Auden’s Blessing
Amid the boundless golden radiance, a luminous stone monument slowly rose into view.
At the same time, another golden streak with a trailing tail shot upward from above us. Seconds later, it struck the monument. The stone tablet cracked open like a hatching egg, fragile and deliberate, splitting cleanly into two halves.
A surge of brilliant light washed over my face, forcing me to shield my eyes. When I lowered my hand again, I realized everyone’s gaze had shifted behind us.
Shia and I turned as well—and were stunned by the enormous map before us.
Countless beams of light gathered in midair, forming a map of the Nine Worlds. The lines flowed like liquid, sketching dense networks of continent