[STATUS WINDOW: Damien Karyon]
[Cultivation: 4th Order, 4th Rank (Foundation Solidified)]
[Physique: Convergence Physique (Stage 1 – 42% Integration)]
[Mana: 310/4,500 (Critically Depleted – Recovery 5%/hour)]
[Health: Severe Spiritual Fatigue, Minor Corrosion Burns]
[Bloodline: Ocularis Prime – 75%]
[Bonded Artifact: The Conductor's Focus (Charge: 15%)]
The Glimmerdawn Depths clearing was a battlefield triage center. Lyra, her rainbow-hued eyes dimmed to a dull amber, moved between Brom and Kiran, her healing foxfire sputtering like a damp candle. Kiran lay propped against a crystal, his chest a mess of blackened, corroded flesh where Garron's backhand had struck. He was conscious, but each breath was a wheezing curse.
Brom was in better shape physically, his Rune-Forged Granite body resistant to the decay, but the effort of inscribing the 'Sundering' rune mid-combat had cracked something fundamental in his earth core. He sat motionless, a fine network of fissures visible across his stone skin.
Sylvia, the least magically taxed, was efficiently looting the Purifiers. "Standard issue gear. Potions, rations, some decent grade spirit stones. The glaive…" she kicked the broken haft of Garron's weapon, "…is junk. The corrosive energy ate itself once the Harmony hit. But the Inquisitor's spatial pouch is intact." She tossed a sleek, black leather pouch to Damien.
Damien caught it, his movements slow with exhaustion. He probed it with a thread of will. Inside was a small fortune in high-grade spirit stones, several data-crystals, a writ of authority from the Vexis Clan Council, and… two pulsating, crystalline fruits that glowed with an internal, gentle light.
[Identified: Dawnheart Fruit (Grade 4 Alchemical Treasure).]
[Effect: Massive, pure infusion of life-force and spiritual energy. Can forcibly elevate cultivation base for those below 5th Order, with minimal foundational damage. Extremely Rare.]
A boon. Two of them. Garron had likely been carrying them as rewards for his Purifiers or for his own use.
Damien didn't hesitate. He walked to Lyra and Brom. "These are for you."
Lyra stared at the pulsating fruit in his outstretched hand, her exhaustion forgotten for a moment. "Damien… that's a Dawnheart Fruit! They're legendary! You should use it, or Kiran—"
"Kiran's void constitution would reject its pure life energy. It would cause a violent conflict," Damien stated. "My Convergence Physique can advance through integration, not brute force. You and Brom are the furthest behind. This will close the gap. Our strength must be balanced."
It was a cold, logical assessment, but the act itself was one of profound trust. He was investing in their power.
Brom took the fruit with his good hand. He didn't thank Damien with words. He met his leader's grey eyes and gave a slow, deep nod. Then he bit into the fruit. It dissolved into liquid light, flowing into him. The cracks in his stone skin began to seal with a golden glow, and his aura, which had been muted, began to swell with a deep, resonant power.
Lyra, tears shimmering in her eyes, took hers. "Thank you," she whispered, then ate it. A cascade of prismatic light erupted from her, her nine tails fluffing out to twice their size, each tip blazing with a distinct, vibrant color. The air filled with the scent of blooming orchards and summer rain.
They sank into immediate, deep meditation, their bodies working to absorb the incredible energy.
Kiran watched, a bitter twist to his mouth. "So I get the corrosive burns, and they get the god-fruits. Fair."
"Your reward," Damien said, tossing him the data-crystals from Garron's pouch. "Vexis tactical data, security protocols, possibly clan movements. Knowledge. Your weapon."
Kiran caught them, his void-eyes glinting. "Hmph. Better than fruit." He began scanning the crystals with his spiritual sense, his pain forgotten in the allure of enemy secrets.
Sylvia finished her looting and sat on a rock, cleaning her nails with a Purifier's dagger. "You're building quite the little rebel cell, Frostbite. Healer, tank, spy, and you as the mad conductor. What's my official title?"
"Den Mother," Kiran muttered without looking up.
Sylvia threw the dagger. It stuck in the tree an inch from Kiran's head. "Try again, Void-boy."
"Perimeter Specialist," Damien offered. "And our liaison to the… less reputable elements of the Shattered Lands."
Sylvia considered it. "I can work with that. Means I get to do the fun negotiating. Speaking of…" She nodded towards the tree line.
Several Echo-beasts had gathered, watching them. But these were different. They were clearer, more defined.
"Great," Kiran sighed. "The audience is back."
The Huge beast stepped forward. It did not speak, but a feeling of curiosity and offer washed over them, accompanied by fragmented images: a hidden grove deeper in the Depths; a pool of silver water; protection from the "rigid ones" (the Vexis).
"They're… inviting us?" Lyra mumbled, her meditation interrupted by the psychic communication.
"Or leading us into a trap," Sylvia said, hand on her chain.
Damien's Cosmic Lens eyes studied the beast wraiths. They were not hostile. They were… guardians. Memories of the Depths' original protectors, from before the Fall. They had seen the battle. They had felt the Harmony.
"They offer sanctuary and a boon in exchange for our continued… disturbance of the 'rigid ones'," Damien translated. "They see us as allies of chaos. Of life."
"Do we trust beast wraiths?" Kiran asked.
"We need a secure place for Lyra and Brom to complete their integration without further Vexis interruptions," Damien said. "The terms are acceptable."
He bowed slightly to the huge beast wraith. The wraith bowed back, then turned and drifted into the forest. They were to follow.
Gathering their wounded and their loot, the battered group followed the spectral guides deeper into the Glimmerdawn Depths, leaving the clearing of battle behind, stepping into the care of ancient memories.
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