The Trials (Part 2)

Both groups made ther way around the base of the mountain. Iskandor collecting rock samples, Hikari collecting various herbs. Lar and Serena each drawing a map and marking noteworthy locations in the surroundings. Suprisingly in the 34 hours they were apart nothing happened worth noting.

"We are almost at the meeting point guys!" Iskandor exclaims, trying to cheer up a tired Serena and Fenrir.

"Let's take a breather, we've been walking nearly 5 hours now." Serena complains.

"Alright, we can take a breather," Iskandor says, Serena collapsing, "as soon as we get there."

"Go fuck yourself..." Serena angrily retorts, obvious to Iskandor she is just venting. He decides to try teasing her a bit.

"Fuck me yourself you coward!"

This immediately angers Serena even more while Iskandor just runs away laughing with her chasing him so she could wring his neck.

***************

"Lar, we're getting pretty close. Let's give one last push." Hikari says with Lar responding with a nod.

"I can't wait till we reach the peak. My body aches." Lar says not long after.

"Same here, it's nice though, traveling with friends I mean. Despite the hardships of traveling, and yes I know this is just the beginning, I feel it makes the journey more worthwhile. It has also given me time to reflect on what all Roku has told me during his short visit. I was born in a hidden clan under a powerful name. It would make sense if I was given exceptional education, even if inaccurate at times. Also, considering the nature of some of the peculiarities I have, it has led me to believe that my clan, for good or bad, lives in the shadows, literally and metaphorically." Hikari says, releasing some of the unseen weight upon her shoulders.

"Be it dark or light, good and evil can appear in all places. Just because your clan is secretive doesn't necessarily mean they are bad, nor does that mean everyone is good. Whatever the case may be, I be-" Lar starts but stops when she hears, "ISKANDOOOR! I'LL KILL YOU!" followed by the laughter of a dragonborn, clearly Iskandor. The dragonborn in question appears from the dense treeline into a clearing finding it occupied by Lar amd Hikari, the latter giving him a confused look.

"She isn't receptive to teasing, who would've thought?" Iskandor explains, giving Lar a laugh. Not long after Serena enters the clearing.

"You need to work on your stamina if you want to prepare for mating season." Iskandor says, laughing when Serena tries to attack. Instead of dodging however, Iskandor just walks into it after slightly adjusting the angle of her punch and hugging her. "If you keep acting so cute I may get wound up early." He whispers directly into her ear, causing her to turn even redder.

"She's blushing so hard her skintone matched that of some demons and devils..." Lar exclaims, clearly amused.

"Take it easy, are you trying to get killed?" Hikari laughs.

"If I die, it better be by snu snu..." Iskandor replies, causing Lar and Hikari to laugh. "Okay, I had my fun Serena. I'll let you go if you promise not to hurt me." Serena shales her head, causing Iskandor to laugh. "Looks like you like being wrapped in my arms."

At this Serena pushes away and climbs a tree to avoid Iskandor for a bit.

"Alright, we spotted the stairway on the southern side, littered with bones." Hikari says.

"We should head there in the morning, even if the stairs are a trap I feel like the correct path is near." Iskandor says, tossing out the tent and setting up camp.

***************

*Up in the sky*

"This group is different... I can feel it." mutters a figure, obscured by the clouds above. "I hope they pass, I've been stuck here for centuries..."

***************

After a good night's rest Iskandor takes the maps and starts to redraw them as one singular map while Hilari packs up and Lar serves breakfast.

"Fenrir, how you feeling?" Iskandor asks as he finishes the map.

"I feel great, your pack is so kind to one another despite your differences. I think I may end up staying for quite some time, if you'll have me." Fenrir replies.

"You're already a part of the team!" Iskandor says, scratching behind Fenrir's ear.

"Let's head out, don't wanna be late." Lar says. "Afterall, we got about 12 days and we have no idea how long it will take to reach the peak."

"Assuming we could just scale it, no traps and such, I imaging it would take us just shy of a week. But, if there's a staircase that doesn't go all the way up, as you said, there's likely a path on the inside, even if trapped." Iskandor predicts, taking the lead to the location marked on the map as the stair with the rest following behind.