Nysari was a short, petite woman, and Tatiana might have mistaken her for a fourth-year student if she hadn’t known better—if she hadn't been expecting a foreign noblewoman of not inconsiderable strength and influence. She had pale skin and red eyes, as any demon, and straight white hair that fell to her midback. Her robes were gray and unadorned. Notably, she had no crimson facial tattoos, which Tatiana thought odd for a demon of the First Blood, who normally adhered to cultural norms much more rigidly than commoners.

There was something just barely familiar about her, but she couldn’t place why, and dismissed the feeling.

“You must be the Keresi—” Master Aeris had begun saying even as he opened the door, but he cut off with a strangled noise. He stood frozen for a moment, then staggered backward, his face losing all color in an instant.

The development was so jarring that it took Tatiana a second to react. Master Aeris looked like he’d seen a ghost—or something far, far worse. Her skin went cold in confusion, and her entire body tensed. What could possibly provoke that reaction in humanity’s strongest spellcaster?

“Ah,” the woman said. “You recognize me.”

Before Tatiana could think better of it—her feet moving entirely on their own—she found herself standing in front of Archmage Aeris, blocking the demon. It was utterly ridiculous, her jumping to protect Master Aeris. But the expression on his face had made her move instinctively. She discovered that her staff was pointing toward the intruder, and she forced herself to raise it up and hold it normally. She had no clue what was going on, but she shouldn’t level a weapon at a stranger.

“Who are you?” she demanded of the woman, tone harsher than she’d intended. But the expression on Master Aeris’s face made her skin crawl from toes to scalp.

He looked afraid.

And…resigned?

“It’s time, then?” he rasped. “I knew this day would come. So soon, though?”

Tatiana’s heart pounded in her ears. What was this? The shift in atmosphere was so jarring as to make her nauseous. Anything that scared Master Aeris should terrify her—and it did, by mere implication.

“Who are you?” Tatiana repeated, forcing her voice steady. It shook anyway. “What is this, Master Aeris? What’s happening?”

The demon woman pursed her lips. Her red eyes were unconcerned. Bored, even. She walked in, ignoring how Tatiana’s staff jerked toward her. Tatiana knew she had been dismissed as inconsequential. And of course. Tatiana wouldn’t have stood a chance against this woman even if she’d just been a foreign demonic mage of the First Blood. Not…whoever she actually was, to make Master Aeris react like this.

“I didn’t mean to startle,” she said, closing the door behind her. The only thing keeping Tatiana from full-blown panic was how calm she sounded, and how nonthreatening. “I didn’t want to announce this meeting under my real name.”

“Lower your staff, Tatiana,” Master Aeris said, and for the first time ever, he sounded his age. Exhausted, ancient, the full weight of his six hundred years crushing down on him. “You don’t know who you disrespect, child.”

“It’s noble to jump to the defense of someone so readily,” the demon said. “I take no offense. I would praise her instead.”

That brought some of the life back to Master Aeris, but only a small, sad smile. “She’s a good one, yes. A bit rash, but one needs fire in their heart to survive this world.”

The woman considered him, then nodded slowly. “I can tell you aren’t pleased to see me,” she said, “but unlike what so many people are assuming, I have no reason to believe an Eighth Cataclysm looms.”

…what?

The words didn’t make sense in Tatiana’s head. An Eighth Cataclysm? Where did that come from?

It didn’t seem to confuse Master Aeris. Instead, the old man hesitated, hope dawning in his eyes, and some of that immense weight seeming to lift off his shoulders.

“Truly?” he asked.

“The Dragon King could fly down from the Sky-Pillar Range and raze the mortal lands whenever he pleases. An unknown horror might wake from a millennium-old crypt. A second Shattered Oracle is perpetually one over-ambitious glimpse away. There’s always an Eighth Cataclysm on the horizon, but I see no promise of one.”

Tatiana didn’t know why this topic had been brought up, but she didn’t find those words reassuring in the slightest. Strangely, Master Aeris did. He pulled himself back together, straightening his posture and regaining some of the color in his face.

“I see,” he said, relief palpable. “I…apologize for that unseemly reaction. Your presence is…a shock to the system, Lady Vivisari. I assumed too much. I’m glad to find you alive and healthy after all these years.”

Tatiana heard the words, but they didn’t fit in her head.

Vivisari?

Did he…mean a different one?

Or maybe she’d misheard?

The demon’s eyes flicked to Tatiana, and she said to Master Aeris, “I’m keeping to myself for now, so I would prefer my presence here kept a secret.”

Master Aeris glanced at Tatiana, blinked in surprise, and said dismissively, “Oh, yes, of course. She can be trusted. My word on it.”

It was flattering that Master Aeris would vouch for her without hesitation, but she couldn’t register that, because she stood, frozen, as her brain tried to process what was happening.

Vivisari.

Surely not that one?

Not the Sorceress from the Party of Heroes?

But what else would have caused Master Aeris to react as he had?

“Even if the situation is not so dire as I assumed, you surely have a purpose,” Master Aeris said. “Of course, these old bones are yours to use, for whatever task, big or small. Ask and it shall be done.”

The demon considered him. “Two days ago, I was in Prismarche and witnessed a major dimensional anomaly. I helped the local guard send a report to the Institute.”

He blinked. “That…that was you? Those diagrams were…? But of course!” He seemed immensely pleased by the realization. “I knew I saw something familiar! But I couldn’t put my finger on it.” He stroked his beard, deep in thought, then jolted. He had returned to his usual self, the ‘unseemly’, as he’d called it, terror on his face now only a memory that would disturb Tatiana for years to come. “I forget myself. Please, come in. Tatiana, fetch our guest some tea. I think this conversation will not be short.”

Tatiana jolted, snapping her hanging-open jaw closed. “Y-yes, Master Aeris?” she stammered out. Her gaze shifted between him and the demon woman—Vivisari?—before, somewhat golem-like, she jerked and walked stiffly to the kitchenette. As she prepared two cups as requested, a whirlwind of thoughts assaulted her.

Vivisari. The Sorceress was standing twenty feet away?

Her own master’s fame sometimes provoked discordant moments of surrealism as she remembered that she was being taught by the most powerful human mage in the world. And indeed, perhaps one of the ten strongest mortals in general.

But that didn’t compare to the Sorceress. Vivisari wasn’t just a myth—the world had plenty of those, stories told around the hearth of archmages wielding power that eclipsed even Master Aeris’s. Stories of magic that rewrote the laws of the universe and vaporized forests. Like those of Archmage Osmian, the man who had founded the Institute and laid the enchantments that held its grounds aloft so many centuries later.

Even he hadn’t been able to face down the Cataclysms. The greatest of Osmian’s feats involved merely rebuffing the Colossus—diverting that walking mountain to save a city. He had sacrificed decades of his life, rendering himself a magical cripple, and in return, had left nothing but a small scorch mark on the beast’s titanic leg.

The Party of Heroes had killed the Colossus.

In a mere ten years, they had reshaped the world. Purged monsters of incomprehensible power. There was a not insignificant number of people who viewed those five individuals as gods and goddesses descended into familiar forms, violating heavenly laws to correct the injustice the mere existence of the Cataclysms had represented.

Tatiana didn’t believe that. Or not actively. But to some extent, it was the only reasonable explanation. Vivisari Vexaria had been rumored to be above level eighteen hundred. Such power was inconceivable in such a short life. Even the direct descendants of the Dragon King couldn’t claim that height of power, so far as Tatiana knew. He alone, and it had taken millennia upon millennia for that most ancient of immortals to accrue his strength. He ruled over all of dragonkind for it.

And this small demon woman was his equal?

Whether or not the Party of Heroes were divinities masquerading as mortals, they had been blessed by the heavens. Nobody would call Archmage Aeris untalented, but in his six centuries he had come nowhere near the stories told about the Sorceress.

Head spinning, Tatiana finished up the tea and carried a tray over. Two living legends were in conversation, and they barely noticed her as she slid the tray onto the low table. She hovered on the outskirts, listening. How could she help herself?

“The timing is suspicious, is all,” Vivisari was saying. “A dimensional fracture might stem from a natural phenomenon, but its proximity to my return is coincidental enough to warrant extra attention.”

“I will not disagree,” Master Aeris said, a frown on his lips. “Fate so does love to weave her tangled tapestries. Never trust a coincidence. That advice has done me well in this life.”

“Unfortunately, I’m no researcher. My specialty lies in practical applications. That’s why I had Marcus reach out to the Institute—and why I’m here speaking with you. Of those I knew I could trust, even after a century without contact, you were my first choice.”

Amazingly, Master Aeris’s cheeks went pink at that. “You flatter me, Vivisari.”

“It’s true. You were every bit a hero during those campaigns as I. Many men and women were. I was merely the strongest.”

He waved a hand, now red rather than pink. Tatiana would’ve been immensely amused if not for the fact she still felt like she was in a dream. “Please, Vivisari, this old man will not hear such praise. But I thank you nonetheless.”

“Regardless, I’ve been making theories and experimenting with designs.” Master Aeris accepted a notebook withdrawn from Vivisari’s inventory. “Please look through and tell me if they help. I can say with certainty dimensional magic does exist; with that in mind, it would be wise to study it to…prepare. Just in case. That’s the favor I came to ask.”

Master Aeris had immediately gotten lost in whatever was inside the notebook, and he had to visibly shake himself out of his fascination. “It would be no favor, Vivisari, when we both know you seek the prevention of another calamity. Of course I will help.” He sighed. “I just fear what use I will be. Those diagrams you sent us have set the elites—” he snorted at the term, “of the Institute abuzz. Even I was confounded by them at first, though I do believe I have grasped the concepts you were conveying.”

“Any help is useful,” Vivisari said. “Even if you’re just someone I can discuss ideas with. I placed a [Warp Anchor] outside your door. I hope future visits won’t be a bother?”

He seemed surprised at that—because when had Vivisari had time to cast magic that complex?—but said, “Yes, of course. I am yours to use, Lady Vivisari.”

“I’m glad. There was a second reason I came here, though this one is a personal request. One you may or may not be able to help with.”

“Oh?”

“A young woman was expelled from the Institute eight months ago. Do you know anything of it?”

The words caught Tatiana so off guard she couldn’t help but blurt out, “Wait. Saffra?”

Red eyes drifted her way, and she froze like a rabbit before a wolf. There was no ill intent in that gaze, and indeed this woman had proved time and time again she fought for virtuous ends. Nevertheless, something about those crimson eyes seized her. Was it just Vivisari’s reputation? That was certainly the lion’s share of the effect, since Tatiana’s first thoughts seeing her had been how small and unintimidating a demon of the First Blood looked. How ironic, in retrospect.

“You know her?” Vivisari asked.

Tatiana briefly panicked at the fact that the Sorceress had addressed her. She had barely come to terms with how a thought-dead myth had walked into Master Aeris’s office. But that at least made some sense. Master Aeris was a veteran of the Cataclysm Campaigns. He was a legend in his own right. Vivisari visiting him made sense.

But talking to her? No, something about that did not fit inside her brain. It shut down entirely as she stared wide-eyed at the woman.

Master Aeris, to her mortification, seemed amused as he said, “It’s rude to leave a guest’s question unanswered, Tatiana.”

“Y-yes! Yes, I know her. Of her. I know of her. Saffra, that is.”

Vivisari’s face betrayed no amusement. Nothing besides that same cool impassivity. After the horrors she’d seen, and the wonders too, it made sense nothing fazed her. What was a bumbling apprentice compared to ripping open space and time, or dueling the worst monsters the world had seen, ones that could flatten villages with a step or lay waste to entire kingdoms—and triumphing over them?

“I would answer myself, but I don’t recognize the name,” Master Aeris said. “I believe I heard something about an expulsion, but I didn’t look into it. It is not an admirable path I’ve chosen, my recusal from responsibility, I know this. But if I do anything except separate myself, I will be dragged inexorably back into the Institute’s bickering—or worse, politics at large.”

“By all means, enjoy your retirement,” Vivisari said. “I would have gone to Archmage Lysander, if not you. You’re simply a friendlier face, so I was hoping.” Red eyes locked back onto Tatiana, dispelling her brief respite. “But it seems your apprentice has answers. Might I ask for them?”