"So, that's where we shall go."
"Wait, you don't need any follow-up?" I just told Adma about my dream last night. It seems like she has no questions.
"Is it far? You have to be back to work tomorrow morning, don't you?"
Adma gives me a flat look before a moment of realization springs to her eyes and she dives into her pocket. She grabs something and tosses it to me.
I catch it out of the air, and look down to what I'm holding. It looks familiar. A corestone, except this one is a charcoal grey color and more triangular in shape.
"Exoran Holla. Do you know how to use one of those?"
I nod, though I dare not tell her why. "It's a temporary Vessel. I can use magic with this."
I pocket my new treasure as I look toward Adma. She's almost ready packing up.
"It's only fair you receive it. It's former owner wanted to harvest you for parts, after all."
Eesh. I don't need a reminder of all that mess. But she raises a valid point. "That guy...Leoni? What's going to happen with him?" I ask.
Adma is firm and resolute in her response. "He has confessed to being an accomplice of the Flamekeeper. We shall continue to extract information out of him until he ceases to be useful, and then he will be executed."
"So, I don't have to worry about him coming back for this bad boy?" I pat my chest pocket, where I stowed away the corestone.
"I'm ready," Adma declares, as she finishes strapping a thick two-handed sword to her back. That thing looks like it packs a punch. "The Ferin Village is about three hours from here on foot. We can't take a carriage. The path is too treacherous for wagons or horses. The Ferin prefer to keep to themselves and live in remote places."
Sounds interesting. Not like I even know what a Ferin is.
"Oh, I got this one!" Sola chimes in. She seems happy to provide me with information when she can. If only I could get a little more information.
From Sola, I learn that the Ferin are a different tribe of humans. Their ancestors practiced an ancient form of nature magic that transformed their very bodies. Their descendants still bear the marks of that magic, thousands of years later. Each Ferin develops animalistic traits. Ears like a cat, a monkey's tail, wings capable of flight - all of these features are commonplace among the Ferin.
We leave town and head to the west, over a river, and through some woods. About an hour into our journey, we come to a cleft in the earth - a gigantic ravine that seems to cleave the entire planet in half. It extends so deep into the earth that I can't even see the bottom - just an ominous brown fog. Adma points out a rickety wooden bridge that looks anything but stable. That would be our crossing.
I've never considered myself as someone afraid of heights. Not until I have to cross this bridge. Over the ravine is windy, and the bridge is rocking back and forth violently as we cross. Even Adma is having some trouble. She walks a few paces ahead of me like a tank, slamming her feet down one after another as she holds onto the ropes on either side. If she's afraid, she's hiding it well, or trying to project strength. I guess that's what I would expect from a 'Lord Commander'.
I groan out loud as we are over the middle of the bridge, so loud that Adma whips her head around, turns to me, and leans closer.
"Are you okay!" she shouts. She has to shout. The howling wind blowing us like ragdolls on this bridge makes it hard to hear.
"Not doing great!" I yell back. "But I'll make it!"
Damn it, Kieran. Why did you have to be in the most remote place on this planet?
As we continue trudging forward, I hear a loud screech. I look up and see a bird about half my size circling overhead. Adma is alerted by the sound as well.
"Damn it," she says, her voice gravelly and low, though we're close enough that I can hear her. "That's a Volche."
I look at the bird. Sola recognizes the name. It's a type of 'fiend'. Are all of these fiends going to be damn birds? Maybe when I named Larissa's corestone 'Birdblaster', I was onto something.
"They don't normally attack people. They feast on corpses. We'll be safe."
Her words age POORLY. In that moment the bird swoops down, plummeting through the turbulent air like a bullet aimed directly at me. I don't know what else to do but scream and duck.
As I duck, I hear Adma's heavy greatsword slide out of its sheath and she cleaves all her might into the blade, swinging it savagely through the air and eviscerating the 'Volche' into two neat halves. The blood and guts do not rain on me this time - it's a clean cut and the severed body of the bird falls harmlessly into the ravine.
"Hm. A first time for everything."
When we finally make it over the bridge, we've been traveling for nearly two hours. By that estimate, we should be only an hour away from the Ferin Village.
This side of the bridge is rocky and more cliffs extend upward. Adma informs me we'll be doing some climbing. At least it's not so windy over here. There's good tree coverage and the terrain is uneven, providing some natural shelter. As we start scrambling our way up some steep cliffs, Sola rings into my mind.
"August, I have an observation I thought I should share. Adma mentioned that Volches are unlikely to attack humans, but that one charged immediately at you. Do you think that strange?"
A little bit, I suppose.
"It's just like that Encephalim on the moon. The one with the big yellow eye. They seem to be especially attracted to you, August."
Is that right? I'm a big Encephalim magnet?
"Yes, but I am not sure why. From my understanding, Encephalim are less likely to attack Magicians, not more likely."
Well, that's perfectly ominous. I hate that.
I finish scrambling up a slanted rock and finally get somewhere flat, where Adma is waiting for me. She points down into the valley, and I see the Ferin Village for the first time. It's not far, now - but damn, it's a long way down.
The village is surrounded by fields of tall yellow grass in the valley. A stark contrast from the rocky paths and spiny red bushes that blanket the landscapes I've seen so far, and different still from the perfectly manicured forest of the royal hunting grounds, where I'd met Larissa.
"Ferin children can get from here to there in twenty minutes," Adma smirks. "Why don't we have a little fun of it? Think you're quick on your feet?"
"Oh, hell yeah!" I exclaim. It's the most exciting thing I've heard since coming to this world. Competitive and agile as I am, I see the rocky descent in front of me as little more than a speedrunning course where I can prove my skills. "We racing!?"
Adma laughs. "Oh, no. I'll catch up. Run like the wind, August Madera!"
And with her blessing, I'm off! Skipping down the rocks, vaulting over obstacles, running free.
Free. This freedom. It's what I always dreamed coming to the planet would be like. Endless, boundless. Free to roam wherever the breeze takes me. An open world that begs to be explored.
I'm not as quick as a Ferin child, but I make it to the base of the cliff in twenty-four minutes. Adma is decently impressed. It took her exactly thirty.
As I get more comfortable in this world, and learn my way around some of these obstacles, I'm sure I'll get even faster. Those Ferin kids probably have a lot of practice here, anyway. Not a fair comparison!
"Shall we?" Adma says, a small smile visible on her face. Seems she had some fun too. Side by side, we head into the Ferin Village.