She did as he told her but she was reluctant to climb over the edge as swiftly as he had. “I don’t think I can. I’m just going to find another way down.”
“This is the smallest part of the cliff, Sen Asel. You’ll be going the opposite direction from the garrison for a while if you do,” he assured her. She could almost hear the smirk in his voice.
“I’m going to fall and break my ankle,” Brisethi whined. She never realized she had a fear of heights. Maybe it was the ice and snow that terrified her, or the darkness. Or the combination of all of them. She went to her knees to peer over the edge once more. Although she was only about ten feet high, it felt like twenty feet in the dark.
“I won’t let you fall, you won’t break anything. You’re useless to me if you hurt yourself. Like a horse. I’d have to put you down,” he teased.
Too terrified to retort, she slowly got down onto her belly and crawled backwards to dangle a leg over the edge. Her foot found a hold, and she lowered herself onto it. The edge was slippery where she held her body weight up. She began to panic, keeping herself pressed tightly against the cliff’s walls.
“Just relax, take deep breaths,” Vorsen called to her. “Lower yourself down slowly to the next foothold.” He kept his voice calm to ease her fears.
Brisethi grunted as she used the strength of her arms to lower herself down. She found another foothold, but it wasn’t level enough to allow her to let go of the ledge. She slightly turned her head down to look at Vorsen. “I can’t reach, I don’t remember climbing this!”
“You’re doing fine, just maneuver a little to the left, there’s a small ledge to put your foot on,” he realized it had been easier for him because he was slightly taller than her.
As she attempted to shift to the left, she lost her grip from the slippery ledge and felt herself falling back. She imagined falling on her neck to her death as she let out a startled scream. This is how it ends, she thought.
Vorsen quickly braced for the impact of catching her as he fell backwards when she landed on him.
“Shit, are you alright?” Brisethi asked. She jumped to her feet and helped Vorsen up before checking herself for injuries. There were none.
“Just the wind knocked out of me. Catching you was like catching a bear falling out of a tree,” he joked. He picked up their packs and led the way back to base.
“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked.
He smiled, “You’re clumsy and oddly heavy.”
“Maybe you’re just weak,” she replied.
“Well I don’t typically lift bears,” he teased.
Later that evening, before the division could enjoy meal time, they were formed up with their combat partners for the usual round of spar training. Fighting in heavy, wool and fur armor was extremely difficult for the recruits, but the snow cushioned the falls.
“Mind if I ask you something?” Vorsen faced his combat partner.
“Sure?” Brisethi didn’t know what to make of his sudden desire to converse.
“It’s about what happened that night of the attack – I don’t mean to bring it up, but I’ve often wondered about your destructive powers. Was it an accident that you were summoning that much devastation all at once? Have you done that before?” He dodged her fist as they practiced the hand-to-hand combat they were training to perfect.
She remained in her attack stance to think before answering. She knew most of the division viewed her as either a monster or a savior since that night, but she wasn’t sure what Vorsen thought, nor was she keen to find out. “I have caused Mt. Bavala to erupt. Though that was an accident, because I didn’t know I had that power.”
“How do you know you caused it to erupt? It happens often enough to be a coincidence.” It was his turn to attack. He quickly attempted to pummel her but she was quicker to deflect.
“Because,” she said, giving him another couple of swings, “as quickly as I had summoned it, I was able to stop it. And then I did it again a few minutes later to confirm my suspicions. Then I did it to another, smaller mountain for a shorter amount of time. I can do much more than spark a few flames, Vorsen.” She didn’t mean for her voice to sound as callous as it came out.
“That was the first time you’ve ever taken someone’s life, though, right?” He blocked a kick from her then tripped her.
She leveraged the weight of her legs to hoist herself up from her back to stand up faster, a move incredibly difficult in snow. “You think me some sort of contract killer?”
He laughed and braced for her attack. “Well, you are more aggressive than most people I’ve known in our short life thus far, just like a bear. Sergeant Bearsethi Sen Asel,” he chuckled.
She was certain it was the first time she heard the man laugh since meeting him at the citadel a year and a half ago. She tried to hide her smile.
Chapter IX
The recruits were ordered to pack their warmest layers and bedrolls the night before. Sergeant First Class Vilkinsen planned to lead the recruits on a two-day hike to the northernmost mountains for the first official day of winter. They would experience the shortest day of the year near the north volcano, Mt. Bavala.
The recruits began the hike before dawn. Light of day had barely brightened the snow clouds when the division reached their first lethal ascension up an icy cliff. It was a wall mixed with jagged rock and ice ascending sixty feet above to the next trail.
“This is the day I fall to my death,” Brisethi dramatically declared staring up at the mountain above.
“Nah, there’s plenty of snow to cushion your fall,” Korteni cheerily replied.
“This snow is packed solid – it never melts,” Ibrienne added, trying to force her boot through the hard snow.
Sergeant Vilkinsen demonstrated to the division how to operate their climbing gear. He strapped ropes and clasps to himself along with Sergeant Sen Asel, Sergeant Crommik and Sergeant Vorsen. Hooked together by the ropes, they would be the first four to scale the intimidating rock face.
“Once we reach the top, we’ll come back down. Then each of us will guide ten of you at a time,” Vilkinsen told the division.
Vilkinsen found his footing first, followed by Crommik. Sen Asel was next to follow their guidance while Vorsen closed in the rear. Although Vilkinsen had climbed this same rock nearly a hundred times, he paced himself to allow the first-time recruits to adapt to pulling up their own weight.
“You’re not going to fall on me again are you-“
“Probably!” Brisethi abruptly and nervously shouted, cutting off Vorsen’s cynicism.
The thin air of the peaks made it difficult for everyone to breathe. They had to fight through the light-headedness if they were to make it to the top. The weight on their backs from the gear added extra difficulty to their climb. Sergeant Vilkinsen’s voice echoed through the air, shouting words of encouragement that they were almost there, while adding insults of how disappointed he was for them taking so long.
Brisethi felt her rope tug after taking too long of a rest in a somewhat comfortable position. She looked up at Crommik who was now halted and signaled up to Vilkinsen. The Sergeant First Class took the opportunity to pound in an anchor lest someone lose their footing. A chunk of ice that Sen Asel grasped at, came loose and fell below.
“Could you, uh, calm the fuck down there, Sen Asel?” Vilkinsen lightheartedly shouted. “Take deep breaths through your nose.”
She peered up and couldn’t see him on his own ledge. She looked down and instantly regretted it. Panic set in when she realized how far they had already climbed. She took deep breaths through her runny nose as instructed, closing her eyes to erase the image of the tiny dots below her that she knew to be the recruits.
Vorsen patiently kept his eyes on her, praying to the spirits she wouldn’t lose her courage and take them down with her. His own heart started to pound, not only from the lack of oxygen, but also from seeing his combat partner above him starting to tremble. He wasn’t in the best
position to rest easily, mostly holding himself with his fingers and toes. He started to worry that he would be the one to lose his strength and take them all down.
“Sen Asel, please,” he whispered, closing his eyes. He wasn’t looking forward to doing this again with the rest of the recruits, although he finally realized why they had spent the last two months out here training their upper bodies. It was no easy task to pull their own body weight up, let alone on the icy ledge. He found it silly at first, that they had spent two days a week climbing trees and the same sheer cliff near the garrison he had helped Sen Asel on. He never imagined having to climb anything taller than that twelve foot ledge.
He felt the rope tug and thanked the spirits that Sen Asel had finally moved on. It was now his turn to take a short break where she once rested.
“No way, Vorsen, you don’t need a rest, you’re my strongest recruit,” Vilkinsen shouted down.
“I didn’t realize that I’ve been busting my ass to achieve this magnificent form of mine to not be the strongest recruit!” Crommik corrected him.
“You’re my second strongest recruit, Vorsen,” he corrected.
Vorsen remained leaning against the cliff and glanced up, seeing only Sen Asel. She was glancing back down at him, holding herself up wearily. He could see the despair on her face as he reluctantly held her back from climbing onto the ledge she nearly dangled from. He finally regained his strength and signaled to her that she could move on.
After what felt like an eternity, the four finally reached the top of the cliff. Brisethi wearily sat on the ground, putting her head on her knees. When she recovered, she joined Crommick and Vorsen at the cliff’s edge, bracing for the gusts of cold mountain wind. Above the treeline, they could see plumes of smoke rising from Mt. Bavala and merging into the leaden sky. Although the snow-covered volcano was visible from Res’Baveth, the recruits had never seen the west face. The peak that towered over it yielded the perfect view. Their treacherous hike would eventually take them around to the southern face where even Res’Baveth could be seen.
Sergeant Vilkinsen hammered multiple pulleys and anchors for them to repel down. He put in a couple more for additional safety lining. “Drink water, snack on rations and head back down when you’re ready,” he ordered.
Brisethi felt safer going down the cliff than climbing up thanks to the support of the pulleys and anchors. Getting ready to repel down was just as terrifying as the smaller cliff had been, but she was reassured by the equipment. After the first jump, she found it to be much easier, even fun.
Brisethi placed her feet in the solid iced-over snow below. The other girls flocked to her side.
“How many times did you slip?” Korteni asked, beginning to help Brisethi out of her harness.
“Is it really that hard to breathe up there?” Ibrienne asked, quickly examining Brisethi for cuts and bruises.
“Is there more mountain climbing after this?” Sulica added.
“It’s actually not that bad,” Brisethi replied. “But my group’s going last in case Ibrienne needs to heal or revive anyone that falls. And you three are in my group.” She looked at her list that Vilkinsen had prepared for the sergeants and darted off to find the other six who would be climbing with her.
Since the strange disappearance of Chief Renast and his scouts, Ibrienne Sestas had been promoted to Corporal and given the title of the division’s official healer. Ibrienne took her new responsibility very seriously. She felt as though the well-being of the recruits was her burden to bear, much like when the younger kids at the orphanage had been left in her care, though she said this to no one.
The recruits were soon sorted into their assigned groups. Sergeant First Class Vilkinsen had set out enough anchors to allow Sergeant Crommick and Sergeant Vorsen to lead their groups simultaneously. He had directed them to begin scouting ahead once they reached the top and had sufficiently recovered. He gave the Sergeants a smaller area to scout than was standard, not wanting to risk losing any more recruits. His own group, slightly larger than the other three, would scale the wall solo to keep Ibrienne in reserve.
When it came time for her group to finally approach the wall, Brisethi focused on everyone else’s safety, which took her mind off of the formidable ascension. In her experience thus far, she had learned that the more confident she appeared, the more willing others were to trust her. Having an extra rope tied to her from the anchor above also helped to boost her confidence.
They were about halfway up the cliff when Brisethi suddenly felt a sharp pull on her harness, causing her to grunt and nearly lose her balance. A few screams shortly followed after.
Someone had lost their footing.
She grabbed the anchor spike tightly, praying to the spirits that the rock, or her hands, wouldn’t give way from the added weight. Her feet were planted onto the small ledge as she tried to distribute the additional body weight using the extra line she was attached to.
“Korteni!” she shouted, trying to angle her head to look over her shoulder.
“I got her!” Corporal Jymi Wylis called up. He was next in line after her. Holding onto a wedge of cliff, he used his other hand to grab Korteni’s arm and pull her close to him.
Brisethi had to wait for her pounding heart and trembling body to calm before continuing. It was the worst feeling when the image of her parents receiving a folded Dominion flag flashed before her eyes. “She fell off of a mountain, her head was split open on impact,” was what she imagined the officer telling her mother.
The rest of the climb was uneventful and passed fairly quickly. When they finally reached the top, they were greeted by the rest of the division at the ledge, helping them get onto the top of the cliff.
“My arms are like noodles,” Brisethi whined, dramatically lying on her stomach, face in the snow. “I have a craving for noodles,” she whispered to herself.
“Ah, it wasn’t that bad,” Korteni teased, starting to remove the gear she wore.
“You almost got us all killed!” Sulica shouted, her blond hair frizzing, giving her the appearance of a crazed woman.
Korteni shrank back from Sulica’s dark stare and harsh words.
Sergeant First Class Vilkinsen chuckled to himself at the quarrelsome women, unclasping the ropes from Brisethi’s limp body. “Don’t mind me, I’m just trying to hurry this along,” he told her. He lifted her by her harness to turn her over and unbuckled the belts, letting her fall back to the snowy ground. He would allow her and the other two sergeants a short rest for their added strenuous climb.
“Between you and Sestas, it’s a wonder we ever made it to the top at all,” Sulica was saying to Korteni.
“I definitely was not the one slowing us down!” shouted Ibrienne.
“Please, Ibrienne, the only thing you never slow down for is mealtime,” Sulica retorted, trying to perform damage control on her hair after Crommick had helped her from the harness.
“Shut up, all of you,” Vilkinsen finally snapped. His tolerance of their volleyed insults gave way. As far as he was concerned, that was his job. “Form up, dummies!” he ordered everyone else.
Korteni held out her hand to help Brisethi out of the snow. “Sorry I slipped,” she said. Her heart was still beating fast from her close call and the exchange with Sulica.
Brisethi simply gave her a quick hug. “I’m just glad we all survived.”
The recruits shuffled into two lines, side by side, for the initial path that Vilkinsen would guide them along. Apparently the scouting report had come back clear. He sent Vorsen and Sen Asel to the back of the formation to ensure no one fell out.
Vorsen couldn’t help but stifle a laugh at the sight of Sen Asel hastily eating more rations while they marched. “Are you preparing to hibernate?”
“Stop with the bear comments!” she shouted through a mouthful of dried fruit and nuts.
“It’s not an insult, bears are kind of intriguing,” he lightheartedly teased.
“Will they still be intrigu
ing if they bite your head off?” she growled.
“Wait, are we talking about actual bears or Sergeant Bearsethi Sen Asel?” he countered, holding his hand out for her to give him some of her rations.
She stared at his hand, contemplating on whether she was going to eat the rest or not. “Did Sergeant Crommick put this Bearsethi idea in your head? You don’t strike me as witty enough to come up with it on your own.” She finally poured some of the mix into his hand.
“Crommick teases because it’s the only way he knows how to get a girl. I tease because you haven’t been much of a conversation starter,” he said with a smirk.
“That’s not entirely true,” she softly replied, no longer interested in the conversation.
Etyne was slowly starting to realize that Sen Asel wasn’t quite the same as the other girls he’d known in the past few years. He was accustomed to chatty girls that never left him alone, always asking him for help lifting or reaching items for them; finding any reason to converse with him. Resarian women were spellbound by the uniqueness of his Kiaran eyes. The night Brisethi had asked their Sergeant First Class to make Etyne her permanent partner, he assumed it was for the same reason most girls wanted to be close to him. You genuinely wanted to better yourself, he thought, smiling sideways at her. By the end of our expedition, I will ensure that you’re better than all of us, he stated in his head with finality.
The rest of the division had fallen silent soon after. Weary from their first cliff climb, many of the recruits simply marched listlessly forward. To take her mind off the familiar soreness settling over her body, Korteni’s eyes wandered around, taking in the beautiful snow all around. Icicles hung from tree branches, glistening in the dwindling sunlight. She marched automatically, lost in the serenity of the world around her. So much so, that she nearly ran into Ibrienne in front of her when the columns came to a halt in front of a massive wooden lodge.
Spirits of Falajen Page 8