Life Review Ch. 05

"Oh my gosh, I've never seen a horse like her. She's gorgeous!" Cassidy squealed.

Nessa smiled and patted her horses neck, "Vitra was a gift to me from one of the dukes in the Confederation of the Five Kings. I helped him and his wife when they had difficulty conceiving a child. Vitra was a spirited mare at the time, but she has grown wise in her old age much like myself."

"You can't be more than thirty!" Shawn exclaimed. He didn't know Nessa's actual age, but besides barely noticeable crow's feet around her eyes she shows no outwards signs of aging. He had guessed she was anywhere from twenty eight to thirty five.

Shawn's head suddenly jerked painfully forward as Denza smacked him hard on the back of the head. When he looked up he saw her glaring at him, "That was rude. It's impolite to talk about a woman's age."

Cassidy rolled her eyes, "I'm not sure how people look when they are thirty here, but where we are from, people don't start really showing their age until their forties if they take care of themselves."

"Not that it's any of your business, I just turned thirty four last season," Nessa said indignantly.

"Sorry, Nessa," Shawn grimaced at ringing in his ears. "I didn't mean to offend. I

Just meant you still look to be in your prime."

Nessa stuck her tongue out and winked, "I know Shawn, I'm just teasing. Thank you for your compliment."

Denza snorted in derision and turned her mount to face the open road, "We are following the road north then heading east to the border. If we keep a decent pace we'll make it to the pass in four days."

"That's quite a pace," Nessa frowned.

"We have no time to waste," Denza replied flatly, clicking her heels against her horse's side, "The more time we waste the colder the trail gets."

"Lead on then, ranger," Nessa said, giving Shawn and Cassidy one last blame-filled glance before turning her mount and setting off after Denza.

The group followed the road north until they came to a crossroads before the day's end. Denza pushed them forwards until the sun was almost below the horizon and the horses began to flag. Nessa instructed Shawn and Cassidy on how to tend to their horses. They cleaned, brushed, and fed their mounts before settling down themselves. Shawn and Cassidy listened to Nessa tell them stories around the campfire and found themselves enthralled with the local legends and folktales.

Denza sat away from the group. Shawn tried to sit next to her and draw her out of her shell, but she refused and chose to instead stare into the fire with a stony expression. After their dinner, Nessa lectured Cassidy on magical subjects that far exceeded Shawn's ability to follow, so he sat in silence and listened to the worry and heartache of his bondmate.

True to her word, Denza got them to the pass in four days. The road they followed was a well traveled highway but they encountered little traffic on the way to their destination.The remaining three days passed with little change in their routine. By the fourth day Shawn was seriously worrying about Denza due to her became increasingly isolated, and her emotions more turbulent.

The pass came into view a few hours before the sun was due to set. It was revealed to Shawn and Cassidy as a canyon path that took the road from the forested hills into the peaks of the mountain range that acted as the physical border between rival nations. Instead of stopping, Denza pushed her mount forward onto the snaking road as the shadows lengthened in front of them. Once they had traversed a handful of the winding switchbacks the wind adopted a low pitched constant howling as air currents were funneled down into the red hued canyon walls.

"Denza, it's getting dark. We should turn back!" Nessa called out.

Denza shook her head, pulling her cloak tighter around herself and pulling the hood low. She made a gesture that Shawn took to mean they should continue following her. The sun descended behind the horizon at their backs and their world became one of dim twilight. Shawn was quickly losing his ability to see clearly with the two women in the lead becoming more like indistinct masses of shadows as time progressed.

After spending the four days in the saddle, Shawn was irritable. Cassidy had become increasingly quiet as they traveled which was a tell tale sign of her growing discontent. Shawn spurred his horse forward and pulled alongside his bondmate.

"Denza, stop. We need to find a place to camp out. We're tired. Our horses are tired. It's time to stop," Shawn had to almost yell to be heard over the wind.

Denza turned to look at him. He could see the bags under her eyes and how her face was drawn and rigid from her hours of intense concentration. Her green-flecked silver eyes glimmered resolutely in the shadows and their bond flaired with determination.

"There should be tracks leading to and from Oculsa. This wind is making it difficult and I've lost what trail I could find more than I care to admit. At first I thought it was the loss of light, but there has been nothing for the past few miles," Denza leaned closer to him so it easier for him to hear.

"So what does that mean?" Shawn asked.

"There is no place for a caravan to disappear to until you get further into the mountains. There is a gorge up ahead and the trail splits. There should have been signs of the other group of expeditionaries. Animal tracks or droppings, food scraps, anything that would show a group of people came through here recently. The wind isn't strong enough to erode the signs this quickly," Denza stared hard at the road ahead of them.

"Maybe animals or something?" Shawn speculated.

Denza shook her head, her worry deepening, "That's another thing. There has been no signs of any wildlife. No birds or scavengers of any kind so far, doesn't that strike you as strange?"

"Back home I would say yes, but I don't know this area at all," Shawn admitted.

"My gut tells me someone or something is actively clearing any trails left behind," Denza shifted her mount closer so that their horses were nearly touching. "I was able to catch on because their work was sloppy at times, but it's too dark to see clearly. When we reach the split in the path at the gorge, if both sides trails are clean, then we have our answer."

"But what do we do about shelter? We are exhausted," Shawn tried to stifle a yawn.

"We have to be sure one way or the other. If I'm wrong, than I apologize for the discomfort. If I'm right there might be a chance we are being watched and will be ambushed when we camp," Denza pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes tightly. Once she opened her eyes again she shook her head set herself back to her task.

Shawn could see Denza was pushing them and herself because she worried for their safety. He couldn't argue with her logic so he fell back and relayed their conversation to Nessa and Cassidy who simply nodded, looking grim.

Denza led them on for another thirty minutes and around another bend when the road began to open up and the walls of the canyon gave way on one side to the yawning mouth of a large chasm. The road continued along until it branched off into two main roads marked by a signpost and a multitude of trail heads leading off deeper into the wilder parts of the range. Denza came to a halt and dismounted, staggering slightly when her feet hit the ground.

She walked over to Shawn put a hand on his leg, " I'm going to continue on foot from here, there was a decent place to get out of the wind just beyond the last bend. We should be safe enough there, but don't light a fire until I come back."

Shawn covered her smaller hands in his own and squeezed her fingers, "Stay safe, you hear? If I have to come save your butt because you slipped and fell into a hole in the dark, I'll never let you live it down."

Denza gave him a tired smile and kissed the top of his hand, "I should hope I die first so I don't suffer the embarrassment."

Their shared one last long look that conveyed their unspoken worry and assurances before Denza slipped away into the shadows. He grabbed the reins of Denza's horse and tied them to the pummel of his saddle before turning and leading the way back to the spot she had indicated. They found what was little more than an narrow recess in the rock that was barely wide enough for them to lead their horses into single file. After some cajoling from Nessa they managed to convince the horses it was better than nothing and they reluctantly filed in.

The temperature had dropped as they moved to higher altitudes along the trail. The wind had a bite to it that chilled their exposed skin. Nessa and Cassidy produced small lights so they could work unhindered as they set up a rudimentary camp. While Shawn and Cassidy didn't mind the chill in the air, Nessa's only real source of protection from the cold was her simple black cloak which didn't do much against the windchill.

Cassidy offered to share her own cloak with Nessa, but the older witch decided she had finally had enough shivering and performed a piece of magic that Shawn found extremely useful. After a quick incantation and series of hand gestures the howling diminished around them and the air warmed pleasantly.

"Not that I'm complaining, but isn't that just going to be a drain on you? Keeping the spell going like that all night?" Shawn asked Nessa.

Nessa leaned back against her pack and stretched as best she could in the cramped space, "I very much don't plan on keeping the spell going all night. My hope is that Denza comes back with the all clear and we can start a proper fire."

"A warm meal would be nice right now," Cassidy sighed, munching unhappily on a stick of tough deer jerky.

Shawn laid back and rested his eyes. He focused inwards to bring up his internal menu. He cycled through to the informational section which was a catalogued index of all the information he had learned about the world of Niverra. He toyed with the collapsable fields before switching his mind's eye to focus on the table simply titled 'Map'. When he opened this tab his entire perception shifted to an eagle eye view of the area they had traveled.

He was impressed with the level of detail his mental map actually showed. Information like local geography, topography, and meteorology which were all based off of what he had experienced. The area of the map he occupied as a singular arrow pointing in the direction he was facing, which happened to be southwest, showed him his approximate elevation of three thousand feet above sea level. His temperature readouts were converted into fahrenheit with a feels like temperature in the low sixties with a wind chill in the fifties. There was a seasonal icon in the corner by the compass rose that showed a sun, which he took to mean they were in the summer months.

He let his menu fade away, making a mental note to study it again once he had traveled more. He errently wondered what effect studying an actual map would have on his mental one. He was distracted from his thoughts when he felt a series of jarring emotions through his bond, which had sat in the back of his mind like a tense knot. The sudden flare of alarm and worry made him bolt upright.

"What's up?" Cassidy asked him, both she and Nessa were looking around them wearily..

"I think Denza found what she was looking for," Shawn said, getting to his feet. "I don't sense any panic or fear, so I don't think she is in any danger."

"It's times like these where telepathy would come in real handy," Cassidy joked.

"Telepathy requires line of sight, so I don't see how it would be helpful in this instance," Nessa corrected.

Cassidy started to respond but thought better of it, not bothering to explain her thoughts to the witch. Shawn moved to the mouth of the alcove and waited. Half an hour passed in tense silence. Shawn made out running footsteps coming their way from off in the distance. They sounded light, but urgent.

"Denza is coming back," Shawn whispered.

"What? I don't hear anything. Do you see her?" Cassidy peered out from around him.

Shawn was tracking Denza's running gate thirty seconds before her silhouette came into view. His mind struggled to wrap around hearing her light footfalls within the noise of the wind, but filed it for later thought. Denza skidded to a halt and propped herself against the rock wall to catch her breath.

"I was right," Denza said breathlessly. She swallowed hard before continuing, "The tracks are being erased along all the paths."

"It's pitch black out, how are you able to see?" Nessa asked skeptically.

Denza produced the mechanical mouse from her pocket. She closed her eyes and focused for a moment until its eyes and nose glowed dimly, casting them all in a dull red light, "It was useful before as a distraction, but the low light setting is very useful."

"What did you find?" Shawn put a steadying hand on her arm.

Denza's face fell, "I found a body. It was too dark to see anything else so I couldn't check for signs of life. Whoever it was seemed to have fallen off the path onto an overgrown ledge below. I pressed on and found signs of struggle off the trail, metal fragments and drops of blood. I almost missed them because they were hidden under a bush."

"If you couldn't see if the person was alive or not, we have to check. They might be incapacitated and seriously injured," Nessa said briskly as she started to gather her things.

"The ledge is at least fifty feet down a nearly vertical drop," Denza said with a hint of frustration. "There was no way for me to get down there."

"We have to do something!" Nessa insisted.

Shawn looked back and forth between both women before declaring, "Alright, I'll go."

"Shawn, it's too dangerous to try and climb down in the dark!" Denza protested.

"I understand, but someone's life might be at risk. Don't worry, I'm an experienced climber," Shawn reassured her.

Nessa bit her lip. After a long pause she relented, "She's right. I can't let you do something this risky."

Shawn looked at Cassidy who had yet to insert her opinion. She smiled and shrugged, "I know you can do it, so I won't stop you. If you can save someone's life, go for it. If it's too dangerous, then maybe we can come up with another solution when it's light out."

Shawn chuckled quietly to himself. He would never have even considered doing something as dumb as trying to free climb down a fifty foot shear wall in a windy gorge in the middle of the night before coming to Niverra. He felt confident in his new body's strength and he always had magic to help him out if he needed it.

He turned to Denza, "Do you still have my axe?"

Denza nodded and went over to her horse. She rummaged around in her saddle bags and removed a cloth wrapped bundle. She removed the covering and handed Shawn the tool hilt first. When he gripped the haft, he noticed Denza was reluctant to let it go.

He was bewildered as to why she held onto the climbing axe, and instead of asking about it he simply smiled and said, "I'll give it back, I promise."

Denza tried unsuccessfully to hide her embarrassment by wrapped her cloak around herself and covering her face. She turned quickly and stepped out into the night, her mechanical mouse flashlight guiding the way. Shawn jogged after her, and when he caught up he easily kept pace with her. She led him up the canyon pass until the post marking the split in the path loomed ahead of them. Denza veered left off road onto a trail that skirted the mouth of a gorge and snaked away into the gloom.

Shawn could hear the sounds of rushing water when Denza held up her fist and cautioned him, "Careful, the path gets slippery in places the further we go down."

Shawn began to nod, but then figured she wouldn't be able to see the motion so he just grunted his affirmation. The farther they descended the more the howling of the wind died down.. He would occasionally feel micro bursts that would fill the air with spray and moisture that collected on the rock walls, making them dangerously slick. Denza finally came to a halt at a second fork in the trail.

"From what I can tell these paths are like a maze and it would be easy to get lost in the dark. I noticed a section of the trail had broken away while I was looking for evidence to support my gut feel," Denza inched closer to the edge of the gorge and held out the mouse to point directly down. "Can you see the ledge from here?"

Shawn tested his footing against the slick rocks underfoot and inched forward. It would have been a rookie mistake to look out over a ledge by leaning over it, so he dropped to his knees and held himself secure as he peeked over the precipice.

Sure enough, Shawn could see the ledge. Denza hadn't been exaggerating when she said it was overgrown. He could see that area was less of a ledge and more of a slab of stone that was being supported by a large root cluster that pierced out of the rock wall and snaked down towards the river. He could see a pair boots poking out from beneath a knot of leafy vines.

"I can see boots. I can tell they are attached to a body but I can't see much else in this dim light," Shawn squinted into the misty hazy below.

"Are you able to make the climb?" Denza glanced over the edge with a trouble expression.

Shawn tried to find the safest path down. Besides the darkness, Shawn's biggest challenge would be the moisture on the rocks. He briefly considered using his Gale Intercept ability to reach the platform quickly, but immediately disregarded the idea when he remembered that he didn't have a reliable way to decelerate. He figured his best bet was to use Windstride to create a controlled fall once he got to a safe height, but the biggest issue remained getting back up.

"Can you make a rope harness?" Shawn asked. When he left the camp he brought his pack that held various useful climbing items like pitons, lengths of rope, and line anchors. Most of those items would be useless if they were trying to avoid making any more noise than absolutely necessary.

Denza nodded and set to work fashioning a length of rope into a makeshift harness. Shawn grabbed his axe and sank the blade deep into the ground above the ledge to act as his initial anchor as he climbed down. With practiced ease he dropped off the ledge and hung in empty space momentarily while he searched for solid footholds. Once he was confident he wouldn't slip, he jerked his axe free with a powerful wrenching motion before burying it once more into the rockface near one of his handholds.

Shawn slowly felt his way down the shear cliff. He had to brace himself against the rocks when the wind would pick up and threaten to knock him loose while it doused him in cold spray from the river. Once he was roughly thirty feet from the root cluster, he activated his Windstride ability and immediately felt the air coil around his body in a protective cocoon. He barely noticed the microbursts as his own air currents dispersed the random hazards harmlessly. He waited for last of these gusts to finish before ignoring all instincts screaming at him to cling to the rocks for dear life and jumped into the void.

Shawn's stomach rose into his throat as gravity took hold. The air around him pushed against the unrelenting pull and his acceleration slowed enough that he could guide his fall to land easily on his target, absorbing the impact using his powerful leg muscles. He felt the knot of tension release and a sudden influx of relief washed through from Denza who watched on from above.

He knelt down and pulled aside the knot of vines to see the body of a man. He could make out the shallow rise and fall of his chest but couldn't make out much more in the darkness.

"He's breathing!" Shawn called up as quietly as he could manage.