The journey west was a relentless grind. The familiar, lush green of their valley quickly gave way to the rugged, unforgiving terrain of the foothills. For three days, they walked, a small, self-sufficient unit moving with a quiet, professional purpose. Draven had mapped their route based on Elias's frantic sketches, a path that favored caution over speed, weaving through dense forests and rocky game trails to avoid the open plains where they would be most vulnerable.
Their new summon, Umbra, was proving to be an invaluable asset. The Shadow Panther was a ghost, a creature of pure stealth that moved through the undergrowth without snapping a twig or disturbing a leaf. It became their primary scout, its ability to climb sheer rock faces and melt into the shadows giving them eyes in places no normal scout could reach. More than once, Umbra returned from a silent patrol to report a pack of predators or a treacherous rockslide, allowing Draven to adjust their course and avoid a potentially costly encounter. The twenty-five energy units he had spent on its summoning had already yielded an immense return on investment.
On the evening of the third day, they made camp in a small, defensible cave at the base of the mountains proper. The air was thinner here, the wind carrying a sharp, cold bite. While Kara skillfully prepared a stew from foraged mountain roots and the last of their salted meat, Draven sat by the fire, reviewing the day's progress.
"Umbra's reconnaissance saved us at least a day's travel and a pointless fight with that pack of Ridge-Stalkers," he noted, his gaze fixed on the flames.
Kara looked up from the pot, a warm, tired smile on her face. "Your instincts were right. A flyer would have been spotted. The panther is the perfect tool for this environment."
"It was a logical choice based on the available data," he replied, but her praise was a quiet, welcome warmth against the cold of his own analytical mind.
Kael and the Rune-Hound rested near the fire, a formidable pair of guardians, while the Thornling had burrowed into a patch of soft earth, a spiky, sleeping lump. Umbra was a dark shape perched on a high ledge, its green eyes a pair of emeralds in the gloom, a silent overwatch for their camp.
"We're a long way from the keep," Kara said softly, her voice pulling him from his thoughts.
He looked at her, at the way the firelight danced in her eyes, and felt the immense weight of their mission settle over him again. "This is the only path forward," he said.
"I know," she replied, her hand finding his. "I wouldn't want to be on it with anyone else."
The simple, honest declaration was a more powerful motivator than any System quest. He squeezed her hand, a silent promise. They were in this together, to the end.
The next day, they began their ascent into the high peaks. The terrain became a vertical puzzle of treacherous ledges, crumbling rock faces, and sudden, gut-wrenching drops. Jaxon's climbing gear was their lifeline. Draven took the lead, driving the chitin-tipped pitons into the rock, while Kara provided a steady, reliable belay from below. The summons were surprisingly adept. Kael and the Rune-Hound were powerful climbers, their claws finding purchase where a human could not. The Thornling was light enough for Kara to carry, and Umbra simply flowed up the rock face like a wisp of smoke.
It was mid-afternoon, as they were navigating a narrow, wind-blasted pass, that the attack came. Elias had warned them of Cliff-Drakes, and now they understood his fear. They were not large, but they were fast, a flock of a dozen winged reptiles with leathery skin and talons like sharpened steel. They dove from the sky with piercing shrieks, a blur of motion against the gray, unforgiving rock.
"Defensive formation!" Draven yelled, his mind instantly adapting to the new, three-dimensional battlefield. "Kara, you are our only anti-air! Jaxon may be at the keep, but we will make do! Prioritize the leaders! Kael, Rune-Hound, protect her! Thornling, burrow! Umbra, high ground!"
The commands were a rapid-fire sequence of tactical orders. The team moved with a practiced, desperate efficiency. Kael and the Rune-Hound formed a living wall around Kara, their bodies shielding her from the drakes' swooping, slashing attacks. The Thornling tunneled into a crack in the rock, its Thorn Barrage ability creating a deadly, low-level field of fire that kept the drakes from landing.
Kara was a pillar of calm focus in the heart of the chaos. Her bow was a blur of motion, each arrow a precise, deadly calculation. A drake dove, and her arrow met it in mid-air, a perfect, impossible shot that sent the creature tumbling into the abyss.
Umbra, meanwhile, had scaled the cliff face above them. As a drake swooped low to attack Kara, the Shadow Panther leaped from its perch, a silent, black projectile that slammed into the creature's back. Fangs and claws tore at leathery wings, and the two of them plunged downward, a chaotic tangle of shadow and reptile. They crashed onto a lower ledge, and Umbra rose, shaking its head, the drake a broken, unmoving heap at its feet.
Draven was the anchor, his axe a whirlwind of defensive strikes, his mind a constant stream of tactical updates. He saw a pattern in their attacks, a weakness in their formation. "They're coordinating!" he yelled to Kara. "The one with the red crest! Take it down!"
Kara shifted her aim, her arrow a silver streak that found its mark. The lead drake shrieked and fell, and with its death, the flock's coordinated attack dissolved into a panicked, disorganized mob. They picked off two more before the rest scattered, their screeches echoing through the empty peaks.
[Combat Resolved: Cliff-Drake Flock Defeated.]
[Reward: +350 Experience, Drake Hide (Lightweight) x8, Drake Talons (Sharp) x16.]
In the ringing silence that followed, they stood, breathing heavily, the adrenaline slowly fading. They had survived their first major test of the mountains.
"The hides are light, but tough," Kara noted, already in quartermaster mode as she inspected one of the carcasses. "Perfect for reinforcing our cloaks against this wind."
"And the talons," Draven added, his mind already processing the new resources. "We can use them to replace Jaxon's iron pitons. They'll be lighter and stronger."
They made camp on a high, defensible ledge. As the twin moons rose, casting a pale, ethereal light over the jagged peaks, Draven looked out to the west. And there, nestled in a high, hidden valley, he could see it. A faint, almost imperceptible geometric pattern that was not of the natural world. A series of structures, glinting faintly in the moonlight.
The Enclave outpost. Their destination. They were close. The hardest part of their journey was still to come.