Chapter 148: The Arrival At Mount Callum
The journey to Mount Callum took exactly five days. Five long days and there was not much rest. The first two days everyone was still in high spirits, still excited about the fact that we were going to explore somewhere new, a place of history. Even Ivana who although tried not to show any emotions hummed a few tunes and I could tell she was very excited to be out of Lord Skarde’s house. Having visited the residence myself, I would have been excited to get out. I would have done the exact same thing.
By the third day though, our excitement had been starting to wane. There was less laughter, less chatter. The horses made their way forward with reduced passion while their feet produced a slow and a weary clopping noise. The unyielding sun pounded above us as though it had an individual animosity for every single one of us while the path turned into a rugged path covered in dust.
Ivana had stopped humming. Silence settled over her as she kept staring straight ahead yet I observed her shooting several glances backwards almost like she was fighting the urge to run away into the woods. At this point, I wasn’t even going to get mad, I was also thinking the same thing to be quite honest. I was very tired and running away had been very attractive to me.
Heather was the only one who had seemed the most exciting about the trip. She started reading some scrolls about purity and the beauty of nature and she would have continued reading if Ivana hadn’t threatened her to shut up or she was going to yank out her tongue. That seemed to shut Heather up immediately and I was too tired to even tell her that Ivana was joking even though I knew she wasn’t not really. I loved Heather but if I had to hear one more word about the beauty of nature, I would have burnt the scroll and knocked her out myself.
On day four all our moods grew tensed because of our conditions. The hunger and pains from sunburns and muscle fatigue afflicted us as a group. We were so tired and we couldn’t afford the luxury of resting, we had to continue walking and because we were too tired. Nikolai created different methods of sleeping with his eyes open while still maintaining his seat on the horse. When Ivana caught him sleeping twice, he explained it was simply meditative focus. I didn’t buy it not one bit.
The fifth day when we finally arrived at mount Callum it was like I we had stepped into a magical painting. We had no idea the beauty that awaited us but when we did, it was almost magical. A smooth white stone hill supported the monastery which had pine trees as a backdrop while winds moved their trunks gracefully through the fresh air as if Naktus herself was among them. The golden sunlight scourged through drifting mist providing a gleaming effect on the spires which appeared to be made from crystal.
The painting in the archives had not done justice to the scenic beauty in front of me. It was an entirely different vision. It was elegant, beautiful, serene and it looked enchanting. The view in front of me was beyond regular human knowledge.
The ivy colored merged with pale tints while intricate carvings placed along the archways displayed forgotten prayers and old tales through runes and symbol patterns. The marble staircase ran long until it reached the big wooden entrance doors while the mountain base featured trees with petals showering as gentle rain.
When we reached the gate two females stood at the entrance, dressed in white long dressed with some sandals and on the top of their head was a crown of flowers and I would have laughed if they didn’t look so intermediating with the spears they were busy holding and there was just something about them. They may be women but they had a good form, I could tell from the way they stood.