“Here we are,” Tygus said in a chirpy tone.
Cillian threw off the load he was carrying. The array of luggage clamored and the young human fell to his hands and knees. He panted and watched as his sweat dripped off his head and mixed with the snow. The cold comforted him and he felt as if he could curl up into a ball here and pass out. The exhausting trip took just under thirty minutes, but the burden Cillian carried made it feel three times as long. The pair had traveled out of the cave Cillian had awoken in, traveled on a pine-forested trail, and climbed steep elevations to reach their destination. A modest log cabin was what stood before them. It was of similar style and size to Cillian’s pre-ash home, except where his was in a flat clearing in the forest at the base of the mountains, while this one was up near the top of a mountain on sloped land.
Tygus looked at the hunched-over shape of Cillian and slapped his back with a hearty laugh. “Come on boy, you can’t give up. You’re nearly there.”
Cillian dragged himself out of his comfort and back to his feet. After re-equipping his hindrance and struggling the short distance to the cabin, the tired boy took a chance to rest by leaning against the front door. His relief was short-lived, however. The door swung open without warning and Cillian fell forward into the house, landing face first on the wooden floor.
“Oh my,” came a soft voice right above Cillian’s head. “I’m so sorry about that. Here, let me help you up.”
Cillian lifted his face off the floor to see a pair of large catlike eyes staring right at him. He jumped back with surprising force, and at the new distance could notice that the catlike eyes were attached to a catlike face of yellow fur patterned with black stripes and spots. He saw pointy ears sitting firmly upright, prominent whiskers extending far out, and a glimpse of sharp canines. The giant creature was slim and stood on a pair of athletic legs and long feet.
It extended out its arm to aid Cillian, and when he grabbed it he noticed it was more like a hand than an animal’s paw. Once Cillian was on his feet he could see that the giant cat was slightly taller than him and was wearing simple white garments.
“Master, I didn’t know you were bringing in guests today,” the humanoid cat said facing Tygus.
“Cillian, this is Ravel,” Tygus said as he gestured with his hands.
“Pleased to meet you, Sir Cillian,” Ravel grabbed Cillian’s right hand with both of his and shook it before Cillian could move.
“Is he your…” Cillian hesitated, thinking of the correct word, “pet?”
“Oh no, it’s nothing like that,” Ravel said smiling. “My position is one of servitude.”
“So, a slave?” Cillian asked with even more confusion.
“I saved his life and ever since he won’t leave me alone,” Tygus said while he dusted the snow off his boots. “Trust me, boy, I was just as shocked as you were to see cats this big.”
Ravel let out a polite laugh and closed the door behind Tygus. “I’ll go prepare some refreshments,” he said as he exited the room.
“Here let me get that for you,” Tygus said as he grabbed up the pack Cillian had been carrying for the past half an hour.
He tossed it up with one hand as if it were made of light cotton and slung it onto a hook on the wall near the front door. Cillian stared in awe and watched as the hanging luggage began to slowly fade from his vision till it disappeared altogether as if it was never there.
“What the-” Cillian rushed forward and groped where the pack was supposed to be hanging, only for him to feel nothing but the rough wooden wall. “How is that possible?”
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Tygus had taken off his boots now and tossed them to the side of the door. “A little treasure from adventuring,” he said with a smug smile. “It’s getting dark now. I’ll have Ravel make us a feast and get some bedding up for you. The test is going to start first thing in the morning, so rest up as best you can.”
***
Sleep was not coming easily to Cillian. He was trying to lay still and not disturb the digesting contents of his stomach. The dinner they had was in silence. It seemed that everyone was so famished that they crammed their mouths full till their plates were empty, so there was no time to talk.
Ravel had prepared some type of meat he didn’t recognize, but it was more than tasty. Tygus had given him some beer, and the buzz was slowly wearing off. As his head began to clear, an assortment of thoughts and feelings surfaced.
The last time Cillian felt his belly this bloated was during Amalea’s birthday. She had demanded they go to the tavern in the village and had sweet-talked Cillian to keep ordering long after he should have. They had devoured so much chicken, potatoes, lamb, and cider that they were keeled over the tavern benches nearly incapacitated. They were moaning and groaning till closing time, and they had to be dragged out.
Once home, exhausted and with a heavy set stomach, Cillian almost passed out without giving Amalea her present. He got out of bed with a jolt and stumbled over to Amalea’s room in an almost drunken stupor. Cillian presented her with a small hand-carved wooden dragon. Amalea loved it, as she finally got an antagonist for the matching wooden warrior Cillian made for her last birthday.
Cillian missed her. This was a situation that both of them would have been awfully excited about. It was a chance to play a hero and play out one of their countless stories, but without her everything felt wrong.
Anxiety flooded Cillian’s body.
What if I couldn’t pass the test? What if I can’t save her? What if I’m too weak?
Questions attacked Cillian’s mind till sleep finally took him away.
***
Tygus, Ravel, and Cillian stood together on the edge of a snowy clearing. They were surrounded by trees except for the side they were facing. The treeless opening was the edge of a hill that revealed the side of another mountain. The mountain rose so high that they had to crane their necks to see the top.
The part of the mountain they saw was mainly harsh 90-degree drops and cliffs; it reminded Cillian of the flat width of a sword’s blade. It was mostly rock and snow, only a few trees here and there. The wind blew and caused snow to cascade down the cliffs of the mountain they watched.
Tygus turned around and went into the forest. Within a few seconds, he was out of sight for Cillian and Ravel.
“What is he doing?” Cillian asked.
“Master Dronbar has left me in the dark, unfortunately,” replied Ravel.
Cillian sighed. He rubbed his eyes to try to combat some of the exhaustion that resulted from last night’s sporadic sleep. Tygus had woken him up before sunrise and, together with Ravel, they hiked up to this clearing.
Cillian only had on simple thin garments, his jacket must have been lost during the house fire, so the cold wind cut deep against his skin. To add to his misery, Cillian did not get a chance to eat or drink since the night before, so parched lips and an empty stomach accompanied him.
After a few minutes, Tygus came stomping out of the forest covered in snow and carrying a slender log about as thick as Cillian’s calves and twice as long as Tygus was tall. He sat down crossed-legged with the end of the log between his legs. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a large knife and started to sharpen the log into a point. After a few powerful strokes, Tygus blew away the wood dust and stood to his feet.
“Here we are,” Tygus said. He reached into his jacket again and pulled out a large red square cloth.
“Your test is simple,” Tygus said while tying the red cloth around the unsharpened end of the wood.
He hoisted up the log and found the balancing point in the middle. He cocked his body back, like a muscle-bound spring, and exploded on one foot, launching the makeshift spear. The power he generated was so much that it caused a mini shockwave that Cillian felt and heard. Cillian didn’t see the spear move out of Tygus’ hands, it was too fast, but when he looked towards the mountain cliffs he saw the distinctive cloth as a red speck in a blanket of white and gray.
“Go and retrieve that red handkerchief,” Tygus said with pride. “That is your test. Do that by the end of the week and I’ll train you.”
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[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/601007576796233728/1007605402629836820/ELIANAILOVEUSOMUCH_A_mountain_with_steep_cliffs_and_snow_some_t_3adeaa3e-50e0-41bc-95d0-8ce0ef4b3ed5.jpg]
Mountain of the Test