When Murphy first reversed the Blood River, the Blood Spirit version of Salokdar had warned him that once the Midnight Matron completed her faith-binding, her new aspect would soon be born.
But Murphy seemed to have misjudged what "soon" meant.
He had assumed that, no matter what, a Chaos Spawn developing a second aspect would take time. Even at the fastest, it would take several months of guidance from him—the "Midnight Matron's mortal vessel"—as the vampires' true faith gathered, before her second aspect could take shape.
But as it turned out, when a mindless Chaos Spawn suddenly grew a little "brains," its capacity for understanding was off the charts. The first time it drew on the primordial creation energy supplied by the Creation Engine, the Midnight Matron's positive aspect took shape.
Murphy was still enveloped in the primordial creation energy.
Through the faith-binding between himself and the Midnight Matron, he could see the entire process of the second aspect taking shape more clearly. Outside, Triss was able to watch almost the whole thing through her symbolic connection to the Midnight Matron—a process that was utterly secret and unimaginable to 99.99 percent of all life.
Under their gaze, a blood-red humanoid struggled free from the Midnight Matron's twisted form.
Crimson streams of light wrapped around it like chains, forcing him back into the Midnight Matron's body. But the newborn aspect struggled to tear itself free. It crawled as if through a mire, looking rather pathetic, yet somehow making it seem all the stronger.
Its arms tore apart the blood-light connecting it to the Mother of Midnight. Then, writhing and struggling, it freed itself from the Blood River's projection. Finally, it kicked its legs and completed its escape, much like an individual being born from a womb.
But before it could savor