Ruby Heartstrings to Guide You (Blade)

Content Warnin's:

WELCOME BAAAACK!!!! BOOK THREEEEE!!!! Bleeding anger. Threats. A gerl gets punched in her face. Talk of death and abuse and the suns getting angry.

I bleed rage like lessers would spill tears as I Listen and Obey the command of my Mistress, grabbing hold of space around us without a care and submerging it in the viscerae of distance, time, logic, and other such useless nonsense. All that matters is the will of my Mistress and the safety of those who have entrusted themselves to me. Adel Verpflichtet, a concept I have failed to live up to in letting this happen. No more. I see what my sister and my niece have done, and will not accept it, will not permit such grotesque violations of my forbearance, even if I have to beat it into them.

"Everyone, grab a strand as you travel, and I will provide a way back. Sekrhús has changed where we are in forms I don't understand yet."

My first Sister, Verbess, cracks fully out to guide its Frame. Quills beginning the low hum that only our Pack can understand is fury and violence and fear. <Factor Seventy-Seven Construct. Aggressive Threat Level. Seek Primary and Secondary User's Advisement in...>

"Be well, Sisters." It growls, Turning focus toward its goal. Sparking up to Giyar Nine, nearly its highest before even starting this hunt.

Finding Infection. Finding Krahe. And... bringing them back safely. Despite how broken and twisted our Sister seemed before we ended up here.

"No big risks yet, not alone." our Mistress demands of Verbess. "Alright? You come back and you get us if there is even half a chance of something going wrong. Understood?"

I feel it nearly snarl at that, not even because it finds her command cruel or anything but logical and good, but because it, before all others, understands just how much anger is roiling below what I'm letting out. Is in... Some ways, trying to act as relief in sharing my fury.

"Understood, Mistress." It agrees without anything but steady focus.

I offer out a loop of my essence manifested and point to the roil of gore. "Take hold and jump through. I will hold this area deliberately unstable to ease your passage. You should be able to go right to them."

It does so, then is gone. Quill-Song starting to snap out little but precise melodies of <Locate.>

Our Mistress' headtendrils click, rattle but struggle to find and match our tune. Fight to calm the twinned muffled screams we all feel reverberate along our bond to them.

The new frame and form Lynette normally strides about in are still shaped like some... big odd mantle of flesh and teeth and shadow across Elevar's shoulders as she releases my hand and moves to cup my cheek. Brow furrowed as she pulls me to meet her eyes.

"How... Xafra." She murmurs so gently, voice bubbling with worry, still gripping one of Adaline's hands with her other. "What happened? I understand what struck my twin but not you."

It's all I can do to avoid smashing her head in, despite it being the last thing I could ever desire. My quills thrum a quiet warning, and Adaline pulls my Mistress's hand from my face. "Elevar, Xafra is the embodiment of Strife. She's struggling to maintain control of herself."

She looks between us, nodding slowly at Adaline's warnings. "That makes... Some amount of sense. Fills me with more questions than answers." She looks out over the ring of unstable reality I've formed and around the fields of swaying grass that surround the lone spire we stand atop of, then hisses. "Empty Skies. What even... why did Sekrhús..."

Trails off. Expression turning confused. Tendrils slowing and... seeming to find a melody to grasp and match.

But not the Pack's.

"It's roused. Not... fully. Not as much as it would like yet. But enough. This is, quite literally, the worse way this could all turn, Loves." She murmurs with a wince.

"My sister has done this. I felt her snatch cascading souls from Girra as they fell from his embrace." I hiss in disgust.

"What?" Elevar jerks to stare at me, pain and dread spiking along the bond. And it feels so much like watching an old wound tear open. "No that... That doesn't make any..."

But she trails off. Glares back out at nothing as her head tendrils start to click and rattle a little louder. "Cracked and Riven Moon. Do you know where she's taken them? The spirits? Where she is now? Because if there is a chance in finding peace with Girra it'll be in returning those."

"I... No. I could pull her to me, but I would not be able to avoid violence if I did." I respond carefully.

My Mistress nods. "Then best we wait for our Pack to regather. Let that wayward family seek us out. Hopefully before she gets tangled up in worse-"

But a crack and snap from my rendered tether to Verbess and Schatzi goes tight, then pulls firmly and three figures are suddenly rejoined to us on the Spire's tip.

Feryudra, with those sapphire tipped stakes it keeps as weapons folded tightly into crooks of its elbows

And... bracketed by only two of our Sisters. Verbess and Infection. Quills growling in fury and worry at...

<Pack Sister Krahe, missing. Factor Four Construct, designation Krelliva in her possession. Factor UNKNOWN Construct spilling from Frame.> It thrums to us as it and Infection move to bracket me. Quill-Songs wrapping out mine to imbue any stability I require. <Sun-Blessed Feryudra, reaffirmed Oaths of peace and aid. Speaks for its purpose, not Girra's. Seeks to parlay for joined effort to reclaim Sun-Blessed Krelliva's spirit and our wayward Sister.>

I do not respond, cannot respond to the enormity of this breach of griþ. For a welcome guest to be slain under my aegis... It is unspeakable. "Adaline. Translate for Mistress Elevar. Mistress, my Mate. I require instruction and guidance, else I act impulsively."

Adaline does so rapidly, following it up with, "I believe we are obligated to assist and would prefer to even if we were not. I... I gave them the order. Krelliva's death is my fault and I insist on being allowed to put it right."

Elevar absorbs all this, nods. "Agreed. Xafra, remain here with me as Anchor and one whom can react quickly to anything and anyone. Can help me reach out and check on your Dolls and such. Adaline, you and Ver-"

But a snap crack, like the sound of some large creature's bone breaking, twists from the mantle on Elevar's back and interrupts her words.

Then our Second User's body has shifted to a more humanoid shape to stand off to the side of us.

But... different.

Lynette stands still as dead stone. The only motion coming from the writhing endless shapes wrap all about her flesh where the vine tattoos should be. Teeth and even tongues cracking between and beneath. Eyes glazed and blind with purple sparks crackling across.

"Just myself and Adaline. Infection will attend to Feryudra well enough here with Verbess and Schatzi ready to attend and act as needed." Lynette states to the Pack, then looks to the Sun-Blessed. "I've made sure the Beast Below won't interfere with this. But I won't have you distracting me while I ensure Krahe and Krelliva come out the other side of all this."

I nod, looking at the lesser kin that stream across my Lynette's flesh, accepting that most of them will be devoured by Krahe. "Hunt well, beloveds." I declare and offer them another strand of my essence.

Lynette only moves then, letting Adaline carry the offering. And... for a heartbeat the Sun-Blessed here seems to consider arguing or offering more. But doesn't. Only kneels, placing those staves across knees as it settles to wait.

Then they depart.

Leaving me to bleed through the Pack sisters demanded to stay on either side. Quill-Songs a low shrill thing our Mistress cannot hear but I see now reverberates through Feryudra's Frame. Possibly giving it some idea of my angers?

Elevar takes a step away to gaze out over the lands around us. "No salt on the wind. So... far from the sea. I'd guess. Forests on two horizons. No mountains. Looks like four sources of people woven lights that imply civilization close by. At worse I can pick up new languages quickly. Should be able to get some measure of understanding as to where we've been deposited."

"We aren't on our peninsula, that's for certain. There's a small mercy there. It's possible that the Groves reputation hasn't stretched this far, and thus we may be able to make allies instead of engaging in slaughter." I respond evenly, paying attention as she reaches out to all the Dolls she can thanks to my pendants ignoring the distance. "Anyone not responding yet?"

She draws her knitting needle and takes to tip-tapping it on her thigh. Eyes distant as she converses with multiple members of the Shelf at once. Then murmurs. "Primrose and Nettle. And those that saw them last were certain they were abed together in your First Doll's studio. So... Could have to do with the oddness of your Spire? It's... disconnected. A wound. Probably why Lynette asked you and yours to move there. Its anchoring to the Real might be as muddled and off as its connection to the others. The tunnel system doesn't even reach it. Or was long ago collapsed. Not sure. Seemed the safest place to her at the worry of this very event happening."

"Might be able to bridge the path there myself. Actually. Do you think the tunnel system still connect the Spires, despite the changes in position?" I inquire.

"I..." My Mistress pauses, then nods. "Lynette insists they do. No increase in distance or time needed to move between Spires even. Not... Well, unless your niece wants that. Which it shouldn't unless someone annoys her."

"Then that's one less thing for me to be enraged about. I... Hhhhh. I'm going to correct them both in a calm and reasonable manner and not feed them their own entrails. Do you have any idea why Augusta has decided to team up with Sekrhús to attack Girra?"

"Honestly...? I'm caught between three terribly unreasonable and probably stupid ones. Either she's been using us from the start, which is not likely. She's been so mangled by Sekrhús to see things 'her way' as your brother does. Or... well, it turns out I'm somehow cursed to never have a sibling that won't betray us the second we truly decide to trust them, and my binding to you has infected you with my horrid luck." Elevar chuckles unsteadily. Then... Doesn't respond for a long moment, turns and... gives me the worst smile I've seen my Mistress give. It sparks with the same expression I caught a shadow of when she learned of Verbess' first idea for a name. Asked it if she was caught in some wretched nightmare before lashing out. Our bond sizzles with anger that mirrors mine. "And as for the lack of entrails you are considering feeding them... Well, let's just say that I'll try my hand at cooking if we walk that road. Let none say we don't serve our siblings well when they act like this. Only... Hmm... You get first cracks at Augusta. Of course. But Sekrhús? She's mine to tend to. Both as Blossom, twin to the gerl she just violated, and as a woman she thought it a good idea to treat like my dead lover once did."

"Okay but... Why? Augusta comes back, and without speaking to me, does this. Did she give any hint or motivations at all? You mentioned that she had a plan to pull entire worlds together and that there was some desperation to her, to how important she made it seem. But even then, this seems... Drastically out of character for her, at least how she was. To attack the innocent. I know that she traded a name to Sekrhús. I could feel that shift, and that's when she started pushing against me mentally, overwhelming me with something indescribable, but... I feel like there's something we're not yet aware of. This felt like vengeance. So, while I find the actions taken unacceptable, I think an opportunity to explain and make amends could be worthwhile." I trail off, the Strife-fueled anger starting to cool if not diminish.

"Prince of Decay? Yes? Lynette babbled that privately just before taking over and twisting off at Sekrhús' command. But... Why?" Elevar sighs, running hands through her still frazzled hair. "Sekrhús' new name seems softer than the last. Festering Stardust. Why lash out at Girra, of all Divines, right now? Because this does stink of vengeance. But why waste what could have been a hidden blade like some... Spiteful child and not a being with thousands of well documented resources as her disposal? If not for Augusta's actions to keep you from stopping this... I'd think she simply was trying to mitigate the mess. Her mistakes, ones she felt would only hurt her."

"Festering Stardust? That... Stars are another name for the Watchers that Girra hid away from mortal sight. They're clearly working together to make this merger happen. And... Lynette is... She was something before being a part of you, we know that. Is there a chance, even a slim one, that this was some... twisted attempt at kindness?"

My Mistress glares off and up. "That's... Yes. I think my twin doesn't just bear Sun-Blessed bits, but was fully that. Was cut off from His gaze when this place captured her. Stripped of memories when woven through me and only just getting them back last night. As for the spell? Well..."

The translated words of the invocation Lynette wove over the bond flow from her to me.

Forever Fire. Harvester of Spirits. Endless Blaze. He who never forgets His children.

Cold ash and empty flesh and broken shells remember your warmth and embrace.

Even if you forgot her.

Left us all to Rot.

Never even looked for the bones.

Like a Lament it twists and seems to wind in such anguish. Then... Twists to anger.

Or... made sure your clutch was safe from the thing that lurked beneath your Weeping Dreams.

She still loves you. And because of that will gift you the breaking heart only a parent can understand when a child is torn from their embrace. Lost.

Worse still, actually. You can only imagine the horrors time and wretched keepers could inflict on them.

Or me.

And then the name...

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⟨Empty Ashes and Nameless Bones - Spark Consuming Maw⟩

A spell that weaves such a mangled mess of methods. Miasma not so much the fuel but... similar to the Root Ways that I've learned deliver the water to various Groves. But in this case it is the Empty Nomos manipulated.

I stumble, falling to my knees and the rage flares once more with understanding as I clutch at my skull and scream. "Blasphemer. You promised them eternity. You failed to protect your chosen. Bloodprice was claimed and will be claimed again and again and again until the lies run dry."

"Oaths of old cascade and break and leave Ruin where there should be Cultivation," A voice of an old Doll whispers beneath my words, our Packs Quill Song, and the Mistress' attempts to console and understand. Feryudra, speaking like it does sometimes. Like an echo to my fury. "Would you claim backways? Firstborn? Forever? Or find the first Oath cracked and start there?"

"That which Festers and Decays feed cultivation, allows new growth once more. Ruin. No. No attempts at forever, not even for me. I am Strife! I am the demand for change and the refusal to surrender! I am... I am just my Mistress's Blade, and I too will die when it is my time. I only hope to be able to leave a place for my loved ones before I go." My fury fades to weeping acceptance. "Mistress Elevar... I'm sorry."

"It's okay, love." She's already whispering from where she kneels before me. "You've done nothing wrong. Your rage is... grounding. Needed. Helps an old Witch like me understand when my own anger is well placed."

"I want us to grow old together. Is that selfish of me?" I ask in a whisper.

"I never expected to grow old. First due to... simply hating the idea of more flesh changes I hated and not willing to live that long with them. Second due to my reknitting. Then... well, the Soul Rot." She sighs and adjusts to sit. "I feel old, Xafra. Have for over a decade. Feel like I already have taken more than I should. But... Want so much to give you all that. In a World that doesn't feel like it's falling to bits."

I sit down with her and bark out a laugh. "Part of that involves things like me not having as much power as we do. There's... so much to do, to get ready, to fix, and I feel like I don't have enough power and that I have far too much to be capable of a delicate touch. Love... We have two kids with a third on the way. That's absolutely madness. I... We need to figure out a different method of freeing all the Dolls besides war. And I think we need to find my other sister as well."

"I... Have no idea how I was even talked into that. Being a parent. Sia asking like it's any other normal thing and just... Now she's snared me and I can't imagine giving that little one anything but everything. Can't help but know that when Lynette finally figures things out with her little one I'll be snared again. Then... well, of course Sikkina will hook me as well." Elevar shakes her head, bond bubbling with worry but... also so much hope. Even a little excitement. Then eyes me. "But your sister? Which one? Not Sekrhús' mother, I hope? Hive seems worse than her child and half as likely to work with us. But... There is another? I don't seem to recall a name or details about her..."

"Don't know her name either. Augusta mentioned that she's third born, and I'm first. Chalice was fourth and Hive fifth, so... there's one missing. For some reason, I'm certain we were all girls."

"Odd, especially with a brother mixed in there. Wonder if he's a mess for the same reason I was before I came to this place." Elevar muses. "But yes, we should see if she's around and stable. Is... Odd that we don't have more on her."

"The Scales Changed shed Names like storms do rain." Feryudra offers gently.

eyes widen and my head snaps up as I point to it. "That, that right there. There's a resonance that feels familiar. I think this Scales Changed might... Be my sister? or at the least, Dreamborne like me and my siblings."

The Sun-Blessed Doll considers the roof between us as it replies carefully. "Krelliva was... attempting to gather information from the Blaze on this topic. Was why it asked this one to offer you the scale before you returned here. Hoped you could use it. Shapes and names and roles and purpose weave together but never remain solid. Is like... grasping at smoke. But one thing stands out to this one. Despite the Scales Changed love of Girra, His voice is silent to them. As the Divine's were to you. If nothing else, something is laid within mimics what smothered Truth to you."

I nod thoughtfully. "Mistress, should I call on my dear sister for explanations now, while we wait for Lynette and Adaline to return?"

Elevar takes in a deep breath, lets it out slowly, then nods. "My twin is... well enough distracted and still riven with enough guilt that she won't shove me aside." Then she rises, and offers me a hand up. "Let's see what our family has to say about... this entire mess."

I stand with her assistance and inhale to call out when Augusta steps out through Feryudra. She looks... Haggard. Worn thin, yet her small self satisfied smirk sets me on edge all over again as she says, "So you've calmed enough to talk then?"

Without even thinking, I punch her solidly in the jaw, knocking her over into Feryudra's arms. "Nearly, yes."

"Oh, thank the dead hag. Was worried you'd meant to try and resist that urge. And I've not even tried since I was... fifteen? Younger? Not sure. Broke three fingers and all that." Elevar snorts at me mirthlessly while eyeing Augusta. Then greets. "Good morning sister, how's your night been? Anything interesting happen? Or bright ideas spark? Fascinating company found?"

The Sun-Blessed is... Taken a bit off balance, but helps to right Augusta smoothly enough. Then returns to sit.

"Oh come on. I EXPLICITLY told you I was going to get up to stuff. even offered to let you kill me to slow it down. Are you really surprised, Elevar?" She hesitates for a breath then shakes her head. "Using Lynette in that way wasn't part of the plan but I'll take responsibility for it. It was on my order. I used your twin and Sekrhús both to further my plans, and while I'm slowly getting closer to having Lynnette be free, I don't expect her to forgive me." She throws her arms in the air in faux boisterous exultation, "I'm the one and only Divine Prince of Decay, everything our dear brother should have been before the meddling of mortals ruined him, and I'll be as evil as I have to be to ensure a future." She steps towards Elevar and offers a bow. "So, sister Elevar, when you punch, it's important to fold the fingers in first, then wrap your thumb around the second and third knuckles of your index and middle finger, then strike with the first set of knuckles. that's the best way to prevent your hand from breaking."

"Yes, I am surprised. But not by you getting up to stuff. I'd be disappointed if you were the boring sort." My Mistress glances around performatively, then turns to level a look at this Divine. Words more measured than what roils down the bond sings of. "If you had simply roused this place. I'd be terrified. But... I was told what your niece is like. How abused she is. And I can't help but see in that idea how terribly worse off my Xafra could be. So I would have trusted with only a heartbeat's hesitation. Especially if you had asked your sister for help. But..." Then she's hissing. Half of that smile back and I understand now what it and her anger shrouds. Fear. Real and hot and growing every second. "My twin may not survive this now. The future you chase now empty of her. So I have to ask, how many of our family are you willing to let drown to reach that future? Because my answer is none, and that includes you. I finally have a sibling worth the title and cost. And... By the Cracked and Riven Spite-drained moon, I'm not letting you slip out of that."

"She will survive this. Even more so when she's whole. This Lynette? She's only a third of the original one. I will get her corpse back, and reunite them so she can be a proper mother to your children as well. As for me? Elevar, I've been drowning for two centuries now. Took about a decade to learn how to breathe underwater, but I've got it down. Maybe my perspective is a bit out of line, but that seems to be a common side effect of being dead. And ask Xafra for help? Love, your meathead of a Mate would have traded one of her Names instead and then you would be caring for a comatose idiot as well as three children. THREE. From your perspective it was like a week‽! Is this going to be exponential? What next, opening up an orphanage to be the mom to all the lost and lingering?" Augusta bites back. I begin to argue and she turns to me with a "Shut it, the adults are talking. You can join in when you've spent at least one full year as a person."

"You say that, yet our Xafra has learned from her mistakes quite admirably given her past and current mess of a Mistress. Oh certainly, she would have wanted to do something that foolish. Yearned for the seemingly easy self-sacrificing solution to a problem bigger than the seas. But that's where it seems your elder is also your wiser. Xafra would have come to ask her family what they thought nowadays. Gathered perspectives. Even if she wanted to be clear that she was set upon the choice." Then my mate steps very close to my sister. Gets just... Right up in her face. Voice low. But calmer than before. Actually conspiratorial now. "And I certainly hope not, for their sake. Don't even joke about us attempting to handle more than three. I'm expecting to barely manage motherhood. They'll need an aunt I can trust to not make very not time sensitive choices based on impulsive rage. I'm actually curious what the Beast Below showed you that made it's... very stupid waste of a strike seem a good scheme. Even in the moment. Because what's done is done and I'm here to clean up the mess either way. So spill it. What happened down below?" Then she pulls back and plops back down on the roof to sit. Even gestures to the spot in front of her expectantly.

Augusta sits down as well with a grumble. "You were supposed to believe me when I said it was solely my idea. Would have made smoothing things over with the shattered girl a lot easier." She waves Elevar off and continues. "I haven't been impulsive in centuries from my perspective. Not since Sekrhús killed me. The trade of names caused... A shift in vision and comprehension. Permitted Sekrhús and I both to see farther than we ever could before. She is no longer the Beast Below, or the Murk that drowns dreams. I took that. And... Oh, The anguish we can hear now crying out for salvation while Girra laughs. Letting Xafra hear was enough to drive her mad for a time. You call it a waste of a strike, as though I was planning on going to war with Girra, and steal away each and every sunblessed from him one at a time. It wasn't. It served the purpose it needed to. The sunblessed once again know grief and fear. Through them Girra will either be forced to change, or they will leave He who Loves Eternally but does not Care. The ones that were stripped from him and their spore family are safe in my labyrinth, and will be given another chance at life after the Convergence. That's set to happen even if someone imprisons or eliminates me, I wouldn't leave that many lives up to chance."

"Oh, well that's less and more of a mess than I thought. Confusion in the ranks, as it were. Should keep Girra busy enough." Elevar considers aloud, then looks up to regard me. Pats the space next to her. "Come. Sit. Let's sift through this mess together. Your sister may not understand your brilliance, but I've seen you bisect and solve more complex problems than this." Turns back to my sister. "But... Festering and ready to still Peel those she spites on a whim. Moonshite, Augusta... I take you've become more... Familiar with her cruelties? Because that gerl may be a victim, but she's also had years to learn well those lessons. How do you plan on guiding her from one day deciding that your schemes aren't to her liking? Or lashing out with a demand I cannot let my twin follow?"

"To start, She offered me one of her most virulent names, as stated, and I gave her my kindest. And I've claimed responsibility for her. To her. That I'm going to raise her the best I can into healthier shapes. I cannot promise that she will never act in such a manner, but... I will do my best to curb that, as well as help her gain perspectives and understanding befitting one of her potential."

I sit back down once more as I tap tap my fingers on my lips. "I think... I have a scheme for that. Though, I believe Feryudra's concerns are probably more pressing than any of ours right now?"

Elevar nods, then looks to the Sun Blessed Doll.

"The Blaze forgets that which He promised would not be lost. The Maw that wields a sister like a weapon to steal spirits is awake once more. And... this one's charge was last seen in the maw of a Nightmare freshly bloomed. Which concern does the Bane of old wish to speak on?" It asks evenly and without a hint of emotion.

"Krelliva is fine. Mostly. She hasn't passed on at least, and Krahe more than anyone is worthy of Trust. Don't diminish her effort to keep you both safe from your own actions even at the cost of the stability of her form. But my sister is probably talking about my... We'll be honest and call them hostages. You may visit them, if you wish. I intend no harm to them, aside from the emotional distress that comes with the circumstances I've inflicted upon them, and they will be given the best opportunities in the new world to create places for themselves and the rest of the sunblessed." Augusta explains. "You may also strike me, if you wish. It will not be in violation of guest rights."

"This one will consider taking both offers once its charge is once again safe and well. Able to freely return to the Blaze and even find new flesh." It replies. Seems like it means to say no more, but then adds. "We spotted one of our hosts bound to a Will she'd otherwise not bear. Were told to let her suffering spill forth. This Frame does not regret it or Krelliva's attempts to ward us all from what will follow. Only that this Nameless sister now has to bear the weight of an action she did not wish to take."

"Thank you. We will... We will set this right." I insist.

Feryudra turns gaze to me. "You will try. This Frame only hopes the next action your second Mistress is commanded to take is gentler than this last. But it does not speak for the Blaze or His other less... passive children in this. Only this Frame and the charge it seeks to see safe once more."

"Yes. I understand and appreciate the implicit warning."

It nods, then goes quiet once more.

"Well, that's that then." Elevar stands. "Augusta, Would you mind terribly checking in on Primrose and Nettle, if you please? They're still not responding and I worry they're starting to get panicked. Then, after that, if you could come back and help us get an idea of where your niece placed us and get maps worked out I'd be much appreciated. "

"Sure. Sister, if you hand me one of those... rather horrific tethers, I can bring it with me to them." Augusta offers.

"You don't get to have opinions on my heartstrings until you have your stench of rot under control. Gebetshure is going to have their hands full with you, even more than previously." I snipe back, handing her one of the loops.

With a fragile smile, she carefully takes the loop from me and steps into the roil, disappearing from sight.

A pause, then Elevar turns to her Doll. "Schatzi? Would you mind terribly taking Infection and making sure the tunnels are as we remember them to be? Mayhaps checking in on the little ones and Warden as well? I know they're safe, but think a few hugs from you will help calm them all a fair bit besides. Then if Lynette and Adaline haven't returned by then I'll send you all out after them."

"We can do that, Mistress." Schatzi responds before giving Elevar and myself both a big hug and dashing away with our other Pack sister.

Then my Mistress turns to Feryudra. "Feel free to wait in the entryway if you'd like. Or on the front lawn. It seems the grounds proper span about... fifty paces from the root of this Spire. Stay within those, if you please."

It nods, then rises. Moves to hop over the roil and edge to drop down below. Leaving just my Mistress and myself on the Spire's rooftop.

"So... That's my immediate motions offered out." She sighs and turns to me. "Did I miss anything? All things nilled and pips popped, as you once said, I think we're managing this mess quite well."

"I want to hit Augusta a few more times but it seems like it would be... like striking a pet who's pissed on the floor, more than any real catharsis. She knows, and is deliberately being just aggravating enough about it to make being mad at her feel justified. Which it is, of course, but... You know what I mean, right?"

"Oh yes. Far too much. From both ends of that, unfortunately. This was actually quite the tame encounter compared to what I remember from the last times I fought with my siblings." Elevar chuckles. "She, unlike them, is worth the frustration. Can be nudged and shaped to act more... responsibly? Or at least with consideration for others. Given time. And honestly your blow to her face is the gentlest thing you can offer her. Easy, even. For her to endure. I think. Especially considering how wrongways this is already twisting. Next Lynette speaks with her I... I'm not sure. We'll see."

"I hate being proven right, you know." I sigh. "I suspected that Sekrhús could puppet Lynette like that and tried to express how... tightly bound she was, but that kind of abuse will scar her as deeply as Yselda's actions scarred you, even if it was much shorter."

"Yes. I... Lynette didn't know that what she was doing wasn't her own designs until it was done. Is going to spend decades trying to find where the command ends and she begins." She murmurs, moving to sit on the edge of the Spire. "And Augusta being involved? The very night Lynette wished to ask for her help? In the same span of hours as Nadine betrayed her trust? And the event in Sikkina's chamber as a result? Trust was already so very impossible for her. But now? I don't... I've no idea. I worry I've just lost my best chance of saving my twin, Xafra. That she's going to close herself off even more than before and... and... Sekrhús will keep hurting her."

"Yeah. I understand that. A bloody confluence of disasters all within a very short span. In some ways, that will probably make it easier. All of it being... One large incident instead of a series of betrayals. But either way, we will get through it, get Lynette her freedom, and give her the time and space she needs to heal." I reassure her. "I am... Admittedly a bit worried about Sikkina, but with Sia and her serpentine sister, I think that the three of them will be okay and perhaps a stabilizing presence for Lynette."

Elevar nods and reaches up to take my hand, tugging me to sit with her. "I think they may very well be what keeps her afloat. I hate that the... that our little ones have to endure so much of this nonsense. But I'd have given anything to have siblings as sweet as them. And Lynette isn't willing to let a drop of her pain leak onto any of our little ones. Her and I remember all too well how horrid that feels."

I flop my way into her lap, letting my tail curl around her ankle and wings flutter gently under her hands. "So. I had an idea earlier, but talking about it with only you is probably better than blurting nonsense out to everyone."

"Oh? Well aren't you proving your wisdom?" She chuckles and happily embraces me. Starting to trace patterns gently about while nuzzling close. "What's your idea, then?"

"After talking with Sekrhús, I've been thinking about perspective and such. How there's... A desperate need for her to understand, you know? For me, it seems strange, but I also have dozens of lives recorded in me already. Even if I personally never had much of a childhood or life experiences, I have the memories of a lot of them. Enough that I've been able to kinda... figure it out, with the help of you and the others."

"Hmmm..." My Mistress considers that, then nods and adds. "And she can probably relate to that. But where you've the recollections of mostly sweet gerls, she's been consuming... everything. And probably savoring the worse bits. Like a child whose tastes are still developing and over sensitive. Tend to chase the loudest flavors. And that's not even considering Directives and such."

"Yeah, but this idea is well... Two ideas really. I'm kinda selfish like that. Saving the better one for us."

"As you should." Elevar agrees with a grin.

"So for Sekrhús, I think she could probably do something similar to how Warden made Sia for us, but with a one way connection to help her main self grow and develop over time. But... My better idea... I want to make a different kind of little archive, one to hold our unfiltered recollections. Something for the kids, when they're old enough to be able to understand, so they can truly know who their family is, and learn from our mistakes without having to repeat them personally." I exclaim with excitement.

"Oh that's... not a bad set of ideas at all. The gift will needed to be Tuned just so, otherwise the information will be too much to imbibe. We'd want them to experience it all slowly. Carefully. Like one does a book." She murmurs while hands trace up to play with my hair. "As for Sekrhús... convincing her of that will be difficult. But not impossible. I'd insist that her new identities be... well, hidden. From both her and us. At least at first, possibly forever. As her past is too much a weight for a child to bear. Even a little leakage could ruin the little one. But... I think your sister would find the idea enthralling. Could start to lay the groundwork of trust to find out how to entice it into consenting."

"Of course. Safety is vital for both. Don't want to cause more harm in my clumsy attempts to solve things... What do you think Augusta meant about what my brother should have been? Do you think she's talking about like, some sort of predetermined role?"

"Probably what many children born and brewn are given when their parents hold more wealth and sway than is healthy." Elevar muses. "My mothers had schemes for me, quickly forgotten as I turned out to be nothing like the docile quiet boy they hoped to hatch, but still. I can imagine with the nonsense of Names that gets worse. Inheritance of not just power and influence but... expectations. Especially when you consider your mother's weight upon our world. And when one child abandons or changes their claim... others tend to pick up the dropped bits."

"It's... kind of odd though. Whenever I think of Chalice, a part of me insists that he's a woman, and another feels... angry at the idea. But even more relevant. Prince is a male title, right? Do you think that Augusta is going through some gender stuff?" I ask, my mind racing in myriad directions.

"She very well could be. But also... titles are an odd thing. Witch, for instance, has more female leanings. At least Historically. Same for Thresher. Yet males gain the mantle none the less. But... hmmm... There is the chance that Names could bear weight similar to my second Einwandfrei. And we still don't know exactly what Sekrhús did to make your brother 'see things her way', as she put it before Augusta attacked. There is a chance he was hurt in a way that marred his perceptions of himself. I've... met others with similair scars. Heard of some Thresher Burrows that try such things on Half-Knits they hook."

What if he's like Calix? Best not pull at that wound. My head bobs in acceptance as I check that off my mental list. "Once we get everyone back together, we need to figure out where we go from here. Not just in regards to the interpersonal issues but... as a group. If this world is dying, we need to prepare. Send uhm. Scouts or something to the destination world to try and understand their cultures, as well as the other worlds that are getting pulled together, right? And I guess... Figure out how to make peace with, I assume, at least twelve other Divines, probably a lot more. Damn me, and that's still ignoring the fact that we only just learned that we've been isolated in a tiny tucked away corner of our own world and have no idea of the politics or societies here." I sigh heavily. "We're going to need a large team. Probably want to reach out to the Grove Envoys that were friendly and give them a heads-up and a seat at the table."

"Agreed. And track down those that are going to be a cracked and riven problem. Deal with them... pointedly and quickly. I can work around Augusta or even Sekrhús, but we can't deal with another couple with less interest in helping." She agrees and adds, "Hive, and this second unnamed sister. Chalice is gone, so shouldn't be a threat. But... if this scaley gerl is an ally to Girra she could be a murderous problem. Their time alive will give these siblings a dangerous edge that your and Augusta's Divinity might struggle to handle. No rash encounters. No reckless strikes."

"For some reason I keep thinking Hive is dead, but that doesn't make sense either. Maybe she's hibernating or something? But either way, I think negotiations are unlikely to be viable with her. This Scales Changed seems... possible at least."

My Mistress takes a deep breath, then lets it out while humming. "Hope for the best, scheme for the worst." Then smiles down at me. "But you're a charming sort. Got the Sun-Blessed loving you before you were even awake and about. Hopefully... she'll blame Sekrhús and delight in meeting a sweet sibling."

"I still hope to repair relationships with Girra and the sunblessed. If... If we're all going to be sharing a new, much bigger world, at the very least we cannot bring a godwar with us. Girra and Sekrhús could do so much damage even before they get others to pick sides."

"No, we can't. But... Well, I hate that we have to worry about odd strokes tilting us into such a thing. Should find a way to more... calmly dissipate powers and influence. Create an understanding about how horrid it is to have a handful of sporadic sorts wielding sway beyond what others can muster."

"Somehow, I think we need someone a bit better attuned than me to figure that out." I quietly joke.

She chuckles. "No doubt. I can barely stand the idea that the suns are eyes and the moon is a mother. The Dirtgod seems sweet though. They I can endure."

I laugh at the absurdity of it all, and how the scope of our problems has escalated beyond any hope of our control.

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