To reach Shutoll, at some point the squad was going to have to go around or through the Iron Heights. After consulting with the scouts, Captain Tiras brought the squad together to explain the plan.

“The Harmonious Citadel controls the route to the north around the Iron Heights, as well as the major pass to the south. However, there is a smaller path in between shown on our maps- and confirmed by our scouts. While it is true that the risk of running into powerful beasts will go up significantly, I have determined that it is still safer than going near human-controlled territory.” He looked around at the squad to make sure his words settled in. This wasn’t a discussion, merely a statement of what would be, but he still wanted everyone on board. “If we make our way across the mountains, we might find ourselves in Scarlet Alliance territory. If not, we should only have a few more days of travel to reach the control of Shutoll.”

He didn’t bother mentioning the possibility that the Harmonious Citadel would have already taken it over. If they had, there was little hope for the squad. The best they could hope for was dispersing into the populace and not being recognized as members of the Scarlet Alliance. But he didn’t want to suggest or promote such a possibility, especially with the risk of failure. If they all stayed together, they should have the best chance. There was also the factor of Grandmaster Chikere’s presence- though she was not someone they could rely on, as long as she was on Yaitis there was still hope.

-----

At first, Chidi presumed that the Iron Heights were just another name for a place. Mountains and stone were generally hard, so the name would fit anywhere. In this particular case, there was a bit more to it. Not only were there exposed ores- though generally of little value- the whole mountain had a strange flow of energy about it. Chidi could feel it, tugging on him and to a larger extent his blade. Magnetism, with the exposed rough ores being prominently magnetite. The fields fluctuated from completely ignorable to strong enough to cause the soldiers to sway unsteadily as their weapon or armor were pulled off balance.

Aconite was the only one completely unaffected, mostly by coincidence. She didn’t use weapons herself, and her fur was the best armor she could realistically have. Her parents and some siblings had tried more armor on top, but most of it was too bulky and led to overheating fatigue, along with the fact that even with armor designed to fit them it limited mobility. Humans had untold generations of experience working armor for themselves, but they had not worked out all of the little quirks for other creatures, even she smiths who specialized in beast mounts.

“Mother would like this place,” Aconite commented to Chidi.

“Would she?”

“Indeed. The earth itself is quite interesting, I am sure she could learn something.”

“... My mother would either love it or hate it,” Chidi replied. “Magnetism can augment formations… or completely ruin it. This is just one big complication. Or half of a setup already done.”

Their ascent was not terribly interesting, as bare stone and metal ores were the main sight, with only thin dirt on the slopes and few other features. Only a few scraggly plants growing in the rocks, using what soil they could find.

Aconite led the way up a scree slope, an endless number of loose and often sharp rocks… and of course magnetite chunks. Every time Chidi leaned forward, the ground was liable to jump up and grab at his sword. When that happened, rocks loosened and nearly caused a cascading effect. Fortunately, as cultivators they were able to prevent themselves from slipping if things shifted suddenly, and the magnetic rocks tended to clump together. That meant they could partially be avoided or otherwise dealt with. Even when there was a large shift, it made the whole section more stable for those following behind.

Along with the larger chunks sticking to his sword through its sheath, Chidi sensed a small coating of dirt. No, that wasn’t quite right. As he tried to brush it off, it merely moved around- and when it built up in one spot it stood out in strange patterns. Iron sand, then, reacting with the general magnetism of the area. It was interesting to see how it spread, but it would be inconvenient to fight with its interference. It seemed like only a small detail, but Chidi was beginning to understand how small changes could significantly impact a battle, when perfection of motion was demanded.

As they got closer to the pass, a lower section that would require less climbing and otherwise risky traversal, the ground trembled sending scree flying over the Chidi and Aconite, then the squad further behind them. At first it seemed to be an isolated incident, but it came again.

“I smell something,” Aconite said.

Chidi also smelled something, but he wasn’t sure if it was relevant. Mostly, it was metallic. As they continued a bit closer, he felt fluctuations of energy. Then there was another trembling, preceded by a burst of natural energy. “Something’s fighting.”

“That does seem to be the case. Bad luck.”

“Perhaps,” Chidi said. “Or we can slip past. There’s something big… but I can’t quite tell what’s fighting it.”

“Human cultivators,” Aconite declared. “The winds shifted. I smell them now.”

“Great. Harmonious Citadel, or…?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t believe they will be friends.”

Chidi held back to relay the message to the captain, who ordered the soldiers to suppress their energy. They were keeping it somewhat constrained already, but they couldn’t keep a hold to the maximum effect all of the time. Even if some weren’t stealth experts, they could get a bit closer to their goal unnoticed if everyone put in the effort.

“If you can find a way around, lead us there,” Captain Tiras said.

“Of course,” Chidi nodded. He strode upwards to catch up with Aconite, only a couple hundred meters ahead. He kept track of the battle, able to hear the sounds as well as feeling the vibrations. No sword cultivators, he was quite certain. Spear, perhaps? They had lost their saint, and so they went wherever they were told or thought they could regain some prestige. Even if the Harmonious Citadel tried not to admit the loss, people had to know.

The sounds of combat continued to become more and more clear. In fact, it seemed as if it was moving closer faster than Chidi could climb the slope. Then there was a great shattering sound, and a strange tube came flying towards him.

Fortunately, it wasn’t as close as he first thought. It was just the massive noise its body made moving through the air, and the speed with which it had happened. It landed far short of him, though it still started a cascade of semi-magnetic scree. Chidi blocked his face with his arms, trying to determine where the giant snake was looking. Its head… turned towards him? He wasn’t quite sure about that, because it was still some distance away. And as long as he’d gone without it, he’d come to rely on the feeling of a gaze to determine intent.

Then the time for thought passed as it flipped about, several more figures descending towards it in a clear display of their cultivation. There was no way they would miss the squad down slope from them, with absolutely no cover.

“We can’t let the humans live to speak of us!” Aconite barked.

Chidi agreed, drawing his blade. Immediately bits of the mountainside reached up to try to grab onto his weapon, but he slashed with the intent to leave it behind, then began to make his way upwards. Though he ran at an angle, because he didn’t want to run into the snake. It was at least a meter thick, and dozens long. Quite enough to swallow any person whole, should it get the opportunity. Though usually they would not feed during a battle, Chidi knew beasts with cultivation such as it had could circumvent normal animal activity.

He didn’t really intend to help the snake… but they had a mutual enemy at the moment, and couldn’t just stay out of the fight. There were at least five Essence Collection cultivators among the enemy, and a couple dozen more in Spirit Building. A dangerous group for just their squad to fight, but if they ran now they would just be hunted down in a day or two. And the enemies weren’t exactly fresh.

Aconite avoided entering the thick of the battle- she was smarter than that, and only Chidi was with her at the moment. The rest of the squad was moving, but while they waited Aconite picked off one of the cultivators that strayed away from the rest. She lunged forward, grabbing the leg of a surprised individual. Then she spun him towards Chidi, who reacted by slicing with his sword. The two of them had developed their teamwork over their time together, but Chidi felt his own movements were even smoother now.

Obviously the enemy wouldn’t just ignore one of their own being killed. Nor would being engaged with a large snake distract them enough to not notice. Immediately, half of the weaker cultivators charged towards the pair. It was a sensible arrangement- a handful of them could fight Chidi and Aconite respectively and overwhelm them. But the two did not let themselves get split up… and Chidi was imbued with a deep overconfidence.

At least, he had to assume it was overconfidence until he was proven otherwise. It was crazy to let a spear nearly brush the tip of his nose, but he did. At the same time, his sword slashed up towards his opponent’s arms. The only thing that saved them was the slope and Chidi suddenly being pulled down. Massive ripples of power had suddenly spread out from the snake, reaching the secondary battle only a couple dozen meters away. That was practically right on top of it, as it could stretch that entire distance.

Somehow, it had increased the magnetism of all of the scree. Now it coated its body like a second layer of armor, while sticking to the weapons and armor of humans who were not expecting it. Chidi didn’t like the way his weapon was suddenly heavy, but he was unable to shake anything off his weapon.

With a moment of focus, he shifted his thoughts. If it would not let go, he should make use of it. He felt for the flow, both of weapons and magnetic fields. Citadel’s Downfall had much to say about the Harmonious Citadel’s flow in combat, and capitalizing on a shift in energy he swung his blade. It seemed to be going high, but instead it followed the shifting lines, coming down on his opponent’s shoulder while their spear went over him, slightly deflected by the fields and partly due to the angle.

One enemy fell, only to be replaced by two. Another fell, to be replaced by a third and a fourth. They surrounded Chidi on one side, with Aconite held back on the other. But they were not the only ones with allies. Denitsa leapt into battle, swinging her warhammer down, disregarding whatever tried to stick to her or the enemy. It was an appropriate move, as the random magnetic scree around her hammer physically deflected the spear, while her focus on simple momentum brought her weapon straight towards a breastplate, the force of her blow crushing it and opening her opponent up to be finished off in the next swing. Chidi appreciated the straightforward power, but he knew that wasn’t for him. He liked the efficiency of a well maneuvered blade.

A moment later, Chidi nearly found himself impaled on one of the enemy Essence Collection cultivator’s spears. Not because they had chosen to come face the squad, but because they were slapped flying backwards. Without the pressure of the full group of Harmonious Citadel individuals, the giant serpent had found an opening. Chidi could smell the blood dripping from it, some of it even on the spear that trailed past his ear, but it was clearly not down and out yet.

Chidi tightened his grip. They would get through this still. He was confident, and he’d have to trust that his training was good enough. It always had to be. Because he was going to survive, and go apologize to his parents for thinking he was ready when he really wasn’t.