Forward Unto Dawn II 
Ash 33rd, 120th Year, A.o.S.
The air felt colder than before when Rickter lazily opened his eyes once again, his clothes and blanket hardly doing much to keep him any warmer than his natural temperature. Even now, with the morning lights barely even tinting the night sky, he felt utterly drowsy and ready to just sleep the morning away... but he knew. He knew now would have to be the time to get up, and so he rose from within his bedroll to a sit and stared, his eyes sleepily watching the ladies that slept huddled together for warmth. Damn. Was it still that chilly even near the springs here?
At least they'd be returning home soon, and proper food and proper beds would await them, but first, he still had one last thing to do before that could happen. Rather slowly he moved to slip on his chainmail greaves first, lazily tucking at the fabric of his trousers as they folded and creased along the higher reaches of his legs. The wolf didn't like that, he hardly liked sleeping with any clothes on actually, for they only generated discomfort whenever he tried sleeping with them on. Probably why he felt ready to just sleep in now, even though the slipping of his chainmail boots started to prove otherwise.
As he was getting ready Hannah and Telion stirred, the brunette being the one to awaken from her light slumber, as her eyes fell onto Rickter while he finished adorning his chainmail shirt. "Is it time already?" She inquired with a yawn as Telion slowly stirred to a rouse, her yawn following suit as she seemed to bury her head into her pillow.
"For me yes..." He remarked to the brunette, seeing as how Telion hadn't quite awoken yet. "keep her safe and warm... until I get back?" When Rickter posed the suggestion he did so softly, his weary eyes softened into a pleading stare as the brunette looked to him sleepily in turn.
"Whatever you say Wolfman." The brunette lightly remarked as she eased her head back down, generating a rather vivid and warm smile from the wolf when he gazed at them. Somehow, he couldn't imagine having got this far without them. In a way, he found their need for sleep entertaining, but at his core, he was thankful that they both came with him on this journey. He had something to look forward to when he came back now, rather than simply braving the rest of the peaks alone like he would've done before. No actually... he wouldn't be doing this before, and if he were out here alone, it would've been for some other reason than the Argent Hand's trial.
Still, with his gear back on and a few minutes spent gathering what he needed, Rickter was soon off for the path at the highest crown of the spring. With the miner's pickaxe fitted into one of the holsters of his harness, and the aetheric net dangled over his shoulder, Rickter made for the pass that would take him towards the eastern side of the mountain. If he wanted to collect the Illumite by dawn, then he needed to be there the moment that first light touched the peaks. Briskly did he walk along the shores of the spring just to reach that point, admiring the elaborately carved pillar up close when he reached the crown in question. He wondered what the significance was with the rocks that jutted out like fangs surrounding the spring, the designs carved into them undoubtedly bearing some importance to the scenery.
Not that it mattered to him now. In passing the crown he followed along the passageway in front of him, walking along a cavernous corridor that led him further within. From the looks of it, the wolf would be dealing with a few dark spaces on his way up, therefore he took a moment to stop and detach his lantern from his belt. Placing the iron tool on the ground he then pulled out the tinderbox that had his flint and steel, taking the two so that when he struck them, sparks would litter their way into the oil basin of the lantern. It took a few patient tries before he finally had a spark catch flame, generating a small light within the lantern so that he could brave the way forward once more.
Though the corridor did take a couple of odd turns, Rickter followed his nose to determine where to go next, hopeful that a lingering trace of ozone would lead him to the outside. Delicately his path forked and alternated from time to time, as he started to climb jagged parts of the cavern towards an opening within the confines above. Before too long with careful placement of his lantern every now and then, Rickter climbed steadily towards that opening as he was sure it would lead him to it. He even remembered the first of the instructions he'd been given, when the wolf had asked Talon what to expect when he searched for the dragonshards.
"You will be able to get a sense of them. The strongest ones will electrify your senses. The weaker ones, like a soft caress. It is on you to determine what you can harness and what you cannot. I simply advise caution. Even the most benevolent of stones are dangerous if misused."
When he'd get there he'd know what to do, the challenge itself was finally climbing his way up, as the wolf needed to clasp the lamp back to his belt before attempting the try. While the rigid edges of the stone walls weren't difficult to grasp at, let alone scale, it was Rickter's own body weight that generated the challenge of climbing. He even almost dropped the net he'd brought along, which would've been a vital component to harvesting the shards when he got there. However, after he finally reached the surface Rickter felt the rush of ozone greet his skin, the surface of his face lightly stung from the cold welcoming him once more. The outside beyond looked much like the valley on Astralar's western side, though of course, much more could be seen further out east than in comparison.
As the land itself looked to remain in the dormant state night brought, the sunlight had already begun to filter out over the horizon, indicating that the wolf had made it just in time for his query. Now all that remained... Peacefully the wolf exhaled, breathing in deeply with his eyes closed, as he allowed himself to feel for the energy around him. He waited and waited, until finally, it wasn't the cold that tickled the surface of his skin, but a soft and ambient warmth that coyly tickled his sense of perception in turn. They were near here somewhere... Not a lot of them but a deposit he could harvest nonetheless. Opening his eyes he looked towards his right, his senses following that tangible energy he received earlier. Moving along the peak he'd climbed out onto carefully, the wolf felt himself growing closer and closer to the source of that energy.
Finally, along the spines of several crags were gems glistening in the sun, their light a soft radiance to behold as the wolf drew closer to their presence. This is it... He assured himself as he looked at the dragonshards with wonder. These are the Illumite shards. He actually found them!... He could barely even believe it, somehow he was actually resourceful enough to locate them, and now that he was so close he could finally see the end? It amazed him to have come this far for sure, but the wolf hadn't come all this way to gawk at a bunch of gems. The Illumite looked much like golden glass that emitted a soft light much like his latern, to which the wolf lowered the aether net down onto a cluster, spreading it along the spine he'd approached so that it covered all the shards within its span.
From there the wolf gripped the pickaxe at his waist and undid the clasp keeping it secure, bringing the tool up so that he held it with his right hand, and raising it up just before attempting to strike with it in a careful manner. The intent was gentle and yet, even so, Rickter still feared the possibility of setting off one of these stones. But the pickaxe barely even chipped away one of the shards when he'd hit it, challenging the wolf with another strike as he added just a bit more effort into his swing. The strike emitted a somewhat loud clap, as a small portion of the gemstones began to break away, still remaining in the confines of his net as the magical properties didn't seem to react in turn. The wolf breathed a sigh of ease as a result.
I can strike at them almost like I would a regular rock or geode... So long as the aether net rests over them, then I should be able to mine as much as I want. That begged the question though... did he want to just take home a single sample and consider his first trial finished? Something told him he'd be heavily disregarding the value of this opportunity before him, as these Illumite shards were certainly a valuable resource he could stock up on. That settles it then, He figured to himself as he raised his pickaxe once more, I'll take home as much as I can carry, not that there's a lot here along the spines." Even so he could practically fill his next with them, and if anything, Rickter could just offer the biggest or finest sample to Aoren; when he completed the second half of his trial.
For now, though he resolved to simply mine, collecting as many shards as he could just from that one spot, so that when he later returned to the girls at camp; he'd have a small collection of them worth bringing home.
At least they'd be returning home soon, and proper food and proper beds would await them, but first, he still had one last thing to do before that could happen. Rather slowly he moved to slip on his chainmail greaves first, lazily tucking at the fabric of his trousers as they folded and creased along the higher reaches of his legs. The wolf didn't like that, he hardly liked sleeping with any clothes on actually, for they only generated discomfort whenever he tried sleeping with them on. Probably why he felt ready to just sleep in now, even though the slipping of his chainmail boots started to prove otherwise.
As he was getting ready Hannah and Telion stirred, the brunette being the one to awaken from her light slumber, as her eyes fell onto Rickter while he finished adorning his chainmail shirt. "Is it time already?" She inquired with a yawn as Telion slowly stirred to a rouse, her yawn following suit as she seemed to bury her head into her pillow.
"For me yes..." He remarked to the brunette, seeing as how Telion hadn't quite awoken yet. "keep her safe and warm... until I get back?" When Rickter posed the suggestion he did so softly, his weary eyes softened into a pleading stare as the brunette looked to him sleepily in turn.
"Whatever you say Wolfman." The brunette lightly remarked as she eased her head back down, generating a rather vivid and warm smile from the wolf when he gazed at them. Somehow, he couldn't imagine having got this far without them. In a way, he found their need for sleep entertaining, but at his core, he was thankful that they both came with him on this journey. He had something to look forward to when he came back now, rather than simply braving the rest of the peaks alone like he would've done before. No actually... he wouldn't be doing this before, and if he were out here alone, it would've been for some other reason than the Argent Hand's trial.
Still, with his gear back on and a few minutes spent gathering what he needed, Rickter was soon off for the path at the highest crown of the spring. With the miner's pickaxe fitted into one of the holsters of his harness, and the aetheric net dangled over his shoulder, Rickter made for the pass that would take him towards the eastern side of the mountain. If he wanted to collect the Illumite by dawn, then he needed to be there the moment that first light touched the peaks. Briskly did he walk along the shores of the spring just to reach that point, admiring the elaborately carved pillar up close when he reached the crown in question. He wondered what the significance was with the rocks that jutted out like fangs surrounding the spring, the designs carved into them undoubtedly bearing some importance to the scenery.
Not that it mattered to him now. In passing the crown he followed along the passageway in front of him, walking along a cavernous corridor that led him further within. From the looks of it, the wolf would be dealing with a few dark spaces on his way up, therefore he took a moment to stop and detach his lantern from his belt. Placing the iron tool on the ground he then pulled out the tinderbox that had his flint and steel, taking the two so that when he struck them, sparks would litter their way into the oil basin of the lantern. It took a few patient tries before he finally had a spark catch flame, generating a small light within the lantern so that he could brave the way forward once more.
Though the corridor did take a couple of odd turns, Rickter followed his nose to determine where to go next, hopeful that a lingering trace of ozone would lead him to the outside. Delicately his path forked and alternated from time to time, as he started to climb jagged parts of the cavern towards an opening within the confines above. Before too long with careful placement of his lantern every now and then, Rickter climbed steadily towards that opening as he was sure it would lead him to it. He even remembered the first of the instructions he'd been given, when the wolf had asked Talon what to expect when he searched for the dragonshards.
"You will be able to get a sense of them. The strongest ones will electrify your senses. The weaker ones, like a soft caress. It is on you to determine what you can harness and what you cannot. I simply advise caution. Even the most benevolent of stones are dangerous if misused."
When he'd get there he'd know what to do, the challenge itself was finally climbing his way up, as the wolf needed to clasp the lamp back to his belt before attempting the try. While the rigid edges of the stone walls weren't difficult to grasp at, let alone scale, it was Rickter's own body weight that generated the challenge of climbing. He even almost dropped the net he'd brought along, which would've been a vital component to harvesting the shards when he got there. However, after he finally reached the surface Rickter felt the rush of ozone greet his skin, the surface of his face lightly stung from the cold welcoming him once more. The outside beyond looked much like the valley on Astralar's western side, though of course, much more could be seen further out east than in comparison.
As the land itself looked to remain in the dormant state night brought, the sunlight had already begun to filter out over the horizon, indicating that the wolf had made it just in time for his query. Now all that remained... Peacefully the wolf exhaled, breathing in deeply with his eyes closed, as he allowed himself to feel for the energy around him. He waited and waited, until finally, it wasn't the cold that tickled the surface of his skin, but a soft and ambient warmth that coyly tickled his sense of perception in turn. They were near here somewhere... Not a lot of them but a deposit he could harvest nonetheless. Opening his eyes he looked towards his right, his senses following that tangible energy he received earlier. Moving along the peak he'd climbed out onto carefully, the wolf felt himself growing closer and closer to the source of that energy.
Finally, along the spines of several crags were gems glistening in the sun, their light a soft radiance to behold as the wolf drew closer to their presence. This is it... He assured himself as he looked at the dragonshards with wonder. These are the Illumite shards. He actually found them!... He could barely even believe it, somehow he was actually resourceful enough to locate them, and now that he was so close he could finally see the end? It amazed him to have come this far for sure, but the wolf hadn't come all this way to gawk at a bunch of gems. The Illumite looked much like golden glass that emitted a soft light much like his latern, to which the wolf lowered the aether net down onto a cluster, spreading it along the spine he'd approached so that it covered all the shards within its span.
From there the wolf gripped the pickaxe at his waist and undid the clasp keeping it secure, bringing the tool up so that he held it with his right hand, and raising it up just before attempting to strike with it in a careful manner. The intent was gentle and yet, even so, Rickter still feared the possibility of setting off one of these stones. But the pickaxe barely even chipped away one of the shards when he'd hit it, challenging the wolf with another strike as he added just a bit more effort into his swing. The strike emitted a somewhat loud clap, as a small portion of the gemstones began to break away, still remaining in the confines of his net as the magical properties didn't seem to react in turn. The wolf breathed a sigh of ease as a result.
I can strike at them almost like I would a regular rock or geode... So long as the aether net rests over them, then I should be able to mine as much as I want. That begged the question though... did he want to just take home a single sample and consider his first trial finished? Something told him he'd be heavily disregarding the value of this opportunity before him, as these Illumite shards were certainly a valuable resource he could stock up on. That settles it then, He figured to himself as he raised his pickaxe once more, I'll take home as much as I can carry, not that there's a lot here along the spines." Even so he could practically fill his next with them, and if anything, Rickter could just offer the biggest or finest sample to Aoren; when he completed the second half of his trial.
For now, though he resolved to simply mine, collecting as many shards as he could just from that one spot, so that when he later returned to the girls at camp; he'd have a small collection of them worth bringing home.
"Every side attacks you when you don't pick sides."
