Page 110 of Stars in Halo

They had been scouring every database and public data source for hours. Tracking down any lead or information on Iccythria and its connection to the Eye of Elysium.

Their search had led them to ancient manuscripts and stories of lore, uploaded onto Sysnet by historians and scholars.

Xion examined through pages upon pages of data, his fingers flying over his holographic keyboard as he searched for any mention of Iccythria.

Meanwhile, Katya pored over maps, charts, old books, and archaic scrolls on Sys-Net.

Mirage concentrated on the Darknet, their screen flickering with feeds from the most secretive corners of Pegasi’s digital universe.

Xion froze as he scanned through a document saved in a dusty corner of Sysnet.

His eyes widened, and his gaze flickered towards his companions.

‘I might have located something,’ he murmured. ‘It’s a passage from an old book that dates back centuries.’

Both Katya and Mirage leaned in closer to examine what he had found.

‘It’s an old manuscript written by a group identified as the Keepers of Knowledge,’ he told them. ‘They were said to possess vast amounts of information about the history of various worlds,’ Xion read out loud. ‘According to the parchment, Iccythria was an uninhabited planet that once housed an advanced civilisation famed for its incredible technology. However, their wisdom was lost when a massive volcanic explosion destroyed their society and left behind inhospitable conditions on Iccythria.’

‘The eruption was caused by an experiment gone wrong with an artefact of unknown origin.’ Xion added. ‘The text states it’s called the Viper’s Eye, and when turned on, it can trigger a planetwide seismic and polarity meltdown.’

‘I’ve done some crunching and taken a closer look at that manuscript, and I have more of a scientific explanation,’ Mirage piped up. ‘Like many worlds, the core of Iccythria is a moon-sized ball of heavy, elemental metals. From the scrolls, it sounds like the vibrations from the Viper’s Eye created pressure so intense and so dense in the past that it led to a colossal catastrophe that damaged the core’s crystal structure and magnetic field.’

‘If K’Sumi were to use it now,’ Mirage said, ‘damaging electromagnetic radiation would reach Iccythria’s exterior, stripping the now ionised atmosphere by solar radiation, killing everyone. The oceans would freeze and boil as the planet rotates towards its sun. Everything would die. It might even have rippling effects across this part of the universe and even reach other planets.’

Xion whistled under his breath. ‘So it’s possible to imagine that the waves emitted by the Viper’s Eye might somehow disrupt the geomagnetic fields of other worlds?’

‘Naam. Imagine all the magnetic rocks across Pegasi going ‘kachink’ all at the same time,’ Mirage said. ‘There would likely be earthquakes, volcanoes, and cracking of the planets’ surfaces.’

‘Which it once did,’ Katya breathed, ‘from the notes in the manuscript. But the historical catastrophe was short-lived and only affected Iccythria, triggered for a short time.’

‘Correct,’ Xion concurred. ‘So to be triggered, the Viper’s Eye needs a key, a lock. A gem of some variety to unlock its oscillating power.’

Both he and Mirage gazed at each other at the same time. ‘The Serpent’s Iris.’

Katya’s eyes shot up in surprise. ‘So it’s some kind of planet-destroying artefact, not just a pretty bauble?’

Xion jerked his chin. ‘Mirage examined it and found it gives off a radiating energy frequency that might be used to set off a series of reactions. So now that K’Sumi has The Serpent’s Iris, we can assume he needs the Viper’s Eye. Perhaps to use it as a bargaining ram to maintain his power over the Council and the Houses.’

Katya hissed in disbelief. ‘Meaning he’d threaten to use it unless they allowed him to keep his throne?’

‘Truly a far-fetched, fokkin-mad, ego-driven, maniacal idea,’ Xion mused.

‘So if the Viper’s Eye artefact is hidden within the Eye of Elysium, where is it?’ Katya asked.

‘I think it’s more like who has it,’ Mirage countered. ‘The text says that hundreds of years ago, a man, an elder of Iccythria, was chosen to take the Viper’s Eye out of sight and mind to a far-off realm inside the Shard. His name was K’Xyrth. He walked into the Eye with the artefact in hand for his walk to eternity.’

Xion shook his head, nonplussed. ‘Fokk, aren’t there thousands of souls in the Shard Eyes? Mirage?’

‘Millions, in fact,’ the quantum mind confirmed.

Xion sat back for a beat. ‘Perhaps we don’t need to uncover the artefact; we probably don’t have the time. That said, no matter how the King swings it, he’s desperate for access to our strongroom to find the object and enact his terror on Iccythria. How about we lure K’Sumi with a way to reach the vaults and the Shards and make him believe he’s close to getting a hold of the Viper’s Eye?’

‘So you’re saying that we give him a little help?’ Katya smirked. ‘If so, I know of a double-cross caper we could use.’

Xion turned his eyes on her. ‘Pray to tell.’

She proceeded to share.

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