The broad-built adult beast steps away from the spring and settles beneath a rock shelf, no longer blocking the narrow valley entrance. Its amber eyes remain open.
Mist thins above the water, revealing softened stones around the spring. Faded carvings emerge beneath moss and mineral stains, arranged in a broken ring.
Mara
The creature yielded the passage without retreating. It is watching, not attacking.
The carvings show a descending ravine, a spring marked by three curved lines, and small figures entering the valley with empty hands.
Beyond the reeds, the valley opens into pale grass and scattered black stones. No movement disturbs it, though the older route continues clearly westward.
The broad-built adult beast lowers its head onto its forelegs. Rain darkens its coarse fur while its gaze follows Mara, calm and deliberate beneath the shelf.
Behind her, the watchtower and wounded traveler lie beyond the ravine. Ahead, the quiet entrance and the faded spring carvings wait without summons.
Interpret the spring carvings