The silver wire of Ren’s mammoth ivory awl pierced the main lead seal of the life-extension pipe hub with a sound like a needle passing through dry parchment.
Sssssssss.
A thin wisp of violet smoke curled from the puncture wound.
Beneath the brass plate on Kael’s chest, the twelve sky needles embedded in his heart began to hum with a clashing, sickening rattle.
The lead cover of the Master Extraction Register was still clutched under Ren Prime’s left arm.
He set the ancient, three-foot book upon the shattered dark wood console, the heavy lead plates clattering against the charred wood. He flipped the pages with his left hand, his fingers stopping at the royal decree signed fifty-two years ago by Kael’s own hand.
“Look at your signed name, High judge,” Ren Prime said. He held the page before the dying Astromancer’s quartz eyes.
The ink on the thick parchment was dark, faded, but the royal seal was clear. The seven-pointed star of the High Zenith, counter-signed with the blood of Vaelen Kael.
