It was late evening when he descended into the woods, having wound his way around the looming mountains above. The moon was beginning to rise above the horizon and the sky was already coated in charcoal, small beams of pale light glittering through the canopy of leaves and illuminating the forest floor like jumbled pieces of a puzzle. It was dark, and Soltero slipped between the trees in solemn silence - almost as though he were a ghost, invisible to the eye and drifting across the land almost eagerly. He had eaten relatively okay the past few days but sleep had not come easily to him, and frequently he would be left stretched out in the open, staring at the moon.

The young traveller paused for a moment, air billowing from his nostrils like the breath of a dragon - he stood stock still for a few heartbeats before continuing to move, intent on encountering another who might be able to gift him hints to his desired location. I will find them, mother, I will. It was an oath he had sworn to himself, to his mother, to the stars, and there was no way he could possibly fail in his task.