An Owl's Rise

Evelyn could not help but be remorseful when Rehni brought up the burrowing owls that lived in the Velinis Desert.

Thanks to her Otis had died. Had she never intruded upon his home and taken him away once he was strong enough to be useful, he would likely still be alive.

Sure, the burrowing owls would take them in and give them a safe place to recover, but Evelyn could not stand to face them. 

However, Evelyn's choice was not purely emotional. She had thought about it logically as well.

"We may find sanctuary with the burrowing owls, but it will not change our current situation much. If I am to recover, we will need stronger healing magic. Something the burrowing owls certainly do not have. Instead, we will head to the Elmot Gorge. There we will find Lucia. Hopefully she will be able to help." 

Without the Roost's support, Lucia was the only friendly ally that Evelyn could think of that might be able to help her recover from her injuries.

Of course, it was possible that her one-time rescuer and occasional trading partner might turn them away. It was not like Evelyn was particularly close to Lucia.

Still, in that case the Velinis Desert was close enough and they could simply head to the burrowing owls' home. As much as Evelyn was reluctant to do so.

"I suppose that makes sense. A peak tyrant rank beast is more likely to be able to help us than the burrowing owls." Bylur said.

He had only met Lucia a couple of times when Evelyn made some exchanges with her, but there was no doubt she was impressive.

"If you think we can trust her, I will agree that it is our best bet. But do you think she will help us for free?" Rehni asked.

"Probably not. Our relationship is give and take. Still, she is not unreasonable. I am sure that we have at least something she might want that we can offer her." 

With their destination now set, Evelyn and her compassion began planning their route to the Elmot Gorge.

To make sure to avoid any dangerous areas they were going to need to make serval detours, but time was not of the essence.

Evelyn's condition was not going to worsen or improve and making haste would only put them in danger.

"Thank you for doing this, Bylur. I am going to be counting on you." Evelyn said, as she was positioned on his back.

He had volunteered to carry Evelyn for the entirety of the journey that was expected to take around three weeks.

"This is no problem. I would do anything to help you. Just leave everything to me and relax. I promise that I will get you healed. Even if Lucia cannot help, I will not stop until you are well again." Bylur said with a reassuring smile.

After they had made their preparations, Bylur with Evelyn on his back, Rehni, Verrader, and Aralee took to the sky and began their journey towards the Elmot Gorge.

…

'It looks like we have finally arrived.' 

Off in the distance at the edge of the horizon, Evelyn could see what looked like a great scar in the earth. 

Just as the last time she saw it, the Elmot Gorge was an imposing landform.

As they got closer, their group lowered their altitude until they were flying just a dozen meters over the ground.

There were powerful beasts in the Elmot gorge that watched the skies and would attack anything they saw flying over it. In order to stay safe, it was necessary to approach from the ground.

When they reached the edge of the gorge, Evelyn pulled out the magical pendant that Lucia had given to her and activated it.

"I have established the connection. Now we just need to wait and hope that Lucia responds." Evelyn said, her expression neutral.

It took nearly two three hours, but eventually a familiar figure came into view. 

With boundless grace, Lucia ascended up the side of the Elmot gorge until she reached the edge and leapt into eh air.

She dexterously landed in front of Evelyn and her companions and eyed them with excitement.

Her first thoughts were that Evelyn had come with more items to deliver, but when she took a closer look, it became clear that was not the case.

"I can tell that this is not a pleasant visit. Follow me, you will have an easier time explaining in the comfort and safety of my home." Lucia said, turning around and jumping right back into the gorge.

Bylur, Rehni, Verrader, and Aralee scrambled to follow her, thinking that they might be left behind if they were too slow.

However, Lucia was not racing ahead and waited for them on a root that was jutting out of the side of the gorge's wall. She was not going to force them to move recklessly to keep up with her full speed.

Carefully she led them into the depths of the gorge and even went so far as to protect them when other beasts attacked.

Thanks to Lucia's guidance and help, the normally perilous journey to the bottom of the gorge was mostly uneventful.

Once they reached the entrance to her home, Lucia pulled out a key shaped magic device and inserted it into the wall of the gorge.

The solid stone began to creak and slowly pushed out.

When the stone reached a certain point past the wall it split in half and slid apart. Revealing a tunnel that descended into the ground.

"Come on. Follow me. My home is at the end of path." Lucia said, noticing the hesitancy in Evelyn's companions' expressions.

Cautiously Bylur led the way with Evelyn on his back and descended into the tunnel with Lucia.

Just as Lucia said, at the end of the path was her home. 

She took them to the largest room within her home and asked them to wait there.

When she came back, she was holding six bowls that contained a hearty stew in them.

"Let us eat before we begin. Once we have all filled our bellies, we can begin our discussion."