His body had barely begun to recognize it was dead from Hex's gunshots when she cast Disintegrate on it. 'No point in making it easy to bring him back', Bliks thought, dipping her toe into the dust that oozed out of the clothing of the former Black Sovereign.
Looking up and across the large chamber filled with panicked guests and now hesitant guards, she was glad she had been able to convince her companions to take this necessary next step. Hex had opposed her, but that was before, and he had been right. Unity posed the greater threat and Bliks had been blinded by the opportunities for a future that, had its plans come to fruition, would have been cast aside as the dust was just now being scattered by her Fickle Winds.
But now that the head had been cut off, the resulting infighting of the Kellild tribes in an attempt to take up the mantle of Black Sovereign would weaken Numeria, and with all of the threats on her borders, this was something she could well not survive. Bliks mused on that for a moment, an impotent arrow arcing across the room from some brave guard not even catching her attention. Eryno began to defensively step in their direction, but the roar of Hex's pistol silenced that resistance. Had she managed to stir up unrest on the borders, against Hex's advice, it could have gotten out of hand. She smiled; Hex would make for a good Black Sovereign.
An offhand wave and she completed yet another spell she had prepared hours earlier, having barely scraped the depths of her ability to not only assault the castle but to deal with what token defence could be mounted before they slew the Black Sovereign Kevoth-Kul. Her voice now magically amplified boomed unnaturally evenly across the room, catching everyone but the Torch Bearers off guard; her companions, the pistol wielding Hex, Eryno our scout and bodyguard, and the spiritual twinned healer Ve'Dien, knew the general points Bliks was going to bring up, but not the specifics.
"The Black Sovereign is dead. The Technic League has been shattered. And the Gearsman Unity who dreamed itself a god, who directed the attack on Starfall from its lair in Silver Mount, has been destroyed." She opened with; the first were indisputable but even the threat of the last was little known outside of a few. That was going to change, as were many of the secrets the Technic League had held.
"Kevoth'Kul was a good man, seeking to make Numeria into the empire that we were poised to be before the Fall of Sarkoris, when demons came to our world. But he was murdered long before today by the poisons of the treacherous Technic League. We all know that it was truly they, not Kevoth'Kul, who have been ruling Numeria for years. With their leaders dead, their base of operations blasted into ruin, and their members fighting amongst themselves, it is now that we must seize Numeria back for ourselves."
"For they hid from us the truth, that we are two people. Kevoth'Kul came from one of our people, the hearty tribes, whose bravery and strength are renowned across Golarion. But the corruption of the Technic League blinded him, and you, to the second people that we are; those of us, like me, who seek to understand the secrets that were gifted to us after the Rain of Stars."
"The Technic League failed because they were cowards and did not see the two people that we are. They sought strength only for themselves, using it to dominate the tribes. But all they did with their supposed strength was to bicker amongst themselves and keep us from becoming who we truly should be, the greatest nation on the face of Golarion. For we are two people, one people hardened by hard ways, one people enlightened by hidden truths."
"Even after centuries the Technic League could only repair what they found; they were scavengers, picking at the surface of the secrets given to us by the Androffans, whose ruins we still inhabit. But I propose a new way. For almost a year now I have been leading followers of Brigh centered in Torch to unearth and master the vessel that crashed there and now with the dangers of the Silver Mount tamed, our research can expand greatly. But the two people of Numeria must cast aside old ways. The tribes must not punish those who seek to explore the ways of the Androffans out of fear of the unknown and the technologists must not seek to dominate the people of the land through the secrets they have found."
"And the technologists will not be the only people to benefit, as they will bring new medicines, weapons, and even allies to our fellow people in the tribes. Gearsmen will not merely be repaired, but built whole and new, to fight alongside our brave warriors. Weapons and armour crafted from skymetal will flow freely to those who need them, and we will craft great tools not only for war but also for peace. Life will spring from barren lands and we will be the envy of all other nations of Galorian; the jewel in the north. We will bring war, not just defence, against the demons on our border, and with the strength of one people and the insight of the other, we will bring an end to this Age of Lost Omens, ushering in a true Age of Glory, the Age of Numeria."
'It was a start', she thought. Not everyone would listen and not everyone would benefit, but the die had been cast; there needed to be change in Numeria as she and her companions had toppled the twin pillars of the Black Sovereign and the Technic League. Perhaps they could import the philosophy of Common Rule from the Republic of Andoran, keeping the Black Sovereign as the head of the military and creating two councils, one composed of the people the other of likely reluctant technologists, to write new laws and administer the hopefully burgeoning nation. For certain they would have to get technical expertise from the engineers of Alkenstar, even if they were working the technology problem from the other, perhaps more grounded end.
But the Androffan genie was out of the bottle and Bliks would be damned if anyone tried to stuff it back in. The Technic League had tried that and gotten nowhere. She looked at her hands, hands that had helped craft so many spells over the months of adventuring with her companions. Those hands would now be put to better use, as magic benefits only the few and the local, and what she sought to create, would transform a nation, and in time, a world.
Looking in the mirror was still difficult for Bliks, because what looked back at her was not who she remembered herself to be. The shape was still there, but the content had all changed. Gone were the sparkling eyes that so enthralled her father and the silvery blue hair that had attracted so many questions in the past, replaced now with solid orbs and an almost alive shock of wires.
Her inattentiveness and faith had bought this appearance. The former from an either skilful or lucky Red Mantis assassin who had struck as most of the unfortunate things that had happened to Bliks had struck, when she had become separated from her companions. She didn't even remember the fight, but her fellow worshipers of Brigh had told her that it must have been brief, as it took them so little time to run to her aid only to find her incapacitated.
And as for her faith, instead of making her whole again through mere divine magic, the local church had concluded she needed to become closer to their and her god, the clockwork god, the god of living machines, and so integrated machines into her flesh. It was an uncomfortable choice, but a wise one she had finally settled upon; how better to know your god than to share in their form? And it had been pointed out her companions were both closer to Brigh, one being an android, perhaps the pinnacle of form in the eyes of her church, the other being quite willing to augment himself to the very limit his mind and body could handle.
Still, looking in the mirror was difficult.
She thought of Hex and Eryno, wondering in which particular corner of Numeria their adventures had taken them to; Ve'Dien, on the other hand had gone off the grid, vanishing deep into Silver Mount on some personal quest she refused any assistance on. There was the initial power struggle that they had all participated in, eliminating the remnants of the Technic League, their allies, and allies of or pretenders to the throne of the former Black Sovereign. And though he was not a Kellid, Hex did fit the model of the stoic even laconic Kellid leader, and after some squabbling over succession rites most of the tribes were brought into the fold. Usually all it took was showing the decadence and waste that Kevoth'Kul had fallen to and presenting both a capable leader and a neutral choice; no need for blood to be spilt when there were enemies aplenty.
Yet as much as she wondered where they were, she was glad of their absence. The link that they had used so successfully had started to invade her thoughts. When she asked the two of them about it, they didn't mention any odd sensations, and if anything, their tandem fighting had improved, with Hex striking weaknesses that only Eryno could have spotted, and Eryno sidestepping Hex's gunfire to great effect and surprise of their enemies. Perhaps she was just more sensitive to it then they were, but when they were near she could feel this constant hum of background noise, her vision occasionally clouding with overlays of what they were seeing, her hearing echoing with her own voice when she spoke to them.
But if she was needed, she heeded her Black Soverign's call. Most of the problems of Numeria could be managed through simple answers, a stout sword, or at the end of a barrel, but for negotiations, technological barriers, or just pure arcane power, Bliks was glad to see a change from the bureaucratic day to day managing of a kingdom.
For all the boredom, there were moments of enjoyment. Seeing the Kellid tribes take up skymetal arms and armour, even if they refused to use the powerful Androffan artefacts, was a warming sight; the few tribes that hadn't be persuaded by the former Black Sovereign's bad behaviour were brought over with these formerly restricted gifts. And while there were still many mysteries hidden in Silver Mount, it and other sites had been opened to exploration by adventuring companies under the careful watch and support of the priests of Brigh; no one wanted to see the release of some horror that had been kept in stasis or the vaporization of the company, the ruin, and much of the surrounding countryside.
Some argued that they were acting no better than the Technic League, preventing the free flow of technology, but there was much that needed to be understood and in that lack of understanding, unknown and unknowable dangers to be met. Indeed, many of the same guards and guardians protected the various starship debris sites as during the Technic League's day, with the same violent response to unauthorized visitors; there were just more authorized visitors.
The Age of Numeria had not yet dawned, but she could see the first glints of sunlight on the horizon. The wilds were still wild but with fewer robotic horrors, their numbers thinned by greater understanding of both their communications and repair which in turn bolstered the ranks of the Numerian army. The land was still reluctant to be farmed, but gave way with the introduction of both new means and methods but also of new, specially designed crops, care of Androffan databanks. And the two peoples of Numeria, the inquisitive seekers of technology and the hardy plains tribes, had at least a kernel of respect for one another's strengths.
Bliks looked into the mirror again. Perhaps someday this will be how all Numerians see the world, not just that which they were given, but that which they chose to make of themselves. She ran a hand through her hair. Though they were wires they were as smooth as her hairs had ever been and she delighted to see them shift and shape themselves to reflect her thoughts.
She decided to make a point to spend more time with Hex and Eryno. They had embraced the link. Now it was time for her to do the same.
The blast that issued from Silver Mount a week ago had caused quite a panic in Starfall. That unnatural mountain of metal that jutted out of the ground, the largest, mostly intact star ship that had grounded itself so many centuries ago, had been the Divinity. While it had been over a year since the mad AI Unity had launched its attack on the city, the people of Starfall still had lingering concerns about any unusual activity from their looming neighbour.
What concerned Bliks wasn't the blast, but where the blast had occurred; secondary engineering. This was the area that had allowed access to the interior of the Divinity, but more worrisome, where Unity's overlord robot had been preparing to launch a shuttle into orbit as part of it's plan to forcibly convert all of Golarian. The guards at this level hadn't reported any unusual activity but were now not responding to her commset. Having grabbed a pair of magnification goggles, she rushed to the roof of the Palace of Fallen Stars, and caught the barest hint of a contrail followed by a sudden if distant burst of light.
Something had been fired from the Divinity and, as she subsequently learned from robotic observers around the city, had exploded high above Numeria. And to top it off, the guards at the engineering entrance had finally reported in, claiming that there were three people, all claiming to be Ve'Dien, in their custody.
All of this had come at an inopportune time. While Hex and Ernyo were in town to meet with the Tribal and People's councils, taking care of much of the day to day hassles she often had to manage in their absence, Bliks herself had been doing some delicate technological experiments as well as the arduous task of creating a Numerian military. Prior to Hex's administration, their nation's defence had been mainly orchestrated through whatever tribes the Black Sovereign could control or directly through the mainly robotic forces of the Technic League, but any weakness in the Black Sovereign or infighting in the Technic League could easily divide them. What Bliks determined Numeria needed was a professional army, and creating such an army, let alone working out its funding and political considerations, had been a balancing act that didn't need unknown factors to be thrown in.
And while the Ve'Diens weren't a political consideration, the blast threw her negotiations into disarray. There were calls for increased patrols over the surface of Silver Mount, and opposing calls for either shutting down all access to Silver or sending the nascent army into the Divinity to ensure complete control, regardless of the risks involved. So it had taken a week of concerted effort, backroom conferences, and late nights to smooth over ruffled feathers, calm frayed nerves, and return Starfall to a relatively calm state. Only then was she finally able to meet with the Ve'Dien trio.
Bliks had ordered that they be ushered to the Palace of Fallen Stars under a shroud of secrecy and given rooms far from the circulation of the general staff. When she finally did sit down with them, she found their tendency to finish each other's sentences and handing objects to one another without looking or asking, both fascinating and unnerving. And while they all looked like Ve'Dien, she had been merely a human, and now there was both an android and translucent cloud versions of her.
"It's so good to see you again Mistress", the android said. The android looked just like Ve'Dien, save for the faint tattoo like circuit tracery on her skin, but dressed as she had done when she had been Blik's personal cohort; a many pocketed long coat, with tools filling those pockets and spilling out across bandoliers and hanging from belts. She had been Bliks' personal confessor of inventiveness, an emissary sent from the Temple of Brigh in Torch over two years ago … and had died at the hands of Furkas Xoud in the Choking Tower.
Bliks shifted in her seat. "I'm sorry I had to keep you waiting so long, there were … affairs of state that needed my attention."
The human Ve'Dien smiled. This was the Ve'Dien that Bliks had remembered most recently, the one that had disappeared into the depths of Silver Mount, that she had presumed had died. Her garb was far more daring, a form fitting white and red jumpsuit of Androffan technological armour with added flared sleeves. "We understand, the rise of the herald must have been disturbing."
"The herald?", Bliks blinked in response. "You mean that shuttle?"
"Oh yes." This time, the translucent Ve'Dien spoke. Bliks knew that it wasn't merely a vapour or a ghost, but a cloud of nanites holding themselves in a humanoid shape. The shape, while clearly representative of the human Ve'Dien, appeared to be more clockwork in profile, and Bliks could see internal workings, shifting, ticking, and ratcheting against one another. She had seen the clockwork automata of Alkenstar City, but never seen through one before. "Before events proceed, our goddess will need a new herald."
Bliks mused on this for a moment. While Ve'Dien had once been a priestess of Brigh and this translucent creature clearly had the shape of her holiness, the human Ve'Dien had seemed to have given up her faith for something more spiritual.
"Why would the Whisperer in Bronze need a new herald? What is there that couldn't be protected by the Latten Mechanism, advocated for by Karapek, or created by Salometa?"
"Mistress," the android said, "you yourself spoke of a new era, which you seek to start as flint sparks a fire. You called it the Age of Numeria, but it will not be what you think, it will be not an age for any one people."
"And so the goddess called to Casandalee," the human Ve'Dien continued the android's thought, without a pause.
Casandalee, the android who Unity had sent forth centuries ago, who had abandoned her master to seek freedom, and who, before her death, copied her mind into a matrix. And whose body, after her death, had transformed itself into Bliks' friend and ally, Hex.
The translucent one said, "And we were both her guides along the path and the trail markers she left behind."
"There will come a time," the human one said, "Where you will feel the need to choose. To choose between flesh and bronze. Others will not even see it as a choice. They will be either flesh or bronze and will broach no encroachment of the other."
Only now did Bliks realize that the android had stood and was resting her hands on the human's shoulders. "Mistress," the android said, "you must be the lock, the gate, and the key."
The suddenness of the descent into imagery took Bliks by surprise. Looking around she saw the lights in the room had unexpectedly dimmed; years of adventuring immediately kicked in. Something was wrong, seriously wrong. She stood with a jerk.
The three Ve'Diens had started to merge. The android's arms were now deeply sunk into the human's shoulders and those two were now shrouded by the translucent one's shape, itself both digging into and taking gear shaped pieces bloodlessly out of the human's body. They spoke with one voice, a grinding and screeching of gears just before they sheared off, "Open the way to eternity. Or howl in the dark. Howl in the dark. HOWL IN THE DARK." The room now seemed to slip out from under her feet, and she called forth a simple spell of displacement, something to get her out of there.
But she did not move. And the room did not move. And the lights were not dim. And the Ve'Diens were gone.
"Technician Volgeling, there appears to be a problem in my chain gun ammunition storage." The metallic voice hummed through the warehouse. It appraised the technician with its singular glowing red sensor cluster.
Bliks sighed as she turned to face the Annihilator Robot. The large scorpion shaped robot towered over her, its skin a uniform black excepting where Bliks had had to make an incision in its armoured plates. This was the second one she had refurbished and seventh in the Numerian army's arsenal.
"Ex a you four un seven, before I resolve your weapons diagnostic, would you answer a question for me?"
The colour of XAU-4-UN-7's sensor cluster wavered slightly, shifting from external consideration red to internal processing green and then back to red again. Bliks wondered if, in those moments, the massive robot was actually blind, shutting off a visual feed so as to devote all of its processing to something else.
"Unless the question has to do with my ammunition storage, answering your question now would be tactically unsound."
"Your model always seems to be focused on threats, has anyone ever told you that? Oh, sorry, that's not a question, or it is, but it's what we call a rhetorical question, you don't need to answer. I mean it makes sense, you are designed as a frontline combat robot, but I would have hoped, that after so many years … " Bliks trailed off.
"If answering your question will result in you resolving the problem in my chain gun ammunition storage, I will answer it."
Bliks heard a distinct clicking from somewhere off to her left, like a series of knives being tapped into wood. The blue glow of TAU-3-UN-46's sensor dome revealed its presence before it pulled its bulk out of the warehouse's gloom. A thin spotlight shone out from that dome, illuminating parts of XAU-4-UN-7's frame, panning over it in an obvious search pattern.
"There's no problem Tau three un forty six. Ex a you four un seven is just wondering about its new ammunition load."
TAU-3-UN-46 looked considerably more alien than its military counterpart. Built as a combination field technician and robot overseer, the Director Robot had been assigned to this warehouse before the overthrow of the Technic League, mainly managing smaller robots and human workers in inventorying robotic parts. A bulbous body mounted on top of four spear like legs, it looked out on the world through a dome on top of a cylindrical housing, but manipulated things using a cluster of metallic tentacles that it could extend from its undercarriage. Bliks could have sworn it also had a dark sense of humour, terrifying newly hired labourers by climbing up the walls and surprising them from odd angles.
"If you do need my services, Chancellor Volgeling, I would be …", TAU-3-UN-46 paused, reminding Bliks that her recently installed interpersonal nuance subroutines might need some time to be fully integrated "… delighted to assist. One of my RNU-1 units is always nearby."
Bliks sighed. Of course the warehouse Director Robot was keeping tabs on her. She had often wondered how it always seemed to know not only when she needed a particular part but have that part in hand. Glancing around she saw a shy two foot long beetle Observer Robot scuttle back behind a nearby crate, its shell already shifting colour to match its darker hiding place.
Focusing back on the looming robot, Bliks spoke again, "Ex a you four un seven, I think, if we can manage, both answer my question and solve your problem at the same time." Bliks stepped over to a large bin filled with small, tapered cylinders pulling one out and holding it between her fingers "Can you tell me what this is?"
XAU-4-UN-7's sensor cluster extended slightly, focusing in on the small object "That is a standard 30×165 high explosive dual purpose shell, designed for use in my chain gun."
"So it is a kind of ammunition that you can use."
"Correct, Technician Volgeling."
Bliks wondered if the robot was worried that it was dealing with an idiot, someone who couldn't even identify the proper ammunition it needed. She dismissed the thought with a smile.
"Now, do you consider yourself to be part of the arsenal of the Numerian Army … or a member of the Numerian Army?"
Its sensor cluster flicked to green again and then back to red. "I do not understand the relevance of this question to the problem in my chain gun ammunition storage."
"It has to do with the nature of ammunition," Bliks put down the shell and picked up a rail gun she had been working on earlier. "You're able to talk to me, unlike this gun. You can decide where to shoot and what to shoot at, again unlike this weapon. And if I were to tell you to do something supremely stupid, you would tell me of its tactical shortcomings, wouldn't you?"
"Correct, Technician Volgeling."
"So there are those who don't see you as anything more than just a gun, a piece of ammunition, something that we would use and throw away if it breaks. They wouldn't see you as a part of the team, a member of the army. And we're going to have to change that. Yes, I know, your primary purpose isn't one of diplomacy or rhetoric, but I will need you and the others in your unit to try."
"Because, you see, we're gearing up for a new fight, and the problem in your chain gun ammunition storage isn't a problem at all, it's a solution. Your standard 30×165 high explosive dual purpose shells have a core made out of steel. We've replaced that with a material we call cold iron."
"And cold iron can hurt demons."
"So, what do you think it means?" Eryno asked, his face sporting a lopsided smile. Bliks had often wondered at the chances of a half-elf, like Eryno, would end up working with an android and a sylph, all having much longer lifespans than the abundant human population.
Bliks sighed. This was one of the challenges she faced in talking with Eryno. Always so focused on the present, where their opponents were, where to go to next, it served him well in dealing with traps and combat, but outside of those moments of pressure, he seemed to lack a sense of focus, an aimless drifting into and out of circumstance. And so it was in dealing with esoteric matters like the prophecies, if she could even call them that, that Ve'Dien had dropped on her weeks ago.
Hex looked over at his two companions, having just secured one of their opponents after stripping them of their gear. The gunslinger proceeded to double check his bandolier of firearms, ensuring each one was topped up in either charge or fully loaded, his hands moving carefully but methodically; this was one of his unusual physical ticks, always checking his gear, but never in the frantic fashion of a man searching for his now missing wallet.
"I think," Hex said flatly, "Bliks doesn't know what it means and wanted to have your insight, even though she hasn't yet asked that question."
"Oh." Eryno said, his expression changing to one of concerted focus.
… darknessnightcoldmetalshroudcapecoverhelmblindstonehard … the words fell over the link to Bliks … howlscreamwindcoldnightterrormonsterreachingchoke … she suppressed the urge to wince; she felt she had to start to get used to this now more than just a hum.
"I don't know." Eryno continued. "I mean, we've both died at least a couple of times … I don't remember that being particularly dark … so maybe it's not about dying?"
"That, I agree with." Bliks said, now cataloguing the gear they had stripped from the Pathfinders. A casting of a few spells allowed her to further break down not only what gear was what, but the valuable from the mundane.
"And?" Eryno asked, having waited a few minutes for Bliks to elaborate.
"Well it worries me that it likely isn't about dying." Bliks said, "Howling in the dark sounds more like torture or despair. And if Ve'Dien is to be believed, that's my fate if I don't 'open the way to eternity' by being 'the lock, the gate, and the key'. I can't be clear if it's something that will happen if I don't do something or if something's coming that if I don't prevent it, that's what will happen."
"Have you considered the source?" Hex asked, picking out from the now collected gear something that had caught his eye.
Bliks nodded, "Yes. She was our companion, my cohort even, for months. But she also went into this place," she gestured at their surroundings, "by herself. We haven't seen all of Silver Mount, what other terrors could be left behind by either Unity or the Dominion of the Black?"
"And Brigh?" Hex pressed on.
"The signs have been inconclusive," Bliks grumbled, "None of our divinations have indicated a new herald, but there's always room for heretics or niche cults. Maybe this is something else, some remnant of Unity that tainted Casandalee, gave her something of the divine but not enough, not yet, to be clear. Time works differently in the outer sphere, it's hard for us to really measure the passage of meaningful events."
"And it could mean all sorts of threats that are looming. Do you really think, even though we wiped out that one enclave of members of the Dominion that they're not still out there? Or that when you blew up that power matrix that it wouldn't have attracted their attention? And outside of Numeria, there are all sorts of different kinds of world ending threats, any one of which could lead to howling in the dark."
One of the Pathfinders was coming around. "What are we going to do about them?" Eryno asked, although Bliks could feel it was more trying to shift focus away from such gloomy future matters, another benefit he brought with his attention on the present.
They had detected the Pathfinders intrusion into Silver Mount moments after it had occurred but hadn't been able to stop them before they had caused an unknown amount of damage. The hologram logs recording the events laid it out fairly clearly. They had bypassed the Divinity drive's teleportation null zone by using some kind of anchor another team had left behind for them and then almost immediately started attacking everything within sight. An entire room of domestic servant droids smashed into pieces because the ignorant and trigger happy Pathfinders had wanted to loot their component pieces. Then they blasted through several doors and, when attacked by a group of Riot Suppressor robots, tried destroying the local robot control panel, apparently thinking that it'd disable the robots. But like a ship whose tiller has been removed, it'll still keep going, as the robots did, and only Hex, Eryno, and Bliks' intervention prevented their destruction. The destruction of the robots, Bliks thought, knowing that was their likely outcome at the hands of these thugs.
"Aside from that one," Bliks pointed to the still equipped half-orc barbarian, "I'm going to be force teleporting them to face unfulfilled justice elsewhere. The rogue, he'll be going to Daggermark; his face should be recognized by the posters they put up for his arrest. Not that I'm fond of sending a known thief into that nearly lawless land, but the museums in Osirion had no idea who had stolen from them so he wouldn't see punishment there."
"The demonologist, despite appearances as a diabolist, will be sent to Egorian. I'm sure the Cheliaxians will be happy to have her back, having likely killed an actual diabolist to secure her identity with her compatriots."
"And what of the Paladin?" Hex mused.
Bliks sniffed with disgust, "They're normally a good sort, but this one either didn't care to or wasn't allowed to dig into their past, a serious flaw in the Pathfinder Society, almost requiring the just to sully themselves if they want to get work with them."
"Overall I'm just disappointed. We allowed them to reopen their lodge in Starfall, we invited them to join us in studying Androffan technology at the Numerian Institute, and this is how they choose to repay us. I wasn't surprised when you pointed out their first bungling attempts at theft, but a few silver disks here or there wasn't something I thought we should concern ourselves with. But this?" She pointed at the destruction the Pathfinders had left in their wake, "This is unacceptable. They could have delved into Silver Mount with a proper priest of Brigh at their side, greatly reducing their risk, and if only they would be willing to abide by our demand of first option to purchase any material and a light handed approach to this ship's precious contents."
"At least their Barbarian showed restraint. Unexpected that. Perhaps we should consider hiring her. What do you think Hex?"
"I'm sure we could find some work, if she's willing. You know the Society won't appreciate this."
"Of course they won't. But the deal I gave them was better than the deal they had, and now that they know what we're capable of, they'll at least be more careful in the future. It wouldn't pay for every one of their agents they send here to end up answering for the various crimes they've committed across Galorian."
A new signal broke through the link, from outside, an actual outside communication. "Sovereign Hex? Am I intruding?" Bliks couldn't put a name to the voice, but certainly one of the guards manning the main entrance to Silver Mount.
"Go ahead Captain." Hex 'spoke' over the link. Clearly he at least knew the rank of the guard, if not their name.
"There's something going on to the north. The men say it's a storm, but the priest says its like no storm she's ever seen. We thought you should know."
Bliks nodded and swept up the gear they were keeping into a portable hole, deactivated the Divinity's nullification field, invoked the phrases necessary to teleport the Pathfinders away, save for the half-orc, and made a mental note to have a team catalogue the wreckage. Putting a hand on each of her companion's shoulders, and they on the still comatose barbarian, teleported them all to the peak of Silver Mount.
Numeria was not a beautiful land. Blasted by winds, sparse vegetation, and lingering radiation from years of broken Androffan technology had not been kind. But it was a hearty place, and if you were willing to work, the land would give up a profit. From this lofty spire, Bliks felt like she could see all of what made Numeria that land that it was.
But to the north was an ever pressing concern. Always just over the horizon but never out of Blik's thoughts for long, was the Worldwound. A massive rent in reality, somehow linking one of the Abyssal planes to the former nation of Sarkoris, it was now a twisted realm of madness and death, where four crusades had tried to push the demonic hordes back and four crusades had merely slowed their endless tide.
And now there was a great dark cloud brewing, shot through with red lightning and flashes of green sky. No doubt the land below the cloud top was being spattered with vile slime or the corpses of incomplete demons, vomited forth from the ever churning Abyss.
Then there was the flash. A golden spike driven down from the heavens into this boiling cauldron. For a moment the clouds seemed to recoil, and then they spilled out.
In horror Bliks' glance turned to the nearby city of Starfall. She could already see the flashes of plasma and laser, the puffs of dirt visible even from here which must have been massive volleys of missiles exploding in the ranks of invaders. And there was no doubt in Bliks mind that these were demons.