The Soulcaster

The Soulcaster at Gavilar's rite of interment might have been male, might have been female. It was hard to determine, as they wore a hood up over their face. The skin beneath was colored like granite, cracked and chipped, and seemed to glow from within. The Soulcaster regarded the corpse, head cocked, as if surprised to find a body there in royal catacombs of Kholinar. They ran their fingers along Gavilar's jaw, then brushed the hair off his forehead.
They whispered to the corpse, then tapped a stone that had replaced one of the king's eyes. Then, light emerged as the Soulcaster drew their hand from their pocket, revealing a set of gemstones bound into a fabrial.
The Soulcaster touched Gavilar on the forehead, and the transformation happened instantly. One moment Gavilar was there. The next he had become a statue.
The Soulcaster slipped a glove onto their hand while other ardents hurried to remove the wires that had held Gavilar's body in position. They used levers to tip him carefully forward until he was standing, holding a sword with point toward the ground, his other hand outstretched. He stared toward eternity, crown on his head, the curls of his beard and hair preserved delicately in the stone. A powerful pose; the mortuary sculptors had done a fantastic job.
==References==
Category:Alethkar (people)
Category:Ardents
Category:Soulcasters