Before The Mountains [MXM]

Ch. 1- Before the Moon Rises

Zed tightened his fist before slamming it on the cold stone wall. "Just try me..." He whispered. The air was chilly, and the walls and ground felt damp against his skin.

Zed held his legs tightly against his chest. Wrapping his arms around his knees, he closed his eyes, and listened. All he could hear was his own breathing. Calm, relaxed, deep breaths.

"Zedurax. Hey Zed, wake up." A voice came through.

Zed opened his eyes slowly. "Hmm... Tyron?" He yawned and rubbed his eyes with the back of his palms. "What are you doing here?"

"It's already a half moon. Don't tell me you forgot." Tyron sighed and looked at him from where he stood. "Get changed. I'll wait outside. And hurry up." Zed nodded slowly and waved him off.

He slipped into his usual outfit of a tunic and knee shorts, then walked outside. The usual strong light from the sun was covered by a thousand milky white clouds. "How did you know?" Zed looked at Tyron as he asked. "Hmph, just a feeling."

Zed looked at the view for a minute. The end of his cliff, and further away. Hoops of white trees were scattered about, and blue tiny birds surfed the sky. He took a deep breath of the fresh cool air and followed behind Tyron.

"So, we have two days left?" Zed asked, stepping over a big log.

"Correct. Two days before the full moon. The place is called Derolika, it's almost an entire day's walk there, but it's necessary." Tyron replied and suddenly stopped walking, turning his gaze upwards.

"Hmm... We're going to need to find another path there though." Zed sighed and stretched out his left arm in mid-air. "No, wait. Not worth it." Tyron turned to look at him and then to the right. A small opening in these woods was rare, and yet, there it was. They were silent, but knew exactly what to do. That opening into the mountains looked like a better option than what was coming.

Zed went in first, to investigate, then gave a sign for Tyron to follow behind. It was an old tunnel made of rocks, just barely high enough to stand upright in, with a thick air and misty smell of blood.

Heavy steps were heard outside a few minutes later. Metallic, sending an unpleasant feeling throughout the forest, enough to make anyone shiver. Tyron carefully peeked out with one eye after removing a small rock from the wall. "As expected, they sent spies. Most likely there will be another two not far from here," he whispered.

"A deer and a calf then, I suppose?" Zed asked, whispering back.

"Not quite. They still sound like the others when moving, but look very different. Here, have a look." He moved away to let Zed see.

Tyron wasn't exaggerating. They were the same spies, and yet not? One was masked as a silver gray wolf, a pretty uncommon species in the kingdom, its fur's colour believed to originate from the moonlight. The other was a fox, a particularly rare species. The Bronx fox, recognized by its bright bronze fur and ice blue eyes.

"We should rest here for the night then. I'll take watch, you need to rest. We'll leave at first light," Zed eventually said.

"Alright," Tyron agreed, a little surprised. He went further into the cave, exploring as he looked for a nice spot to settle down in. Zed licked his lips, slowly, as he got lost in thoughts of food. He glanced to the opening of the cave. His stomach was making loud sounds of protest, he placed a hand on his belly and looked down at the ground, tracing all the way to his bare feet with his eyes.

Tyron stood up and walked over to Zed, who then raised his head. "Yeah, that's the food signal alright. I'll see what I-" Tyron got interrupted by his own stomach, growling in protest. They both almost burst out laughing, but quickly placed one hand each on the other's mouth. They couldn't risk loud sounds being heard to the outside. "Let's go hunt for some food already, we'll practically starve tonight if not." Zed suggested.

"That's not a bad idea, Zed, although those things are still out there somewhere." Tyron sighed.

Zed thought for a moment, travelling his eyes all around the dark cave, quickly adapting his vision to the darkness. He bit his lip, as a plan was made. "What if they couldn't see us? Then it would be safe, right?"

"Well, yes. I suppose it would," he raised an eyebrow. "What are you planning, Zedurax?"