Journal #68: Return of Black Marble [Text Roleplay]

Black marble. It always came back to black marble.
The icy portal hadn't been gentle with Aniks this time; hadn't let him fall out onto a beach of soft sand or into the bed he'd been given during his last stay. No, he landed hard onto the cold marble, at the feet of Pharasma's Herald.
The Steward's gaze was colder than the floor, the red glow of her eyes practically boring into his skull. "Get up."
 
It’s gone. Winked out of existence, as Aniks fell onto the black marble floor. That mental connection Celuriel and He shared because of those magic rings. Snuffed out like a candle’s flame between pinched fingers. She didn’t make it this time.
That was his first thought as he was once again in the Boneyard. The drow rose up, where once there might have been a glare toward Herald it was dulled. Not even looking at the Steward. Aniks doubted he was back because Skein wanted to “just talk’ after his most recent death. There might have been a tiny spark of rebellion in his golden eyes, but his mind was preoccupied with other thoughts.
 
The Skein didn't seem to care about his lack of emotion, not that he could properly tell - the sharp metal of her helmet and shadows concealing her face prevented most attempts to tell what the Herald felt. Her arms were crossed across her chest, sharpened gauntlets tapping an impatient beat. "You found a Shard. You hold weapons powerful enough to destroy it. You let it go." With each sentence came the sound of metal scratching on metal. The Steward's wings flexed, ready for flight. "Why."
 
"Do you want to know or Pharasma?"
 
"The Mother of Souls requests answers, Champion."
 
“We still have not dealt with a single one Skein. None of them are gone, not really. The Gem now fuels the Blade and is loose in the world. We have bound Iomedae to The Unbroken March for what might be an eternity. The weapons we have would only do that same to Norgorber and Cayden. We were told to deal with those artifacts. Without knowing the what, the why, or even how to deal with them. Just that Pharasma wanted them dealt with. So why didn’t I take that chance to mark another one of the shards of our list? I’m not willing to sacrifice our lives in another fight that would have to lead us to our graves. So *please* tell me how we screwed up this time.”
 
The Skein's hand slammed into Aniks's face with some heavy force (25 damage her red eyes flared brighter for just a moment, but stopped short of causing further damage to the Champion. "Countless undead are being allowed to run rampant because I must provide help to you. Threads of fate that should be no longer are because I must be here instead. You will not waste my time with petty sass." A beat of her wings pushed her back from him, putting a few paces between Champion and Herald.
"You chose to land in circumstances that would provoke a fight if you followed our Lady's will. You chose not to invoke help. You chose to accept the offering the Shard gave you without question. Must I go on?"
 
“Chose? You think I choose that?!” Aniks said, pulling a bloodstained hand away from his head. Golden eyes now practically burning with anger. The drow knew he couldn’t face the herald and win. Maybe on a really good day, but not today. Definitely not today. Still, the distance between them was noticeable, and Silver’s weight on Aniks’s side became very apparent to the drow at the moment. “Neither… Neither side could agree on an outcome, because each of us thought we ‘knew’ what was best for dealing with the shard. Use it, Study it, Test, Destroy, Save, Cure the shard! The ONLY thing we agreed on was to deal with it after we removed it from that castle. And I HAVE asked for help, but you’ve shrugged at me. While I stood here in this room asking about the fate of another champion I made a choice. We stood in front of the Harp and I made a choice to not sink a blade into it. I have made mistakes, gods I have made many, but I try to choose what is right! ‘Neutrality, at these times, is vastly more important than you'd ever be expected to understand.’ Pharasma herself said that. So how can I be neutral without knowing about the shards? If the first response is to destroy them then there is no neutrality in that. That does not mean I agree with how things ended, and without question? Ha! Skein do you think me blind to trust her so COMPLETELY! They are dangerous to Istralar, I have not forgotten that. We are in desperate need of a history lesson, what we have learned cannot be taken as absolute fact. Life is never so black and white, and still, gods have yet to tell us their side of the events. For one reason or another, I do not care, but I’ll be damned before I have to bind another god to those shards for what might be an eternity when there might be other options we just don’t know about!”
It had been a long time since he accidentally slipped into Undercommon.
 
The Herald let him rant. She stood still, tall and silent, until he finished - then let the silence hang in the air, tense and electric.
It wasn't her voice that broke it, nor her footsteps that sounded against the black marble from somewhere behind Aniks. The voice was unfamiliar: warm and rich, echoing in the open space as if it sought to fill every facet. "The Herald has no time to understand mortals or their languages, Champion." Its owner stepped past Aniks's side, pausing in stride halfway between he and the Herald. Whoever they were, they were at least roughly humanoid in shape - the implication of clothing hung on a featureless form, blank face turned more to the Herald's direction than to his. Two stag-like horns rose from its head, each orbited by a golden halo of eyes.
The Steward stood for a moment longer, glancing between the two. "Minder," she said warily, addressing the newcomer. "This is no trial."
The faceless creature nodded to her, eyes blinking out of turn. "My sphere becomes involved. She has allowed it. Would you?" The Steward considered them briefly, before once again closing the distance between Aniks and herself to more gently flick the Champion on his forehead. Positive energy, the sort that burned through his veins, rushed through Aniks at her touch - she'd healed the damage she'd done - as the Steward of the Skein turned back and faded from view, draping incorporeality and invisibility about herself.
Leaving Aniks with this newcomer, who now paid him more attention. "You did make choices, Champion, realised or not. You choose to ask and think. You choose to wait and watch. You are mortal. The choices you make dictate a thread of fate, flawed or perfect. This is the case irrespective of decisions made. You request history? You wish to avoid determining the fate of gods? How fateful that we meet now." The figure gave him a slight bow, all of its eyes focusing on Aniks. "I am Saloc, Minder of Immortals. Your speech on neutrality intrigues me. Your soul does like defying expectations, doesn't it?"
 
A cold breath was let out as soon as the Herald left, releasing some of the tension he had. Aniks could still feel the imprint of leather from Silver’s hilt on his palm. A small part of him was shocked that he had been ready to fight the Herald. Then his body relaxed, and sooner or later the adrenaline would fade.
“I ...thank you Saloc.” Those last two words came out exhaustly, it seems that spark of anger had drained him completely. That and Aniks thought he covered all the basic answers the Herald would have beat out of him. Even if she couldn’t understand it. But would he need to explain that to Pharasma again or did she already hear it? Given that he was in the palace he didn’t know. Aniks paused giving the faceless figure a more proper bow than the Minder of Immortals gave him.
“My soul? I couldn’t tell you how it’s defying expectation. It’s just there… well, I’m just there. Sorry...normally I would introduce myself, but you already know me it seems. What would you like to talk about?”

The usher spread their hands wide in an open shrug. "It is hard not to know the soul of a Champion who has both lived so close to me and who stands for the Lady of Graves. Not to mention the rest of your soul's intricacies, of course." If they could smile, they would. "There are many things I could ask you. Let's start by asking for your opinion on what occurred with Champion Ypolita: it was intriguing, wasn't it? What made you decide how you did?"
 
Aniks’s eyebrows furrowed thinking about the champion “I’m not sure...not about why I chose to save her, that I know. What happened is the concerning part, or more so how it happened. This version of Ypolita has yet to sacrifice herself to contain the corruption of Tenarul. She was from a period of time where arcane magic started appearing in the world. The Inheritor’s champion could channel her gods powers without an issue, She was clearly from the past. Ypolita also saw things as they were or would be for her.”
Time manipulation on this scale was alway a bit hard to grasp for the drow. The Fey did it once, this was sort of similar in a manner of speaking. Just she was sent far further into the future than they had been. Aniks scratched his head thinking.
“I don’t know how the shard managed to pull that off, but it did. However the shard tried to kill her. When I died and came here during that fight, I could still feel it’s attempts. If I could feel that, across the planes in this room. If this truly was Ypolita from the past, she couldn’t be allowed to die. It wasn’t the proper place or time, to have the shard undo her sacrifice was not something I would allow. So I choose to help her. It just worked a bit too well. I didn’t get to check if anything had changed, that was only ten minutes ago I think. But now she’s here, connected to the present day Iomedae. I can’t say or explain what happened here. She's just here now.”
 
They nodded, contemplating Aniks's answers in a silent pause. "Connected to the present Inheritor in her current form, at that, and not the Inheritor alone. The skeins of fate must be quite tangled for Pharasma to call multiple of Her ushers into the matter, and I can see how. You returned for a time before you were called back? What was behind the choices you made, with the Shard and your unlikely allies? They have continued the path without you, but you were there when the most important decisions were made."
 
Ebony fingers brushed through his hair as he thought of how to answer the Usher. “Answers. I wanted answers. With every step we seem to be going further and further into the unknown. We’re far past the point of no return when dealing with these artifacts. They have to be dealt with. Still the Shard wanted to show us a story from their perspective but why? It’s still only half the story. The world seems to have forgotten things and I don’t want to make mistakes that could change the future because I was ignorant of history lost or hidden.”
The Barkeep felt or more actually became more aware of the inconspicuous black blade on his hip as he mentioned changing the future. “I will not make decisions alone, when there are other champions who walk the same path as I. If I must I will but that was a moment where we could learn. For now we know where the shard is. I have my concerns but we have a way of dealing with it, if it comes to it. Even if it means binding another god.”
He didn’t like that he said that or meant it. “ Ypolita’s resurrection, does she have to return to her time?”
 
"Would you have succeeded if she were meant to?" Saloc responded, his arms spread in a shrug. "You chose to invoke deific power in a mortal choice, all of you, just as you have before. As you will again, no doubt. It wouldn't be the first defiance by mortal hands. More importantly: do you want her to return? I wonder if you know the consequences in your choice, if she stays?"
 
Aniks remained silent. “I can’t see the future, but our choice has been made. I stand by mine. I’ll deal with it later. As for returning, as long as her barrier stands, I have no issues with her staying unless the ripple becomes a tidal wave.” Aniks shoulders slumped Another thing to think about, when had life become so complicated. “Was it Pharasma who wanted to ask my reasoning behind what happened thirty minutes ago? Or was Skien showing her disdain for me dying once again.”
 
"Her barrier?" Saloc seemed amused. "Interesting questions, Champion. I think many people want to know your reasonings right now. Mortal ideas are hard to predict: your wills are far less tied to the things we see, after all. The Steward acts on the Lady of Graves' will, whether intentionally or not: both could be right, to some extent. As could be 'neither'. Sometimes, fate wills something to happen entirely of its own. What do you think your friends will do with the Shard now?"
 
The drow paused for a moment. Both his hands brushed through his hair and sighed. " I don't know. Question it hopefully, but I am concerned. The Shard had a moment clarity, but said the 'shadow' was coming back. Whatever that means. I suspect they would revert back to the shard instead of the personality. That icy elf knows too much and had the chance to learn more because the demiplane is his, I wish I had more time to question the Shard..." He paused for a moment "As for my reasoning I... they can ask me what they want. Skien and I just have a very interesting relationship, so my response was less than perfect."
 
"More time, Champion? Ice freezes and magic pauses. You've found quite an interesting temporary method for buying more time without even realising it, haven't you? Very interesting." It was impossible to tell what emotion Saloc displayed at Aniks's ramblings, but the eyes spun loops on their halos. Something had definitely caught his attention there. "Would you like little facts on why the Steward grows so annoyed with you?" He didn't wait for an answer, stepping away from Aniks to gesture to the marble stairway they weren't far from. "The Steward sees threads, and you are an infinite source of tangles both as you are and as what you will be. The Steward sees death of her fellows, and you dance with death more often than you believe. The Steward is also hard to get along with and cares little for the mortal world, to which you remain linked. On a similar topic, the Steward likely does expect you to speak with the Mother of Souls within your visit - do not feel any need to rush, but take care not to forget."
 
“I was not aware of that, but that was not our doing. That was the work of the Azsire. I glimpse his soul, unsurprisingly it was covered in ice. So his mastery of ice is not unexpected, but if it was pausing magic like you said and to see ice on his soul. Clearly A champion but it’s too… specific” Aniks went silent for a moment. Crossing his arms, putting a single curled finger to his lips, storing some thoughts in his head. He shook his head for a moment. “Sorry, too much information the past couple of days I haven’t had a chance to write everything down yet. Haven’t had time to think.”
A smile came across his face “That’s interesting, but shouldn’t that be the same for most mortals? People are constantly changing, shaping the world and events around... ” Then the drow paused for a moment, shoulders dropping like some more tension was released. He honestly couldn’t really deny how odd *The simple Barkeep* had become. He couldn’t claim to be mortal, not after what he’s seen and done. “I… am the champion of Pharasma with a shattered and broken soul. The Irony is not lost on me there. Still unaware of how, but I think I know when. I’ve tried to steal a Shard when it’s being reforged by reaching into the Void. Which gave me this,” he flicked Silver on the hilt. “Traded away the Championship of Andirifkhu to another, Celuriel protected me from something but she never said what. With some mist from another world being around me or something like that. But I’m digressing, infinite tangles seems a bit much. Especially for one person, even if I get myself into trouble. In regards to my future and what I will be, whatever that might be. At this point I think asking for a normal life is out of the question. Still I assume I can’t ask what I will be, infinite tangles probably mean infinite outcomes. Or problems”
He started walking slowly to the path Saloc showed him “Your welcome to follow if you have more questions. You’re much better at conversation than Skein and I find this enjoyable. It’s nice to know more Ushers. I didn’t meet all of you my last stay. As for my meeting with Pharasma, It might be a bit selfish and a bit childish but I don’t wish to spend that long here. I want to return to my plane, and spend time with Celuriel. Need to speak with Ypolita to make sure she is okay in this new world she found herself in. Family matters and figure out what to do with… the dragon egg”
He had to resist touching the egg in his bag, if it was a psychic dragon esoteric dragon whatever it will be hatched. It would be really difficult to protect.
 
"A champion? I see you have a lot to learn still. You'll have your time to think, Champion, do not worry." Saloc was unnecessarily cheery about that. His cheerful tone maintained even through Aniks's interesting levels of self-introspection. "You were correct, by the way. Predictions are not in my portfolio, but I know the viduus scribing for your group. They haven't been so busy since the last large batch of your rank. You'll find a way to muddle through it all eventually - our Lady would not have chosen you if the choice didn't serve her well."
 
That could be a concerning sentence, considering Pharasma's most famous domain. Saloc seemed unbothered, if amused at Aniks's haste. "Time will work with you as long as the Mother of Souls wishes it. You have no need to hasten, but you should go to Her if that is your wish - I won't follow, it isn't my place to. Did you meet Vonymos last time you were here?" Bouncing from topic to topic seemed a skill of the usher's, if this were any indication. "The Mourning Storm is keeping an eye on your Celuriel and compatriots during your stay, and likely after. An interesting choice, don't you think?"
The drow had paused turning back to the Usher, his foot hardly had been on the step for a second. “Not a champion, an Avatar’s chosen then. Clears up the affinity for ice. We were never given a proper name for the Galasthin Elves and their connection to that entity.”
Fully turning now he sat down, both his elbows on his knees. He was going to finish at least some of this conversation before talking to Pharsama. “Before I continue on topics you’ve spoken of, we have failed to talk about my stance on neutrality since it peaked your interest. Especially since I will be talking to Pharasma at some point during my temporary stay. That aside, I have only met a single Usher I think in my last stay. The Mourning Storm was not one of them, which if I recall correctly that usher deals with the… nevermind. It is an interesting choice to say the least… As for the people they are watching, infinite tangles doesn’t that apply to the other Champions as well? With the ability to channel a god’s power. No matter how small it has to give a similar effect. I cannot be the only one with that problem. Which leads me to another question about former champions...”
Say it Aniks easier to ask them than Pharasma.
“Am I Pharasma's first champion?”
 
"Each Champion is as a storm to twist fate, you aren't wrong," Saloc admitted with an open shrug. "You are twice-marked and four times sought, which does complicate your presence, Champion. Their souls are not so confused, either."
 
All of the Usher's eyes blinked twice at the question. "Hmm. Our Lady has not told you? It is usually the realm of other gods to gift the mantle of Championship. She and her equal have each not Chosen in the permanent pasts. They have the right to step around the first agreement, after all. Does this... Ah, but I think you should ask these questions to Her. I have kept you overlong. Are you ready?"
 
Her Equal? Four times sought? Andirifkhu and Pharasma for sure. Aniks thought, two others, somewhere in his head he knew one of them without having to think about it. The last thought? Aniks was too tired to attempt to figure that out. For now. That question, his last question was. While Aniks couldn’t put it into words. He wanted to know, there was however a fear in finding out that answer.
And he wasn’t sure what that answer meant, so he stood up. Giving the Usher a proper bow.
“I … no, she has not told me about this. Saloc I thank you for your intervention earlier and our conversation. Perhaps next time I am in The Boneyard I will have a better chance to continue this conversation. I believe I am ready.”

Something gave Aniks the impression that if Saloc could wear a smirk, there would be one on the demigod's bizarre features. The Usher nodded to him, eyes swivelling and blinking. "It's always a pleasure to speak with interesting mortals. Seek me in the Tumulus if you feel inclined to answer more of my questions when you next find your way here. For now, I wish you luck with what you would ask of our Lady." He indicated the stairway and the sleek doorway that stood at its top.
There was no room for more words, at least not to Saloc, for when Aniks next blinked - his eyes reopened to an empty room.
 
"I'll keep that in mind." Aniks said to the room at large. However it was empty and he was alone. So he did the only logical thing and started walking up the stairs. So he could have a conversation with Death.
 
With the absence of both the Skein and the Usher, the Spire was oddly silent - a silence that seemed to press down on Aniks's lonely words and that chased his echoing footsteps up the stairs. The doors soon loomed above him, taller than ever necessary.
A whisper on the edge of the silence: We're here. We're helping.
 
The pace of his stride didn't change. The Echoes being the only thing that accompanied him left the building feeling empty. For a moment that is. The whispers were new. Again he didn't stop, but he did look around mid walk in an attempt to find where it came from.
 
A giggle - childlike, if anything - caught the very edge of his consciousness. Nothing physical, nothing present - just a ripple of audio to accompany his walk.
The halls remained empty to his eyes.
 
There was a sigh for a moment as he slowed his walk. Despite the Herald wellness to fight, Aniks did feel safe-ish. Now at least, and a laughing child wasn’t the creepiest thing he’d seen or heard in this spire. He pulled a bit on the soul domain of Pharasma to see if he was truly alone.
”Do you want something?” He asked.
 
A bright light flickered - dazzlingly bright - for.. maybe half a second before ducking out of his view.
It was a female whisper, young and highpitched and very much childlike. Careful, careful! You'll hurt yourself, and our Mother wouldn't like it. I just want to watch you. Aren't you going to her?
 
Recovering from the temporary blindness, he rubbed his eyes. Not exactly what he expected, and after a moment of running through her words in his head at least twice.
“I *am*...” Aniks blinked looking at an empty hall. The bright soul light had stopped him, but he continued walking. Slower this time. “Our mother? I was unaware I had a new sis. One I don’t know the name of?”
 
Another giggle, as a cold and small, painfully small compared to his, hand wriggled its way into his, its owner materialising with the contact.
A child, no more than eight years old. Ashen skin, greyer than his own, with loose curls of white hair and matching white eyes that seemed alert with curiosity. Her dark dress trailed against the black marble. "I'm the last sister," she declared with a smile, her eyes flickering between Aniks and the door separating them from Pharasma. "You can call me Atropos if I can call you Aniks?"
 
“You can,” Aniks said, leaning down to be at similar heights to Atropos. She looked so much like her mother, far less intimidating than Pharasma by far. Still the similarities were noticeable. The drow gave the last sister a soft smile, “You know I am not your real brother Atropos, despite the similar hair color. Why do you think she is our mother?”
 
She beamed back at him, entirely amused at his question. "Silly. She chose you, so you can be my brother if I say so. And she's the Mother of Souls according to a lot of people, so she can be your mother that way too." The Usher's words were light and childish, but that didn't mean they weren't spoken by a being with endless experience. "Unless you don't wanna be the first chosen son~?
 
“Hmmm...” Aniks pondered for a moment looking at the small child. “One more sister couldn’t hurt, and I happened to like Pharasma.”
 
"We'll need to come up with a title for you!" Atropos said, continuing to keep up her bright smile. "Well, you've got Champion already, but that's not unique to you. Maybe we can ask Mother, since you're talking to her anyway. Oh, but do you have any ideas?"
 
“I’ve never really been good with naming on the spot. I can give it some thought though, I don’t think this needs to be done today does it?” The drow admitted sheepishly. He looked back to the door for a moment “Wait *we*? Are you going to join me while I talk to her?”
 
The girl considered his questions for approximately half a thought, then shrugged. "Not today, no! But it's nice to do things in a timely manner, so I'll think about it even if you're too busy with all the other things you have to do. We have... well, I can't just tell you how long." Her free hand tapped something glassy and invisible at her waist. "Long enough, of course, but anyway - do you want me to come with you? I don't have to~"
 
Aniks stood up looking down at Atropos “I guess some things are better if they are a surprise huh. You can come if you want, I have no issues with it.”
 
If the satisfied look on her face was anything to go by, that had been the answer Atropos wanted to hear. She squeezed Aniks's hand lightly. "No being needs to know when their end is, it'll just make them stressed," she said by way of explanation, and glanced away from him to peer at the door. "Of course I want to come. I don't know what Mother has to say to you and I know she's listening but I need to tell her that you're my brother now, too! Oh, but she wanted to speak to you, so you have to go first."
 
There was a small laugh which left him with a genuine smile. “Why am I not surprised she’s listening. Well I’ll see you in there sis.”
 
Atropos rolled her eyes. "Is this why the Steward thinks you hit your head? Seee me? I'm holding your hand, silly little brother, we can walk in together! She's just waiting for you to open the door~"
 
Aniks raised the hand in question “ Ah it’s been a long day, sorry.”
So Aniks walked to the door, to open it with his new sibling.
 
The door, predictably, opened at his touch, soul-deep creaking echoing about the halls as it opened into Pharasma's throne room. A familiar place for Aniks, and one swelling with power even now. The Lady of Graves was evidently in attendance, but for once, there was no overpowering compulsion to kneel or look away. The goddess's presence threaded through the atmosphere just enough to bring the promise of Her power to the forefront of Aniks's mind, and lingered there. Lurking, not acting. Neutral. Was it that power that prickled against his neck, or the sensation of being watched by eyes unseen?
The Lady of Mysteries sat atop her throne as usual, that much unchanged. A soft ticking emanated from somewhere behind her, though her attention was focused more on the Champion and his Usher companion than either it or the black rose that twisted in her hand. "I have decided to allow my Champion the opportunity to speak first," she said, expression inscrutable. "Speak what you will, Champion."
 
Walking a handful of steps into the throne room the champion closed his golden eyes for a moment. His breath cold and it entered his lungs and as he exhaled. Being watched wasn’t a new feeling, only moments ago he was being watched by the girl holding his hand. Still Pharasma, his goddess, was the only thing he needed to focus on, at this moment in time.
“Thank you. There are many things I wish to ask. We have heard much but I fear we have learned little. When we set out on our journey to deal with these artifacts, these fragments, we knew nothing. Other than they needed to be dealt with. We understood they were dangerous but did not understand why. Never questioning why the Mother of Souls wanted them destroyed, the answer we thought was obvious at the time was disrupting the natural balance of souls. Which might have some truth in it, but certain revelations leave me questioning. Was there more to this. These fragments, I understand, are dangerous. We have seen what happens when they are left alone. We have yet to truly remove any one of them from the material plane. The Blade has consumed the Gem and is loose on the world, The Inheritor now battles the Unbroken March in a manner similar to Seren and Marvaeth. The Harp is stuck in a demiplane but easily retrievable. You told us off six but there might be an unaccounted seventh. So the first question I ask you, knowing I likely will not understand all the motives behind your reason is why? Why do you want to see these fragments destroyed?”

Next to Aniks, Atropos drew in a sharp breath - and released a bubbly giggle, her free hand covering her mouth at the passive stare the noise earnt her. She looked up at Aniks. "Oh, you've got a lot to say!"
The Lady of Graves didn't seemed perturbed either by Aniks's speech or by Atropos's interruption, instead taking her time to consider a response - one that would be measured out, word after careful word, when she had decided. "A full accounting is not within your measure to receive. To comprehend. You are mortal. There are limits on what your mind can hold." She held his gaze. Cold. Dispassionate. "You have learnt by the will of your earthly guardians the beginnings to this conflict. You are aware of what the shards were and the power they hold. You recognise similarities in the situations but you do not understand the difference." She paused to ensure he followed her train of thought, then continued without hesitation. "Whilst a force exists that will undo the bindings of fated existence, the fabric of the Material Plane risks its thread. This is the destruction I seek: elimination of this planar threat. Should the Inheritor claim victory, the March will be re-bound."
 
One thing at a time Aniks some of these are more important than others.
Another breath, another statement. “The Unbroken March was the one shard that has technically been dealt with. At the cost of one of the weapons, I wonder if there is another way to deal with these shards without having to bind them to a god. I do not doubt Iomedae can handle this task, as well as the others. Still a fragment that has been re-bound serves what purpose? Stopping this force, this planar threat? I assume a connection between those shards and the threat you spoke of given you wanted us to destroy them. Yet I do not know what it is. Is it just some destructive force caused from leaving these shards unchecked on the material plane? Or is this something else or someone else behind that force and the shard are just some other piece of the puzzle. Could be neither.”
 
Atropos looked between her Mother and declared-brother with a look of patient understanding. This time, she didn't interrupt.
"Each shard has been unbound from its rightful fate. From what should bind them." Pharasma treated each word as if it held infinite weight, her expression as intense as before. The ticking clock behind her echoed in her punctuation. "You learnt of six shards. You raised blades against six shades. You come before me, and you speak of seven." With the finality in that sentence, it seemed Pharasma deemed this an adequate answer. She turned her attentions elsewhere. "The shards must be destroyed or rebound. Fate requires power. Power lost in their undoing. Power that must not be reclaimed, but provided anew. You speak of the Harp." It wasn't a question. It did, however, require an answer.
 
“The seventh did that? Unbound them.” How? Aniks whispered more to himself than to Pharasma. He was still unsure if he could say that name, the seventh would work for now.
“The forme… the current champion of Iomedae, Ypolita noted that she expected seven there. One ran away, as it always does. The Harp in its moment of ‘clarity’ explained that seventh was the reason for their transformation. Which included itself. While the information cannot be trusted at face value, I do not think it should be overlooked either. Especially if that were to be true, we run thin on options to deal with them. At most without any guidance two more, then were left searching for another way to destroy or rebind them.”
 
"The seventh has caused more trouble than you would ever understand. Freeing its influence granted the Harp clarity to answer you with the truths she knows." There was something odd in the goddess's tone, some dual-level of comprehension. She did not clarify. "Seeking an exact measure by which to destroy the shards has been a task left to the Champions for good reason. You have obtained the assistance of guardians best suited to learn and teach without risk, and in doing so expose them to your own mortal dangers."
"And our immortal dangers," added Atropos, with a significant glance at Aniks. "Mortals like playing with the shards sometimes."
 
What topic next, when will she start asking questions? She likely heard most of what I said in the hall with Skein. Aniks thought, then....
“Twice in our trials of The Harp we saw or learned something only champions reacted to. The question and the shadow. Why was this the case?”
 
Pharasma raised an eyebrow. "You dart from topic to topic without diving deeper into nuance. You see only the surface with your eyes. This is why you struggle to find your truths." She looked away from Aniks for the first time, meeting Atropos's eyes for a flicker of a moment. The girl gripped Aniks's hand tighter when Pharasma looked back to him, inordinarily grim all of a sudden.
"No deity should allow their chosen to be corrupted by a shard's reach. You receive our warnings and commands for the sake of your salvation. It was not Champions alone that felt the second instance, but the realm itself."
 
Aniks paused for a moment then sighed with a smile. Which despite the smile, Atropos likely felt his hand tighten slightly before relaxing. If he was going to ask now would be the time. “I am unsure of how much I am allowed to say. The Seventh’s name? The other side to the story of the Betrayers. The implications behind the question and what that means for the third brand of magic. Desna’s Champion was met with disapproval for lack of a better term when she began asking questions. So forgive me for being unsure, the topics I wish to question and dive deeper into might have certain restrictions. Am I allowed to speak freely in this throne room?”
 
"Nothing is restricted for a mortal to speak to his goddess, save that which he feels is unwise to suggest." Pharasma said coolly, her expression unmoving. "You stand within the heart of my palace, at the foot of my seat of power. At the precipice all souls find themselves. Foolish would be the one to question your right to speak." It... didn't sound like that message was meant for Aniks. Yet that feeling of being watched, that odd tingling - lessened. "Words have power. In this place that power means little. Upon the Material Plane, it could sway the balance from its precipice. Consider that as you speak, Champion of Souls."
 
Golden eyes rapidly darted around the throne room, empty save for the three he could see. Quickly dragging them back to his goddess, his eyebrows slightly furrowed at the first part.
“I will remember that then. The question said a god gifted arcane magic to the world. Regardless if this was true or not, the way it was described by Iomedae’s Champion sounded completely different from the arcane magic we have today. Corrupting the world around it, something happened to it, changed it after the fact. At least I think so. While I would like to know why or what the change was, I am more concerned for the outcome of people or otherwise who display an affinity with this psychic magic. If history begins to repeat itself, and physic magic has this original corrupting nature similar to arcane magic from before the worldrend. I would like to assume the gods would not repeat that portion of history but that is a just assumption. I have hope in this matter given that psychic magic has been around longer than I originally thought. But only time will tell.”
 
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Tick.
...
Tick. Tock. Tick.
 
Neither Pharasma nor Atropos cared to react to the skipped beat of the unseen clock as Aniks finished talking; the former's expression had not changed, whilst the latter was still standing firmly with her mother's champion (and her newest brother). "No single pantheon of deities wishes for the same outcome as another. The actions of the gods should not be assumed by mortalkind." Pharasma remained as cold as ever, even as she rested her hand atop the hourglass at her side. "Corruption is a word used in many ways. Magic is change. The magic of minds remains susceptible to influence from what your kind term the occult just as the magic of gods is tinged in divine will. You have lived long enough to see the fickle actions of mankind. What do you believe will occur at the rise of incomprehensible powers? It has already begun."
 
This time the drow’s head tilted, eyebrows furrowing at the ticking started again. What? In a moment. Aniks thought to himself. His eyes very much looked at the hourglass for a moment, after the ticking continued then back to the goddess who held it.
“What I believe? Anything from scholarly study to systematic slaughter. Mankind is fickle and each person would react differently to such a power. Form groups of similar ideals about said power…” Aniks shook his head. “If that’s the case, then time very much will tell what mankind will do. I failed to ask this properly: was arcane magic a gift to mortals?”

The clock stalled once more - a tock unheard amongst the ticking - as Aniks's question hung in the air. This time, Atropos tilted her head, giving her mother an inscrutable look. Pharasma gave no reaction to it, again, instead evaluating Aniks almost clinically. Her words were, as ever, considered and sharp. Doubtless she had already Seen how this would go.
"A gift, a curse, a reward, and a punishment. Each individual from the lowest mortal to the highest deific power views it with their own interpretation, no matter their role. Many of these offerings are granted to mortals. Mortalkind did not start out with the gift of fire, nor did you claim feelings of hope or despair. Neither were gifts that shook the branches of creation. Changes to the fabric on levels almost unparalleled are rarer than you can conceive of, Champion, and bring with them challenges you cannot understand."
Enough with the Arcane Magic questions Aniks thought, history will help but it won’t help immediately. Honestly he wasn’t completely sure where to go from here. He had questions, plenty of things he could ask. It’s what he should ask that was the problem. With the information overload, from the battle with the shades of former Gods, to Ypolita being removed from her place in time. Any question could be important, but would it help the other Champions. He had to change questions.
“Some of the others have made it clear they want to restore the shards back to their former selves. Is that even possible, I don’t want them exhausting themselves, expending all their time and effort on finding something that might not even be possible given that gods themselves said it would take a miracle.” Then he paused, visibly confused. He had noticed it before but twice? “... Why does that keep happening, that hesitation in the clock?”
 
"The clock reflects the shudders of time." The goddess's words were spoken with heavy finality, but Atropos frowned. The child's whisper echoed inside Aniks's mind.
"You're asking big questions. Fate needs to be Seen before some can have answers, and--" The mental communication dropped sharply with the shift of Pharasma's gaze from Aniks to her daughter. Atropos looked adequately chastened.
"I shall speak more clearly, lest Atropos find the need to clarify." Pharasma continued, as if she hadn't been virtually interrupted. "A rebinding is needed prior to any redemption. I have spoken on the necessary power involved in this. If the intent is to maintain the shard, the power needed would not be the sole requirement. Danger lurks in their existence. That threat must also be nullified. Just as their destruction is a pathway you must walk without full guidance, so is the ideal of restoration. The consequences require forethought, if this is to be your path. Do not assume all are the same in their nature."
 
The Goddess's comment about time left him visibly confused, why was time shuddering? How is that even possible? Then he remembered magic was a thing, and was still confused. Solas said ‘time would work with you as long as the Mother of Souls wishes it.’ So what purpose does a stutter serve? Was it because he mentioned Arcane Magic? Then his golden eyes only looked at Atropos after she stopped speaking. Giving the child a small squeeze with his hand. Even if she was a god, he’d seen parents scold their children before. He had been one after all.
“So we must find our answers in destruction and redemption elsewhere. If my companions do not choose the complete destruction of a shard. Then before any action we take they must be bound. Whether by borrowed power or another undiscovered method that much has to be done. Or the Material Plane will suffer the longer the shards remain unbound from their proper fate. Makes sense given their effects on ley lines, warping towards where the shard had taken root and the fact they can warp reality. How do *we* bind something like that though, you said we must have the help of these Guardians? Those are the people chosen by Avatars? To further help us understand how to bind or destroy the shard?”
 
"Make no assumptions of what I say, Champion. I do not order you to seek guidance." This time, Aniks had earnt the 'parental' rebuke. Pharasma still seemed neither pleased nor displeased. The eternal calm was likely a perk of deific power - and her lack of humanity. "Again, I provide clarity. Those chosen by, and those who are, and those who shall perhaps be. Those fallen, those enslaved, and those mortal lives touched by whispers. You have gained many allies and acquaintances in your quests. Some shall guide you where you wish. Others shall see you fall. The title of guardian is one to be claimed by many, most of all those earthly guardians that wish to interfere and aid you."
She let Aniks think on that, smooth voice ringing out in the echoing marble chamber. Still empty, aside from them. Atropos returned Aniks's grasp in the same moment, her smile more fixed.
The Afterlife's architect continued without warning. "Seeking aid is a forgone conclusion. It was upon your agreement that their moribund son sealed your unsteady prize. You would not succeed, now, without their aid. This decision was yours. Yours are the consequences. You must now answer to me. I will continue to allow your questioning. Do not avoid mine." She didn't wait for an agreement.
"By what motive do you seek a method other than destruction?"
 
Aniks went silent, the question asked was one similar to that of the Herald. It took a moment for the drow to gather his thoughts on that matter. ‘His motives’ in the past two days the drow was forced to reexamine this quest.
“I want to make sure we have every option available to us. As we will eventually run thin on options to deal with the shards. This task we have been set on is understandably more complicated than we originally thought it was. While I do not completely agree with some of my companions' desires to heal these broken and forgotten gods. I can understand why they would want to. But I will not stand by and let them spend an endless amount of time on healing *just* one, when others are still remaining in the world. The longer these Shards are left in Istralar the more dangerous they become, the harder they are to deal with.”
Her Champion paused looking at his Goddess “Dealing with the Shards in a similar manner to how we have with the Unbroken March is the easiest path, but it is clearly not the only one we need to take. While I could have done similar to The Harp, but I was not willing to sacrifice my comrades in order to do so. The agreement we have with that other group was the best we could come up with. Given our circumstance at the time. I cannot tell what will happen because of it, I can not see the future. However destruction of the shard is a path I am *willing* to take, if it allows the best chance of success. However I cannot ignore any additional paths if they could deal with the shards in a proper manner.”
 
Pharasma nodded once. "Your reasoning is yet your own. Your sense remains comprehensible. Do not forget that the Shards each have influence of their own. Record your findings and justifications, Champion, and review them as you progress. I spoke before on this: no deity should allow their chosen to be corrupted. Learn avoidance before intervention is needed. You have already lost one ally. This is not a mistake you will repeat."
 
As before, she waited for him to process this before continuing. "You have yet to seek methods of sensing a Shard's influence, barring the Champion of two. I sense that you have much more to ask: do not include this in those questions. This is not something for you to ignore, but something for you to learn of by other guardians."
 
“That bard is already lost?” Aniks said, not that he’d expected otherwise. He willingly sacrificed himself to the Harp but...Right time passes differently in Boneyard. An hour in here could be seconds or days. It might not have been as instant as Aniks thought. Or it was, the Shards were former gods. He could check once he was finished with some of the tasks he needed to do back in the material plane. “After dealing with the Gem of Life I started recording my thoughts into a journal the night we returned from the Boneyard, and have been for a good while now. As for sensing the shards, I have met this Samsaran, Jinne, with a silver orb that reflected the world's ley lines. This gave me an idea on how we might track the shard’s influence on Istralar, but this will not help on a shard's effect on people. I will have to look into that more, and need to research ley lines as well...”
 
Then a thought formed in his mind, one that might be rather important in the future. “Is it possible for you to tell me *how* exactly we temporarily removed The Seventh’s influence from The Harp. Did we do anything specific we could replicate?”
 
"We have spoken about your assumptions, Champion," rebuked Pharasma, her gaze cool - the room's temperature dropping slightly as she spoke. "You record much - this, I have seen. What I do not see is the verification that all is as it should be. Study the past. Learn from it. You will not find the best resources on a world's veins in any book. Nor will you find many warnings of your encounters hiding outside your own."
Atropos raised her free hand, waiting until she received a nod of approval to speak. She looked at Aniks. "You need to talk to the other gods, too. They have things they won't tell other gods, but you're different! Champions are different."
"Atropos is not wrong. Seek the pathways that will give you knowledge. Regarding the seventh - you should recognise the answer to your own question. They must be broken of strength and will, as you have accomplished thrice. For each success, expect the next to be more of a trial. This foe is not unintelligent."
 
The drow nodded at the two goddesses as they spoke, listening carefully to the two of them. He’d have to take advantage of something Pharasma had told him for his last question. His next questions were not about the shards. They were about *her* specifically “I doubt you would find my next questions surprising. In various ways Ypolita, Saloc, and even from your daughter, I learned you have not chosen a champion before. When I asked The Minder about being your first champion he had said something interesting to me. I believe it was... ‘It is usually the realm of other gods to gift the mantle of Championship. She and her equal have each not Chosen in permanent pasts, They have the right to step around the first agreement, after all.’ I am unaware of somebody who is your equal or what this first agreement is? Which other gods seem to be bound by, but not you or this other? What I should have asked back then was why you had chosen a champion *now* not why I was chosen.”
 
 
 
"The Minder speaks to you of deific business. You would not be the first mortal to hear of it, thus he deemed it fair to speak of. This is not a question you have need of me to answer: the annals of your own histories will hold the answer. Atropos." Pharasma gestured for her daughter to answer, eliciting a small smile from the girl in question. She turned to Aniks, rocking back on her heels.
"When mortals were still young on their worlds, it was really common for gods to touch the worlds themselves. We directly interacted with mortals, we manifested ourselves, we created miracles and disasters - we changed whatever we wanted. And mortals loved it, mostly. Their prayers could be answered directly, if they were dire enough." Atropos spoke quickly, with all the airs of someone reciting from tales of eld, rather than with the emotion someone who'd lived the experience. Not that she hadn't.
"But... you know what gods are like, a little. Some couldn't hold back. Some destroyed whole worlds, or gave their favoured species unfair dominance. Some punished too much, others granted too much. It wasn't really chaos, because the gods of law wouldn't let it be, but the gods of chaos wouldn't let it be law, either. And caught in that mess, mortals had so little will. It broke into a divine war, and that fell into a binding agreement. We would never interfere like that again." Atropos looked solemn enough whilst speaking that, but any lasting solemnity vanished immediately as she grinned at Aniks.
"There're exceptions, and a lot of terms, but that's all the complicated stuff. The big exception you care about is Mother. She's got to be able to intervene directly sometimes. Death doesn't have limits. And... it's the same with Time, isn't it?"
Tock.
Pharasma raised her hand. Atropos fell silent, though certainly didn't stop smiling. The elder goddess remained as passive as ever. "By making a choice, I right an imbalance. By making a choice, I state my position. Your task is one beyond the axes others focus on. My choice enforces that amongst mortals and the divine, and prevents your fate from being seized. You continue to seek to understand motives that stretch beyond your capability of knowing. Take care with your words, Champion."
 
Time? Pharasma has been spoke with Time itself? Aniks looked at the small goddess. Aniks’s curiosity had gotten a question to slip through. Though it was more of a string of thoughts he had than question. “Your right… Wait, are they a god? Or Time itself personified?”
 
Then Aniks straightened looking back at Pharasma herself. If anybody would know his last question she would. Still there was a bit of hiestation, he’d gotten quite good at avoiding “ “ or finding work arounds to thinking about… what it was.
 
“Before my final question, I must apologize for interrupting any conversation you were having with Pharasma prior to my arrival. I thank you for being patient with me. This question is more of a personal matter, and it’s the reason why it’s last. I have struggled to speak about this topic, or even think about it. So I now must take advantage of the fact we are in your throne room and may speak freely, My Lady. There is a haze across my memory, not caused by Celuriel when she was a Vetala. It happened when I had met the Lost Ones for the first time. Something, Someone came into my life. My soul sundered, my memories hazed and I was removed from reality according to them. Despite having some vague memories of being with them, I have no memory of being removed. I would hazard a guess all three are connected and happened when I disappeared the first time. It had stopped A demon lord from claiming me as her champion. And has tried to stop any mention of its existence. I know I could channel on your powers to attempt to remember exactly what happened but I worry about the outcome. I wish to know who or what that entity is, why my memory is fragmented, and how my soul broke if that is the case.”
 
His eyebrows are furrowed, Aniks wanted to know this. Even if the information hurt him to know. His grip tightened slightly as he had asked. Aniks had cast a stone across dark unknown waters, completely unsure of how Death would answer.
 
Atropos chimed in first, granting the elder goddess time to consider her response to the needy mortal by answering about time. There may have been some irony there. "Time is! There are some deities who come from beyond this universe-- and sometimes beyond all creation? And time is one of those, in a way. That deity - that manifestation, since it's both and such - it's... not really one you want to think about, or draw attention to? We've kept most information on those away from your plane for a reason: don't try to learn more about the elder ones. Don't look for more on Yog-Sothoth. It's not safe, even for you."
 
The words rang into a stifling silence, into which not even the clock tolled. Pharasma's voice cut through the silence as a scythe, sharp and measured. "If you were a true deity, full many of these answers would hold greater learning for you. You stand here with the beginnings of power, granted to you by powers you know not, and wield an infant's understanding of what you ask. Like the children of your kind, you do not comprehend the danger you risk in the asking. Your memories hide to protect you from their knowledge. Atropos speaks of elder deities: it is their most powerful that could provide understanding. And yet you have your own tasks and mission. I will not see the whispers of Time take my Champion from his task. Know that you will know your answer. In time. It is Written. So long as no act can see Fate break that thread."
 
*His question would be answered*. Eventually, the amount of relief that gave him was good though the concern did not leave. Just lessened for now. The Drow thought that might be the answer, and expected the bit about his memory. As usual, when talking with the oldest being in existence, he was left with more questions than he began with. The wording of her reply to his last question toyed with his mind. This time he had answers and some direction for his quest.
Then there was the third unseen entity in her throne, and how could even process that? An Outer God? He had a book about cults and had vague memories of that name Yog-Sothoth. He’d only looked at the book once but that name was mentioned. Her Equal. That was information, but he wasn’t sure what to do with that. Instead, he’d listen to both goddesses, as Elder Gods were not beings he’d *want* to know about.
“Thank you, My Lady. I am grateful for what you have answered, and I will not forget the task you have set for us. ” Aniks said with the addition of a respectful bow to the Goddess. “If I may, I would like to rest now.”
The Drow waited to be dismissed, still holding the tiny goddess's hand.
 
"You will listen once more, Champion." Still watching him, still holding true that eternal neutrality: Pharasma did not seem to care for his exhaustion, nor for her daughter's curiosity. "The goddess Desna seeks audience with her champion. Speak with the girl once it is done. You will earn much knowledge for when next you set foot in this hall. Atropos. I shall allow this decision to pass until my Champion returns. Do not forget this, Champion."
 
Atropos looked equal parts happy and uneasy, glancing between her mother and Aniks as if she were on the verge of saying something; a simple look from her mother seemed to push her into staying silent. She squeezed the Champion's hand, and took a step back.
 
Pharasma nodded once, resolute, and spoke with finality into the oppressive silence. "Go, Champion. Return to your partner, and return again to your task. Do not return until you have acted or learnt."