a Return and a Breakthrough

Waking up in the Plane of Chaos had never felt normal, but this time, it was something altogether different. The atmosphere was still electric with the residue of abyssal power, and it felt as though I had been submerged in darkness that refused to dissipate. As I regained consciousness, the first thing I noticed was the familiar ceiling of my personal lab in the Magic Tower University—the alchemical lamps overhead casting a faint blue hue across the stone walls, illuminating the scattered arcane instruments I had left behind.