The Lumbridge general store is the same as it has been for years. The bell over the door jingles as Lilaina opens it, and her mother looks up from a book and smiles. "Lily! Oh, sweetheart--"

"--something's happened," she says, and her book falls shut as she stands.

Lilaina nods mutely and lets the door close behind her.

Rosemary pulls her into a hug. "I'm glad you came home. Do you want to talk about it?"

It takes a moment for Lilaina to make herself able to speak. "It's... something you and Dad should hear at the same time."

Rosemary nods, squeezes her once, and pulls away. "Daniel!" she calls. "Fetch your father, please!"

Daniel comes clomping down the stairs. "He's only at the church, Mum--"

He pauses on seeing Lilaina. "Oh. You're back. Did you kill another dragon?"

She really isn't in the mood for this.

"No."

"Daniel," Rosemary says with a sigh, "please just fetch your father."

Daniel leaves.

Rosemary tugs Lilaina into sitting behind the counter with her and leans her head on her daughter's shoulder. "I can tell it's nothing good," she murmurs. "You're so strong, it must be something enormous to shake you like this."

Lilaina nods slightly, and they sit in silence.

Soon enough Daniel returns with Tobias.

"I'm glad you're back, Lily, but couldn't this wait? Saradomin has returned and I just talked to him."

"--Okay, if you're going to make that face I guess you're more important."

"Danny, mind the store, please. Lily, Toby, upstairs."

Lilaina takes the stairs up to her family's living quarters first, and drops heavily into a chair by their small dining table. Of course Saradomin would be here. That's just how her life goes, as of late.

Tobias pulls out a chair and sits to her left. "Did you know the Edicts were broken?" he asks.

Rosemary sits on her other side. "Give her a moment, Toby."

She takes that moment. She takes several, actually, just staring at her hands where they rest on the table, feeling like she's floating a little to the side of her body.

"I knew," she croaks. "I... I was there when they were broken."

"What happened?"

"I... found Guthix's resting place. I spoke to him. He... he told me he wanted mortals to be free from godly influence, he granted me the power to stand against gods, and..."

She has to say it, doesn't she.

"... and I saw him be killed in front of me."

"He died? Did--"

"No. --Saradomin didn't. The Edicts--" She takes a breath. "The Edicts broke with-- due to-- when he died. Saradomin only showed up within moments of them breaking."

"You met him?" Rosemary says in a hushed voice. "You-- spoke to him? Before--"

"Yeah, Mum."

Tobias reaches across the table to hold his wife's hand. "I'm sorry you had to see that happen, Lily."

"I'm sorry it happened at all."

Rosemary takes a deep breath and lets it out. "The other gods will return, won't they."

"Yeah."

Zamorak, of course. Bandos, probably still furious that she and Zanik ruined his plans. Zaros, perhaps. Who else? Who else would she need to defend the world, her world, from?

"You got a lot put on your shoulders. Doesn't-- didn't Guthix have other guardians?"

"He made me specifically resistant to divine powers. The Guardians of Guthix do still exist. I'm just... another one of them, now."

And she has been for much longer than she's known she was. The twisted loops of time Guthix only had moments to hint at make her head ache.

"He must have seen a lot in you, to give you such a task."

"Flower, are you sure..."

Are you sure you can handle this, he isn't saying. Are you sure my no longer so little girl isn't going to break under the strain.

She isn't sure. She isn't sure at all. But--

"I have to be."

She doesn't tell her family everything she's gotten up to, over the years. Doesn't even tell them most of it. But everybody already knows Lilaina Mercer slayed Elvarg; she can tell them more true tales of what she's done across Gielinor, make them more confident that she has the diplomatic skills, allies, and sheer power necessary to wrangle gods if she needs to. If the safety of the world needs her to.

"So you have killed more dragons," Daniel says over dinner about a week after her return home. "A lot more." He picks at the chicken on his plate, then stabs it moodily. "Such a name you've made for yourself."

"Daniel--"

"No, Mum, it's all right." To Daniel: "Do you want to know how many times I've nearly died?"

Saying that is a lie, technically; she doesn't even know which of the times she's blacked out from pain were only near-death experiences. But explaining that she seems to be impossible to kill would not actually help right now.

"More than the time you nearly gave Mum a heart attack by collapsing in front of her?"

"Dozens. I've lost count, frankly. You don't want my life, Daniel."

"Sure I don't."

Lilaina sighs and goes back to her dinner.

Things stay quiet a little longer. The trees themselves weep for Guthix; when she asks, the druids tell her it's the Anima Mundi itself paying its respects. Strange blue-green butterflies appear, and when she catches them they dissolve in her hands and broaden her mind like the tears Juna guards, imparting knowledge of creatures from the Spirit Plane.

She manages to get Daniel to join her, once, and he says the butterflies give him knowledge of metal and ores. But he doesn't like the idea of his mind being messed with, and so she gives up on that attempt to mend the rift and catches the butterflies with her mother instead, who says they make her feel more nimble.

The druids set up a memorial to Guthix on the road out from Falador, for people to bring rune essence to. She brings a piece herself, and then, after she mentions it to her parents, returns with essence on their behalf and on behalf of a dozen other people in Lumbridge. It's... something.

None of the other gods have made a move, not even Saradomin after his initial appearance in what seems to have been every Saradominist church and gathering-place across Gielinor. She doesn't sleep well.

"There's a magic thing in the woods," Daniel says one afternoon. "Between here and Draynor."

Lilaina's minding her parent's general store that day; it's... soothing, having nothing higher-stakes than helping people get things off high shelves and counting their coins, when there's anybody there. Nobody is, right now.

"Is it doing anything?" she asks in alarm. "What does it look like?"

"It's a floating black ball as big as a person, I heard," he says. "Why? You going to do something about it?"

"Obviously," she snaps, then shakes her head. "This isn't the time, Danny. Just-- mind the store a minute while I get Mum, all right?"

She doesn't wait for an answer, just heads for the back rooms and knocks on the inner door to her mum's potions room. "Mum--"

"Just a moment!" her mother calls. There's the muffled sound of tools on glassware, and then the door opens. "Yes, Lils?"

"Danny says there's something magic in the woods behind the castle. I need to go check it out, in case--" There are a lot of things it could be. Too many. "--Well, in case."

Her mother nods. "Is Danny minding the store? I could really use another few minutes to finish these up."

"Yeah, all right," Daniel calls from the front. "A few minutes."

"Thank you both so much," Lilaina says, and takes off for the forest at a rapid walk.

It's easy to get more specific directions to "the magic floating ball in the forest", though it's deep enough in the forest that it takes over an hour to get there.

The ground around the ball has been stripped of grass, and the trees immediately next to it look gray and charred. It's as wide as a person is tall, and high enough off the ground that a tall man could walk under it, though there's a small crater of concentric circles directly under it. It's black, at least when looking straight into its center; its fuzzy edges are rimmed with purple and green no matter what angle Lilaina looks at it from.

Well, it's not very much like anything she's seen before. Magic, obviously, and ominous. It doesn't look like it's growing extremely rapidly, but -- she looks at the sky -- she can't walk to the Wizard's Tower before dark, not even close.

-- She feels extremely silly. Does she have a cache of enchanted jewelry or not?

She still has her rune pouch on her as always; she hasn't fallen that far back into old habits. It's a moment's concentrated thought to teleport to her pocket dimension, a few minutes to get to and sort through her jewelry cabinet, and then she has an enchanted jade necklace in hand and the sun hasn't moved in the sky by the time she stands on the pavingstones outside the entrance to the Wizards' Tower.

"Welcome to the Wizards' Tower, adventurer," Wizard Valina says as Lilaina steps up to her podium next to the inner archway. "Is this a social visit or are you here on business?"

It's been too long since she talked to Ilona, but duty has to come first. "Business," Lilaina says. "I need to talk to Archmage Sedridor, or anyone who might know about magic that comes in the form of fuzzy black spheres floating in forests."

Wizard Valina frowns slightly. "Archmage Sedridor could direct you to the right wizard, I believe. Lilaina... Falkenrath, here to see the Archmage?" At Lilaina's nod, she notes this down. "In you go."

In she goes, making a beeline for the teleportation beam and allowing it to pull her upwards to the floor containing Archmage Sedridor's office.

She raises her hand to knock on its grand door and it swings open, so she enters. "Archmage," she says to the white-bearded old wizard at the desk.

"Adventurer Falkenrath," he replies. "What brings you to me today?"

"There's something strange in the Lumbridge Forest and I'd like a wizard to take a look at it." She describes the sphere and its apparent effect on its surroundings as best she can.

Archmage Sedridor nods, frowning. "I believe you are describing a portal of some kind. Perhaps interdimensional, given recent events. I recommend you speak to Wizard Relina." He describes Relina, then scribbles a missive and hands it to Lilaina. "I believe she's working in the lower library today."

"Thank you." Lilaina pockets the note and heads back down to the ground floor to look for the woman in question.

She's a stern, dark-haired woman at one of the many desks, alternately poring over a thick book and scribbling notes on looseleaf. It takes a moment for her to notice Lilaina standing in front of her desk, and she looks up with a frown exaggerated by the sharpness of her face. "Yes?"

"Archmage Sedridor said I should speak with you." Lilaina hands over his note.

Wizard Relina reads it and her eyebrows rise. "I see," she says. "Describe the portal again for me? How far is it from the Lumbridge lodestone?"

Lilaina describes the portal again. "It's maybe... an hour and a half's brisk walk from the lodestone, for me."

Relina glances out a window. "I'd best pack a tent, then, it'll be dark by the time I get there. Give me a few minutes, adventurer." She gestures at the tome, which flies back to a shelf, then briskly gathers up her notes and heads for the teleportation beam.

Lilaina finds an empty chair and waits.

Another wizard comes floating down the teleportation beam, notices Lilaina, and hurries over. "Lily! I haven't seen you in ages! How are you doing?"

"Ilona," Lilaina says, smiling despite herself. "Hey. Anything interesting in the field of stuns-and-binds lately?"

"Oh, lots, I think I'm really near a breakthrough to improve on Entangle--" She pauses and frowns. "Lily," she says chastisingly. "How are you? I've heard rumors about what happened when the Edicts were broken."

"... I've been better," Lilaina admits reluctantly. "I don't know what you've heard, but I can't really stay to talk." She summarizes the portal situation.

"That sounds like exactly Relina's specialty," Ilona says. "Maybe if it turns out to be big enough she'll calm down a bit about Avalani's lucky find."

"Avalani?"

"And here I thought you'd been everywhere," Ilona teases. "Wizard Avalani studies portals too, and she found a portal south of Falador that she discovered leads to ancient flying citadels, probably created by the god Armadyl for his aviansie. It was all very exciting, especially when Avalani managed to restore the portal, but Relina's been working in the field for decades and hasn't discovered anything nearly so grand, so she's been cross about it."

"Ahhh. Wizard politics. I see. Well, I hope she learns a great deal and nothing blows up."

"I'm sure I don't know anything about things blowing up around wizards."

Wizard Relina returns from the upper floors of the Tower with a bag slung over her shoulder. "All right, adventurer, I have everything I need." She nods to Ilona. "Are you joining us, ah..."

"Ilona. Combat spells, stuns and binds." She smiles and shakes her head. "I can't get away on such short notice, my advisor would be cross. I might manage to convince him to give me a vacation in a few weeks. If you'll still be in Lumbridge then, Lily?"

"At least the next month, unless the fate of the world's at stake."

"That's good. I won't keep you any longer, then. Good luck with your research, Relina!"

"Thank you. Adventurer, shall we?"

And off they go. Relina isn't exactly unathletic, as wizards go, but the walk from the Lumbridge lodestone still takes closer to two hours at her pace.

The sun's rapidly setting by the time they get to the portal in the woods. "You said you'd bring a tent," Lilaina says, "but I'm not sure we'll have time to set it up."

Relina smiles. "It would take too long to set up an ordinary tent." She pulls a bundle of cloth, rope, and wood out of her bag, larger than the bag looks like it should be able to fit, and sets it on the ground a safe distance away from the portal. "However, I am a wizard."

She pulls a wand from her sleeve, incants sternly at the bundle, and in a blur of motion it leaps into the shape of an expertly-raised tent.

"Where the hell have you wizards been hiding that and can I have one?"

"The enchantments are terribly expensive, I'm afraid. I had to trade in favors for it."

"I have a knack for sourcing rare ingredients, if that's the problem. I'd find a magic tent extremely useful."

"Hmm." Relina peeks inside the tent, and, apparently satisfied with whatever she finds there, turns back to Lilaina. "I suppose I could put in a good word for you with Wizard Edevane after I'm done here."

"That would be kind of you. Do you need anything before I head back to Lumbridge?"

Relina waves a hand. "No. Thank you for guiding me; I have measurements to take now."

"All right. I'll stop in tomorrow."

She stops in tomorrow, in the afternoon. The portal's grown, not by much but visibly. Relina assures Lilaina that she'll have pinned down the rate of growth in another few days, and that it's definitely a portal and not, say, a bomb. "There was a paranoid farmer who came to gawk," Relina says. "If it was going to explode I'd be much more concerned."

It's still withering the plants around it. "If it's dangerous in another way," Lilaina asks, "could you close it?"

"Perhaps," Relina says, "but I doubt it's actively dangerous. It could be a byproduct of Guthix's death, if you trust the druids' claim of his death."

"I do," Lilaina says. "Could it be the work of a god?"

Relina frowns at the portal. "It could. Let's not jump to concocting wild theories just yet."

It's too long a walk to justify going every day when she was in Lumbridge to relax with her family, but Lilaina checks on the portal every other day, and every time it's grown. Slowly but surely, it strips the forest bare around it and leaves an increasing disturbance in the dirt. Lilaina has a deeply bad feeling about it, but Wizard Relina isn't so sure it's a malignant presence, and even if the portal is of divine origin Lilaina has no idea how she'd go about negating it, or even if she can use the power Guthix gave her actively instead of it merely being passive protection.

She stares at the portal anyway, thinking Stop, go away, close at it. If that does anything, she can't tell.

This is Lilaina's home, her safe place, if this is the work of a god let it be Armadyl, she's pretty sure he's the least worst option of all the gods who she knows might have an interest in Gielinor. It's not Saradomin, who's already back on Gielinor, and who else? Zaros? He already has a communion portal under the Varrock Dig Site, she wouldn't expect him to return to Gielinor here unless he can't actually aim. Bandos? Bandos would make an alarming amount of sense, if he wants to make another attempt at subjugating or destroying the Dorgeshuun. Zamorak? Some god she hasn't heard of? Maybe. She doesn't know.