Elizabeth took over their flight as Irwyn intended to put his mind to a different task. Namely, the merging of his two Concepts. Not that he was ready quite yet, but it wouldn't be too long before he would be. The mild impairment on his Soul caused by carving Light was already fast fading as far as Irwyn could tell, even though it couldn't have been more than a day. Still early into Conception, the recovery would be quicker. But it also meant he had to make plans or risk future delays.

"The principle is simple," Elizabeth was still the best among them to explain such matters, of course. The group took a now familiar composition of the four mages attentively listening while Waylan theatrically groaned in the background. "Concepts must play close to equal part in a merger. Forming a Concept for a prismatic element is the most basic use case for this and perhaps the simplest. We have talked about others before, but that is besides the point for now."

"What you will need to do is take the lines of individual intentions forming the Concepts, then knit and twist them together into the new shape. Rather than carving anew, you will be altering the already existing grooves until they perfectly overlap with the new vision. Other than that, the process remains mostly the same as carving a new Concept."

"So I still must find the 'perfect' shape for it," Irwyn nodded. "But I also need for the shape to be as close as possible to the two that will be used in the merger."

"Exactly. Ideally, you would even want to use identical intentions as much as you can. This is the reason I heavily recommended that you use several of the same for your first two Concepts. It will make the process significantly easier and better off in the end. Half of your Concepts are already made of the same parts, so you will not need to radically twist them during the merger, merely having to overlap what is already comparable. There will still be need for small adjustments but nothing like the trouble you would face otherwise."

That made Irwyn think back about his two Concepts. Their composition was still well in his memory: Luminous, radiance, incandescence, glare, shape, control, magic, strengthen, empower. And Burn, incinerate, melt, conflagrate, shape, control, magic, strengthen, empower.

The last five were in fact identical in both. And could remain the same intentions in the final Concept of Star he was aiming for as well. The same would actually even apply for Starfire if he kept to his plan to re-merge it again with a re-carving of Ligh and Flame.

"That is all assuming this will proceed the normal way for Irwyn," Alice chimed in. "The Soul is much more receptive than the body for changes."

"That is actually not necessarily true," Desir disagreed. "It is a very common misconception that the Soul is more malleable than the body to the average mage without Life nor Soul as their elements. This is not the case. Just like manipulating your own Soul, it merely comes down to habit and practice. Humans are not used to moving their very essence as they would a limb, but it can be learned to similar mastery. This is no coincidence, but the aspects' designs - the body and Soul are incredibly alike in most ways, they just react to different stimuli."

Johnson had mentioned something similar when Irwyn had first looked for a solution. Actually, the odds were Desir had the very same source for the tidbit. Either way, as their sole expert on Life, the shapeshifter clearly had deeper knowledge on the topic.

"I cannot regrow a limb," Alice still argued back.

"Neither would you be able to naturally regenerate a severed piece of the Soul - not yet, anyway," Desir calmly elaborated. "But you can recover from far worse wounds than you perhaps realize. An average mage at the peak of imbuement will be able to survive an artery incision nine times out of ten without any treatment. For a normal person, that is certain death. Much like even the weakest attack directly targeting the Soul will kill most civilians instantly while we could shrug such an assault off."

"Not to mention the Concept themselves are in my Soul, reflected onto it," Irwyn pointed out. "The carvings left behind in the flesh should be just linked representations. But since they are closely related, merging them on the body should once again transfer the change deeper within me. Worst case scenario, I will simply have to forego mergers and rush towards Domains without."

"Desir will keep an eye on you again," Elizabeth nodded. "And if this first idea turns out to not work, we can search for another. Giving up so fast would be premature."

"What I am more interested in are the benefits," Desir interjected. "You might imagine I have had some scarcity on this information. What is the point of merging Concepts?"

"They will be stronger than a Concept directly formed, the estimate is about 30%," Elizabeth explained as she had to Irwyn in the past. "But the main benefit is that it will provide a burst of growth to the Soul similar to a regular caving. And then it will also rather quickly open the space for an actual extra Concept - doing the math, that is four carvings for the Soul-space of two. Most people in Conception are bottlenecked by their Soul being too weak, requiring prolonged nourishment to grow them enough as to hold another. By doing many mergers early, we are likely to stave that problem off. I hope to reach six or seven before this issue catches up to me, Irwyn might feasibly never face that restriction at all but there is no reason for him to not try and avoid it just in case."

"Wouldn't that give Soul mages a massive advantage for attaining Domains?" Desir frowned. After all, they were obviously the best suited to accelerating their growth in that area.

"Why do you think the Duchy of White can support both the Ducal House and the Inquisition?" Elizabeth smiled. "Just like Life mages maintain the highest average lifespan, Soul mages have the undisputed highest numbers at the peak of Conception. Hosting a Domain though, that is a different matter entirely. Any Soul mage that cheated their way towards a hilltop thanks to just their element never had any shot at scaling that mountain in the first place."

"I suppose that makes sense," the shapeshifter nodded, seemingly deep in thought over it.

"It will not be too long before I can attempt carving my first too," Alice interjected. "I was raised to seven by our encounter, but the wall of an eight intention feels tantalizingly closer by the day. With any luck, I could be carving as soon as in half a year."

Irwyn nodded along. Briefly he glanced at Desir, but it seemed that 'encounter' was vague enough to not trigger the fae's safeguards. Or the shapeshifter was just not listening, as he seemed withdrawn and pondering something. Likely altering plans for his own Conception based on some tidbit from the conversation.

"How is the compass?" Elizabeth changed topic.

"Ah, here," Irwyn handed it over since it was her steering them again. It was pointing mostly North and a bit to the West.

"Probably at least a few more hours," Elizabeth nodded.

Afterwards the conversation broke down. Irwyn and Desir were caught up in pondering while the rest of the group formed a clique over something. Irwyn spent his time imagining the shape that Star would take, as well as how he would twist the existing Concepts into it. The mental exercise was harder than if he had merely been envisioning a new one from scratch, but not exceedingly so. It certainly burned a chunk of the day, though.

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They arrived at their destination at some point past noon. Irwyn did not know when they had passed the border or what the nation they found themselves in would even be called. Just that the compass snapped to the side just as they were passing the only settlement in sight. Basically just a humble village surrounded by fields and plantations.

"The Borakki lands," Desir at least knew a bit more. "A small nation with no real standing army or anything worth taking by their neighbors. I remember hearing that the land is cursed - anyone who tries to settle here slowly goes insane over the course of years, hence why they maintain independence. Not that the place has much of a unified government. Just small communities of farmers that are either immune to the degradation or don't care about staying on the rocker."

"Are they at least growing anything interesting?" Irwyn inquired.

"Certainly," Desir nodded. "You might be surprised to hear that the 'Eidolon wine' that Venen is so partial to is actually grown by one of the larger communities at the Southern border. Though that one is much bigger than this and receives rotating troops as well as clergy from the kingdom for protection - it's basically a tiny protectorate. The things they grow in Borakki are known to be exotic and usually unique to the specific community that nurtures them. I can see why Bhaak would have contacts around."

"What makes what they have so special?" Alice asked. "That 'curse'? The mana here doesn't feel significantly thicker or different than elsewhere."

"No clue," Desir shrugged. "We can poke at the mystery from closer up."

"I would rather resolve this quickly and move on," Elizabeth suggested. "Just ask for direction to these 'bandits'. We could be done by the end of the day."

"There is a problem with that," Waylan shook his head.

"Hmm?" Irwyn nodded for him to go on.

"I feel very hungie," Waylan explained with a fully serious expression.

"You had lunch," Irwyn pointed out.

"Maybe we can sample local cruise-inn?" Waylan said, everyone ignoring his provocation.

"Being hosted shouldn't take overlong," Elizabeth allowed. "I will bring us down."

As she said as much, she also dismissed the magic shrouding them from sight. Therefore, they were quite visible during their quick approach, people immediately gathering to point at the lot of them.

Not that there were too many. Irwyn counted 20 or so outdoors at first glance, many of them guiding around a strange beast of burden - ones which looked like a bull with six legs and twice the usual bulk. There were probably more locals around, as most of what Irwyn saw were already in the fields where various bushes, trees, and crops could obscure vision.

Elizabeth also slowed down, giving the people below some time to gather a response. When they neared ground at the settlement's edge, someone was already rushing out to meet them. A man wearing, surprisingly enough, a well fitting blue suit - contrasting against the entire aesthetic of the place.

"It is rare guests come sailing through the sky rather than by foot and road," the obvious greeter bowed, almost courtly as they landed before him. "I am Silvester, mayor of this humble community. How may I be of help to your esteemed selves?"

"No need for overt politeness," Irwyn spoke first when it became apparent Elizabeth wouldn't. "We have heard from Bhaak some good people require help just as we planned to pass near here."

"Truly?" the man's eyes suddenly almost glowed with joy. "That is wonderful to hear. "

"Maybe a meal first?" Waylan surprisingly enough interrupted. Unusual for the sneak.

"Of course! Follow me."

Silvester led them deeper into the small village. The houses were all wooden and not particularly remarkable, but at least well kept together. The villagers were all clothed either in dirty working linen or a few strange and colorful pieces that were likely traditional - only stressing the mayor's strangeness.

"You seem a bit out of place," so Irwyn brought as much up.

"My fellows can be rather gruff, as you can likely guess," Silvester just chuckled. "Though we are mostly self-sufficient, it is important to have a person or two around who can deal with merchants and help resolve disputes. That is the role of a mayor, so I dress for the part. Though I will admit, the veneer tends to slip sometime around the second bottle."

"Don't sell yourself short," Desir laughed along. "If I were to guess, you can keep it up well into the fourth."

"Either way, let me introduce you to the town hall," Silvester did not comment, instead quickly leading them inside the largest building around.

Within, there was not much more than three rows of large tables - enough to hold a feast for twice as many people as Irwyn had even seen in the settlement so far - as well as a slightly elevated platform at the front. On it, there was actually another person. A shrivelled old woman that sat mutely on her legs, grinding up something with a mortar. A ceramic pot of water was just about coming to boil to her side from a small fire. There were also several more colorful bowls of various sizes spread around her.

"Let me introduce you to my grandmother," Silvester nodded towards the old lady, who seemed rather indifferent to their arrival. "She can be a bit odd at times - and don't give too much credence to her tall tales - but tradition demands she serves honored guests tea. In the meantime, I will go arrange a meal for you."

"I assume the brew is local?" Desir asked when Silvester hurriedly left. The old woman did not answer. Did not even raise her head, actually.

She just finished up grinding what had to be the leaves, then poured them into a prepared bowl. With smooth practiced motion, the crone poured the container full of boiling water, then covered it with a lid. Afterward, she actually drained the contents through a small gap bellow the lid into another larger bowl before re-pouring more water into the original one. That seemed to satisfy her as she began to transfer the contents into smaller bowls that Irwyn belatedly realized were a cups. She would fill up a precise portion, then remove the remnants in the main bowl out into the larger one. That process was repeated five more times until everyone in the group had a drink, including her.

The whole process had a bit of a ritualistic cadence to it, though Irwyn found himself not particularly taken by the slow moving spectacle. When it was done at last, the old woman silently beckoned for them to take a cup each, which they did. Irwyn quickly took a whiff of the tea, only to find it smelled like, well, nothing.

"What is this?" Waylan, on the other hand, seemed to have a different reaction. Irwyn would have though it was a joke at first, but his friend appeared genuinely excited at what was in front of him.

"Local specialty I assume," Desir also seemed very eager. Even more so than Waylan, perhaps. Doubtfully, Irwyn glanced at Elizabeth and Alice, only to find them having a reaction mirroring his own.

"Two. Rare," the crone spoke briefly in a strained and raspy voice. Then she returned to silence again, borderline ignoring her guests.

Irwyn frowned, but had nothing else to say. He looked down at his tea and found it slightly blue in color. Deeper than water, definitely, not much like any tea he had ever seen. There were surprisingly enough no particles swimming around at least. The crone raised her cup and beckoned for them to do the same. Everyone ended up taking a sip almost in unison.

Irwyn found the taste bland. Ordinary. Just tea he would forget and not think of again. Waylan and Desir on the other hand had an immediate and much more radical reaction. With his enhanced senses in the relative quiet, Irwyn could literally hear Waylan's heart suddenly beat loudly enough to be audible from where he sat next to him. Further to the side, Desir's pupils were visibly dilating to a literally inhuman degree, until there was more sclea than white in them. The shapeshifter at least seemed to quickly notice and suppressed that change just a moment later. He also put his hand on Waylan's shoulder before Irwyn figured out whether to raise any alarms about a possible heart attack.

"This is incredible," the sneak gasped, clearly a bit overwhelmed. "Downright addictive. Hope it isn't, because damn."

"No biochemicals that should spur this reaction as far as I can tell, and yet…" Desir agreed. "This has more of a kick than absinthe. And lingers longer."

"It tasted rather ordinary to me," Elizabeth frowned. Alice and Irwyn nodded along.

"Taste lika normal tea?" the crone suddenly let out a hacking laugh. " 'xcept, what is 'normal'? Think bout it for a lil. What was da taste?"

Irwyn frowned after deciphering her sentence. What did 'normal' mean? He thought back at what the flavor had been exactly… and found that there was nothing there. The tea had touched his tongue, water had traveled down hist throat, and an overall meager impression had been left behind. But no memory of the taste itself. Like it had been scrubbed from his thoughts.

"What did you do?" Elizabeth asked, clearly realizing the same strangeness as him. In between moments, she was suddenly on edge. Almost as ready as a drawn blade.

"Me? Nuthin', just ground dem leaves," the old hag tried to chuckle, only to break into a brief coughing fit before she continued speaking. "Is the soil, ye see. Why no one want to walk here 'sides us. Can't bear 'hat, feeble boys and girls, to be up to a neck innit."

"Waylan, translate," Alice turned to their sneak.

"Shit's haunted," Waylan sagely nodded, then sipped some more of his tea, his calming heart redoubling its efforts to get free of his chest.

"They left nary a corpse, but ichor? Blood runs deeper as water here. In plant and tree, leaf, stem. Sweet as poison. Of dem gods who die here."

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