Morning arrived with pale light filtering through his window. Cel’s door opened onto the corridor just as another door down the hall did the same.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHr8Lplgau2
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMDlMYHVqE
Lior emerged, wheat-blond hair sticking up at odd angles, still rubbing sleep from his eyes. He looked up and his expression shifted immediately - first recognition, then shock so complete it stopped him mid-motion.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvp0FZDqPtD
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNmooxBNVY
“Cel?” His voice cracked. “What—your throat—“55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XG1aZJgJh
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuAgZNtYd06
Cel’s hand moved automatically to his throat. His fingers found the thin line of dried blood he’d completely forgotten about. The cut wasn’t deep, but it had bled enough during the night to leave a visible mark.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVEbCYy4IET
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjB8f3mVJDR
‘Shit.’55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsZVglgx0NK
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNG94nqghb
“It’s nothing,” he said quickly. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ38C7XOhOkF
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa2wNK8eLOS
“Nothing?” Lior crossed the distance between them in three quick strides, eyes wide with something close to panic. “You’re bleeding! Did you—were you trying to—“55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGR7nKwRi5
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ44VoQiDqHx
The implication hit a moment before Lior’s voice broke completely on the unfinished question.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMYrNrPAoun
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VFjr5rYR8
“No.” Cel raised both hands, palms out. “No, it’s not what it looks like. I wasn’t—“55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLJIe7XT2Ha
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDV3X9Jcuz
“Then what happened?” Lior’s sky-blue eyes searched his face desperately. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgc2LyiVhNx
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmKomSuyW5p
The truth was impossible to tell. A lie was needed.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPceju7S4dg
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxnbER4dPL
“I was testing something,” Cel said. The words came out awkward, stilted. “With my artifact. Wanted to see how sharp the edge was.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVYFYmxH5h9
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeJgtDV30nP
Silence stretched for two full heartbeats.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuuut35QaqE
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiyLfuvcIEU
Then Lior’s expression cycled through confusion, disbelief, and arrived at something that might have been horror.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrVOSQmp4vj
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSNSHNgFnf
“On your throat?!”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoRhE8ZX7R
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdr1nCKuHRG
The question came out half-shout, loud enough that a door down the hall opened. Someone peered out, saw them, and quickly retreated back inside.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfQgZw9Lnt2
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJA3WhLGCj
“I just—“ Cel scrambled for something to make this seem reasonable. “It seemed like the best way to—“55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvH6EVriD0
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZf9tQQL97T
“The best way?” Lior stared at him like he’d announced plans to jump off the Academy’s tallest tower. “You put a blade to your own throat to test if it was sharp?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMlEBCQDg64
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMT7ca0OX0p
When phrased like that, it sounded even worse than Cel had thought.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi40l9J6SvR
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSXPL6Jvy2J
“It was controlled,” he tried. “I knew what I was doing.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0KZWNSMaCH
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWppKUkOHfX
“Controlled.” Lior’s voice had gone flat. “Right. Very controlled. That’s why you’re bleeding.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wipn7gZ9g
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqjas9QuL1X
Cel opened his mouth. Closed it again. No explanation was going to salvage this.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwN3JcSWSVd
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbEttz0SWL
“Look,” he said finally. “I’m fine. It’s barely a scratch. And I learned what I needed to know about the blade’s edge, so—“55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNvEBCWT1Y
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kO6etRx4V
“You’re insane.” Lior shook his head slowly. “Completely insane.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Blywj8WJ3
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguqhlLb0Xh
He reached out and grabbed Cel’s shoulder - not aggressively, just a grip that suggested he needed something solid to hold onto while processing what he’d just heard.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmjWSaaAwE
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ00q5jCkuot
“Promise me you won’t do that again.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcsKR29Wv7H
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBNlsA9hBZW
“I promise I won’t test my artifact’s sharpness on my own throat again.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpsQ4MpKxY
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72jDmBdvkj
Lior studied him for a long moment, clearly trying to determine if that answer was sufficient. Then he sighed, releasing Cel’s shoulder.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiOXymLykt5
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPdfgO6lk8k
“We should get to conditioning,” he muttered. “Before you find some other creative way to kill yourself.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxnZgG05TH
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ht3Tjx7JA
They walked to the training grounds together, Lior occasionally glancing at him with lingering concern. Cel kept his expression neutral, relieved the conversation had ended but acutely aware that his reputation for rational decision-making had taken quite some damage.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡifDjAsziEr
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4vChXy3S6D
The day passed without incident. Dawn conditioning proceeded as it always did - bodies moving through drills, Instructor Calder’s voice cutting across the yard with corrections. Theoretical classes filled the morning with information Cel already knew. Combat training in the afternoon tested basic techniques against partners who couldn’t push him far enough to reveal anything.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLixMfNBgT
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2g0rApw9UZ
Through it all, Hestia occupied her usual position. She took notes during lectures. Participated in drills with her typical precision. Never looked at him. Never acknowledged him.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdhvu9GcNTJ
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBuI5lcuwW
It was almost worse than confrontation.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7EZzafRtb
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA650WcnAdX
By the time afternoon classes concluded, tension had settled in Cel’s shoulders like a physical weight. He needed to move. To do something other than sit and wait for Esrin to either confirm or deny his story.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLj4Ozbybq
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6Cf3OIspL
The Reckoning’s hideout waited.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOJGNtuHqI
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91gMwiyI2S
Esrin had told him to arrive at sunset two days hence. Today was that day.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7mv84uHXI
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ11N3U4xmxN
Cel left the Academy grounds through the main gate, nodding to the guard who’d come to recognize him over the past months. The city sprawled before him - broad streets branching in every direction, buildings pressed close enough that their upper floors nearly touched.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVq1gxvqNvL
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKKzfHMuyjD
He moved through crowds with practiced ease, tracking landmarks from memory. The fountain with the cracked basin. The bakery that always smelled like burned bread. The corner where street performers gathered each evening.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZnhuEaa7L
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkAgGTYZPxN
His mind turned to what waited at the end of this walk.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFIve0YpBBr
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNZrQW8utNk
Death’s Friendliest Face.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8DaMioJft
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDnPSK7ukg
Wrath’s Only Daughter.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAfSi2SUsz
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR6KZJPouaf
Two members of the Reckoning assigned to train him. Two people he’d met only once, during that initial gathering when they’d voted on whether to let him live or kill him immediately.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsZ94JmtkVE
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vqUfi1GYG
Death’s Friendliest Face had voted for him joining. He remembered that much. Still, the contradiction of his codename was unsettling - what kind of person earned a name that paired death with friendliness? Someone who killed with a smile? Someone who made dying seem pleasant?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCYefh84Dz
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtklxLkgNKl
He didn’t know. Couldn’t know until he met them properly.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1K4p0Nqn9j
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFfoLyVl1w
Wrath’s Only Daughter was clearer in his memory. She’d voted for his death without hesitation. Her hostility had been palpable even though it was their first meeting. Training under someone who’d wanted him dead seemed like an efficient way to end up dead, just delayed.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqL5qwBcESk
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSAEDEPiiO5
But Esrin had made the assignment. An opportunity to grow stronger. Refusing wasn’t an option.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSKBGkraPW
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYl5nXBELv
The bar came into view as he rounded a familiar corner.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbLLoFI63aL
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdf0cOJs5r6
It looked exactly as it had that first night - weathered wood, grimy windows, a door that hung slightly crooked on its hinges. The kind of place that was abandoned long ago.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwERLeplqzl
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyWy3OGUWEW
Cel approached and reached for the handle.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8mefBz0Bry
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvnuvtr1R0l
Locked.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXFrADq3sa
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5olwIWJw3
He pulled harder. The door didn’t budge, resistance firm under his grip.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FeOSRPOZO
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtitFobwofR
Cel  stepped back, frowning. Had he missed a specific time requirement or something?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHEd3rJzVu2
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHA81Jiv22
He grabbed the handle again.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqsdqFBwMBJ
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8U1Q66umNn
Only this time... he really pulled.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTPQCQb2Rvp
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9B85iabc3l
The door flew open with enough force that he stumbled backward a step.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXfZfn8NaXm
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpq3dxQsk7a
Not locked. Just stuck.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYHRnL0eQ45
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZz7nU6e2la
Heat crawled up his neck as he glanced around to see if anyone had witnessed that display. The street remained mercifully empty.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUenKHbnoE
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKq2kOmN81S
He stepped inside.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLxtrKIjMhO
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOlzAcYP6If
The interior matched his memory - cramped space, handful of tables, bar running along one wall. Just dim light filtering through boarded windows and the smell of old wood and older alcohol.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG67axf1VG
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYEHFt1uL0s
Cel moved deeper into the room, scanning for anything that might indicate where to go next. A hidden door. A symbol. Some sign that this place connected to the Reckoning’s void-dimension manor.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlUn2egEHnw
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC9Ojml9aCl
Nothing.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡedeEeL9A1Y
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrhfm47R1A
He stopped in the center of the room, precisely where he and Esrin had emerged from the rift that first time. The floor looked like floor. The air felt like air. Reality seemed entirely intact.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8AQfsY3yIx
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZct7i0xyaA
What was he supposed to do now?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHbykRwRrZ
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Sjy1pl3RO
He extended his hand slowly, fingers spreading as if he might touch something invisible. His palm met only empty space. No resistance. No tingle of energy. Just air moving past his skin.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKOWa1oNZt
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXeVd3TMZi
“Open,” he said quietly.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8VFOzNBas
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhzsyEKDogQ
Nothing happened.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lBOSeFgVc
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ20aEbC4QSN
“To the Reckoning.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc2k6R9dUo6
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpF1Rj10pMP
Still nothing. He felt ridiculous, standing alone in an empty bar speaking to nothing.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4oSFEmlOIz
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXluCiCdpZ9
Maybe there was a phrase. Something specific that activated whatever mechanism Esrin had used. But she hadn’t told him any words. Just said to come here at sunset.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVNfwQuLsgd
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh1lkBQkGD9
He tried again, cycling through possibilities. “Show me the way.” “Grant me passage.” “I seek the Reckoning.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBl1rZ7M9JC
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIK9Qfodj6
Each attempt landed in silence.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7rfT4fud5
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj5ekBCCJb6
Frustration built in his chest. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGg7oeEu3Wb
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPnpj5iLld9
Then a thought occurred.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsNbd00deND
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9a7uzCZowq
He’d summoned Silent Moon thousands of times by now. The motion was instinctive - not words but intent. A reaching inside himself, a calling forth of something that existed in a space adjacent to reality until he needed it.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqYUCvq92K0
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWmo959EBnM
What if it worked the same way?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuE0Q3ePB1l
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK0kKSiPyHR
Cel closed his eyes. Breathed. Let his mind settle into that same space he accessed when summoning his blade.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr65GDu7eR7
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmOOcatoOe
But instead of reaching inward for Silent Moon, he reached outward. Toward the space where Esrin had opened her rift. Toward the connection that must exist between this location and the void dimension.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMx7rBjuTbY
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jPtgSHRGQ
He focused on that intent - not demanding, just... requesting. Asking reality to part so he could pass through.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB27BVNtRpp
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2MpEfjXsVS
Something shifted.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡznpti2MBAu
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTbNBeCJJY
His eyes snapped open.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFApPAZ4nJb
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIzWf8ESGMO
A vertical slash hung in the air before him - violet light bleeding from its edges, energy crackling across its surface in patterns that hurt to look at directly. Small, perhaps the height of a door. But unmistakably a rift.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ81cSrB1MLH
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWAaiRYc2f7
Cel took an involuntary step backward.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXLTgAhuJl
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9b5N9TRV7Q
Reality had just broken open in front of him. Torn itself apart because he’d asked it to.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9q12WhTTO
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZD8QmVFxkx
The rift pulsed, patient and waiting.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxhjwcyy56
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PdgBwj5FR
He studied it carefully, taking in details that his panic had obscured when watching from a distance two nights ago. The violet light wasn’t uniform - darker at the edges, brighter at the center, shifting through shades that had no names in normal spectrum. Energy crackled across its surface in branching patterns, like lightning frozen mid-strike.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNeVfNtHLi
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRDb6CfhMM
It looked almost exactly like the rift that had opened outside the city walls.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtrVzeBG4QY
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQuqsWhzp5
Just smaller. Controlled. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3zB7DEVGk
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFoLLwk4D6
But fundamentally the same.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMKmlPN7x6t
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfSkUZJGtUr
Cel’s breath caught. This wasn’t anything the Empire taught. Rifts meant disaster, not possibility. They were random tears, dangerous openings to be sealed with human lives.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDALwbpWbc
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqo2xmSXnIi
What did it mean that the Reckoning could simply create them on demand to use them for traveling?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdtAF0z3Q8A
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4EYnkEA3rR
Questions for later. If he survived whatever training waited on the other side.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1szo9AkBT
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWOoCSM2FwN
Cel stepped forward slowly, approaching the violet tear. Up close, the energy made his skin prickle. Not painful, just aware. Like standing too close to a fire or too near the edge of a cliff.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzHNVq4M7p6
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEIDTKLDtrW
He extended his hand.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6OooWsrMn4
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt30pNjMSp9
His fingers passed through without resistance. No sensation at all - his hand simply disappeared into the violet light as if it had ceased existing from the wrist forward.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdlNPHmiOdF
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZxRqWYVZk1
He pulled back. His hand returned, intact and unmarked.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwWpIGMVIT
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPj7PVNpHhI
‘Alright.’55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlO0bIgKg3Q
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBefE5QfrTz
One deep breath. Then another.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNGmRO5lBO
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZn08aiNWq7
Then he stepped through.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRWN1wxzzVX
1234 copyright protection51ＰＥＮＡＮＡmAvECfrWJj 尼

216.73.217.114