The ocean beyond Skygarden was bathed in golden light. Kai beat his wings against the ocean breeze, and while the city itself was magnificent, it was the tiny island in the distance which drew his ire. A jagged spine of black granite flanked on either side by high cliffs crowned with flowery meadows. A handful of pine copses occupied the loamy depressions. As he ascended into the golden sky, his eye was drawn to Princess Astrid's Villa, a glowing hotel of purple draconic crystal, cut into the central spine of the island, ten thousand feet above the crashing waves.

It was, as far as Kai was able to estimate, the most expensive real estate in the known universe. The most powerful and wealthy corporations in the Physical World would struggle to rent a room for their executives for more than a few nights. And yet, in spite of the extraordinary cost, the rooms in Astrid's Villa were booked for at least a year in advance. Most of the grassy landscape was occupied by an exclusive golf course, and dozens of humans meandered about the island.

Kai transformed into his human form before reaching the purple crystal structure. Storm sorcery would suffice to descend onto the private balcony for members of the royal family. When he landed, the violet-clad guards at the door prostrated themselves on the ground.

"Prince Kai, the Exalted Princess Astrid resides within," the guard captain warned. "If you enter, you will be diminished."

"Then I shall be diminished," Kai said.

Astrid's private quarters were fashionable without being gaudy. Golden light poured between mother-of-pearl drapes to illuminate a sparse room. His sister was seated on an oversized couch with one of her preferred granddaughters. They were both engaged in some elaborate form of grooming. Kai recognized the crystal comb that the younger girl was using to brush Astrid's immaculate hair. He himself had given that comb to Astrid a thousand years before, just a few months before she died.

She was not wearing the metal mask common to Fate Binders. Empty eye sockets tracked him as he stalked across the room, bleeding writhing tears of misty shadow.

"Brother," Astrid said. "I saw your soul flying across the ocean. Why have you come?"

"You know why I have come," Kai said.

"You attempt to restore me to my former self, to the sister you once knew in centuries past. Perhaps if you had been there, you would have been able to protect me from Ashe."

Kai grimaced, betraying the pain caused by this insult.

"I pity you, brother. Speak, I will humor your request this one time."

"Thank you, sister. I would speak to you about an island. A specific island, which I believe might be of interest to the Queen of Fire, who may become our ally."

His eye was drawn to an empty space beside him. Someone was attempting to draw his attention away from that area, and so he refocused his attention there, piercing through the mental fog to see what was beyond. A purple-haired whelp frowned at him, her arms crossed under her breasts. With a rainbow shimmer, she appeared.

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"I hate that you can see me," Brigid said.

Astrid waved her hand dismissively. "My brother means no harm. I admire your diligence, however this is a matter for members of the royal family."

"As you like, Princess."

"If you please," Kai began with a slight bow, "I would ask a question of you, Brigid. Of the souls who came here with Ingrid's dream, how many were bonded to Greater Fire Elementals?"

The whelp glared at him. "Just two. A couple of old men bonded to Phoenix Elementals."

"And where are they now?"

Brigid shrugged. "They have not caused any problems so far. Their souls were not affected by their brutal treatment, not to the same degree as the others. We have other priorities."

"Let me paint you a picture," Kai said. "An island filled with whelps. A Red Dragon rules the north, and a Blue Dragon rules the south. And both of those Dragons worship Ashe. They send their whelps against each other, smashing their armies together over and over as part of a eugenics program to create two mortal races that hate each other."

"Ashe would do this thing," Astrid agreed.

"However, one of the two Dragons was recently killed. The other Dragon is weak, unable to acquire allies on the other side. Elvira is more than strong enough to kill him. If you went to that island, you could inherit that eugenics program from Ashe, and twist it to be more in line with what mother wants. We could breed a new generation of skilled pilots there."

"We have other continents," Astrid said. "We have uplifted many nations into the Golden Age of Flight."

"Indeed," Kai agreed. "Now imagine that both of the Phoenix Elementals could be brought to that island. They would be able to very rapidly create a stable war between the two nations. In fact, you might be able to initiate perfect conditions with just a single year of investment, perhaps less."

"I support this," Brigid added.

"Are you speaking as my sworn bodyguard?" Astrid asked. "Or are you speaking as a servant of the Queen of Fire?"

"The latter," Brigid admitted. "No harm will come to you on that backwater island, and I can do most of the work for you. All you need to do is cause both of those souls to be reincarnated there. I can do almost all of the work."

"To control Phoenix Elementals, they would need an ally on the other side," Astrid said. "They would need a Light Elemental to witness the bonds, and the Festival of Fates was just a few decades ago. We would need to wait a very long time."

"Then we send them to Twin Fates," Kai said.

"That's insane, brother. Would you really allow two souls bonded to Phoenix Elementals to wander through Ashe's Domain? What happens if they arrive at the Apex of the Elements and the Queen of Light offers to release them into the Physical World?"

"Then we would know the Queen of Light's answer."

Brigid nodded. "It is a risk, but it would provide a lot of information. If both of those souls return to us on that island, then we would know that the Queen of Light agrees with our long-term plans."

"Not necessarily," Kai admitted. "It could also mean that the two souls want to return to the Plane of Dreams."

"Which would be insane," Brigid said. "Nobody chooses to come here."

"This is irrelevant," Astrid snapped. "Brother, you are so irritating! And I hate being irritated. You concocted this plan with the intent to tempt me with its perfection. You knew that Brigid would accept the bait. You seek to humiliate me in front of my bodyguard."

"You know that's not true," Kai said.

"You think I'm going to change on that damn island!"

"I do. And I don't care if it takes a thousand years. I don't care if I am diminished to nothing in your eyes."

Astrid sighed. "Brigid, my dear. Get your people to draft a plan. Get the appropriate reviewers to approve it. Then have your people talk to my people."

Brigid bowed deeply. "It shall be done, my Princess."