Alator, for a brief, dumb moment, set off towards the makeshift mountain that had swallowed the Trade Road.

  “We’re not crossing that!” I shouted at him. With the lines of [Battle Tactics : Metavision] just fading, I was confident there was absolutely no path to take, and any attempt to carve one without an army of labourers would be an exercise in insanity.

  He took one last look at it, as if frustrated with the knowledge that he’s not quite as powerful as an avalanche, then relented and came back to the group. We doubled back for a short time and found one of the goat paths. None of us had any keen ideas, and with the terrain being so blocked and wild, [Survivalism] did not assist us much at all, save for informing us of the flora and fauna; there were thick claw marks in the stones as if dinosaurs had passed through — I’ll admit to experiencing a sudden thrill.

  And so after an hour of searching, we simply chose the trail that had the most flowers — jagged silver leaves on a tall, spiny weed. With the Analysis Card, I found the flowers were called Stormweave Thistle, but that they had no alchemical or enchantment uses.

  “Fewer beasts,” Akishen said.

  “Or more predators. . . .” I grumbled.

  “So negative,” Akishen smiled.

  The path we had chosen was a gorge that dipped and rose as it moved between and around mountains. A trickle of water was all that remained moving through it from the rains, but the ground was slick and slippery, the stone perfectly smooth. We steadied ourselves with a hand against the wall as often as we could, and made our way slowly.

  The wind picked up again and soared through us like I’d scratched my skin on a built-up freezer drawer. I pulled the Stonebear Cloak around myself. “Thanks, Kikiara,” I said under my breath, “Wherever you are.” Akishen took out a blanket and tied it about herself, and Lenya began a low chant and there was an elemental, uncanny rush of magic which quickly turned all the settled snow on her hair and shoulders to water. Alator pressed on practically nude, of course.

  Despite the hardship, I was honestly quite enjoying myself. The stint in Ith-Korr had been very rewarding, and on the whole very peaceful and restorative, but I had missed the early days of trekking with Alator into the unknown wild, regardless of the consequences, and solving problems with violence!

  As if to answer my call, we heard the CRUNCH of a heavy footfall somewhere ahead, then more, getting fainter. Ahead of us, the gorge took a sharp climb, with the walls coming down to meet it, and beyond — the light of the sky.

  “The Taruk-Tal!” Akishen whispered, dropping to a squat and pressing herself against the side of the cliff-face, half-hidden by a rocky outcrop. “Hide!”

  Lenya did so instantly, but Alator and I shared a glance and . . . just couldn’t help ourselves. We crept to the opening in the crevice, climbing three-point, loosing gravel and flinching every time we made a sound.

  Cresting over, we saw, disappearing to the left out of sight behind a constructed wall of roughly hewn stone, a stone giant. I only saw its back and one leg, but it was probably no smaller than six yards — 18 feet — with skin resembling cracked shale, streaked with veins of dimly glowing minerals. It seemed normally proportioned, save for its extremely long arms. As it moved, the knuckles on one grey hand dragged over the floor.

  Once it was fully out of sight, I let out a whistle. INSTANT regret — the Taruk-Tal’s head appeared again like a mask of hollowed eyes, glowing faintly across the snow field. It gazed around with its head cocked, then turned its head fully in our direction. I pushed Alator down — his wild red hair would be visible a mile off (I’m sure that’s his intention), but I just couldn’t pull myself away.

  The enormous head was still for almost a full minute, and through the haze I saw its head twitch and nostrils flare as it sniffed the air. Then it stretched to its full height, bellowed out a laugh that sounded like shovelled gravel, and disappeared again in the same direction.

  I fell against the slope of the gorge and blew out my lungs. Alator popped his head up again to make sure the coast was clear, then we waved on Akishen and Lenya.

  “That was a giant, wasn’t it? One of the . . . Taruk-Tal,” Alator breathed through a wild grin

  “It was. Amazing!” I exclaimed, trying to keep my voice down.

  “Amazing?! Horrifying! We’re lucky to be alive! By all my ancestors, I’m going to pray to the spirits of the mountain for an hour tonight.”

  “Oh, relax,” I said, clapping her shoulder and jabbed a thumb back at the entrance to the gorge. “It wouldn’t even fit through here.”

  She gulped and shook her head.

  “Wouldn’t need to,” and then she pointed up, where the gorge was broadly open to the sky. “It’s said they can climb sheer rock, and leap from mountain to mountain.”

  “They’re no bigger than the Abominable you destroyed when you first came to Barbican. Think you could take one?” I nudged Alator, foul glint in my eye matching his.

  Instead of instantly answering, he looked to Akishen.

  “Are they clever? Cunning?”

  “Famously not, but —” she shook her head. Her fear abated a touch at our confidence — or idiocy.

  “I could take three or four before I fell,” Alator declared.

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  We sheepishly made our way over the plateau, flanked by cliffs and spires. Our footsteps crunched shale and new snow, by superstition I avoided walking in the heavy footprints left by the giants as they passed this way. The path continued in two directions; one followed the giants, so we chose the other. Nearing the far edge, the wind howled through the crag and over our bodies. Lenya and Akishen drew close their wrappings again, and Alator and I stood on the precipice:

  The air had been left crisp and cool by the storm, points of blue broke in the storm-grey above, edged with molten gold from the suns. Standing high in the mountains, a vista unfurled before us, vast and staggering, as though the world had spilled open. Jagged peaks rose like a titanic broken crown in all directions, edges and snowcaps gleaming in the clearing light.

  And within the curved mountains on near all sides, making up a flat pate, narrow streams cascaded downwards like silver threads weaving between shallow valleys. Rolling hills and broad fields were parcelled to the green-yellow and gold of dry farmland like a patchwork quilt. I imagined I tasted the fresh, clean air, heard the faint hum of distant life, the rustling of recognisable leaves, the faint song of water. And nestled within it all, at the centre of the natural semi-arid bowl, was Uruk.

  The city was an intricate marvel of high walls, polished stone, tall watchtowers crowned with banners, and canals moving through the city into a broad lake within the walls. The east of the city belched smoke — faint and orderly, the mark of countless forges and hearths. The west blended to the yellow-green surroundings as terraced gardens became olive groves.

  Alator stood beside me, scanning the expanse with wide eyes, and spoke in a small, wondrous voice that I’d only heard once or twice:

  “Looking on this, I feel as if I’ve never before seen a city.”

  Lenya and Akishen joined us, their breath catching as they took in the sight.

  “It always stuns,” the mandrill-faced girl let out a brief gasp and wide smile, but then surveyed the rest of the land beneath us and saw we had a far way to go through the mountains.

  Without closing my eyes, I turned my sight to within me, to the stream of inner power, and felt myself revitalised. With [Survival], a few paths over the edge and down through the mountains opened up, but they all seemed fraught and difficult, I couldn’t parse between them with my ability.

  Eventually, feeling the moment pass and Lenya and Akishen shiver, and Alator turn to me expectantly, I felt the weight of responsibility — and the suns dipping towards another terrible night.

  “We know our heading.” I gave another scrutinising look below to the loose ground and jagged rocks, with snow teetering in all places and winding zig-zag paths threatening to drop at any moment.

  Then, the crunch of stone behind us. We all turned to see three cautious creatures stalking towards us. Moving on all fours like lizards, perhaps four feet from nose to where their long tails started, with short, fat bodies on spindly legs and rock armour covering their backs.

  I turned and levelled my spear at them. Can’t have them chasing us down the mountain, we need our wits and full attention to —

  Then my eyes picked up further movement and saw three others, high above, attached to the wall with gripping claws, the rock nearly perfectly blended in with the mountain face. Then on the other side, three others. The longer I stared at the rock, the more appeared, like staring at stars in the night sky.

  I reached into my pouch and touched the Analysis Card.

  Shit.

  “That way!” I pointed. And we jumped off down the cliff.