The stone floor of the temple was cool beneath her knees, the golden sun of Colchis spilling through the high windows in rays that caught the dust like stars. Aurelia knelt before the great mural—an unfinished image of a figure she had seen countless times in dreams. A halo of fire behind His head. Eyes like burning suns. A god clothed in armor.

Incense coiled in the air like whispered secrets. Her fingers hovered over the pages of a bound scripture, freshly penned with symbols no other cleric could translate. Behind her, footsteps echoed—her oldest companion stepping through the heavy doors.

"Come," she said softly, not turning. "Join me in prayer, he answers to all who seeks him."