Shadow Slave

Soon, all three of them were sitting side by side, with the slate resting on the table in front of them. Cassie was tracing her fingers across the stone surface, a focused look on her face.

After a while, she slowly nodded.

"The coordinates match. It is indeed the right place."

The blind girl was much more proficient in navigating the Great River, considering how much longer she had spent here than Sunny and Nephis. She was also the one who had learned the transcript system of the sybils and pinned down where Effie and Jet were trapped, in the first place.

"Wind Flower, huh..."

Sunny looked at the slate. There were neat columns of symbols engraved on it, as well as an image of a messy circle with frayed edges. It resembled a vortex more than anything, or maybe a cyclone. After studying it for a few moments, he reached out and turned the slate over.

Familiar runes covered its reverse side. Without wasting any time, the three Masters read them.

Pretty soon, Sunny's expression darkened.

'...The currents of the River are twisted and treacherous near Wind Flower. Strong gales violently assaulted our ship, as if trying to push it back. Desperate to escape our pursuers, we persisted, entering deeper into the mist. The surrounding waters moved in the wrong direction and with unnatural speed. It was as if we had lost our way and found ourselves near the Edge.

At some point, we were not struggling against the repelling winds anymore. Instead, overcome by fear, we were battling the raging tide that pulled us deeper and deeper, toward the source of the wind...'

The first part of the text engraved into the reverse side of the slate was an excerpt from a report made by one of the Outsiders who had lived in Fallen Grace. He ventured on a long journey with a small fleet, hoping to find out the fate of a different city, one of the last with which Fallen Grace still maintained a connection... until the visitors and merchant ship from that city had stopped coming, as well.

The fleet managed to learn that the city had been destroyed, but on their way back, they were attacked by powerful Defiled abominations. After a furious battle, only three ships managed to escape. Pursued by the enemies, they were forced to enter the dangerous waters around Wind Flower.

'...For a few moments, the mist cleared, allowing me to glimpse the true nature of the tide. We were hopelessly caught inside a whirlpool of titanic proportions, which spun around a bottomless and dark abyss. There was an island hovering above the darkness, with a tall and magnificent tower rising above the misty cliffs.

Terror grasped our hearts when we realized that the tide was pulling us into the darkness. Desperate to save our lives, we tried to escape...'

end, only one of the three ships managed to fight its way out. The

silent for a few

a giant

the monstrous vortex and destroyed, they would

that they had reached the flying island at the center instead of being crushed in the depths, at least. The

shook her

whirlpool. Don't forget that the Great River is a river of time... any anomaly of its current is not a mundane one. There has to be something strange going on

Nephis nodded.

"But what?"

the runes on its reverse side contained notes made by the priests and

fact that almost no one returned from Wind

tower the Outsider from the Fallen Grace mentioned had

challenge the Estuary, still resided there, or perished a long time

one exception

A familiar name.

'The Serpent King...'

Twilight Sea - had reached the stronghold and spent some time there, then returned to lead his people in the

stared at the runes

all the secrets of Wind Flower from the slate, exactly. But they

that it was possible to brave its danger and come

Second...

Nephis, then

that place. Fighting against the whirlpool will be hard, but doable. The problem, though, is that the island is floating above its chasm. So, if we don't want

for a few long

resources to fully restore the enchantments of the

expression grew somber, she hesitated a bit,