Amdirlain’s PoV - Culerzic

The simple awareness within the psi-crystal seemed content to wait, focusing on the memory crystals touching its base. When Sarah departed for the Elemental Plane of Earth with various monitoring crystals to test, Amdirlain gave its thoughts more attention. Fortunately, it seemed content to review the rules for collating information that Sarah had set it.

Returning to the other project, Amdirlain began creating a crystal spike the size of a piton, paying particular attention to the flow of harmonies between the parts to ensure endurance. She didn’t take the time to examine the stabilised creation but immediately stored it and started on another. The places where she’d caught even a hint of dissonance, she strove to smooth out in the next.

A couple of hours after Sarah’s departure, a rush of information flooded into a memory crystal, the energy of messages causing its material to glow. The consistently rugged solidness conveyed that Sarah’s first stop had either been Duskstone or another dwarven settlement on the Plane.

“You’ve tagged 496 dwarves and counting; where are you?”

The wait for a response felt like forever to Amdirlain’s racing mind.

“If details only just came through, the ones with the biggest ranges didn’t work. I’m approaching Duskstone’s front gates. I’ll drop the mithril bars off at the auction house, then try other versions.”

Amdirlain went over the composition for the version with issues before she replied. “I’d say stick to the ones under a kilometre range. It's a sphere, so the greater volume might make it hard for the detection effect to separate them.”

“Will do. I sent Ebusuku a message telling her we were working on this project and ratted on the pigeons for being oh-so-helpful. She’s going to have a few words.”

Amdirlain returned to her work and, after a while, memory crystals connected to different devices began to receive information. The initial tide of details had slowed when a new message arrived.

“Amdirlain, do you have time to talk soon?”

Ebusuku’s voice didn’t distract Amdirlain’s focus, but she finished settling the crystal before she sent a response.

“I’m at a stopping point.”

“In that case, I’ll be at Duskstone shortly. This isn’t about your plans; I’ve told the others to choose between actively helping you with what you’re undertaking or staying away. Sometimes I’ve nearly been as bad, ‌so I’ll also try to do better. Gail wants to talk to you about Gideon’s harp tale, and I also have questions about it.”

Aware Gail would hear her surroundings, Amdirlain stored the latest crystal she’d created and considered the hidey-hole. She first carved a series of corridors and rooms off one side of the circular chamber that she’d been content to use until now, then added some basic furnishings and lighting to reassure Gail. Looking at the drab stone of the shaft, she carved images from a remembered glade; the stone became a frozen moment amid its peace.

When the Gate opened from Duskstone, the scene was radically different to the last time. Though Ebusuku appeared in her Wood Elf form again, given that Gail’s song came from a cat-folk boy, the negotiations on lifting racial restrictions must have gone Gail’s way.

A broad feline grin appeared on Gail’s short muzzle before ‘he’ gave a double-handed wave. They’d modelled the general shape and colouration of Rasha’s appearance, including the black and green fur, but Gail stood waist height next to Ebusuku, smaller than in the Wood Elf form she’d used last time.

“Good Morning, auntie Am,” Gail chirped excitedly when the Gate finished stabilising. “Aunt Sarah sent me a message saying you remembered the harp as well, but didn’t tell me more.”

“Why didn’t you just interrogate her when she came to visit next?”

“That could be an age from now,” protested Gail, spreading his arms dramatically. “She said you had lots of things you needed help to get in place.”

“I do indeed,” admitted Amdirlain. “Since you convinced your mother to bring you, I gather you told her about it.”

“Talking within the Domain, it's hard to hide things from me,” explained Ebusuku, and she brushed Gail’s closest ear and drew forth a chirping squeak. “People speaking out of direct earshot sits in the background of my awareness, but anything to do with helping you will always get my attention.”

“Mother has big mental ears,” grumbled Gail.

“Is that why you’re in a Cat-folk form today?”

“No, Ras played bodyguard coming here, so I’m in disguise,” whispered Gail, and brought a finger to his lips.

“I’ll keep that in mind, little-not-Gail,” teased Amdirlain.

With a squeak of protest, Gail crossed his arms. “I’m still Gail; I’m just seeing places with fresh eyes today.”

A finger tapping his cheek drew attention to the elongated pupil typical for Cat-folk.

Gail continued before Amdirlain could comment further on their appearance. “Aunt Am, did you make the harp?”

“I don’t think I did. I’ve got a memory of it being presented, and it sounded like at least several choirs were involved.”

Gail shifted on the spot and scratched behind his ears. “Could you have been working in one of them?”

“That’s possible, but I couldn’t say for sure,” replied Amdirlain.

“Well, I’ll still consider it your harp until proven otherwise. Gideon said you presented it to the Queen, and your husband presented another gift to the King,” declared Gail. “Do you have any idea what happened to it? I don’t want to talk to Isa or the Lómë about what they know.”

“How come?”

“I don’t want to get their hopes up. Plus, Erwarth says lots of older knowledge is but half-remembered hearsay, even for them,” sighed Gail.

“What do the harps do?” asked Ebusuku.

Gail gave a broad smile. “Gideon said it could bring people back to life even if you had nothing of their body, regardless of the Soul’s preference.”

“That’s specific to that harp. Generally, they magnify whatever True Song effect the player is singing. Some can amplify only specific types of effects, and I think that was one of them. From what I remembered the other day, restoring the dead to life was only a minor aspect of its power. Its primary purpose was around seeding planets with life. It could alter the environment to assist with that.”

“How does bringing someone to life unwillingly tie into that?” asked Ebusuku.

“Souls that have never known flesh before aren’t just going to hop into a body. You need to give them a shove to get them settled into place,” explained Amdirlain, and she nodded when True Song Architecture provided the song components. “The Anar or Lómë can individually settle souls in place, but the harp lets them handle tens of thousands at once.”

Gail gave a curious hum. “What environmental alterations did it allow?”

“Land masses influence environments, so raising and lowering them. So shifting material…” Amdirlain paused, and she snickered at the possibility of Gideon’s scheming.

“What’s so funny?” asked Gail.

“Gideon is fulfilling the role of the Concept of Knowledge and being sneaky‌,” explained Amdirlain. “I wonder if they audit themselves for rule breaking? Though technically, what we do with the knowledge we come to possess is our own decision.”

“It didn’t seem like that was all you were laughing about,” observed Ebusuku.

“The harp supported bringing primordial matter from the Abyss to germinate life and refine landscapes. Once the Lómë royal family is free, it would help get their settlements out of Ternòx,” explained Amdirlain.

“Or pull their tower out of the Abyss in the first place?” Gail asked, and he continued when Amdirlain nodded. “Would one of these harps help you?”

“I don’t think Orhêthurin played any instrument, so you’ll have to get someone else to give you lessons. Have you considered the possibility the harp you are looking for is still in the Royal Tower?” asked Amdirlain, and she continued despite Gail’s suddenly glum look. “If Gideon was telling you about Anar and Lómë history, the first Lómë coronation is reasonable to include.”

Gail’s ears drooped expressively before they perked back up again. “In my memory of the story, they seemed to focus on describing the harp more than the event.”

“While I’ve got a memory of its song, I can’t divine for it since that would require me to use an active effect across planes,” advised Amdirlain.

Gail gasped and Ebusuku immediately grabbed his shoulders to stop him from moving. “I wasn’t going anywhere, mother. Amdirlain, would you share the memory with me so I can find it when I’m older?”

“Only if you study,” replied Amdirlain, and she impressed the fundamentals of True Song Composition into a memory crystal. The easiest knowledge formed the largest nesting doll, locked by challenges of increasing difficulty, for every layer breached.

“There is a lot of noise in that crystal,” noted Gail critically, despite his whiskers twitching with curiosity.

“This is to help you, so stick to the crystal’s rules. While you shouldn’t risk using True Song until you gain a suitable Class, you can learn other skills that will help. This has the basics of a Skill you can master with no Class since you have Resonance. When you get to the prize in the middle, the right way, I’ll give you another.”

Crouching, Amdirlain flicked it forward like she was playing marbles, and it skipped through the Gate. Once it reached the circle’s inner edge, it bounced off the barrier and rocked back and forth.

“Any tips?”

“Thousands of them are in that crystal, but Resonance will let you find examples of songs all around you,” replied Amdirlain.

“I wish I could use True Song now,” grumbled Gail, and he shot Ebusuku a look. “I heard that eye-roll, mother.”

“It’s only fair—you eye-roll your father,” rebuffed Ebusuku, her smile softening the words further.

“I spent months practising singing almost non-stop before I tried using True Song,” commented Amdirlain, and her statement grabbed Gail’s attention. “Consider that I have memories that helped, so ‌I was only relearning; I’d suggest you plan for years instead.”

“So many things to learn,” sighed Gail.

“The more you learn, the easier it is to learn more,” reassured Amdirlain. “The knowledge you gather gives you a base to understand more things.”

“I supposed that makes sense,” mused Gail. “But are you doing okay, auntie Am?”

“Better. Sarah is helping me work on that, along with some of my projects,” admitted Amdirlain.

Gail chewed on the inside of his cheek and gave Amdirlain a concerned look. “You’ll find Uncle Torm again, and then everything will be alright, won’t it?”

“Time will tell. Hopefully, it will be better than now,” offered Amdirlain. “Why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to?”

“Ras is teaching me how to sneak through the grasslands and woods. The tricks are so different, and he doesn’t let me stop when I hear someone close,” grumbled Gail.

“Of course not; sometimes the purpose of sneaking is to remain unseen, but other times it's to get closer,” Amdirlain agreed, and she held back laughter when Gail’s ears drooped again.

“Aunt Isa is always busy with the Lómë. Would you help me with Resonance?”

Amdirlain considered the request and eventually shook her head. “It would be difficult with you having to tune out the Abyss to focus on the objects we’re studying.”

“Can you hear objects here?” asked Gail.

“Yes, but I can’t alter them to see if you can pick up changes in the same object.”

“If I was in the circle, I could just roll the object back through the Gate,” observed Gail, and Amdirlain caught Ebusuku's exasperation.

“The circle is there so you’re protected from the Abyss’ miasma,” countered Amdirlain. “Even if it wasn’t, all the protective circles and runes are a lot of background noise for you to ignore.”

“I’m used to ignoring background noises. The domain is…” Gail’s argument faded away as Amdirlain’s smile broadened.

“Glad you told me ignoring the chamber’s protections and the Abyss together will stretch your capacity further. I’ll just adjust items here.”

“Drats!”

“Foiled again?” asked Amdirlain, and Gail’s shoulders slumped as he sighed dramatically.

Amdirlain created a steel disc and flipped it across her fingers, even as she made other adjustments. “Now, the simple part of Resonance is detecting the general gist of what’s ‌around you. Determining details about items gets harder the more noise there is or when the information is subtle.”

“Getting drowned in the overall harmonics and losing details?” Gail asked.

“Yes. Knowing there is rock, steel, or something living about can be hard when too much is going on. Separating details on the items you are interested in increases the difficulty. Can you tell me what’s wrong with this disc?”

“Other than that it's in the Abyss?” joked Gail, and his ears pricked forward, signalling his focus. “I want you out here with us. It's not fair that bad things happened to you.”

“Life isn’t about fairness, Gail, it is what it is. We can’t control anything but our decisions, not even their outcomes,” countered Amdirlain. “Now, focus on the disk.”

“Is something different with its middle?” Gail asked after concentrating on it for a few minutes.

Amdirlain sped the disc’s pace across her fingers up. “Right. Now tell me what’s different.”

“Hold it still,” protested Gail.

“Nope. It’s not about the object’s speed—that’s just an element added to its framework. Focus past it and tell me what’s inside the frame.”

Gail’s whiskers twitched in surprise, and he gave Amdirlain a wide-eyed look. “How did your song touch me?”

At his prompting, Amdirlain caught a tag resting against Gail’s Soul. “It wasn’t me. Sarah is in Duskstone with crystal tools I developed to detect and tag mortals. We’re looking to devise a way to avoid celestials following false leads in the Abyss. There are tools to put a mark in place and another to detect them from a distance or scry where they’re located.”

Gail focused on his mother and then shifted to peer at the chamber’s door. “Mother’s not marked, and neither is Rasha.”

“You should only hear them on mortals, so that’s good. Perhaps you can help Sarah with some experiments to determine if other tools can dissolve the marks,” suggested Amdirlain. “They should dissolve if you go to the Material Plane.”

“Can I visit auntie Livia then?” Gail asked, and he gave Ebusuku a pleading look.

“We’ll sort that out later,” agreed Ebusuku.

“Okay, lesson first,” said Gail, and returned his attention to the disc in Amdirlain’s hand. Eventually, Gail realised the same stone around Amdirlain was present in the disc’s core.

“How did the stone get in there?” asked Gail curiously, peering through the Gate as if it was some trick. “I didn’t hear it in your song.”

“I cheated. I used Inventory to hollow out the disc and insert the stone,” replied Amdirlain. “If you aren’t cheating, you’re not trying hard enough.”

“Aunt Am, that’s naughty,” protested Gail, and he posed with hands planted on his hips.

“Focus on the lesson, and not my morality, thank you,” quipped Amdirlain, and promptly poked out her tongue when Gail burst out laughing.

Amdirlain created various items, quizzing and instructing as the lesson went on. Gail’s improvements were steady for a while, but as the session continued, he started to get stuck on more details. When he yawned for the third time in as many minutes, Ebusuku called a halt, despite Gail’s protests.

“Practise what we’ve gone over. Listen for the object’s edges, and you’ll be able to hear changes in the material and its flaws,” instructed Amdirlain.

“Does it get easier when you have True Song?” Gail enquired.

“Having True Song doesn’t help unless you’re listening. It enables you to act on what Resonance and Composition will tell you about your surroundings. ”

“Thank you for taking the time with me, auntie Am,” Gail said, and he muffled another yawn with a fist. “When you need a break, can I get more lessons, please?”

“If you study that memory crystal and master its first challenge,” agreed Amdirlain.

“Will do! I’ll be ready for another lesson in no time,” declared Gail, and his enthusiasm fought a losing battle against another yawn.

“Thank you for working with Gail, Amdirlain. If you need any materials for those tools, let me know,” Ebusuku said, and she lifted Gail. “I know you can create most things you need, but if I provide raw materials, it will save your efforts for the harder parts.”

“Their key component is True Song Crystal scraps I’ve repurposed,” admitted Amdirlain.

“Perhaps I can get the Domain to produce items for you like it did that miniature tower. Any size of crystal in particular?”

Amdirlain gave a pleased smile. “If it will play nice, something about the size of my hand will be enough.”

“I’ll try.”

When the Gate closed, Amdirlain retrieved the sphere Sarah had brought. Focusing on Zutag’s territory, she moved between smaller production towns looking for glimpses of the damned in the associated images. When she found signs of the damned, she noted the energies being harvested and the forms they took.

For each one, she worked out the rough harmony to change the damned to render them oblivious to their torment. Until she heard the damned in person, it was uncertain if that’d be sufficient, but it gave her a framework to start from and should reduce time spent in the area.

The memory crystal attuned to the last experimental tool stopped accumulating alerts a few hours after Gail’s lesson ended.

Sarah appeared in the chamber as a dwarven miner, but her sturdy garb quickly disappeared as she resumed her glowing draconic form.

“You snuck in as a Dwarf?”

“Fewer questions that way,” replied Sarah before she stretched out, claiming a larger section of the floor than she needed for comfort. “I see you made some adjustments.”

Amdirlain shrugged. “Only because Gail wanted some auntie time.”

“Didn’t want to worry her?” Sarah enquired before she shifted her focus to the psi-crystal.

“Andre had enough worries in life, I don’t need to inflict unnecessary ones on Gail,” pronounced Amdirlain.

A glowing claw waved towards the sphere in Amdirlain’s hand. “What were you working on?”

“Checking the images of smaller townships for glimpses of the damned. Their situations let me work out primary themes to neuter them.”

“What’s next on the agenda, undercover jaunts or fire and brimstone?”

“I think I’ll handle a bunch in a low-profile fashion. While I’ve got the themes, they’ll need some embellishment, which might take time,” answered Amdirlain.

“I’ll see if I can get in touch with this Fallen. I stopped in but couldn’t speak to the High Crafter in the hall—she was busy,” said Sarah.

A Message delivered an enquiry that caused Amdirlain to laugh. “Oh, Gail detected getting tagged.”

“On that topic, none of the tools showed species,” noted Sarah.

Amdirlain gave her a mock-affronted glare and huffed loudly. “Not exactly a priority, is it?”

“Poor quality results represent a lack of care,” Sarah said pompously, and she waved a talon reprovingly. “Shape up or ship out.”

“Well then, I’ll go check on my first location for the demonic neutering project,” grumbled Amdirlain, and she shifted into her Skëll form. Oddly enough, its red and black scales rasped louder than Sarah’s gemstone scales.

Withdrawing the tools from Inventory, Sarah lined up each with their associated memory crystal. “If you love your pet, make sure it's spayed.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you, Sarah,” retorted Amdirlain before she disappeared.

“Bitch.”

Amdirlain took in the scene before her as Sarah’s message buzzed in her ear. The field ahead of her held countless funeral platforms upon which the damned thrashed and fought for freedom. Giant birds, radiating the hostility of an angry cassowary, stood astride each pinned limb, continuously pecking at their wiggling food, they jerked strands of material from the souls. The damned screamed from the assault and the sensations that fed back to them from the slowly digested material.

Among the platforms, dretches shovelled the droppings into carts they dragged behind them. One cursed a bird for deliberately shifting position to shit on it when the Dretch passed near enough to hit. Others laughed at its misfortune, but those who paused too close to the corners of the platforms, likewise ended up anointed by worm-riddled excrement.

The Dretch’s muck-stained leathers showed it wasn’t an uncommon occurrence, and even as more Dretch screamed and ranted, most simply continued work. Those closest to the road emptied their handcarts into large wagons so shoddily built, they looked ready to collapse. There wasn’t a smooth or straight piece of wood in their construction, and splinters formed a field of burrs along their surface.

Amdirlain ambled along, and the first Dretch she passed looked ready to fall to its knees at her presence. With others registering the effect of the Angel Killer aura, she kept walking towards the town. Her arrival point was on the edge of a swath of the damned, and she focused on their tormented songs as she travelled.

Her path eventually took her past grain fields and towards an orchard surrounding the nearest town. As she drew closer to the town, she could see the barrels of droppings harvested from the birds being emptied across fields of disease-ridden crops.