Page 120 of Dawn of Hope

But ithasto be in here.

I turn back toward the center of the room and look at the far side. Two stone stairs carved into the floor lead up to a platform. It reminds me of the throne room back in Blackwood, but there is no throne, only a small alcove carved into the far wall. I climb the stairs quickly and sprint to the alcove.

The stone is smooth inside the oval, and a small basin makes up the bottom. Just above the basin is a hole, smaller than my fist, with a stone spout beneath it.

This is it. This is where you get it.

I glance around, looking for something, anything, to hold the cure in. How could I have been so unprepared and come with no vessel to carry it in?

A booming voice startles me, stopping my frantic search. I whip my head around, searching the room for whoever is speaking.

I am alone.

It’s the island.

I shake my head, focusing on the voice, to process what it is saying. The voice is commanding, but calming, and I find myself overcome with a feeling of happiness and safety as I take in its words.

Thehealing waters of Dawnlin you seek,

To help a loved one sick and weak.

The waters better than any cure,

Leaving the sick or injured pure.

With hope you came unto this land,

To leave with the waters in your hand.

Searched high and low with all your might,

Battling darkness to step into light.

A few more tasks must be complete

Or else your time here obsolete.

Carve the name of the one you must save

In order to keep themfrom the grave.

The voice stops, the chamber falling silent again.

Carve the name of the one you must save.

Carve the name where?

I look at the alcove in front of me, but it is as smooth as the door behind the waterfall. I turn and that is when I realize what I didn’t see before.

The walls aren’t covered in an intricate design or pattern. They are carved withnames. Names cover every square inch of the walls. Big, small, legible or not, the entire chamber is filled with the names of those Dawnlin has saved. They are forever part of this island, part of the magic of the place that healed them.

It brings tears to my eyes, knowing I am not alone. So many people before me had made this journey, had found this island and held hope in their hearts, in order to save someone they loved.

And they had.

This room is proof of that.

I run my fingers across the names, some of them in languages from neighboring kingdoms. Tears well in my eyes as I see that no matter who we are, or where we come from, hope has brought us together with a unified goal.