1. Name: Ronald 'Ronnie' Delafield
2. Birthdate: March 20th, 1952
3. Gender: Male, he/him
4. Height: 6 ft. 3 in.
5. Traits: Devoted husband, loving father. Hardworking, resilient, kindhearted. Loves a good joke, has a contagious laugh.

Originally a cat character I created back in 2014, then promptly forgot about. Then I designed a human form for him in 2020. Started as the only character in this story/universe.

Kiwi-born lad, has a thick accent. He's also a postman! That's his day job. He has a wife, Diane, and a son, Max - Diane likes to joke that she's amazed that Ronnie's found the time to settle down considering how much time he spends exploring the great outdoors.

Best friends with Elijah Atkinson - the pair had met through their shared interest of mountaineering. Unfortunately for ol' Ronnie, this friendship doesn't end very well.

1. name: Elijah 'Eli' Atkinson
2. birthdate: May 16th, 1960
3. gender: Male, he/him
4. height: 5 ft. 10 in.
5. traits: A cocky, competitive bastard. Your typical jock-type. Friendly, but has an undertone of... something odd about it.

Moved from New Zealand to the United States for college. Works as a high school mathematics teacher.

1. name: Dale Carter
2. birthdate: March 12th, 1959
3. gender: Male, he/him
4. height: 5 ft. 11 in.
5. traits: TBA

Works as a police officer. Met Ronnie and Eli during of the the pair's many outings together.

In between brief bursts of consciousness, Ronnie can feel something pulling away at his jacket. He shivers, and his numb hands attempt to zip himself back up, but his attempts go nowhere. He is stopped by something - someone, he soon comes to realize. Through the blurred, foggy glass of his visor, he can make out the shape of a person huddling over him. panic grips his heart, and he tries to get away, but cannot.

"Easy, Ron," the figure says, voice slowly sounding familiar. "It's me. Elijah. don't worry, I've got you."

A sense of relief washes over him at the realization. His climbing partner had finally found him. Just how long he had blacked out for, Ronnie didn't know - didn't want to know. Still, one question kept bugging his sluggish, oxygen-deprived mind.

Cold. His midsection was icy cold.

With his bulky coat undone, the hem of his sweater had been pushed up, and his bare skin was met with the horrible chill that came with being so high up in the mountains. Ronnie gasped, breath shaking.

"Wh-what are.. y-you-..." his words fumble over each other, his mouth refusing to cooperate. His vision darkens - consciousness slips through his grasp.

By the time Ronnie stirs once more, he can feel cold hands running along the contours of his abdomen, and tracing down his sides, thumbs rubbing into his stomach. His back arches at the violation, and a sharp gasp exits his ragged throat.

"Relax," says Eli.

Everything about this feels wrong in Ronnie's mind. He can't make sense of it, or anything. He whimpers quietly.

While he is struggling to acquire any sense of understanding, somewhere in the back of his mind, Ronnie can feel his belt being unbuckled, and the zipper to his jeans fiddled with.

Ronnie's head shoots up. Immediately, lightheadedness forces his head crashing back down against his pack. Fighting through the fog, the reality of the situation begins to dawn on him, and the emotions that follow rack Ronnie to his core—confusion, betrayal, disgust.

"D-don't," he tries in vain to wriggle out of the other's grasp, quickly overpowered. "I-I don't..."

"C'mon, Ron... don't worry," his partner soothes, sick grin evident in his tone. "I'm not gonna hurt ya."