The next morning, they were all up before the sun had even risen over the eastern slope of the mountain. It had stopped snowing, and Ritchie was shocked to catch a rare glimpse of a star in the Oymyakon sky through tiny breaks in the ever-present cloud cover.
The snow had stopped falling the afternoon before, and the wind had died away as well. The air was still and so quiet it seemed to make her ears ring, as if she could hear her own eardrums straining to pick up any kind of stimulus.
The lack of wind was welcome, but the air itself was shockingly cold. Ritchie was grateful there would be no climbing that day, just hiking. That meant they were all wearing their warmest gloves and boots, leaving the more flexible but not as insulated climbing gear in their packs.
As she tucked her hair
