The mineral roots settle into a slow, soothing pulse around the warm springs. Relief spreads through Oceania’s fragile scales without asking her to leave the water, while Vaelor remains beside her.
Vaelor
These channels may carry us beneath the frozen sea for leagues. I hope they lead to a living shore, not another abandoned refuge.
The spiral map glows beneath them, its pale branches converging beyond the black pillar. Warm currents drift westward, carrying the faint scent of kelp and distant open water.
Vaelor
I want to see what waits beyond the ice, but not at the cost of Dawnspine, her mother, or the pod’s safety.
Vaelor
We can travel as far as the roots continue to answer us, then return before the passage shifts. Those behind us deserve our protection, not our disappearance.
Far behind, Dawnspine holds the whale pod in its warm basin while the elder guardians tend the covenant markers. Their distant calls reach the chamber as soft vibrations.
Vaelor
I hope we find more than a route. I hope we find allies, warmth, and a place where your scales can endure the shore.
✓ Quest Accepted
Reach the living western shore with Vaelor