Séverine groaned as she trudged the last few steps up the pyramid she was climbing, her cat Bandit clinging to her back. When at last she reached the top, she paused for a moment to catch her breath. This was her first dungeon delve, and she was not quite in shape for it yet. Kendall, the guildmaster, had warned her ahead of time that dungeon travel could be very arduous, and while she had believed him, she hadn’t quite taken it to heart before now. She lowered her head to the ground, panting, and Bandit leapt from her back to come rub up against her face affectionately. 

Then, a voice made the ground beneath them rumble. 

“LITTLE COURSER.” It said. “WHERE IS YOUR KNIGHT?” 

Séverine looked up in the direction the voice was coming from and saw the gentle face in the rock. She realized with shock that she was standing on the knee of some kind of giant stone creature. 

“A knight? Why would I have a knight? I’m not a noble, or anything. I’m an adventurer. I don’t need retainers.” 

“NO HUMAN RIDES YOU?”

“What? No, the only one who rides me is Bandit here.” She said, crouching down to allow Bandit to hop back up onto her shoulders. “And I think you’re a little behind the times. There aren’t any humans.”

She herself only vaguely knew what a human even was, based only on what she’d been told by more experienced Diamond Hounds who had traveled to deeper parts of the dungeon. Did they really used to ride Coursers? 

The stone giant seemed to ponder what Séverine had said for a long moment. Then it spoke again, sounding somber now:

“THAT IS UNFORTUNATE TO HEAR.” 

Séverine remembered some of the stories Apolonia had told her about the Moor of Sleep.

“...Yes, I suppose it is quite unfortunate.” She said thoughtfully. 

The two were quiet for a moment. 

“...Can you tell me the way forward?” Séverine hesitantly broke the silence. The stone giant grunted in assent.

“THIS WAY.” It gestured to a nearby opening in the cavern walls. Séverine nodded, heading that way.

“Thank you for your help,” She said as she went.

“THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR NEWS WITH ME, SAD THOUGH IT MAY BE.”

Well, it’s not exactly news, Séverine thought, but didn’t say. 

“Of course. Perhaps we will see each other again on my way out.”

“PERHAPS. FAREWELL.”