Enmity of Atlas

After a couple hours of traveling, Trenton keeping an eye out for any potential dangers and keeping Blith on course, everyone else awoke, each one slowly rising from their slumber. Kiva was the first to awaken, stretching her arms, yawning, and laying back down, staring passively up into the sky. She seemed content to keep resting, not bothering to ask Trenton as to what had happened after she went to sleep. It seemed that she truly did trust that Trenton would look after them all, a comforting thought.

Next to wake was Leo. He had been pale and sweating the whole time, muttering quietly to himself in his slumber. Millie had been tending to him while Trenton steered, keeping a moist towel on his head, making sure he wasn’t bouncing too much, etcetera, but it didn’t seem to help much. When he finally opened his eyes, he shot up, his body shivering violently despite the intense heat. Millie jumped back, the sudden movement startling her, and went over to Trenton, keeping close to him for comfort. Trenton looked back at Leo, trying to catch his eye to see if he needed anything, but Leo didn’t seem in the mood to talk. He closed his eyes and laid down next to Kiva, his form slowly stilling. They’d have a chance to talk about Leo’s magic later, so there was no reason to push it right now. Trenton trusted Leo.

Finally, last but certainly not least, was Garrote, who sat up with a grunt, his eyes immediately locking on his bandaged right arm, his face oddly calm. He stared at it for a while in silence, no one saying a word, before finally breaking the ice, “...no dice?” He asked, looking dimly over at Kiva.

She shook her head, sitting up halfway to look at him, “I did what I could, but you messed yourself up pretty bad. I plan to confer with a more talented druid before I make a final call.”

“Right…yeah. I figured as much…I wasn’t even sure if I could survive using that much magic at once. I guess I’m pretty lucky to still be alive,” he looked over at Trenton, his mind set, “It doesn’t matter. I can fight with my left arm. Once all the pain goes away, I’ll be right back to top shape,” Garrote laid back down, joining the rest of them in relaxing. His mental fortitude was remarkable if nothing else.

“Pain? There shouldn’t be any pain left,” Kiva said, looking over at him with concern.

“Not the arm. I overused my magic and now my whole body hurts. I’ll need a while to recover,” Garrote replied, clutching his head in his one remaining hand.

Off to his side, Leo bristled, his voice barely audible, “Yeah, that about sums it up.”

“I really shouldn’t be complaining. My spell was nothing like yours. I cheated using momentum just to get a spell not even half as strong,” Garrote said, doing his best to look over at Leo. “You can just do that?”

“I don’t know…I don’t really want to talk about it, either,” Leo responded dismissively.

Garrote opened his mouth to retort, but Trenton cut him off, hoping to distract him. It was best not to press Leo on these matters. He had a good mind about him, and if he had something bothering him, he’d take it to Trenton at the very least. Whatever it was that he was going through, he could sort it out.

“I’m actually more curious about what you did, Garrote. You said you cheated using momentum? What does that mean exactly?” Trenton asked.

Garrote turned his attention to Trenton, forgetting completely about whatever he intended to ask Leo, “It’s an old graviturgy trick. The same way that geomancer’s get more power from striking the ground harder, graviturgy mages get more power by moving faster. You can kinda just think of it as me transferring the energy of my fall into the spell. It’s great if you need a last ditch kill, but it does a lot of damage to the body. It’s generally not recommended.”

“And you’d best not do it again. I can’t be fixing your mistakes after every battle,” Kiva said, exasperated.

“Yes ma’am,” Garrote said, giving her a mock salute.

Now that everyone was awake, Trenton eased Blith forward, encouraging him to pick up the pace. It was gradual, but eventually the world was flying by, the sand Blithe was kicking up creating large clouds of dust behind them. They were making much faster headway than Trenton had anticipated. At this rate, assuming some hiccups, they’d make it to Zerital in 2 weeks tops.

“WOAH! HE’S SO FAST!” Millie cried out, the wind tussling her hair, Trenton having to hold her down so as to keep her from climbing onto Blithe’s head.

Meekly from behind him, Kiva called out, distracing Trenton just long enough for Millie to slip past him, “Trenton, I have a favor to ask.”

Trenton cursed, thinking better of chasing Millie around while they were moving, turning his attention instead to Kiva, “What is it?”

“I’ve always wanted to see the top of the final spire…could you take me there? Please. It’d mean the world to me,” Kiva said, her expression soft.

Trenton’s number one priority was to see to the safety of the group, ensuring they reached their destination alive. But his second priority was the morale of the group, each individual needing to stay happy if they were meant to keep pushing forward. It wasn’t an easy ask, but he had to do it–for her. “Sure, we could probably make it there within the day,” Trenton said, eyeing the looming tower off in the distance. With the extra food supplies they scavenged, and the speed they were going at, they could reasonably make a detour without risking too much.

Trenton tugged on the reins, steering Blithe towards the massive tower to their right. Luckily, since the final spire was such a famous landmark, it was on pretty much every iteration of the world map, including the one he had. He’d be able to navigate fairly easily using its location.

After only a couple hours of travel, Blithe carrying them across cliffs and sands with little effort, they arrived at the base of the colossal tower, its massive, perfectly vertical, rounded body standing out against the natural landscape. It was often understood that the final spire wasn’t a natural landmark, instead having been created by an impossibly powerful geomancer many, many years ago.

“Garrote, can you keep an eye out while Kiva and I are gone? I’ll be as quick as I can,” Trenton asked.

“Yeah, sure. No problem. Leave it to me,” Garrote said, giving Trenton a subtle wink.

Without bothering to stop and question what that could’ve meant, Trenton gingerly picked up Kiva, fashioning a makeshift harness for her from spare cloth he had in storage, strapping her to his back so as to keep her body easily supported. Behind him, Blithe had sat down, waiting patiently for a large bowl of water that Leo was boiling for everyone.

“Are you ready?” Trenton softly asked, Kiva warm against his back.

“Yes,” she whispered, her eyes dull and dreary. She must’ve still been tired from using her magic so much.

Trenton started up the sheer cliff, finding a steady pace so as to make the ride smooth. This was for Kiva, so he wanted her to enjoy the ride, taking his time to allow her to gaze out across the sites of the desert. She seemed enthralled, her eyes lighting up with childlike wonder, the cliffs, crags, and dunes sprawling out below them. The tower was massive, Trenton taking several hours to climb to the top, his easier pace not helping their schedule in the slightest. It wasn’t ideal leaving Garrote and Leo alone for so long, both of them unable to fight very well in their current states, but it was just a sacrifice he had to make for Kiva’s sake.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it,” Kiva siad, her voice airy and light.

Trenton stopped for a couple seconds, enjoying the sights with her, before continuing his assent, “It is. It’s marvelous…was there a specific reason that you wanted to see the top of the spire so much?”

“Yes, actually,” Kiva said, hesitating to continue. “I left my home for a couple of reasons, but one of my dreams has always been to travel the world, see it for what it truly is. The final spire is just one of the many places I’ve always wanted to travel. I never had the means to climb it on my own, so I had to skip it my first time around. Thank you, really. This means more to me than you could ever know,” she nestled her head against Trenton’s shoulder, taking comfort in his warmth. It was getting a lot windier and a lot colder the higher they went, the air starting to bring a biting chill.

“What other places have you wanted to visit?” Trenton asked, straining to keep them level..

“All sorts of places. I want to see the big waterfalls near the Dwelling. I want to see the hills north of Dasellium. I want to see the spires of the Colossus Cliffs. I want to see the peaks of the Thalian. I want to see the snowy landscapes of the far north. I want to see it all. And this,” she beamed, her smile radiant, “is a part of that grand quest–the very start.”

The sun was starting to set as they neared the top, the many hours they’d spent traveling and climbing finally catching up to them. Trenton noticed this, picking up his pace slightly so as to not have to climb down in the dark. After only about 20 more minutes of climbing, they crested the top, Trenton letting Kiva off of his back. Kiva seemed a little unsteady on her feet, but she was managing.

The top of the pillar was massive, open, and spacious. It was easily a mile or two across, the oncoming darkness making it hard to see for sure. With nowhere left to go, Trenton and Kiva picked their way around the side, each of them holding little glowing orbs that Trenton had bought back in Wyrm’s Perch. They talked as they went, circling around until they were all the way across the platform. They sat together, staring out over the beautiful scenery as the sky turned black, the stars overhead shining with a glorious splendor. The cold was starting to set in, so Kiva scooted close to Trenton, hugging close so as to conserve her body heat.

“You ever just feel like you’re not where you’re meant to be?” Kiva asked suddenly, her eyes half lidded.

“What do you mean?” Trenton said, looking over at her.

“Like right now, the spot that you’re in just isn’t right for you. You’re meant to be somewhere else.”

Trenton thought about it, “I suppose, but I’m not sure I belong anywhere right now--a trespasser no matter where I go.”

“It’s why I want to see the world so much. I can find a place for myself somewhere out there. I just have to look for it, put in the effort.”

“Do you think you’ll find it? The place where you truly belong?”

“I don’t know. I hope so…I think when the time comes, I’ll know.”

“Well, you’re already halfway there already.”

“Hm?” Kiva looked up at him, her eyes large and sparkling. “Yeah…you’re right. But then where do we go? Close your eyes and imagine it,” Kiva took Trenton’s hands and started swaying, Trenton following suit. “Snow capped mountains, fields of flowers that roll with the land, cliffs overlooking great lakes, the highest peaks, the lowest trenches, the whole world just for you. Doesn’t it sound wonderful?”

“Yeah…it does.”

“Where would you go if given the chance? The Bloody is gone, the veil is gone, it’s just us left. I’ve been thinking a lot about it recently.”

“I think I’d go to the cloud isles, settle down in a peaceful little valley, maybe do some farming. What about you?”

“First and foremost, I’d go back home. I”ve been gone for years now. They’re still waiting for me to return. But after that…I’d probably go and find you. Things seem to be interesting whenever you’re around.”

“How about this? Once this is all over, once we get the chance, I’ll take you across the world, see all the sights that you could ever dream of, and we’ll find a spot to settle down. I’m not too picky, personally. How does that sound?”

Kiva smiled, laying her head on Trenton’s shoulder, “That sounds nice. I’d like that,” Kiva said, shutting her eyes.

Together, pressed by the cool night air, they sat together silently, enjoying the tranquility of the moment. Trenton searched his mind for something to say, a question that he’d put off for later. He’d been stowing away a lot of questions, but was really poor about getting back to them. Now seemed like a finer time than any to say whatever he had on his mind.

“Kiva, why did you end up traveling with us to-”

Kiva was snoring softly, her energy long since spent. Trenton smiled, deciding to let her rest. She’d more than earned it. He could always ask another time. Trenton carefully picked her up, strapping her around his back to get them back down the spire. Trenton was just getting ready to head back the way they came, when all of a sudden, off in the distance, he saw something, a glint off in the distance–a vibrant blue glow–the only light piercing the darkness. And it looked like it was getting closer.