Amdirlain's PoV - Qil Tris solar system - near gas giant.

When whole, the Dragon's general shape would look classically European, scales running from the blunted snout, along an elongated neck, to broad shoulders that widened out into massive membrane wings. Its colossal torso was heavily armoured, with four clawed limbs beside its wings and a long serpentine tail that ended in a bladed point.

Their gaze had remained fixed on Amdirlain in her Elven form for some time before their minds brushed hers.

"You look like an Anar, yet different at the same time. How can you help?"

At least their bloodline memories contain the Anar, which saves a lot of explaining.

"I'm not an Anar, but I have True Song. I'll need to cut ahead of the corrupted flesh, so you have little time to decide."

"Then make it quick. I'll not have time to spawn a new life if you're slow and fail."

Amdirlain numbed its nervous system and got to work. Corrupted flesh sprayed outwards from the Dragon, while regrown flesh and scales pushed outwards behind the safety threshold of uncorrupted flesh she'd removed as well—the momentum of the explosive healing flung the corruption away. When it was clear of the now-healed Dragon, she ignited it with Primordial flames. With the work done, she unblocked the Dragon's nerves and let sensation return to their body. Their intact scales now appeared like an uninterrupted field of stars stretching above the planet's horizon.

A flex of wings to test the healing and push of power lifted the Dragon high above the atmosphere and into a stable orbit. Amdirlain waited for them to settle before she reappeared before them again.

"Do you feel any lingering aches?"

They flexed their wings and settled them against their sides. "I feel so free of aches it's as if I'm freshly moulted."

"Do you have a name that you'd share?"

She caught a sphere of constellations in a particular alignment from the Dragon's mind.

Not exactly one to use in chats except through telepathy.

A burst of warm amusement came from the Dragon, followed by a Draconic name that went on for hundreds of syllables.

"Would you mind if I shortened that to Fronuth?"

"Feel free." Fronuth's wings ruffled with suppressed amusement and relief. "I know how fragile elven minds struggle to hold proper names within their thoughts. Though yours seems curiously robust, oh tiny one."

Amdirlain repeated their name in full. "I can pronounce it fine yet it takes some time. You can call me Amdirlain if you'd like."

"A name of decent length for such a tiny hatchling."

"Then you can consider me the runt of the litter."

"Yet a talented runt to heal me so fast and well. You have my thanks, Amdirlain. I wasn't looking forward to leaving an egg untended when I self-immolated to stop the corruption from claiming me and others. What compensation would you like?"

"There is no debt between us as the Eldritch is a common enemy to all. Would you share with this runt the details of your recent battle?"

The mental image of a swarm of Eldritch forms with several skyscraper-sized masses behind them. Fronuth's irradiated breath weapon lashed out like a solar flare to clash with bursts of energy from the swarm. It obstructed their initial attacks and incinerated a clustered group as more attacks lanced out from the swarm. The strange spells of the lesser beings lacked the range of Fronuth's breath weapon, but the more powerful Eldritch matched their reach. Sweeping around the perimeter of their advance, flares of power swept across the contorting forms and left drifting ash behind.

A purplish blast from the largest Eldritch cut through a gap in the swarm, shrugging aside Fronuth's latest attack before it could claim more and reversing its course. A last-second flip saved Fronuth from a straight-on strike. As the other large Eldritch joined the fray, Fronuth spent an increasing amount of effort avoiding their replies. The Eldritch's efforts bit increasingly into Fronuth's defences until the Far-Chaos energies they were throwing about wormed through the arcane order of the Dragon's shielding. The first fracture triggered a cascade of failures, which left them suddenly exposed with a shield collapse; the leftover force then ripped into their wing tip. Before they could reestablish the shield, multiple blasts struck Fronuth's side and head, and only a reflex wormhole let their spinning form leap away. As the wormhole closed behind Fronuth, they had clawed at their eye to keep a stray mote from eating into their brain.

"I'll go tend to them. Were you drawing in gases to heal?"

"No. I believed I was dead, yet I wanted my memories of the battle to survive. I needed energy to prepare an egg so that another would know my recent life and death."

Amdirlain restored the gases Fronuth had consumed and settled the raging cyclone that had formed.

"It seemed like other solar systems were closer to that fight."

"Their course appeared directed towards this star. I'm not sure why they chose it since I can taste no Eldritch energies nearby."

"There were until I cleaned them up last year," Amdirlain projected. "Maybe that served as their beacon for entering the realm, and they continued on course despite their removal."

I'll need to shift the imprisoned Eldritch from that barren planet if it can serve as an entry beacon.

"At the pace they are travelling, they will take centuries to get here, so they might not be aware of your work. How did you incinerate my corrupted flesh so thoroughly?"

"The Spell used the Primordial Affinity. Would you like to learn it?"

"It won't do me much good to learn the Spell as I don't have the matching Affinity."

Amdirlain glided forward and patted Fronuth's snout. "I meant the Affinity, and some tricks for using it in spells you already know."

"Well, we have some centuries available to try that before they get here."

"I'm sure it won't take that long. I'll go check on them after we get done."

Despite her shattered memories, Amdirlain had no trouble recalling the insight she'd had attuning and reinforcing her understanding of the Primordial Affinity. Yet Fronuth's age and alien perspective posed a challenge; at over a million years old, they possessed deeply distilled attitudes about gaining affinities. Her attempts to guide their understanding faced stubborn resistance and instinctive disbelief. She sought common ground to start from, yet the foundation of their existence was that of a birth between stars. They never stood on a world or felt air moving across their skin except in bloodline memories. Even gravity held little meaning to them, living outside the heliosphere of any solar system; they'd never encountered it, and the gas giant's pull had been a fragile thread clinging to them. Of the three affinities Fronuth possessed, the only one Amdirlain had commonly used was Spatial, whereas Void and Radiance she'd infrequently touched upon since her initial attunement.

After hours of seeking connections between their understandings, Amdirlain stopped and tapped her hands against her legs, quelling the frustration.

The Void Affinity almost directly opposes the essence of creation, yet its focus wasn't on destroying, but the absence of anything to begin with. Their viewpoints also start from different places, so trying to move from one to the other isn't working out.

"I've taught many species, but they all had the commonality of a world-bound framework of experiences to connect them."

"It's nothing to be worried about, Amdirlain, as I wasn't expecting to gain a new Affinity at my age. From my bloodline memories, my forebears only had the same three affinities."

"Your breath attack is a type of radiant energy?"

"Though it flares bright, it's a fleeting thing."

Amdirlain clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "I think going to the Primordial Affinity directly was my mistake with you. Your viewpoints of Void, Spatial, and Radiance differ from mine as well. Despite our different perspectives, they still allow us to utilise Mana embedded with the Affinity."

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People can reinforce their affinities because we only need a superficial understanding to include them in spells. Yet, if it's a sphere of knowledge, then Fronuth has come at their affinities from another angle. Their perspectives are all energy-related rather than physical or songs.

Memories of her lifetime as a cloud of sapient energy drew a mental groan from Amdirlain.

That's where I was going wrong.

"Let's start with Life Affinity. While there aren't many living things in space, we can start with you seeking an understanding of your own body. Though let's go beyond the magnetic field around this solar system, as the locals are getting excited about your presence."

"Yours as well," Fronuth corrected. "Since you're a goddess."

"I prefer the term Primordial. Shall we get going?"

Fronuth opened a wormhole ahead of their orbit and flew into it, leaving Amdirlain to follow. There was only deep space on the far side, without a hint of Eldritch distortion or bodies that had strayed from a solar system, so she jumped to appear beside the exit point. At the very edge of her perception, she caught the hiss of Eldritch distortion, but Qil Tris's star was no longer in range in the other direction.

[Realm Step [Ap](10->11)

Note: Try to blend World Step into it at some point.]

I'll have to practise it a lot locally before I risk going anywhere outside the realm—no point in returning to Earth, but I want to know what turned the forest into a desert.

A few seconds later, Fronuth emerged from the wormhole's vortex and caught Amdirlain's presence out of the corner of their eye.

"How did you get Teleport to carry you this far?"

"Realm Step doesn't have the same range limitation; it just needs a reference point, which the end of your wormhole provided. Shall we get started with a different approach?"

Now the Catfolk instrumentation has readings of wormholes to go alongside the details of Sarah's Artificer theorems, which I provided them. At least it will let them cross-check the enchantments in the ships they're building.

"What did you want to try?"

"I've been trying to share with you my understanding of the affinities. Your perspective is quite different, though, so I thought I would switch to enabling you to understand them on your own."

The next approach requires energy samples, just as Yngvarr's Artificer friend provided for me.

Amdirlain created a shielded sphere for each of the first three tiers of affinities that Fronuth lacked, along with one for Primordial, Destruction, Order and Chaos. As the lesson progressed, Amdirlain opened herself to Fronuth's perception of the energies and guided them with nudges and suggestions. Their halting struggle echoed through her, and she felt a shift within her essence that eased the conflict of differing world views between two lives. The hand-to-mouth existence as a scrub farmer echoed the lean times of a neonate vampire desperate for a mouthful of blood.

[Refined Shards:

- Soul: +1

- Life: +1]

Finding self-understanding while helping others reach for understanding.

She isolated the thought from Fronuth and doubled down on helping until understanding clicked into place.

Teaching them made me reflect on myself. To teach someone properly is to see the world through their eyes and present it in a way that aligns with their perceptions. Would Master Cyrus be pleased or amused to know that I only figured this out after teaching a Dragon?

When at last their understanding of Primordial clicked into place, Fronuth's wings flared wide, and their whole body stiffened.

"Did you want me to assist you with other affinities?"

"Might I try them on my own?"

"I'd prefer not to leave them floating in deep space. How about I place these in a Demi-Plane, and you can share the details with other star dragons that are interested in trying to understand more affinities?"

"You'd provide such a gift?"

"It'll be an opportunity for growth and transformation. Given you're using spatial energy for your wormholes, they'll work to access and exit the Demi-Plane I'll form."

After a brief expansion of an empty Demi-Plane, Amdirlain shifted them and the spheres into place. Though the outer skin of the region was pure darkness, Fronuth unconcernedly turned their attention to another sphere.

"This place has the feel of the region that wormholes travel through—a suitable spot to meditate undisturbed. Let me test my understanding before you depart." A wormhole spun into being in front of Fronuth and remained in place when they flew through. A short while later, they reappeared, mentally humming with glee. "This is a fine spot indeed. What do I owe you for such a treasure?"

"You can decide if you'll use it to teach others, but regardless, it's a thank you for your efforts against the Eldritch."

Amdirlain jumped back to where they'd been on the Material Plane and hopped closer to the distortion of the massed Eldritch.

At a tenth of a light year from their location, she studied the light particles of distant stars racing by them; their comparative pace allowed her to approximate the Eldritch current speed. Their True Song coordinates against those of Qil Tris provided an arrival time if they continued straight on. The three hundred and fifty years they'd take to enter the system eased the tension from Amdirlain's mind.

Do the larger ones even know I'm here? I have plenty of time to try multiple things at extreme range, and I don't have to handle them alone.

Amdirlain created a bubble of air around her and pushed with her Primordial Will as she invoked his name. "Mars."

The bearded deity showed little change. Still attired in his centurion armour, shield, and spear, he looked Amdirlain up and down before he smiled. His spear disappeared, and he stuck out a hand, exchanging a fierce forearm clasp. "It's so good to see you again, Amdirlain, even in this strange place. Sarah has been tight-lipped about you."

"She's very protective of me, and being my secret keeper is a hard habit to break."

Mars clasped Amdirlain's shoulder. "She's not the only one who's protective. I wasn't being critical of your wife, just that I've heard little. I've such gratitude to you that whatever place in your plans you have for me, let me know."

"Today it's more Eldritch, but soon I thought I'd check on a few primitive worlds. Do you feel like teaching more elves about agriculture?"

"It's an interesting challenge getting them to plan crops around the forest without disrupting it. We can discuss that after the Eldritch, though. How many foes have you found?"

"Several thousand small ones, most below the strength of named demons. However, there are three of them with the strength of demi-gods."

"The lesser ones are but chaff in the harvest; a solid initial assault should fell them. Shall we bring in a third to keep the fighting balanced with the stronger ones?"

"Who did you have in mind?"

"Perhaps Torm's former liege. It would be an injustice to let the Eldritch roam and ruin any lives. Then there is your daughter with her protective inclinations, your wife, or your older sister. Though in truth, the Eldritch are so hard to judge that, especially with the three of them having support, it might be best to outnumber them and bring six to the battle."

"I appreciate your avoiding names so I can choose who to involve."

"These forces were your find, so who you involve is up to you," Mars said.

"You'd bring even more?"

Mars nodded grimly. "Indeed, they are not to be taken lightly."

It's not like I get experience from them now, and it's less risky for us that way.

"Let's bring them in for the fight, and maybe one more if you'd prefer."

With her permission, Mars called out five names and warned them of an Eldritch force between the stars. Týr, Livia, Sarah, Lerina, and Minerva all responded to his call, appearing arrayed around him. Minerva was the only one that Amdirlain hadn't met, knowing her only from Athena's account during their time together in the Titan's Maze. Still a Mantle holder, she wore a white tunic that came down to her knees, golden sandals, carried a bright silver shield and spear, and had a gladius sheathed at her hip. Curiously, an emerald-eyed barn owl perched upon her left shoulder, and her blond hair and blue eyes gave her the appearance of someone who came from northern Italy rather than a more traditional Roman appearance that Amdirlain had expected.

She has some overlap with Týr and Sarah, since traditionally the Romans considered her a goddess of justice and the crafts, along with law, victory, arts, trade, and strategy. However, her interests lay more in the mundane arts than the arcane, from what I read on Vehtë.

Livia's snow-white hair and skin caused her sapphire eyes to stand out; they were the most exotic feature about her since she wore only plain grey and black robes in the Monastery of the Western Reaches style. She looked plain next to the red leather outfit that clung to Sarah's lean frame, which had embedded enchantments that shone with the silvery energy of divine Mana.

Though Sarah had warned her, the change in Lerina's appearance was dramatic from her original Succubus form or even from her time as a Solar. The faithful of the worlds to which her tenets had spread had given her a more pronounced elven appearance. Where she'd once possessed obsidian skin and hair, they were now respectively pale green and metallic silver.

"Nice dye job, sis. Livia's lovely as always, while I went back to my old look, and you went for something completely different," Amdirlain said casually. She tugged at her own azure locks and drew a bright laugh from Lerina.

Livia and Lerina moved in sync and hugged Amdirlain together.

"Messages just aren't enough, Móðir," Livia murmured.

Lerina nodded in swift agreement. "Indeed, they're not Amdirlain. Your tendency to venture off and find more trouble before we've caught up in person is so you. How did you find a group of Eldritch between stars?"

"I didn't expect you'd all come along. Now we're the perfect number to take on the forces at hand," Mars said.

"Only if the Romans' superstitions governed you," Týr countered.

As the ladies stepped back, Týr extended a hand to Amdirlain and clasped hers firmly. "It's good to see you again, Amdirlain."

When he released her hand, Mars motioned to Minerva. "Amdirlain, let me introduce you to Minerva."

"Others have already said her name, Mars. I don't think a formal introduction is necessary," Minerva said. "Though you are all paranoid, it's not like we need to worry about her being summoned, or me pestering her with Message spells."

Mars laughed.

Minerva fixed her attention on Amdirlain. "What do we gain by risking ourselves fighting the Eldritch here? I can sense we are galaxies away from Vehtë."

"You can test various powers against them where no mortals you're concerned about are around to get hurt," Amdirlain offered. "You might also consider this a getting-to-know-each-other exercise, and what help I can provide if we work well together."

"A wise strategy, and a wise approach since we are both known to each other by name alone. I approve. Share with us what you know of the gathered forces so that we can devise an efficient approach."

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