Liyuzhe pulled out her own tome, one very similar to the one left to Riyxia, appearing fairly relaxed as she looked it over. Vwyx and Sryine however weren’t anything close to relax, not with Riyxia suddenly gone.

“For having just fought each other, you seem really relaxed.” “Same to you, actually, that emotionless tone is actually a bit surprising actually, all things considered. Khyzae had always made sure we stayed efficient, and such a demonstration seemed much faster than just waiting for something to change. It did, all things considered, we can get back to our research now, so that’s great. Look, I don’t have anything against you, not exactly. I mean, if you do want to get in my way, I will have you both removed, kinda as easy as that. I know, I know, you both have some pretty impressive abilities, not going to lie, that’s why we’re looking into that Riyxia right now. But the four of us, Khyzae included, have been working on this for years now, and there is no way I’m going to let anyone come in the way of all that work.” Vwyx watched Liyuzhe put the tome away, offering to actually hold a discussion at this point.

“I get the feeling you two never got to know her very well either, she always made it clear that the opening for any proper diplomacy was a good introduction.” “Oh, uh, I’m Vwyx, she’s Sryine.” “Hmm, quick and simple, fair enough. Liyuzhe. I’ve heard you know Fhyernx already, the guy before. The elf was Ieqyisa. Your friend would be Riyxia, someone you missed introducing. I’m guessing you have some friends waiting over in the distance, but that can probably wait, I’m not so sure your other friends can hold their ground as well as you, so the sudden power shift might be too much for them.” Liyuzhe pointed towards the windcraft in the distance, showing Vwyx that she’s aware of their other guests as well. Sryine giggled faintly before stopping herself, her insanity making it a lot harder for her to have a rational conversation. Vwyx had clued in on that as well, and was why she was trying to help out, but was herself dealing with a lot of thoughtlessness.

“Ah, so keeping yourselves in that state seems to take a lot of mental endurance, another area I seem to have an advantage in then. Both of you are so visibly trying to hold on, and I remember Sryine there being much more diplomatic, until that dramatic display of your own ability, when she suddenly lost all composure. Your own advantage would be the lack of all this heavy gear, Power Armor can be so uncomfortable to ride around in, and our circumstances.. doesn’t exactly leave me comfortable in the idea of getting out. I’ll at least try to keep things a bit clearer then, for the both of you. We both have our goals, stuff we want to set off and accomplish, and that’s not really something I have a problem with. I suspect your goals are in line with Khyzae’s dreams, ambitions that will lead you to the stars, and if I’m right then I certainly want you to succeed. Making her dreams come true is important to me, we owe each other like that, so actually you better do your best in making that dream come true. However, I have my own dream too, to discover a new power source, something to escape the restrictions of the gift, to achieve more in the process. I expect my success will even be useful in reaching the stars, which is why I’ve given it a greater priority. Khyzae seemed to believe that the stars would bring us access to new sources of power, so her priorities were in reverse.” Liyuzhe sighed, reflecting on an argument on that same subject in the past.

“Anyway, who knows, maybe we’re both right, access to the stars will need a new power, and we will find a new power when we access the stars. I’ve almost secured my part in that first process, almost secured a decent improvement on the limitations of the gift. Did you know that beasts also have blood with the gift inside, but they are completely unable to use it? They lack the proper cognitive function to form instructions for their own access to the gift, making it a considerable waste. But that’s where we’ve stepped in, making use of the multitudes of beasts and mesmerizing them, adding their supply of the gift to our own. Beasts are living creatures too, they have their own ability for thought, so if I leave one with instructions, it can continue it even in my absence, like a giant mint-leaf crop. Set them up, a handful can keep a few instruments running indefinitely. Now, this does take some pretty complicated instruments, but fortunately we’ve got that covered too. We’ve even got some of the best transportation, as you would have noticed by now, Phase Gates.” Liyuzhe’s reference was not lost, even in the struggles of the moment. The gates that the girls had been hunting, possibly the fastest way anyone could travel from one point to another.

“Legendary mythical legends of myths, unoriginal thieves stealing ideas that don’t even exist. This tome, that tome, like tomes that I’ve liked, crazy over insane stories.. like farms growing beasts and not just crops. Those lies were so old, from a distant past that never happened, lies from another world, the Terran Mythos.” “Ah, you’re familiar with those.. legends? Ieqyisa really loved those stories herself, they gave us so many fresh ideas. We even managed to recover a lot of the ruins and wreckage that seemed to have struck off the Instrumentation Era, like 200 years ago. There was word about someone then dabbling in something that didn’t make sense, and oddly it was impossible to make any of the wild machinations of that period even work anymore, like it was never made to work. Fhyernx is good though, he made those things actually work, adapting their design as complicated instruments. Meanwhile, I was the one who took the idea to farm beasts, much like the pets of the Terran Mythos. Khyzae never did trust the Terran Mythos, always believing in finding her own way, avoiding anything to do with the Mythos itself directly. Seriously, the girl made it seem like working with the Mythos was going to kill her one day or something.” Sryine broke into laughter at Liyuzhe’s ignorance, not having missed that irony herself. Vwyx herself knew, both of them would have found it much harder to not expose their own sadness had they not been augmented at that time, herself still an emotionless mask.

“But on actually risky subjects, just keep in mind that I’m letting you know this so that you know where to stop treading. Looking for a way to the stars should be a big enough task, don’t get in my way in the process. Best of luck on that though, we never were able to help in that area very much. Ieqyisa and Fhyernx had helped her a long time ago with some kind of really complicated gateway instrument, but it seemed like that failed or something. Never did learn exactly why, something about it being the wrong location. You both might be more up to date on all of that more than me, but I can see her sending you here if location was still in question. This location started a lot of things, providing me with the information I needed for my goals, and it somehow gave her some inspiration too. That’s why I have no problem with you two looking around, you will both need to find everything you were sent here to find, just the same as myself.” Liyuzhe was checking some instruments she had ready, things her two companions had left in her care for these circumstances. Even with all of this, she was still at a loss for where to begin. What exactly made the forest special, anyway?

“Oh foolish foolish girl, confusing the end for the beginning. So confused, so lost, so unaware, when the truth was blatant for anyone who wasn’t so blind. You had interfered, ruined everything, tainting a flow of pure perfection in the closing, right when we were all but ready to depart. Efficiency, hilarious, an efficacy that was effectively in fallacy. So blind, so beautifully blind, ignorant, unaware. A play of fools, played by a fool who plays fools. To think you too had us fooled, yet were the greatest fool of all. No hope, no hope for a fool who lies to themselves about truth. It isn’t a blindsight that still sees, blind is blind is blind.” Sryine was laughing in the sand, having lost all of her composure. Vwyx rushed over to encourage Sryine to relax, though it was a challenge to encourage any sense of calm when they were both still augmented.

Liyuzhe was even further intrigued by this information, suddenly explaining why neither of the other girls were as interested in their surroundings than she was. She had expected that it was only a matter of priorities, that the girls were putting more diligence in the recovery of their friend than their other goals, but it seems they were simply already otherwise done here. She realized that, despite the tremendous threat possessed by both girls, it might actually be convenient to have them in a mentally weak state. Even without their awareness, she had managed thus to turn the direction of travel towards their little camp, arriving before the girls were even aware of it. On arrival, the two girls noticed that she had started humming a faint tune.

“Sryine, what’s going on, why is there a giant metal suit of armor walking… Oh! Liyuzhe, fancy meeting you here.” “Jwyexzn, how interesting to find you here with the girls. I will have to let your sister know about this turn of events, she will be thrilled, I’m sure. Terribly sorry about dropping in unannounced like this, but I just had to catch up with a few friends.” “Wearing that?” “Certainly you’re aware of just how dangerous this place is, right? That’s why you sent your three best to go on your behalf.” “Well, sure, but we’ve got someone keeping an eye on both the fluctuation of the veil and the threat of the flame. As long as the beasts leave us alone, we’ll be fine.” “Oh, so you aren’t aware, even the Beasts have fled this place in fear, there isn’t a single beast who would dare approach this area of their own will, like they have something to fear about this place. The trees, most especially.” “Really, that too? I mean, I would have thought the smoldering mountain of fire and death to be a lot scarier, the trees seem like nothing in comparison.” “Ah, now that is an interesting theory, I’ll have to look into it myself.” Jwyexzn somehow seemed oblivious to his surroundings while talking to Liyuzhe. Liyuzhe continued to hum a faint melody while the girls tried to be discreet in getting him to shut up.

“Excuse me, miss, can you please cut with that annoying racket, some of us are trying to get work done.” “But don’t you find it to be such a compelling melody, such a catchy tune?” “Music has always been a matter of taste, and I’m sorry to say that I don’t even have a taste in music. Shut up or get lost, I don’t even know you and you’re starting to irritate me.” Ayzherie had suddenly appeared, only to immediately tell Liyuzhe off. Sryine and Vwyx were even more alarmed at this, knowing that Liyuzhe could have held her ground in force without even breaking a sweat. Liyuzhe however compiled, going quiet in contemplation. The veil and the flame, because of a nearby mountain of fire and death. She wasn’t exactly sure what was being implied by the veil and the flame, but even a quick scan of the horizon made it clear what mountain was being implied at that moment. Taking note of the implications of its danger, she decided her investigation would begin there. She made her way towards the two girls again before her departure.

“Thank you both for your support, I’ve at least got a place to begin. Such free and open trades, it is great that you two made everything so easy. Having got the better end of the deal, maybe I should leave the two of you with something of your own. If you still have my business card, don’t bother finding us there, we’ve already moved. Honestly, we’re not even in Windvale anymore, so finding your friend is going to be more than a small challenge. My recommendation would be for you to make it easier for her to find you. At one point, we’ll be done, and she will be sent on her way. Getting an appropriate phase gate to bring her back to you will be out of the question, not unless she likes exploring deep underground. Instead, we’ll probably get her into a small windcraft, something rather easy to fly. At that point, it will be up to you two to bring her home, so just be ready for her. Even if you leave now, she might be ready to fly even before the two of you get back to Windvale, so you had better hurry up.” Liyuzhe waved as she otherwise casually departed. A dangerous mountain, maybe she should start with contacting Fhyernx and getting some new supplies. Once a distance away, no one following her, she opened a call to Fhyernx.

“So, I might have the need of a protective assessment of your gear here. Something about a mountain of fire and death.” “Well, the barrier is immune to both physical might and gift-based influences, such defenses should be enough for any average fires. How hot are we talking, anyway?” “I don’t know, ‘fire and death’ hot? Something about that makes me not want to simply take risks.” “Use the onboard sensor, then have your cell send me the results.” Liyuzhe compiled, sending Fhyernx the numbers. “Hells, what the bloody hells did you just discover? This isn’t a fire, this is like an incarnation of hells, like a hellfire or something. It’s a good thing you called first, because I can’t guarantee your survival if you get too close to something like that. I don’t even think we have the equipment to make something that powerful, this heat would just disable any instruments in an instant.” “Alright, alright, I’ll keep my distance and prepare some measurements for when you both have some time to breath.” Fhyernx was almost panicking on the phone while he spoke to Liyuzhe.

“I’m guessing this has something to do with the girls. Neither of you two knew the two village girls at all, but I’ve talked with Vwyx several times over the past years, ever since we first started taking an interest in all of that Schorlwood. She’s changed.. a lot. I’m not just talking about her emotional personality either, we had a business deal going to have metals supplied to the village, something her family needed. Did you see her shift materials from one thing to another? Do you really think that sounds like something a girl who needed metals brought to her would be capable of? I’m pretty sure I saw her shift sand into an axe, fully metal and everything.” “Well, of course, they found something out here that…” “No, something has been bothering me since even the last time we met, something about the girls seemed strange, and I had always just left it to that supposed illness they had all apparently suffered the year past. Nothing about their illness even makes sense, but now all this has happened to them… Honestly, it makes more sense to believe that they had found something major that day long ago, and disguised the whole thing as some form of illness.” Fhyernx went quiet at that point, leaving Liyuzhe to only speculate. Liyuzhe decided that she would have to explore this train of thought later, after getting an update on Ieqyisa’s research. First, she had a mountain of other research to occupy her time with. She pulled out her cell, reviewing some of the fresh data that had also been sent to it, she would be busy for a while.

Sryine was really flustered, the thoughts of the events passing through her once in a sane state. Sanity was fleeting, Vwyx could still question if Sryine could count as fully sane at this point. “By the divine, how could I be so stupid? We could have set up a way better deal with her, gotten a lot more information, but instead we almost just gave her everything she wanted. Sure, she gave us information too, stuff she wanted us to know. Free, I can’t believe we gave her everything without any form of cost whatsoever.” “Calm down, neither of us were any good at keeping a rational head while augmented like that, she even figured that out. Taking advantage of a visible weakness.. I don’t know, I think something like that is almost impulsive of her.” Sryine was still not totally convinced, even knowing Vwyx spoke the truth. The most alarming thing for her was her complete inability to help out Riyxia, to figure out how to save her.

“It’s at least good to be aware of your own weaknesses, don’t just predict that you have everything under control when you are struggling just to keep yourself under control. However, don’t just think the blame is entirely your own. Jwyexzn, what did you think of all of her humming?” “She was humming? I never noticed, actually.” “While she was here, how did you feel then?” “Oh, mostly relaxed, glad that the girls were safe, happy that things were going to be okay.” “.. and about Riyxia?” “Wait, Riyxia is missing? Where did she go?” “You seem to know that girl, do you like talking with her like that?” “No, she’s pretty intimidating to confront.” “Is that usually how you feel when she’s asking questions of you? Have you ever felt like turning her away?” “No, of course not, you can’t turn her away. She’s not that kind of person.” Ayzherie scoffed at Jwyexzn’s comment, herself having had no problem sending Liyuzhe away.

“A compelling melody indeed… I suspect there was some gift behind that melody, something I might have been fortunate to have avoided. However, I suspect she managed to work her gift into everyone else.. only made worse by those with a subtle weakness to mental compulsion. Sryine and Vwyx might not have normally been so weak, but your augmented state only worked against you, making you so incredibly vulnerable. She was basically spying, pressing for information against people’s will. Just keep in mind, she did have to resort to making use of Jwyexzn, your resistance was enough to encourage her to find someone even easier to work with than yourself. I expect things failed on me because of how I normally am, only made even more resistive because of feeling so vulnerable. Being without a gift might have left me a slight advantage there.” Ayzherie had suffered so many problems being left without her gift, it was a great improvement figuring out something working in her favour in that area. But her insight had the effect of instilling concern in everyone else, that they had suffered a gift of mesmerization, compelling them beyond their will. Sryine and Vwyx could see how that could work, it was that same gift that Liyuzhe would have been using on the beasts to bend all of them to her will.

“This is strange, some of my instruments had started to malfunction earlier, I had no idea what was going on. It was around when the girls had arrived, but it only lasted a short while. For some reason, everything just switched to broadcast mode, without warning.” “What would that do?” “Oh, it’s useful if you want to send the data to another instrument, one often better to cope with the information. Still, without setting up any of the security settings, anyone walking by could just get a record of the information and run off with it.” “So.. a melody that affects instruments too or something, that’s pretty dangerous to work with. Just what else is that woman capable of? I’ll need a record of everything that was exposed in that moment, so that we know what information the thief made off with.” Eqriuxzl was alarmed to hear from Ayzherie that they had been hit by a thief in the middle of nowhere. With urgency, he went back to his instruments, compiling such records as requested, while everyone else packed up to leave. With such a skilled thief around, none of them wanted to stay any longer.

A short while later, all of them were back in the windcraft, preparing for an overnight flight home. Vwyx sat with Sryine, her eyes to the stars the whole time, her own fears being overwhelmed by her own worries for Riyxia.