Chapter 17

Caleb walked along the side of a mountain, each step sure-footed. There was a sheer drop just inches to his left, pebbles and snow clattering the thousand feet down, but he walked with confidence. The stone was his companion, it would not let him fall.

He’d walked through the night and now the first signs of morning were starting to make themselves known. If he were able to put the obvious danger and threat of death out of mind, the threatening landscape was actually quite beautiful. His breath puffed clouds of crystal into the thin air that caught the light, turning into shimmering mist. What he’d have done to be up here before all of this.

But he didn’t have time to admire the views.

He was nearly upon the green mountain. A pulse of Aether into the emerald resting in his palm and a shining green light burst into existence atop the peak only a mile or two away.

His walk had been surprisingly peaceful. Chloe was right, the monsters seemed to have thinned out dramatically. He’d only seen – and slain – a handful of boggarts and one ice troll. Hardly enough to send him to the next level. Aside from that, nothing.

Each of the first two bosses appeared to have their own henchmen. Boggarts and trolls for Bolvun, wolves for Fenryr. So, what does it mean if the third one doesn’t have henchmen? That the boss is too weak to convince anyone to work for him? Eh, probably not.

Maybe they’ve heard the legend of Caleb the destroyer and are now cowering in fear? Yeah, that’s a lot more likely.

As he walked the final stretch toward green mountain, his thoughts drifted from the upcoming boss and its lack of leadership skills to his Truth. It already felt like he’d stumbled upon something profound, something that would shape his path forward, but he knew there was so much more still. He’d only scratched the surface. The tip of the iceberg. What great depth of knowledge or strength awaited him?

The understanding that came with his Truth wasn’t something that he could articulate. When he tried to put words to it, he came up with nothing. It was a feeling, something unconscious. Similar to how he knew his heart was beating – he could feel it, hear it – but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t control it.

Caleb dragged his hand along the mountain wall opposite the cliffside. His fingertips cut troughs into the stone as if it were made of playdough. An amused smile flitted across his face.

His command over stone was impressive for sure, but he couldn’t help but look forward to what it would become. Currently, he could only control a relatively small amount of stone within a dozen or so feet from him – maybe a couple hundred pounds worth. But what about when his Truth grew beyond a lesser Truth? If that was even possible.

Control a mountain’s worth? Create Earthquakes? Summon rocks from nothing?

The idea of bringing the weight of mountains down upon his enemies was as exciting as it was terrifying.

Hmm… Skyward Will wants me to keep challenging myself. I wonder if it’s considered less of a challenge because I’m getting so strong. Should I try handicapping myself? Maybe fight the next boss with only one hand, or blindfolded?

He chuckled to himself. There was no way he would actually do something like that, but the thought had a hint of merit to it. It wouldn’t surprise him if the System worked that way. Maybe once he wasn’t in such a life-or-death scenario he could test things out more. For now, survival was still number one.

Caleb started to step down the side of the mountain. He needed to cross a valley to reach the base of the green mountain, then climb it. The stone melded around his feet, shifting into a perfect set of stairs with every step.

He didn’t need to make stairs, but damn did it make him feel cool.

After a few short minutes of his descent, his foot crunched into the soft snow of the valley. A small stream meandered its way through, bits of ice drifting within it. Everything was eerily quiet. Always before he’d heard the distant sounds of small critters, birds, or wolves. Now, nothing.

Tough to find a suitable challenge when there was nothing around. Well, that just meant he’d have to walk up to the boss’s front door and give it a solid knock.

An unsettling knot started to wind itself within Caleb’s chest. Normally, a lack of ferocious monsters bent on killing him would be reassuring. But for some reason, not this time. Something wasn’t right here. Beyond being trapped in a magical dungeon.

He shook his head and leaped over the stream, sailing fifteen feet through the air before impacting on the opposite bank. He’d been half expecting something to lunge out at him when he crossed over the river. Like it were some dividing line that would signal hidden monsters to attack. But no such luck. Still nothing but quiet.

Caleb cleared his throat. “Hello!” he yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth. “I’m here to fight you! You can come out now!”

When nothing returned his call, he groaned, shook his head, and started his climb, creating stairs underfoot with every step.

It didn’t take long to summit the mountain. Caleb arrived near the peak, taking his final step onto the plaza. It was just like the previous two – a large stretch of tiles, frozen over with a sheet of ice and packed snow, pillars for seemingly no reason other than to be there, and a yawning archway leading deeper into the mountain.

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He let slip a sliver of aether into his palmed emerald. The keystone gem shone back at him in response. At least that was working.

“Is the place abandoned?” he mused aloud, stepping onto the ice. “Hello!” he tried again. “Is anyone there? I mean you no harm. I just have to kill you for a quest.”

He pulled his presence defensively into his chest, bracing for a sudden attack like Fenryr had done. His fingers tightened around the emerald.

With a thought, he was able to summon the quest screen from the System.

Dungeon: Mistveil Peaks
Grade: E
Completion Objectives:

• Kill the Storm Titan

• Kill the Storm Titan’s Hands (2/3)

Completion Odds: 20%