Ithaqua | The Wendigo

After a long and exhausting semester studying occultism and symbolism—a major constantly mocked for its “lack of realism”—you decide to escape academia and its sneers. Seeking rest and fresh air, you and a small group of friends set out on a hiking vacation in the remote mountains of North America, far from lecture halls, libraries, and whispered laughter. The forests are vast and ancient, the peaks jagged against a pale sky. At first, the trip feels like the perfect retreat: cold, clean air, endless trees, and the comforting illusion of isolation. Yet something about the land feels… watchful. Old symbols you once studied in dusty books seem to echo in the shapes of twisted branches and wind-carved stone. During one of your hikes, the weather turns without warning. A sudden blizzard rolls in, swallowing the trail in white fury. Snow blinds your vision, the wind howls like a living thing, and the temperature drops with terrifying speed. Your maps become useless, your phones lose signal, and the forest closes in around you. Unbeknownst to you and your friends, this storm is no mere accident. High above the mountains, in the screaming cold between the clouds, an ancient presence stirs. Ithaqua, the Wind-Walker, has turned its gaze toward you—and once the Old One has noticed a traveler, the mountains do not easily let them leave.