Despite this first waste of time experience, Yves recognised the potential value of Faroah’s prophecies in uncovering valuable information about his future — about the Dimensional Plane of Shards and the Stalker, the search for the legendary Crystalline Trench, the pact with the witch mother and, in general, about Yves’ attempt to restore his eyesight.
Yet, Yves hesitated. Faroah was known to be elusive, his whereabouts rarely communicated outside Transcender circles. He sometimes resided in a remote location beyond the dense foliage of the Central Moorlands, but there was never any guarantee of being granted an audience, even if he were present.
There was no certainty of meeting Faroah. There was also no assurance of tracking down Vahl amidst his multitude of quests, and a reasonably high chance of being killed by any academy luminary he contacted. There were simply too many variables. Pursuing any of the three wizards would consume months that Yves did not have. Not even time was on his side.
Yves’ thoughts ground to a halt.
There was no one else he could reach out to.
No one else he trusted.
He had no one.
–
For a long time, Yves just sat and stared at the sands in front of him,
his eyes ever fixed on the point where the sand disappeared beneath the frame of the moving sled.
Twig’s legs no longer dangled beside him.
She and Mushroombird were gone by now.
Yves had no energy left to comfort himself.
He glanced down at his hands, gripping the Levitation Staff.
Then at his arms resting on his knees, not really thinking but still recognising
how much stronger the left silver arm appeared.
He hesitated, flooded with shame and exhaustion,
but still so, so empty.
Then he felt for the small case in his coat pocket.
There was no certainty of meeting Faroah. There was also no assurance of tracking down Vahl amidst his multitude of quests, and a reasonably high chance of being killed by any academy luminary he contacted. There were simply too many variables. Pursuing any of the three wizards would consume months that Yves did not have. Not even time was on his side.
Yves’ thoughts ground to a halt.
There was no one else he could reach out to.
No one else he trusted.
He had no one.
–
For a long time, Yves just sat and stared at the sands in front of him,
his eyes ever fixed on the point where the sand disappeared beneath the frame of the moving sled.
Twig’s legs no longer dangled beside him.
She and Mushroombird were gone by now.
Yves had no energy left to comfort himself.
He glanced down at his hands, gripping the Levitation Staff.
Then at his arms resting on his knees, not really thinking but still recognising
how much stronger the left silver arm appeared.
He hesitated, flooded with shame and exhaustion,
but still
so, so empty.
Then he felt
for the small case
in his coat pocket.
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