The technician clapped once. "Right. Bring forth the test payload!"

With some choreographed marching and chanting that Ruyo was pretty sure they were doing as a joke, four of the Inheritors brought a coffin-sized box to the platform. Inside, they revealed, were samples. A rock, a hammer, a live mouse, and a few simple enchanted items including one of Ruyo's bread-conjuring sticks. "For this test we don't have a way to bring anything back, but we want you gods and spirits to stare intently and tell us anything you can while we monitor the instruments."

Ruyo stepped back, and coaxed her mind into the same frame of thought that she used to see the spirit reflection of her temples. The room held a magical charge at bay, sleeping beneath their feet. Elly didn't have the same skill at that yet but did her best. Nusina had promised to keep one eye on the Inheritors while Ruyo was distracted, just in case.

The research team seemed to care only about the task, though. "Chargers full. Timer set to 300 for aiming."

The room hummed with energy. Nearly everyone stepped instinctively back. Ruyo focused on how the platform seemed to grasp the test box and hold it slightly airborne. Pale, shimmering light shot up from below and rained in reverse, striking the box and melting it away. A whiff of sulfur filled the room. In seconds the effect faded and the transport bed sat empty again. The onlookers gasped.

Ruyo had seen it a little differently. The vanishing box had been shunted sideways, really in a direction she didn't understand. She'd seen inside it too and had a sense of the living creature standing out, a pattern more complex than the test objects. She mentioned this silently to Nusina.

"I don't remember this much detail; sorry. But I think you're seeing a little insight into souls."

One of the Inheritors said, "Did we really send that to the moon, or just destroy it?"

Ruyo described what she'd seen. "We probably just killed that poor mouse."

A woman at the controls studied them further. "As far as I can tell, the far side acknowledged a sending. But whether it succeeded I have no idea."

Another technician hissed in frustration. "So now we need to wait another month for any more data."

Magus told them, "My guild has had certain experiments running for years at a time. I don't think you appreciate how hard it is to maintain a constant enchantment in a fixed location. Except where these three are involved; any other insights from you?" She turned to Ruyo, Elly and Nusina.

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Elly asked if she could stand on the platform, then crouched atop it and concentrated. "No sign of char marks or anything. The magic is multi-element; Magus, come see. And I think, when it started, everything was sort of gripped or coated in the spell."

Nusina commented, "I would guess part of that is a means of protecting or stabilizing the contents."

They all took a break in the lounge. After a little analysis the Inheritors reported, "We think there is a way to pull something back. There is an... echo, maybe, or a wave bouncing back, a few minutes after the original sending. We could try to have a test subject ride that to come back. But it's just as poorly controlled as the original beam, and you'd need to dump extra mana into it. So, that's still not useful for most people."

Ruyo said, "Good! I mean, I'd love to see this thing set up so that anyone can use it, but the fact that you'd find a way to test it at all is impressive."

The researcher shrugged. "Sending someone across, the hard way, is probably the only chance at ever configuring the thing properly. Like building a bridge."

Miras rubbed one of his tusks. "It's impressive to see this place, but is it really worth the risk?"

"Are you kidding? Who knows what treasures there are to study?"

"Spoken like someone who doesn't have to risk himself to find out."

Ruyo excused herself to examine the shrine to the dead goddess Loruna below the lounge. Unfortunately, she couldn't "hear" the message from her precursor anymore. The accidental recording had faded when Ruyo claimed the altar for herself. Would've been nice to hear that voice again, even if it still came with the moment of panic Ruyo had felt in it.

Nusina floated nearby. "Anything?"

Ruyo tapped her chin. "No, but it's interesting that you can record thoughts and feelings in one of these things. We found that music player once, and that was a simple-looking device."

"The Inheritors want to borrow that again by the way."

"Fine. So. You can record sounds easily once you know how, and you can leave a more complex message like Loruna's moment of panic. This moon beam device can somehow keep objects together even while flinging them temporarily out of reality or something. And it's even possible for a god to leave part of her own identity behind in a way that someone else can absorb. I think all these things are related."

"Maybe. What about it?"

Ruyo shrugged, then answered silently. "We know the Light God is unable or unwilling to change shape to escape its trap. It has a strong sense of identity, maybe. I and now Elly have some shapeshifting ability." Aloud she added, "I think the secret of surviving the moon trip will be a mix of physical integrity, and some flexibility to be pulled and squeezed through whatever the damaged machinery does. I'll also need need to practice shielding or shifting others so I can bring you and Elly."

"But you can't directly change Elly, only maybe extend some stability to her."

Ruyo started back upstairs with Nusina. "So we all need some practice. We've got a month."