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[incantates]

[ Please enjoy the communication-enabling device magically hovering in the air and capturing Magnus as he wriggles something that looks awfully dragon-eye shaped at the screen. It's 30cm of pure what the fuck. ]

Oh, don't mind me showing up uninvited in the middle of dinner. I just felt I should make a follow-up report to all interested parties on our recent expedition to the Sibilant Sands –courtesy of one depressed dragon lord named Cain, a plucky group of fellow curious minds, and a beautiful Shadowhunter who had to pick through bones with me for hours. I had my skepticism about dropping in on a pair of advertised coordinates with little planning, but, you know, I'm an adventurer at heart.

[ Lucky for him and everyone else who joined, it worked out about as well as mysterious expeditions into creepy wastelands could work out. ]

So... curious thing about this eye! Apparently, the magic imbued within makes it easier for the owner to parse through whatever illusory enchantments have been running amuck in Serthica. How did I learn this? Well, I advise you look away now if you're faint of stomach.

[ Magnus keeps his grip on the eye with one hand and uses the other to magically produce a small visual replica of what he'd witnessed in the form of a floating, nearly transparent screen, reflecting exactly what Magnus saw when he positioned the eye on the dragons that were loaned to them by Cain, who were brimming with good health, versus Lethe, who was... well, definitely not alive. ]

...Not pretty, I know, but it could have some practical applications on how we move forward unraveling the great mysteries of this world.

[ At least, he hopes. ]

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video;

[incantates]

I'm sure too, but there's no reason why I should be having all the fun on my own.

[ Not that he wants to traumatize everyone, but it's probably not helpful keeping the undead and all the mannequins concealed either. ]

I've been trying to come up with a spell to pass the effects along to everyone else, but I think it will tax my magic too quickly, given the number of refugees from other worlds hanging around at the moment who would need access. I don't suppose you have a better suggestion?

video;

[spoilers]

[ She's not so easily traumatized, and she'd rather see reality than illusion. It troubles her that they've clearly managed to manipulate her mind in some way, all of their minds. ]

Me? Afraid not, sweetie. I have many talents but little knowledge of magic. I'm not even sure how a dragon's eye is capable of allowing us to see, well, what we couldn't without it.

[incantates]

The answer is simply that dragons are magical.

[ Which doesn't really answer much, he realizes, but it's his best explanation. ]

So am I, but I was incapable of seeing past the illusions in this world when normally my magic would sniff through them pretty well. The question is whether or not the dragon eye only works in my possession. I haven't tested that part out yet.

[spoilers]

[ Yes, well, that doesn't clarify much for her. She'll take science any day. ]

Anyone might have found it. I don't recall Cain asking for anyone specific. [ A very brief pause. ] But then, as fractured as his mind clearly is, maybe he doesn't realize we don't all use magic.

[incantates]

Are you saying I'm not absolutely special? My heart is breaking.

[ But he also figured it was probably a general use eyeball. ]

You know, you're more than welcome to take it out for a test spin if you don't have any issues holding loose body parts in your hand.

[spoilers]

Please, sweetie, I've held much worse.

[ Yes, she would love to volunteer. ]

And I'm sure you're very special. Just perhaps not in this particular context.

[incantates]

It will take a while, but I'm sure I will eventually get over the heartbreak. And if you're really that eager, I'll be happy to teleport the eye over to you briefly.

[ He still hasn't worked out the kinks on sharing his vision with so many others for an extended amount of time without wearing himself out, so this is probably easier for anyone who is deeply curious. ]

[spoilers]

I'm not sure eager is the word, dear, but how could I possibly refuse an offer like that?

We may not like what we see.

[ But she is ever so curious.

The dragon is a preview of what she expects is the much more horrific truth of this city. She'd like to see that truth. ]

[incantates]

Definitely not, especially with how long ago the plague that wracked the city had been, but it's better to know the truth than to live in delusion.

Send me your present coordinates or even a general description, and I'm sure I can portal this into your hands as we speak.

[ He's not sure how much of the dead they'll find in some of the areas they do presently have access to, but he is incredibly curious himself. ]

[spoilers]

Same place as everyone else.

[ But she does follow up with a set of coordinates. ]

Will you be travelling with it, or should I expect an unaccompanied eyeball to fall into my lap?

[ It seems like a valid question. ]

[incantates]

We're both adults here, so I doubt you need my close supervision. I will forewarn you that running off with it is futile. I can just use my magic to transfer it back with a snap of my fingers, and it's a little too solid to break easily.

[ He doesn't think she'll do anything that drastic aside from poke and prod it, so he's not deeply worried. Just to demonstrate his skill, he teleports the eye to her, letting it appear neatly in her hands. ]

Let me know what you see with it. I'm eager to compare notes, no matter how morbid they may be.

[spoilers]

Show off.

[ There will definitely be some light poking and prodding, but nothing to risk causing it damage. She's of a more practical nature than that, and she understands its value. ]

I'll be glad to share. It isn't the sort of thing you want to keep to yourself anyway, is it?

Why would you think I'd want to run off with it?

[incantates]

Well, we've only just met, and who knows whether or not you'd sell it on the black market for whatever the local currency is?

[ He highly doubts it. She doesn't seem like the type who would, and he tends to trust his own instincts. ]

Whether or not you actually would, it's always good to have a back-up plan in case things do go awry.

[spoilers]

I do like a back-up plan.

[ It's almost idle agreement. Already, she's looking over the eye, studying it. ]

And really, sweetie, if I wanted money, there are easier ways to get it.

[ Stealing. She means stealing. ]