By the time it was night, Sonder was far enough west that any trace of swamp had disappeared.
The moon hung low, and the stars were bright.
Sonder found a hollow between stones, shielded from the wind.
She settled down there.
She didn't look back, and her thoughts never returned to the kobold city or the reptile-men.
After a long while, she reached into her belongings and drew out the wrapped bundle.
For a moment, she hesitated.
Then she undid the cloth.
Three shards lay in her palm, catching the light of the moon.
They were nothing alike, with different lengths and different curves, but it was clear that they once belonged together. She was certain of it.
She wondered what they were made of because it was clear that they weren't glass, even if one would be mistaken at first glance.
The surfaces were smooth, but the material was something entirely unfamiliar. They were warped at points and slightly twisted, but not randomly.
She turned one shard between her fingers.
When she looked at them too long, it almost seemed like there was something in it. She had to force herself to look away in those moments.
She could only wonder what it was once, who made it and what its purpose was.
Now, it seemed like an evil thing, but maybe in the past it wasn't?
Even if the shards seemed alive, and she would ask the questions aloud, no answers would come.
She laid them side by side on the stone.
For an instant, just a tiny moment, she thought she saw the faintest suggestions of a larger shape.
Not a whole image, just a hint of something. It was like something she had seen before and should know, but couldn't place.
something in the far back of her mind that hadn't been thought of in a long while or didn't want to.
Beyond memory, recall or desire.
If she found the rest, she would know.
The thought both thrilled and unsettled her.
Carefully, she wrapped them again, layer by layer, nothing was visible.
The bundle felt heavier than it had any right to be.
She leaned back against the stone and looked up at the sky. She wished she could see the future, but she didn't know how to cast any star-magic.
And Vell's words about it rang in her ears. He didn't believe in it, and even if you could cast it, the results were a blur of nonsense, interpreted however the mage wanted.
She sighed heavily.