Chapter 53 – The Climb

  Kaelin crouched by the stream, running her fingers through the icy water. The cold sent a sharp jolt up her arm, but it was refreshing, grounding. Droplets clung to her skin, refracting the golden light that filtered down through the dense canopy above. The grotto was unchanged since the last time she’d found it, it had only been earlier that day, an isolated pocket of the wilderness, untouched by the chaos of the trial.

  Stone walls, smoothed by centuries of wind and water, curved high around them, enclosing the space like a natural fortress. Vines draped lazily down the rock, their leaves damp with lingering moisture. Patches of moss and lichen sprawled across the stone in varying shades of green, some so dark they were almost black. Thin roots from unseen trees snaked down the walls, reaching for the stream that had long since carved its way through the grotto’s heart.

  The air smelled rich with earth and water, carrying the faintest hint of pine from the forest beyond. Everything here felt still. As though the moment they had landed, the world had been holding its breath.

  Kaelin straightened, stretching her arms over her head before glancing at Kana. She sat perched on a boulder, arms folded, her gaze distant. She hadn't spoken much since they'd landed, but Kaelin could read the tension in her posture. The way her fingers tapped idly against her sleeve. The way her eyes kept flicking toward the treetops, as if expecting someone, or something to descend at any moment.

  She was thinking. Calculating.

  Kaelin rolled out her shoulders with an exaggerated sigh. “We should get moving before the whole trial catches up to us.”

  Kana blinked, then turned to her. “You know the way out?”

  Kaelin smirked. “What do you take me for?” She nodded toward a natural stone pathway winding up the rock. “This leads out. I found it before.”

  Kana let out a slow breath through her nose. “Convenient.”

  Kaelin’s smirk widened. “It’s almost like I planned it. Except I didn't. Why the fuck did you make me jump a cliff!?”

  Kana shot her a dry look, and said nothing.

  The climb out was straightforward but tedious. The incline steepened as they ascended, forcing them to use their hands for balance. The rock was rough beneath Kaelin’s fingers, jagged in some places, worn smooth in others. She moved with practiced ease, picking her footholds quickly. The air thinned slightly as they climbed, growing cooler the higher they went.

  Kana followed, her movements careful but deliberate. She wasn’t as fast, but she wasn’t struggling either.

  Kaelin glanced over her shoulder. “Not bad.”

  Kana huffed. “I don’t need commentary.”

  Kaelin chuckled but let it drop.

  At the top, the world opened up again. The dense forest stretched endlessly in every direction, the canopy shifting lazily with the wind. Far ahead, rising against the sky like a jagged knife, was the mountain peak. Their goal. The highest point in the forest.

  Kaelin exhaled, resting her hands on her hips. “There it is.”

  Kana’s gaze flickered up toward the peak, her expression unreadable. “How much longer do you think we have?”

  Kaelin shrugged. “Dunno. But I’d rather not find out by being the last ones there.”

  Kana hummed in agreement. “Still avoiding fights?”

  “If we can help it,” Kaelin said.

  Kana muttered something under her breath but nodded.

  Then they ran.

  The treetops welcomed them like old friends, bending under their weight but never breaking. Kaelin moved effortlessly through the canopy, leaping from branch to branch with barely a thought. The wind swept past her, cool and sharp, pulling at her clothes as she navigated the shifting landscape of leaves and limbs.

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  Kana followed close behind, but her movements were slower, more rigid. She had the strength, but she lacked the natural instinct. The fluidity. She hesitated just enough to make every jump feel like a gamble.

  Kaelin glanced back. “You’re hesitating.”

  Kana scowled. “I’m being careful.”

  “Same thing.”

  Kana shot her a glare but didn’t argue.

  The forest blurred beneath them, shifting in streaks of green and gold as they raced through the treetops. Every leap sent them soaring through the air, weightless for a breath before their boots struck wood again, the impact softened by years of growth. Leaves whispered in the wind, brushing against their arms and cheeks like fleeting ghosts. Sunlight dappled through the gaps in the canopy, illuminating patches of the forest floor far below, where the undergrowth twisted in a tangled sea of roots, ferns, and fallen branches.

  The sounds of the world carried on around them, birds calling in shrill, melodic bursts, hidden creatures stirring in the brush, the distant snap of a twig beneath some unseen predator’s foot. Every so often, a branch groaned beneath their weight, flexing but never breaking, as if the trees themselves had grown accustomed to visitors weaving through their arms.

  Kaelin barely thought about her movements anymore. Her body knew the rhythm, the momentum, the split-second timing that turned hesitation into disaster. Every jump, every grip, every push-off was second nature. She could have done this blindfolded.

  Kana, however, was still finding her footing.

  Kaelin glanced back just in time to see her partner coil for another jump. It should have been simple, the distance wasn’t too far, the branch ahead thick enough to support her weight. But Kaelin saw it a fraction of a second before it happened. The angle was wrong. The force behind her push-off was too much, sending her too high instead of forward.

  Kana landed, but the moment her boot hit the bark, it skidded against the damp surface.

  Her balance wavered.

  For a split second, her eyes widened in realization.

  Then she fell.

  The world seemed to slow.

  Kaelin lunged before her mind fully registered the movement. Her arm shot out, fingers brushing empty air for a heartbeat before locking around Kana’s wrist just as she dropped past. The jolt wrenched Kaelin downward, nearly yanking her from the branch as well, but she planted her feet, muscles straining against the sudden weight.

  For a moment, they hung there, bodies suspended above the endless sea of green below. From this height, the forest floor looked impossibly far, a blurred mosaic of twisting roots and tangled undergrowth. A fall from here wouldn’t kill them outright, not with the thick foliage to break the landing, but it wouldn’t be pleasant either.

  Kana’s breath hitched, her free hand grabbing onto Kaelin’s arm with a grip like iron. Her pulse thrummed beneath Kaelin’s fingers, rapid and uneven.

  Kaelin smirked, her hold unwavering. “Getting cocky, are we?”

  Kana scowled, her fingers tightening around Kaelin’s wrist. “Just pull me up.”

  Kaelin chuckled but didn’t leave her hanging—literally—for much longer. With a sharp tug, she hauled Kana back onto solid footing. They collapsed against the tree trunk, the rough bark pressing into their backs as Kana exhaled sharply, running a hand through her hair to shake off the near-miss.

  “I had it,” Kana muttered after a pause.

  Kaelin arched a brow. “Oh? What was that about then? Just testing the gravity?”

  Kana rolled her eyes, clearly unwilling to entertain the teasing. “I slipped.”

  Kaelin snickered. “And I noticed.”

  Kana shot her another glare but didn’t bother with a retort. Instead, she dusted herself off, smoothing out the creases in her sleeves as if the entire thing had been nothing more than a minor inconvenience.

  Kana adjusted her gloves and nodded toward the treetops. “Let’s keep moving.”

  Kaelin smirked and pushed off first, moving with the same practiced ease as before. This time, Kana followed more carefully, her footing more precise, her jumps just a fraction less reckless.

  The forest began to thin as they neared the mountain base. The dense canopy overhead peeled away, letting more sunlight spill through in golden streaks. The trunks grew thicker, their roots snaking over the ground like veins, twisting together in an endless network of nature’s design.

  Kaelin slowed her pace, landing on a sturdy branch near the treeline. Beyond, the world opened up. The land sloped downward, revealing a rocky outcrop that jutted from the earth at the mountain’s base. The jagged cliff face loomed before them, its sheer surface stretching impossibly high toward the sky.

  Kana landed beside her, following her gaze.

  “So… we’re climbing that?”

  Kaelin grinned, tilting her head back to take in the height. “Looks like it.”

  The rock face was uneven, broken by natural ledges and cracks that could serve as handholds, but it wouldn’t be easy. There were no ropes. No shortcuts. Just raw strength, endurance, and the will to keep moving upward.

  Kana exhaled, tilting her head back slightly. “No way around it?”

  Kaelin patted her shoulder, her grin widening. “Come on. It'll be fun.”

  Kana gave her a flat look. “You and I have very different definitions of fun.”

  Kaelin just laughed, stepping toward the cliff. Her fingers found the first grip, her boots steady against the stone.

  One last push. Then they’d be done.