The bath was wonderful. Blissful and I couldn’t be happier. I even forgot everything that was waiting for me on the other side for a while. But eventually, like all things, it had to come to an end. Besides, my fingers and toes were getting all pruney. I splashed up out of the bath feeling as clean as the baths in Breezewood.
I frowned, thinking of having to wear the filthy and torn peasant girl’s outfit, but as I moved towards the dressing rooms, a figure appeared out of the mists. I gave a little yelp…
Alright, I might have actually shrieked and said ‘kyaah’. That was embarrassing enough.
“I’m sorry to have startled you.” A feminine voice broke through the mists, slowly revealing itself as a pretty young woman wearing a priestess’s robe. “My name is Mia, I’ve been assigned to assist you in getting ready for the ceremony.” She handed me an enormous fluffy white towel, which I gratefully grabbed and wrapped around myself, immediately feeling much better.
I swallowed. Get it together, me. I’m a girl. She’s a girl. This is… normal. I nodded, and swallowed.
“I’m sorry, I was just… very startled. Um…?” I looked around. “My clothes?” I asked hopefully.
The priestess bowed to me, her hands folded in front of her, which just felt weird.
I’m nobody spec… no, that’s not right, is it? I’m the heroine. I was hit with a sudden realization. I don’t want to be someone special! An adventure is fine, but being treated like this is not!
“Please don’t do that.” I said. “I’m really… I’m not someone you should be bowing to.”
The priestess looked up with confusion in her face. “But aren’t you the saintess candidate?”
I frowned, looking down. I knew how this would go too. “I did not ask for that honor.” I finally said.
The priestess looked discomforted, but gave a little bobbing curtsey. “As you wish, milady. We’ve taken your clothes away to be cleaned and mended, and I’ve brought you new clothes for the testing ceremony.” She said.
I felt my heart sink. Brand new clothes? That’s not a good sign for a plot development.
“If you’d like, I can help you dress…?” She trailed off uncertainly.
I blinked at her in complete befuddlement. “What?”
“I’ve several sisters, so I know-”
I waved my hands at her to stop the flow of words. “No, no. Not that, why… why would you think I needed help to dress?” I said in bafflement. “Actually, you know what, scratch that, I’d really like to get dressed and stop standing naked in the baths, so if you could just direct me…?” I trailed off hopefully.
“Oh!” The priestess curtseyed again, and blushed prettily. “Of course, I’m so sorry! This way!” She led me into a small side passage which opened into a different changing room than the one I’d started from.
Laying on a long low table was a brilliant white confection of silk and lace, a flowing garment that screamed ‘plot relevant’ to my eyes.
I bit my lower lip and fidgeted.
“Do you want my help after all, sai- milady?” Mia asked.
I swallowed and shook my head wordlessly. Brave. Come on, Lily, Eshaan said we’re brave. We can do this. I stepped forward and examined the dress, finding a small packet of smallclothes next to them, pure white bra and panties and stockings.
Honestly, this is more like a bridal gown than a ritual dress. I thought angrily. I shook off the negative thoughts, and turned back to Mia. “I’ll be fine.” I said as bravely as I could. I hope. I added wordlessly. “So, if you would please turn your back?”
The priestess looked at me in bafflement, but politely turned her back to me as requested. I let out a sigh of relief, and unwrapped my towel, rubbing roughly at my body, and wringing out the soaking strands of my long pink hair. I draped the towel over a nearby bench and reached for the smallclothes, hurriedly slipping them on, briefly marveling that this used to feel completely alien, and now it’s an experience of doubled memory, boringly familiar and incredibly exotic.
I picked up the dress, a little worried that I wouldn’t know what to do with it, but the dress was just like ones I had worn a hundred times before, and it was not difficult to figure out. It was a bit tight, much lower cut in the front that I liked, and definitely overly formal. I bit my lip, wondering if shadowme had chosen this dress…
How far has he wormed his way into this storyline?! What is he planning?!
I didn’t have a good answer for that, and the only advice I had to give myself was to keep walking forward. The low cut of the dress meant anyone could see my cleavage, and that was deeply uncomfortable, but it was very pretty. I turned to look at myself in the nearby mirror, admiring the way the dress fell, and the long trailing hem of silvery white material.
I nodded at my reflection and turned back to the priestess. “Alright, you can turn around now. Thank you.” I gave her a little bow of gratitude as she turned. Her face flushed and she stammered awkwardly. “Saintess, that… you mustn’t…!”
I straightened and looked her in the eye, tipping my head to the side questioningly. “I’m not your saintess.” I said firmly. “I would however like a brush, if you have one?” I gestured to my wet and tangled hair.
“Oh!” She leapt over to a nearby set of drawers and pulled open one hurriedly, returning with an ornate hairbrush. “Of course, allow me!” She reached forward to brush my hair and I took a step back hurriedly.
“Alright, what is going on?!” I protested. “I am perfectly capable of dressing myself and brushing my own hair, I’ve done it for fifteen years now!”
The priestess paused, holding the brush in midair. “You have?” She asked in confusion. “But aren’t you a noble?!”
My eyes widened in surprise. “Where on earth did you get that idea!? Spirits no! I’m from a tiny little town called Breezewood in Helenia!”
The priestess slowly lowered the hairbrush, confusion evident on her features. I took advantage of her confusion to take it from her grip and start brushing out my hair.
“I… I just assumed…” She stammered to a stop.
I stopped brushing and looked up at her, thinking. Oh. Of course. “Ah. Only nobles get the saintess treatment? High position in the church automatically goes to nobles?”
Mia’s eyes got round in shock and her mouth fell open. “Y-you really are from one of the provinces!” She stammered.
I laughed. “Yes, I really am.” I gave my hair a few last strokes and handed the brush back to her. “So you’ll understand why I am quite confident that I can dress myself.”
“But why-?!”
“Am I being given the saintess treatment?” I finished for her.
She nodded wordlessly.
“Well… it’s complicated, and I doubt it will make any sense, but I suppose the simplest way to explain it is that somebody has it out for me, and is trying to ruin my day.”
Mia’s expression of pure bafflement was priceless.
***
Soriya was not having as good of a day as she had hoped. The option to overact and play the part of a spoiled inventor was fun! It held lots of promise! But then the inventor’s competition turned to be for trinkets only, not actual theories. And now… this. She glanced to the side, staring at Lakshmi.
Lakshmi let out an enormous yawn, and leaned on Daniyel’s shoulder. He gave Soriya an apologetic glance. “It seems as though Mistress Holly’s potions are wearing off. I regret this may cut my potential tour short, at least for today.” He gave an apologetic grimace.
The airbus was entirely empty except for their group, and Soriya noted with distress that it was sinking steadily downwards into the deep canyons of the city. It appeared that the inventor’s lodging was on the lowest level of the city. And if she was any judge of her tropes… things were not going to go smoothly there.
“Can you at least show me to the street food?” She asked hopefully. She had really wanted to share it with Lilyanna, and if they could act quickly enough that might still happen, but…
Daniyel regretfully shook his head. “It is late, all the food stalls I know will be closed as well. I will do what I can to learn more at the palace, and send you information as I learn it. But for now… I’m afraid I can only offer you the directions to the inventor’s housing, and directions to a local restaurant. The ground level of the city is said to have a great many stalls and late night bars.” He grimaced. “Though perhaps… that would not be as suitable for a lady of your reputation.” He finished reluctantly.
“Can we be of any help to you at the palace?” Asked Holly lightly.
Daniyel shook his head slowly. “I’m afraid not. I could bring you, but I could not get you inside without entirely too many questions.”
Eshaan ventured “It is fairly late. I saved the wakeup potion thinking we’d need to be sneaking into the palace, or… or sneaking somewhere. Probably through a sewer, if Lily is right about this kind of thing. But… is there really nothing we can do?! I want to help Lily!”
Holly patted his arm gently. “Unless you know where to go, we don’t have a direction for you, and Spyre has more than a million people in it.”
Eshaan’s eyes grew large. “So many… that’s right. I’d forgotten.” He murmured.
“How could you forget something like that?” Soriya asked slightly snappish.
Eshaan looked up at her. “Well like I told you, Miss Soriya. I spent most of my time in the barracks and the hangars. That’s a much smaller area than a whole city, and mostly I just spent time with people I knew. A million people… it’s just… hard to imagine.”
The airbus slowed dramatically, and outside the windows a dusk lit by shimmering neon colors flickered into view. Looking out the window, Soriya was surprised to see a scene that seemed to leap out of a cyberpunk dystopia. Flickering signs of glowing light advertised everything from brothels to noodle stands to bookstores. Overhead, the tall cliffs of the buildings soared into the sky on either side. The street was shimmery and slick, reflecting the glowing colors of the signs, and hand drawn carts were visible on the ground.
Soriya murmured “Well, I guess we’ve found the sewer level.”
Eshaan groaned. “What!? Oh no! Really?!” As he pressed his face against the window, then watched the street resolve into view with his eyes wide and full of wonder.
Daniyel shook his head slowly, careful not to dislodge Lakshmi’s head on his shoulder. “No. The streets are kept clean by imperial decree. It is not a sewer.”
The airbus landed with a loud whining wheeze, and the doors opened, allowing the fetid air of the streets to flood in. Eshaan gagged, and Soriya was amused to see that Holly was already holding her fingers over her nose, and breathing through her mouth.
Soriya gave Daniyel a look. He squirmed uncomfortably. “I did not say that it was a pleasant smell, merely that it is not a sewer.”
“It smells like rotting cabbage and fish!” Eshaan protested.
Soriya sighed, and regretted it immediately, the smell permeating every part of her lungs. With an act of willpower she avoided gagging, and stood up.
“Let’s go, everyone. I’m starting to think this plan of ours may have a few more hurdles than expected.” The group trooped out the doors. Daniyel took a moment to ask the airbus driver about taxis, then joined them, holding Lakshmi on his back.
Soriya looked around and then up at the flickering sign buzzing overhead. “Well. According to the packet… this is it.” She swallowed and looked around. The street was packed with an array of unsavory characters, and she wondered how many of them had the ‘footpad’ or ‘thug’ classes. Assuming such things even existed? She was suddenly very glad that she’d been reborn in Breezewood rather than one of the bigger cities. Even nobility wasn’t worth this!
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The group pushed into the dirty glass doors to the building. A very bored looking old man with his feet up on the counter looked up at them from his magazine, an expression of surprise crossing his face. His eyes widened then narrowed again as he took in their state.
“Inventors?” He asked, simply.
Soriya stepped forward. “That’s right! We’re here for-”
“I don’t care.” The old man cut her off, raising a hand. “You’re here, I give you housing, that’s the deal. No food, find your own. Locks are busted on most of the rooms. That’s your warning. Airbus comes in the morning at 7am. No others till nightfall. Taxi’s 250zeni to come down here.
Daniyel nodded agreeably, and strode forward. “Then I would like to hire a taxi, please.” He pulled five crisp 50’s out of his belt pouch and placed them on the counter. The old man’s eyebrows shot upwards. He gathered the bills together and examined them carefully, then nodded, his eyes narrowing again as he looked the group over with fresh eyes.
“What’s your deal?” He asked.
Daniyel raised a single eyebrow. “Questions are an expensive habit in the undercity. I will be happy to barter with you. The price is 50 zeni for 1 answer. 100 zeni for an accurate answer.” He said calmly.
The old man got a sour look on his face as though he’d bitten into a lemon.
“Right.” He said. “I see you’ve been to downtown before.” He turned around and pulled out a key from one of the cubbies behind him, then held it out. “Whoever you are, here’s the room.” He busied himself with a complicated series of crystals then said “Taxi should be here in 30.”
“Don’t you need to see our badges, or inventor’s pass or something?” Holly asked.
The old man snorted. “You’re here. You’re clearly from out of town. That means you’re desperate, you’re new, and you’re poor.” He stopped, looking Daniyel up and down again. “Or you’re hiding from something. That means ‘inventor.’ Only real question is am I going to die of old age waiting for you to take the key or not?”
The group shared a series of glances, and then Eshaan stepped forward and took the key from the man’s hand.
“Thank you for the warning.” Eshaan said. “Will you tell us where we can eat without getting mugged, or is that too pricy of a question?”
Soriya blinked in surprise, wondering when Eshaan had grown a brain.
The old man grunted. “Don’t give me that look boy. If you’re here, you’ve already got a bum hand. Best place local is the Spirit’s Charm or the Sukiyabashi. Two blocks that way, turn right, another 2 blocks. They’re on the left.” He paused. “Don’t let down your guard. It’s past the 9th bell, and the river mist is already up. The animals will be out, but the food courts are mostly neutral ground.”
And with that, he sat down again, put up his feet, and resumed reading his magazine.
The group traded glances, and then Holly clapped her hands. “Alright, come on children lets not pester the nice man any further.”
Three mouths opened in protest while Daniyel merely smiled quietly.
The rooms did indeed prove to be lackluster. They were considerably better than the dystopian street front outside would have indicated however, and Soriya found herself grateful that they weren’t going to go down that particular route. They dropped their bags from inventory and got settled, then Daniyel nodded.
“I think we have enough time to check on those restaurants the proprietor mentioned.” He said gravely. “Which one would you like to try most?” he said gravely.
Holly smiled as Soriya’s eyes lit up. “Why don’t I stay here with Lakshmi. The poor girl is completely tired out.” Holly said, gesturing to the princess who was currently crumpled into an oversized chair and snoring quietly. “I promise you that I can keep her safe enough for the extent of a meal.” She gave Soriya a wink.
Soriya blushed slightly. Daniyel turned to Holly and bowed to her, his fingertips touching. “I would be honored, Mistress Holly.” He held out his hand to Soriya. “Shall we?”
Soriya bounced on her heels. “Oh yes!”
Eshaan coughed, and then said “I should stay here too. Just in case.” He paused. “But could you bring me back something? I’m awful hungry.” His stomach growled, and Holly and Soriya laughed in unison.
Daniyel bowed to Eshaan gravely. “We will quickly return with a repast for you. My word on it.” He said gravely.
And with that, Soriya and Daniyel marched out of the inventor’s lodgings and into the flickering pastel lights of the downtown streets.
The night was cool and as quiet as a downtown could ever get. Soriya and Daniyel traded hesitant comments, gradually warning to each other’s company. As they turned the corner, passing a nearby alley suddenly a flurry of motion arrested them. Threads of light whipped around them held them firmly. A group of confident looking thugs appeared out of the darkness, chuckling cruelly. The leader held an orb which was the source of the threads of light.
Soriya immediately perked up, examining the object with interest.
“Well now, what have we here?” the leader chuckled. “I-“
“If you give me that orb, I’ll let you live.” Soriya interrupted. “I’ll even consider paying you if you do it before you force me to hurt you very badly.” She added, after a moment’s contemplation.
Daniyel looked at her in surprise, and slowly relaxed his tensed muscles, curious to see where she was going with this.
The leader took a step back, his eyes flaring wide in surprise and then laughed a nervous overloud laugh. “Well I’ve not heard something that stupid in a long time!” He narrowed his eyes and reached up to grip Soriya’s face in his hands.
Daniyel’s voice was a low and lethal rumble. “Take your hand off her, or there will be a great deal of pain very shortly.”
“Oh, there’ll be pain alri- YEAAAAAAAAAARGH!” The man clutched the stump of his bleeding arm in shock, looking up at Daniyel, who had snapped free of the restraints with trivial ease, his fists glowing with red gold light.
“You have been gravely wounded. Surrender the orb now, and I will provide treatment.” Daniyel said quietly.
“W-what are you standing there for!?” The leader shouted at his henchmen. “Get them!”
“Tsk.” Soriya said quietly. “Please try to keep the orb intact, Daniyel.”
Daniyel exploded into a blur of motion, his fists hammering into thugs with a rapid flurry of strikes too fast to follow. Thugs exploded outwards from him. From the middle of the shouting and sound of fists on flesh, he replied almost too quietly to hear “I will do my best, Miss Soriya.”
With a shriek of fear, the remaining thugs fled, the flicker of broken weblight around Soriya and Daniyel dissipating.
“Tsk.” Soriya pulled out Diaboli from her pocket realm, and took aim at the fleeing leader.
Daniyel raised his eyebrow again, but remained quiet.
“Adjust for windage… moving about 20km/h…” she murmured quietly to herself. Her focus narrowed to the point of Diaboli’s muzzle and the fleeing thug surrounded by his henchmen.
“Bang.” She whispered, and Diaboli’s roar broke the still quiet of the dark street, a streak of red fire swerving over the head of the thugs to target the leader’s back, who gave a cry and flattened onto the ground.
His crew took one look at their ‘invincible’ leader sprawled on the ground, an enormous black hole burned into his jacket and took off with panicked shrieks of fear, terror giving their feet wings.
The world soul whispered in her ear. <{Sharpshooter} Advanced to level 1. {Hawkeye}, unlocked. For ‘sticking to your guns’ you have advanced to {Sharpshooter:1}
Notice!: Class violation penalty cleared. Staves unlocked as weapon choice.>
Soriya’s eyes got wide and a smile slowly appeared on her lips, her eyes suspiciously bright.
Daniyel looked at her with concern. “Miss Soriya? Is everything alright?”
Soriya nodded slowly, her voice a soft whisper. “Oh yes. Everything is… just fine.” She wiped at her eyes. “Lets get that orb of his.”
Daniyel eyed her suspiciously, but nodded. “Very well.”
The two quickly reached the downed leader. Daniyel eyed him curiously. “He’s still alive.” He noted, which was quite obvious, as he had not vanished into motes of light.
Soriya nodded, and smiled a little crookedly. “Call it Lily rubbing off on me. Being foolish can be cured, it doesn’t have to mean a death sentence.” She knelt down and picked up the odd magitech artifact that had fallen from the thug’s grip.
Daniyel hummed, then nodded. “It suits you.”
Soriya looked up at him in surprise, then stood up pocketing the orb. “That’s sweet of you to say, Daniyel. Thank you.” She smiled more brightly. “Now. Let me show you why I was happy.” She reached into her storage pouch, feeling for something, and then pulled forth an elaborate and ornately carved mage’s staff. At the staff’s head, caught in a cage of interwoven wood was a glowing crystal the size of Daniyel’s thumb.
Daniyel’s composure completely failed as he stared at the impossible thing. “Is that… is that actually…?”
Soriya nodded quietly. “A godswar artifact. This is Ægishjálmur.” She smiled faintly. “I didn’t know…” She swallowed. “I wasn’t sure I’d ever get him back.”
“Where did you come by such a thing?!” Daniyel whispered in awe.
Soriya smiled with an air of mystery. She caressed the head of the staff like a long lost child. “I suppose you could say it was a gift.” She patted the staff fondly, then gently slid it back into her storage. A brief pause and she pulled it out again, reassuring herself that she still could. Her smile grew brighter, and she looked back to Daniyel. “Lets go get that meal. I’m sure Eshaan is starving by now.” She gave the staff one last stroke of affection, then gently slid the staff back into her pouch.
***
Mia took the brush back from me and turned to put it away, when the far door slammed open and shadowme strode in confidently. His smile was a million watts of pure darkness as he looked my outfit over. He carelessly spoke to the maid, his eyes never leaving my body.
“You may go, priestess. I wish to speak with the saintess candidate alone.”
“O-of course, Deacon!” She scurried out like a mouse, and closed the door behind her.
“Really?” I asked him, crossing my arms. “You’ve come very far in the church indeed if you can just walk into a woman’s dressing room without question. Next you’ll be diddling little boys.”
Shadowme’s cruel smile flickered out like a light, and he took a step towards me, his eyes flashing with anger. “You know how we feel about that! You of all people know!” His fists clenched in anger.
I shook my head. “I doubt I do, you seem quite content to play the part of the villain, I assumed we simply had completely opposite values at this point.”
His eyes narrowed. “I can’t say that’s clear to me. I think I’m the one who’s unaffected, and you’re the one whose mind has been twisted into useless pink taffy!” His smile returned. “And this foolish saintess test will prove it. We both know how this will go down.” He knelt before me, mockingly. “Saintess.” He said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
“I might be wearing slippers, but I can still kick you.” I growled.
Shadowme stood up, laughing. “You don’t have it in you. That pink fluff in your head won’t let you.” He leaned closer, peering at me curiously. “Do you even have a will anymore?”
I glared at him, stamping my foot in anger. “I am quite capable of expressing myself, thank you! Why are you even doing this?!”
Shadowme looked at me with an expression of pity. “So you really are completely braindead then.” He spun around, assuming a lecturing tone. “Very well, let me educate you! I know as well as you…” He turned to look over his shoulder at me. “Or as well as you used to… How this goes. You’re currently abducted, the hero is coming for you. I can’t stop that, and I was quite put out for a while when I realized that. But then I realized, I could use this. I’ll push your ascension forward, trigger the church arc sooner. They’ll take you to Narses, and the hero and party will trail along like little sheep, leaving me with more than enough time for my plan here.”
I glared at him, the echoes of my other memory informing me of the distance to the holy island of Narses. ‘very far’ was as much as I knew. “Why are you so confident that I won’t-“
He spun to look at me, his eyes blazing in triumph. “Because you can’t! Kill innocents!? Destroy swaths of the Imperial capital!? That’s hardly what the cotton candy princess would do!” He stepped forward. “Which means you can’t.”
I swallowed, a cold rock settling into my stomach. He was right, curse him. I could probably level this whole building… and the very idea made me sick to my stomach. That was a lot of innocents dead… and I would still be stuck in Spyre!
“This whole thing, a grand plan…” shadowme continued to brag. “The church doesn’t even know what they have! The keys to the System itself, and all they can think of it is the power to prove their Crystal Dragon the true power! Trivial games of religious pawns! And instead, they will install me! And then…” he breathed deeply; his eyes closed. “Then I will free this world from the shackles imposed on it!”
My eyes bugged out, and I took a step back, my mouth dropping open in shock. He’s… he’s doing the villain rant… does he… he’s just as shackled to the plot as I am!? Does he… even realize it?!
I looked down, my mind spinning rapidly. Well… lets find out… I thought quietly. The village girl would be shocked and horrified, silenced by his mad rant… so… I stood there, head bowed, quietly, hands folded in front of me. And lets hope that I’m not pinned to my own story like a butterfly to a cork board. I thought grimly.
“You’re nothing like me!” Shadowme ranted. “Look at you, there’s nothing left of us in you!” He threw his head back and laughed, and the door banged open again, Mia standing there in the doorway nervously.
“Um… D-deacon Brown? Vicar Hnin is asking for t-the candidate!”
“What?” Shadowme looked over his shoulder in irritation then smiled broadly. “Oh, yes, of course. Come along, Lilyanna of Breezewood. Let’s get you anointed.”
As he proceeded out the door in front of me, I spat meadowlark honeybound frip silently at his back. I gave a sympathetic glance to Mia as we passed, and ‘Deacon Brown’ swept onwards.
“Do you still use Benjamin?” I asked after a few steps.
He jerked in surprise and looked back at me. “Deacon, most of the time, honestly. But it’s not like you’ve a use for that name any longer, is it?”
I swallowed and then shook my head. “No, it’s not.” After all. Both of us are dead. Deacon.
The procession was quick and quiet, and we shortly entered a grand foyer where Vicar Hnin and Commander Khine waited for us, along with a giant hunk of Ancients’ technology lying in a metal frame.
“…from the mines of Dig site in the Jol Jaegren range…” I heard the vicar explaining to Commander Khine.
“I have no interest in its origin, Vicar. I know where it came from, I signed the requisition slip to approve transit. I’m quite surprised to learn you managed to pry it free of the inventor’s conclave long enough to use it for this. Your obsession with these objects has cost the Empire-“ he snapped his mouth shut on his words as he caught sight of us. “Finally!”
Vicar Hnin was all smiles and charm, and so was Deacon as he turned to me. “Ahh, Madam, Lilyanna! Please, please come and join us.” He gestured for us to walk closer.
As I did, I could feel the hum and vibration in my bones from the artifact. It put my teeth on edge, the entire fragment was badly out of tune and deeply broken from the whole. Inside me, my Arcanum stirred uncomfortably, echoing the deep wrongness of this piece of tech ripped from its place.
No one else seemed to notice anything wrong, which only made the painful vibration in my bones that much worse.
“Please, the test is simple. All you need to do is touch the device.” I glanced at him, and then at Deacon, then back to the Vicar. “That’s all?” I said, hesitantly.
“That’s all.” The Vicar said with a kindly smile.
I swallowed. I was really putting my fate in the grinder with this. But as I reached my hand slowly towards the artifact, I felt something very far away tick as though a door had unlocked. A puzzle piece that had been lost falling back into place. I hesitated for a moment, glancing uncertainly at Deacon.
The Vicar said soothingly, “There’s no need to worry, Miss Lilyanna. There really is nothing to fear at all.”
It came to me in a rush. I’m not… the only one pushing here! Soriya is trying too. And Lakshmi is trying to leave her path as well. I need to have faith in them. Faith that they can do something I can’t. I stepped forward and placed my hand firmly on the artifact.
Immediately, a brilliant white light surrounded me, enveloping me and flowing out and over the artifact. The broken corrupted vibration in my bones eased, and a quiet hum of connection replaced it. The white light grew brighter and brighter, and a beam of brilliant white light erupted from the cojoined forms of myself and the artifact, piercing upwards, a brilliant bolt of pure silvery light that stabbed into the clouds far overhead.
I’m not sure if I should be relieved or angry that I didn’t blow anything up this time. I thought. And now… now I wait and hope. I swallowed. Soriya… my best friend. Please don’t fail me.
The world soul whispered as though to reassure me. <{Spiritist} Advanced to level 10. {Mercy}, unlocked. {Arcanist} Advanced to level 6. For the faith placed in your friends you have advanced to {Spiritist:10} & {Arcanist:6}
Notice!: Capstone skill unlocked. {Holy White}>