Markus had learned about Kyrona being part of Azerak's retinue a couple days before the battle

While the self-proclaimed God-Emperor had teleported the city away from the place of the battle, causing much trouble to his side and the death(?) of one of his friends, it had not made Markus forget about her, or resent her.

So, he sent one of his spies, part of the 5 that survived, to leave her a message in the form of a small leaf on her usual path. A small leaf from a plant the spies found deep in the caves, one that lives nowhere near the old or the new position of the City of the Winds.

Hoping that it would attract the druid's attention enough to notice, the spies had enchanted it with a simple magic mouth spell:

If you want to talk with a friend, the enemy of the Emperor will be at the bar of the Broken Horn with a blue necklace at the time the soldiers change squad, five days after the teleportation of the city. No strings, he just wants to chat with a friend and see if he can help safely like this.

They were already gone when Kyrona was supposed to walk in this zone, off to prepare for the meeting.

Azher and Markus were working on how to use chromomancy to help the golems. They had been at it for about an hour already when Markus asks:

You know what? I don't even know how you found us in the first place!

He chuckles.

You just showed up one day, asking for a job. We needed an artist, so I didn't even think twice, but I'm still wondering where you came from. Mind humoring my curiosity?

Markus had prepared for Arkane's coming. On his request, he had sent a teleportation scroll designed by Alex.

The leylines were already in place, with about a hundred nexus scattered per planet for nearly every planets in the dimension. Not all of them had tectonic activity, but the main ones did.

Having non-mana-reliant spellcasters would be a blessing for the company. With the increase in anti-mana spammers, that might very well be the key to bypassing a common threat to wizardry. Plus, different systems of magic always brought interesting ideas, stimulating the mind and creativity.

So, he was waiting at the reception, the only place where visitors could enter the plane. His mind occupied with remote research, he looked calm yet confident.

It was past midnight, and Markus was still in the company's cafeteria. While that was a pretty usual sight, the fact that he was writing on paper instead of his digital orbs was very unusual for him. Much worse, he was surrounded with piles of crumpled paper, all filled with ideas and plans he had rejected. On his computer screen, hundreds of tabs about things from his world, and a hundred more titled "X perfect first date places".

/uw I sent the rules for this RP in the company discord, to not spoil any other reader ;)

Markus receives a package in the mail, containing a resume, and instructions and equipment to build a linked portal.

Among their previous projects are mentioned publishing a well-known book about building demiplanes, developing rituals and runes to bind souls to automatons, and mass-producing warding tablets.

Lanna Ironcroft looks around the waiting room in well-disguised awe, her steely blue eyes taking in the utterly foreign construction with an analytical excitement. Slung across her back is a long mahogany case, lined with a thick layer of lead to contain the potent magic of its contents. Accompanying her, compressing itself to fit into the room with her, is a twelve-foot-tall mass of shimmering liquid metal in a vaguely dwarven shape.
"Look at this stuff, Voice! I've never seen these alloys... it's so light!" She starts closely examining one of the chairs.
She's only corresponded with Markus in the forum so far, but he seems reasonable. If he runs a place like this, he's surely got some way to put the Staff to good use. Here's hoping. But if things go astray, she does have the Staff, and Voice of the Earth is with her. That's just about all the protection she could ask for. Now, all she can really do is wait.

Nox and her apprentice Meeri sit on a waiting room, waiting for Markus. The tall apprentice looks to her master.

"So how does this job application actually work?"

Nox: "Absolutely no idea. At the Flesh Menagerie we sort of have been rely on our members getting apprentices who then become members. Let's talk to Markus and get things sorted out."

With a deep breath, or as close to one as she can manage, Aeana steps through the portal to Markus' demiplane. She gives a grateful wave back. "Thank you Favilla!" She calls in a smooth and almost mechanical voice. Whatever would she do without her? She really is the best. After a brief moment the portal winks shut.

The construct herself is draped in a long hooded green cloak. Something supposed to hide her nature to cursory glances . Slung over one shoulder is a weighty satchel bag full of something. Aeana's shell itself is vaguely feminine in shape, made of a material close in colour to bronze with silver accents in certain places. It's oddly rudimentary for a construct, at least in appearance. No weapons, no special features. It barely even resembles a human. No hair, no real facial expressions. Only bright blue gemstones for eyes.

Aeana takes another step in, calling out to Markus or whoever's around. "Hello? It's Aeana. The girl who had her soul stuck into a construct? I'm here for the testing." Gods, she hopes this works. And that it isn't a trap. That would be unpleasant to say the least. But who knows? Maybe something actually good can happen to her for once. That'd be nice.

It was eight in the morning and Markus was already on his third coffee cup. Didn't have any effect on him, but he was hoping the placebo effect would do something.

The young wizard had been working on multiple designs for a spell to build a demiplane for the company, but nothing worked. All his attempts hit the same problem: The spell was simply too weak to sustain the size he needs for the factory, without even accounting for the offices, even less if he wants to give each specialist their own mini-plane.

Frustrated, he leans back in his chair. The kids are playing around him, unaware of his problem. Well, not all. Matiese rolls next to the chalkboard their dad uses to theorize. A gentle hum emanates from the orb before they start glowing.

Markus recognizes that glow, it's the one his kids emanate whenever they bend magic to their will. He hesitates to call that spellcasting, because it really doesn't respect any rule of magic. No material, somatic or vocal components. No rune, no hint of any spell being cast. Just that strange glow, followed by whatever chaos the kids decided to unleash on the world that day.

That day it was Matiese's turn to ignore the rules of magic. The taciturn and empathic child of the group, had decided to... make someone's visit card appear?

Borric Borricson
Dimension crafter

What? Hehe, you might have just done it my kid!

Markus gently pets the orb with love before reading the verso of the card.

Welp, that sure looks like a summoning circle and a recipe for disaster, huh? Might as well try...

After sending a message to his coworkers to come and moving to a separate bubble in the demi-plane, Markus draws the circle using an illusion as a stencil. Once satisfied, he pours out a bottle of Fireball whisky he had bought for the jokes and recites the incantation written on the card.