Half-sighing and half-groaning, Evin slid into the tent he sohow managed to put up.
They had just reached an area dug into the Third Cataract, wide enough for dozen tents to be pitched. Their roof was the rest of the Cataract they had to walk up. It was basically a man-made cave. A resting point built by great mages of Tenarak.
"Final checkpoint," he mumbled.
At first when he was climbing, Evin was scared of the walls and the few pillars giving up on him and crushing him beneath it. His instincts refused to stay still inside a place like that, but eventually, he got used to it. Even managed to sleep under it. Though… the altitude sickness robbed that from him.
'Oh, how I want to sleep. Or at least be finished with this damn climb. 300 ters more and I'll finally be at the top, right? Knowing my luck, I'd still probably be sick when I get there, but at least I won't have to struggle through these stairs anymore…' he thought. 'It feels like my foot's going to act up again too.'
"Make sure you drink enough water!" Ssatsko said from outside. "And try to breathe a lot."
"Uh." Evin managed. It was supposed to be an 'Uh-huh!'.
"Just hang in there till evening," Ssatsko sighed. "There's a guard post on top of the Cataract and I have a friend there who makes pills for that sickness."
"Is brother Evin okay?" Sasha's voice sounded.
"Yes, yes. He'll be fine by tomorrow. For now, he just needs so rest," Ssatsko said. "Can you let your brother rest undisturbed for today?"
"Un!" the girl nodded.
"Alright, stay close and don't wander too far. Wouldn't want you walking off the cliff now, do we?"
Evin saw the scene, knew he should've felt all warm and fuzzy inside, but all he could feel was annoyance. Mostly at Lora's family always trying to help him out on the littlest things. He always went through sicknesses alone, so the extra attention felt excessive and sotis even pitying.
He rolled down the tent's flap and conjured water from the air. It wasn't hard, with all the cloud swirling around him. Gulping it, he laid his back on the thick cloth on the ground. The nausea in his stomach felt a bit better at that.
He tried sleeping, but sleep was still refusing to co. It hadn't co to Evin since yesterday morning, and in its stead, only pain and thoughts. The bad sort.
The increasing sadness in his mother's face, the increasing fear in Theor's face, the increasing suspicion in Ssatsko's face. At this point, he was sure Theor had spoken about Evin's threat. Evin tried to believe otherwise, but it was painfully obvious. Theor's reluctance to even look at him sotis; the many private talks between his mother and his grandfather; how hurt and dismayed they looked after these talks.
Perhaps they didn't believe Theor at first, but Ssatsko would know what Evin was capable of. Lora also knew of Evin's illusions, so she would imdiately realize why Theor was convinced so easily.
Would she still keep her good faith in him? Probably not.
'Just co and confront on it…' Evin sighed. 'Get this over with.'
Evin wanted to groan. He hater being sick and also being riddled with these thoughts. His head suddenly felt dizzy, and with it, ca his nausea. The different kind from his stomach's nausea. The one that ca if you were constantly feeling pain. Evin learned about this new kind after he lost his foot.
'Fun tis.'
Endra offered.
Endra said. Endra humd.
Endra replied, but he was focused on sothing else.
Evin wanted to curse, but another blast of air interrupted him. Much stronger this ti. Evin had to cover his face instinctively, fearing it'll scald his skin.
Ssatsko appeared from inside his tent, a worried expression on his face. Lora also ca out of his tent, instead of the big one she shared with Theor and her daughter.
'They were talking about again…'
"That wasn't you, right?" the old man asked.
Evin shook his head. "It ca from below."
Ssatsko ca over to see. Finding nothing, he frowned.
"Well, it's impossible to see anything on the ground from up here, so…"
"No, that blast did not co from the ground. It was much closer to the peak of the Cataract than to the bottom and it was much weaker than layn's spell. They're clearing out the cloud bit by bit!" Ssatsko pointed at the sky clearing up above them "My horn picked up the difference when the blast hit us the second ti."
"Could it be…" Evin wondered, and looked down again, this ti, searching for mages in the sky. Again, he saw nothing. A bad feeling welled in his heart.
Endra said.
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