be a storm easier to weather... "But I am no more sick than usual. Well, perhaps a little more, but there is nothing that can be done for this sort of wanderlust," he answered. Nothing but arriving at his destination, at least. Lightning Caller certainly felt like life was a series of travels by now, despite at the same time feeling as though the Obelisk itself was simply an invisible lead he had found himself hooked to.

"I hope not to have too much trouble with the oncoming storm," he answered honestly, "but if worst comes to worst I may have to take cover. I certainly need to return to the Obelisk, but it would do me good to get there in one piece as well!" With a bit of a chuckle, he shook his head back to its normal position.

Ah. Something struck him again, as he recalled a swamp tradition. "I suppose it might be easier to handle with some help, if need be. Have you a name for me to call you?" He still phrased that in such a... Totoma-ish way, he thought to himself.

@Shaddaling

[Shaddaling]

@Mima

"Shelter, you can call me Shelter if you want. It is my name, well most of it. Sheltered by the leaves is a bit of a mouthful." He gave a soft nervous chuckle, giving a slight twitch as the sky rumbled overhead. Ominous. Nope, no, just a storm and a storm was a normal act of nature, even if he was out in the middle of it like a fool. He strangled off the thought before he could scream internally.

"The Obelisk can not do you much good, if you don't take care of your body on the way there." He agreed. "Does it give you a sense of purpose? Traveling to and from the Obelisk? Or does it feel much more like a chore you have to take. Not a pilgrimage but a sort of disliked vegetable?" No, that didn't make sense. He huffed, chewing it over slightly.

[Mima]

Lightning Caller took a long second to think about that. That some Totoma found meaning in returning to the Obelisk. He supposed there was something to that, but at the same time, he wondered about it. "I don't know if I'd call it like a vegetable. More like... A patch of bramble that my wool is stuck in, so I can walk around just a little before it starts tugging, but it's nothing more than pacing in circles." Maybe to some they'd see those brambles for their fruits. But to him, they were just pointy and unpleasant.

He nodded at Shelter's name. "A good name," he replied. "I am Lightning Caller." He'd gotten some side-eyed glances before for his strange name, but he'd heard that times were changing when it came to name expectations for Totoma, so... that was good. It made sense to him that a kin with Shelter in his name would be offering to, well... shelter him from the storm. Though it seemed his companion was just as much in need of shelter as him... "Normally I too would prefer to wait something like this out, but I just have a feeling this one could be a lot worse than what it will be. ...Though I predict anyone hoping to muscle through it as I am will end up soaked to the bone." Not that you didn't get that way already from just... being in the swamp.

"Certainly if you know where is safest, however, you must have some reason for staying out in this weather, do you not?" He asked in reply, just as small talk.

@Shaddaling

[Shaddaling]

@Mima

"Lightning Caller is a strong name, it is a good one." Shelter replied, chewing over the thoughts of being stuck in place, moving around in circles. Eagle Scream hadn't thought of it that way, but since Legion had found the Obelisk in the swamp she been working on incorporating it into their migrations. She couldn't claim it, not truly, but she could certainly be a pain about it.

"Testing some things," he said, carefully, musing how to explain it. "I been seeking out the best shelters in the swamp and been trying to figure out how to mark them so others can find them. I am sure the scrapings could be see during the day, but during a storm? I might need to figure out something else." He sighed, shaking himself as the first drops of rain started to break.

"So I'm going to brave the storm to see if I can even notice them." He sighed. "I have good company, at the very least." He nodded at Lightning Caller. 

[Mima]

Finding and marking shelters for kin in bad situations. That was an interesting thing to dedicate your life to- but certainly not a bad one, now that Lightning Caller considered it. "That is certainly a noble goal," he replied, nodding along, "and fitting of your name as well." Though perhaps a sturdier shelter than leaves might be preferable for the coming storm.

His tail swished a bit in thought as he considered the scrapings, and he squinted. Even now, with the dark cloud cover and before the rain, they were not the easiest to spot- or maybe it was just the fact his mind was wandering. But now that he had been told to look for them, perhaps he could find one if need be. "Have you considered adding some sort of bright marking that would cut through the gloom?" He asked, thinking. "Many kin breed and tame large, colorful birds. Perhaps you could find a way to use their feathers to mark them?" Caller was unsure how exactly to affix them to their designated shelters, but maybe that would depend on the shelter itself.

Thunder rumbled in the distance once more, and he tasted it in his gums. "And it seems I am in thoughtful company myself."

@Shaddaling

[Shaddaling]

@Mima

"I had not, that might help. Though I would have to figure out how to get them to stay in place." Shelter gave a little startled squeak, pressing against Lightning caller as the thunder sounded, eyes peering up at the dark sky. He shook himself, stepping aside, flustered.

"Sorry." He said, dancing slightly in place from nerves. "Umm. What do you think of rocks? If I stacked them?" Shelter questioned.

[Mima]

Lightning Caller nodded a bit in approval. "Rocks would be good, if you could manage ones heavy enough to withstand a storm. Could help to keep the feathers in place too, if you positioned them right before you stacked them, the weight would keep them down." He would not lie: A brainstorming session was not what he had expected when he set out for this journey, but it was certainly more interesting than what he'd initially thought of.

He stood firm in the space of Shelter leaning against him, though he did seem a bit concerned. "It is no problem. I don't mind, just- make sure to watch out for my shards. ...They are a bit sharp, and they like to stick to you," he admitted sheepishly, as if this had been a concern many times before.

@Shaddaling

[Shaddaling]

@Mima

"Ooh, are they?" Shelter paused, looking over the shards. "Can I touch one? Can you feel if someone touches them?" He questioned distracted. "I never thought that they could stick."

The thunder rumbling overhead brought him to reality making him focus. "Mmhm." He shook his head, thinking. "Your name is Lightning caller? Do you know anything about storms then?"

[Mima]

"I don't mind if you touch one as long as you're careful," Lightning Caller told Shelter. "I can kind of feel them, but... hmm. I guess the best way to explain it is that I can feel them in the way I feel my wool or my plates. So I can feel when they move, but it doesn't hurt too much if they get dinged or a tugged around a little," he explained further.

With a nod, he addressed the second question. "A bit. I can feel them a little before most other kin- my only guess is it has something to do with whatever is keeping the shards stuck to me," he answered honestly. The truth was, he wasn't totally sure why he could feel storms, just that it was a thing he could do. And it wasn't a 100% accurate power either- just... an inkling in the bristling of his fur that told him storms would strike. "It's a rather obscure talent, but it's saved me a few times before, so I don't resent having it or anything."

With that, he finished, "If anything, I think it's safer to be a little damp. Less likely your shelter will catch on fire that way," he said with an anxious shiver.

@Shaddaling