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His mixed memories of her worked their way into his dream. Images of her smiling face. Feelings of her warm embrace. Followed by colder eyes and closed doors. And the pain from the tattoos. Coming and going.

And she spoke to him. Telling him to quit crying. That she wouldn't always be there to make everything better. That he had to take care of his little brother. That he should learn from his father's example. That a day would come when everyone was depending on him.

He saw Eloa. The whole continent. Burning. He saw creatures he'd never seen before. Monsters, humanoid but not. Gangly and distorted. Melting out of the ground. Rampaging. Slaughtering. Devouring.

And he saw them all turn toward him, hunger in their eyes. Until it turned to fear.

He snapped awake, thrashing. The blanket was wrapped around his face, and he had to take a few moments to undo it. His breathing was labored, though he couldn't tell if that was from the dream or from the blanket.

For a while, he just sat there in the pitch darkness, trying to clear his mind and failing.

He pulled one of the Shards out of his robe. He could feel where they had both pressed up against him while he slept. If not for the tattoos, he would probably have a bruise there.

He gripped the crystal and closed his eyes.

And he tried. Again.

He concentrated on the Shard, on its shape, on his own soul passing into it.

And again, he came up empty. As expected, nothing became clearer.

He sighed and returned it to his pocket with the other one.

The darkness was interrupted by the sudden appearance of an abnormally illuminated scorpionfly descending through the ceiling.