Ethan walked toward his personal hideout, mind replaying the chaos of the previous night like a cursed slideshow. The earlier family banter had taken the edge off his panic, at least enough for him to breathe normally again, but the weight still pressed on his shoulders like a thousand boulders.
The automatic glass doors slid open without so much as a whisper, and he stepped inside, sighing as his senses soaked in the familiar quiet.
The ritual, that stupid, insane, universe-tier ritual, had gone way too well for comfort. Linking Anbord and Old Gassendi was an act even the old gods would grumble and complain about before attempting, and he… he did it as a side task. The seeds helped, yes, but the real force behind it was his identity, First Primord, bearer of Order and Mysticism.
But nothing in life came free.
