After the conversations have died down in the room with many fine chairs Ethelred waits for everyone to settle down to sleep. Red nudges Alexis to make sure he is awake. In a low tone he speaks.
“So a lot of words were said about Hedonis and his possible plans. And while we know little there is one part of his story the rings true. For what ever other reasons he wanted us to fight the Giants, the one reason he did state I believe. The part about needing an anchor.
It is just such a specific claim. He could of said anything as justify to killing the giants, why that one very clear goal?
I have gone over all my inventory in my mind trying to piece together what ‘anchors’ we might have. When we passed through that strange metal door things changed. This room feels out of place, different than where we were just before.
When we find the Tear how will we escape? Hedonis said little but made it clear that there was something different about where the Tear is. That an ‘anchor’ was needed to get ‘back home’.
We should have some solutions to this riddle before we are faced with a rushed decision.”
Alexis is quiet for a moment, thumb moving across his Collegium ring.
“You’re right. And I’ve been turning this over too.” He keeps his voice low. “We should have sorted the anchors before we went through. That’s done now, can’t go back.”
He pauses.
“My suspicion is that we’re not in a different place. We’re in a different time. The whole dungeon was soaked in time-magic. This room feels like a continuation of that, not a departure from it. That changes what an anchor needs to do.”
He starts counting on his fingers.
“Perfect Recall holds a complete, vivid memory of exactly where and when we came from. That might serve as a makeshift anchor. It’s not what Hedonis would have recommended, but it’s what we have.”
A second finger. “Everything we’re carrying came from our time. Some of it is tied to specific people and places. Worth thinking hard about what’s in our packs and what it means.”
A third finger. “The ring might help. It sees possibilities. I can’t promise what it would show me about this particular problem, but it’s worth considering.”
A fourth finger. “If we can find somewhere safe, even briefly, you can make something. You just need food and time.”
A fifth finger. “The Dragon built all of this. If he’s somewhere in this dungeon, he knows more about how it works than anyone alive.” He pauses. “And at the end of all this there’s the Tear itself. Something that powerful might have something to say about getting us home.”
He looks at Ethelred.
“What could you make if we found the time?”
“If we find the time to build something to help us escape into our time… funny.
My thinking is that our best option is to lean into what unites us the most. For the most of us that would be Raiden. Specifically the grove Gustav made tied to the land, to Raiden? I still have a few bits from that grove. Your focus, Rask’s wooden shield and the other item I made are all using material from the grove. That to my mind is the place we have the strongest connection.. assuming it is still there. It was also made in a very specific time.
We do have other options I am less confident about.
The Bombda seed I planted in the odd grove before the monastery. I have a second seed, but that feels a bit weak. Oh I also have some cherry blossoms from that same grove.
I have the torturers ash from the Colleguim. That with you ring is something.
As for what I could make.
My mind drifts to either a door we could use for the opposite reason we used one on the Cursed Pit. A door that could open upon the grove?
Or a small diorama of where we want to end up.
I will have to really reflect on what I know about time itself. Studying the new item Ca’rmine has could help.
The crystal ball might be helpful, but using it in such a way to return us ‘home’ might consume it.”
Alexis leans forward, clearly engaged.
“The grove.” He says it quietly, like he’s turning it over. “Specific place, specific time, specific working. And we have pieces of it right here.” He looks at Ethelred. “That’s the strongest thread we have back. Great thinking, Red.”
He ticks off a finger.
“The crystal ball goes without a second thought if it gets us home. Easy.” Another finger. “The door and the diorama, both worth the time if we find somewhere safe to work.” Alexis’ tone shifts “we need to figure out a way to make food on the go.” Another finger. “The bomba seed, plant one here, grow it fast, use it to get back to the other one.” He pauses. “A risk I see: it takes us back to when the other plant has grown as large as the one we plant here. Which puts us forward in time, not back… assuming we’re in the past and not the future. Using chronomancy to go into the future sounds much harder than going into the past. But going back to where we came from seems different. We have our parents as anchors. The people we know.” Alexis seems to drift into thought for a few seconds.
He glances over at Rask’s sleeping form, then back to Ethelred.
“The grove connection gets me thinking. Since we’re all tied to Raiden, even loosely, a massive shared prayer might pull us back.” He looks at Rask again. “But you and Rask aren’t as connected. I don’t know if that weakens the working or leaves the two of you behind entirely.”
He looks back at Ethelred, waiting.
“I am well aware that I am the weakest link in this. Rask at least has his tattoos.
But it is a risk I am willing to take. Much is unknown. Maybe on this path to the Tear I can find some way to connect with Raiden.
We have all accepted your blessings.. more of those and one during the ‘ritual’ couldn’t hurt
Let’s get some rest. We can discuss this with the group as we have time.”