There was some shock when Sonder woke up.
Everything hurt.
Her arms, down to the fingers. Her legs, down to the toes.
Her neck, her back, her eyes, and even the inside of her mouth.
Like she had tried to swallow a hot coal.
The roof of her mouth felt especially sore.
Her face was prickly, like she had endured a bad sunburn.
That was something she hadn't felt for a long time, but she could remember such times.
It didn't happen often.
She needed to get her bearings.
She had forgotten where she was, or how she had come to be there.
Something was floating beside her.
For a moment, she thought it was dust, and Sonder watched it drift through the air.
She remembered seeing something like this before.
Sonder slowly raised a hand. Her arm ached, but she managed it. She held out a finger, and the puff of dust settled on it.
She smiled.
She gently caressed Sireacht with one finger.
"Hello," she said.
Then she looked around the room.
She was lying in a bed. There was another bed nearby.
She didn't remember there being another bed.
She sat up, giving a little squeal of pain as she did so.
She wasn't very hurt, but it had been a while since pain had bothered her this much.
Her head began to ache. It sat somewhere behind her eyes and pulsed.
It felt like there was something on her face.
Her hand shot up, and she held her face, trying to get rid of something invisible that was on it.
But there was nothing.
She set her hands down.
It still felt like something was on her face, so she checked again, but not as frantically, just to be sure.
She could feel something buried in the back of her mind.
She tried to reach for the memory.
Her head hurt more.
She stopped.
Whatever had happened, it had done more than exhaust her body.
It had exhausted her mind.
She trembled slightly.
She knew that she had been afraid, but soon another thought came; one of reassurance.
For some reason, she knew that things were better now.
She leaned back against the pillow.
The little puff of dust drifted closer to her face.
She raised a hand and gently touched her again.
She needed to remember. There was something important that she needed to do.
She was in the Yellow Mage's tower. She had come here for a reason.
But what was that reason?
Did she need to get something from here? Or tell the Yellow Mage something?
Maybe bring something here instead?
She had talked to the Yellow Mage. He also had an important task; related to hers, but separate somehow.
Sonder looked at Sireacht.
"You remember, don't you?"
She tried to remember again.
"I came here."
She remembered that she was traveling. Traveling a lot, all over the world.
She remembered the road, the wilderness, trees, cold nights alone, and long stretches where nothing happened.
She remembered being tired and continuing anyway.
Then she remembered Vell.
That brought back more.
Sonder's hand fell to her lap.
Her head throbbed.
There was something wrong with the memory.
The mask. Her journey to get it.
And fear.
There was a sound outside the room.
Footsteps.
Sonder looked toward the door and shrank back.
It opened.
Vell stepped inside.