Normal POV
The boat pulled up to shore when the moon began its descent last night, so the passengers decided to call it a night before continuing in the morning. Azura took the first watch after convincing Runaan to rest; just because they got away thanks to the quick thinking of the Moonshadow elf doesn't mean that the soldiers will keep searching. They would take turn keeping watch every now and then, so to ensure that the other would rest. Both Runaan and Azura mutually agreed to it. It was the Moonshadow elf's turn when the sky began to turn a pale pink, heralding the dawn of a new day.
With Rayla on his mind, he went to the river and sat at the edge. As he looks to the rose colours lacing the calm surface, there is something about the scenery this morning; the water is still, no rapids nor even ripples. But despite the peace, Runaan was worried. He knew that the younger Moonshadow elf is strong, and that she will succeed in returning the Dragon Prince home. And yet, he feared that Rayla would lose her hand before that happens and that she'll forever be an outcast because of him.
Runaan's POV
"Mind if I join you?" I open my eyes to see Azura sitting down beside me, albeit a good foot away. "You know… Back at the Banther Lodge, I honestly thought that we would have a chance of getting away by running to the woods. But I hadn't taken to account that a small army was following it. And I wanted to thank you for your quick thinking." I was quiet when she said that; true, I didn't had the best experience with humans before Azura. Still, I feel as though… That I can trust her; only a little because I'm travelling with her.
"I guess, that means we're even now." I replied, earning a small smile from her. "We'll continue once it's light enough." Azura said, "And it was smart to get a boat ready yesterday. It's really practical." At that, I looked at her like she suddenly grown a second head; did… did she just complimented me? I mentally shook my head and got up, walking to the boat and pulled out the waterskins.
Azura's POV
I got up in time for him to toss something toward me, causing me to let my reflexes take over and catch them. "If you don't mind…" Runaan said before he pull out two of the rations bars; I looked down and realized that he tossed the waterskins since I was closer to the edge. I knelt down and filled them one at a time, before the Moonshadow elf walked over and handed me a ration bar while eating his. In the early daylight, I have a proper chance to look at the rations that Runaan have salvaged from the camp. It was wrapped in a sturdy, yet papery leaf that has a wax-like texture and tied with a thin piece of vine; opening it reveals a cream-colour bread shaped in rectangle bar with dried fruit and nuts baked into it.
Taking a small bite, the nuts and dried fruit made me think of those fruitcakes that were often eaten during Yuletide– only the ration was pleasantly sweeter. The bar was light, and at the same time, quite filling; it was actually good for a travel food. I saw Runaan disposing the leaf in the river, and decided to do the same. Upon contact, the leaf disintegrated. I wondered what kind of leaf it was– that it would stay together and preserve the ration, and yet breaks apart when contacted with water or even burn quickly if exposed to a fire… "The next time will be the third sunrise from now." He said before getting ready to push the boat back into the water, I quickly finished my ration and helped him. Once we're in, Runaan gave one final push and the boat begin drifting downstream.
Normal POV
With the birds singing and the sound of the oars slicing through the water, Azura find the boat ride to be… peaceful despite travelling with an elf. However, it wasn't the first time…Feeling the boat rocking a bit, she turn her attention to see Runaan grabbing one of the waterskins and opened it to drink; reminding her that she had filled them straight from the river. "Hey, wait! You need to purify it." Azura said quickly, but the Moonshadow elf took a mouthful of water from it before she could even finish her sentence. Once he finished and closed his waterskin, Runaan looked at her and gave her the other one. "The water is safe." He told Azura, earning a surprised and confused look on her face.
"These waterskins were crafted by Oceanmist elves. They would often carry one whenever they need to travel away from any source of water. Nowadays, any elves connected to a different Primal Source would often go to an Oceanmist elf to have a waterskin created for them." Runaan explained before pointing to the side of his waterskin, "If you look closely, there's a special ocean rune engraved on it. With that rune, the waterskin can instantly purify any water inside." Azura opened the waterskin given to her, looking unsure before taking a cautious sip. When the water reached her lips, she was surprised that the water tasted twice as good as the water drawn from a well– although she wondered if the results will be the same if she filled it with swamp water, or even the saltiest seawater.
Viren's POV
Since my spell to locate the Moonshadow elf have failed; thanks to that… that meddlesome witch, I decided to call for the summit. And to do so, I'll need the king's seal. I walked over to the untouched chamber and paused, thinking back to that night before opening the doors. With the exception of the bodies from both the wounded and the dead, the room remained the same. Sitting down on the bed, I thought back to that night again. I went to see King Harrow, with the intention of using myself with the soul-switching spell; and he stopped me before I had the chance to explain.
Maybe if I had said it differently, then the king would still be alive… I looked over to see the frame he was looking at before I entered with the soulfang serpent; face down like how he left it, I picked it up to see that King Harrow was looking at the portrait of him and his family. I put it back exactly as I found it before walking over to the desk and pulling out the king's seal.
Runaan's POV
The boat ride became quieter as we kept an eye along the forest and down the river; in case of any upcoming rapids, though it does made me think of Rayla and how she despise travelling this way if she was with us. Both of us knew how to swim; but ever since my sister nearly drowned at a young age, she have an aversion to water; Rayla wouldn't go near it to save a life. And bath-time would be a complete battle for me and Dad; Mom on the other hand… Rayla feels somewhat more secure if she was being washed by her. "You have a rock coming close to your side." Hearing Azura's voice, I look up to see a rock approaching; prompting me to use my oar to guide the boat away from the rock.
"The river up ahead seems to be calm for a while." She said, but I ignored her. Realizing this, she turned around to face me and set her oar down on the inside. "How about I ask you five questions?" I look at Azura with confusion, "It will help pass the time along. And if you'd like, you can ask me five." She insisted. Well, I do have a few questions regarding the 'light magic' she mentioned… "Alright. I hope you don't mind me asking first." I said, setting my oar down.
Azura's POV
I was surprise by Runaan's wanting to ask first, but I decided to let him. After all, if we were to be travelling together until we find Callum and Ez, we need to know each other better. "You already explained a bit about light magic back at the Banther Lodge, and I was wondering if you could elaborate a little more about it." I was taken aback by the topic he chose of his first question; I normally keep my guard up when it comes to someone asking about light magic, but I did say that he could ask me five questions… "You're familiar with how dark magic works, right? Well, light magic is similar; and yet, opposite at the same time. They often cancel each other out; much like the spell that I cast last night. When someone uses dark magic, the components used for the spell are destroyed in the process. Whereas light magic only use what is needed, since light mages learned to value life; thus taking only what we need and in a way that doesn't harm the ingredients involved with the spell." I said, piquing Runaan's interest. "My turn to ask. What is it like in Xadia? I mean, I've heard so many things about Xadia growing up. An example is that Xadia is full of life and everywhere you look… there's magic."
Runaan looked at me with a slight surprise in his eyes, "You're somewhat correct. In Xadia, magic is pretty much in everything. And it's the same as saying 'Everywhere you look, there's nature or beauty.' Just a part of what makes Xadia as it is. There are also many locations and phenomenon that proves it; up north, you could see these lights dancing in various colours. And then, there's Lux Aurea; the Sunfire capital." He said with a nostalgic smile as he looks out to the water. "Sounds incredible. I wish I could see them with my own eyes." I reply, knowing that once Callum and Ezran have been found, the princes and I had to return back to Katolis… Runaan must have realized this as well, "But who knows. If the war is over and there's peace between Xadia and the humans–" He said before quickly adding "Hypothetically, on the last part. Then maybe, you can." Hearing this, I instantly reminded of another who said something quite similar; that I may be friends with her son if there was peace… "Yeah… I'd like that." I told him with a small smile. It was quiet before a sound and the look on Runaan's face made me realize that the river is going faster; too fast, to be exact. Turning around, I notice that the boat's about to go down a waterfall. I look back at the Moonshadow elf, and he nodded. He must have thought the same thing; that there was no time to paddle to shore, we had to ride it through! Securing the oars and supplies, we moved to the stern and held tight as the boat begin its plunge down the waterfall and into the rapids.
Normal POV
As Viren enters the Crow Lord's keep, he can hear the cawing of many crows used for delivering and receiving messages– and a young man tending to a crow. "Crow Lord." The High Mage called, only to be ignored. Viren cleared his throat, "Crow Lord. You! Sir! Crow Lord!" that got the man's attention. "Oh! Sorry, I heard you calling for the Crow Lord." He apologize as he sits down at a desk, "Uh, he's not here right now." Viren looks at the man, knowing that he's not the Crow Lord. The man in front of the High Mage has short black hair with a tan complexion and blue eyes. "Then, who are you?" Viren asked.
"Oh! Well, I'm… I'm the Crow Master." The man introduced himself, "It's sort of like… Assistant Crow Lord. I just got promoted." Viren mentally sigh to himself, "Congratulations. Are you able to sent the mail?" he asked. "Sure! Sure, of course!" Crow Master replied cheerfully, but quickly changed his tune when he saw the king's seal. "Oh, um… hmm. These… these seem to bear the king's seal." He said, "Yes." Viren asked, not liking where this is going. "Well, uh… yikes. Uh, the king is… you know… I can't send these." Crow Master refused.
Viren's POV
I thought about it, this 'Crow Master' is a very nervous fellow. "Hmm. I understand your dilemma. You were recently promoted, yes? And you are trying to do a good job?" I asked, "Yes. Yes, exactly." The Crow Master answered. "Right, well let me be perfectly clear, Crow Master." I began, "You will send these to the leaders of the other four kingdoms immediately. If you refuse, you will also be… you know." Looks like he's getting the picture. "Um, now that I think about it, I'm just gonna go ahead and take care of these for you." Crow Master said as he gather the four letters, much to my satisfaction. "Mmm, I thought you might." I told him as I leave.
Azura's POV
The boat went down a final waterfall and spun into the calm waters of a small lake, slowing down to a stop. I couldn't help but laugh a bit, "You know… that was actually fun." I said. "If you can get the boat back to that first waterfall, then you can do it again." Runaan deadpanned as he checked the rations, making me realize that going down the rapids would have ruined the leaf wrappings. "Why don't we get to shore, so that we can dry them out if we need to." I told him as I grab an oar, with the Moonshadow elf doing the same. We pulled up to a shore and carefully laid the supplies out in the sun; thankfully, they were not as soaked as we thought.
Runaan let out a sigh of relief, "Once the supplies and the boat have been thoroughly dry, we'll continue. Through we would lose time…" he said. "Well, we would have lost more time if we tried to carry the boat around the rapids." I told him, causing him to nod with acknowledgement. There was the sound of a branch snapping, following by a splash; at first, I thought it was a tree branch. But Runaan ran into the water, causing me to see a little girl trying to use a broken branch to stay afloat.
Runaan's POV
I swam out to the young girl and convinced her to grab on to me; she was around four or five years of age with green eyes and… small horns growing in? "What is an elfling doing–" That is when I saw her hands, and a moonstone pendant hanging close to her neck, I swam back with the child. Azura ran toward us and helped us out. She checked in on the girl while making sure we sit in the sun to dry out when we heard a voice, "Terra! Oh, thank goodness." We look to see a woman running toward us and picked the child up; not once concerned about seeing an elf. But then, while the woman resembles an adult version of her child; complete with a matching pendant, I can clearly see her as an Earthspirit elf.
"Mommy! The man who saved me has ears just like yours." Azura raised a brow before the woman gave a nervous laugh, "My daughter…has a vivid imagination." She said. "But Mommy–" The child insisted before her mother cuts her off, "Thank you so much for saving her. If you'd like to rest at my place before continuing on your journey, the town we're living in isn't too far from here." She offered before I spoke up, "Thank you, but I think our supplies are dry enough." I politely turned down her offer as I gathered the supplies that was in my satchel. Azura looked at me before I silently convince her to do the same, "Are you sure?" the woman asked me. I nodded as Azura and I got in the boat, "I am. But I hope the Primal Sources keep you and your family safe." The mother widen her eyes when she realizes that I saw through the illusions and by turning down her offer, I was doing them a favour. "And you, as well. Safe travels, for both of you." And with that said, I pushed the boat off the shore and the Earthspirit elf carried her daughter back to their home.
Normal POV
"What was that?" Azura asked a few minutes after leaving the mother and daughter, completely miffed. "I know you don't trust humans, but that woman was trying to repay you for saving her daughter." She added before Runaan spoke up, "By having another elf in the town they're living in, we would have endangered her family." Azura's eyes widen when he told her this, clearly remembering what the child had said before. "Did you notice the pendants around their necks? In Xadia, Moonshadow elves can enchant jewelleries to create an illusion that lasts as long as they're being worn." Azura look back toward the shore, "So, Terra and her mother are…" She began before the Moonshadow elf nodded. "The mother is an Earthspirit elf. Though until recently, I have never seen a halfling before." He commented, this piqued Azura's attention.
"Halfling?" she asked, "A neutral term for anyone born from the union of a human and an elf. Through, they can choose to refer to themselves as either 'half-human' or 'half-elven'." Runaan explained. "But I thought humans and elves hate each other." Azura said, "Before humans were exiled, they used to live alongside the elves, though some of the latter would look down on them as 'lesser beings'. Unions between an elf and a human is not unheard of, but not very common either. One of the reasons is due to the lifespan difference." The Moonshadow elf replied before she realize the other reason. "And another is because of the humans discovering dark magic. The exile must have been especially difficult for the halflings; forcing them to choose as their families are being torn apart." Azura said sympathetically.