The Elder's Path

by J. D. Caldwell

  Lyn had always put on a brave face for people. For her mother, for Nana, for the rest of the village. Even for herself in an attempt to believe it. But despite her seemingly impetuous nature, Lyn was accustomed to feeling very deeply indeed, and those feelings often included fear. Fear that she would never amount to enough, fear that she was doomed to a life of complacency and solitude. Fear that she would not meet the expectations of her role. And now, true fear that she was lost, alone, and would perish if she could not soon find shelter and gain her bearings. Her joking remarks and smirk to Alir were a familiar charade on her part to mask these feelings and convince herself she wasn't feeling them. But she was, and Alir knew it. She could not hide from him like she hid from everyone else. Like she tried to hide from herself.

  Alir watched her with a knowing look, and after a moment took to the air. Lyn felt a moment of panic as she lost sight of him, and she frantically searched the sky for a trace of him. Not seeing him, she looked around her and took a moment to regain her composure.

  "I got down here, I can get back up," she breathed to herself. While the trail that she had been following before was meager at best, it was at least some directional guidance. She intended to return to it at once and watch her footing much more carefully from then on. She took her time and carefully laid about to find a route back up the slope she had just come down. From what she could see, the slope was relatively steep and covered in the same ice that had caused her slip in the first place. She doubted very much that she could make her way back up the slippery surface without falling prey to another unintentional slide. She came to the conclusion that she would need to find another way around. She was loathe to do so, however, because the storm was picking up again and visibility was low. The last thing she needed was to lose sight of where she fell and lose her way among the mountain crags. To make matters worse, she seemed to have fallen into a small outcropping of trees, making visibility even lower as she tried to peer through the foliage to find an alternate route.

  Back in the forest, Lyn was accustomed to tracking. But that was in familiar territory, where she could tell what was out of the ordinary. On this unfamiliar ground it was difficult for her to determine signs of irregularity and disturbance, and what signs she might have had anyway were quickly being covered in the snow that was whipping around her. She sighed to herself and racked her brain for an alternative.

  As she was puzzling to herself, she heard the familiar beat of Alir's wings as he alighted on a nearby branch. She looked up at him and met his eyes, and while she could hear no words to the effect, she knew he wanted her to follow. As soon as he realized Lyn was indeed intending to follow, he took off to a tree some distance away and waited for Lyn to catch up. When Lyn reached his new perch, he took wing once more. As Lyn followed her companion through the trees and snow, she realized that he must have been scouting a route for her from the beginning. She smiled to herself and felt warm adoration for him. What would she have done without him?

  It took them some time to find a way out of the small ravine Lyn had slid in to, but Alir guided her faithfully back to the path she had been following before her slip. However, by the time they made it back, darkness was rapidly approaching and the snow continued to fall. Lyn found herself very cold indeed, and was wishing fervently for better insulation. Alir let out a displeased cry every once in a while, indicating they shared the discomfort. The blustering wind clawed at Lyn's eyes, and she found herself blinking away tears. She put her arm in front of her face in an attempt to block the icy onslaught, but it did little to alleviate her discomfort. She cast her gaze about, looking desperately for some shelter.

  Alas, luck was not on their side; no shelter or outcropping seemed to stand against the storm, and snow was piling up at Lyn's feet. Feeling panic grip her once more, Lyn tried to get a hold of herself and consider her options. Alir let out a particular startling cry, jolting Lyn from her reverie. She glared at him and turned back to her thoughts, trying now to think of how she could compile a makeshift shelter. Chewing her lip, she turned and looked back the way Alir and she had come, towards the small ravine and the trees therein.

  Alir squawked again, and Lyn turned back to look at him in frustration. "What?!" she yelled over the wind. But as the outburst left her, she saw what her companion had been calling out for. A shape was manifesting in the storm before her. She could not make it out, but it was large and moving steadily toward her. She took an involuntary step back, feeling her breath catch in her chest. She did not know for sure what it was, but she had a suspicion; while there were some few in the forest in which her people dwelled, she had heard that the mountains were home to many more. Bears.

  Panicking now in full, Lyn checked again about her for any possible hiding spot or refuge. Seeing none, she turned to run and yelled for Alir to do the same. In her haste and panic, she lost her footing on the ever-deeper snow at her feet. Lyn stumbled and with a cry, fell to the ground, receiving a mouthful of snow for her efforts. She scrambled quickly to her feet and cast about again for some better option. Seeing none, she grit her teeth, stood her ground, and put her hand inconspicuously on the haft of the knife that Zhiva had given to her. Squaring her shoulders and raising her chin, she stood as composed as she could be, waiting for whatever the shape was.

  She did not have to wait long, and as the shape took on more tangible form she saw it was not a bear at all, but something far more dangerous; a man. After the desolation of the mountain so far, Lyn had somehow forgotten that there were indeed people here. Seeing another individual startled her and put her off her guard. Forgetting herself for a moment, she drew the knife and cringed, making herself smaller. She may have indeed become acquainted with good company so far, but this was different; she was all alone in the middle of nowhere, in a storm, lost...caught as she was in this train of thought she did not hear the man call out to her the first time. The second time, he bellowed substantially louder.

  "Ho, there!" he called, and waved his arm. Seeing that she was not responding, the man tilted his head curiously and took another step forward. Well within her visual acuity now, Lyn could see why she had mistaken the man for a bear; he stood at least seven feet in height and looked like he weighed as much as any two men she had ever seen. He was also bundled in layers of furs, and his face bore a great beard unlike any she had ever seen. Whereas Yusef had a beard that was long, it was well trimmed and shaped. This man had his beard unkempt and scraggly, as if he hadn't been in front of a mirror to maintain it in a long time. She could not make out any other facial features, with the beard covering half and what appeared to be large goggles covering most of the other half. Lyn stood her ground, not sure what to expect from him, and more than a little disappointed in herself for the creeping feeling of relief that began to nudge at her. She had always been accustomed to doing things relatively on her own, and had no issue with keeping her own company, but that did not seem to stop her from feeling grateful for seeing another person in this desolate place.

  "Hey, there," the man called out again, "What are you doing out here dressed like that? You're going to catch your death of cold." He shrugged off one of his many furs and draped it around her shoulders. To her surprise, she let him. She did not realize how much she had been shivering until he put the warm fur around her. As he did so, the creeping feeling of relief burgeoned full-fledged, and she sighed gratefully for the reprieve. A smile cracked wide in his scraggly beard, and he lifted up his goggles. His face was worn, but the lines around his eyes suggested numerous and hearty smiles. "Much better when you're wearing proper covering, no?" He winked at her and Lyn nodded in return.

  He looked around them and held up his hand. Licking his finger, he put it to the wind and grumbled to himself. "Storm is dying down now, wind is shifting. Should be able to set up for the night and wait it out. You're welcome to join me if you like. Not often I run across other mountaineers this close to the storm belt." He smiled at her again and started off. Lyn followed him, st
rangely unworried about potential recourse. Perhaps it was just the cold. Or maybe the loneliness of the mountain had gotten to her more than she knew. Either way, it was nice to have company.

  Chapter 5

  24th day, 9th lunar cycle, 700th age of Arc

  "The mountains are beautiful in their own right, but cold. Very cold. And isolated. The mist that shrouded them from view without do the same to the rest of the world within. The mountains here are contained in a dome of grey, almost like a completely separate world. While I liked the novel idea of snow before, neither Alir nor myself are accustomed to this brisk weather and the preparation it takes to travel at all in it. On a lighter note, I now have a much warmer cloak to wear, thanks to a mountain man I met just last night. I was so cold and lost that I didn't even think twice about following him or accepting his hospitality. I would never have considered myself a 'wild' person by any means, but I've always felt relatively anti-social and self-sufficient. To immediately trust my safety to someone else, someone I don't even know, has this mountain broken me? Am I to be some meager girl who needs saving and is always waiting for someone to happen by to take care of me? I know it's unfair to say things like that, and I know my strength and reliability. I suppose it just scared me how quickly things are changing, chief among them my own self."

  Morning came much too quickly, it seemed. Lyn and her new friend, whose name she had discovered was Thom, had spent the night in a surprisingly effective lean-to Thom had constructed. They had a small fire and furs for warmth, and Thom was kind enough to share his supplies. Lyn had to confess to being curious why Thom was wandering about the mountain, and how he happened to stumble across her. As it turned out, Thom was a member of a group of men who called themselves the Stone Watchers. Their duty, as illustrated by Thom, was to trek the mountains and watch for stragglers such as herself and any other phenomenon outside the norm. The mountains, Thom had said, were indeed a world apart, and they were the oldest known place in Arc. Before the formation of Arc in the age of magic and war, these very same mountains had been home to a great city supposedly formed by wizards. They enchanted the very sky to shroud the mountains from view so as to hide their home and magic, which is why the mist clung so close to the range. Eyes twinkling, Thom had told her that every once in a long while, the people of the mountain heard whispers in the wind in ancient tongues, and saw shadows and wraiths in the snow. Lyn had peered at him skeptically and he chuckled low in his belly.

  "Fine, fine, don't believe me," he said, "but you wait, young Lyn, and you'll hear the whispers too."

  Despite her disbelief, Lyn found herself wondering at the possibility. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have some experience of the old world to bring back to her people? After all, of the remaining folk in Arc, the Druids were the most closely connected with the old world and the magic therein. Their own great Sage Tree was of the old world, and had been the one to grant them their purpose for as long as her people could remember. To be able to bring such nostalgic knowledge back to the tree would do well by it, Lyn thought. Caught as she was in her thoughts, as was her wont, Lyn did not notice Thom watching her. Mistaking her introspection for nerves, he patted her on the head with a huge gloved hand and assured her that the mountains were safe enough from curses and wraiths.

  "It's the ravines you want to look out for as you climb," he said, stroking his beard. "Many a man has been lost to their depths crossing the snowfall." He explained to her how the snow fell so heavily and quickly that it would cover the ground and mask any sign of the crevasses below. If she wasn't careful, a false step could sink her down any such crag and send her spiraling down.

  "How will I possibly avoid such deception?" Lyn worriedly asked. Luckily for her, Thom was an experienced adventurer indeed and taught her things to watch for, including tricks to testing the snow and ice. He provided her with a long smooth stick with which she could poke the ground before her to make sure there was ground beneath it before she stepped. He also gave her one of his smaller icepicks in anticipation of the slopes she would be making her way up.

  "You are very low on the mountain now," Thom warned, "it will be much worse as you ascend. Watch the weather; you can tell when a blizzard is coming by the wind. If you feel a warm, calm wind coming, the storm is only a few hours out. Soon as you get that calm, finish what you're doing and find shelter. Remember though, as you get higher the storms will be more intense and last longer."

  Lyn sighed and looked up towards the peak. Thom chuckled again and said reassuringly, "Don't worry. The mountains are hard, but there are folk up here who make their way, and they'll help you. Once you get past the storm belt, weather will let up and you'll find some of the people. You're better prepared now, you should be able to make it." He looked sidelong at her and paused. "I'd escort you up, normally, but I have a feeling this is something you are trying to accomplish on your own, no?"

  Lyn smiled and looked to Alir, who called out in response. "Not quite alone, Thom."

  They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. Lyn, now more properly equipped for the mountain climate, felt much more at ease about spending time in it. The same could not necessarily be said for Alir, but he tolerated the trek in as good humor as could be expected. As they continued their journey, the weather began to let up.

  "Well," Lyn said conspiratorially to the great bird, "it would seem a storm is coming. Let's find shelter, shall we?"

  That evening found them in a small cave, the best shelter they had been afforded for the days they had been on the mountain. To their great benefit, their ascent had slowly lead them to a more livened area of the range, where wildlife and forestation were becoming gradually more prevalent. That meant food and firewood. Lyn built a small fire near the mouth of the cave to allow the smoke to leave, lending the small cave light and heat. Lyn laid down her coverings and snuggled down, watching the snow outside the cave. This storm was not nearly as violent as the previous, and the cave was set in enough of a recess that the wind did not cut through the opening. Lyn picked at her travel rations and read through the previous entries in her travel log.

  "The world has opened up so much, so quickly Alir," she said out loud. Her sudden speech startled Alir from his rest, and he blinked at her with a cocked head. "Just looking back on this short period of time...look at what we've experienced so far. And these have been mild, every day minutia for the people we've run in to. What about when something big happens? Something out of the ordinary? I just have this, this feeling of something large looming just on the horizon. We've just barely made our way into the Northern Province, we still have so many more places to go."

  Silence slowly crept back in to their shelter, broken only by the low sound of the wind outside and the licking of the flames. Lyn pondered for a short time, flipping idly through her journal. Shortly, she decided she was upset. She shut her journal with a quick movement of her hand, drawing Alir's startled attention once more.

  "The world is composed of such shades of grey. In the woods things were so simple. So black and white and uncomplicated. But that's not how the rest of the world functions. The real world. I've been sequestered away my whole life in a place that is so departed from reality that it feels like a dream. And the worst part is, it's not just me. It's our entire people. I feel...cheated. I love our way of life but it's unrealistic. What have we been missing? The entire world has kept moving forward without us, and we slowly wither away and disappear. We haven't been preserving our ways by keeping apart from the world, we've been slowly dying, and worse, willfully so. I think I finally see, Alir. I think I finally understand why I was chosen, and exactly what I was chosen for. This is about the preservation of everything I've ever known, and reintegration in to the world. Because I think if I don't, no one ever will. I think I am the last hope of my people. And I think I'd better start taking this seriously."

  The next morning, Lyn made quite a show of starting her Druid duties in earnest. Alir, clearly bored, sat through her tirade
of their responsibilities, how she had been shirking them before, about how unfair it was for even one more generation to go without the experience of the outside world, and a myriad of other ideas that were spouting from her as quickly as she could think them. Despite the youthful exuberance of the whole scenario, she was indeed in earnest and began immediately to lay out a plan of action.

  "Alright, Alir," she began, pacing in front of their small cave, "We have a good shelter here, where the storms aren't so bad. We have fuel for fire and food for the taking. I think we should set up camp here and take some time to concentrate. We started to make some real progress with our bond, and I think it deserves exploration. Plus, I don't want to get rusty with my knife skills. Imagine how disappointed Zhiva would be."

  Alir ruffled his feathers and turned his head to peer at her with one eye. Lyn stared him down and puffed out her chest.

  "Listen here, I think this is a good idea, and we don't have to deal with the weather and wind unexposed. It's perfect, no distractions up here, and no interference. Who else can really say they took a solitary trip up to the great northern mountains to train and meditate, hmm? It's a great opportunity."

  Alir jerked his head once more, and flapped his wings.

  "And, look, plenty of game to hone your hunting skills, huh? We're doing this." Lyn decided the matter was settled and set about gathering wood for their fire. Her search led her to a small grove of hardy-looking bushes. Small seed pods were scattered around on the branches, and upon seeing them Lyn recalled Yusef pointing out some of the very same bushes around the base of the mountain. Yusef had taken some of the seed pods and cooked them over the fire later that night; after some time over the open flame, the pod had burst open and the warm seeds inside were shared between the two of them. Joyed at her find, Lyn retrieved some of the pods from the bush to take back to camp. This was a fortuitous find indeed, and further convinced Lyn that she had made a good decision to stay for the time being.