Though there were so many moments that hurt Ria — like losing friends and facing stuff alone — she always had Kri by her side. But Kri wasn't just her friend anymore.
It all began on training day. The very first step. She didn't know the exact path, had no clue where it would take her, but deep down, she just knew — I need to reach there.
So she started. Randomly. No plan, no map, just that one thing stuck in her head — the end goal. She could see it clear as day: the top of the mountain. She thought, "Cool, I'll just climb it." Simple, right?
But turns out, it wasn't.
She kept climbing and climbing, only to find herself back where she started. Again. And again. And this time? No Kri. Because Kri's powers only level up if Ria reaches the top. That was the goal — get to the top, unlock those powers, level up Kri. But she never really thought about how to get there. The mountain looked so easy, so pretty from far away. She didn't stop to think twice. Just ran on pure energy — on fuel. Fueled by desire, not direction.
She entered the mountain, went deep in, the path seemed chill at first — just some twists, a few ambushes, random danger spots — but she was cool with that. For like 10 minutes. Then boom. Back at the bottom.
She told herself, "It's fine," and tried again. Same result. Same starting point.
This time, she was frustrated. Drained. Her patience? Slipping by the second.
She tried remembering the way — didn't work. Then she started tying red bands on trees to mark her path. That kinda helped. But still, doubts crept in. Am I even going up? No tech out here to help her out — it's just you, and nothing else. You gotta do this solo.
She found bits of courage here and there… but also, she felt so alone. Confidence? Gone. Mind? Messy. Hope? Melting — like candle wax, slow but steady.
She sat down. At the bottom. Again. Felt like giving up. Felt like going back and saying, "I didn't do anything." Just… quitting.
But then… something in her whispered — If not now, you'll never do it.
So she sat. Thought. Took a breath. Rested.
And stood up.
And started again.