They travelled through the ashen lands for about two days. In which they would stop each night and eat food they had stowed in the wagon. Rodrigo would do body weight exercise until he got tired and Fred would sit in the dark, his eyes darting around to every lightless space.
They did not use a campfire and instead slept in the cold under the stars. Because a campfire could draw the attention of the beings that evolved to survive in this war wrecked land.
Now finally after two days of travel they arrived at an obsidian tower, rising far into the sky and piercing the clouds, on the door of the tower was a note.
'Sorry Rodrigo. I'm away from the tower at the moment. I'm being buried.' The note read
Rodrigo turned and looked at Fred. "Well that's annoying." He said.
~Why would she tell just Rodrigo specifically that she's unavailable? Does she have no other friends. If so she would be quite attached to Rodrigo wouldn't she. But then she wouldn't just up and leave without telling Rodrigo her location.~ Fred took the note off the door.
"I bet you there will be a map to her on the back." Said Fred, Rodrigo nodded.
"Yeah I could see her leaving something like that." Fred flipped the paper around. Sure enough on the back there was a drawing of a series of landmarks. Which could be used as guideposts to find her position.
"I can't read this." Said Fred as he handed the map to Rodrigo. Rodrigo examined the map, the slip of paper looking miniscule in his massive hands.
"Ah I see… She's just past that mountain. It should be a half day trip." Said Rodrigo.
Without so much as a warning he lunged towards Fred and threw him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"BRO! Why the heck are you grabbing me!" Yelled Fred.
"We don't have any food left in the wagon. So the quickest way there is for me to carry you!" Said Rodrigo as he bolted off. Leaving a massive dust cloud behind him.
"That was enough food for a month though you glutton!" Said Fred, his face red as Rodrigo carried him as if he was transporting a child.
"NOT FOR ME IT WASN'T!" Yelled Rodrigo. They continued to argue like this for hours as Rodrigo ran. Even when he was bounding from foothold to foothold in the alps. They continued to fight words such as "Nincompoop" And "Fatass muscle head" Used frequently by Fred as his stomach began to grow sore From the repetitive impact of Rodrigo's running and jumping.
After a long six hour ultra marathon in which they bore witness to nothing but snow or ash covered wastelands. They arrived at the location that Rodrigo had divined from the map.
A congregation of people wearing bright yellow robes surrounded a marble white coffin held above a 6 foot hole. Lying in this marble coffin was a woman with pale white skin, blue lips and blue eyelids. She had her hands around her stomach and she faced towards the sky filled with clear white clouds.
Suddenly a massive man walked onto the scene, he wore full plate armour and had a sword slung across his back. Thrown over his shoulder was a diminutive man with a short blond beard and scraggly black hair.
"SALUTATIONS!!!!" Bellowed the man. "IT IS I!!!!! RODRIGO!" The womans eyes snapped open the second the name Rodrigo was uttered. A manic grin growing on her face.
"AHAHAHAHAHHA! RODRIGO!" She yelled as she flew twenty feet up from her coffin and into the air. She remained in the air held there by some unseen force. "It has been so long!" She suddenly appeared in front of Rodrigo her manic grin still present. "What is the purpose of your visit?!?!?!?!" she said as she looked at Rodrigo's eyes through the slits in his armour. Rodrigo threw Fred onto the ground. Adjacent to the women.
"This man right here wants to find Betala" Said Rodrigo as he pointed down at Fred. She paused looking from Fred to Rodrigo for a few moments.
"Oh well where are my manners!" Said the woman. "Followers!" She pointed to the congregation of yellow robed people. "Brew us some tea!" She yelled.
They sat in relative silence as the followers scurried around Some snatching leaves from some wild herbs, one filling the tea pot up with water from a nearby stream, another setting up a makeshift holder for the teapot, while four others lit a fire under it. After about ten minutes of waiting the tea was made.
"My name is Sandra by the way." Said the woman extending a hand towards Fred. He awkwardly accepted the handshake Giving it a few firm shakes. "So I heard that you want to find Betala?" Said Sandra. Fred nodded.
"Yeah I'm looking to find her at the moment." Said Fred.
The followers had arrived with the tea They handed it Fred, Rodrigo and Sandra whilst bowing.
Sandra took a good long sip of her tea chugging the whole glass in one go. "Ahhhhh." She let out a big breath having drank the whole thing. "Well I can't help you." She responded. Fred grit his teeth in response, his brows furrowing. ~What am I going to do? Well she did work for the insect folk, maybe she met someone else on the job who could help me.~
"Do you know anyone else who may be able to help me find them?" Asked Fred. Sandra paused, putting a hand over her chin her lips pressed together in a pensive frown.
"I know of one person. We call him only. The man who pops up." Said Sandra.
"What!" Barked Rodrigo, "You can't be suggesting that we consult that man! He's. He's."
"He's been more stable for the past few years so I'm sure it'll be fine." Said Sandra with a dismissive wave.
"If you say so." Said Rodrigo. "Where is he supposed to show up next?" Asked Rodrigo.
"Sorry. Not to interject. But who is the one who pops up?" Asked Fred. Sandra turned to Fred with a smile on her face.
"No problem, interject as much as you want. I consider myself a bit of a teacher. So let me educate you." Sandra extended her finger, and tapped Fred on the head.
For a moment Fred saw only darkness, a blank space of ignorance where even ideas could not survive. Then with a flash a scene was created before him.
"I SHALL APPEAR IN THE TOWN OF SUMSUCH AT SOME TIME!" Yelled a figure cloaked in a black cloak from the sky. Afterward he vanished as if he were never there in the first place.
Fred stood in the nondescript town for an uncountable amount of moments, the sun and the moon constantly changing places. Until finally he stiffened, he had reached the point. SOME TIME. WIth a flash a man wearing a black cloak and black bandages manifested in the middle of the town. As casual as a man would approach a friend he snapped his fingers. In a wave from him people turned to ash, their screams overlapping.
Fred snapped back into reality. He bit his tongue to stop any reaction at what he had just experienced.
"Are you sure he's stable?" Fred said
"Right now he is." Responded Sandra.
"He's going to show up on that mountain next right." Said Rodrigo.
"Yeah he should." Responded Sandra. Rodrigo forcefully slapped Fred on the back.
"Alright! Looks like we'll be there for the next month!" He yelled.