Shards of Felwyn

Trovvs

Only a day passed on the sailboat before Lysander and Cosmo spotted the silhouettes of mountains in the distance. The two boys, despite having clear weather during their travels, were both itching to be rid of the boat due to its miniscule deck and three-foot-tall cabin. Because of this desire to once again be on land, Lysander and Cosmo spent the majority of the day following their departure from Hiӓen looking at the shadows across the horizon.

"I've never seen a mountain range before." Lysander broke one of many minutes of silence that transpired between the two during their gazing upon the land in front of them. Lysander's mood seemed to improve significantly following a night's rest on the sailboat. Whether it was just a hardened shell or actual improvement, Cosmo was unable to discern.

"That makes two of us." Was all Cosmo could say, nearly paralyzed with disbelief. The enormous craggy mountain range that stood before them was larger than life, much more gigantic than anything the two boys had ever seen in their whole lives. As the sailboat continued to accelerate towards the vast sandy shore that rested just before the foothills of the range, the mountains continued to loom taller and taller on the horizon. By the time the boat slid onto the soft silt of the beach, the peaks seemed to be reaching across the sky, some piercing the clouds.

"It's beautiful..." Lysander sat with his feet in the hot and white sand, sinking his toes beneath the surface. His face was filled with childlike wonder, gazing up at the massif.

While Lysander was focused on the beauty of the Clifftop Haven, Cosmo was focused on the harsh sunlight radiating upon his body, making him feel as though he was always running a fever. Cosmo began to strip the thick layers of clothing Hallar had given him off of his body and into Lysander's travel pack until all that remained was his attire previous to waking up in Wyrfel: his dark black pants, leather tunic, and boots. Regardless of the amount of clothes shed, Cosmo still sweat profusely.

"C'mon, Lysander. It's time to get up and begin hiking to Trovvs. It's going to take us more than a day's worth of travel to get there. We can't afford to waste time."

"Aye," said Lysander. "I suppose you're right." He then shed the majority of his thicker clothes, choosing to go barefoot, unlike Cosmo. Together, the boys removed all necessary supplies from the sailboat and fit what they could inside of the travel pack. Locating the nearest opening in the phalanx of precipices standing before them, they left the boat behind and began hiking between the cliffs.

Now that they were mobile, the complete beauty of the Clifftop Haven was presented before Lysander and Cosmo in the form of enormous flowering trees, mysteriously colored underbrush, and the cascading of several waterfalls. However, after less than two hours of trudging through the rampant flora, the boys found themselves sitting on the ground, sweating from every pore in their body, and exhausted beyond belief.

"Forgive me. I need a break." Cosmo apologized, setting down what he carried in his hands and collapsing to the ground. The heat was overbearing in every way. While he could tell that the temperature was not very high at all, the humidity seemed to trap the hot air in place and smother those that tried to breathe it.

"How much farther must we go?" Lysander groaned, dropping his travel pack to the ground and raising his face to the sky.

"We've got more than a day's worth of travel, still. We haven't even reached the other side of the mountain range." Cosmo sighed, staring at the ground. Lysander gave no response. Instead, he squatted, produced a small canteen from his pack, and took a drag from it. After offering Cosmo a drink, they began on their journey once again.

Most of the trek remained in silence, partly due to the glorious scenery of majestic plant life surrounding them, but also because the energy required to speak would already be much more than the boys could handle. Instead, they continued to be blown away by the endless growth of the Clifftop Haven. Every other step was followed by a critter skittering in a bush, or a bird squawking in the leafy blanket of trees above.