As the magi-train's wreckage settles, the members of Cell-04 are frozen—not by magic, but by pure awe. Kaelen drops to one knee, the Gravity-Rune that once crushed him now shattered into useless geometry. Tari leans on his staff, his "Broken Flow" finally finding a rhythm that matches the deep, tectonic pulse of the King.
Madara is the first to move. Despite her stunted wings, she steps forward onto the cracked ice. To the others, Zimbila is a monster of myth; to her, he is the frequency she has been humming since she was a larva in a jar. Her antennas vibrating in a complex, rhythmic sequence—the Ase greeting for a King of Kings.
"Great Bloom," her vibration carries. "The stolen light has been returned to the air. We are the Unchained. We heard your song from the deep."
Zimbila tilts his head. He doesn't speak in words, but Madara feels a wave of Prismatic White warmth. It is a recognition. He sees her not as a "Lost Wing," but as a sovereign daughter of Kushvanipad.
For Gimli-Var and the Paladins, the "Glory" of the Church is nowhere to be found. In the presence of Zimbila's Null-Frequency, their Magistone armor becomes a coffin. The Paladins' staves turn into dead wood, and their "Mana-Circles" evaporate like mist in a furnace.
"Retreat! Fall back to Glacier-Point!" the lead Paladin screams, his voice now thin without Aether-amplification. They don't fly away; they scramble like insects, sliding over the ice, dragging their heavy, useless armor behind them.
Gimli-Var doesn't even look back. He knows the Church doesn't forgive failure. He disappears into the blizzard, his mind already spinning a new lie to tell his handlers, unaware that Zimbila has already "marked" his soul-frequency for later judgment.
...
The World's Reaction: Two Tales of One Day
The sinking of the Sky-Frost Bridge is a seismic event in global politics.
A. Aethelgard & Shenzhou: The Manufacturing of Consent
Within hours of the bridge's collapse, the Adventurers Organization and the Pugilist Alliance launch a coordinated propaganda campaign across the World Turtles.
The Narrative: They label Oba Zimbila as "The Abyssal Calamity." They release doctored footage of the bridge's collapse, framing it as an unprovoked terrorist attack on a "civilian transport" (omitting the Grace-Bolts).
The Goal: To justify the "Sinking of Kushvanipad." They argue that the Ejijiwin King is an "Aether-Vampire" who will drain the World Turtles dry. They begin drafting a global conscription act, telling the public that to save their way of life, the "Great Bug-Hive" must be dropped into the sea.
The Market: Aether-stock prices plummet, then skyrocket as the Church begins selling "Zimbila-Proof" wards (which are actually just overpriced Null-Glass charms).
B. Kushvanipad: The Day of the First Bloom
In the kingdoms without borders, the reaction is the polar opposite.
The Holiday: The day is instantly named "The Shattering of the Jar."
The Celebration: Across the continent, Ejijiwins stop their work. Zanbibis climb to the highest peaks and vibrate their wings in a global chorus that can be heard even in the Elven clouds.
The Hope: For the first time the "Larvae" are emerging from their century long diapause early and yet not stunted. The birth rate of the Ejijiwin triples in a single day. They aren't preparing for war; they are preparing for a homecoming.
...
The world is now split. Cell-04 is no longer just a group of rebels; they are the Escorts of the King. They must lead Oba Zimbila across the Miasma Seas to Kushvanipad before the combined fleets of Aethelgard and Shenzhou can mobilize their "World-Sinker" weapons.