The next day…
The great mountains of Dolomites stood above Bolzano, touching the clouds. The sun hovered above their lowest peaks, the light barely scraping past the edge. In the RV, Dante awoke from his slumber. He yawned, stretching his limbs. He drew a sharp breath and sat straight. He glanced over at Missio who was still asleep. He reached his hand out, pulling the blinds. Light seeped into the vehicle, blinding Missio.
He groaned, covering his face. He opened one eye and exhaled heavily.
"Good morning." Dante stood up.
"Good morning." Missio sat straight.
He placed his hands on the edge of the mattress. He lowered his head, staring at the wooden floor. Then, he tilted his head to the side. He witnessed the greatness of the mountains beyond the city, towering above them like giants. Dante placed his hands on his hips, gazing at the mountains in awe.
"We'll be hiking here…" He stated.
Missio locked onto his big brother. "Where?"
"Alta Via 2. It's a seven-day trek through the mountains." Dante spun around, entering the bathroom.
Missio blinked, yawning. Tears formed in his eyes as he stood up. He wiped them off, stopping near the bathroom door. After a minute or so, Dante exited, brushing his teeth. Missio passed him, catching the smell of the toothpaste. Dante pressed the toothbrush against his teeth, wiping them clean of any dirt. He spat out the paste in the sink, washing his mouth and the brush. He moved to the bed, putting his glasses on.
When Missio exited, he placed his brush in its stand. He met Missio's gaze with smile.
"It's time to go shopping."
Missio spat out the toothpaste remaining in his mouth.
"For what?"
"Hiking gear." Dante replied. "Ya think we're going into Dolomites in August with no gear?"
"Why? Is August that bad?" Missio cleansed his mouth.
"Yes… It's prime time for snow." Dante chuckled.
"Snow?" Missio raised his brows. "There's gonna be like actual snow there?"
"Sure is." Dante opened a compartment beside him.
A smile tugged at Missio's lips as he put his brush back. Dante took out their clothes. He threw Missio's clothes at him. He caught them with ease.
"Get dressed quickly. We don't wanna be late for the hike." Dante began taking off his pajamas.
***
After getting dressed, the duo headed over the bustling city center. After a few minutes of searching, they eventually found themselves in a mountaineering gear shop. They stepped onto its wooden floor, passing by other customers. Dante led them through the shop. They reached a certain section filled with many essentials.
"Alright…" Dante drew his phone. "We're gonna need… Via Ferrata Lanyard, Climbing Harnesses, Mountaineering Helmets, Stiff-Soled Mountaineering Boots, Technical Trekking Socks, 50L–65L Backpacks, a windproof and waterproof outer layering, heat trapping mid layer, a sweat-absorbing base layer – those are all clothes… Headlamps, offline GPS, and Freeze-Dried Rations… that's a whole lotta stuff."
Missio looked over his brother's shoulder.
"All that kinda seems unnecessary, dude."
Dante shrugged, pinched his brother's cheek.
"But that's what Mythos said, my dear little brother."
Missio stepped away. "Mythos can do that."
Dante tilted his head, looking at his little brother.
"It's literally the world's best AGI and the EOC's greatest personal assistant. Ya didn't think it would access to that kind of data? Chaos fragment sometimes spawn in the mountains as well y'know."
"They fly to fragments on jets." Missio responded.
"That doesn't mean they can survive the cold. Besides, we have to send them to safe zones. If we deploy them straight into the mountains, who knows what could happen."
Dante headed forward, waving at his brother to come along.
"Let's get everything quickly."
Missio nodded, trailing his brother. They strolled around the store for a while, trying to find the clothes section. Dante sighed in hopelessness. Then, in the corner of his eye, he saw an employee. His eyes lit up as he raised his hand.
"Excuse me." He called out.
The worker turned around, noticing Dante. He approached him with a bright smile.
"How can I help you today, sir?"
"Yeah… um, where is the clothes section…?" Dante inquired awkwardly.
The employee tilted his head slightly. "That would be… on the other side of the store."
Dante clasped his hand, nodding. "Thank you so much."
"My pleasure." The man bowed a little.
He then watched as the siblings headed off to the other side of the store. He stared at them until they escaped his vision. He heaved a sigh and spun around.
Dante and Missio walked to the other side of the store in a few minutes. Dante halted before the rows of mountaineering gear. Missio's jaw dropped slightly. He neared one of the jackets, touching its fabric.
"Oh… this is so cool." Missio checked the jacket from every angle.
He rotated his head, calling out to his brother.
"Bro, which one are we buying?"
Dante rubbed his chin, gazing through the shelves.
"I don't know… find something that's cheap and practical."
Missio raised a brow. "Is it that expensive?"
Dante met Missio's gaze. He coughed and drew a deep breath.
"Everything will be expensive, who am I kidding… Just buy whatever you like…"
Missio's azure eyes lit up like gems. A wicked grin appeared on his face and looked through each rack of clothes. He picked out different colors, assessing their practicality and 'cool' factor. Dante watched this from afar, his heart sinking, imagining the amount of money he would have to spend.
'Isabella's and Missio's care for money is non-existent… or am I just spoiling them too much…? God! Please help me.'
The supreme commander face-palmed, groaning as Missio approached with two jackets.
"How about these?" Missio showed them off.
"If you like them, they're good…" Dante lowered his head. "Pick out the rest of your gear."
Missio grinned widely. He handed over the jackets to Dante, rushing off to pick the rest of their gear. Dante watched him run. He lowered his head, glancing at the jackets Missio had picked out. Lifting his head, he watching his brother chuckle like a little child as he searched through the store.
"I am definitely, definitely spoiling them too much…" Dante sighed. "This ain't good for my heart, why do I keep doing this?"