The Mountain of the Immortals - Part 2

The rest of the evening went by quickly and uneventfully. After her discussion with Siyan, the previous enthusiasm of her captivated audience had somewhat soured. The thought of an outlander climbing Mount Shekan seemed shocking to most in the room. 

Evelyn left it at that. She was relieved that for once she wasn’t the centre of everyone’s attention. Less eyes on her meant she could finally relax. She felt like she hadn’t done that in quite a while. So far, the journey into Yunar had been testing, even for an experienced seeker like herself. It wasn’t the physical strain that bothered her much. The worst of that was yet to come, she knew. It was the fact that she always had to stay switched on that was weighing on her mind. Paying attention to everyone around her, making sure to leave the right impression in every situation. The feeling that everyone she met here was judging her every move… All that was taking its toll. 

Now that she felt like a burden had been lifted from her, there was no use pretending anyone. She could finally put her feet up and enjoy her drink. As much as one could enjoy sorghum wine, anyway. The stuff was sour and pungent. Maybe after all this work was done, she could look into importing ale into this country. Whoever managed to do that would stand to make a fortune… 

Her thoughts were interrupted by Songhai, who approached her table somewhat timidly. 

“Can I sit here?” he gestured to the chair opposite her. 

“Be my guest.” 

“Are you crazy?” 

“What?” 

“No offence… Some of my friends over there seem to think you are,” the boy hurried to explain, putting his hands up defensively. “A foreigner coming to Kantor of all places, on her way to the top of a sacred mountain. A journey that might kill her. And for what? Just to write about it in some books? You don’t even believe in our ways. Why risk your life so foolishly? I just wanted to make sure, is all.” 

Evelyn scoffed as she sipped her wine, checking the sourness was still there. Her suspicions were confirmed not too pleasantly. No wonder people here don’t let their wine sit in the jug for too long. Down it and be done with it seemed to be the local custom. 

“Are you having second thoughts about this, Songhai? Because if you are...” 

“Oh no, no. My word is my word. And 10 gold is 10 gold. I’m just wondering whether I should worry about you during our journey.” 

“Worry about me?” Evelyn’s brow darted up.

“You know, whether you would sacrifice me to your ‘Seekers’ of something.” 

Evelyn almost spat her drink out. She couldn’t help but laugh at the seriousness with which the boy spoke. 

“Sacrifice you?” she asked, her grin widening. We collect knowledge, my dear boy, not the blood of the innocent.”

“Of course,” his tone almost dismissing his last comment. But Evelyn could see relief in his eyes following her reaction. 

“Why did you agree to help me anyway? I mean, if you’re so concerned I might eat you – why take the risk?” 

“You pay well.” 

“True. But is the money worth it if you were convinced you were risking your life?” 

“I wasn’t convinced I was risking my life. When you spoke before, I could feel you were determined to go up that mountain for whatever reason. Somehow, I knew you would keep your word and give me those 10 coins as well. It seems you were my change of fortune.” 

“Your what now?” 

“My mum always told me to watch out for my change of fortune and be careful not to miss it when it came along. I saw a chance to get out of this town, and I took it.” 

“Your mother sounds like a wise woman.” 

“That she was,” Songhai said, his eyes, now watery, looking down at the table. 

“Sorry,” Evelyn said.

“No problem at all, miss. It’s not your fault. You weren’t here to sacrifice her for knowledge,” Songhai tried a joke, which fell flat on its nose. 

“Is that why you’re trying to leave this place?” 

“I guess you could say that. I’ve got very little left for me in Kantor. And 10 gold sounded like a nice way to start over!”

Evelyn could see through his smile.  For such a young age, Songhai looked like he had seen a lot. Sometimes, life demands we grow up faster, and Songhai had had no choice but to answer that call. Evelyn wanted to find out more about his life but then thought better of it. He had already shared more than he had intended tonight. She had questions but settled for the last bit of wine in her jug. She downed it in one, wincing as she did. 

“Well, your fresh start awaits you tomorrow morning at the fifth bell –” 

“ – In the town square,” Songhai finished her sentence. “I won’t be late.”

“I’m sure you won’t.” 

“Now, let’s go get some rest,” Songhai said as he got up. “No offence, but you look like you need it.” 

“Do I now?” Evelyn returned his playful grin. “You best go before I change my mind about the whole thing.” 

“Too late now! You’re stuck with me,” Songhai said as he turned towards the exit. 

He was right, of course. Evelyn was convinced no one else would agree to accompany her on this journey. She was annoyed at how perceptive the boy was. Annoyed and more than a little intrigued. This trip had just gotten interesting. 

She looked around the room. The place had almost emptied, only a handful of people left drinking their final orders. Drinks that she had paid for, she remembered now. At least, she had gotten what she set out to get. But it had taken a lot out of her. She felt exhausted. 

She got up and went to the counter where Ka’chen was cleaning up.

“Has everything been paid for?” she asked. 

“Yes, everything’s alright,” the innkeeper said. “Would you like me to take you to your room?” 

“Yes, I would very much like that,” she said as she grabbed hold of the wooden countertop. The wine seemed to be catching up to her now. Ka’chen caught a glimpse of her trying to keep her balance and smiled to himself. 

“Alright, miss. Let’s show you to your room,” he waved his hand towards the staircase to the right of the bar. 

Evelyn waited for him to get in front and then followed him up to the second floor. “Away from the mountain, you said.” 

“Yes, that would be my preference,” Evelyn slurred her words as she held onto the walls on either side of the narrow hallway. 

“Well, you’re in luck. I’ve got one room like that, and it happens to be empty tonight.” Somehow Evelyn doubted that this place was ever obersubscribed, but she went along with Ka’chen’s story. 

“There we are,” Ka’chen said as he pushed a heavy door open and entered the room. “I hope this is agreeable?” 

The interior followed the same basic, functional layout as the rest of the inn. Apart from a two-person bed, a simple redwood dresser, a chair and a desk, there was nothing else inside the room. What Evelyn found most refreshing was the absence of leaf smoke here. Finally, a rest from that blasted smell, she thought. 

“Oh, this will do very nicely. Thank you, Ka’chen.” 

“No need to thank me, miss. You’re paying after all…” he said as he went to close the window. 

“Of course,” Evelyn nodded. 

“Well, I won’t bother you more. I wish you a quiet night,” he bowed as he left the room.

“A quiet night to you too, Ka’chen.”

Evelyn dwelled on the saying as the innkeeper closed the door behind him. She hadn’t thought of the importance of a quiet night before she’d heard the expression in Yunar. And yet, now a quiet night seemed essential to a good life. Something one starts to value a lot more after several weeks on the road. 

It wasn’t until Evelyn’s head hit the pillow that she realised how tired she was. Despite the excitement of the evening and the amount of wine she had consumed, she let sleep take her without any resistance. 

* * *

Evelyn woke to the bursting sound of the wind. Sharp gusts of icy air cut through the layers of blankets on top of her. The sound flapped in her ears with terrible force. She opened her eyes, still in bed, but the bed wasn’t in the room she remembered falling asleep in. 

She found herself now atop a mountain peak, her bed barely a footstep away from the edge of a cliff. Although she had never seen it with her eyes before, she had no doubt what this place was. Mount Shekan – The Roof of The World. That thing haunts me waking or asleep, Evelyn thought with annoyance more than anything else. What did she have to do for that bloody vision to leave her at peace for a few hours?

The flapping sound was deafening. She could now see small whirlwinds forming in the distance, each signing to its own, deliberate tune. The sounds harmonised and converged around where she was sitting. She shivered from the cold and something else… Even though this was a dream, the feelings were palpable, intense. Evelyn couldn’t remember the last time she felt so cold and alone. She willed herself to get up from the bed, keeping the blankets wrapped around her as she did. 

Then the whistling sound came – lound and sharp, stabbing at her eardrums. As the sound intensified, it converged into a question: 

“Who is Evelyn?” the voice demanded. 

Evelyn couldn’t decide whether it was male or female. It sounded to her like a combination of a few entities coming together. It didn’t matter. She still felt it carve its way inside her mind. 

“Why have you brought me here?” Evelyn returned the question. “Why won’t you let me sleep?” 

“Who is Evelyn?” the wind repeated with a sharp icy gust, boring deeper. Evelyn focused her gaze at the whirlwings in the distance, now melding into one. She could barely make out a silhouette inside the tempest. The figure looked uniform but kept drifting together and apart. 

“Obviously, you know me. Why do I have to explain myself to a spectre?” 

“Who is Evelin?” The voice repeated. The figure in the distance bolted towards her. It became transparent as it got closer and hit her head-on, evaporating on impact. The wind knocked the air out of her lungs and thrust her backwards. She found herself falling off the edge of the cliff she was standing on. 

She fell, but she did not wake up. Whatever this thing was, it wanted her here in the dream, and it would keep her for as long as it pleased. She kept going down at an unnaturally slow pace, minutes turning into hours as she spiraled towards the bottom. 

She saw a lake beneath her as she spun mid-air. From what she could make out, the water was still, untouched by the storm around it. But it was shifting colours in the same rhythm of the storm. Red, then orange, then yellow, then green. Blue, violet,  purple, red. The closer she got to the water, the more frantic the colour shifts became. 

Evelyn thought she should be terrified of the fall, of this dream, but she wasn’t. She was perfectly still, letting the tempest carry her and throw her body in any direction it willed.

She strained her focus, trying to remember everything so she could include it in her notes later. An effort she suspected was fruitless, given the nature of dreams. But she insisted anyway. 

The water beneath her came close, filling her entire field of vision. Evelyn braced for the inevitable hit. Dream or not, falling from the top of a mountain into a lake was bound to hurt. Oddly enough, as she fell into the pool of glowing water, she didn’t feel a thing. The water embraced her with warmth – a stark contrast to the icy wind she had felt moments ago. 

For a few moments longer, she remained perfectly still, her body bobbling on the surface of the lake. She looked up towards the mountain top. The storm was raging up above, but she could not hear it any longer. The only sounds present were her movements in the water. The lake matched her temperature exactly, making it feel like she was still floating in the air. 

As she watched the peak, a now familiar voice whispered again: 

“Find yourself.” 

Evelyn closed her eyes and saw the same elusive figure in the darkness behind her eyelids.

“You must climb,” the voice came louder. Evelyn felt the words etch themselves inside her head as the figure grew brighter and consumed her vision. The light was blinding, too much for her to take. It felt like someone had taken a hot needle to her retinas. She couldn’t take it anymore and blinked away from the image. 

She opened her eyes, now again in the bed and the inn in Kantor. She shot up and looked around. The room was totally unimpressive – as she had left it.

Evelyn looked around, trying to process the experience. She heard the gentle raindrops outside. Their reassuring drip reminded her of home. In the distance, Evelin could just hear a storm brewing up. In here, Evelyn perceived it as no more than a gentle whisper. It carried a message for her, one she tried to ignore but couldn’t. 

“Find yourself,” the wind insisted. 

She wasn’t entirely sure what this meant. Or indeed whether she wanted to find out.