I pushed open the doors to the Grand Sanctum, my footsteps echoing on the elegant marble flooring. Overhead, the stars shone with an ethereal radiance. I had often wondered how the stars could be so crystal clear, even during the day. Walking over to the shrine in the center of the building, I kneeled and lowered my head in reverence.

“You called, Grand Priestess?” I asked respectfully.

The figure before me remained silent, and the white veil that covered her face kept her expression a mystery. The silence stretched on for some time, and I waited patiently for her response. The longer she remained quiet, the more I worried that I had inadvertently offended her.

“A new power has appeared in the world,” she finally said. “One with a body of metal and blood of lightning.”

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I considered her words carefully. “...Should we be worried?”

For the first time in my life, I heard a brief pause of hesitation in her voice. “I…do not know. It has been hidden from my sight. By who or what, I cannot say. But I can sense its existence.”

My eyes widened slightly in surprise. The Grand Priestess’s understanding of the Law of Light was one of the deepest on the continent. To conceal something from her sight was nearly impossible. “Then what shall we do?”

“Find it. Ascertain its motives, capabilities, and origins. If it is cooperative, attempt to establish friendly ties.

“And if it is not?”

“Then do not hesitate to destroy it.”