The Call of the Peaks

Climbing alone up the rugged Celestial Mountain, the young mountaineer looked up to see the blizzard chasing away the sunlight. Mira had decided to advance alone in their ascent due to a tension that had developed between the two women. Thus, solitude had invited Anastasia to dance together.

The freezing air of the mountain burned her lungs, and her ragged breathing worsened the pain. The tears from the redhead's effort stung her cheeks, and it was difficult to see anything in the endless fog. Her suffering didn't stop there: her upper limbs were close to giving out from exhaustion, and her toes were nearing necrosis. The weight of her backpack felt like an elephant to her. The flame of her lantern was nearly extinguished from her life force, amplifying the climber's worry. This simple light attached to her belt had protected her from the darkness.

Suddenly, a gust of wind nearly knocked the young woman off her feet. Fortunately for her, her harness was securely attached to the climbing rope, but she had thought that death would join the dance. Unfortunately, the lantern gave out from the gust of air, and despite being useless in the fog, a wave of panic seized the redhead. However, Anastasia had a knack for regaining control of her emotions. Without a moment's hesitation, she slapped her face to stay focused on her goal and yelled like a warrior on a battlefield.

"I have to climb this damn mountain to prove that Mira was wrong," Anastasia panted.

So the journey continued thanks to her iron will. She found time to secure good footholds and hoisted herself up the various gripping surfaces of the wall. The climber's efforts were not in vain; she could once again see the sun dominating the sky in its splendor. The summit was finally within her sight. The hope from the fireball lifted her spirits, but Anastasia carried an awareness within her that whispered nothing was won yet. She found a flat enough surface to stop and have a snack to regain energy and catch her breath.

In the distance, vultures circled the peak. The climber wondered if Mira was dead. This thought made her laugh but also disturbed her. She immediately felt horrible for having such thoughts. The lack of oxygen was probably to blame. Otherwise, Celestial held Anastasia in a bargain: I'll let you climb me, but in exchange, I'll gradually possess your choices. A shiver ran through the redhead's entire body, and she preferred to believe it was the lack of air making her lose her mind.

"I hope she's okay," she sighed.

Strangely, the birds looked bigger than before. The climber rubbed her eyes because she couldn't believe what she saw. With their large wings, the scavengers dived, heading straight for Anastasia. Fear paralyzed the young woman. Vulture attacks were supposed to be rare since they only fed on corpses. Karma had struck her; death had her on its list.

In a flash, one of the beasts attacked her face, slashing her cheekbones with its sharp claws. Her deafening scream echoed through the mountain, and Anastasia, finally freed from her paralysis, tried to fend off the bird of prey. Its wing beats destabilized Anastasia, but she grabbed the creature with a fierce grip and bit its neck. She coughed because her attack had caused her to taste the bird's feathers. It flew away from our young redhead because the coward had underestimated the strength of its opponent.

Unfortunately, too preoccupied with her fight, the climber hadn't noticed one of its companions damaging the lifeline rope. She tried with all her might to get closer to it. The bird continued pecking, and the cord frayed, then it flew away. Thus, the damage was done, the link she had with the mountain was broken. However, Anastasia didn't fall yet; she was still on the flat surface. So she tried to pursue the escaping rope at the edge of the precipice and caught it just in time. However, she hadn't checked how fragile the platform was on the edges. Thus, the rocky ground gave way under her weight, and Anastasia began to tumble, losing all her light.