Apex Part 2

I sat outside waiting, hopefully, as he returned with a bunch of stuff. "Listen, I'm too old to use this now anyway and I've got a bunch of them lying around, so I think since you've come all this way, it'd be a shame if you had to turn back, here you go."

I took the bag made of dried skin happily. This was my time. I knew that I would never be turning back. Such was my faith, but the old man never needed to know that. I already made enough people saw that as it was. I'm going to leave this kind man with some hope in me and my goal.

I would climb that mountain by my teeth and nails if I had to, but I was glad I didn't have to as I started taking out each item from the bag. My hands dipped into the bag.

I saw rope, which I recognized, but then I saw some form of garment I wasn't sure what to do with, stone carved like tubes and other stuff shaped like a flat, broken piece of rock with holes in it. Then there was a thing I recognized and some sort of pulley. My eyes widened and I let out a deep breath unconsciously.

"Don't you know what these are?" He asked. I looked up at him, bewildered and confused. I shook my head.

"Kid, how are you going to come to climb a mountain and not know how to climb a mountain?" he asked.

I stuttered. "I don't... I didn't think it would be like this. I didn't know what to expect. I don't know what I had in mind." I said, as my cheeks burned red with embarrassment.

"Well, it's a good thing I was here when you came then." he smiled, putting me at ease. I released my tension and smiled as well.

"Okay, so here is what you're going to do." he showed step by step how each tool worked and put them on himself. I listen to him well, the ropes were obviously used for leverage and hanging on to the wall.

The stone instruments were for breaking into the rock and sticking that rope in place. The tubes were used with the pulley and held sling the rope that allowed me to pull myself along the circular surface.

I have seen how police work, so I should be able to figure it out even if my imagination was blanking right now.

As he put each thing on, he reminisced. "Man, I remember when I was young, before these old bones creaked like this." He laughed. "Do you hear them?" he asked. I mean, I did hear some bones pop, but I would not say anything. Instead, I just laughed and shook my head. "Anyway." He continued. "I used to love to explore the things I've seen." He spoke as he put the rope through holes and loops, tugging on them, showing me where to place hooks, and describing each of his movements.

I watched in wonder and also in anticipation so much that although I was hearing his stories; I wasn't really listening as I tried to grasp quickly what the heck he was doing with those tools. He made a flourish of sway in his hand. "And of course, the rope goes here. Now, you try." He said, removing the tools from himself and handing them to me.

I looked at the garment he stretched out to me. He chuckled. "It's adjustable, just pull on here and here, then Voila, it'll shrink to fit you." I smiled and nodded.

It started out with putting that on and securing it as I had seen him do, then it was on to the other stuff.

My confidence misplaced, for seeing one thing and doing it were two completely different things. I was so confused that we spent the next hour there reliving his adventures through stories and trying to figure out how to help me understand how each thing worked together and how to put them on and use them. Eventually, I managed to get everything on and I had newfound confidence looking at myself with the robe and stone instruments strapped on around my torso down to my waist.