Mountain Men

Sneaking its way down the collar of his jacket the cold gives his entire body chills. Hiking the bag up higher Adam looks out at the small train stop, a small building to sell tickets and a few benches for people waiting for their rides. Walking around the train station and along the sidewalk Adam comes face to face with what looks like it is the entire town in front of him. On his right a bank and a few small houses are all that appear to be kept up with the wrest of the street being slightly run down.

On the left side of the street there is a small hotel and bar in one building, a sheriffs department and a small department store. 'Oh good, i was worried that this was going to be fun.' There was no one here to hear his sarcasm but even so he was not going to be silent for another minuet, the noise of the train making it impossible to talk while it was moving.

Stretching Adam feels a cold breeze slip down one sleeve and up to his armpit forcing him tuck his arms in and head towards the small bar. Out front a single motorcycle is parked, snow packing its way into its crevices. Beside it a car is covered from view by a four inch thick layer of snow making its model or brand indistinguishable. Each step Adam feels the crunch of snow under foot, his footprints behind him trailing him all the way to the station.

"Well actually can I get a water? No ice please," Adam was already tired of the weather, ready for the warmth of Karakura town once more but that was to be a little ways off his job really only just starting. The town was deserted, normally a small tourist location to visit the summit of a nearby mountain. It was a two day hike but not for nothing. Rumor has it that for everyone that makes it to the peak gets a wish that will be granted after a year. A silly dream of a rumor but none the less it drew in a bit of a crowd every year, simple people gathering for the opportunity to put their dreams into something.

Adam disbelieved in the nonsense behind wishes, maybe at one point in his past he would have thought that the notion of wishes being cute but too much has happened to him and left him a little bitter to the thought that wishes were possible. The kid behind the bar hands him a clear plastic cup of water and sits back on a cushy seat that was below eye level behind the bar. "So what brings you out here? Not the mountain I hope. No one has been up there for over two months now, not with all the missing people and deaths in the area."

The older man with the rifle coughs, obviously trying to get the kid to shut his mouth. No real need though, Adam has come here with the purpose of finding out why all these people have been vanishing. It wasn't too abnormal for people to go missing, this region having about four people go missing on the mountain a year but this was out of the ordinary. Nine people have vanished and not all at once. Once person week for the past two months have gone missing breaking the total missing in the past two years and catching the attention of the local police department, the regional government and the new stations one the internet reporting on odd happenings around the world.

Adam smiles, old men like this generally didn't give half a damn about danger long as they have a bill or two to get their next drink," Yeah I'm looking for a guide as far as the first missing person. After that I'm looking to go on by myself. There isn't any point in dragging two people into the woods looking for one bear."

The middle aged woman at the far end of the group stands and speaks up. "Good, then it'll be four hundred now and another hundred when I get you to the first missing persons camp site. When you change your mind and decide to come back it will be another four for me to escort you back." Walking around the older man she reaches down and grabs the rifle, its scope having a small rabbits foot hanging down on a small chain from the scope mount. She wore a black winter jacket with grey fur interior and blue jeans pulled over a pair of hiking boots.

"Oh well..." Adam was unsure of how to react. He fully expected that the guide was going to be this older man, some kind of old timer that knew the woods like the back of his hand. What was the worst that could happen? I'll just send her back after we get there. "I suppose thats fine with me. I didn't realise that the guide would be..." faltering for a sencond he considers what to say other than a woman," so young."

"I guess I'll have the burger then," Adam says putting his paper down and drinking some more water. The bartender reaches over and grabs the paper and slides it under the bar out of sight. Walking over to a small mini fridge he grabs a burger, wrapped in a prepacked bag. Well...that figures. Pulling the bag open the bartender sticks it into a fridge under the bar and plugs the number and hits start. This is my life now isn't it? This is what I am now.

"So what kind of bear did you hear about? Out here there was rumors of some wolves because of the attack sites. Seemed like there were too many of them to be a bear as they don't travel in packs and I can't imagine that the new has kept the story straight all the way to where your from." The bar tender pours more water into Adams glass and goes back to his seat.

"Well the news said that it was a black bear but they are not from this region so i looked into it and the largest bear i could find was a brown bear, but this one was supposed to be bigger than most. What are you talking about wolves?" Adam listens to the sound of the microwave humming under the bar, nuking his meal to be super heated in the center and still frozen on the outside with wet spongy patches.

"Don't mind him. He is really superstitious and doesn't like talking about the mountain. He thinks that it is being stalked by some kind of witch and its out there taking people to do some kind of black magic bullshit. Personally from what I have heard there is some kind of mad man running around taking people and shredding the camp sites. Would make sense as none of the bodies have been found but plenty of blood have been in the sites." His friend, Mr. Witch bumps him in the shoulder to leave whispering about how talking about the mountain can get you targeted next. Walking out the bar they argue about how black magic is and is not real.

A ding from behind the bar catches Adam's ear and brings him back to his growling stomach. The barkeep puts his microwaved burger on a plate and takes his twenty, digging through his pockets to find change. Taking the change Adam slips it into his pocket, just crumpling the bills up and stuffing them down. The burger was terrible, too hot and too cold in different spots, burning him more than once. Regardlessly though he finishes it off and packs up, heading towards the door. "So the hotel is open right?"

The bartender nods in agreement," Yeah but its nothing to be proud to stay in. Most of your average tourists here spent their nights on the trail, moving towards the summit, leaving as soon as they get back. Just try to make sure you get a room with working heater though, those walls are thin and you'll freeze your ass off if you cant get that heater on."

The laugh fades away as she realises that she could very well be in trouble for not mopping up the water and someone slipping in it and falling down. Just as fast as she laughed her faace changes to worry as she waits to see Adams reaction. "Are you-" Adam cuts her off with a loud outburst of laughter. Her relief is evident when he obviously is fine and does not seem to be that embarrassed by the accident.

Adam waves her off through the fits of laughter and rolls to one knee to stand up, shaking his hands off and flinging the water onto the ground. Slapping his hands together his laughter subsides to a chuckle. "I'm fine, I didn't see the water. Would have bee fine if I hadn't over reacted."

"Are you sure that your okay?" the girl has bright red hair, obviously dyed and kept so that it would make an attempt to be 'natural'. Taking a moment to regain his composure Adam walks up to the counter and props one elbow on it and give the girl a half smirk. It is obviously an attempt that would appear to hitting on her but due to his fall it appears to be a joke. Adam does his best to hold a straight face while he is playing, the possibility that this young woman would find him more amusing rather than feel bad for him falling down being his goal.

Flopping into the bed face first Adam closes his eyes and lets his traveling exhaustion settle in and take his mind into the black of sleep. His dreams are short, filled with odd images of animals darting through the woods, the yellow of wild eyes watching him as he travels. It is not long before the white light of the sun glows into his rooms window, waking him and drawing him out of his bed still dressed in what he was wearing the night before.

Checking his phone Adam sighs, the time being about forty five minuets before seven. Sitting on the bed he buries his face in his hands, blocking the light from his face so that his eyes have a bit of a better chance to adjust the morning sun in his window. Reaching into his bag he pulls out some personal hygiene things and heads into the bathroom so that he can get cleaned up brushing his teeth and shaving.

After a few minuets Adam is cleaned up and out the door, brushing his short hair off to the side in an attempt to find some kind of style that looks like he spends a little bit of time cleaning up in the mornings. Walking down the hall he hikes his bag up on his shoulders hooking up a holster to his hip with a three round revolver loaded with 50 cal short rounds. The powder in the shells them selves is not at all combustible making the weapon almost just for appearance, intimidating to the eye but in the hands of Adam it is truly deadly.