Shattered Secrets

As he looked at the keel that stretched endlessly forward through the darkness, Duncan felt he could already determine its origin—and the "deal" that had taken place deep within Subspace a century ago.

Yet he still felt that he had overlooked something, that this was not the message the Lost Homeland wanted to convey to him—or at least, not all of it.

He raised the lantern in his hand. Its spirit-fire flame brightened slightly, and its gentle glow illuminated the surroundings, bringing the details on the keel's surface into sharper relief. The firelight also shone upon the void beyond the keel, spreading through the dark mist.

Shadows flickered within the fog, as though many things were concealed there.

Agatha's shadow followed him. She rose from the mist and stood hazily at his side. "Could this... spine have come from Sasloca, the Great Demon God from elven legend?"

"That is highly likely," Duncan said with a slight nod. "And I'm afraid only an existence on the level of a god could possess such a spine."

"Goat Heads..." Agatha hesitated. Her thoughts seemed to be in disarray, and it took her a long while to find the right words. "I mean all Goat Heads—the one aboard the Lost Homeland, the one in this dream world, those in the hands of the cultists, and perhaps other 'Goat Heads' that remain unknown. What exactly do you think their relationship with Sasloca is?"

After a pause, she continued, "That muddleheaded Goat Head said Sasloca died long ago, and that it was not Sasloca. But now it seems that 'they' are all inextricably connected to the elves' 'Primordial Dream.' And now we have found this 'keel' beneath the Lost Homeland... You no longer remember how you obtained this keel in Subspace, do you?"

Naturally, Agatha did