"Fucked if I know, but isn't that where we're going?" Irun asked, pointing up to the glowing room just ahead of them. Behind the swung-open doors was a massive portal, with a group of twenty fully-equipped hegraphenes, their eyes glowing a deep violet similar to that of Ardrin himself.
They snapped to the direction of Athar and Irun's footsteps from down the hall, immediately drawing attention to them. "Irun, Athar, come." Ardrin said, pulling them using the same technique he had back in Valdis.
Couldn't you have done that before? This place is much larger than Valdis could ever be, Athar sent to his master. I could have, but for reasons I will not explain here, I just didn't want to, Ardrin replied, lightly cocking his head towards the group.
"It's about time you arrived, Irun," Volzuk said with a gravelly voice. "M-my apologies, great one. I was not entirely aware of how time functioned in this place. I beg you to overlook and forgive my stupidity," Irun kneeled, replying in a tone that almost seemed… practiced.
The Undergod was clearly pleased with this newfound display of humility. "I see Kaila has taught you your place well, as per my instructions," he glowered momentarily. "She has indeed, great one," Irun responded, keeping his head low. "Good, then I will get started right away without standing on ceremony," Volzuk retorted quickly.
"You're to command these twenty that you see before you. As I'm sure a former synner would know of the legendary artifacts given by the gods before Codrean became what it is today, you will find this mission most intriguing," the Undergod said, letting the words hang a little. "I am at your command, great one," Irun said, doing his best to hide the shock in his voice. "Lead them to Caegwen to begin your search for both the Dreambinder Jerkin and the Benevolent Ring. My sources have told me that those two will be the most easily found," Volzuk stated.
The jerkin and the ring? What the hell could he need those for? Irun shielded his thoughts as best he could, desperately trying to remember Kaila's training.
"It will be done, great one. I will not fail you," Irun said confidently. "Good. You know what will happen if you do. Prepare to depart. I will open the portal. Do not underestimate the elves," the Undergod said menacingly. He turned to face the portal, and outstretched his hand. The umbral mana of the portal swirled and grew more intense, as dark tendrils of mana poured into it.
"Lord Gavar," Volzuk called out. Within a heartbeat, the leader of the Ironplume clan was before him, kneeling next to Irun. "Go with them, as I will need a second pair of eyes to make sure everything goes according to plan. Kaila will tend to the training of the others in your stead," he continued.
"It will be done, my lord," Gavar said, his subservient tone carried throughout the room. The Undergod dismissed the pair before him without a glance, letting them make their preparations accordingly.
Athar sheepishly walked over to Irun, whose face was contorted into one of both worry and anger. "Are you alright, little brother?" Athar asked, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'll live, thanks. Just a bit nervous, you know?" he said without a hint of a lie in his tone. "I'd be too if I were on such an important mission," Athar said as he nodded his head and lifting his eyebrows almost in disbelief.
"Do… do you think that there's a chance I'll see them again?" Irun asked quietly. Athar turned to face his friend again after having looked away momentarily. "What?" he asked. "Do you think I'll see them again if I go?" Irun asked again, more quietly this time. Athar was stunned but quickly glanced around to make sure no one had heard him. "I don't know if I can ever face them again. Not after what I did, not after the things I've caused to happen to them, or what happened with Isla… I just don't know if I could," Irun said, keeping his tone quiet and monotone to hide his true feelings.
What the hell do I say to that? Athar asked himself.
"Listen, I think that redemption is only something that is given to those who have earned it. Perhaps you, too, will get your chance at it, but I'd be lying if I said I thought it was right now," Athar spoke quietly, still making sure no one heard the two of them. Irun said nothing, but merely nodded his head in understanding.
"Now, chin up, you've got a mission to finish. Not as you once were, but as a commander of a strike force for the Undergod himself. I salute you, commander," Athar said with a crooked salute. Irun smirked and shook his head. "First of all, I'm not at the rank where I'm supposed to be saluted. And secondly, you know we don't really do it that way, right?" he said, correcting Athar's hand and finger position into a nice, crisp salute.
"There, much better," he said, sarcastically returning the salute, and walking off to join the group of hegraphenes. "Good luck, little brother," Athar said, pumping his fist. Irun glanced over his shoulders, and waved curtly with a pair of fingers held up, then reduced to just the middle one as a wry smirk grew on his face.
"Let's go," Irun said, motioning for the others to follow him as he stepped into the swirling portal. The realms lurched and bled into each other, though the color change was reversed this time around, going from the gloomy, violet and sickly green to a mist-filled, snowy forest. The tall canopy tore and scratched at the gray sky even as the snowflakes that clung to the leaves tried to drag them down. The ground was covered in a decently thick layer of snow, reaching up to Irun's mid-calf.
He lost his focus once more, although, this time, he was able to keep his last meal where it belonged. The dizzying feeling, however, remained the same. Gavar, who had followed him closely through the portal, was slightly taken aback at the feeling of snow beneath his armored feet. "What is this? Did we go too far?" he asked. Irun managed a soft chuckle as he recovered from the dizziness.
"It's called snow, Lord Gavar. When winter comes in this realm, the air is cold enough to keep the moisture from the clouds far above us frozen until it reaches the ground," he explained briefly and quietly, as he observed their surroundings. "But, to answer your other questions, I have no idea. I've never been to Caegwen, so I'm just as lost as you are. The only instructions I have are to go North until we hit a city of some sort, then move North-East from there and try to avoid being noticed along the way, which, in this weather and terrain, might prove to be a little difficult," he continued.
Gavar let off a low, chest-borne rumble, but clicked his tongue and turned to make sure the others made it through the portal. Within a few minutes, all had joined them in the dense forest, and Irun's heart began to beat more quickly.
"How does one find North in weather like this?" Gavar turned to ask Irun after a quick head-count. Irun, however, was already one step ahead of him, having stabbed a stick into the ground. "This stick will tell us where North is," he replied. "Elaborate," Gavar commanded.
I'm going to have to give him an entire lifetime's worth of knowledge, aren't I? Irun sighed.
"Keeping it as simple as possible, the stick's shadow will move after a fifteen minute period. You take the difference in direction of those two marked points, and you can figure out where the North is since the sun always rises in the East and sets in the West," he explained. Gavar scrunched a chitinous plate that could be viewed as an eyebrow, and thought about the information carefully.
"What about during the night?" he finally asked. "Find the brightest one in the sky and follow it, at least that's the easy way to remember it," Irun said plainly. "I would have you teach me these ways in greater detail during our journey. There is, surprisingly, much to learn from you about this realm," Gavar said, looking ahead. "O-of course, Lord Gavar," Irun said, bowing slightly before proceeding to explain some of the survival techniques he'd learned during his time at Codrean.
Moving cautiously through the snowy forest was easier said than done since the hegraphenes, no matter how good of warriors they were, were still unaccustomed to the realm's attributes. Even with the help of the Gwynnleaf concoction made by Ardrin himself, there were still some limits to their abilities that hindered their progress.
Even though I've taught them a lot of what I know, they're still leaving too many tracks behind and they're struggling to adapt to this realm. At this rate, we're going to get spotted before we even get close to Myrdin, Irun thought, noticing the long trail of footprints they'd left behind that were still noticeable even after their efforts to cover them.
Far above them amidst snow-capped branches, a scout who maintained a small outpost stirred beneath his thick cloak.
I fucking hate the snow. Every damned time I'm put up here, I can never seem to get warm, the scout thought, curling into a tighter ball as he hugged his knees.
His stomach growled quietly, which, to him, was a signal that it was time to eat. As he reached for the bag of rations, however, the wide, snow-covered branch shifted a little when it began to support his weight, sending his rations plummeting below. His eyes opened wide as he lurched forward to try and grab them, but the leather strap slipped through his gloved hand. The reality of going hungry that night sunk in like an anchor in water. Luckily for him, they caught on the stump of a branch just a few meters below.
That was too close for comfort, he let out a sigh of relief. I'd hate to have to… what the fuck is that? Are those tracks? How the hell did I not see them before? Wait, those are… the scout paused, having spotted the group below making an effort to cover their tracks.
Shit, I need to notify the Commander. She'll know what to do with them, he thought, leaving his rations and making his way back to the city.
As he moved, the snow that was once atop the branch holding his rations, finally fell to the floor below, drawing the attention of Irun's party. "Enemy?" Gavar asked simply. Irun scanned the surrounding area, but saw nothing immediately identifiable as a threat. "It's not unlikely, but we need to be extra cautious from now on. That means moving quickly and quietly, do you understand?" Irun asked, to which the group nodded their agreement.
We can't get discovered now. I will not be viewed as an inadequate subordinate anymore. This will not end well if we're found out before we're ready, he thought, looking ahead as far as he could given the density of the trees.