Implode ~ 16!

Contrary to Joe's expectations, they were not led to a secret tunnel. There was no entrance hidden behind a bush, no waterfall guarding a secret path to a magical city. Instead, they simply began their trek into the mountains, following a narrow path that could fit only a single dwarf at a time. If it were not for the fact that he knew magical storage devices existed that would allow for the rapid transit of huge amounts of resources and everything that a thriving city needed, he would never have believed that roads of this quality would be sufficient for their needs.

“I'm just checking, are we on a goat path right now?” Jaxon looked around in excitement, “I love those fluffy little guys, and their square eyes! Basically the cutest things I've ever seen in my life! Besides, any random snake sunning itself by the side of the road, of course!”

“This is actually known as the G.O.A.T. path.” Major Cleave explained with a rare smile, clearly she was feeling more secure as they got closer to the city proper. “According to every magically inclined dwarf that has come out of there, this is the path to True Enlightenment and understanding. The greatest of all time path, or ‘the G.O.A.T. path’. It is a repository of knowledge, secrets of the Oligarchy, opportunities for advancement both in careers and society. That is what Dehur Bethi, the High City of Deep Thought represents to my people.”

“That's pretty grandiose, in that case the capital has to be even more amazing, right? A symbol of prosperity and wealth, perhaps?” The Chiropractor questioned with great enthusiasm. “Also, is it just me, or is it starting to get bitterly cold?”

“The Capital is the center of trade. It's just where the Oligarchs live, as well as the people that want to climb the social ladder. You will always find the highest ranks of military, nobility, and merchants in that city. It is not designed for innovation or anything else beyond being a central hub for the rules and regulations of our civilization.”  Major Cleave blushed slightly at the words coming out of her mouth, which almost sounded treasonous. “That's the reason I was there, for sure. Clearly it worked out for me, having reached major in only a few decades instead of a century and a half as is custom.”

“Right, and the cold?” Jaxon gestured at the air around them, even as he pulled out a large parka and shimmied into it.

“Yes, this mountain range is in an eternal winter.” Major cleave could only shake her head and continue on as the others began to bombard her with questions.

“Are there going to be more monsters up ahead?” Daniella’s voice was quivering a slight amount, and Joe tried to feel sympathetic to her plight. As far as he knew, she had always been able to gain levels through her profession instead of through direct, dirty, painful combat. Or, it could have been the fact that it really was getting pretty cold. “That is, how much further do we have to go until we get to the city?”

“Now that we are on the path, which is protected from eavesdropping, both magical and physical, I can give you a better idea.”  Major Cleave pointed directly up, and a smug smirk graced her face.  “Straight up. All we need to do is follow the path until we get there. We are already on the mountain that the city is built on.”

“Wait, it's the first mountain? The very first mountain in the whole range? The easiest one to get to out of all of them?” Joe started to scoff, but it turned into a tiny laugh as he thought about it more. “That's tricky! Put a city inside of a massive mountain range,  lead on that it is going to be very difficult to find the city, but it's actually just… right here?”

“You know it.” Major Cleave’s words floated back to him on the wind, as she was facing forward to scan for threats, as well as to ensure her footing. “It is still going to take us a day and a half to get there at this pace, more if we run into any monsters.”

That put a damper on Joe's spirits, “So long? Why? Don't we just have to go up?”

“We need to circle the entire Mountain several times, staying on the path or in the  larger rest areas attached to it.” Major Cleave explained easily. “Normally, of course, people that are coming to the city would simply teleport in, never knowing the difficulty in reaching the city. However, with that option unavailable to us, the only thing that we can do is follow the ancient way. On the plus side, this is also the path that any magically inclined dwarf would need to follow to even be considered for training. If they teleported in, it would show a lack of resolve. The path is magically guarded, with various effusive and misleading enchantments woven into the stone over the last millennia. Leaving the path, even for a moment, will result in you finding yourself back at the bottom of the mountain, nowhere near the entrance path at all. If you are lucky.”

“That means we will have an easier chance of getting access to the people we need to talk to in the city above?” Joe voiced his hopes carefully. “If we combine that with my military rank, what do you think the likelihood of meeting with a Grandmaster is going to be?”

Major Cleave pondered the answer she wanted to give him for a moment. “Back in your world, if I remember correctly, you had something called a lottery? I believe the odds of getting to speak to a Grandmaster so easily has similar odds to winning the grand prize on that game of chance. If for no other reason than you are a human, and to them, an unknown factor. With a bounty on the heads of the Grandmasters, that is the best odds I could possibly give you.”

Now knowing that all they had to do was get there, the blistering pace that they set for themselves was more easily accepted by everyone in the group. All the way until they made it to the first rest area. Then, seeing magically comfortable tents, flames enchanted to never go out that would easily remove the chill from their bones, and a large pot of soup that was stirring itself…  all of the humans started to build a slight amount of resentment in their hearts as their Dwarven escort rushed them past.

“But there was soup!” Jaxon pouted as he waved sadly behind them. “It looked like hot soup, and this place is chilly.”

Cleave shook her head and handed him a small bar of travel rations. “Trap soup. When have you ever seen my people—at a level where they are seeking higher understanding— be given creature comforts? You are in the Legion, you should have a good understanding of what my society thinks of people that are just seeking handouts. If we would have stopped at the first rest station, The way forward would have been barred to us.”

“You dwarves and all your little tests.” Jaxon spat to the side in consternation. “Why can't you just give people soup, when you make it look like you are going to give them soup?  Soup, soup, soup.”

“Reaching the highest heights requires an iron will. It requires doing whatever needs to be done, to advance yourself as far as you can.” The Dwarf’s voice was tinged with nostalgia as she said these words, which had clearly been passed down to her. “ The G.O.A.T. path is narrow for a reason, there is not room for everyone to walk it. It is a hard path, full of tests  for your mental, physical, and emotional being. Only those that can continue to put one foot in front of the other, and stay on the path no matter how long it takes them to arrive, can reach the summit.”

“Ugh, these metaphors!” Jaxon broke the solemnity of the moment, “What's so bad about resting every once in a while? Taking breaks? When you have forever, why not allow people to advance at their own pace?”

Major Cleave shook her head, completely disregarding his arguments. “That is definitely what an elf would think, but we know better than to give in to the lure of hedonism on our march toward eternity. When you stagnate, that does not mean you stay the same. It means that you 'll need to work twice as hard, three times as hard, and you still may never catch up to those who had simply continued walking the path… no matter how sedate the pace they had been marching along it.”

They lapsed into silence at that point, each of them thinking over her words and taking their own meaning from it. Joe nodded along, thinking that he understood exactly what his companion had been getting at. Jaxon was shaking his head, clearly disagreeing with something in her arguments, and Daniella… seemed contemplative, but her jaw firmed up, and it seemed she had reached a conclusion of some kind.

He always loved how the wisdom of the ages could affect people in so many different ways. It made for rich conversation and a deeper overall understanding as their individual points were expressed and examined.  Joe sank into deeper thought, trying to figure out what it was exactly that his friends may be agreeing or disagreeing with, and trying to see what Cleave had said from a new light, a light where he didn't agree with her completely. It was difficult, but he could, perhaps, see how someone could take this message as ‘always be working’.

The Ritualist knew, or at least believed, that this was not the actual take away that was supposed to be taken away. Following the path was not about grinding until you simply could not anymore, it was about doing the work consistently, taking breaks as needed, but not every possible break you could. It was also not about seeking comfort at the first opportunity.  He believed, at that moment, that he understood why this was known as the G.O.A.T. path. He had a lot to learn still, and he was loving every moment of it.

Wisdom +3!

“The greatest of all time, indeed.” Joe murmured to himself, pleased at the fact that he was already getting great results from this adventure. “I'm looking forward to what other lessons reaching the pinnacle of Dwarven success will bring to us.”