"Staring is rude," the little white dragon-remote notes, when Hakeber just stares for a minute. "I had to go through your drawers to check for monsters. Most shapeshifters try masquerading as underwear at some point."
"I see," goes Tasha, who steps aside and then promptly lowers down to rest her arms on the bed, and her head on her arms. She doesn't stare; she focuses all of her attention on the little dragon, tail up and wagging slowly, ears forward, grinning very widely. Her ears even flick. After a few seconds she very slowly tries to reach over and touch the little dragon's nose. She struggles to suppress a rather high pitched "eeee."
"No booping!" the remote says and pulls back under the covers. "I'm your mentor!"
"Does that mean we can't hug.. uh.. it? Him? Her?" Hakeber says now that line of sight has been broken. "What exactly is going on here, Tasha?"
"My adorable mentor," Tasha insists, but she does pull the hand back. What she does not do is stop grinning, wagging, or otherwise stop her whole-body focus. "Can we hug you? Because I'm not sure I can't avoid hugging you. I hugged Charon all the time."
"You've seen my real body," the mini-dragon claims from under the covers. "I am not huggable! I am old and cranky!"
"Like a grandma?" Hakeber asks. "Now I want fresh baked cookies.."
"I hug a lot of old and cranky people. My mate is five-thousand years old. I have another mentor that's an older Titanian. Thoth is probably a million years old and I owe him a hug. I hugged Horus," the red woman further insists. "I did warn you I appreciate little dragons and you know my history with Charon."
"I did not know about the hugging," Kainudy claims. "Nobody hugged him last time he was around people. Who goes around hugging dragons?"
"I do." Then Tasha makes a lunge towards the sheet covered lump!
The lump vanishes when Tasha makes her move. Then the little dragon can be seen running towards the bathroom from under the bed. Since the bed is on a solid platform, this could be considered odd.
Tasha does not give chase, she knows when she's beaten by exceptional magic and-or technology, and this is so much beyond her it could be either, both, or something she doesn't even know yet. Instead she lays on her bed and props her head right back up, wagging. "You'll have to teach me that trick!"
"Your walls are made of fake matter," the dragon calls from the bathroom. "And I'm made of.. uh.. something or other. Doesn't matter!"
"Should I still bring Hake? When should I come?" Tasha rolls on to her side and day dreams of hugging both Charon and this new little dragon. "She's looking very confused!"
"I'm not confused," Hakeber counters. "I'm bewildered."
"Yes, you need to start your shadow training," the dragon calls from the bathroom.
Tasha gestures Hakeber to sit on the bed, then calls out, "Come back please, so we can talk without cowering in the bathroom." She then turns to Hakeber and explains, "You know how I said I have a new mentor but I can't talk about them because I promised not to? Well since our tiny dragon old lady buddy revealed herself, I need not conceal her from you now. That's Kainudy. She's a dragon; a bigger dragon in person. She taught me how to make the sword and shield."
The remote comes back out of the bathroom. "How often do you have to clean out the trap on that bathtub?" she asks and hops back onto the bed. "Yes, I am a dragon. I live in private.. place.. that I carved out of.. uh.. that's hard to explain too. Doesn't matter. You've got something weird in your head, right?"
"I have some special knowledge that I can't seem to access except under specific circumstances," Hakeber exlpains. "And nightmares."
"She means besides your personality, eating habits, taste in cats, and hair style," Tasha insists of Hakeber.
"It was but there by one of the Ogdru-hem during a time when I wasn't with the others. Some kind of geas that includes information, placed there as part of its defense mechanism, and to accomplish a certain goal -- releasing another Ogdru-hem at Daltoona Station."
"Is that the exact wording?" Kainudy asks. "Releasing? That could mean a few different things."
"Only Hake really know. We have a few scenarios that have taken vague wording in to account," Tasha replies.
"It's some sort of spell or.. whatever," Hakeber says. "When Urgo-hem showed up.. uh.. well, like you're showing up.. something came out of me and it made him leave."
"She invoked some sort of spell. I was there to hear it, but I don't remember the details." Tasha eyes the little dragon, then opens to clearly ask something, thinks better of it, and then just sits there wagging and smiling.
"Well, hopefully we can find out more during the training," the dragon says. "Now, who else has a head full of weird stuff?"
"Besides me? Only Hake. Oh, and Yue. She got a large helping of fragmented soul fodder when Samael expurgated part of his essence to distract gremlins when I accidentally ripped a hole in the universe," Tasha replies. It strikes her what she says sound highly improbable, even to herself, even when she knows better.
"That sort of thing usually passes," Kainudy claims. "Sometimes with death, sometimes not. Was this to do with your pet demon?"
"He's more of our on-loan-from-Nyarlathotep; he's one part of the two part system of the Dagger of Eibon." Tasha lowers her head, her tail reaching around to see if it can find anything to play with. "Yue caught some of what Sam's made out of when he fragmented. You know, processed soul matter. Mental flensing."
"And he didn't take it all back?" the dragon asks.
Tasha's head shakes. "Thotep gave me a bottle full of souls to give him later. Otherwise he expended part of what he was to protect the ship and its crew while I was, uh, out of commission from death-related issues."
"It should have been able to suck out the bits from people, unless it was very weakened," Kainudy notes. "When did you last see Thotep?"
"Only a few days ago. One of his manifestations is here on Ymir," Tasha explains. She holds up a hand, indicating height. "Egyptian man, Mr. Pharaoh. Likes Egyptian-themed decor. Surrounded by people with 'gifts' somewhat like Hakeber's, but clearly more gift-with-price rather than order-with-benefits."
"Oh, well, thank you for telling me he has one of his avatars here," Kainudy says, arching a tiny eyeridge. "Now I'll have to destroy the planet.. or just ignore him."
"Isn't he almost everywhere? I know he's a universal font of madness and sinister intention, but he's also part of reality," Tasha notes, frowning a little. "I've though of opposing him, but my plate of universal horrors is kind of full, and besides, he's the enemy of my enemy."
"He has limits," Kainudy claims. "They all do, and try to hide them. They can't really lie about them though, so just make it seem like they have none. Even they can be killed, or at least banished."
"Hmm," goes Tasha, who rubs her chin in a very Thotep sort of way. "Something to think about for later, then. I'm not entirely comfortable working with him, but I didn't exactly have the longest list of allies when I started out."
"Just about every avatar you'd have met wouldn't have been that different from this body I'm using," the dragon says. "He's not really there, or anywhere. He needs something that can exist in the realities he's active in. Just like the Ogdoad need the Ogdru-hem."
"What does that make me then?" Hakeber asks, rubbing her forehead.
"Fluffy," Kainudy offers.
Tasha reaches over and pats Hakeber. "I see, so it's more like he's altered one of his tendrils to touch the plane of our reality -- dimensionally tuned it -- and it manifests in the dimensionality we can see as this carefully crafted projection. Kind of like how a higher dimensional being can have part of itself touch a lower dimension without having all of it there? And he actually exists between all realities and dimensions as a self-contained reality, much like how Sam's a reality-bubble?"
"Yeah, that sounds as plausible as anything else," Kainudy notes with a nod. "Honestly, extra-dimensional stuff gives me a headache. The Stelya-rhyan think in twelve dimensions. I didn't teach them that, either. But that's what it takes to navigate between multiple realities. They don't even use integers, but quantum numbers that are.. uh.. like smears of probability. It's taking all my concentration just to operate this mini body. I didn't want to use the human one, since I don't think I have any clothes for it. And you couldn't fit it into your pocket. And a lot of other reasons too. I can't even taste things with this one."
"It sounds very complicated," Tasha observes, nodding slowly. "The cloest i've come to that is having lived in multiple bodies, and my brain is wired to interface with specific technologies, such as Khattan vessels and a specific Titan, which are both machine AI run constructs."
"A Titan?" the dragon asks. "What's that?"
Tasha holds a hand up again, to indicate height. "Fourty-foot tall humanoid machine that resembles Horus, Progenitor of Vartans. Full AI support, advanced internal reality modeling, pilot acceleration, full-depth machine level pilot thinking and action emulation, annnd some sort of soul-container for entities, currently inhabited. Thoth made it, he said it was designed to draw out the ability to create Vril from mortals."
"What's it do when it's not doing any of those other things?" Kainudy asks.
"It sleeps." And so Tasha gives a little shrug. "Unless you mena piloted? It makes me in to a fourty-foot composite being with the resources of a machine and the soul and mind of whatever I am now."
"So.. it doesn't do anything apart from you?" Kainudy asks.
"No, it's linked to me and exists for me. I tried to suggest it could exist for itself, but it made it very clear it can't and shouldn't," the red woman answers.
"Hmm," the little dragon goes. "I was never comfortable whenever I had to ride a horse. Usually because it meant I was severely injured. So, you've got Twee... uh.. Thoth here, where's Horus then?"
"He and I have one of those special deal like I have with you, so no telling," Tasha admits, shrugging her shoulders. "And he and Thoth don't get along; Horus is one half of Thoth's progenitor."
"This may not be a big secret, but Thoth doesn't get along very well with anybody," Kainudy claims. "So, you've got a demon as part of the ship? How's that work? Usually if you bind a demon into anything bigger than a shoe-box they get very sluggish."
"Why would you put a demon in a shoe-box?" Hakeber asks.
"So you have an excuse to horde shoe-boxes of course," is the snarky reply. It doesn't work coming from a cute little dragon voice though.
Tasha considers the question, the lifts a hand and twirls it; her tail twirls too. "The Tnuctipin did it with Thotep's help. The Tnuctipin are a now-deceased races of hyper-intelligent hunters who existed as part of the first Galactic society. And by hyper-intelligent I mean they could pilot this vessel by hand with only a few of them on board, where even our quantum computer has difficulty understanding it. They were verging on Sifran-level enetities anc probably could have become like the Stelya'Rhyan in relatively short time, Galactically speaking. They were terrible at working together though. very suspicious. We suspect this vessel is a prototype."
"Sounds old then, where'd you dig it up?" Kainudy asks. "Is it powered by souls then? Blood sacrifices? Sex?"
"We don't have to keep the engine happy I don't think," Hakeber says, and looks to Tasha for confirmation.
"The Titanians found it a long time ago, using it as some kind of beacon. They then gave it to me in return for 'dealing with a god,'" Tasha answers. She turns now to look past the door, out to where the the green crystalline Bridge penetrate the Owner's Area. "We don't have to power her or appease her, but I try to be nice to her and give her what I can. She seems to have power over movement; she can break causality."
"Well, it never really breaks, just bends over really far," the dragon claims. "And that doesn't sound like a demon. Does she talk?"
"Yes, through me. But it's hard. The cage is very strong, and only a little of her can reach me. Even a little distraction means I can't hear her. Although ..," and so Tasha taps the side of her muzzle, " ... ever since the seed became part of me, I can see her if I try very hard. She looks like a humanoid figure with wings in a million state of motion, like they're hyper-local or moving too fast for my eye to catch in a roughly six wing pattern."
"Sex wings, interesting," Kainudy says, but doesn't elaborate. "And the actual demon? Did that one come with the ship as well?"
"He came after it, after Horus suggested we speak to Thotep to look for aid in fighting Urgo-hem. He may have been trying to kill me. Thotep wanted his servant recovered from a Wizard, a geometric being that used to work for Thotep but possibly worked for Leviathan at the time. The Wizard returned the servant, Sam, and then used the Ogru-hem that was part of the world it resided on to twist our timelines to sabotage our efforts. I met Mr. Yellow in my effort to fix things, that's why I ended up beholden to him," Tasha explains at length. She swirls a finger again. "Thotep eventually kept his promise and enabled Sam the ability to use the Dagger."
"And everyone wonders why I claim being a god is like being drunk all the time," the dragon claims, shaking its head. "But I'd probably mess with people too if I could like that. But don't worry, I stopped messing with anyone a long time ago."
Tasha spreads her hands. "I'm used to it. I mess with people all the time. I mean, just just messed with you a few minutes ago. Not that I didn't mean it." And so the young woman shrugs. "So, should Hake and I head over, then?"
"Is it night for you yet?" the dragon asks. "It works best at midnight you know. Plus, I still have to get Molly to wait for you and help open the door. And you need to get the donuts."
"Ooo, yeah, we should get donuts!" Hakeber agrees, wagging her tail.
"We'd better do that then, night's coming. I'll let everyone know we'll be heading out." And so Tasha sits up, stretches, and slides off the bed. "Ready, Hake? we can get some food for ourselves along the way."
"I haven't eaten in hours," Hakeber claims. "I hope the bakery is still open. Back in New Zion, you had to get there at just the right time in the morning when things were fresh."
"Thanks to modern technology, everything is fresh all the time! There's also a place with puppies that serves ice cream, you'd like it." Tasha snatches Hakeber's hand and then eyes the dragon. "Are you coming along?"
"Just put me in your pocket," Kainudy says, and then.. is just a golden, swirly-looking pearl again that drops to the bed.
"Personal Dragon Assistant. I bet these would sell like nothing else," Tasha says as she pockets the orb. With orb stowed and Hakeber in hand, she heads out. Along the way she passes a note to the others she and Hake are going to eat, then they're going to head to the 'special training area' for most of the night.
"So, how weird is this going to be?" Hakeber asks Tasha on the way back to the resort area in one of the air taxis. "Will there by a giant pile of treasure we aren't allowed to touch? Lava pits? Fumes?"
"And ruin the surprise?" Tasha looks up from where she'd gotten comfortable, head behind hands, literally laid back. "You'll just have to see. Just, um, don't wander off. And don't let anything get you to wander off, either."
"How big of a meal should I have then?" Hakeber asks, turning to something near and dear to her stomach. "Are there bathrooms? Will there be exercise or.. do you actually know what shadow training is?"
"As much as you want, bring a snack, I don't think so, maybe, and vaguely," Tasha replies, waving it off. "We'll just have to see. I'm sure what you're in for will be different from what I'm there to do. I think she mainly wants to assess you, but maybe you'll learn some magic. Book magic, maybe."
"I didn't see you carrying around a big ancient tome of magic," Hakeber notes. "We'd better bring a lot of donuts then, just in case. Especially if my skull is going to be pried open or anything."
The air taxi lands at the usual platform in the resort, near the 'mall' where the main restaurants and other social areas are located.
"No Hake big ancient tomes of magic are your type. I'm fast and exciting, with colors." But Tasha grins, clearly teasing. She hops out of the cab and asks, "So, what to eat? I can remotely place a donut order. There's a place with puppies that sells food, and I met a young woman named Pinky there whom we'll have dinner with eventually. There's also pizza. And Khattan. And, well, a lot."
It's still early evening, so plenty of people are out and about. "Did you say pink Khattan pizza?" Hakeber asks distractedly. "Do those have gravy?"
"Are you okay?" Tasha walks over and puts her hands behind her back, leaning over to inspect Hake's face. "You seem distracted, and you're not focusing on food, which is worrisome indeed."
"I think it's just really hitting me now," Hakeber says. "I was trying to attract faeries earlier, but now I'm going to another reality to see a dragon about.. shadows. It was the donuts that threw me off, I think."
"They're sinister, Hake. They're empty inside." But Tasha grabs Hakeber's hand and decides she needs something fun to distract her more, and so drags her to the nearest pizza place (with an arcade!) and cute-looking staff, hopefully to be Silent-Ones staff but she doubts it.
As it turns out, there is a Silent-One at the arcade: their own Mr. Gold who is playing an elaborate game that involves a virtual sword and shield.. and dancing. With music. There's a small crowd watching and cheering him on.
So as not to distract her employee, Tasha makes sure she's well out of his vision arc and pulls Hakeber along the same route. "Lets let him play and impress everyone. We can offer him a seat at the table afterwards, if you want," she whispers, then she makes for the counter.
Tasha smiles from across the counter. "Hello, table for two, maybe three if our golden crowd-pleaser decides to join us."
"Right this way!" The hostess is 'wearing' some sort of holographic mascot that is probably a reference to some popular Terran character, but to Tasha looks like a cutesy version of an Amazonian. The booths are all full, but they do get a table, which should actually be a bit easier on Tasha's wings. "Can I get you some drinks to start off with?" the hostess asks.
Tasha slides in and, after getting her wings over the chairs, nods. "I'd like the Cola SuperFizz Simu-latte, and Hake here can place her own order."
"Wow, you have beer," the Karnor notes quietly as she browses the selections. "I'd like a.. salted caramel wolf shake," she decides on. "I think it would suit me, since I'm salty and caramel colored.. in places."
"I'll get those right out to you!" the hostess promises and walks off. No roller skates in here.
"You are adorably nerdy Hake." Tasha settles back again, hands in her lap. "So. Here we are."
"They have sooo many toppings," Hakeber says, but has conspicuously taken the seat that lets her watch Mr. Gold.. dance-fight with some sort of tree-based monster. There are a lot of drum-beats involved. "Should I go with something different, or familiar?"
"No ham or pineapple," a voice says from Tasha's pocket. "Not too fond of feta cheese. Do you have goats in your universe?"
"Familiar, you want something comforting before you head out." To her pocket, Tasha replies, "Yes, we have goats. Terra has them. I am going to go with a white sauce pizza with artichokes, vanals, and cucumber. I don't know what a vanal is but it looks good. Also chicken, lots of chicken."
"I'd be afraid to try anything too drippy," Hakeber says. "So.. sausage and steak with pepper-marinara and extra cheese with sausage-stuffed crust."
The hostess returns with the drinks, both in large mugs. She then takes their orders and promises to be back soon.
"Good choice." Tasha looks around, noting the differences between this pizzeria and the one back on Abaddon. "Having that 'how did I get here and is my life real' feeling?"
There a birthday party going on in a nearby glass-walled room (that is apparently soundproofed) with holographic cartoon characters entertaining the children. A couple at the nearby booth is making out. "Should we have ordered something for your teacher?" Hakeber asks.
"I'm sure she'd chime in if she wants anything. She's not exactly quiet about those sorts of things." Tasha pats her pocket, then smiles as she looks around more. "It's nice to be back among ordinary every day life."
"These are people on vacation, not ordinary life," Hakeber notes. "And.. I have no idea what any of this costs."
"Vacation is close enough. It's ordinary to me, anyway." Then Tasha spreads her hands. "It's on the business's budget. After all, we're about to embark in to dangerous skies, and mental helath is very important."
"Well, we have the mental part down at least," Hakeber says with a grin. "Don't tell Yue I said that though! She'd laugh and hurt herself."
"A lot," Tasha agrees, laughing herself. "Oh, poor Yue, to have to deal with us." She grins however, then points a finger nail-down to the table. "I'm sure we'll be fine, ultimately. Our guide is good and our teacher is someone you can put your faith in. Just be careful about the details. Yes I know you can hear me."
Two pizzas arrive to further distract from conversation. "The milkshake goes well with the pepper spice," Hakeber notes when she pauses to catch her breath.
"The cola fizz works well with the mild-but-bigger cheese and the delicate chicken flavor," Tasha agrees. But she's too busy to talk; whatever she is, she's still enough of a Karnor to appreciate food, and lots of it.
At some point during the meal, Mr. Gold finishes his game.. and leaves without acknowledging the two women if he noticed them.
"Ouch," goes Tasha, who says it around a slice of pizza. "Maybe he doesn't like women?"
"Or he doesn't want to show we're associated," Hakeber suggests.
"Work life, interfering with my success once again," Tasha mock-complains. She munches down the rest of the slice and starts on another one. "I suppose he is of a certain ordering, so I can't expect he'd come see us. In fact I might have had to count that against him. Leadership is hard."
"Depends on if you lead from in front or from behind, if we'd asked Katie," Hakeber suggests. "Do you think she'd eat pizza?"
"I think she'd want to but Mr. I and Miss N. would give her a look and she'd stop. We could sneak her some, she'd appreciate that a lot. Mr. Ives will definitely know though," Tasha admits. She then taps her chin and adds, "We could call her down here?"
"I have no idea where she is, but it wouldn't hurt to invite her, true," Hakeber agrees. "And for the record, I'd lead from behind because that gives the best view of the troops."
"I lead from where-ever I need to be, which includes behind." Tasha grins, then slides a finger down her fancy wristbands and whispers something to them. She then holds her arm up, scoots closer to Hake, and says, "HI KATIE! This is a super secret No Mr. Ives special invitation to come have pizza with us. If you accept, please press my nose. If you decline, delete this message." She then lowers her arm, fiddles with touch buttons that light up across it, and hits one more before lowering her arm. "Sent. I added a auto cab dispatch to her location that will bring her here if she accepts."
It takes almost a minute before there's a reply. "Tasha, I'm out in the wilderness, naked, and hunting someone. But if you get me one with steak and hide it in my room that'd be great. Make sure it's well sealed!"
Tasha's reply is just her saluting in a very commanderly way. "She's busy with interpersonal training. I'll order a sealed pizza and hide it in her room."
"Wait.. hunting someone naked?" Hakeber asks. "Are we.. are we doing the wrong training?"
Tasha laughs at that. "It's less exciting than it sounds. Usually. Or else you're doing it the wrong way, which can be the right way; it really depends on your goals." But she holds up a finger. "I think this one is decidedly of the work variety."
"Now I have to wonder if she's been stalking us naked at night," Hakeber says, and waggles her eyebrows. "Have you ever stalked someone?"
"I used to help hunt wild game when I was younger," Tasha says in the tone of some someone who is definitely older now, despite only being physically twenty. "But most of my 'stalking' involved me in a giant robot, or with a sword, or really me coming at something after hunting it down. I'm not exactly stealthy; or at least, I wasn't before."
"Like giant alien crustaceans?" Hakeber asks.
"Well, our usual prey, and there was that giant robot-worm. Maybe I should try it again? Maybe I'll be shadowy soon." Tasha wiggles her fingers in a very 'ominous' way.
"You need to stalk something without a giant robot for it to count, I'm sure," Hakeber says. "I stalked plenty of guys."
"I think it's because I preferred to be stalked. I mean, I persued people, but usually I was upfront about it. I think I may be more shy now than I used to be. It's very strange. Gabriel mentioned it a few times." Tasha shrugs unknowingly. "I guess I'm not much for skulking unless the need calls for it."
"I suppose I can't really picture you skulking," Hakeber agrees. "But also find it hard to believe you ended up where you are because of a bar brawling bunny in a breastplate."
Tasha's grin's lopsided. ""Down the rabbit hole,' as Nora might say. I'm Alice in Wonderland; I'm even blond as a Human." But Tasha spreads her hands again. "The universe is complex, Hake. You never really know where something may lead, even if you can try to anticipate it based on facts and probabilities. I guess that's why the Space Whales have to navigate by probability smears?" She shrugs. "Well, whatever it all is, lets box this stuff and get going. The sun's setting."
Mollymauk is very disappointed when his 'boop test' fails to turn Hakeber into a human, and just makes her sneeze. Although the sneezing could also be due the combination of being soaking wet and standing in the snow. "I'm to take you through a safer path this time," he laments. "No feral fey. Oh, did you want to be dried off?" It also doesn't help that Hakeber is wearing just a bikini.
Tasha does her best to keep Hakeber warm by holding her close and shielding her from the wind with a wing. "Dry would be good," Tasha says, maintaining a strong facade despite being cold herself. "If you can do it while we move, that would be better." She decides not to mention Molly's sea-going female friend until Hakeber is dry; she can also ask why Hakeber doesn't turn Human later.
"Don't your hooves get cold?" Hakeber asks. In order to fulfill the 'drying while walking' request, Molly summons some sort of living flame spirit that orbits the pair of mortals. "I never get to have fun anymore," the purple devil complains as he leads the way from the pond.
Now that they're drying off, Tasha opens her wings but does keep Hakeber close for reasons other than warmth and cuddling. No matter what Mollymauk says, she knows better than to assume the fae lands are safe. She walked a mile from her own ship and had a fairy try to kidnap her in the mortal world, after all. "Speaking of fun, your eyeball-breasted girlfriend said 'hello'. She wanted to spend some special time with me to make you jealous but I showed her I wasn't interested."
"What?" Molly asks. "Oh.. the mermaid? She's not my girlfriend. I wouldn't do that to my girlfriend, if I had one. And I had one and she let me do that, then she wouldn't be an interesting girlfriend." The winter landscape suddenly gives way to a bright sunny meadow, where odd looking vaguely humanoid creatures are playing croquet. They all pause to stare at Hakeber and Tasha. "You can ignore them, they're just a bunch of.. hmm.. I want to say boggarts, but they could be some sort of goblins. My nose isn't burning so I can't be any more certain about that. They probably can't understand what we're saying anyway. Just don't wave to them."
"Well whatever she was, I got to see what the sword does to fae," Tasha notes, eying the strange creatures and their equally (to her) strange game. She suspects Titanians would play games using mallets, and if they don't, she's of a mind to suggest it to them next time she's around them. "So why doesn't Hake turn Human when you touch her nose?" And so Tasha's own nose wrinkles she she further wonders aloud, "Why does mine?"
"Maybe you have an allergy," Molly says. "I suppose she doesn't change because she was never human before."
"Wait.. what?" Hakeber asks, and then immediately boops Tasha's nose to see what happens. It makes Tasha want to sneeze.
"I'm allergic to fae?" Tasha looks at Hakeber, who is a very Human-sort of of Karnor, but then she's seen Hake howl and do other distinctly canine things and so she can also see where the limit is.
Then Tasha sneezes.
"Hmph."
"Gross," one of the 'goblins' notes before they pass on from the lawn game. "Now, be very quiet for this next bit," Molly warns as they pass under an arbor. The lawn gives way to a path of stone winding between high cliffs with caves scattered across their surfaces. It smells very bad here. Hakeber immediately covers her nose.
Tasha does likewise, careful not to disturb it too much. She Grabs on to Hakber's tail with her won so she can 'hold her hand' while still having her own hands free in case she needs to do more 'sword tests'. She gives Molly a thumbs up, but suspects he's full of it.
The path goes on for quite a bit, and then Molly turns off of it and heads for a ground-level cave opening. It's short, so he gets on his hands and knees before delving into it.
Tasha pauses outside the cave, waving Hakeber to go first. "Wings," she whispers to her friends, then she steps aside.
Despite being quiet outside, it isn't long before they encounter deep rumbling sounds. Which move. There are also odd crashing noises that Tasha doesn't recognize. "Alright, safe to talk now," Molly says. The ceiling is still too low to allow walking upright (even if hunched over). But they're dry.
Tasha follows beside Hakeber, looking almost like a four legged bird-dog with her wings down and hands ready to catch herself. Her tail trails behind her in an almost straight line, seemingly bouyed up by nothing if the viewer didn't know it was fully articulate, not unlike a cat's tail. "So what was in the area where we couldn't talk?"
"I don't know," Mollymauk admits. "But it looked ominous so I figured it wouldn't hurt." Another roll of thunder moves through the rock, ending in a crash that probably isn't lightning. "They might also have just been for stashing shoes."
"Wise," Tasha agrees. She's spent enough time around the supernatural she's just willing to go with things like this. And as it's the fae, and the fae seem to bank on being whimsical, she's all the more so willing to entertain the idea almost anything can, and should, happen out here. It's not as chaotic as the Halflands or the Unformed, but it's close. It does now occur to her that the fae do, in fact, live up to using their name as a descriptor for a peculiar and special kind of oddity, so Tasha is happy to realize at least one Terran saying makes sense to her now. "So what's underground? Robot-worms? I fought a robot-worm once."
"We're under a bowling alley," Molly explains. "Never accept a game of ten-pins from a faerie, by the way."
"Because of Rip van Winkle?" Hakeber asks.
"Because they use you as a pin if you lose?" Tasha asks at the same time
"They'll make you buy the beer," Molly says. There's a light at the end of the tunnel ahead.
"I probably shouldn't accept games from Hake then," Tasha laments, and then Hake feels Tasha's tail swat her butt while the woman herself acts like nothing at all is happening as she steps in to the light.
They enter a chasm, which is open to the sky. There's a very narrow ledge that switch-backs down into mist. "Hmm, I think you're supposed to close your eyes and jump," their guide proposes.
"Please do, guide." Tasha says, smiling. She takes Hakeber's hand gives Molly the look of expectant disappointment combined with patronizing smiling that only young women evaluating men can muster. "We'll wait here." Then she winks to Hake.
"Suit yourselves!" Molly says, then closes his eyes and jumps, being swallowed up by the mists without a sound.
"Is it always like this?" Hakeber asks.
"Sometimes it's better or worse. It's always entertaining, at least. And annoying. Entertaining and annoying -- the heart of fairydom." She waits a long moment, listening for thuds, screams, "oh shits," or anything else that would indicate a problem.
Other than a swirl in the mist, there isn't any indication of Mollymauk's fate.
And so Tasha shrugs. She then turns, picks Hakeber up, and then jumps in to the pit with her wings spread.
And lands on the floor after dropping about six inches. "Watch the wings!" Molly chides, as they stand in the entryway to the temple, next to the statue of Danu and her aspects.
Tasha mantles her wings as requested. She puts Hake down but holds her hand with her left. "Welcome to Kainudy's refuge-prison. That's Danu, who doesn't live here anymore but is apparently very important to the fae. Molly will now tell me which depressing part of the self-contained reality Kainudy is at before vanishing mysteriously because Kainudy doesn't want him involved today."
"Oof," Hakeber grunts.
"The Tree of Angst," Molly says.
"Right this way Hake," Tasha bids, patting Molly's shoulder as she passes him by to show there are no hard feelings.
"What is this place?" Hakeber asks when they enter the Memorial Garden. "It's got a cemetery vibe."
"It's a cemetery. or rather, a memorial to everyone Kainudy thinks she got killed. We're heading towards the tree." And so Tasha point at it. In a way she's a little sad to share this place with her friend, since it was one of the few places in the multiverse where she could go and feel like she was around someone like herself; a place of rest and learning. But she has her duties, and her obligations, and those are more important. "I think it's nice, but then I died."
"It looks expensive," Hakeber notes as they move through it. "Is Kainudy a sculptor?"
"Of reality more than stone. This whole region is shaped from the raw stuff of the Halflands, a region of reality close to the unformed chaos. Beings of focus and magic can shape the churning energies in to something; people like Kainudy and the fae. Wizards, probably. Alchemists like Thoth," Tasha explains, folding her hands behind her back as they walk. "We're very far from the laws of our universe."
"Not as far you think," the dragon notes, even before they reach the section with the white tree and the sandpit. "Did you bring the required spell components?"
"She's blue," Hakeber gasps. "And has a racing stripe. Charon didn't have a stripe."
"Spell components?" Hakeber asks. "I brought pizza and donuts.."
"Yes, those," Kainudy says, and gestures Hakeber closer with both paws. "Gimme!"
Tasha gently nudges Hakeber forward before she walks over to a bench and seats herself. "Yes, Kainudy and Charon have some similarities, don't they?" She strongly suspects Charon would also want all her donuts and pizza.
"So.. I've never heard of pizza and donuts being used for magic," Hakeber says as she holds out the sealed boxes as far as she can.
"Religious sacraments," the dragon claims as she grabs the boxes and then sets them aside behind her. "Now, come closer pup, I want a better look at you brain.."
Tasha coughs down a chuckle. "The magic of bribery and delivery maybe," she remarks, then she turns, lays down on the bench, and folds her hands on her chest to watch the grey sky. The dead part of her appreciates the stillness, she decides.
"Uhh.." Hakeber frets.
Tasha untangles a hand to wave Hakeber on over without actually looking over. "Don't keep Lady Kainudy waiting Hake."
"Don't be shy now, open your mouth as wide as you can," the dragon instructs. Then once Hakeber does so Kainudy turns her head a bit to get a good look into her mouth. "Hmmm. Ahhh. Yes.. I see.." she mutters. "No cavities. That's a good sign. That's all for now."
"Cavities?" Hakeber asks, and looks to Tasha in case she can explain.
Tasha simply spreads her hands in a shrug; your guess is as good as mine.
"Right, may as well get started then," Kainudy says and claps her hands together loudly. "Take your clothes off."
Tasha turns from the sky to watching the show instead, head propped up on a hand. "No one said magic and adventure was easy, Hake."
"You too, Tasha," the dragon says. "Don't worry, you're both about to get truly naked in a bit anyway."
"I think I've heard that one before." Luckily Tasha has exactly three pieces of clothing at the moment, all of which are slip on. She stands up and steps out of her one piece, putting it aside, but she leaves her arm bands, as she usually does. They're resilient and waterproof, plus the hold all her favorite technological resources.
"Armbands too," Kainudy instructs. Hakeber has her bikini off but keeps covered up with her arms and tail. She's never been this shy before.
Tasha rolls her eyes in a manner very keeping with her biological age, if not her emotional and experience age. She presses through the touch interface to disengage the skin lock and then slides the devices off, feeling a lot more naked now than when she wasn't covering her torso.
"Alright, the sand has been warded ahead of time for safety. Now it's my turn," Kainudy says and laces her hands together to crack the knuckles. "It's been awhile.." she claims. Then there's a bright flash of green light, and the dragon is now a smaller bipedal version. She actually wobbles a bit before she gets her balance back. "Ugh, I forgot how weak this body feels," she complains.
Tasha takes a moment to look Kainudy over, hand on her hip, grinning a little. "It's frustrating isn't it?"
"Having breasts feels weird," the dragon admits, and manages to walk towards the sand pit by using her tail to help support her. "They do not counterbalance wings very well." There's another flash of light as she crosses over onto the sand. The pit is pretty wide and circular, and circled by large stones. The closer she gets to the center, the more shadow seems to multiply.
"This is where our inner demons show up," Tasha warns Hakeber, and her friend notices that Tasha's posture has shifted in that was she does whenever she starts to suspect something is about to happen but she doesn't exactly know what. Ready, at least. "Shadow-training."
Kainudy reaches the center, and her shadows extend out to touch the stones. A figure appears over each stone. There must be a hundred of them! Some are made of shadow, others of differently colored flame, and yet others as ghostly images. Most of them are dragons like Kainudy, one is a dragon not like Kainudy and one is a ghostly dragon much smaller and with different colors. There is a human (the 'remote' body one that Tasha saw before) and a few other more alien looking things. "These are why I can't leave this place," Kainudy explains.
"Demons?" Hakeber asks.
Tasha doesn't comment at first, looking from one figure to another with a different sort of look: focus and evaluation. She begins walking around slowly, then suddenly says, "Fae, dragons, and others. The remote is tied to you, but I'm not sure why it's here unless ... Unless it used to be a real Human until its essence was drawn in or connected to you somehow. Which means all of these beings are connected to you. If they're like my shadow, they're soul-fragments. And a soul is the essence of what we are, and the laws that bind us. Demons, mortals, fae. Our core. To possess even a little bit of a soul is no small thing ... So, the absorption of rules and their limitations. Soul fragments. The key in the lock of a reality, and the bridge, but also: a prison."
Kainudy nods and says, "I refer to them as The Inmates usually, because they always want out. Traumas, anger, loss, grief, rage, jealousies.. and actual pieces of other souls that have been grafted onto mine. The things we repress, or want to forget, or are ashamed of. They're still us. And we can try to bury them, or wall them off or deny them, but they're always there. The longer you live, the more you will accumulate, and the more effort is needed to resist them. Although sometimes you have to sacrifice one, which is giving up a part of yourself." She gestures to the one stone that is touched by a shadow, but doesn't have anything over it. "It's easy to partition your soul. But the more you do it, the harder it becomes to hold yourself together."
Tasha nods slowly, understand from her experiences with beings like Samael and Vril. She had already understood some of this through raw exposure and the answers from some of those beings, but now it's clarified in instruction. "Think of when Sam released parts of himself, Hake. Familiar rules apply to him as well as us. Also, association with certain beings taints the soul, as it has mine. This is therefore also the way we slip away from being mortals to being something a bit -- or a lot -- different. Not the only way, but one way."
"Oh, mortals are just as bad," Kainudy says cheerfully. "They're awful at accepting themselves and prone to self-loathing. Who wants to go next?"
"I will." Tasha steps forward, arms winging at her side as she flashes Hakeber a smile. "I've been fighting and facing myself for a while now, so I don't expect too many surprises. Not a lot I'm not already aware of, anyway."
Kainudy steps out of the circle so Tasha can enter.
And so Tasha steps in to the circle, turning around and walking backwards so she can watch the shadows spread from her. "This could get interesting, so get ready," she warns.
There are.. a lot of them. A few she remembers from when she faced Atum, but there a so many others.. including herself from before she died. There's the human version, the Empress, her old self dressed as a captain, and many younger versions. There's a shadowy silhouette that oddly looks like a black Lapi, and several different Vartan versions, all looking like her mother. And her male version is there as well. Some of them are clearly angry, others crying, and few are bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. Every hang-up and insecurity is on display, each one clearly existing as people. Blackwings is there as well, but there isn't a squirmy black mass for the spore like she saw before. There are at least six different pregnant versions of herself, and only one looks like she does currently. The others are younger, and it isn't clear which are fears and which were desires.
She also gets to see what she looked like before her time in the regeneration tank, with parts of her head and hand burned away.
Tasha grimaces, but then forces a smile. "Well, no great surprise I'm a mess, right?" She spreads her hands and looks at Hakaber. "You knew me during my rise up from being nobody, so you might recognize some of these. I think the newest pregnant me is my fear of having children after talking to Kainudy, the Vril'ya, and others. The endless young self-loathings are not a surprise, and I see the new favorites such as the Empress annnd- is that the male me? I think it is." Tasha laughs. Nervously. "Blackwings, uh, no spore and ... I'm not sure what the black Lapi is. I always wondered what I looked like half-melted. Good thing I dont remember my death, right?"
"Oh, that's behind you," Kainudy points out, and points over Tasha's shoulder.
"Oh good." Tasha does not sound like that's good at all. She rolls her head as she turns around. "So, how many pieces am I in-"
It's more of a pile. A lot of the insides are outside, and.. spurting. The head is distinct, and the one remaining eye in it blinks at Tasha. Since the lower jaw is missing, at least it can't say anything.
Tasha sucks in a deep breath and winces very noticeably, then looks away. "Yep," she says in a fast, sharp tone. "That's about what I expected." No one said magic and adventuring were easy.
"I see a lot of rage," Kainudy notes. "Tell me, how many breakdowns have you gone through? And is that a bunny?"
"I have to know how many?" Tasha turns away from her ruined form and spreads her hands. "A lot, okay?! I've been angry and breaking down for a long time, it's just that I use the anger to do something useful now rather than beat myself or other people up. Other people who probably don't deserve it, I mean." She glances at the rabbit and frowns. "Yes it is. I don't know why it's there. Aaron, maybe."
"Ask it," Kainudy suggests.
And so Tasha turns to the shade. "Who are you, rabbit?"
The figure becomes less of a silhouette, looking a bit like Liza, but also a bit like High Priestess Nitsa. "I was the spore," it replies, also sounding a bit like both of the Lapi women. "Now I'm the part of you that you think is wise."
"I thought the spore was wise?" Tasha frowns at her own answer, however. "No ... The spore records, but now it's part of me. So it records me. My memories, my knowledge, maybe even my magic. Like a ... A black box of the self. A flight recorder. You are what I know."
"And what you feel that you could know," the shadow-Lapi says. "I give you confidence."
"Well then," goes Tasha, who looks noticeably brighter and pulls herself up to stand taller, even bouncing on her hooves a little, "you are very welcome here. Uh, I mean: Here," she points at her head."
"Some of these may be aspirations," Kainudy notes. "That shouldn't be surprising. I've never tried this on a mortal before. But, it didn't rip your soul apart, so I think it's a success!" She even gives a double thumbs-up.
Tasha returns the thumbs up with a single thumbs up. "Does my soul armoring effect this at all? And how does this all," she gestures around her, "apply to Shadow-training?"
"Well, your armor in part is keeping all of this inside of you," Kainudy explains. "The training will involve deliberate creation and expression of shadows."
"I guess I'm a spaceship after all." Tasha nods, then looks around again before asking, "Should I stay here, or do you want Hake to try it next?"
"I have to do this?" Hakeber asks. "Facing my ghosts isn't something I'm good at. Otherwise I wouldn't have joined the Knight Templars to start over."
"Is that like the Foreign Legion?" Kainudy asks.
"I don't know that reference," Hakeber admits.
"Well, I feel dated now," the dragon says, and gestures for Tasha to come out of the sand.
Tasha plants a hand on her hips and shakes a finger at Hakeber from the circle of shadows. "That's precisely why Shadow-beings and others like them picked you as their target, because you won't fight them. At all. You might as well wear a shirt that says 'I'm a puppet, use me'. None of us can afford that anymore, Hake." And so she starts out of the circle.
"I see what you meant about being really naked now," Hakeber grumbles. She does move forward once Tasha leaves though. "This would be easier if I were drunk."
"I don't have any handy vampires to drink you," Kainudy claims, and gestures for Tasha to give her friend a little nudge.
"Maybe not," Tasha warns as she walks over and retakes a seat on the bench, laying back down to watch.
Upon seeing Hake isn't entering the circle, Tasha stands up and walks over before finger-poke nudging Hakeber towards the circle. "It's. Good. For. You."
"That's what they said about broccoli!" Hakeber resists, then eventually steps into the circle. And takes another step. "Tell me when I reach the center," she says, possibly keeping her eyes closed.
"If you feel me poking you you're going the wrong way. Also: eyes open. Don't be a coward, Hake!" Tasha sits herself right down at the edge of the circle and folds her arms. "Don't make me feel like a bad leader for bringing you along!"
"Aargh! I better get a good reward for this!" Hakeber declares and stops towards the center of the ring. Her shadows expand out. There are a lot of little Rebekah in dresses. A lot of crying ones too. A lot of crying teenaged Hakebers, drunk Hakebers, angry Hakebers and jealous Hakebers. Also lonely ones. And something dark and shiny and made of cubes that seems turn and spin and reshape into different geometrical shapes.
Tasha studies each of the shadows in turn, not really reacting so much as noting one and then moving on. When she reaches the geometric cloud she stops, glances at the remaining shadows, and then returns to the floating mass of angles. "I think that's the ... The geas I think is the word. Or the library. Or both."
"Hmm," Kainudy mutters as she approaches the shadow from outside the ring of stones. "I think it's a code," she says.
Tasha stands up and follows along, circling the shadow warily. "It reminds me of a Wizard. if it's a code, it's probably for the Ogdru-hem being bled inside Daltoona Station."
"Tell me again about the origins and how it's been used so far," Kainudy requests.
"Uh, I looked at a picture and it jumped into me," Hakeber claims.
"Then I said some stuff that made an Ogdru-hem avatar thingy leave, but I don't remember it," she adds.
"The ship was attacked when I was away. A sleeping Ogdru-hem's defenses infiltrated the ship, and found Hake. Showed her something, and this happened," Tasha gestures between the geometrical shadow and Hakeber. "It comes with certain knowledge and a compulsion to do something; free the Ogdru-hem at Daltoona. Incidentally," Mr. Yellow wants that being destroyed."
"It also wrecked the crew duplicates in the ship's virtual simulation system," Hakeber says. "They went insane."
Tasha's expression, which hadn't been exactly cheery, falls further. "Yes. From what I was told, they turned in to some sort of virtual monster."
"I think this is a Name, or whatever equivalent Ogdru-hem have," Kainudy notes, and actually pokes the shadow. "Sort of a key to access the definition of the being. It's the basis for most types of magic, really. And since they can be affected by spells, it stands to reason that they have something like True Names."
"Hmm," goes Tasha, who continues to walk around the thing despite the movement not helping her understand it at all. "I'm afraid I don't know much about it other than that I've heard demons have special names and those can be used to control them. It's on old bit of superstition from back home. I tried using it with Sam and Thotep once, and Thotep seemed to understand what I was doing and seemed to also think it mattered despite him telling me it was also useless."
"Superstition?" Kainudy asks. "It's the basis of wizardry; controlling a thing, entity or person by knowing their definition. It's why it was important to armor you."
"A lot of magic on my world is based on misunderstandings of magical fundamentals pieced together and passed down through the ages from a great many sentient species," Tasha notes, hands spreading. "The mages of my home world know as much about the real basis of magic as, well, Hake does. I know more now. But, they made it work. The rest was just superstition amalgams and tidbits of truth with a lot of fiction." But then she points at the geometric shape. "But if this is the basis of magic, how do I understand this? Is there training for it?"
"Well, first you need to be able to study something to the point of absolute understanding of it," Kainudy explains. "For the Sidhe - the high elves - they can do this easily enough to conjure up exact duplicates of things from memory. For me, I got as far as the molecular machinery of life, but I didn't use magic to manipulate it, I used my own body. This thing clear isn't static. It's almost redefining itself following some formula - probably because it has to do something like that to maintain a hybrid existence in a reality that is constantly trying to reject it."
"Wait, is that thing alive then?" Hakeber asks. "Inside of my head??"
"All True Names are alive, if they represent living or dynamic things," Kainudy notes.
"'Alive' might not be the right word, but it's probably, uh, alive like Sam is. But less so," Tasha offers at the same time, shrugging. "I think my sporebunny and the Blackwings shadow are also a bit like this."
"It's just like learning very complex mathematical equations," Kainudy explains. "Or a song. If you have perfect pitch."
"I'm bad at both of those," Tasha complains, frowning at the shape. "Am I bad at wizardry then?"
But then Tasha blinks for a moment. "A song. The angel sung. Was that what it was?"
"A song is a mathematical wave equation," Kainudy notes. "Reality is a harmonization of frequencies in quantum fields."
"Oh, well that's easy," Tasha insists, looking at Hakeber and spreading her hands. "Now all I need is a gigantic brain and a perfect voice. Why did Persephone make me a tiny but adorable being again?"
"You can only modify things so far," Kainudy says, "before they cease to be a thing. So she could only modify you enough to quell the disharmony in you."
"The Stelya-rhyan do not do wholesale reality warping," the dragon notes.
"So I'm harmonious now," Tasha repeats, head tilting. "I guess that is better. Well, I should focus on what I can do, I suppose."
"So how am I supposed to use this?" Hakeber asks. "And what does it do exactly?"
"At a guess, it disconnects an Ogdru-hem from physical reality," Kainudy suggests, then makes a wobbly motion with one hand. "Maybe. If it's one that's been bound it may unbind it.. but that could have the same effect anyway."
"A self-destruct code? Or an escape? It would convert the Ogdru-hem to a being that exists purely in their hyperdimensional space. I once asked a Harrower what it wanted to do if I made a deal with it to move on, and it said 'go home'. And then it left this reality for its own. Is it like that?" Tasha's head tilts.
"I'm not an extra-dimensional demon psychologist," Kainudy claims. "It's a key, and keys unlock things. Or it's an index to other keys, if it worked on a different Ogdru-hem. As for how to use it.. I suppose it's a spoken thing? Or you have to feed yourself to the monster. That was always a popular way to kill monsters via sacrifices.."
"Well, there'll be no feeding of Rebekahhakeber while I'm around." Tasha leans over to stare at the shape. "You got that? Our deal won't hold if Hake dies."
"It's not my choice," Kainudy claims. "I presume this thing knows how to use itself when the time is right."
"I wasn't talking to you," Tasha notes without malice, leaning back. "I and the originator of this bag of shapes had a long talk months and months ago. We have a deal."
"What is this deal?" Kainudy asks. "You know that making deals with demons is generally considered a bad move, right?"
"This was back before I even knew what any of them were and I wanted everyone to be my friend, no matter what it was or why it was." Tasha walks away from the shape shadow and sits down legs crossing and leaning forward. "That's still true, but I'm smarter about it now. Better educated. I felt bad for the Ogdru-hem; I still do. It's a terrible existence, and it wasn't doing anything terribly sinister. Scaring some mortals so they'd get along. Not so bad. Tatha-hem is similar. So I said I wouldn't kill it if it continued to be harmless. It even showed me its origin, where it was born. What it once looked like. We talked for a long time. It said if it ever was a danger, it would let me kill it. I could have already."
"Sounds like one of those sideways-time sorts," Kainudy says and sighs. "I have enough trouble with regular linear time and multiple realities, but that's... probably actually the same thing now that I think about it."
Tasha nods to this. "It could be. Both Tatha-hem and the one I made a deal with seem to think that way. I know Tatha-hem does." But then she spreads her hands. "But we should probably move on."
"Hmmm," Kainudy says. "Alright, you can step out now Hakeber. Time for pizza and donuts and mead, and hoping Molly isn't peeping on us."
"Of course he is." Tasha waves her tail 'hello' as she steps in to her bathing suit, then heads towards the boxes. When Hakeber nears her friend gets a smile. "You did very well, Hake. That was brave of you."
"I want some mead," Hakeber says. "That's a Titanian drink isn't it?"
"Blood and fermented honey," Kainudy claims. "I've got some casks. Titanians anything like Vikings?"
"I think?" Nor'a memories aren't great on ancient Terran cultures, except that she knew that Vikings were one. Holding the boxes, Tasha asks, "Back to the study then, ma'am?"
"So long as you don't spill anything," Kainudy says. "I don't want to get ants."
"Regret-bugs would be very disturbing," Tasha agrees. She scoops up the boxes, tail-grabs Hake's wrist, and heads towards the center of the tiny universe.
After demolishing the pizza and donuts and washing it down with mead, the trio returns to the shadow pit. Tasha has been quiet for awhile after drinking her mead though, seeming lost in thought. "Is everyone still sober?" the dragon asks, having returned to her normal form.
Hakeber nods. "Yeah.. I didn't drink nearly enough."
Tasha merely nods, staring down past her mug at her won shadow. She's been thinking, thinking about a lot of things, about her shadows, about her life, and her death. About why, when she asked herself what it all meant and what she wanted from it, she had no answer for herself -- because she already had it and was still somehow racing away from it all. It was upon that realization her future shifted abruptly with the realization she's not working towards what she wanted and dreamed of, but towards an old destruction. A good cause, and one that must be handled in time, but her own tiredness and fragility has reminded her of her limits. Her time, too, has limits, and perhaps she has been misspending it.
"Well, now that you've seen your shadows, you can learn how to use them," Kainudy explains. "Or rather use them handle specific situations, and eventually deliberately craft new ones. This is a bit like developing a reflex, but.. not. It's hard to really explain. Think of it like swapping out personalities to use the one with the reactions or skills you actually want for a given situation."
"Like loading and unloading memory profiles," Tasha chimes in, sounding distracted despite clearly paying attention.
"Is it like how you forget things that happen while you're drunk, but then remember them when you're drunk again?" Hakeber asks.
"Hmm," the dragon ponders, then points to Tasha. "Tasha, do you have issues with killing an enemy? And by issues, I mean hesitation because you aren't certain of the morality of the situation or collateral damage?"
"It's what Mel does with my mind when I'm in full depth, and with his own as he needs different subsystems running, or not," Tasha explains, looking up. "Activating various systems of the self."
"Yes, probably like that, but doing it on your own," Kainudy agrees.
"It depends heavily on the situation. If there's time to evaluate I prefer to delay until I know more. If I can't know more and action is necessary, I go by my best judgment. If there is no time to consider, I base my decision on the immediate facts on hand and the threat the enemy poses in that situation. If an enemy is immediately endangering one of us, including myself, I will act immediately without further consideration," Tasha answers at length. The answer of someone who has had to dispense death on a regular basis, both with and without time to consider the ramifications. Yet, also the answer of someone who has experienced death's sadness and seen their enemy for more than something to destroy.
"That is a lot of decision making," Kainudy notes. "I've crippled myself by waiting until I have better information, and I've also crippled myself for acting too soon without a fuller picture. But let's get a little more granular: how experienced are you with using a saber?"
"About as much as I am with most swords. I've used a few as part of my Templar training, but I'm hardly an expert." Tasha considers herself as a combatant; in many ways she's lacking. Self-taught, for the most part. Poor education, damaged information upload. She sections herself, wondering how she could be better. Who could replace her. "Blackwings favored the saber."
"That's the big pirate-looking hippogryff right?" the dragon asks.
"That's her. She's very lithe for a Vartan, at least." Tasha gestures back towards the circle. "She would be a good choice for swordsmanship and intimidation. She's also good with seduction and dealing with gray areas and criminals, and she has no real morality to stop her." Is morality important to her task, Tasha wonders? If someone replaced her, who would they need to be? What of her children? Would they want to replace her? Could they? Should they? But some of them will be her, perhaps younger and fresher, better educated. Different, perhaps, in body, mind, and spirit.
If her children continue in her place, she Tasha decides it will be their choice. There will be tests; it will be opt-in. A support system will be needed; they'd need special education. She should learn everything she can. And most of all, should she die now, they will never have the chance to chose. "But yes."
"Alright, I want you go into the pit again," Kainudy says.
"Good, I was going to ask to." Tasha rises, putting her mug aside and beginning to walk without waiting. "I can ask questions of the shadows, can't I?"
"Well.. I suppose so?" Kainudy replies. "Might work with a mirror outside of the circle later."
"Okay." Tasha decides it's worth a shot, anyway. "Why is the circle warded? Can the shadows become autonomous? Can they become dangerous?"
"Mine can," the dragon notes. "So no reason to take chances."
"I see." Tasha doesn't comment further as she makes her way in to the garden and towards the circle.
There's that little shimmer when she crosses the threshold, and the shadows length until she reaches the center and they manifest over the stones at the perimeter.
Tasha takes a long moment to turn in place and look to each manifestation of her self, and then to what is not herself, but something added to it. As they are of herself, she suspects she doesn't need to ask, but does anyway. "All of you, shadows. We've been doing this for a while now. For a long, short while. And we have so much. Much more than we can appreciate, and we keep going forward." She turns to her mangled self, tempted to walk towards it but fearing it will vanish. She still can't suppress the wince; it's not a pretty sight even if it wasn't her. "And you most of all. The end of the old me. Maybe the end of me. Maybe I'm the shadow, here. But it doesn't matter. I'm here now. So." She spreads her hands. "What do you think of me? All of you. What are we even doing? What do we want, anymore?"
"To carve our mark across the sky, never surrender and take down any bastards that challenge us!" Blackwings claims. "To be an airship captain of course," younger, pre-Amazonia Tasha says. "To save the ones we hold dear," Tisiphone offers. "Liberate the Titans," blown-up Tasha says. "Fix the world," the Empress claims. The shadow-bunny is the last to speak up though, and says in a quiet, Nitsa-with-an-echo voice, "Do what we can and not regret what we cannot."
Tasha nods. They're all thoughts she remembers, if out of place and out of time. Now the harder question. She's never asked this question before; never even really considered it. Not seriously, not ever. Until now, when her confidence in that she's doing the right thing is shaken; that she should be doing something else. That people are waiting for her awhile she abandons them to chase the doom of the stars, and to grow larger. More. But she feels it, the cracks and the tiredness. The strain, and the doubt. Doubt, more than anything. It would make man people happy if she chose one way; surprise them, too. "Can we go on? Should we?"
"That isn't for us to decide," the Empress says. "We aren't wiser, and we aren't living your life. I was driven by anger, anger at the inability of nations to behave properly. The fickleness of the universe that opposes order. But drive is important. So ask this instead: have you created something that will go one without you yet? Have you fulfilled your immediate obligations? Do you have someone ready and willing to step up in your place? My answer to all of those was 'no', but then I didn't really consider them. Nobody but me could have accomplished my goals."
"'Nobody but me,'" Tasha repeats. She folds her arms, tapping the side of her muzzle with her left hand's pointer finger. "There it is again. Only me. Replacing myself with myself would have meant cloning, or some other preservation of self and consciousness. Electronic or photonic media, perhaps." More tapping. "But that's no longer true, is it. 'Your daughters will be you, they will inherit your soul and the spore.' Or something like that. And if they're me, one of me will want to, most likely." Tap. Tap. "My obligations aren't spent, that would need to be dealt with. No one is ready to take my place; that is an obligation. I don't know if Dark Horse will continue without me; the JEF probably will. I'd need time to ready a replacement. If one of me, I don't know how long they would take to grow. How much time we'd have, how much they'd know. As for drive," Tasha drops her hand and shrugs. "We all know I'm getting tired. Many of you are wounded. One of you is dead. That is far longer than most mortals can endure. Something is lost when you die." She inhales, then breathes out. "So, I can't retire just yet. But I should start on it. Keep stepping back from the front lines; learn all I can. Get ready. Tell Gabriel."
"And Katie? But first you're getting this thing out of me," Hakeber says.
"And Katie. And yes, that's on the top of my list of things that need to be done." Tasha smiles at Hakeber, a little sad and a lot apologetic. "Sorry, Hake. I guess you're the first one to hear it, aren't you? You and Kainudy."
"And this brings us back to the lesson at hand," Kainudy claims. "When you need to feel inspired to do something you normally don't want to do, you need to embrace a shadow that does. Especially if you're feeling crippled by doubt, or feel too beat up. I've been falling apart for three millennia now but I'm still going. Not because I have hope things will get better, mind you. Because I'm stubborn and angry and maybe can teach someone something useful.. someday. So welcome to my world: you have to train someone up, inspire them, and lead by - quite often - bad example."
"Mostly though because I deserve to suffer for my mistakes," the dragon adds.
Tasha nods to this and keeps smiling. "I'm well equipped for bad examples, anyway." She spreads her hands. "And many good examples. I've come far in my short lives, and I'm not done. I may withdraw from the front line but I'm sure I'll continue to be active; I can still run things on an administrative level. Work with my contacts, train people, look at information and provide direction. Gabriel's done it for a while now, he can show me." Then she points a finger at Kainudy. "And don't be so hard on yourself. We both know how difficult these battles are, even the gods and Waymakers make mistakes. There's suffering and then there's being crippled by self-punishment." She turns her pointing finger to several beat up incarnations. "If it's not teaching anything or helping anyone, what good is it?"
"Hey, this is all I have left," Blackwings claims. "I'm just trying to keep you alive and paranoid."
"I greatly appreciate both of those things." Tasha claps her hands together, now. "But I believe we were in a lesson? I've settled my personal questions. I'll speak with Gabriel and Katie soon. For now, I need to learn all I can."
"Kid, I've betrayed every person represented in this garden, including myself," the dragon notes. "I reserve the right to wallow in my guilt. Now I want you to do something that should be simple. I want you to let Blackwings be in control when you manifest your blade. Which means that when you do draw it, you make sure you're going to use it."
"The way you told me it, you made a choice and they all died. But what do I know, I'm, what, a few months old, again?" Tasha spreads her hands. "Not that I haven't wallowed in my failures before, but I wont tell you your business any more. Please continue."
"And then I.. never mind," the dragon notes, waving a hand. "So, how you bind a shadow is usually unique to the person. With shadows that are really suppressed it will be harder or more painful. Pain can be the key for those. Now, since Blackwings was a real person you had a real relationship with.. what would you try? Be sure to dismiss any negative thoughts about the shadow, however you proceed."
"I know it's not really her, but a kind of copy. So I don't hold any grudge against the shadow; I ended whatever grudge I had against the original when I killed her. My feelings have more to do with a more general sadness and the questions what I did raise, why I do things, than with the woman herself." Tasha thinks she sounds matter-of-fact, when much still lingers beneath her professional facade. It is true most of what she felt has simmered, not unlike lava touching the sea, hard and stony and done. The questions do still linger, but whatever part they play she put firth just a moment ago when she decided to retire. The rest ... The rest she supposes she'll find out about. "She enjoyed besting people, cruelty, non-romantic sex, exploiting people, bravado, and personal accomplishment and aggrandizement. I think a challenge worthy of her skills and the desire to survive might work."
"Sounds like a fun girl," Kainudy says. "Would have made a good dragon. Do you feel guilty about killing her?"
"It's mixed. Part of me regrets that I killed someone I cared about, maybe even loved. Why was whatever else I believed in more important than someone I cared about? Was that Vartan of me? Why had I decided to start protecting the world instead of people I cared about? It's something I've been struggling with." Tasha rubs her nose, other hand on her hip. "On the other hand, she was a vicious slaver who didn't stop her cruelty after her success. She enjoyed it, very much so. I wonder at that. I could do that, too. But then I'd be her, and the people around me would be like her. And I'd be dead. Except I am dead, so maybe nothing changes either way."
"Alright.. that seems like too much thinking," Kainudy says, and sticks the tip of her tail into her ear before pulling it out and looking at it critically. "Let's go back before you killed her. I don't suppose she was promising to teach you things, or that you actually wanted to be her?"
"The things she taught me aren't very useful in my work these days. Hake appreciates them, though." Hake gets a wink, if a bit subdued a wink. "She promised a lot but it was all to string me along. I wanted to be here, when I was younger, back before I started my journey."
"Did she ever defend you?" Kainudy asks. "Or did you see her attack someone? Feel thrilled by watching her? Having to think about sex in an emergency can be awkward. It's hard to get aroused by those sorts of situations. Unless you have a kink like that."
"Lucky for me I don't. Maybe afterwards, but not during." Tasha thinks back. She really hasn't been thinking about Blackwings much at all, not since her little fling with the Vartan woman back on her last vacation. "Watching her fight was exciting. I remember the time she gave me her belt bu- Um, well, the time before that when she offered it to me, that is. When she beat a man in combat for his ship."
"Did she seem to be having fun when she did that?" the dragon prompts.
"Yes, quite a lot of it. She enjoys besting people and rubbing their failure in, but, well, gracefully. She's very charming when she wants to be, which is usually." Tasha bites her lip a moment, then adds, "She also made me a promise she'd tell me something when I died. Well, I died. I want to know the answer."
"Death sucks," Blackwings says. "So try to possess someone as soon as you can. You went with that blonde over there." She sounds a bit sarcastic though.
"Riiight," Kainudy says. "So, maybe focus on that thrill. And think of a summoning key, like.. uh.. 'Hey, let's kill this thing and call it names' or something."
"That's doesn't sound like what that old Khattan spy would tell you from the mystery chair," Tasha insists, but sounds a bit sarcastic herself. "Fine, lie to me even as a shadow-ghost. I'm used to you by now."
"Sometimes when I'm really worked up I just get this burning hunger to watch something be destroyed. A desire to crush it until it's not a problem anymore. It's hard to explain. It sometime involves howling; usually it involves self-injury. You know," here Tasha tilts her head, "I can still feel it? I guess I'm quieter now, but it's still there. Like that volcano metaphor I used earlier. Lava."
"No, I, as a dragon, cannot understand that urge at all," Kainudy claims in a deadpan voice. "Is that a 'Vartan thing'? Maybe go with that then. After all, if you're using your yellow sword, you're definitely about to destroy something."
"It get an urge to chase things sometimes," Hakeber offers.
"I think it's an abuse thing. Blackwings and I both draw off a hatred for things that hurt, bully, degrade, or would otherwise put us down; so when pushed we annihilate them." Tasha spreads her hands. "She and I just annhilate for different reasons."
Tasha then rolls her eyes a little. "Dragon. Burning desire. I don't get the connection at all."
"Anger is good, so long as you can angry at will," Kainudy suggests. "It's counterintuitive, since anger makes you more reckless, but if that unlocks Blackwings then go for it."
"It might be a bit harder. Everything feels deeper now, harder to pull up, but calmer. Not always, but often. Still, I did destroy Luk'thu-hem right after dying and as a Human." Tasha taps her muzzle again. "Yellow sword. Urge to destroy. That should be easy, since they go well together and I'm usually thinking about that whenever I think to sue it offensively."
"Okay, now you just have to have your ass handed to you by your shadow," Kainudy claims. "So.. try attacking Blackwings?"
Tasha crosses her arms. "Is this a trick because I rolled my eyes at you and didn't connect rage with 'being a dragon'?"
"No," Kainudy claims. "To bond a shadow, you need to engage it appropriately. If it's going to be anger, then.. you need to get angry, and in a way that will let you accept the shadow. So for combat, that means fighting."
"And if it works, I'll get a real sword-slinger to spar with you," the dragon promises.
"Why am I always swinging a sword around when my enemies are massive and often space-fairing," Tasha asks the universe. She should have said 'laser pistol' or 'rail gun' or something. She turns to Blackwings and spreads her hands. "I did better than you, I killed you, and you probably still look down on me,more so because I did it all the right way and that eats at you. So come on. Lets go."
"Swords work everywhere!" the shadow of Blackwings claims, and produces her own shadow-saber. "And we weren't fighting then," she adds and lunges towards Tasha with her wings spread out and upward to make her more intimidating. She also screams at Tasha.
Tasha's own sword flickers in to existence like melting wax in reverse. She knows better than to try to beat Blackwings by blitzing her, she's seen the woman fight and knows she plays on weakness with deft jibes and fast, elegant moves. She also knows she's not really a match for her, but she can at least try. "It just kills you I got what I wanted, doesn't it," she coos, raising her sword to defend herself.
The advantage of the yellow sword is that it can't be knocked out of Tasha's hand. The disadvantage is that the force of Blackwings' strike against it is thus transmitted fully to Tasha's arm. "I got all that I wanted too!" the big Vartan scrawks. "But then there was the after!"
Tashaa shifts to hold her sword with both hands, no longer being equal to a Vartan in strength, and needing the extra arm to absorb the impacts and match Blackwings. "What after? You're just a fragment of a soul," she insists, the two blades scrapping together in silent friction before Tashaa deflects the saber off and steps back in to a defensive position. "But I'm glad you at least got something. You deserved something. I just wish you'd have learned mercy and peace along with it." The last is said honestly.
"Not this after!" Blackwings claims, and makes a chop towards Tasha's head. "After I got everything!"
Back and on defense, Tash is able to deflect the blow by meeting sword and turning it aside. She steps back, having plenty of room, and readies for the next one. "After you got Dagh's Chibix? After you started skinning slaves for fun? After I stabbed you? The chair? The old Khattan spy?"
The deflection works, but Blackwings recovers enough to swat Tasha on the hip with the flat of her blade before moving out of range again. "You can't just keep defendin'," she chides. "I got my ship, my crew, my reputation.. and then all that I wanted seemed small once I had it. You never stop wanting. You just settle for a time, until it looks like you're going to lose it all!"
"You don't think I don't know that?" Tasha rubs her hip, making a face, but doesn't lower her sword with her main hand. "But I also know once you have enough, enough that needs you, people you miss, people you left behind because it was never enough, they weigh on you. The guilt weighs on you. The mistakes, the people left behind, the people that could be if you'd just stop. You begin to weigh what you have against what you could lose, in the disappointment in the faces of the people you left, and in the futures you could have made." And then she swings not at Blackwings but at her sword, deflecting the tip just a touch before she shifts back in to the defensive.
"Needing other people makes you weak," Blackwings claims.. not for the first time. It's always her excuse for never having anyone. "Just the tip eh? You held back wi' me, didn't you? Afraid to get hurt!" She growls and lunges low, thrusting straight out towards Tasha's midsection as she goes down nearly to one knee to extend her reach. "Afraid to fight dirty!"
Tasha doesn't dodge, or even deflect the blade much -- she angles it upward and steps in to it just where she knows she can take it. With a sharp exhale she steps further on to the blade, her own sword evaporating briefly as she holds Blackwing's sword with her other hand, her main hand rising, "Y-you don't know sacrifice, you don't know f-fighting for anything you believe in, or matters to you, it's all just something you had, as empty as your faith and love for it. Of course you were never satisfied." And then Tasha rematerializes her blade in her hand and tries to drive it right through Blackwing's heart.
"Magic sword.. now you fightin' dirty," Blackwings says with a hint of approval. Then she backs off of the blade, her own dissolving. She goes back to her stone.
"There's only one way to fight," Tasha insists, rubbing her chest where she was stabbed. That she can step in to swords and injure herself so easily now is, she thinks, one more reason she needs to stop. She already threw her life at something, it's not a trick she can afford to keep repeating. "Everything else is another way to fight, or something you want." Her sword vanishes and she sucks in a breath. "Do you know what hurts more than this? Thinking of Mariel reading my letter and being disappointed. Thinking something else was more important. Seeing Gabriel hide his pain every time I wake up in the Med Bay. That 'weakness' is the price you pay for something that matters, that lasts."
"What the hell was that?" Kainudy asks. "Kudos on keeping it short at least. I used to have a solid-iron sword longer than you are tall and it was not made for dueling with that weight. Like swinging around an anvil. So, did you feel confident during that fight?"
Tasha keeps rubbing. "I feel like an immovable wall that can stand up to gods and demons until I, or they, are done." She lets go, rolls her shoulders, and turns to Kainudy and spreads her hands. "A dull hunger to destroy and something beyond fear. That's part of why I need to stop now."
"Just because you want to stop doesn't mean this isn't an important thing to learn," the dragon claims. "Now, what exactly has Thoth been teaching you? Do you have a totem or focus or whatever you're supposed to use to help you with magic?"
"I'm also not very tall," Tasha adds, a bit wryly. She holds her hand head level and stretches it out towards Hakeber, showing she's as short as the short Karnor. Looking back, she then nods. "Yes, you're right. I need to keep learning." She cocks her head aside, then answers, "A card deck. I've been painting it myself. It's partially done. That was the beginning, we haven't gotten much further." She wonders if any of her children will wonder at magic, if it will fascinate and allure them; she wonders what that child will be like.
"Cards? Holder-style magic then," Kainudy notes, and nods her head once. "Well, have already made one for Blackwings then?" she asks.
"I made cards for the foundations of reality: The Null is Oblivion, The Hunger, Thotep as Deception, Balance, Order ... " Tasha holds up a hand, as if grasping a card. "Those are what you might call 'major arcana'. I've thought making minor arcana for smaller, more complex beings."
And then Tasha asks, "What's Holder-type magic?"
"Magic that uses an object held by the caster, usually that has been pre-charged or enchanted," Kainudy explains. "It's usually faster to use as a result, since all of the real work is done in preparing the object. Sort of like using a gun. The energy is stored in the bullets ahead of time, and the caster can fire them off rapidly as a result."
"In this case, you should be able to use your cards to summon whatever shadow aspects you want, either for yourself or as a servant," the dragon claims.
Tasha rubs her chin at this, one hand propped on a hip. "Does this mean I should start over? Or devote the lesser arcana to shadows and the major ones too, well," she thinks for a moment, and then perks her ears and brows. "Summoning, I suppose? I sometimes need to talk to these beings, and occassionally invoke them. Last ditch choices, or questions. Reporting."
"The hierarchy doesn't matter, unless you make it matter," Kainudy claims. "Make Blackwings the Queen of Swords if you want."
"Can be the Queen of Cups?" Hakeber asks.
"Cups? They added cups?" Kainudy asks, looking at Hakeber. "Blackwings has bigger boobs, so wouldn't she be the Queen of Cups?"
"I don't think I have a Hake-shadow," Tasha admits, turning to look at her array of regrets, murderers, and pregnant selves. "It would be very handy for taking notes and reading. And I'll think on it. I like to use the cards to meditate some times, to think on the multiverse. They're a good teaching tool."
"Well, you can't take this shadow-ring with you, so if you want to see these again you'll need to do something with your cards to summon them up," Kainudy says. "What sort is Hakber here then? Holder or something else?" she asks.
"I'm a witch.. maybe?" Hakeber replies.
"She's a fuzzy hug-a-bear," Tasha says with a perfectly deadpan voice and no change in her expression, making it uncertain whether she's being serious or is faking it, as she seems to have gotten a lot better at both.
"Oh, she's a plush-golem then?" Kainudy asks, and pokes Hakeber with a claw. "Did her 'brother' build her, or is her soul just animating a doll?"
"Ouch," Hakeber complains.
"I think she's an angry doll who has risen up to get her revenge," Tasha insists. She walks over, slings an arm around Hakeber's shoulders and leans in. "But to be serious, we don't know. I'm the experimental test subject and others plan to follow. There's also Katie. Both Hake and Katie are deemed worthy for sorcery, Lacci might do well with alchemy."
"There're more of you?" Kainudy asks. "Are the others possessed or have contracts with supernatural entities then?"
"No that's pretty much Hake and I. Katie's scary in her won right, and Lacci is, um, well she's kind of innocent and sweet. I'm still not exactly sure how she ended up with us, except that I did it," Tasha explains. As she talks she reaches over and gently pokes Hake's muzzle from the opposite side, "Total we're three would-be witches, and two would-be alchemists. I count as one of both. We also have Samael and Thoth as teachers." She wonders what they'll both say when she decides to retire; probably the same thing Kainudy is saying, that she still needs to learn. And she does.
"And what sort of training have they been giving you all?" the dragon asks.
"For me it was painting cards and trying to lure fae," Tasha explains, gesturing back the way they had entered this realm from. "Oh and Sam had Hake and I dance."
"I think I had a few faeries sniffing around while I was dancing in the woods," Hakeber claims.
"Dancing?" the dragon asks, one eyeridge raised skeptically. "And you do that to attract faeries?"
"I saw movement while I was painting, but the only fae to reveal themselves to me have been Molly and a mermaid Molly cursed." Tasha realizes she hadn't really told anyone about that; it seemed to her too small of an altercation to matter. "I stabbed her when she tried to kidnap me. I don't think we'll be friends." She then shakes her head. "I did painting. Hake danced -- danced too hard I think. We suspect they're trying to take advantage of her."
"Uh.." Kainudy goes, and scratches behind one of her ears in thought. "Is this on Thoth's advice or Samael's?" she asks.
"Thoth's. He said we needed to be 'somewhere with life' to study magic." Tasha spreads her hands. "I like him a lot, but he's kind of mysterious."
"He's an idiot," Kainudy claims. Then gestures around her. "He came here, didn't he? He could have introduced you directly to faeries, instead of trying to get you do it like humans would. You aren't humans. You already have a built-in bond with nature!"
Tasha frowns at Thoth being called an idiot, and lifts a finger. "I'd appreciate if you didn't insult him. I wouldn't take that from the others if they insulted you." Her look is very stern, with a slight edge. "That said, I suppose it is a bit mysterious.He does have a lot more experience with Humans, and at least I was Human for two days or so. I don't know what I have a bond with now, though I think Katie is the only one who is really going 'natural' among us."
"Maybe he had his reasons, but.. whatever world you're on right now, is it your homeworld? Or are you just passing through?" the dragon asks.
Tasha looks back for some reason, then holds out a hand , palm up. "Passing through. We're resting after the battle with Luk'thu-hem, and preparing to pursue another one at Daltoona Station. Hake and I are from different worlds in the Primus System, a still-functiona Sifran system. Hake's from Abaddon; I'm from Sinai."
"So.. this was just an experiment then, I think," Kainudy says, tapping her chin. "From Thoth's point of view, that is. So, you can keep to his methods, assuming he's got a long-term goal, or I can set you up with something that plays more to your.. instincts."
"Can we do both?" Tasha perks her ears, head tilting. "I feel like seeing different methods of teaching and approaching magic would be useful. I may need to teach my children; I probably will."
"Well, my way will certainly give you a better insight into the Fair Folk," Kainudy says. "It would need to be all of you though. Unless Katie and Lucky are human?"
"Katie's also a Karnor; Lacci is a Vartan." Tasha then perks up suddenly and asks, "Do you think I could pilot a remote?"
"What, here?" Kainudy asks. "I've only got the one handy. And for what I have in mind you need to be physically present, because.. uh.. you'll be going to your roots, as it were."
"This is my natural color already," Hakeber claims.
Tasha looks noticeably disappointed she can't try running around as a tiny dragon. Her ears are very droopy. "I see." She sniffs, then tilts her head. "To the tree?"
"No.. not literal roots," the dragon says, sounding a bit exasperated. "I swear, what is it with wolves.." she mutters, then clears her throat. "I was thinking you could all join the Wild Hunt. As wolves and hawks. Just for one hunt though."
"That sounds interesting. A hunt, is it?" Tasha's ears are up again, and she taps her chin. "I bet Katie would be all for it. Lacci will be all nervous. Hake will be very uncertain. I am extremely tough and capable." She grins, just a little. Then she frowns. "Um, which would I be? I was four different things when split apart. Lacci is probably two. Karnors are two, too, but we're nto counting Humans so just one."
The dragon looks Tasha up and down, and suggests, "Go with wolf or hawk, unless you want to be something a hunter rides. And since most of their steeds are skeletal or nightmares that probably wouldn't be the way to impress them."
"And I feel like being a giant surly Bromthen hog would put me on a dinner plate," Tasha reasons. She considers for a moment, then says, "I've been a Vartan briefly, so maybe I'll try being a wolf. I also wanted to try being a dolphin, but I'm not any part dolphin."
"Being a dolphin is easy, unless you're a cow," Kainudy says. "Bull dolphins are rather rapey, it turns out. Maybe they're different in your reality. So, three wolves and a bird. Which is the innocent one again?"
Tasha raises a brow at that; well, so are a lot of species, she supposes. "How about a Phin? They're sentient dolphins from our universe. Gabriel says I'd do well as one." But she taps her chin again. "Lacci is the innocent one. I'll be a bit worried about her, all alone up there."
"Alright, so she's less likely to be bloodthirsty probably," the dragon says. "Phin? What exactly is the difference between a Phin and dolphin?"
"Sentience, they're uplifted dolphins with some Human in them," Tasha answers. "We have several on the crew. They're a bit fae themselves, at least in behavior. The men are still very horny." And so she shrugs. "But I can deal with that. And no, Lacci is probably the least intimidating Vartan I know."
The dragon blinks, and then looks at Tasha and Hakeber again. "What about Karnors and Vartan then?" she asks.
"Karnors are uplifted wolves. They're a bit martial, team-oriented, and often chosen for military duties. Vartans are 'hippogryphs' as you say, they were uplifted by Horus, and they're usually very family oriented, stubborn, and blunt. There's a sub-species that are smaller and more domestic. I used to be a ... hyyybrid ... between Karnor and Vartan."
"Isn't a Humanized Wolf a dog?" Kainudy asks, sounding uncertain. "All of the wolves I used to deal with were just.. well, probably magical. They could switch between being bipeds and quadrupeds. Except for the ones I think might have been cyborgs. It was a long time ago, before I holed up here. Hmmm. Uplifted. Interesting..."
"I'm a cyborg too," Tasha adds, pointing at her head with one hand and holding her pointer and thumb of the other hand just a little bit apart; this much.
"You don't weigh a quarter-ton, so I'm choosing not to believe you," Kainudy claims, and looks at Hakeber now. "What bad habits do you have?"
"They're all charming habits that make me popular," Hakeber claims.
Tasha steps away to leave Hakeber to Kainudy's uncomfortable examination, stepping over to look at her pregnant form. "I guess you win."
The pregnant shadow winks back at Tasha.
"She avoids her problems, can write with both hands, and she likes ti study! A lot! And she never cleans! She sleeps with cats!" Pregnant Tasha gets the wink returned by soon-to-be-pregnant-Tasha.
"Hmm, none of they wolves I knew were very fond of reading," the dragon muses. "Way more into eating and shedding. And fighting for dominance. So.. maybe a bit of human isn't so bad. Either way, we'll find out if you decide to join the hunt. Any other Karnors or just you two-and-a-half women?"
"Gabriel might like to try it. I feel like he deserves some fun for once, rather than worrying about me back home." Tasha spreads her hands, "Besides he'd be the best wolf."
"A proper pack then?" the dragon asks. "That works. See if you can get them to come then. Probably talk to Thoth about it. Either way, bring Hakeber back, I need to bring in a specialist to see her."
"She does really like specialists." Tasha walks back, but does pause to lean over and get a really good look at her pregnant self, as a preview for later. I wonder how heavy that is? She supposes she'll know soon. She decides she might just make a card for her pregnant shadow.
Hake gets Tasha wrapped around her shoulders, future pregnancy making her feel like being cuddly. "We'll be back, even if I have to drag her back."
"Was that a dragon pun?" Kainudy asks, narrowing her eyes slightly.
"Will there be pizza and donuts and beer for the hunt?" Hakeber asks.
"There's usually roast something on a spit, and ale, and Norse gods getting drunk," the dragon notes. "From what I remember, anyway."
"I made Persephone so frustrated once she told me the answer to something she wanted me to figure out for myself," Tasha insists, wagging her tail behind Hakeber. "What's a Norse? Is it like a horse? A naga-horse?"
"Human deities that fight a lot, from the northern realms," Kainudy says. "Not as messed up as the Greek ones. Or as weird as some of the others. Very party oriented."
"They sound like Titanians, so we should get along," Tasha decides. She gives Hakeber a hug for no real reason and adds, "Anything else?"
"Hmmm," the dragon ponders. "I gave away my god-killing dagger, and I doubt Persephone is willing to make any more of those."
"Any other goodies?" Tasha presses, ears forward and tail slowly swaying.
"You've got the ansible marble and whatever similar thing Persephone stuck into your genome," Kainudy says. "And me as a mentor-on-demand, maybe access to the Dreamlands eventually. I can probably make a door. Hmm. You've got a demon.. maybe I can use that.."
"He once was a door in to himself. There was a tavern full of dead hollow souls. The music and food were good," Tasha explains, wagging some more. "And I have an anisible genome? I thought my spore would do that."
"I don't know, maybe Persephone has some other way of keeping you in-sync with your offspring," Kainudy says. "She never admitted to me what she figured out how to do."
"She didn't tell me either. I think she knew I'd tease her and that's how I ended up shorter and more adorable." Tasha lays her hands on her fingers, presenting, tilting her head against Hakeber's. "I suspect what she does is beyond us."
"She likes making cute things," Kainudy admits. "What color was her remote this time? You should have seen her contact remotes. She always had to make them the cutest version of that particular species."
"I guess we're both dolls Hake," and Tasha pinches her friend's cheek. Tasha perks up at this cutest-of-everything Persephone. "When she met me, she was a crystal dragon surrounded by all my parts, and we all sat with her. I got to pet my own wolf butt as a Human." But then she hesitates, and adds, "I hope she likes me. I had enough trouble with my last creator, but we worked those out eventually."
"You weren't dressed up like one though," Hakeber notes.
"Yeah, she went with the crystal look early on," the dragon says. "Gold, then sapphire, probably up to amethyst by now."
"Want to dress me up then?" Tasha glances over at Hakeber, then back to Kainudy. "I guess I'm the cutest of my own species. And yes, she's at amethyst. She bit my head when I teased her. Are all the remotes whatever you chose to make them? How do you make them?"
"I used real humans originally, but you can't control them," Kainudy says. "Then used dead ones but they didn't work well. Eventually just made them think I was human. Persephone just makes them from scratch or from a DNA sample."
"That sounds very useful, but also something we couldn't really learn." Tasha rubs her nose, then rubs Hake's nose. "Should we bring anything for the Hunt? Tell Sam and Thoth, right?"
"Yes, and bring me the demon if he's willing. Just carry him though, don't try to get him here externally," the dragon says.
Tasha blinks at that. "Externally?"
"Yes.." Kainudy says, raising her brows again. "You don't know what I meant, do you?"
Tasha shakes her head, which makes Hakeber shake her head too due to the lack of room. "Magic. Student," she repeats.
"Bring him internally," Kainudy explains. "You know.. inside someone?"
Kainudy is met with more blinking.
"He can do that, right?" the dragon asks. "Or did it just never come up?"
"He once suggested carrying around my brain in him, and I've been in him. He's been in Hake." There's some genuine grinning on Tasha's part now. "Speaking of odditities."
"Not.. like what you're suggesting," Hakeber claims, her ears blushing.
Hakeber gets hugged. "Adventuresome." And so Tasha winks, and then asks, "You'll have to explain?"
"Demons can possess people," Kainudy says bluntly. "They're nearly undetectable at that point. Unless it's not a spirit style demon?"
"He's a big dimensional blob that usually looks exactly like me, bu the other sex. Physical, with an internal reality," Tasha explains.
"How much mass?" Kainudy asks. "Sounds like an outer type then."
"A bit heavier than I am," Hakeber claims.
"He's one of Thotep's brood. His actual mass and dimensions are hard to figure, since he can adjust himself," Tasha admits.
"Ah, then Thoth can bring him," Kainudy says.
Tasha winces at that. "They don't get along well, I can't see them combining in a non-violent way."
"They don't need to be combined," Kainudy clarifies. "He just can't come the same way you do, through a faerie gate. Thoth can guide through a different route though."
"Oh. That should work. Hopefully." Tasha sounds a little uncertain, but she does shrug, clearly willing to give it a shot. "Anything else?
"I can't think of anything right now," Kainudy says. "If I do I'll contact you."
"Okay. I'll make more cards, and I'll need to talk to Gabriel and Katie. And the others. Different reasons." Tasha then tries to walk Hakeber forward to also try and hug Kainudy's muzzle again, like last time.
The dragon mrffs. Why do people feel compelled to hug her? "Bring more pizza next time."
"Yes ma'am. Come along, Hake-dear." Tasha turns Hakeber around and the two of them head back towards where they entered -- but not before Tasha finger-wiggles a wave to her pregnant self; see you soon.
The shadows fade when Tasha moves out of range, and Hakeber asks her, "Was any of that normal?" in a lowered voice.
"'Normalcy is simply a measure of conformity to to a present system,'" Tasha quotes; who knows where she got that from. "As for what you really mean, for this place, yes. For our universe? No. For you? Sort of. For me? Yes."
"So it wasn't because of the mead then, is what you're saying, and that all actually happened?" Hakeber asks to confirm.
"I mean you could think about dimensions, mental spaces, seens versus actuals, but I strongly suspect she is as real as she says she is. Thoth has more or less confirmed it. So, yes, she's a real, somewhat surly old dragoness who somehow lets me hug her. I think she's nice," Tasha replies, letting her friend go and holding her hand instead. "The shadows I'm sure are real; they're too real not to be real."
"Things that are too real seems suspicious," Hakeber claims. "Especially when you're a little tipsy."
Back at the entry, next to the statue, Molly lounges suspiciously. Casually suspicious though.
"I didn't drink that much, I was too busy reflecting," Tasha admits. When she sees Molly she, in her best impression of Kainudy, goes, "Molly you feckless bastard what did you do now?"
"I've just been waiting here for you, what do you think I've done?" the fey man asks with a devilish smirk.
"Even more now that you're smirking like that." Tasha puts her hands behind her back, bending over to look at the man. "You were watching us, weren't you?"
"She's got you paranoid already, doesn't she?" Molly teases. "What were you doing that would have been worth watching then, hmmm?"
"That depends on you," Tasha says neutrally. She stands straight, then waves him up as well. "Well, time to go home."
"Wait, the other one wasn't here as a sacrifice then?" Molly asks, looking shocked.
"I know, I know. She seems like such sacrifice material. She'd probably look cute in a slightly torn outfit tied to something," Tasha agrees, but she does squeeze Hakeber's hand. "But no, we're all witches-to-be. Next time, there'll be a lot of us."
"Witches? Not.. well.. you're women. Mostly canine.." Molly teases, then holds out his hands for the pair.
"The appropriate term is she-wolf. That, or hen, for me," Tasha insists, then she releases Hakeber's hand so she can hold Molly's with her left and have her right hand free in case something needs to be stabbed.
This time the path back is.. pleasant. They pass through a village, which had very tiny houses made of gingerbread and frosting and lots of candy. The inhabitants are ant-people that walk upright and wear little hats. Some are listening to another one wearing robes and squeakily proclaiming that the time of the Last Picnic was nigh. "Just ignore them," Molly advises.
"They're kind of adorable," Tasha admits, watching the little diorama of ants and sugar play out before her. She wonders what mythology these are from, suspecting something Human -- or ant. "The fae realms are varied, at least."
"Those aren't fey creatures," Molly claims. "They're just big ants. Don't eat enchanted cookies, by the way."
"How can you tell if they're enchanted?" Hakeber asks, being vulnerable to cookies.
"Raisins instead of chocolate chips," Molly offers, and then they're at the pool. "In you go!"
"Big ants ... " Tasha wonders, then, where the big ants come from and how they ended up living in the Halflands. "Raisins are probably Unseelee," she declares before standing beside the pool and taking Hakeber's hand.
"My buzz has warn off," Hakeber claims, and starts wading out with Tasha.
"Best to be safe." Tash walks out with Hakeber, then dives down with her to the other side.
On the other side are warm towels at least. "How'd it go?" Gabriel asks.
"Pretty well. We've got a lot to discuss later -- and have you ever wanted to try being a a big wolf, my big wolf?" Tasha snatches up Gabriel's hand and wraps herself around his arm. "A lot to talk about."