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Was there any correct way to do this? The piece of the Code that was on the Moon had expressed urgency in those knights who had attended the meeting to visit their Wonders, their places of power, in order to resync their power to the piece of the Code that inhabited there. There was just one problem in Irkalla's mind: she had never been to her Wonder. She didn't even know where it was. How exactly did one get there? Her fingers curled into tight balls, fists really, along the golden cord that was her weapon before she glanced up to the stars. They twinkled cheerfully. The squire knew that it was merely atmospheric winds that shifted perceptions that caused the appearance of twinkling lights. Her voice was soft as she spoke into the night air, "I would like to visit my Wonder, please."

Nothing happened. Even though she had asked politely, she had been denied.

Irkalla was perplexed. How exactly did one get to their Wonder? Was there some other sort of trick to it? What had the Code piece that Erytheia had relocated told her to do? Almost as if from a distant memory did its words come back to her.

“If you want to travel to your Wonder, you need only look inside yourself. The words are there, waiting to be spoken. Clear your mind and focus. Listen. Trust in yourself, and trust in your namesake. Irkalla will guide you to it. You will find answers there. You will find purpose there. Have faith. I know you can do it.”

So the answers lay inside her already? Irkalla frowned before she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. What words? Words... what where they?

Almost unbidden, or was it bidden, did a phrase draw up from the deepest recesses of her core. It seemed like a simple pledge: one that once said indicated that she would be ready to pledge her loyalty to her Wonder so that she could give it aid, and receive its aid in return. Her lips moved silently as the words echoed around in her brain. Opening her eyes did Irkalla speak the words into existence in a sotto voice, wary of breaking the calm that had descended over her with the discovery of what she needed to do and say.

"I pledge my life and loyalty to Cosmos, and to Irkalla.. I humbly request your aid, so that in return I may give you mine."

The clearing in the woods disappeared and the squire of Cosmos arrived on what appeared to be an ancient road that branched out to either side of her position. Her legs wobbled unsteadily as she took in the change of scenery before simply feeling the shock wash over her: it had actually worked. Surprise warred with caution as she knelt and then sat down in the middle of the ancient path. The next order of business would be to figure out what she was dealing with but all she wanted to currently do was sit.

The climb seemed never-ending. Why were there so many god forsaken stairs in this tower? Of course the obvious answer was that people needed to get to the top level: but climbing? The muscles in her legs screamed at her to sit down. Irkalla ignored the dire messages her body was sending to her brain. The drive to reach the top of the obelisk was stronger than any discomfort that she was currently feeling. For one moment though she leaned her back against the wall and gave herself a chance to take a breather. Her gaze tilted upwards. How many more stairs would she have to climb in order to get to the top: twenty, fifty, one hundred? It was hard to even place an estimate. She had lost count of how many stairs she had already travelled in her ascent but it was definitely north of two hundred. Closing her eyes, the squire fought with the idea of simply leaving and not finishing what she had been tasked with accomplishing. It would have been much easier than this punishing climb upwards.

Pushing her frame off from against the wall Irkalla gritted her teeth in an expression of agony before she pushed onward. The sooner the climb was finished, the sooner she could find her piece of the Code. There was absolutely no doubt in her mind that it now lay somewhere at the top. The pull that she had followed was more insistent than ever and it was only that connection that she was feeling that kept her feet moving.

Twenty minutes later the brunette stared at what appeared to be a trapdoor that pushed up and out to admit entrance to the floor above. Spotting what appeared to be a mechanism that merely needed to be pushed into place did Irkalla push up on the wooden door before sticking her head into the room.

"Oh ..."

It was the only word that left her lips as she stared at the destruction of the room. Debris from what had once been a lovely pedestal in the center of the room was strewn all around the floor and Irkalla made note of the damaged windows that would allow an individual to look out at any point of the land below. Her heart ached, for what reason she wasn't too sure. Setting her shoes down on the floor Irkalla slipped her feet back into them before she leaned over and placed her hands an inch away from the floor. There, an insistent tug led the squire to a rather large pile of debris that she began to gently dig through. Near the bottom rested a faintly glowing orb and Irkalla reached down and cupped both hands around, being careful not to jostle it too much. Looking around at the floor plan of the top floor Irkalla pondered where exactly the piece of the Code might have resided before looking above her. In the middle of the celing a strange contraption hung down and for a moment Irkalla debated placing the orb in the resting place before pulling back.

"Should I try syncing with you now and then put you back or put you back and then try syncing?"

There were just so many variables upon variables on how she could do this. Irkalla opened up one of the damaged shutters to a window and glanced down at the ruins of what had appeared to be a glorious city at one point. Her gaze then travelled back down to the faintly glowing orb in her hands before the decision was made. "Sync now, before you get any weaker."

Had a regular person asked her, Kathryn would have been adamant about the fact that she was not the sort of person who could easily fall into a trance ... or calm down the mind and body long enough to enter a meditative state. Even as she stumbled across the room did Irkalla pace around the circumference before she went back to the window shutter that she had opened in order to just stare at the the view. The little orb in her hands emitted what seemed to be a subtle flash of light and it was then that a sense of calmness flowed into the Squire. Her gaze became unfocused before she felt gravity pull at her limbs. As she slumped down to the floor in a mass of white fabric did her eyes drift close. The little glowing orb remained in Irkalla's left hand as the woman's breathing slowed to a steady intake of air and gentle release of that same breath.

At first glance it could have been suggested as a trick of the light. Movement disturbed tiny motes of dust around the room as Irkalla began to slowly emerge from what she supposed could have been a trance. It seemed almost jarring to notice the difference in the amount of light that was now filtering in through the open windows of the tower. Her movements were slow at first, almost clumsy, before she took a moment to glance around. The windows, which she had sworn earlier were broken, now seemed whole once more. The pedestal that had obviously been affected by the energy source that had probably damaged many other wonders now sat in a pristine state. Huh? Would you look at that. Did all this fix itself while I was 'out?'

This was definitely something new to experience. Having never been to her wonder and only visiting a few others, there was nothing to really compare it too. The squire rose from her position from the floor before staring down at the piece of the Code that was apparently still in her left hand before she made a cheerful discovery. It looked like it was here to stay. The faint glow from before was no more. Her wonder's piece of the Code now shone with a brilliant and steady light and Irkalla breathed out a sigh of relief. Whatever it was that she had done, had witnessed, it had obviously been enough to resonate with the small orb. Irkalla almost felt like laughing in a moment of giddy joy but instead the woman gave a soft sigh. "Let's put you back where you belong." Having witnessed a memory of the past Irkalla knew that her Code Piece did not actually reside in the location she thought it would. Going to the pedestal Irkalla gently ran her fingers along the cylindrical top before moving her right hand over the edge. A small nodule marked where one needed to push inwards. A small whirring sound emanated from within the column before an opening appeared and a smaller structure rose from within.

"There we go. This is where you are destined to sit. Something else is in that overhanging piece I believe."

With the gentlest of touches the squire of Cosmos let the orb roll off of her left hand to fall into its assigned location before she sighed in relief. In time this would perhaps become routine. Her gaze shot upwards to the overhanging structure before she closed her eyes. The memory of the old knight had made something clear to her: that structure was used to place an item of great importance to the current protector of Irkalla. She had not seen what had been there in the memory but the knowledge of what was placed there had been amongst the teachings that had been imparted to his protege. She had never claimed it, so would the item still be there?

Grasping the hanging structure with two free hands did Irkalla gently pull down on the chain before her questing fingers struck an item that was hidden within. With practiced caution did the squire retrieve her find before staring at the ring that now lay in the palm of her hand. Staring down at the object did Irkalla quietly thank the last knight to walk this room for placing the ring back where it belonged. Even as her fingers traced the gold band and the stone set in the face of the ring did she finally believe that perhaps there was something greater at work than she could have imagined. It had seen worthiness in her when the string of ornaments had appeared before her that one night many years ago. Slipping the ring onto her left ring finger did she give a soft sound of contentment before frowning. Going over to one of the open windows did Irkalla lean out. The sky was perhaps not as vivid as it had been in her vision. The hues that the older knight had witnessed were not there. It also seemed as if the waterfalls were still silent. That would change, though, in time. She had to wonder, somehow, if the water flow had been stopped by natural means or human interference. "Guess that is something else I will have to investigate."

She would make sure of that. Wonder Irkalla was meant to be a resting place before souls returned to the Cauldron. People had been a rarity, even in the past. But this place deserved to thrive as much anywhere else. She whispered softly to herself as she began to trek back down the stairs, "there is a lot of work to be done here but I will not back down from the challenge, not now. Not ever."