The morning light filtered softly through the dense canopy above, breaking into beams that flickered across the forest floor. Dew still clung to the leaves, and the scent of dry dirt lingered in the air. Beneath the towering trees, a four-man group moved in formation, their steps muffled by layers of fallen foliage and soil. The woods around them were vast, their silence interrupted only by the occasional call of some unseen bird.
A few days had passed since Kael had joined the small group from the Eirendaile family. Torin took the lead. Selene followed at his back, her gaze alert, her posture light on her feet. Kael walked third, and behind him, Malric brought up the rear, his presence always just far enough not to press, but never so distant that Kael forgot he was there.
Their formation was no coincidence. It had been chosen with Kael in mind, designed to protect him, whom they still believed to be the only mortal among them.
Despite their swift pace, they made frequent short stops, allowing Kael time to catch his breath before pressing on. Though the journey was difficult, he could tell they were being considerate of his limits. However, he also knew that once they reached more dangerous territory, that courtesy would not last.
'Here she comes…'
His gaze dropped for half a second, then returned.
As they moved through the forest, he noticed Selene gradually slowing her pace until she fell in step beside him. Her footsteps, usually light and unbothered, had taken on a more deliberate rhythm, like something was on her mind. After a moment, she cast him a sideways glance and finally spoke.
"You holding up alright?" she asked, her tone gentle yet curious.
He nodded slightly having already grown accustomed to Selene's talkative nature and adjusted his accordingly.
"Yeah, just trying to keep up."
Selene smiled. "You're doing well, you know. Most mortals would be exhausted by now."
Kael glanced ahead at Torin, who remained focused on the path, and then back at Selene.
"I don't intend to slow you down."
Selene chuckled softly. "I don't think anyone here expects you to move like a Luminaire. But still... you're keeping up better than I thought."
Kael wasn't sure whether to take that as a compliment or not, but he didn't really care, either. Without a word, he turned his attention back to the forest, his gaze sweeping over the scarce undergrowth.
Selene remained quiet for a while, turning her head slightly to the side as she watched Kael scan the surroundings. His hair shifted with the wind, swaying gently between each step. His deep green eyes stayed calm, yet alert.
Her gaze drifted downward to his neck, where three visible scars stretched from his neck to his chin, remnants of what seemed to be a deadly battle long ago.
Before she could stop herself, she spoke, her voice calm with a hint of curiosity.
"How did you even get this far? You know, through the forest and all, finally reaching us?"
Kael sighed inwardly before turning his attention back to Selene.
"I've been a mercenary for more than six years now. It might not seem like a long time, but I've never truly rested during those years. And as time passed, I picked up a thing or two, you know."
His eyes was locked on the path ahead as he spoke
Selene looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
'Six years? We're both around the same age. He must have started awfully early.'
She tilted her head slightly, curiosity flickering in her eyes.
"You must have started young… was it by choice?"
Kael simply gave a warm smile and answered, "Yes."
Kael glanced at Selene as she turned her head forward, her sharp features standing out in profile. Her striking blue eyes remained fixed ahead, and her golden hair fluttered in the wind. She seemed lost in thought, as if searching for something to talk about.
Just as she turned back to Kael, parting her lips to speak, a voice rang out from behind them.
"Selene, get back to your position."
Malric's voice came from behind, steady but firm. He didn't even look their way, his eyes still scanning the surroundings as always, his expression as unreadable as ever.
Selene let out a soft sigh, rolling her eyes before offering Kael a small, knowing smile. "Guess that's my cue."
Without further protest, she picked up her pace, falling back into formation. Her golden hair swayed with each step, catching the light as it bounced gently with her movements.
When there was little to do, Selene would wander over to Kael, filling the silence with her thoughts and speculations about anything that crossed her mind. Kael had come to understand her personality well by now.
After all, spending weeks in a forest with Torin and Malric, two men of few words, must have been unbearable for someone like her. He couldn't blame her for seeking conversation where she could. So even if Kael wasn't always one for idle chatter, he listened.
His eyes flicked to a bird's cry overhead, but he didn't slow his pace.
The path they walked had become rockier, though the towering trees around them remained as majestic as ever, their massive crowns swaying high above. The incline had grown steeper, a noticeable shift that gave Kael a clue about their location.
"Titanwoods…"
Kael let his hand move along a passing tree as his thoughts started to wander.
The Titanwoods stretched across the entire eastern continent like the stripe of a zebra. A thriving forest that, by all logic, shouldn't have existed in such conditions. From above, it appeared to be nothing more than an unbroken expanse of trees, but in reality, it was shaped by countless massive mountains, pressed closely together to form a grand and imposing mountain range.
The mountain range had stood since the beginning of time, its presence woven into countless stories and legends. Tales often spoke of its unyielding nature, an unmoving giant that had watched over the land for ages, untouched by the passage of time.
One story, in particular, surfaced in Kael's mind, a legend of a nameless wanderer.
—
Once, there was a wanderer who wished to stand above all. He had no name, for names were ties to things beneath him, family, duty, love. He abandoned them all, climbing ever higher, seeking the peak where none could reach him.
A golden string had taken notice of him. It danced around him playfully "What do you seek, mortal?" it asked.
He answered, "To be beyond all things. To rise where no shadow can be cast over me."
The golden string laughed. "Then climb," it said, and so he did.
But as they climbed, the air grew thinner, the winds sharper. Their form ached, weakened by the relentless ascent. Still, they climbed.
They reached a height untouched by any before them. Yet, as their gaze lifted, the peak remained distant, unreachable.
And still, they exhaled, satisfied.
"At last, I can look down on everyone. Where I stand now, no one has ever set foot before. I will never have to lift my head again."
The nameless wanderer was battered and weary, yet a quiet sense of satisfaction radiated outward. However, the silence did not last.
The golden string twirled around them playfully before pausing, its tone light yet curious.
"Why do you seem so elated?" it asked.
The nameless wanderer froze for a moment, then quickly replied,
"Why? Because I've climbed higher than anyone before me."
The golden string swirled around him, laughter rippling through the air like a breeze.
"Higher than anyone else?" it echoed, amusement lacing its tone. "Let me tell you a story. There was once a man who passed through this very place. He reached a forest, where he now rests. Before climbing even higher."
The nameless wanderer froze, breath hitching, as the golden string danced before them. Shock rippled through the stillness.
"Impossible…!" The words escaped in a strained gasp. "Everything was given, I climbed higher than any before! How… how could I possibly go any further?"
The golden string danced around the nameless wanderer quietly before a whisper came, not from the golden string, but from the mountain itself.
"You have come far," it murmured, its tone neither cruel nor kind. "But the peak is not free. The highest heights demand the greatest price. Will you pay it?"
The wanderer hesitated. They had long cast away their name, their past. What else remained to give?
Your shadow," the mountain said. "Abandon it, and I will lift you beyond all others. But you will never cast one again."
The nameless wanderer laughed, the sound hollow in the thin air.
"What use is casting shadows," he said, "when I will stand where no light can reach.
And so, they lay upon the frozen rock.
Slowly, the mountain stirred beneath them. It rose, lifting the nameless wanderer higher… and higher… and higher still. A height they had never been able to reach before.
For the first time, there was no climbing. No struggle, no desperate grasping toward the heavens. There was only ascent, silent, effortless, carried by something far greater than themselves.
And yet, the nameless wanderer soared beyond all they had ever known.
—
Kael smiled quietly to himself. It was quite the story.
No one really knew the true origin of the nameless wanderer, but nearly everyone had heard of them. It was a tale as old as time itself, passed down through generations, woven into books, and immortalized in songs. The mystery surrounding its beginnings only made the legend more compelling.
Kael had always been fond of these stories. He had spent countless hours poring over the few fragments that had been uncovered over the years, losing himself in the myth and speculation surrounding the wanderer's journey.
'Rotten...'
He looked down. Flakes of decayed bark clung to his fingertips. Kael brushed them off with a simple swipe, the dust falling to the forest floor.
Without another word, he kept walking.