Alina Nivar: The Moonstone

XIII: The Mourning Mountains And The Gray Plains

After waking up and having breakfast, the group was ready to go. They dismantled the tent and went on their way. Surprisingly for Alina, they reached the hillside of the mountain really fast.

"Welp, we're here. We need to make a decision," Arien said with his hands on his pockets.

"Right. It's the Mourning Mountains or the Gray Plains, right?" she corroborated.

In front of them was a crossroad divided in two. One of the roads went straight into the mountain and looked pretty steep. The other one went to the right, surrounding the hillside. Alina guessed it was the path to the plain.

"Which one should we take?" Kita asked from behind her.

"Both routes lead to the same place. If the mountain road goes uphill, then the plains would be a shortcut," Arien explained.

"If that's the case, then we're going right. I wonder why they are called the Gray Plains."

"Do you mind if I turn into my wolf form?" Kita asked hesitantly.

"Not at all, go 'head," the boy encouraged her.

The nagwals made a demonstration of her ability once again, and turned into her animal form, wagging her tail.

Taking the initiative, Alina walked forward and took the right road. Arien and Kita followed her.

As soon as she caught sight of the plains, she felt a chill go down her spine. The place was so silent she could easily hear the other two breathing. It was empty except for some dead trees and rocks here and there. And everything, every single thing, was a shade of gray. The ground was an earthy gray color, like clay. The trees were either gray or almost black, and the rocks were the same. It looked like a very realistic charcoal drawing.

"This place is way more odd than what I expected."

"I know, right? It's so weird. What do you think, Kita?" Arien muttered.

The wolf didn't react. The humans turned around to see her a defensive position, the kind Alina had seen stray dogs adopt when threatened. She was staying completely still, with her ears flattened and her tail stuck between her legs. The hair in the back of her neck was raised and she was growling softly.

"Uhh, Kita? Are you okay?" Arien asked, with a hint of concern in his voice.

"I don't like this place," Kita turned back to human and muttered.

Alina caught a shadow in the corner of her eye, but when she turned her head she saw nothing.

"Yes, it gives me the chills," she said.

"No, you don't get it. There's a weird smell floating around in here. It's so unsettling. We need to leave. We can still go through the mountains."

"A smell? I don't smell anything," Arien told the nagwal, seemingly doubtful.

"It smells like death. We need to leave, now." Kita now looked genuinely scared.

"Arien, we should listen. Kita's sense of smell is more powerful than ours. Nagwals can smell a spell's remains. If she can sense it, it's powerful, and it's not good."

"You can smell spells? Wow. I start to feel like I'm the only one with no special abilities here," the boy joked.

"You can climb trees... Oh wait, no you can't."

The boy rolled his eyes.

"So mature. Let's go back. And yes, I can climb very well."

The group walked down the path back to the crossroad and took the road up the mountain. It was rocky and steep, just like Alina had expected. She was running out of breath pretty fast, though the other two didn't look bothered. The sun was very strong, and Alina thanked the gods for her hood, which protected her eyes from the sunlight. After half an hour or so, they reached a valley. She sighed with relief.