Apologies for the delay, but I think I am going to have to take back what I said about a two week update schedule. That simply isn't possible with my coursework if I wish to maintain any degree of quality with what is posted. Updates from here will be posted as they are finished, no sooner.

xxxxxxx

A rubble scattered road took Islidi and Tarin east then south again, the two passing the skeleton of a fallen Pegasus Gate before they crossed into the damp shade of blighted woodlands. The maps marked the realm as Val Paladra, a place of once thriving farmlands situated in valleys walled by blistering jungle. At its heart was the city Frontera, the only settlement in the region that had survived the plagues that scorched both it and its sibling forest of Essenia. Those who remained would not soon forget how narrowly they had avoided their fate, less than a days journey to their north lay the moldering ruins of what had once been the homes of thousands and the center of trade for the region. Now only beasts and Devas lurked in its fallen walls.

Those creatures recognized a world in peril not as disaster but opportunity. The soldier woman knew they lay in wait along the roads and abandoned farms, ready to descend on any refugees or travelers who wandered too close. At Islidi's instruction the two kept to the jungles that rimmed the settled land, and though their progress was slow the thick foliage was enough to conceal them until they reached Frontera's gates.

Darkness reigned about them when finally the shape of the wall appeared, a voice rumbling out in challenge moments later, "Hold, travelers. State your intentions!" from the top of the wall Islidi noted a flicker of movement as a head shifted, rising slightly over the wooden ramparts.

"We've journeyed from Tria through the Outskirts hoping to find some use of the harbors here. Do ships still set sail from your docks?" Islidi called back, the hard journey forcing her to halt halfway through for a caught breath. Exhaustion gnawed at her limbs and the dank air felt thin in her lungs, even in that resting stance the jungle ate at her strength. Furthermore they had lost track of the Eye hours ago due to the thickness of the canopy, though Islidi could have guessed that evening was close on them. She did not savor the idea of spending another night in the wilds.

Tarin had a better chance of falling asleep at his post than detecting a giant lumbering past.

The shoulders and head of a human man burst into focus as a lantern in his hand sparked then flared to life. There was a metallic screech as a lid over its face snapped shut, what had once been scattered rays forming into a single solid beam out of a hole in its front. Said beam swung around to the pair on the road, lingering longer on Tarin by a good three heartbeats than it did on Islidi.

She did not have to ponder long to guess as to why, "We know Devas have likely come knocking on your gates, but he is no threat to anyone. You have my promise!"

"Only enter if you are willing to stake your life on such a claim," the man countered, tone direct and unrelenting in the manner of one prepared to go through with a threat, "As for boats, yes we have a few, though only for those who can provide compensation for their passage."

"I am, and we can," Islidi replied promptly, squaring her shoulders.

He studied them for a moment more before his off hand gestured towards something unseen. A heartbeat of pause followed before the wooden door creaking open just wide enough for a pack laden body to squeeze through. Islidi didn't waste a moment, one hand giving Tarin a hard shove forward as her eyes turned over each shoulder in turn. She didn't enjoy lingering in the spotlight of the lantern, and the conversation had been loud enough to attract the attention of any lurking in wait nearby.

The sorcerer slid in, his face twisting almost comically as he grunted his way through the gate. Islidi let a heartbeat pass before she followed, taking care to make her entry practiced and smooth.

They crossed from darkness into blinding light in the span of a breath. Islidi's eyes narrowed to slits, a hand rising to block the worst of the glare before the blur resolved into torchlight and the figures of several wary guards arrayed about the pair. Many a hand warmed the hilt or shaft of a favored blade, but to her relief Islidi noted that none were yet drawn.

In a fleeting moment her attention wandered outwards past the guards towards the rest of the city. They had lingered only briefly in Tria following the Event, she had not been there long enough to see more than the immediate aftermath. Here the widespread destruction that had followed Balder's sealing was more obvious. Where Allemantheia had been utterly destroyed here the structure of the town remained, though the marks of magic gone awry were obvious. Tarin's disk was not the only arcane device that had misbehaved, everywhere streetlamps once lit by magic remained only as singed poles sticking out of the ground. Mechanical air purification devices, massive steel monstrosities that resembled an oversized Popori carved out of krymetal, had apparently turned into small bombs where they once laid. Where her mind remembered each being there was now only a crater, the buildings all around them scarred by chunks of flying steel. Finally, at the center of town the immaculate fountain that had acted as a meager beacon of hope and normalcy for the residents lay in rubble, the ground about it still looking muddy.

"The Outskirts?" A single pair of footsteps thumped down a wooden staircase to Islidi's right, her gaze turning to take in the visage of the watcher as he descended from the wall to speak to them in person, "We take in many coming down the roads from Bastion, though none have ever told us tales of braving the Allemantheian desert. Tell us, what has become of the city? Are our fears true?"

"If you are speaking of the blast, yes," Tarin cut in immediately, his tone that of a stranger making comments about the weather, "Allemantheia is a melted ruin, I have little reason to believe anything but that it was the epicenter of the explosion."

Islidi drew a short hiss across her teeth as a hand snapped out, smacking Tarin across one cheek before he could even flinch to avoid the blow. "Fool," her eyes flicked between the man and the other guards present as soon as the uttered sentiment had passed her lips. Their reactions were mixed, some simply nodded at the truth they had already accepted, others flushed with rage, and one sank slowly to his knees, eyes brimming with tears.

How to salvage this, Islidi worked to craft the first apology that met her mind, "Apologies, my companion-"

"Don't bother girl, just keep going on your way. Best that we know the truth of it," the watcher waved a hand at her, cutting her off, "We don't have the beds to house you here, but if you leave now then you can reach the docks by true nightfall. We keep those roads clear enough, Devas have not yet managed to push past Frontera."

"Beds or not, I would prefer we were allowed to camp within your walls. We've traveled hard and would enjoy a full night of rest without one of us needing to stand watch," Islidi protested.

The watcher opened his mouth to reply, but another of the guards had their say first, "Understand when you are not wanted, devil, and move on," a woman snarled quietly, eyes riveted on Tarin.

Looking between she and the watcher, Islidi's silent need for affirmation was immediately answered.

"Draw what water you need and go."

xxxxxxx

Chaos had reigned within the Collegium Arcane.

The brightest minds of Arun and many from beyond gathered within the libraries of that esteemed society, for decades it had stood as a repository of knowledge for any who cared to better themselves. It was a final jewel to adorn the famed city of Velika.

Now its shelves were lined with the burnt carcasses of books, blood smeared its walls, and deep gouges of arcane wrath lined the floor and ceiling. The destruction had been allowed to sit, fester, none existed with the will to tend to its wounds, to erase the memory of those who had been lost. Rot and disease grew where the blood had soaked into surviving books, ash spilled to the floor and danced in the air with the breeze of each passing body, and an unwary step would send one tripping over furrows as deep as a hand.

At the center of the Collegium's primary complex five figures huddled around a candlelit table bearing a map of Velika.

"Two more boats from Southern Shara arrived today; more civilians, plenty wounded," the human female who spoke pointed out a spot at the southern end of Velika on the map before her, "High command is housing them in Huntress Plaza. I went among them myself, but none had any news of Allemantheia."

"More of the same? A great blast from the direction of the city?" A male elf inquired immediately.

"Yes."

"We cannot continue to assume that the Mysterium stands, surely they would have contacted us by now," a male human replied, his arms lifting from the table to cross before his chest.

"Always jumping to conclusions...have we made any significant effort to reach them beyond a few basic spells of sending? If there is interference of any sort then such simple methods would be blocked," an elven woman across from him immediately protested, her disk churning in anxiety in a quiet reflection of its wielder, "I must still insist that we send an envoy overseas, and once again I volunteer!"

"You are needed here, Akaria. I desire to know the fate of our kin as much as you, but our duty remains to this place," the elf man continued, gaze wandering to the first man who had spoken, "Tored, have you made any progress with penetrating Velik's sanctuary?"

His clean shaven head shook a single time, "Ciebel was not kind enough to share with me the methods of opening the way to her tower, and I dare not create shows of magic too grand. Sulmar has made that mistake once already..." The Event had taken many of their number within its first moments, disks attacking their owners, scepters melting, staves detonating, but the destruction had not ended there. Many more had been wounded or outright killed as they attempted acts of magic that should have been simple. It seemed the threads of the Dream that had been frayed during Balder's closing continued to sow destruction.

The elf allowed himself a single solemn nod, "Regardless, keep trying. The goddess has not shown herself to guide us and so we must assume that she is in some peril. Find a way in."

xxxxxxx

As foretold, Islidi and Tarin arrived at Frontera's dock as the last ember of Balder's veiled light vanished beyond the mountains at their back. The place they came upon was meager at best, not worthy of a name on the maps by its paltry size. Across Arborea the primary means of travel had always been Pegasi, docks and ships being only of use for fishing or the transport of large loads of cargo. As a result tiny piers such as the one they now stood at littered the shores of both continents but often went completely unnoticed by the world's population. Before them were two simple shacks, one to act as housing for the crew and the other a warehouse, before a simple and run down boardwalk led out to a medium sized sailing ship.

As the moment both shore and dock were at capacity, a crowd of refugees swarming over the sand and water as they all clamored for space on that vessel, their sole hope for passage away from the devastation reigning on Southern Shara.

"We're getting aboard that ship," Islidi growled under her breath, "I'm not going to linger here to wait for another, this is our boat."

"I-I feel urgency about this journey, yes, but are you quite sure we need to go to lengths to get this one?" Tarin emphasized his words with a jutted finger and tilt of the head.

"Look around you. If we wait in line like good little refugees then we will be here for a week," she spat, dark eyes scanning the assembled crowd, "We don't have the food to linger so long, and a gathering such as this will not go unnoticed. Guards at their walls will not keep this road clear for long, Devas will turn this into a slaughtering field soon enough. I do not relish the idea of trying to fend them off alongside a bunch of farmers, smiths, and merchants."

"Islidi stop and think! If they had more room on the vessel they would be allowing some of these number aboard, what makes you think we can get on?" The Castanic quietly inquired.

"Because we will find a way to convince them, now stay close behind me," not wishing to draw the conversation out another moment longer Islidi turned to put the man at her back and the ship ahead.

Halting further words of protest, Tarin shook his head before settling a hand on her pack. His touch was not meant to restrain, but rather to hold on for whatever plan the human was about to put in motion.

Islidi squared her shoulders, set her jaw, and drew both arms up before her. Sucking in a single breath, she let out a feral growl before launching herself into the crowd.

The sea of bodies pushed back, but her entry into their ranks would not be denied. Men and women parted before her, Islidi forcing them aside just long enough for her and Tarin to advance a pace before the crowd fell in again behind them.

Progress was slow at best. The suffocatingly damp air would have been bad enough were it not for the ear splitting roar of the frantic crowd. The forced march and restless nights to bring Islidi and Tarin here had sapped her of her strength, muddied her mind, but she could not relent now. She just had to get them on that ship, just had to get them away from the lands soon to be overrun. Tarin and his 'friends' could handle the rest.

Just a bit further.

Islidi ignored the panicked cries and faint splashes of those unlucky enough to have been at the edges of the dock as the crowed expanded slightly with her passage, forcing them over. They were not her concern, the only one for whom she cared was at her back, her ticket to some semblance of understanding about all this.

They broke through.

Stumbling forward Islidi caught herself as they buffeted past the last few refugees on the dock, all forward resistance vanishing. Two clumsy gyrations of her arms and she managed to right herself, head raising in time to see the chipped blade of a battleaxe snap to a halt inches from her face. Wielding it was a young man, barely more than a lad, his skin tanned from years under the ocean sun and ragged robes holding about his person. To either of his sides similarly armed sailors kept the crowd at bay, menacing them with drawn weapons to prevent any from scurrying up the boardwalk to the overfilled ship just beyond.

On that same boardwalk a figure started to descend, his voice ringing out as his attention settled on the human and Castanic pair, "What the hell do you-"

"I'm here to bargain for passage on your ship," Islidi stated immediately, drawing herself upright and locking her shoulders square once more. A quick look took in his visage; rough and tanned from years of salt spray and sun, strong muscles rippling under a modest tunic, and a gait that suggested leadership. Not the captain, no, but someone who could be negotiated with.

Shock gave way immediately to mirth on the man's features, "Are you now?" An arm gestured beyond her towards the crowds she had just parted, "And what, might I ask, sets you apart from all those else you so rudely passed in order to get here?"

"Quite simply, I have this," her head flicked back, indicating the greatsword hilt over her right shoulder, "And I know how to use it. You know better than any that the seas between Arun and Shara are about to become a battleground. The Devas and pirates know fresh meat when they smell it, it's been what, five days since the Eye sealed? They will be patrolling the seas, hunting for refugee vessels like this one. You need every able bodied fighter you can get your hands on, and I offer both my services and my gold in exchange for passage for myself and my companion."

"Hmm," the man looked her once over again, his mirth creeping slowly into something colder, "Able. Bodied. Fighters...yes...you certainly look one, that I will admit. Bearing like that...Federation trained I take it?" A single one of his digits rose, "But hold on, where is your uniform? I see not the crimson of the Traders, the emerald of the Union, or the blue of the Order on your person."

The hard line of Islidi's jaw grew tighter, skin beginning to flush.

"You hold yourself quite proudly for a causeless sellsword. Either you truly don't believe in anything but your own survival, which you just demonstrated by heedlessly bowling over all of those helpless man, women, and children back there, or," the finger leveled, now pointing accusingly at her, "Perhaps, by the shade your skin just took, I would guess there is a more personal reason. Did they not have need of your 'talents'?"

"You know not of what you-" She started, fists clenching.

"Save it. Instead tell me this, lass. Why should I allow a Federation washout to have a role in guarding my ship?"

Fury rang in her ears, the crinkle of her leather gloves tightening lost to the roar of the crowd and the churning of ocean against shore. How dare he, some salt crusted fool speak to her that way? How dare he mock her so openly in front of so many? How dare he force her to answer such a question?

Islidi's eyes settled on the lad in front of her, axe still held menacingly. He wanted proof of her talent? He would have proof.

Islidi's right hand snapped to the hilt of her blade, tugging it free of her back even as she put her weight forward. The lad saw it happening, saw her body shift, but he wasn't fast enough to stop her before the blade was bared. On the first swing she battered the axe aside, opening up his whole right side to a follow up blow that could have ended the battle with a single thrust.

He was lucky she wasn't out for blood.

Instead the flat of her blade smacked across the man's right forearm where it was choked low on the handle of his axe, forcing him to release it. The axe head thudded into the soft wood of the pier, his trailing left hand clumsily trying to bring its bulk to bear on his assailant, but Islidi would not give him time to retaliate. A knee flew upwards, connecting with his groin to the sound of her savage shout and his cry of pain, the lad doubling over right into the path of her blade.

She had anticipated as much though and was prepared, the keen edge halting at his neck as one of her hands left the hilt to grip him by the back of the head.

A grin spread across Islidi's lips as a deathly silence fell over the scene. Other crewmen who had started to move to aid their fellow froze midstride, the docks full of onlookers hushing. The exchange had lasted not longer than a pair of rushed heartbeats, but the lad was now knelt before Islidi' a blade to his throat and her grip ensuring that one false move on his part would have been his last.

Islidi let her gaze fall on the man who had only just before mocked her before she released her captive, the blade swinging back to thud into the dampened wood of the dock. A single breath passed her lips, then, "You should let a Federation washout on because one is still better than any of your crew. Do you have another I should demonstrate upon?"

"What did you say your name was, girl?"

"Islidi Longshade," she breathed, her eyes not moving.

"Welcome aboard, miss Longshade."

xxxxxxx

Hundreds of feet drummed their way over steel, hundreds of voices cried out in combinations of terror and barked orders.

Still none of it could rise above the keening roars that thundered behind them.

Khasir didn't look back. The Aman soldier rushed forward, pausing occasionally to lend aid to a fallen refugee or fellow officer but never turning his gaze back towards the gates of Kaiator. An avalanche of refugee and resident alike scurried from the southern maw of the Fortress of the North, putting the terror behind them.

Gods the sound, great slumbering Titans the sound. Kharsir had no words with which to describe the fury that laced those high screaming roars, he had no way to describe the terror that cut through him to the very bone.

The best way he could express it was by running.

Run he did.