Unknown Story Chap. 17 part 2

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The mountain air was incredibly cold and uninviting. A thick fog had settled into the spaces in between each mountain. The dark sky was perfectly cloudless, showing thousands of bright stars, each shining down into the bleak landscape below.

A man wearing a plain black jacket and pants was looking out into the cold night. He also wore a black helmet and a ripped black cloak that he had wrapped tightly around him. He had a short brown beard and appeared to be middle aged.

Each time he exhaled a white mist flew from his mouth and gently disappeared into the night. He was rocking back and forth slightly and rubbing his hands together.

He was in a large room that was also empty. There were several black, metal desks all put together to create one long, waist-high desk, stretched from one side of the room to the other. The long metal desk broke off in the center where stairs led down to a slightly lowered lever.

Here too, were long, sleek desks, all of the hard chairs empty. The man was leaning on the front of one of these desks, looking out into the night. Before him was a massive glassless window, showing the cold mountains.

The man exhaled into his hands and swore under his breath about the cold. He heard a door open and close behind him and heard boots on the metal floor coming towards him.

He heard the person walk up next to him and sit on the desks as he was. The man glanced over and said, “Damn cold tonight, eh?” The replacement nodded briskly and rubbed his hands together aw well.

“The Fill Hall is warm.” He responded.

“I can’t believe he has us doing this. What are we guarding? And who from?”

“Shh!” The replacement hissed, “You idiot, Delkil. You know he has ears everywhere. Besides, that freaky servant he has might be around somewhere.”

“You really think they can hear us here? Ha! They’re off doing more important things. And why would they come here? Tonight? This is the most-“

“Shh!” The replacement cut him off. “What the hell do you think you’re saying? He recruited us. Without the pay I’m out in the cold… Without this cloak.” he looked down at his thick black cloak and Delkil looked down at his ripped one. The replacement chuckled and continued.

“Besides, didn’t you here him? Says he gonna change the world. He wouldn’t pick some guys like us for no reason.”

“Then why’re we standing out in the damn cold while he’s off making plans with some of his higher lackeys?”

“Says he got a plan for all of us.” Delkil snorted and the two took the silence to breath into their hands.

“He could at least but some kinda heater in this place.”

“You don’t hear the rest of us complaining.” he replied smartly.

“All I’m saying is it would be nice to know what’s going on higher up.”

“Then why don’t you come and see?” came a cold whisper from behind the two. Delkil jumped up and immediately snapped into a quick bow. The replacement jumped up too but not as suddenly. The two bowed again.

Before them was a man with a long flowing dark green cloak. He had short spiky black hair and ghost-like pale skin. He seemed completely unaffected by the cold, which was surprising especially since he only wore a black jacket.

His eyes were narrowed and his lips were very barely stretched in the corners, creating an extremely small smile. His arms were crossed and he wasn’t shivering in the slightest, giving him a larger sense of authority.

“Do you wish to know the… Darker secrets of the operation, lieutenant Delkil?” Delkil spluttered indiscernibly for a few moments, the replacement only able to make out something about “just wondering”.

“Very well…” He whispered again. He turned around sharply and briskly walked out of the door. Delkil followed him down long empty hallways, only the sound of their boots on the cold metal floor echoing down the empty spaces.

The man with the long dark green cloak led Delkil down thousands of underground passages, meeting no one along the way. The entire trip was spent in complete silence. Delkil began to sweat even in the cold passages.

They eventually walked up a large, heavily polished, bronze staircase. At the top were large bronze double doors. The man lazily wove his hand and they burst open. He quickly stepped through them and Delkil followed once more.

The doors closed behind him and he was now following the man through a circling corridor with open, glassless windows to the left. Delkil followed him through a door on the inside of the corridor and up an extremely large stone staircase.

There was no railing and Delkil feared falling off. He followed his master, however up to near the very top. The came up one door from the top and he entered through it.

Once the man was through he gestured for Delkil to step in. Inside was a large room with long metal desks like the one where he was at previously. There was no glassless window but a large metal wall filled with scraps of paper.

On each scrap of paper there was a picture of a young boy. He was pale and head dark brown hair. In some he carrier a katana and in others he was with a silver and blue haired man.

Underneath some of these pictures were several pictures of a Shade. He looked just as all the others did. Then Delkil walked closer and saw in some pictures he had two magnificent bat wings.

He gazed at the pictures silently and finally whisper one word, “What?”

“You see, lieutenant, this is what we’re doing ‘higher up’.” The voice came from directly behind him and Delkil didn’t even hear him walk across the cold metal floor. He turned around and said, “Why-“

A long black sword unraveled in the air and stabbed Delkil through the throat. The sword refolded itself and disappeared. Delkil dropped to the floor, dead. The man stepped through the open door silently, not getting even a drop of blood on his dark green cloak.

As he stepped out of the door there were two men in black robes outside. “Take care of him.” He said silently. The two bowed and went inside the room. The man returned to the large stone staircase and went up to the last door.

He opened it and hovered back up to the upper room. He slowly walked up to the edge of the tower and gazed down. He sensed someone walk up next to him and smiled very slightly.

There was harsh breathing coming from behind him and warm breath on the back of his neck. Without turning around he whispered, “What?” The thing breathed harder and said, “Lord Mathorn. The boy was last seen in The Last City.”

“The Shade?”

“He has reached the mountains.” The man narrowed his eyes and responded,

“Prepare the forces. The war is coming. I can feel it.”

“Yes my Lord.” He heard the thing’s heavy footsteps move away behind him and Mathorn gazed back out to the endless barren plains. A steak of lightning lit up to dark landscape and Mathorn smiled.

*~*~*

Knall had been traveling with Derez for over a week. He hadn’t seen the natural ground in that long time and he was pretty sure that they were extremely higher up. They had been traveling on a small ledge for two days, to one side a sheer rock wall and the other a drop to which you couldn’t see the end of. Knall was exhausted and hadn’t slept in two days.

“Please tell me we’re at least half-way there.” complained Knall. Derez remained silent. The two had their faces pressed against the rock wall, inching along very slowly.

“Why can’t we just levitate?” Knall had learned how to fully levitate himself.

“We can’t use magic. Rezlel will see us as well as if we started a bonfire.”

“Then why can’t I fly?”

“We can’t risk you being seen. A thing that looks like an eight foot tall bat in the middle of the mountains will alert our enemies as much as using magic.” Knall sighed and pressed himself slightly closer to the rock wall.

The sun was going down, basking the ledge in darkness. Derez summoned a small orb of light and let it drift in front of them. “How can he not sense that?” Knall asked, gesturing to the orb.

“I’m lighting other orbs all around the mountains. To him there’ll be thousands of lights.”

“What if he finds us then?”

“He won’t. He doesn’t have enough Dark Hawks. Even if he did we have a roof.” He looked up and above them was a large rock piece jutting out, shielding them from a bird’s eye view.

Knall couldn’t help but smile slightly. Besides being cold, hungry and tired he knew it would all come together in the end. Now, at least there’s a plan.

When night at last fell, the entire mountain was dark and Derez at last found an extremely small rock platform for them to sleep at for the night. Knall took up most of the room without trying, covering himself in his wings.

Derez had his legs dangling off the edge of the platform, gazing out into the darkness. Knall’s wing blocked some of the coolness and made for a comfortable makeshift blanket. He fell asleep gladly and quickly.

When Knall awoke he felt pleasantly filtered light coming in through his wing. He yawned and looked around, attempting to see through his thin fleshy black wing. He stood up and stretched out. He looked around and Derez was missing again.

He had done this every morning and Knall was beginning to wonder weather he really was scouting ahead or something else. Knall heard a scream echoed from down pit. He got up to the edge of the platform and looked down into the dark crevice.

“Derez!” he shouted. After a few seconds a shout came in response.

“Knall, help!” Knall noticed the drop was only very slightly slanted and he jumped. He slid down the rocky surface fast and flapped his wings to slow himself. His eyes were scanning fiercely as he slid down into the darkness.

He heard another yell and he dug his hand into the ashy, grey rock. He flapped his wings once and he was sliding very slowly. “Derez!” He shouted.

“Knall!” came a voice from the right and lower. Knall was now completely submerged in darkness, his eyes adjusting instantly. Then he saw him. Derez was hanging off of something, only having his chest above the ledge.

Knall let go of the rock and began to slide down again. As he neared the edge he gasped in surprise. He barely stopped on the ledge of an infinite drop. He looked down but even his night eyes couldn’t see the bottom. And to make matters worst there wasn’t a wall Derez could get a foothold in. The ledge cut back into the mountain for hundreds of feet.

Knall barely stopped himself by bating his wings viciously. He looked across at Derez who was struggling. “Hang on!” Knall shouted.

“Not funny!” he shouted back. Knall kept his right hand dug deep into the ashy rocks as he attempted to make his way over. Derez was only a few feet away and Knall was nearly there. “Just use your magic!” he shouted bitterly.

“It’s not worth it!”

“Your life is worth it!” Knall swore under his breath as he kept his right hand dug into the slope and held out his left for Derez. Derez slowly reached out, slipping slightly. Their hands met and Knall pulled hard.

Derez was surprisingly heavy then he realized he must be wearing full armor. Knall hoisted him up and the two began to climb back up the steep slope. Knall beat his wings every now and then to give them and extra boost.

They eventually reached the platform again and Knall laid Derez on his back. “Are you hurt?” he asked. Derez shook his head.

“Good. What on earth were you doing?”

“I got careless. It was a stupid mistake.”

“That doesn’t answer the question.” Replied Knall, sternly. Derez lay there in silence for a few moments, gathering his breath. He coughed once and answered,

“I was walking along the ledge, scouting ahead and slipped. I hung there for what seemed like hours. Then I lost my grip then and slide all the way down. I waited for seven hours.”

“You counted?”

“You get pretty bored when you’re hanging on for your life.” Knall nodded and Derez chuckled slightly.

“Okay, we have to get moving.” He said, standing up.

“Are you sure? I mean-“

“We can’t waste any time.” Knall nodded again and Derez slowly climbed back out to the ledge. As they inched along Derez spoke,

“We have to be quiet in these next parts of the mountains. Giants live up here.”

“Really?” Knall said, intrigued.

“Don’t be too exited. They’re bloodthirsty, unintelligent, and violent.” Armed with this new information, Knall went ahead even more cautious than he was when he first came into the mountains.