James had not been sure what response he expected when he had asked Ayal what their next step would be. Perhaps he had wished for some form of comfort, or maybe a promise that it would all be okay in the end – the kind a father or mother tells their child when things being to head South. Or maybe he had wanted the truth. Maybe he wanted to reassurance that he was not the only lost soul tonight, wondering as though half in a dream. Whatever response James had been looking for, he hadn’t been ready for how softly the older Keeper spoke and how unsure he sounded. It caused James to pause, open his eyes, and study the pile of sticks before him.
Ayal recovered quickly, of course, in a way James could never dream of. He could barely wrap his mind around what they had just seen, nevertheless take a deep breath, put on a brave face, and march forward towards the unknown. Still, there was a strange sort of half-comfort, knowing that he wasn’t the only one wondering. Ciess bumped her head against his side not all too gently, and he turned to watch her. She stared back at him with blazing, golden eyes. She was right, as she often was, they were in this together, all of them. They were Keeper, they were brothers, and they had a job to do. Especially if they were the only ones…
James cleared his throat as a way to clear his mind and blinked out of his haze, or at least tired to. He took a steady breath, resting on hand atop Ciess’ head as a way to ground and steady himself before kneeling back before the fire. Tea was important, as was water. James hadn’t realized how dry his throat was until he was thinking about the last time he’d had a sip of water. The mountainside, that was it, before he and Ciess and Gweli reached the top. James had packed just enough water to make it back to the monetary, any more would have been too heavy. Besides, there was snow he figured it he needed it he could use it. Well, they needed it now.
“I’ll work on the fire,” James said with a nod. He picked up the flint and steel that Ayal had pulled out from his bag and rubbed the two together. Friction was needed if a flame was to take hold, as was heat. In order to produce both some strength was required. Normally, it wouldn’t have been much of a problem for James. He had started many a fire in the past, both with and without flint. But with numbed hands, a body chilled to the bone, and damp logs the young man found himself questioning his ability to produce a flame. But they needed the heat, and one look towards Ciess and Gweli and then to Ayal and Zlabia reminded him that they needed it soon, lest they freeze to death on the side of the mountain they call home.
Three more quick strokes of the rocks and suddenly a spark flew. For a moment James wasn’t sure it would catch, but one of the branches was dry enough, and soon a small flame began to lick at the sticks. The light that emanated from the fire was greater than the small candle Ayal had brought considerably more warmth. For a moment James let his hands hover just inches above the sticks. He moved them only when the flames began to grow and build.
“I got the fire started,” he said to Ayal who was out just beyond the entrance collecting ice. Settling back beside the fire, James picked up another stick and began to trim back some of the back. Ciess settled against his side, relaxing some, though he could still feel the tension along her back as he ran a hand through her fur. “What do you have to eat?”
James himself wasn’t hungry, but it was bad news not to eat, especially in the cold and especially on a mountain. Altitude sickness could kill if one was not careful. Besides, food in their systems could be good. It would help them think and allow them to have more energy to face whatever was to come their way. “I don’t have a lot myself,” he continued as he trimmed away as much damp wood as he could without totally destroying the stick, “some bread, some leftover dried beans, and nuts.”
What he had wasn’t a lot, but they didn’t need a lot, at least not now, but later. The longer they wanted to stay the more food they needed. But if that wasn’t an option, perhaps they’d have to start back down the mountain sooner than they expected.