I had been right. It had really been one long night. The thunderstorm had lasted quite a while. None of us had gotten a whole lot of sleep. And whenever we had reason to hope that the worst might be over it had picked up the pace again. Well, at least neither rain nor wind had been too much for our tent. So at least we and our gear had remained dry. What a good thing that Khuzan had weighed down the anchors holding it in place with additional rocks. In a way we had mastered our first real challenge. The wrath of nature had to count, right?

Our campsite was a little worse for wear. The pot had been knocked over halfway in the fire pit. Some rainwater had collected in it as well. But that wasn't really an issue. If anything it would be easier to clean thanks to that. And we still had to clean it, since we didn't get a chance yesterday. There were a few broken branches here and there as well but nothing worse. No uprooted trees or the likes. Not as far as I could see anyway, as I stepped outside to properly stretch after a night in the cramped tent.

No, that wasn't the whole extent of the differences compared to before the storm. I tilted my head slightly, listening. The sound of rushing water was nothing like the happily gurgling little creek from yesterday. It sent shivers down my spine. I turned around to face the others as they stepped out of the tent. “A good thing that we didn't camp any closer to the creek.” I paused and frowned as something else hit me. “I probably wont be able to train using Cat's Grace there either today.” I wasn't opposed to the idea of taking some risks but that would have just been too reckless.

The others nodded in agreement, more or less well rested. Kaele looked the worst among us. Of course, she only got a little sleep, probably no more than an hour or two at best, in the early morning hours, when the storm had finally died down. I watched her plod around the campsite for a few moments. In the end Eld'tide drew our attention by clearing her throat. “We better stay well away from the creek today. The water won't be any good for drinking or cooking right now anyway. I don't want anyone to fall in either. So please bear with it.”

Khuzan nodded in agreement. “With a bit of luck it will get better soon. For now please use the water we have sparingly.” He was right of course. Our water skins were full, but even if we only used their contents for drinking they wouldn't last us for long. The others nodded in agreement as well. Missing a bath or even just the chance to wash up a little wouldn't kill us, even if the idea wasn't terribly appealing. Well, we probably would make up for the missed opportunity tomorrow or the day after at the very latest.

Eld'tide took over the conversation again after Khuzan's interjection. “So, what are we going to do today then? Training by the creek is out of the question. We won't spend any time fishing there either.” She nodded my way, as my face fell, clear for all to see. “I doubt we would be catching anything anyway. Most fish worth mentioning will have been washed further downstream by the current and the rest will probably be in hiding in whatever nook or cranny they could find. So, no grilled fish today either. Sorry about that.”

My shoulders slumped. The stew hadn't been too bad but it wasn't meat, and no amount of flavorful herbs could change that. My sister's next words saved the day for me though. “We should keep our eyes open for wild ashroot and some honey. With some of the things I brought we should be able to make ourselves some sweet buns.” My face brightened back up. Sweet buns weren't meat either, but they were the next best thing as far as I was concerned. Going by the faces of the others their line of thought must have followed a path similar to mine.

Before any of us could agree or object she raised a hand though. It seemed she was not quite finished yet. “If we could, I would like to follow the creek down to the river.” She cleared her throat. “I know it is a pretty long trip and especially the way back here will be a chore as we will be marching uphill, but it might really pay off. If we get lucky.” That drew some frowns from us. What was she up to? She must have some kind of plan. She wouldn't suggest a trip like that otherwise. It was stretching the boundaries we had set for ourselves after all.

We didn't have to prod her for details. She started explaining on her own. “You know a little about magical metals, yes? At least some rumors?” I shrugged, and so did the others, prompting her to keep going. “Titanium. Incredibly tough and hard and supposedly the bones of the ancient Titans. Arkanium. Heavy and warm to the touch as if heated by a fire from within. Illuminium. Light and glowing with an inner light. Star Iron might be another magical metal but the scholars aren't quite sure about that one yet. Either way, they all have in common that they are quite rare and thus precious.”

All of us could clearly hear the excitement in her voice. She paused to clear her throat. “And, well, I recently read a story about how Illuminium comes to be. Supposedly it can be found wherever powerful lightning strikes the red silt of the flood plains of the great rivers all around the Bleak Peak.” She looked at us expectantly. What she saw in our faces probably didn't satisfy her. “You know, the river banks of the river are mostly red silt. And we had one hell of a thunderstorm last night.” She paused once more, looking at us. “Oh, come on. Pretty please?”

Khuzan and Eld'tide looked uncertain. I wasn't entirely convinced yet either. “Are you sure about that? I mean, if that story were true, wouldn't wizards be able to create Illuminium as they please? That red silt is more than abundant after all and there are plenty of wizards that can command the power of lightning with their spells. Those are pretty popular among the spell casters focused on combat after all. Striking your opponents with a lightning bolt is a pretty good way to make sure they are dead and that they stay that way.”

She just shook her head. “The lightning that our spells conjure is nowhere near powerful enough. None of those spells come even close to the unleashed elemental force of real lightning. Wizards could burn themselves out channeling all the Mana they possibly can, and then some, to conjure the most powerful lightning strike they can imagine and it probably still would only barely be enough to turn a few grains of silt into magic metal.” She crossed her arms. “And its not like any of you have better plans for today. Am I right?”

I sighed. I got it. She really wanted to do this and who was I to turn her down. And she was right anyway. I had no better plans. I looked towards our friends. Khuzan didn't object. Eld'tide was frowning though. “I don't mind.” She bit her lips. “You shouldn't get your hopes up yet though, Kaele. The river is flooding probably just as badly as the creek, if not worse. Even if your stories are right there is a good chance that any magical metal created by lightning strikes has already been washed away by the current. Just saying. You know?”

That seemed good enough for my sister, even if she didn't really appreciate the reminder, that we might return empty handed, all that much. “That decides it. Let's get going!” Right up until this moment I couldn't have even begun to imagine seeing my sister in such high spirits after a sleepless night due to a thunderstorm. In the end I just got my armor and started to get ready. Khuzan helped me fasten its belts and buckles properly, so we could get going, once he had gotten his own things. Eld'tide got her things as well. Bow and quiver gave me hope that we might still get a meal a little more substantial than sweet buns.

We would leave the camp as is thus our packs would be a bit lighter for this side trip, but we would take our packs. Kaele, despite her enthusiasm, was the last to get ready. I was even starting to get worried. I exchanged glances with our Gorgon friend and together we glanced back inside the tent. My sister was just standing there, staring at her bag and the still sleeping, purring bundle of pretty fur, claws and teeth, napping right there on her precious scrolls as if it was the most natural thing in the world. She turned to stare at us, obviously unsure what she should do. “Uh, a little help? Please?”