Day of Calm

The mountainous figure soon took shape. A sea of black and white teeth stood tall in Osiris's vision, they were majestic in a horrifying kind of way. The Maw was often spoken of in a way that made it seem far more like an animal, though Osiris could see why the comparison was made. Even though he was still little more than half a day away, and the towering spires stagnant as they ever were, he felt as though the Maw was eyeing its next meal.

It gave the veteran bounty hunter the shivers, which he promptly shrugged off. He wouldn't let a little primal fear stop him.

He stopped for the night.

It was late and he felt that he would need to regroup for the coming challenges. He would eat light tonight, the time he would spend in the mountain may be longer than expected and he needed to have all the rations available. Though he may have been able to gorge himself a little more than he had, having reached the Maw quicker than expected. It had only been four days so far since he had been given another chance at freedom.

However, Osiris wouldn't take this chance.

He ate a small serving of salted meat, wanting to save the fruits and vegetables a little longer.

He then settled onto the grassy plateau. Peering upwards, he looked to the stars, a million, million burning balls of light created an aurora of brilliance that fended off the all-consuming darkness to its fringes.

While almost all believed their world was the only harbinger of life, looking upward he couldn't help but disagree. Every pinprick of light reminded him of his own struggles and the world he lived in, maybe others were fighting the same kind of fight he was fighting.

Either way, what was happening in other worlds was not of any real concern to the bounty hunter. Just because others were going through similar things didn't make his own challenges any less hard or real.

He needed to sleep, after all, so he tried to push his thoughts away. Yet somehow, they seemed to crawl their way back. He finally submitted to the woes of his mind, indulging them just a little. They seemed to carry him away like a leaf in a stream.

After some unknown time of just simply existing underneath the prism of stars, the Knight Slayer drifted asleep.

He awoke at dawn as he usually did, nibbled on an apple, and then mounted his lackadaisical horse who began to move with indifference.

The journey to the Maw was relatively uneventful. No battle-hungry druids, goblins, or malevolent spirits in sight. Not that he wanted the trek to be eventful at all really. What bounty hunter didn't like an easy job?

He soon felt the ground shift beneath once more. He had first walked the cobbled streets of Solic, then the dirt paths of the countryside, the soft ground of the plains, and now the rocky earth of the imposing mountain range.

There was still light in the day so Osiris decide to continue moving. The temperature had yet to change, though he knew it would. It was the middle of autumn, slowly shifting into a colder climate.

The mountain would only make it worse.

He continued over a few steep hills, they posed little challenge to Dusk who surmounted them with grace. The sun had continued to dip beyond the horizon. He came to a stop in a small clearing. It was covered in small bits of lichen and moss, the ground, while indeed rocky, was still capable of holding grass. He would not yet consider himself within the Maw, where all seemed desolate.

Trees also littered the area and granted him a little shelter. He also tied Dusk to one, he doubted the horse would try to make a break for it, though Osiris didn't want to take any chances.

Osiris wished to save his rations and spent some time creating a few simple snares with string he had purchased when obtaining other goods. He looked for a few holes that might have been the homes of rabbits. Also placing one in an area that appeared a little more trafficked than other places.

He had paced three in total and hoped to have a good meal the next morning, though his presence may throw off his plans.

He also made his way to a small creek, its water was crystal clear as he refilled his canteen.

He soon made his way to a suitable spot and settled in. Osiris retrieved the detailed notes Xavier had given him. Searching the whole mountain range would have been insane, probably getting him killed of starvation or exposure.

Written in the parchment was a more thorough location of the shard. It seemed that the oracle had seen the shard in a small cave that one would find when climbing the third tallest peak the mountain had to offer.

The hike would be arduous, but the bounty hunter was sure he could reach the peak in two-ish days.

This was if nothing went wrong of course.

The bounty hunter then brought out a blanket, though he wasn't really using it as one, at least for now. He had neglected it so far as he didn't feel the need to use it. The rocky ground had just been something he knew couldn't sleep on. It worked in a way that it could wrap around its user, sufficiently protecting its users from the elements.

At the current moment, it wasn't cold enough to warrant its use in that way so he was content with using it as a comforter.

He once again stared up at the stars, a new bout of thoughts entering his mind. They truly looked beautiful. Even in the slums, lanterns lit up the streets and diluted the elegance of the stars. On his many bounties, he had looked up to the sky regularly, though at the moment nothing could take away the serenity and quiet this place provided. It was a world of its own.

A calm descended the Knight Slayer like a blanket of velvet. The noise of the day slowly ebbed away into tranquil silence. Perhaps the world was giving him one more day of calm.

It didn't matter to Osiris however, as he was sucked beneath the waves of oblivion.