Right: "... Pulverized completely."
Two figures opened their eyes in perfect, unnerving unison. The lingering traces of a vision not their own receded, leaving behind the cold, metallic scent of the air in their sanctum.
One eye was a placid, unassuming blue.
The other, a pit of absolute blackness, oozed a faint, vaporous aura that coiled like smoke.
They stood on a high gantry, holding hands. From each of their corrupted eyes, a single, black tear traced a path down their cheek.
The man spoke first, his left eye the source of his tear. The woman's corruption was in her right eye, a perfect, mirrored affliction.
Left: "The vessel has begun to crack, Cantodia... Already."
Cantodia, the woman, let her grip on her brother's hand loosen, a light, crystalline laugh escaping her lips, holding no warmth.
Cantodia (Right): "She really has returned... The spymaster was right, as expected!"
Twins, both clad in articulated armour of obsidian-black steel, etched with intricate, silver filigree that caught the flickering gaslight of the laboratory below. They stood on opposing sides of a central platform, from which two sweeping staircases descended into the heart of their domain. Brass pipes, slick with condensation, ran alongside thick, black wires, connecting countless humming contraptions and glowing gauges. Towering glass vats, filled with a viscous, tar-like substance, lined the walls, their contents bubbling with a slow, malevolent energy. Scientists in stark white coats moved between the machines like ghosts, their faces pale and drawn, scribbling notes and adjusting valves with tense, precise movements.
Cantodia descended the rightmost staircase, her steps fluid and confident.
Cantodia: "A vessel fit for the dark goddess herself... Can you imagine, Cancus? How much the balance will shift when she awakens!"
Cancus, her brother, shook his head, the gesture stiff. He turned, his own descent down the leftmost staircase measured, rigid with a tension his sister did not share. The metallic clang of his armoured boots echoed in the vast, humming chamber.
Cancus (Left): "But it is much too soon... The Spymaster is not yet ready, and our network has yet to cover all key settlements. If we are not careful, she could slip through the cracks."
Cantodia waved her index finger from side to side, a gesture of playful admonishment.
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Cantodia: "Not for now, she won't. She killed her Master, so we know they cannot be far. And, we have eyes on the territories surrounding her tower... Don't forget, the Lunar Rend has already expanded there."
Cancus: "Hmph. You put too much faith in that rabble... We cannot even peer through their gaze. How can we ensure they tell the truth? Darn, by the time word even reaches us, she could have already left the area."
Cantodia's laugh followed him as she reached the floor, the sound echoing off the cold brass and iron.
Cantodia: "You may not trust them, but at least have a bit more faith in our organization. Our men have the Rend right under their thumb; they've taught them better than to fabricate lies for an easy profit... Once they've found something noteworthy, they will signal us. Just as the sorceress did, in her final moments. We will know when to see what they see."
He did not reply. His attention was fixed on the far end of the lab, on a massive, central vat that dwarfed all others. There, suspended in an amniotic blackness, was the indistinct form of a man.
Cancus: "And then what...? Our abilities are lacking in comparison to the Spymaster's. We may see them, but we cannot reach them."
Cantodia followed his gaze, her expression unreadable as she approached the pod. Countless tubes and wires, like metallic umbilical cords, connected the suspended figure to the humming machinery.
Cantodia: "So let our agents reach them for us. Our purpose is simple: to keep watch. Until he is finished, that is all we have to do. They can do the dirty work."
His gauntleted hand came to rest on the cold glass of the vat.
Cancus: "Please, return to us quickly... Spymaster Lunalus."
Cantodia came to stand beside him, her arms crossed, looking up at the shadowy figure within.
Cantodia: "Until he does, we must make the most of these eyes..."
She reached up, her own hand tracing the curve of Cancus's cheek, her index finger dangerously close to his black, weeping eye.
Cantodia: "... Before he claims them back for himself."
Cancus turned away, his patience snapping. He seized a nearby scientist by the arm, stopping him in his tracks.
Cancus: "How much longer, do you reckon...?"
The scientist flinched, scrambling for a clipboard, his hands shaking as he flipped through pages of dense, complex equations.
Scientist: "I-it's hard to say! It is only the second time we are attempting this procedure and the first... Well, t-the first ended prematurely, as you both know. We have direct orders from the Spymaster to see it through this time!"
Cancus's jaw tightened, the leather of his gauntlet creaking as he clenched his fist.
Cancus: "It's always the damn same with you white coats... How about an honest 'I don't know'!?"
With a roar of pure frustration, he slammed his fist into a nearby metal desk. The impact left a deep crater in the steel. The sickening crunch of his own bones shattering echoed louder than the clang of metal.
Cancus: "ARGHH...!"
He cradled his mangled hand, glaring at the terrified scientist, his voice a low, pained growl.
Cancus: "S-see this...?! This, is NOTHING compared to what you're putting him through!"
He pointed at the Spymaster's vat.
Cantodia: "Tch... Cancus!"
Cancus: "SO DO YOUR DAMN JOBS, AND DO THEM QUICK!"
The scientist snatched his clipboard and scurried away, resuming his duties with renewed, panicked fervour.
Scientist: "Y-yes! Of course, of course!"
Cantodia approached her brother, gently taking his broken hand. He winced, but did not pull away.
Cantodia: "Do you think scaring them will help...?"
Tendrils of black vapor, thin as spiderwebs, seeped from her fingertips, burrowing into his ruined flesh.
Cantodia: "Patience... We must trust him."
She glanced at the vat, her voice softening.
Cantodia: "This is his project. He knew how much it would take."
Something moved beneath the skin of Cancus' hand, flesh and bone bending and contracting unnaturally. With a loud, wet crack, his bones snapped back into place. A thin, iridescent sheet of black tar enveloped the injury, hardening into a temporary shell before being absorbed, leaving no trace of the wound behind.
Cancus: "Even so... He's giving it everything he's got. We should all follow suit."
He stared at the Spymaster one last time, his new hand flexing, whole and strong.
Cancus: "Tentoria shall guide us once more...! She *must*."