The Reader of Stone

The quiet resolve settled over them, a shared understanding that needed no words. They turned their attention to the next task, the choosing of the third stone. This time, however, it was Bria who stepped forward. She did not wait for Soren or Finn to lead. She simply began to walk, her eyes scanning the ground, her senses open to the subtle language of the earth and stone.

She paused, her gaze resting on a particular patch of ground. She knelt, her fingers brushing away the loose soil, revealing the edge of a large, flat stone. She did not try to pry it loose. She simply placed her hand on its surface, her eyes closed, listening. It was the same stillness she had learned from Soren, the same quiet attention she had given to the first stone. But this time, it was her own.

After a long moment, she opened her eyes and looked up at Soren and Finn. “This one,” she said, her voice soft but certain. “It wants to be the third.”

Soren and Finn looked at the stone, then at Bria. They saw the quiet confidence in her eyes, the newfound certainty in her posture. Soren nodded slowly. “Then it will be,” he said. Finn simply smiled, a silent acknowledgment of her growing skill. The third stone was chosen. The work continued.