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It was time.

Sutai didn't feel as though she was equipped to make the ascent up the mountain for which she was named, but she'd been putting it off too long as it was. Miss Delphi and Mister Alphubel offered to help the Worst Squire in the World get to the top of the mountain, and she couldn't bring herself to keep chickening out. She'd already called Delphi with the request to meet in the park for transport, especially since Sutai wasn't sure she could safely transport two people. Since Delphi had been there before, maybe she could help?

The Squire had no idea.

But with all three ranks of Polaris knight, perhaps something special could happen. Sutai was already prepared with a small backpack filled with water bottles, mittens, food and an extra windbreaker parka, just in case. She'd already put on her heavy coat despite the creeping spring heat in Destiny City. Upon arrival at the mountain, the cold would be piercing. Sutai was not happy about that.

And so, she waited, fidgeting with worry and fear. Would she be brave enough, with two people helping, to climb the mountain? It was embarrassing enough not to have her signet ring, especially when Sessrumnir said it was so important to have.

Whiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine!

Jason was happy when he finally got the message that Sutai wanted him to come with her and another knight to the top of Sutai's mountain. And she had even remembered to invite him! He thought that was extremely nice of her, and was quite glad he didn't have anything more to do for school as of yet.

He wasn't exactly sure what to bring, as he had never hiked a tall mountain before, but figured that some extra earmuffs, blankets, and some heating pads would be a good idea. His brother had wondered what Jason was doing when he asked to borrow so many things, luckily Tom got cold easily and often had many blankets lying around, and Jason could only say that he was going on a mountain hiking trip with friends. His brother had worried, but Jason reassured him that it would be all right and that they should return at most in a few days.

He had powered up before meeting the two of them, and had already put on a pair of the earmuffs and was probably a bit too hot right now, but he knew that soon enough he would appreciate his warm robe.

Finally he managed to catch up with Sutai and the other knight they were supposed to travel with, and was quite amazed that it was an actual knight. She looked so mature! And he felt a little embarrassed as the lowest-ranked one in the group, wondering if he would be slowing them down rather than being of any actual help. When he could finally talked to them he greeted them with a "Sorry I'm a bit late." And looking at the other he held out his hand, hoping the other would reciprocate. "I'm Alphubel. Nice to meet you."

It really was no surprise that Sutai was all a flutter with energy and words, she was used to it by now. It was even sort of...cute in a way, like watching a small child bounce around. There was the same level of innocence, at least as far as Delphi could tell.

"They are transcendence markings, like Hyperborea has. The rock from your wonder helped me to gain these..." Reaching out to place a hand on the others shoulder, to slow her down...and to silently thank the other for the rock she'd been gifted. It had helped her and done so much more, it had completed something that had been missing from her wonder. It felt more complete now, more her wonder and more like home. She'd visited every week since she'd transcended, the need to go and be there just too strong to deny - not that she wanted to.

"It's alright that you're a bit late." Greeting the other knight with those words, and a bit of a smile, Delphi pulled him in close and grabbed hold of Sutai as well. "We need to be close for this."

Leaving the transportation to Sutai, since it was the squires wonder, Delphi closed her own eyes, it was easier for her that way. Teleporting always did throw her a bit, though she had gotten used to it and could shake it off with a fair amount of ease and rather quickly.

When they arrived she knew it, instantly, there was no way to ignore the cold of Polaris now the feel of home that filled her by being here. Even if it wasn't her wonder it was still Polaris - still her home world. For a moment she released the younger of the two and pulled Sutai to herself and held her close. She knew the other had to be drained of energy, teleporting two people as she had, and somehow she knew she could help. She could just focus and share some of her own energy with the other - and that's what she did. With enough focus and keeping a hold of the usual bundle of energy that was Sutai she was able to transfer some energy to her.

"I can bring us home from here...I should be able to." In order to reduce the energy Sutai would be spending.

The Squire was winded, teleporting two people like that. Sutai hadn't the slightest idea just how much effort it took to two people versus just the one. She almost fell to her knees in exhaustion without Delphi there to grant her some of her own energy. Slowly, a slight tingling warmth coursed through her body... and suddenly, she didn't feel so tired.

"Wow, Miss Delphi, that was amazing!" she cried, speaking with much more volume than she would normally, due to the piercing wind of Polaris. She clung to both Delphi and Alphubel as the howling winds whipped between the three of them. She had to be strong, though. She had to! With both of these Polaris knights here to help (and one ever so grateful Sutai), she couldn't chicken out now!

With an internal whine, Sutai turned back to the base of the mountain for which she was named.

Before them loomed the vastness of the frigid rock, a wide stone staircase about ten yards wide reaching up into the heavens. The stone was oddly free of snow, and any that lit on the steps seemed to melt either through heat or magic. The stone itself was a slate grey in color and seemed largely undamaged. From their vantage point, the top of the mountain was clouded in a thick, freezing fog. Sutai turned to Alphubel, who seemed quite comfortable in his long, furry coat. "Mister Alphubel! We've only been to the middle of the stairs... the wind gets bad the further up we go, but at least we made it halfway? With your help, I bet we could make it to the top! Just... don't tease me too bad if I get scared and cry, okay?"

Another short whine and Sutai clenched her fists together. She couldn't let them down! One step at a time, Sutai... one step at a time.

"We just have to get to the top!"

Well, at least it wouldn't be too hard then. They were just climbing steps. They weren't having to navigate the cliffside of a mountain and be on the lookout for avalanches or anything, right? He defaulted to Delphi, as she seemed to be the one who knew what she was doing. After all, he hadn't really been going and climbing mountains with his brother. They had usually stayed within the city limits or closer to sea level when they went out of town. Hiking was fun, but his brother couldn't stand the cold, which Alphubel found a bit funny, considering he was a polaris knight.

He was glad for the earmuffs he was wearing though. Even though he was supposed to be okay with all of this cold, he still hadn't gotten quite used to it and with his head so exposed, the earmuffs were quite welcome. He got a bit closer to the two so that it would be easier to tie the rope. "Thanks. I'll follow your lead Delphi, I'm not too used to climbing any sort of snowy mountain." Even if the steps didn't seem to be frozen.

"Nor am I. My wonder is a court complex and my heels are no good for climbing. They hadn't been that good before she'd become a knight but at least then they'd had tred on the bottom, that was now gone. With the tred gone from the bottoms of her boots she was just as likely to slip as one one of them, maybe even more so. "We just go slow and keep tied together in order to help if anyone slips." Not that they were go down a mountain face but falling down steps was still no fun, the wind didn't help either.

Motioning the two to go ahead of her Delphi took up the position right behind the male. Sutai in the lead she watched the two carefully, ready to step in and catch either if they lost their footing and came back down the stairs towards herself. Puffing out hair she pulled her coat tighter about herself, glad for the fur inside of it, as she covered up her mouth and nose to the best of her ability. Using the coverage of her mouth and nose to allow her to breath within the coat and keep herself just a bit warmer.

Holding onto the rope she continued the climb, forcing one foot ahead of the other as she made sure her foot was sure before placing the next foot. She couldn't slip and fall, she'd take the other two with her potentially. It was when they reached the plateau that Delphi took a moment to gather herself, to look around. This was where her stone had come from. She was still grateful to Sutai, and this was one small way to thank the other Polaris knight. At least here they could all gather themselves before they continued on, hopefully this marked a half way point, if so than they were close.

"I'm fine. Rest if you need it before we continue." She called out over the wind, hoping to be heard by the other two.

Despite the howling wind, Sutai waddled over to Alphubel's side. "I would love a blanket, Mister Alph-ph-b-bel!"

Even her windbreaker pants and heavy coat weren't enough to stave off the piercing cold of the mountain. The knights' hair blew every which way, Sutai's nose starting to run. She sniffed mightily and shoved her face into the blanket to stifle a whine. Wrapping it around herself, she bowed to Alphubel, incredibly grateful for his assistance. It was difficult to hear her between the wind and the blanket, but her gestures indicated an appreciation.

The Squire was obviously shivering and most of her very being wished to turn around and go home, but that would ultimately waste both Alphubel and Delphi's time and energy. It would be shameful and embarrassing. If she turned around now, how could she face these two again? How could she face Sessrumnir, who emphasized the importance of the signet ring?

No, Sutai had to make it to the top.

Clenching her fists, Sutai turned to face the second leg of their journey. This had to be finished in this trip. There was no other way.

The group started the ascent soon after their rest on the plateau. The wind seemed increasingly harsher the higher up the staircase they went, each step feeling heavier and heavier. It felt as though every inch took hours, the wind roaring in their ears and tearing at their hair and coats. Sutai squeezed her eyes shut during one particularly cold and harsh blast, kneeling for a moment to keep from being blown down the stairs. It was as though the mountain itself was shouting at them, GO BACK!

Bracing herself with Delphi and Alphubel's help, their moral and physical support, the trio eventually completed the climb.

At the very apex of the staircase stood a pair of thick, slate-colored doors - the same stone from which the staircase was made. Carved directly into the stone of the doors was the familiar eight-pointed star signifying Polaris. Standing before these doors, Sutai was dwarfed by their ten foot height.

"There's no doorbell!" she shouted over the wind, turning around to face the pair of knights behind her.

Just then, a particularly harsh gust of wind hit the three knights, sending Sutai flying backwards and into the stone doors. The contact seemed to be the key, the Polaris symbols flashing to life with a powdery blue light. The doors slowly ground open, displaying just how thick and heavy they were. The din of both the doors and the wind was nearly deafening to the three and without the doors to prop her up, Sutai went flailing backwards and into the inside of what appeared to be a building carved into the very rock of the mountain.

With a squeak, the Squire face-planted into the smooth floor of the building and lay there for a moment, whining.

"....owwwwwwwwwwwww....."

The inside of the cave turned out to be a dimly-lit, meticulously carved home of some kind. The entryway in which Sutai lay had two beautiful statues that served as pillars to hold up the roof, one on each side of the thick stone doors. The statues looked very similar to Princess Polaris in a stylized, idealized way. They appeared to be made of marble or a similar material. Powdery blue crystals adorned the walls, giving off a soft, snowy glow. Additional rooms seemed to be further in.

Outside, the wind... suddenly stopped.

Alphubel was a bit proud that he could be of some help on this expedition. He took out a blanket for himself also, glad that it helped if just a little. Though it didn't feel like it, he could only feel less of the wind's bite against his skin. He started to wonder if when he was upgraded to a higher rank, if his uniform would change to be better suited against the cold of Polaris.

Although it wasn't his own wonder that they were exploring, Alphubel was glad to get to know and being doing something with his fellow knights. It was interesting meeting the other types, but he hadn't felt quite the same connection as he did with those that he was actually a part of.

Eventually, they started to move again, and it was becoming harder with every step, but Alphubel knew that they would be reaching the top any time now. It's not as if the staircase was getting longer whenever they went up a step, at that point he probably would have given up. Since that wasn't the case, he was able to will himself up each step, trying to be of some help to his fellow climbers.

Finally, they had arrived and he could see that there were doors in front of them. He felt a bit of a sense of familiarity with the doors he had at his own Wonder's building. He wondered if there was a theme going on with them. But before he could even register it, Sutai had fallen in and the wind had suddenly stopped. He nodded to Delphi and followed her in, wondering what would await them inside.