(Cole’s point of view)

My stomach flipped several times as I began plummeting to the ground. Fortunately for me I had one comfort Fin and the others wouldn’t. Moments after my ejection, a parachute deployed from the back of my seat.

I could hear both Carletta and Fin screaming in horror as they fell, but their voices were overshadowed by the ear splitting cry of the zephyr.

The noise came from right above me, sending a tingle down my spine. My brain froze with fear. The moaning whine of metal being crushed overwhelmed me with dread. Then chunks of metal and hot coolant started falling around me.

A moment earlier, I was frustrated at not having been able to prevent the ejection, but now I felt immensely grateful for God’s mercy in dropping us into the valley.

I nervously looked up to see what had happened, but the parachute obstructed my vision. Severe winds began tangling the lines as falling debris poked holes in my parachute.

The zephyrs' powerful wings carried it away with the velociter, and sent me into a wild spiraling descent. I counted three times I slammed against the cliff face before losing consciousness.

When I awoke, my chair was dangling off the side of a cliff. The chute was caught on some exposed roots that didn’t look like they would hold much longer. Below me, was a straight drop down to a rocky river bank and a sure death.

With nothing in the valley to obstruct the wind, it howled almost constantly. My seat twisted and bumped against the cliff side, making it hard to unstrap myself.

When I heard the click of freedom, I reached out and started climbing the cliff. The sound of cracking of wood gave me a second’s notice to flatten myself, as much as possible, against the rocks. The broken roots banged against the cliff along their way down, with the parachute following behind them.

When I reached the top of my climb I heard the distant clang of the metal shattering at the bottom of the ravine.

Standing firmly atop the cliff, I looked over the edge with gratitude to whatever deity was looking out for me.

“Cole, you survived.” Fin shouted from behind me.

I spun around, startled by the sound of his voice and nearly fell backwards into the ravine. Carletta caught me by the collar of my shirt and pulled me back to safety.

“Thanks.” I sighed, counting the number of times I’d nearly died today and contemplating which religion I should follow.

“Well, I guess our ride is gone,” Fin unhelpfully observed.

“If you think that’s bad then look over there.” Byron pointed towards what I could only assume was the zephyrs nest. Inside it two rounded white hills sat just high enough to be seen over the edge of the nest.

“Why is there only snow on those two mountains? Maybe that’s the source of whatever we were sent to investigate?” Fin moved to the edge of the cliff and used his hand to block the sunlight to try and get a better look.

Carletta made a sour face at his remark then gave a sassy reply, “I’m sure you meant that as a joke, but just in case I’ll go ahead and say it. Those two ‘snowy mountains’ are zephyr eggs. With that being said, we need to get far away from here before that thing comes back.”

“Agreed!” Byron and I said in unison.

However, as usual, Fin felt the need to be right and to be the leader. “That’s obviously just snow.” He insisted. “I’ll go by myself and check it out if I have to.”

He was already looking for a way down the cliff to reach the deeper part of the valley.

I might’ve left him there if I didn’t think we might need his strength later. Instead I waited for Byron and Carletta to exhaust themselves trying to talk sense into the stubborn boy. It wasn’t until the zephyrs' shadow appeared, like a blanket of night blocking the sun, that Fin finally accepted he was wrong.

Perhaps the zephyr and its eggs did have something to do with the mountain's irregularity, but I very much doubted either was the source. Even if they were, the only thing we could do was confirm their existence. Anything else would simply be suicide.

Even Fin knew better than to stay out in the open as the zephyr settled atop its nest. There were very few trees left growing in or near the valley, but that made it easy to spot a cave mouth in the rock face.

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There was nearly a mile between us and the cave and every moment of the journey was tense. None of us dared use magic or move too quickly for fear that it might attract the zephyr’s attention. The zephyr never moved from its nest even after we crept into the cave the avian stayed put; still, the thought that we could possibly be spotted and killed at any moment had me drenched in sweat.

Byron stayed near the mouth of the cave to monitor the zephyr. “The next time that bird goes to sleep or leaves, I’ll make a path for us to climb out of here,” He said.

Fin sat near Byron tossing his CAD in the air. He nodded to acknowledge what Byron said then returned to his activity with a dull expression.

Carletta had found a spot against the wall to rest. She had bruises and scrapes on her arms, and a jagged gash on her forehead. Considering everyone’s condition, it seemed likely that Carletta endured the roughest descent into the valley.

When I first spotted the cave, I had assumed it would be shallow, but once we reached it, it became clear that the cave was more likely the entrance to a network of tunnels.

If that were the case then staying inside might be just as dangerous as remaining in the valley. I took it on myself to explore the deeper reaches of the cave. The others needed to rest. Byron and Fin looked fine, but it was possible they had hidden injuries from the fall.

Carletta definitely needed to stay off her feet for a while but when I moved towards the back of the cave, she struggled to her feet and followed after me.

I admired her dedication to her duty, but worried that she would push her body past its limits. “You should take a moment to rest.”

“I’m fine. A knight should always stay at the mage's side.” She straightened her posture and quickened her pace to walk ahead of me. She only managed a few steps before she stumbled into the cave wall.

“I’m going to explore the cave. Just to make sure it’s safe,” I said while helping her back towards the cave mouth. “You should stay with the others and rest until I come back.”

“I said I’m fine!” She snapped and pushed away from me. Her right knee buckled and she had to lean against the wall to keep from falling.

“But you don’t look fine and it’s as much my job to protect you as it is yours to protect me.” That wasn't the way it really worked, but in my view any mage that didn’t look out for his knight didn’t deserve to have a knight; unfortunately the world didn’t agree with me. Those with less power were often treated like meat shields for stronger mages.

Carletta glared sharply. “You know that’s not true. If something happens to you I’ll be blamed, especially if I wasn’t there to stop it.”

“I know, but what could you possibly do in your current condition? You’d just be a liability. If something does happen I’ll have a harder time running away if I have to worry about you.” I didn’t mean to be harsh, but it was the only way she’d listen. Turning away, I softly added, “if I’m not back in ten minutes, then you can come after me.”

I half expected her to follow me anyway, but I didn’t hear her stumbling behind me. When I reached the place where the cave descended into darkness I looked over my shoulder to check on her. I could see the reluctance in her eyes, but Carletta was still leaning against the wall where I left her.

“Ignite.” Flames gathered into a swirling orb above my palm. With the fire for light, and defense, I took my first steps into the darker portion of the cave.

The deeper I went into the tunnels the more certain I became that they weren’t formed naturally. Some sections were straight and smooth while others twisted and spiraled wildly as if they were dug by a creature in a state of panic.

A multitude of deep grooves covered every surface. The lines crossed over each other without regularity or any discernible pattern. At first I thought maybe they were claw marks, but the lines continued on in a single direction as if someone had walked through the cave hundreds of times, dragging a long spike along the walls as they went.

The lines must’ve been made by a beast of some sort, but I didn’t know of beasts that would do something like this. I played through a few scenarios in my head but couldn’t come up with any that seemed plausible.

Lost in my thoughts I walked along mindlessly. “Wha-ah! Shit.” I slipped on some kind of thick black liquid. The liquid was so slick that I slid further into the tunnel. I slipped again when trying to get back up, and this time I slid even further into the tunnel. The cave took a sudden downward turn and I slid right over the curve.

My head banged against the rocky floor, or the wall, I wasn’t really sure. I’d picked up speed and as the tunnel twisted and turned I slid in spirals around the cave. The groves carved in the walls did little to slow my slide and were far too slick to grab onto.

When the tunnel eventually leveled out I finally managed to stop my slide. I carefully got to my feet, which was harder now that my clothes were soaked in the black liquid. I conjured a stone staff to help keep from falling again but it did little good.

Every surface of the tunnel was covered with the black substance. It dripped from the walls and ceiling and collected in sludgy pools on the floor. I had no idea how I was going to get back out of the tunnel, but the more immediate problem was finding a way to dry off.

I had only managed a few steps when I realized that I was missing my fireball. Then I realized that the cave was still brightly lit and it was getting brighter.

I couldn’t see the fire yet, but the temperature inside the tunnel was steadily rising along with the brightness. “Fuck, Cole you dunce.” I intended to cast a spell, but couldn’t calm down enough to concentrate, or even remember the right words. Fear overwhelmed me as the fire approached faster than I could muddle through the slippery cave without falling.

When the blaze came into view I threw myself down on my stomach and started using my arms like paddles to slide along the floor. It was painful and I couldn’t keep the disgusting black liquid out of my mouth, but this was far faster than walking and with each stroke I picked up speed. Still I couldn’t out pace the fire and had to frantically flail just to keep ahead of it.