Games Everdell Spirecrest Instructions
- June 7, 2024
- Games
Table of Contents
CONTENTS
OVERVIEW
Far beyond the comfortable boundaries of the Everdell valley, deep into
mysterious and uncharted lands, adventure is waiting to be discovered. Ancient
ruins? Critters from foreign lands? Giants? Gather your traveling supplies and
your courage, and get ready for a daring journey through the mountains of
Spirecrest!
You will begin the game with a rabbit Traveler on the Mountainboard. Every
season you will have to face challenging weather that will alter how you are
able to play. As the seasons change you will move your Traveler along the
trail, gathering maps to plan a final Expedition, and making amazing
discoveries. Smartly utilize the unique abilities of your Discovery cards,
carefully plan for your endgame Expedition, and the story of your city–as well
as your epic journey–will be remembered in Everdell for many seasons to come!
CREDITS
Expansion Design: James A. Wilson
Development: Dann May, Brenna Noonan
Art: Andrew Bosley
Additional Art: Dann May
Art Direction/Graphic Design: Dann May
Executive Producer: Dan Yarrington
Playtesters: Clarissa Wilson, Karl Schwantes, Chrissy Peske, Iskra
Dyulgerova, Tom Peske, Amy Peske, Alex Peske, James Charlick, Jonathan
Ramundi, Kat Rendek, Trevor Baker, Gregory Delaney-Mucklow, Cory Kneeland,
Angela Kneeland, Marie Kneeland, Michael Forrey, Tim Dolloff, Benjamin Leroy-
Beaulieu, Kim Williams, Anthony Williams, Erin Williams, Rob Bell, Kat
Slosarska-Bell, Jonathan Baxter, Erin Baxter, Andrew Albertsen, Maximilian
Berbechelov
SETUP
Follow the set up rules for the base game with these additions:
- Place the Mountainboard along the lower half of the mainboard.
- Divide the Weather cards into seasons, then shuffle and place 1 facedown, unseen, on each corresponding season spot on the Mountainboard. Return the remaining Weather cards back to the box, unseen
- Keep the Discovery cards divided into their 3 categories: Foothills, Peaks, and Ridge. Shuffle each group individually and place them facedown on their corresponding spots on the Mountainboard.
- Give each player an Everdell map tile. Then shuffle the 24 map tiles and place 1 more than the number of players faceup on the Foothills portion of the trail. Then place the same amounts facedown on the Peaks Trail and Ridge Trail. Return the remaining map tiles to the box, unseen.
- Arrange the Big Critter meeples on the Mountainboard (optional) or nearby.
- Flip over the winter Weather card and place a Traveler meeple for each
player on the Foothills icon at the beginning of the trail.
Note: Spirecrest adds substantial complexity to Everdell. When playing Spirecrest, it is recommended that you do not include other expansion material.
THE TRAIL
Your adventurous Traveler will be journeying through the mysterious Spirecrest
mountains, braving treacherous weather and venturing into uncharted lands.
Along the way they will discover hardy mountain folk, exotic locations,
challenging trails, and even some of the fabled Big Critters who are rumored
to roam these peaks.
Your Traveler begins the game exploring the Foothills and will then progress
to the Peaks, then the Ridge, and then finally to your Expedition.
Every time after you perform a Prepare for Season action, you must perform the
Explore action, which consists of the following 3 steps:
1) Chart
Take 1 of the map tiles from the area your Traveler is exploring and place the
map at the end of your Expedition.
2) Discover
Reveal 3 Discovery cards from the area your Traveler is exploring and then
play 1 into your area.
3) Travel
Move your Traveler to the next area on the trail, and reveal the Weather card
and the map tiles if they are not already revealed.
Chart
Choose any of the faceup map tiles on the area of the trail where your
Traveler is currently exploring. Take the map tile and place it at the end of
your Expedition.
At the beginning of the game, your expedition will consist only of the
Everdell map tile that you received during setup. When you gain your next map
tile, place it to the right of the Everdell map tile as shown below:
Other map tiles
you gain will then be placed to the right of that map tile. Each player will
gain a total of 3 map tiles over the course of the game. This forms the
Expedition that your Traveler may embark on at the very end of the game.
The Expedition will be explained in more detail later in these rules.
Discover
After choosing and adding a map tile to your Expedition, then take the top 3
cards from the deck corresponding to the area you are exploring. This will be
the Foothills deck the first time you Prepare for Season. Place these 3 cards
faceup along the bottom of the Mountainboard, beneath the cost markers on the
board as shown below:
These cards
represent different discoveries that your Traveler has made during their
journey. You get to pick only 1 of these cards to play into your area. These
cards do not count against your city size limit.
The first card in the row is free to play the second card, you must either
discard 1 card from your hand or pay 1 of any resource. To play the third
card, you must either discard 2 cards from your hand, pay 2 of any resource,
or discard 1 card and pay 1 resource.
Play the Discovery card beside your city. Place the 2 Discovery cards that you
did not play facedown on the bottom of their deck.
Types of Discovery Cards
There are different types of Discovery cards that you may encounter. All of
the Discovery cards are outlined in detail in the Index at the back of this
rulebook.
Discovery cards are considered “cardplaying abilities” and therefore may not
be combined with cards like the Innkeeper or the Crane.
Trails and Cities: Trails will challenge you to fulfill certain
requirements in order to gain their endgame points. Cities, which are only
found in the Ridge deck, will gain you endgame points based on card types that
are not in your city.
Ongoing Effects: You will gain an ongoing ability that will remain in
effect for the duration of the game, or as long as the card states.
Locations: These may be locations that only you can visit or Open
locations that other players can visit as well. When Played: Some cards have
abilities that you will perform immediately when playing them.
Big Critters: If you play a Big Critter card, take the matching meeple
from the Mountainboard. This Big Critter replaces 1 of your workers, and you
may optionally use a plastic addle clip to attach your worker to the Big
Critter so they are riding them.
Big Critters are considered “workers,” but possess unique abilities. They may
visit all the normal locations that other workers can, such as resource
gathering spots, Destination cards, etc. They may also be moved with cards
like the Ranger.
Travel
After claiming a map and playing a Discovery card, move your Traveler to the
next designated area on the trail. These areas are marked by symbols:
If the Weather
card for that area is not yet revealed, reveal it now; you must now follow the
rule restrictions of this Weather card. If the maps on the trail of this area
are not yet revealed, flip all of them faceup now. When you perform the autumn
Prepare for Season action, first turn over the autumn Weather card if it is
not already revealed. Then move your Traveler off the Mountainboard and onto
the Everdell tile at the beginning of your Expedition; while here, you must
follow the rule restrictions of the autumn Weather card.
WEATHER
You will be exploring these areas during hese seasons of the game: Winter:
Foothills; Spring: Peaks; Summer: Ridge; Autumn: Expedition. While in each
season, you must follow the rule restrictions of the corresponding Weather
card.
After you Prepare for Season and move your Traveler forward to the next area,
flip over the Weather card for that new season if it is not already revealed.
You must now follow the rules of this new Weather card for as long as you are
in the corresponding season. You are only affected by the Weather card in the
current season.
Different players may be affected by different Weather conditions at the same
time in the game, depending on which season they are currently in.
Note that cards like the Lookout ignore the Weather effects that apply to
Forest and Basic locations.
Weather effects that force you to discard cards take effect at the end of your
turn after you have fully resolved your placement or card abilities.
If the Weather effect requires you to pay an additional cost to play a card,
you may ignore this effect if you are playing the card for free (via occupied
token or another effect).
EXPEDITION
At the end of the game, immediately after you pass, your Traveler may then
embark on their Expedition. Each map tile of your Expedition will grant you
endgame points, but only if you pay the listed cost to travel there first. You
may choose how many map tiles you will travel through if any. You must travel
through your Expedition in the order that you charted it.
For example, you must pay the cost listed on the first tile to the right of
the Everdell Valley tile before you can pay the cost on the second tile, and
finally the third. Move your Traveler to the furthest map tile that you choose
to explore. When you add up points, you will gain points for the map tile your
Traveler is on and all of the previous titles to the left. You do not gain
points for map tiles that you do not explore.
In the below example, the player pays 3 resin and earns 4 points, but cannot
pay the 3 pebbles required to continue on their expedition.
SOLO RULES
Ragwort is on the move!
He never was known for his original ideas, and now he is literally following
in your footsteps! Ragwort has heard of the amazing discoveries being made in
the Spirecrest mountains, and he has hired a shady critter to follow you
around on your journey, trying to scratch up whatever you leave behind.
You must make sure that he wanders down the wrong path and doesn’t return!
When playing the Spirecrest expansion solo, use the solo rules from the base
game, including the 3 years of difficulty, with these additional rules:
-
Place 1 Everdell Valley tile in Rugwort’s area and place his Traveler on it.
-
Place 2 map tiles on each area of the trail, with the tiles on the Foothills faceup, and the Peaks and Ridge tiles facedown.
-
Ragwort ignores all Weather effects.
-
Ragwort takes the map tile that you do not choose from each area. Place it at the end of his Expedition.
-
Depending on which Discovery card you play, Rugwort will gain a certain amount of point tokens. Give him 3 point tokens if you play the 0-cost card, 2 point tokens for the 1-cost card, or 1 point token for the 3-cost card.
-
At the end of the game, move Rugwort’s Traveler to the end of his Expedition. He will score for every map tile in his expedition.
INDEX
WEATHER CARDS
Winter
Blizzard: Whenever you gain resources from a Forest location, you gain 1
less resource. Example: You visit the Forest location with 2 resin and 1 twig,
and you choose to take 1 resin and 1 twig. This does not apply to cards drawn
at a Forest
location.
Dense Fog : You must pay 1 additional resource of your choice to play a
card from your hand. If a card costs 2 berries, you may pay 2 berries and any
other resource to play the card. Critters played for free via occupied tokens
are still free.
Freezing Rain: You may not visit any Forest locations. If playing with
player powers (Bellaire expansion), Lizards may still visit their exclusive
Forest location.
Spring
Heavy Rain: Whenever you visit a Basic location, gain 1 less resource or
1 less card. Example: You visit the 2 twigs, 1 card space, and choose to take
2 twigs but not draw the card.
Lightning Storms: Each Construction costs 1 additional resource to play.
This resource may be a berry or any other resource of your choice. This still
applies even if you use a card-playing ability like a Crane.
Severe Wind: Every time you play a card into your city and completely
resolve its effects, you must then discard 1 card from your hand if you are
able to do so.
Summer
Drought: Green Production cards do not activate when you play them.
Heat Wave: Each Critter costs 1 additional berry to play. This still
applies even if you are using a card-playing ability like an Innkeeper.
Tornado: You may not play any cards from the Meadow. If an ability lets
you draw cards from the Meadow into your hand, you may do so, then later play
them from your hand.
Autumn
Flooding: Each card in the Meadow costs 1 additional resource to play.
This resource may be any resource of your choice. This still applies even if
you use a card-playing ability like a Crane or an Innkeeper.
Hail: After visiting a Basic or Forest location and fully resolving that
location’s effects, you must then discard 1 card from you’re hand if you are
able to do so.
WildFire: You must immediately place 1 of your workers on this card
permanently when you prepare for autumn. You will have 1 less worker to use in
autumn.
DISCOVERY CARDS
Foothills
Archeologist: When played, place up to 3 Constructions beneath this card,
either from your hand, the Meadow, or a combination of both. These cards do
not count toward your hand limit. Later, when playing a card, you may choose
to play 1 of these cards for a decreased cost of 1 less of any resource.
Cartographer’s Caravan: When you place a worker here, draw 3 cards, then
also gain 1 of any resource for each worker that is here, including the worker
you just placed. Each player may only have up to 1 of their workers here. If
an opponent visits this location, you gain 1 point token.
Every blossom Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you have at least 3 purple
Prosperity cards in your city.
Forager: Whenever you gain berries from any action, you perform in the
game, draw 1 card for each berry that you gained.
Green
sprout Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you have at least 4 green Production
cards in your city.
Map Seller: When you place a worker here, you may draw cards from the
Meadow or the discard pile (or a combination of the two) up to your hand
limit. Do not refresh the meadow until you have completed this action. Each
player may only have up to 1 of their workers here. If an opponent visits this
location, you gain 1 point token.
Mistress Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you have at least 3 tan
Traveler cards in your city. Starfall Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you
have at least 3 blue Governance
cards in your city.
Stubblehoof (Big Critter): When you Prepare for the Season, you may
choose not to bring back Stubblehoof and activate the location where
Stubblehoof is, and also draw 1 card and gain 1 of any resource. In a solo
game, you may still activate a location even if Ragwort moves to it.
Sunblaze Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you have at least 3 red
Destination cards in your city.
Trail Guide: When played, place up to 3 Critters beneath this card,
either from your hand, the Meadow, or a combination of both. Later, when
playing a card, you may choose to play 1 of these cards for a decreased cost
of 2 fewer berries. These cards do not count toward your hand limit.
Peaks
Ancient Orchard: You may place a worker here to gain 5 berries.
Belong Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you complete every map in your
Expedition.
Cloudrim Peak: When you place a worker here you must discard 5 different
colored cards from your hand (1 of each color type in the deck). Then, gain 8
point tokens.
Grey Cloak’s Hideout: You may move 1 of your deployed workers here to
activate the location that the worker was on before you moved them. This
counts as your action. You may only have up to 1 worker here at a time.
Honeypaw (Big Critter): If you did not gain any berries from placing
Honeypaw, then after you fully activate the location where you placed
Honeypaw, you may also gain 1 entry for each resource that you did gain
there, up to a maximum of 3 berries.
King Rhun (Big Critter): You may place King Rhun on any purple Prosperity
card in your city to gain 1 of any resource equal to the base point value of
that card. Example: If you place King Run on a Castle, you would gain 4
resources of your choice.
Mole Mines: When you place a worker here, you may reveal cards from the
deck is equal to how many more cards you could draw into your hand. You may
stop revealing cards at any time and draw the revealed cards, plus gain 1
point token for each card. If any of the revealed cards ever match a card in
the Meadow, discard all revealed cards and gain nothing. Each player may only
have up to 1 of their workers here. If an opponent visits here, you gain 1
point token.
Ruins of Spire: When you place a worker here, gain 3 resources consisting
of either twigs, resin, or pebbles. They do not all have to be the same
resource.
Stormvale : When played, draw 3 cards and place them faceup by this card.
You or an opponent may play any of these cards just as if they were in the
Meadow. You gain 1 point token each time an opponent plays 1 of these cards.
Replenish any played cards from the deck.
Whisper (Big Critter): Whisper ignores the exclusive placement rule. You
may place Whisper on a location already occupied by you or an opponent,
including Destination cards, Forest locations, and Journey. You may not use
Whisper to achieve an event that another player has already achieved.
Windlore (Big Critter): You may place Windlore on top of the deck and
then draw 3 cards from the deck. While Windlore remains on the deck if an
opponent draws cards, you may draw 2 cards from the deck. Also while on the
deck, you may draw cards beyond your hand limit, but then you must immediately
choose which cards to discard from your hand to get back down to your hand
limit. Do not use in a solo game.
Ridge
Bounty Hunter: When played, name any Critter card and then search the
deck. If you find that Critter, you may draw it into your hand, even if your
hand is full. If you do not find it, you gain nothing. Shuffle and return the
deck when you are done.
Cloudsong: When played, name any Construction card and then search the
deck. If you find that Construction, you ay draw it into your hand, even if
your hand is full. If you do not find it, you gain nothing. Shuffle and return
the deck when you are done.
Every blossom City: Worth 6 endgame points and -1 point for each purple
Prosperity card in your city. Gatherwind Trail: Worth 4 endgame points if you
have achieved at least 2 Events (basic and/or special).
Green sprout City: Worth 6 endgame points and -1 point for every 2 green
Production cards in your city.
Hopewatch Trail: Worth 1 endgame point for each point you gained on
Journey, up to 7 points.
Mistress City: Worth 6 endgame points, and -1 point for each tan Traveler
card in your city. you gain nothing. Shuffle and return the
Serpent’s Pass: Place this card at the beginning of your Expedition so it
will be the first area you will explore when moving out of Everdell. You must
pay 6 of any combination of resources to travel onto Serpent’s Pass.
Sunblaze City: Worth 6 endgame points and -1 point for each red
Destination card in your city.
Starfall City: Worth 6 endgame points and -1 point for each blue
Governance card in your city.
The Distant Shore : Place this card at the end of your Expedition so it
will be the last area you will explore. You must discard 6 cards to travel
onto The instant Shore.
EXCERPTS FROM THE JOURNAL OF TORRIN HARE
7th of Hopewatch
“A fool’s errand.”
Those words echo in my ears as we take shelter from a late winter storm. We
are only seven days into our quest, and already the weight of what we are
hoping to accomplish is heavy upon us. We have left the comfort of our homes
to venture into these wildlands seeking aid from a king, who some still insist
is only a legend. My companions are stout and hardy critters, but I recognize
the seed of doubt in their eyes.
Our needs cannot be ignored. It will take months to rebuild from the carnage
left by the tornado and the dangerous shortage of food from the drought. If
the bitter frost of this winter continues, there will be little time to grow
and harvest new crops this year.
I must remember the words that my father told me: “You were never meant to
follow in my prints, Torrin, to live a comfortable life as a shopkeeper. You
were born for greater things. Go with my blessing. I will be watching every
day for your triumphant return.”
I think I will encourage Chibblesqueak and Rose with a song. Chibs, in
particular, has a droopy tail about the weather. It will do my heart good as
well. A tune to help us muster our bravery once more.
19th of Hopewatch
I knew my rabbit instincts about that map seller were correct! He pressed us
to buy a map with a so-called shortcut, and Chibs, eager to avoid any more
freezing rain, paid the high price in shinies.
The whole business smelled foul to me, but seeing as how Chibs is an official
member of the Cartographer’s Guild, I begrudgingly decided to trust his
judgment.
The map led us along a wayward and treacherous path, thick with foliage made
damp by the continued onslaught of biting cold rain.It was approaching sunset
when we broke from the undergrowth, only to nearly topple into a deep canyon
stretching out before us.
Finally, Chibs admitted the map was ludicrous and hurled the cursed thing into
the canyon.
Then Rose spotted a bridge. It was a rope and plank structure, clearly
ancient, and I was about to declare that it was not worth the risk when she
plunged ahead. In short order he was safely on the other side, where she
announced that there was a dry hollow in which we could take shelter.
I encouraged Chibs to go second, knowing that if I left him for last, he might
never follow us. I could see his tail trembling the entire way. I swallowed my
own trepidations and began the crossing. A shrill wind blasted through the
canyon, swaying the rickety bridge. I folded down my ears and pressed forward,
refusing to imagine my body breaking upon the rocks far below and then
floating lifeless down the river… Safe in the dry hollow, we were finally able
to laugh at ourselves for trusting, of all critters, a weasel to give us
directions.
22nd of Hopewatch
The day began wet and dreary as we plodded along the Mistress Trail. I don’t
know how many hours we spent wandering through that shrouded valley, taking
wrong turns and
getting our fur positively soggy.
We were in quite a sour mood after midday and decidedly lost. Rose scaled a
tree to discover that we had only progressed a short distance from where we’d
started. Chibs plopped to the ground and nearly started to weep.
Then, finally, a rare bit of luck! A cardinal spotted Rose and landed for a
chat. We were overjoyed to discover that this fine bird was actually a trail
guide. He generously offered to help us. In no time at all, it seemed, we were
out of the mist and resting happily on a grassy knoll at the other side. We
told the trail guide of our quest, and he suggested that we seek out a famed
mountaineer of the area, who he said frequented a nearby traveler’s inn.
23rd of Hopewatch
The inn was a prominent establishment just off the main trail, aptly named
Wayward’s Way. The tables were busy with a colorful assortment of mountain
folk.
We learned from a rather plump hedgehog that no one knew the real name of the
mountaineer, but that the locals called him Grim. A grinning prospector
claimed he could
help us find Grim, for a price. We declined. It was getting late, and the
innkeeper generously put us up in a room with a hearth and three dry beds. It
had been weeks since any of us had felt a straw pillow against our whiskers.
The next morning we were surprised to meet a frowning red panda, who appeared
to be waiting for us. “So this is it? I’ve seen stouter critters than you
attempt to brave these peaks, never to return.”
Grim downed a mug of something. “I will take you to Stormvale. The owls may
know where you can find the king. But you are on your own after that… f any
of you are still alive.”
Month of Mistress
Finally Grim has allowed us to rest and to light a fire! I can barely write,
my paws are so frozen. This Bellsong Trail is a miserable road indeed.
I do not know the actual date. Grim has been driving us so hard, even
demanding that we travel through the night at times. Does he never tire?
The cold! Oh, it is so miserably cold here. Hopefully Rose can light the twigs
we carried with us. I’m sure that Grim would have some trick to get a fire
going, but we aren’t about to ask him.
3rd of Mistress
I was convinced that Grim was going to drive us to our deaths, but by some
miracle, we survived the frigid road of the Bellson Trail, and then the
treacherous climb up to the ower of Stormvale. The glowing beacon at the
tower’s peak was certainly a light of hope for us.
The owls gave us a warm welcome, a delightful feast, and very comfortable
lodgings. Grim was gone before we even noticed that he had left.
Sadly, for all their wisdom, the owls do not know where King Rhun is. They say
that if anyone has seen him, it would be the great eagle, Windlore. An eagle!
It will be truly astonishing to see this Windlore for ourselves. For now, we
will enjoy our time of rest in Stormvale. I hear that their library is
magnificent.
9th of Mistress
Windlore told us quite happy that he had seen King Rhun, just recently in
fact, as he was oaring over the Ruins of Spire. He offered that we could ride
upon his back. How could we decline?
The flight was truly the most exhilarating experience of my life; I think that
Windlore took a certain delight in scaring us with his diving and swoopings.
The weather darkened before we arrived at the ruins, and streaks of lightning
forced us to land. Windlore told us that the ruins were not too far ahead and
that we could make our way to them easily enough once the storm had passed.
The eagle wished us well, gave us a wink, then leaped and soared away.
10th of Mistress
The paths leading up to the Ruins of Spire are treacherous; the spring thaw
has created icy rivers that carve over and around the stones. Rose fell and
injured her left arm. It is clearly causing her pain, but I do not think it is
broken. I believe that her pride was hurt more.
We are beginning to see some of the ancient settlements. Perhaps someday I
will return here to explore them more, but for now, we must press on, the
quest at the forefront of our minds.
There was a time today that I felt a strange presence. Like we were being
watched. Yet, when I turned around, we were alone.
11th of Mistress
Astounding! We have reached the heart of the Ruins of Spire! From here we can
see Everdell Valley as a green blur far in the distance. It is incredible to
imagine that Corrin Evertail himself may very well have stood in this exact
spot.
I had the same eerie feeling as yesterday: that we are being watched…
We have now spent an entire day exploring the ruins, and still no sight of
King Rhun. I begin to wonder if I am losing my mind. All throughout the day, I
was looking back over y shoulder, positive that I would find eyes upon us.
I could not hide my intuitions from Rose or Chibs, and now I fear that they
are beginning to feel it as well.
We have decided to remain here for one more night. If we have not found the
king by the morning, then we will leave this strange place.
12th of Mistress
We had a troubled sleep, convinced that we were surrounded on all sides by
serpents or ghouls. When dawn finally broke, we nearly jumped out of our furs
at the sound of a deep voice. We spun to find ourselves staring up at a
towering mountain ibex. King Rhun himself! He wore a weathered crown between
his long, curved horns; his muscular frame held his stature tall and strong;
his eyes were ancient and wise. We bowed low before him.
He said that he had been watching us for days now, and told us to speak our
names and state the purpose for traveling into his realm. I did so, trembling
in his presence.
After a moment of silence, with those deep eyes staring into each of us, King
Rhun answered. “Not only is your bravery admirable, but it is also inspiring.
You have climbed to the top of your world, risking your fur to seek aid from
giants. Woe to me, woe to all critters if I, King Rhun of Spirecrest, should
let you return without the promise of hope and help. We ill help you, as best
we can. More than that, I shall descend to visit your king myself, to see what
may be done.”
Chibs could not contain a squeal of excitement. My own heart as pounding. “As
for you three, your journey is not yet complete. You must travel onward to the
Ridge, and visit the cities found leading away from that road. Speak with the
leaders there, tell them I have sent you. Many of them are critters unfamiliar
to you in Everdell, but they are all
good-hearted.”
He told us the safest route out of the peaks and how we could find these
foreign cities. Chibs took copious notes and drew maps, then showed his work
to the king, who nodded approvingly. “You may have what it takes to become a
famous cartographer one day, Chibblesqueak of Everdell.” (I think Chibs’s tail
grew longer when he heard this).
The king said, “I see there is more, though, in your hearts. There is a
yearning for something, is there not?”
Rose stepped forward. I was surprised to see that her eyes were moist. “I have
lost all of my family,” she said. “There is nothing left for me in Everdell. I
do not know where I belong anymore. I seek adventure, a purpose, a challenge.
Is that wrong?”
King Rhun shook his head. “Never is it wrong to better understand one’s
purpose in this world, young wild Rose. Should you decide to remain in
Spirecrest, you will find adventure, you may even find great wealth. But know
this:
purpose does not come from outside, but from within. Whatever you may gain in
this life, it will not satisfy. It is what you give that will begin to make
the difference you seek.” Rose stepped back, looking down at her injured arm.
She said no more after that for quite a long time.
“And you,” the king said, looking at me, “I can see the wanderlust in your
eyes, Torrin Hare. You are not content to remain in Everdell either, are you?”
I had a comfortable life in Everdell, full of simple work… but I realized that
my father was right, that the king was right. How many hours had I spent
gazing up at these peaks, writing in my journal, dreaming and wondering?
“One day,” the king said, “you may find yourself leaving this land to seek
another, not unlike your hero of old, Corrin Evertail. My father spoke similar
words to him when he passed through here many years ago.”
I was truly humbled to be compared to Corrin Evertail, even in this small way.
I stood speechless, pondering the implications of what the king was saying.
Then he laughed lightly. “But let your hearts not be troubled by my words. You
must continue on your quest, and I must make my way down into your beautiful
valley. Go, my brave little friends. Go onward, and may your journeys be
blessed.”
1st of Starfall
I still remember his words, though it has been months since he spoke them to
me. King Rhun was right. There is a calling within me, a stirring for
something more. Something beyond.
Rose did return to the mountains, and last I heard she had found great wealth
exploring caves. I hope she will remember the king’s words.
Chibs was so inspired by the king’s approval of his mapmaking skills that he
formed a Cartographer’s Caravan to create an atlas of the entire world. He was
never one for
small ambitions.
I find myself gazing upon a sparkling blue sea, ready to board a vessel that
will take me across to an unknown destination far beyond. But the destination
is not what drives me. It is the daily travels, the surprises, and delights,
the challenges and heartbreaks, the wonder and the imagination and every
breath of every moment…
The journey is the destination.
The distant shore awaits