Book 6, Chapter 1

Author’s Note: This is the unpolished first chapter for Book 6 of The Lurran Chronicles, so those who are interested can get a taste of what’s to come. However, keep in mind that I’ll be removing this page just prior to publishing the completed title next month, so read it while you can! JQ

Eli woke up to an uncomfortable pressure in his skull that had him grimacing in discomfort, but the idea of greeting the day didn’t sound too enticing right now. After all, his bed was feeling especially soft this morning, so he sent a wave of healing energy toward the pain before burrowing deeper into the silky blankets, wanting a little more shut-eye.

“Eli, are you awake?” a woman’s familiar voice asked from just over his shoulder.

Shock had Eli’s eyes opening wide as he tossed the blankets off his head while flipping around on the bed, just to stare in disbelief at the beautiful, rainbow-haired woman sitting in a bright blue chair a few meters away, her brows pulled together with worry.

“Fluxi?” Eli asked confusedly, his thoughts feeling annoyingly disjointed, reminding him of a few really bad colds from his childhood, but even with the slight ache in his head, he couldn’t help noticing the pitch-black curtains hanging in the air behind Fluxi, which hinted at where they were without explaining how he’d ended up here.

Following the battle with Boruta all those months ago, Eli had first appeared in this white-tiled room with its ominous walls, and he noted the circular space had expanded quite a bit once again, further hinting at him leveling up again.

Eli pushed the silky yellow blankets away and tried to sit up in bed, only for a nauseating dizziness to sweep through him, so he took his body’s warning seriously and relaxed back into the soft pillows.

“You know, I really did plan on being healthy the next time we saw each other,” Eli tossed out, looking at Fluxi with a grin. “Unfortunately, all my good intentions didn’t keep me from showing up hurt again, though I’m still a little confused about how I ended up here.”

His admission seemed to amuse Fluxi, her lips curling into a slight smile. “In truth, I was hoping you might know the answer to that particular query, as I arrived for our session a short time ago to find you unconscious, with evidence of recent healing throughout your body’s tissues,” she said, gesturing off to one side. “Regardless, rather than leave you lying naked on the ground, I moved you to my travel bed before providing some psychic healing treatments of my own.”

Eli felt his face heating. “Thanks for helping me out,” he said, imagining this beautiful woman finding him sprawled in a heap on the ground in nothing more than his birthday suit.

Fluxi nodded, her expression turning more serious as she waved a hand to one side, and a rectangular sheet of colorful smoke appeared in the air beside her.

“My scans have confirmed your mind underwent new trauma since our last session, with quite a significant amount of foreign energies coursing through your system,” the woman explained, meeting Eli’s gaze. “I don’t know whether that sequestered world of yours has anyone capable of repairing a near-disassociated consciousness, but without their direct intervention, you likely wouldn’t have awakened from your injuries.”

Eli definitely didn’t like the sound of that. “Just how bad am I banged up?” he calmly asked, all too aware of the uncomfortable pressure still filling his head.

“You are already on the mend,” Fluxi replied with a reassuring smile, rising from her chair to reveal the yellow one-piece bodysuit she was wearing today, with slashes of contrasting white strips of fabric along her arms and legs. The outfit was quite a bit different from her usual style, yet the slick, leather-like material hugged the gorgeous woman’s form in a very enticing way as she stepped closer.

“Much of your discomfort should pass by the time you return to Lurra, though you might still feel some lingering symptoms,” Fluxi said in a more professional tone, stopping to stand beside the bed. “I have witnessed similar injuries in some of my other clients, so I can only imagine the situation must have been truly dire for you to employ such a questionable technique to survive.”

Despite the rainbow-haired woman’s smile, Eli didn’t miss the cool assessment in Fluxi’s gaze, much like when they’d first met all those months ago, but unfortunately, he wasn’t sure what technique she was talking about with this annoying blank spot in his memories, though he could remember some flashes of color swirling in the air around him and a lot of pain just before everything went black.

“Sorry, my memory is a little hazy, but what do you think happened?” Eli asked, sitting up more slowly, which seemed to help as he didn’t feel a fresh bout of nausea this time.

Fluxi crossed her arms with a neutral expression. “Extracting the vitality from another sapient is fairly well-known throughout the Greater Infinite, though the particular methods can vary quite a bit,” she remarked dispassionately. “I recognize that certain species have learned to mitigate some of the inherent risks in using these techniques, yet they cannot completely inhibit the deep psychic wounds suffered from so many minds interacting with your own in such a destructive fashion, so regardless of the power you gained from consuming the lives of thousands, this sort of hazardous growth has a tendency to create unforeseen dangers, like bringing the attention of Greater Beings that already do not view humans kindly.”

Eli still didn’t know what Fluxi was talking about, so he took another look around and noticed a semi-transparent screen several meters away, floating above the pale tiles behind the bed and already oriented toward him.

________________________________________

Infinite Path

Name: Eli Tal

Current Status: High Initiate (7th Step)

Allocated Time: (08:17:12)

________________________________________

Eli stared in surprise, since his updated status as a High Initiate on his “7th Step” meant he must have gone up two levels, yet the amount of allocated time for this meeting with Fluxi seemed a good bit more than expected. Regardless, he wasn’t planning on using all those hours today since that would mean about ten days passing back on Lurra.

Looking for more answers, Eli pulled up his previous system prompt.

________________________________________

Congratulations! You have completed the optional quest to defend Palium against a vastly superior foe. 

Calculated Difficulty: Low Prime

Reward: Marker of the Everwatching Guardian, 600 celestials, additional time has been banked for your next counselor session

________________________________________

Eli frowned in puzzlement, just to suddenly remember standing atop a tower in a fortress several kilometers outside Palium and watching as a skyscraper-sized cyclone of mana rose from the open ground between them. Off to the south, the enemy legions from Houses Marmabel and Marmadon had been retreating after losing all of their artillery to Eli’s fireballs, along with many of their warriors.

“What is it?” Fluxi asked, pulling Eli from his memories as he turned back around on the bed to see the rainbow-haired woman staring at him with a slight frown.

Eli focused for a moment and then watched as Fluxi’s gaze darted toward where the screen was hovering, her eyebrows rising.

“I’m starting to remember what happened right before I showed up here,” Eli said, hooking a thumb toward the floating message. “Not too long ago, I was in Galdish when I learned about the Southerners appearing outside Palium with a couple of their legions again,” he continued before explaining his actions of creating a gateway and traveling to that city with reinforcements before launching dozens of fireballs at the enemy, which forced their formations to retreat.

Fluxi’s brows were soon furrowed when Eli described the sudden storm that had seemed to erupt from nowhere, with massive, skyscraper-sized cyclones of multicolored mana rising from the very ground around him. He’d known his evolved body would be somewhat protected from all that mutative energy, yet the same wasn’t the case for the rest of his people or those living in the nearby city, so he’d drawn in all the power his omnessence could withstand while simultaneously using that extra energy to wreak deadly havoc among the two enemy peak threats and their surviving warriors.

At the time, Eli had recognized that hundreds of lives among the Southerner’s legions were being swept away with every flex of his empowered aura, and he certainly didn’t feel any guilt about killing the peak threats, but the other enemy consciousnesses were harder for him to ignore, especially remembering how so many of them had mentally screamed out in their confusion and terror, only to be forever silenced.

Ordinarily, Eli liked to think of himself as a decent person, at least most of the time, but he was finding such notions increasingly difficult to believe these days. Sure, the vast majority of those he’d killed since arriving in Lurra had been hell-bent on killing him, his friends, or innocent bystanders, yet that was a cold comfort with the blood of thousands on his hands.

“You mentioned crushing the life from these enemies, but what do you mean?” Fluxi asked, her brows furrowed.

“That’s just how I see it,” Eli admitted, grimacing at the memories of their mental screams echoing through his consciousness. “I’ve learned a few things over these past months, like how the auras inside people are quite elastic, but they have a breaking point, and employing enough force will shear them away from a person’s body, which is instantly fatal. So, with the storm’s mana swirling through my omnessence, I had all the power I needed to just wash away thousands of lives like a massive tidal wave of death, and the only ones I spared were some scattered groups fleeing the field, though I can’t imagine those survivors did well in the storm’s aftermath, especially if a bunch of monsters spawned afterwards as expected.”

Sighing, Eli hoped his people were doing okay back at Palium. He’d sensed Bearach, Malitea, Wolf, and the others disappearing into the shielded rooms beneath the Waldrics’ fortress before the storm hit, but a lot could have gone wrong later, like their energized barriers failing or a few monstrous peak threats appearing out of thin air to wreak even more havoc on that beleaguered city.

Fluxi was still frowning as her gaze turned toward the floating sheet of smoke beside her, and she waved a hand through the smoke, sending the colors away in a sharp burst of greenish light, though after several seconds of staring, the woman glanced back at Eli while looking a bit embarrassed.

“Eli, please accept my apologies,” Fluxi offered in a quieter voice. “While my scans revealed the mental scarring and other psychic wounds you recently suffered, I allowed my own biases and fears to sway my interpretation of that data,” she explained, gesturing at the floating sheet beside her.

“What do you mean?” Eli asked, gathering the yellow blanket around him and scooting across the mattress while doing his best not to flash any extra skin along the way.

Then, making it to the edge of the bed, he decided against standing, not quite ready to test his balance since the room was staying nice and stationary around him right now, and he wanted to keep it that way as the pressure in his head slowly lessened into more of a dull ache.

“Certain binding oaths limit what I am allowed to reveal, but I have mentioned other human clients in the past,” Fluxi replied, pursing her lips. “Among their number, some have employed morally questionable methods in their pursuit of taking another step along their path, and while I try to keep my personal feelings separate from my work as a counselor, I have found that somewhat challenging at times,” she murmured, glancing down. “Earlier, when I saw the injuries to your mind, I assumed the worst, giving little consideration to the honorable man I have come to know since our first meeting.”

Eli forced a grin, trying to hide how much Fluxi’s words stung. “I’m definitely no saint, but I do my best to keep any of my murderous tendencies at bay,” he tossed out in a joking tone.

Fluxi’s pale orange eyes rose to meet Eli’s gaze, a bit of humor tugging at her lips. “Even if you hadn’t repeatedly demonstrated as much, that reward you’ve earned for yourself is quite convincing,” she said and pointed toward the floating quest message.

Eli lifted an eyebrow. “I’m assuming that means you can tell me more about that mysterious reward, and seeing as there isn’t anything new sitting on the tiles, I’m guessing whatever it is got stored away in my DS,” he said, holding up his left arm and the silvery bracelet still wrapped around his wrist.

“I would presume as much,” Fluxi replied with a slight smile. “The marker should be similar in shape and design to the token you received from the Trial of Might, as both are generated by the Greater System.”

Eli held out an empty hand rather than try searching through his dimensional storage, since a lot of objects were stuffed inside there right now. “Give me the Marker of the Everwatching Guardian,” he ordered with careful enunciation.

A thick metallic disc materialized atop Eli’s palm, and much like the trial’s token, this object had a dark gray circular center, though instead of being surrounded by a crimson ring, this one had a band of deep blue, its outer edge ringed in a bright silvery material that somehow glinted in the room’s nonexistent lights.

The disc was pretty enough, sort of reminding Eli of the medals he’d seen at various martial arts competitions back on Earth, though obviously made from far more precious materials. Still, the object seemed somehow special as a sense of relaxation slowly spread away from his hand, releasing tension throughout his body that he hadn’t even noticed was there until it drained away.

“What the heck?” Eli breathed, looking over at Fluxi in wonder. “If I didn’t know better, I’d swear this thing was putting out calming vibes.”

Fluxi chuckled softly. “Objects made from sarintalium produce a pleasant sensation in humans, but rest assured, the effect is quite benign beyond providing further validation that you hold a genuine marker.”

Eli smirked, glad to know he wasn’t getting a dose of dangerous radiation or something similarly troublesome. “So, what am I missing?” he asked, holding up the disc. “I’m not complaining, but this thing must have some purpose beyond helping to calm my nerves.”

Fluxi leaned closer to the bed, pointing at the disc. “This marker contains the Greater System’s record of your recent deeds at Palium, which guarantees you an audience with the Everwatching Guardian, who would likely provide a suitable reward for you’re actions. Of course, finding this Greater Being is a small challenge unto itself, yet they are known to have official representatives in several Prime worlds across the Krakoma Sector,” she explained, though her smile dimmed a bit. “Sadly, that will also do you little good until we discover some other means of extracting you from your sequestered world, but in the meantime, I recommend being careful about letting others know you possess such an object, as I have to imagine anyone employed by the Association would recognize it.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Eli agreed with a snort. “I definitely don’t need any more attention from them, especially after helping to kill a couple of other Associates a few weeks ago. At this point, I can only assume they’ll be resurrecting soon to come after my ass, so I’d like to spend some time with you today, strategizing on how to handle them.”

Fluxi’s eyebrows rose. “You encountered more Associates beyond those outside Palium?”

Eli nodded. “After our last meeting, your gateway dropped me off in the middle of that same Thuard settlement I told you about before,” he replied, waving a hand to the side while pulling up the older quest message from a couple of weeks ago.

________________________________________

Failure! You have failed your optional quest by killing a Being at or above your evolutionary stage before your next step.

Calculated Difficulty: Variable

Reward: None

________________________________________

“As you can see, I failed that particular quest,” Eli noted wryly, pointing toward the floating display. “When I appeared in Silverhome this last time, I encountered some dead Thuards and two exceptionally strong people who’d just captured the town,” he explained, his tone darkening with the memories. “I wasn’t sure about helping at first, since taking on a small army by my lonesome seemed a bit dangerous, but after watching them suck the life out of a prisoner, I decided to help liberate the place.”

Fluxi studied the floating words, her brows furrowing. “The sheer probability of you receiving such a message, just to then stumble upon individuals who met this quest’s criteria, appears exceedingly unlikely,” the beautiful woman muttered suspiciously.

“That’s pretty much my thoughts on the matter,” Eli agreed, glad to know he wasn’t the only one unhappy with the situation.

Despite how helpful the Greater System had been at times, he couldn’t help but be nervous about the idea of some vast, all-powerful entity taking a personal interest in him. On the other hand, it didn’t seem like he had any say in the matter, leaving him to wonder what new surprises might be heading his way soon.

“How about I get dressed?” Eli suggested, holding the blanket in a fist against his side as his naked legs swung out to dangle off the edge of the bed. “That is, assuming your scans confirm I’m okay?” he added, nodding toward the sheet of colorful smoke.

Fluxi had been frowning at the floating message, but Eli’s question had her orange eyes turning his way, the beautiful woman’s warm smile blooming as she moved closer to the bed again.

“Did you bring more toasted snapfruits?” Fluxi asked with an excited lilt to her voice. “They were simply delicious, their crackling spikes of flavor truly unlike anything I’ve ever tasted before, and what of the canduins?” she added, grasping Eli’s free hand in both of hers. “I recall you mentioning various preparations and condiments you wished me to sample for that particular delicacy.”

Eli didn’t bother keeping the big grin off his face. “I brought those and a lot more,” he returned, his heartbeat suddenly racing at the casual contact and thoughts of spending the next several hours with this wonderful woman.

Book 6, Chapter 2

Author’s Note: Much like the previous entry, this is the unpolished draft for Chapter 2 for Book 6 of The Lurran Chronicles, so those who are interested can get a taste of what’s to come. However, keep in mind that I’ll be removing all these chapters from this page just prior to publishing the completed title later this month, so read them while you can! JQ

Eli and Fluxi were sitting in a pair of comfy leather chairs a bit later, the small square table beside them nearly covered with what was left of their snacks and drinks pulled from his DS.

Fluxi’s sweet tooth had been quite obvious during their last meeting, so Eli had brought a much wider selection of desserts and sugary treats to go along with the other dishes today. Amusingly enough, she really seemed to enjoy her nuyinga, which somewhat resembled a cheesecake, and the woman’s smile had only grown after Eli poured the fruit drizzle over the top, just the way he liked it himself.

But then, their evolved bodies demanded quite a lot of calories, allowing the two of them to eat an almost obscene amount of food while their systems quickly broke everything down, which Fluxi proved with how much she packed away despite her petite size. The woman also wasn’t shy about drinking her fair share of the drinks Eli provided, some being high-proof liquors, yet the only effect Fluxi showed was a slight flush to her cheeks.  

Personally, Eli wasn’t feeling at all tipsy, but he had the added benefit of being a healer, so anything toxic like ethanol was quickly filtered away by his organs or internal energy. In fact, it actually took him some effort to maintain a pleasant buzz these days, though he wasn’t complaining, given all the other benefits that came with his more powerful body.

On the other hand, Eli’s appetite for all this food and drink swiftly waned once he started going over some of the more difficult topics, like Royn’s death at the hands of Hesh’s assassins, the atrocities by the Southerners, and the ongoing resistance to Eli’s unbinding treatments from some in the Pantheon Alliance.

As usual, Fluxi proved to be an attentive listener, so even while sampling the various dishes and drinks, she peppered in thoughtful questions and insights of her own. The rainbow-haired woman seemed particularly interested in anything related to the Association since that organization secretly controlled Lurra, making it the likeliest threat to Eli’s continued survival, though he still had plenty of other dangers in that world to face, including Hesh and that asshat’s many supporters. 

By the time Eli was winding down with his more detailed explanation of what happened in Palium hours ago, Fluxi’s high spirits had dampened quite a bit, her silvery cup going untouched for a while now, even as the beautiful woman’s expression soured.

“I have to wonder about the Association’s apparent ability to find you,” Fluxi said in a musing tone. “Your band of concealment is a powerful artifact that should be more than capable of shrouding you from even your sequestered world’s lesser system.”

Eli shrugged. “I still think there’s something about my gateway that is giving me away,” he muttered unhappily, echoing his earlier words on the subject. “I told you how quickly those Southerners reacted both times I showed up in response to their attacking Palium, and they certainly were keen on throwing everything they had at me, as if somehow recognizing the potential threat I posed. Heck, some of the prisoners taken from that first assault claimed they’d been told about an evil power emanating from inside the Alliance’s hilltop encampment, which their gods ordered them to defeat.”

Fluxi’s brows furrowed. “The evidence does seem quite persuasive,” she acknowledged, turning in her chair to look at the sheet of smoke floating within easy reach.

The woman quietly studied the swirling colors for several seconds, then shook her head before looking back at Eli. “My sensors are still not detecting anything emanating from you, at least nothing that should be noticeable outside this protected space,” Fluxi reported with a slight frown. “Perhaps if you created a pair of local gateways here as a test, I might get different results.”

Eli nodded. “Makes sense to me,” he agreed, getting up and walking toward the middle of the circular space.

A horizon stone appeared in Eli’s hand, which he set down on the tile floor to serve as a convenient target, and then, getting to his feet, he summoned his bonded enervus gem while heading back toward their chairs.  

Fluxi had stood up while Eli was busy and was now staring his way with a sparkling smile. “Truthfully, I have been interested in observing your gateways ever since you described their creation during our previous session.”

Eli grinned. “Well, if I’d known how excited you’d be, I would have shown them off,” he admitted, tossing Fluxi a wink, which earned him a tinkling laugh.

Turning his attention to the horizon stone lying on the tiles a handful of meters away, Eli gathered a bit of power in his hands, since even though the two gateway apertures would only be a short distance apart, they still required a lot of energy for their initial activation.

Given all the practice he’d gotten over these past weeks, his consciousness quickly latched onto the nearby horizon stone, which had the image of this circular space suddenly appearing in his mind, and he then watched as two ghostly forms appeared beside a pair of shadowy chairs, confirming a solid connection.

Eli pushed the accumulated power into the clear gem in his hands while simultaneously triggering the mental commands he’d learned from Arnas’ knowledge tome several months ago, and as expected, a bright white doorway flashed into existence right in front of him. Then, just a split second later, the second gateway appeared a handful of meters away, right beside the targeted horizon stone.

“Have you detected anything?” Eli asked, glancing over at Fluxi, who was focused on the gateway, but she quickly turned toward him, arching an eyebrow.

“Let’s see, shall we?” Fluxi replied with a teasing voice, her gaze shifting back to the floating sheet of smoke, and she waved a hand, sending the colorful particulates swirling, though whatever the rainbow-haired woman saw had her brows quickly pulling together in a frown.

“What is that energy?” Fluxi murmured as she flicked a finger through the smoke, setting off a tiny orange flash. “Better yet, how is it even detectable when you are wearing one of Herupa’s artifacts?”

Frowning, Fluxi looked back at Eli. “Have you taken your band off or otherwise noticed any issues with it?” the woman asked, sounding perplexed.

“Nope,” Eli returned dryly as he held up his right hand, the ring on his index finger still invisible. “But then, you didn’t exactly give me any instructions other than to never take this off before chucking me through your gateway, or don’t you remember how our first meeting ended?”

Fluxi glanced over at Eli’s hand before meeting his eyes with an apologetic expression. “That was admittedly not one of my better moments,” she said, the flush along her cheeks deepening.   

“Then maybe you could explain more?” Eli teased, waggling his hand. “I’ve already told you what I figured out about how this ring hides my aura and keeps my glowing eyes from showing whenever Manasight is active, but I’m guessing it does more.”

Fluxi’s lips curled with amusement. “A fair assumption, yet one that is hard to address, as Herupa was a powerful crafter known for creating devices capable of concealing her agents from detection, which she used for spying, assassinations, or just outright controlling the various societies across many worlds. Unsurprisingly, such actions didn’t go unnoticed, and enough animosity eventually built among certain Greater Beings, who combined their efforts to pierce Herupa’s greatest protections, resulting in her permanent death, yet that still left the crafter’s scattered artifacts behind, though none could be sure of their true limitations, thanks to her never divulging those secrets to anyone.”

“Huh,” Eli grunted, not exactly thrilled about wearing something with unknown capabilities. “What about using your scanners?” he asked, nodding at the nearby sheet of smoke. “You’ve mentioned before how the Greater System sees pretty much everything that happens everywhere, so I would have expected it could tell you about this ring of mine.”

Fluxi followed the gesture, looking over at the colorful smoke, just to shake her head as she returned her attention to Eli. “This system interface belongs to my firm, meaning my access is necessarily limited to their own, which is dictated by their binding agreements with the Greater System. While I don’t know the full extent of those arrangements, I have noted in the past how certain information about my clients remains beyond my authority, and Herupa’s bands are much the same.”

The rainbow-haired woman’s lips pursed as her gaze shifted to study the nearest gateway several meters away, its two-dimensional surface still giving off a bright white light. “The artifact is obviously suppressing your auric emissions and other personal identifiers from outside detection, yet I cannot believe someone with Herupa’s reputation would create something incapable of also concealing her agents’ own gateways or other energy projections, so how did they accomplish such feats?”

Fluxi turned, giving Eli a thoughtful look. “You have explained some of the requirements for your gateways, but is there a reason you must use both hands during their formation?”

Eli frowned, mentally reviewing his notes from the subjective weeks he’d spent inside Arnas’ knowledge tome while learning about gateways. Creating the bright doorways required a bunch of different conscious triggers and visualizations, but besides maintaining some form of physical contact with the enervus gem, using both hands wasn’t actually necessary. Honestly, Eli had been doing it that way as an extra precaution to keep from accidentally dropping the thing at an inopportune moment, especially since he’d already had one explode almost right in his face.

“Yeah, I could channel the activation energy through just my right hand,” Eli confirmed, guessing Fluxi’s intentions. “In fact, there’s no reason I couldn’t push all that power through the ring on my index finger if you think that would help, though I’d want to practice my technique a little first.”

Fluxi’s lips curled into a sly smile. “I do appreciate your diligence in continually improving yourself, but rather than go to such efforts, you could just take the band off and resize it to fit around your wrist.”

Eli blinked, having never considered that idea, though he really should have since the ring had originally been a bit larger before shrinking down to fit around his finger while vanishing away. But then, he figured it was pretty easy to forget about something invisible, reminding him of that old adage, “out of sight, out of mind.”

Grinning, Eli backed off the energy flowing into the enervus gem, letting the gateways safely collapse, each vanishing with a slight wooshing sound. Then, storing the gem away for safekeeping, he carefully touched the faint ridge around his finger, which felt like nothing more than old scar tissue, and gently tugged.

Eli was suddenly holding a silvery metal ring, which quickly expanded in his grip, though he was distracted by Fluxi gasping as she stepped away, just for her to stop and grimace.

Realizing his mistake, Eli focused on strengthening his auric shield, much like Dara had taught him so many months ago. Thankfully, he’d continued practicing as a part of his daily morning routine, so his sense of the world around him swiftly settled into a quiet normalcy again.

“Bubbling muck, I forgot how potent your unfiltered aura was,” Fluxi said, shaking her head with a slight smile. 

“Sorry about that,” Eli sighed, unhappy with the reminder of how freaky his aura was to others. Normally, he projected his energy into the air to simulate the effect since his ring kept him hidden, though he never bothered doing that while spending time with Fluxi, so the woman had just received a full dose of Eli’s aura.

Not that he actually understood what it was like to anyone else, since Dara had explained how that required fully knowing and accepting one’s true self, which remained far beyond Eli’s skills. Now, without wearing the ring, he sensed little more than a slight electricity in the air, similar to that feeling before a big thunderstorm.

Eli shook away the distraction and brought the silvery ring over to his right hand, just to feel the metal expanding slightly in his grip, making it easy to slip on and settle over his wrist. Then, the silvery band quickly shrank until tight around his skin while shifting colors before finally vanishing away.

A subtle stillness he hadn’t previously been aware of seemed to settle around him, and it was suddenly quite easy to maintain his auric shield, further demonstrating just how much help Herupa’s band had been providing all this time.

Unfortunately, Eli hadn’t been able to test the device’s limits while on Lurra since that would expose him to the Association, but the same wasn’t true for this protected space, so he made a mental note to talk it over with Fluxi later today.

Focusing on the matter at hand, Eli summoned his enervus gem, and he then went through the same process, but this time, all the power went through his right hand, and just like last time, two gateways flashed into existence, one after the other, in quick succession.

Fluxi seemed amused about something and was smiling as she turned to study the floating interface beside her.

“Ah, excellent,” the woman said, waving a hand through the colorful smoke. “That strange energy signature has disappeared, which should mean your gateways will now be similarly concealed from the Association’s notice, though I would still urge caution,” she added, looking at Eli with a more serious expression. “Your life is not something I would risk on some potentially faulty assumptions, so I hope you take all due care while within that sequestered world of yours.” 

Eli met Fluxi’s pale orange eyes and grinned, feeling a happy warmth spreading up his chest. “I have no intention of dying anytime soon,” he assured the rainbow-haired woman, meaning every word.

***

The sound of approaching footsteps had Mestra rising from her chair and then turning toward the open doorway to see Sebatien leading Rodotheos into the room, both men’s expressions a bit strained.

But then, the two had an acrimonious history after exchanging certain ill-conceived words years ago, and setting that aside wasn’t done overnight, though Mestra’s patience for such behavior had limits, as both would do well to remember.

Sebatien likely noticed the warning look, his features smoothing as he came to a stop and gave a respectful bow. “My lady, Gifted Rodotheos.”

Mestra waved a hand that had Sebatien stepping back before she turned to the red-headed man, glad to see her cousin looking far better today. The tremendous stress Rodotheos had been under as of late had shown in a multitude of ways, including nearly bloodshot eyes and a waspishness to his speech, so witnessing such improvement lessened some of the burden weighing down her spirit.

“Light’s blessings to you this morning,” Mestra said with a welcoming smile. “I trust all is well with your household?”

Rodotheos cupped his hands. “Yes, with much thanks to you,” he replied, giving a respectful bow.

Mestra couldn’t help noting the stiffness in the man’s words, wondering if something new problem had arisen to upset him. “Cousin, come and sit,” she directed instead, gesturing at the chairs and couch nearby.

“You do me much honor,” Rodotheos murmured, not relaxing as he headed over to join her.   

“Is anything amiss?” Mestra asked, returning to her seat.

Rodotheos’ brows pulled together in apparent confusion as he sat down in the chair across from her. “Are you not troubled by the latest news from Palium?”

Mestra settled back in her seat’s cushions, idly arranging her blue house robes. “If you are referring to the burst about Diadar Eli vanishing yesterday, then yes, I am concerned,” she calmly responded. “However, we should not ignore Palium’s prior burst from hours earlier, claiming victory over the Southerners, and following such glad tidings, I am reminded of previous reports of Eli’s disappearance after accomplishing some truly miraculous tasks, such as slaying the Demon of Eld Forest.”

Rodotheos stared for a few seconds, his frown turning thoughtful. “Then you believe the honored spirits have summoned Eli away again just to bring him back later?”

Mestra made a tiny shrug. “I am uncertain whether the spirits are directly intervening on Eli’s behalf as some insist, yet some instinct tells me that mysterious man will return.”

Rodotheos’ lips pursed, but he nodded. “Then I hope the spirits act soon, as Caley’s swift recovery has others in our family opening their eyes to the world around them, perhaps for the first time in years, and what they see has them asking difficult questions.”

Mestra wasn’t about to argue such an obvious point after speaking with certain influential relatives about what Eli’s appearance might truly mean for Lurra. Some had started wondering whether he might actually be the Harbinger, sent by the honored spirits to show the people of this darkened world their path back toward the Light, while others thought Eli an unusually powerful servant of the Darkness who had fooled the unwary into believing his lies, but regardless, few with a working mind could doubt the impact he was already having on the Pantheon Alliance.

Over the years, Mestra had reason to question some of the Temple’s official interpretation of events, let alone its seemingly arbitrary restrictions on using certain gifts, yet the bound were a relatively well-documented subject. After all, they had records going back centuries of how only a handful of individuals, usually through an extraordinary circumstance, were cleansed of their curse, and even then, their aura’s strength would be weak, though at least detectable. However, Eli’s unusual technique clearly produced different results, as Metra had witnessed when he treated Rodotheos’ daughter, Caley, somehow removing the young woman’s curse in mere minutes.

Soon after accomplishing that miracle, Eli mentioned leaving Lurra on multiple occasions, and while such claims seemed absurd, Mestra still found herself believing him. 

At Eli’s direction, Malitea then took Mestra aside to divulge other momentous news about the bound, the gods, and so much more, calling into question many beliefs. Still, even though no specific oaths restricted her, she’d decided against revealing such details to Rodotheos or anyone else other than what could be independently verified, at least for now.

“Have you confirmed any further accounts about Eli’s former patients?” Mestra asked, returning to their original reason for this conversation today.

Rodotheos’ brows furrowed again as he nodded. “I have verifiable backgrounds on four of the reborn, two of which were suggested by Malitea, while the other two I had previously identified through my own efforts. In all four cases, these individuals were adults in full possession of their gifts when unknown parties forcefully bound them against their will, and I have enough evidence to corroborate these findings before any honest clergy member.”

Mestra was hardly surprised, having suspected as much after reviewing the preliminary findings days ago, including several sworn affidavits to the Oververse that confirmed they spoke truthfully, which certainly added considerable veracity to their assertions.

“Some rumormongers and entertainers in Galdish have started spreading different versions of this story,” Rodotheos continued grimly. “While most remain careful with their wording, a few of the more daring are wondering whether the bound are truly cursed, causing tensions to rise in the city as the Temple seemingly remains committed to ignoring anything that does not conform to their public announcements on the subject.”

The man’s impious words should have drawn a sharp rebuke, yet Mestra didn’t protest, knowing such would be a wasted effort, especially when they appeared to be true. “How have our family’s outer members in Galdish responded to the various rumors swirling around the city?”

Rodotheos gave a quick headshake. “Not well, as you might expect, since those hoping to ingratiate their way closer to Diadar Hakara and his circle of supporters have long ago done so, leaving quite a few dissatisfied at being excluded from such honors. Still, their options remain severely limited beyond making quiet grumblings, though I suspect some might have been more personally involved with the recent bouts of violence in House Leighsals’ district.”

Mestra pursed her lips, reminded of the many shadows now surrounding their family’s name, and more would likely continue to sprout so long as her uncle continued leading them down this darkening path. But then, she’d had her own opportunities to act years ago, which certainly could have averted the precarious situation they now found themselves in.

“There is a far more insidious rumor being passed among our family,” Rodotheos murmured, and he glanced around the room as if afraid of being overheard, though Sebatien was the only other person here, standing in his usual place beside the door.

Rodotheos turned back to face Mestra, his expression troubled. “As you undoubtedly recall, certain members of our family have disappeared under suspicious circumstances over the last several years.”

Mestra nodded, well aware of the troubling situation, though her people had turned up little evidence from their searches around Tolanne, which had been quite suspicious. Consequently, she dispatched several trusted individuals, including Malitea and Agos, to continue their investigations beyond the Leighsals’ borders, on the assumption that someone closely associated with their family might have betrayed them.

Unfortunately, Mestra’s fears seemed confirmed when Agos suffered the same fate as others weeks later, disappearing a short distance outside Bishal, prompting Malitea to swiftly travel there at her best speed, but by the time she arrived, almost no trace of the man or his party could be found. However, priorities then shifted when Aengus Riagladod, a true heir to their Fallen bloodline, was discovered in the area, prompting a campaign to slay that abomination before his evil could take root.

Wybert Easone took command of the effort, which was entirely appropriate, given the man’s strong reputation following his repeated victories against the Blood Cult in the Eastern Reaches and the numerous outlaws operating beyond the Pantheon Alliance’s northern borders. One of his family’s squads formed the core of the assaulting force, supported by Diadar Eli and Commander Sarsauka’s band of warriors, along with other groups searching for missing relatives of their own, including Malitea and her cousin, Samark.

In the subsequent battle, Eli claimed to have killed Aengus after passing through a gateway, so the man’s body hadn’t been recovered, but Malitea reported personally examining the handful of rotting hulish found within a structure resembling one of the Southerners’ border fortresses, seemingly confirming the Riagladod’s lineage and death.

“Malitea informed me of her findings, including how she had documentation hinting that Agos and others might have been transported elsewhere,” Malitea revealed in a neutral tone. “I have a list she compiled of our missing relatives’ potential locations, some I recognized as cities on the far end of the continent, making the continued search a major undertaking that Hakara is unlikely to ever support.”

Rodotheos glanced away, his frown deepening. “I have heard whispers about how convenient it was for several of those individuals to go missing, being outspoken critics of our family’s current leadership. If nothing else, many of the changes that were recently implemented became far easier after these impediments to Hakara’s wishes were removed.”

Mestra grimaced, unable to deny that possibility. Even ignoring the present situation, she had seen far too much other evidence of her uncle’s depravity since arriving in Galdish, proving Hakara had fallen far from the Lighted path.

“How widespread is this rumor?” Mestra asked, wondering if she could use the Leighsals’ growing disgust to drive a wedge between her uncle’s supporters.

“That is hard to measure,” Rodotheos replied with a small shrug. “Anyone uttering such words must be careful, knowing how ruinous it would be to have the wrong ears hear their whispers, but I know of several of our family’s more senior members residing here in Galdish who are under increasing pressure, including Aelfric, Manos, and Vasia, even if those three still seem unwilling to act.”

Mestra would have preferred a more definitive answer, but gaining accurate intelligence was a challenge at the best of times, and these circumstances were far from ideal. By now, any Leighsal with a working mind would be on alert, and she didn’t have much confidence in her agents’ capabilities following their repeated failures since arriving in Galdish, though at least they’d caught these same whispers.

But then, Mestra had lived away from the capital for decades, so it was little wonder some of her people might have been compromised and were now reporting only what certain other Leighsal family members wished to reach her attention. Over the years, she’d experienced far too many betrayals, yet one of the few people who’d earned her trust in this darkened world happened to be sitting across from her, which wasn’t an opportunity to be ignored.

“Cousin, as you are undoubtedly aware, due to these recent troubles, I have been unable to carry out my regular duties for the Festivals of Giving,” Mestra said, and Rodotheos gave a slight nod of acknowledgment, his brows furrowing in confusion.

“In order to address this situation and honor those who have given so much to House Leighsal, I will be hosting a ceremony for many of our relatives in a week’s time,” Mestra continued in the same unhurried tone. “Once my proper duties are complete, the guests will be invited to remain for the Feast of Plenty, where I plan on taking certain individuals aside, including those you just mentioned, to discuss the current state of our family’s path.”

Rodotheos’ lips curled into a smirk. “I imagine anyone in our family would be foolish to ignore such an appropriate invitation from the holder of Tolanne’s Key.”

Mestra quirked an eyebrow, allowing some of her own humor to show. “I presume the same, yet before this event occurs, I am in desperate need of better intelligence on various matters occurring in and around Galdish, so I wish to retain your services on my behalf, commencing immediately.”

Rodotheos blinked several times, though his expression quickly soured. “To what end?” the man asked bluntly. “I have watched Hakara and his circle of supporters driving this family toward ruin for years, as my messages to you in Tolanne have repeatedly warned, yet now you wish my aid?”

Mestra nodded, holding her cousin’s gaze. “I will have to answer for my many poor choices when I someday stand before our honored ancestors, and I cannot change what is in the past. Nevertheless, now that I have seen how far our family has fallen astray, I believe my true purpose during this turn of the cycle on Lurra is to return the Leighsals’ path toward the Light, so if that requires casting out certain unworthy relatives from our line, then so be it.”

Rodotheos’ head turned slightly to one side, his brown eyes scrutinizing for something in Mestra’s gaze, and after a few more quiet seconds of staring, the man finally gave a slow nod.

“I would be willing to serve you again, for the good of our family, but activating my old network will be costly,” Rodotheos warned, pursing his lips. “Much of the wealth I accumulated was spent on Caley’s treatments over the past year, or was seized by the Temple, leaving me without the necessary resources to do more than maintain minimal contact among my former agents.”

Mestra couldn’t help but smirk at the minor victory. “I anticipated such a need,” she revealed, holding out a hand, while focusing for a moment, and a blue leather satchel edged in silver thread appeared, her arm barely dipping beneath the sudden weight.

Sebatien started walking closer, but Mestra waved and got up herself, which prompted Rodotheos to quickly rise with a smile of his own while taking the satchel.

“My wealth is not unlimited, but I recognize how perilous these times are for the Leighsals,” Mestra said in a more serious tone. “Those hundred golds should be sufficient for you to acquire the intelligence necessary for the upcoming family event, though if not, I can allocate additional resources as needed.”

Rodotheos’ expression sobered. “Twelve days is a perilously short amount of time, when so many in our family are already suspicious, but nonetheless, I will not fail you,” the man promised, holding the blue satchel with both hands as he bowed respectfully.