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“You’re right, of course,” said Jun. She stiffened her posture a bit, and a hint of a smile appeared on her face. “Words alone are not enough. So perhaps I can offer you something a bit more tangible. Something that, by rights, should be returned to you.”

Zeff felt sudden pangs of both anticipation and worry. What in the world could she be talking about?

She let the moment linger a little more before elaborating. “The Fountain of Lhutwë,” she said, causing Zeff’s eyes to widen again. “It was destroyed, once upon a time, yes? Reduced to a dozen or so fragments.” And to Zeff’s further amazement, she reached into her onesie and produced a sizable chunk of blue-gray stone. “Fragments such as this one here.”

Zeff couldn’t help marveling at the mere sight of it. Could that be real? It was certainly too early to be certain, considering he’d never actually seen the Fountain with his own eyes, but he did have the benefit of Axiolis’ memories to pull from. And that chunk there did indeed look... rather promising.

There was more to it, too. Something he couldn’t put into words. Something that he just felt. An odd sense of familiarity. A resonance.

“Here, catch,” said Jun. She tossed it to him like a softball.

And despite still being utterly dumbfounded, Zeff caught it.

“That one is on the house,” she went on. “Belongs with you, anyway. Consider it a gesture of my goodwill. But if you decide to join up with me, I can offer you a second one to go along with it.”

She had two?! Zeff was speechless.

Thankfully, Axiolis decided to speak up for his servant. ‘Where did you find these?’

“Oh, I’m not sure, actually,” said Jun. Her smile broadened, and she shrugged. “They belong to Sai-hee. No idea where she picked them up. But I figure, she’s not usin’ ‘em, so...”

Graves gave an audible huff. “You must truly believe she is dead, then. Because if she is not, then you are playing a very dangerous game here, Phantom. She will certainly see this as a betrayal. And not a small one, either.”

“Yes,” said Jun. “Now you understand how serious I am.”

Zeff was still stunned and staring at the fragment in his hand. A real fragment. From the mythical Fountain.

These had been lost to his kin for centuries--and the Fountain itself, for even longer.