The desert sands were quick to succumb to the natural rolling pastures that came with entering the Riverlands, and Ophilia couldn't tell if she was more welcoming or fearful of what was to come. She had to admit that they had finished up with their journeys to Wellspring and the surrounding areas much faster than she would have expected, and her heart skipped a beat at the idea of what she knew was going to happen next.

Now that they had gained the blessings of Sealticge, the next step was clear to all of them: it was time to make for Saintsbridge and investigate a potential shrine location in the area. Cyrus seemed rather confident at this point that they were going to find something there. Given that they had encountered shrines near the last five towns they had passed through-each in the second ring of Orsterra's civilizations-it seemed clear as could be that they would likely find the same blessings once more. Ophilia had no idea which god would be waiting for them, but she was oddly on edge about it all.

Ophilia had known from the start that she would be traveling to Saintsbridge to complete the second part of the Kindling. That much had been the first thing that Josef told her when she decided that she was going to be taking up the journey in Lianna's stead. However, knowing that she would be going to Saintsbridge and arriving in the Riverlands near the city were two entirely separate things, and Ophilia didn't realize just how high her anxiety was running until the rushing of stream water replaced the blustering of sandy winds.

She should have been fine with this. No, she should have been glad that they were finally back on track. She had been planning to go to Saintsbridge so long ago when the group had first met up with Alfyn, but all of that had changed because of Aelfric pushing her in a different direction. From there, the group was left winding through the rest of the continent wildly, and Ophilia felt as if everything had changed since the days when the group was in Clearbrook. Since then, she had met Therion and H'aanit, watched Primrose destroy the first man of the crow, gotten involved with the theft of the ruby dragonstone, fought against a twisted apothecary with no regard for human life, and seen a man turn to stone under the mysterious power of an unknown beast. So much had happened, and Ophilia didn't think she would ever be able to return to the person she had once been. The Kindling had set her on a new path, and she had no idea what she was supposed to think of it all.

Back when she was first in Clearbrook, Ophilia had been confident that she would be able to handle whatever Saintsbridge had to throw at her... Though she supposed she should have known better than to let her confidence get the better of her. The last time she had been in the Riverlands before meeting Alfyn, she had still been living in the small village of Creek not far from Saintsbridge. In those days, Saintsbridge was caught up in a conflict with the neighboring Quarrycrest over matters of trade, and it erupted into a war that nearly consumed both cities. In the end, both Saintsbridge and Quarrycrest were able to stand tall after the fact, and while their relationship was not what it once was, they were making progress to return to the way they once had been.

But Ophilia's home village could never be brought back to the land of the living. It had been a long time since she was last in Creek, but she could still remember the way the town sprawled out across the plains like the back of her hand. She knew the names of all of her neighbors, and each of them had done their part to raise her. Ophilia had loved her parents with all she had, and they had done the same for her. It was a simple life, but it was one that she had come to call her own.

The battles between Saintsbridge and Quarrycrest took away all of that, and Ophilia didn't know how she was supposed to return to the Riverlands with all of that in mind. It wasn't as if she could necessarily hold much of anything over the heads of the people within Saintsbridge or Quarrycrest; they weren't the ones responsible for the conflict that took away her home and her family, and accusing them of such wouldn't be productive or helpful. Still, it was strange to Ophilia to think that she was going to be returning to the area of her home again after all this time, albeit under completely different circumstances.

Ophilia did her best to swallow back her nerves as she focused on the path ahead. She couldn't get caught up in her own bittersweet reminiscence forever. There was work to be done, and it all started with the next shrine encounter. After that, she would be able to carry out the first leg of the Kindling and spread the light of the Sacred Flame. It was her duty. Besides, that was what Aelfric would have wanted.

Aelfric was perhaps the greatest issue for Ophilia in the midst of her internal strife. Now that she knew the truth of her history-that Aelfric had always known that she would be the one to take on the Kindling's burden for some reason or another, that Aelfric had saved Ophilia's life from the tides of war that destroyed everyone else she loved-Ophilia still felt as if her world was tilting on its side. She had gotten better at coping with the revelation, yes, but the issue remained prominent as could be in the back of her mind. Since leaving Clearbrook-no, since leaving Flamesgrace-Ophilia had become an entirely different person, and she had no idea what she was meant to think of it all.

"Look out!"

Ophilia barely recognized what was happening until an arrow soared out of the corner of her eye to hit a nearby frog monster that had jumped out at her. The cleric had been so caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn't even realized. Ophilia's eyes went wide, and she found herself breathing heavily at the sight of the frog pinned down against the ground, an arrow in its throat. H'aanit was the one who had fired the shot, though she was hardly the one who had spoken.

Alfyn appeared at Ophilia's side a moment later, helping her to her feet. Ophilia hadn't even realized that she had fallen into the grass until she was starting to stand. "Are you okay, Phili?" Alfyn questioned softly.

Somewhere in the back of her own mind, Ophilia bittersweetly remembered that Lianna had always called her that when they were growing up, and she struggled to not collapse once more under the weight of how much she missed her sister all of a sudden. "Yes," Ophilia finally managed to choke out when words began to cooperate with her once more. It took her an embarrassingly long time to come back to grips with reality, and the only thing that felt real was Alfyn's gentle grip on her upper arm.

"I'm glad that H'aanit was able to get rid of that monster before it could hit you," Tressa remarked, and Ophilia realized that the merchant had been the one to cry out for her to be careful before. Tressa trotted over to Ophilia before placing her hands on her hips. "I guess you're pretty tired and out of it today, huh? I would have thought that you would have noticed the second a monster like that started to come out of the bushes towards you."

Ophilia processed Tressa's words slowly before nodding. "My apologies... I suppose I got a bit distracted," she murmured, knowing it was an inadequate excuse but unable to force herself to come up with something better. When she looked down at her hands, she realized they were shaking, and she found herself desperate for the group to find the next shrine just so everybody would stop looking at her like that. They could tell that something was wrong, but Ophilia didn't even know where she would begin when it came to articulating everything that had led to her sudden emotional fallout.

"We should be arriving at the shrine soon," Cyrus announced, recognizing Ophilia's upset much to her relief. "I'm afraid that I can't say if who we will find there, but we should be able to take care of that matter before we settle down in Saintsbridge for the night."

Ophilia nodded at that. She could already tell that she wasn't going to have the chance to go to the church within Saintsbridge to talk with the people there until the following morning. It gave her time to think, and while she was thankful for that, she couldn't help wondering what was going to happen when she was left alone with her thoughts again. She hadn't ever thought that she would get caught up in her musings of the past after so much time had passed, but she practically couldn't bring herself to calm down. Perhaps it was the frog monster that had scared her. Maybe she was concerned about having to think about Creek again. Then there was the possibility that she was still afraid of doing something that could mess with the Kindling's rituals. Ophilia assumed that her current shakiness had to do with all three of them, though she was desperate to make it stop, even if it was just for a few moments.

Ophilia's mind remained a somewhat hazy spinning cycle as she continued to press on in the direction of the shrine. Cyrus took to the front of the party once again, H'aanit at his side. Ophilia could tell that the others were giving her space because they thought that she needed a bit of time to recuperate after what had happened, and she was grateful for it. She was entirely sure of what she needed in that moment, but she didn't think that having them all ask if she was alright would help her much. If anything, that would likely just make her anxiety worse.

"Hey, Ophilia. Are you okay?"

Tressa seemed to be all too happy to ignore the buzz of anxiety that came with the rest of the group, and she fell into step alongside Ophilia with an easy smile on her face. Ophilia could tell that Tressa was trying to calm her down, and the cleric couldn't help sighing with relief at the sight. Her mind was still a tempestuous mess, and she had no idea if talking was going to help her or not, but Tressa had always brought so much light to her life that she could hardly bring herself to mind what was happening around her for the time being.

"Ah, yes, I'm fine," Ophilia assured Tressa, desperate to move on and talk about anything but what had just happened. Ophilia could already tell that the others weren't going to buy the excuse of her just being distracted for too long, and something deep inside of her said that they were barely accepting her excuses to begin with. Still, she was desperate to move on, knowing that voicing her thoughts about Creek and being back in the Riverlands was only going to make everything feel worse. She couldn't falter. Not now. Not when they were so close to getting to Saintsbridge and finally carrying out the first leg of the Kindling.

Tressa's eyes narrowed in Ophilia's direction, and the cleric did her best to not shy away from Tressa's gaze. That would only prove to the merchant that she was right to be suspicious, and Ophilia really didn't want anybody worrying about her right then. There was too much work to be done. She refused to be the distraction that got the rest of the group off track.

Tressa's determination was impressive though, and Ophilia could tell that she wasn't going to be escaping this without a fight. The merchant narrowed her eyes in Ophilia's direction before she spoke once again. "It's okay to talk to us, you know," she assured Ophilia. "You don't have to keep everything inside. I promise you that the rest of us can handle it if you need to talk about your feelings for a while. I mean, we're all here to help one another, right? That means that I'm here to listen if you want to let it all out."

Ophilia shook her head. "It's really fine," she insisted. She was more than alright with helping the others through their moments of emotional turmoil, but Ophilia knew that asking them for the same was going to do nothing but embarrass her. If she tried to get their attention, she would go right back to feeling selfish for it all over again. She had felt that way when it came to speaking with Josef and Lianna for years, and it seemed that feeling of knowing that she was just barely out of place had followed her out of Flamesgrace.

"We've got a bit of time to kill before we get to the shrine," Tressa pointed out. She paused for a moment before smiling up at Ophilia, and the cleric did her best to not wince at the idea of Tressa having a devious plan up her sleeve. "You know, I'm really good at this sort of thing. If you don't want to talk, then I'm not going to push you, but... I want you to be open with yourself. If that means talking to me, then you should do it. I would be more than happy to pester you if I think that would be best for you too."

"Why would that be best for me?" Ophilia questioned, doing her best to keep the fear of Tressa's probing to creep into her voice. She wasn't doing a great job of holding it all back, but she did her best to at least put in the effort. She owed that much to herself.

"You're the type to keep things bottled up. I can tell," Tressa began to explain. "If you're willing to let me, then I would be more than happy to listen and do what I can to help you with feeling better about all of this. You don't just get distracted like that for no reason, and I think it would be better if you tried to talk about it, even if it was just for a little while. If you really don't want to talk, then all you have to do is say the word, but... I think it would help you a lot more than you realize to just say what's on your mind."

Ophilia thought about it for a long moment. Just what was she so afraid of? She didn't want the others to know that she had dark emotions that were steadily creeping up behind her. She was terrified of the mere concept of those around her knowing how she really felt in case it turned into a burden for them. She had been confident that she would keep everything that held her down bottled up inside to make sure that nobody got hurt along the way, but at the same time... The gleam in Tressa's eyes-a glitter of something so overwhelmingly loving that it almost stung to see-was so genuine that it struck Ophilia still for a moment.

Tressa cared about her. They all cared about her.

Ophilia found herself replying before she could even come close to stopping her words where they rested on the tip of her tongue. "It's been a long time since I was last in the area near Saintsbridge," she admitted softly. "It's been more than fifteen years now, as a matter of fact."

Tressa quirked up an eyebrow in confusion. "I was under the impression that you had never left Flamesgrace," she admitted. "I mean, you said that you've lived with the church for a long time and haven't ever mentioned leaving, so..."

"I haven't left Flamesgrace since I came to live there," Ophilia corrected her. "I was actually born in the Riverlands... In a small village not far from Saintsbridge. But... The village of Creek no longer stands. It was destroyed in the midst of a conflict about trade between Saintsbridge and Quarrycrest, though I'm afraid I don't know the details. It was always too upsetting for me to think about any longer than I had to."

Tressa stared up at Ophilia in shock, her eyes wide as could be. "I... I remember you telling us about this after you went to speak with Aelfric while we were in Stillsnow..." she murmured.

"In the heat of war, soldiers from Quarrycrest razed it to the ground. It was a consequence of the fighting, and... All of the people within the village were killed before anyone had the chance to register what was happening... All except for me," Ophilia muttered. She shook her head before her hand drifted to the Ember where it rested at her hip. "I didn't know it at the time, but... Aelfric saved my life back then. She knew that I was going to be the one to undergo the Kindling, and she decided that it would be for the best if I survived. She used her power to ensure that I survived the battle that day, and now... Here I stand."

"I remember you mentioned all of this before, but... I'm still so sorry about what happened to your home," Tressa murmured. She fell silent for a moment before glancing up to the cleric once more. "But... Have you ever wondered about what really happened all those years ago? I mean, you said it was because of some conflict about trade, but... Coming from a merchant, it takes more than just a trading conflict to cause a war like that. People don't just start fighting each other because of disputes with wares and money."

Ophilia hesitated at that, biting down on her lip along the way. She honestly had no idea how to respond to that. She had been so eager to put the thought of Creek's destruction out of her mind years ago that she was never able to ask any questions about what had truly happened. Tressa was right about one thing though; there must have been some deeper cause that ended in an explosion of war like that, and Ophilia would have been lying if she said that she had never wanted to ask questions. She had feared her answers, but part of her remained curious whether she wanted to admit it or not.

But was she truly ready to hear about what may have happened? As far as Ophilia could tell, it was simply going to be some faraway political talk that she had no real way of comprehending for herself, but perhaps it would offer her a bit of closure. Well, it would either resolve the screaming of her mind, or it would give her even more to think about in a time when she was busy enough as it was. The Kindling took up much of her time and attention these days, and Ophilia had no idea if she would be able to spare her energy to think about a past that she had thought was staying where it was for so long.

Everything Aelfric had told her in the shrine had changed her thoughts on the matter. Just like that, Ophilia's world was flipped around at the revelation that she had survived because of a goddess looking after her, not simply because she had gotten lucky. Aelfric hadn't been able to save all of Creek, but she had rescued Ophilia, and now... Ophilia had no idea what she was supposed to do about it.

"I don't know," Ophilia admitted softly. She realized that her hands were shaking, so she took to clutching tightly at her bag to try and stop the motion of the trembling. "I've wondered about it for a long time, but... I don't know if it's a good idea to try and dredge up information from the past like this. The Kindling has to have my full attention, and I can't get distracted now."

"In the nicest way possible, Ophilia, you've been happy to 'get distracted' when it comes to the other members of this group," Tressa countered. "If you really wanted to focus on the Kindling above all else, then you wouldn't have helped Primrose to overthrow the ring in Stillsnow. If all you wanted to do was think about the Kindling, then you wouldn't have done so much to help Therion and Alfyn. If the pilgrimage was all that mattered to you, then you wouldn't still be traveling with us to try and solve all of our problems. You're okay with putting yourself last, but the rest of us want to do what we can to help you. We're all friends and equals around here, and that means supporting you through tough times."

Ophilia opened her mouth to protest, but she forced herself to fall silent a moment later. She wasn't going to be able to object to Tressa's words and she knew it; the merchant had a point. Ophilia had always been content with setting her own desires aside in the name of others. Back in Flamesgrace, she had thought that perpetual selflessness was her price to pay for the kindness of others. Josef had taken her in, and Lianna had decided to be her friend. That meant that she had to do everything she could to help them, and if she tore herself apart under the weight of her desire to assist others, then so be it. That was simply how she functioned.

But she didn't have to be that way, not anymore. As easy as it was to let her bad habits get the better of her, Ophilia was allowing herself to take up space with the other travelers... At least to a degree. She still had struggles with self-acceptance and self-esteem, but it was a step in the right direction. Maybe it would be alright if she decided to ask questions of this nature... The others had done nothing but support her thus far, so if she said that she wanted to learn more, then they would do everything in their power to help her.

Ophilia nodded to Tressa, and the action even caught her by surprise. "I... I think I want answers," she murmured. "You're right about me putting everybody before myself, and... This is going to be my best chance to find out what really happened all that time ago. When we get to Saintsbridge... I'm going to ask the others if they would be willing to help me find the truth from fifteen years ago."

"Then we'll do what we can to figure out what really happened back then," Tressa smiled with a firm nod. "I was still just a little kid back then, but I bet that at least somebody else in the group is going to be able to tell us something about what happened between Saintsbrdige and Quarrycrest to cause so many problems... Maybe Cyrus would know. I mean, he's the scholar here, so if anybody is going to have ideas about what went down back then, it would probably be him."

Ophilia nodded before shifting her attention up to where Cyrus was walking at the front of the group. Tressa was right in saying that Cyrus would be the one with the answers she sought; he had managed to narrow down the shrine locations without even batting an eye, and even with Barham's map, that was an impressive feat. His smarts were beyond impressive, and given how much he enjoyed learning about history, he likely knew at least something when it came to the conflict that swallowed Creek fifteen years ago. Ophilia took in a careful breath before she started to plan out what exactly she was going to say to him. She would be much less nervous if she had a script to go off instead of just trying to fly through this on her own.

However, she was never given the chance to come up with a deeper idea than that. The Ember began to glow a bit brighter at her side, and at the front of the group, Cyrus stopped walking. "It seems we have arrived," he announced, and Ophilia nodded. Judging by how the Ember was responding, they had found the next shrine, and that meant it was time for them to prepare for yet another battle against the gods.

Ophilia did her best to shove her thoughts of Creek as far from her mind as possible, though that was much easier said than done, as much as she hated to admit it. She took in a careful breath before taking a step towards the grassy hill that appeared to mask the entrance to the shrine. It was certainly far from the beaten path, and Ophilia was almost glad for the privacy. After all, she needed the moment to breathe away from the eyes of the rest of the world given her circumstances and everything rushing through her head.

The door to the shrine responded immediately and easily, and Ophilia peered inside carefully. Sure enough, the inside of the shrine looked the same as Ophilia would have expected. The stone ground was the same deep gray color as it always had been, and there were torches with green dancing flames lining the walls. Ophilia had no idea what element that was going to indicate, but she couldn't help wondering if perhaps this would be a new type of magic from what she was used to.

That was another matter that Ophilia had been thinking about ever since Brand's shrine was uncovered. There were five other elements that had not yet been utilized by mortals, and the travelers knew next to nothing about them. Cyrus' hypothesis about the magic outside of mortal capabilities hadn't been confirmed or researched before he was forced to leave Atlasdam, forcing the travelers to go in without any expectations of what they might find next. On one hand, it was thrilling, but on another, Ophilia found herself quietly desperate for any answers or information that might make this easier for her to figure out.

Ophilia took in a careful breath before walking into the shrine in full, allowing herself to push away as many thoughts as she possibly could when it came to her parents. Even if she was curious about the truth behind Creek's fall, she had to focus on fighting against this god. She could tell that it wasn't going to be an easy battle since none of the fights ever were. Even as the travelers grew stronger, their foes grew more difficult to win against as well. The gods were holding back to ensure they didn't completely destroy their predecessors, but the stronger the travelers got, the less the gods needed to seal away their strength. In other words, battling against this next god was going to be just as difficult as it had been to fight against Aelfric, and Ophilia could only hope that they were ready for it.

The doors to the shrine slid shut soon after Therion-who had taken to the back of the group-passed over the threshold to the inner workings of the hill. The green flames seemed to flicker even stronger now, gesturing for the travelers to draw nearer to the end of the shrine. Ophilia stared down the long pathway, finding a carving at the altar at the center of the shrine with her eyes.

The stone had come together to form what appeared to be a bottle of some kind. Upon closer examination, Ophilia realized that it was a phial like what Alfyn used when he was trying to cure the ailments of others. He smiled at the sight before starting to approach the carving. "Shucks. This must be fate," he murmured. The rest of the group was quick to follow after him, and Ophilia sighed before doing the same.

The group gathered around the carving as soon as they had arrived at the other edge of the shrine, and Ophilia continued to look down at the stone in curiosity. She took in a careful breath to ground herself, more focused on trying to keep her raging emotions under control than trying to figure out who it was that they would be fighting against next. There were only seven gods left, and that meant that Ophilia probably would have been able to figure out who their target was with a bit of deductive work. However, that involved much more effort than she was willing to put in at the moment. She would know the truth soon enough either way.

Alfyn glanced around at the other members of the group with a small smile on his face. Ophilia couldn't tell for sure if it was genuine or not, but she chose to not question it as long as they rested on the precipice of such an important moment. "Ready?" Alfyn asked, a grin continuing to spread across his features. The travelers nodded their confirmation, and with that, Alfyn reached out for the carving.

As expected, light spread outwards rapidly from there, and Ophilia allowed her eyes to fall shut. When she next opened them to look at the world around her, it would be time for the next fight against the gods. She could think about her plans in Saintsbridge after all the upcoming battle had been resolved and left in the past; for the time being, there was too much else that required her attention.

But she would have her answers soon enough. After years of wondering, she was finally going to hear the truth. She was sure of it.

So... Fun details of lore, huh?

Because of the connections between the travelers being much more prominent this time around (thanks to the story structure, that is), I decided to add in a bit more in terms of world cohesion. Ophilia's musings about Creek are the tip of the iceberg for another connection, though it'll be a while before we get to see how that manifests. I'm looking forward to getting to Quarrycrest, to say the least, because of what all of this means. You'll have to give it a bit more time to hear the truth, but it's going to be fun.

Until then, this chapter was rather fun. I thought it would be a good idea to offer a brief breather before we got into the heat of the next fight against a god. We're going to see Dohter next time around, and after that, it'll be time to head to Saintsbridge for Ophilia's chapter two. As of now, the order of operations for the rest of chapter two is Dohter, Ophilia's chapter two in Saintsbridge, Aeber, Cyrus' chapter two in Quarrycrest, Tressa's chapter two, Draefendi, and finally Olberic's chapter two in Victors Hollow. We're finally onto the second half of the chapter twos, and I'm so excited for it all.

With that said, I'm going to wrap this off here. I can't believe the story is up to 75 chapters already. Just... Wow. Next time, we'll get to chapter 76 with the battle against Dohter. Until then, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is appreciated as always. Have a nice day, everyone!

-Digital