Lidea awoke slowly, the warmth that cocooned her, making her feel languid and unwilling to open her eyes just yet. She would fallen back asleep, if it hadn’t been for the incessant mumbling, she could hear. With a groan she opened her eyelids, taking a moment to study the tent wall in front of her, before realizing where she was.
In a whip she turned around, to see Warchief beside her. Sweat dripping off his face as he wrangled inside his sleeping bag. Yelling while trying to escape the horrid memories that haunted his nightmares. His drawn face had turned even more pale and he shivered uncontrollably. Reminding Lidea of how much energy he must be losing by creating this heat.
“Warchief, wake up!”
Lidea yelled, even though she knew he wouldn’t wake. On his other side, Crystal stirred. The healer sleepily looked over at the two of them, but one glance was all she needed to become wide awake and move for the sedative.
Knowing what was to come, Lidea pinned him down. Which was easier than normal, now that his movements were restricted by the sleeping roll.
Holding him down on his shoulders, she couldn’t help but feel saddened. Just how often, did he need to be sedated? No matter how harmless a medicine, none were good when taken in excess. Lidea could only imagine, what kind of harm, being regularly sedated like this would have done to his body.
But then it was preferable to the harm his powers would do when they left him to his own devices.
Tears of frustration formed in her eyes as she took in his condition.
“Stop hurting yourself!”
Although her words wouldn’t reach him, she couldn’t help spilling out her thoughts as she pinched his shoulders.
“The hurt won’t bring them back! It is pointless! Don’t you understand that they would have never wanted this?!”
Crystal kneeled beside her wordlessly. Tapping against the syringe, as she waited for Lidea to free Warchief’s arm from the sleeping bag.
But as she did so, the both of them were startled as Warchief started yelling again. Flailing his arm wildly and almost hitting her in the face as his skin heated up further.
“Lidea!”
Crystal screamed franticly as flames burst off his skin and started running up Lidea’s arms. In a panic, she jumped back and tried to swath away the flames, only to stop as something occurred to her.
It didn’t hurt.
Looking at her arm, she could see the flames dancing over her clothes and skin. But there was no burning sensation, no pain. Like they were some sort of illusion, but their warmth convinced her otherwise. It was real fire, but for some reason, it didn’t harm her.
Crystal’s eyes had widened and she reached for the flames, only to pull her hand back with a hiss as it burned the top of her finger.
The two women shared a look. Each puzzled as to why Lidea was safe from Warchief’s powers, while Crystal wasn’t.
However, they didn’t have a chance to talk about it, as Warchief screamed again. The flames across his body, increasing in intensity.
Immediately, Lidea went to grab him, stretching out his arm for Crystal to do her work.
Just as before, his flames didn’t hurt her. Even as they scorched his own flesh.
Had she somehow become impervious to fire?
Crystal plunged the syringe into his arm, and almost immediately the flames disappeared. Leaving nothing but the smell of acrid smoke behind.
Sitting back on her heels, Lidea stared at her arm in wonder. Not quite understanding what had just happened.
Glancing over to Crystal, she could see the healer stare at her with a frown. Clearly as confused as she was.
“How is this possible?”
Crystal didn’t answer, her eyes unreadable as she stared at Lidea before she finally broke out into a grin.
“It seems like he didn’t want to hurt you.”
“That makes no sense. He wouldn’t have hurt you either.”
Lidea protested but the healer simply shrugged as she looked over the items which had been scorched during the ordeal. Making sure none had been damaged beyond repair.
“He must believe that I can handle it. It is the only reason I can think of.”
Lidea wasn’t convinced, but Crystal was already looking over at their clothing.
“At least everything will be dry. I’m going to make something to eat. He will need more than usual.”
As if agreed upon, neither woman mentioned what had happened to Warchief after he woke up. It would only worry him, and he couldn’t afford to sleep separately from them. Even now, he was shivering violently as he inhaled his breakfast, causing Lidea to offer him her piece of jerky.
He looked at the piece, smiling gently before shaking his head.
“I might look pitiful, but I am fine. You need your energy too.”
His refusal didn’t surprise her, and she put the piece away. Not feeling particularly hungry, as her mind still conquered the image of the flames dancing over her skin.
Had Crystal been right and had he subconsciously protected her, or was there something else going on?
After breakfast, they packed up and continued their way through the valley. Though it was mostly flat, walking hadn’t become any easier.
Lidea headed the trio, and even with her snowshoes on, she sank away in the deep snow with every step. Straining her legs and leaving her breathing harshly.
More than once Warchief tried to switch positions, but Lidea declined every time. There was no way that she would allow him to waste more energy than needed in his weakened state. She would have considered changing over with Crystal, but the healer didn’t fare well in the snowy landscape.
Although the snow reached up to Lidea’s knees, for the healer it came up to her thighs. Meaning she would need to shovel her way through and Lidea couldn’t stand seeing that.
In other words, she was stuck, creating a path for them.
Still, she didn’t mind. For the first time, she found herself in a situation where they needed to depend on her. Making her feel useful for once.
Lidea lost track of just how long they spent following the valley. Only realizing they must have been traversing the mountains for more than a month when their supplies started to noticeably dwindle. They had brought enough food to survive for three months. Spread evenly among their bags.
But now most of it was only carried by Crystal.
It meant that they had passed the point of no return. Even if they turned around at that exact moment, they wouldn’t have enough to reach the hut again.
Staring at the mountain range ahead. She wondered if they were to become one of the lost spirits of the Vazul’Kar.
“We are reaching the end.”
Lidea thought Warchief had been reading her mind again, but instead, his eyes were pointed at something in the distance. As usual, she couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Just the snowy peaks that surrounded the valley.
“What do you mean?”
Looking over at her, his smile was weak at best as he spoke with a trembling voice.
“The valley ends there. If the map is correct, it means we are halfway through the range.”
She hoped the Vazul had been mistaken and that the valley extended farther. But beyond that, the news also made something else clear to her.
“We will have to start climbing again.”
Lidea couldn’t keep the exasperation from her voice, and Warchief pressed his lips together as he nodded gravely.
Crystal who caught up with them, stared ahead as well. Her face was grey and her eyes filled with freight as she spoke hauntingly.
“He will swallow us whole if we do.”
Her words caused a shiver to run down Lidea’s spine. Though she understood that the healer had lost herself to her hallucinations. Her predictions still came across as ominous to Lidea, and she was quick to shift the subject.
“Perhaps… But I am more worried about how you two will fare in the higher altitudes.”
Warchief shrugged as he placed his bag on the ground to give his shoulders a rest.
“We have no choice.”
He must also be aware of the state of their supplies.
At this point, they no longer had another option but to continue. That was, if they wanted to keep living at least.
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If walking through snow had been hard, walking uphill through snow, was murderous. Her muscles cramped and Lidea had to take more breaks than she wanted to. They never paused long though, as standing still caused them to cool down rapidly. More than once, Lidea had to remove her gloves to put her hands inside the collar of the multiple layers of scarves. Using her body heat to desperately try and warm the extremities that were turning more numb by the minute.
As she did, she kept an eye on Warchief and Crystal. Not convinced that either of them was in a good enough state to keep track of themselves.
They had chosen a random mountain to climb. Hoping it would give them enough of a vantage point to see any easier way to continue southeast. The direction in which they knew the sea to be. The map was no longer detailed enough to give them any idea of what lay ahead of them, and the uncertainty of their situation filled Lidea with fear.
There is nothing you can do but continue.
“Everyone alright. Still feeling toes and fingers?”
Warchief raised a hand that he had heard her and was fine. Crystal, on the other hand, didn’t react and Lidea waited for them to catch up before checking on the woman herself. Luckily of the three of them, Crystal seemed the most tolerant of the cold. For her, it was this mountain spirit that was the problem.
“He will claim us if we go on…”
She muttered and Lidea grunted as she put the healer's gloves back on.
“Let him try then.”
The woman’s eyes grew but Lidea didn’t wait to hear her response. She had long lost the patience for dealing with the mad woman’s ravings.
As she turned back, Warchief was staring at her. The eye covering and the many layers he was wearing, prevented her from seeing his expression but she got the distinct feeling that he disapproved of her reaction.
Hunching her shoulders, she sighed as she defended herself.
“It wasn’t nice, I know. I just can’t handle her telling us we are doomed.”
He laid a hand on her shoulder and she could barely perceive the reassuring pressure through the layers of clothing, as he pulled away the scarves hiding his face. Including the one that provided him with air.
“I understand, and she does too. She is just having a hard time.”
Hanging her head she nodded in agreeance as she could already feel the cold seeping into her bones.
“I know. I’m just worried.”
She didn’t need to say more as he pinched her again before slapping her gently on the back.
“We will be fine. We just have to keep moving.”
Closing her eyes for a moment, she let his words calm her nerves as she started walking again. He was right, there was no point in pondering their fate, they could only go forward now.
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Their hopes of finding an easier way were dashed as a day with clear blue skies, finally allowed them to look out to the horizon. They had climbed high enough that they could see the ocean that was their destination far off in the distance. But between that point and where they were standing, there were rows of peaks, each seemingly impossibly high. It would take months for them to cross.
Would they make it?
Looking at Warchief and Crystal beside her, she could see the toll that the journey so far had taken on them. Warchief had stopped shivering, but not because he was feeling warmer. His body had just given up on fighting.
While Crystal was barely there these days. Her eyes were hazy and looking out at something, Lidea couldn’t see. She could only hope, that the healer would return to her old self if they finally made it out of here.
We have to hurry.
Removing the layers of scarves, including the air providing one, her breath caught as she tried to speak. The air so thin at this altitude that she struggled even if she removed the scarf for only a moment.
“We… need… to… go.”
Warchief raised his hand slightly. The sign he had been using to show her that he understood. While Crystal didn’t respond at all.
Although she struggled with the lack of air, she could still remove the scarf even if it was for a short time. Neither of her companions seemed capable of doing the same.
Having said what she needed to, she returned the scarves to their original position and grabbed the compass she had stolen from Warchief.
Finding the exact direction they needed to go and mentally mapping out the mountains they would cross.
If her hands weren’t as cold as they were, she would have liked to draw their route on the map. But she doubted that she had enough dexterity to do so.
Instead, she tried to memorize their path, before she suddenly started their descent.
As their food supplies started running low, she continued to ration further but for Warchief’s portions. Causing her body to grow weaker with every mountain they crossed. Each time, she looked out to the horizon, hopeful of how much distance they had crossed. But the sea never seemed to get any closer, making it almost impossible to hold on to hope.
Every time, she felt like giving up, Warchief would be there. Grabbing her hand to pull her along, or simply comforting her with a hug.
She didn’t know how he did it. There was no doubt that he suffered the most out of them, but despite his grumbling and quiet attitude, it was clear that he was trying to help them in whatever way he could.
At that point, she hadn’t known how fortunate they had been so far. As with their next ascend, it started to snow again. But instead of fading away after a couple of hours, it grew heavier and the wind started to pick up. Blowing up the snow off the ground until they couldn’t see further than a couple of feet, and dropping the temperature to unbearable lows.
Turning around, she panicked when she could barely make out Warchief, and couldn’t see Crystal at all. She hurried back down and grabbed Warchief who was looking down at where Crystal was climbing up to them.
Lidea knew they needed shelter, right now. But there was nothing for them to hide by and with these winds, she was unsure that they could even set up the tent. Still, left with no other choice. She tried.
Grabbing the tent from her bag, she held it as low by the ground as she could, while trying to pin the thing in place. Only for the wind to tear it away again.
Cursing, she pushed it back, desperately hoping for it to hold. Focused as she was, she missed it when Warchief fell to the ground. Only noticing something was wrong when his body started to slide down the steep slope. She jumped to grab him, releasing the tent in the process which got whisked away in an instant.
Dammit!
She patted Warchief down, who was unresponsive, ensuring that there were no wounds. There were none, making her suspect that the cold had finally gotten too much for him. Desperately, she tried to shake him awake. Not even knowing, what she could do if he did.
Suddenly Crystal kneeled beside her, removing her glove to hold her hand to his neck.
“He fainted. Cold.”
Lidea could barely hear her muffled voice over the hauling winds but felt relieved as the woman seemed to have recovered her senses. For now at least.
However, having conscious company did not help them out of this situation.
What now?
Behind them was a sheer mountain flank with no shelter anywhere. With no tent, there was no way that they would withstand the decreasing temperatures. Already she could feel herself starting to shiver.
“Move forward.”
Crystal’s voice sounded assuring, though Lidea couldn’t guess why. How was going up any better than going down?
Yet, she found herself grabbing one of the blankets from their bags, and using it to tie Warchief onto her back.
While she worked, Crystal just stood motionless until she was done. Then she grabbed her hand and started pulling with determination.
With the extra weight, Lidea had an even harder time moving forward. With every step, she almost lost her balance as she fell away deep into the snow. But Crystal kept pulling her forward through the white that surrounded them. At some point, it became so bad that she couldn’t even see the healer anymore. Only the hand holding her wrist, promising her that she wasn’t alone.
She didn’t know if the woman had any idea of where she was going. But she seemed confident and at this point, Lidea didn’t know what else they could do.
They walked like that for hours, as Lidea’s legs started to tremble and the cold numbed her every sensation. Eventually, her body just gave up.
Sinking through her knees, the sweat of the exertion that had barely kept her warm, made her cool down even further. She could feel Crystal dragging her, but no matter how many times Lidea attempted it. She couldn’t get back up to her feet.
Finally, the cold started to fade away. For a moment she thought it had been a miracle, but then she realized that nothing had changed.
It was just that her body was losing the fight.
I can’t die here.
Her mind tried to protest. Seeing the faces of those she had left behind and those she had lost. She still had so many things to do.
What about Warchief and Crystal? They would die here as well. She couldn’t let this happen!
But her body didn’t listen, as she drifted farther away from reality until there was nothing but darkness.
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The howling wind tore at Crystal’s skin, biting through her coat but it was nothing compared to the cold that clawed at her heart. Her knees buckled beneath her as she sank to the snow beside the two motionless figures. The cold had been too much for either of them.
They should have never attempted to come here.
Her throat tightened as she fought the scream rising within her, wanting to curse the Gods, for their cruelty. But she didn't for it would do nothing but exhaust what little strength she had left. And strength was something she couldn’t afford to waste. If she wanted to save them all.
This is your fault. You were warned, and yet you continued onward.
A mocking voice hissed inside her mind.
Crystal squeezed her eyes shut, gripping her head as if she could physically shove the spirit’s venomous words out. For nearly three months, the mountain had been whispering to her, tormenting her with visions and words of despair, urging her to turn back.
The mountain spirit was an old entity, though it was once honored as a God, it had now been forgotten. Forsaken by the humanity that had once worshipped it. Causing it to turn vengeful. Wanting for nothing more than to drag anyone who dared climb the Vazul’Kar, into a cold forgotten grave.
Despite knowing that, Crystal had ignored its snarls of warning. Tried to pretend it didn’t exist, while pushing forward. Now, seeing the two people she cared about lying still and helpless, the weight of the spirit’s words became unbearable.
They didn’t belong here. None of you do. And now they will pay for your arrogance.
Crystal’s hands shook, not from the cold, but from the rage and despair boiling inside her.
You should’ve left. Now it’s too late, and they will die because of you.
"Shut up!"
Crystal whispered hoarsely through clenched teeth, her voice barely audible over the storm. Her breath came out in ragged bursts, even with the air provided through the scarf, she had trouble breathing in these thin skies.
They belong to the mountain now.
Her vision blurred as the spirit's laughter echoed in her mind, taunting her, feeding on her despair.
How dare it. She had lived far too long, to be mocked by a meager spirit like him.
"You won’t have them. Not while I’m still breathing."
You can’t save them. You couldn’t save anyone. They’re mine now.
The spirit's voice grew louder, almost gleeful. Its arrogance causing Crystal to chuckle hysterically.
“You don’t know who you are dealing with.”
She huffed, as she raised her head and looked at where the sky should be above them. It was still day, so he might not hear her. But she would force his attention. Closing her eyes, she started praying. Asking her former tormentor to listen to her plea. He owed it to her after all.
You can’t save them. You’re alone. Just like you’ve always been.
The spirit sneered. Preying on one of her deepest fears. The fear of being alone.
“God of night. Hear my plea, for I have fulfilled my hundred years of servitude to you. Save us from here.”
Futile. You can’t fight the mountain. You’ll die here.
She kept repeating her words. Disregarding the mountain spirit as she waited for an answer. For all that the God of Night was fickle, he did keep his promises.
A screeching sound came from near them and Crystal almost fell in relief. Knowing, that he had answered her.
No! They belong to me!
The mountain spirit screamed and ranted. But he couldn’t do anything. After all, he was a mere spirit. One that had been forsaken and whose power was dying. They were no match for one of the Gods of the inner circle.
“Thank you, God of Night.”
She quickly grabbed their flint from the bag and tried to create sparks. Anything to grab the attention of what was out there.
Another screech came from her right and she could feel something heavy land on the snow. Its magical energy filling her with a mixture of awe and trepidation.
A figure dressed in grey leather appeared out of the snow. Not speaking a word he checked on the trio. He tried to pull Crystal away from the other two but she refused and the figure didn’t insist. Instead, it disappeared again in the white.
It didn’t take long for her to hear the sound of massive wings above them, and wind to blast in her face. Two massive claws grabbed for Lidea and Warchief, while its beak gently picked up Crystal using her jacket.
A bird’s yellow eyes stared into her soul, as she looked at a creature she would have never thought to meet.
A Griffin.
The Vazul had found them.
That was two of three, little demon. I hope you remember to use your wishes well.
Sing songy words mocked her. The God of Night’s voice still gave her nightmares until now. Yet he had kept his side of the deal. This was the second time that he had reacted to her request. He would only listen one last time.
Yet she didn’t regret a thing. They were going to survive.
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