Alma was impatiently tapping her foot. Glavas was meant to join them twenty minutes ago, and he was still nowhere to be seen. In the meantime, they saw countless elves in festive clothing pass them by and head up the mountain. For once, the Unodes were welcome to pass the gates that lead to the other districts.

"Where the hell is he?!" she muttered and looked across all the streets, desperately trying to spot an elf in a dark coat. Unfortunately for her, the only thing she saw was more of the usual residents.

A family passed them by, grabbing Surdi's attention. The oldest member of the group wore a snow-white robe, which, as Glint had already explained, was reserved for those planning their extinguishing. Right behind the man then walked a presumably young woman. Her apparel, while the same in shape, was of a light cyan color. Under her arm, she carried a large metal lantern. A container for the old man's spirit. She was supposed to be his Parasavrra and carry the fire that would represent his soul all the way to the top of the mountain. For a moment, Surdi felt bad for her. Part of the ceremonial apparel was odd sandals with numerous straps and countless small blue rocks attached to them. If she was to climb all the way up wearing those, then being Parasavrra felt more like a punishment than a prestige. Behind the woman then walked two younger children. One dressed in a similar long blue robe as the mother, and the other in a bright red one, most likely about to choose his own Path of the Fire.

[Are we dressed to the occasion?] Surdi asked, examining the massive hole in his tunic. As it turned out, simply tossing it aside from the roof and onto the streets below wasn't the brightest idea.

"Well, you aren't elves, so it doesn't really matter," Glint replied and quickly tidied his robe, which, unlike those of the people around him, seemed a lot dirtier.

[If white is for death and red is for fire, then what does the blue robe mean?]

"Oh, that's just for moonlight. It means you are just taking part in the festival as an observer," Sina explained and showed off her own blue dress.

"Holy shit..." Alma suddenly called out. When Surdi saw everyone turn their eyes elsewhere, he quickly did the same. The sight before them was unlike anything they could ever imagine even in their wildest dreams. They saw Glavas walking down the street. His long black hair was tied into a long ponytail and the red robe he was wearing was such a sudden and unexpected change from his usual attire that Alma had to rub her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

"What the fuck..." Surdi muttered. He got so caught off guard that all knowledge of sign language suddenly left his memory.

"I'm guessing you have a lot of questions," Glavas said the moment he rejoined the group. The children, however, couldn't say a word. Or rather, they didn't know which words to say first.

"Awww... look at our little boy," Sina sang as she leaned against Glint. Both parents stared at their son with soft smiles.

"Wipe off those expressions, both of you. This is embarrassing as it is."

"Wow..." Alma finally said something.

"Don't you start!"

"You're all red!"

"Excellent observation."

"You're not wearing black."

"Obviously."

"And you look so clean!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"No dirt, blood, or food stains. Wow... I never realized how pale you actually are."

"You are in no position to judge my paleness!"

"Why? I'm not pale." Alma grinned.

[You are taking part in it? The Path of the Flame?] Surdi finally came to his senses and asked the crucial question.

"Oh yeah! Weren't you against religion?" Alma joined in.

"I am. However... well, there is something I want to do. It is more of a symbolic gesture. Just... Ugh! It's hard to explain. You will see what I mean. It's something I want to do mostly for myself."

"Glavas! Holy shit, you look ugly!"

"Clive... grand. I thought you wouldn't join us." Glavas rolled his eyes as he saw the man in a black poncho running up to them.

"And miss seeing you dressed like a monk? Ha! Not in a million years!"

"Ugh... I'm starting to regret this."

"Well then, are we ready to go?" Glint asked and looked at everyone for confirmation.

"Seems like it. Let's go," Alma decided and only managed to take a single step forward as a heap of bones and a single skull fell to her feet with loud clacking. "AAAAAAAAAA! What the fuck?!" She screamed and looked up, trying to find where it came from.

"Wait... 5... minutes..." the skull said before its jaw fell apart.

[What did it say?]

"We're supposed to wait 5 minutes," Alma repeated.

[Said a skull?]

"Probably one of Sizzy's creations. Does she wish to join us?" Glint asked.

"Doubt it. It's hundreds of stairs. Not exactly wheelchair accessible. And if she thinks I'll carry her on my back..."

"That won't be necessary." A feminine voice suddenly interrupted Glavas. He knew it far too well. While a smile on his face, he turned around, expecting his friend to just be coming around the corner. When he turned around, however, his expression changed to that of pure terror.

"What the fucking hell is that?!" he yelled and everyone's jaws hit the floor. From around one of the buildings appeared... something. It could only be described as an apparition of bones and muscles A massive collection of ten legs, closely reminiscent of a spider, minus the freaky head and massive butt. In the middle of this necromancer's delight sat Sizzy, smiling at them from ear to ear. Her usual clothes were replaced with a beautiful cyan robe.

"Hehe, like my new ride?" she smirked as he saw everyone visibly stunned by it.

[That is the most disgusting thing I have ever seen...] Surdi tried to comment on it while still holding back his true feelings.

"Oh, don't be like that! It's awesome! And it can scale almost any terrain! Even walls! Oh! And it has built-in weapons!" Everyone watched as he pulled on one of the loose muscle fibers. With a clanking noise, a femur with a sharpened end shot out of the creation and jabbed itself into a nearby wall.

"Today really is a night full of wonders, isn't it?" Alma said and scratched her head.

"Indeed. I simply couldn't miss an opportunity like this. I mean... look at him! He looks so cute in the robe!" She smiled and gestured over Glavas, whose expression was getting sourer and sourer by the minute.

Since they all finally gathered, it didn't take long for the ascent up the mountain to start at last. Most of the Unodes were accustomed to Sizzy's craziness and the unusualness that happened in the district, but once the group crossed the gate of the Odimai part of the city, the eyes of almost all the elves turned toward them. Concerned parents were quickly hiding their children. Some were even yelling at Glavas and his friends to go back where they came from, but a few glances from the hunter's scary companions were enough to achieve silence. After all, a skeletal construct, a bald girl with white eyes, a dragon youngling, and a human detective were such a crazy combination that nobody desired to stand in their way.

The kids paid little attention to the words the Odimai were saying. They were too busy taking in all the beauty the rest of the city had to offer. The district of the ordinary people, as they called it, was full of massive trees, which were hiding more than one building among their leaves. The individual treehouses were then connected via a series of wooden bridges. To top it all off, the treetops were covering the whole street like a single green roof, but the glowing yellow and blue lanterns hanging from the branches were making the journey feel like a walk right underneath the stars. The main events; however, weren't taking place there, and so the little party of oddities continued onward. They walked through the largest official part of the city and then headed up the stairs right beyond the exit gate. The higher they went, the nicer their surroundings seemed. The wind was getting colder, but stone lamps with glowing orange crystals inside were scattered along the pathway, keeping the wanderers warm. About halfway to the next district, the staircase began changing, from perfectly fitting and smooth stones to beautiful marble. The biggest shock to the uninitiated; however, came when they finally reached the section of the Haasavras. Out there, it was as if they entered a completely different city. The buildings were larger, with much more impressive architecture and facades decorated with such minute details it seemed as if an army of sculptors was needed just to build a single house. On top of that, every corner they came across had at least one large tree growing there, with glowing flowers blooming out of it, functioning as a perfect substitution for streetlamps.

"Well, here we are," Glint exclaimed and pointed to a massive open door leading deeper into the mountain. The priests in the white and gold robes were gathered by the large marble columns, overseeing the whole event and making sure that nobody would get hurt more than was expected.

"Yeah, of course, I shouldn't have expected something normal," Alma sighed the moment she saw what awaited them on the inside. Past the massive doors was a dark pit with a bridge made of fire leading across it and onto an elevated stone cylinder on the other side.

[It's a literal path of the flame,] Surdi added. Everything made sense when he actually thought about it, but realizing that the name was literal in its meaning still came as a surprise.

"I want to write a new grand encyclopedia about mana-rich flowers!" shouted a squeaky voice coming from across the bridge, where a young elven boy was just proclaiming his lifelong goal. When he was done, the crowd in front of the gate clapped and his parents greeted him with a hug the moment he arrived back.

Glint stepped closer. "Well, there's no line here yet. So I better get on with it."

"Are you sure?" Glavas asked.

"Hehe, just watch out for the priests, okay?" the old elf winked and walked over the bridge with a smile on his face. The fire danced around his ankles, yet not interfered with his path.

"I want to live and watch my son grow older!" Glint shouted and instead of applause, a murmur began spreading through the crowd of people.

"Ugh, who let the old guy in here?"

"Unodes, of course."

"Guess we know where his little bastard got that attitude from."

Glavas clenched his fist. The words that surrounded him could've all been silenced all so easily. However, there didn't seem to be the need to do anything. Outside of a few rolls of their eyes, the priests did not interfere. Glint bowed to the disappointed crowd and then headed back.

"Look at you, making their heads all confused," Sina smirked and gave her husband a hug.

"Quick, before the unwanted get another go. They'll just taint that place," one of the women standing nearby mumbled. She and her husband then dragged their young daughter to the burning bridge.

"Well come on! This is your day!" the father nudged her.

"But... I..." the girl tried to protest but was quickly silenced.

"Hurry! You don't want to go there after the Moonscourge, right? God knows what he wants with that sacred place!"

The little elf looked at Glavas with fear in her eyes. The hunter clenched his fist, only for Sizzy to quickly grab it.

"No. It would make matters worse."

"Not for her."

"Since when are you so protective? Put your paternal beacon to rest for a moment!"

The girl approached the bridge and only let out a faint squeak as she stepped on it. Three steps were all she managed. Her cries could be heard across the district. Red marks appeared around her ankles as if a hot yet invisible grasp was squeezing them. In the next moment, one of the priests reacted. A strong gust of wind picked the young elf up and carried her back to the crowd.

"They probably forced her," whispered one of the priests.

"Yeah, I'll fill out the papers. You go grab them," the other responded and began going through the numerous pockets of his robe, looking for anything to write with. In the meantime, his colleague approached the two parents, who started showering the approaching priest with excuses the moment they realized what had happened. The third priest then walked over to the girl, helping her aside where her marks left by the Path could be treated.

"I could've..." Glavas started but was quickly silenced by Sizzy.

"Stop playing a hero. They are a Haasavra family. If the same happened to your kid, they wouldn't move a muscle."

"Come on then, Glavie, the path is clear," Glint encouraged him and pat him on the back.

The hunter slowly approached the Path of the Flame. It looked a lot scarier now that he was supposed to cross it. He stood there, staring at it. His legs felt like two pieces of wood, completely unable to move.

"You okay?" Sizzy walked over to him and asked.

"I... I am not sure if that is what I truly want."

"You put on the robe even! That's not something you'd do if you weren't sure. You're just nervous. That's normal. I was too. I'm betting you'll be able to cross it just fine. And if not... well, this chair can carry us both back home."

"Not helping, Sizzy."

"Hehe, sorry. Don't worry, Glavie. You'll be fine," she said and stepped away, letting her friend take the first step.