The Blacksilver Authority to take them to Arbai wasn't Dhan, instead an elderly Fithan man who appeared to have little time for them. He demanded they gather together with barely enough forewarning to collect their supplies, hectoring House staff to pull together some resources they apparently planned to trade. Fiyu was still readjusting her mask when he pulled out his weirkey and transported them all.

Traveling by weirkey instead of gate, the flesh-shriveling dryness hit Theo from all sides. He briefly glanced at the others to confirm that no one had been left behind, then quickly looked for their destination. Fortunately, there was no sandstorm at the moment, so it was easy to find the School of Emerald Indulgence looming, a honeycomb of balconies and tunnels.

"This the place?" the Authority asked.

"Y-" Theo had barely finished nodding when the man disappeared, leaving them in the middle of the Arbaian desert.

Fortunately, this time they were well-prepared and not under duress. Nauda had packed a significant amount of water, just in case, but Theo didn't anticipate that would be a problem. He set about lifting the barrels of granitebile with a gravitational field and neutralizing their momentum so they could be carried behind them. While he did so, he noted that Senka hadn't managed to sneak along, this time. It might have been his imagination, or maybe she'd truly been around less since his attempt to train her.

One thing they hadn't been able to do was call ahead, since all the Blacksilver Authorities wanted to do was confirm that the school still existed. There was a remote possibility that they wouldn't be allowed inside, though Theo doubted that was likely. Even if something significant had changed with Navim, they had a relationship of debt with the School of Emerald Indulgence.

Several Arbaians met them before they arrived, their bodies shaped like great spiked wheels. One of them uncurled just enough to reveal an emerald-studded core. "Why have you come to this place, outsiders?" There wasn't exactly suspicion in the echoing voice, but they clearly treated arrivals by weirkey differently than stragglers from the desert.

"I owe a debt to Master Uvvah Ulim," Theo said. "Some cycles past, he granted me a favor in exchange for knowledge. I have returned to pay that debt."

"And these barrels? What are all they?"

"Our hosts have sent a number of sublime materials along with us, common materials on Fithe that we hope can be traded for common materials of your own." He considered explaining about the granitebile, but the Arbaians who had met them were clearly warriors. Likely more educated than the average guard, just more interested in security than commerce.

"We know one of your relatives." Fiyu walked directly up to one of the guards and stared up into his gemstone sphere. "His name is Navim. He will vouch for us."

"Navim? Are they the...?" The guard trailed off before pulling back and the two conversed in low voices. Soon enough, they were told to follow but wait outside the main entrance while the guards walked further inside. Since there had been no wildcards up to that point and Navim was apparently still present, Theo let himself relax, focused more on potential random attacks than the situation turning truly bad.

While Fiyu stood and waited as if her presence could force them to capitulate, Nauda ambled up beside him and leaned on her staff. "They're being a bit unfriendly, aren't they? We saved a member of their community."

"I think they are being reasonably cautious," Fiyu said, smiling over her shoulder at them. "But I believe they will let us in soon."

"Most likely." Nauda smiled back, but released a sigh as soon as Fiyu turned away. "Really, though."

"I suspect we all look alike to them," Theo said. "It's a pretty daunting trek to the nearest gate, which is so unused that Tatian barely keeps it guarded. If they don't see many humanoids like us, I doubt they really register the details."

"...humanshapes? Is that a word in your language?"

"It sounds better there, yeah."

Fortunately, they didn't need to wait too much longer. There was some commotion on one of the upper levels, then an enormous mass of stone launched itself down at them. It would have been alarming if it hadn't been Navim, his upper body now branching into three limbs but otherwise as they remembered him. Nauda only flinched slightly and Fiyu quickly ran to intercept his landing point.

"Navim! We have returned." She smiled up at him and Navim lowered the gemstone sphere at his core so it was nearer her face.

"You have indeed returned. My only regret deeper than your absence was that I was unable to thank you for saving my life."

"I am sorry for that, but it was essential to return to Myufuru."

"So I heard." Navim's body rose higher to regard Theo and Nauda as they approached. "I am glad to see that all of you appear to be intact. The rumors regarding Myufuru were grim, and though I wanted to believe in your resilience, at times it seemed improbable. Please, enter the School of Emerald Indulgence as my guests."

They followed Navim into the catacombs, all suspicion falling from them as the other Mundhin confirmed the identity of the outsiders. Along the way, their stories tumbled together, a truncated version of their own travels mixing with Navim's rather more stolid account. It seemed that he had recovered from near death, written a monograph about the experience, and improved his reputation as a scholar.

Though he didn't even mention it, Navim had also ascended to Archcrafter, and developed a shielding wall that made it impossible to tell how much further he had soulcrafted. He'd also altered his body, growing shields of durable stone on several appendages. It was not a full war construct, lacking in offensive spikes and instead possessing smaller limbs for delicate work. Still, Theo had no doubt that his soulcrafting had improved along with his scholarship.

To Theo's surprise, their conversation advanced to a small cavern filled with a dense mist that reduced the burning dryness. Within, they were served water and actual food edible to humans. It seemed that in addition to his other work, Navim had established more of a connection to the gate in Tatian, ensuring that lost travelers could be cared for.

Not that there was much commerce, since the two sides had so little to offer one another. The Arbaian side of the gate remained unguarded, but the Tatians had organized more than local Farmguards after Magnafor had torn through them. It appeared to be at least a reasonable working relationship, which was more than the School had ever established with Tatian before.

Eventually the conversation fell off from the frenzied recounting and Navim regarded them all with his impassive non-gaze. The mental focus of his sphere soon came to rest on Theo. "I presume that you are not here solely for the sake of discourse and companionship. You believe that our School can assist you in the conflicts you have intimated?"

"We have several goals," Theo said. "For a start, I promised your master that I would return to speak with him."

"Ah. Master Uvvah Ulim was further weakened striking down a demonic incursion and is not seeing many visitors. I believe that he will wish to speak with you, but it may be some time before you can be scheduled between more important affairs of the school."

"What happens if he..." Nauda's question faltered out as she reached the obvious, but Navim raised a rocky limb.

"Do not be concerned, we understand that death is part of life here. Though Master Uvvah Ulim will hopefully lead the school for many more cycles, he is making arrangements for his passing. We may not be the largest school, but our philosophy is respected and he has never fostered a... I hope that the term 'cult of personality' is known to you. The School of Emerald Indulgence may change, but it will persist."

That was well and good, but it was a distraction, so Theo stepped in again. "We'll be staying on Arbai for approximately thirty days, and we have several things we want to do in that time."

"Approximately?"

"Depending on variables. We made arrangements with our allies to transport us back at a set time, but if your master has a weirkey for Fithe and is willing, we could return at another time." Though Theo was still parched, he made himself set aside his glass and focus. "We have a limited amount of time to soulcraft, and though I don't imagine you'll give us your finest sublime materials, some that are common here may be completely impossible to obtain in Norro Yorthin."

"Indeed, if you had not come with such goals, I would have been concerned regarding impersonation." Navim turned from him to sweep his focus over the others. "All three of you are welcome, and I believe that you will easily be able to earn your keep. This region is not rich with sublime materials, but I suspect you will be able to find something of use to you."

"What work will we be doing?" Fiyu asked. "I imagine all the maintenance of your building must be optimized for Mundhin labor."

"It is, but there's work to be found for other forms, and hardly menial labor. For example, I believe that your knowledge regarding this Chasm of Lamentations, and its inclusion in cyclical Fithan customs, would be of great interest to many scholars here. Perhaps we could collaborate."

"I would like that." Fiyu had been smiling the entire time, but managed to smile broader. "Do you think it is possible that, once our time here is complete, you might want to explore Norro Yorthin as well?"

"Perhaps, but it is too early for such predictions." Navim's limbs rolled underneath him and he rose to his full height. "At minimum, we will have this time together. Come with me and we can make use of it."