Private Tales The Mountains Ahead

[Aviana Sabel]

"Always." She said warmly, pulling herself up into the saddle.

A few hours later, not long after the sun had risen over the horizon, Aviana and Kasim arrived at a small, picturesque hamlet that was nestled into the rolling foothills. These were the kind of people who lived simple, peaceful lives and didn't much fuss themselves with the world that just happened to exist along side them. Not long ago, Aviana was aware that she'd lived not differently on her little island. That realization helped to put things into perspective as they rode into town.

Her silver hair was loosely wrapped with a blue scarf that was also draped over her shoulders. During the journey from their campsite to the town, her ears had gotten cold and she improvised a way to keep them warm without having to take her hair down. It was an elegant solution.

Erodin, however, drew quite a bit of attention. As Aviana was sliding out of the saddle, a young girl with bright red pigtails came trotting up to her and the elk with a stuffed doll tucked in her arm. Her head tilted all the way back, to the point that Aviana was worried about the girl tipping over, and she pointed up at Erodin's antlers with her free hand.

"Daddy! Daddy! Lookit!" She exclaimed, giving a shrieking laugh and clapping her hands together.

Aviana kept a hand on the reins, both of them gathered loosely beneath Erodin's chin. He was a gentle enough beast, but he was also large enough that she was worried he would accidentally knock the girl over. She looked around, almost exasperated, and not entirely sure what to do. To the elk's credit, he didn't flinch and stomp a hoof at the girl's shrill voice.

Moment's later, the girl's father finally appeared. He looked out of breath, as though he'd been chasing after the miscreant. "Henrietta! Gods above, child." The man puffed out, bending down to scoop up his daughter.

"Tha' goat is HUGE!" The young girl, Henrietta, continued to prattle on, giggling in her father's arms.

The adult chuckled and hefted his daughter a little higher up on his hip, kissing her cheek, before he turned his brown gaze to Aviana. "Sorry about tha', lass. What kin I do ya for?"

A stab of heartache pierced through Aviana's chest as she watched the father and daughter, the hand holding the reins tightening ever so slightly. The wounds were still too fresh for her to brush off the moment. For the first time, she started to come to accept that she would likely never see her family again.

The noble mask was quick to fall into place so that the tears didn't well up in her eyes. A forced smile spread over her lips, but it was still warm and friendly. She had a harder time understanding these two when they spoke, their accent being quite thick and extremely foreign to her.

"There's no need to apologize, my good sir. Though, I suspect that is the first time Erodin has been mistaken for a goat." She said lightly, forcing the ache in her chest down into the recesses of her mind.

"My companion and I were just stopping to see what supplies we could procure before we continue on our journey." She continued, gesturing over to Kasim who was still mounted on his horse.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim nodded to the man as he kicked his leg over the saddle and dropped down on the other side of the horse. He landed on the ground with a muted thud, worn boots colliding with the dirt road and kicking up a small hint of dust.

For a moment the Jester lingered in place, glancing around the small village. ”Do you have a general goods store? Something to that effect?”

The man nodded and pointed down the ways a little. Kasim nodded and thanked him. They would need to tie up the horses...well horse and elk first, but hopefully the small store would have what they needed. This close to The Spine he couldnt imagine that there would be no cold weather clothing to be found.

Though of course, it could all have been sold.

Kasim could fashion clothing himself using the runes, but changing a strip of raw hide into an actual article of clothing was far more difficult than changing a piece of clothing itself. One had to essentially direct the runes on what to do, and in order to create stitching and the like one had to be incredibly difficult.

He'd never done it himself, mostly because the process would take nearly an entire day.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

"I can tie up the animals and meet you inside, Mr. Areth. You know what we're actually looking for." She offered, taking the reins to Kasim's horse as well.

Both beasts of burden were soon tied to the appropriate hitching posts and watered. A few of the villagers that passed by stopped and stared at the strangers, whispering behind their hands at the strange elk and the woman that accompanied it. By now, she'd gotten used to the stares.

Not long after, she joined Kasim inside the small store. If ever there was a word more apt to describe a place, 'quaint' would have been the one for this little shop. Aviana was fairly certain that did not bode well for their chances of finding adequate equipment, but Kasim usually had some sort of trick up his sleeve.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim had perused for a few seconds already, and unfortunately he had found none of what he'd been looking for.

They needed heavy cloaks, animal skins, anything that could protect them from the incessant cold one would find inside of the mountain paths. Unfortunately the store had none of that, instead there were trinkets, a few ancient looking swords, and general hunting goods.

None of what they needed. Kasim frowned slightly, clearing his throat to call attention to the store attendant who seemed to have been drifting to sleep. "Excuse me."

The Jester called out to the man.

"I need some cold weather clothing." He told the man. "For traversing the pass."

 

[Aviana Sabel]

The young half-elf came up beside Kasim and she glanced up at him with a raised brow. It was obvious that things so far hadn't gone according to plan.

"Something wrong?" She asked.

One quick look around the store gave her a decent idea of what Kasim was talking to the clerk about. It wasn't looking good that they were going to find the equipment they needed in order to continue up the mountain pass.

She brushed a few strands of curls behind her ear and smiled to the clerk. The older man shuffled off the stool that he'd been napping on, making his way over to the pair.

"Cold weather gear, eh laddy?" He pushed his half-moon spectacles further up his nose with an old gnarled finger. Aviana couldn't help but wonder how the man had afforded such nice glasses. He shook his head forlornly. "Not sure we have anything suitable for crossing the mountains at this time of year."

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim frowned slightly. "Figured that."

His fingers drummed against the side of his thigh as he thought about what to do next. There wasn't really much of a decision to be made. He had already told Aviana what their options were, either they found cold weather gear or they would head into the Deep Roads.

Their path had been decided for them, as much as Kasim didn't really like it. There was more guess work when it came to the underground, and that meant more danger. A sigh escaped him, and he took a deep breath.

"Then we'll need torches." He had already seen those in the back of the shop. "As well as some rations if you have them."

There wouldn't be much food to find in the roads.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

"Of course, lad." The old clerk shuffled off to the back of the shop to collect the requested goods.

Aviana looked up to Kasim, folding her arms loosely over her chest. "Unfortunate... But we'll be able to make this work. We'll just have to be more careful."

She hoped that she sounded somewhat reassuring, but she couldn't be sure. Kasim was difficult to read, and it didn't help that he always seemed rather annoyed with everything around him.

Not long after, the clerk returned with a small cart that had several torches piled on top of it, and a few packets of rations. "Will this suffice?"

 

[Kasim Areth]

"I suppose it will have to." Kasim said with a slight sigh. He didn't like the idea of doing this. The Deep Roads were an unknown, so much so in fact that the path he had taken a year ago might now be completely blocked off.

The real trouble was that he had no map, and he was confident they wouldn't be able to find any in this little town.

Most humans stayed away from the deep roads as a matter of principal, simple village folk especially. There were legends and rumors that demons dwelled within the depths, waiting for innocent victims to wander a bit too far. Kasim gave no credence to those stories, but he knew well that it was dangerous.

Still, he supposed it was better than traveling another eight weeks.

His fingers drummed against his thigh again, a nervous tick that he just couldn't shake. They would reach the gates within two days, and from there he would just have to lead as best as he could.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

After they'd purchased what few meager supplies that they could get their hands on, Aviana helped Kasim carry the goods out to the animals and secured it to the saddles. There was a new kind of tension swirling around the jester, almost as if he was uneasy. It reminded the half-elf of the expression he'd had moments before that harpy had attacked them -- which probably meant the man was uneasy about something. Should she say something to him? Try to get him to open up for the fiftieth time, or just let well enough be?

Even after having traveled with the bard for a few weeks now, she still felt as though she barely knew the man. It was unsettling, but she reasoned that it was probably just the mainlander way. She hadn't excatly been forthcoming herself.

"Areth, if you're worried about the old roads, we can take the long path around the Spine." She said softly to him as she tied a bundle of torches to his horse's saddle.

 

[Kasim Areth]

”It will be fine.” Kasim said, thought he wasn't entirely sure about that fact. There were danger that just couldn't be foreseen in the deep roads. That was what really made him nervous, not the things that he knew they would already face no matter what.

Still, the risk was worth cutting eight weeks from their journey. Especially considering that heading over the Spine also meant there was a chance of running into something else that would kill them. The orcs generally kept things safe, but one never quite knew what was going to be at the end of the road you couldn't see. Shifting slightly he pulled his pack a bit tighter onto his back.

”It will be undoubtedly dangerous.” He told Avianna. ”But as long as we follow the road signs it should be alright.”

The Jester did not know dwarvish, but he knew the words of the Holds and cities that would take them on the right path.

At least he was pretty sure he did.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Aviana smiled back at him, then finished tying off the bundle of torches on the saddle, flipping a protective cover over the flammable kindling on the ends to keep them dry.

"How hard can it be to follow road signs?" She asked with a false confidence, that she didn't quite feel. Having traveled with Kasim for some distance now, she was getting accustomed to putting on a brave face.

She lightly patted his shoulder then slipped past him and walked over to Erodin, hauling herself up into the saddle and loosely grabbing the reins. "So. Are we spending the day here, or continuing on our way?"

 

[Kasim Areth]

"You would be surprised." Kasim commented quietly, thinking back to his own journey through the Mountains.

Most of the roadsigns had been half destroyed, others had pointed the wrong way and some had even collapsed in on themselves. He hoped it would not be the case this time, mostly because he had no intention of getting stuck beneath a mountain and dying in a maze.

He shivered at the thought.

"It might be a good idea to spend the night." The Jester commented to his companion as he patted his horse on the neck. "We won't find a bed for quite some time."

The Deep Roads were faster than going north, but it would still take them a week or so to go through them, and that was only if they actually took the right ways. If they fell off the path then it would take even more time.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

The half-elf nodded quietly at the suggestion of staying the night in the quaint little hamlet. She turned her gaze away from Kasim, looking for something that would qualify as an inn and a stable. Erodin could use a rest, just as much as she could.

Eventually, her eyes landed on an adorable building at the far end of the road with what looked to be a small stable behind it. She nodded her head towards the inn, then gestured with her arm a moment later. "That looks to be the place then. Might as well get ourselves a proper meal and a room for the night."

She paused, then realized that she had just insinuated they get only one room together. Her cheeks colored a soft pink briefly and she cleared her throat. Which was ridiculous, of course, she knew that. She'd spent several nights on the road with the jester, but for some reason the thought of an enclosed space with him seemed different.

"Right. I'll stable the animals and make sure that they're fed and watered." She offered, reaching to grab the reins of Kasim's horse then turned to take the animals to the modest barn.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim nodded to Aviana and handed her the reigns to his horse. The creature had served him well over the last few weeks, though he suspected she might not enjoy what was to come.

The Deep Roads weren't exactly the most welcoming place, and while they were hospitable it was rather difficult to lead untrained animals through them. The lack of sunlight, collapsed tunnels, and unsure footing made even the most self assured beast skittish. Of course, what would actually happen remained to be seen, but Kasim was starting to feel like this whole thing might have been a bad idea.

Still, at least it was an adventure. Another for the books he supposed.

Without another word to Aviana Kasim headed towards the small Inn, stepping inside and leaving the door open for his companion. The inside of the place wasn't anything unexpected, a small common room, a few tables, and a bar at the opposite end of where he stood. It wasnt unlike the Inn where he had first met Aviana.

”I need two rooms.” Kasim said as he walked up to the bar. ”And two meals.”

He thought for a second and then continued. ”As well as feed for two…horses.”

Aviana didn't have a horse but close enough.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

By the time Aviana had finished tending to the animals, the food that Kasim had ordered was cooked and waiting on the table. She walked into the small establishment and glanced around, making considerably less of a scene than she had the first time they'd met. If anything, her travels with Kasim were helping her to blend in somewhat.

She made her way to the table, pulling her gloves off her hands as she took a seat, tucking the wayward strands of hair behind her ear as she sat down. "Well. This certainly feels familiar, does it not?" She asked warmly, clasping her hands together in her lap.

While she had managed to not barge into the inn in as such an abrupt fashion, she still sat a little too straight for a commoner. Her hands were always neatly placed and composed, giveaways to anyone with a keen enough eye. She nodded towards one of the plates, silently asking if that was intended for her, since she didn't want to be rude and make the assumption.

 

[Kasim Areth]

It certainly did, though that wasnt too surprising. Inns like these were a dime a dozen in this world. There was really only so much you could do with interior design when your options boiled down to wood, more wood, and then some other kind of wood that happened to be a different color.

Tables, chairs, fireplace, and of course a bar. All of it was pretty much standard practice. If Kasim were to guess he'd say these had all been carved and created by some woodworker who lived nearby and more often than not got his drinks for free instead of actually paying. The practice was common enough in places like this and served as a way for people to work with each other while never actually exchanging any currency, which was of course rather scarce.

”It certainly is.” Kasim admitted as he sat himself down.

He'd not ordered a drink, though was considering it as he sat there.

”They only had one room left.” The Jester explained. ”But it has two beds and its own fireplace.”

It would be comfortable enough for the night.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Aviana chuckled softly to herself when it was revealed that there was only the one room. Since Kasim didn't tell her the plate was for himself, she reached over to slide it in front of her. She quietly started to nibble on the morsels of food, enjoying the hot meal that she hadn't had to cook for herself.

"That's not so different than every other night since we've started traveling together. There's just a roof over our head for a change." She chuckled quietly, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. "Fire and all."

Her gaze flicked around the small inn, then landed back on Kasim. "Did you want a drink, Mr. Areth?"

 

[Kasim Areth]

”No.” He said with a shake of his head. ”Not tonight.”

Something felt off to him, though just what it was he couldn't tell. Perhaps it was simply the dejavu of being in a place so similar to where he and Aviana had met. The human mind was funny sometimes, and admittedly his own had been riddled with drink and other vices long enough that sometimes he just lost himself in certain ways. Shaking his head Kasim sat down.

Best to keep an eye out anyway, lock the door of the room too when they were going to sleep.

”Best to keep my head up for tomorrow.” That was probably it anyway. Their journey into the deep roads had his nerves on their last little tether. He wasnt entirely sure what they would find down there or even if they'd make it through. The Jester was confident in his own abilities, but there was no accounting for the dozens of surprises that might come.

They would just have to hope for the best.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

She'd been around Kasim long enough now to recognize when the man was uncomfortable or distracted. This was certainly blatant enough for her to pick up on the tension.

With a quick glance over her shoulder, trying to see if there were any unsettling or shady characters huddled in the shadows that might have put him on edge. She didn't see anything that stood out to her.

"That's fair. Just worried about tomorrow then? You look as though something is on your mind." She ventured carefully with a raised brow.

So far in their journey, Kasim's hunches had not led them astray and she'd learned to not take them lightly.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim shook his head. ”Probably nothing.”

The Jester wasnt entirely sure about that, but he wasnt going to create an issue when he had absolutely no evidence except for a feeling in his gut. He'd traveled the road long enough not to be a complete fool, despite his occupation. So he just leaned back in his seat and drummed his fingers against the edge of the table. His mind wandered from place to place for a while, simply mapping out where they would have to go in the morning.

”The entrance to the Deep Roads should be a few miles from here.” Kasim explained to Aviana.

There were actually dozens upon dozens of entrances to the roads themselves. Many had been sealed over the last few centuries, but a few of them remained open for one reason or another. Most often it was trade or another small convenience for a nearby village or town.

”From there we read the first marker. “ He was confident that one at least would be there. ”Then follow them until we reach the other side of the spine.”

 

[Aviana Sabel]

If she was honest, the plan didn't sound like it had the sturdiest of foundations; but she didn't know enough about the area to offer a better solution. If Kasim thought it too suicidal, he would have insisted they go another route. She knew that she could, at the very least, trust in the jesters well developed sense of self-preservation -- though she only benefited from it as a convenient after thought.

"I trust that you know this road will actually get us through to the other side, instead of dead-ending in the middle of a labyrinth?" She countered with a raised brow.

While she quietly ate the food, she wondered just how far she would be able to explore the ruins of the deep roads. It wasn't as if she could bring enough rations to last her indefinitely down in the caves, and she was almost certain that if she ventured off on her own that she would get hopelessly lost.

Once she'd finished, she pushed the plate a few inches forward and wiped at the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

 

[Kasim Areth]

”The road goes where we need it to.” Kasim said with a slight sigh. ”It's just a matter of whether or not the road is still whole.“

That was really where the trouble in this whole affair came from in the first place, why the deep roads were so dangerous. Things changed beneath the earth, whether by the hands of beast, man, or nature. The roads were destroyed, the markers smashed, and the great caverns torn apart. Within a matter of months things could turn on their head. The dwarves had a way around it. They always knee another path, but Kasim was not a Dwarf. He was just a man

If things changed too much they would have to rely on luck. ”I only know one path through the roads, but in the last year that path could have been destroyed.”

Kasim paused for a second and then continued.

”Or have a sleeping Fire Giant on it.” Unlikely but not impossible. ”Things change quickly beneath the earth.”

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Aviana smiled faintly at Kasim's response, clasping her hands together as she brought them up to rest on top of the table.

"Has anyone ever told you just how wonderful you are at reassuring people, Mr. Areth?" She asked sardonically, smirking a little at the jester.

She knew that Kasim wasn't one to sugar coat information just to make it more palatable for her, which is partly why she had stayed with him for so long on the road in the first place -- she needed someone that was willing to tell her how things actually worked, and who wasn't afraid to do so in a matter-of-fact manner. Expectation management and having an iota of an idea as to what she was getting into was a good thing.

 

[Kasim Areth]

”I didn't say we were going to die.” He pointed out to her.

As a matter of fact he was still fairly confident in both himself and the ability to get both of them through to the other side. If that weren't true he would have just called this whole thing off and taken them to the north, or waited a few weeks until this village saw its next merchant. Truth was, even with the danger he knew he could do this.

And he knew it would make a better story.

”Did I scare you? “ He mused with a smile. ”I didn't even give you any of the details. “

Leaning back he grinned slightly, then considered for a moment and waved to the nearby bar tender. Perhaps he would have a drink after all.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

She chuckled quietly at his retort and leaned back in her seat, folding her arms over her chest. The smirk grew into an amused grin and she wrinkled her nose slightly.

"I didn't say that you frightened me." She countered, mimicking the tone that he had used with her.

"Though, I am curious as to what details you're leaving out. It's not like you to mince words."

Her eyes flicked over to the bartender as Kasim ordered himself a drink, and she bit at her bottom lip, considering if she wanted to drink herself. It had been some time since she'd actually enjoyed a glass of mead, and she reasoned that she might as well partake in one while she could.

She raised a hand and smiled brightly to the bartender, ordering herself a glass as well.