Galus woke in Seluvis' rise, he got up stretching with a yawn.

He unwrapped a piece of goat meat, and took a bite, it was dry but filling. "Lucky it didn't go bad yet..." He turned seeing Selen running around Seluvis' workshop like a kid in a toy store, he supposed she didn't have a lot of these tools in her old lab which was a glorified hole in the ground.

Galus walked over to her, carefully stepping around Irina and Edgar who were still asleep. "So, how's the new body treating you?"

She looked at him. "If I'm honest Seluvis or Pidia or whatever, seemed to have done a well enough job if not for a little stiffness in my joints, though that could be attributed to minor atrophy, what I'm amazed with is that he managed to make an entire human body."

Galus raised an eyebrow. "Where I come from there was a group of people whom men created much like the albinaurics known as homunculi, an artificial body of flesh and blood and soul made by the hands of man. It seems similar."

She glares at him. "You always know just what to say to piss me off don't you."

Galus smirks. "All good students do."

She sighs. "I believe I'll be staying here at Carian manor, it's secure, there is a small army of the most martially and magically talented fighters in the world here, and with Seluvis gone they had a position open, and asked if I wanted it, I told them I did."

Galus nodded, it was her choice, and he wouldn't force her to come with him. "I'll wish you the best then."

Galus went to go to the doorway, he had to info dump on Ranni for Miquella's half of the deal. But she grabbed his hand. "Before you go..." Galus felt something pushed into his hand. "It's something that should be able to reverse your friends puppephication."

Galus nodded. "Thank you... I've never met them but I suspect that I might get along with her, then again, I killed her friend Gideon so maybe not."

Selen winced. "Right, you said something about that..."

Galus looked at it, it looked to be a blue Glintstone pill. "Do I feed it to her?"

Selen nodded "might need to force water down her throat, ever since that little shits fate she's been catatonic." She gestured to Pidia who had been hung from the cieling in a bird cage, just sitting there drooling. Galus turns to the puppet of Dolores. He crouched in front of her and puts the pill in her mouth and Selen handed him a goblet of water. It goes down with difficulty as she's doing nothing to swallow it. But it works well enough.

Eventually the dull glow disappears from her eyes and she looks around every move she makes is followed by soreness and popping of joints. "Wha- HUAGHK" she vomited a sparkling blue sludge, it landed right on Galus' chest, before collapsing on her side, he checked her pulls and felt nothing. He looked up at Selen and shook his head. "She's dead."

Selen shrugged. "It's experimental, I probably should have given it to another puppet."

Galus shook his head. "You're as cold as one of Ranni's ice storm. I'm going to clean this shit off, can't meet royalty smelling of vomit after all." Then he remembered he had a few firemonk coats.

He turned to leave, and saw Irina's blank stare in his direction, it was a judging look, and Galus realized just how much he'd been changing since he'd gotten here, he had not been this cold when he'd gotten here, and two weeks ago he would have puked at the sight of a body, he looked up at Pidia clear irrefutable evidence of his rising cruelty, sure he'd killed the noble at castle Morne, and he'd brutalized Gideon, but he felt he was growing steadily more ferocious as a person, a part of him didn't care, another part of him was mortified by this development. He shook his head, he had things to do he could self reflect later. He asked Selen if she knew how to make soap, luckily he did, and after about a half hour came out with a bar of soap that had a funky smell to it, when he asked what it was made of she told him mushrooms. He turned and left the top floor.

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As he went down the stairs and down the ladder, he turned and took off his chest plate, it was where most of the vomit was he quickly his trousers down, and then his leather tunic. he walked over to his horses saddle they'd managed to get the horses up here with some difficulty last night and took off one of the fur lined coats that were there, he put it on over his tunic and it was actually quite warm save for the fact that it's sleeves were rather short and worse still, open. He walked over to Ranni's rise, and he was pleasantly surprised when he saw Blaidd sitting in on the stairway up to the entrance. Galus waved and Blaidd waved back.

Galus stopped to talk. "Hey there Blaidd, how have you been?"

Blaidd shook his head. "It's been difficult lately, I've been looking for a way into nokron for the last three days and it's been fruitless, but you, you killed Seluvis, had it been anyone else in my ladies service I'd rip your throat out but frankly there have been times when I've been wanting to kill him myself, you lucky bastard, you beat me to it."

Galus shook his head. "I think there's enough of his ass left for you to kick, so don't look so down."

Blaidd held up Galus' old bastard sword, it looked to have been modified with Glintstone. "This has been very useful to me, thank you for this."

Galus shrugged. "No problem."

Blaidd nodded before standing up and heading inside. Galus followed before heading up stairs and onto the elevator.

Galus once again knocked on Ranni's doorway and walked inside. She looked at him. "Welcome back, you've come to deliver whatever information you have?"

Galus nodded. "I have, where do you want me to start?"

Ranni gave a keep it going motion with her hand. "The beginning."

Galus nodded. "Well, the first thing is the stars correct? Your fate is locked in place. As I'm sure you know, your brother Radahn long ago challenged the stars and promptly kicked their collective asses causing them to stop, well, this was because of a place in Caelid known as Selia which was fated to be destroyed, now I believe one way would be to destroy Selia, no more Selia no more reason for him to keep the stars in place, the alternative is to kill Radahn, frankly I believe it'd be prudent to start with Selia if that doesn't work then go to kill him, but this is your matter not mine."

Ranni shook her head. "How would you suggest I destroy an entire city?"

Galus shrugged. "You have an army of Carian knights.'

Ranni shook her head. "I do, but they're quite busy trying to free my mother from her prison in the academy library."

Galus sighed. "We need to have a talk about that someday, but there are other things that I'm going to have to tell you."

"Go on." Ranni said.

Galus made a motion with his hand. "Your finger blade is over is in the depths of nokron and is heavily guarded, can't imagine why." He said, the last part in deep sarcasm. "And for the record, this last part is a while off, but a group of black knife assassins will come here to kill you, they'll systematically kill each of your followers, Iji and Blaidd will die, and I like them both so I'm not going to let that happen. But there are countermeasures you can employ, you made their cloaks of invisibility, you can make something to counteract them, might I suggest lining your wall with sentry torches, after you killed godwyn Leyndell made a torch that can reveal their cloaked figures."

Ranni nodded. "Alright... continue."

Galus continued. "The last thing is you'll be being hunted by shadow bound beasts that look similar to Blaidd, and wield destined death in their blades, so again, be very careful."

Ranni closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Anything else?"

Galus thought for several minutes. "Not that I can remember."

Ranni's ghostly face raised an eyebrow. "Remember?"

Galus waved off the question. "I might explain that some other day."

Ranni's eyes narrowed but she nodded. "I'll wait for that day."

Galus nodded, turning to leave. Before Ranni spoke "I recommend you use a short cut up to Altus plateau."

Galus turned. "I planned to." Before he walked out of the room.

He walked downstairs and Blaidd looked at him. "If you're ready, I'd like to start training you in swordsmanship."

Galus thought about it for a few seconds before nodding. "Alright."

Blaidd nodded, and they walked out to the plateau.

Galus nearly got his head taken off when Blaidd turned and swung his sword at Galus' neck. He skipped backwards on reflex and unsheathed his hound sword and ivory sickle. Blocking the next strike and then dodged another when Blaidd used his claws, and he attempted a strike back with his sword but Blaidd expertly parried with his gauntlet, leaving an opening for his sword, Galus blocked the sword with his sickle and hooked it but he was unable to wrench the sword out of Blaidd's grip, instead he ducked under the punch Blaidd took and attempted a stab at his abdomen. Only he was met with a kick to the face. Galus dropped his sickle and sword and fell back on his spells he summoned his spear and attempted to attack him but Blaidd hit the shaft and the Glintstones glowed cerulean and the shaft shattered in sparks. He attempted to throw his disc but that go swatted aside and shattered, Galus was panicking at this point and blasted him with flames of slumber which did absolutely fuck all.

Blaidd shook his head. "There's the flaw, you rely far too heavily on your magic, and it'll destroy you if you ever fought a shard bearer."

Galus took a step back, and summoned his spear again. "You're not wrong, but what am I to do without my weapons?"

Blaidd shook his head. "There's nothing else you can do, and that's the scary part. Which is why you need to gain further skill in your blade. If you have your back against the wall you better get creative or get dead."

Galus nodded going and picking up his sword and sickle.

"Those are both decent weapons, but if you don't mind my saying, the... Hook, can use a bit of reinforcement." Blaidd said looking at the ivory sickle.

Galus looked it over, it looked fine to him, not a knick or scratch on it. "Pretty sure it's magically reinforced."

Blaidd held out his hand, and Galus handed it to him, and he inspected it with a keen eye. "Mmmmmm... True, but It's design is based the best, there's. I pommel, so it could easily slip out of your hand, and without a leather grip and just the ivory swirl only reinforces that point."

Galus thought about it and nodded. So Blaidd continued. "Your sword is light but it's also long, and the way you use it one handed isn't the best, if you fought someone with that one handed they could rip it out of your hand with anything that resembles your ivory hook, especially given that your grip isn't the strongest it wouldn't be hard."

Galus sighed. "Yes, but I've been thinking I could use the sickle as an anchor when I attack, using momentum to spin my body as I slide to a stop from my bloodhounds step."

Blaidd shook his head. "That wouldn't work, for one your momentum would tear that thing from your hand, but maybe if you had a bit more training you could though I wouldn't count on it."

Galus gripped his sword and said. "Let's continue then."