Aloud to whoever may be listening, "Ok, I'll play along."
Taking a closer look at the items on the table, Ialari examined each one individually and pondered how exactly to go about choosing. After looking at all of the items, it occurred to her to choose ingredients based on special significance that she might assign to them.
First, she chose a preserved bat wing. To her, it symbolized her encounter with the group of zith years ago. One of them, Va'al, she took as a slave of sorts; employing him as a guardian of her Retreat; one of the physical locations of an entrance to her Dominion. The wing actually looked like a miniature zith wing. As she thought of the zith, she made a mental note to visit him soon. The wing also reminded her of when Dira, Goddess of Death, wrapped Ialari in her divine embrace and soared through the Ukalas; gifting Ialari with a sort of tour of the divine weave that touched all of existence. She tossed the wing into the cauldron.
Next, she picked up a vial that vibrated and trembled. Inside she could see bolts of crackling lightening, rain and violent looking clouds; it was a vial containing a swirling storm. It reminded her of the Djed Storm of 512 that followed the release of Ivak from his prison. She recalled the vision of the event granted by her bond to Izurdin. It also reminded her of the otherworldly weapon she'd acquired at the Stair Step Falls; a weapon that literally projected pure lightning. This she also dropped in the cauldron although she did not open it before doing so; uncertain as to the wisdom of releasing a storm in a small, confined room.
Moving on, she chose a vial of blood. Attached to a string and wrapped around the stopper was a label that read, Air Velispar. Ialari found it rather odd to find such a thing that was so closely tied to her own experiences. With the events involving the world gate near Syka, the arrival of Verusk and all that came of that encounter, it felt like an obvious choice. Pulling the stopper, Ialari poured the bit of blood into the cauldron.
For her fourth ingredient, Ialari narrowed her eyes in consideration before picking up a jar of what appeared to contain rather fresh looking brain material. There was a label on the jar that read, "Dhani Brain". The significance of the brain was obvious to Ialari as she felt a unique kinship to the serpentine beings. She had a love for snakes; one that had existed for as long as she could remember. She even possessed the unique ability to create snakes from otherwise inanimate, unliving objects. The idea of the snake, the symbolism tied to fate and destiny created a powerful connection for her. She opened the jar and dropped the brains into the cauldron.
Finally, for her fifth and final ingredient, Ialari chose a bowl of dirt. Carved on the bowl were the words, Dirt from the Grave of a Champion. As she read the words and looked at the dirt, she considered the possible meaning. What sort of champion? That term could mean so much. What sort of champion? For Ialari, it was the fact that it was grave dirt. It was symbolic of her connection to Dira. While she was an isur, a child of Izurdin, Ialari owed so much to Dira. It was Dira who was instrumental in setting her on the path toward Dominion. It was Dira who orchestrated so many aspects of Ialari's discovery of Dominion as well as her asking to be marked by the Goddess. Dira gave her context in life and had revealed secrets that only Death could reveal. The grave dirt felt like a source of reality amidst a life filled with the fantastic. She poured the dirt into the cauldron.
Now came the time for a sacrifice. What did Ialari have that she could sacrifice? It had to be something special...something that she would have a hard time giving up. That left her really little choice as she had nothing much on her person save for the Sentinel's robe. It was not magical. It had no divine influence upon it. It was simply a robe in structure but held so much in the way of memory and symbolism. She wasn't sure she could go back through the rift to find something else while at the same time realized that she didn't possess much else that held as much significance for her.
Reluctantly but still wishing to complete the strange task she'd engaged in, Ialari took off the robe, looked at it one more time and then dropped it in the cauldron.
All that was left...was to wait.
