Chapter 13: Take a look
Traveling through the sparse vegetation of the highlands was significantly easier than crossing the ashen plains, and the temple provided them with a good observation point, so they planned their path beforehand as well.
They reached the hill in the early afternoon, leaving them with some time for observation and choosing the next step.
Each of them had a pair of binoculars - courtesy of Grond’s shop and Koravel’s stash - and was looking in a different direction, to speed up the process.
"The further we go from the capital the more intact structures remain" Cassian noticed.
Calen nodded in agreement.
Cassian was right, the devastation here wasn’t as severe as what they seen in Asharil, and he suspected that closer to the royal capital everything was razed to the ground.
The landscape was still mostly lifeless and desolate though, just less so.
Their first observation target was the great tree - an ancestral home of the druids. It towered over the surrounding forest, devoid of any signs of life.
Both the tree and the small city at its base vere silent and unmoving, but if one looked closer it became clear the settlement wasn’t completely abandoned. The palisades didn’t have any holes, and the buildings were strangely well preserved.
Granted, it could be just a barrier that kept the city spotless for centuries, but it didn’t really matter for them - inhabited or not, it seemed to be safe space.
"Anyone found anything interesting?" Calen asked.
"Everything is still as far as I can see" Cassian answered.