At first, the guards did not seem inclined to humor Elijah's insistence that he stay there on the scene, and moved to kneecap him if need be to put him off guard – but one of the mages ordered the captain to stay her hand, warning that this was far too delicate a place in which to have any further violence, and that the shedding of blood might have undue potency that would jeopardize attempts to "stabilize the subject" – whatever that meant.

It was with great begrudging and many dire warnings that Elijah and Sukara were permitted to stay and observe. Another dream mage came to lend assistance to the first, as well as a chaos mage. There were all sorts of arcane exchanges that Elijah could not hope to comprehend, save that, by the context, he presumed that the mages considered these things to be of great import and of ill omen.

Srinala was laid back out in the center of the circle, and lapsed back into slumber, though she would occasionally mutter strange things, and evidence no reaction to her surroundings.

"Is it just a dream?" Srinala had whispered, "or are you just a shade? An echo? A manifestation of magic? Doesn't that make you less than real? Doesn't it?"

Some time later, she asked of no one visible, "What is your favorite place? Your favorite place, on this world, or any other?" Still later, "It is true that the Srinala speaks My words."

More of a surprise was when she suddenly shouted, "THEN TELL ME!" and lapsed back to incomprehensible muttering, but the mages did not seem to be overly concerned by this in particular.

Through all this, Sukara and Elijah have been witnesses, if not entirely silent ones. Sukara has repeatedly demanded to know what was going on, only to win stone silence from the dream mages, whose expressions made it clear that they had no time to break off chanting to offer explanations. As for Elijah … he has only been dimly aware of the passage of time, his strength sapped from him despite Sukara's healing and the rudimentary first aid he was given by some apprentices of the Sphere of Life.

Lucidity returns for the time being, as Srinala's shout snapped him out of a half-slumber, and slowly he manages to shake the fogginess out of his head. His arms are pinned behind his back in restraints, and, of course, he hasn't any weapon anywhere within reach. Sukara is similarly restrained. To Elijah's side is perched a Korv with bleach-white feathers and white robes marked with the rune of the Sphere of Spirit, his jet-black eyes glittering in the candle-light.

As Elijah stirs, the Korv cocks his head, regarding the brown Vartan. "Ah, you are with us again. That healing must finally be doing its work. Now then – I hear from the priestess that you are but a mercenary from Ur in her service. Far be it from me to question your credentials, unless I should have just cause, and I shall be more than happy to report merely a botched attempt on the part of Babelite mercenaries to invade our grounds." He pauses, clicking his beak.

"That would depend on how successful we are in coming to an understanding," he adds. "Toward that end, I am willing to do my best to enlighten you on what transpires here – "

The ex-dean is interrupted by the second dream mage, a Naga with enameled scales in subdued patterns of blue-grey that seem smoky in the dim light. "Dean Fau – " The snake snaps his mouth shut, flicking a tongue in annoyance or embarrassment, and then starts again, "Mage FauSt, Something iS tranSpiring in the Dream RealmS. The RealmS themSelves are deStabiliZing."

The folds at the edges of the crow's beak fold down in a frown. "This isn't my Sphere. Tell me if this is a good or a bad thing."

"InSofar aS I have no idea what thiS meanS," the Naga says, "I call it a 'bad thing'. The RealmS are not collapSing … not yet, any road … but Something iS changing."

"Then stop telling me about it," the crow caws, "and make certain Mystico isn't the only one holding onto the link!"

The snake responds, "I onCe again recommend that we terminate the anchor. It iSn't worth the riSk."

Mage Faust's eyes narrow. "Lucidius, no. Unless you can tell me with all certainty that we're about to have Sunala herself manifest here right now, or something similarly catastrophic, we aren't going to be that pragmatic."

The snake flicks his tongue in annoyance, his slit eyes scanning Elijah, then Sukara. "If you inSiSt." He closes his eyes and resumes chanting.

The crow tries to coax some of his ruffled feathers back into place. "We intend to do the best we can," he says for the benefit of Sukara and Elijah, "but we are at real risk. That was no jest about Sunala. According to our best readings, we came this close to having just such a thing happen. After hearing Priestess Sukara's story, I fully understand why you would feel compelled to try to stop us … but we are not monsters. We are trying to save lives."

Sukara turns from glaring daggers at the snake to give Faust a dubious look.

"All I know is that you kidnapped a child and have two other children worried sick. I have repeatedly demanded to know what you are doing and have been told utterly nothing. This implies that you mean harm, or at least something highly illegal yourselves, if you cannot be forthcoming. I already know that one of your number has fallen to the Seven Sisters, and for all I know you have been corrupted as well… and you have the nerve to call me a Babelite agent. So I will ask again: what are your intentions towards that child that you hold prisoner? And why did you have to kidnap her and hold her here?" Elijah pulls himself up, his fingers feeling out his bonds.

The crow seems surprised at Elijah's outburst. After all, it's the first opportunity he's had to make any, given the dullness imposed upon him by a combination of pain, blood loss and healing magic. "Our intentions are only to put things right, and to prevent a catastrophe," he caws. "And we did not 'kidnap' her. We obtained a warrant, and followed standard procedure. Where cases of spirit-possession are concerned, Rephidim recognizes our authority, as they always have. They hardly have the means to deal with such cases, except in the most crude fashion."

The Vartan's eyes widen. "You had her arrested? Under what charge?"

"This 'child' is not quite what you suppose her to be, I would wager," the crow caws. "She is a 'Srinala'. What that means is that, from birth, she has been comatose. She has no life experiences, no personality of her own. 'She' is nothing but a mindless vessel. 'Srinala' the child is but a mask … an illusion. This body is animated by an artificial spirit. She is possessed. That is the 'charge', as you put it."

"That's a lie!" Sukara hisses. "I may not be a 'spirit mage', but I can sense life well enough. She's alive. She's not a puppet on strings!"

"It was my understanding that she sucked in fragments from the realm of the Babelite gods, the Sea of Souls, and they all melded into one personality. It may not be the conventional way for a birth to occur, but she is a newborn nonetheless." Elijah takes a moment to slow his breath and calm down. "I watched her learn how to walk, to understand that it hurt when you fell and bruised your knee, how to eat, how to dress herself… If she was possessed by a higher power, one would assume that it would already know such things."

"Not," the crow says, poised as if expecting this, to the naked irritation of Sukara, "if this higher power is a spirit that has never experienced such things. Babelite goddesses do not learn how to walk, and they do not know pain the way we do. They exist within their 'perfectly' sculpted worlds, where all events occur only according to the way they 'ought to be', shaped by their myths."

"Spirits cannot inhabit living bodies, at least not long term. All the possessions I have encountered have involved some sort of corruption to the body. The ones that are alive when possessed die soon enough, and the puppeteer usually shows its hand if there is one. I spent months with Srinala and saw no such thing. If I did see her as a threat, she would not have been left in the care of a child." He looks over to the Eeee. "Why don't you wake her up and allow her to defend herself?"

The crow clamps his beak shut, giving Elijah a sour look, perhaps unused to being challenged by someone claiming personal experience in his own field of expertise. "She would be awake, if we had any say in the matter. It is simply impossible to keep her separated from the 'Dream Realm' indefinitely. We allow her to sleep for a brief period, and then resume shielding her from its influences for the remainder of the day."

"So what is the disaster you are supposedly fending off by keeping her here? And what precisely do you intend to do with her when all of this is done?" the Vartan scrawks.

The odd tingling sensation still runs through Elijah's body, as the residual effects of the healing spell cast upon him still work through his body. He can feel his strength still returning, and the grogginess fade away. The pain, however, is not gone – The wounds haven't miraculously vanished by any stretch of the imagination, but the stress on the rest of his body has been greatly relieved.

The crow looks to the sleeping form of Srinala, then back to Elijah. "She is a key to what is happening in the Dream Realms. Within her is the heart of the entity of 'Sunala'. For whatever reason, whereas the other 'goddesses' have their essence within that insubstantial 'realm' of the magic field of Sinai – or the 'Dream Realm', if you will, though the term is misleading – Sunala has become inextricably anchored to a mortal, physical body."

"We intend to break that link," the crow says, "and thus end Sunala's existence in the Dream Realms."

"BLASPHEMER!" Sukara spits out, struggling vainly against her bonds.

"Sukara, hush and be still." Elijah grinds his beak. "Has she done anything that construes a threat? Stricken anyone dead? Severing that link may kill her."

The crow looks to Elijah. "Our experts are certain that severing the link will restore her to her natural state, as she was before the 'Dream Realms' came into existence."

Elijah bristles. "So you'll kill her. You'll turn her into a vegetable again."

Mage Faust sighs. "Being a vegetable and being dead are not the same thing. If you are saying that removing the spirit that motivates her constitutes 'death', then, yes, we are going to destroy Sunala. Sunala is going to 'die', as much as it can be said of any artificial entity."

The tingling sensation still runs through Elijah's body, tickling the fringes of his senses. It's no longer merely a matter of him being conscious of it. What keeps bringing it to mind? Is the sensation growing stronger?

"No! She's a child! I interrupted your ritual because I thought that you'd somehow put her back into the sea of souls and let Sunala possess her body … but now I find that this is your plan all along? You would snuff out a child's life because of a perceived danger? She was given a chance to live again after being made into a vegetable at birth by a mage … and you would strike her back down into that state for a crime she hasn't committed?" The Vartan's fingers curl around the straps of his bonds and he spares a glance at Sukara, curious if she's the source of the growing magic.

Sukara seems to have lost interest in the crow entirely, staring at the prone body of Srinala. Mage Lucidius shifts on his coils, and Mystico's breath comes rapidly. Mage Faust blinks, and, in the middle of opening his beak with a comeback, looks over toward the circle, just as the candles all flicker and threaten to die out, dropping the room into a deeper darkness.

The bonds around the Vartan's arms seem quite sturdy, but, determined enough, he might be able to snap them … or severely injure himself in the attempt.(Or both.)

Elijah forces himself to stand, choking down on a pained groan as his leg complains over the attempt. He keeps his hands behind him and in their bonds for now, but tenses himself in case he does need to tear them loose. He'lltake severe injury over the death of Srinala any day. "You do not become the monster you battle. No matter how many soldiers you lose, you sacrifice them all if you can save a child's life. This is murder, and it speaks very very ill of – " His words trail off as he notices the stirrings in the chamber. "Srinala?"

The crow hardly notices Elijah standing, though he absently caws, "Sit – ". He makes no move to enforce his command.

Srinala's eyes blink open, and the whiteness of them ispure, undimmed by the shadows, not casting any light, but making that which is around her seem darker by comparison. She slowly begins to stand.

Lucidius' eyes snap open. "It haS happened! You fool! I told you it was unStable!" He draws a dagger from the folds of his vestments.

Elijah takes a couple of limping steps towards the circle, but doesn't step within it after his past "null" mishap. He catches the light of the dagger from the Naga's hand and suddenly hurls himself at the snake. He may not have the hands to grab, but he can still squash with his bulk.

Even bound, Elijah is far better a brawler than the snake, who probably wouldn't have the skill to wield the knife against anything but a prone victim. The mage still possesses Nagai reflexes, and manages to turn and bare his fangs instinctively as he sees the Vartan coming toward him, but he fails to angle the blade in defense; it goes flying from his hand, spinning across the floor, as the serpent is nearly flattened underneath Elijah's bulk, the breath shooting out of his lungs.

The Lapi mage's ears jump back, and he lets out a high-pitched squeal as he abandons the circle, diving for cover. The crow flaps his wings, cawing in dismay … and unfazed by the turmoil, Srinala stands the rest of the way, then takes a deep breath of the dingy, damp chamber air.

The Vartan forces himself up again against the screaming protests from his back and leg. "Srinala!"

Srinala turns and looks at Elijah. "Don't lay a hand on him," she says, her bearing regal and confident, despite her humble appearance. When the crow draws forth an arcane amulet with glowing sigils upon it, she lifts her right hand and points it at him, without even looking. "Don't."

Sukara slowly rises, her hands and wings still bound. "My … Lady?" she asks, uncertain, with a tinge of fear in her voice.

Elijah shakes his head. "Sunala… " He strains at his bonds again. "Have you taken Srinala?"

"I have taken no one," the bat says, as she looks to Elijah. "I merely came to realize who and what I truly am."

As Elijah struggles, he feels a surge rush through him … and he finds himself snapping free of the bonds, seemingly without effort.

The Vartan flinches and hesitantly rubs at his wrists. "You were Sunala, then? What about the Sea of Souls or all those pieces of memories?"

"I am that as well," the bat answers. "I am Srinala, I am Sunala, I am many things, woven together. I am born of magic and denied a true life in two worlds at once."

The crow, dumbstruck, still clutches his magical amulet tightly. The snake doesn't look like he'll be causing trouble anytime soon, nor will the Lapi cowering in the corner.

Elijah walks slowly towards the Korv. "Please, put it down." He looks back at the Eeee. "So how did you end up as you were? Wasn't your body supposed to be killed during that ritual in the cave? Did Pouncer accidentally do something to change it?"

"At that time," the bat says, "I was confused as to my identity. I acted as if I were separate entities: Sunala the goddess of death, ruling over her lonely realm … and another presence, a child, who may be called Srinala, though she wore many masks and played many roles. She saw what was happening in the realm of her mistress's rival, Inala, and feared that Inala would become ascendant, and that Sunala and the others would be left behind."

"Was there to be a sacrifice then to stop it? Or was it your plan all along to move into a body?" Elijah pauses for a moment to tear Sukara's bonds free.

"There was no plan. On that night – the same night that you were seeking shelter in that cave – two Dreamers challenged Inala. It was a challenge that could not be won," she continues. "Envoy of Lothrhyn was compelled against her will to 'request' that she become Inala's avatar. This strengthened Inala and her realm, and the Dream Realm as a whole."

The white-eyed bat continues, "While the powers ran wild, chaos drew you toward that shrine, and there, when the boundaries between the worlds became weakest, the child attempted to draw your daughter in as a Dreamer, but without a dream. Her plan was not to gain an Avatar. She knew not what she sought, but glory and power for her mistress. She knew nothing of the import of these contests … "

"… save," she amends, as the bonds fall from Sukara, "that they had to be performed."

The crow steps back toward the wall, his beak working as he evidently tries to come to grips with just how things have unraveled here.

The Vartan glances again at the Korv, somewhat fearful at how "your daughter" may blow his cover. He finally just shrugs. "So what ultimately occurred?"

Srinala/Sunala says, "What occurred, was that the 'test' did not go as planned. The 'child' was drawn into the body, into the physical world … or so it might be said. In reality, she was never apart from it. From her birth, she was a dreamer, and from the opening of these so-called'Dream Realms', she was a part of them, more so than any of those drugged worshippers that have laid down and fantasized about their realms. 'Sunala' at that time was but a concept – a rough collection of ideas and myths," she continues.

Elijah tilts his head. "So you always did have a soul."

"Yes," she answers, "but devoid of life's experiences. The Dreamers, as they passed through the realms, helped to shape the ideas of these goddesses," Srinala/Sunala narrates. "But Sunala had no willing visitors. The only one who was truly shaping her existence … was the one who had brought her – however unwittingly – to the real world."

Sukara looks as if she dearly wants to say something here, but perhaps can't find the words. No doubt, this is not something she deals with on a regular basis.

"Pouncer." The Vartan rubs his head. "Oh Star, she's probably worried half the fur off of her tail by now."

Srinala/Sunala frowns, then says, "I owe much to her. But I cannot be what she wishes me to be. I will always be grateful to her, and she will always be welcome in my temples … but I cannot be her 'friend'."

Elijah clutches his fist. "Why not? Why is it that Srinala could be Pouncer's friend, but Sunala cannot? You yourself said that the goddesses were just concepts floating around in the minds of dreamers, and your body will die just as mine will someday. Why must you choose the life of a goddess born out of dreams instead of the life as part of a family with people who love you?"

Srinala/Sunala frowns even more at this. "I am not some ordinary child. I cannot pretend to be so. It would be a lie. As much as anyone can claim to be Sunala, I am. I am made from all of those concepts, all of those dreams, but given life and breath and power. I can grant miracles through my followers. I can hear their prayers. I can speak to them in their dreams. I cannot make myself quite so small, just to be a playmate to Pouncer, no matter how dear she is. Can you deny who you are, so that you may play the role of ever-present father?"

Elijah drops his head. "But must you be a goddess of death?" He gestures to Sukara. "What sort of figure will you be? All I know of Sunala's followers are pleas for quick deaths, or hopes of nothingness. Shredded wings and blind eyes. Sukara, whom someone considered useless to give her such a horrible name, has seemed both vibrant and alive, yet hopeless in the prospect of future oblivion. If we have touched you at all … have we done anything to remove that?"

Sunala pauses at this. "These things … are mere trappings. Blood sacrifice does not please me. All shall go to Death some day, and there is nothing to be gained by hastening that journey." She looks up to Elijah. "If that is your objection, these things can easily be amended. I am Sunala, am I not? What I tell my followers, they will do, or else I can grant them oblivion more swiftly than they ever imagined."

"That is not quite what I meant." The Vartan takes a step forward. "I know you have power, because you healed me – but will you be a goddess or a leader? Will you have followers, subjects, or worshipers?"

"Worshippers," Sunala says firmly. "I am giving them an ear to their prayers. I am giving a voice to their dreams. I am giving life to their myths. And I am giving them a goddess to worship." She looks to Sukara. "Have you any objections to that?"

Sukara looks dumbstruck, and stammers, "Y-you … you are my Lady, who called me in my dreams, are you not?"

Sunala nods silently.

"Pouncer did not have as great an impact upon you as I had hoped she would," Elijah says sadly. "Whom will you pray to when you feel alone, or are scared, or seek guidance?"

Sunala looks back to Elijah at this, even though she has no pupils. "I understand what you are trying to do. But it is an absurdity for a deity to pray to another."

"Deities do not die, Srinala. I can show you libraries full of stories where people gained power just like yourself, but they are not deities. Amenlichtli is not a goddess, nor is Ariel, nor is Kasaris. Blood runs through your veins. Some woman who may even still live gave birth to you … and although you may even find immortality in your existence, that does not grant you godhood … because it isn't something that can be achieved or granted in life." Elijah glances back down at Sukara "There is only one god, and it always was and always will be."

Sukara bows her head. "Please, my Lady, take no offense at him. He is not of our people, and does not understand our beliefs."

Sunala shakes her head. "Oh, but he does. He does." She looks back up to Elijah. "I have been weak and humble for so long now. And what has it gotten me? It only makes me prey for such as these." She gestures toward the mages.

"And pride makes you one of them. Is it better to be humble and be a victim every so often, than to be prideful and blindly smashing anything you see as a threat. I know how you feel, Srinala … I have wanted nothing more than to ravage the Temple for the shame they put upon the Knights. I have wanted to smash every Inquisitor who sat idle as my brothers and sisters were sent to slaughter. But I didn't, and I won't. I hate, even though I don't want to … and I am angry beyond angry sometimes – but taking action is not worth the cost." He holds his hands out. "I was so angry in the cave that Pouncer had been caught up in this mess that I wished death upon you, Srinala. But that is not what I have been taught to believe. Yes, humility may have made you a victim, but it also saved your life, and it made Pouncer choose to turn the dagger upon herself in her dream as well … so perhaps it saved you twice."

Sunala closes her eyes, turning a degree away from Elijah, though there's enough pride that she can't allow herself to flinch more than that. "Perhaps." She looks back to Elijah again. "I demanded to know of Envoy why you did not rescue me. She was in my realm while I was sleeping. I wanted to know why you came so far, and yet surrendered."

The Vartan frowns. "And what did she tell you?"

"She laughed at me," Sunala says, with a trace of bitterness. "She said that I couldn't possibly understand, because self-sacrifice has no meaning in Babel. I thought she was absurd; many of my followers sacrifice themselves. But she said that it was because your objective was not to obtain me. It was to save me. And since you could not do so without harming me, you surrendered, rather than putting me at further risk."

Sunala smirks faintly, her eyes impossible to track, given that she has no pupils. "Envoy said that if you had been a Dreamer in one of the 'challenges', you would have won. And perhaps that is what you did."

"I wanted you back safely, yes." Elijah looks at the cowering Lapi. "But I've seen the results of botched rituals, like Safar so many years ago. I was afraid that if I had wrenched you from the circle I may have killed you, so I chose just to stay as close to you to protect you as I could, instead. I … I don't think you're incapable of understanding that."

"Envoy usually doesn't have such a high opinion of me. I suppose I should be flattered. Is she still Inala's avatar?" He quirks his head to the side again.

"No," Sunala says, firmly, shaking her head. "She tore herself free of Inala, at a cost to herself." She sighs, then shifts tracks. "My people need me," she insists. "The Dream Realm is coming to an end. The mages of Caroban have broken up the rituals, and the realms are falling apart. Even now, a battle is being waged in what remains of the Realm, and that is certain not to last long. First Rephidim struck against Babel, and now Caroban has taken its turn. Time and again, the empires of the sky oppress those of the earth, just as Bael violated Vael."

"What of the High Princess? Is she conveniently absent in all the turmoil again?" Elijah looks down at his hand. "Boghaz maintained the peace and made Babel great for a time. If you are going to take up a role, perhaps you should consider his instead of godhood."

"She is at the heart of it," Sunala says. "She aspires to make herself a goddess."

"A … goddess?" Faust stammers, finding his voice. "This is all just some preposterous power-grab to satisfy her delusions of grandeur?" he sputters.

"She was around the Sabaoth for far too long." The Vartan shifts his weight on his wounded leg, testing to see how far along the healing has gone. "I never would have expected it of her in the time that we spent together, although she tended to keep to herself."

"Power can change people," Sunala says, absently, and then as soon as the words are out of her mouth, she frowns. "But that is beside the point. Caroban pretends to be neutral, but even now, it leans heavily toward Rephidim. I can lend my power – and that of my followers – to Babel, to give them a defense against the abuses of the mages."

"And then there will be retaliation, and the war shall continue until everybody is dead." Elijah looks around the room. "The better path would be to file charges or make some noise about the matter. I also am somewhat suspicious that the mages here are not acting entirely under the authority of Caroban."

Mage Faust glowers at Elijah. "We do not require the full authority of Caroban for such an action as this. An emergency was brought to our attention, and we have proceeded to deal with it with great haste, considering the dangers presented by the Dream Realm. This is not something limited to a small area. This affects all of Sinai!"

Sunala looks at Faust, pointedly saying, "But, most importantly, it challenges your authority over all things magical, does it not?"

"Then spread word over Sinai of what happened here. If Caroban is neutral, then we can get word out about every time they take sides loud enough so that Caroban will either have to stop pretending to be neutral or will have to enforce their claim of dropping the membership of anyone who does not remain neutral. Furthering the war will only shatter neutrality all the more." Elijah sighs. "Besides, I've had enough of the war. I've lost too many people to count over it, and I would like nothing more than to see it finally end. Nobody has to win or lose… just end it."

Sunala crosses her arms. "Then what would you have me do?"

"Be a leader, not a goddess. Grant your answers to prayers because you care about the needs of your people, not because you are obliged to because you are an object of worship. Command respect, not fear." He gestures to the Korv. "Look what fear has gained you so far."

Sunala follows Elijah's gesture, attesting to amazing hearing, anticipation, or else that whatever magic she possesses allows her to ignore her physical blindness … and then she looks back to Elijah. "This, I shall consider." She looks to Sukara. "Would you follow me, if I were but a leader, and not your goddess?"

Sukara seems quite put on the spot by this question, obviously mulling over her answer. Babelite goddesses, after all, are so well known for asking trick questions.

"Sukara, answer what your heart tells you. If anyone would have gotten struck down for saying the wrong thing, then I would probably be dead twelve times over. If you feel that you must say 'no', then say 'no' … or if you need to say more than 'yes' or 'no', then do so." The Vartan tries to give a reassuring smile.

Sukara shakes her head. "I don't know how to answer you … my Lady. You listened to my prayers, and you spoke to me in dreams … I want to believe that you are Sunala … but … I … I don't know. This is very difficult for me to grasp."

Sunala says, "I am not asking you to worship me. I am asking you to follow me. It should not be a difficult distinction. Few of the Yodh actually worship their Mistresses."

Elijah takes a couple of steps forward between the two bats. "Why don't we continue this conversation elsewhere? I think we've worn out our welcome here, and I don't feelmuch like waiting for the cavalry."

Sunala says, "I'm certain I can arrange an exit." She looks to Mage Faust. "If you don't grant us safe passage out of here, I am quite capable of striking down anyone I meet. If you need proof, I can demonstrate."

"I would rather not take such an option," Elijah adds. "But if we have to fight our way out then I am willing."

Mage Faust works his beak again. "To let you go … is against everything we stand for! To let … a spirit loose on Rephidim? Are you mad?"

"Let us go, and I will not file charges against Caroban that their Dean of Spirit violated his neutrality and tried to murder a young woman who was a guest at a Rephidim citizen's household. I may look like a ragged mercenary, but I have enough clout in enough countries to make things extremely hot for you, Dean Faust," the Vartan scrawks.

Sukara seems to be emboldened by this. "As a representative of the priesthood of Babel, I have a right to file a protest against ill-treatment of a Babelite citizen. If you must perform an 'exorcism', I would far more trust that the matter be moved to the Guild Hall in Babel."

Faust shrinks back. "It seems … I have no choice in the matter. I strongly advise you, then, to leave Rephidim immediately. Once the Temple hears of this, they will have no choice but to take action," he warns.

"With what? The Order of the Pink Ribbon? The Knights of the Stuffed Truffles?" Elijah smirks. "Who do you have in your pocket, Dean Faust? Bribery won't look all that good on your record either, and the Temple is excellent at keeping records. Now… why don't we all simply quietly exit and all of us can pretend we were never here? There will be far less trouble that way."

The crow lowers his head, in a glowering sulk. "You win, 'mercenary'. This time. But mark my words, you've made an enemy of Caroban this day."

Elijah takes one swift step forward. "Mark my words … if you harm one hair on my family's head because of this, I will deal with you very swiftly. I've killed dozens of Plaguebringers, golems, ghosts, and most other nightmares you can conjure up. If you insist on a vendetta, then make it against me and me alone. And if I catch so much of a whisper of it, I'll call for a full investigation, and get as many allies as I can to boycott Caroban. I may be an enemy, but I am not one to be taken lightly."

To this, the crow has no comeback, save to gesture to the broken doorway with a wing. "This way," he caws.

Elijah puts an arm across Sukara's shoulder and offers Srinala/Sunala his hand to help her along.