Sailor and the Ruined Castle, Con't

Sailor awoke to a harsh reality. His mind was fogged by the unconsciousness he'd lapsed into while his body throbbed with cold and pain, he could not seem to clear his head. With great effort he pulled himself to his feet and leaned against the door-frame not having the strength to hold himself forward. Sailor felt confused, his mind was fuzzy and strange images merged with familiar ones in his clouded brain; but he couldn't sort them out into what was real and what was not. Questions, always questions. Sailor tried to shake his head - The castle. It held the answers and he had to reach it. Although Sailor had tried to settle in this village and call it home, in fact it was the castle that was most familiar to him and it was in its presence that he really felt like he was home. If he could only muster enough fortitude, he would take to his paws again and revisit the castle. A powerful sense of urgency now washed over Sailor forcing him to move toward the entrance of the alcove and out into the rain and fog. He advanced stiffly forward, willing his legs to move; his body was so unyielding that he feared trying to walk lest his legs broke! A cry of agonizing pain escaped his throat as his legs buckled and he collapsed forward; his head hitting the rough cobblestone while shooting pain raced up his legs and reverberated through his already wracked body. Utterly exhausted and crippled with affliction, Sailor braced himself against the wall and struggled to stand again. He waited until he could sense his paws under him, then gingerly shook himself. The heaviness of the rain weighing down his fur fell away. Feeling lighter and a little more mobile with constant forced movement Sailor stared out into the rain sodden village. Everything was saturated and the intense cold was returning to his body.

Catspaw