The Mountain

Chapter 19

After finishing my five miles for the day, which were very uneventful might I add, I had quickly set up camp beside a large boulder to help protect me from the cold wind and snow flurries. The snow prevented me from building a large fire and I ended up going to bed a lot earlier than I planned. I woke up this morning still freezing and terrified for the day ahead, knowing there would be a big challenge at the finish line. I could only hope that Johnathan got through it safely last night.

I shake the snow off of the tarp and wrap it around me. It'll protect me from the snow and wind while my jacket provides a little bit of warmth. My hands have gone numb while my ears and feet were slowly following in suit. Still, I forced my legs to keep going, knowing that movement would help warm me up.

Around midday, only a third into my hike, the snow stopped falling. I was happy about it until I realized that the wind and air were still cold and there was still snow on the ground. I trudged through the few inches of snow on the ground until my stomach rumbled signaling the time for a break.

I unwrap the tarp from around my shoulders ad let it fall to the ground, plopping down on it unceremoniously. Grumbling to myself, I unzip the pack and dug around in it, hoping to still have some scraps of food tucked in somewhere. Luckily, I find a bag of nuts and eat them quickly, drinking small sips of water so I don't run out.

After about fifteen minutes of procrastinating, I finally stand up and get going, determined to finish the hike without stopping. Unfortunately, the anticipation of finishing made time stand still and made the distance travelled seem smaller and smaller. I space out as I walk, imagining what could be at the top of the mountain.

"Adylin!" A voice calls, pulling me out of my thoughts.

My head snaps up, looking around for the source of the voice. A female figure appears in the distance behind me. She trudges over to me, hunched over against the wind and limping on one leg. I peer at her as the wind starts to pick up, my hair going everywhere.

My stomach drops as she grows close enough for me to recognize her face, the face of a ghost.

"Eloise?" I ask, bewildered.

She nods and smiles weakly, stopping in front of me. "I know it's crazy."

"You- you're dead. I saw you dead," I stammer, still not believing my eyes.

"I was close to it. Somehow I survived the drop," she explains. "My only injuries are bruises, a broken ankle, and a couple of broken ribs. It knocked me out, too, that's probably when you saw me."

The image of her in the ravine flashes in my mind, she seemed in a lot worse shape than this.

"You were dead," I whisper. "I saw you."

"Adylin!" Another voice from behind me calls along with an arm that grabs me. I spin to see Ellen with wild eyes.

I quickly shake her off of me and back away. "Get away from me." My mind is racing right now and all that I know is that Ellen and James threw Eloise off a cliff and tried to kill me, too. With the news of James' betrayal I know I can't trust anyone. Not even Ellen. 

"Adylin, whoever you're talking to isn't real. There's no one there," she says grabbing my arm again. "We are almost to the top, we have to go."

I turn back to Eloise. She looks at Ellen with murder in her eyes. "You tried to kill me."

"You killed her," I say, looking at Ellen. "And now she's here."

"It's a hallucination. It's been happening to me, too. I saw Eloise, too. I saw what I did to her. I can't believe I did that," she says looking away. "I'm so sorry I tried to hurt you, Adylin, I know it was wrong and I'm truly sorry. But we can talk later, right now we have to go."

Before I can open my mouth to argue, she grabs my arm and drags me into a blind run behind her. I stumble over my own feet before regaining balance and speeding up to a jog beside her, her hand still clutching my wrist. Eloise's voice and image appeared around me and in my mind as we ran. I ran faster, determined to get away from her. I don't even notice how long or far we run until we start slowing down.  As I'm pulled out of my thoughts, I become aware of my aching legs and screaming lungs. The cold air combined with high altitude and running caused my lungs to burn.

Ellen lets me go and I collapse onto my knees, catching my breath and trying to slow down my mind.

"Adylin..." she says quietly.

I look up and follow her gaze to a small black flag flapping in the distance. It sits on the peak of the mountain.

"We made it," I whisper to myself. "We're here."

Ellen pulls me to my feet. "Let's finish this, together." 

I nod silently and we approach the flag. It stands alone with no clue around as to what we need to do. I look around us. "Is this it?" I ask. "What do we do?" 

 I stop as Ellen walks straight up to it and grabs it. As soon as her hand touches the pole she recoils. "What is it?" I ask. 

She laughs. "It's freezing because of the wind and snow."

I laugh with her but I'm cut off as a droning sound pierces the air. It slowly grows louder and we look around expectantly, waiting for someone or something to show up. 

"Adylin, look," Ellen says. 

I turn to her and watch as a glass cylinder slowly rises from the ground. The droning noise and the cylinder finally stops when it's a few inches taller than us. We watch as a door slides open smoothly, inviting us to step inside. Ellen and I exchange a glance before stepping towards it. 

She steps inside first and I follow, turning to face the door as it closes behind me. The cylinder lowers back into the ground, and my last view of the mountain disappears as the cylinder dips underground. 

"It's kinda weird, huh?" Ellen asks, breaking the silence. "I hated that mountain and all, but it feels sad leaving it."

I nod. "We went through some shit on that mountain, but it's the only thing that we know. Our memories are gone and that's all we had."

She doesn't reply and I can't see her face as the cylinder grows dark. I start getting nervous, what's in the darkness, a safe haven or another trial? The cylinder finally slows to a stop and we hear the door slide open. It's still pitch black all around us, scaring me. 

A sound of something mechanical starting up breaks the silence of the room. Lights start flickering on overtop of us, revealing a small, empty room. 

"Where are we?" Ellen asks, following me as I step out of the cylinder. 

Another mechanical whirr starts up and I watch green clouds of gas disperse throughout the room from little spouts on the ceiling. I spin around, seeing no way out of the room. Ellen's eyes widen as we both search for a way out. 

I spot the cylinder and start towards it until I begin choking on the gas. My legs give out and I fall to my knees, my mind slowing and my vision darkening. I look over to see Ellen doing the same thing. She looks over at me as her eyelids droop. Her eyes roll back into her head and she collapses. 

I start to panic but I don't get far as the darkness completely takes over.