A useless hand clawed at the table's leg, he could hardly lift his head. Owain breathed out another curse, Ranni would be so furious with him. He'd died due solely to his own arrogance! Just as the last light was leaving his vision, a pair of small but strong hands hoisted him bodily up atop the table. "Rise, Sentinel. I've need of you yet." His lady Fortissax! She guided his hand as he could no longer see, lifting it to rest upon the golden grace.

Owain pushed forth from the table with both hands, a colossal breath surging into his lungs. He turned to lean, head back, against the table's edge. "Th-thank you, my lady. You have saved me." The woman was already walking away.

"Hither, Wain. We've much to discuss." Owain laughed out a haltering breath, scrubbing a hand over his face. He would have to process his close brush with final death later it seemed. The sentinel rubbed his now returned arm as he followed after his lady.

Once she had secured them in her quarters, she leveled her eyes up at his; nostrils flaring. "I scent your nervousness, commander. What is it that you hide?"

Owain's eyes widened, he'd forgotten her keen senses! How could he tell her what Ranni had done? The dragon would not likely forgive his princess as he had. "If I tell you, you will seek my death, and I can not raise my hand against one I am sworn to protect."

Blue eyes flickered to amber, she brought her face close to his, teeth slightly bared. "Tell me."

"I cannot." He stared straight ahead, he could neither harm Lady Fortissax, nor endanger his beloved.

She turned with a growl. "It was the Carian Princess, was it not? I am no stranger to forced acquiescence." At his surprised expression, she continued. "Who else could ensorcell destined death into the black blades? The only other with the skill is her mother, and her mind was long looned by then." She paced once more. "Princess Ranni loved you far more than she hated Marika, I expect you were not meant to be there that night?"

Owain did not speak for a long moment. Of course one as clever as Lady Fortissax would have solved such a riddle. "I was not. Though, I did not discover that until my reunion with Ranni in this life."

Lady Fortissax halted abruptly. "She lives?"

Owain fought his instinctual glower at the question. "She…remains. Her flesh was slain just as Godwyn's soul. She used Marika's scheme to free her fate from the fingers."

Lady Fortissax's reaction was immediate. Clawed hands grasped his throat, Owain was forced to a knee from the overwhelming weight of his lady's mana. "The hidden half of the hollowbrand!" The dragon gnashed her teeth. "Your princess is she who cursed my love to-to wretched unlife! She stole his true death!" Her conjured claws began to pierce the sides of his straining neck before vanishing, the woman spinning away. "No…no I can not blame the blade for the arm's direction."

As hot blood pooled down the hollow of his throat, the sentinel watched the dragon warily. Gone was any of the gentleness of the human Fia, only the dragon Fortissax remained. "I do not yet understand, my lady. Please, do you possess a way to revive my lord?"

Manic eyes slid to his, twitching fingers closed to fists. "Yes, Owain. I would yet bequeath unto him a resplendent second life as the new elden lord, as the new lord of all those who yet live in death." Her draconic gaze scorched through him. "Reforge the elden ring with a new rune of mighty dusk, one born of me and the lifely vigor of countless champions.

Melina had explained Those Who Live in Death to him some weeks ago, those poor souls brought into unlife from the poison of the mysterious deathroot. "There is a place of safety and comfort for the undead in the Lands Between I will forge. My princess is agreed." He paused, unsure of how to broach the subject. "My lady… even were you to use the practice of deathbed companionship; my lord Godwyn's soul is slain."

Frantic hands closed tight on the fabric of his shirt. "His soul would be returned through the power of the restored ring! Through my sacrifice, my love will live again!" Owain swallowed dryly as the air in the large room grew yet thicker with the dragon's magic.

He gently pried her fingers from his shirt, to hold them in his conjoined hands. "Should this plan prove true, should my lord be born anew without his wife at his side, it would only slay him anew as well. Reforging the great ring would once more pin us under the rule of the Greater Will." He could not bear the growing despair in her eyes. "The Greater Will, the fingers, my glorious tree…they failed to keep safe the peace of these lands."

Lady Fortissax ripped her hands away to begin pacing. "What would you have me do then, Commander? My lord must be revived, these poor souls must be allowed to live freely." She turned to him, eyes brimmed with unshed tears. "I cannot live without my lord Godwyn, Owain. Every second of this second life has been torture! Pain beyond measure! I revived with all my memories intact, sentinel, I was forced to mourn him twice! I-" True sobs ripped from her to be stifled by angry growls.

Owain knelt, fist over heart. He'd left his lady to her grief for too long, Godwyn would be so hurt by his negligence. "Ranni has turned from her Dark Moon, I from my Greater Will. We seek a new path, unbeholden to any god that would subjugate us. Join us, my lady. Together, we may yet find a way to repair these lands, and revive my lord."

She sneered. "You would have me ally myself with she who destroyed me?" Owain spied blood dripping from her clenched fingers. "Alas! Woe! I need her knowledge and your heart." Lady Fortissax pinched her brow, waving him away with a tired hand. "Begone from me now, Sentinel. I must confer with my sister. I will seek you out when I am decided." The horrible pressure of her rage finally lessened.

He rose unsteadily. "Yes, my lady." Owain's heart was pounding thunderously. He'd narrowly avoided death not once but thrice in the span of a few hours.

She'd recognize those heavy footfalls climbing her tower stairs anywhere. Where had he been? It was almost evening now, though perhaps the moon would aid her coming conversation with mother. "Arista, thou'rt dismissed for the day. I thank thee for thine aid." Ranni waved the handmaiden away without looking up from her book. She was grateful for Owain's diligence in selecting new servants for the manor; the hand-maidens had been a great help in restoring her tower and tending to mother.

There was a slight pause in Owain's heavy steps at the archway and a low murmuring of pardon by Arista, before her lover stood before her. Ranni released the illusion of her former flesh. "Where hast thou-" Ranni finally looked up from her text. "Sunbeam?" Why was he looking at her with such watery eyes? Why was there blood upon his shirt? She rushed up from her chaise. "Owain! What-"

The firm but gentle encasing of his arms around her small frame interrupted her. The sentinel buried his face into her porcelain neck. Ranni worriedly patted down his windswept hair, rubbing small circles in his sides with her other hands, as these drstratingly short arms could not reach his back. A small sob escaped him before he clenched her tighter. "I love you." He said brokenly, voice a hitching rasp.

Ranni reared back slightly, floating now to see his face. She softly wiped away the tears she found there. "Thou'rt my heart." He kissed her roughly, like he was afraid she would disappear. She returned it with a twinned ferocity, though it infuriated her greatly that she could not truly feel the sensation.

Only when he pulled away slowly, did she speak. "What burdens thee so, mine warrior?" Barring the reveal of her current form and her involvement with the black knives, Ranni had rarely seen Owain so shaken. He was a righteous force of nature, renowned for his stoutheartedness and tenacity.

He leaned their brows together, breathing out shakily. "My arrogance almost cost me my life, us our future, and our people their dreams." She was silent, only wiping his tears once more. "I walked right into Ofnir's trap; twice!" He scowled, she rubbed it away. "The rat escaped me."

Before she responded, she made sure it would not harm his pride; made sure she did not frown. "We hath had this conversation before, lover. Thou'rt formidable, yes, but thou'rt not unslayable, Sunbeam."

"I-I know that, Ranni. These past months of immortality have left my hubris unchecked. This was a needed reminder of my frailty." Were it so that Owain need not go through such a dire ordeal. She hoped she was comforting him well enough.

With her arms still wrapped around his muscled core, rubbing at his sinewy neck; Ranni would hesitate to ever call her gargantuan consort frail, but she understood his meaning. There was still a shadow in his golden eyes though, more than what he'd relayed.

She squeezed his arms with a small smile. "Hardly delicate." He chuffed out a wet chuckle. The princess leveled her eyes at him, waiting for him to continue.

"The Lady Fortissax knows of your part in my lord Godwyn's death, Ranni. Her rage…she feels Queen Marika is to blame, as I do; though, I will be wary would next we meet. I told her of our plans, that she might ally herself to us."

"What sayest she?" She captured his cheek with a slow hand as he tried to cast his head aside once more. Ranni could tell his misplaced guilt yet ate away at him, he was ever self sacrificial.

His voice was steadier now, though still rough. "She went to take counsel with her sister, though I have hope she will join our cause." Ranni fought the impulse to spout her pessimisms.

"I am sorry. About Godwyn." His fragile smile only made her feel worse.

"I know." He kissed her brow. They stayed like that, silently embracing for many long breaths. She did not release him until the princess deemed him wholly comforted; it was a rare thing indeed that he allowed her the chance to coddle him so.

His steady hands and clear eyes urged her to speak her mind. Ranni gripped his wrist, trying to ground herself. "I am ready to see mother." She sighed into his touch, that she might imagine true sensation.

"Take heart, Ranni. Mother may yet be healed." His tender embraces always betrayed the gentleness his stern appearance hid. She reignited her illusion magic, it would be unwise to allow mother to see her true form just yet. Ranni wanted to allow herself just a few moments to feel normal again.

Morgott had sent them an entire caravan of royal perfumers and supplies, most of which she had put towards the health of her gathered people. A small portion though, she reserved only for mother. Ranni was unsure what Owain had disclosed to the king in his monthly reports, but Morgott was evidently pleased. He had leant them the services of Head Perfumer Tricia, the most skilled of her order and one of Owain's oldest friends.

As she and her sentinel tread ever closer to mother's quarters, the princess grew increasingly more apprehensive. Though Tricia had informed her that mother was now in sterling health physically , Ranni knew better than any that the soul was a separate matter from the body.

Mother's quarters had been painstakingly renovated and restored, though the rest of the manor was taking much longer. At their entrance, the few perfumers and servants within bowed respectfully before departing. Ranni clutched Owain's hand, oh she could not do this!

"Come, Starlight. We shall weather this together." He gathered her into his side reassuringly.

They approached mother's grand bed; the queen did not look so imposing like this. Her long, glossy hair was down, freshly brushed; her piercing eyes closed peacefully. Without the vacant expression that had taken up residence when her father departed, Ranni could almost pretend that the queen Rennala was still the same mythical sorceress of eld, not the heart broken shade she'd become.

They pulled two chairs to the bedside, Owain sitting slightly between she and mother. Ranni breathed out a phantom sigh, slowly before lifting the spell that forced mother into constant sleep. "Mother, Mother 'tis I, Ranni." She went to press a hand atop mother's but halted just short; the queen would feel her porcelain, not her flesh.

Mother's eyes opened slowly, lids heavy, gaze seeking out her daughter blearily. "Ranni?" The queen smiled gently.

"How doth thou fair, mother?"

The queen's eyes slid to Owain, widening in surprise. "I am well, daughter. Though plagued by terrible nightmares. Wain, Ranni did not tell me thou wouldst visit." She laid a slender hand on Owain's scarred knuckles with a smile before leveling a disapproving frown at Ranni.

Alas. Mother was having another fit. Ranni held back the sob that almost tore its way from her mock mouth. Owain's expression pinched slightly, but he maintained his normal low baritone. "I have come on…urgent business mother."

Rennala shifted to a higher seat against her pillows, eyes deceptively sharp. "Urgent? Shall I calleth for Radagon? Loretta? Hath thee need of mine knights?"

The muscle of Owain's jaw jumped, and he glanced at Ranni with uncertainty. Only, she could not seem to make herself speak. Owain cleared his throat as he realized her muteness. "No, mother. We have need of your wisdom; and of your skill."

The queen patted Owain's cheek. "Thou always appearest so beleaguered, mine son. Doth not forget to share thy burdens with thine family."

"I-Yes, mother. You are right as always." Mother smiled softly before her eyes found Ranni once more.

"Ah, Ranni! My sweeting, mine joy. I did not know thou were't visiting as well. Thou so rarely leave thine tower, mine little recluse."

The princess opened and closed her mouth several times but her voice would not appear. The growing panic in her heart was strangling her. She only smiled shakily with a nod instead.

Owain's eyes flickered between mother and daughter warily. "Mother, we need your aid, quite desperately. Ranni…" At her squeezing of his hand, he continued. "Ranni has become trapped in a terrible curse. We may yet have a means to release her, but we have not the skill."

Mother's eyes blinked away their haze, once again sharp. They studied Ranni's form with manic intensity. The horrible weight of the Lunar Queen's unbridled magic began to seep into the air. Mother realized what she'd done.

"What is this?" Mother slashed a hand, dispelling Ranni's illusion. "What is this?" The queen roared.

Rennala bared her teeth, throwing away her covers, she attempted to rise from her bed before Owain gently tried to ease her back down. "Release me, Wain! Who hast done this? Who hast committed such a grave insult to mine princess? Who wouldst dare? I will-"

"T'was I! I cast this spell." The words fell from her mouth in a jumble.

The room was deathly silent. Ranni's heart broke as she beheld her mother's face. It was exactly as she'd expected. Mother looked at her in a terrible mix of confusion, fear, fury; and worst of all, chilling grief.

"Daughter."

Owain tried to defend her, resting soothing hands on mother's shoulders. "Mother, she-"

"Silence, Owain." Her sentinel's mouth snapped shut. "Explain."

And for a moment, she was truly there, the Queen of Caria in all her glory, looking up at her in disappointment. The princess felt like she was a child again.

Ranni felt spectral tears fall down her soul's cheek. She knew she likely only had but a few moments of lucidity from her mother but she could not bring herself to bare her great shame. Ranni looked helplessly to Owain. He enfolded her in an arm, taking mother's frail hands in his other.

The princess took several heavy moments to gather her courage before she began. The tale leapt from her in a rushed babble; Marika's plot, Ranni's scheme. Owain and Godwyn's death. Lastly, the plan that she and her Sunbeam had concocted.

Mother stared at her in silence, chewing her lip. "Thy soul is imperfectly bonded to that doll, daughter. Shoddy magic, unbefitting The Princess of Caria." Was mother truly criticizing her spell right now? She continued. "If Wain's resurrections art true, and the Greater Will fuelest his immortality…This plan may yet succeedeth. I need consult Miriel." She turned to Owain. "Thine eyes yet hold the lingering blaze of unalloyed gold, thou've ever been beloved by thine tree."

Owain finally smiled. "What do you require to prepare for the spell, mother? I shall gather it at once."

The sharp glint of mother's eyes faded dull in a passing moment. Rennala smiled vacantly. "Wain? I didst not know thou were't visiting! Why hast thou brought me Ranni's old doll?"

She could bear it no longer. Ranni wept in truth, fleeing from the room as she once more activated the enchantment to keep mother asleep.

Owain found his princess in her chambers. "Starlight?" He called softly to the vaguely humanoid shape beneath her sheets.

The door slammed shut behind him. The sheets made no movement, but he could tell what she needed. He slowly lifted the sheets of their bed, Ranni's miserable face looked at him in despair. "Don't forsake all hope just yet, beloved. Perhaps Pastor Miriel will have insight that is helpful to us. I've had a Wolfram at his side for some weeks now, he oversees a small refugee camp."

Two of Ranni's hands clasped over her eyes, a third reached out to him. "I'd rather thy comfort than thine optimism, Wain."

The sentinel wordlessly made his way under the sheets, pulling her into his arms with a kiss to her temple. The doll could not truly cry, but he heard her sobs muffled against his chest all the same.

"It is only so-! I just-." She paused before starting again. "I knewest better than to hope, illness such as hers can not be mended so easily."

"Before my death, she was doing quite well, almost hale, darling. I believe she can achieve such peace once more."

Ranni looked at him strangely, a contemplative glint in her eyes. "I will yet find a path forward." She ghosted her fingers to his neck, pausing at his pulseline. "Sweet man, thou've no idea what torment this is." Her voice was a forlorn whisper and it made his chest ache.

He threaded his fingers through the hair at her nape. "You will breathe again, Starlight. You will feel. This I vow." He missed the dimples of her real smile, but her porcelain lips kissed him with all the same sweetness.