Chapter 75 - 75. Down We Go

"I asked you what you were doing here kid. How did you make it up here? The only way is up the flat face of the cliff here." There was a slim, well toned man in a black tank top who was also at the flat top of the hill Asher had just climbed up.

"Huh? I'm trying to find the rock wall that Garnet said was at the end of the trail. She said if we get to the wall on our first try we get a bunch of points. And if we can climb it first try we get even more." Asher was looking around trying to spot the rock wall expecting one made of colorful handles like most gym classes and camps he had heard of had.

"Do you even know where you are…" The man had his face in his hands and gave a pitying look to Asher. "This is the top of the rock wall. Now how did you get here?"

"How can this be the top? I barely climbed anything. I just came up the trail through that way." Asher pointed at the place he had practically crawled up.

"That's not even a trail...what did you follow the path of the water that flows down the mountain in the rainy season?" The man was thinking that the kid in front of him must have some sort of flying super power and just popped up here that way. "Just fly back home, this is a camp for students to train."

"I am a student and I came to earn some points. I started today so I could get a headstart training." Asher was getting a little annoyed since the man was not listening to him.

"Fine fine, what is your name kid? I will contact my sister and see what she says." He pulled a hand held radio from his back pocket and looked at Asher waiting.

"Asher Ronan, I am one of the three students here early."

"Garnet, I have a kid named Asher claiming he is a student up on top of my mountain. You know him?"

The hand held radio crackled loudly before a reply came through. "No way he's up there already. He managed to climb the wall? Put him on!"

The man handed Asher the radio. "Hello, Garnet. It's Asher. I just followed one of the trails and came right up. I don't know what's going on here, but it was really no trouble."

There was not a response for some time but before Asher gave the radio back it crackled in to life. "Hear you. I don't know how you got up there but you don't have a flying power...you don't have physical enhancement powers or even a mutation. Tell Onyx the points are added and to see you down."

The man took the radio back looking Asher up and down a few times before he spoke again. "As my sister said, I'm Onyx. Follow me, I will show you the safe way down." He sounded like he could barely believe that someone without any power related to physical enhancement or mutations had made it all the way to the top of the mountain without following the trails or even flying. It was just impossible to him, he hadn't even noticed the Asher until he was already on the mountain.

"We are going to take a side trail I carved out myself. Just watch me and put your hands and feet in the grips I put mine and it should go fine." Onyx started to slide over the edge and grasp on to the rock face.

'He really expects me to climb down from here...he's crazy.' Asher had no skill in climbing yet and he did not want to risk his life climbing down from so high up for the first time in his life. "I will just head the way I came, no need to worry about me." Asher retreated from the cliff face and started toward the place he had come up the mountain.

Before he knew it Onyx was right back up on top and had Asher in his arm. Just hold on to me then and don't let go. If you get the courage up to climb down halfway let me know I will set you up safe."

Asher had no time to argue. He was already hanging on to Onyx's shoulder for dear life as he was being carried down the side of the cliff. "Holy...Why did you grab me?! I can't climb cliffs! I came to climb a rock wall!." The fear in Asher's voice echoed down to the ground and back to his ears.

"Well you managed to get up here so you should have the courage to get down. Now just toughen yourself up and stay there or climb down yourself." Onyx was not affected at all by the slightly struggling Asher. His first grip on the wall was almost like he was part of the stones themselves. His hands seemed to dig in to the wall like they were tougher than the stone.

"You know if my power didn't make my body as tough and strong as Onyx you and I would both be pancakes on the ground down there. So calm yourself or I will deduct all the points you got from getting up here."

The threat was enough to silence Any complaints Asher had at the moment. The only thing left was to feel defeated and wait to be placed on the ground by his new babysitter. 'As soon as Art and Jane hear about this they are going to avoid me like the plague.' Asher was cursing himself over this for a few minutes. By the time he started to actually observe his surroundings the two were only a third of the way up the cliff, they would soon be at the bottom.

"Ughhhh screw this I need to give it a shot so my friends don't call me a loser. I will climb the rest of the way from here." Asher clenched his jaw and was looking for one of the hand holds he had heard Onyx tell him about.