Lucien returned to Lootwell first.
He left Vivian in the Celestial Dominion with Virel and Aniel. Seraphine stayed as well, along with the Mirrorhorn Duants, both because their role in the cure had earned real gratitude and because the Celestials themselves insisted on accommodating them properly.
A great feast would be held in a week once the Dominion had fully stabilized and Virel and Aniel had recovered their strength enough to stand before their people again.
Lucien had every intention of returning for it.
But first—
Lootwell.
He had been away too long.
There were too many decisions there that still needed his hand. Eirene had never once complained. That only made the guilt worse.
So he left.
The teleportation array carried him cleanly back into Lootwell, and the moment he arrived in the central office, he knew his instincts had been correct.
Eirene was drowning in work.
Elegantly.
But drowning nonetheless.
The office had become a battlefield made of stacked reports.
