The doors shut behind us sealing off the way back. We stepped lightly through fresh snow our feet sinking into the powdery substance. Passing through an arch and into a snowy mountain pass the sky with it's soft predawn glow seemed almost overwhelming. I had expected to feel relieved with the absence of rock overhead but found instead that I felt uncomfortably exposed. Looking up I saw a stone bridge broken at it's midpoint crossed the pass to the entrance of a fortress on the mountaintop. Kites sailed by migrating to the sacred mountain their movements unusually direct and sluggish. One unfortunate kite wobbled and unable to maintain altitude impacted the snow at the bottom of the pass with a muted crunch. Aether sprinted ahead to where the kite rested with it's trio of tails waving in the bitter wind. She chimed lighting up the symbols along it's length but it did not stir. Trailing her wing over it's tails she chimed to it as if trying to coax it from the snow. I lent my power to the effort but without result. Nothing we could do roused the ill fated creature.
We moved on compelled by the icy wind not to linger. It was deathly cold here and I feared for our safety. I knew promethian cloth creatures could not die from exposure to this accursed weather but they like the kite we had witnessed could freeze and become dormant. I did not relish the idea of remaining locked in ice forever on these lonely slopes.
We continued through the mountain pass. A Jörmungandr hunted the skies overhead it's hollow metallic scream rending the air. The beast preyed on the migrating kites clipping one and sending it tumbling to earth. I mourned for the playful creature singing sadly as I watched it fall. Aether drew close and wrapped a wing around me giving me a one armed hug and I felt delicious warmth creep through my body as the hem of my robe glowed. The monstrosity took no notice of us as we trudged through the heavy snow but their presence made us more than a little uneasy.
We came to a series of large deeply carved slabs of basalt that looked like a coiled serpents with triangular heads that formed a loop at the top of the stones. These slabs were about one and a half times our height and as we approached I noticed a deep resonant sound. Hunting for the source I noted that the sound was growing louder. The wind cut through my robes with biting edge like a razor. Ice crystals began to form on my cloak making my movement sluggish. I ducked behind a slab out of the wind and huddled there with Aether. Contact with my friend made the ice crystals melt away in an instant to my considerable personal relief.
Taking advantage of a break in the wind we utilized what little power of flight we had regained from huddling for warmth to glide a short distance toward the next stone. I reached out to steady myself on the slab as a blast of wind threw me slightly off balance and yanked my wing away when I felt the stone vibrate. That was the source of the noise I heard, someone had carved these basalt statues to whistle when the gale winds funnelled through the aperture at the top! We slogged through the drifts avoiding the tempest when the whistling stone's thrum began to raise in volume by ducking behind them. At one point I was not fast enough and lost a good deal of ground when the blizzard knocked me off my feet and caught my robes like a sail. As mortal beings we might have marched through the wind unhindered but our promethian forms were as light as thistledown. Without the waystones we would have never made it to the narrow fissure in the canyon wall.
The gale slackened as we reached the other side of the crevasse. Tombstones carved from indigenous rock littered the snowy slopes. This mountain volcanic range must have been the source of the basalt for all the headstones we had seen and more than likely the origin of the impurity free white marble that the shrines of the ancestors were comprised of as well. I was beginning to think my fascination with stonework stemmed from some past interest in geology. I still had no idea what sort of person I had been before the war started and couldn't resist trying to guess. An interest in stone could mean I was a scientist, a quarry man, a stonemason or a sculptor.
Or maybe I just liked stonework. I wished I knew!
Empty segments of Jörmungandr golem rested at odd angles wedged into the mountainside amongst the graves. In one a promethian kite sheltered cooing a greeting to us it's sides laced with hoarfrost. We spoke to it lending it the energy to melt the frost and it swooped around us gratefully before flying up the slope a short distance. In the treacherous wind the moisture still clinging to it refroze and it darted into a new sanctuary in another of the golem sections. Aether and I did our best to warm it again but it refused to budge from it's new shelter. We pressed on whispering our apologies for needing to leave it behind.
The full moon was setting in the predawn sky as we scurried up the crags of stone that formed uneven stairs up the mountain. We passed clusters of graves fighting the wind as we climbed. The ice on our robes was thicker and refroze instantly if we did not remain in constant contact. The rhythmic movement of walking was beginning to sting as the crystals chafed the cloth we were made of like sandpaper. Up ahead Aether spotted an fortified alcove and we made for it eager to be out of the cruel winds.
Inside the shelter stood a lantern surrounded by graves. As we approached they resonated quietly with a hum almost lost beneath the sound of the wind. The lantern lit with a ball of energy and the space inside the shelter warmed within seconds melting the ice from our cloaks. A flock of promethian ribbons descended from above and we called to them feeling that glorious sensation of weightlessness as they pulled us up. I hadn't realized how limited I felt not being able to fly. There was a ledge there with another mural. Aether and I looked at each other and activated it watching it reveal a picture of the fortress we had seen from the foot of the canyon. Overhead a great battle raged with people on the backs of Jörmungandr. This was an ancient battleground and a dangerous but necessary route.
We basked in the warmth of the lantern steeling ourselves for the challenge ahead. We were quiet both of us lost in thought. Aether walked to the entrance of the shelter resting a wing on the wall of the shelter peering out into the blizzard that was turning the sky as white as the ground. I joined her giving her an encouraging chirp before stepping back into the cold.
The rising natural stone steps took us to the broken bridge we had seen from the canyon bottom. It was spanned by a length of promethian banner that had frozen solid anchored to the far end of the bridge. The end closest to us just out of range the wind having whipped it into an upward curve. Our voices warmed it and it reached out to us allowing us entry past the fortress wall.
We strode up the steps and into a world of white. For an instant I wondered if this was a vision like we had seen before the wind cut through me too painfully to not be real. The sky was clouded over and wind whipped the powdery snow into the air like mist. We fought against the primal power of the blizzard as we hastened up the slope. Almost fully obscured by the falling snow and low cloud cover a Jörmungandr circled the old battle site hunting for food.
We passed a whistling stone. The great beast took notice of the movement and swooped down to investigate. We huddled in the husk of a broken Jörmungandr as the eerie searchlight bathed the snow all around our fragile shelter with bright light. The monster passed and I chimed a signal to Aether. The wind picked up as we raced for the next segment drag from our billowing wings slowing us down. We made it but only just as the beast made another pass. The instant that terrible light moved on we wasted no time in making it to the next bit of cover. The Jörmungandr seemed to lose interest after another pass and flew off in the direction of the mountain to continue it's hunt. In dismay I noted it left in the direction we were headed. Cursing I searched our surroundings and spotted an alternate route to the left and pointed it out to Aether who nodded with obvious relief.
Fighting the wind we passed two whistling stones which lead us to an ice cavern. Inside we found another fortification with a mural. Once activated it showed us a mass exodus to the mountain. When viewed this etching I knew with a certainty I could not explain that in the last days our people had gone to beg the gods for help. I did not need to be told that it was beyond even the power of the gods to mend the world we had destroyed. The gods however were merciful and had given our restless souls a chance to find peace and atone for the destruction we had wrought through the blind arrogance of taking their blessings for granted. Aether and I stood before the mural in silence. We clasped wings feeling the strength ebb and flow between us. The storm still raged outside but in this moment of quiet we were warmed from within. I loved her. Not romantic love with it's thrall of physical passion but a deep platonic devotion. Whatever trials lay ahead we would face the God's judgement together and we would not be afraid.
We facing the storm with renewed resolve we slipped like ghosts past the hungry Jörmungandr moving between the broken pieces of golem which littered the battlefield. The wind tore at us mercilessly but we paid it no heed putting aside our discomfort. We reached the safety of a narrow crevasse with gravestones perched atop the rocky crags. Kites floated above sheltered from the wind by the high rock walls cooing their support as they passed . We followed their flight to an old bailey of the fortress. Someone had crashed a Jörmungandr here and the promethian cloth that powered it had taken root and grown and spread under a coat of ice into long fronds. We used the fronds to climb the cliff face and passed through the gate to the exterior wall of the fortress. Exposed on the outer rail of the fortifications we met the force of the tempest. Using debris as a windbreak we charged along the side and up a flight of stairs taking advantage of momentary lulls in the wind. Past windows we charged utilizing a strand of promethian cloth to jump a break in the platform. We turned through a gateway and met the full force of the wind.
A vast rising plain stood before us dotted with graves. Lightening flashed overhead and the tempest roared. Wind snatched the heat from our bodies as we fought against it. Our scarves grew brittle from cold and snapped to fragments at our backs. I chimed encouragement to Aether my voice snatched away but the gusts. She answered me with the faintest chime but I sensed determination behind it. We trudged doggedly up the slope keeping the mountain shining it's beacon of hope in our sights. We had to believe we would make it. Ice formed on our capes cracking as we moved sending fiery darts of pain through my being. Our movements became more sluggish as our red robes became encrusted with ice. It became harder and harder to move forward as I felt my cloth skin crackle with the exertion. I watched Aether struggle ahead of me and I forced myself to continue. I bowed my head against the wind digging in my heels.
The gusts fell away and the clouds swallowed the mountain. I looked about me unsure of which way to go. Aether chimed at me her voice weak and I answered her hearing powerlessness in the feeble sound I uttered. I plunged ahead moving slower and slower as I felt my skin go numb and frigid. Each step became more laboured and sound faded away until all I could hear was the snapping the cloth of my body made as I forced it to move. Aether struggled beside me fighting the paralysis that was imminent.
Aether...
She toppled into the snow her strength deserting her at last. I dropped to my knees. Perhaps this was how this Journey was always supposed to end. I had befriended those who had been my mortal enemies. I had rescued the promethian cloth creatures we had enslaved. I mourned the world we had destroyed and bathed in the purifying waters of the cistern to cleanse my soul of anger and grief.
I was ready to rest.
I pitched forward landing inches from where Aether's still body was already being covered by snow. I thanked the gods for letting me find this measure of peace and hoped Wing was safe wherever he was. My one regret was that I never had a chance to say goodbye. The world grew dim and meaningless as I sunk into a deep torpor. I heard the sound of snowflakes as they impacted my prone body and then heard nothing at all...
...
