Well, that was a nice trip...

[Blue]

A limp form floated, barely clinging to a log, along the quick-flowing river. Its gray body blended well into the swirling colour of the waters. Dark black eyes blinked, then fully opened to find themselves faced with quite a problem. Colton was nearly at the river's mouth, and after that he could see nothing but raging ocean.

He started paddling as well as he could for the near bank. His muscles groaned in stiffness, still affected by the drug the vermin had inflicted on him. His bushy tail was wet and heavy, slowing him from his destination. By chance, he spotted a rock almost fully submerged in the water ahead of him. Grabbing it as he passed by, he wrapped his tail around it, then shakily stood on the log, which bobbed up and down, nearly tipping him. Steeling his nerves, he crouched down. "Now or never," he thought, and leaped as far as he could, landing half on the bank, half in the water.

Tiredly, he dragged his sorry self the rest of the way up to firm ground. He lay there, panting raggedly, and it was sometime before he regained his breath. Checking to make sure he still had his two swords and dagger, he rubbed his eyes. In the distance, he could see a large building, shining with light. He prayed it was inhabited by friendly beasts. With a groan, he heaved himself up on unsteady paws, and began the seemingly long trek towards salvation.

************

"Almost there," the squirrel told himself. "Almost there..." He had arrived at the door, but just as he was about to raise a paw and knock, his body gave out. He slumped heavily against the gate, a dull thud resounding from the impact. As the dark comfort of sleep took him over, he lay there on the ground, his thoughts blanked out, ignoring the fact that he would freeze from the cold of winter and the wetness in his clothes and fur.

[Linx Exotic]

The only reason Linx was there on the walltop was to see if anyone was actually approaching. Not guard duty, mind you, just watching the traffic for the fun of it. He could plainly see all sorts of trade ships come and go, the odd caravan, the usual... The periodic half-frozen exhausted beast. Oh, great, another one of these... I'm gonna have to make a term for beasts who arrive half-alive. "Open the gates!"

The gatehouse sentry had complied in time for Linx to bolt through the barely ajar double doors and rush to the aid of this sopping wet, unconscious, sopping wet, miserable-looking and sopping wet squirrel. If he were someone else, a vermin beast, say, he might have just idly checked the limp form to see if it had come from the ocean or river by the salinity of the water it had been immersed in for apparently quite some time. "OK, uh, close 'em," he told the bewildered sentry while carrying the squirrel in, feeling the cold, wet heaviness of the beast's body pressing firmly down on his arms as he moved.

By the time he had entered the actual fort and its sickbay, this new arrival or whatever had warmed up a bit and was actually showing signs of stirring. Maybe Linx could get some answers while the medics worked their magic, or maybe not. It didn't matter. The top priority at that time was to keep this one alive.

OOC: Topic moved to accommodate the change of setting.

[Blue]

Colton shuddered, coming into slight consciousness. Somebeast was carrying him. "Who..." he began, but he was cut off by the feeling of a warm, dry blanket enveloping him. He peered around himself, still feeling confused, to see a bunch of others either bustling around with herbs, blankets and the like, or lying in beds like the one he himself was seated on. "An infirmary," he thought faintly. "Lucky me..."

He then noticed a mouse standing a little to the left of him, the front of his tunic wet and fairly dripping. It occured to him that this was the beast who'd brought him in. "Thank you," he murmered, pulling the blanket around him a little tighter and staring down at the floor uncomfortably. He didn't much like being the center of someone's scrutiny, as he was now to this mouse. He realized that they seemed to be about the same age.

Another creature was coming forward, presumably a medic to take care of his hurts. Still feeling a bit groggy, he rubbed a paw across his eyes to bring himself more awake. The sogginess of his paw did the trick, and he sat a little straighter on the bed, his black eyes now clear and more focused.

[Linx Exotic]

OOC: Linx doesn't wear a tunic. He wears a jacket.

BIC: Linx watched the medic... Medics, there were quite a few beasts working the sickbay right then, tending to Colton with some concern. This beast was out there in the cold for who knows how long. Hopefully, frostbite wouldn't be an issue, but if it was, he didn't want to think about what might happen with this squirrel. "Good, you're awake. I'm not going to interrogate you or anything, but who are you? And, more importantly, how are you doing?"

While waiting for an answer, several thoughts crossed Linx's mind at once. One was that this squirrel might not actually know much about himself due to amnesia or simply trauma, or maybe he just had no identity. Another was that it probably wouldn't be good to bombard him with questions for the time being, since he had just been out in the elements only minutes before. And the last was that this squirrel was a remarkably handsome beast. If Linx weren't already taken, this one would be a viable option.

[Blue]

OOC: Sorry, my mistake.

BIC: The squirrel moved to a more comfortable position on the infirmary bed. As the medics took his temperature, he tried to answer the mouse's questions as best as he could through the thermometer.

"My name's Colton Cedarbow," he mumbled around the object. "Thanks for your concern, but I'm fine now. Actually, I-" he was interrupted by a firm paw pushing him back onto a pillow, and the face of a medic staring down at him.

"Enough of all this chit-chat," she told him sternly. "You have a nasty case of the flu, and plenty of wounds and bruises besides. Most certainly not fine. Lots of bedrest and a nice bowl of vegetable broth should do you good, along with a small dose of herbs to help you sleep. Mr. Linx," she added, turning to the mouse, "would you care to fetch some soup for our guest?"

[Linx Exotic]

"When will people start calling me Commander around here? It's been weeks..." Slightly disgruntled by this insubordinate lack of acknowledging his rank, Linx grudgingly walked off and returned in a few seconds with a bowl of something hot, runny and tasteless. And a spoon, he really hated it when people forgot spoons. "Good to meet you, Colton. Uh, eat this stuff..." What a great sentence for a Commander to utter.

"As a former patient here, I can confirm that it isn't poisonous. In fact, it's pretty nutritious. But there seems to be an inverse relationship between how enjoyable something is and how good it is for you." He was glad to get the steaming broth off his paws. The smell of it reminded him of being wounded and decommissioned time and time again.

[Blue]

Colton took the bowl in both paws, disturbed by the odd smell wafting from it. "Er, thanks, I guess," he said, picking up the spoon and reluctantly sipping the liquid. He tried hard not to gag from the tasteless soup, at least not in front of the stern medic, and managed to swallow a mouthful before putting the bowl down.

Ignoring the glare shot at him from the healer, he turned back to Linx. "Where is this place?" he asked. "I didn't know there was any village this near the River Moss, let alone a huge place like this."

[Azrah]

OOC: good fun, an injury!

[Linx Exotic]

"Near the mouth, actually. Of the River Moss, I mean. Big trade center, surprised you've never heard of it. Started as some little fort then turned into this like you wouldn't believe." Despite all physical adversity, this was one attractive squirrel. Shut up. Keep your thoughts in focus. Just because you haven't been able to be with anyone in over a month doesn't mean you can throw your impulses at every guy you see. Linx realized Archon was elsewhere in the room but although the mouse was his mate it wasn't a good time to run off and visit.

"I don't think I've told you my name, sorry about that. You can call me Linx. Around here, beasts are supposed," he gave the medic a pointed glare, "To call me Commander Linx. But you can call me Linx, you're not a fort member."

OOC: Don't post OOC here unless you actually have something productive to say or you're also posting IC.

[Azrah]

**Azrah walks straight in, she had herd there was someone injured, ubt didn't know what.**

OOC: I was board, and was reading what was above, lame post.

[Blue]

Colton nodded. "Commander Linx, eh? I owe you one, then." He held out a paw to shake, noticing an otter of odd colouring walk in at the same time. "Strange," he thought. "A white otter?"

OOC: Sorry, couldn't think of much else to say.