Esylana: She'd met Aeternita in the forest, and...it had been a moment of uncertainty, but then the fae had insisted on coming with her. And since Zenra had still been asleep, Crystal was unwell, and Alaihandra had work to do with the people, Esylana had thought she'd be quite alone on her quest. So she was delighted when Nita had asked to join her, and together they had set off. To the south, along the road, looking mostly inconspicuous. Esylana had given Nita a cloak with which to cover her wings, and to also keep the cold out, as the snow had started to fall - winter was finally here. It had taken them about four days to reach the old Valanice border, and while the landscape would likely remind Nita of sweeter times, Esylana was seeing most of it for the first time. The bamboo forests mingling with the other trees, it was delightfully different from what she was used to, and the snow had her feeling frisky, in spite of the danger - there were quite a few soldiers on the road.

Aeternita: Nita shuddered for a moment the cold air sneaking through her cloak and sending a chill across her skin. Inside the cloak, which Nita is currently beyond grateful to have, her wings wrap around her body adding an extra layer around her upper body. Her slender fingers grip at the inside of the heavy covering keeping it closed just at the bottom of the hood, trying to prevent any air from slipping through. As they travel she gets somewhat lost in the scenery, the purity of the snow making everything seem clean and fresh...it's as if the world took its shape of how she felt inside after meeting "The Oracle", not that she knew that name. "H-hey, Esy?" She scampered up a bit to walk beside her instead of behind her. "...We should find a place to warm up soon, dontcha think?" She smiled hopefully, chewing a bit on her lip as she prays Esy will agree.

Esylana: Esylana paused by a tree and looked around thoughtfully. They were still pretty deep in the woods, but she wondered if the leyline was anywhere near here. She pulled out her spectacles, and set them on her face, hoping to catch a peep of the otherworldly energies with them. And she did, they were right on top of it, as luck would have it. She smiled broadly, nodding as she removed her glasses. "Let's make a camp off the road here and have some food. I should have brought a kettle; we could've had some warm tea." She lamented briefly, before gathering together the wood needed for a fire. While it would be difficult to find dry pieces, they were in a forest, so surely there was some.

Aeternita: Nita let out a relieved sigh, a swirl of steam escaping her lips as she nods. "Yes, let's..." She then offered a gentle shrug and a reassuring, almost playful smile. "No use in worrying about what can't be helped." She then too began searching the area for dry bit of kindling and wood for a sustainable fire, lucky for her if there is one thing she knows, it's nature and it doesn't take long for her to find a healthy supply...enough to last for the time being anyway. With an opening of her arms she flops her latest bit of gathering into a pile on the floor, before brushing the dirt from her hands and immediately shoving them under her armpits to warm them up. "I hope this'll do..we shouldn' t make the fire too big...we don't know who's about..."

Esylana: "Oh yes, this is perfect. Thank you," Esylana took a tinderbox from her belt and after a few strikes, the fire was ready. It was nice, warm, soothing. Snow had lightly begun to fall, and Esylana sat with her bit of dried meat and cheese, enjoying the simple meal with Aeternita. She liked having her around, there was something familiar and soothing about it, and she found herself to be far more jovial than on her previous trips to the leylines, talking about the scenery, and what life was like in Rembrant. Then, she remembered that Aeternita had originally spoken to her like she was known by her...and that started the question. "Aeternita...I hope you don't mind me asking, but...uh..."she swallowed her mouthful. "Do...what...I mean, I was...told I look like the former ruler of Valanice...and I have her same name...uhm..." Gods, this was hard...and now she felt stupid. But she had to know. "What...what was she like? This other Esylana?"

Aeternita: She smiled and sat beside her as the fire began to warm up the area a bit, stretching out her hands and putting her feet a bit closer to it as she watched the flames dance. For the moment she held off on eating, her priority at the time was enjoying the radiating warmth. She slowly slid the hood back from off her head, stifling things that they are she much preferred to be without it whenever possible. "Hm?" She turned to Esy as she heard her begin her query, tilting her head slightly and smiling, but as she heard the question her smile faded just a little. With a soft sigh, she leaned her arms back behind her and lifted her gaze up towards the falling snow. "...She was brave....and just." She turns back to look at her friend. "...fiercely kind, and loyal...She was the kind of woman who made people want to do what was right, even if it was hard...or scary...and.." Her eyes return to the light of the fire. "...she was an amazing friend..."

Esylana: She's taken aback by this, and the warmth of embarrassment rises in her cheeks, before she nods and says, "I see...she sounds like she...was amazing...uhm...heh, I...I'm sorry if I hurt you when we first met. I uh...I don't think I could ever live up to her, and I didn't mean to remind you of her, either..." She fidgets, staring into the fire herself now, watching how the flames danced and spiraled, teasing the cold air with their searing warmth. But in spite of the warmth, she found herself shivering slightly, burrowing into her cloak and hiding her mouth and lower part of her nose, her eyes peeking out shyly.

Aeternita: She smiles reassuringly. "...It's okay, it wasn't your fault. I guess my exhaustion just got the better of me." She watched as Esy turned her attention back to the calming glow of the flames and she did the same. "And your not meant to be compared to her...Living up to her isn't your responsibility. All you need to do, is live for you. Follow your hearts compass and stay the course...Do that Esy, and I don't think there's a force alive that can stop you.." Her voice was kind and sure, and it may seem odd to Esy that despite having only known each other a brief time, this girl would already have such faith in her.

Esylana: Her words encourage Esylana, and she suddenly feels like she could fly, like she -could- take on the world, and you know what? Soldiers or no, this is it, this is what she was meant to do. It didn't matter if she grew up in another world altogether and...and had made horrendous mistakes there, but now...now she was in a world she didn't know hardly at all. But these people mattered, they had lives, families, and friends. They needed help, and this Empire was a complete injustice. And without magic, the Land was dying. Of course she didn't have to live up to someone who may or may not have been her past self, she was her own person, and darn it, her past wasn't going to get her down. She was up, she was shrugging her cloak into place around herself, and with her spectacles on her face, she said, "Let's go. We're close, I just know it." And with that, she went off into the woods, following what looked like a dried up river bed running through the woods of Advant - Nita wouldn't have seen it, however, without the enchanted spectacles Esylana wore on her face.

Aeternita: She blinked and watched as Esy suddenly stood and walked off. "R-right!" She pulled up her hood and after throwing snow quickly on the fire she scampered after her friend, trotting up to her until they walked side by side. "So how does this work anyway? I mean...when we get there...what's going to happen?" She kept her eyes to the ground, being wary of her steps in the deepening snow, a bit of concern in her tone.

Esylana: "Well, we're gonna fix it," she said with a chipper tone. But even as she said that, she was reminded of the ultimate end of this journey. Creating a Master Crystal was...what -was- she doing? What made her think she could do this. And the sudden fear that clenched in her heart almost made her pause. She stopped briefly, and she peered carefully at the dried out leyline. She knew Aeternita was near her, and so she tried to make it look like she was only studying the next steps on a long journey, but inside she was remembering. The vision she'd shared with fellow guild mates. How depressing a tale it had been with the researcher and his loss of his true love to the experiments deep in the underwater dome. How his 'accident' had led to the very creation of the heart of her old guild. And how the Founders had gone ahead, then, and continued those experiments, spurred on by what had happened. All of it came in a rush, and she exhaled slowly, trying to keep from going dizzy. "Alright, this way..." She started walking again, the pit in her stomach growing with each step.

Aeternita: "...It's that easy?" She asked with a bit of suspicion, quirking a brow at her companion. Her lips pursing as Esy's voice went from upbeat and jovial to one that's filled with what seemed to be hesitation. "Umm...is there something I can do to assist you? A-aside from of course simply following your lead.." She wrapped her arms around herself in a tight hug, bracing as the cold caressed her skin beneath the cloak.

Esylana: "Well, we have to reach the source, first..." She came over a ridge and suddenly, there it was. It seemed so out of place, in comparison to the other leyline sources. It was in the forest, in a hollow of trees, the brush and undergrowth parting to leave a large circle in which the ruins of pillars and a large fountain could be seen. And of course, as she expected, there was the symbol broken in half, lying on the ground. "Earth," she whispered, noting the square spiral. "We need to find a stone bit that looks like a line, with two "arms", reaching out at...45 degree angles from it?" She was trying to describe the piece to Nita - the full symbol would have the square spiral supported by the line with "arms".

Aeternita: "The source..." She repeated to herself under her breath, wondering momentarily how many of these places must exist in the world. She stopped beside Esy, taking in the scene before her..it was beautiful, but in an almost eerie way. Maybe it was the snow, or the ancient aura that this place seemed to hold within it. "O-okay...a stone with "arms." She gave her friend a playful wink after a second more of taking in the area. "...Bet I find it first." She then jogged down towards the fountain, making sure to get a head start. She could tell in those moments before arriving here that something was weighing on Esy's mind...she figures a little distraction from her head might be helpful.

Esylana: And she smiled as a silly thought came to mind. She remembered doing this back in Aegara, and now...she got down to the little hollow and looked around before scooping up snow to try and find the piece. It would be small, but distinct, its shape unique to the rest of the debris lying around. She didn't see it immediately, but soon she had a hefty palmful of snow. She rolled it absently, still scanning, when she looked up and grinned as she suddenly let the snowball fly to hit the fae's cloak, before she laughed and ran for cover behind a broken pillar.

Aeternita: She's nearly at the bottom of the ridge when she feels the "poof" of the snow hitting her in the back. She squeaks in surprise not initially knowing what had hit her as she spins around to find out the source of such a dishonorable and aggressive act of violence. As she spins the cruel powers of momentum, gravity and low coefficient of friction send her slipping backwards onto her backside. "O-oof!" As she sits in the snow, wincing a bit more from the surprise than any kind of pain, she catches the end of Esy's cloak as she scurries behind the pillar for defense. "...Yea you hide woman...Cus I will smote thee!!!" Nita stands up and gripping her cloak she covers her face so just her eyes are seen, using it to shield any incoming attacks as she advances on Esy's fortification.

Esylana: Oh no, Esy thinks, laughing and giggling like a school girl the whole time. Angry fae, what has she done? She scoops up another handful of snow, retreating away from the advancing fae before letting loose with another laugh. "Hiya!" she shouts, her cry echoing through the forest, disturbing the silence, the white peace of winter. And then she turns and runs, wrenching her cloak away, or attempting to, fleeing the fae with laughter and mirth.

Aeternita: She lifts her cloak to block the incoming fire...which ironically is snow. A playful, yet devious grin curling the corners of Nita's lips behind her defensive armor. "...Run...if you can, it'll take more than that to quell the wrath of Nita!" She now gives chase, trying to catch up to Esy best she can through the thick layer of snow that she's simultaneously scooping as she advances, whilst making a larger and larger ball.

Esylana : Oh goodness, that's a lot of snow. And the fighting between them would go on for a good long while, back and forth, playing and tossing the snow like children, screeches and giggles, non-serious threats. It would be a wonderful time, a time that Esylana hasn't remembered having in simply forever, and it fills her with hope, and with peace. And finally, they would collapse in the snow together, giggling, drenched, freezing, but happy. As if no time had ever passed between them. And while Esylana still can't remember the time they were together before, Esylana knows that it could very easily have been. She looks over and grins, and while she does so, Nita would feel it. The loose piece of stone that was slightly warmer than the others...and if she looks at it, it would be the right shape, as well.

Aeternita: She lays in the snow beside her old friend, and in that moment the world was right where it used to be. She closed her eyes for but a moment, gasping to catch her breath, her face red with the strain of battle and the bite of the cold. She shifted to turn to Ana, positively beaming before she winced uncomfortably. She reached underneath her to remove the pokey nusince in her back before quickly sitting up...she didn't even need to look at it, she could feel it in her fingers, two branching bits from a square stone. She held it in her fingers and looked at it for a minute. "..It...It's warm.." Her teasing grin returned as she held it up to the other snow drenched woman. "Told ya I'd find it first.."

Esylana: Flushed, and still half-laughing, she looks over and grins, taking the stone in her own hand. "It is...it must be filled with the power we're about to release..." She sits up, brushing the half-melted snow off her. They'd have to warm up fast, otherwise they could catch their death of cold after this. She hands Nita the spectacles, urging her to put them on before she presses the glyph back into place. It locks into the stone, as if it had never left in the first place, and if Nita's watching through the glasses, she would see the fountain spring to life with a bright luminescence that would flow from the fountain and into the leyline that stretches off into the woods. The breeze warms slightly, and the earth rumbles, deeply, but not enough to throw them from their feet. It is as if the stones take on a healthy shine, suddenly, as if things were put to right. The leyline lives again. Esylana, for her part, is now sitting by the fountain, holding her right ankle - the image of the stone they just replaced seared into her flesh, like a scar, or a tattoo.

Aeternita: "..Oh?" She says with awe, slipping the glasses over her ears. She watches intently, as Esy puts the stone in its place bringing forth the power back to the land...some of it anyway. She can't look away, the beauty of the pure natural magic drawing her in...she actually tears up a bit, overwhelmed by the significance of the moment. She knows there's even more to find and fix...but this moment feels like the first step in a journey that will change the world for the better...and to think she has the honor of being there to witness it. "It-it's amazing Es-...Esy?" As she turns to her, she sees Esy nursing her ankle. "..What's wrong? I didn't hurt you during our lil' battle did I?" Her nose scrunches with concern.

Esylana: She stands, perhaps faster than she should have, but she lets her skirts fall to hide the mark. Her left ankle holds the completed symbol of Air. And now half the symbol of Earth is upon her right. She shakes her head. "I'm fine, you didn't hurt me." She forces a smile through the singed tingling that still stings her flesh, but she knows it will eventually fade. But even as she assures Nita, she vaguely sees, overlaying the world around her, a time when she might have been with Nita, and another man, in a forest like this, talking and laughing as they walked to another adventure. He seemed familiar, but she couldn't place him, his katana at his side, and it looked like Nita had mouthed a word, or a name, something like "...Ayden"? The image fades just as fast as she noticed it, however, and she shakes her head. The Land and Its' magics had strange ways. "Let's go home, I'm gonna catch my death of cold." She starts to walk through the woods, back towards the road they'd left behind hours ago, now.

Aeternita: Nita looks unconvinced, unfortunately for Esylana, Nita knows her...and she's seen a lot of genuine smiles, and a lot of fake ones. "Very well.." She says a little meekly, there's something deeper here that Esy isn't sharing and it's hard being outside that trust she used to have, but she understands why, so she opts to let it go. She then wraps her cloak around herself tight and follows behind her for the journey back to the Healer's Grove.