When Moses exited the trance, he reached into his satchel and found a piece of chocolate. He unwrapped it absently, still lost in thought. What did Irmana mean? Surely, no future is inevitable.  

He had fancied that Grandmaster Yoshi's book would answer his questions. Instead, he had found the words Abdal Angels.

            He remembered the djinni saying the word. Yoshi’s book defined it as angelic guardians- tasked with protecting the paths of the amatrix angels.

Moses tugged at his goatee, mind churning. If the djinn have or will capture an amatrix angel, they intend to use it for something. He remembered studying King Solomon’s war texts-one account mentioned a djinn weapon powered by the life source of an amatrix angel.

If all accounts of the Aradunyan War are correct, the Atlanteans captured amatrix angels and used their energy source to power their teleportation devices.  

            Maddening, he thought, flipping through pages. He searched for the word Gyllo. Yoshi had great many pains to document spirits, and Moses respected the effort.

When he found the entry, he exhaled in relief. Had Yoshi encountered the same djinni mentioned in the book?

HeHe turned the page-and there she was. A sketch: a striped face, and bushy tail. Below it a caption read:

Most dangerous bejangli. Hunts the unborn. Converted to the Atlantean cult. Loyal to Lilith.

 Moses had seen written in the Book of Asmodeus? He flipped the page and saw the djinni's striped face and bushy tail sketched in the book. Beneath the sketch was a caption: “Most dangerous bejangli. Hunts the unborn. Converted to Atlantean Cult – loyal to Lilith.”

Moses leaned back, contemplative. Gyllo is after something. A needle, to abstract quarks from the amatrix angel’s energy source. He traced the edge of the page, deep in thought.

The quiet of the library pressed him. He flipped through more entries, not searching for anything in particular. One sketch blurred into another. He realized, finally, that he had no answers—only one question:

What comes next?

Remembering his promise to Toddkhuslen, he closed the book and returned it to its place. Then he left the library and retraced his steps to the balcony, where the Utetezi leader leaned against the rail.

Below them, a dozen whirling dervishes spun in silence.

When Moses stood beside him.

Toddkhuslen gestured to the dancers. “Have you ever seen a more beautiful connection to The One?”

Moses watched their motion. The dancers had unknowingly-or perhaps delibertately- aligned themselves to the Egg of Life pattern.

 “It is breathtaking,” Moses admitted. “Toddkhuslen, you wanted to see me before I left. It sounded important.”

Toddkhuslen cleared his throat. “It has been two decades since the Utetezi became involved in political disputes. We can no longer sit by while your homeland suffers.”

“The fighting hasn't reached the island.” Moses folded his arms. Decades had passed since the coup d'etat started the civil war. Was Toddkhuslen holding back information? “What else concerns you?”

“A soldier, all but dead, was revived with an artifact.”

Moses raised an eyebrow. “We both know there’s no mystery.”

Toddkhuslen nodded. “Upon further inquiry, we discovered the artifact abstracts energy from nearby objects. One report says they placed it on burning coals—and it remained cold as ice. The fire itself died within moments.”

He turned to face Moses. “Could it be chari?”

Moses lowered himself to the floor, folding his legs. “Chari keeps an object cold in fire, yes—but it doesn’t extinguish flame. Do you think the relic is supernatural?”

“We know your friend Bayissa conducted many… questionable experiments. Has he mentioned anything to you?”

Moses gave a wistful smile. “Bayissa was buried twenty years ago. I imagine his children now have children. It would be hard to remember anything about a relic in… where did you say it was?”

“Jijiga.”

Moses froze. A chill crawled over his skin.

“What?” Toddkuslen asked. “Did I say something wrong?” He gleamed suspiciously. “What do you know?”

“I don't know anything about a relic,” Moses said carefully. “But I will go to Jijiga. I will find the relic and, if possible, bring it to the Hall of Relics, where it will be safe.”

 “What? Now you look surprised. Did you expect me to agree?”

Toddkhuslen placed a hand on Moses's shoulder. “Not so easily.”