Chapter 69 – Mount Elysian
Chapter 69 – Mount Elysian
Chapter 69 – Mount Elysian
Shawn tapped the owl gently. “Then let’s pick up the pace.”
The owl flapped its wings with renewed vigour, propelling them toward the jagged plains as the dawn bathed the horizon in golden light.
Day 9
They flew for hours, the sun rising high in the morning sky, though hidden behind heavy clouds. Makara took the lead, guiding the owl with steady hands as they crossed the rocky expanse of the northern plains. The air grew colder with every mile, biting at their skin. Following Selena’s advice, Shawn and Makara wore their Atlantis outfits, which offered some protection against the chill.
As they ventured deeper into the northern region, the landscape shifted dramatically. The plains transformed into a vast expanse of towering rock formations, stretching endlessly in every direction. It was a stark, unwelcoming land shaped by millennia of erosion and tectonic shifts. The rocky surface glistened faintly in the occasional sunlight that escaped from the clouds, its hues alternating between a muted grey and a ghostly, spectral blue.
Intricate veins of cracks snaked across the terrain, weaving an ancient tapestry of fractures that seemed to pulse with an eerie life of their own. These fissures were deep, plunging into an abyss that swallowed the light, leaving only heavy, foreboding shadows. To peer into them was to glimpse the void, an unsettling reminder of how easily the earth could swallow everything whole.
The air itself felt heavy, laden with an almost oppressive silence. No animals called out, no vegetation rustled in the non-existent wind. The stillness was absolute, amplifying the surreal beauty of the terrain.
Shawn stared out at the expanse, closing his eyes briefly as he reached out with his senses. After a moment, he shook his head and spoke softly, his breath visible in the cold air. “Nothing yet. The fragments aren’t here.”
Makara nodded, his expression unreadable, and urged the owl forward. Selena turned her gaze to Shawn, her concern evident, but she said nothing. They all knew there was no turning back; their journey would take them further north, into the deeper slopes of Mount Elysian’s snowy peaks.
After some time travelling through the snowy peaks of Mount Elysian, in the far distance, the rocky terrain met a wall of jagged peaks that stretched skyward, marking the edge of Mount Elysian. These big, forbidding mountains loomed like ancient sentinels, their snow-dusted ridges cutting sharp lines against the pale blue sky. The contrast was striking: the calm, vein-like expanse of the plains behind them, and the unforgiving, windswept peaks ahead, each promising its own challenges.
The owl’s wings carried them higher as they ascended toward the mountains, the cold intensifying with each beat. The wind became harsher, cutting through their clothes with chilling precision. Shawn’s breath grew laboured as the air thinned, and Selena clung tightly to the owl’s feathers, her teeth chattering.
The jagged peaks towered above them, some so high they disappeared into the clouds. Snow began to fall, light at first but quickly turning into a blinding flurry. The owl struggled against the increasing winds, its wings beating furiously to maintain altitude. Makara, unfazed, pulled out his sake gourd for comfort, only to discover that the liquid had frozen solid.
“Even my sake can’t handle this,” Makara muttered, his voice tinged with rare frustration.
While shaking in the cold, suddenly Shawn’s expression hardened. He felt it—an unmistakable resonance inside him, the faint echo of a fragment. He pointed toward a towering mountain ahead, its sheer size dominating the horizon. “It’s here. Somewhere beyond that peak.”
The mountain loomed like a fortress in the sky, its massive slopes unyielding and covered in layers of snow and ice, and it was difficult to fly over it. The owl circled, seeking a path circling it, but the towering structure seemed endless, like a colosseum, with no gaps to fly over it. The air thinned further, and the cold became almost unbearable.
“There’s no way over it,” Makara said, his voice clipped as he scaled the mountain.
Selena pointed to a narrow ridge a little higher than they were flying now, with the rest of the ridge much higher, partially obscured by the swirling snow. “What about there? It’s small, but it might be our way through.”
The owl, sensing the urgency, gathered its strength and banked sharply toward the ledge. The wind howled around them, but it used the currents to its advantage, rising steadily. With a final burst of effort, it cleared the ridge and crossed to the other side.
The sudden change was startling. The moment they passed over the ridge, the howling winds ceased, replaced by a calm, almost serene stillness. The biting cold gave way to a warm, temperate breeze.
“What is this…?” Selena murmured, her voice filled with awe as she looked around.
The trio gazed at the scene before them. It was as if they had entered another world entirely. The mountain sloped downward into a vast circular plain, covered in lush green grass that stretched far into the distance. The ground glimmered faintly, as though dew had been kissed by sunlight, though no clouds obscured the sky above.
Encircling this strange paradise were the towering walls of the mountains, creating a natural enclosure that seemed impenetrable from the outside. The peaks formed a jagged crown around the area, their snow-covered tips glittering in the light. It was like standing in a massive, hidden area, sheltered from the harshness of the outside world.
“This place…” Makara said, his voice uncharacteristically quiet. “It’s paradise.”
Shawn stepped forward, his senses attuned to the fragment. The resonance was stronger now, almost pulling him toward the centre of the plains. “The fragment is here,” he said, his voice resolute.
Selena nodded, her eyes scanning the landscape. “Let’s look around and look for a safe spot before we descend.”
Makara smirked, his confidence returning. “That sounds like a plan.”
The owl glided gracefully over the expanse, its wings slicing through the tranquil air. Shawn, seated at the back, felt a heavy resonance of the last fragment to the fragments inside him. His voice carried a quiet certainty. “It’s here. I can feel it strongly—towards the centre of this place.”
Selena adjusted her gaze to the landscape below, her expression a mixture of awe and disbelief. “So, any plan on how we are approaching this?” she suggested questionably.
Makara, leaning back with his arms crossed, added with a sly grin, “That’s a good question. Since Shawn, you’re practically a beacon with all those fragments inside you, so this time, hiding you won’t be pointless. So, we’re sticking together.”
The trio continued circling the area on the owl, its powerful wings effortlessly holding them aloft. As they studied the landscape, Selena’s astonishment grew. Despite her extensive knowledge of geography, this warm and vibrant haven, cradled high in the heart of the mountains, defied all logic.
“This… doesn’t make sense, this place shouldn’t exist according to my knowledge,” she murmured, her voice tinged with wonder.