Azura's POV
The mist had burned off by the time we were an hour out.
What replaced it was not much better. Heavy clouds sit low over everything, grey and flat, the kind that neither threatens rain nor promises anything good.
The road stretched ahead of us in a long straight line that eventually curved into the trees and disappeared, which was less reassuring than a road that you could see the end of.
I kept moving.
The map said we were heading in the right direction. The road said the same thing. The trees on both sides said nothing because they were trees and had no opinions about our schedule.
Liona was beside me. She had been beside me since we left the gate, and she had been quiet for the first hour, which was how I knew she was tired.
Liona was quiet, meaning Liona was conserving energy. Liona conserving energy meant Liona approaching the outer limit of what she was willing to do without commentary.
We had been walking for hours.
"How much further?" she asked.
