Ines glanced up the snow-covered mountains before her. They seemed to have no end. Wherever she turned, either right or left, rocks and grey steep ridges met her gaze. New dark clouds had started gathering in the evening sky, an omen for the storm that would soon break.
As the last sunrays of the day kissed the heathland, nightfall came to awaken danger within its quilt of starlit black. The light drained away and there was barely enough even for shadows. Whether she liked it or not the darkness was spreading over them and with it everything that was hidden in the mountains.
'I guess the only way is up,' Inerma said while looking up at the mountain peaks.
Ines nodded at her and fixed her armour so that it wouldn't grate on her nerves during her ascent. While she was refastening her belt and retying her leather boots, Matthew suddenly passed by her and stood over her. Ines held her breath but didn't look up at him, because his piercing eyes were enough to make her melt inside.
'Mind your steps,' his deep voice was more distant than usual.
'I will,' she reassured him, her gaze still fixed on the ground.
Only once she heard him walk away did she look up and see his retreating figure. The truth was she wasn't that mad at him, not really. Hell, she even felt excited by the thought that he reciprocated her feelings, but things weren't that simple. He had made an awful lot of mistakes and he needed to prove his sincerity if he wanted her to give him a chance.
She knew now why he wouldn't leave her side, or why he was so overprotective of her, and when he burst in anger and confessed his feelings, everything fell into place. She could have forgiven him right there and there, but she needed to give him a lesson first.
She wasn't to be ordered around like a helpless damsel who needed rescuing. She was a soldier who had trained for years and was ready to fight her own battles. He needed to learn to trust her, listen to her and respect her wishes. To think of her as his equal. Until he accepted that, she was going to give him the cold shoulder.
'Stop torturing the poor man,' Inerma whispered to her with a grin on her face.
'I'd rather test the waters first.'
She stood up and beckoned her to follow the men up the mountains. The elf, probably remembering the fighting they went through so far, carefully observed their surroundings for anything out of the ordinary, her brows knitted in concentration. After ensuring they were safe, she nodded at Ines and together they strode on the rugged slope.
'It is chilly,' Ines rubbed her cold hands.
'It will get worse as we go up.'
'I hope we'll find the information we need and get the hell out of there. That is uncharted territory, and I don't want to stay any longer than necessary.'
'Yeah. I gotta warn you though. No more playing around. We stick together if we wanna keep our heads.'
'Alright, boss,' Ines replied through pursed lips.
They steadily rode the uphill paths towards the top. The pathway threaded through the mountains. The hike there wove her into nature, becoming part of the fabric of the place. She breathed in the freezing air and felt her body relax after what seemed like ages.
Rock arose from the ground as if it reached for the sky. Landos went on first, Matthew following right behind him, and Ines stayed in the rear to cover their backs. They slowly climbed upon the rising ground in silence, each one of them focused on not falling over the sheer cliffs.
There were no trees nor any form of life on those mountains. The bare rocky land was too cruel and unwelcome for any of that, and the wind was every bit as cold and merciless. Ines felt goosebumps all over her body every time a powerful gust struck her, but she didn't complain. Her years of training in the army had made her immune to that kind of hardships.
They had covered half of the distance that remained up to the top, when the clouds gave of their rain, when the path became alive with more puddles and splashes than her eyes would appreciate. Their boots met the wet ground, causing water to spray their clothes in an unpleasant way.
Still, they went on without pausing. The white planes under the mountains grew more and more distant as they ascended to bigger heights and the chilly air made them draw together a little more. Eventually they reached a small plateau in the mountains where the ground leveled off.
Ines looked around her. The mountain range stretched for miles, cutting the human realm off the easters lands. Its peaks were hidden behind dense fog that obscured whatever there was below in the unknown parts. On the other side the atmosphere was clearer, and Ines could see the vast forests and small human settlements spread out in many places.
The landscape was a marriage of crystalline white and umber brown that shined in the sunset. They were lucky, because come night the beautiful sight before her would vanish in the darkness. As she took in the view, it gave her a sense of perspective that calmed her soul, that made the everyday struggles shrink.
'Nice view, huh,' Landos murmured in astonishment.
'More than nice,' she agreed.
'Hey,' Matthew nudged the elf and pointed to their left. 'Do you see that over there?'
Ines glanced towards where he was looking at. It was difficult to see anything under the thick snow that covered everything, but once she squinted harder, she immediately noticed a tiny camp in the distance. It was heavily fortified with high wooden enclosures and the few low-ceiling buildings she could make out were in bad shape.
'It looks like a bunker,' she said. 'Is it ours?'
'I don't think so,' Matthew replied.
'Come on,' she was about to stand up and head to the mysterious camp, when Matthew suddenly pulled her back down.
'Peter!' he hissed her name. 'Stay down. Someone might see you!'
'Alright, alright.'
She knew he had a point right then, so she crouched down and moved cautiously ahead. She led them through narrow cracks and trails, down to the lower ground of the unknown structure. She made sure they were always hidden by the rough landscape, blending into the slope.
They approached the bunker and squated next to each other. Ines saw then that there was only one entrance to the camp that was facing south. Inside it, there were black figures moving around, for what purpose she didn't know. For some reason she had a feeling she had seen such an attire before.
She watched them closely and soon enough she discovered she wasn't wrong. They were wearing the same masks as the people they had faced a couple of times in the past. They were the ones who had abducted Matthew and had fought them ever since.
'While we were asleep, they've been busy,' Matthew's tight voice brought her back to reality.
'Are you thinking what I'm thinking?' Ines smirked at him.
'Uhmm, yes, and I highly recommend we stay out of this. They are too many. We must find another way.'
'There is no other way. We need information. Those people with masks definitely know something.' She looked at him with a blank expression, waiting to see his reaction. Would he react the same way as usual and disappoint her, or finally learn to stop ordering her around like the overbearing man he used to be?
'Fine,' he said, his jaw clenched. 'But don't do anything reckless. And stay close to us.'
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A/N: I have a bad feeling about this. Do you have a bad feeling about this? It was a bit hard writing this chapter and now I'm very tired. You know, a star might give me energy. Wanna try and see? THANK YOU FOR READIIIING <3
Phrase of chapter: aequat omnes cinis / ashes make everybody equal - Seneca