Die. Respawn. Repeat.

I close my eyes and breathe.

The artifact the crows gave to me is a lot harder to fully access than I’d imagined—even with all the ways I’ve grown, the imbuement within the stone is woven with so much complexity that reaching any useful information is a challenge at best. I’ve retrieved a number of different visions, stories, and tales, but nothing I was explicitly looking for.

It’s not just about quantity. If it were, it would be trivial to navigate with Guard’s help. The problem is the density of information and the sheer precision required. It’s easier to hit the wrong pocket of information than it is to get to the right one, and the amount of control needed combined with the sheer density of Firmament required to even make any amount of headway…

I open my eyes, staring at the egg-like artifact with a scowl that slowly turns into a wistful sort of smile.

It’s just like Tarin to give me something that’s basically a whole new form of training. Part of me wants to talk to him about it, tell him about my progress. Another part of me wants to avoid it entirely. It’ll be one thing if he remembers this last loop—even that would be bittersweet, considering—but another thing entirely if he doesn’t.

I’m a little worried about what that might do to Naru, to my surprise.

Still, there’s nothing I can do about it here. I just need to work on my Firmament Control. I might be able to acquire some Mastery in the skill, and hopefully that will give me the edge I need, but somehow I doubt it. It’s looking more and more like I’m going to need some kind of key to find the information I want. Something to act like a filter…

I frown, turning that thought over in my mind, then think back to the first vision I ever received. The one about the harpy.

I hold that image in my mind and feed Firmament slowly into the artifact, forming that Firmament with familiarity and recognition. Not a Concept, exactly, but something similar to a Thread.