Rhys's declaration, "We're going to get involved in everything," was interpreted four different ways.
To Liora, it was a vow. "We will be a guiding hand. We will mend their broken kingdom, restore their faith, and protect the innocent." She envisioned a long, noble campaign of justice and order.
To Elara, it was a war cry. "We will be a sword in the dark! We will burn the rot from its foundations, crush the beasts at their gates, and execute the heretics who mock the coming end!" She envisioned a swift, brutal crusade.
To Theia, it was a historical inevitability. And The Progenitor declared his intention to walk among mortals, to test their worthiness and write a new, living scripture upon the canvas of their failing world.
To Vesper, it was a tactical objective. She said nothing, but her mind was already mapping the city, identifying key players, and plotting infiltration routes.
Rhys, of course, meant something else entirely. Reputation grinding, he thought happily. I'm going to get my rep to 'Exalted' with the Royalists, the Thieves' Guild, and the Peasants' Rebellion all at the same time. This is gonna be a challenge.
"Right then," he said, rubbing his hands together. "First problem: travel. How do we get this whole flying island over to Eldoria without crashing into the bits and pieces of other dead worlds Vesper mentioned?"
This was, from a divine perspective, a colossal logistical challenge. It was akin to asking how one might move a mountain range across an ocean.
Elara was the first to offer a solution, her entire being radiating incandescent self-belief. "I will be the engine!" she declared, stepping forward. Her golden wings flared, casting a searing light. "Chain this world to my soul! I will become a living sun and tow our Sanctum through the void!"
Liora looked horrified. "Elara, no! Such an act would extinguish you!"
"A worthy sacrifice!" Elara roared.
Rhys held up a hand. "Okay, let's put 'turn our berserker into a living rocket engine' on the back burner. It's dramatic, but I feel like we might need you for the boss fights. Liora, any thoughts?"
Liora's approach was more methodical, rooted in faith. "Perhaps if we all gathered at the heart of the island and focused our will… prayed, even… we could persuade the Sanctum to move. It is your creation, Lord. Surely it will obey our collective faith in you."
So, the Paladin's idea is to use the power of friendship and prayer to move several billion tons of rock, Rhys thought. Adorable. Utterly impractical, but very on-brand.
"A valiant thought," he said kindly. "But I'd rather not leave our navigation up to a group project. Vesper?"
Vesper considered for a moment. "I can chart the most direct path through the void. I can see the empty spaces between the cosmic wreckage," she said. "But I possess no power to move the vessel itself. I am the navigator, not the helmsman."
"Getting warmer," Rhys said, a slow grin spreading across his face. "You're all thinking about it from the outside. You're trying to push the car. You don't push the car. You get in and drive it." He gestured around the grand foyer. "This entire Sanctum is my creation. A high-tech piece of dream-architecture. I just forgot to install the control panel."
The four women stared at him, their expressions a mixture of confusion and dawning comprehension. A… control panel?
Rhys strode to the exact center of the Grand Foyer. The crystalline floor here was a mosaic of inlaid silver, forming a complex, star-like pattern. "The throne is the seat of power, but this… this is the heart. The central processing unit, if you will."
He stomped his foot once on the central point of the mosaic. "It needs a user interface."
THRRRUMMMMM.
The entire island shuddered. A deep, resonant hum vibrated up from the very bedrock of their world, a musical note that was felt more than heard. A pillar of pure, silver-white light erupted from the mosaic at Rhys's feet, spearing upwards into the vaulted ceiling of the Foyer. It was the same light from which he had spun the Sanctum itself.
His Apostles watched, transfixed in awe. The light was not chaotic. It was orderly, weaving and solidifying with impossible speed and precision.
With a final, satisfying CHIME, the light vanished. Where the pillar had been, a new structure now stood.
It was a crystalline spire, about waist-high, that grew organically from the floor. Its top was a flat, polished surface of what looked like captured starlight, perfectly smooth and black. Ethereal, glowing blue glyphs—runes Rhys was inventing on the spot—floated just above its surface. It was a perfect fusion of arcane magic and high-tech aesthetics. A divine control console. A holy joystick.
Rhys casually walked up to it and placed his hand on the smooth, dark surface. The blue glyphs swirled and resolved into something new. A three-dimensional map of shimmering light particles bloomed into existence in the air above the spire, a miniature galaxy of cosmic dust.
At its center was a bright, steady light. "That's us," Rhys pointed out. A few other, dimmer, smudged lights were scattered through the holographic void. "And that… must be what's left of the rest of the world. Remnants."
Vesper glided closer, her eyes wide. "It is a map of the void… an Oversoul's Compass."
"Sure, let's call it that," Rhys agreed easily. "Now, Vesper. Where is Eldoria on this map?"
Vesper, the only one to have actually traveled the void, pointed a slender finger at a particularly grimy-looking smudge of light on the far edge of the projection. "There. In the region of the Fading Coals."
Rhys followed her finger. He pressed the smudge of light on the holographic map. A thin, blue line instantly connected their Sanctum to the target location. A simple text box, written in the same flowing glyphs, appeared in the air.
Set destination: ELDORIA? [Y/N]
Rhys grinned. He tapped 'Y'.
The low hum of the island deepened into a soul-shaking, world-moving groan.
GRROOOOAAAAANNNN... VMMMMMMMMMMMM!
On the balcony, the waterfalls, which had always fallen straight down into the misty void, suddenly bent backward, their water streaking through the air as the entire island began to surge forward. The Celestial Weave protecting them glowed brighter, acting as a streamlined shield against the void.
Elara and Liora stumbled, bracing themselves against a pillar as their entire world became a vessel. Vesper didn't move an inch, as solid as the shadows she commanded.
Rhys stood at his new control spire, one hand resting on it casually, a look of immense satisfaction on his face. He watched the star-chart as their little beacon of light began its steady journey across the great darkness.
"Alright," he said cheerfully, turning to his stunned crew. "Next stop, Eldoria. Let's try not to park on the palace, eh? First impressions are everything."