Chapter One, reading # 9

She felt isolated and a little frightened. Things were too confused. She retreated from the confusion by closing her eyes and drawing forth a memory of pleasant times.
It was the summer before Leudh's marriage and things couldn't have been happier. As always, there had been much work to do, but work was pleasure when it assured the health and security of her family. It hadn't been all work, there had been plenty of time for play, too. Leudh took her on hunting trips and taught her even more about the ways of the animals and of the forest itself.
The pleasant memories touched her heart with love and hope. She knew her family would want her to face her fate with courage. She would try to be brave and face her future without hesitation to live up to that expectation. She knew it was going to be a challenging effort for she simply couldn't imagine living anywhere else and being someone else. This was the only home she knew. Eghero, Dakra, and Leudh the only family she could imagine. The idea of her being a princess seemed so unreal. She was a woodsman's daughter - at home in the trees and with the animals. How could she possibly feel at home in some palace? She would probably only embarrass herself with some clumsy comment or inappropriate action.
With a sigh of resignation, she went back to the task of examining the objects on her lap. The last bag was both the largest and the heaviest. Flindra opened it and found a crystal sphere, which fit neatly in the palm of her hand. The surface of the crystal was perfectly smooth and pleasurable to touch. As Flindra moved the sphere about, she saw colored light reflecting throughout the crystal.
The spectrum of colors was hypnotic and she lost herself within the sight. It seemed that all sensations were concentrated in the orb. She felt as if she was being pulled into and through a vortex of color. The colors intensified and surrounded her consciousness. She was lost in the colors until they blended to form a blinding white light. Her consciousness was pulled through the light and into the beyond.
An image of the face of an ancient woman then appeared to Flindra in the crystal. She heard a voice, but the sound didn't come from the crystal. Strangely, the voice echoed within her mind.
The old woman said, "I am Kewero, named for the Northwind. Seek me and learn the answers to the questions in your heart!"