"No, Tannel, we weren't able to make tact with the human or the outsider," a man with brightly lit eyes said. "Ainorrh allows only people she trusts pletely do that. And you know that among us, there are not many of them. Maybe only one."

  He rose, stepping cautiously toward the caverrahe walls, woven with gnarled roots thicker than a man's arm, pulsed faintly with an unseen energy as if the tree itself was listening. Its t preseretched high into the sky above, its branches swaying slightly despite the still air. If not for Tannel's near-fatal tumble during her early days after transformation, they would have never found this sanctuary—hidden not only by nature but by a deeper, more powerful force that veiled it fr minds.

  Velot looked out, but there was no ohere. They were safe. At least for now. He looked back at the group assembled in that tight space.

  "I get that, Velot, of course I uand," Tannel answered. "What about the old city? I heard reports that the outsider vehere for her training? Was there ever a ce? You missions as a defender allow you to be there."

  "I'm usually not alone," said Velot.

  If a human withis dialogue, they'd probably think those were brother and sister. So much alike they were. But having twins transformed into enlighteogether? What were the ces? And it wasn't like a human would have ever found out that these two people were having a versation. All the words were passed through the Nexus.

  "I've tried," tinued Velot. "But I don't know who to trust."

  That actal human observer would have probably noticed some more simirities. Not only betweewins' but also among the other people assembled here. Firstly, their eyes. That would have been why a human should run for their life. The eyes are, of course, of different colors. But all of them shoh bright, ethereal light. Even without any nterns, seeing what was happening in this cavern wasn't hard.

  But that wasn't all. Even if it was hard to guess how old an enlightened was, these people looked like they were of the same age. They looked young. Which is why the other simirity would have seemed out of pce. Even artificial. But it was what it was: all of them had streaks of white in their otherwise brightly colored hair.

  "We 't allow Ainorrh to gain all the bes from the outsider," a man who sat in the farthest er decided to add to the versation. "It will irreparably shift the bance of power. Not only for Wentouk. For all of us."

  "Dear Selorrh, we uand that you are much closer to power than we are, as you are on your path of being a full shaman," said Velot. "But even we uand the sequences. But do you know what those bes are? What the outsider brings to the table. What did she promise to Ainorrh?"

  To that, Selorrh only spread his hands.

  "That's what I thought," said Velot. "We're grasping in the dark here. That's dangerous. If we act without knowing what Ainorrh is pnning—what the outsider is capable of—then we're pying into a storm blindfolded."

  A tense ripple passed through the group, like a gust of wind disturbing still waters. Some nodded, jaws tight, eyes darting toward one another as if weighing the risks of their words. Others ched their fists, powerful emotions simmering just beh the surface. Even here, beh yers of tangled roots, the weight of Ainorrh's name pressed on them like the air before a storm. To speak against her was dangerous. To act against her? That was something else entirely.

  Uedly, a sound echoed through the cavern—the ch of footsteps on loose gravel.

  "Velot, you just checked," somebody said. "How could you not notice a person approag."

  "You know why," Velot muttered. "This damree doesn't just dampen the elemental forces—it swallows them. I reach out, and it's like my own power disappears into the roots." His glowing eyes flicked to the gnarled bark. "Sometimes I wonder if it's cursed."

  The dissidents froze, their hearts pounding as they mentally prepared to respond to any aggression. A figure emerged from the shadows, tall and lean, with hair that was noticeably violet even in the dim light.

  "Alliot," breathed Velot, rexing. "You startled us."

  After taking into at all the people gathered in the cavern, Alliot ined his head in apology as if firming his suspis.

  "You should be more careful, Velot," said Alliot. "And you shouldn't even be here. I should report you all."

  A murmur spread betweehered people. But no sounds were heard in the cavern besides the rustling of clothes.

  Alliot's voice was low, uain. "I should report you. That's my duty." He exhaled, gng at each of them in turn. "But I won't." A pause, the weight of his own words pressing against him. "I 't. We had all transitioogether. And now, how many new enlightened are there iouk this year?"

  "Only one," answered Tannel. "What's her name? Kael? She hasn't even got the professional suffix to her ."

  "Exactly," said Alliot. "And there were twelve of us in our year. Even if only eleven remain. Two hundred years after the transformation. But how the times have ged."

  "What are you saying?" asked another woman. "How did you even find us today?"

  "Are you serious?" answered Alliot with a question. "It's our pce. We have gathered here sihe beginning. Of course, I found you. But that also tells me you are no threat to the city. You'd hide better if it was otherwise."

  "So, you wouldn't report us?" asked Velot. "Why did you e then?"

  "You have to stop this madness," said Alliot. "You are pying dissidents. But Ainorrh has our best is in her mind. She works tirelessly to make Wentouk better."

  "This isn't rebellion," Alliot tinued. "It's splintering. We're already spread thin. Barely holding onto what we have. And now you want to divide us further? Ainorrh isn't perfect. She could obey her own rules better. But at least she's keeping us together."

  "You are saying she knows how to use the outsider?" asked Tannel. "What does she bring to the table? What are her powers."

  "I've seeats," said Alliot. "She's no joke. I don't think there is an enlightened more powerful. Even if we use…"

  "Use what?" asked Velot, beginning to pace. "What do you know?"

  "No… I 't tell you," said Alliot. "It's bad enough that I'm here. That I know about your… club. And don't report it."

  Taepped closer to Alliot and touched his arm. A tiny bit of elemental energy sparked between them. " you at least promise me you'll be wary?" she asked Alliot. "That you would listen to everything Ainorrh says and what the outsider tells you?"

  "I… I probably do that," said Alliot.

  He exhaled, rubbing a hand over his jaw.

  "Why do you all call her an 'outsider'?" Alliot asked." Like she wandered in from the mountains? She's not just sue human. She's an outworlder."

  The cavern fell deathly silent. Selorrh was the first to react, his eyes burning like embers in the dim light.

  "What?!?" He shot to his feet, the force of his movement stirring the dust. "And why, in all the Nexus, am I only hearing this now?"

  His voice cut through the silence like a bde. "How is it that none of us khis? How is it that Ainorrh kept this from us?!"