When All You Have are Embers

V

Lilith

The mountains got cold at night, and both her and Ric had no covers to huddle under. The sun had set and they both shivered as they walked one step at a time. Lilith could hear her teeth chatter against each other. She held her arms as she tried to convince herself this journey was still doable. 

After they lost Sin everything became so much harder. The Snow elf led them through the valleys and cracks of the mountains. The Snow elf knew where they were, but that seemed to be the only bright side. The shoes Lilith was wearing had begun to fade on the bottoms, they were only made of fabric after all. Her hair was all matted in the back after she took it out of its braid. She began to miss the heat of her armour. 

She watched the elf in front of her as it crawled to lead the way. It jumped up and off rocks as it looked around with its black glossy eyes. Lilith's steps were short and took up so much energy, but if they were to stop to sleep they would die. The maroon sky cracked with thunder as the magic swam through it. The few trees and bushes that were scattered around her had little to no leaves on their branches. 

As she walked she heard a thud from behind her. She turned around to see Ric had fallen over. She ran over to him, and the Snow elf looked behind it and followed Lilith to Ric.

"Ric?" She turned him onto his back. He groaned with his eyes closed. He was half asleep as she lifted his head off of the ground. The sharp pebbles had cut his face when he fell. She brushed the sand off his cheeks as she placed his head on her leg. She winced as she looked at his sleeping face. The Snow elf sniffed him and let out tiny whimpers as she tried to understand what was happening.

"He's tired, that's all. Don't worry." Lilith told the elf. She curled up beside him and nuzzled her head under his arm. Lilith grabbed Ric's shoulders and held him up enough for her to get under him. She hoisted him onto her back and stood up. She wobbled under his weight but took a step forward. The Snow elf yelped as if she was telling Lilith to stop and just rest.

"Lead the way." She said. The elf stopped and walked ahead of Lilith. The peak of Mount Center was directly in front of her. She carried Ric's body with her as she stepped closer to the base. She could see it through the crack in the mountain in front of her. She limped as she squeezed both her and Ric through the crack. 

The stone felt suffocating as it squeezed her body from the front and back. The jagged edges of the rock sliced her palms open as she dragged them across the surface of the mountain. Her tears seemed to have frozen on her cheeks. 

She looked to her side and saw the elf waiting for her on the other side. She grunted as she stepped out of the mountain and fell down. She dropped Ric and he fell beside her lifeless body. She saw the base of the Mount Center in front of her. She smiled before everything went black.

When she awoke she saw the sun for the first time in a while. She felt the stones under her body move as she sat up. She had leaves wrapped around her legs and arms. She stared at them before looking beside her and seeing Ric still asleep. 

She moved his hair away from his face and smiled. She watched his body rise and fall as he breathed, before she heard a sound from behind her. She turned around and looked to see if there was anything strange. A man rounded a corner carrying sticks. They noticed each other and stared for a few moments before he dropped the sticks. Lilith grabbed her throwing knife and swung her arm back.

"Ah, well there's no need for that." The man said.

"Who are you?" She demanded. "Where's my Snow elf? How did you find us?"

He raised his arms to show that he was unarmed.
"Ah- be careful, some people find it rude to be asked so many questions at once." He chuckled.

"...Are you lecturing me? Careful a man of your stature couldn't possibly have anything of value to teach me." Her breathing was elated as she spoke harshly.