The woman shook her head and trembled before this strange woman sent by the Crown. Was she some sort of demon? Somehow, she couldn’t quite picture the Empress as merciful. “She had a whole village slaughtered, and that was when she was a young girl,” she said, her eyes flitting from Ysaryn’s burning glare to the frightening blades she wielded, as if expecting any minute to be decapitated. “H-how could you blame me for being afraid of her?” Whatever defiance she displayed in making these remarks left, however, when the pink-haired warrior told her to lift the sleep from the village and confess to the giant Countess.

“If I wake them up, everybody wakes up,” she said. “Even the messengers the lords had sent. We had heard about these men. The village will pay for ou—for m-my mistakes. And the villagers will make my husband pay. Will she—will the Empress make sure nothing bad happens?” But another look at Ysaryn and the woman knew she was out of options either way. Swallowing, she nodded, and meekly walked back with her to where the other two had fallen asleep.

Once she was standing in front of them, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and pressed her hands to her chest. Nothing happened for several minutes, but after a while, both Narda and Daryll began to stir.
“Ugh,” Narda grunted, pushing herself up from the ground. “Feels like that time we stole barrels of wine from smugglers.”
Daryll cursed in Taakalon as he rubbed his face, then looked up to see Ysaryn and the mayor’s wife. “Ah.”
“Back to your house,” Narda said. “Tell me everything from the start. The truth,” she said, looking pointedly at the woman, who nodded fervently. Around them, the town, too, began waking up, accompanied by noises of confusion and distress. “I want to know everything before we take you anywhere else.” None of them had reacted to the four of them, but Narda knew even before the woman could divulge her fears about how they would behave that they would be demanding answers and reparations for this. “Oy, Daryll, shake it off,” she grunted, shaking the scholar by the shoulder.
“I’m up, I’m up,” he insisted, straightening up on shaky legs.

Back at her home, the mayor seemed to have also just come to. “Holly? What’s happ—oh!” His face went beet-red at the sight of all three of the strangers back in his home. Holly started sobbing.
“They know. It’s over.”
“Again, from the beginning, or I will throw your husband outside for your fellow villagers to deal with,” Narda growled, still irritated from having succumbed to the spell and from wanting to get back to Kire with the information.
“More importantly, we want to know if anything else had happened alongside the emergence of your magic,” Daryll put in. “Voices, visions, strange sensations, unexplainable impulses, that sort of thing.”
“Voices?” Holly sniffled. “N-no. No voices.” She shook her head, then turned to her husband. “Did I?”
“No, milord,” the mayor put in. “Just that, I was the first to feel it. And then eventually more and more people succumbed to the sleepiness. Holly wouldn’t hurt anyone on purpose, she’s a good woman, but the lords’ thugs—er, sorry, messengers, they frightened us.”

“The more I fretted, the more it happens. It’s—will I really get help?” Holly asked. “Or will I turn out like that Lyta girl?”
Daryll frowned at that question. “’Turned out like that Lyta girl’? Right now, you’re on the same boat,” he began. “Except you had backed yourselves into a corner, and you let everyone put the blame on that poor girl. Didn’t you?”
“I will deal with the ‘thugs’ you mentioned,” Narda said, eyes narrowed at the husband and wife. “You leave my lord father to me. As for the other lord, I assume you meant our neighboring province’s liege. Fret not, goodwife, the Crown isn’t singling you out for persecution. Her Majesty has other pressing problems, you know, and if there will be others like you, you will be of great assistance.”

Holly merely nodded her head meekly, tongue-tied. At her husband’s prompting, she retold what she had said to Ysaryn. Narda was quiet for a few moments after that. This village was lucky, in a way, that it was so far from the center of the Wild Meadows and the next territory, and that it was so small compared to other towns. Else, the disappearances of these messengers would have caused a bigger stir. Still, this is odd. There should be other reports about this town reaching us by now. Why haven’t the neighboring noble families taken bigger action, or at least given us word?
“Nard,” Daryll said, tapping her arm to call her attention. “Time to go back to Kire.”

Ysaryn only clicked her tongue. "People learn." The elf insisted. "Chieftess, too. You Emp-eress learn, and you are to learn that this is different." Ysaryn gestured broadly. "This is happening many places. Magic blossom. We know is not you fault, to lose grasp of control." She shifted her weight again, lowering her blade to appear less threatening. "The Lyta girl, she is to spend time with others like her. Like you and me. To learn how to control it. To make sure no harm comes of her. Or of you. If you are not harmful before magic, I see no reason to fear that you will be harmful now."
Her wolfish smile returned as she sheathed the second blade, placing her hands on her hips. "I am danger long before magic. Is the way of my people. But I still know not to harm people who do not deserve. You not deserve harm. Well, maybe a slap on wrist, but no blades."

Following the woman back to Narda and Daryll, Ysaryn peered around as the spell wore off, watching the other villagers wake and try to make sense of it. She wondered, as Narda grumbled her orders to the woman, if the magic could be controlled to target specific persons. A handy tool it would be in a fight, though grossly unfair. Silent for a moment, she considered the ramifications that would follow magic abilities such as these, randomly spawning in civilians. Kire had already anticipated such a reaction in the power hungry, no doubt, but Ysaryn made a note to remind her, either way.

Once inside the mayor's home, Holly, she learned the name, admitted to her husband that they were caught. As she confessed that it happened more often the more anxious she felt, Ysaryn glanced at Daryll, sure he noticed the connection. It wasn't until Holly mentioned Lyta that Ysaryn hissed, glad Daryll answered before her. Glowering, though deciding not to chime in with her own, far less polite response, Ysaryn kept quiet, watching Daryll and Narda. "We are to leave her here?" Ysaryn asked. "The waking messengers, they will not cause harm? Should we to bring Wyvern soldier here to protect?" Her fuchsia eyes darted to Holly for a moment. She understood the woman's fear of being singled out. Even if Narda echoed her own reassurance that she wouldn't be, leaving the pair in the center of a city freshly released from a spell seemed cruel.

When the matter was decided on, Ysaryn returned them to the edge of the forest. Leaving Narda and the others to relay their news to the empress, Ysaryn wandered over toward Ruli, who was using his finger to mark the dirt. Runes. Ysaryn tilted her head, her limited knowledge of the symbols preventing her from understand. Practice, perhaps. Or problem solving.

"More than the Lyta girl in Daryll's vision have magic." Ysaryn said.
Ruli only grunted.
"They will need help to understand it. Like Envy helped me. He would not want for you to let these people suffer, Rulitus."
He turned his head to glare at her, his bright eyes narrowed. But whatever was on the tip of his tongue, he swallowed, and looked away again. "Envy first. The others will live."
It was Ysaryn's turn to frown at him, exhaling through her nostrils before she turned and wandered back toward the others.

Narda shook her head. “We have to bring these two,” she muttered in reply to the elf. “Don’t want the villagers to tear them to shreds when they realize what’s been happening, or if the messengers catch wise and take them. Something else is going on around here and I don’t like it one bit.”
The husband and wife just shifted their gazes nervously between the giant Countess, the otherworldly warrior-woman with the strange accent, and the Wyvern cousin looking intently at them. Though as frightening as this turn of events were for them, they were even more unprepared for Shadow-Walking. All Narda had given them was a curt explanation in Taakalon of what to expect, but even then, the sudden plunge into absolute darkness, and the cold shock that came with it, overwhelmed them so much that Holly emerged looking pale as a sheet in fright. Narda was about to warn her not to send everyone to sleep when she saw the woman faint in the mayor’s arms.

While Ruli was drawing runes, Kire and Gavin had returned to the edge of the forest after their conversation with Myka at camp. Sensing Ysaryn’s arrival, she nudged Gavin to walk with her to meet them and saw the three, along with a portly man carrying a sleeping woman in his arms. Kire raised a brow. “I take it the lethargy wasn’t coming from Lyta, then?” she asked after Ysaryn left to talk to Ruli.
Daryll nodded. “Seems like this woman—Holly’s her name—has at least some control over it, but still needs guidance. They’d caused quite a mess back at their town.”
Narda snorted at that, before recounting what they had learned, and what had happened while they came to fetch the woman. “They don’t know anything about a goddess, or visions. Looks to me like magic is seeping into Amria whether this Solaralai wills it or not,” she said, crossing her arms. The mayor looked like his tongue had been glued permanently to the roof of his mouth, realizing who the blonde with the scarred face was.
Kire looked at him, her expression stern, though not too angry. “Daryll,” she said at length, her gaze already weary. “Work with Narda. Find out if there’s any sort of significance as to why two people from the same place had acquired magical abilities. If it’s their blood, or the place, or both, or something else. If there’s a way to anticipate the appearance of others like them, I want to know. The Lyta lead was slim, but we got more than we had anticipated.” Both Narda and Daryll nodded. They could see the weight of all this uncertainty in her eyes. They felt it too, but both knew that the burden would be hardest on the Empress. “But first, see to it that these two have accommodations. The inn would suit them for now, till we figure out where the best place is for them.”
The giantess looked at the forest behind Kire. “Any leads?” she asked, even though they hadn’t been away for too long and the answer was a likely ‘no’. Kire didn’t respond, thinking something else over. “Could you take care of these two?” she asked Nard, gesturing to the mayor and Holly. Narda nodded, then practically hoisted the unconscious woman up, muttering to the mayor in Taakalon as they walked off.

Kire turned to the young mage beside her, not speaking just yet, still pondering on the question she was about to ask. “Gavin,” Kire she said at length, softly. “How were the Kartaians able to track me down at Ziad?”
Gavin, who had been glancing at the forest now and then, thinking about how best to try and track Envy down, looked sharply up at her, eyes wide. “Wards.”
“Can you break them? How long will it take you?”
Gavin thought it over. “Yeah, I probably can. As for how long, with help, maybe two hours, a little longer than that by myself, but I still have a vague memory of their placements. But why?”
Kire saw Ysaryn approaching them and waited till the elf had rejoined them. “I need to go back to Ziad. I’m going to look for something in the catacombs under the temple. All I need is for the Kartaians to not know I’m sniffing around, and in any case, I will only be searching under daylight. I’d probably still need to speak to Risa first, though, along with the goddess’s worshippers she says she’s been meeting with, if only to ask where their sacred texts might be buried, if they don’t already have some hidden with them when they fled Ziad. If they don’t have them, at the very least, maybe bringing back something from the temple would appease Solaralai enough that she’d, I don’t know, grant a favor. I have not worshipped at a temple since I was a little girl,” she added, frowning. “But I do know that as much. Gods love their offerings.” She smirked, though only briefly. "Maybe she's fucking with me because I punched a hole through the temple during my last visit.
Gavin glanced at Ysaryn, uneasy. “Did you talk to Ruli? What’s he doing?” he asked. When Ysaryn gave her answer, he nodded, eyes downcast. “What are we gonna do, though, if we don’t find Envy soon?” he asked in a quiet voice. “The people back home—humans, elves—they might start asking questions.”

As she returned, Ysaryn arched an eyebrow as she listened to Kire explain her plan to return to Ziad. As much as she wished to return to the city to see more of it, having only viewed it briefly from afar, Ysaryn knew better than to leave Úvano for long. "Or, bringing these text would help placate worshippers and Risa." Ysaryn suggested. If they'd left behind such sacred things and deemed them lost in the rubble, they would be excellent bargaining chips against the princess and her priests.
"You what?" Ysaryn asked suddenly, lifting her head. "You punch hole through ... ahaha." She laughed, grinning wickedly. "Not wise, to destroy things offered to the Gods, Kirai." The elf clicked her tongue, though the grin on her face said she approved of the violence involved, and against whom.

"He..." Ysaryn glanced over her shoulder to Ruli as Gavin asked. "-is solving problems. Envy first, he say. Then the others, like Lyta." When Gavin expressed his curiosity about Úvano, Ysaryn frowned. "Do not fret about city. You work with Kire to find Envy. I can handle home." She offered what she hoped was an encouraging smile, but the expression wasn't one she used often. "Go unmake wards. Find leverage. I will speak to Risa and inform her you will be speaking today." Another crooked grin. "Though, much more fun to ambush her."

Kire pouted when Ysaryn laughed at her comment about destroying part of the temple. “Hey, that was the day I met Ruli, and he was being a real piece of shit that time.” she muttered. “Besides, my first impression of Ziad, seems like the gods hadn’t really returned the favor.”
“We should tell Ruli we’re going, though, right?” Gavin asked.
Kire shook her head. “He’s devoting all his will to Envy at the moment. Divide and conquer. And besides, he doesn’t really want to go back there. Understandably.” She sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Risa is expecting a visit from me any day now, anyway.” She gave Ysaryn a small smile. “I know you don’t really back down from challenges, but thank you all the same. We look like we’re going to have a lot on our hands. I just hope we find Envy,” she murmured, looking in Ruli’s direction. She turned to Gavin. “What do you need to break the wards?”
“If we swing by Envy’s chamber, I can get everything we need,” he said, determination replacing the worry and despair that had threatened to take him over earlier. “What I can’t find there, I know how to get.”

After Kire told Narda, Daryll, and Myka where she and Gavin were heading, Gavin asked her to Portal them into Envy’s alchemy chamber, where he quickly went through the supplies, muttering under his breath, only pausing now and then to think over the next item in his mental list. Once he had everything, he asked Kire to Portal them a certain distance from the Ziad ruins. The Paladin squinted up at the burned and crumbling walls. “Forgot how hot it was here,” Kire said, her eyes looking over the ruins, though she knew very well it wasn’t the heat that she wished to forget. She looked at Gavin, who was staring ahead, a grim expression on his face. He swallowed thickly after a few moments of silence, shutting his eyes and waving his head as if to ward off some waking nightmare. The last time he was here, he had still been in Ikegai’s thrall. It was here that he had found Kire’s hunting knife. It was before the gates where he had been taken and enslaved by the blood mage.
“We don’t have to now,” Kire said, a hand on his shoulder. “We can go back, or I can just go in during the day—”
“We’re doing this,” Gavin said, glaring at the walls as his hands fumbled with the satchel of supplies he had brought with him. “I’m fine,” he insisted when Kire stared, about to ask again.

With Kire’s help, Gavin walked the perimeter of the city, trying to ignore the heat as he familiarized himself with the wards again. They circled the whole city, with Kire portal-jumping them both forward now and then to shorten the time. At certain places he etched a rune into a pebble he had brought with him. Finally, when they had finished circling Ziad, they returned to the spot where they had emerged. Gavin murmured under his breath, drawing the knife he used to etch the runes, then slashed through the imaginary circle they had drawn around the perimeter with the pebbles.

Kire looked up, feeling the sensation of the wards breaking and the signatures tied to it dissipating at the same time. “We’re going straight to the temple, right?” Gavin asked quietly. Kire nodded. Besides wanting to spend as little time and leaving as little a trace of their presence as possible, both of them didn’t want to be around the corpse of the city, seeing what had become of the remnants of carnage there.

What was left of the temple was in an abysmal state. “So you really punched a hole through it, huh,” Gavin remarked.
“And made it cave in on this side, yeah,” she replied. “Be on alert. We have the sun on our side, but it pays to be paranoid.”
“Can you sense the Kartaians? That thing you do with your nose and magic signatures?”
“Yeah. And a bloodlusty Kartaian’s signature is rather hard to forget.”

It was a long afternoon’s toil, sifting through the ruins. Kire had insisted on doing the bulk of it, wanting to spare the lad any more painful recollections, but Gavin’s pain, it seemed, paled in comparison to the need to get closer to finding Envy. They worked mostly in silence, and the few times they spoke to each other were in hushed whispers. Kire wasn’t sure why; perhaps it was a combination of not wanting to disturb what remained of the temple, wanting to make themselves scarce in case there was an unwelcome ear listening for intruders, or just some irrational compulsion not to let the goddess know they were rooting around in here.

When they returned to Úvano late afternoon, Kire and Gavin carried with them a badly-damaged tome, parts of a statue and candles. Kire remembered Sireen mentioning the catacombs, and she knew a longer search would yield more results. But for now, perhaps these would be enough to make Risa or Solaralai’s other worshippers more pliable. “You did good back there,” she said to Gavin as they set down their burdens. “That must have been hard, going back.”
“Y-yeah,” Gavin said, swallowing again. “I’m gonna go wash this off me, drink some water.”

"Gods rarely do." Ysaryn replied, about their returning the favour.

She followed them back to Úvano, and promptly disappeared. Silently, Ysaryn tore across the elven side of the mountain, sweeping down the steps to Bolym's house. After slipping inside and a brief conversation, the two slipped out again, parting ways to head in separate directions. To different houses. A knock on the door, a quick conversation, and four of them were moving swiftly across the carved cliff-face. Then six. Then twelve.
Ysaryn paused then, watching the others move and spread her instruction to those she knew would follow her orders. Thinking, she turned to frown at the castle perched on the crown of the cliff. Risa would be easy. The difficult ones would be-

She disappeared again, grabbing a soft arm and uttering a quick word of "You are needed" before appearing in front of the gate. Once through it, passenger in tow, Ysaryn Walked them both to the forest where Myka and Narda were. "Do your best." Ysaryn instructed, before disappearing again.

Sidney, who spoke not a word of elvish, stood dumbstruck where she'd been left, without an ounce of knowledge of where she was or why. Her sandy hair was bunched up into a messy clump, and wrapped in a bit of brightly coloured cloth, tied together in a bow atop her head. Her outfit, little more than a long sleeved tunic and skirt, was hidden behind an apron that had some mildly questionable stains.
Allowing the inner turmoil of Walking and ...whatever the weird gate was ease out of her system, Sid exhaled, looking around apprehensively.
To spot Narda. A face she somewhat recognized. Right. Sid rolled up her sleeves and turned them at her elbows. Kire or Kire's friends.
"Who needs help, then?" She asked Narda, strolling into the first tent.

Upon Kire and Gavin's return to Úvano, the atmosphere had changed. The caves between the two sides of the cliff were empty, with the exception of Ysaryn, who was more heavily armed than normal. She tilted her head, peering over their finds as they set them down. As Gavin went to walk away, the elf casually stepped before him, blocking his route. "No leave through there." She warned, her gaze steady on him for a moment before she looked up to Kire. "You are to stay into the caves until go to Risa. With no Envy, it is dangerous." A shrug of her bony shoulder. "Well, not yet, but soon, yes? You are to be given access to you home that way, but only with me."

Narda and Myka had been talking with Daryll about what had just transpired in the Holly and Lyta’s village as well as Kire’s orders for Daryll to investigate it when Ysaryn appeared momentarily, accompanied by a woman Narda recognized. From the look on her face, she seemed just as surprised to be there as they were to find her here. But the woman only took a few moments to get her bearings and she was already ready to work.
Myka cleared her throat. “Introductions first, yes?”
After Narda stepped forward to do so, the giantess turned to Sid. “I don’t know how much you’ve been told, but for now…” She pointed to a newly set up tent, where the villagers who had ‘attacked’ Kire in the forest were now being held. “Those people seem to have just come out of a trance that had lasted for—well, we’re not really too sure, but let’s say a couple of days. They’re still dazed, and their skin seems a little scalded from, well, suddenly bursting into flame. Long story,” Narda added quickly.
“Short version,” Myka put in, “some magical—entity, thing, I dunno, kinda took them over and their bodies are adjusting to whatever the seven hells had been taking over their bodies these past two or so days.”

The two Amrians glanced at each other. Should they tell her about Envy? Or what Ruli was doing now? “Where’s Ysaryn?” Narda asked.
--

Gavin stopped, blinking in surprise when Ysaryn barred his way. Kire frowned, looking the elf over, noticing how she looked ready to jump into battle. As she spoke, Gavin, too, stepped back to watch her.

“Danger? Are you talking about a coup?” Kire asked, crossing her arms. She moves fast. “Without both Envy and Ruli, who else is tied to the wards that sense magic-users? If stealth is what you need, we can skip the gate. I can portal us without setting foot in there.”
Gavin was quiet for a few moments, looking at Ysaryn, then down at the weapons she carried. Part of him looked distressed; though he did raise that same concern himself earlier that day, that Envy’s disappearance would upset whatever order they had established in this shared city, it disturbed him to see how fast things progressed. He had seen takeovers before, as Itallo’s unwilling right-hand man. People jockeying for power, leveraging their advantages and their opponents’ weaknesses. The familiarity struck him, especially after he’d had to be back at Ziad and reminded of that period in his life.
“A Chieftess must act quickly and decisively,” Kire said, nodding to Ysaryn after glancing at Gavin. “Alright. I trust you’ll know how to handle things.” She looked down at the items they had dug out of the rubble of the temple. “When can we see her?”
“And what about Zeke?” Gavin said, his eyes shifting, as if afraid there were ears everywhere.

Sid turned her head toward Narda, pressing her lips thin. She didn't quite want to admit that she'd been told nothing. Just outside the nearest tent, Narda gestured to a different one, offering a few details. A trance. Her brow knit together, then her lips parted when Narda explained that they had burst into flames. What in hell was going on here? Sid wondered, looking from Narda to the shorter woman beside her, who offered a shortened version.

Lips still parted, brow still furrowed, Sid could only offer a stumped 'huh' before she took control of her face again. "I don't know." She answered of Ysaryn. "Dragged me here, muttered something in her language, and left me. I suppose she wanted me to help, so." She gave a raise of her shoulders, then started for the tent to which Narda had gestured.

For having just burst into flames, the burns were nothing like Sid had imagined at first. She expected blackened and charred flesh. Not ... well, as Narda had phrased it, singed skin. Shining, pink, a bit blistered, but nothing terribly awful. She approached the first patient, a woman perhaps on the upper end of middle aged, and offered a reassuring smile. "Hello. My name is Sidney. May I look at your neck?"
As the woman nodded and held out her arm, Sid glanced to the two women, then around the tent. "Narda, right? And ... Myka. Would you look for fresh water, bandages, and ... assuming I am in your home world, whatever passes for aloe here?" Yes, that would make sense. The strange, ugly feeling gate Ysaryn had pulled her through, must have been the way into Kire's world.
But she'd deal with that panic later.
"Oh! And antibiotics. Salve, preferably, to set over the blisters."

---

Ysaryn only smiled when Kire asked about a coup, though it was far more reserved than her usual one. Less blood hungry than her wolfish grin. "Gavin, and myself. But others can see." Ysaryn pointed out, reminding Kire that they would illuminate once triggered. "It is not stealth. It is uh, what is word?" She clicked her tongue. "If you are found moving in an out freely, you will be hunted."
Her fuchsia gaze flit to Gavin when he asked about Zeke. "He won't be harmed. He will be on my side, or he will find himself in Amria." She gave Gavin another reserved smile before she looked back to Kire. "I take you to the door. Inside hall. When you are done, you come here to me, Kirai. Before you go through gate, yes?"

The two Amrians glanced at each other again. Why didn’t Ysaryn explain?
Myka raised her brows. “She reminds me a lot of Elva,” she said to Narda in Taakalon with a grin “Though with just the right amount of bossy.”. Narda raised a brow at her. “Behave.” Then, to Sid, “Yes, there are healers already here, but with the new and unprecedented developments earlier today, well, you can imagine more hands are welcome. You’ll find most of what you need in the adjacent tent, and what’s not there can be supplied for you. Aloe...hmm, yes, I do believe there’s some here, but we might need more.” Narda rubbed her chin. “The healers are, understandably, rather wary of their new patients. Magic, especially magic that suddenly manifests like this, understandably unsettles people.” She paused. “Were you aware that Envy, Ruli, and Gavin crossed over with Ysaryn? And—”
“—and Ruli’s somewhere helping investigate all this weirdness,” Myka butted in, making the giantess frown. “Don’t wanna distract you with all that other magic talk, I know I’m confused. We’ll fill you in about the rest later, hopefully after either Kire or Ysaryn returns. Nard, weren’t you supposed to meet with the leaders of these two towns to talk about the situation? I think they’re tired of dealing with ole me, and without Kire, you’re the next most intimidating face around here.”
Narda looked down at her friend, not liking the secrecy, but not wanting to break it either until Ysaryn came back to explain herself. “Alright. I’ll leave you here for a bit then.”

Myka turned and beamed at Sid. “Okay, follow me to the other tent. I’ll introduce you to the other healers and the attendants you can consult for your resources. We’re honestly just as confused as you are about what’s going on here, but right now we’re focusing on looking after these people.”
--

Kire pursed her lips as Ysaryn explained the restriction she had put in place, while Gavin frowned. He looked like he wanted to say more, but instead nodded with a huff. “I’m comin’ back with you to help Ruli later. I’ll wait here till we cross back over. But if you want to keep our trip to Ziad from Ruli, we can’t go looking like we crawled through the dirt and ruin,” he pointed out.
The Paladin paused, looking down at herself then nodded. “We’ll clean up at the inn. Though, with the way we left him, I’ve a feeling me might not even notice.” She looked at Ysaryn. “Alright, let’s go to Risa.” She picked up one of the items they brought with them, a statuette similar to the one they had found in Amria, though this exhibited signs of other damage besides the wear and tear of time.

Other healers? Sid looked up, suddenly far more interested. The idea of meeting other-world healers. To compare notes and techniques. Blend their resources. To be able to speak with them and take home her knowledge...
Sid blinked as Narda explained there were supplies in a nearby tent, Sid straightened, smiling kindly to the woman who had let her inspect her neck.

The strange way the two interacted, especially when speaking about Ruli and their investigations. "Yes," Sid grinned. "I knew. At least, I did. Then Ysaryn appeared beside me and yanked me out of a practical course." So, frankly, without Myka informing her that Ruli was somewhere, likewise offering assistance, Sid would have assumed the others could be anywhere.

She only shrugged, looking back over the other patients as the two discussed their immediate plans. As Narda slipped out, Sid waved a hand in farewell, not quite sure of the appropriate goodbyes or sayings here. Then her eyes cause Myka's beaming grin, and Sid smirked. "I'm no stranger to magical burns." She admitted, following Myka out. "We had a resident of sorts who burnt another with her magic. Ruli, actually. Though," She glanced sideways to Myka. "I'm not sure that's something he wants shared. Private as he is. So maybe only bring that up if he does."

Guilty, Sid followed Myka into the tent, to the other healers. Introductions were made, Sid nodding along as names were given. Hoping she didn't look as excited as she felt internally, she logged their names away. With a final grin to Myka that shamelessly betrayed her eagerness, Sid approached the others to discuss what she knew, and how to best help.

---

Ysaryn listened to them speak, silent and patient, the same calculating glint in her eye. When they were decided, and Kire ready, Ysaryn looked back to Gavin. "Remain in here. Look into Envy's chamber, for scribe things? But do not leave caves." Leering firmly at him, she took Kire's hand and they two women disappeared.

Her countenance fell once they were within the castle foyer. Her shoulders slumping slightly, the crack in her facade that betrayed how unhappy she was with the current situation. "Keep Rulitus in Amria, Kirai." Ysaryn said warningly as she marched along the corridor to the Princess's chamber. "How, I do not care. Chain him. Bed him. But do not allow him to come home. He will be harmed by his own decision."

Without allowing Kire a moment to respond, she pounded on the door and opened it, greeted by a squawk as Risa jumped. The woman had been on the ground, Ysaryn's eyes caught as Risa scrambled to her feet. Praying. Stretching. She cared little for why. "You don't just barge in here like some ... savage!" Risa demanded, wrapping her arms around her frame.
Ysaryn stopped a few steps within the door and twitched her head. An ambiguous movement that could have been a nod in apology, an impolite bow, or a challenge. "Emp-eress Kirai." She gestured to the blonde who accompanied her.
Risa's attention was delayed by the weapons on Ysaryn's person, the look in the elf's eyes. "Right, right, for the priestesses." Risa said with an indifferent glance to Kire before her eyes went back to Ysaryn. "Has something happened? I've a right to know."
Ysaryn's wolfish grin made a reappearance, and the elf turned to look at Kire, instead. "You know a way out. Heed the words." She warned again before she marched back out, leaving Kire and Risa alone.

Looking incredibly annoyed that she'd not only been ignored, but was clearly missing something, Risa's muddy eyes zeroed in on Kire. Then to the statuette she held. "I see you at least come prepared. Where did you find that?"

“Ahhh.” Myka nodded when Sid explained her experience with magical burns, as well as her subsequent comment about keeping the exchange between the two of them until Ruli brings it up himself. “I’ve had the, ah, pleasure of trying to interrogate him. From that first meeting, and all our other conversations, he does give the impression of being a secretive person. Not that I can blame him of course.” She shrugged, before introducing Sid to the rest of the other healers in the tent. A less temperamental version of Elva, then, the pirate captain thought, watching Sid get right to work. Or, Elva when she was younger. Myka had been around Wyverns long enough to have seen them change with age—as well as see what Time hadn’t been able to touch. Mostly the Wyvern temper.

“Y’know, healers both fascinate and scare me,” she remarked at some point, grinning at Sid. “You’ve got a lot of incredible knowledge stored up in your heads that’ll help people—but that also means you know a lot about the human body to do some serious damage if you needed to. Not that I’m saying you’d ever do that, “ she added quickly, a sheepish grin on her face.

--

Kire huffed, impatient, when Ysaryn spoke to her in Elvish to tell her what to do with Ruli, but she barely had time to voice her objections when Ysaryn already pounded the door to Risa’s room. Frowning, she turned her attention to the flustered princess, only glancing back at the elf in response to her parting words. She looked back at Risa, then at the statuette she held. She needed answers, and unless she found an enemy she could run through with her sword, Kire had to hold her temper back. There was enough tension in Uvano; anymore and the place would implode. This wasn’t the time for that.

Reverently, she placed the statuette on the ground before Risa, stepping back. “Ziad,” she replied, pausing for a moment to let the fact sink in. “Gavin and I brought back more: a few more statues, some damaged sacred texts or prayer books—not sure what they are. But I’m sure your priestesses will find much of great value.” Her eyes looked into Risa’s, serious and steady. “There are more left behind, as you can imagine. I am willing to bring back as much as possible—though you also know that the Kartaians know Ziad’s location. I have to be careful, and if things get too risky I will stop.” Risa didn’t need to know anything about the wards, nor about Gavin breaking them and, hopefully, greatly reducing the risks Kire was now playing up. “I hope this, and my promise, is enough to be…worthy of a conversation with the Goddess’s followers here.”

Sid grinned and chuckled softly, her smile pretty, though it revealed a few crooked teeth. "You sound like my brother. Zeke." She added, unsure if they knew Zeke here. "Only he twisted that comment a bit." Sid straightened, folded her arms, and leaned slightly sideways, as if to mock Zeke's posture. "Bet you know how to make men writhe in the bedroom, huh? Think you can teach my lady a thing or two?"
Snorting, Sid lowered her arms, shaking her head with amusement.
Though, for a moment, guilt crossed her face. Her mind wandering over the pretty young girl who had made Zeke so happy, and who had fallen in the Ziadi raid.

Pushing it aside, Sid grinned back at Myka. "But, I suppose we can be pretty scary. Envy says our minds just work differently. We watch a child trip, and the average person wonders if their shoe is untied or of something was in their way. We debate privately about muscular and skeletal abnormalities or underlying illnesses that could make them unstable." Really, it never shut up. She had plenty of theories about Rulitus and Zeke that she could never share, because her opinion on such matters was never requested.

She stole a glance toward Myka again as she gathered supplies she wanted and moved back toward the initial tent. Myka followed, and she was a bit glad for that. Myka, though slight, was a sliver of familiarity, and suddenly finding herself in a new world, with patients who didn't know her, with maladies they seemed uncertain of, she could use a sliver of familiarity.
"But you're right. I never would." Sid explained as she ducked back into the tent and set her armful down. She knelt for a few moments, applying and mixing in preparation. "Growing up with the others, you saw a lot of tears. A lot of broken hearts. I've had enough. So I'd rather mend and cheer up. There's enough cruelty without my adding to it. Its why I started training as a physician."

---

Risa studied the statuette for a moment, then looked up at Kire as she let on she'd gone digging around Ziad for it. The question blossomed on her face without her prompting. How was it? Her home, abandoned and left to crumble. Did she long for them back as they all longed to be there?
But the mention of the Kartaians made Risa give a short shake of her head in rejection. No, it would never be their home again.

"She've already agreed to speak with you." Risa said, turning and pacing her chamber. "Apparently having the ear of some off worlder has her quite excited." Risa's tone betrayed that she still didn't believe it. Or, if she did, she didn't understand why it made Kire special. With a turn of her head, she called toward one of the walls. "You may come in, now."

The wall shifted, one of the many bookshelves pushed outward to allow a figure so slip out of a secret passage. The priestess was older, perhaps in her early fifties. She was pale from years indoors, likely within the temple itself, though wrinkles touched her face regardless. She had brown hair speckled with grey pulled back into a neat bun, the crows feet on the corners of her deep brown eyes gave the impression of kindness, their slant indicative of smiles, rather than frowns. Her dress, a plain, woolen thing of muted gold-tan, was held around her waist by a plain rope. Part of its end was burnt, the frayed pieces charred black.
"This is Priestess Zeltzin. Priestess, this is-"
"Empress Akire." Zeltzin finished. She did, indeed, have a kind smile. "I know of you, of course. I am happy to meet you in person."
Risa looked utterly disappointed at the amiable greeting, hoping at least to have to 'request' that the priestess listen to Kire's strange favour.
Zelzin's warm gaze fell upon the statuette. She asked no questions, but looked pleased with Kire's find. "I am aware Her Warmth has graced your world. How may I be of service to her through you?"

Myka rolled her eyes when Sid started imitating Zeke. “Men,” she said, shaking her head. “Though I have to admit, I’ve met Zeke, plus I’ve heard a bit about him from the others. Can’t quite imagine him and that person you just described being the same fellow.” She nodded along when Sid explained how healers’ minds worked. “Sort of like being around warriors and fighters. You see how their minds work, calculating their odds. Even during peacetime it never stops.” She grinned. “But at least healers do a whole lot of good. I’m a fighter, myself, but hats off to healers, I say.”

She liked this woman. Sid had that no-nonsense air about her, but she wasn’t completely humorless. A trait often found among the crew of the Wench, but also what had drawn her to Kire. Myka observed her politely, hands behind her back as the healer busied herself. “Ehm,” Myka cleared her throat. “After you’re done with the immediate tasks, you’ll probably need to be told what’s going on here. Properly, I mean.” She could almost here Narda chastising her to behave.

--

Kire ignored Risa’s tone, waiting for her to introduce the priestess. When the woman finally came out, she was both what Kire had expected, and not at the same time. Priestess Zeltzin looked so ordinary, besides the slight strangeness of her priest’s garb. And given what Kire had been told by Sireen about worshipping Solaralai, the easy, warm smile that creased the priestess’s face was also unusual to her. Kire bowed her head slightly in greeting, though she didn’t feel like smiling back.

“Thank you for seeing me, Priestess Zeltzin.” The way the woman asked Kire her question gave her a chill. Like they were all just puppets for this goddess to use. But then again, all priests talked this way. “I want to know why she is—gracing my world with her warmth,” Kire said, biting back her frustration. “My people have been getting visions. Riddles. None of us understand fully what the Goddess wants. I just don’t want my people to get hurt.” She debated on telling her about what happened to Envy, but she didn’t want to bring that up in front of Risa. Especially not in front of Risa.

Sid grinned oddly, her lips pressed thin into a sort of grimace. "Yeah. He's not really the same anymore. He's lost two, now. Women who made him happy, I mean. That, and the injury he has, I'm not advanced enough to really do much, so." She shrugged sadly, going silent as she focused on her work. Zeke was so much less warm now. While Sid still saw pieces of the old Zeke on his better days, that was still all she was seeing. The 'old' Zeke.

Working, she gently rubbed the salve and aloe on the burns, mindful of the blisters. She wrapped it gently, speaking kindly as she relayed instructions, such as not to scratch or do anything abrasive, or it would scar badly. Magic-given burns were not so different than normal burns in terms of care, at least. These ones appeared to hold no special properties.

As Myka offered to gill her in more properly, Sid glanced over her shoulder from the patient she was currently working on. "Somehow, I feel like you mean more than the burns and trances." She sighed, bending over her work again. A smaller burn, less time. She stood, rinsing her hands before moving to the next one. As she knelt, she looked back over Myka curiously.
She said she was a fighter, and she could see that. She had the body for it. Well toned. She carried herself in a way that declared she was fit and light on her feet. Quit similar to Zeke and Ysaryn. More Zeke, though. Ysaryn carried herself in a whole different way. "I'm not really sure what happened in my own world that brought our acquaintances together. But I know it was something unnatural. Is this like that? The trances? The .. whatever made your tone sound the way it did?"

---

Risa looked between the two women, clearly unhappy that she was currently being ignored in her own domicile. It grew worse when Priestess Zeltzin turned her face toward her. "May we trouble you for some tea, your Grace?"
Nostrils flaring over the idea of serving others, Risa forced a polite smile and slide across the floor to step outside. Beyond the door, her voice carried as she called for a servant.
Zeltzin looked satisfied with their temporary peace. Her smile only brightened. "The Sun Goddess, much like the sun that she corrals across the sky, seeks those who would benefit from her warmth." She gestured with her arms to demonstrate the sun's rays cascading downward. "Those who are yet unaccustomed to her touch will not see clearly for a while. It takes some adjusting, I fear. Consider it like dwelling in the dark for all your life, and suddenly stepping outside into the sunlight."

Risa stepped back in, sweeping with a bit of a hurry in her step, as if she didn't want to be left out of the conversation. Her eyes darted between the two, as if demanding to know what was said. Zelztin, of course, did not indulge her. "New exposure can be uncomfortable, but with the correct tithes, the visions will clear."
Shortly after Risa, a servant girl, a fairly pretty faced thing of about fourteen entered, carrying a tray of teacups that didn't quite match. Purchases from the nearby town, presumably. The kettle steamed, and a small arrangement of baked biscuits sat on a small saucer. Risa kept her mouth shut, but looked minutely displeased about having to share her precious snacks.

The priestess gestured to the statuatte Kire had brought in, studying it like a mother reunited with a beloved child. "I would know that anywhere. She used to sit in the lower chambers, watching us as we worked on our tomes. You have been inside the temple?"

Myka tucked her hair behind her brow that had begun to stick to her temple from sweat. Sid looked like she was managing better in the heat here than she was. “Yeah. Unfortunately,” she said, when Sid asked if she meant something else other than the injuries and trances. A healer went to her and she spoke to him in Taakalon for a few moments before returning her attention to Sid. “I’ll let you finish up, step outside afterward.” From the impression she had gotten of Sid, Myka figured it would be easier for her to deal with bad news when there was work to be done first. The fact that Sid didn’t ask any other question besides what she was supposed to do the moment she appeared told Myka as much.

Not long later, Myka looked towards Sid as she came out of the tent. “Okay. So.” Myka wiped her brow again, then pointed in the direction of the forest. “You see the line of trees over there? Yeah. There wasn’t a forest there a few days ago. It looks like a goddess from your world had shown up here, causing all sorts of magical aberrations. It gave these Amrians the power to wield fire, though they don’t know shit about how, or why. But that wasn’t all She did.” Myka frowned. “Ruli’s there right now, trying to get Envy back. Kire and Gavin are trying to find a way to get answers, too. We don’t know how it happened, but it looks like that entity spirited Envy away. Now, I don’t know what Ysaryn’s trying to do, or why she didn’t tell you, but I’ll assume you being here will help us in some way.”
The pirate captain let out a deep sigh. “Fuck, it’s a mess.” She gave Sid a wry smile. “I thought waging a war against mages with our own sorcerers and seeing Kire with her Paladin magic would be the extent of the magical shit I’d find myself involved with. I’m a mercenary, a pirate, a commander. But this sure makes me feel tiny.” She chuckled, though there was worry in her eyes as she fell silent, letting the information sink in for Sid.

--

Kire didn’t look Risa’s way when she left to fetch them tea, though the corner of her mouth did twitch, almost smiling. Though when Zeltzin started talking about Solaralai, she tried not to frown. “I….see.” It was an understatement, certainly. It was one thing to step from darkness to light, and quite another to suddenly wake up on fire and strange dreams. At the mention of tithes, though, she raised a brow. Her gaze flickered to the statuette before looking back at the priestess. “Yes. I retrieved this from Ziad. Along with other items. What kind of tithes would be considered ‘correct’?” Kire asked, ignoring the food. “And does the Goddess—punish nonbelievers? You can probably imagine, my people have their own gods and spirits they’ve worshipped. Will this Goddess bring her wrath upon them because of this? Or if harm came to the temple, things of that sort.”

She took her time. New world, new problems, but mending injuries never really changed. Even if the absent look on the victim's faces were a little strange. But Sid knew burns, and knew how to care for them. With a nod to Myka as the Amrian woman left, Sid kept at if, gently applying the salve and aloe before wrapping them lightly.
On habit, she moved on to the next one, only remembering she was supposed to stop and speak to Myka halfway through. Ever mindful not to rush, Sid finished with the older gentleman and left the tent, smiling apologetically first before she stood herself before Myka.

On instruction, Sid looked toward the first, having no inclination that it was not natural at first. It looked so normal. Her brow furrowed as she looked back to Myka. To receive news she wasn't prepared for. Envy. Sid stopped breathing, her arms slowly rising to fold over her torso.
For a long while, she was silent, staring at the same spot on Myka's shoulder as her brain tried to absorb the information she'd been given. A Goddess from their world, her world, had come and taken Envy. Why? Why here? Why him?

Looking toward the forest, where Ruli was said to be working on getting him back, Sid felt ill. But she turned to look back around to Myka and raised her shoulders. "I- I don't know." She said. "I don't know why I'm here. I had assumed this," She gestured toward the tents full of healers. Sid licked her lips, her brows still pulled up in worry. "I've never... when things go wrong, its always the three of them. Envy, Ruli, and Zeke. Sometimes Aera, but," Sid shook her head, then touched her fingers to her lips as she looked at the tents once more. "Mending injuries is all I know. I have to assume its why Ysaryn brought me here until told otherwise. So." Turning back to Myka, she straightened and nodded. "Thank you for telling me. But I'm going to keep busy so that I .. I don't know."
Another nod, and Sid turned and shuffled back into the tent, her own vacant look on her face to match the others.

---

Moving to gather a cup of tea, Zeltzin held it with her fingers wrapped around the ceramic, despite the steaming liquid and obviously hot surface. "Oh, no." Zeltzin grinned reassuringly. "The Goddess minds not the reverences paid to others. She understands that Her Warmth touches all, even if they do not acknowledge. Not all are grateful to the sunlight or to the rain for nourishing us, but they continue on, regardless."
"Temples are sacred." Risa butted in to Kire's inquiries. "No matter the form, no matter the religion. Even those savage Kartaians knew better than to touch the temple in Ziad."
Zeltzin looked Risa's way and nodded patiently, looking more like a teacher tolerating a rowdy student than a priestess for a moment. "The temples we build in Her name are Her way of communicating. While Her light shines strongly, we have found that the temples aid in focusing is, so that She may more clearly relay Her favours."

"Tithes," Risa butt in again, glancing to Zeltzin as if for permission. "are different all the time, and depending on what the persons wishes. Our famers often offer the best of their yield as thanks for a great summer, and to request another the following rotation. Nobility would often offer coin to the temples, as well as their children to inspire return of favour."
Another nod from the priestess, who sipped her tea as Risa spoke. "A temple in your world should assist with the visions She is gracing your people with. Offer to Her willing people to serve, and She should cease reaching out blindly." Her warm smile never faded. "You are incredibly blessed that She has chosen your world. It will be a lovely home."

Myka nodded when Sid said she was going to go back to work. She understood that all too well. When the healer went back inside, the pirate’s shoulders sagged, and her expression turned serious. With a groan, she sat down on the ground, cross-legged, fingering one of her knives. Gods. How does Kire deal with this shit? I’m barely keeping up.
“Hey.”
Myka looked up just as Daryll joined her, sitting beside her, a thoughtful expression on his face. “What did I miss?” the scholar asked. After the captain filled him in, Daryll nodded in understanding.
“Did you find any leads?” she asked.
Daryll huffed. “I need more information. There are archives I need to visit. But here’s the thing: though that forest certainly wasn’t there before, there have been instances where this town has had supernatural occurrences before. They just weren’t as obvious, or were dismissed as coming from the imagination of the superstitious. Folktales, things of that sort. There have been fragments of what used to be an older structure that would get unearthed now and then, though this would be the first time they’d seen a statuette like that.”

“Amria is an old land. I’d expect ruins everywhere,” Myka muttered. “And folktales are hard to pin down. They’ve been passed on from generation to generation, and place to place. That’s the nature of these stories.”
“Fair enough,” Daryll replied. “There are ways to track down which strain of stories come from which region. And to verify them alongside old records. That can be done with this town; I’ve already taken a look at some old records they have here, and asked around about the stories they’d tell. The same could be done for the town where Lyta came from. There’s lots of texts back at the Capital, at the Tower, and in certain libraries here.” He paused, sinking back into that pensive expression. “But did you know that the oldest libraries used to be in Gemini territory?”
Myka turned sharply towards him. “Daryll. When you begin a sentence like that…” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you up to something?”
“Many of them would be likely destroyed by now. And I’m sure their contents have been raided, taken somewhere else. I know we’ve probably got some locked away at the Palace, too,” Daryll said, as if he didn’t hear the question. “But somewhere deep in Gemini country is, purportedly, the oldest library in the continent.”

Myka was still looking at him with a frown. Then, shaking her head, she sighed. “Good luck bringing that up with Kire and the Wyverns.”
“I’m a Wyvern, too,” Daryll pointed out. “And if Kire is serious about rethinking the old Wyvern distrust of spreading knowledge about sorcery in the face of the return of magic to the continent, we can’t disregard these sources of knowledge.”
“Oh, I know. I’m just saying you will probably have an uphill battle there, convincing them,” she said. “And with the urgent matters at hand, sending you, or anyone, to yet another potentially dangerous place isn’t going to go down well with everybody concerned.”
Daryll sighed, nodding in agreement. “There is something we could do here, while we wait for the others. The people the Goddess selected here,” he said, gesturing at the tents, “and people like Lyta and that Holly woman. Much like how their respective hometowns might have had dormant magic all this time, they could similarly have been born attuned to the magic. There are signs for that; magic doesn’t just manifest at random.”
“We hope,” Myka butted in, scowling.
“We hope,” Daryll replied, nodding. “Maybe through blood, or through constant exposure to the land and the elements. Maybe have the healers gather information about their health before this happened, family histories, how they fared with injury or disease, that sort of thing. If they inherited other physical peculiarities.”
“Like how Wyverns are either crazy or ill-tempered?” Myka said, to which Daryll rolled his eyes. With a grunt, Myka stood up. “Alright, alright. On it. Will relay this to the healers. Don’t do anything stupid,” she said, her gaze stern while pointing a finger at him before heading back towards the healers' tents.

--

Kire watched as Zeltzin handled the hot tea cup with ease, her mind on the Amrians scalded by the fire they had suddenly begun to wield. Will they eventually control it, then? Will they be safe? The fingers of her scarred hand twitched, remembering the way they had burned when she tried overexerting herself through the Ring. And again, at the memory of the boy on fire. Solaralai has no right putting a child through that.

She nodded at Zeltzin’s answer, then glanced at Risa’s explanation about the temple, biting back a reply. If the Kartaians had really revered the Goddess, they would have left Ziad alone entirely. Kire pursed her lips. What would they say if she told them what she had done? While a part of her was grateful for the information the priestess and Risa relayed, another part of her distrusted their word. Kire didn’t believe, at least not yet, that they would knowingly deceive her about Solaralai, but ardent believers of a religion certainly would talk only of the righteousness of a god’s motivations.

The Paladin let Risa continue, then looked to Zeltzin again as she bade Kire erect a temple in Solaralai’s honor in Amria. Though the priestess had a warm, benevolent smile on her face, or perhaps because of it, her last words sent a chill down Kire’s spine. Amria, a home for some foreign god? She barely had any faith in her native deities. “The temple…” she began, looking at the statuette. “Part of it was damaged in a fight. When I was hunting the murderers who destroyed Ziad.” She stared at Zeltzin. “Are my people being punished for my—sin? And has the Goddess ever—taken people that have displeased her?” She took a deep breath. “If I build her this temple, will she rescind her punishments? What does a temple to the Goddess require?”

Zeltzin blinked in surprise at Kire's question, her smile withering just slightly. "Oh, my dear. She is not punishing you!" The priestess exclaimed. "If you had a part in the destruction of Her temple-" Risa made a sort of noise that betrayed her disbelief in the punishment part. "-that, if anything, She is reaching out to you for help. She cannot communicate properly now. None of your people are properly attuned."

"What did you mean by 'taken people who displeased Her'?" Risa asked, her muddy eyes on Kire. "Have your people gone missing?"

The priestess blinked again, having apparently missed that portion of Kire's question. "Taken? Oh, goodness. I do not like such a word." She took a hand from around her teacup to touch over her heart. Her teacup still steamed merrily, despite the others cooling slightly. "I have never known for the Goddess to take anyone who was not willing to go to Her. The old ways of offering would, on occasion, require a willing priest or priestess offering themselves to Her presence by Fire, but it was long ago put to rest."
Neither Risa nor the priestess seemed the slightest bit bothered by the idea of burning people alive. Willing or no.

"As far as the temple goes, perhaps I can assist in its construction. At least with a few artifacts to help Her settle. The Statuette," She gestured to it. "would certainly be something you could use. Items She has blessed. By fire, by Her nurturing Light, and so on. And windows. She enjoys being free."
"There are stones, too." Risa offered. "Sunstones found throughout the desert. Said to be made when She first appeared and touched the earth. They're rarer now, and harder to find since the destruction of our home. But I'm sure you'll have no issue, considering you had crawled around Ziad's remains to find our artefacts."

Zeltzin smiled at Risa in a way that said her patience was waning. But, of course, the priestess could not say such a thing outright.

Kire was quiet as she listened to Risa and Zeltzin. She took the teacup and drank from it, still quiet, until she set the cup back down. “Very well.” She looked back at the priestess. “I—appreciate the offer. I will need to consult with my people how best to go about this. As you can imagine, we’ve all been taken by surprise by the Goddess’…blessing.” As she spoke, her eyes on Zeltzin’s hands, her mind pictured a priest or priestess writhing in flame. What kind of worshipper would willingly feed themselves to a fire? And how could these two women speak about it so plainly, like it was nothing more than offering flowers to an altar? Given how the priestess’s smile flickered for the first time since their conversation began, Kire had a feeling even they knew their Goddess wasn’t all warmth and sunshine. “Once I have conferred with my fellow Amrians, I will make arrangements for this temple. My thanks for convening this meeting, Your Grace,” she said as she rose, giving a nod to Risa, “Priestess Zeltzin. A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

She made her way back to where she had left Gavin and where Ysaryn had told her to come back. The lad was sitting cross-legged, deep in his thoughts, his gaze seemingly on the other artefacts from the Ziad temple, but not really looking at them. The moment Kire approached, Gavin snapped out of it, gazing up at her. “What did you talk about?”
Kire huffed. “Looks like I will have to build a temple in Solaralai’s honor in Amria. Like a beacon for the Goddess. It’ll help the new worshippers see more clearly, the priestess said.”
Gavin frowned. “Seems kinda simple. Too simple.”
“Nothing is ever simple with gods,” Kire murmured. “With not much to go on, I don’t have better options yet. If this gets us closer to helping my people and getting Envy back, I’ll take it, but—it feels like letting her get a foot in through the door. Once that happens, it would be hard to close it.”

As Kire spoke the word 'blessing' with such hesitation, Risa narrowed her eyes slightly, shrewdly staring the woman down. Zeltzin, however, looked pleased as ever. As Kire bent and said her farewells, Risa nodded, while the priestess bent in a bow of her own. "It was a pleasure, Empress Akire. I look forward to speaking with you again. May Her Light guide you."

Ysaryn, upon return to the caves, was absent for the time being, though her voice could be heard. Accompanied by Zeke's raised interrogation. It grew louder, though the first person to appear was Rab.
He frowned at Kire, his expression anxious as he sidled in and tucked himself to the side. "I am only going to ask this one more time-" Zeke growled.
"You say that three times!" Ysaryn answered harshly.
"-what the hell is going on?" Zeke ignored her retort. "I demand to know. Why so much weaponry? Why the armed men? Why can't we-"
Ysaryn muttered something in swift elvish as they both appeared in the chamber. Both of them looked cross, and as they spotted Kire, both their expressions changed. Ysaryn looked intrigued, while Zeke looked more annoyed.
"How did it go?"
"You're behind this aren't you?"
They both asked at once. Rab swallowed and sidled further away as both Ysaryn and Zeke frowned at one another again.

"She is not behind this. No part in this!" Ysaryn fought back.
"Well, every time something goes fuck end up, out here, somehow she is to blame!"
"Pull you head out of you salf hatred long enough to listen!"
"Maah!" Rab shouted loudly, clapping his hands to interrupt. Both angry persons turned to round on him, then inhaled.

"Kirai, take Rab." Ysaryn suggested, gesturing at the halfbreed.
"Now, wait just a minute! You can't keep tossing people out! What the hell do you-"
"Perhaps some Kartaian blood will be of help?" Ysaryn said hintingly, ignoring Zeke, who continued to yell. (Why would she need Kartaian blood? Rab better be in one piece when he is returned! And he will be returned!)