After a brief delay, three Signal Flares shot up into the sky. The Charged Crystals sealed within the flares detonated violently the instant their inertial locks released, activating the array of magic symbols engraved inside the shells—within the next few seconds, colossal globes of light, visible even from Fort Greta, illuminated the ink-heavy clouds, a blinding red radiance diffusing through the dense overcast. Almost in the same instant that this light burst forth, the vapor condensed above the narrow plain reached a critical peak.
