He should have known better than to try and brave the cursed mountain this late in the year. But by the time he had sniffed out all the other leads, winter had seized Relic Lore, and he wasn’t about to return to his son without a thorough report. But slippery slopes had not been kind on aging bones, and now Vasco Halex was cooped up in a small hollow at the base of mount dire, with a leg that wouldn’t carry his weight.

Luckily, the bone didn’t seem to be broken, just badly bruised, as was his hip from the unexpected twist as his leg slid out from underneath him. He’d have to rest for at least a few more days; And then what…? If he still couldn’t walk, he could be doomed to end his miserable life in this equally miserable tomb, disappeared much like his Sita and Xulia; Did they die like this too, all alone? A dark thought indeed, but he had no energy to think anything else; One more day… Then, he’d have to tackle that when he got to it.

Thoughts ”Speech”