138 Phase 120: Skycrown Mountain

That was the end of the Uber Marshes idea, at least for tonight. Colin wanted to see the Tournament and Alicia had to admit she was interested too.

"But I have to change my Home Base. Fast." She told him, now wearing Snow Leopard Armor. "And we need weapons. You lost your staff at Gardens World, remember? And I just lost my sword when I died."

They tried to get a room at the Inn, but there were absolutely no vacancies left, especially not for a Home Base. Then, they tried to find weapons at the local shops, again without success.

"Ya might try Canary Imports." The shopkeeper advised as Colin bought a few bottles of Bruth as a matter of course. "By now, only way you're gonna get imports here is Import them yourself. They might even have a room to offer, but that's gotta be even more costly."

"Importing stuff is going to be expensive, isn't it?" Colin sighed.

"At a spaceport, yeah, but Canary Imports is on-the-spot get-it-right-now. It's gonna be way expensive."

He was right. Canary Imports offered goods from the Higher Plane. They weren't the manufacturers or anything; they were middle-men and they had both a fixed service rate AND a percentage commission on top of that. Not to mention customs tax and gate-in fees.

"It's going to cost me one thousand Clira just to Import a basic extendable staff like the one I used." Colin shook his head. "I may as well make it two thousand for a good modular silksteel tripartite staff."

"Or you can borrow my shovel." George mentioned.

Colin jumped. "George? You're here!"

George the Gardener grinned. Earthy and warm even in this cold land, he gave Colin a big smile and said, "Hullo, Colin. I see you haven't run out of Bruth yet."

"Nice to see you too. What brings you here?"

"I need a Cruncher Drill. They don't make those here on Nakama World. It'll make dungeons too easy." George mentioned. "But I have a license from the Interstellar Gardening Association to use it for myself, so long as it doesn't cause trouble."

"Wow… I didn't know you could Import stuff like that." Colin marveled.

"Importing stuff from the Higher Plane is very complicated. Just getting a license is a headache." George said. "I see you've got a limited license for Adventura Import Links. J-Knight benefit?"

"Yeah." Colin nodded.

"Well, I've got a shovel from Adventura. You can use it as a weapon if you want. It's kinda useful for defense too, and it packs quite a punch if you swing it right."

"Thanks, George, but I kind of got stuck on the idea of that tripartite staff. I like something lighter."

"Suit yourself." George shrugged. He turned to Alicia. "What about you, missy? You're the J-Knight who isn't hunting us down, aren't you?"

"Hunting you…?" Alicia was blur. She didn't seem to recognize him from before. {But then, last time, we were in full scale battle. She was too busy trying to kill me to pay attention to him.}

"George, meet Alicia." Colin introduced them formally. "Alicia, meet the Gardener."

Alicia jumped. She dropped the catalogue, let out a squeak, and landed off-balance, nearly tripping over her own feet. George caught her with a hand on her back. "Steady, girl, steady. Take it easy. Alicia, eh? You're the one who's been killing Colin all night?"

"It was my idea." Colin told him. "We're Traveling together. Long story."

"Ah. Well then." George straightened. "If there's anything you need…"

"Just a Home Base." Alicia said, with a sigh. Somewhere between 'Take it easy' and 'Well then', she'd somehow gotten comfortable talking to the Gardener.

"Oh." George thought about that. "What about Burrow Hollow? We had a little cave there, not enough room for all of us, but it should still be there and nobody's using it as far as I know."

"Really? I can use that?" Alicia stared.

"Yeah. It's technically mine, but send me the request once you arrive, and I'll approve it." George said, tapping his watch. He flicked a datastream out from his to Alicia's. "Here. That nav point should lead you right to it."

"Thanks, George!" Alicia beamed. "You're a lifesaver."

"Well…" George looked faintly embarassed. "Um… take care, all right? Try not to kill Colin too much. We wouldn't want his Comrades to go Frenzied on us, and he's not all that bad, really. He's just a bit blur, sometimes."

"I'll keep that in mind." Alicia said, with twitching lips.

"Well." George said again. "Well, well, well."

"Well." Alicia said, as if in agreement.

"Anything else I can do for you?" he asked then.

Alicia grinned. "What about a shovel?"

***

"You really took advantage of him, didn't you?" Colin mentioned as Kirin flew them south along the beacon trail to Burrow Hollow.

"He was nice enough to offer. I thought it rude to refuse." Alicia said blandly. "Besides, you didn't want the shovel and nobody's using the cave."

"I would have thought you'd buy some super-fancy sword now that you've got all that money from killing me."

Alicia paused. "I… I don't like the idea of spending so much on toys."

"Toys…?" Colin remembered what Alicia said about Nakama World being a children's playland. "But we can use Import Links in other Dreamworlds too. Remember Gardens Dreamworld? That staff practically saved us both."

"True." Alicia conceded. "But think about it. What could two thousand Clira buy you… in the real world?"

Colin found himself speechless. {If I had gone to that clothes shop in Gardens World… they'd send me those clothes in the real world. How much would last night's clothes cost in the real world? Just mine alone… a hundred real-life Clira? That's a few days worth of eating out in real life.}

Wait. His clothes had cost five thousand. That means… "If the exchange rate is fifty to one… then twenty thousand Clira…"

"Yes. I'm getting four hundred Clira worth of real-life money every time I kill you." Alicia told him, straight out. "If I get the rest of your bounty and find a way to transfer it over somehow, I could pay my own way through a semester of college."

Suddenly, it didn't seem like just playing any more. Colin started thinking about all the thousands he'd spent, hundreds of thousands that passed through his hands…

Translating that to real life money meant he'd handled thousands of Clira. If he had stayed the rest of the week as the Forester of Lamico, ten percent of that week's income would have been his.

Colin was dumbfounded. {How did I ever land a job like that in my sleep?!}

That led to other questions. {Just how much damage did I DO to everybody at Lamico?! Whole businesses… whole towns and cities destroyed… how much did I cost the Union? The Republic? The Protectorate?}

Enough, obviously, that they'd come together and put a price on his head between them so high, Alicia could use the total for a semester's worth of whatever college she had in mind. {Mercy, what have I DONE…?!}

And then he looked at all the groups of people flying south to see the Tournament. Thought about what the Tournament itself meant.

{The title of the Mountain Prince. I don't know if it's the equal of the Mountain Princess or just her champion or something, but it's definitely more important than that of a Mountaineer or Forester. How much would a guy like that earn? How much would that translate to in real-life?}

Actually forget the title. The point was, the Tournament really was a big event, and people were going to be very, very serious about winning it.

When you put them together… joining it could be tons of fun and profit.

"You know…" Colin said slowly. "If the Tournament is an Open one and just anybody could join… maybe I too…"

"I knew it." Alicia smirked. "You're greedy."

"Shut up." Colin said and stalked off crossly.

They found George's Cave easily enough. That nav point he gave Alicia pointed them right to it. The place was overrun with greenery, and not just moss and fungi. Somehow, the Gardener had filled the cave with flowering creepers and some sort of thin bamboo.

"Home Base set." Alicia said minutes after they reached it. "Next time I get killed, we respawn here."

"Hey… is this place really unused?" Colin wondered. "I'm seeing tracks and traces here. It's like someone camped here just hours ago."

Alicia came over to take a look. "Just one person, judging from the footprints. Someone my size. Small shoes. Probably a girl." She picked up a wisp of hair, curled it in on itself, and inspected it. "Red."

"May." Colin figured. "Why is she here, though? Is she headed for the Tournament too?" Colin wondered. "Is she taking part?"

Alicia snorted. "The Tournament is for {boys}. Maybe she's just going there to cheer somebody on. Or to watch."

They were lagging behind the crowd, Colin noted. Most of the people going to Skycrown were far ahead of them, he could see several groups up ahead, and several tiny figures that just might be groups of Travelers even farther south, but none lagging as far back as themselves.

"We're going to be late." He pointed out gloomily.

"If you wanted to go to the Tournament, we should have started out earlier." Alicia said. "But I wouldn't worry too much if I were you. Something tells me this Tournament isn't going to end any time soon. Even if you're too late to take part, it's still going to be worth watching."

That didn't make him feel any better. Alicia's Dirge, though, did. The Muninn had some kind of wind technique that, when used on Kirin, actually made her fly faster.

"It's called Tailwind." Alicia explained. "It works for the whole squad. It even works on the flying squirrels."

Kirin herself was a Storm Swan; though young, her flying abilities were nowhere near meagre. Between her inborn talents and Dirge's boost, they were catching up to the crowd at a rapid pace.

"Are you all right?" Colin asked, when their speeds were starting to make him feel slightly tense.

"Yeah." Alicia said. "I'm fine."

"Not feeling queasy or anything? At these speeds?" Colin asked.

"No problem." Alicia said. "It's actually kinda fun to be flying on a bird for once. I should get a big one too."

"I'm not sure it'll fit your theme." Colin mentioned. "I mean, Storm Swans nest in the trees, but take to the water. She's going to grow really, really big. Most trees wouldn't be able to manage something of her size."

"Then I'll get something smaller, but big enough for me and my squirrels to ride." Alicia shrugged. "I don't need something as big as a Storm Swan."

"You want a Shadow Hawk." Colin guessed. "A full grown one should be as big as a car."

"Katrin had one, didn't she?" Alicia remembered. "Whatever happened to it? Wasn't she supposed to give them up or something?"

"It's probably Desolate and confiscated." Colin lowered his head, his good mood lost.

"Where can I find it?" Alicia questioned. "Wait. I know. It's at Hot Springs, isn't it? Or the J-Knight Outpost there. I wonder if they'll let me have it."

"Seriously?" Colin grimaced. "I think it's best if she wins him back herself. If you want your own Shadow Hawk, I can ask…" he froze.

"Ask who?" Alicia blinked.

Colin gulped. {I nearly told Alicia about the Lords of the Wilds. Blast it, I have to be more careful than this! I can't go blurting secrets out to everyone I travel with!}

"A friend of mine." Colin said evasively.

Alicia noted his discomfort and smirked, but she didn't push. Obviously, she wanted that Shadow Hawk enough not to press the issue.

Kirin was barely moving her wings now, yet Colin could feel them going faster and faster. "Hey, Alicia… just what does this 'Tailwind' technique do, anyway?"

"Well…" Alicia thought about it. "At first I thought it just doubled the speed of a Comrade with Feathered Flight, but when I tested it on different Comrades, the results kept changing. The more I tested it, the less sense any of it made. I've never seen results like this, though. I think… maybe…"

"What are you talking about?" Colin asked.

"Well, if my Traveler Watch is correct," Alicia glanced at it. "We're going faster than an airplane right now."

Colin, for some reason, had absolutely no trouble believing that. Kirin's speeds had risen to the point where he was beginning to freak out. "Kirin! Hie, are you in pain?!"

"Krr." Kirin didn't sound like she was in pain. She actually sounded like she was enjoying this.

Alicia's point was proven when they overtook a small, stubby airplane and then a formation of flying Comrades.

"Alicia? Is it just me or are we still accelerating?!" Colin gasped. "It's like the farther we get, the faster we go…"

"About that… I think… maybe…" Alicia trailed off dubiously. "No. It's the only explanation that makes sense."

"What explanation? What's happening to Kirin?!"

"Kirin? No, no, it's got nothing to do with a bird's weight or class, or wingspan… or even her tail…" Alicia said, thoughtfully. "In fact… I think it's everything but."

"What are you talking about?!"

"It's not about the bird!" Alicia exclaimed. "It's about the {route}! And everything else before! Oh wait. That can't be right. Windspeed doesn't matter. I've already confirmed it. In fact, the only unique factor about this route is…"

"What are you saying?" Colin demanded.

"It's all about {other} birds! Or other flyers!" Alicia's eyes widened. "In other words… the more flyers passed this way before us, the stronger the Tailwind technique becomes!"

Colin sneaked a glance at the crowds of flying Travelers all around them, some on machines, some on Comrades, one of them even on a jetpack. He glanced at the rapidly nearing Skycrown Mountain, flooded with Travelers all going to the Tournament site. He gulped. "How fast are we going?!"

"My Watch says Mach 2.03." Alicia showed him. "That's more than twice the speed of sound." (Note: That's almost the speed of the concorde)

"Then how is it we can still hear each other?!"

"How would {I} know?"

Colin glanced behind and found the group of Travelers they passed getting knocked completely off course. Several of them were knocked clean out of the sky. {Great. We left them a sonic boom when we passed…}

"Kirin! Kirin, take it easy!" Colin yelped as they passed another two groups of Travelers and left them in total disarray.

"Kirr?" Kirin blinked.

{She IS taking it easy!} Colin gulped. {There was just THAT many people who came this way recently.} "Um… slow down! We can't go around causing havoc like this!"

"Krr…?" Kirin sounded disappointed. This wasn't really as fast as her mother usually flew.

But then, Colin realized, Shinji and Rain would be flying higher, going over these groups, not blasting through them.

"Up! Let's go higher!" Colin directed.

Kirin swooped for the sky, leaving Colin's stomach behind. {Okay, this is DEFINITELY the flight of a Storm Swan…}

Shadows flickered overhead. Colin glanced up and saw Shinji with Rain and four other gigantic Storm Swans shooting past them. He pointed them out to Kirin. "Follow your mom!"

"KIRR!" Kirin obliged joyfully, chasing after her mom.

These heights should be safe enough for supersonic flight. Colin thought. If Shinji and Rain and all of them could do it safely, we should be able to as well.

Then again, Kirin was not just following her mom, she was actually catching up to Rain. "Uh…"

Shinji turned and saw them coming. He stared. "Colin! What the-?!"

Colin, Alicia, and Kirin caught up in a minute. "Shinji! Please don't kill me!"

"I can't! Tournament rules! No fighting each other while we're headed for Skycrown! Not until an hour after the Tournament ends!" Shinji called back. "Looking good there, Kirin! I never thought you'd get this fast this young!"

"It's the Tailwind Technique." Colin explained.

"Ah. She's learned it already?" Shinji was impressed. "You've really trained your Wind techniques, huh?"

"It's my Comrade's." Alicia said.

"Alicia! You're traveling with Colin? Not killing him for the fourth time tonight?"

"No, we don't want his Comrades to go Frenzied on us." Alicia said.

"Of course, of course. Quite right." Shinji agreed. "Well, stick with him and kill him some more tomorrow! Don't let him get away!"

"He's not getting away from me." Alicia said, with a shark's grin. Colin winced. She sounded absolutely confident and he knew full well she had reason to be.

Oddly enough that seemed to satisfy Shinji. All he said was, "Colin slow down! You're going to crash into the mountain at this rate!"

The mountain, to be sure, was getting close now - or at least it looked like it. Skycrown towered over Colin, even at this height. The glaciers gleamed in the distance, faint specks of rainbow colors only now beginning to show. He was three times higher than those cliffs, he guessed, which really weren't even a tenth as high as the mountain itself.

"We should go higher…" Colin suggested.

"No way!" Shinji jumped. "Why did you think I'm flying this low? The winds around it are way too strong! If it's just Rain and I, we could make it as high as Icewind, but with these passengers, Icegard Outpost is as high as I'd dare to fly."

Colin gulped. "How high is Icegard Outpost?"

"As high as we are." Shinji tapped his watch and flicked a datastream to Colin. Colin opened it and found a map.

.

Map image:

https://imgur.com/sLbQQyU

.

"Yikes." Colin gulped.

"That's not even halfway up. We're going to have to climb the rest of the way up to the peak, aren't we?" Alicia guessed. She sagged. "Isn't there an easier way up?"

"We don't need to actually climb all of it." Shinji told her. "We can fly, but we'd have to stick close to the mountain for cover against the wind until we reach Icewind Outpost."

"What happens at Icewind?" Alicia wanted to know.

"That's when we have to get off the birds."

***

Landing on Skycrown Mountain felt like the world had just turned vertical. As if the very ground that was supposed to be underfoot had somehow flipped up and now he was walking perpendicular to it. The mountain was just so big, it seemed to dwarf even the ground and not even gravity could fully convince Colin that he was still right side up rather than walking on a wall.

"I'm going to give my passengers a moment to stretch their legs, and then we're going to skim the trail up to Icewind." Shinji told Colin and Alicia. "You want to come with us, or go on ahead?"

Colin exchanged glances with Alicia. She narrowed her eyes at him. He gulped. "We'll tag along. We don't know this mountain. You do."

It wasn't really necessary. With so many people going up the trail, getting lost was near-impossible. The winds here were strong, but there was no fog, rain or snow. The ground might have gotten sludgy with snow, but Kirin wasn't actually on the ground or anything; she was hovering a foot or so above it, still quite capable of shooting off along the trail at Tailwind-boosted speeds.

But something about the look Alicia gave him said that she didn't want to dash up the mountain just yet. "Kirin, let us down for a bit."

His hunch proved right. Alicia scurried off without a word the moment Kirin's feet touched snow. Colin was left staring at her back and scratching his head. {Wonder where she's going? It's not like we need toilet breaks in our sleep.}

Meanwhile, Colin supposed he may as well have a look around.

It was a quaint place, as outpost sites went. Little more than a single inn that doubled as a supply center. It had perimeter defenses and a low wall, which made Colin wonder whether the Wilds here would really attack a human camp out in the open. Satrox and Sora's conversation earlier seemed to imply as much.

"Sonic emitters." Colin observed the towers evenly spaced along the five foot walls. "More for deterrent than destruction. But they're not that far apart from each other. Do they really need several towers' concentrated sonics to keep the local Wilds off?"

And then he paused and wondered about how and why he was thinking like that.

Most visitors here would be enjoying the view, he thought. And it was a remarkable one. An endless stretch of pure white, broken by rainbow colors below and the Mountain's own Wilds around, several of which flew, but most crept or climbed or hopped. Colin thought that little patch of color there in the distance just might be Burrow Hollow. And those little shapes on the other side could be the Forbidden Mountains, where Crystal Cove lay.

No forests. At least, not as far as his eyes could see.

Colin felt a tad sad about that, and a feeling like a wave of clear, cold air. Like the crispness of a dry morning. It was invigorating. {But it kinda bites at the same time.}

"I'm facing the wrong way." Colin realized. He spun around and looked at the mountain. Now {that} was a truly magnificent view.

Majestic cliffs. Soaring spires and dark, noble stone both smooth and jagged. The rare, brave plant that dared the utter heights. Veils of water gliding almost like mist down the mountainside. Tall, proud Rockatauri minotaur golems. Determined, tight-gripped Burrlizards. Cunning, sharp-eyed Pterodactons. The mountain itself.

It had the feel of a timeless fortitude, a sense of ancient wisdom that had been through it all and witnessed the world as it passed by. Though hundreds of blizzards had come and gone, the mountain remained, king of its kind, the crown of this world that reached into the skies.

Colin deeply admired this place. This mountain. This timeless throne of authority over all mountains, over all the highlands and the very lands of this Dreamworld.

There were trees here. There were streams and waterfalls. But this was, without a doubt, the center of the Mountain Princess' power.

"It's a grand place, isn't it?" Colin mentioned to a passing Pterodacton. The oversized flying reptile paused, regarded him solemnly and promptly crashed right into the cliff face.

A soft nudge made him turn. Kirin eyed him curiously.

"Just look at it." Colin mentioned. "Isn't it grand… and majestic?"

"Kirr." She fluffed her feathers. Then, she eyed the misty veils of water drifting down the mountain, half-cloud, half-stream. She took a half-step towards them, then turned and glanced askance at Colin.

"Why not?" Colin shrugged. "Let's go check them out." He tapped his watch. "Raiki."

Raiki warped in, pawed him in greeting, and looked around. "Mew?"

"We're going to check out that misty waterfall thing." Colin told her. "We need someone to watch our backs."

"Mrew." Raiki sighed. She wanted to check the mist-falls out too.

"Right…" Colin mused. He tapped his badge again. "Sonia. Foxie."

In warped his Sonic Wolf and Whitestreak Fox. They greeted him with wagging tails.

"We're gonna check out the mist-falls." Colin pointed. "But the Wilds here are fierce. Help us keep an eye out, will you?"

Foxie barked a laugh. Sonia just let out a short whuff.

It had been a while, Colin reflected, since he last traveled with just his Comrades. There was always a team or someone else, or something bigger happening right now that he had to watch out for and take care of or else…

{Well, for tonight there's the Tournament and we might still go clear some land at the Uber Marshes. Also there's the issue of Alicia and I respawning together whenever either one of us dies. But I guess that's not that big an issue, as long as neither of us dies often. She still wants the money from killing me… and so long as she's killing me, even Shinji seems okay with me now. It's like they don't actually hate me or anything, they just want to make sure I'm punished, and as long as somebody's doing it, everybody is satisfied. At least Alicia is considerate about how often she kills me. None of us want my Comrades to go Frenzied.}

{Still. I forgot to ask Lynn about it. Oh well. I'll ask next time. Alicia's not all that bad for company. And I owe her too.}

That last bit felt profoundly disturbing. {Wait. Why do I even owe Alicia anything? I've given her half that special leaf Lynn gave me, halving her respawn recovery time. It's something she can use over and over again as long as she has it. Surely that's enough reward. Surely that's enough to clear any debts. So… why? Why do I still feel like I owe her something?}

Another girl came to mind then. Sparkling green eyes, black hair, and a farm where they first earned money in this world. {Katrin. I've never stopped owing her for giving me Raiki and saving me from the… huh?}

Wasn't that the same thing? Alicia saved him from the Green Men too.

{But Katrin gave me Raiki! And Raiki is still here with me… she's priceless… and Katrin gave her up to save me… Alicia just… well…}

Risked herself. Katrin never left the farm, never got stuck in someone else's Inner World, never had to fight hand-to-hand with the Cult of Gaia.

{She's got that leaf half, though. It's still with her and I don't think anyone ever sells something like that. She'll probably have it forever…}

Again, something about that thought felt profoundly disturbing. {And Raiki? Aren't I having her with me forever? I'm certainly not giving her away or selling her.}

Raiki nuzzled Colin in appreciation for the thought. Colin stroked her between the ears. Her whiskers twitched.

{Raiki is far more valuable than that leaf. I think. How valuable is that leaf? But it's only half a leaf, come to think of it. It still works, but the point is… Katrin lost Raiki so I could have her. When I gave Alicia half the leaf, I didn't actually lose anything. It still works just as well the way it is.}

Colin wondered if a quarter leaf would work just as well as half, but decided against testing it. {I'm not risking it. I have a bad feeling about that idea. Halving it and sharing it with just one person is all very well. Cutting it to pieces and letting plenty of people use a little bit just feels… wrong.}

Again, that profoundly disturbing feeling. Colin felt a shiver run up his spine, but not because of the cold.

{Katrin, I'm sorry.} Colin walked to the mist-falls with his Comrades and wondered why he felt so bad. {Lynn, I'm sorry.}

Wait. What? Why would he be apologizing to Lynn? Why would he feel bad about anything he was doing? He'd given her what she wanted… and given Katrin a clear answer… so… why? Why did he have a bad feeling about all this?

"Kirr!" Kirin and Raiki dashed on ahead and started playing hide-and-seek in the mist-falls.

"Auf." Foxie barked a laugh. Sonia barked in agreement.

His Comrades looked like they were enjoying themselves. They were having fun. Whatever his bad feeling was, it wasn't something around here.

"I should call in the others." Colin figured. He hadn't wanted to, because Eclipse might get blown off with the wind if she tried to fly and Cour might not like the cold, but seeing how the others were enjoying themselves, it didn't feel right to leave them out. {And what of Shiro?}

He sensed out for his First Comrade. Shiro, Colin realized, was remarkably close. But busy. Still very busy. {I better not bother him.}

"Eclipse. Cour." Colin said as he tapped his badge. They warped in and looked around a bit and saw their friends all having fun with the mist-falls. "Are you two all right here? It's not too cold is it? Wind too strong?"

Eclipse took to the air. Colin had a pang of worry for a bit, but then saw her navigating the winds skillfully and easily. She actually liked the strong winds. Cour didn't seem all that comfortable with all that snow and mist, but he set up a ring of fire and was content to sit there beside Colin as they watched the others play.

And then the others disappeared.

"Huh?" Colin blinked. "Where did everyone go?"

Cour exchanged wide eyed glances with him. The others were popping in and out of the mists one minute and then suddenly stopped appearing. Colin and Cour dashed forward, fire carving them a path through the mist, just in case there was some sort of sudden drop that the others had all tumbled down.

But there wasn't. Colin and Cour scoured the walls, the trail that led through the falls…

"Raou." Cour peered at a particularly thick strand of mist-fall, at the corner of the mountainside. He threw more fire into it. "Riaou!"

"What-?" Colin frowned. Cour was throwing a lot of fire into those mists, but all of it seemed to just… disappear. Colin poked at it with his new staff.

It went right through. All the way to half its length.

Colin gulped. {There's an opening. I thought it was just mountainside, but there's an opening right there. It must be… a secret passage!}

Cautiously, he and Cour poked their way in with fire and staff.

They got through the mists in five steps. Colin found himself in a cavern of white quartz and plenty of light reflected around him. This secret passage was quite well lit.

And there were the others, running around the cavern, scampering about it excitedly, still playing tag with each other. Colin nearly did a facepalm in exasperation. They didn't seem to have a clue how worried he'd just been. {It must be Foxie's influence. The others are always more playful when she's around.}

Foxie herself was barking farther up ahead. Colin saw her and realized that the secret passage didn't end in this cavern. It only began here. There was more to explore.

"Well… why not?" Colin mused. "I don't actually have to go around with Alicia all night. It would be like old times, just me and my Comrades."

They headed in.