The next day was pretty quiet. I’d slept in the Heart, and upon waking, gotten my wishes stocked up in the ring. I’d considered using them, but honestly, given the million point end goal, if I forced myself to tick down the stats day by day I’d probably go insane. Letting them build up and getting four to five digit boosts ever few weeks was much more palatable.

To my joy, Elena and her son had arrived, along with the daughter she’d mentioned reminded her of Mnemosyne. Her name was Emma, and I actually kind of understood what she meant. The fiery haired girl was about the same age I had been when this whole mess had started, and I was pretty sure I was more scared of her than I was of Abel.

My first stop of the morning was to check in on them. “Elena,” I said with a wide smile as I found them in the kitchen (furnishing the place had been a matter of minutes, one of the many joys of every Ascendant carrying all their worldly possession in a portable pocket dimension) “How’s the place treating you so far. Simon, how about you, how you feeling buddy?”

The eleven year old looked…better. Better but still not good. His skin was pale and waxy, his eyes sunken and ringed in black so dark they looked bruised. But he seemed to be breathing easier now than when he got here. Even as I noted his condition, Archie let out a trilling cry and pulsed power into the house. A wash of green flame bounced off the walls, amplifying like some kind of echo chamber as it washed over the kid.

His eyes closed, shuddering a bit, but when they opened they seemed less tormented. Elena reached down, adjusting the bracelet on his wrist almost compulsively. Rackham was a B-rank planet, and small children who didn’t even have abilities weren’t made to withstand the Impact here. The bracelet was a thamaturgical device that offloaded the pressure onto his mother when he was outside of designated safe areas designed for children.

“I feel good,” Simon said happily. “It doesn’t hurt so bad anymore. I couldn’t sleep for a long time, but I slept for four whole hours this morning!” The enthusiasm behind that comment kind of broke my heart.

I nodded up to the window sill where Archie was perched. “Well, if you’re feeling better, you’ll have to pull your weight around here. Can’t have any freeloaders. Do me a favor and watch my friend up there? He’s kind of an attention hog, and if he doesn’t have people fawning over him he gets whiny.”

Archie chirped in outrage, and I ignored him, causing Simon to giggle. The sound was sadly ruined by the coughing fit it devolved into, but another pulse of green fire settled him. My phoenix swept down, landing on the table next to the kid, then hopping close so his aura was helping more directly. I nodded to him subtly, and he returned the gesture knowingly. Archie knew what was up. Smart bird.

I jerked my head to the side, gesturing for Elena to follow me out of the room while Emma strode in with a plate of waffles I assumed she had made, since I didn’t see anywhere else to have gotten them.

When we got outside, Elena threw her arms around me, squeezing tightly before letting go and giving me an embarrassed smile. “Sorry, I just really wanted to do that. I can’t thank you enough for this. He’s doing so much better, and this place…I know that revealing this kind of location isn’t something someone would do lightly.”

I just shrugged, a little uncomfortable about the credit for something that hadn’t really been that much effort. “It’s fine. I’m glad it’s helping.” I was relieved actually. If it hadn’t I’d have either had to give her a scroll or felt like a monster for withholding it.

“More than you can imagine,” she smiled warmly. “The breathing was only the least of it. The loss of energy, the aches and pains, I’d gotten so used to seeing him in discomfort I forgot how big the difference was. I’m not sure if this is TREATING his illness, but considering the symptoms are just constantly degrading health, it’s at the very least counteracting it. At this rate he should be feeling healthy again in a few weeks. Hopefully since we won’t have to worry about the wasting we can find a cure more easily.”

“I can’t make promises,” I hedged. “But I HIGHLY suspect that consistent exposure to Archie will cure the underlying disease.” Life Nova was a powerful curative, enough to restore even a soul if damaged enough.

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Honestly I’d expected it to just fix him instantly. It was only after I mentioned the delay that Elena mentioned that the bracelet that kept him safe didn’t just offset passive Impact from the world around him. It was actually resisting MOST of the healing effect. Too much life energy poured into a mortal would be harmful. He was only receiving a fraction of the full effect, moderated by the bracelet, but even with the suppression, it said a lot about how BAD his condition had been that he was going to take weeks to recover.

“Did you reach out to your husband with the directions?” I asked, deciding to change the subject. Thinking about how long it was taking made me feel bad for waiting after she’d told me the truth.

Her smile was blinding. “I did. He’s still working on the trials. Joel’s been enjoying the investigative work, and I think he might stick with Delthrys even if Simon is fine. He’s going to come visit before his next trial, if that’s still alright.”

“By all means,” I said with a laugh. “Chess doesn’t mind the visitors. Just don’t tell anyone where this place is and we’re good. I owed you one anyway. More than one really. I, however, am going to be out for a while today. I promised my friend Ray I’d help him with the first Raxus trial. He’s off meeting with his emissary now.”

Her warm expression faltered. “I’d be careful,” she warned. “We did our homework on the gods before we came here. The twins represent a duality. Delthrys is attractive to those who would uncover secrets, and Raxus to those who would bury them deep. That doesn’t translate to good or evil, mind, they’re both dark gods. But Raxus initiates tend to be…more outwardly focused in their malice.”

“I got that impression, yeah,” I admitted. “I’ll keep an eye on Ray. I don’t think he wants to do anything too bad.” If he couldn’t get it done, I’d tell him about the Acheron and send him to my grandmother’s guards. “I’ll watch out for him, gotta pay it forward and all that.”

She just laughed, shaking her head. “I had no idea you would do something like this when I helped you, but I’m glad I did. We searched for such a long time to try to find a way to help him. Seeing how quickly things have been…well, if not resolved at least repaired. It’s kind of crazy. What a world, right?”

She wasn’t wrong. Ascendant life could be a bit nuts. Granted Zagan was cheating levels of effective, even for Ascendants. I was well aware my own ability to solve certain problems, even without wishes, was far beyond what the Average D-ranker could manage. Honestly it was still insane to have thoughts like that, thinking of it from the point of view of baby Solomon, who wasn’t sure he’d ever get to E-rank back on Callus.

After a bit of small talk I said my goodbyes to Elena and made my way out. Archie stayed back with the kid, hoping to help, so it was just me. Bella had slept in alongwith all the others. While the life force aura of the Heart DID make sleep technically unnecessary, once you were actually unconscious it seemed to extend and enhance the rest. Good dreams and restful slumber were the standard in the Heart.

Once I got out of the crevasse, I made my way west, to where Ray had asked me to meet him. I ended up in a small town called Shadehorn, and stopped at the local tavern for a meal while I waited. I was just digging into my country fried steak when Ray dropped into the seat across from me. “Alright,” he said in a determined voice. “I’ve got my assignment.”

“That’s nice,” I said casually. “I’ve got FOOD. I’m gonna eat it.” I cut off a piece, sticking it into my mouth through the opening I triggered in my mask.

He blinked. “Oh,” his voice was a bit crestfallen. “Right. I mean, this just felt like a big dramatic moment. Like we should set off on our mission, ready to take on anything. Should we…not do that?”

“Is your mission to be hungry?” I asked mildly.

“Not…specifically?” he said in confusion. “It’s an infiltration. We have to pose as members of a certain organization. We’re supposed to steal an item and replace it with an exact copy.”

I took another bite, chewing and swallowing before answering. “Doesn’t seem time sensitive. I’m gonna finish my food. Some advice? Slow down. Rushing is never helpful. Sometimes it’s NECESSARY, but it’s never helpful, and in this case it doesn’t seem to be needed. We take our time. Case the place. I’ve got about six days to help. So we take our time.”

He slumped. “Yeah, that makes sense,” he admitted. “I guess it just feels…urgent.”

“Trust me,” I told him with a laugh. “All the important stuff does. But impatience will kill you faster than a knife in the gut. That’s the kind of wisdom you pick up from doing trials that are essentially torture. Procrastination is your friend.” Intellectually, I knew that I had NOT been partly eaten alive by beetles because I had been impatient and mouthy…but it probably hadn’t helped the situation. Apparently I could be taught. “Anyway, give me the details while I eat, what are we doing?”

He pulled out a roll of paper, unrolling it and smoothing it out on the table. “This, is Angelina DeWinter. She’s the daughter of a Count. Now, as you may have noticed around her neck, there is a rather large golden necklace. THAT is the Fox diamond. It’s a stone with an exorbitant amount of Perception naturally occurring inside. It’s got a natural rune, and the setting harnesses that Perception, making it a unique item that can be used to spy on other people from a distance.”

“We’re stealing a spying device?” I asked in surprise. “Do you know why?”

“Not exactly,” he grimaced. “But I can guess. Despite my flippant demeanor, I’m not stupid. Based on some context clues, I think my emissary is double dipping. Using our trials to do local jobs for a payout. It kind of makes sense, given he worships a god of deceit.”

I winced. “If it helps, he won’t be able to do that for more than the first two. Trial three and on are shared competitions, at least they are for us.”

“Good to know. Anyway, I was given a false necklace to swap out with the real one.” He sounded tired already. “Probably a knock off that prevents people from seeing specific things. It’s a C-ranked item, so it’ll be guarded pretty closely.”

Blowing out a breath, I finished my bite and pushed my plate away. “Alright, well, like I said we need to take this slow. Find out her schedule. Where she puts it at night, how closely guarded it is. We’ll be doing recon to start, and then once we know everything, we’ll make a plan from there. Now, I don’t suppose you have a map of where this person lives?” He shook his head grimly and I sighed. Of course, nothing was ever easy.