A Chance of Cold

[Rickter]

A Chance of Cold
Searing 7th, 123rd Year, A.o.S.

Lykos was noticeably excited as of late. After having met the Exalted Prince a while back, things had been gradually looking up, to say the least. Granted, he already had a better start with what Hilana and her ragtag group had done for him. Even so, he had been itching to flex his muscles a bit more as of late, both magic and divine in turn, but had been waiting until he seemed appropriately ready to pitch the idea he had in mind.

The Atraxian Expanse was a hot and dry place, naturally, and it had occurred to him that he could perhaps help it out in a variety of ways. As the Lord of Frost, he felt it his duty to at least consider it a try, so, when he actually came up with a possible idea; he found the approvals behind it quicker than he ever anticipated. So when he'd awoken early this morning and shared a hearty breakfast, the wolf had allowed Lana and Lia to guide him to the appropriate room that would serve the purpose of what he had in mind.

If the wolf wanted to bring a safe and cool chill to those within the desert, and do so without affecting the weather of the environment, then he naturally needed to seal himself and his magic in a containment facility. And what better way to do that than one of his own making? Dressed in his usual cotton vest over the breezy slacks he oft favored, the wolf stood centered within the room in question as it had been vacated. Emptied with not a window nor crack in the foundation, for they were somewhere deep within the citadel of Red Rock itself.

"This should do it..." He finally murmured to himself with much enthusiasm in his tone, his attention fixed on the perimeters of the room itself; and the corners nested at every side of the walls in turn. It'll take some layering of Negation magic, but if anything, I should be able to completely suppress the cold within this room specifically. He thought to himself with heavy consideration, with thoughtful strokes of his beard as he contemplated the setting itself.

It was a decent-sized room to be fair, four hundred square feet if he were guesstimating the size of it. Such a large area surely would've served greater purposes before long, but if Lykos had his way, then Red Rock Citadel would have an artificial freezer within walking distance of their cellars. Plus, for those who could brave the cold itself, there would hopefully be crystalized ice for the taking. It was a running theory he had at this point, but if he were onto something, then Lykos could turn the room into a potential Frostlyth generator.

"You sure that Sentinel Phocion is alright with this?" The wolf then checked with a curious gaze to the sisters, his eyes hopeful when he smiled at Lana and Lia both. "This isn't exactly foolproof, you know." He remarked with a soft chuckle, admittedly, a little humbled that they were there to support him in this endeavor.

[Hilana Chenzira]

When Lykos had explained to them what he wanted to try, Hilana and Lia had discussed it over with him, and then the three of them had requested an audience with the Sentinels to run the idea by them. To their surprise, there was remarkably little disagreement and it was arranged that a room would be prepared for him. Cleaned out, emptied out, with some additional Negation wards were placed around the walls and outsides in order to ensure containment. There were some crates of supplies - aetherite crystals of average quality, some of rare quality, of various sizes and shapes. There were scrivening supplies, from spellwright’s ink, sorcerer’s sand, dragonshard foci, and a number of brushes to work with the ink.

Hilana, at least, had her notebooks at the ready, and the books on Scrivening were on hand in case, Founders forbid, they needed to check something in the middle of this. Lia was deeply curious to see how it went, and both girls were wearing layers for this. He may have dressed lightly in his vest and trousers, but both of the women had cloaks on hand.. just in case things got a little chilly. Lia had already wrapped herself in it in preparation, but considering she was Arche to fire and had no problems warming her body temperature fairly easily, perhaps it was just a bit of overpreparation on her part. Hilana, ever the more adventurous one of the two, had hers off to the side with some of the supplies.

As it might have been expected, neither of the Hilana’s pythons were joining them for this venture. Both of them were relegated to the younger Vastiana’s bedroom for their own safety, and for Hilana’s peace of mind. She didn’t bring them to her Alchemical lessons either, which might have been something of a surprise to him, but as far as the girl was concerned, the safety of her pets was paramount. If they didn’t need to be exposed for something like this, she intended to keep it that way.

“I have faith in you,” Hilana told him. Both Lia and Lykos had been doing their studies while Hilana was at work, or off chasing Stewards at the Western Tower, and while the younger sister had a strong memory, Lia was no slouch academically, either. She was perhaps a faster book study than her sister, but she also had the classical foundation that Hilana lacked when it came to magic. In the real world, it was very much a different story.

“Very much so,” Lia nodded, in both agreement to her sister and with Lykos’ query about whether or not Sentinel Phocion, who was in charge of Red Rock Citadel, had acquiesced to this project. He had indeed, and while reasons were not revealed, she thought it was perhaps because it was a small ask, for one, in the grand scheme of things. It allowed them all to learn more about their Peregrine guest, and what all he could do. If everything was contained, and it would be, then there could be no harm done to the rest of the structure. If it worked out, then Frostrylyth shards would be more accessible for them, and in the desert, there were endless uses for those.

“It may not be foolproof, but we have plenty of mages on hand, and what better way to figure it out than to try?” Hilana smiled encouragingly at him. “You’ve already considered the goals of what you want to do, you’ve thought about the theory. At some point you’ve got to take the leap and go for it.” Adventure belonged to the adventurous, and at least this was a lot safer than some of her last excursions and forays into the unknown.

“Touch wood,” Lia said dryly, adjusting her cloak. “Right this instant, Hilana.” The girl shrugged and made a fist, and lightly knocked on her head with her closed fingers as if she might knock on a door. Wood was touched. They were ready to go.

[Rickter]

As excited as he had been to try and attempt this experimental project of his, Lykos was admittedly a bit concerned for the ones that were helping in him in turn. Lana and Lia were both always there for him in one form or fashion, always giving him the encouragement and the intellect he needed to handle such things. But that wasn't what concerned him really, not when he knew he would do everything in his power to prevent their wellbeing from being compromised.

No, really, seeing them already having to be prepared for the possibility of cold even before he started, it led him to wonder just how dangerous this room could potentially become for them. If not for the unprepared. All the same, it was exactly why he needed to be prepared for it. Why else would they have not gone to the lengths to make sure he was at least ready to try, and supplied him with as many materials as he could possibly ask for during the process also? He smiled ever so fondly at the pair of them, feeling genuine appreciation for the sisters as he stood center of the room.

"Thank you." Their faith in him meant everything at this point. How else was he going to serve the world as the late Lord of Frost? If it only took two or even a mere few, then Lykos would carry their faith well within his heart. The fact there wasn't a shadow of doubt in regard to this idea, and that Sentinel Phocion did seemingly approve, wasn't lost on the wolf from where he stood in the room. A generous flare of aether stemmed through his eyes before he actively engaged with his sight of Semblance, having already noticed the faint trace of wards on both the inner and outer foundations of the walls.

The people here were meticulous with their work, and he would have to be the same, scrutinizing every possible detail he could to ensure things came together without a hitch. "Leap or not, I'll be certain when I know my own wards are reinforcing the work everyone else has done." He commended with a hearty chuckle to Lana and Lia, amused by the gesture of knocking on 'wood' as the younger sibling pretended. "Everyone worked hard to help make this all seem possible, so I don't want to squander it without scrutinizing the extra work needed to make it happen."

And with a blink of his eyes he looked about the room, the icy blue hues alight with gold as he steadily studied the wards in place. The foundations of aether lain place was already astounding, and the designs of the wards were intricate in that they seemed targeted to both cold and divine aether itself. Excellent. They didn't miss a single detail when it came to the groundwork necessary. He noted as his eyes still appraised the rest of the room, tracing every line throughout the network of anchors instilled within. If anything, this is perfect. I can use this as the blueprint for my own design, and from there, I should be able to reinforce the room for more than just containment purposes.

Lykos figured there had to be a certain threshold of aether reached before the room would begin to hold, especially if he wanted to generate Frostlyth shards using his own natural aura. The only key factor that would need work was the door itself, which, that alone would be specifically warded to significantly reduce the risk factors involved. People who might've opened or accidentally wandered in here would not have wanted to linger for long, not when the cold could be as cruel to others as it were kind to Him. The highlights in his eyes faded back into their natural hues, before he looked to the sisters once more and gave them both an approving smile.

"Everything looks great!" He approved enthusiastically. "I'm going to work on the reinforcements first, that way we can put the Scrivening materials to use after." Once he expressed this the wolf brought his hands closer to his chest and then focused, taking a deep breath in as he felt the aether that flowed through him respond. He channeled that flow with a steady exhale of air, allowing the direction to filter through his Negation Rune next. As natural as it was to feel the power respond to him, Lykos knew he would have to be more than just patient. Consideration for the wards themselves would have to be well thought out, but first, he needed to reach a certain threshold of aetheric density before layering it across the room itself.

Around Lykos a radiant crown blossomed in the form of the Northern Lights, his focus locked on the first anchor he sought to forge as he continued to harness the aether he possessed. As the fluorescent lights danced all around him, particles of it started to shine and collect between the gap between his hands. It doesn't have to be a substantial amount, not right away, just something that'll- Suddenly he felt a sharp pain thrust into his core, and the Rune upon his left shoulder fizzled with sparks in response. What?! His loss of focus was immediate and that in turn affected his casting, causing the dancing lights which crowned him to fade away, and the particles of aether accumulated died out in turn.

Lykos staggered forward down onto one knee, a look of pained shock as he clutched at the pain that resonated in his chest.

[Hilana Chenzira]

When he said he didn’t want to squander it, Lia and Lana smiled at him. “You won’t,” Hilana reassured him. In any event, this was an exercise to see what he could do, and the Sentinels were watching in order to observe and supervise. They were just as interested as the Chenzira sisters in seeing what all he could accomplish, and by watching his ever-growing capabilities at work, this was a good exercise for them, too. They wouldn’t interfere unless absolutely necessary, but that threshold, considering the wards outside the room that would contain all of the aetheric work within it, was a very long way off.

They nodded at the stated plan, and were not about to interfere with him. This was his idea, his project, his baby, really. They were here to support him and lend what they could when they could. Truthfully, all of this went over Hilana’s head, quite a bit of it, and while Lia had a far better understanding of what was going on, and they’d more or less given her some explanation of the process, this was not magic that they could interfere with, not yet.

When the aetheric crown was manifested, the colours and radiance of his nimbus delighted the younger Vastiana who looked on with widened eyes. It was beautiful to see the shimmering display. She had seen seen something similar with Daemon, back when they had first met, and he had shown her what he could see, and in doing so, had shown his divine status and power.

But when his efforts faded away, Hilana’s attention was on her friend, and she closed the short distance from where she and Lia had stood to give him space to work to touch his arm and his shoulder. “Are you alright, Lykos? What are you feeling?” She couldn’t Semble him, not without rendering herself useless for the rest of the day, but she could at least try to help him. He’d done other feats of Negation since they’d recognized his Rune, but something was blocking him. Maybe he needed to clear his mind first, breathe, and focus. She crouched down by him, her skirts pooling around her, her hands on his upper arms, her big brown eyes searching him. She had restoratives on hand. “Focus, and breathe. Slowly in, slowly out. Clear your mind. Let everything else outside of what you are doing go. Let this go. Just breathe, and settle into yourself.” She rubbed his biceps gently. If he needed something, if the pain didn’t stop... then she would try a tonic.

[Rickter]

Their confidence in him was all the more reassuring once the wolf had begun the first part of the experiment, having started on what he expected to be the rather easy part of the trial when he engaged his Negation rune firsthand. Lykos had been practicing with Negation off and on in his spare time after all, and studied the tome that the sisters had lent to him almost night and day where he could. Even after the amount of aetheric reserves he'd felt himself maintaining though, and the slightest practices done in the meantime, he never once experienced a pain as sudden as this had been. What began as an intense heated dagger into his core, soon dulled to a minor aching throb throughout his entire torso region.

It did not take a lot at all for him to regulate his breathing, and yet, even as he held himself upright on one knee; the youngest of the sisters was quick to attend to him. "It's just... Pain." He remarked with a sense of self-introspection to his gaze, a moment spent reevaluating himself before he focused on Lana once more. "I'll be fine though, I think." He didn't hurt as badly as a moment ago, that was a fact, but there was no denying that whatever wall he did hit stung worse than the hunger he'd first woken with. If he had to guess then that likely had something to do with his lingering threshold sickness, and the severity of it which still might've lingered even after a month had passed.

Have I overreached myself already? He didn't even feel like he had breached his limit in the slightest, and yet, there was no denying that pain that subtly lingered as a warning reminder. Perhaps he had put the cart before the horse in this instance, and where he felt eager to just create the foundation himself, he simply hadn't fully recovered enough to attempt such a thing. At least, not in his current condition. Still, he gave Lana a reassuring nod firsthand, before steadily rising on his feet once more with the barest hint of a groan. "I'm alright, I think I just pushed myself too far too quickly."

He reasoned with a look at his hands, certain he would've had no trouble creating such an anchor otherwise. "Whatever happened under that tree must still be taking its toll..." He didn't want to sound defeated quite yet, but honestly, this was a setback he had not entirely accounted for at all. Even so, there had been so much put in place for him to try this, and with all the resources they still had on hand... Maybe he wasn't entirely out of options like he initially felt upon hitting this obstacle. "It looks like we'll just have to try this from a different approach then."

Though he lowered his hands then there was a clench of determination to them, as he gave Lana and Lia both a more assured smile in turn. "It's going to be a bit more hands-on, but that's something the two of you can definitely help with. Especially you, Lia." As he regarded her the wolf rested his gaze on the older sibling a bit more fondly, having not forgotten the level of attentiveness she paid to her Scrivening studies. "The workload might've just doubled for me at the moment, which is exactly where you both can pitch in if you like. What I'll need is Scrivened foci on every wall within the room, they don't have to be elaborate in design, just wells that draw in the ambient aether for the most part. Every wall is going to need one with the same design though, which the ink we have on hand should be able to cover that."

He then looked to Lana just as warmly with a simple yet generous grin. "In the meantime, I'll have to Scriven pictographs that funnel the aether into wells. This'll be a bit more tedious since we'll literally be etching into the walls with a Scrivener's Scoring tool, that, and we'll also need to encompass every design with an additional pictograph. One for reinforcements for the room's interior, so that none of the actual cold temperatures bleed out into the foundational wards." That last part was more so the precaution he wanted to implement to begin with, but as limited as he was on expending personal aether at the moment, he deemed it best to just work it into the schematical design of the room itself.

This probably worked out better in the long run anyhow, since the wards wouldn't likely deteriorate due to the ambient aether the room would naturally produce over time. "Once we finish all that, well, then we'll worry about setting the charges throughout the room. Think you both can help me pull this off?" He then inquired with a hearty tone, a certain enthusiasm found in him once more when he posed the question to the pair. Lykos knew that much of what he expressed likely went over Lana's head, as she didn't seem as interested in Scrivening as her sister did, regardless he knew that the both of them would likely live up to the task.

[Hilana Chenzira]

Hilana supposed that that made sense. Lykos had done an incredible amount of magic recently, but trying all of this may very well have been taxing on him. There was also the possibility that whatever Myshala had done to take his memories was affecting this, but Hilana couldn't know for sure. She wasn't entirely certain what was too much or too little, but there were plans that Lykos and Lia had come up with during the days that Hilana had been away. Plans and theories and ideas that Hilana was a mere apprentice with. All the same, she was there to assist, and she would do her best.

The younger sister listened and nodded, getting up when he was ready to do so, patting his bicep gently and reassuringly as she digested this. Lia was far readier than she was, and she inclined her head. "Just do your best. We will correct your work if we must, soror. Go slowly, and remember your lessons. Use your book if you need to," the elder smiled at the younger. Hilana's world was outside. This was something else, but it would behoove her to learn it. "Let us begin. We'll get the style right to your liking, and then we can also put it on the ceiling. Hilana, you can start there," Lia indicated one of the walls, and Hilana, down for everything anytime, would gamely do her best, gathering up the materials and her book on Scrivening, setting it open on the stand and reviewing the pages first. Better to refresh her memory before attempting anything like this, and even still... she had very little faith in herself for this work, knowing the level of energy that needed to be captured. If she didn't do it properly, then others would certainly need to redo it sooner rather than later. Even still, it would likely need to be redone long before Lykos' or Lia's handiwork.

With the work divided to start, Lia winked at Lykos and squeezed his hand encouragingly before taking up the brush and ink. She very much felt that it could be done, one way or another. Her own confidence and self-assurance was generally quieter than her sister's, but that perhaps was due to the differences in which they were raised. Sisters, yes, but with completely different experiences... and that didn't even bring into mind the fact that Lia had spent the last ten-plus years in the Void. Compared to Hilana's, Lia's own style was more refined and polished from her training at the private academy that her father had paid for her to attend. Shapes were inherently different. Hilana's work tended more towards that which she knew and she knew well - flowers of the North, it seemed, where Lia's own Pictographs aimed to honour the merger of North and South, with a mosaic of a wolf howling on the sands.

But what both of them included was a combination of aetherite foci, paths, continuums, and vortexes. Intention was laid into each aspect of the Pictograph to form the wells that Lykos requested of them, and when Lia had an opportunity, she came over to check Hilana's work as well and offer a bit of input as to what she could do to improve it. It was better to keep her on the right path than have to completely start again and waste precious time.

[Aegis]

As Lia stepped away from her position, there was a momentary falter in her shadow as the void she left behind in space was quickly filled by air, light, and other matter and energy. The tiniest, most imperceptible piece of shadow tore off of Athalia's own, and escaped to a darker corner of the room. As it went, a few of the very many wards in this particular room glowed, their energy hummed a bit harder and brighter for those that were paying attention.

And then those specific wards went dark, and faded away entirely.

The small piece of shadow slipped into the shadow of a piece of furniture and disappeared from the room entirely. And the world continued onward as if nothing else happened.

Ten minutes later...

A roar was heard outside of the Red Rock Citadel, one so loud it shook the very foundations of the massive structure, and the wards inside the room containing Lykos, Athalia, and Hilana flared as their protections held, some strongly so, some wobbling but maintaining nonetheless.

It wouldn't take long for the reports to come in, reports talking about an incredibly large monster of some sort that seemingly appeared out of nowhere in front of the Citadel and was approaching at a startling speed. From the spot it appeared, there was a portal of pure, black darkness that maintained its presence.



As the creature lumbered toward the citadel, the highly trained defenders of the area were well prepared. Their orders were simple, protect the citadel from any unauthorized access, or escape. Elementalist and Kineticists and Reavers began unleashing obvious volleys of attacks toward the massive beast, accompanied by various weapons of mundane and enchanted natures.

And all of the attacks disappeared entirely about a meter out from the surface of the creature. Other mages were scrambling, reinforcing wards, defenses, more reinforcements were called upon. But this much was clear.

The Citadel was under attack by something that would not go down easy.

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[Pharaoh]

“The fuck was that?” In his austere office several stories above them, Phocion observed the progress of Lykos’s experiment. Leaning far back in his chair, booted feet propped up on the red stone slab of his desktop, Phocion glanced to the Sentinel standing behind him watching the projection that seemed to occupy the empty air before the desk.

“Did you clock that, Vigil Finn?” He looked to the Sentinel over his opposite shoulder, the Sembler who, through his glowing white eyes, was projecting the scene before them. “Assess.” He commanded, and the scenario seemed to rewind before their scrutiny.

“There!” Phocion cried, swinging his legs down from the desk and tucking them under as he leaned forward. “Magnify.” Silver eyes squinted at the sight.

“Well, fæx.”

The whole of the citadel had been outfitted to study alien power, and the room assigned to Lykos for this experiment was naturally under particular scrutiny. After a fashion, it was one of the best places and times for such an invasion to betide.

“Is that what I think it is?”

“Voidsign, Sentinel Phocion.“ The Sembler would keep his Report crisp and brief as he imparted it to the other two Vigili.

Phocion stood sharply, calling into the outer office.

“Alert the instructors to gather the Subvigili on the main floor. Prep the Traversers to portal them wheresoever that thing manifests itself, and manifest it will. It must be stalled. Vigil Finn? Open a portal to the research room.” He gestured to the projection of Hilana’s Voidborn shadow-sister that was still frozen before them.

“It would seem The Void has come at last to reclaim its lost soldier. Vanguard will hold the line whilst we brief them… and then we’re going to capture that fucking thing.” A surge of silver light burgeoned at his wrist, where he wore the Mark of Supremacy

[Rickter]

It brought a genuine smile to the lupine demigod when he saw how ready the two were to step in. As always the Vastii sisters were right there when he needed them most, and however they could effectively aid him in his endeavors. This may not have been a mere act of encouragement to support him, but nonetheless, Lykos sincerely appreciated their effort even if what he asked seemed trivial in the long run. The wolf just knew firsthand that with Lia there the actual Scrivening work would be done quicker, which meant he just needed to focus on the passageways that aether would channel through.

While the walls were undoubtedly heavily insulated with negation magic, he still wanted to make sure no frigid temperatures were going to leak through any cracks in their foundation. Not that some at the citadel would likely mind it given their location, but what could be as simple as a leak would likely lead to more problems down the road. If not for the citadel then certainly for the cold room itself. Therefore, when he grabbed the scoring tool for Scrivening, he looked back to listen to what Athalia had to say in turn. In case he needed to add anything more to the instruction she gave Hilana.

"Good call." He remarked when he glanced up to the ceiling in turn, having not actually thought about that when he started to assess the room in turn. "Just remember the Pictography doesn't need to be elaborate, so long as it implements the purposes we inscribe into them before the charging phase." He reminded with a gentle tuck at the corner of his lips, still humbled by the level of dedication they paid to this experiment. Lykos knew if he wanted this to work out well, then he certainly needed to be particular with the approach they made.

Yet when he knelt on the floor to begin the first of his etchings, the tip of his scorer stopped when he smelled something unusual. The scent of death grew heavier in the room, far more heavier than what normally lingered in someone's presence. Lykos knew that smell to be associated with the Void, as it always hung heavy on Athalia, but this time the trace of it loomed thicker into one side of the room. Something weird had transpired near her, as some of the wards seemed to flicker in response to something else. I don't know if I liked that smell... He noted to himself as the lights of the wards soon shimmered out, leaving him to wonder what might've caused the reaction to begin with.

Although he would've liked to get back to his personal project, his mind wandered immediately to the Vastii sisters, and then over to the materials that were still piled up in the room. There had been crates with Scrivening materials, as well as Dragonshards to help with the distribution of aether. Perfect for Lykos' current predicament given the nature of his casting attempt earlier... but for whatever reason, the wolf's gut told him he may have other need of them yet rather soon. Regardless, he held that thought aside for the moment, and spent more of his time on scoring the base of the floor within the center of the room.

He started with a line that etched out from the point of contact made, and then etched three more into the stone until four lines branched out like the corners of a compass. The two lines on the sides were etched with triangles from the tips pointed inward at them, while the top and bottom lines were etched with circles instead. This seemed like a simple but standard pattern to draw, as it would both channel the wells of the ambient aether and protect the stone foundation in turn. While that had spanned the center of the room, and the girls were working on painting the ink on the walls, the wolf etched designs into the circle that matched the very outline of his Negation rune.

Since that was what came to mind when it represented reinforcement, he figured that would also likely help with the secondary focus of the pictographs he etched. No sooner did he finish the first diagram of the schema though, an ear-piercing roar soon rattled the very foundations that they all stood on, and Lykos visibly tensed as he felt the pressure in the room increase dramatically. Every ward that had been instilled prior flared with a sense of life in response to the sudden quake, and in the process, Lykos felt the pains of a headache threatening him from the sound that assaulted his ears. That sound! What could've...

Immediately his alarmed gaze filled with realization, as something massive had to be outside the walls of the citadel. The wolf looked over to the Vastii sisters with sheer concern, as he realized what he might've noticed earlier was none other than Voidsent activity. Oh no, did whatever gave off that scent come here? There was a greater concern in his gaze now when Lykos looked specifically at Athalia, before his eyes moved to the crates of materials that rested at the side of the room. I don't know if I have enough strength to fully protect her yet, not when I couldn't even cast a high-level enchantment ward earlier.

And whatever sound came from outside the walls of their research area seemed massive. Enough to give Lykos anxious pause as he tried to gauge what to do next. Somehow, his body felt ready to freeze on him, terrorized by the thought of doing something he might not be ready to do. As a portal opened within the room though, his thoughts were pulled out of that state of mind, and the wolf quickly stood on his feet to observe the situation unfolding before him. Now wasn't the time to let his mind and body grow stiff, not when he had two pack mates who needed him to be ready to protect them both.

[Finn]

"Aye, Vigil," he replied smartly.

Though he had been with the Vigilia long enough to rise to full status, he was still relatively new to the relatively new Custodes Deorum, and the ways and means Prince Phocion had to make things so were being absorbed as best Finn could. Kalzasi had been full of magic, of course, but Solunarium—especially in the strata he inhabited—was positively soaking in it. Following the Sembler's senses as they were projected was almost dizzying; he wondered what it would be like to sense not only soul symphonies and the slipspace, but all aether. It seemed as though it would take any mind some doing to parse so much information at once.

Once Phocion had manipulated the image and the Sembler confirmed both their suspicions, Finn muttered his own Common curses.

"Aye, Vigil," he replied, even as he reached through space-time to connect this room with that, a portal opening even as his superior was uttering the rest of his orders. He didn't know if this Voidborn abomination was of the same sort as the eclipse-born shadows he had battled with Hilana and Khyan, but the combination of his Rune of Command and Aværys' grace had had an effect upon it. When he felt the pull of Phocion's mark, he invoked his own. His brow shone with golden light, and he followed whither Phocion led.

Even as he walked through his portal, he swiped his right hand down his left forearm, activating his Rune of Reaving and pulling a blade out of the aether. Phocion could handle himself, could likely crush this thing with sheer kinetic force, but Finn would guard his back. One day, they would be in-laws. Already, they were chosen of twin gods, and there was a kinship in that too. It meant a great deal to the bard-become-sentinel.

The deserts belonged to the Platinum Dragonflight and to the Divine Twins. Their sands would be purified of such things, their people kept safe.