Holding the box in one hand and the oil lamp in the other, Shade followed Sister Devlin through the elevator inside the Sacrificial Ground and arrived at the true First Fire Sacrificial Ground on the lowest level.
The flame of the Primordial Fire burned at the center of the circular Sacrificial Ground rising layer upon layer. The nun's weapon, the Ashen Longsword, was planted diagonally in the middle of the bonfire, its strange blade licked by the flames.
"Offered as kindling."
The Blind Sisters, dressed in a gray nun's robe, stood beside the Fire Basin, her silver blindfold reflecting the flickering, unstable firelight.
Shade handed the narrow-necked bottle containing the "demon remains" to the nun, who extended her right hand into the flames. The First Fire almost immediately ignited her hand. As burn marks emerged, cracks spreading across her skin crawled outward from the flames and covered her entire body, until even sparks appeared at the tips of her withered gray hair.
Sister Devlin, ignited by the First Fire, extended her left hand into the bonfire as well. As the "demon remains" held between her hands were completely swallowed up, the weak flames suddenly leaped upward, as though celebrating the ignition of new kindling.
At the same time, traces of First Fire Embers appeared over Shade's body. The Primordial Fire's increased strength also made the flames within him more powerful.
"Offered as flame."
The nun spoke softly again, her voice as steady and soothing as water flowing beneath a glacier.
Shade opened the lamp's cover, and Sister Devlin once again extended her hands directly. This time, both hands—hands cracked across their surfaces and flowing with the color of magma—enveloped the faint flame of the Sun that had only formed after eight days of gathering at Shade's home.
Compared to the