Her money was gone, rations were low, and her horse was exhausted. Almost four days riding sun up to sun down took its toll, at her fierce pace nonetheless. The sky had gone black once more but tonight she kept pressing on, spurred by the tingling sense that what she came for was close at hand. The weight of exhaustion pressed upon her whole body like the weight of her armor after hours of training. Even in the darkness the oppressive warmth in the air offered no relief from the day’s exertion. Time lapsed as she slipped from consciousness briefly. She hated the feeling that she’d missed an unknown amount of time, this it marked the time for her to stop for the night.
[color=990000][i]“Carry on, child. We are close.”[/i][/color]
She mustered the strength to growl at the voice in her head, [color=ff3f3f][i]“do not call me that.”[/i][/color]
Perhaps it was the tired delirium, or perhaps she was in fact losing her mind. Whatever the case, her stupor made it far funnier than it should have been that here she was talking to some imaginary voice. It seemed to serve to wake her up a sliver which was enough to finally make it within view of Silverwick.

[color=990000][i]“Gods have mercy ...”[/i][/color]
She knew the history of what happened here, but to see the devastation firsthand was nothing short of shocking. Much of the rubble had weathered to dust, flattening into an ashen soil half-burying what still stood. Nothing green lived here; everything was grey and black and charred. Various half-destroyed buildings stood like a scorched forest across the barren expanse. Yet the place felt ... [i]alive[/i]. A burning energy permeated the very air. She [i]was[/i] losing her mind. There was absolutely nothing living here, and she knew she didn’t have the aetheric training to sense anything. Perhaps more concerning was the sense of familiarity. She had never been here before, [i]or had she?[/i] She left her horse and treaded carefully into the ruins.

[color=990000][i]“I always hated this place,”[/i][/color] the voice spoke again.
This time she swore it came from one of the streets ... or what she assumed were once streets now buried in ash. [color=ff3f3f][i]“Who are you?”[/i][/color] she called into the inky night.
[color=990000][i]“Do not be afraid.”[/i][/color]
Adrianna could see nothing anywhere, and it kept changing direction whatever it was. Its advice certainly wasn’t helping to reassure her racing heart.
[color=990000][i]“Relax, child. I am only here in your mind.”[/i][/color]
That was less than reassuring. It still didn’t answer her thousand questions. [color=990000][i]“I am Kassandra Malistare, the blade dancer. Forgive me for startling you.”[/i][/color]
Adrianna pulled at her hair, convinced her own mind was betraying her. Seemingly knowing, [color=990000][i]“Do not be afraid, your mind does not deceive you, and you are not alone. We should find the others, before I teach you.”[/i][/color]
[color=ff3f3f][i]‘Teach me what?’[/i][/color] Adi thought to herself, finally breaking the habit of speaking out loud to the voice in her head.
[color=990000][i]“Everything,”[/i][/color] Kassandra answered, [color=990000][i]“All the power I once wielded will be yours to command, to right the wrong that I see tearing you apart, to shape this world to your will.”[/i][/color]
[color=ff3f3f][i]‘... The power to take back my rightful crown,’[/i][/color] she fantasized.
[color=990000][i]“You are not meant for your father’s crown.”[/i][/color]
[color=ff3f3f][i]“It is my birthright!”[/i][/color] she seethed aloud.
[color=990000][i]“Your birthright is to rule far above your petty lordship. You will sit upon the throne of the Imperium itself and preside over half of the known world.”[/i][/color]

Kassandra had her. Just like that she owned the girl. Adrianna coveted a throne and she was just promised the highest throne in all of Avalon. If she had a physical form, her telltale smirk would be all over it. [color=ff3f3f][i]‘What would you have me do?’[/i][/color]
[color=990000][i]“This world took from you what it promised and cast you aside. Here on the site of our fiercest victory, you too will learn the power to rewrite the world in your image.”[/i][/color]
[color=ff3f3f][i]‘Gods have mercy the old legend is true ... you were a Legionnaire.’[/i][/color]
Adrianna couldn’t even comprehend it. Shock and exhaustion took her legs out from under her. Kassandra was of the Shadow Legion, and she was among the chosen reincarnate.
[color=990000][i]“I am indeed, and you, Adrianna, will be my protégé.”[/i][/color]

She remembered what Kassandra had said: that the others needed to be found. Adi remembered her horse, and led him through the city towards a flickering light near the fringe of the ashland. She thought she could see people around the flames but she couldn’t shake the thought this was all a hallucination. Rest would do her well. If the people were real, she only hoped that there would be no need for a fight. Her staff and armor were both stowed and she had neither the strength nor the dexterity use either at this hour.