After a while I finally get up and I go to my room. As I lay on the bed I turn my head to see singer who had summoned herself yet again.
"What now?"
She tilts her head
"You should train making your ice reflective"
I sigh, I'm sure about one thing, that she can see the future, and most likely that means I'll be working with prince pretty closely. My dislike of him is mostly just that dislike, although I still fully intended to smash in his kneecaps for killing velvet. Other than that I dont really have that many issues with him. Still i have to make a few things as well.
After a few hours it finally finish a large chest, made of a tree fallen devil and the metal of a corrupted demon. I pick up the rather large chest and I go to sunny. I drop it and it lands heavily on the ground.
"Uh, that is definitely quite the chest."
I point to it
"This is what I want to be turned into my new storage memory"
He looks it over
"This will work pretty well"
I nod
"How many soul shards do you think you'll need"
He thinks for a bit doing mental calculations
"About 4, but 5 would be better"
I nod tossing out 5 transcendent soul shards from my satchel. I then sit down and I start trying to make a particularly reflective ice shard as sunny weaves.
"I'm done"
I look over at sunny who has a pretty prideful grin
"I think i did quite well for such a complex memory.... anyways is there any chance I could borrow that armor type memory you've got?"
I look down at my robe.
"Like to look at the weave...?"
He shakes his head
"Uh no, I want to make it a supreme memory"
I think for a while
"Uh I guess. If you break you then you'll have to make or get a new transcendent armor for me"
He nods and I transfer it over.
"Also what are you even doing?"
I shrug
"We'll be working with prince, so I'm making it reflective"
He gets a sour expression then he looks away studying my armor type memory. I then notice him get a slightly sad look in his eyes.
I'm woken up my sunny shaking me. He barely dodges a swing of the arm by me.
"Careful you idiot"
I sit up slowly rubbing my eyes. He takes my hand and gives me back my robe. I summon it and i lean back to go back to sleep. I go to look at the runes, I frown take sunny's hand and I transfer all of the useless memories to him. I don't having things I don't need. I then get up walking over to cassie and I gave her the stained glass cloak. She will need it and I have a new set anyways. I then walk back to where I was sleeping and I quickly fall asleep yet again.
I stare at the dead massive nightmare creature. A unsure look on my face. How odd, it really is. I sit tapping my fingers on the rails. We go past it but it stays in my mind. I'm not sure exactly why. I stay staring out at the water when I notice the tides slowing down slowly coming to a... stop. I push off the rails to neph
"Time is going to be stopped at twilight"
She glances over at me a curious look in her eyes
"Why is that?"
I point out at the water
"The water, its coming to a stop like in the eye of the storm. Wasn't twilight lost to time? It being stopped would explain that"
She gets clearly uncomfortable at the idea.
"That would make a lot of sense."
I glance out at the waters yet again. I'd best not get trapped in stopped time yet again.
I look at the shining piece of armor. I snicker, how am I not shocked. I then jump on down, I have to admit i probably look sick as hell, i mean with it forever being dawn, or is it dusk? And my firey wings it probably looks cool as hell. I land patting myself off. I lean on jet looking around with my halberd in a relaxed position. Suddenly everything flips. I look around holding my halberd in a relaxed way still. I turn my head with a disinterest look most likely.
"So what's the situation prince?"
He smiles
"Still yet to remember my name. My, oh my. Sunless... ■■■■… ladies… ah, I am so incredibly glad to see that you've been able to make it…"
I push off of jet and i walk up to him patting his shoulder. He blinks a few times very confused.
"Whats the situation dipshit"
I then fiddle with commanders authority, I'm not too interested, I've mostly figured out that times stopped. I just needed a excuse to make contact with him with commanders authority. Its the only way to use a ability thats not from a subordinate. Being able to go into reflections would help a ton with quite a few things.
"Aw it seems i was missed, in a way."
Sunny scowls at him with a aggressive tone
"Where are we?"
Prince keeps a polite smile
"Ah. This is… let's call it the Mirror Realm. Consider it an extension of my Ascended Ability. In a sense, it is."
I sigh
"Let me guess, soul stealer is here and this was him"
Prince blinks a few times
"That is correct and quite a good guess I must say, good job ■■■■"
I sigh heavily
"It seems the mad prince put each of us with our plague counterpart. Even me in some way as the unrelenting storm sent me a message. I'll assume you've had little time to plan being hunted by your corrupted counterpart, so kai is fine am I right?"
He finally stops smiling, its not cold in any real way just a little shocked
"Aw yes that is uh true. Time is stopped within this place so we'd best get a move on before soul stealer finds us. It is us, the visitors of the mirror realm, who are in danger. However, this is also the only place where we can talk… unless one of you is willing to surrender your body to me, of course."
I laugh
"I mean you could try frozen singer again, but I don't doubt she would fight back." He shivers for a second a look of slight panic that he smooths over just as fast
"No thank you. I'd rather not be a echo"
Bingo. Just the answer i was looking for, he's scared of frozen singer, most likely from trying to take her body within the night temple, ill have to get it out of him what he saw.
Effie appears in the mirror realm more then a little started. But its prince who's really confused. This time he's just staring at her as confused as can be
"Ascended Athena… uh… why… why are you…"
Effie looks at him a grin quickly appearing
"Pregnant? Well… you see, Your Highness… when a man and a woman love each other very much..."
Oh shit he's getting the sex talk
"So then the two get into bed"
I pipe up
"Oh and do remember, everyone is different, everyone has different things their into"
He then gets even more confused, he slowly looks from me to her
"Yes and do remember that consent is very important"
This is priceless! I can even see jet contemplating joining in
"I uh see. That… please accept my sincere congratulations... I guess? Congratulations! Ah, but we've already spent too much time here. It's time to leave."
We appear in... oh is this princes soul sea? I have to admit that was a little too fun. For someone always called a monster he is so corny, just the most corny person I've ever met. I slowly start trying to sneak off to take a good look around as prince talks with sunny.
"Oh and ■■■■ don't go wandering off please. I would like to keep everything here and not in that satchel of yours"
I scoff
"Its a... oh wait you actually got it right. And hey who said i was going to steal anything? And I have not stolen anything"
He tilts his head with that damn smile
"I suppose everything you took in the obsidian tower was not stolen"
I wave my hand looking away
"The original owner is dead, I was simply repossessing what was left."
I walk next to prince, nobody else wanted to. He's a jackass bug just some guy. He leans over
"You mentioned the plague version of you sent you a message"
I nod
"Well will only fight them when we get to the final act of this nightmare."
He nods
"But why exactly do you think that other version did not act?"
I sigh
"Well, what do you think makes me act. Its my care for others. Without that I have no doubt the plague version of me has no real interest in doing anything so its waiting for us to come to it"
He studies me with a smile
"Hm well that does sound like you. More importantly, you think it was the mad prince who caused this?"
I nod
"It was. Who else could have?"
He looks at the group behind us
"What about Cassia?"
I shake my head.
"No it wouldn't have been torment"
I already suspect that torment has long since fallen. I wont say it but my reasons are simple, cassie has never been the type to wait around. She would have freed the other Plagues, unless she was dead of course. That or, the last city controlled by humanity would have fallen to her.
The people their.... wrong... sunny speaks up about it
"You've been here for a long time. Don't these people seem a bit strange?"
Prince glances back at sunny
"How so"
I point to one of their faces
"There not a shred of fear. Even those who have seen the worst of the worst have fear when ripped apart. Now, the Plagues are versions of us with transcendent forms. Now let me hear a few guesses as to what princes is"
They all go silent neph is the one who breaks it
"Are you saying that there's a chance for quite a few people within this city to be soul stealer puppets?"
I nod
"Do you think a corrupted prince wouldn't do that?"
Prince shakes his head with a offended expression
"Of course I wouldn't. Controlling so many bodies would undoubtedly erode my sense of self"
I look at him
"Are you corrupted?"
We get to a plaza and prince grabs my arm. He looks back at the group, I turn as well, making eye contact with sunny
"Stay… absolutely… still."
Soul stealer. I sense a corruption so massive it must be a titan. So it is soul stealer. Thats when I see it and.... I had felt at best disturbed at undying slaughter, and I hadn't even wanted to look at what effies corrupted version looked like. But soul stealer.... God its worse then disturbing, not for looks but what it represents, each are our worst traits seemingly cranked up and made worse by corruption
So soul stealer seems the idea of prince abandoning everything about himself to gain enough power to kill his father. If that is the case... why is mine apathetic, wouldn't I be mad, forever angry. I hate, no loathe, apathy so why would i have become apathetic?
"I guess it's time for desperate measures. How unfortunate. It's up to you now, Sunless!"
Soon with the sound of glass breaking we are thrown out of the mirror realm.
I land in a roll
"Times unfrozen!"
I then feel heads turning towards me
"Fuck!"
I get up and with slowly spreading grins I'm attacked from all sides. Snow rips them apart as I summon flame. I jump on without waiting to put on the war platform and we are on the run. Figures appear and gunshots start up as we run. The awakened run, a few Ascended mixed in as well while the rest ride on either flame or 2 ice PTV's
"I hate being correct!"
I think about sending out my heat sense but in this situation it would likely overwhelm me quite a lot. I do pick up on one very very similar but just a little different from the rest close by.... oh prince! We sharply change directions going right for him. He's the most at risk out of us of all. I finally see a very familiar figure. I jump forward off of flame activating my wings, reducing drag and kicking off of sudden ice platforms suspended by snow storm. I land not far away from prince ice shooting out killing everything in the area.
"You!"
He looks at me then smiles
"Oh my friend I am glad yo-"
I pick him up
"Huh?"
and I throw the idiot onto flame. I then jump on myself and we get back to moving. I glance back at him a few times...
"New core"
He nods slightly. I pat him on the shoulder again this time slower and less sure. He glances around... oh. I make a shard of very reflective ice and soon he disappears.
I then find cassie whom I grab
"Cassie!"
I pull her up. I look at flame
"Cassie do i leave without neph?"
She turns her head towards me then at the city then she nods
"Yes."
Not sure what she's planning but.... I'll trust her. Flame grips the ground stopping for a second then it jumps. I reduce drag, while sometimes making platforms but it takes a lot of essence to keep flame airborne. I expand my heat sense with a flinch
"There!"
Very very quickly we leave the city. Maybe I can freeze the- a explosion goes off sending flame flying. I grab cassie putting her away from the explosion . What in the good lord did changing star do?!
I desummon flame curing around cassie. I active my wings and I try to slow us down I swing around just as I slam into the wall. I bonce a few times handing in a heap. I lay on the ground. I slowly reach down and... my leg is broken, no legs.
"■■■■?"
I laugh
"Not dead"
She crawls over to me
"Injuries?"
I wheeze
"Legs"
Her breathing seems to speed up for a few seconds
"I'm... I'm not fully okay but ill live..."
She grips my hand
"Dont worry i wasn't hurt because of soul stealer and I didnt even- oh god- see dread lord"
I put most of essence into commanders authority choosing a healing option i had picked out just in case, not neph's but Rangers. His worked better for me anyways and him being my subordinate it works better. I grip cassies hands tighter for a few seconds then I lay back down.
"Ow"
I put my hand on her shoulder and I use the rest of the extra to heal her as well.
I get up as it shakes i notice a locket in cassie's hands.
"Figured."
I couldn't find effie or jets heat signature so I figured they where put into the locket. I didn't know who had it but cassie seemed like the safe option.... where is quiet dancer? I slowly limp to where I sense them, then is that prince? Okay he's suddenly here rolling around. I reach it when I see, is that another.....? Oh shit its corrupting. I go to rush forward when quiet dancer and neph appears. I shiver looking at her, why? Why is something so wrong? What is so wrong and why? I... I can't tell.
I sit on ground next to prince. I can't look at her. Its... its almost as bad as soul stealer. Or when she came back from.... no. I have to distract myself!
"Don't I get healed?"
I slowly turn my head.
"Wait your turn"
I then slowly get up
"Prince"
He turns his head a forced smile on his face
"That was quite the save back ther.... why are you looking at me like that?"
I take out a long pipe of enchantmented metal i had taken from. What was left of sun prince.
"Aw man. Don't take this too personally but.... you get the point"
He shakes his head a frown crossing his face
"You don't have to"
I laugh dryly
"And you had no reason to kill scout. I've made a promise and unfortunately for you its to break your legs."
"Come on ■■■■ you don't have to"
I shake my head
"No I do"
I sit on the edge of the ship looking out. Not at the city falling under the waves but at the water. Kai slowly walks over to me
"Uh ■■■■"
I look back
"Let me guess, you want to ask about a ton of stuff"
He nods quickly
"Uh yes I do. What just happened?"
I lift my hands
"This is a river of time and its in a massive time loop. Last loop we got corrupted and killed neph. We went to where the past and future connect and we went to this loop. Only corrupted cassie and me are left."
He nods
"Then about the whole alien army thing?"
I put my hands down
"You know how the gods are dead? Turns out their dead bodies are the divine realms. One by one each civilization on each of the divine realms have fallen to the spell. What you saw was the last of the people of storm god. We are the people of war god and the last of humanity. Sooooo there's a lot of pressure on us"
Kai stares at me in part disbelief part... dread
"Don't tell anyone though"
Kai's face twists into confusion
"But that.... thats too important why shouldn't I tell anyone!"
I hop down make a thoat slitting motion
"Because the great clans know. And they want it hidden no matter what"