Page 71 of Lady's Steed

“It is dangerous, yes. It is even possible you will perish, especially if you don’t ally yourself with the Griffon.”

“Isn’t that a fairytale creature?” Avera scoffed.

“Fairytales often have roots in the truth.”

“Are you saying griffons are real? I guess that’s not any stranger than totems that spew magical creatures, an evil being under ice, and a mist that sings to kidnap,” Avera grumbled.

“You will encounter much on your quest that stretches the bounds of what you thought real.”

“Even if I could make it to Verlora, it’s as big as Daerva. I wouldn’t even know where to look.”

“Your blood will know how to find them.”

Not the strangest thing she’d heard that day. “And if I refuse?”

“Then you might as well join your companions in Ultilina and toil away the time we have left. There are only two choices for you, Avera Voxspira. Find the stones and return them to the Spire, or watch as everyone, including you, perishes.”

“That’s not a choice,” she grumbled. “I never asked for any of this. I was quite content being a nobody.”

“You weren’t happy.” A flat statement. “Now you can either whine or act.”

“Act?” Avera exclaimed. “My choice is to die here, or in a foreign land.”

“Only if you fail. Find the Griffon.”

Avera huffed. “And where am I supposed to find this legend?”

“You must set sail. Cross the ocean and you will find what you seek.”

“How am I supposed to board a ship when I will most likely be arrested on sight if I show up at the docks at Horizon’s End?”

“There is another port.”

“Seaserpent Bay?” Avera snorted. “You do realize from this mountain it is a multi-week journey. I must circle back around the island, travel past the capital while evading any patrols seeking me.”

“It’s only a few days if you use the passage through the mountain.”

Avera stopped her agitated pacing to glance at Opal. “There’s a shortcut from here?”

“Yes.”

“And you’ll show it to me?”

“I can set you on its path, yes.”

“With my companions?”

“I’m afraid they are bound by the spell in the mist.”

“I’m not going without them. I can break the trance they’re under.”

“How?” Opal asked, then frowned “You speak as if you know this for sure.”

“Because I’ve done it before with the amulet.”

“What amulet?” was the sharp retort.

Avera held the medallion away from her chest, the dull surface making it look innocuous. “This one. When the mist comes it glows and keeps me from being caught. When I touch my companions, it frees them too.”