The woman in the black fox mask sat and watched as the lich and its underling/slave worked. The ascended wretchling was pulling pieces of metal from a dimensional storage bag, while the lich was instructing her on where to place them. While the exact nature of the intended construct was unknown, the lich proved to be full of surprises so the woman had little doubt it would be interesting.

Noting that the air within her pocket of quasi-reality was getting stale, the woman made a gesture and refreshed it. It was a pain, sitting here in the void outside of the universe, but the individual known as Rine Vect Nol Karmaskor was canny and knowledgeable. The only means by which the woman could be certain she'd remain undetected was to literally be outside of the cosmos while she observed him. Any other method was far too risky.

However, that meant constantly maintaining this bubble of reality around herself, complete with an atmosphere. That also meant that the amount of time she could spend observing him at any point was likewise extremely limited, and she had maybe fifteen minutes left before she'd need to return. She considered returning early and taking a short rest, since whatever these two were doing, when her master contacted her. As she felt the splitting headache begin, the woman in the black fox mask retreated back to reality, in a prepared position many miles away, a dark cave, dimly lit with candles.

[Servant/Vassal/Subject/Slave = You], her master commanded, [Report/Describe/Explain/Update = Now.]

The master's concept of language was far different than that of mortals and difficult for the mind to comprehend. Even for those familiar with him, it was a painful process to understand his orders, since many thoughts and concepts in his mind were all summed up in a single thought.

There were things that mortal minds were not built to comprehend, and even with her master dumbing things down to the most basic concepts possible, his thoughts were often too vast for mere mortals to put into words. While it was possible to, with time and effort, sort through the great being's messages, it could be physically and psychically damaging to do so, and it gave any who received the master's thought-messages a splitting headache... if it didn't cause an aneurysm or even one's head to explode instead. The master's thoughts were vast and complex and were not meant for things as small and fragile as mortal language or mortal minds.

The woman in the black fox mask sent a message in response, her thoughts, feelings, and memories traveling the distance between herself and her distant master. All she'd seen and heard, the great master now knew. After several minutes, the great one asked, [Beacon/Signal Source/Girl Child/Key = Status?]

The response to this was a more orderly thought, as she sent back, "Neither she nor the lich are aware of the true extent of her gift. The lich knows she can send a signal that pierces the veil but does not understand why and has no clue of its importance. He remains ignorant of her significance, beyond her capabilities to assist him."

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

The master's reply came promptly, stating, [Good/Acceptable/Within Allowable Parameters = Yes.]

[Watch/Observe/Protect Them = You.] [Allow Self-Cultivation/Minimize Interference/Act Only If Necessary = You.]

[Lich/Wizard/Pathway/Locked Door + Beacon/Signal Source/Girl Child/Key = Critical To Plan.]

[Remember/Keep In Mind/Priority Lich > Girl Child.]

[Key = Replacable, Locked Door =/= Replacable.]

[More Keys Can Be Found/Made = True.]

[More Time/Continued Steps/Cooking Preparations = Required.]

[Extended Observation/Careful Manipulation/Playing The Long Game = All Players On Our Side.]

[Continue As Instructed/Keep Up The Good Work/Fail Me And Die In Agony = You.]

With that, the master's agonizing mental touch left her. After a moment, the woman took off her mask and took a deep breath, wiping a stream of blood and ichor from her face with a hand. As she did, she reflected on her situation. While wizards could rely on their inner strength, born from training and studying, witches and warlocks instead utilized power granted to them by a patron.

The patron could be any creature willing to grant power, often more than modern wizards could hope to acquire, but that power always came with a price. As she studied the green and purple threads that ran through the blood on her hand, she acknowledged that her 'price' was becoming more advanced. The good news was, once it reached a certain point, she could rise further in the ranks of the organization. The bad news was, she was well on her way to no longer being human.

A year or two more, the changes would no longer be internal, but instead plain to anyone who saw her without her robes or mask. Five years after that, no amount of masks or loose-clothing would hide the fact that she was an abomination. Ten years after that, not even the most intense scrutiny would reveal any sign that she was ever human at all.

Placing her mask back on her face, she shrugged. Being human was overrated, and once the master's plan came to fruition, the species would be well on its way to extinction unless the master decided that they might serve useful as livestock. It was far better to be an abomination than a beast to be slaughtered to sate the master's bottomless hunger.

She raised a hand and used her master's power to force euclidian and non-euclidian geometry to intersect, ripping a momentary hole in the fabric of the cosmos. She stepped through the opening and out of the universe so she could continue her observations.

No one, not the king nor his court, the leader of the Stoneclutch nor his minions, nor even the faculty and students of the academy realized how colossal a clusterfuck tomorrow night was going to be. Only the woman in the black fox mask knew, and she had no obligation to warn anyone.

Only the lich known as Rine was critical. His continued existence was both the pathway and the gate that would allow her master entry into what mortals considered reality. However, he was also the lock that prevented the door from being opened. Lily was a key, but she was only the first one to naturally form. Others would be born, or the order would create them if it became necessary. If Lily proved... inconvenient, she could be replaced with someone far easier to control.