Redhawk Caldera Hippos Can't Ice-Fish

I've already told you two about my plans on Somnia getting hypothermia. Well, I'm impatient, and I also wanted to get another thread up with @Ashton soon. I also said that @Elwood could be a part of if it if Kim wants. If you don't want Elwood in it Kim, you can just not post anything, it's fine by me. Otherwise, jump right in! As for Ashton, you can't escape this if you wanted to Xandir. :)

Yesterday, I realized I found a comical goldmine with this plot thing. I already did Ashton's doctor job pretty much, and researched hypothermia and all that. I'll elaborate more on that later in thread, closer to the crisis. And Elwood, whether he be present in the thread or not, is going to get the short end of the stick with Somnia when she becomes delirious from hypothermia. That, you'll have to wait for though. Can't give all my secrets away. ;)

Where did all good ideas grab a hold of you? Maybe not all, but at least most happened when you were trying to accomplish something else, something completely unrelated to the idea. A good deal of good ideas happened when you were trying to take a shit, but trying to accomplish other things sounded more... pleasant. Plus, it also included other things, and that made a larger percentage.

So, do-do do do-do, Somnia was trying to accomplish something. That something was trying to get a squirrel to leave the safety of its tree by making threats at it and calling it very bad names. Yes, even Somnia raged at times.

So squirrel this, squirrel that, squirrels are *beeeeeeeep* bad, so on, so forth. But then, out of seemingly nowhere, fish! What if instead of barking at a squirrel in fury, Somnia tried some ice-fishing? After all, the fish couldn't climb trees to escape her. If they somehow ended up being able to, she would be pretty damn impressed at their dedication to escape her.

Wait, one problem; Somnia didn't know how to fish. It came with an easy fix though. Ashton had fish the last time she had been there, so he must know how to fish. Plus, it gave her an excuse to visit the golden hippie, can't pass that up.

The walk to the nearby infirmary was short, and in that short time Somnia also established that Elwood's scent was fresh. He must've been around the area earlier today, and maybe she would even encounter him later on.

That quickly got pushed out of Somnia's mind as she came across Ashton's den. Taking a few steps down the dirt steps, she announced her presence, not even sure if anyone was home yet. "Hey! Ashton! You here?!" The loud barks echoed through the dirt maze.

OOC: Hope you don't mind if I go ahead and pop in. :) If you want me to wait, I can delete this post!

IC: Elwood had, indeed, passed by Ashton's den earlier in the day, on his way back from a brief patrol. He had taken to visiting the borders for only a short amount of time, skirting along for a half an hour or so before finding something else to do. Each time he ventured to the outskirts, he tackled a different edge of the territory. Chopping the patrols up like this made the tiresome task a little more bearable, and he hoped he would be on his way to earning his warden trade soon.

He had retired to his own burrow, where he had napped away the early afternoon. But presently, he was awake and prowling down the mountainside again, without any real destination in mind. When he heard Somnia call out for Ashton, his interest was piqued, and he changed course and headed toward the medic's home. He soon found his grey-furred friend, beckoning Ashton from within the corridors of his expansive infirmary. "Whatcha up to?" he asked amenably as he sidled up to Somnia, bumping his shoulder against hers.

◆Theres no way I could ever wanna escape this, Sydney.xD ♡◆



Again, the golden teen was shaken from his slumber. Different dream though.
Hell, never woulda though wolves could fly, but apparently having a Stump Limb Cap with Hickory bark gave the unconscious mind the...
Wait, ...he was woken up by a voice, not the fact that the once flying dude crash landed on a antelope.

Shuffling to his lean legs, Ash shook his fur, the hardcore jolt thrusting him back into wakefulness, and a fresh look. He scanned the darkness with luminous emeralds, only to find out that the voice came from upstairs.
Trot, trot, pat pit, trot,
"Yea, on my way, miss Som Som. "

And soon, he had left the underworld of a seclusive den, to the bright outter world. And staring into the faces of two of his closest Hawks.

"Sup there, Electro. How's that healings comming along?

And to the gorgeous girl who called him, he said,

"Hey there, my little cheerleader. Got any new routines for me today?"

While waiting for Ashton, Elwood had magically appeared by her side. "Hey," She greeted, leaning into the shoulder bump for half a second to return the friendly gesture. As for what she was doing, "Asking Ashton for a favor.... If he's here."

Just as Somnia said that, she heard a response to her first call, the golden doctor following after. Then, said golden wolf started with the greetings. She gave Elwood, then Ashton an incredulous look when Ashton called Elwood Electro. Maybe this nickname had an origin between the two, instead of just something Ashton said out of the blue?

Next came Somnia's little nickname from Ash, "-my little cheerleader." Elwood might have been just as confused with her nickname as she had with his. "Had to have been there." That was her lazy explanation to him, as a full-out explanation would've been to long. She could tell him some other time if he really wanted to know.

Answering Ashton's question now, she said, "I've had a few ideas, but haven't been able to test them out. Too busy trying to not break my face, you know?" Her tail wagged slightly as she grinned at her response.

"What about you? You in the middle of fighting off the clown caravans roaming through your infirmary in search of me, or do you got the time to teach me how to fish?" Another reference to their last conversation that Elwood wouldn't understand. She gave the grayscale wolf beside her an apologetic smile.

Elwood looked at Somnia with curiosity, wondering what sort of favor she was going to ask of Ashton. He wouldn't have long to wait, though, because within seconds the blonde medic was emerging from his den, greeting the two grey wolves that stood on his doorstep. There was a grin from Elwood as his friend called him "Electro," a nickname that he had been given the first time they met -- after tangling with a cougar, in fact. The Gamma glanced back at his hindquarters, where the wound from that very scuffle had healed up quite nicely and was a dry scab, nearly covered by silver fur. "Healing up just fine," he responded, flashing a thankful glance at the doctor.

He watched the playful interaction between Somnia and Ashton, raising his brows slightly. Were they flirting? Even if they weren't, Elwood was glad to see two of his close friends getting along so well; he hadn't realized until this moment that they were acquainted with each other, although that wasn't surprising considering the size of the pack. They had obviously spent some time together, judging by their comfort level, and he found himself hoping for a moment that he wouldn't be seen as a third wheel.

His interest was piqued at the mention of fishing; that was one of his favorite pastimes, having grown up on the shores of a large lake. "Oh, fishing!" Elwood exclaimed excitedly, then stopped himself. He hadn't even earned himself an invite yet, and he looked sheepishly between his two companions. "Do you mind if I tag along?" he asked with a wiggle of his tail.

Ashton was greeted by both of his most loved Hawks, their faces and words the obvious choice of their displayed feelings for him. It felt real good to be surrounded by not only satisfied patients, but satisfied friends, as well.

First, his miss Pom Pom. Her reference to the attempt not to destroy the front of her head threw a bark of laughter from the hippie.
Then a response.

"I can't have ya breakin ya face, toots. I don't have that much web. Nor do I got enough White Root, and for such a surgery, you just might need a Blue Cap."

The babe mentioned the clown caravan, and from the words, her cute little cheer jig came to mind, along with the joke of him fighting off thieves. Ah, the memories. He sent her a familiar charming smile, and jested,

"I almost died tryin to take on 16 of em at a time. It was hell."

Ash then turned to El, his fellow bromigo, and responded to his own words and questions.

"That's a rad thing ta hear, dude. It's quite rare that I get unhealed patients, and it makes a narley story to know I got a 'happily ever after' witcha."

Another comfortable moment passed until the mention of fishing, in which El showes his enthusiasm for the sport. Fishing brought back the memory of Lasher, and that alone reminded Ash to talk to Per about the matter.
Later.
For now, he was with his Hawks, and they sure as hell weren't gonna be grieved by sucha sad topic.

"Of course ya can, dude! When it comes down to fishin, it might make it a bit easier for you to spark em for us. Makes it a bit easier for is."

I'm thinking Somnia can fall in the lake in my next post?

The first thing Somnia's curious mind wandered to was what a Blue Cap was. She gave Ashton a questioning glance before pushing it out of her head. She couldn't learn every single thing in the world, and plus, she wouldn't need the knowledge as long as Ashton was around to know it.

Somnia laughed at Ashton's little clown fighting boast, if that was a suitable name for it. After all, what else could be a better name for the little joke? Ashton also took care of telling Elwood he could come before she could get to it. "The more the merrier!" She chipped in with a little tail wag.

Before anyone could move anywhere, an idea struck her. A slight smirk and an excited tail wag tried to give away her mischievous intentions before Somnia spoke them. "Race you to the top!" Without looking back, Somnia started dashing through the snow. [size=x-small]In a one-horse open sleigh,[/size]

Sounds good! Poor Somnia. :)

Elwood bobbed his head as both Ashton and Somnia confirmed that he was welcome to join them. He was about to thank them, when Somnia suddenly took off running, exclaiming that she wanted to race to the top of the caldera. Never one to turn down a challenge, Elwood released a challenging bark and rocketed after her, his paws churning up the snow as he ran.

He raced up the side of the mountain, weaving between the trees with reckless abandon. Normally, he would have taken more precaution, especially with the slippery snow, but he wanted to catch up to his friend. Her grey tail remained ahead of him nearly the whole way; she was smaller and lighter than he was, which gave her an advantage when racing.

When they crested the top of the caldera, Elwood slowed his pace as the ground leveled out, coming to a halt near the edge of the lake. The ground sloped down at a sharp angle towards the water, so he carefully made his way down until his toes were at its edge. There was a thin layer of ice, so he set to work puncturing it with his paws.

RELEASE THE HOUNDS! 
Ash could picture some sort of theme in his head, a musical of sorts, that hinted an intense race. 
Well, considering he was built for speed, the sun pelted doctor knew he could beat them both, yet to be one who rather put his friends happiness and pride before his own, he kept his own burst of lightning at s minimum. 

Somnia flew, and not too far behind, zoomed get stone pelted twin. Ashton kept up with the duo, making sure to only extend his long limbs halfway. Soon, his compadres made it up the hill. El had managed to brake himself, but Somnia kept her paw on the gas. 
Did she not see that giant ass Lake? 

"Somnia, slow down! " 

The only words the handsome doc could shout to the beauty, before....

Hypothermia stuff for you guys. Hypothermia is when the body temperature lowers too much. Long term exposure to cold can cause it with the first symptoms of shivering, numbness, and stumbling. But, Somnia is falling into freezing water, so, it will progress MUCH faster than just walking outside in the cold. Worse symptoms of hypothermia that she could display would be acting delirious, to stop shivering, weak pulse/breathing, losing consciousness, and permanent memory loss in old people. That last one, Somnia's going to have a little bit of a time-lapse in her mind which is going to go along with her deliriousness, and only last as long as that. Oh, and her limbs (and tail?) will be colder than her chest/torso area because the blood stops circulating to those areas and only goes from the heart, lungs, and brain instead of pushing the other cold blood around and making it worse.

To cure hypothermia, you just need to get the body temperature back to normal. There is no medicine to do that, except, they can pump heated fluids into you at hospitals and such. But, wolves don't know how to do that. So, Elwood and Ashton would have to heat her up with body heat, dry her off, and probably move her someplace sheltered. But keep in mind the cold weather could lower Somnia's temperature enough to kill her if she isn't warmed at least a little bit first.

Super long OOC, but that should be the important stuff! :D

Craaaack. She had tried to slow down, she really had. But Somnia hadn't been able to stop before it was too late. A second seemed to go by in slow motion as the small cracking sound continued. She should really get off the lake befo- CRACK! The water rose up instantly to meet her. Somnia struggled, her limbs flailing about in a poor attempt to not drown. The freezing water had already invaded her mouth and drenched her from when she fell in, but her head was still above the water.

Her limbs got heavier with every movement, making staying up afloat a harder task. And, any of the ice she had somehow struck in her useless flailing attempts just broke off. Her focus was getting out of the water; Somnia couldn't focus on trying to get on the land instead in her panicked state. The heaviness enveloped her, even intruding her mind. Heavy.... Heavy..... Now complete nothingness. She had blacked out from the cold water in only a seemingly long moment.

Eek! Thanks for all the info! Xandir, if you need to powerplay Elwood at all in your next post as they start to pull Somnia out, go right ahead!

While Elwood cracked the ice in a careful and intentional manner, Somnia simultaneously did the same -- accidentally and dangerously. The cold water had just touched Elwood's toes when he heard the sound of the ice splitting, and looked up in time to see his friend plunging through its frozen surface. She had evidently raced past him and out onto the semi-solid surface, and it hadn't been able to hold his weight.

To Elwood's horror, he watched as Somnia's head disappeared beneath the ice, swallowed up by the frigid water underneath. He gasped, hesitating only for a moment before springing into action. "Ashton!" he yelped, then furiously beat his paws against the ice, trying to enlarge the fissure so that he and the medic could reach Somnia. She hadn't come up for air in a few seconds, and he feared that the temperature of the water would be fatal to her. It was imperative that they act fast.

Once a large portion of the ice was shattered, Elwood waded in until the water lapped at his elbows, then looked to Ashton for help. "Should we both go in, or do you want to make a chain?" he asked, his words coming out as a jumble and his heart hammering against his chest. He wasn't sure what their best course of action was, but he didn't want to make a mistake; one wrong move could cost Somnia her life.

◆Thank you, Kim your the fantasticest.★◆



Awe shit, not the bae. Not the damn bae. This was so not cool.
Mother Nature was a cold bitch at times.
Buh Dum, Tsss.
This is not the time for jokes, ya damn dude.
You're right. Alright, time for a bit of a swim.

The only thing that came from his mouth was,
"Dammit, Mother Nature. What the hell, girl? "

Then turning to Elwood, Ashton heard words come from his maw that he hadn't even had the chance to think about. How his brain took control and pushed his usual cheery self aside, he'll probably never know, but it happened.
That's Narley, dude.

"El, you're the strength between us. I'm gonna need you to stay as close as you can to us, but far back enough to where you'll still have good grip on the soil to host up two wolves. I'm gonna go grab her, and as quick as I can, I'm gonna drag her to the shore. I'm gonna hold on as long as I can..."

The final sentence could have been taken 2 different ways, and Ash knew it, but he didn't take a single thought to it, as he brushed passed his amazing friend, and Swan dived into the hole his cheerleader was in.

The water hit him like an avalanche of the coldest Antarctica known to Wolf. He almost felt his heart stop. As contrary to what should happen, he opened his foresty orbs, ; and swam straight for the blurry mass of fur that hung emotionless in the freezing waters.

Skipping Somnia with permission!

A grim situation such as this one was enough to transform even the most laid-back wolf into something much more focused. That was exactly what happened with Ashton: before Elwood's eyes, the blonde hippie came to life, devising a plan and delivering instructions with speed and precision. Elwood hardly had time to digest what his directions were before Ashton vaulted into the freezing water, making a beeline towards Somnia.

"Okay, okay," he murmured, taking a step back and digging his paws into the frozen soil. He prepared himself to act as an anchor once Ashton pulled Somnia closer to the water's edge. Until then, he watched the rescue mission in action with bated breath and gritted teeth.

Ashton reared back his lips, and gently snagged the scruff by the mouthful.
The moment he made contact with her, his vision began to flicker. To dim.
Oh hell no, you don't. You better get that golden ass up there, and save your girl, bro.
I'm tryin, alright? I'm fucking..I'm trying!
You better be. She's all you got a chance with, you scump a lump. Save her.

Ashton kept his thoughts flowing, his eyes finding the gaping hole in the floating ice a 6 feet above him. With the effort he could muster, he summoned the lightning. All the bolts. And as if Mother Nature was finally throwin' him a bone, his limbs kicked into high gear, the webs between his toes finding purchase with the ice water, his sun draped hide slicking his body, and the teen damn near became a merman.

He heaved, ho'd, and hoisted, regaining his grip every now and then on her soggy scruff. Soon, the doc and his patient were right underneath the hole.

It was then, that he realized he was losing momentum. Why wasn't he movin? Ta fuhq?
His front limbs...he couldn't feel em anymore. Shit. This was bad.

The back legs were losing their motivation, as well, and he noticed as the hole started to back away from him.
Oh no da snowball's chance in hell, you're not, life!
Ashton turned into a merman that very instant, doing the worm in the fridgid liquid, and soon, they leapt out from the water as if they were a pair of dancin dolphins.

"MRRFN, MRFF MMMNN, MRRNN!" were the sounds he threw from his full mouth the instant they surfaced.
Ashton only hoped his Electro was there, quick enough to act with his own part on this deadly job before gravity acted on them, and dropped the pair back into Mother Natures cold puddle of 'The End' for the both of them.

Elwood all but stopped breathing during the few seconds that Ashton was underwater with Somnia. If the water was cold enough to take Somnia's consciousness, he worried that it would have the same effect on Ashton. Trying to convince himself that it would be all be alright, he thought that, since Ashton was prepared for the freezing temperatures, his body might be able to withstand it better. Besides, the medic would be kicking and thrusting with his legs the whole time, which hopefully would be enough to keep the blood circulating through his body.

When Ashton finally reappeared with a mighty splash and the sound of gasping, Elwood nearly leaped into the water alongside him. The Gamma forced himself to remain where he was, however, as his friend paddled towards him. Ashton had Somnia's scruff grasped firmly in his teeth, but it looked as though the grey she-wolf was nothing but dead weight; she hadn't come to and was hanging limply, her body swaying with the motion of Ashton's swimming.

Taking a deep breath, Elwood began to ease himself further into the water, until he could feel its cold burn against his chest. He dug his paws into the soft earth at the bottom of the lake as shards of ice pressed against him, ebbing and flowing with the tide created by Ashton's movement. "A little closer..." he grunted, stretching his neck out as far as he could. He could tell that Ashton's strength was waning, so he grabbed his friend as soon as he could, muscles straining as he threw himself backwards and hauled all three of them up onto the shore.

Just as trusted, his gray friend had his back,..quite literally, this time. As his sputtering vision darkened another shade, the panic wanted to set in his heart. Where was she? Somnia? He had grabbed her, right? Right?!
He uncuffed his mouth from some wet and soggy thing..fur..fur? Oh! Somnia! Oh Thanks to geebus!

It all came back to him in a flash, a knock straight into his chest, and even though he couldnt feel himself standing, his brain had registered that he had somehow gotten to his fours. Good. While El was working with Som Som, Ash did a jig that would've been funny, if it hadn'tve been a life or death situation. He shook himself, removing as much of the water as possible, and continued to shake himself, causing the friction of skin cells to arise underneath his pelt, a tactic that was closely related to shivering. After he ridded all of the water, he got right back to running in place. Shuffling from one side of the field to the other, the yellow teen shouted to his fellow.

"El! g-g-get her! Go-tt-tt-a ge-t-t her t-to infi-r-r-r,...infir-m-mary!"

Oh, the searing heat of the blood coming back. Damn, it was hell. Hell searing in his prized limbs, and with him being in critical shape as well, he desperately hoped he hadn't caused any muscle damage to his body.
After he had gotten himself to a higher sense of reality, mentally and physically, he dashed back to Som's side.

"First, water. We have to get her to breath. Any longer, and her risk for brain damage increases,"
as he talked, Ash put his forelegs on the soggy and freezing grey babe's ribcage, and thrusted, over and over again.
"and the moment she comes back bro, we get her on her feet, and get her moving. Pronto. ASAP. No holding back. "

It hurt him deep, the thought of possibly losing her, but the only thing that kept him going was the sole facts that he had indeed felt a pulse in her throat while he held her, and that losing her would crush the very sweet an jovial guy that he was.
He could'nt lose her.
He hummed, a way to steel his nerves,a tune that he loved, a song, a song he would save just for her.

"Somnia,..come back. please. Babe...Come back to us. Come back to me. "

He wasn't losing it. He wasn't.
He's not gonna lose her.

Another thrust. A pause. Another thrust.
And the rhythm continued, on and on.

@Somnia, ready to hop back in after this?

Elwood's muscles trembled with exertion as he pulled Ashton and Somnia up and onto the slope, out of the water. He released Ashton, hoping that he had been successful, and then reeled backward, panting as he assessed the situation. Both wolves had been returned to shore, both freezing and sopping wet. Luckily, Ashton leapt to his feet immediately and began to shake off, attempting to gain the feeling back in his limbs. As he did so, he shouted for Elwood to take care of Somnia.

He wasn't sure exactly what to do, but he knew that her internal body temperature had to be much lower than normal. Elwood lowered himself to the ground next to her, wrapping his larger body around hers, and began fervently licking at her fur. If he could manage to dry her even somewhat, it could help warm her up and bring her back to consciousness. "Come on, Somnia," he murmured, pausing in his ministrations to nudge her roughly with his snout.

Once Ashton was ready to assume the role of doctor, Elwood leaned back, giving his friend room to operate on Somnia. He stayed close, hoping that what little body heat he had retained would seep into her. With worried eyes, Elwood watched as Ashton began to pump Somnia's chest with his paws, trying desperately to wake her up and get the blood flowing in her veins.

I've actually knocked myself out once before on accident, and oddly, I remember being in sort of a daze before I opened my eyes. Like, seeing pitch black and a yellow shape (no idea where that came from?) and recognizing that I needed to get up, which was probably my mom speaking to me instead of my thought process. Gonna base Somnia's reaction stuff off of that... Except for the yellow shape. And the added deliriousness. :P

Edit: Kim can post faster than me. Was already in the process of taking forever to post when you posted. I shouldn't need to change anything though. Post order has changed though. :)

It was pitch black. Not black as in dark nighttime shadows, but as in nothing. Absolutely nothing.... Except for the weird feeling of her stomach seemingly making some sort of movement, as well as the faint voice telling her to come back to the world of reality. She had heard it, but it couldn't be hers... Could it? Even though it was only seconds ago she couldn't tell whether it was the voice in her head or not. Opening her eyes couldn't hurt either way.

A gray eyelid lifted, the black void gone. In it's place was her territory. Where? She wasn't quite sure yet, but she knew that it was hers. A golden shape that she recognized as Ashton was touching her. Was he also hers? It felt like he should've been, but she wasn't entirely sure. Before she could come to any other conclusions, her stomach clenched as she emptied its contents, which was quite watery.

Her stomach done emptying itself, it stopped trying to turn inside out. Now, how had she got here? A fleeting feeling came back to her. The cold, the panic, the wetness.... She had fallen through the lake. But how? Then, she recognized another shape, a grey one this time. He.... He was linked to her falling into the lake.... Her poor memory struggled to retrieve how he was involved. Finally how popped into her head, as if she had known it forever. He, Elwood her mind named him, had pushed her into the lake in an attempt to overthrow her... Yeah... He had been her servant and when she gave him the task of breaking the ice, he admitted to her accusations of him pushing her in.... Yup, that was it. Ashton must've showed up to save her... But, why did the traitor still linger around? Shouldn't he run for his life after trying to murder the queen?

What... What if he tried to murder both of them?! Her fragile mind went into a panic. She instinctively tried to recoil away from him, towards Ashton, but found she couldn't move. She couldn't even feel anything. Small shudders and a miniscule guttural sound was the most she could manage.

Before long, all he saw was a chocolatey glassy eyeball, before something told him to leap back.
She's gonna blow!
And blow, she did. The pretty little Som Som spewed watery gunk all over Teekon Woods.
He's never been so glad to see someone hurl so much, in his life. Before he could rejoice, before he could calm down, before he could even hug the beautiful sloppy wet chick, he saw a glint in her warm brown orbs. Fear? And the way she stared at El..Fear...was she scared of Elwood?

Before confusion overwhelmed him, his mind snapped him back into 'get her ass up and moving.'
So he did.

"C'mon, beautiful, let's get ya goin, up, up, up, now."

With those words, Ashton stood on her side, ready for her to lean on him. A brisk pace was needed for her, for he could feel the very cold that seeped her to her bones, right on the edge of his skin.

"El, let's get her to the infirmary. The moment we get her warm, I'm gonna have to check her vitals. But first things first, getting her there. "

Hahaha, I love Somnia's reaction to Elwood!

Finally, after what seemed like hours but in reality was only a matter of minutes, Somnia stirred. She opened her eyes and Elwood froze, his tongue poking from between his lips. Suddenly, Somnia retched, spewing water and bile onto the snow. Elwood recoiled slightly, though he did not leave her side. It was a good sign that her body was removing the excess water from her stomach; he imagined that she had ingested quite a bit while she was beneath the ice.

Her next reaction, as she got her bearings, was to push fearfully away from Elwood. Confused by her action -- though he wouldn't have been, had he been able to read her mind -- he remained still, not forcing himself on her. He chalked it up to the fact that she was bewildered; after all, she had been unconscious.

Elwood looked to Ashton as the medic insisted that they help Somnia get to her infirmary. Obediently, he stood, staying close to his friend so that she could lean on him if she was unsteady. "Come on, Somnia, you've got this," he murmured encouragingly.

Thanks!

The traitor didn't seem to get any closer, which was a good thing even though he was still way too close. Ashton... He then called her beautiful and said something about moving her. Moving her away to protect her from the traitor? But, he then asked the traitor for help! But.... He had called her beautiful, so that meant he was on her side.... Yeah, you didn't compliment the enemy.

Somnia tried to move her limbs, all the while keeping a fearful eye on Elwood. It took too much concentration to try and move with the numbness to focus on attempting to warn him off with a growl, so he was lucky. She found that with a bit of effort, she could move where her legs joined her torso. Besides that, she couldn't even feel the rest of her legs. It would still be worth attempting to walk, if she could get away from Elwood. It was like trying to get up with logs attached to her instead of limbs, but she somehow managed to get up.

Now she could get away from Elwood with Ashton as her escort! Except, as Somnia lifted up a leg to step towards Ashton, she toppled towards Elwood. She landed against his furry side, which sent panic coursing through her. With a whine, she leaned the other way, tumbling over her still-numb limbs to land back on the ground where she started.

Getting up was easier this time around, as a little bit of feeling was starting to come back. Not a lot, but enough to feel a creeping cold intruding her chest. It still didn't help her walk much better.

Wait.... Wait, wait, wait, wait. She was the queen after all. Why did she have to be vulnerable, tripping and stumbling along the side of the wolf who had attempted to murder her? She didn't. But how would she get to where Ashton wanted her to go if she didn't? There was a way....

Now standing close to Ashton on shaking limbs since escaping Elwood's side, Somnia slowly turned towards him, shuffling a little closer. She then did the brash, dangerous, and unexpected. She lifted her front legs up, as high off the ground as she could. From this position, Somnia fell on top of Ashton. She had (somewhat) successfully draped herself across his back. Sure, it knocked the air out of her for a moment, but it wasn't too uncomfortable with the numbing cold.

"Carry me...." It was supposed to come out as a fierce command, but ended up as a pitiful whine.

The Doctor was watching the babe stumble and tumble worth the praise of a mama deer, and soon she had stood. It was also evident that the doll had a drive to get away from El, which only caused him to worry more. Did Som Som bump her head? Or was this an issue of brain damage?
Hell, was it both?
And was it fixable?

Only time would tell. They would have to race her quick to the safety of the infirmary, lest he hafta raid his stash again for more medicine, but being out in this cold, it could progress into ammonia, and he,

Oomph.
Did a sack of potatoes drop on his back? What in sam's hell of America...

Oh, it was his little cheer girl.
A freezing and delusional babe who thought he was a damn trolley horse.
Nope, nope, no no, missy.

Slowly, he downed himself, and slip her soaking butt off of his back.
He was doing this to get her to walk. She had to. If she didn't get the blood flowing back into her limbs, they would die.

"Babe, ya gotta walk it. When you wake your legs back up, I'll carry ya all you want. But I'd I don't get you to walk, your legs are gonna die, then you'll need to get them chopied off. Walk with me, sweets."

Ash sincerely wanted her to understand her life was going to be put in jeopardy if she didn't cooperate, but with El here, the doc had a better chance of Somnia listening.
But how could he get him to get Somnia up and walking?
How?

It took her some effort, but Somnia finally managed to stand. Elwood stayed protectively close, ready to catch her if she lost her balance -- despite her apparent aversion to him. He tried not to worry too much about it (and he certainly didn't take offense), chalking it all up to the minutes spent submerged in the freezing water.

He was thankful that he was standing right next to her because, predictably, she wobbled and bumped into him after only a few seconds on her feet. However, she overcompensated for the motion and managed to knock herself back over, falling in the other direction and landing in a heap between Ashton and Elwood. Had the circumstances not been so dire, Elwood might have laughed. Instead, he looked down at her with concern as she reorganized herself and made another attempt to stand.

Once she was on her feet again, she insisted weakly that Ashton carry her. Elwood initially thought it was a good idea, but Ashton quickly vetoed it, informing both of his grey-furred companions that Somnia needed to walk in order to get the blood flowing through her legs. So he nodded his agreement, reaching out to give Somnia a gentle and encouraging nudge with his snout. "You can do it. We'll make sure you're okay," he said, repositioning himself next to her -- whether she liked it or not.

Her mind was too busy processing things to realize much of anything else, besides that Ashton refused to carry her, and Elwood, the murderer, touched her for a moment. Were they stupid?! She was the queen, Elwood was the traitor, and Ashton was one of her subjects! Elwood should've gone out of her kingdom by now, but instead he was close enough to touch her! Ashton, he wouldn't listen to her commands!

Fury and panic were apparent in her eyes as she got up again. Each time getting up got a little easier, as well as a little colder. Somnia didn't know that the coldness was a good thing, for she didn't even know that she had been cold before now because of the numbness. But, her limbs were getting a little easier to control too, so that made up for it.

She had to get away from Elwood before he tried to kill her again. Ashton was currently questionable, but she was furious at him for not carrying her. The urge to get away from both was overpowering. So, Somnia made an attempt to get away from them. The only way she could go was forward, as it would take too much time to turn around to go the other way, so she was boxed in with them on each side of her.

Her pace was slow, for she stumbled and fell more than she actually got anywhere, but it was still getting easier. Where she was going to go she didn't care, as long as it was away from them. However, they could easily keep pace with her. She tried to snarl a warning at them, but it turned out to be incoherent except for a few words. "Get.... Traitors..... Queen...."

If this situation wasn't so life and death-ified, Ash would laughed his ass off. He watched as the greyscale was trying to escapse them , but the babe just couldn't go faster than a pups first steps. Eventually, they made it to his den, several millions of years later, and the Doctor left her side momentarilly to stand near his home's intrance. barking out an attention getter to Somnia, he said,

"Over here, sweets. This is where i'm gonna get you all nice and warm. Plus, added bonus, i added a bit more to the cache of food, so you can have ya a nice meal, and i can go whip you up a good drink that'll make you feel real good. Who knows, i might even get some soup or somethin' if i can get to that Hot Spring before you take a totally well deserved nap."

He was tired, and cold, himself. He was sure El could have had a similar feeling, after all, he too, submerged himself in the lakes freezingness.
All Ash wanted to do was get Som a heap of furs, drap em over her, make she was warm and fed, and curl up next to her.
Whoa there, spoon'n Romeo, the Hippie.
Well, hell, it's always an option, aint it? Doin it for body heat reasons...
Bull. Shit.
Fine, fine, not yet.

Ashton had to close his brains yap, before it got him in trouble with himself.
Patiently, he waited for Electro to make his move.
Then, it brought to mind his current predicament. Was he too, going to develope a sickness?

"Hey El, you think you might come down with sneezes, coughs, and looniness too?"