A couple minutes after lockdown, I was sitting next to Sandfinch in the Fount training grounds. She was still holding onto me with her right hand, while she probed the area around her neck stump with her left. Sandfinch’s breathing and pulse had just barely started slowing down to a more relaxed pace when Agito entered the courtyard.

The proctor sighed and looked to Sandfinch, then me. Then she said “Theerin. The guards are searching for the group of bandits who stole Sandfinch’s head, but we need a description of what they look like. Sandfinch obviously can’t talk, hear or see right now, and her signing isn’t good enough to provide a detailed description.”

I spotted the subtext immediately and said “Sure, I’ll let Sandfinch borrow my head for a bit.” even as I drew my knife and quickly set about cutting off my head, using a rhythmic sawing motion to make it relatively quick and easy. I was cutting fairly low on my neck this time, to ensure that Sandfinch got at least one full set of vocal chords, since it looked like the bandits had cut through her voicebox. After a few moments I passed my head to Sandfinch, my field of view suddenly rotating as Sandfinch started rotating my head around to try and feel what it was.

A few seconds of this passed before Sandfinch apparently figured out that my head was in fact a head. Then she put it onto her neck and I partially sealed the wounds so she could use it, but I’d still be able to easily pull it off. I felt Sandfinch trying to speak through my lips, and I let her.

My own voice sounded a bit odd as Sandfinch used it to ask “Did you get my head back... wait this isn’t my voice.” and looked over at where I was sitting headless, a plume of Life-Vapor flowing from my neck stump and illuminating the area.

I quickly signed [Letting you use my head right now. Please describe the group who attacked you.]

Sandfinch looked to Agito, then started talking “Right. There were six men in the alley there. All of them were dressed up like people from the North, with those multicolored sashes and wide-brimmed hats. I didn’t get to look very long because they blindfolded me almost immediately after cutting my head off and stuffed my ears with wax. That said, I’m pretty sure they’ve put my head in some sort of box, and judging by how much jostling I’m still experiencing they haven’t stopped moving since they jumped me.”

That twigged something in my memory as I signed [Wide-brimmed hats? A man wearing one of those got in my way just before I found you headless. I think he might have been running interference for them.]

Agito groaned with frustration, “So there’s at least seven people involved in this plot, and they were smart enough to have someone keeping trouble away while they did the act in question, along with taking measures to avoid Sandfinch’s head giving away their position. It’s still vaguely possible that they’re in Ardsto Flats, but it’s far more likely that they’ve already made their escape and we’ll need to send someone after them.”

There were several moments of silence, before Sandfinch looked back in my direction and I signed [Can I please have my head back now?]

Sandfinch hesitated, before saying “Fine. I really really don’t like being helpless though.”

With that, I reached over and with a solid yank I pulled my head right off Sandfinch’s shoulders. Even as I put myself back together, Sandfinch was already crossing her arms together in an obvious pout, her Life-plume pulsing in intensity with her heartbeat.

A moment later, one of the guards entered the courtyard and reported “We’ve searched the cargo of all the travellers currently in town. We haven’t found any Fount body parts, though we did uncover a human trafficking ring and arrest everyone keeping it running.”

Agito just nodded in acknowledgement, before saying “Right. We’re going to need to organize a search party for this. Call the rest of the council to Stophall, and we’ll start planning the mission.”

I got up to follow, only for Agito to turn to me and note “Theerin, you stay here. Sandfinch is your apprentice, and she needs your help to function right now.”

I sighed and said “Right.” before turning back to Sandfinch. Instead of a gaseous plume of Life, now she was bleeding its glowing green liquid form, thoroughly soaking her clothing. As I sat and watched, Sandfinch switched between gaseous and liquid flow several times, before eventually settling on gaseous. Apparently she’d figured out the phase transition, and it was at least something to do, given her current state.

Several minutes passed, before Sandfinch tried hauling herself to her feet and promptly fell over. She tried again a few times, to no avail. I could sympathize from previous experience; without feedback from vision or the inner ear, maintaining balance was nearly impossible unless you had a handhold to keep you upright. So, the third time Sandfinch tried to haul herself onto her feet I held out an arm for her to grab.

Sandfinch grabbed on briefly, before immediately letting go. When she tumbled over again and hauled herself to a sitting position, she signed [Walk on my own. Won’t give up. Ever.]

In response, I traced the word “YES” on her back letter by letter, letting Sandfinch know I got her message.

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What followed were several minutes of repeated attempts by Sandfinch to stay upright while missing two out of three senses that could provide balance information. The longest she could stay upright was two seconds, and any time she tried taking a step she fell over immediately. It was painful to watch, especially when Sandfinch sat down in something vaguely resembling the fetal position after a string of particularly painful falls.

Still, after a few moments, Sandfinch signed [Trying something different. Might help.]

Then the plume from her neck stump briefly cut out, and I felt a surge of something that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. On her part, Sandfinch suddenly straightened out and signed [Pulse bounced back. Bounced back brighter for living things. I can see using that.]

There was another pulse from Sandfinch, then another, and another. At the same time, she hauled herself to her feet, and this time she stayed upright. One faltering step, then another. Immediately, Sandfinch threw her arms up in joy as she turned to me and signed [I can see and walk again! Still can’t hear, but pulses are round.]

Something quickly occurred to me, and I signed back [Can you read handsigns with this?]

Immediately, Sandfinch replied [Yes. Please slower. Can only see during pulses.]

This was huge. The main reason we’d invented Ardsto sign language in the first place was for getting reports back from patrols who brought a Fount’s head with them, but few were willing to volunteer for that role given how helpless it rendered them. On the other hand, we’d have significantly more takers if Sandfinch’s new technique were shared, as it massively reduced the downsides to being headless.

I signed back a bit slower [Do you think you could teach this to others?], making sure to time each sign to one of Sandfinch’s pulses.

[Yes, but writing. Can’t sign well enough yet.]

[The library, then?]

[Yes.]

[I’ll tell Agito and meet you there.]

And with that, Sandfinch walked off towards the library. Meanwhile, I made my way towards Stophall. At the door the Fount acting as guard asked “Aren’t you supposed to be watching over Sandfinch?”

I told him “This is important. Sandfinch figured out a way to see without her head and she’s on her way to the library to write it down.”

The man’s eyes widened and he hurriedly stepped aside, saying “Right this way ma’am.”

And with that, I entered Stophall, quickly making my way to the council room. Knocking on the door, I waited for permission to enter, and the instant I heard “Come in.” I opened the door.

I didn’t wait for accusations, saying “Sandfinch figured out a way to see while headless. She’s on her way to the library now to write it down.”

There was a brief moment of silence before Agito abruptly got up from her seat and said “Right. I’ve got to come take a look at this.” and walked out of the council room. I followed her, and as we walked through the exit door of Stophall, Agito asked “So, what can you tell me about Sandfinch’s newfound ability to see without her head?”

As we walked, I told her “Sandfinch figured out how to do something to her plume that makes it send out a pulse that bounces off stuff. She can tell when the pulse bounces back to her, and with that she can gauge distance, shape, and orientation well enough to read handsigns at six paces.”

As we walked, Agito thought for a moment before she said “That sounds a lot like the night ping spell that the Guards use, but I thought Founts didn’t have the control for that? We can barely control something as simple as what phase of matter our Life comes out in.”

Then something clicked in my mind as I noted “Sandfinch knew the night ping spell before becoming a Fount. What she came up with is probably a variant on that with all the complexity stripped out that she could.”

Agito nodded in agreement, “Yes, that’s probably it.”

Then we arrived at the library, passing the printing press room as we made our way to the scriptorium. Sure enough, there was Sandfinch rapidly writing down her technique on a piece of bamboo paper, the text glowing with the distinctive green of fresh Life. We’d just arrived next to the writing desk when Sandfinch put down the fountain pen and signed [Just finished writing. Glad we use Life ink, so I can read.]

Smiling, I signed back [Well done! Mind if we read it now?]

In response, Sandfinch simply passed the page to Agito, who browsed it for a few moments and said “Hmmm. Yes, I can probably do this.” before stabbing herself in the chest to draw a plume of Life directly from her aorta. Soon enough she’d managed the same sort of pulsing that Sandfinch was doing. Agito’s eyes widened and she one-handedly signed [I’m doing it! Theerin you’ve got to try this!] as she passed the page to me.

So of course I read, the glowing green text quickly revealing just how right I was with regards to the origins of Sandfinch’s Lifesight technique.