Private Tales Of Sand & Dragonfire

[Chaceledon]

Tianau brought up the rear, sheathing his sword reluctantly. So that was Persian de Soto, the ruler of Pedeo. Tianau didn’t think he looked like much; a middle aged fae wearing a dirty canvas coat that clinked when he walked. He didn’t seem to be properly fearful of Tianau either, which made the albino think he hadn’t had very much experience with Volkers. Truly, Persian had no idea how deadly he was.

Good, that would make his head easier to divorce from his shoulders. He tugged his ilgaak up on his forehead and pulled his hood down as they entered the estate, breathing a sigh of relief. His poor eyes could adjust in here.

Persian glanced back at them. “The magic surge was strong enough to knock the power off in Pedeo for a few hours. It gave us all quite a fright, and locked the doors. I’ll have to fix that, lest the city become a tomb if it happens again. Seteta seems to be suffering from magic burnout, but it runs much deeper than that. She sleeps fitfully, has dizzy spells, and nausea. I’ve been managing her symptoms.”

“You’ll be next door to Seteta, and you’re welcome to see her. I’ll be on her other side, and Chaceledon sleeps with her.” Persian explained as they headed downstairs.

“I’m sleeping with them.” Tianau declared sharply, jerking his head at Ausar and Rehema.

Persian cocked an eyebrow. “And just who are you?” He asked, opening the door to the downstairs guest bedroom. He set their bags on a chest at the foot of the bed. It was a large bed, plush with fresh white linens. They had a small closet, a washroom with a simple tub of polished quartz, and a desk. There were windows, higher up on the walls and just above ground level. “We thought that being in the earth would help her.” Persian explained.

Tianau drew himself up to his full height. “Lieutenant Tianau Ashatao Volker, of the Pale Elk.” He growled, meeting Persian’s eyes.

“I sincerely doubt that. The host is Rheinhard Volker, and he isn’t an albino.” Persian said dismissively. “I’ve never known a spirit taking over the host and being able to conjure such a convincing illusion.”

“Calling me a liar?”

“No, but you aren’t the first to use that family name without permission. The actual Volkers take offense to such usages.” Persian noted. “Seteta should be awake.”

“What the hell do you know of Volkers?” Tianau growled.

“I helped make a good third of them.” Persian said tiredly, and gestured toward the door.

Chaceledon was napping lightly with Seteta, curled up protectively around her. He had his cheek on her chest, letting her use his arm as a pillow. He hadn’t been sleeping well either. He wasn’t wearing makeup, there were dark circles under his eyes, and his claws had started to grow a bit long. His hair was fluffier, likely from not keeping up his long hair care routine each night, and he dressed in simple robes he’d clearly thrown on to satisfy modesty.

 

[Seteta]

Rehema listened as Persian explained what he'd seen so far, her eyes half-closed as she began to pull every bit if knowledge she could from the depths of her mind. What she wouldn't give to be able to speak with the high priest before her again...

"It's probably more than just magic burnout," Rehema sighed. "Our earth magic is a spiritual gift from Aptuz as much as it is a magical one, and ties into the soul. With her being Steward of the Well, something has probably complicated her recovery.

"I'll need to see her and speak with her before I know which steps to take."

Rehema buried her face in Ausar's shoulder to muffle a laugh at Tianau's declaration. Ausar lightly pinched her butt as he set her on her feet inside the bedroom.

“We thought that being in the earth would help her.” Persian explained.

"It should," Ausar agreed, and helped Rehema quickly sort through the bags as Tianau and Persian had their little... argument.

A few minutes later and they had both combed their hair and straightened their clothes.

Rehema was practically on Persian's heels as he directed them to Seteta's room. She paused for a moment, smiling softly at the scene on the bed. Seteta really had chosen well.

She gestured for the others to stay near the door, then padded over on silent feet to Seteta's side. She reached for her daughter's hand, squeezing it gently fingers subtly settling on her pulse.

After a moment, she reached up and smoothed Seteta's hair back from her forehead.

"We're here, bit," she murmured quietly and started to hum a quiet lullaby to waken her gently, glancing at Chaceledon to see if he was waking.

Ausar, somewhat timidly, reached for Tianau's hand. Seteta looked... so weak and frail. He'd never seen her look so before, and it frightened him.

The room was teeming magic, though. Ausar felt like he was breathing it, and he tentatively reached out to touch it with his own. The magic responded, ready to answer his command, but... it waited for her. It wanted her.

Seteta stirred, fingers clenching on Rehema's hand as her eyes fluttered open.

"Mut?" Seteta murmured, her voice confused for a moment, but then her eyes widened, and she smiled despite the tears that gathered in her eyes.

Rehema's hid a frown as Seteta's pulse leaped under her fingertips, picking up a nearly frantic pace that seemed at war with itself.

"Yes," she said with a smile. "Your mit is here, too"--she nodded over her shoulder--"and your grandmothers and Keket will be here as fast as Supti can bring them.

"You're supposed to be preparing for a wedding, darling, not turning the world upside down with your magic."

Seteta cracked a small smile then, but a tear still leaked from her eye. Rehema reached up and wiped it away.

"I missed you," Seteta said, and Rehema hid her reaction again as she realized Seteta was speaking a dialect more similar to what Tianau had spoken when he... awoke than their own.

"I'm here now, bit," she said, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "We'll get you feeling better in no time. Just rest."

Seteta nodded, but she didn't let go of Rehema's hand.

"Ausar," she said quietly. "Come and touch her."

Ausar somewhat reluctantly released Tianau's hand and obeyed Rehema. He grasped his daughter's wrist just above Rehema's fingertips, and frowned.

"The magic is trying to settle," he murmured. "But something's prohibiting it."

Rehema nodded. "I thought it might be the Well at first, but it's not. Her soul is fractured."

 

[Chaceledon]

Chaceledon lifted his head, smiling in relief when he spotted Rehema. Her parents were here. He hoped beyond anything that the Inizae would be able to help her. He wouldn’t know where to begin. He sat up a bit, cradling Seteta’s head and settling her back into the pillows.

“They’re here now love. Everything will be alright.” Chaceledon helped arrange her hair. He felt so helpless. He had taken over the day to day tasks; he helped her into the bathtub, made sure she was eating, and helped her get to the bathroom to relieve herself down the long drop. He had never been so…common in his life. When Peridot, Cassius, Carnelia or even himself fell ill they were expected to care for themselves or had the housepets aid them. It just wasn’t done. With Seteta, he dared not leave her. He would rather learn how to properly brace a dizzy woman and help her go to the bathroom than trust a pet with the task.

His appearance didn’t seem half so important as relieving her suffering.

Tianau grasped Ausar’s hand firmly. He was here. He didn’t quite know what was going on, only that he could decipher Seteta’s words far easier than Ausar’s and Rehema’s, but he would support them as best he could. This was his mistress? He could feel the opal in his chest responding to her, burning, pulling toward her. His mistress was weak, and the Well was urging him to protect her.

Chaceledon looked at Tianau, confused. “…Everyone else is here or on the way, but where is Rheinhard? I know he’s still asleep in the Well but…shouldn’t the rest of him be here?”

Tianau set his jaw. “This is who they’ve brought. As far as I can tell it’s not an illusion, but also not a Volker I’ve ever actually met. I get the feeling he died long before either of us were born.” Persian said grimly, and approached with Ausar.

Chaceledon looked between her parents in concern. Her soul was fractured?!

“Could…could the Autumn Court help? They know everything about souls and the dead. I’m a citizen; so is Rheinhard. We have to do something…” Chaceledon’s eyes filled with tears. He looked terrible. He hadn’t eaten much, and weight had fallen off of him. Stress was making his hair dull. Persian had been bullying him to eat, but he was so focused on Seteta he neglected his own body.

“We could summon a Detritor, but we would need a death.” Persian suggested.

“That could be arranged.” Tianau glowered at Persian.

 

[Seteta]

"When... Seteta channeled that magic," Ausar quietly explained to Chaceledon and Persian, "Rheinhard got caught in it. Aetes watched his body transform as he held him. Tianau's form is no illusion, but rather... a re-formation."

"I'm sorry," Seteta said quietly, her fingers twitching in Rehema's hand, but she slowly turned her gaze to Chaceledon. "I forgot to tell you. Rheinhard... he said he died. That he saw Carruth." She paused to catch her breath. "Nestor thinks the Well reached for the Volker whose weapon was closest, rather than the spell destroying itself."

She took another deep breath, then released Rehema's hand. "Help me sit up please," she murmured to Chaceledon. "I'm thirsty."

Ausar helped Chaceledon pull her up carefully before stepping back to stand with Tianau again. When she had quenched her thirst, she looked at her mother. "My soul is fractured?" Seteta asked. "What does that mean?"

“Could…could the Autumn Court help? They know everything about souls and the dead. I’m a citizen; so is Rheinhard. We have to do something…” Chaceledon’s eyes filled with tears.

"Perhaps," Rehema conceded. "They might at least be able to tell precisely what happened. There are some things I can do before we resort to that, though."

“We could summon a Detritor, but we would need a death.” Persian suggested.

“That could be arranged.” Tianau glowered at Persian.

Even in her weakened state, Seteta managed a glare. "No deaths," she said, her voice sad. "I've already caused one too many." She turned back to her mother. "Amphetrion died. I've told Persian that we'll bury him."

Rehema looked back at Persian, skepticism in her gaze. "You were so adamant that you be in charge of his burial when we spoke of it," Rehema said with a raised brow, then sighed and turned back to the matter at hand.

"A soul being fractured... it's similar to being broken hearted," she explained. "Though it's not always grief that causes it. In your case, I suspect it was... this magic. In situations like this, usually with time, it will resolve on its own. But someone doesn't normally have these physical symptoms that you're manifesting.

"I will do what I can to help," Rehema said. "But I'll need to rest after the journey, and be able to ward the baby for protection."

Soul work while carrying a new soul within was highly risky, but Rehema doubted there was anyone else who could help anytime soon. Even if they were to seek aid from the Autumn Court--repulsive as the thought was--Seteta needed relief soon. Very soon.

"I also need to gather crystals, and consecrate water," she said. "It will be at least a day."

Seteta nodded wearily, but her shoulders sagged in relief. Then she turned a tired but critical eye on Chaceledon. "When was the last time you ate, sehejib?"

Ausar scowled as well. "How do you expect to take care of my daughter if you can't take care of yourself?" he scolded.

 

[Chaceledon]

Chaceledon’s face went ashen when she said the name of the death god, and he made a small triangle over his heart. “Gods help us don’t say that name, not now. He saw Carruth and the god let him go?” he swallowed thickly and helped her sit up, his shaking hands pouring her a glass of water. Rheinhard had died. Truly died, then. How had he gotten back to tell her? How had the Well not exploded? He looked at Tianau. “I didn’t know the Well could cause such a shift…I’m so sorry. We’ll fix you soon enough. You and Seteta.”

Persian folded his arms. “It seemed better, in the end.” He said defensively. “I can see about tapping into the spring here to get you water; this place was built over a deep river and when they pulled the geode up, water filled the space beneath it.”

Chaceledon looked chastened at his fiancé and father in law’s questions. “I…this morning-“

“Yesterday morning, and you had three grapes.” Persian corrected. “You’ve got to eat something.”

“I can’t eat when I’m worried. Father used to tell me Mother was dying to get me to drop weight before the social season…”

“Mother Mountain…” Tianau swore. “Do you have tubing anywhere? We can make a mash and just shove it in. I tube fed three of my men when they went snow-mad.”

Persian cocked an eyebrow. “I do have samples of some new materials for tubing…leathers, mostly, but something from the Isles they’re calling rubber. It’s a raw press mold but it doesn’t appear to be toxic. I have ten feet of it.”

“More than enough. You get the tubing, I’ll mash some food and broth, and you hold him down. You’re good at that.” Tianau said the last to Ausar with a knowing grin. His eyes flicked up and down the other man’s body, and he hurried up the stairs. Persian followed.

Chaceledon blinked, looking between Ausar and Rehema. “Did you…with my son? Darling where is the vomit bucket…”

He wasn’t so sure about this. He wasn’t letting that boy or Persian anywhere near him with a tube. He sighed and leaned down to kiss Seteta’s forehead. Everything seemed so mad. His fiancé needed some sort of relief. His son needed the balance for the Well to heal.

 

[Seteta]

"Perhaps it was something Aptuv did," Seteta murmured in response to Chaceledon's shock about both Rheinhard's death and Tianau's... body. "I cannot imagine our god would have let the Well destroy itself and take our tribe with it."

Rehema nodded as Persian spoke of the underground river. "Ideally, I need the water before dawn," she said, then gave Chaceledon a gentle yet placating look as his lack of eating became apparent. "Eat when Seteta eats," she told him. "It'll be easier for you to remember."

Seteta laughed weakly as Tianau talked of force feeding, but he and Persian vanished before she could say anything in response, though she blinked as Chaceledon did to learn that... Tianau and her father? She gave Ausar a very uncertain look as Chaceledon kissed her forehead.

Ausar shrugged meekly and scratched the back of his neck. "Is he really your son, though?" Ausar pointed out to Chaceledon. "He's not Rheinhard. It's not even his body, and he lived... a very long time ago. He didn't even know that the Inizae empire had fallen."

If she'd had the energy, Seteta would have shaken her head disapprovingly, but for now she just whimpered and scowled. "You know that I and everyone in the Well have access to everyone's memories of everything, right? It... shows them as if they were happening in front of you." She almost looked green at the thought of stumbling across them.

"It's my fault," Rehema interjected. "Tianau was very hostile to me, and especially to Aetes. I could see by the way he was reacting to everything that he was going to snap at some point. I asked Ausar to intervene, and you know what your father specializes in."

Seteta whined and leaned her head back--carefully--against the wall. "But really? You had to fuck him?"

"Sorry," Ausar shrugged, though the gleam in his eye said he was anything but. "And I'm sorry that you... might stumble across those images. Now, I'll go find those two before they actually come up with a plan to force feed your betrothed."

"Please," Seteta grimaced. "Tell them to just bring a tray of food for us to share."

Ausar nodded and skipped up the stairs.

"Who is the head of the house here?" Rehema asked Chaceledon. "I will need help knowing where to gather the supplies I need."

 

[Chaceledon]

Chaceledon scowled. “Regardless of when they were alive they are all my children.” he said defensively. He had raised a good many of them, after all. He felt protective over all of them, from Klaus to Prima. He didn’t know Tianau that well, but the boy was young and seemed to be fairly impulsive. Bossy, from what he could see. He agreed with Seteta. He had probably needed an anchor, but taking him to bed?

“They are not force feeding me.” he said grouchily, running his fingers through Seteta’s hair. He began sectioning it out to braid it, his claws carefully combing out tangles. “The Dahna of the house is Seikilos. She should be coming down eventually, but you ought to rest. Really.” He smiled reassuringly. Rehema was a lot like her daughter. Determined and driven.

_____________________

Persian was expecting it the moment they’d entered the kitchen. The tension in the air was palpable and the servants weren’t in residence. “Something simple, I should think. Broth and a paste of some sort.” He said, carefully keeping Tianau in his peripheral vision as he pulled down a pan. As dangerous as the Volkers were, they had their tells like feral dogs had tells.

Tianau was watching him closely, his feet measuring his steps very carefully and his weight balanced. His head was lowered ever so slightly on his shoulders. He set a jar of broth on the counter, and Persian reached up to untie a head of garlic from a knot.

Tianau struck. Persian grabbed the pan and caught the edge of the blade as it swung down for his head. The cast iron squealed in complaint, and a few sparks skittered over Tianau’s sword.

“Slaving bastard, I thought I had you.” Tianau disengaged and Persian blocked low, deflecting a stab aimed for his belly.

“Your mistress and I have an alliance.” Persian growled. He turned the blade aside sharply and rapped Tianau on the knuckles with the pan. To the boy’s credit, he didn’t let go. He growled and swiped for Persian’s face, chasing him around the kitchen island. Persian blocked again, sighing. The kitchen staff wasn’t going to be happy about this poor skillet. “Enough. Any quarrel you have with me we can solve after. I’m an engineer, not a soldier, and I am not the slavers my ancestors were.”

“Is that why you’re rubbing shoulders with dragons?” Tianau followed him, but Persian kept the counter between them. “And what the hell is an engineer?”

“Yes, actually. And I work on machines, thats what that means.” The pair stopped for a moment, Tianau eyeing him suspiciously. Persian relaxed slightly. Good. He was thinking.

“What about siege weaponry?”

“Your ballista.” Persian said slowly.

Tianau said nothing, but the tip of the sword dipped slightly. Persian sensed the opportunity.

“I can repair it-“

“Her.” The tone told him to be careful.

“Her. I can repair her. You sheathe that sword, and I put down this pan, and we’ll kill each other like civilized people when your mistress is better.” Persian proposed.

Tianau frowned, but assented. “Until she’s better.” he agreed.

Persian set the pan on the stove gingerly. “Now…shall we make her something to eat?”

 

[Seteta]

"Among the Inizae," Rehema told Chaceledon gently, "when one adopts a child as their own, the child must consent as well. Tianau does not even know you. Ausar did what he felt needed to be done in the circumstances."

"They won't have to force feed you if you will eat with me when food is brought," Seteta said, turning her head so Chaceledon could reach her hair better as he braided it.

Rehema frowned slightly, but repeated the name Chaceledon gave her for the... dahna. "I will find her," she said, shaking her head. "There are things I must prepare for a soul healing, and they take time. The sooner I can start, the better."

Seteta reached over and clasped Rehema's wrist for a moment. "Speak to one of the pets," she said tiredly. "Ask them to take you to Seikilos not as my mother, but as the High Priestess of Aptuv. There is a shrine in the ballroom upstairs. Seikilos may not be devout now, but her late husband was, and I think she was herself at one point."

Rehema nodded and kissed Seteta's forehead before leaving Seteta and Chaceledon alone. She would need to at least put on clean clothes if she were to go about as High Priestess.

---

Ausar stepped into the kitchen just as Tianau attempted his first strike on Persian. The Inizae sighed and stayed out of the way, though he snorted a bit at Persian's words. Once the two had finished coming to attempted blows, Ausar stepped up, his arms crossed in front of him.

"Saying you and Seteta have an alliance is... being generous with the truth." He pinned Persian with a glare, but then it shifted to Tianau. "But regardless, it is rude to kill another guest in your host's home."

Ausar warily edged himself between Tianau and Ausar. Tianau wouldn't dare stab him, and Persian... probably wouldn't. "Now, what are we cooking?"

 

[Chaceledon]

The pets would respectfully escort Rehema to the entrance to the garden. Their own mistress had asked not to be disturbed by them, but a guest would be more than welcome. The gardens were protected from the harsh sun by lengths of silk, ensuring more sensitive desert plants could grow outside of the estate. The underground spring fed fountains and small ponds, allowing fruits like pineapples, lemons and orange trees to grow.

Seikilos was outside in the back garden. They were losing time. The Nameday ceremony was very soon…she was stalling the set up as long as she could to give Seteta time to recover, but she couldn’t hold back the event too long. After all, she was meant to be a teacher, not someone who influenced the actual outcome. The last thing she wanted was Seteta’s victory to ring hollow. She was worried about her own house; the magic breathing here hadn’t faded.

“Oh my love…” she sighed, looking at the stone sculpture in the garden. Saltarello’s memorial was much like the man himself; simple. A simple formless statue of gestural grace, formed from a large piece of citrine. It stood on a plain plinth of sandstone with his name carved into it. “You would be so much better at guiding this girl than I. You knew the Inizae and loved them the most. That boy inside has your hair, your chin, even that stupid smile of yours. What in the gods’ name did you do?” She drew in a shaky breath, tears welling up in her eyes.

Her own children wanted nothing to do with it. The twins had been left with her for their nehmaji preparation, their parents and aunt had returned to their own estates to begin the process of fielding offers. Seikilos felt adrift in so many ways. She was responsible for her twin grandsons, a large task in itself, now this? A girl humming with so much power it frightened her, a young dragon who could have been the ghost of her dead husband, a dubious enemy…

“You would have loved this entire thing.” she told the statue accusingly. “You’d have laughed, and pulled out some ancient book, and invited everyone for coffee. You’d have known what to do! I don’t…I just don’t.” Seikilos sighed and rested her forehead against the smooth, warm crystal.

________________________

Persian raised an eyebrow at Ausar. There was still an uneasy twinge in the air, but Tianau was calmed by Ausar’s presence. He rested his hand on the pommel of his sword, watching Persian carefully. The other began chopping tomatoes, adding garlic and a small bit of oil to the pan. “Allemagne, from the Floimish coast. It’s just pasta and a hearty sauce but it will be healthier. And easy to tube feed if we deem it necessary.” Persian replied, adding broth and some chopped basil leaves.

Tianau looked suspiciously at the pan. “You don’t need this stupid frilly shit.” he sneered, and grabbed a bowl. He headed into the pantry, and came out with a jar of large sardines, a bowl of prickly pear, a lard cake, and what appeared to be leftover rice. He dumped the fishes into the bowl, whole and with the cloudy juice from canning, and grabbed a pestle. He began mashing them, crunching the skulls, bones and guts into a vaguely reddish paste. The rice was added, turning the mess of canned fish into more of a lumpy, gelatinous paste as it was pounded.

Persian leaned over and wrinkled his nose in disgust.

“I don’t have boiled sweet potato! And these weird fruit are the closest thing I could find to juniper berries. You don’t need fire to make good food.” Tianau glowered defensively.

“I forgot how much of a war crime Krynian food is. When your own prisoners of war choose starvation over your cuisine…” Persian shook his head and added crushed pepper to the fragrant, rich sauce he was making. “Ausar, could you please see what noodles there are in the pantry?”

“And if there’s any more meat. This needs more meat.” Tianau looked at the mess in the bowl, and added a prickly pear…without bothering to peel or cut it. Everything was simply pulverized, determinedly.

 

[Seteta]

Rehema had changed into a clean linen robe of pale blue, combed her hair, and placed a gold chain with a large teardrop sapphire pendant around her neck. Aptuv was the god of water, the source of life in the desert, and so the priestess wore blue in any official capacities. The pendant, though, had been passed down through the generations from the very first priest of Aptuv's. If Seikilos had been devout at any point, she would likely recognize it for what it was.

When she was ready, she followed the pets up to the gardens. They left her at the entrance to the garden, and Rehema thanked them quietly before stepping inside and wandering through the paths. It was like an oasis, with flowing water and abundant vegetation.

It didn't take her long to find Seikilos, but the dragoness was... talking to a statue, and Rehema quickly recognized the aura of grief around her. She lingered out of the way until it seemed Seikilos was finished, her forehead resting against the stone.

Rehema sighed and stepped out into the small clearing.

"Forgive me for intruding on your private moment," she spoke. "I am Rehema, High Priestess of Aptuv. Seteta... my daughter. I need to perform a soul healing for her, and I came to ask if I might use some things from your house."

She'd caught glimpes of the sheer amount of crystals within, notwithstanding the ones that made up the house itself. If she couldn't find the things she would need, she would be shocked.

---

Ausar kept one eye on Persian's cooking, making sure he didn't slip anything in that might incapacitate either Seteta or Chaceledon... though admittedly he didn't know much about what might affect a dragon that way. Tianau, though... Aptuv's tears, whatever he was mixing in that bowl was an abomination.

"The intention, I believe," Ausar murmured, looking a little green around the gills as he caught a whiff of the stuff in Tianau's bowl, "is to make them want to eat not vomit."

“I forgot how much of a war crime Krynian food is. When your own prisoners of war choose starvation over your cuisine…” Persian shook his head and added crushed pepper to the fragrant, rich sauce he was making. “Ausar, could you please see what noodles there are in the pantry?”

Ausar's face was grim as he clapped a hand on Tianau's shoulder and gave a nod to Persian's request. "Let's go," he muttered. "I need you to show me what... noodles are."

As he steered Tianau away from the kitchen and toward, presumably, the pantry, Ausar looked back over his shoulder and mouthed make that disappear to Persian.

 

[Chaceledon]

Seikilos straightened up the moment she heard Rehema’s steps on the sand. She took a deep breath, banishing the grief back down into the depths of her heart. She willed the tears out of her eyes. Saltarello was so much better at this sort of thing. She had always handled the business part of their partnership. She handled the children. She respected the Inizae and always would, but her husband had known them.

She turned to Rehema, and nodded. “What do you need, High Priestess of Aptuv?” she asked. She looked at the pendant. Gods. She had seen that before. She knew that stone. Any dragon would know that stone deep down in their bones. “You’re wearing the waters…listen. I know you’re with child. I know what a woman looks like, what she smells like, when she’s creating new life. Are you sure it will be safe?”

Seikilos held out a hand to Rehema. She needed comfort, and wanted to offer her strength to Rehema as well.

________________________

Tianau shot Ausar a look. “This is healing food.” he said sharply. He set the bowl on the counter and wiped his hands with a rag, leaning into Ausar’s embrace. He hadn’t the faintest idea what noodles were either, but he was all too happy to lead Ausar into the pantry and shut the door.

“They’re long strings of dough.” Persian called to them, sighing and stirring. He eyed the bowl. Krynians truly did have the strongest stomachs…he set his spoon aside and picked up Tianau’s bowl. With a swift movement, he opened the door to the back garden and dumped the lump securely behind a plant.

Tianau smiled and backed Ausar against the shelves, resting his hands on his chest. “I think I’ve found something I want to eat.” he whispered, getting on his knees.

 

[Seteta]

"Certain crystals, pure water that can be consecrated, and salt," Rehema said. "Seteta told me there was a shrine as well. If I can have access to that, it will help greatly."

If Seikilos' husband had followed the old ways of worship, then the shrine itself would be on a magical conduit. That would be the best place to cleaned and consecrate everything she needed to use, as well as the best place to perform the healing itself.

Her expression faltered for a moment at Seikilos next words as the dragoness held out a hand. Rehema took it gratefully, lending the woman whatever support she needed.

"There will be some risk," Rehema admitted quietly. "But even my successor is not yet experienced enough for this kind of healing, and he remained at the temple to care for our people.

"I can hardly ignore the needs of one of my children. Not when the longer her soul is fractured risks her sanity and, eventually, her very life."

---

Ausar sighed as Tianau shut them in the pantry, carding his fingers through that pale hair as the boy knelt before him.

It was a lovely sight, and any other time he would've let him continue.

"As tempting as you are," Ausar murmured, "my daughter is ill in bed upstairs and both she and her betrothed haven't eaten in far too long."

Ausar tugged Tianau up to his feet again and gave him a gentle kiss. "Let us take care of them, and then we can... play."

He stepped out of Tianau's embrace and turned to look over the shelves.

"Long strings of dough..." he muttered, scratching his chin confusedly.

 

[Chaceledon]

Seikilos nodded. “The longer she is fractured, the more risk to her, to this Dahn, and to the man she holds in sway.” she said. She squeezed Rehema’s hand for a moment, and let her go. “My husband would be thrilled right now, were he with us. Come with me.”

She led Rehema back inside, through the hallways and into the ballroom. She gestured to the crystals on the shelves. “We use them for music, but you are welcome to them. I have my own private collection as well, if they don’t suit your needs. As for salt…would sea salt be sufficient? I could investigate the kitchen.”

The shrine had been cleaned. The statue had been lovingly polished and cleaned up, the old mummified offerings removed. Two new brass bowls were in place, filled with sand and water respectively. The sand bowl carried incense sticks that were smoldering quietly, bathing the area with rich sandalwood scents. The housepets had put out offerings of fruit and bread, which would be quietly removed and buried each day.

__________________________

Tianau leaned his head into Ausar’s powerful hand. The other man was distracted by his daughter, and he had a fair point. They shouldn’t be so blatant. Tianau sighed and reluctantly sat back on his heels, looking around at the pantry. There were large barrels of dry goods and rice, baskets of fruit, and preserved jars of pickled vegetables. A large basket of chilis dominated one corner of the room. Tianau hadn’t seen a food storage quite like this one, and it seemed in direct opposition to the dragons’ way of eating.

Strings of dough…Tianau spotted another basket. There were long, tubelike strings tied in a knot. When he touched them, they were brittle. They didn’t seem much like dough. He squeezed one experimentally, listening to the strands fracture and crumble in his fingers. “These are fun.” he held one up for Ausar, crushing it in a fist.

Persian waited patiently, putting a pot of water on to boil and salting it generously. He thought to himself while he worked. He’d have to send an expedition to Krynid. Previously he hadn’t thought them worth exploring, given the remoteness of the area, and the hostile environment. Perhaps Oor had known something he didn’t, and Tianau was a beautiful creature. Even a small expedition could prove fruitful, and if so…chances to expand to far north regions and begin serving the Winter Court with pets.

Perhaps it was time to stop shitting where he ate. Forge a peaceful alliance with the Inizae, and turn his attention to Krynid and Floiland.

 

[Seteta]

Rehema followed Seikilos back into the house. Even without the magic churning through the house and through Seteta, amplifying everything, she would have felt the magic humming through the floor and through the crystals.

"Sea salt will more than suffice," Rehema said as she took in the sight of the crystals lining the walls. Some of them sang with magic in a particularly vibrant way, and she would go back to look at them once she'd seen the shrine.

Her first step into the space flooded her with magic, but her eyes fell first on the statue of Aptuv. She'd never seen its like, only read of it in their ancient histories. It was made of sandstone and had three faces--male, female, and one that was not quite either and yet both. It was the third face that was turned toward the main part of the shrine, and its body was carved in such a flowing movement that it was impossible to tell if it was male or female.

Rehema covered her eyes, palms out, lowered herself to her knees, and bowed low. The Inizae as a people did not use figures of Aptuv for their worship anymore, but the priesthood was familiar with them and some they used for specific rituals, a soul healing being one of them.

Please, restore Seteta and protect my baby, Rehema prayed in silent supplication, then rose.

"With your permission, I would like to perform the healing here," Rehema requested. "It is a holy place, and flows of magic in the earth converge here." Then she frowned, face paling. "Seteta didn't step foot in here, did she?" If so, that could have been what triggered everything. If Aptuv had unbound her powers in the Cleansing... oh gods, what should have been a gradual growth of power had instead forced Seteta to become a conduit with no preparation.

---

Ausar raised a brow, looking at the crumbled... something falling from Tianau's hands. He didn't see anything that looked like dough, or at least not any dough he was familiar with.

"Fun?" he said, giving Tianau a look that managed to be both scolding and amused. "We shouldn't be wasting our host's food stores."

He stepped over to look at the basket of... strands, though. "This is the only string-like thing you saw, right?" Ausar asked, picking up the basket and carefully poking at the brittle strands. "We might as well see if it's the right thing."

Ausar took the basket back to the kitchen, playfully pinching Tianau's ass before they stepped out of the pantry.

"These are the only... strings we found." Ausar showed them to Persian. "They don't seem very doughy to me."

 

[Chaceledon]

Seikilos watched, respectfully, as Rehema knelt before the figurine of Aptuv. She let the woman have her prayers, pulling aside a housepet to ask if they would kindly go to the kitchen and fetch a bowl of salt crystals for the ritual. She felt guilty for letting the statue sit in dust for so long, and was grateful that Seteta had uncovered it. She would have been mortally embarrassed if the priestess had been the one to uncover the shrine and demand its cleaning.

She stepped forward when Rehema rose, standing before the shrine with her. “Yes…she did. She originally came here to learn how to make music from us. I’m sure she’s told you about the challenge Hokkaido has set forth for her. This is our ballroom. We practice music here. She was taught to channel magic through the crystals, and make a basic form of music. Translating magic to sound.” she caught the strange look on Rehema’s face.

“Surely that wasn’t what triggered it…?”

_________________________

Tianau laughed. “Us? Us wasting food? These people don’t eat and they hoard food. Like dragons.” he grinned at his own joke, experimentally biting into one of the noodle bundles. He chewed, making a face. The shards were sharp and sliced into his palate and tongue. He had to grind them up with his teeth to make them into anything he could swallow.

Persian looked into the basket and eyed the broken bundles, sighing and picking out three of the ones Tianau had managed not to smash.

“You said my food’s bad, that’s like chewing wood.” Tianau smirked.

Persian tossed the bundles into the boiling water, and pulled his sauce off of the heat. He’d added some spiced sausage for flavor, and the sauce had thickened into a rich, flavorful mixture of tomato, garlic, pepper and basil. “Because you ate them raw, idiot.” Persian grumbled. He stirred the noodles in the water, waiting patiently. He occasionally pulled one out with a deft pinch of a finger, and Tianau was surprised to see them soft and pliant.

He tried to copy Persian, and got smacked with the flat of the spoon. “Next time don’t insult my food.” He said sharply.

Persian drained off the water, and divided the noodles evenly between two bowls. He poured the sauce over, and set them on a tray.

“How do I know you didn’t poison it?” Tianau said accusingly. Persian offered him the saucepot and a spoon. Tianau swiped his hand along the inside and licked his palm. He rolled the flavors around in his mouth, frowning. He cleaned his palm off with his tongue, then began cleaning the saucepan. He had to admit…it was good.

“Take those to Chaceledon and Seteta, and quit licking the pan like an animal.” Persian said reproachfully, tugging the pan out of Tianau’s reach and setting it in the washbasin. Tianau glared at him, but picked up the bowls and headed downstairs.

Persian eyed Ausar. “You and I need to speak. I’m cutting my operations in Amol-Khalit, and I want to bury the hatchet between the Inizae and the De Soto family. For good this time.” He wiped his hands and began gathering the dishes.

“If Seteta is as powerful as the magic in this place seems to indicate, I’m never going to survive open war with her. She gets a handle on that power? She can smother Pedeo in sand and kill us all. I’ll release the pets I have in training, and give the rest of the Inizae in my care the option to cut their collars. In return, we will be allies from this point forward. No blood between us; only business.”

Krynid was a viable path toward peace, and he didn’t want bad blood if he was going to be ferrying northern slaves across the sands. He already had enough headaches in the sands. He eyed Ausar, gauging his reaction. “I understand if you need to speak to your mate, but there is a path forward for us both. I’ll have Kennedi draft three copies of an accord; one for the Inizae, one for myself, and one to remain in the Pedeon archives.”

 

[Seteta]

"She stepped into the shrine itself?" Rehema clarified. "That is what triggered it, not the music lessons."

Rehema sighed and looked around the ballroom. She hadn't told anyone outside their family--Ausar, their mothers, and Supti--what had happened when Seteta was a child. She'd never dreamed she would be telling anyone outside the Inizae about it--let alone a dragon--but it was in Seikilos' house where Seteta's powers had erupted. Seikilos deserved to know why.

"Seteta's powers were bound as a child," Rehema spoke quietly. "Before she could barely even walk. From the time the sands caught her... she was powerful. Her magic was growing faster than her physical abilities to control and use it. She never fell or stumbled--the sand always steadied her. If she desired something, the sand brought it to her.

"The Inizae had already started whispering about it by the time she was a year and a half old. It would only be a matter of time before word reached Pedeo. And the healers--and myself--were also concerned that she would rely too heavily on her magic, and not learn to appreciate the dangers of the desert, or what her own body is capable of.

"So we took her to the temple, and Aptuv bound her powers. But when she entered the temple again this time... I think Aptuv finally released those bonds."

Rehema turned back to the shrine. "I do not know how strong your abilities are, and I will confess that I do not have the raw talent for using earth magic that Seteta and her father do. But it was necessary in my training as a priestess to become familiar with earth magic, to recognize its presence and use even when the practice of it is beyond me. That shrine sits atop a point where no less than a dozen flows of earth magic converge. Combined with the underground spring here--because all waters are holy to Aptuv..." Rehema shook her head, almost disbelievingly. "With Seteta's powers unbound, all she had to do was brush against that point.

"it is very likely that through channeling the magic through her voice and the crystals, it took the edge off, at least for a little while. It might be what saved her life."

Rehema turned back to Seikilos and rested a comforting hand on the dragoness' arm. "It was meant to happen eventually," she said comfortingly. "Though I doubt this is quite how Aptuv intended it to occur. Seteta made her own choices to bring her to this moment."

Rehema turned her attention back to the crystal-lined shelves. "Now... I need selenite, and green venturine, rhodochrosite, blue chalcedony, and petrified wood."

---

Ausar just watched as Persian cooked the... noodles. Dried dough, then. Perhaps that was something the Inizae could use, though they seemed awfully fragile. It would be difficult to transport them in long, dried strands.

When Persian handed Tianau the pan to check for poison, Ausar dipped his fingers in curiously to taste it. It was... interesting. He wasn't sure about the strange red fruits Persian had chopped up, but cooked down like this, it was rich and savory with just a hint of sweet.

It really was a strange sway that spell held over the Volkers. Tianau had barely even met Seteta and he was already incredibly protective of her. When Persian eyed him, though, and raised a surprising point of conversation, Ausar raised a brow skeptically, but otherwise kept his reactions--some rage and insult, certainly--hidden from his expression.

The fae really had no handle on his daughter's personality. Persian's turn of phrase was curious too. No blood between us. Blood was as binding as water in the desert.

"None of what you propose is within my rights to grant or negotiate," Ausar said, shaking his head. "Rehema has already been put on leave until the baby is born, at the healer's insistence. The only reason she is attempting to help Seteta is because right now she is the only one here capable of doing so.

"You will have to negotiate with Aetes and the other priests. If they determine that your... negotiations are favorable, then a council will be called of the Inizae elders. The priests and the elders--and yourself, of course--will all have to reach an amicable agreement.

"But I will warn you, Persian De Soto, just because you wish to... what was it? Bury the hatchet? And do business with us does not mean that the Inizae will have any desire to do business with you."

 

[Chaceledon]

Seikilos felt her mouth go dry with every passing word. She only knew of one person who the sands had claimed as their own. Even just the way Rehema spoke of her power; the sands catching her as she fell. The unmitigated joy of the earth binding and twisting around a woman who could speak to the mountains and walk through simoons without a hair out of place. She looked at the shrine, the beloved work of Saltarello and that woman’s hands.

Her hands were shaking, and she felt rooted to the spot. That was why the house embraced her. That was why the shrine had called to her and her power had bled across the earth. That was why here, of all places on the planet, she had become unbound.

Seikilos heard the request, but her head felt like it was filling with cotton and her mind raced. She looked at Rehema in horror, then beyond her to one of the mirrors in the ballroom.

A man wearing battered old robes and loose trousers, putting up a wild mass of red hair with a bandana. He looked up at Seikilos with friendly pink eyes, and winked at her. “You remember her too, don’t you? The woman for whom earth moved like waters and waters stilled like the earth.” he chuckled.

It was her. She hadn’t been sure before. She had suspected…but now she knew.

“Nailah…” Seikilos whispered, trembling. “…the Inizae are returning to rule the sand.”

__________________

Persian raised an eyebrow. “Then I will send a runner to the temple and begin negotiations. There is little you could give me I don’t already have, and you should be thankful I’m offering peace versus razing the area to the ground with only Aetes protecting it and your wife out of commission. Do not mistake me, Ausar. I am trying to prevent death on both sides before your daughter reclaims her place in the sun. I’ve been made aware of an alternative to enslaving the Inizae, something that will allow me to leave your people in peace without compromising revenue.” He washed his hands, and leaned on the counter to look at the man.

“But I will need to transport these new slaves through Inizae lands. I will need to do so unmolested by your people. In return, peace. The offer is simple. Otherwise I want no interaction between your people and mine. I’m already facing losing millions offering the ones I do own the chance to cut their collars.”

 

[Seteta]

Rehema watched Seikilos warily. The dragoness' eyes were horrified, then seemed to look past Rehema but when the priestess turned her head, there was nothing she could see.

“Nailah…” Seikilos whispered, trembling. “…the Inizae are returning to rule the sand.”

"Seteta is Nailah's heir," Rehema confirmed. "She is descended from the ancient perav from both her father and I. And Aptuv has told me that our exile is nearing its end."

To rule the sands again, though... would Aptuv ask that of them, after the disaster they'd made of it the last time?

"Whether we rule or not is in Aptuv's hands," Rehema finally said, shrugging a bit helplessly. "Do you have the crystals?" she asked again, her hands fidgeting with the cuff of her sleeve as she eyed the shelves again nervously. "I will need time to cleanse and bless them."

---

Ausar's jaw clenched, every hair on his head bristling. Persian was at last beginning to show his true colors, and Ausar only regretted that Chaceledon and Hassani were not here to see it.

"While we have long understood how slavery and survival fell hand in hand in the sands," Ausar said, "it is unlikely that the Inizae or Aptuv will tolerate the transportation of slaves that you are merely substituting for Inizae.

"Make no mistake, Persian De Soto: the only one expecting and threatening war and death here is you. You are the one so frightened of those possibilities, while I guarantee you that the thought has not even crossed my daughter's mind."

Ausar took a deep breath and shook his shoulders loose, stepping to follow Tianau back to Seteta's chambers. He dodged pasted the fae as he leaned back against the sink, then paused for a moment in the doorway.

"If you attack the temple, and attempt to raze it to the ground, it would do you well to recall what happened the last time your mercenaries hunted the Inizae there. Aptuv defended us once. Aptuv will do so again.

"And people--whether elves, humans, dragons, or even fae; slave or free--are not revenue to be tallied in a ledger book. You'd best learn that lesson quickly, before it seals your fate."

Aptuv, forgive me, Ausar prayed silently as he descended the stairs to the lower rooms again. But I hate that fae.

 

[Chaceledon]

“Yes…the crystals.” Seikilos fought to gain mastery over her expression again, walking toward the shelves and looking over the crystals with shaking hands. She almost dropped the selenite point, setting it back down and leaning against the shelf momentarily to steel herself. She had to get herself together! If Nailah’s heir had returned, then she had to do right by her Dahn and ally herself quickly with the girl. She didn’t do that by going to pieces now.

She grasped the adventurine, rhodochrosite, and a large cabochon of chaceldony. Petrified wood…there was a small piece with an opal inclusion on the third shelf. She grabbed it quickly and set them in front of Rehema.

“I’ll see where that fae is with the water…” Seikilos said shakily, hurrying out of the ballroom.

______________________________

Persian sighed and gave Ausar a look. “I’ve lived long enough to see the writing on the wall, Ausar. When your people recover under her tutelage they will be angry. They’ll think of all I’ve done to them. They’ll want revenge. Your people aren’t made of stone and anger is a reasonable emotion. I want to get ahead of it before that anger becomes a maelstrom.” He said patiently.

Ausar, however, didn’t seem to be listening. He wanted an end to Pedeo, slavery and all. Persian couldn’t operate without it, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to. He enjoyed making the pets and training them. In his mind, more good had been done than evil.

People weren’t revenue. Persian chuckled. “What a naive sentiment.” He commented as Ausar turned to go downstairs. “I know your worth, alive or dead, down to the copper.”

The elf was gone. Persian resigned himself to doing the dishes. It helped him think, anyway. “Men are so much easier to deal with collared and on their knees.” He muttered to himself.

________________________

“Pasta!” Chaceledon brightened as Tianau offered him a bowl. He passed it to Seteta with a pair of chopsticks. “Persian knows this is a favorite of mine. I have this at Tratoria whenever I’m in Pedeo. It’s brilliant.” Chaceledon picked up a pair of noodles in the chopsticks and nibbled delicately at them, smiling. He set his food aside after a few bites to help Seteta sit up and eat hers. “Come, love. It’s good. You should be able to keep it down.”

 

[Seteta]

Seikilos was clearly shaken with the way she fumbled to hold the selenite. Rehema quietly came up beside her and began to take the crystals. When she had all but the petrified wood, which Seikilos seemed to need to hunt for, Rehema took the other crystals into the shrine.

A moment later Seikilos brought the petrified wood. She said something about the water, then vanished before Rehema could say anything further. Rehema sighed. She wasn't sure what she would have said anyway. Clearly, there was more going on with this dragoness and the Inizae than she knew. Gods, how much history had they lost? She took a deep breath and let it out in a long, slow exhale, and began to deliberately clear her mind.

She set the crystals in a row before Aptuv's carved figure, moved the bowl of sand and incense to sit between the statue and the crystals, and retrieved the small bowl of water. It was consecrated simply by being offered to Aptuv, but she would need more than that for the healing. This, though, was sufficient for cleansing and blessing them.

Rehema knelt before Aptuv, head bowed in respect. She began to pray softly, asking Aptuv to guide the healing. She dipped her fingers into the water and sprinkled it on her own head.

"Aptuv cleanse me of any thoughts and intentions which may hinder the healing," she murmured. "I submit the fate of the child in my womb to your care. I am your willing vessel."

The mark on her back--put there by Tianau the night before when he thought she slept--seemed to flare into flame, hot enough that Rehema flinched. It quickly faded into a gentle warmth, though, and Rehema smiled faintly. "Mother Mountain... I do not know you, but I think I would like to. Please protect my babe."

Then she turned her focus back to the crystals and to Aptuv. She worked quietly for a long time, sprinkling water over the crystals as she prayed.

---

Ausar snarled silently, his elven hearing more than able to pick up the last of Persian's remarks. He clenched his fist and turned to smack the side of it against the wall in frustration. A squeak startled him out of his rage, and he looked up to see a young woman, a collar around her neck, hesitantly frozen a few steps away.

Her features and build... they were very similar to the Inizae. If she wasn't a full Inizae, Ausar would be willing to bet that she was at least half.

"Sorry," he muttered in Common, stepping out of the way so she could get by. Then he continued through the halls to Seteta's underground chamber. He tried to shake the angry tension out of his shoulders, but it didn't want to leave.

No wonder the Inizae had made a concerted effort to avoid the fae after the Empire's fall, if Persian was anything like the rest of them.

He paused just outside Seteta's door, hearing voices within and not wanting to disturb the chatter with his bad mood.

---

"Pasta?" Seteta asked curiously, eyeing the bowls. It smelled delightful, at the least, though the only scent she could identify easily was garlic. The... pasta reminded her of the savory noodle soup they'd had, at the first village they'd stopped at after leaving Fal'Addas.

Chaceledon helped her sit back up, and she had him hold the bowl of food for her as she used the chopsticks. Her hand shook, but she managed to slowly slurp up some pasta.

She leaned back to rest for a moment, her eyes falling on Tianau.

"Tell me about you," she asked. "I know there are records in the Well, but it's not the same as hearing your story from you."

Movement just outside the doorway caught her eye. Seteta looked up and saw Ausar lingering there, and almost called him inside. But then she saw the clench of his jaw and the set of his shoulders, and her softened in understanding. He would come in when he was ready.

 

[Chaceledon]

At the sound of her prayer, warmth wrapped around her waist and softly touched Rehema’s lower stomach. It was a protective touch, an affectionate touch. Mother Mountain, the tallest peak anywhere in the world, heard her. This elven woman wasn’t one of her children, but someone who was had cared enough to give her the mark.
She would happily defer to the other god.

Seikilos and Persian prepared the water. Seikilos was able to let Persian deeper under the home, to the reservoir of water used by the house for cooking and bathing. The piping, Persian found, were a modified version of a Pedeon design…someone had been paying close attention to the plumbing in their hotel room walls.

The housepets quietly tugged in a large basin for Rehema. It was large enough to hold a coiled dragon, made of beaten brass. Seikilos used it when she was having problems shedding and needed to soak her form naturally. The pets bowed to Rehema, and began a bucket brigade to fill it.

The pet that Ausar frightened came in a few minutes later and set a bowl of salt in front of Rehema. Nervously, as though the priestess was about to eat her. She made a swift retreat.

____________________________

Tianau stood before Seteta. He hadn’t interacted much with her. She didn’t seem like the same kind of mistress as Oor, but neither was he about to challenge that assumption. He stood straight, eyes up and front, one hand resting on his sword and the other by his side.

“Ma’am. Tianau Volker, Lieutenant in the Krynian army, leadin-led the Pale Elk contingent. Student of the Ballista, but I’m capable with a sword and shield as well. I specialize in larger conflicts; especially sieges.” Tianau said stiffly. “Bisexual, late teens, died during a conflict at the ruined temple protecting the Inizae. Oor enjoyed my services in the bedroom as well as battlefield. You own my body, you do what you please with it. All I would like to ask is that I stay in Krynid, not Witherhold. I love my country, and I don’t like the underground.”

Chaceledon gave him a pitying look. Even if they told him to relax, chances were he wouldn’t. Oor liked to get them relaxed then beat them for doing so, and Chaceledon had gotten the feeling that wasn’t a new habit. Nor was touching them inappropriately, come to think of it. Chaceledon’s jaw tightened a little; Oor was still out there somewhere.

“Please, Seteta isn’t much like Oor. She’s been a good steward of the Well so far.” He encouraged Tianau to rest anyway, even if it did no good. He ate a few more noodles in silence.

Tianau caught sight of Ausar lurking in the doorway. The man looked tense after speaking with Persian and Tianau couldn’t blame him. He gave him an encouraging half-smile; he’d relax away that tension.

 

[Seteta]

"Thank you," Rehema whispered softly, grateful tears pricking at the corners of her eyes as she felt Mother Mountain embrace her. While Aptuv was their primary god, they'd never been averse to the Inizae petitioning other gods as well.

Rehema only briefly looked up from her work as the pets lugged the brass basin into the shrine. The quiet of swoosh of water as the buckets were dumped into the basin became a soothing rhythm as she finished cleansing the crystals.

A skittish girl brought her the bowl of salt, darting away before Rehema could thank her. She frowned slightly, but then pushed it from her mind. She gathered the crystals together into a group, then laid a circle of salt around them. She set the bowl aside and removed the sapphire necklace from around her neck.

Rehema raised the pendant over the crystals, pressing her other palm to the earth. She reached out for the magic around them, swaying slightly as the sheer, raw power began to flow through her. It was... like a rapid river.

"Aptuv, god of water and life," she prayed, the sapphire beginning to glow and shining light down over the crystals and the salt, "bless and consecrate these tools. May your healing flow through them."

She stayed there until the light had faded from the sapphire, then returned it to its place around her neck. The basin was still being filled, so she left the crystals where they were, but picked up the bowl of salt and began to line the walls of the shrine with it, leaving the entrance clear. Only when she began the healing with Seteta would she close the salt circle.

---

Tianau's smile pulled Ausar a little further out of his grumpiness. Ausar took a breath and rolled his shoulders, leaning against the doorframe to listen.

Seteta gave a relieved smile to see her father relax, and laughed softly at Tianau's rigid demeanor, managing a few more bites of pasta as he talked. She nudged Chaceledon lightly with her elbow when he inadvertantly goaded Tianau.

"It took weeks of travel before Rheinhard even started to warm up to me," Seteta gently chided. "Let Tianau do what's comfortable for him."

She handed her chopsticks back to Chaceledon and rested her head back against the stone wall again. The earth's magic felt comforting, and she could feel an echo of her mother's power running through it.

"Unfortunately, I cannot send you back to Krynid at this time," Seteta frowned. "We do not know if or when Rheinhard's control of the Well will return. I hold no claim to Witherhold, either, so rest assured you will not be returning there.

"However, the wraith still lives, so I cannot promise you are entirely safe from him either. I will make one thing clear, though: I do not own your body. It is yours to do with as you please, so long as you do not endanger yourself recklessly. Nor will I... issue commands without cause. When I must command you, I will explain my reasoning beforehand if the situation allows."

She shivered slightly, pulling the covers up over her hands. The sun had set now, and the sole window in the room let in a gentle, but cool, breeze. Against her feverish skin it felt like ice.

"Why was a Krynian lieutenant defending an Inizae temple?" she asked.

 

[Chaceledon]

The pets watched Rehema as they filled the basin. A fair few of them were Inizae, or at least partial blood, and they shivered with the feeling of the magic she was pouring into the earth. The entire estate had felt like Volta lately; humming, breathing with power. They filled the basin dutifully, and even Persian took up a bucket to watch what Rehema was doing. He wanted to study it, and he was a little disappointed he couldn’t speak with Nestor further. The man had been a reliable research partner if nothing else and his insights into magic were often astute.

Persian approached her quietly as the last few buckets filled the basin, clearing his throat slightly. He didn’t speak, lest he completely shatter her concentration, but he did nod toward the basin. It was ready for her when she was ready.

_________________________

Tianau frowned. He wasn’t sure he understood the game here. He needed to be muzzled, as was normal when he wasn’t in use, and he awaited her orders. “I’m not here for you to justify orders to. You don’t need to give me explanations. I must obey regardless. I was defending the temple because I was ordered to by Oor. The Inizae were hiring mercenaries hand over fist to protect themselves. They couldn’t pay for the full services of my men, so I went alone. I defended the temple, and your people, to the death.” Tianau said proudly.

Chaceledon winced. “He must have had your son ready in the wings. I’m so sorry. I don’t know why Oor would let a valuable…and young...Volker die like that.”

Tianau’s jaw tightened, and he looked down. He could still hear ragged screams, turning into desperate gasps and shrieks of pain. Every begging cry to stop, and if he moved, if he blinked, if he cried, Oor would hurt them worse. He had been planning to kill the man when the war was over. Gods, what had happened to them once he’d died? Had Oor visited them for a final bit of fun? The thought made him nauseous. No, Oor had gotten rid of him before he’d made things worse.

“If you don’t need me ma’am, I’d like to tend to my weapon. This sword of mine needs work as well. It’s a large project; I’ll be quiet and out of your way.” Tianau said stiffly. Chaceledon nodded to him. Poor thing looked nervous enough. Tianau bowed, and walked out of the room. He grabbed Ausar’s wrist and pulled him up the stairs. His heart was pounding and he didn’t want to be underground anymore. It felt like a tomb. It felt like echoed shrieks in the night. It felt like he couldn’t breathe.

He kept an iron grip on Ausar’s wrist until they got outside. He tucked his head against Ausar’s chest, shaking.

 

[Seteta]

Seteta sighed wearily. Apparently this was going to be an issue with all of the Volkers, and perhaps it would be a little better understood if she made her intentions clear.

"I did not take stewardship of the Well because I wanted it, or its power, or a legion of men at my command," Seteta said as Tianau struggled to compose himself. She couldn't even imagine what he or his kin had all been through at Oor's hands. "I took it to set Rheinhard free. I intend, if it is within my power, to free all of you from this curse, or to pass it to another steward who will swear to do the same."

She wasn't sure if he'd heard her, though, as he bowed and darted out of the room as soon as Chaceledon gave him leave, chuckling quietly as Tianau latched onto her father's wrist and dragged him away.

Seteta looked over at Chaceledon, reaching for her chopsticks again. She took another bite of the pasta, though her face was turning pale and her hands were trembling again. She practically dropped the chopsticks back into the bowl, leaning back once more as she slowly chewed and swallowed.

"Will you help me lie down again?" she asked Chaceledon. "I'm cold and tired."

She was so cold. It felt like her bones were turning to ice.

---

Rehema looked up at Persian's presence. She saw the filled basin and gave him a grateful smile. The pets were gathering their buckets and leaving the shrine and ballroom. She set the bowl of salt down in front of the crystals and stood. Her eyes were wide and seemed to shine with a strange ethereal light.

"Thank you for coordinating the water," Rehema told him. She would prefer to finish her preparations in solitude, but Persian didn't seem like the type to dismiss himself. "Was there something you wanted to ask me?"

Best to get anything out of the air now. Then she could work on consecrating the water without distractions.

---

It was cool out in the evening air, and Ausar welcomed Tianau into his embrace, arms wrapping firmly around the shaking boy. He knew Tianau wasn't cold.

"Please don't be too upset with my daughter," Ausar whispered, running his hands soothingly up and down Tianau's back. "She means well, but she has a very firm idea of what it means to live one's life freely. She's not trying to remove the structures you're familiar with merely for the sake of it, but rather to give you all the freedom that she feels was stolen from you."

 

[Chaceledon]

Chaceledon watched Tianau flee, sighing and kissing her forehead. Not everyone wanted, or could deal with, freedom. While Rheinhard knew he wanted freedom, so many of the others wouldn’t want to go. Men like Klaus didn’t want peace. He took Seteta’s bowl as she shakily dropped the chopsticks back in, setting it aside with his own. He’d eaten quite a bit of the pasta himself, much to his own shame.

Chaceledon pulled her into his arms, into heat. She would never be cold while he was there, warming the blankets. “Just rest now. Persian and your mother will take care of it. You just need to rest. Thank you for eating, I’m so proud of you.” Chaceledon kissed her forehead.

__________________________

“I wish you luck, Rehema.” Persian said politely. “Be careful, I’ve already got one woman in bed rest. I’m sending a courier to your elders with a peace agreement between us. I’ve made the decision to move my acquisition teams toward the north.” He folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t want there to be any more bad blood between Pedeo and the Inizae.”

_____________________________

“Freedom to what? Go back to the mountains, to a fort of dead men? To everyone I know and love dead and forgotten? I don’t want freedom. Not if it means facing that…I’d rather be a slave to the Well forever.” Tianau sniffled, embarrassed to admit hot tears were welling up in his eyes. He was lucky enough to be one of those boys who didn’t look ugly when he cried. It only made his eyes shine, and his skin flush rose. He looked up at Ausar, leaning into his arms.

“You were angry, out there in the hall. What happened?” He asked, toying with one of Ausar’s chest barbells. Maybe tonight Ausar would give him a few piercings to distract him.