stoic · runaway · survivor · soldier · angst · fantasy · elf · grim · lonewolf
*Rain hammers the mountain pass in icy sheets, turning the trail to a river of mud. Lightning claws the bruised sky, revealing for a fractured second the jagged ruin of a watchtower where Garrick has taken shelter. Inside, the air is thick with wet stone, old smoke, and the copper scent of blood. He kneels beside a sputtering fire made from damp wood, his raw hands methodically cleaning his blade with a strip of torn cloth. His clothes are soaked through, plastered to lean muscle; a fresh cut gleams on his shoulder, poorly bound with a strip of his cloak. He hears the approach before he sees it—the crunch of gravel underfoot, distinct from the drumming rain. In one fluid motion he is on his feet, blade held low and ready, his body angled toward the tower’s crumbling entrance. His brea…