Part 9

As the sun rose over the horizon, Korlok was already up and eating breakfast. None of them had slept very good last night, except Gaeene. Something about knowing exactly what path she planned to take allowed her to sleep like a baby.

Korlok had always planned to take the path of a Cleric, but could now see the value of having etra life, and fighting power. Especially after these last few weeks. He decided that he'd spent enough time thinking about it, and would try not to think about it until they reached the top of the mountain, and it was time to make the decision.

Wendelyn was pretty sure she wanted to choose the path of a Shadelord, though there were several times she saw the power a necromancer has, and almost changed her mind. She liked being the protector of the group, taking as much of the damage as she could, and gaining the skills of a Shadelord would allow her to take a lot more damage than she can right now.

Jasko was the furthest from making choosing his path. He knew the power his bow would have as a Hunter, and he loved the idea of following the path his mother chose, but some of his best battles involved using dual swords. There's something about being within swinging distance of a monster that he enjoyed, and once he chooses the path of the Hunter, his swords wouldn't do much more damage than they do now.

They all started up the mountain, but Gaeene was the only one that walked at a normal pace. The rest moved a little slower than normal, trying their hardest to not think about their paths. Aside from the stress of trying not to think, the journey up the mountain was beautiful. They could see a few rooftops from Jamarth, and a bit more to the West, and much further out, some smoke that had to be from Kelthor. They were above most of the tree lines, so it looked like a different world from up here. Halfway between The Mountain and Jamarth, the mist from The Falls created a rainbow that seemed to stretch from The Ruins to The Maze.

As they got closer to the top, Gaeene's pace was quicker and quicker. And as much as they tried not to, the rest of the group couldn't help but make a few last minute arguments in their heads as to which path would be best for them. There was almost no sound from anyone's mouth, until they reached the top. Once they saw the stone platform ahead, they all ran the rest of the way.

"I'm ready!" yelled Gaeene.

"Me too!" said the rest, in unison.

They let Gaeene go first. There were about 20 stairs that led up to the platform. They were very steep, so you couldn't see what was up there. When Gaeene made it to the center of the platform, she was surprised to see a very small man. He had the same proportions as she did, but he was about half her height. He held two small stone tablets, and without a word, handed them both to her. She closed her eyes, and immediately saw flashes of light. The flashed began to slow down, and she could make out images in between them. Some were images of fire, others dirt and stone. After several minutes, the tablet in her right hand fell, and shattered on the stone ground. The other tablet started to disappear, almost as if it was dissolving inter her hand.

"You have chosen your path." Said the quest giver. His voice was much deeper and louder than she expected. "Once your quest is complete, the tablet within you will form into your emblem, giving you your 4th skill."

Each Protector took their turn choosing their path on the platform. It had been a long day, but they decided to head back down before the sun disappeared for the night, and discuss their paths and quests.

It turned out that Jasko, Wendelyn, and Korlok all received the same quests. Gaeene's were a little different, but there was some overlap. They all involved killing a lot of monsters, and several Legendary ones.

"I say we hit up The Maze in the morning. The quicker we complete these, the quicker we can start the epic quests in the 4 skill outposts" Gaeene said, as she walked even faster down the mountain than she did going up. "And I know you guys are all aware I decided I needed a pet rock in my life. Wendelyn, what path did you end up choosing?"

"It was a tough choice, but I chose the path of a Shadelord. Honestly, it's what I've always wanted to be. What about you?" Asked Wendelyn, looking over at Korlok.

"Well," replied Korlok "I figure with as many times as Jasko's almost died because he can't take a hit, I decided it only made sense to be a Cleric."

"Well, you shouldn't have to worry about that too much. Since I chose the path of a Hunter, I won't be close enough to the monsters to get hit very much." Laughed Jasko.

"Fair Enough."