[font="Garamond"]Blu and Eun Jung struggled to keep the door open against the force of the Poltergeist, it's tug still quite considerable, despite it's attentions being focused on Ally.
[b]"Ally, reach for my hands!" [/b]Cowboy called to her, extending his arms up, his plan being to outmuscle what was, for all intents and purposes, muscle-less. She strained her face, but her arms made no move. [b]"Ally, now!"[/b]
[b]"I'm trying!"[/b] She shouted back at him, her irritation getting the better of her.
[b]"****."[/b] muttered Phil. [b]"It's got a good grip on her." [/b]
[b]"Then we'll have to get a better one."[/b] Cowboy maneuvered himself so that he had one leg on the floor of the SnowCat, the other up on the seat in front of him, to gain him better leverage. [b]"Ally, I need you to relax, and do your best to make yourself limp."[/b]
[b]"I'll uh... I'll do my best, in the circumstances."[/b] She replied, laughing nervously now.
[b]"That's all I can ask."[/b]
Outside the SnowCat, Eun Jung was looking at Blu with some concern.
[b]"Blu, you're white... Are you okay?"[/b] Blu was shivering and looking more than a little uncomfortable.
[b]"It's got so much... rage! We are very very unwelcome here."[/b] Eun Jung didn't want to let on that she was a little alarmed at these words, so she did her best to comfort Blu.
[b]"It'll be okay, really! It must be able to sense we mean it no harm... we're here to observe, that's all, nothing more. We'll be fine."[/b] She pulled one arm away from the door for a moment to pat the other girl on the back genially. [b]"You'll see, it'll be okay."[/b]
Back inside, Cowboy had his hands wrapped firmly around Ally's ankles, and Phil had taken up a similar position, his hands around her wrists.
[b]"Are you ready? We pull on three..."[/b]
[b]"Oh no... I cannot see this turning out well..." [/b]Ally mumbled from her upright position.
[b]"Shush it, darlin'. We're doing our damndest. Ready? One... two... THREE!" [/b]At the exact same moment Phil and Cowboy pulled, the mysterious force disappeared as quickly as it had come, gravity doing the work of pulling Ally down and Cowboy and Phil tumbling under the surprise of no resistance to their force. The floor of the SnowCat became a tangled sprawl of bodies.
[b]"... Ouch."[/b] came Phil's voice from somewhere under Ally.
[b]"...Er, sorry, guys... Thank you, though."[/b] Ally got up meekly and grabbed the extended hand of Eun Jung who helped her down and out of the SnowCat. After Cowboy and Phil untangled themselves, they followed suit. The five members stood outside of the vehicle now, Ally, Phil and Cowboy dusting themselves off and readjusting their heavy snow gear.
As soon as Ally got her bearings, she let her power loose for a moment, feeling the area. [b]"It's clear."[/b] She confirmed what they all felt.
[b]"For now,"[/b] added Blu, who still looked no more comfortable.[b]"I think that was just a warning. It was making itself known to us."[/b]
[b]"And we were making ourselves known to it. We'll be ready, next time."[/b] Phil replied. Cowboy nodded, but they all looked uneasy.
[b]"Well, I suppose we better get going if we don't want to blindly grope our way back here in the dark." [/b]Cowboy tried to seem cheerful. [b]"Come on y'all, move it."[/b] He herded them away from the vehicle, Ally in the lead using her ability to steer them in the direction of the rift.
They weren't far, now.
Eun Jung plodded alongside Blu, her mittened hands were jammed into her pockets for warmth, concentrating too hard on not freezing to be much good for conversation. They all were, really. The arctic wind was biting cold, and it nipped and stung any exposed flesh it could find. It was like another invisible enemy all together. The wind howled, whipping up more snow around them, assaulting their senses of sight and touch.
[b]"Christ, Ally, we almost there?"[/b] Phil called out to her from the middle of the group, his voice nearly lost in the tempestuous gusts. Ally didn't turn around, only a slight nod indicated she'd even heard him at all. She was focused intently, feeling for the rift, calling out for it, waiting for it to call back. She stopped abruptly, and said nothing, waiting for the group to huddle around her.
[b]"It's there,"[/b] She indicated to a small ridge. [b]"it lies there, over the ridge."[/b] She nodded. Blu also nodded, confirming what Ally had said with her own feelings. Phil clenched his fists inside his pockets but said nothing to hint at his own feelings of disquiet.
They all stood in silence. When nobody made a move to react or go, Eun Jung decided to take on the role of leader for a moment.
[b]"Well, what are we waiting for?"[/b] Eun Jung grinned at them all, her voice light and positive as ever. [b]"Let's go see what all the fuss is about."[/b] She turned her back to them and without waiting, started off over the ridge and toward the crack.[/font]