The interior of the landcruisers was as utilitarian as the exterior. At the back was a group of tiny compartments containing cramped amenities, like a galley and a hycab. At the front was the driver's cabin and the communication room. The rest of the interior was unsegmented, forming a d-shaped enclosure. As Airo's team, Councilor Itrix, and her micro entourage boarded, the slitheroid drones embarked after them, folding up and attaching themselves to a row of fixtures installed along one of the walls.

The journey went underway. The landcruisers were autopiloted, though Ramara, one of the blue-skinned women, periodically checked the navigation to make sure they were on course. The convoy drove for hours through the lifeless tundra, the AI drivers churning steadily toward their destination.

Airo and his team settled on portable bunks in the central enclosure. Their rescuers turned out to be quite talkative, and both parties conversed with each other on trivial topics like prefabricated food or the weather. Airo didn't participate in the socializing, and he stood silent to the side, enduring his situation sullenly. He had no idea a conversation about clouds could last so long, even when it included nephological terms like cyclonic lift or altitude boundaries. What he noted, however, was how Councilor Itrix and her escorts carefully avoided questioning him or his travel companions about their identities or goals.

"Are there other dragons in Dragon Retreat?" Veralla inevitably asked at some point, her tail swishing in barely restrained anticipation.

"Alas, there haven't been any dragons in our shrine-town since the Dragon Independence War," Nerisca said. "We used to be visited from time to time by some who served as Radiant Knights, thought this also ceased to be after the Starblaze."

"Oh," the dragonet said, her enthusiasm dampened.

"Dragon Independence War?" Zuckeroff blurted. "When did that happen? Ow!" he yelped as Kiana elbowed him in the ribs. "What gives?"

"You don't know your galactic history, gamebrain," she snorted dismissively. "Might try the educational database once we get to town."

Airo observed the exchange closely. His gaze was focused on Kiana, yet the young Conduit pretended to be watching through the viewpanel, instead of defiantly meeting his eyes as she usually did when he looked at her. He was certain she was hiding something – and Zuckeroff too, by extension. Airo looked away. It didn't matter. As soon as he reached town, he would contact the Consortium and leave the two bumbling juveniles behind – and the dragonet as well. He was done dealing with unwanted burdens.

Shortly after, something different than endless ice glaciers and snow crests appeared through the viewpanels. The convoy passed a small settlement, though the vehicles steered clear of the unvaried collection of prefabricated buildings and hab complexes. Airo magnified the view on his visor, and saw the reason: only blackened ruins remained.

"What happened to those people?" Kiana asked quietly, gazing at the destruction in the distance.

"They were caught in the conflict," Councilor Itrix said. She had removed her helmet, revealing a set of bright orange fins on her head instead of hair. "Terra Para had been in the iron grip of both the Consortium and the Union," she continued in a measured voice, and gave Airo a calm look. "The two stellar civilizations have clashed many times over the centuries, and now we are their latest victim in their never-ending ideological fight."

"Who'd live in the middle of nowhere?" Zuckeroff asked, palm and face pressed to the nearest viewpanel. "The Viirt connection must be spotty in such a place, even with decent satellite cover."

"This was one of the maintenance outposts along the Beacon Highway," Councilor Ixtrix said. She gestured at one tall structure, which turned out to be the remains of an E-beacon. "The Highway connects to every settlement on Terra Para. It is the only way to travel safely across the planet, besides suborbital flight. Or it used to be."

"This... conflict, which you speak of," Kiana asked slowly, "does it by chance have anything to do with that eyesore over there?" She pointed at the purple-white energy pillar, which towered beyond the horizon ominously, like an ever-present blight.

Councilor Itrix didn't answer right away. When she did, her words carried subtle wariness. "We believe it does," she said. "A certain... chain of events started after its appearance. The Consortium and the Union began attacking each other. Communication lines broke down, and Viirt access became limited. Then almost the entire grid went dark, and through the remaining isolated connections came rumors about monsters roaming the wilderness." Councilor Itrix shook her finned head. "Terra Para never had any wildlife. We thought it was just void-talk, the same you get during any war or period of protracted adversity. But then the warpstorms hit, and they were worse than ever as far as any planetary records show. And that... pillar of light was there the entire time. We think it comes from the Shard – it is where the headquarters of the Order of the Radiant Knights are. We couldn't contact the Order. We sent volunteers to investigate but none returned. If something bad enough happened to defeat the Radiant Knights themselves, then the rest of us have little hope against it."

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Kiana hugged herself and shivered. Zuckeroff seemed vaguely worried. Veralla stood silent and anxious. Ramara and Nerisca looked at their leader with fear and uncertainty in their eyes. Airo regarded the moody atmosphere with detachment. He couldn't quite grasp the context, yet the significance of the events was clear. Except he wondered why the councilor would share information so freely.

"Why tell us these things," he asked, "if you consider us your enemy?" He tapped the Consortium insignia emblazoned on his power armor. "Why risk it and rescue us in the first place, if you have already lost search parties?"

Councilor Itrix regarded him with her calm, insightful gaze. She suddenly gave a tired smile. "Some of us were indeed against replying to your distress call," she said. "That warpstorm hit our town, too, so we had our own problems. We also had to think about searching for our brethren who left to learn what was happening to our world. Certainly, resources for a rescue mission should've been assigned for them first? And, after all, that communication tower was a Consortium outpost. Why help the enemy?"

Airo hid his surprise behind a stony expression, and in the corner of his vision he saw Kiana and Zuckeroff were having less success doing the same.

"However, some of us thought differently," Councilor Itrix continued as if her words had caused no tension whatsoever. She propped an arm under her chin. "They reminded the others about the teachings of the Way, and they asked if a true Celestian would turn away from a fellow being in time of need. In the end, their words rang true; thus we assembled," Councilor Itrix looked at Ramara and Nerisca with pride and gladness, "and braved the perilous wilderness of Terra Para for three days, despite the broken Highway and despite the pressing concerns of our shrine-town – in order to help you."

"And yet," she said with a tone of finality, "we still might have left you to your fate after all, if it wasn't for the fact you weren't the original occupants of the outpost."

"How does that change anything?" Airo demanded. "We are still Consortium soldiers."

"I had a vague feeling," said Councilor Itrix contemplatively, "your group indeed needed to be helped." Her gaze fell upon Veralla. "And I think I was right."

The return journey was graced with good fortune. The anomalous landscape of Terra Para had warped the surrounding regions, enabling the convoy to take a drastic shortcut after Kiana used her Conduit talent to help with the navigation. Instead of three days, Dragon Retreat emerged on the horizon at dusk, merely after ten hours.

The shrine-town was nestled in a large, solitary mesa rising among a host of ice hills. The mesa was eroded into a network of canyons and fissures, as if some giant blade had slashed across the rocky mass repeatedly. Natural terrain provided solid defense, further reinforced by hastily erected barricades and threatening outlines of automated turrets. Dragon Retreat shone brightly even from a distance, its large geodesic dome atop the mesa a glittering lighthouse in the twilight glow.

"Heee!" Veralla squeed. "It is beautiful!"

Kiana and Zuckeroff stared, murmuring in wonder. Airo, despite himself, felt impressed.

The convoy drove along the shrine-town's outskirts, and climbed into the mesa proper via a wide road. Enormous sections were carved out in the walls of the canyons: vast caverns lurked just within the cliffs, made in the past to accommodate dragons and reflect their raw majestic splendor. Besides these primeval abodes of smooth stone and crystal clusters, smaller embrasures pocked the canyon walls, entrances leading to homes of transhumans. Arching walkways and pyramidal platforms connected various points along the cliffs, crossing between the canyons in patterned geometric shapes. Wide thoroughfares circled and snaked their way at the ground level, their routes intertwined with the walkways. Huge temples with intricately-shaped facades made of inlaid metal and crystals were shaped at various levels, with broad plazas paved before their steps. The thoroughfares and walkways were lit by low obelisks with softly glowing tips. Statues of both dragons and transhumans decorated the public squares, alongside more abstract sculptures of stone and crystal, all of them illuminated by orbs of pure light atop high pylons. If he didn't know better, Airo would have thought he was in a pre-Equalizing settlement on his homeworld Arceria. As he watched the draconic statues, he felt his mood turning foul.

"Deus, look at the power of that architecture!" Kiana gasped in awe, taking in the sights.

"Um, what do you mean?" Zuckeroff asked tentatively.

"Those lights! Their energy comes from the Æther! Whoever did this, they were a pretty badass Conduit."

Veralla was even more mesmerized by the surroundings. "Oh!" she said, the pupils of her eyes round and wide, as she constantly craned her neck around, trying to see more from the landcruiser's viewpanels. "Oh! It is so lovely!"

"Should we accommodate the visitors first, or would you like to present them to the Council straight away, Councilor?" Ramara asked.

Councilor Itrix seemed to unfocus for a few moments, then nodded. "The others are currently in a meeting. Drive us to the High Temple."

The convoy made its way to the heart of the shrine-town, where three of the largest canyons met in one place, forming a Y-shaped valley. The widest corner of the valley was carved into a towering building, its cliffside shaped like giant draconic wings made of crystal. The wings emanated a pale emerald glow and curved inwardly, sheltering a grand entrance in the evening dark.

The landcruisers stopped at the foot of the magnificent structure. There weren't many people on the pathway, yet those who were nearby clustered together to watch the arriving convoy. Their curiosity quickly turned to awe as the party disembarked, all gazes focused on Veralla. Slitheroid drones came forward and formed a loose phalanx, to give some privacy and serve as an honor guard. Or perhaps the locals have more sense than trust and it is a prison escort, Airo thought cynically. The attention and the armed presence certainly didn't help to improve his temper.

Councilor Itrix stood before the vast entrance of the wing-shaped building, and made a welcoming gesture. "Visitors," she said formally, "you are invited to step inside the High Temple of the Fire Eternal. The town council is awaiting you to introduce yourselves and present your case to them."

Veralla was about to ask something, but Airo bid her to stay silent with a glare. They passed through an enormous vaulted passageway, and entered the High Temple.