Over the months of Duskwane (fall) , as the portal to Earth lay dormant, Thalia turned her focus to the increasingly erratic fluctuations in the unstable portal. She had not even considered that casting the Everglowing Ember into the weave would have consequences and she hadn’t foreseen the depth of Azamodius’s cunning. The Ember’s vast, unanchored energy had become a hidden lifeline for the imprisoned wizard—one he had tapped into with subtle precision. Through the leylines braided into the portal’s core, the Ember’s essence surged like blood to a wound, nourishing his broken power. Bit by bit, Azamodius siphoned it, cloaked behind arcane wards and veils. His voice sharpened like a blade in the wind. His eyes shimmered with unnatural fire. And the cage that once held him safely—constructed with old Adherent wisdom—began to shiver, crackle, and hum with power no longer contained. The closer Thalia looked, the more she realized: he was not merely recovering. He was preparing.

Each time Thalia traced the Ember’s ley echoes, regret tightened in her chest. It had seemed the right decision—sacrificing the Ember to close the unstable portal, unifying the guilds in action and saving Linshire. But now, with Azamodius rising like smoke through the threads, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had handed him the key. The choice haunted her in sleepless hours, where the crackle of ley magic reminded her of fire not yet unleashed. Had she lit the fuse that would burn through Vravana? Was the unity they forged that night worth the danger now looming? In the quiet of her study, she feared the answer.

Over the cold weeks of Frostlight, Azamodius had doubled the amount of power he was drawing until he had enough power to shatter the enchantments on his cage.

Early Icrith (December) Silas had told the Adherents he was leaving on an important errand.  But Thalia had seen him step through the unstable portal into the unknown.  Later that month. In an explosive act of defiance, Azamodius broke free and vanished into the veil of shadows, leaving Linshire unaware of what his escape truly signified. His flight sent ripples of fear through the town. His motivations cloaked in mystery put the town on edge. To those watching, he seemed a growing threat.