Part 6 - Infected

Chapter 117 - Onwards and Upwards

It took next to no time to find out the tallest mountain in the Alps was Mont Blanc. At just over four-thousand eight hundred metres, it was within an Ares jet's VTOL altitude. The jet touched down heavily and Gwen ducked out, letting it take-off again to circle so that it didn't blow snow over whatever hint she was looking for. She took a moment to admire the view, then got straight back to work. There was another stone pillar which stuck out like a sore thumb against the white of the snow. Gwen brushed some flakes off and read the hint: 'the great mountain of caravans'. She frowned. A mountain of caravans? Was she looking for a junkyard now? She took a photo of it on her phone, then took a few more of the view before signalling the Ares to land again.

Stanley frowned at the clue, just as Gwen had.

"Are we looking for a scrapyard specialising in dealing with old caravans?"

"That was my first thought, but it's been geographical features up until now. Ever heard of 'caravan mountain'?"

"Never." He typed the phrase into Google on his iPad. "Nothing here, either."

Gwen muttered the words of the clue over and over again, trying to decide if it was actually being literal or was a riddle. She had an idea.

"Is there a mountain that's name in another language has something to do with caravans?"

"None that I know of, but I'm not exactly a mountain trivia person."

Gwen had a look on the internet but again found nothing. She did, however, find a definition of 'caravan' on Wikipedia.

"Is there a mountain known for trade in the ancient times?"

Stanley shrugged.

"Ask Google, not me."

Gwen searched but it only brought up information on the Silk Road; an ancient trade route between Rome and China. She sighed as she received a text.

"Crap, I'm late for my counsellor."

Stanley nodded.

"I'll keep working on this. Have fun."

"Thanks."

"You really must learn to keep better track of time, Gwen." Her counsellor said as she sat down on a couch in her counsellor's office.

"I know. I'm really busy trying to find Max, though."

Her counsellor, Sarah, nodded as she sat down as well.

"Logically you put your son before yourself, but these sessions are necessary."

"I'm getting better, though."

"You may be far more in control than you were a few months ago, especially looking at the GOC incident, but if you quit now it may all go to waste."

"I don't know if it's these sessions that are actually helping, or just being straight-up dead."

"Do you really want to risk losing your progress?"

Gwen sighed and shook her head.

"I thought not. So, have you had any issues since the last session? Any outbursts?"

"None. I've been doing great."

Sarah took some notes on her clipboard.

"Any mental breakdowns? Any loneliness, worries, that sort of thing?"

"I mean, yeah. I'm human, so I'll always be worried about something."

"Tell me about them."

"I'm mostly worried about Miles. He's half-blind now and I haven't heard from him since he left. He could be dead for all I know. Properly dead, I mean; like Teresa."

"Anything else?"

"Well, I'm worried about Max too. But he's a God so wherever he is I'm sure he's fine. I just wish he'd stop hiding."

"And how do these worries affect the rest of your mental health?"

"The same way they affect anyone: just a feeling of wishing I could do something about it."

Sarah took some more notes then clicked her pen shut.

"It does look like you're doing well. However, I have been asked to pass some information along."

"Oh?"

"We haven't heard directly from Miles, but have from the INTF. He's been branded an outlaw."

"What? Why?"

"He has sided with Liam."

"I'm sure he has his reasons. What does being an outlaw mean for him?"

"He'll be apprehended if he's found."

Gwen felt a spark of anger.

"What the hell? So he changed his mind. He must have had a reason, so maybe we should look and see what it was instead of following INTF's orders to the letter."

"That's not my call, and you know that. Please calm down, Gwen. You're having an outburst."

"I don't need a flipping psychologist to tell me that. What I need is to find Max. Don't expect to hear from me until he's found. Actually, you wouldn't happen to know of a mountain of caravans, would you?"

"In its native language, that's one of the translations of Kilimanjaro. Mount Kilimanjaro."

"Thanks."

"It's our best bet, and keeps with all the patterns." Stanley agreed when Gwen told her Sarah's suggestion.

"Can an Ares get up there?"

"Yes. Its VTOL ceiling is about seven-thousand metres. Seven-and-a-half at a push."

"Onwards and upwards, I guess."

Yet another Ares flight, and yet another pillar bearing another riddle. Gwen was surprised at just how flat everything was around Mount Kilimanjaro. It certainly earned the title of highest free-standing mountain. She took a few photos of the view, then checked out the clue: 'three brothers forever alone'. Since Kilimanjaro was the highest free-standing mountain in the world, that wasn't what 'forever alone' meant. She snapped a photo and returned to the jet.

Stanley scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"I've already done some Googling since you emailed the photo, but I couldn't find much."

"Same here. Nothing at all. I'll ask Sarah since she knew about Kilimanjaro."

"No, Gwen. I don't know about a mountain called 'three brothers'." Sarah replied.

"Right. Know anyone who might?"

"No. However, I think you need to take a break. You'll burn yourself out, then it won't just be your mental health that breaks."

"Whatever."

Gwen had no intention of taking a break. She ran through the streets of all kinds of cities, asking people if they had heard of this 'three brothers' mountain. Finally, someone said they had.

"It was in Bhutan, called Gangkhar Puensum. Tallest mountain nobody has climbed." Gwen told Stanley.

The scientist typed into Google and sighed.

"It's just over seven-and-a=half thousand metres above sea level. Too high for an Ares."

"How high can it get me?"

"Up to seven thousand, maybe a little higher."

"Right. I'd better get going."

It was a tricky landing for the Ares, and it nearly ended in disaster as snow was sucked up into its vents and started to choke the engines. However, it managed to get free and Gwen was alone on the highest mountain nobody had ever climbed. The air was extremely thin and she was already struggling to breathe. However, she had an oxygen tank in her bag for when she really became desperate. She started walking, glad for her thick clothing as the wind howled across the ridge threatening to knock her down a cliff. She had her web shooters in case she fell, but she wasn't planning on needing to use them. The snow seemed to cling to her feet, trying to hold her back from her goal, but still she fought on climbing higher and higher.

It took a full day, but she reached the top. She dared not sit down, knowing that if her exhaustion took her she would most likely doze off and freeze to death in the howling wind. Still, she had something to show for her efforts: the stone pillar was engraved with another clue. Gwen had been hoping Max would settle here, but somehow she had a feeling she was about to be sent to climb Mount Everest. She looked at the clue and cursed herself for thinking about the answer before she read it. Five words…five words which would test her to her breaking point: 'the top of the world'. She felt her motivation draining from her and began to question whether she should even bother going down or just accept defeat here. No: she would keep going just as she had when things became difficult before. She had put the world's worst criminals behind bars, she had battled gods, she had wielded fragments of Creation itself. She refused to let herself be defeated by a big rock, even if it was the tallest on Earth.

Crossovers in this Chapter

- SCP Foundation

Note

I'm not entirely sure all my information on Gangkhar Puensum is correct. I went back and checked it all on Wikipedia and I managed to get just about every fact wrong...
I've tried to fix it, but if you're writing an essay please don't quote me as a source!