Compass [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczONU5A5z8trULKb2iZm_7lKA4TvNnUrHFoN6xw21_ajnFvyxOxQgZwCFshOoeJOxpsNmaC7YEfIknbH_GQSr8p3KBuSlAwq0zFEy3hSXpPzBb-4ZMylN3yN2zkGDeZ9sNUNyMxxRqfFMASxHIdygZqM=w613-h919-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
Veldrix wasn’t sure if they were concerned or impressed when they met the Emerald Caste Lord Ethan Teras, who looked more sleep-deprived than any Caster at that level should be. Judging from the stagnant smell in the Magi’s workshop, the man hadn’t left or probably even stopped working within it for weeks.
That kind of… dedication was either a sign of brilliant passion or desperate madness, and both were at the expense of one’s self-care. Veldrix thought it might be a bit of both when the amount of work falling on the cinderen’s shoulders was made clearer, along with the fact that the Duke had let slip about Ethan’s son being one of the combatants lost due to their queen’s lack of expediency.
If Veldrix had arrived before the Soul Reapers, things would have turned out very differently for thousands of people. It was just another reason for the knight to be glad they chose to escape that cesspool of disconnected royalty.
“Now, if we can borrow some Emerald Casters adept at rituals –not experts, but at least passable– then I think we can get the initial relays to the three border fortresses done within a month,” the Chancellor of the OOM stated, pointing between a wall with a ritual diagram scrawled over it and the table the group currently stood around displaying a map of the tundra very much like the duke had.
“We can’t spare that many Emeralds,” Director Trayvious said with a frown, “Not until after the blood moon.”
“We need this for the blood moon,” the duke countered, “We needed this before it even started. You said this uses a minimal amount of our city’s mana reserves so that we could implement it right away, so why didn’t we?”
Ethan blinked with a blank expression, and for a moment, Veldrix thought the exhausted Caster might have finally shut down internally. Then he seemed to reboot and say, “Um, we didn’t have the plans or the… convention of using the alert system in this manner on this much larger scale.”
The knight looked closer at the map where the intended relays were planned for the initial stage involving the three fortress cities and noticed the odd shape of the ritual circles that weren’t actually circles, “I’m not a specialized expert at rituals or enchantments, but why are they shaped like hexagons? It looks odd trailing to the towns like this.”
“It does, but it’s also what makes it so efficient and expandable,” the Magi explained, then pressed a series of runes that shifted the map to include not just the three trails but an entire grid over the whole tundra.
Veldrix’s eyes went wide in surprise as they said, “It looks like a honeycomb.”
Ethan gave a sad smile, “My Polissa said the same when she saw it. She wanted to help implement it, too, but she’s not very happy with me at the moment.”
“That’s what happens when you put Adventurers in a gilded cage,” Everin spoke up from his position at the end of the table next to Kara, who had both followed Veldrix’s tour led by the duke.
“I don’t expect someone who’s not a parent to understand, Avatar Starlark,” the Magi snapped with a glare, “Especially one that promotes rebellion among the youth.”
“Lord Teras, I assure you,” the colorful voxen began with a vulpine grin, “I promote rebellion in everyone regardless of age.”
“Makes one wonder why you were on our side then, during the battle for Tulisuda. Perhaps the one sabotaging our alarm system in the first place is some rebellious faction, and who better to lead them than–”
“Lord Teras,” the AOA Director cut off, “I’ll remind you that Avatar Starlark also serves the Scholar and has been assisting with both responding to these blackout events as well as fighting against the Soul Reapers.”
“Don’t conflate my desire to see people free of overbearing and often exploitative authority with the twisted desire to watch the world burn to ashes,” Everin said, the humor dimmed, “I’m trying to save lives, not take them.”
Veldrix interrupted the obvious tension by tapping on the map and saying, “Well, this seems like it will save a lot of lives, but what about your sabotage issue? Will this help it?”
The Magi seemed to deflate from the spark of anger and rubbed at his head as he answered, “Yes, in a way,” he pressed more runes, and the map shifted again to a zoomed-in version of the capital city, focused on just the inner city circle.
“Currently, the ley lines feed mana from Tulisuda to the enchantments embedded into the very foundation of the city. The runes are under the streets that encompass a district, but that’s the main problem right now. One enchantment covers the whole district, and when that gets cut off, the whole thing goes dark.”
“That’s a massive enchantment,” Agatha said in surprise, “I didn’t realize that was how it was working. I didn’t even realize enchantments could cover that much space alone.”
“I’ve seen bigger ones,” Veldrix commented, “But it is uncommon, especially in such a low Caste zone,” then a nagging thought had them clarify, “You said the runes were under the streets. That must have been a massive reconstruction project. I assume this would need something similar, so how did the city do it before?”
The two cinderen men glanced towards one another before the duke answered, “Those enchantments have been there since the founding of the city. Over five milleniums ago. The largest construction projects since then have only been additions like the Quicksteam.”
“You’re not wrong that this would be a very large reconstruction project,” Ethan said and pointed to the overlaid plans of newer and smaller hexagon-shaped enchantments all over the city, “We would be ripping up every road to create this new grid. The benefit is that if something happens to one of the enchantments, it stays isolated to that singular –much smaller– spot without taking down everything around it.
“Plus, we would immediately know that there was a dead spot as the surrounding enchantments would be monitoring their neighbors as they regulate mana flow between them. No more finding out after a monster spawns and destroys a building.”
“Can we do a skyway instead?” a soft feminine voice asked, and the Magi turned to address the Sapphire Caste human that had been hanging back away from the group, silently observing while pouring over a scroll in her hands.
Ethan gestured for her to come closer and introduced, “This is my personal assistant, Miss Camilla Saren. She specializes in Reality Rifts and helped restore the ley lines when Tulisuda was seized. I have been working with her extensively on this project between my other duties.”
The cinderen ran a hand through his short, unkempt hair as he said, “Now that the assault from the Soul Reapers and Corrupted Reality Seeds have been taken care of –thank you again for your assistance on both of those Paladin Fairweather– I’ve been able to devote more time to this between visits to the World Tree.”
“The what?” Veldrix interjected.
“Presley is a World Tree now,” Camilla answered, not making eye contact with the Ruby Caster. Then she added with a tiny smile, “Presley is a good oddity.”
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“Who?” the knight asked in confusion looking back to the duke.
“Ah, I didn’t get that far in my explanation before we were interrupted by Paladin Fairweather and Avatar Starlark,” Victor Tul admitted nervously.
“We can visit and explain more later. I try to check in once a week anyway,” Ethan said, gesturing back to the map of Tulimeir, “What were you saying about a skyway, Camilla?”
“Oh, um, s–sorry, I just thought we could still just do an addition. L–like we’ve done before. New roads. High above the old ones, that could use the existing buildings as supports. Make it balanced and flexible. Glow underneath for more light and shelter for walking below. Less traffic below now that more magical transports will be able to function,” the woman listed off while nervously fidgeting.
Veldrix grinned at the odd researcher and said, “That sounds like a fantastic plan that will help with the influx of Casters this city is going to have.”
The knight watched the woman curiously for another moment and added in her turn-of-phrase, “Another good oddity.”
A small smile tugged at the corners of Camilla’s lips as she nodded in agreement, still looking anywhere but at the people. She adjusted her body to face Lord Teras as she held up the scroll she had been holding and asked, “Where did you, um… find this rough draft?”
Ethan smiled as well and said, “It wasn’t found. Paul gave it to me. Months ago, when he first told me about Phoenix. She gave it to him.”
“Phoenix the Wayfarer?” Veldrix clarified, “The one at the center of everything that’s been happening?”
“Much to her displeasure,” Kara confirmed with a grin.
“I feel like, even if I tried to avoid her, our paths will cross. My curiosity is definitely piqued.”
“Get your own Wayfarer,” the Obsidian Caster playfully teased, “This one’s mine now.”
“Pretty sure I knew her before you,” Everin interjected with a matching smile, “Doesn’t that mean I get dibs?”
“You can fight me for it,” Kara wickedly replied.
“Maybe when I’m Obsidian too, we can race for it,” he retorted with a laugh.
Veldrix frowned at the objectification, usually being on the receiving end of such banter. Despite it being portrayed in jest, they knew all too well where it might eventually lead and weren’t sure if this crazy Obsidian wasn’t quite joking about thinking of people weaker than her as mere toys.
If she wished to, it would be all too easy for the Obsidian to seize this young Wayfarer and claim dominion over her. By the time anyone else could muster a response to save the girl, it would be far too late.
What could Veldrix say, though? The last time they spoke out against that type of behavior from a peer, they were mocked for being both too soft and too strict. They were a Ruby Caste knight, but that meant little to an Obsidian Paladin. All that might result from speaking now was creating powerful new enemies and hating theirself a little less.
With a sigh, they said, “Why don’t we just let Phoenix decide who she belongs to, yes? Now, when can I visit Presley? Who named the World Tree that, by the way?”
“It’s Presley Wayland,” Camilla answered, “Phoenix named them since they believed she was the mother.”
“Say what now?” Veldrix asked in utter bewilderment.
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Saiya found herself standing in front of the temple of the Traveler yet again. The last time she had visited had been while Dazien was recovering from his traumatic ascension. She had felt so lost after the seemingly hopeless fight against the Soul Reapers and the trifle its resolution had become with the arrival of Kara.
She had shared in Phoenix’s anger and frustration at what felt like unnecessary losses. If only the powerful Obsidian Caster had arrived before so many had died –before her friend had fallen to a much too powerful foe.
The Healer recalled standing in this very spot alongside Simmon as they sought guidance. He had been a kind companion, a promising healer, and a good friend that she had hoped to spend more time with. Now, the only time she would see him again would be as ashes and memories at the upcoming memorial that the city was planning for all of those who fell during the war.
She gave Snowbelle a squeeze around the squishy middle portion of the furry feathered Seagull, who was being a spoiled Familiar in her arms. The added weight since turning Sapphire wasn’t so bad; it just took both of her tiny arms to keep a hold of the aval and prevented her from using them for anything else. Today, however, she wanted the extra comfort that her Familiar granted.
“Have you found your path yet?” a feminine voice said from behind her, and she turned to give a respectful bow to Priestess Kyleen Lestrand.
“I think so,” Saiya replied, glancing back towards the front door to the temple, “It’s the next step in my personal journey.”
“I see you’re getting the vernacular down already,” the elf replied with a playful wink and linked arms with her but didn’t try to pull her in any particular direction as she asked, “So where are you heading?”
The healer smiled at the priestess, who would likely be her senior soon, “Forward, hopefully. I see… I feel too many people around me who are stuck standing either at an intersection or a dead-end. I think by helping them find their own paths, I’ll find mine.”
“Then lead the way, my lady,” Kyleen prompted, gesturing towards the temple.
Saiya stepped forward.
She made her way into the temple with a few scattered people, mostly in traveling clothes under their cloaks that all shared a matching insignia of a nautical compass star embroidered on the left.
When she looked to Kyleen for directions, the older priestess smiled and nodded towards the lift, “Top floor, like most other temples. I think my deity wants to meet you before you say a vow.”
The voxen’s tails tucked slightly, and ears lowered to the sides at the thought of meeting a deity face to face and being the one they were actually focused on. She had only met a few deities before. The Mender was the only one before joining up with King’s Dream, having gone to the goddess’ temple for healing when she was younger, and it was merely in passing.
Despite having visited this temple a few times before, she hadn’t caught a glimpse of the Traveler’s projection, though Phoenix had described them to her when she asked. The Wayfarer seemed to attract gods like cinderstones attracted mothlets, and the three other times Saiya had seen a deity up close was when the Cultivator and Parent marked her friend and when the Scholar first possessed Avatar Starlark.
As the two women and familiar reached the inner sanctuary at the top of the tower, the Healer looked all around her where the walls were open to the chilly air and had a clear view of the surrounding towers. Pillars were in each of the cardinal and ordinal directions supporting a ceiling with clear glass to shield from the weather but keep the stars visible.
There, in the center of the open space, stood the androgynous deity that Phoenix had described, smiling at her and gesturing her closer, saying reassuringly, “It pleases me to finally see you deciding on a direction. I know you have taken great care in this choice and wanted to briefly speak with you on it.”
Saiya nodded and made to move closer when Kyleen asked, “Would you like me to go or stay?”
The voxen glanced toward the deity, who smiled and said, “The choice is yours, not mine. Kyleen already knows any information I may share.”
“Then stay, please,” she said, “I would have brought Rayna to be with me, but I thought this would be better done apart for a change. This is my path, not hers.”
The elven priestess nodded in understanding and moved with her to stand before the deity who gestured for them to sit upon large pillows splayed around the floor. When she gave a questioning look to Kyleen, the woman chuckled and said, “For stargazing and company. Preferably both.”
“Now,” the deity said when they were all seated, “I can’t read your mind like the Scholar but I have overheard your conversations and any whispered prayers sent my way. I just wanted to ensure that you weren’t hoping to join me just because of the immediate concerns of your friends. The kind of Path we offer that works alongside the Mender is usually a long one and doesn’t always end in the destination one might envision.”
Saiya nodded hesitantly before explaining, “I know it can be… difficult to recover from certain events. My own experiences have made that obvious enough to me. More recently those types of events seem to always be happening. We aren’t given time to process and heal between them. I’m hoping to help not just my friends but also myself; hope to learn how we can walk forward at the same time as looking back. To keep fighting while we grieve. To not get trapped by our losses and overwhelmed by the doom that seems to be in every direction.
“I feel like I don’t even have the chance to worry about our destination because we can’t find any roads in the first place. We’re just lost among the sand dunes; any previous dreams just faded mirages… When I’m here in this temple –when I think about this journey as a priestess… I feel found.”
The Traveler smiled at her and said, “I’m glad, Saiya Dewsong. If you find purpose in the journey, then you are more than welcome among my clergy. Go ahead and speak your dedication as an Acolyte.”
Saiya took a slow breath and recited the words she had thought through a hundred times, “I offer you my devotion and service as your acolyte. My heart is your heart. Your words are my words. My life is your life. Your will is my will.”
“Thus, your newest journey begins, my Acolyte Dewsong.”