Ren walked to the spot where the first Weeping Maiden had disappeared. A soft light was on the ground. Two items appeared.
[You have vanquished a Tormented Elven Spirit.]
[EXP Gained: 2000]
[Loot Gained: [Whispering Tear] x1]
[Loot Gained: [Faded Memory Fragment] x1]
Ren looked at the new items. The Whispering Tear was a beautiful crystal. His System said it could be used to add the idea of 'silence' or 'fear' to items. Ren thought of his armor and smiled. Another upgrade for later.
The second item was more interesting. It was a Faded Memory Fragment. The System said, 'Crush to see the memory.'
"Be careful, Ren," Lyra warned. "That memory might be full of sadness."
"No risk, no reward," Ren said. He closed his hand and crushed the fragment.
The world disappeared. Ren was seeing through the eyes of the dead elf. He saw a big fight. A group of brave elves were fighting a giant army of skeletons. The elves were losing.
Then, a tall, dark figure appeared. He wore a black iron crown. His eyes were burning with a green fire. The Silent King.
The King raised his hand, and a wave of death magic killed all the elves. The last thing the spirit saw was her friend, a young elven woman with bright green eyes. The spirit's last thought was a name: Elara!. Skeletons grabbed Elara. She was still alive. They dragged her away, deeper into the gorge.
The vision ended. Ren was back in the graveyard. A new quest appeared on his screen.
[Quest Generated: The Sole Survivor]
[Objective: The Silent King has a prisoner, the elf Elara. Find and rescue her.]
[Reward: Massive EXP, High Favor with the Silverwood Elves, ???]
"She's alive," Ren said. He told Lyra what he saw.
Lyra's face became very serious. "A prisoner? In this terrible place? We have to save her."
Ren nodded. "A king, a prisoner... This is a classic adventure story. Of course we have to save her." He looked at the dark tombs where the other two ghosts were hiding. "But first, let's clean up the rest of these ghosts."
They went into the tombs. The last two Weeping Maidens were easy to defeat. They got two more Whispering Tears as a reward.
Now, their path was clear. Deeper in the canyon, there was a giant, ruined building. It looked like an old fortress or the tomb of a great king. The vision had shown Elara being dragged in that direction.
Ren looked at the dark fortress. "Well, I guess the king lives in there."
He summoned Buzz, who landed on his shoulder.
"Shall we pay him a visit?" Ren asked. "I do not have an appointment, but I am sure he will be happy to see us."