At the trailhead clearing, he hadn't been aware enough. There had been violence and confusion so suddenly, and he had had to scramble his focus onto Ayleah and her safety. Bellinda and Sutton both had privately reassured him that Craig's death held no reflection of his ability as their captain. Both had done so fervently enough that Jaen felt somewhat bolstered, but was still shaken from the experience. It was his first command in the mountains, and success was the only path forward in his mind after the debacle at Norton Brook. It was not just a personal shame: throughout his life at the falls it had been a quiet undercurrent. Unspoken among his household was an expectation of him to continue the family's return to glory. He sometimes doubted the legitimacy of that glory, and fell to using his own achievements as a test of its truth.
One load of goods had stayed behind at the Battell village. The driver now rode in the other small van with one of their hired warrior-rangers. The three of them in that van were longtime friends and mountain veterans, so Jaen was able to trust them mostly to their own devices. They followed behind the two larger carriers, driven by himself and Bellinda. Raik was the party's forerunner, out ahead on the scout craft. He was a good man, even when his methods seemed unconventional. A foreigner, though from where no-one seemed to know. His eyes were always serious, but he had a jovial attitude and his skills as a ranger were undeniable.
The vans thumped softly uphill through beautiful old forests of moss and spruce. Jaen was proud of how he had handled his vehicle so far, flowing with the uneven terrain and careful not to jostle the supplies he carried or his passengers. More often now the ledges they had ascended were wholly sheets of rough sloping granite, and Jaen had felt his focus tighten as they followed thin furrows in the massive rocks. At the top of the first real ledge of this kind, they had stopped for a break. A painted woodland church towered over a quaint rocky square overlooking the cliff. The land here generally sloped down on both sides, this hamlet being one of the first quasi-summits on the mountain's south ridge. In previous days, they had felt only the steady climb of the mountain-side, but now it appeared clear that the road was leading them up a narrow spine. There was an air of excitement and the group had shared some supplies and conversation with the locals. The small community was lively and welcoming, curious about each expedition that came their way. This was the southern edge of the Mount Abrahim township, and thought of itself as a gateway village. Jaen's party found that they were well on track to make the summit by late afternoon, though the road ahead was steep and rough. Jaen had met with the other drivers before they left to discuss attack strategies for any rock ledges they might come across. With the blessings of the mountainside villagers, they continued on their way.
--
The immensity of the rock in front of him stirred his mind from its reflections. A smooth wall of gray lurched itself directly out of the roadway, which was forced sharply to the right. It carved a large switchback up the face, edging toward the scruffy roots of forest where it could. On the subsequent upper traverse, great scoops of rock had been carved away to give vehicles some sort of chance on the grade. It was larger and steeper than any of the other cliffs they had braved, but Jaen thought it didn't seem too difficult. Going carefully and steadily, they would easily make it, provided they also didn't look down from that traverse.
The party had slowed to a halt at the foot of the ledge, and Jaen got out and spoke to the others briefly. Sutton left the first van too, looking Jaen in the eyes during their conference.
“You're sure you're ready for this?”
“Yes” Jaen answered, his eyes set. “We need eyes on the roadway up there so we don't stray an inch. That cliff is rounded, and if one repulsar leaves the grade the whole van could lose traction. I know if I can do it with you guiding.”
Satisfied, and understanding his captain's intent, Sutton joined Raik on the scout craft. They ascended together to the traverse, then Sutton climbed to a position higher on the grade. From there he could give direction to help guide the vans across. Raik continued on to the landing above the cliff and kept at the ready, holding a landing space for the other vehicles.
Then the smaller van with the mountain-born driver climbed up. It was far from their first time and they had a lighter craft, so they handily made it up the switchback and across the traverse. Sutton saluted them as they passed.
Jaen's van was next. He gave a reassuring grin to his two passengers in the back. Atkins and Ayleah both tried to mirror his confidence, but they also both knew they should be ready for Sutton to turn from guide to rescuer. Jaen knew Sutton could probably save his living cargo, should something go wrong, but he really needed to not lose the van as well. In addition to the scolding he would get from Bellinda, the summit townships were counting on their supplies.
The first climb was not so bad. The cleft next to the rock was steep and narrow, but the rough granite and tree roots gave good traction for the repulsars. They made it easily enough to the switchback, and turned to face the route across the top of the cliff. Jaen was immediately grateful for the work of whoever had carved out those scoops of rock. It would have been tough to shape this hardened ledge at all, but near impossible for any vehicle to traverse in its natural state. Carefully he began his crossing, with Sutton ahead and above on the slope indicating directions.
They were three-quarters of the way across when Jaen felt the first slip. Strangely, his first thought was for his passengers; there was a millisecond of panic for Ayleah over any other cargo he had. The next moment, as he readied to power through and get to the other side, the corner of his eye noticed something that stood out strangely to his perception. There was a grappling hook in the tool rack behind the passenger seat, and an intuition seemed to move his right hand automatically to reach for it. The steering wheel firm steady in his other hand, he nevertheless felt the second slip as it happened. This one was more significant; one of the repulsars had hit an irregularity in the grade and bounced its corner of the van off toward the sharp downhill slope. As the van fishtailed off the ledge, Jaen held steady and calm. His hand had fired the grapple a mere instant before the slide. One end lodged around a medium-sized spruce trunk, he held the other in his fist and pointed the van back uphill.
The grapple strained and Jaen gave more power to the repulsars, aiming them torward the landing as best he could. As they regained the grade Sutton joined the action, running along the top of the rock. Seeing Jaen's forward momentum, he cut the grapple line so they could reach the safety of the upper road where Raik was waiting.
Once safely parked by the scout craft and the small van, Jaen got out to check his cargo and help Sutton guide the last van up the cliff. This time they set up a grappling system beforehand, and working together the ascent went smoothly. Spirits were high in the group, and Jaen felt he had perhaps proved some ability to the rest of them. More importantly, he felt he had proved it to himself.
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