The ether root shot forth with speeds invisible to the naked eye. It clung against the back wall, bounced a little, before clattering to the ground, where it continued bouncing with enhanced momentum, until the ether inside eventually ran out.

Civar was frozen with his coffee mug in hand, having spilled some on his shirt and ground. He blinked, took a sip, and said, “Holy shit.”

Patryn burst into a cheer—an uncontrollable laugh of disbelief. “What was that? Are we serious? What the fuck did we just create?”

Freyven was smiling as well, arms crossed. “Runeblessed, huh? What are you, Vivi, the smith of ether?”

Vivi gave an awkward smile before walking past the protective glass to check out the results. The hardstone wall was unphased, of course, but the ether root itself was dented. The impact had been heavy enough to damage a white obsidian root full of ether. No power runes, granted, but any ether at all still strengthened its structure.

“That could have killed a man,” Vivi said. “Just the ether root alone, with a slight tap from a stick.”

“Hence the testing room,” Civar said beside her. He looked down at the dented ether root, mildly grinning. “That was certainly more destructive than expected.”

Patryn and Freyven followed, still celebrating. “Isn’t this like a revelation? Are we geniuses?”

“Vivi certainly is,” Civar said calmly. “Two revolutionary discoveries of this scale within, what, two days? This hasn’t happened since… Since what? I don’t even know.”

Patryn patted Vivi on the back with a huge grin. “What are you all so stoic for? This calls for a celebration. A goddamned feast! Fill up the market square, we’ll drink all the ale in this little town!”

“Yes, that sounds quite appropriate,” Civar said. “Perhaps the Luminary will arrange one in the name of Vivian.”

“No, we can’t,” Vivi said, biting her lip. “Not before storm season is over. The city is about to be destroyed.”

Everyone blinked, turning to her.

“The Luminary has kept silent to avoid panic,” Vivi said. “But there’s twenty-seven storms brewing outside the city.”

Slowly, Patryn’s grin fell. Faces opened up in shock. “Twenty-seven?” Freyven asked, leaning his head forward.

Vivi nodded. “We need weapons, and soon. I’m not sure when the storms will break. But it can’t be more than a week before the city is destroyed.”

“Vivi…” Civar said. He licked his lips. “I really can’t take this much insane news in one day.”

“It’s the truth,” Vivi said. “You three need to design a new ballista immediately. Something that can be built within the days we have and be ready to shoot monsters.”

“Designing and building the previous ballista took years, you know,” Freyven said.

“We can either design this weapon, or we will lose our homes,” Vivi said. “Can you get to work for me?”

The three looked at each other. “I suppose we have no choice,” Freyven said.

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Vivi nodded. “I’ll give you ten hours to design a weapon. Make it simple enough that it ideally works on the first try. Then we can start creating more complex ballistas. Freyven and Patryn know how inside-carving works. You can also work on a missile or projectile design. Perhaps we can shoot just a simple cannon ball. I’ll fix any inaccuracies with the veins you design.”

“Symmetry was important, correct?” Patryn asked.

“Yes,” Vivi said. “But don’t fret the vein-shaping. I’ll make it work. Just make sure the ballista itself works.”

Civar took a sip of his coffee. Then another, gulping down the rest of his mug. He grimaced from the heat. “Anyone else need a cup?”

“Bring me two,” Freyven said. “And Pat, go wake up the foundry boys. Harwyn and Quinn will help us at least. In ten hours, we’ll need a lot more help.”

Patryn nodded. “And you, Vivi? Will you work with us?”

She thought about it. “I’ll meet you in ten hours. For now, I have another person I need to meet.”

“Who is it?” Lucius asked curiously.

You’ll see, Vivi thought. “I’m sorry for making you stay up. If you need sleep, sleep. But this really needs to be done quickly. Thank you, and let’s meet at the lab in ten hours.”

“See you then, I suppose,” Patryn said. “Let’s get this done.”

Everyone nodded.

***

Vivi’s next destination was the Luminary’s palace. She ascended up dark city streets, using herself and the moonweaver’s silk, filled with ether, as a moving lamp, until the higher levels started being lit with street-lamps. Lava still dripped like glowsticks in the dark from the occasional dripstones in the sky.

The tunnel entrance to the palace was silent with only two guards on standby, the door firmly locked. Neither had keys; instead, they knocked on the door in a specific pattern. A third guard opened the door from the inside, letting Vivi in.

“Tsarvan is at the palace, right?” Vivi asked. “Coshi’s friend, the one who looks like a skeleton.”

“Ah, him,” the guard said. Vivi recognized him from the deep voice, though she hadn’t heard his name. The guards acted like more brutish servants. Neither tended to offer their name unless specifically asked. “He resides in the palace. I believe he might be asleep.”

“Wake him up for me, please,” Vivi said.

“Very well,” the guard said, leaving Vivi to wait in the foyer. She sat and waited.

The palace was silent, but people were awake. Servants bustled here and there, walking as swiftly as they could while minimizing the noise of their footsteps. Nobody spoke. It almost felt eerie to see so much movement with so little noise.

Tsarvan’s bony footsteps, however, were distinguishable even before he stepped into the foyer. He wore a fluffy bath robe tied shut with a sash. Without eye-lids, he appeared as if he’d been awoken with a pan to the face, though the glow in his globe-like eyes was dim. He yawned as he approached.

“You better not have shown up for lessons at one past midnight, miss,” Tsarvan said.

“I have,” Vivi said, bowing lightly. “I need to learn the basics today.”

Tsarvan sighed, waving dismissively. “Head to sleep, young woman. Neither of us will learn any knots at this hour. Sleep, and we will talk.”

“There’s no time—”

“The city is thrashed, I know,” Tsarvan said. “Completely doomed. The beds have not yet been reanimated, however.”

Vivi pulled a face at him. She didn’t have authority over this man like she had with the ballista makers. But she could still argue. “We’re defending the city. We’re creating weapons to defeat colossi right now. Coshi said godslayers might spawn. Those will be hard to hit with missiles. With my Grandpa’s runeswords and with three ascension skills, I could stand a chance.”

Tsarvan frowned.

“I can also practice while I sleep,” Vivi said. “I need you to teach me the fundamentals now so that I won’t waste any time asleep.”

His eyebrows—if the odd bumps above his eyes could be called eyebrows—rose. “You can practice while you sleep? Is this some human black magic?”

“It’s thanks to my spirit,” Vivi said. “I’m conscious while asleep. I can channel ether in a different realm while resting in the real world. It speeds up practice by a lot.”

“Very curious,” Tsarvan said in a tone eerily similar to Uundref’s. He must have been of a similar species, from a similar culture. Vivi tried not to feel alarmed. “Consciousness while you sleep, huh. A nightmare. I, generally, have come to enjoy my time not existing every night.”

“Please teach me,” Vivi repeated. “I need to learn to use ascension skills. To defend my home.”

“Tenacious little rat.” Tsarvan sighed, though his eyes glowed brighter now. He was slowly waking up. “Fine. Let’s see who built you, runeblessed girl, and let’s fill your veins with so much goddamned ether you’ll never want to ascend again.”