CH55 Up into the mountains to the temple.
The group took to the skies. Alex and Fufi flapped through the forest, heading northwest. Merumeru clung to Alex’s bird leg, wrapping herself around the scaled appendage like a sock. The slime girl looked at everything in wonder.
It was much cooler at the altitude but Merumeru didn't seem to mind. The slime girl hugged tightly to Alex's bird leg. As they climbed into the higher mountains, the air thinned. Soaring became more difficult and it required a lot more flapping to stay above the ever higher peaks.
Alex saw what looked like a dark blotch in the air above them. “What’s that? It doesn’t look like a bird or animal. It is just hanging out in the sky.”
“Oh, what a lucky find. That is a float stone.” Fufi flew up and grabbed the fist-sized brown rock with her beak.
Thinking it was a good time for a break, the trio started towards the ground. They headed towards a mountain lake.
Fufi couldn’t go any lower with the float-stone in her mouth so she handed it off to Alex who clutched it in a claw. The harpy felt the stone pushing upward. The closer they got to the ground the more it wanted to go back up into the sky.
“What is this weird rock? I know you said it was a float stone but it doesn’t seem like gravity is working right on it.” Alex asked when they landed.
“Gravity still applies to it, but it is altered. Hundreds of years ago magical girl Cosmos saved the world. Monsters descended from above and she rose to the occasion to fight against them. Her powers affect space and gravity.” Fufi explained, walking over to the lake to cool her webbed feet. “Float stones are rocks that carry the most famous magical girl’s power. She made a lot of them hundreds of years ago.”
“But why did magical girl Cosmos leave floating rocks around?” Alex pressed.
“She enchanted bits of the ground to float up so that they could battle in the skies instead of on the ground. It is hard to shoot void creatures if they are attacking from directly above. She built some fortresses and placed portals in them to take the fight to the invaders. After she saved the world she was forced into retirement then everyone fought over the sky forts and sky ships. Everything that was accessible got destroyed. However, that doesn’t mean they lost their magic. The sky is vast so there is debris floating around. Finding any of it is quite valuable.” Fufi explained, awe in her voice.
Alex let Merumeru down and deployed the cart. After placing the float-stone in a cabinet and letting go the rock fell up on the top of the cabinet.
“Weird, Though if we could get enough of these rocks we could levitate the carriage. That sounds like a problem for future Alex. ” Alex shrugged.
“Now you understand why these stones are more valuable than gold. Allied countries went to war to possess them.” Fufi said, the sun causing her forehead gem to sparkle.
The trio experimented further with the float stone. Fufi and Merumeru were both too light to counteract its effects, floating easily to the ceiling while giggling. The dolls also floated, with the sturdier Edelweiss rising more slowly. They considered potential uses, such as Lily shooting tiny arrows from a great height, which would demand exceptional vision and archery. Alex muttered something about a 'carpet bombing' doll, acknowledging the need for miniature bombs and a retrieval method if he couldn't fly.
“What was that?” Fufi craned her long neck towards Alex. “I caught the carpet but not the last part. Though I think you are right, the carriage would be cuter with a carpet.”
“I wonder what Cosmos did when she found out what the people she saved did afterward.” Alex quickly changed the subject, not wanting to introduce war crimes.
“Luna gave her a cushy desk job on the moon.” Fufi explained. “Defeating an invasion leveled her up so much that it was making the other deities nervous so she had to call it quits to heroing.”
The harpy blinked at the mental image of a magical girl sitting at a desk in a call center. Alex decided to drop it not really wanting to know.
Alex prepared for a picnic. Opening a panel on the carriage, Alex pulled out a picnic basket. Inside, Martha's pre-made sandwiches eliminated the need for a knife.
As they were setting up the picnic, Ki stepped out of a tree, startling everyone. “Hello, how has the trip been so far?
Alex jumped in surprise, dropping the basket.
Ki continued. “You have made some incredible distance for a day’s travel. Another day’s travel and you’ll be above timberline and out of the domain of the forest.”
“I guess in a way the forest has been protecting us. Even though things haven’t been perfect for us we haven’t had to deal with a single demon. Do you think there will be demons past the forest’s edge?”Alex asked the nymph after recovering from the shock of her sudden appereance.
“There might be. Demons can cultivate ice and evolve that direction. Though it is seen as a sign of belonging to a lower sect. Their native world has a lot of fire so a demon who picks an element other than fire are looked down on. We’ve caught a few ice imps that got arrogant and decided to challenge the forest.” Ki eyed the picnic basket.
“Would you like to join us for our meal? Martha made sandwiches and we prepared a pot of hot tea.” Fufi craned her head towards the nymph.
“Certainly,” Ki curtseyed.
They ate, Ki only ate bread and veggies. Everyone sipped tea and chatted.
“How are you handling the mountains?” Ki asked.
“Meru!” Merumeru answered cheerfully.
Alex patted the slime girl on the head with a wing. “Me too Merumeru, It reminds me of home a bit. I lived in a fairly high elevation area, though not above timberline like we are going. The thinner air makes it harder to breathe and I have to flap my wings more.” Alex made a flapping motion.
“That is just because the flamingo form is sleeker and more aerodynamic than a harpy’s.” Fufi stated proudly, superiority in her voice.
Alex shot Fufi a look. “Now you are just bragging. Besides, I didn’t become a harpy by choice. I’m a victim of an epidemic.”
“Anyway, make sure to keep warm. When you get above timberline it’ll just be rocks and glaciers.” Ki looked a little worried.
“We’ll be fine. If anything too dangerous pops up we can just fly away.” Fufi sounded confident.
“I wonder if we are even headed in the right direction. What if we are flying a couple degrees off course and end up miles away from where the ‘X’ on the map is.” Alex looked from Fufi to Ki. “That spot could be easy to miss.”
“If there is one thing flamingos are good at, it is migrating. It is like we have a built-in compass.” Fufi said.
“She’s right. As the baroness of these lands I can tell that if that map is accurate then you are over half way there.” Ki stated. “I have not good way to verify what is past the forest’s border though.”
“Phew, that is good. I don’t want to be flying around in circles looking for something that we can’t find.” Alex said.
“Don’t worry Alex,”Fufi proclaimed. “I won’t lead you astray!”
As evening approached, the group decided to prepare for the night. Alex, Fufi, and Merumeru tested the carriage for warmth by sleeping inside it. Ki, unfazed by the cold, chose a tree as her sleeping spot. The typical forest sounds were the only disturbances during their sleep, and the small nocturnal animals did not bother them. The following morning, the carriage was fine, and Ki descended from her tree by the lake. Ki and Merumeru prepared tea and then used the remaining water to boil oats for breakfast.
After their meal, they bid farewell and packed their belongings. Alex, with the carriage in card form and slime girl sock ready, followed Fufi into the northwestern sky. As they ascended, Ki's waving figure and their campsite by the lake diminished in size below.
The uphill flight along ridges and mountains increasingly fatigued Alex. They reached the timberline as the sun was directly overhead. Despite it being summer, patches of snow still covered the ground. The sparse trees appeared stunted and twisted. Lower elevations within the mountains supported some tree growth. Looking northwest, the mountain range ascended continuously, and after several miles, Alex could see barren peaks.
Breathing heavily, unlike the effortless Fufi, Alex continued. Once the forest disappeared completely, Fufi pointed downwards. Following her gaze, Alex observed a patch of ice-free ground, a desolate, rocky valley.
“I think that might be a demon encampment.” Fufi flew next to Alex and shouted into the harpy’s ear so she could hear.
Alex nodded, still panting, mostly focused on staying aloft.
“Let's ignore it. There might be demons too powerful for us right now.” Fufi adjusted her course again. They flew in more of an outward expanding circle, trying to get a view of all the surrounding area. After around an hour of circling, they spotted something gleaming and white on top of one of the peaks. Approaching closer, they discovered a shining white temple. It had several storeys and a big steeple at the center. The cold and tired group flew in for a landing.