A pause lingered between them as the Vaelthorne study was illuminated only by dying embers, casting shadows on the tall mahogany bookshelves lining the walls.


    "Master Cassian, if I may," Aldric broke the silence over the crackling fire, his brass plating gleaming in the dim light.


    Cassian nodded once, sitting in his leather armchair, staring into the embers. His tailcoat lay draped over the armrest.


    "Would you care to tell me what precisely has you staring into the fireplace so intently?" the automaton asked, standing across from him, hands clasped neatly behind his back. His polished brass face was expressionless, but his glowing optics flickered—an imitation of human concern.


    Cassian exhaled slowly, rubbing his forehead. "I''ve been having dreams lately."


    Aldric tilted his head slightly. "Fascinating. You are not usually one to dwell on such things."


    "This is different." Cassian''s jaw tightened.


    Aldric waited. Cassian''s voice was quieter than usual. Emotions were not something he allowed to cloud his mind—he considered them a waste of time.


    "I saw my father," Cassian murmured.


    Aldric did not move, but something shifted.


    "He was standing at the edge. The abyss. He was searching for something. He wasn''t afraid. He wanted to know more."


    Aldric''s optics dimmed slightly, mimicking a blink. "That does indeed sound like Lord Vaelthorne."


    Cassian clenched his fists. "He jumped, Aldric."


    Aldric remained silent, the soft hum of his gears the only response.


    "He didn''t hesitate," Cassian continued. "He stepped forward... and fell willingly. I saw something in the mists below, something unnatural, massive. It was watching him. Waiting."


    Aldric''s servos whirred softly, his head tilting slightly. "And then?"


    Cassian let out a shaky breath. "I woke up."


    The room fell silent, the quiet crackle of the embers the only sound.


    "It was only a dream, sir. Nothing more," Aldric said carefully.


    Cassian turned to him, his steel-grey eyes sharper now. "I''m not sure."


    Aldric hesitated for a moment. "Dreams, I am told, are often the result of the mind attempting to process information it cannot reconcile while awake."


    Cassian leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "That''s the thing, Aldric. I''ve never seen the abyss. I don''t know what''s down there. But it felt so real. I felt the cold, unstable air, the way the storm pulled at him. And that thing..." He broke off, staring blankly into the fire. "I have no idea how to explain it, but I have a feeling my father saw it too."


    Aldric''s optics blinked. "You believe Lord Vaelthorne was looking for something?"


    Cassian exhaled slowly. "Lucian''s speech. He knows something. It wasn''t just a warning to the Symposium. His speech didn''t mention any specifics, but his eyes told a different story. I feel he knows something, and I''m afraid my father is involved."


    "And now you believe you might be of interest to the Inquisition?" Aldric asked with a low mechanical hum.


    "I''m not sure. Maybe." Cassian glanced toward Aldric, his voice quieter. "If my father was right—if he really was searching for something in the abyss—and the empire found out..."


    Aldric studied him carefully. "I''m sure this is all one big coincidence, Master Cassian. Your skin has gone pale from lack of sunlight, sitting in your workshop. You haven''t eaten well lately or gotten sufficient rest."


    Cassian''s gaze hardened.


    "I''m sure there are no answers that need to be found here."


    "Answers," Cassian repeated, rising from his chair.


    "Sir?"


    Cassian pulled open a drawer in his father''s desk, revealing neatly stacked ledgers, contracts, and correspondence with various noble houses.


    "Useless."


    He moved to the second drawer, only to find more papers—trade reports, imperial decrees. The things his father had wanted him to study.


    "I shall fetch you a coffee, sir. I''m sure this will be another long night." Aldric''s optics blinked as he stepped out of the study.


    Cassian pulled out a stack of papers, slamming them onto the desk, scanning each one carefully. Nothing of value. No sign that his father had neglected the empire''s ways.


    He moved to the bookshelves, checking each row. Leather-bound tomes on aerodynamics, engineering, and imperial law. He trailed his fingers along the spines, searching for something out of place.


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    "Nothing." Frustration prickled at his skin.


    Cassian exhaled sharply, stepping back. His father was a complex man—a scientist, a man of logic—but also a man of secrets.


    His gaze fell upon a glass display case near the tall arched window. Inside, encased in polished brass and crystal, sat a collection of old artifacts—Vaelthorne heirlooms passed down through generations. At the center, an old ornate pocket watch with a silver casing engraved with a delicate swirling pattern.


    Cassian stared at it. His father always kept it close but never spoke much about it. It was just a pocket watch. Nothing suspicious about it.


    He stepped forward, unlatched the glass, and picked it up. It felt heavier than it looked.


    He pressed the latch. Nothing. The case didn''t open.


    Frowning, Cassian studied it more closely, turning it in his hands. He ran his fingers along the edges, feeling for an imperfection. Then—a faint groove. A mechanism.


    Cassian pressed his thumb against it. A quiet click. The watch shifted. The back plate slid open.


    A small, folded slip of paper lay nestled inside.


    Cassian''s breath hitched. He freed it from the chamber, carefully unfolding it.


    The ink was slightly faded, the handwriting urgent and sloppy, but familiar.


    It has awoken. The answers lie in the mists.


    Cassian stared at the words, his pulse thundering in his ears. His chest tightened. The study felt smaller, darker, like the walls were pressing in.


    Suddenly, the door creaked open. "Sir," Aldric gently placed a mug on the desk. "Found anything of interest?"


    Before Cassian could answer, a knock echoed.


    A single, deliberate knock against the front doors.


    Cassian froze, casting a slow look toward Aldric, who stood by the fireplace. Aldric turned his head, his optics flickering.


    "We are not expecting visitors."


    Cassian swallowed, tucking the watch into his pocket.


    The knock came again. Patient. Measured.


    He made his way down the dimly lit corridor, each step echoing against the marble floor. The weight of the empty halls pressed against his spine.


    First, he hesitated by the door. Then, he clutched the handle tightly and carefully opened it to a rush of cool night air. The distant sounds of Valerian''s skybridges and the hum of steam vents filled the silence.


    "Cassian." Lucian greeted him, his ice-blue eyes as piercing as they had been at the Symposium. "You''ve been searching."


    Cassian''s throat went dry. He fought to keep his masked expression. "I''m not sure I understand what you mean."


    Lucian exhaled, a slight hint of amusement in his gaze. "You''re not as unreadable as you think, Lord Vaelthorne."


    Cassian''s fingers curled around the handle. Then he noticed, Lucian came alone, no guards were present. He exhaled through his nose.


    "You are not in any sort of trouble, I assure you, Young Master." Lucian''s piercing eyes softed, just a little. "I just wanted a word with you."


    Cassian scanned him for a long moment, he let out a sigh, his noble obligation made up his mind. "You might as well come in."


    Lucian bowed his head slightly and stepped across the threshold.


    The High Inquisitor stood, his eyes fixed in the fireplace, gloved hands clasped behind his back. "This was your father''s favorite room. He spent more time here than anywhere else." He started.


    Cassian''s jaw tightened. He did not reply.


    "You found something, didn''t you?"


    Cassian felt his pulse quickening. But he didn''t let himself react.


    Lucian let the silence stretch before he spoke again. "Your father was a brilliant man, Cassian. Perhaps too brilliant."


    Cassian narrowed his eyes. "If you''re implying my father is a traitor, then this meeting is over."


    "No." Lucian replied calmly. "Not a traitor. A seeker." His gaze flickered to the bookshelves, artifacts, the scattered documents Cassian had left in disarray from his search. "And seekers, Lord Vaelthorne, rarely meet pleasant ends."


    "What did he find?" Cassian swallowed a lump in his throat.


    Lucian''s eyes darkened. "Something dangerous."


    The words hung in the air like smoke.


    "Something happened to him." Cassian remarked, piercing steel-grey eyes stared at Lucian, as all nerves turned to anger.


    "He searched for answers. And found chaos. We did what we had to do."


    Cassian''s eyes widened, flared with fire. "What did you do?!" He screamed.


    Lucian, calm as ever. "I told you. What we had to do."


    Cassian fell into his father''s chair, losing control of his breathing.


    Aldric rushed to his side, placing his mechanical hand on Cassian''s chest. "Sir, deep breaths. Your vitals are getting unstable."


    "Your father dug up ancient secrets, Cassian. Knowledge that does not belong to us, and your father was close. Too close. To destroying everything we''ve built." Lucian turned to Cassian. "You remind me of him."


    A sad smirk stretched on Lucian''s face.


    "Be careful, Cassian. The abyss does not return what it takes." Lucian said, clenching his jaw.


    "It is time... you take your leave, Lord Daine." Cassian muttered.


    "As you wish, my lord." Lucian bowed once again, leaving the room.


    Lucian''s voice hung in the air, but the words felt distant, unreal.


    Cassian''s fingers curled too tightly, nails pressing into his palms. His chest felt tight, constricted. A tear ran down his face as he contained his feelings inside as hard as he could.


    "Master Cassian?" Aldric started. "Perhaps you need some fresh air."


    Cassian exhaled a sharp, uncontrolled breath, then a bitter laugh slipped through his teeth. "Fresh air." He repeated. "He''s dead, Aldric."


    "Yes." Aldric replied, his optics blinked slowly.


    Cassian''s inside felt like they would burst. Until finally. He screamed, letting out every emotion he held back. "Damn it!" He cried, eyes bloodshot and tears streaking down his cheeks.


    Aldric placed his metallic hand on Cassian''s head, an attempt at empathy. "There, there, Master Cassian." Aldric attempted.


    Cassian sniffled, stopping his tears. Behind his eyes roared a fire as he stared into the darkness of the study. "I am the Lord of House Vaelthorne now. Aldric, gather my subjects. I''m going to get my answers."