Now devoid of greater powers and shining waters, the City of Uren was left alone as Breeze Haven took off into the real sunrise, hidden behind so many others. Alas, Cira was asleep at the helm, adrift again, her home destined to land wherever it may.

In her wake, there was a pristine egg on the horizon, just like she dreamed. Unlike her dream, the sun didn’t set on Fount Salt for seven long days. Only then did the veil of day lift and the island knew darkness again.

On the eighth morning when a single sun rose, a ship descended from above. With a rounded shape and painted red hull, it was topped with a banner bearing an insignia of three links in a chain—the symbol of the Gandeux Group. Surrounded by a round canopy sail that could tilt around as it rose or fell, this ship was specifically designed to traverse the Noose quickly.

“Man, Earth Vein really turned this place around when they took over.” Brindle gazed down at the twin cities, one visibly more impressive than the other with a massive fountain beset within the calm waters of a sprawling lake which led to rivers which spiderwebbed throughout the city. While the fountain looked almost like silver, everything else seemed to be crafted from the same metal. “No way, is that all ancient brinstahl?!”

Hale squinted his eyes as he inspected the peculiar city, “I was here three months ago… I don’t recall Earth Vein erecting any such city, nor rebuilding Uren. It would have certainly reached my desk.”

“Whoa…” The mage pulled his hood down, letting it rest on his shoulders to get a better look as they got closer. “Is that what were here to investigate? Honestly, even that shithole looks kind of nice now.”

Hale let out a long sigh as he looked out the window, shaking his head, “I agree, but I’m not so sure it was by Earth Vein’s hand… All we know is there were forty-two reports within three days saying there was deritium in Fount Salt. Then the reports haven’t stopped about a saint of some kind. They’re saying crazy things like she made the sun rise and dropped a city from the sky like rain. Islands move at her will.”

“That’s obviously bullshit. But forty-two?! Why so many?” It was outright bizarre. One would do the trick, and somebody would be mandated to check the veracity if an assessment hasn’t been done within two decades—Fount Salt had no such study on record, of course, having been pushed out of the Boreal long before the Deritium Concordat was ratified.

“They said it caused the plague…” was Hale’s only reply.

Brindle’s eyes shot open, “It can do that?! I heard about the plague years ago!”

Hale Pursed his lips, nodding with frustration, “The reports also said there was a cure… for the effects of deritium.”

The mage’s jaw was on the floor, “Bullshit! You can’t fix a broken soul! H-how?!”

Hale offered a deadpan expression, “That’s what we’re here to investigate. Earth Vein’s lips were sealed, swearing they hadn’t heard a thing since their audit a few weeks ago. So, we shall begin with the Overseer. My great-grandfather said he was a good man, so he should be forthright enough.”

The ship slowed to a stop as it contacted the landing pad atop Uren’s silo. Once they got out there was already a crowd of guards waiting, wearing the overseer’s seal. Before them was the oldest man Hale had ever seen, as many wrinkles as there were stars in the sky. He wore the overseer’s badge and bowed when they made eye contact.

“Greetings, Sir Regulator!” The old man was stiff, as if reading from a script and suppressing his accent.

“Please, call me Hale.” Brindle stood behind him with an unfriendly look on his face.

“Right, Regulator Hale, sir…” beads of sweat pooled atop his wrinkles, “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Hale looked at him for a brief moment, “Is… that a serious question? Are you not the Overseer?”

“Uh, ah, yes! I mean, you musta heard about the deritium…” His face paled.

“Indeed… and the incident with the Saint.” Hale scrutinized him closely. Why is he nervous? Something strange seems to be going on, but what could the Overseer of all people be hiding? “There is also a number of other matters. Namely, the cure. Shall we speak in your office?”

The Overseer laughed nervously, “Uh, well, you see… All that stuff, is… a little outside muh purview. You’re probably going to want to talk to the Underseer. He handles everythin’, you know, down there. And out there.” He urged to the world beyond his rooftop.

“Right…” Something is definitely off on this island… “And where do I find this ‘Underseer’?”

The former’s face lit up slightly, “Oh, ya can’t miss ‘im! He’s in that big shiny buildin’ with his name on it.” He pointed to the opposite city where one building stood above the rest, ending in a pointed spire.

Hale didn’t move or say anything. He stood there for a moment, waiting for the Overseer to follow up before leaning in inquisitively, “Oh, of course! Uh, Geronimo, take him there!”

A man wearing an extravagant medallion pushed his glasses up and muttered, “That’s not my name… Er, Regulator Hale, right this way!”

Hale and Brindle looked at each other for a moment, unsure of what to make of the peculiar behavior, but ultimately Hale had been promised there was a man with answers. It was simpler to see if someone could be more help than the old man. Perhaps he’s getting up there in the years. I heard they get old on this island. Maybe my Great-Grandfather caught him in his youth, and he’s gone senile.

They let the other man lead them to an elevator and Brindle just couldn’t help but ask, stroking the rough stubble on his chin, “Hey, what’s with your necklace? Is that a church relic or something?”

“Believe it or not,” The bespectacled man turned with an unamused tone, “Just because it’s blessed silver doesn’t mean it’s from the church.”

“Right…” Brindle and Hale shared a look before following him again.

At least an hour later, they found themselves walking through the new city with the sun at their backs. The air wasn’t as dry as it was in Uren, which had already improved from memory, but there was a change to the infrastructure there as well—namely the monolithic farm they installed. Many rivers standing on stilts could be followed back to the new city and lowered or crossed over as they made their way to the other side of town.

Down the roads paved in brinstahl and around the buildings made of the same, they eventually reached the shores of a lake, formed to look natural but clearly bordered in another hard metal. The fountain was the second highest structure in the city, just below their destination, and there was a lot of open space and indents in the ground surrounding it, like it would be filled with dirt to become a park one day.

“Not a lot of people here.” Hale commented.

Geronimo shrugged, “It’s too new. The Underseer hasn’t sorted everything out yet.” As they passed the park there was a sign growing from the ground about waist high and almost thirty feet long with large, bolded letters embossed onto it.

“Silver Lake.” Brindle read, “That the name of the city?”

“No…” Geronimo replied awkwardly. “Just the lake.”

“Hold on.” Hale paused, gazing over the waters for a brief moment. “Like the Silver Lake that collapsed over a decade ago?”

“Huh. Now that you mention it, I remember something like that.” Brindle agreed, “Nice of Earth Vein to rebuild it for them.”

Their guide silently took them to the foot of the tallest building in the city which had another sign on the front with large print: “LOMP”.

“The hell is that supposed to mean?” Brindle muttered.

The guide led them inside, where there was an open lobby with a noticeable lack of staff. At the back of the room, he touched a symbol on the wall, and it split open like a door, blinding them with pure white light.

“What is this?!” Hale shielded his eyes.

“Magic! Get back!” The scepter in Brindle’s hand started to pulse until they peered into the elevator and saw a litany of shining glyphs. “What in the world…? Burned right into the brinstahl? You, what is this?”

Geronimo choked, “It’s, uh, the elevator, sir.”

“Who the hell built this thing?”

He was starting to sweat, “I believe, uh, everything will make at least a little more sense once you’ve spoken to the Underseer.”

“I would hope so.” Hale shot him a suspicious glare then stepped into the elevator, followed by the other two.

The doors closed behind them, and the magic circles hummed quietly, gently pulsating in brightness.

“Is this thing going to start anytime soon?” Brindle was getting impatient. The guide hadn’t said or pressed anything for a few minutes since entering the elevator and he was starting to feel like they were being twisted around.

“Aaaaaand, we’re here.” The door split open, and Geronimo stepped out to lead the way, leaving the mage with shock.

“Wha—” He followed behind with an uneasy look growing on his face.

The short hallway echoed with each step, assembled with different textured plates of the same metal, and formed to match the city’s architecture. A few glassless windows lit the hall as they approached a door with raised letters, as if it had molded with them on it. “The Underseer”.

Their guide opened the door slowly and walked in.

“What the hell do you want?!” Through the doorway, he could see a very tired man with disheveled hair and a torn guard’s uniform standing at a desk covered in papers and surrounded with boxes, “Does it look like I have time for Pappy’s shit?!”

Geronimo loudly cleared his throat and clapped as Hale walked in, “Underseer, sir. I have brought Regulator Hale with me today.”

“Holy shit!, I mean fu—god dammit…” He fell into a deep bow, “It’s a great honor to receive you, Regulator, sir! I have been eagerly awaiting your Arrival.”

Suppressing a groan, Hale waved his hand, “Please, enough pleasantries. I trust you know why I’m here.”

With a tough face, the Underseer nodded and sat down behind his desk. “Of course. Please, take a seat. Ask me anything you like, and I’ll answer if it is within my power.”

Now letting out a breath of relief, Hale took him up on the offer, sitting down across while Brindle stood. He looked at the Underseer carefully before addressing him with a grin, “I was worried you’d send me off too for a moment. Please, call me Hale.”

“It’s my pleasure, Regulator Hale.” He offered a hand over the desk, and they shook. “My name is Lomp.”

“Ah, so it’s you. The pleasures mine, Mr. Lomp.” Hale leaned back in his chair and mulled over his words. “Okay, let’s start with the messages. When we investigated them, they were all signed with fake names or those belonging to the deceased. Interestingly, the only one we could seem to track down came from none other than a “Lomp of Fount Salt”. Am I correct to assume that’s you?”

“That’s correct.” He nodded firmly.

“Great. Am I correct to assume you’re responsible for the other forty-one messages addressed to ‘the Gandeux’?”

“No, sir.” He shook his head resolutely, not giving any tells of a lie, “It seems once the truth got out there was quite the panic.”

“And the truth, being…” Hale let it hang in the air for a moment, “That the cause of Fount Salt’s plague was deritium all along?”

“That’s right.” Lomp answered truthfully.

“And I trust you have evidence of this and the location of the deritium?” The regulator was rightfully suspicious.

“You see, about that…” Oh gods, here we go again. Hale was already tired of this island. “As far as evidence goes, I mean, the cure is curing it… But the, uh, Saint destroyed all the deritium.”

““She what?!”” Brindle and Hale both shouted in unison.

“Um, yeah… It’s all gone.” Lomp shrunk back.

“That’s madness…” Hale said, scrunching up his face, “One report said there was a Captain Dreadheart who seized the deritium from the Black Scourge Pirates. Are you familiar with this individual as well?”

“Er, yes… Took ‘em out in a day, I heard.” Lomp replied awkwardly.

“Right…” He pulled out a notepad and starting writing something down, “we received word the outlaw Captain Don is on his way to Port now.”

“Yeah… Guess they got him in Uru.”

“We’ve gathered that much… Moving on,” Hale flipped through a few pages, “These stories of the Saint are a little far-fetched, I’m sure you understand. There’s no way someone could do anything like what the reports say, but if anything happened on such a scale, there had to be more people involved.”

“Okay…” Lomp looked at them blankly.

“I’m having trouble finding out where the pirate woman fits in, but it’s become clear from the reports that the Saint had help from someone going by ‘the Hidden Witch’. Despite the name, she didn’t keep a very low profile, being heavily active in Uru and possibly Nymphus. It seems you spent some time down there.”

The Underseer tapped his desk, looking out the window, “She helped a lot in the plague ward…” he said carefully.

“Great,” Hale jotted something else down and flipped the page. “It looks like you’ll be a great help in the coming days. Let’s see here… Witch and pirate aside, let’s get back to the Saint. Am I right to believe she’s the one who spread this alleged cure?”

The Underseer snorted, then coughed loudly and cleared his throat, “Yeah, I think so… She healed a lot of people down there.”

“Excellent.” His pen swiveled around before pausing to return Lomp’s gaze. “Do you have any of the cure left? I’d like to see it.”

“It’s… all down below so far.” He replied.

“Alright, we’ll head down there to take a look soon and pick this up again. First though, there are a few other things here…” He flipped through the pages of his notebook again, “Right, there’s also talk of a young sorceress named Petunia Cloudsworth,” the Underseer’s eyes were open wide, focusing intently on Regulator Hale as he spoke, “There was definite mention of a ‘sorcerer’ though. Petunia seems to be backed by another man far more powerful than herself who works in the shadows. For the purpose of this investigation, we’re calling him ‘Merlin X’. Oh? Mr. Lomp, are you alright? You look like you’re having trouble breathing.”

The regulator got up from his chair with a grave look on his face, “You, with the glasses! Get this man some water!” As commanded, their guide left in a hurry.

Eventually Mr. Lomp let out heavy, wheezing exhales. It took him a few moments to catch his breath, face planted on the desk. “I am so sorry about that, Regulator Hale. Sometimes the salt gets to me this time of year.” Lomp fanned his face as it returned to its original color.

“Right… Er, so can you tell me anything about this mysterious pair of sorcerers? Or anything important about the other individuals involved?” When Mr. Lomp looked like he didn’t know what to say, Hale pressed, “Did the Saint say where she attained the recipe for the cure per chance?”

“Tch.” Lomp clicked his tongue, absent-mindedly holding his hands out in an impression, “It came from the forbidden archive.”

Brindle’s eyes shot open, and he nudged Hale, who nodded in understanding. “Mr. Lomp, let me ask you something…”

“Okay…”

“Did you meet this Petunia Cloudsworth character, or perhaps her associate?” His pen was ready to absorb the truth.

“Er, no… I mean, I never met Merlin X.” He said with a straight face.

“So, you met Petunia then? Great. Tell me, was this elusive sorceress the one who claimed the recipe came from ‘the Archive’?” He was hanging onto the edge of his seat.

“Yup. That’s exactly right.” Lomp replied.

Brindle leaned in and the two had a short discussion in whispers before his pen started moving. “Okay, I think I’m starting to get an idea of what’s going on here. The biggest remaining mystery is how the Saint ended up with Captain Dreadheart’s deritium. Do you know how the two are involved, Mr. Lomp?

“I… can’t say that I do.” He replied meekly.

“I see.” Hale leaned onto the desk, “They say the pirate came here from Leviathan Isle, but she hasn’t made any ripples in the nearby skies. If she flew straight here to take out the Black Scourge pirates for their deritium, I have reason to believe she was working with either the Saint or the Hidden Witch. Did you hear anything of the pirate before the incident occurred, or even meet her by chance?”

Lomp scrunched his face up, deep in thought. “One night… We were flying back from a long day in the Last step, and our boat was plucked out straight of the air.” His face was overly troubled, and he spoke softly, “when we stopped there was a gang of pirates… One of them shouted, ‘Yargh! Yer boats property o’ Captain Dreadheart now!’” The Underseer winced, looking into Hale’s eyes which betrayed none of his swirling thoughts.

“No, way, just like that?!” Brindle asked.

“Hold on. What were you doing in the Last Step?” Hale interjected. “That place is supposed to be off limits.”

“That’s right…” Lomp tapped his desk for a few moments, staring up at the ceiling with a frustrated look. “The Saint. She, uh, kind of made me kill ghosts for a while.”

“You killed ghosts?!” The mage was blown away, “What does that even mean?!”

“BrindIe.” His superior quieted him down, “We’ll circle back to ghosts… I see you must have been in Uru at the right time when most of this was going down.” Hale clicked his pen in thought. “I almost have too many questions to ask you… We’ll be working together closely throughout this investigation to be certain, Mr. Lomp.” He flipped through more pages restlessly. “This must mean you saw the Saint up close. Our descriptions of her vary wildly, can you tell me what she looks like?”

“Hard to get a good look at her past all the light.” Mr. Lomp shrugged.

Brindle nodded in the back, while Hale’s pen was restless, “I understand. Let’s get back on track. What happened once the pirates seized your vessel?”

“Well…” The Underseer’s eyes went wide, surely recalling the attack. He then paused for a moment. Whether it was for dramatic effect or a reflection of the trauma he suffered at the hand of pirates, the regulator could not tell. “Um, we were late getting back… so the Saint came looking for us…? Yeah, and then she bought the boat from Captain Dreadheart and repurposed it to hunt ghosts. That’s what happened. It’s almost like a blur now…”

“She… what?” Brindle squinted at him.

Hale’s pen had also stopped, “You’re telling me your boat was stolen, so the saint bought it and didn’t return it to you?”

Lomp choked, “It’s all for the good of the island. I’m far too busy to be flying around anyway.” Then he nodded with a clear show of resolve.

“Right… Because you’re the ‘Underseer’ of… everything outside of Uren? Including a city that appeared from thin air.”

“Yeah…. The, uh, saint built it on her way out.”

Hale looked at his notepad with increasing uncertainty, eventually lowering it to lean back with a sigh. “What a frightening individual… Did you witness it with your own eyes?”

“Nope.” His answer was quick, “I was down below.”

“Of course… With the cure. Could you take us there now?” Hale asked.

The Underseer got an uneasy look on his face, glancing between the piles on his desk and Regulator Hale, “I really don’t have time, but I think that would be best… It’s a long ride down, though. Do you have everything you need?”

Clicking his pen and putting it away, Hale sighed again, “It will be faster if we take the dropship. We’ll enter through Nymphus.”

And roughly an hour later under the beating sun, the regulator and his mage enforcer, accompanied by Fount Salt’s Underseer, descended through the sky. As they sped down the island, Hale couldn’t help but notice that it looked nothing like the Fount Salt he visited only months prior.

“Say, Mr. Lomp…” He wasn’t sure how to phrase the question, “I couldn’t help but notice Fount Salt is exceptionally smooth. Almost like a pearl… No, more like an egg.”

“Oh, yeah, of course…” Lomp shook his held and held his palms out, “I guess the saint thought it wasn’t pretty enough…? Maybe she just needed the salt. I don’t know anymore…” He sighed and slumped over.

“You’re… saying she altered the island’s exterior?” Hale was aghast, “Is it all like this?!”

Lomp nodded gravely, “It’s beyond me. I’m a simple man.”

“No, no, no… just hang on a minute.” Brindle couldn’t let it go just yet, “Last I checked Fount Salt is damn near forty miles tall, half that at its widest. The hell do you mean she just smoothed it right over?! Do you know what kind of mana that takes?! A team of top-class mages couldn’t do it if they tried!”

Meanwhile the Underseer only shook his head, “My aura is incredibly feeble… I don’t even know where to begin fathoming it.”

“Yeah, I noticed it was pretty weak… Sorry that was rude.” The mage backpedaled, muttering to himself, “I gotta meet this lady.”

Hale snorted, “I keep saying ladies will be the death of you. Something tells me you should steer clear from any of these.”

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“I’ll have to agree with the Regulator on this one.” Mr. Lomp added. Both the others looked at him expectantly as if waiting for him to divulge further before his face grew nervous, “Um, I think it will make more sense once we get to Uru.”

But first they had to go through Nymphus. They made it there in only a few hours, arriving at a hidden alcove reserved for people like Hale. He had the Underseer swear an oath of secrecy using a spell known by people like Brindle.

Once that was done, they exited the ship and entered a railcar which took them through a sealed passage in the wall and straight to the gates of Nymphus. The bright city lights welcomed them, but Hale got uneasy to see a huge crowd in front of the gates, “Mr. Lomp…? Do you know what’s going on?”

He walked towards it with a groan, “It’s probably the High Priest at it again…” the only way to reach the gate seemed to be walking through the masses.

They mostly wore miner’s gear or that of a prima sweep, but Hale recognized more than a few nobles transferred here from their families at the top of the Boreal. “That’s convenient. I was hoping to speak to the High Priest. Perhaps he will know more about the Saint.”

Clearing the path and wading through them until they saw a scrawny man in robes of the Final Sky. He was coming up in the years but still full of vigor from the looks of it. The priest stood on a crate in front of a huge mound of dirty white sludge. This was to the side of the path which entered Nymphus, but the hundreds of people gathered took over the whole area.

They could hear his impassioned sermon clearly from this distance, “—she has shown us the light of the new dawn for seven full days! Now on the morn of the eighth, it is up to me and you! All of us must hold the light in our hearts and show the new dawn to the world. Let them know our lost—” The High Priest froze when he saw a very important man he’d met once or twice. Clearing his throat, he addressed the people gathered, “Ahem, apologies, my devout brothers and sisters… Let’s all break here for lunch.”

Disappointed groans and protests could be heard, but the crowd all started moving after a moment. Hundreds of them spread throughout Nymphus Stratum’s paved field outside the city, nearly filling up the chamber and setting up countless picnics on the bare stone.

“Lomp!” Hale shouted in surprise from something so absurd it was a reflex. The Underseer jumped in his skin, rapidly spinning around.

“Y-yes?!” His face was pale.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you… but since when is there a staircase to the Last Step?!” he leaned in, trying to peer higher, “How far up does it go?”

“Er, well… All the way. It goes as high as Uru. There’s a passage that leads straight to it.”

“Why?!” Brindle clasped his head with frustration plain on his face.

“How to explain this… We had to kill ghosts to make the cure—”

“Regulator Hale!” The High Priest approached, “How glorious it is to see you on this prophesized day! It must be ordained by the Lord of Skies Afar that we should meet in the new dawn’s Light.”

“Um, perhaps so?” He coughed, clearing his throat while he thought of a follow up, “It’s good to see you, Tarrel. It’s been a few years, hasn’t it? I was hoping to ask you about the Saint, but I am interested in what you just said… I’ve heard of the new dawn many times. Are you saying it’s come?”

Mother used to love telling me those stories… The New Dawn was to mark the beginning of the Last Day… These people love their riddles. Mankind will thrive in the light only to suffer under the darkest night which follows. Hale couldn’t remember how the story ended. Why did she tell me that story?

The High Priest lit up at the regulator’s line of questions, “Of course! I imagine Mr. Lomp has told you everything he could, so allow me to fill you in on what it all means!” He wore a toothy grin and chuckled to himself, “Oh, where to begin…?”

“Let’s start with the Saint…” Hale urged on.

Tarrel looked at him with a smile and lightly shook his head, “My brother in the light, it is all connected. Are you familiar with the prophecy of the new dawn?”

Hale shrugged, “Vaguely… you have a few of those prophecies if I’m not mistaken. Why do you think this one’s come true?”

“If you were here, you would know it to be fact, just like everyone on this island has experienced the new dawn with their bodies and souls… At first, I am ashamed to admit, even I had my doubts when word came of a saint appearing atop a wave of golden light to turn the nymphs around as they robbed the citizens of Nymphus of their life…

Standing in place, Brindle felt a chill run up his spine and shuddered, “Does she… control the nymphs?”

Tarrel only offered him a playful grin, “…but then I watched her cure the plague with my own eyes… A man destined for the sky beyond, his bones twisted, trying to stab right out through his gut—I watched the deepest stages of the plague reverse in seconds. She… She even empowered us to do it on our own!” His eyes had started to water, and he gazed up wistfully, “That was only the beginning…” he shook his head.

Both Hale and Brindle had their jaws on the floor, the latter with much more suspicion. That sure sounds like a deritium mutation. Could it really be?

Seeing their rapt attention, Tarrel continued, “As it was written, blue and gold will usher in the New Dawn, and the sun will not set for seven days. It’s… it’s exactly like the prophecy! Don’t you see?!”

“Wait, what do you mean the sun didn’t set for seven days?!” Hale thought that impossible, but the High Priest claimed everybody living on the island could vouch for him. He glanced at Lomp who nodded with a severe degree of frustration.

The mage was eager to poke holes in it though, “That’s impossible! How do you even know if you live in a cave?! And what’s the blue about?”

Mr. Lomp looked up at him wearily, “The rivers lit up for a while… You’ll see in Uru.”

His face scrunched up in concern, but before the regulator could say anything, Tarrel continued, “Indeed, and holy light knows no boundaries. The New Dawn was seen by all, through and through. Moving on, it was just as foretold. The sun did not set for seven days, not even in the deepest cave. Honestly, you should have shown up earlier,” he said with a wry grin.

“And how does the Saint fit into all this?” Hale was nearing his wits end trying to wrap his head around everything he heard.

That’s when the High Priest got a smirk, “You’ve seen the outside, yes? How the island has been reformed?”

“Uh, yeah… It’s completely smooth now?”

“’Blue and white shall be the new dawn, and from the egg of the saint shall the Lost Lamb be reborn to our lowly skies, celebrated by the skies afar and even the sun, which will not know rest for seven days.’ This is the prophecy we have waited our whole lives for and have witnessed with our own eyes. There is no one else who can show us the brightest day and light our path through the darkest night. The Saint of Seven Suns is the very same lost lamb we have yearned for all this time! She has finally come to deliver us to the final sky!”

That’s right… Mother said someone saved the day in the end. That’s where the whole final sky part came in. Where are they getting these prophecies? I still don’t understand what the final sky is supposed to even be… it sounds like dying.

At these times it was easier to transcribe words than try to take notes, and when Hale finished, he looked back up at Tarrel, “You must have seen a lot of the Saint. Is she from… a different church?”

“Oh, no…” he snickered, “She was sent here personally by the Lord of Skies Afar. But yes. I, er, spoke with her numerous times during her visit. She was quite busy though, so it was often brief.”

Brindle noticed the Underseer give him a sidelong stare.

“Okay, Tarrel. I think I’m going to have to come back to you. There seems to be a lot to investigate down here and I want to get a good grasp on it before the day is through.” He gazed at the mysterious pile of goop behind the priest, and gave Brindle an exhausted look, “We’re going to be here all week…”

“At least.” The mage agreed.

___

“Right…” Lomp cut in to rush the conversation along before his veins popped out of his forehead like Pappy’s brother. “Why don’t we head up to Uru?”

“Let’s,” Hale agreed, “It seems there’s still a lot to cover.”

Tarrel seemed disappointed but bid them farewell for now. Following this, Lomp ushered them to the closest elevator for a straight shot to Uru without the need to enter Nymphus.

“I know the religion’s been getting bigger.” Brindle commented with a shrug, “but that sure was a crowd.”

“High Priest was talking this day up since the Saint left.” Couldn’t you have made it last just one more day? “I can’t believe it came true…”

If I ever see Cira again, she’s going to owe me so big… I can’t believe she engraved my goddamn name on the tallest building in town! As if I wouldn’t get the message! I was on the fence about the whole Final Sky thing… but after meeting the chosen one I know it’s bullshit for sure. Gods, I can’t believe this shit. Now I’m chauffeuring a blasted regulator around. How many times have I had to lie just to cover my own ass?! You just had to stop for sandwiches with the pirates, didn’t you?! I deserve a whole island of mithril!

“Mr. Lomp, are you okay?” Hale broke up the monotonous elevator ride, “You’ve seemed upset about something for a while now”

“It’s nothing… I haven’t gotten much sleep lately.”

“Right…” He wrote something down, “I’ll have to meet with you another day to get a better idea of the whole Overseer, Underseer arrangement.”

Lomp dragged his gaze up to the man, “Another day is fine…”

She didn’t even need to send messengers if she was going to reform the island like a ball of clay and blast it with light for a goddamn week! She’s lucky she didn’t vaporize all the ghosts we need. Now the regulators are looking for her six times over! Gah, I need to save this for the office. Can’t let it show on my face.

Their elevator led above Uru, and they were able to descend directly into the plague ward. Hale and Brindle were momentarily shocked when they gazed upon the bright sun that rested on the ceiling. “What the hell is that?!” Brindle was outraged.

Lomp just sighed, shaking his head as they climbed down the stairs towards Earth Vein’s checkpoint, “You know about the endless night, right…?” They nodded, “She ended it.”

“Why is it still burning? I haven’t felt this much mana in ages.” Brindle tried to look away.

“No, what’s happened to the rivers?” Hale interrupted as they reached ground level. “And what is that facility?”

Lomp stopped, leaning against the railing. God dammit, I can’t believe I’m the one that has to do this. “Wait up for a minute, guys.” Damn you, Cira. He took a deep breath and just went for it, “There were many problems when the Saint first arrived…. Floods, famine, plague… The nymphs going mad…” He cleared his throat, “And you see, the Saint had to destroy the deritium somehow… so she… may have completely rebuilt Fount Salt’s waterways with titanium. Cough cough, and rebuilt Zero Stratum…”

The pair looked at Lomp with shock and disbelief plain on their faces. I may have said something I shouldn’t have…

“She what?!” Brindle raged, “You mean she used the deritium?!”

He and Hale shared a grave look before the regulator spoke, “Did nobody try to stop her?”

“I did!” Lomp shouted in their faces, “Erk, sorry… my damn skin nearly burned off trying to get near her and my arm and leg were broken.”

“Damn.” Brindle said. “You look alright now. Did she heal you?”

“No… even though she healed everyone else.” He said bitterly, “The Titan Witch healed me… which I am grateful for.”

The mage squinted his eyes, “The Titan Witch, huh? Heard she was one of the weakest, but I didn’t know she could heal. I was hoping to talk to her too.”

“I’m sure you’ll get the chance.”

“Just a moment, Mr. Lomp,” Hale had his notepad ready, “You mentioned Zero Stratum. What is that? I’ve never heard the name before.”

Urghh, Damn sorcerer… Lomp gulped, “it’s difficult to explain…” A sudden lifeline came in the form of Captain Renit of Earth Vein.

“Regulator Hale. It’s a pleasure to see you.” The Official bowed, flanked by two teens in Earth Vein uniform.

“And you…” He eyed him suspiciously, “What’s it been, ten years? I admit, I don’t recall Uru having a plague ward. I’d like to speak with you about this extensively before heading back up.”

“O-of course! Of course, whatever you wish.” He straightened up his back and held respectful eye contact with the regulator. “I’m simply posted here until the plague is completely eradicated. And please excuse these two, they’re still excited after meeting the Hidden Witch.”

“Oh? She is one person I’m looking to inquire about.” He looked between the two, a young man with a meek constitution and a girl who startled him by copying his pose, notepad in hand. “You, what was your impression of this ‘Hidden Witch’?”

“Oh, she’s amazing!” The girl was practically jumping, “She helped so many people! We saw her build the whole workshop over there and all those farms that don’t need any light with a snap of her finger!”

Seriously? Lomp looked at her with exasperation, is there any need to embellish it?

Hale now looked over at the deep platform which brimmed with soil, “What in the world are those?”

“Moonberry plums!” She practically sang, “They’re so delicious, you’ve got to try one! It was incredible, the whole farm appeared from nothing, and dirt fell out of the air to fill it. Fruits grew before our very eyes! I’ve never seen anything so magical!”

“Wait, what? I find this all hard to believe,” Brindle was always the downer, “How can a whole farm with plants just appear out of thin air?!”

“Oh, she had the seeds already.” The girl corrected as if that explained everything to the wielder of magic. “I think she said it would disappear in five years…”

“What?!” He was close to ripping his hair out.

“The storm was really scary…” The lanky boy jumped in, “but then the rivers started flying! It was so cool…”

“Flying Rivers? A storm? What, are you even saying, boy?!” Brindle’s face went red as the kid shied away. “We’re in a cave!”

“Enough.” Hale stopped him with a look, “I didn’t realize there was a flood so recently. Renit, we have much to speak about. Stay close.” He turned again to Lomp, “How about that cure?”

___

“Oh, we haven’t had company in days.” Nanri jumped out of the chair with a spring in her step, running to the door, “I’ll get it!”

“Knock yourself out.” Delilah stared into a jar of green liquid, half-asleep.

“Oh, Delilah, it’s Lomp!” The alchemist turned to look with mild interest. “How are you? And you must be… oh! Sir regulator, it’s an honor.” She lightly bowed only her head, but that was when Delilah looked away. A regulator was technically above Nanri, but witches held a similarly high rank and with the magic came esteem, so she wasn’t expected to act overly stiff like most were.

“Funny, that’s just what the Underseer said.” The regulator and his mage walked into the workshop gazing with fascination.

“Did the Hidden Witch build all this?” Brindle asked.

“That’s right.” Nanri answered with a smile.

Sure took them long enough… I wonder where Cira is now. Have you found another island to help? Or are you taking a vacation? I sure hope you’re well, wherever you are.

“Is this all blessed silver?” The mage inspected each instrument with scrutiny, “Why are there spoons stirring themselves? Don’t most people just enchant the cauldron?”

This brought a grin to Nanri’s face, and she chuckled, “Apparently, the shape of the spoon is critical.” I’m sure Volume Four covers it in great detail.

“Hale… I don’t like the looks of these magic circles.” Brindle was snooping around the workshop and pointed out the various gray glyphs strewn about, seemingly everywhere. Then he looked at Nanri with a serious glint in his eye, “Are these curses?”

Drats. Guess there’s no hiding it. “Indeed. The Hidden Witch placed these here to prevent anyone from sabotaging the cure.”

Both men paled, which she thought was funny. It was the same reaction she had when she first heard the word curse come up. To think Cira could even lay curses. Primordial curses at that. I still don’t even know what those are, but if she can cast them, doesn’t that mean she’s cursed too? I still don’t know enough. I’ll have to try to research curses if I’m afforded the chance…

Nanri knew her friend was raised by an incredible wielder of magic, and underneath that she had a mysterious past she didn’t feel comfortable talking about, so something ridiculous like ‘primordial curses’ was just about what the aspiring sorcerer expected at this point. Nanri knew curses to be evil all her life, but Cira placed them to help people.

Am I cursed? She almost giggled to herself, if so, I hope it’s a good curse. She clutched the pendant at her neck while the two men stared at her with steadily retained shock.

“What do you mean? What happens if someone sabotages the cure?” Brindle asked.

“It can’t be done, from my understanding. Go ahead and try to take some salt from that pile.” Nanri pointed at the prima salt and grinned, “It’s safe, I swear on the Saint of the Seven Suns.” I bet she would just love that nickname.

He nervously approached the prima salt, stopping once inside the circle and doing some kind of inspection, “I just… grab it?”

“Yeah,” Nanri nodded, “And try to walk away.”

He shrugged, easily scooping some salt out of the pile, and walking away. He made it one stride before the salt slipped out of his hand and wisped into the air, settling back down onto the pile.

“What the hell?!” He stared at his hands in disbelief, now outside the circle, “That’s a curse? I didn’t even feel anything.”

Nanri shrugged in turn, “I don’t believe the curse affects you directly, per se. I think she said if you want to take any salt it has to become part of the cure.”

“How the hell does that work?” He kept trying to grab the salt to no avail and from different angles, activating spells to try and get a read on it but that was impossible. There was no mana moving or activating when he tried. It just couldn’t be done.

“Beats me. You can’t break or steal anything either.” Nanri put a hand on her chin with genuine curiosity, “Try taking some but go put it in that bowl next to the alembic.”

“What? But I can’t.” Brindle gave her an exhausted look like she missed his entire struggle.

She tossed him a little bucket to scoop with, “Use this, but put it in that bowl right away.” Nanri watched him with an amused look.

“Uh, alright then…” the mage returned to the salt and filled the bucket. He took one step away, then two as his eyes bulged out of his head. As he approached the alchemy table with a bucket full of salt, he made troubled faces and uncomfortable noises, “This… this doesn’t make any sense!”

“But it works…” Nanri countered.

Hale and the mage stared at each other uneasily. Finally, the regulator spoke, “You’re aware curses are outlawed, no matter the intent, right?”

“Of course.” Nanri replied astutely, “I didn’t even know the Hidden Witch existed until a couple days ago.”

“Interesting… Tell me, Lady Titan Witch, did you see the Hidden Witch working with the Saint at any point?”

Do the Gandeux… Think they’re different people?

Nanri’s face was stretched thin. When she gave Lomp a look, he stepped in to clarify the misunderstanding, “I believe Nan—Lady Titan Witch was there when Captain Dreadheart sold my boat to the Saint. That was not long before the Hidden Witch set up this workshop at her request.” He stared blankly into Nanri’s eyes.

Lomp… what have you done? No, this is definitely Cira’s doing. This… isn’t bad though, right? Earth Vein will follow up with me long before I see the Gandeux again. Suppressing a smile, Nanri continued, “Right, I was there that night. What would you like to know about the Hidden Witch? You must understand I don’t know much, even if it is more than most. It is said that if you do not know her name, it is for good reason.”

Hale lit up, putting pen to paper, “I was going to ask why I haven’t heard of her, but… Is she an inquisitor?”

“No, I believe she’s far above the inquisitors.” Nanri replied nonchalantly. She was the other day at least.

The mage’s brow furrowed, “What? Far above? Like above the adjutant?” He glanced at Hale, then back to Nanri, “Is she an independent from one of Nightwing Isles other factions? Why would she be here then?”

“That much I can’t say. All I know is she came from the sky,” Nanri gazed up wistfully, “She was here because people needed help.”

“Ah… at the Saint’s beck and call…” When the mage spoke, Hale nudged him and told him to keep quiet.

“While we’re on the subject… I’d like to ask you some questions about an internal matter.” Hale glanced over at the table to see a woman sleeping there before looking over the present company. “I must remind you I am a Regulator of the Gandeux Group. I am not affiliated with Earth Vein, nor will they know we spoke.”

It sounds like Earth Vein is in the hotseat now. I have no reason not to see what this man has to say anyway. “I understand. What are your questions pertaining to?”

His voice got quieter as he took the seat next to Nanri, “Director Yohl maintains that they haven’t a clue what’s been going on here since their last audit, and we’re getting much the same from anyone we speak to down the ladder.”

“Okay…” Sounds like the Director.

“But we have an informant who has confirmed that Earth Vein received some kind of message just over a week ago and sent an inquisitor here. Just when the ‘Saint incident’ occurred. The timing is uncanny…” He looked into her eyes to see if she knew anything about it, and her eyes weren’t hiding it.

“And?” She asked.

Hale blinked a few times in surprise, “So, it’s true… Did you know the Astral Witch and her assistant were seen at the Dead Belt’s lighthouse just three days ago?”

“What?” That far already? I wondered what happened to them when they never returned. I hope Cira didn’t go overboard again. “What do you mean?” The surprise was plain on her face.

“The girl was pretty shaken up, but…” Brindle’s face went white as a sheet as Hale explained it, “the Astral Witch’s leg was damn near blown off, seemingly with her own magic… The report from the clinic said her aura was unresponsive.”

“Her aura?!” How is that even possible? There’s no way she would carelessly expend all her mana. She’s been alive way too long for that. “Did she deplete it?”

The mage gave her a grave look and shook his head, “No… they said it was ‘present but unresponsive’.”

The two wielders of magic shared an uncomfortable moment. How do you even do that, Cira? It shouldn’t be possible to lock somebody’s aura. Unless… Is it a curse?

“We want to know what caused her conflict with the Saint. We’ve gotten reports that a witch tried to unleash light magic on the plague victims of Uren, only to be protected by none other than the Saint,” Hale gave her a troubled look, “I’m sure you can understand why we’re taking these reports seriously.”

Nanri’s eyes went wide. That explains how she earned Cira’s wrath. “Of course. The conflict likely started because the Astral Witch tried to sabotage the cure.”

Both of their eyes went wide as the regulator looked around the workshop and back to Nanri, “Why would she do that?”

“She’s always been like that.” Nanri brushed it off.

He was stumped, staring at his notepad in deep thought, “Thank you for sharing this with us, Lady Titan Witch. I have many more questions I’d like to ask you about this subject, and I’m sure more will come up later. Would you mind travelling with us to Uren for the duration of our stay here? We won’t be returning until this evening, but—”

Nanri cut him off, “Sorry. I’ll be staying here in Uru.” Even if the danger’s passed, I won’t be distracted until they rip me away—and that’s only a matter of time.

“Right, sorry… I should have known you’re quite busy with all this. I’ll ask you a few more questions while I have you here though, if that’s alright.”

“Sure.” She smiled, “Go ahead.”

“We’re also looking for a sorcerer.” Nanri paled, “And it’s said he’s travelling with a young sorceress.

Wait, what? “Did you… happen to catch their names?” Lomp pointedly looked away. Act natural, Nanri… don’t laugh. She grabbed her teacup off the table.

“Petunia Cloudsworth.” He replied in a gruff voice as Nanri’s face remained solid like titanium mid-sip, “And we’re calling the sorcerer ‘Merlin X’ for now. He seems to work in the shadows, and I’m starting to believe he too had a hand in some of these ‘miracles of the Saint—”

“Pfft!” Nanri spat her tea all over the regulator, “Merlin X?!” Dammit, no!

Hale jumped out of his seat as the scalding liquid seeped through his clothes.

“I’m so sorry!” She shot up to help him but couldn’t really. Luckily, his protector had the power to dry him off, “Oh, I don’t know what came over me. Must be all the salt in the air, please pardon me.”

Nanri offered her sincerest doe-eyes but was actually quite troubled and embarrassed. I can’t believe I just spat on the regulator! Wars have started from this exact faux pas!

“Please, it’s no trouble,” Hale smirked, “I take this to mean you know of our Merlin X? Frankly, these miracles are too much for one person.”

With a serious look on her face, Nanri spoke low, “Only legends… Never by name. It’s… fitting.”

The two were visibly excited at this revelation—the first lead on this mysterious figure. Brindle was the one who spoke first, “What have you heard? We haven’t been able to find anything!” Hale gave him a harder nudge this time. “Sorry, my filter’s off. She’s too cute.”

Nanri squinted her eyes at him judgmentally, “He slayed a dragon in single combat… He can brew the most potent poison in the world. He even summons demons just to kill them. Not someone to take lightly, from my understanding.”

“So, you must know of the Order of the Lost Archive who gave Petunia the recipe for the cure, yes?” Hale pestered.

Good heavens, Lomp! Now he at least wore guilt on his face. How did you let this get so out of hand?! What would Cira do in this situation? Hmm… A sorcerer does not lie, except sometimes. I learned that too.

“Only legends…” Nanri replied quietly.

“I see…” Hale jotted some things down, “Did you meet Petunia herself?”

Silver swayed as she shook her head, “I only caught a glimpse of her striking blue hair in Nymphus, but it was too dark to follow her…” Nanri sighed, “I wondered where it came from. To think it was the Lost Archive…”

This time Brindle nudged the regulator and Nanri waved her hands out, “Oh, don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.”

They both looked uneasy. Silence hung for a moment until Hale broke it, “Right, well I’ll be in and out all week with more questions. Where is this cure I’ve heard about?”

“Right there.” Nanri pointed to the jar of green liquid and there was a girl with dark hair pretending to wake up next to it, looking around in confusion.

Brindle cautiously approached it and picked the jar up, “Please be careful…” Delilah timidly said from her seat.

“Of course, I will. I’m a mage enforcer.” He replied matter-of-factly rather than sounding smug, holding it up to the light. “What’s in this…?”

“Prima salt and Aetherium.” She answered, assuming he would know the latter. “The recipe’s right there.”

“Aetherium?!” He shuddered, picking a slip of paper off the table and reading it, “And why would they just leave the recipe on the table?”

Nanri jumped in to help Delilah out, “We’re out right now, but the exorcists should be back in a few hours with more. The… Hidden Witch and the Saint worked together to forge holy relics to harvest it directly. And I believe they thought it would benefit these skies to have the cure floating around.”

“That’s absurd!” He turned the liquid over in his hands, trying to discern its secrets. “She even makes holy relics…? To think she would even be so magnanimous to leave such a valuable recipe for the public.”

“Brindle.” Hale cut in.

“Right, sorry…” the enforcer straightened up and kept his mouth shut.

“This is getting convoluted,” Pacing a few feet away, the regulator crossed his arms, “There was deritium, was there not, Titan Witch? Is there any left?”

She thought about it for a moment, “Oh yeah, that’s right. There should be one jar left on the table next to that barrel of spoons.” She pointed to one end where he found the sample.

When Hale picked it up, his eyes squinted while Brindle mirrored the action. He wiggled the jar around and tried cupping his hand around it. “No way…”

“What? Let me see!” Brindle took the jar and did the same thing, “That’s totally deritium! Did this really cause the plague?”

This time Delilah answered, walking over to take the cure back, “It did indeed. Go ask the ones who have received treatment so far. You’ll find them at the end of the orchard.”

“Only some have received it? The plague hasn’t really been cured yet then…” Hale gazed over the plague ward through a window.

Delilah explained from her seat at the hourglass, “There’s too many people, and we can only kill ghosts so fast—”

Brindle rudely cut her off though, “Hold on, you people keep saying you’re ‘killing ghosts’. What does that even mean?”

With a hand paused on its way up, Hale decided not to stop him because he was curious too. Now Delilah was sweating under both of their gazes, “Well, we’re letting them pass on, really… And turning them into aetherium in the process.”

“…how?!” the mage continued, startling Delilah.

“Simmer down, Brindle.” And was swiftly reprimanded by his superior.

“Sorry… but how are you people doing that? Do you have the church helping you?” He was struggling to wrap his head around it.

“I don’t know how the holy relics work.” Delilah shook her head, trying to rid herself of the attention, “They just work. You’ll meet the exorcists if you stick around, but if you confiscate any of their equipment everyone on Fount Salt will die.”

The men from Gandeux were each taken aback by this, and even Nanri thought it was a little much. Cira sure made a good pick for our alchemist. She’s just as passionate about this cure—Not even I would be that blunt to a regulator’s face. Nanri cleared her throat, “Ahem, I think what our head alchemist means to say is that their work is just as delicate as it is crucial, and we would like to help with your investigation in a way that does not hinder their progress.”

“Right, of course,” Hale gave a genial reply, trying to ease the tension, “As representatives of the Gandeux, it is our responsibility to assist anyone affected by deritium exposure. If a cure exists, we couldn’t possibly stop its production without the capacity to take over the role ourselves. If anything, you should expect aid in the coming weeks. Even if we find and implicate our persons of interest for any of the crimes committed here, the cure must continue so long as I can confirm its authenticity. I’d also like your help verifying the medicine’s effects. That should help.”

Delilah thought about it for only a moment, “No more will be going out for a couple weeks if you’re around that long.”

Hale paused for a moment, looking defeated. “I might just have to be. I any case, it’s a good time to take our leave, but I’ll be back to meet the exorcists. Come, Mr. Lomp. You can tell me about them on the way and I’d like you to explain these metal rivers to me again. And did you say they lit up?”

“Don’t worry…” The Underseer tottered off after them. “I’ll explain everything.”

Underseer, huh? Lomp’s making big strides. I’ll have to go see Cira’s city before they take me away. She watched them disappear past the plum trees and looked over at Delilah, “That was strange, wasn’t it?”

“It sure was.” She agreed.

A cube floated to the table and opened up, letting Nanri grab book from it. Volume Two of ‘the Sorcerer’s Compendium’.

I need to make sure I finish these books first, too. If I see Cira again and I’m not a powerful sorcerer, I’ll never live it down. Mother is sure to encourage harsh treatment when she arrives, but they can’t hold me forever. I have a couple weeks until then at most. I better put it to use.

She turned to her bookmark halfway through the second volume, entitled “The Incipient Sorcerer’s Guide”. It recommended considering a second element while you master your first, and as a self-proclaimed master of titanium, Nanri was giddy at the possibilities. She didn’t realize she was far from mastering geomancy, but still felt like she was standing in the orchard looking for the choicest plum to pick. Nanri would only grasp what was within her reach, one step at a time—gazing forward and above, never back.