Leaving the relative safety of the mid-canyon ledge was like stepping onto the blade of a knife.
The rock face here wasn't just steep; it was a sheer, unforgiving plane, scarred by ancient, wind-worn fissures and offering handholds that were little more than cruel jests.
The easy grace of Anya and Joric on the peaks above felt like a distant, impossible memory. This was a climb only a broken man held together by spite and something unnatural could attempt.
Kaelen pressed his hand against the cold stone, the dark energy within him surging at his silent command.
No longer just a faint aura, it pooled around his hand, the stone darkening visibly under his touch before the effect receded, leaving behind a chilling residue. Find a way.
His dark-infused [Fragmented Insight] painted the sheer rock in hues of vulnerability – not physical ledges, but micro-fractures glowing with faint, exploitable energy, resonance flows that hinted at stability within instability.
He began to climb again, relying heavily on his dark power. Channeling it outwards, he used it not just to solidify fleeting handholds but to create them, pushing the energy into the narrowest seams, forcing the rock to temporarily harden, giving his fingers just enough purchase to pull himself upwards.
Each movement was a deliberate act of will, a conscious direction of the chilling force within him. His muscles screamed, his bones ground together beneath the dark energy's unnatural support, but he gained ground. Slowly. Agonizingly.
The dark energy manifested more intensely now. A palpable aura of cold shadow clung to him, swirling around his form like a second skin.
His eyes felt cold in their sockets, as if the energy flowed behind them, giving his gaze an unnatural, chilling light. The air around him seemed colder, thin frost crystals sometimes forming on the rock where his shadow aura was strongest.
He was learning through desperate necessity. A crumbling handhold gave way? Channel dark energy, surge across the gap using a burst of unnatural force, anchor himself with a hand slammed against the rock face, the stone groaning under the impact and the chilling power infused within it.
Faced with a wide, smooth section?
Focus [Fragmented Insight] on the faint energy flows, look for discordant points, channel dark energy into them to create temporary, solid points of egress, stepping stones of solidified shadow on the sheer face.
It was raw, unrefined control, born of instinct and a burning need to survive.
Higher up, the canyon changed again. The wind grew fiercer, and the resonance hum shifted, becoming sharper, laced with an unpleasant, discordant frequency.
[Fragmented Insight] showed pockets of agitated energy clinging to the cliff face – not monster signatures, but pockets of wild, unpredictable power, perhaps fragments of ancient magic or side effects of the deep resonance.
Hazard: E_N_E_R_G_Y S_T_O_R_M (Localized).
One such pocket pulsed directly in his path, crackling with uncontrolled energy. He couldn't climb through it; the data warned of dissipation, disruption of his own energy flow. He had to bypass it.
The only route was a traverse across a smooth, exposed section, far more treacherous than anything he'd faced.
He channels a significant amount of dark energy, focusing it into his hands and feet, seeking purchase on the sheer rock.
He had to move fast, relying on creating temporary dark energy anchors as he went.
Push. Channel. Grip. His movements became less human, more like a spider scrambling across a wall, leaving fleeting imprints of shadow and cold on the stone.
As he traversed, the energy storm pulsed violently near him. He felt its disruptive force, a chaotic wave washing over him.
His dark energy flickered in response, his carefully maintained shadow aura rippling violently.
Pain lanced through his broken body as the unnatural support wavered.
Stabilize!
He focused his will, pushing the dark energy outwards, creating a temporary, localized shield of solidified shadow energy between himself and the storm.
The shield absorbed the impact, shimmering darkly before dissipating, leaving him shaken but protected.
A shield.
He hadn't known he could do that. The power was responding, shaped by his desperate need.
But using that much energy... the toll was immense. A wave of dizziness washed over him, his limbs shaking not just from exertion, but from the drain.
His injuries screamed, the dark energy struggling to maintain its support. His skin felt stretched thin over bone, unnaturally cold.
The cost. His internal monologue, ever present, focused on the price.
This power was incredible. It was keeping him alive, enabling the impossible. But it felt like it was feeding on something more than just energy reserves.
A growing emptiness in his chest, filled only by the burning fire of his vengeance. Was the dark energy consuming parts of himself? His fear felt colder, his pain more distant, his focus narrowed solely to the climb and the retribution waiting above.
He was becoming less Kaelen, more... function. More weapon.
Does it matter?
The thought was chillingly pragmatic.
What good were those parts? They were weak. They felt betrayal.
This power feels only purpose.
The ascent was a brutal, physical manifestation of his embrace of this darker self. Every foot gained was a trade.
He was getting closer now. The sliver of sky above was noticeably wider, a promise of escape.
The wind carried faint, unfamiliar sounds – not the scream of mountain predators, but something else, something from the world of men. He was nearing the lip of the canyon.
But the climb wasn't finished. Just ahead, the rock face became even more treacherous, culminating in an overhang that seemed impassable.
And clinging to the underside of the overhang, their energy signatures radiating with cold, silent power through [Fragmented Insight], were three of the same stone-shadow spider creatures he'd faced before, larger this time. Guarding the exit.
His weary body screamed. His dark energy reserves felt dangerously low from the traverse and shield.
But the sight of the edge, the thought of the surface, ignited the fury anew. Three creatures. An overhang.
The final test of the ascent. The price of power had brought him this far. Now, he had to pay whatever was left to reach the top. His vengeance demanded it. His dark heart hammered a relentless rhythm against his ribs