Ziotea was not expecting to see Father Antonin's emblem, not here.  The herbs themselves held no particular meaning to her, not when container was of far greater interest.  The toast was an interesting one, and she had to wonder if the healer was one of the ones Essa spoke of.  She also wondered if the children mentioned were the three heirs, or if the old woman meant something else.

And then quiet that stretched out long enough to be unpleasant.  The young inquisitor glanced over at Rose a few times -- she'd no idea what was going on, but the girl apparently knew enough to be uneasy, so Ziotea held her tongue.  When the change came it was sudden, and Ziotea tensed in response, her hand tightening around the shaft of her spear, her feet shifting automatically into a stance closer to that for battle.

Madness?  Something passed down from one generation to the next among Omestrians?

[i]But I am not Omestrian.  The mother thad did not keep me came from Lanostre, as did the two that raised me until they were taken.[/i]

Again, Ziotea felt like she did not belong here.  Father Oren was the one who'd been guided here -- she'd come with for reasons of her own, selfish ones.  Perhaps she should have let the matter be, instead of asking.  She was the wrong person to ask to carry on some sacred heritage.

The aquarium water sloshed in its tanks and the young women whirled about, spear lifted and free arm reaching for her shield.  She dropped her arm when she realized it was Essa doing it, her ether filling the water and making it roil.  Moments later she reached for her shield again and this time swung it onto her arm, watching the water above them warily.

The series of images that passed through the water was...unbelievable.  The devoured gods, and Lord Varya Himself, and...another for whom she had no name.  Omestris had a twin?  The two together had...what, consumed other gods never mentioned in any of the texts she'd been required to read over the course of her education, nor any of the forbidden volumes she'd looked through when she and Rodion snuck into the deeper levels of the library?

Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the second twin's eyes.  Yellower than her own, yes, closer to gold than warm amber, but the intensity of the hue was the same, a brilliance that not all cursed with Omestrian eyes shared.  Rose had it too.  It wasn't something she saw often, and rarely in such jewel-bright tones.  But the hatred there, the sheer loathing for life, shook her just as much.  The burst of what could only be fire made her heart beat faster, and it took an effort of will to keep her focus on what Essa was saying.  The words only confused her.  Was this forgotten Remnant still in the fallen star?  Had Lord Varya taken him out and consumed him?  He must have, if Asherahn was influencing Inquisitors somehow -- assuming the old woman was right.

But the blue circle of her vision had been secondary to the call of the flame, even with the sense of wrongness and the pain.  She was starting to realize just how messed up her very nature was, beyond simply destructive.  These were not the answers she had hoped for -- and yet there was something more, something beyond the malevolent, consuming wave.  Something less hateful, less wicked.

The questions were written all over her face as Essa looked right at her, but even Ziotea wasn't a complete jerk.  The woman was exhausted; she would not be saying anything further just then.  She made a noise that might've been a sigh but was more likely a snort, and turned to look at Father Oren.  His expression told her all she needed to know.  "We'll stay.  But you, girl.  I want a word."  The Inquisitor paused, her gaze roving over the weary old woman seated on the couch.  "After you're doine seeing to her," she allowed, before turning to go.

She left the room, moving out of earshot and making sure the other two children weren't around before turning to Father Oren.  "You saw that blue ring she mentioned?" she asked him softly, still struggling to digest everything they'd just heard.  It felt like she already knew his answer before he said it.  "Mm," she murmured in reply, looking pensive.  He didn't ask her, but after a hesitation she told him anyway.  "So did I.  Briefly.  But mostly, what I saw was fire."