Traversing the broken floor of the "maintenance access" corridor was a tricky task that took more time than one might expect. Careful probes of the remaining stonework showed that what had not collapsed already was quite sturdy, and so long as care was taken around the holes, it was possible to get across and to the other side, where a largely intact staircase led down to the open expanse underneath the enclosed city of Stalto. Here, the underside of the city forms a partial ceiling over a lake of molten rock, from which pillars of red-hot semi-crystalline stone rise, cooling and darkening into more solid forms where they rise up to support the city, aqueducts and causeways.

A web work of crystal pulsates with energy as it works its way through the lava, and around it clusters areas of partially cooled and blackened sections of rock. Where water leaks through cracks above, steam rises and hisses, sending scalding vapors wafting upward to condense on the rocky ceiling and eventually fall again.

The air is unbearably hot and humid even in on the suspended walkways that afford some protection against lethal extremes. These walkways form a broken web – collapsed in many places, and threatening to fall in others – that radiates outward from the centerpiece formed by a series of rotating curved crystal plates that in some ways resemble the petals of a rose – though it is a curiously active rose, its "petals" arranged in concentric circles that rotate in alternate directions.

Within the center of the crystal rose hovers an irregularly shaped crystal that lets out a bright light clearly seen from this distance, but which might be no larger than a Rhian's head. There is no visible connection between the crystal and the rose – or any other support – and the air around it shimmers with such an aura that even one without a drop of magician's blood in him can sense the energy flowing through this place.

The maintenance access stairwell comes down at the southwest corner, and it appears that there is another intact staircase at the far end of this expanse, toward the northeast – and the walkways in many places extend beyond the border of the city, toward the distant and irregular rocky walls that bound the lake of magma, providing other methods of egress for those willing to walk a much longer distance and brave the possibility of a walkway collapsing.

Navigating a path to the Rose would require following a labyrinthine course across those walkways still intact – though, of course, those with wings would be at a considerable advantage to find shortcuts.

"It's awfully hot in here," Envoy notes as she charts a course over the various intact walkways. "How long do you think you could tolerate it, Kia?" she asks, and also takes a moment to see how Knick and Knack are responding to it. She's not very comfortable here herself.

Knick and Knack, actually, seem to be their usual selves – not that little centipodal creatures are all that expressive per se, but they seem to be more harmed by arid regions, and as hot as this may be, it's most certainly moist – so far, they seem to be doing just fine.

The little tinker mouse stares in awe at their surroundings for some moments, until Envoy's comment snaps her out of it. "I don't know," she admits. "It is awfully hot." She starts to unlace the back of her overdress. "I think I'll take this off – the chemise is modest enough and it's not as if anyone's around to see me." She looks a bit embarrassed, nonetheless, though the undergarment covers her from neck to calf, even if it is of a lightweight material.

Whonkahonk hoots and whistles to himself, repeatedly taking peeks at his new acquisitions – though now that he's having to worry about high walkways and long and probably fatal drops into magma – and worse yet, the horror of possibly DROPPING a glowing gem into the lava and never getting it back – he's decided (against much temptation) to keep the gems put away for now.

The Aeolun's own clothing is a bit less layered, and in any case wouldn't allow her to cool off any easier if some were removed. Instead, she just keeps her wings a bit more open that usual, to increase the surface area she has for radiating away body heat. "It's a long path, I want to make sure we all have enough water and stamina to make it."

Kia ties the chemise around her waist with a cord, and wraps her dress over the back of her pack, rather than trying to find room for it inside. "That's a little better." Kia pants into the warm air, surveying the broken walkway before them, then glances at the Aeolun. "Are we only slowing you down, Yovne? You could go faster flying, couldn't you?"

"I could probably fly, but I'm not sure how the heat and humidity will effect me yet," Envoy replies, and starts tapping the pathway with her staff as she moves forward, in case there are unstable pockets ahead. "The walkways provide a little more protection than being out over the magma itself."

"Though at least you don't need to worry so much if the walkway crumbles," Kia says, looking at the places ahead where it already has collapsed. She follows in Envoy's footsteps, being careful to walk where the Aeolun has already put her weight.

"I've been on a collapsing cavern bridge before," Envoy says, trying to sound reassuring. "But it wasn't so hot, and there wasn't so much wild magic buzzing around."

As if to punctuate the weirdness of the surroundings, some strange animal noise – or perhaps a high-pitched cackling laugh – echoes distantly, but then fades into a shriek like metal scratching glass before fading away entirely.

Whonkahonk, bringing up the rear, swivels his head to and fro, looking this way and that, but most CERTAINLY not down.

The mouse mouths a silent "O". "So… what did you do the last time you were on a bridge that collapsed? Fly, I suppose?" Though she sounds like she's trying to take her mind off the narrow path and the lava below, the mouse keeps her eyes roving ahead of them, trying to assess structural integrity in any case.

"Yes, I flew… downwards. I had to carry someone at the time," Envoy says, wondering if the odd sound was from rocks shifting under pressure. "Do you have any metal with you, Kia? I don't know if it will help much, but I can make metal cold."

"Some of my tools have some metal in them. There's the hammer, it's got a metal head," the mouse offers. "And a couple of little wrenches."

Tapping along with her staff, Envoy asks, "Enough that you could hold them against your skin to help you cool down, do you think?"

"It'd help a bit. The wrenches are smaller, but the hammer would be a nuisance to hold for a long walk," the mouse says. She stops in her tracks. "Let's take a right here. I really don't like the looks of that section we're headed for now. See those stress fracture-lines?" She points to where Envoy is moving to.

While she's stopped, the tinker digs into her pack, locating a couple of little steel wrenches, and offers them to the Aeolun.

Envoy looks at the long, straight span that Kia points out as a viable detour. "The magma looks pretty turbulent under that, there might be more heat or gasses. I'll try to test the structure with magic, to see if it's safe enough for us to hurry across it," she says, and places her free hand on the railing while singing a simple spell to test the structure's integrity.

The mouse settles her pack onto her back again, holding the tools in her hands while she watches the mage work. She sidles a couple of steps back the way they came, wrinkling her nose as she eyes the section Envoy is testing.

Envoy's singing echoes all around, and the magma below begins to churn more violently.

At the churning lava, Kia shifts nervously. "Um, I think maybe this isn't a good place for that, Yovne," she says, glancing around at the rest of the structure in alarm.

Feeling the 'boost' provided by the ambient magic, Envoy gets quick results, if not very heartening ones. "The bridge isn't going support all our weight, not at once anyway. We could probably cross one at a time, if we're quick, but I can't magically reinforce it without a ritual, and I couldn't be sure of success under these conditions."

The magma, meanwhile, continues to churn. Bubbles erupt, letting out hissing noises that sound more sibilant than natural processes should suggest. Whonkahonk begins to look around more anxiously, and lets out a mournful wail.

"I'd rather take my chances with the heat," the mouse says, decisively. "If it's too warm or the air is bad, I can go back. I can't fly if the path collapses.

Envoy brings the spell to an end, noticing the extra turbulence. "This place doesn't react well to magic," she notes with a frown.

The reason for his wail becomes evident, as a column of lava starts to rise to one side of the path, the rock darkening and solidifying toward the top, the further away it is from the lake of magma. The irregular, lumpy, smoking pillar rises upward at an impressive rate, a stone's throw from the path.

"Maybe… we should back up a bit?" Envoy suggests, already trying to put some distance between herself and the rising rock.

"Whoa," the mouse whispers, staring at the newly risen pillar. She turns and scurries a half-dozen yards back the way they came, away from the new column. "That's – wow – did you do that? Did you mean to do that?"

Whonkahonk obligingly backtracks as well. As he does so, the column continues to rise, surpassing the height of the walkway and then arcing over it, and turning back down again, moving faster than the explorers can run. It is now coming back down toward the path behind where they were originally standing … though the column abruptly stops its movement, and just freezes in place, the unfinished arc pointing downward like an arrow toward a spot of the walkway.

"I don't know, but I think it might be a reaction to my spell," Envoy admits as she pauses to watch the pillar curve and stop. "If the local magic is what keeps it down, then maybe casting a spell causes an imbalance that it can push up into."

The mouse skids to a halt as she sees the column head back for the path. "I think you'd better not do that again," she squeaks, panting as she watches the new-formed, and now frozen, arc of solidified magma.

"I agree," the former Earth Mage says, nodding. "I guess we'll just skip the attempt to cool ourselves off with metal then too."

A swell bulges at the base of the curving pedestal … and, in a way that stone usually does not do, the bulge pushes its way upward through the column, and, at a rapid pace, over the arc, and toward the end pointing down at the pathway.

"Uh, let's get back to the junction!" Envoy cries in alarm, and runs back toward the point where the path splits off to the right.

the tinker pivots on her feet, a frown on her face, as she tracks the arc of hardened lava, trying to see if there's any connection between its shape, and where Envoy cast the spell – or the section of the path the Aeolun was investigating. When she sees the bubble moving through it, she squeaks in alarm, and tries to dart for the right-hand turn, away from this section and the unusual attention it appears to warrant.

Fortunately, the right-hand turn is not blocked by the arc or column, and there's nothing to stop Kia's retreat or that of Envoy's. Whonkahonk just stands, however, frozen in place, watching as something oozes out of the opening where the arc ends in mid-air over the pathway. Something glowing and crystalline emerges, and lands on the path … then solidifies and darkens to a dull gray … and forms into what looks for a moment like a pile of rocks … but then rises up … and forms what looks like another Hooka, fashioned of stone.

"Whonkahonk!" Kia cries, seeing the Hooka hasn't followed them. She turns around, considering going back for him, as she calls, "Come on! This way!"

"It's a golem, I think," Envoy says, looking at the odd creation. "Maybe it's trying to communicate with us?" Still, she heads back along the path to fetch the Hooka.

"Or maybe it's going to try to kill us," the mouse mutters, watching the "golem."

The stone pseudo-Hooka wobbles uncertainly as it strides toward Whonkahonk – who is still frozen in place, letting out warbling, jittery, broken noises. Then, suddenly, the stone 'Hooka' falls over … and the stones crack. Steam rises from the cracks, and a black something starts to seep out.

"Whonkahonk!" Envoy calls, starting to run now. "Don't touch the goo! There are glowy jewels over here!"

Kia's tail-tip twitches feverishly, but she decides to let the Aeolun retrieve Whonkahonk. If Envoy can't prod him into motion, she thinks, there won't be much her limited muscle can add. She does call out, "Don't you want to see the big glowy gem, Whonkahonk?" to reinforce Envoy's point.

Whonkahonk's head wobbles, and he turns to look at Envoy and Kia, honking plaintively, as the black ooze starts to bubble and form into a large mass, from which exude several blackened tendrils. He looks back, and seems to more fully register his peril. He lets out a loud cry of alarm … and then gallops toward Envoy and Kia. Very distinctly, he bellows, "AIEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Envoy pauses now that the Hooka is charging towards her, then decides that turning around and running back to the other way would be good, before she gets run down.

Relief wars with new concerns on Kia's face. "Careful, Whonkahonk! The bridges aren't stable!" Seeing both of them running toward her now – and the black ooze showing its tentacles – the mouse decides to start down the right hand path, too, scurrying forward at a quick pace, but not as fast as the others, as she's still being quite careful about where she puts her feet, and eyeing the walkway for structural fractures.

At the intersection, Envoy turns and waves for Whonkahonk to slow down, not trusting the span to support both him and Kia at the same time.

The threesome gallop along, Whonkahonk slowly gaining on Envoy and Kia, but thankfully not so much as to trample them in his excitement. The blackened arc that delivered the monster onto the pathway starts cracking and crumbling, and the pieces rain down in little obsidian fragments – though, thankfully, the explorers are not caught in the shower. Most of the fragments land back in the magma, but quite a few slivers can be seen dotting the pathway leading back to the exit – little caltrops awaiting the unwary. The blob-thing, alas, is unhindered by them, and moves along, though at a pace unlikely to match that of the explorers unless they stop to gawk.

To reduce the stress on the bridge, Envoy spreads her wings and tries to the fly the rest of the way across it.

Since she can hear the other two coming behind her, Kia doesn't stop to study the scene at her back. Instead, she's focused on making it to the next intersection, and trying to plot out a safe route to the crystal rose in her mind.

As they work their way around, part of it requires that they turn about, actually heading toward the monster, in a manner of speaking. It's then that they notice … it's gone. The gray "stone Hooka" is gone, the black blob is gone … and it's too far to tell for sure whether the sharp obsidian rubble may or may not be gone as well.

Kia takes a break at this surprise, scanning the area ahead of them, and then in all directions. She tries to spot the arc of solidified magma they'd seen earlier, or any of the other recent "landmarks," in an effort to get her bearings, and verify she's facing the way she thinks she is. She pants, both from the heat and the recent exertion, and shifts her pack against her back.

Envoy has a curious feeling pricking at the back of her spine … and she can sense a sudden surge in the power of wild magic … a sort of surge far beyond what she is normally accustomed to even in a Forbidden Zone. No, levels like this seem far more like … well … Bosch.

The surge comes as a shock, and the Aeolun decides to risk landing on the bridge once more to take stock of the situation.

As Envoy lands, she sees Whonkahonk looking about, uncertain, making a mournful wail. "KIIIIIIA!" he wails.

Envoy blinks, and looks around for the Skeek to see what has the Hooka so upset. "Kia?" she calls.

There's no sign of the Skeek anywhere.

Trying to suppress a feeling of panic, the Aeolun looks over the edge of the walkway for any signs of the tinker. She couldn't have just fallen over the edge, she thinks. Unless part of the bridge is just an illusion!

"Did you see what happened to her, Whonkahonk?" Envoy asks worriedly.

Whonkahonk shakes his head vigorously, then calls out again, "KIIIIIIIIA!"

Envoy closes her eyes and focuses her thoughts. The bridge is pretty high up, if Kia fell she'd have plenty of time to scream. So… she probably didn't fall. "She just vanished then, Whonkahonk?" she finally asks, worried now that it must have had something to do with that burst of chaotic magic.

Whonkahonk wails, "I kikn'k see!" He then jolts upright, and looks directly at Envoy, staring at her. "Kon'k kisakkear, Yobne!"

"I'll try not to," Envoy promises, and then looks back along the way they've come to see if the blob is still visible.

No, Kia can't see the black creature … or the stairway leading back up, for that matter … or the rose shield.

The mouse squeaks in alarm, panic filling her – then she closes her eyes. She thinks about the horde of mutant hairless rodents Envoy saw in the library, and that she didn't. The whispered voice going "Shh!" that no one else heard. Imagination gone wild, she thinks. She takes a deep, even breath, and says, as calmly as she can manage, "Yovne?"

Her voice disappears into the expanse. There are no near walls for her voice to echo off of.

This is not good. "Whonkahonk?" she tries.

Again, no reply, save for the burbling of the magma far below. Her body begins to feel the full weight of exhaustion from running in this unbearable heat, and she feels a little lightheaded – almost as if being tempted to just take a little rest here for a little while to recuperate. Maybe a little nap, even.

"No, I don't think so," she tells herself, firmly. She unslings her pack, then opens her eyes, telling herself that she can't possibly be in an unfamiliar place – the stairway out and the rose shield have to be somewhere around her. She takes another deep breath, looking around.

The walkways are in most places devoid of any sort of railing – However, there are various odd mineral growths (or just something about the way the walkways were formed) that results in various spines and lumps jutting out here and there. Falling here would be perilous anyway, but in some places it looks more dangerous than others.

As Envoy turns around to look, she suddenly sees the Skeek standing there – and at that moment, Kia sees Envoy – and the rose shield some distance behind her.

For what it's worth, there's no sign of any blob.

Envoy jumps at the sudden sight of the Skeek. "Kia! Is that you?" she asks, looking confused.

"KIIIIIA!" Whonkahonk wails, wrenching his eyes from Envoy (whom he has been staring intently at) to look toward Kia now.

The mouse heaves an audible sigh of relief at spotting the Aeolun. "For a moment there – well – yes, it's me," Kia blinks a few times. "Was I – um – gone?" She smiles at Whonkahonk, glad to see him, too.

"Kia was kone!" Whonkahonk hoots to Envoy and Kia, in a plaintive tone that sounds almost like a question.

Nodding, Envoy says, "There was a burst of magic, and you disappeared. Where did you go?"

"I'm not sure. I think my imagination got carried away with me," the mouse says. She fixes her eyes on the rose shield. "This is one strange place," she remarks. "Let's keep moving." She starts plotting a course towards the crystal heart again, this time careful to keep her bearings on the place fixed in her mind.

Envoy follows along, and asks again, "But what happened to you?"

It looks like all this running around, though terribly exhausting, has at least cut a lot of the distance between the walkway and the rose shield. Whonkahonk anxiously keeps looking at Envoy and Kia as they go along, as if to reassure himself that they're still there.

"I got lost," the mouse answers. "I was looking at where I thought the arc ought to be, and then I couldn't find it, so I looked around to see if I wasn't facing the direction I thought I was. And then – it was as if I was hopelessly lost, and I couldn't see either of you, or the stairwell back out, or the rose shield." Kia pants as she talks, and like Whonkahonk, she finds herself looking around now and again to make sure things are still the way they should be – though she keeps firm in her mind the idea that they have to be. "And then I thought, 'well, that's ridiculous, everything can't just be gone. It all has to be around here somewhere.' So I closed my eyes, and opened them again, and then I was back."

Mercifully, as Kia looks around to reassure herself, she's rewarded by seeing that, yes, they are where they ought to be. (Whonkahonk seems similarly assured that he's not missing anyone.)

Envoy chews on her lip as she mulls this over. "That's very interesting," is all she can say.

"That's one way to put it." Kia doesn't offer any other possibilities, deciding that applying her imagination to the task wouldn't be a good idea right now.

This uncertainty guarantees that for the remainder of their journey, the time passes in relative silence, only occasionally punctuated by a stop to point out a section of walkway that looks uncertain in its strength, or to decide the best route to take to the rose shield amongst those offered. At last, though, the last turn is taken: The rose shield is now before them, the petals spinning in place. Each petal is a head higher than Envoy is tall, though each piece is shaped differently, and it appears that there are three layers of concentric rings, with a narrow gap between each, leaving it questionable whether one could comfortably stand between them.

However … as they approach … it is quite noticeable that the outer layer of petals is slowing down.

"I think it knows we're here," Envoy comments as the mechanism slows. "I guess I should go in first?" she asks the others.

"Oh, dear," Kia says, stopping as she sees the difference in rotation speeds. She nods slowly to Envoy. "That'd be best. You can fly over the rose, and you're the one who has to see the crystal." She eases her pack from her shoulders, letting it rest on the ground, while she looks at the rose. A half-smile forms on her face, of pure admiration.

Envoy nods and steps up to the outer ring, watching the rotation to make sure there will be a clear opening for her to jump through.

The petals continue to slow … and then stop at a position that leaves a clear gap that Envoy could easily step through, to the narrow band (wide enough to stand on, but uncomfortably close to the next layer of spinning petals nonetheless) within.

Taking a deep breath of humid air, Envoy steps through into the gap between the rings, and makes sure her tail and wings won't be in the way if the outer petals start up again.

"It does know we're here. Perhaps this is how the Moltpaans stopped it so they could do maintenance on the structure," Kia whispers to Whonkahonk. Something about the area makes her quieter than usual – or perhaps she's just worried about disrupting Envoy's concentration.

As Envoy steps through, the petals that had stopped suddenly – almost violently – start spinning again, fast enough that Envoy surely did well to keep mindful of her tail!

Whonkahonk lets out a wail of alarm at the sudden disappearance of Envoy within the rose shield.

Envoy is not totally invisible, per se – though a view of her is strobed by the whirring petals and the gaps between them.

Kia squeaks in surprise, herself. She thrusts out a hand to pat the Hooka's side reassuringly, "Give it a minute, Whonkahonk. She's ok, see? And she can fly out if she has to, remember?" The mouse conveniently avoids thinking about questions of launch speed or vertical lift.

However unbidden, though, it looks rather iffy that Envoy – unless she has some sort of magical tricks involving levitation – could make a clean lift-off from within the narrow area inside the whirring petals.

Also unbidden are the sounds of … voices from somewhere to the north.

Nervously, Kia glances northwards. "Hello?" she calls out in Skreek, perking her ears as she tries to make out words. She pats Whonkahonk's side again to comfort him – and herself.

The chattering quiets, and as Kia looks out across the magma, she can barely make out that one of the northern walkways – one that the explorers had no need to traverse, as it was a bit out of their way – has a row of hunched-over shapes squatting down on it. The light from the magma reflects off of their gleaming eyes, and lights their disheveled fur and tattered garments. They look like Skreeks … but deformed Skreeks, misshapen and no two alike – though not quite as horrific as the furless, blind creatures from Kia's nightmare.

"Oh!" Kia squeaks, peering around to look at the untidy humanoids. She offers a tentative smile and a little wave to them, thinking that, since they already quieted at her greeting, it's probably too late to pretend she's not here.

The rodent humanoids are armed with an assortment of crude spears and shields, though not so crude as the stalactite clubs favored by "gorks" and such. One of them rises up, in the midst of the others, his tattered garments looking more elaborate in a barbaric sort of way than the others, and his shoulders abnormally wide and arms strangely long for the proportions of a Skreek. He holds a staff that looks to be made from an exceptionally large bone from some creature that Kia would probably be best not to meet – and the toothy and asymmetrical skull affixed atop the "staff" looks equally unpleasant, even when decorated with colored bits of stone and glass set within the bone. "Hail!" the creature calls out, though it takes Kia a moment to parse the spoken Krozite. "Name yourself!"

"I am Kia of Rephidim," the Skeek answers, as loudly and distinctly as she can manage. She curtseys to the inquirer, as well. "May I ask whom you are?"

"'Kia,'" the creature repeats. "It is a name with no meaning! I am Stonegnaw, son of Chieftain Whiptail, son of Ancestor Goldclaw."

"It means 'Little Smile,'" Kia says, "just not in our language. I am pleased to meet you, Stonegnaw, son of Chieftain Whiptail." She gives a quick glance to the crystal rose, just to see if Envoy is still visible inside it, and if the petals are still whirring around.

Envoy is no longer visible – and the crystal that was hovering above the rose has now sunk down, so that its glow is shining through the petals. It is only then that Kia finds that she can see Envoy – sort of – in that Envoy's silhouette can be made out against the backdrop of the glowing gem.

I hope she's having a nice talk with it, Kia thinks, turning back to smile at Stonegnaw again.

"Then, Little Smile, of what line are you? Are you a child of the City of Stone and Water, or of the Sky Folk, or some distant tribe?" responds Stonegnaw, loudly.

Just then, there is a bright flash from within the rose shield. Whonkahonk lets out a loud wail, and the hunched-over rat men shuffle about in place. Within the rose shield … Envoy's silhouette has vanished, and the gem slowly rises upward to its original position.

"I am of a distant tribe," Kia answers, after deciding she doesn't know what Stonegnaw means by "Sky Folk" and that it could be a bad idea to identify herself with them. "My – " she squeaks at the flash, glancing to the rose. Her tail lashes from side to side in agitation and fear. "Yovne?" she calls out, facing the rose.

One of the other rat men stands up – a tall and gangly fellow, with pronounced buck teeth. "The Xylphrim have taken her," he says with a whistle through his teeth.

The mouse bites her lip. "Will the Xylphrim bring her back?" she asks.

The gangly one looks uncertain at this, then begins to squat back down. "The Xylphrim are the Xylphrim. Unknown are their ways, but none meet them … and leave unchanged."

"Oh." The tinker clasps her hands together. She did want the crystal to change her, the mouse reflects, trying to be positive. She remembers Stonegnaw's earlier question, and adds, "My tribe has not made contact with yours for many centuries. I had heard legends of the splendor of your home, and wished to see it for myself."

Stonegnaw thrusts out his chest. "Our treasures will not be plundered!" he loudly cries out, and he is echoed by several agreeing cries and chitters of his fellows.

"Good!" Kia echoes supportively. She smiles at them.

The rat men seem perhaps a little taken off guard by this response, and mull amongst themselves. Finally, Stonegnaw speaks again. "What is it you and your friend do with the Rose?"

Whonkahonk shuffles closer to Kia, almost as if hoping to hide behind her. (It would be a vain attempt, of course.)

"We wanted to look at it. My friend – the one the Xylphrim just took – thought that seeing it would help her recover from an injury she took, a long time ago. It is a marvel like nothing I have ever witnessed in my life," the mouse answers, honestly enough.

The rat men mull amongst themselves again, then Stonegnaw calls out, "You do not come to plunder the gold of the City of Stone and Water, then?"

The mouse shakes her head adamantly. "No. We are only three people, and we came to look on your wondrous works, and the incredible machines powered by this lake of fire." She gestures to the lattice work of walkways all around them.

Stonegnaw looks to the gangly rat with the pronounced teeth. "Whiteeye?" he queries.

"She speaks truthfully," the gangly rat pronounces. "She has the gift of the Builders."

Kia, meanwhile, wishes she had the gift of Yovne Coming Back Again. She glances over her shoulder at the rose, just to see if anything has changed.

The rose still spins. No sign of Yovne. No sign of anything different about the gem.

Stonegnaw eyes Whiteeye. "Eh? Huh." He turns back, returning his gaze to Kia. "We will be watching," he says, and then makes a guttural chattering noise to his fellows, which sends them scurrying off one after the other far more like vermin than men, clambering up stone columns that did not apparently have any hand-holds, and disappearing where it did not appear there was anywhere to go.

The mouse sighs inwardly and looks back at the Skreek natives. "All right! Good bye!" she wishes them, waving, and feeling oddly forlorn.

Whiteeye looks after Kia a moment longer – or perhaps he's staring Whonkahonk, as it's hard to tell – but Stonegnaw gives him a rough shove, and they both go scurrying up a nearby column, and vanishing into two separate holes.

Whonkahonk lets out a shrill whistle, then looks back to Kia. "Are khey hrienkly?"

"Well." The mouse considers that, her whiskers twitching. "They're not unfriendly," she offers. "Or at least, they didn't threaten us. I don't think it'd be a good idea to tell them you came here for glowy jewels, though."

Whonkahonk nods vigorously. "I won'k kell!"

"Good idea." Kia stands in front of the whirring petals of the rose shield, letting the breeze created by it fan over her. She sighs quietly. "I wish Yovne would come back."

As much as imagination may impact the reality around Kia in this place, it doesn't seem that force of will is bringing back Yovne. Not just yet, anyway. But as hot as it is … that'd certainly be a blessing.

Whonkahonk hoots, "Whak if Yobne koesn'k coe back?"

The tinker sits on her pack, her legs splayed out before her. "I don't know," she answers. "I guess if she doesn't come back, we'll have to leave without her. Or… I could try going in after her." The mouse studies the turning petals with a calculating eye.

The petals are definitely turning at a regular rate. It's fast, but not so fast that Kia couldn't leap through if she timed things just right.

Now, the average scholar – no, not a chance. And Whonkahonk going through would probably result in Hooka pieces being shot left and right. But Kia just might be able to do it.

Kia stands. "Maybe… well. The petals slowed down when we came up the path the first time. They might do so again." She turns and walks a little way back the path they came up, then turns around, and repeats their earlier approach.

Whonkahonk dogs along after Kia, and follows her footsteps … but as they repeat the approach, no, the petals don't slow down. They don't change movement in the least.

The mouse taps one foot against the ground. "Oh!" she squeaks, vexed. "What am I supposed to do now? I might be able to jump in after her… but even if I can, will it do any good?" Kia makes a face at the crystal rose.

As Kia makes a face at the crystal rose, she is struck by the most bizarre sensation of the crystal rose making a face back at her … but somehow she reflexively shakes off the notion before any weirdness warps reality again. Something seems terribly odd right now, as if she were in a lucid dream, rather than exploring some forgotten underground city. It's not, now that she thinks about it, unlike the episode where she suddenly found herself lost on a labyrinth of passages. Perhaps this … effect … happens in spurts.

Whonkahonk, meanwhile, seems to be staring off at the magma, lost in a daze, silent from his usual habitual hooting and whistling to himself when things get too quiet for his tastes.

And just then … the crystal that was hovering above the rose shield descends, vanishing within the petals.

"Whonkahonk, does anything seem odd to you now?" she asks, looking at the petals of the rose, backlit by the crystal. She tries to will the petals to slow down again, imagining the rotation halting just as it did earlier.

Kia feels an odd sensation of … resistance … almost as if she were in some sort of argument. "They should slow down." "No, they shouldn't!" The outer ring seems to slow down for just an instant, but then she blinks, and it's going full tilt again.

Whonkahonk shakes himself out of his reverie, and looks back up to Kia. "Whoot?" he honks.

"Whonkahonk? Kia? Can you hear me?" comes a cry, strangely distant, from within the rose shield. It's Envoy's voice, though oddly distorted.

"Whonkahonk, the petals are slowing down. Just like they did before. Aren't they?" Kia tells him, firmly. "Yes, Yovne, we can hear you!" she calls back. "Can you come out?"

Whonkahonk turns and looks at the rose shield. "Are khey?" he asks Kia, shaking his head again.

The spinning seems to flicker, as the petals for a moment seem to be slowing.

"They are, Whonkahonk. You just have to believe it," the tinker says.

"Khey are!" Whonkahonk trumpets, bouncing on his feet. "Khey are!"

Sure enough, the petals start to slow, though not smoothly, and Kia can most tangibly feel some force, some one resisting her.

"Yovne!" The mouse shouts, stepping forward. "Can you hear me? What's happening to you?"

Whonkahonk hoots, "I khoughk I heark Yobne," sounding uncertain. The petal motion flickers again, and the outer ring reluctantly grinds to a stop.

"There's a build-up of magic that's making me a little dizzy is all," Envoy calls back, sounding more distinct. "I can fly back though, but not until you're safe. Or I could come back with you and then fly back down here later if you want!"

"I heard her, too." Kia stands before the outer ring. "What do you mean, until we're safe? We're fine! Should we come in after you?" the mouse calls, puzzled.

The crystal within the rose rises back up to its original position, glowing, hovering above the rose shield.

Then … it lowers again. Whonkahonk makes a puzzled whistle at this strange activity of the crystal.

No sound comes from Envoy. If she heard Kia, it doesn't seem like she's responding.

The mouse grits her teeth, then tries to step quickly through the outer ring, moving to the ledge between it and the inner.

"Kia?" Whonkahonk hoots, as the mouse steps through. She is through … and then the outer ring starts spinning again … and the middle one stops. Kia can see Envoy through the last remaining ring, standing atop the pedestal, her wings spread out, with the crystal before her.

"I'm fine, Whonkahonk," Kia answers the Hooka. "I can see Yovne again." She steps forward again, moving past the middle ring and to the inner one.

The cycle repeats itself. The middle ring starts up … and the last ring stops … making Envoy visible, standing atop the pedestal…

And then … the middle ring starts … and the inner one stops. There, visible through the gap, is Kia, looking up at Envoy.

"Kia!" Envoy shouts, and jumps off of the platform towards the opening. "Stay there!"

As Envoy hops down, the crystal shoots back up into the air again, hovering above the pedestal.

The Aeolun tries to get through the gap next to Kia before the ring can start up again.

"We were worried about you," the mouse says, pausing in the act of lifting one foot to step over the last ring. She puts her foot down again, right where she's standing. "What are you doing? What isn't safe?"

Envoy makes it through as Kia halts her progress. The movement of the outer petals seems to flicker and stutter.

The mouse thinks to herself, when Envoy steps over the inner ring, the middle ring will slow down, while the inner ring starts moving again.

"Khey are sowink kown!" Whonkahonk loudly trumpets from outside. "Sow kown, sow kown, sow kown!"

"The rings don't stop when you try to leave from inside, we have to hurry back out!" Envoy urges.

The middle ring starts to slow down … while the inner ring starts moving again.

… and then … the rings seem uncertain, jerking in place, as if wanting to trade places.

"Unless it was just because you were already coming in," Envoy muses as she tries to jump through to the outer ring before things speed up again.

"No. It works just the way it does coming in," Kia says, confidently. "You just have to believe it. The middle ring will stop to let us out to the outer one. The inner ring will turn."

Envoy moves through without trouble, as the rings at last seem to decide to agree with Kia.

Envoy blinks at this. "Believe it… like the ghosts in the library?" she asks.

The mouse joins Envoy in the outer ledge, waiting patiently for the last ring to stop moving so they can get out. "Yes. Exactly like the ghosts in the library."

Ring by ring, Envoy and Kia work their way out, until they see Whonkahonk waiting for them on the other side. "Hooraaaaaaah!" he trumpets, bouncing happily upon seeing them.

Closing her eyes, the Aeolun thinks, It's not really hot and sticky out here. It's just warm. Maybe it'll make a difference.

The mouse bounces out of the last ring, releasing pent-up tension to give a big hug to Whonkahonk. "Hooray!" she echoes.

And, perhaps it's just the exultation of being out of the midst of slicey-dicey spinning crystal petals, but, goodness, it almost seems as if it's not nearly quite so hot and humid down here…