In a short succession that could only be interpreted as a confluence of fate, all cohorts of the original Fire Keepers returned from their Nightmares. Almost at the same time, the Blood Sisters of Seishan — the women who had been the Handmaidens once — returned from their own trials.
The casualties among the two groups of challengers were minimal, as well, which meant that in the span of only a few months, humanity had gained more than fifty Saints — and not just any Saints, at that.
Both the Fire Keepers and the Blood Sisters were elites among elites, so naturally, they were exceptionally powerful Transcendents. The overall number of Saints humanity possessed easily crossed the two hundred mark, and in almost an instant, its overall strength greatly increased.
Needless to say, it was a tectonic shift.
