Atrium III

"I don't feel different," Aurelia protested, looking up at her team locked in the meditation necessary to absorb the Seed of Life. It felt strange looking at their flushed faces. Even Arthur looked a little red; his brow furrowed in concentration as a bead of sweat traced a path down his temple as he meditated. She wondered if Zariel would struggle to refine something that took her less than a second, too. 

The same thing had occurred last week when she'd stolen all the refined goods from Erikeen. No matter how many pills she swallowed, the only mysterious thing that happened was that her body temperature increased for half a beat before returning to normal. 

It soured her mood back then, realizing that all her hard work had been for nothing, though that didn't stop her from stealing, realizing she quite liked the taste of various potions and pills. She'd gone out every night since taking what she wanted. Be they swords, daggers, spell books, or jewelry.