Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Comet sat, wide-eyed and staring off in the distance, a bright light consuming her face, a rumbling sound coming from afar. She felt a sudden hand on her shoulder, making her jump so violently she thought she leaped five feet into the air. She turned quickly, looking at who it was. “It’s time to go home, dear.” the mystery woman said. Butterscotch started to cower behind Comet’s legs. Butterscotch was a small rabbit that her father, Luke had given her for her tenth birthday, three years ago. “Home?” Comet said, confused. “What do you mean? Who even are you?” she asked. “Cordelia, I am your mother, Oceana. As you can see, where you lived with your father has been slightly… damaged. So, you will come to my kingdom to live until you’re ready.” Oceana explained. “‘Ready’? Ready for what?” Comet asked. “To live on your own when you’re older.” Oceana said matter-of-factly. Comet couldn’t seem to grasp the thought of moving out when she was only 13, she thought she might stay with her dad for as long as she could, but now that he’s gone… somewhere, her only choice is to stay with her mother for the time being. Comet nodded to tell Oceana she was ready to go with her and Oceana started leading her out of the lighthouse. Once they got to the front door, Oceana turned around and noticed Butterscotch was following them. “Oh, what is that-” Oceana exclaimed. “Oh, the rabbit? She’s my pet that my dad gave me three years ago.” Comet said. “...Must it come along?” Oceana asked. “Yes, she does.” Comet said firmly. “Very well, then. Just make sure she doesn’t get lost on the way.” Oceana said. Comet picked Butterscotch up and continued to follow Oceana, who got halfway into the water when Comet asked, “What are you doing?” Oceana stared back at her. “Going to Atlantice, my kingdom. The only way is to swim, fly, or use a boat to get there and I can't fly, unless you want to.” Oceana explained, looking at Comet’s wings. “It’s good practice.” Comet said, not wanting to get her feathers wet. She remembered how she face-planted into the sand when she tried to take off when she left for the lighthouse earlier and almost reconsidered.  As they traveled, Cordelia occasionally dipped down to the surface of the water to ask Oceana something, but the combination of the wind and the waves was too much for Oceana to hear her. Comet started getting more bored as time went on, when suddenly a large dark green wall started fading into view. It had a giant flag representing the kingdom flying in the wind against the wall. Comet landed on top of the wall, noticing there was an entryway to the palace. She went through the hallways and stairwells to wait in what Comet assumed to be a foyer. Oceana arrived in the palace soon after and had a surprised look on her face. “Well, I must say you’re quick.” Oceana said. Comet chuckled and got startled by a voice coming from seemingly nowhere.

“Your majesty, who is this… child?” Oceana turned to the voice and started introducing them. “Earwyn, this is my daughter, Cordelia. Leah, this is my advisor, Earwyn.” Oceana said. “Daughter…?” Earwyn said, sounding like he’s trying to cover up being crestfallen. Comet spoke up and said, “-But you can just call me Comet.” She laughed, nervously. “Well, now you two are introduced, I’ll leave you to it.” Oceana said, walking to her throne. Earwyn and Comet both followed Oceana with their gazes, then stared at each other. Comet looked up at him, expecting him to do something, but he just started to walk off. “Where are you going-” Comet asked. “To do my duties. I do more than advise, you know.” Earwyn answered. Can I go with you?” Comet asked. Earwyn paused, but Comet didn’t wait for an answer and went to catch up to him. They started to go to the top of the wall. Earwyn subconsciously started explaining what he does, droning on and on. They turned a corner and he finally noticed Butterscotch hopping alongside Comet. He jumped back, not expecting a pet to be in the palace. “Why is there a rabid in the palace…” Earwyn trailed off. “...You mean Rabbit?” Comet asked. “It was a gift from my dad three years ago. Honestly, I’m getting tired of having to explain this so much, what is it with fish people and not knowing about bunnies?” Comet explained, exasperated. “My apologies, your majesty.” Earwyn said. “You don’t have to call me that, please.” Comet said. Earwyn blinked at her and nodded in agreement, not wanting to argue. A few hours passed and Comet thanked Earwyn for showing her around. She walked back down to the foyer to see her mother still sitting regally on her throne in the throne room, looking deep in thought.

•••

Oceana sat on her throne, waiting, yet again. To pass the time, she decided to reminisce. She decided to think over and process what happened earlier on Luke’s Island; Oceana knocked on Luke’s door. He normally never kept her waiting, but this time he took a few, long minutes to finally let her in. He led her to the living area to sit down and wait while he got a few things. She figured he had a gift for her or something, perhaps checking on Cordelia. About 30 minutes passed and Oceana got bored. She stood up to walk around a bit. She found herself wandering to a specific side of the room where she normally stood when she and Luke would talk. She got a strange feeling of unease and decided to stop a few feet away from where she would’ve been. The room started to gain an uncomfortable silence, not even the sound of Luke rummaging around looking for something, not Cordelia and him talking, just an awkward silence. She started inspecting the room more closely to wait and noticed a slight shine on the floor. When she looked closer, she noticed there was a very thin but strong tripwire. She followed it to a small opening in the wall. She carefully moved the bricks that made up the walls and found a shocking amount of explosives. She started to hear Luke start to make rustling noises from the other room and Oceana quickly and meticulously put the bricks back the way they were. She carefully restrung the tripwire to where Luke would inevitably step after he read a small note Oceana would leave behind. She gathered herself, starting to regret what she was doing. She heard Luke start to walk back to check on her and quickly dashed out of the house to avoid being seen. She quickly started to swim back to Atlantice to get out of range of the explosion when she noticed a figure on the top floor of the lighthouse. For a brief moment, panic flooded through Oceana, her remembering the fact that Luke’s mother passed a long time ago. She gathered her thoughts and talked some sense into herself when she noticed the figure was more childish rather than the silhouette being that of an adult woman. She realized it must be Cordelia and she dashed to the lighthouse. She reached the door and was about to open it when a loud boom sounded from the island. Oceana stared at the door, tears welling in her eyes. She took a deep breath and opened the door. She rushed up all the stairs, dreadfully remembering just how many there were when she visited Deyanira before she died. She reached the top floor and saw Cordelia sitting on the floor, staring at the explosion cloud into the air, looking scared out of her mind. Oceana went up and gently touched Leah’s shoulder. She jumped violently and turned to see who startled her. Oceana, despite all that just happened, tried her best to have a calm tone. “It’s time to go home, dear.” 

The memory faded, Oceana coming back to reality. She noticed Cordelia walking up to her to ask her a question. “Um… mother? Where will I sleep?” Leah asked. Oceana blinked at her, still confused and slightly lost in her memories. “Oh, in the room just under this platform.” She answered, pointing in the rough direction of the door. Leah nodded in thanks and went to put her things away in her new room. She seemed to have the books she took with her from the lighthouse. Oceana noticed she had more books than she arrived with and figured she just took a quick trip back to Luke’s Island to salvage what she could. Oceana was surprised she was able to find that many research books that weren’t destroyed in the explosion. Oceana heard the bedroom door slam and relaxed back on her throne. She felt a small kick from the twins in her womb and chuckled. A few more hours passed, and Oceana decided to go up to her room to get some sleep, her mind still racing with memories of the past. 

Chapter Text

Comet was sitting in a corner of her twin siblings’ room, reading the notebooks and sketches she was able to gather from her father's safe room where he put all his books before the explosion. Butterscotch was sitting right beside her when her sisters Nixie and Kitsana came running through the door and all over the room. Nixie was chasing Kit for some reason that Comet couldn’t figure out from their squealing. It was the week after the twins’ fifth birthday. Kit seemed to be a normal sized child, but Nix was a little smaller, except for her features; Her wings were still coming in, but Comet knew they would come to weigh her down in the future. Her axolotl tail was dragging behind her, already a bit on the bigger side compared to Nixie. Her gills seemed to be one of the only things that was somewhat normal for the little girl. Kit went and dashed up on the couch, Nix following her. Kit was on the edge of the couch and Comet realized she would lose her balance soon. She rushed over just as Kitsana started to fall to the floor. Comet caught her in her arms, out of breath from running across the room so fast. Kit lay in her arms, her fox tail puffed out like a cat from fear. Kit started recovering from her scare and looked up at Comet. “Thanks, Leah.” Kit said, shakily. “Of course, don’t sisters look out for each other?” Comet said with a smile. Kit looked over at Nix, who was still staring from on top of the couch. “Can you let me down now?” Kit asked. “No, I can’t let you go.” Comet said, jokingly. “What do you mean? Just open your arms and put me down. Gently.” Kit finished as she realized Comet could take that literally. “It’s like you’re glued to my arms, you’re stuck. Besides, I wouldn’t want to let you go.” Comet said. Kit laughed as Comet started tickling her. The twins ran off again and Comet sighed, remembering that her father would do the same thing with her when she was five. Comet started walking to the city, noticing her mother on her throne. She wondered if Oceana was told of Kitsana’s fall by the twins or if she would have cared at all if Comet told her. As she walked through the city, she noticed people walking along the paths, seeming to avoid her. She saw a few children playing nearby. They waved at her, Comet returning the gesture, but the parents quickly told the children to go inside. Comet was confused, she wondered why these people seemed afraid of her. She went up to ask one of the guards that stood post at one of the entrances why this was. “Ever since your mother made changes around this place, the people haven’t been the same. They’ve become scared of the royal family.” one guard told her. She looked back to the people, noticing some of them were eavesdropping, and they quickly turned to walk back to wherever they were going. She walked back to the palace, starting to connect dots in her head. She always wondered if Oceana’s negligence to her own daughters was the only thing about her that was corrupt. She got to her room and noticed Butterscotch wasn’t anywhere to be found. She looked all over for her, asked everyone in the castle where her pet rabbit could have gone. Most of them just said they didn’t know there was a rabbit in the palace, the rest told her they didn’t know where it went. She finally asked her mother, who looked at her as if she was crazy for getting worked up over a bunny. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Leah.” Oceana said. “My pet rabbit, Butterscotch. The one dad gave me when I was ten?” Comet explained. “Just go sit in your room and read like you normally do. It’s undignified for a princess to have a pet, anyway.” Oceana told her. She went and sat on her bed, staring out into space. She questioned how a mother could be so insensitive to her children without being punished for it. She decided she needed to get out of Atlantice. Fly far away and make her home somewhere completely different to her mother’s kingdom. She wondered how she would escape and when. She could probably sneak out at night and fly far away from Atlantice. She decided she wanted to leave as soon as she could. She knew the best time to go would be at night, so she planned to leave then. She started to pack what she felt was needed as Nixie walked in and asked what she was doing. Comet stared at her for a second, thinking of an excuse. “I’m going away for a while.” She finally answered. Nixie blinked. “Why? Where are you going?” Nix asked. “I need to find a few things for what I’m working on. I can’t say what it is, since it’s a late surprise for you and Kitsana’s birthday.” Comet said, guilt starting to pile up in her mind. “Oh, okay!” Nix said, excited. She immediately went to tell Kit that Leah was going to bring back a surprise after a trip outside the kingdom, Comet hearing their excited laughter. She finished packing and hid it in a corner in case her mother were to come in suddenly. Comet spent the rest of the evening with her sisters, making sure to try remembering the things they do so she had happy memories instead of the one she would have if she just left without spending time with them. 

Comet was standing on top of the wall, her bag next to her feet, staring at the sunset on the horizon. She braced herself, slowly opening her wings. She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped out of surprise. “Comet, what are you doing?” said Earwyn, behind her. Comet turned to face him. “Getting out of this hellhole.” Comet said bluntly as she opened her wings to fly off again. Earwyn stopped her by holding on tightly to her shoulder and almost dragged her to the floor. “What are you doing?!” Comet shouted. “I can’t let you leave, Comet. Besides, why would you want to leave in the first place?” Earwyn said. “My mother is corrupting as we speak, she’s neglecting me and the twins, regardless that she’s letting one of them be next in line because I’m an Anderson and not a Miriam, and she killed my rabbit!” Comet said as she counted on her fingers as she listed the reasons why she needed to leave. Earwyn blinked at her in surprise. “I didn’t think Oceana would do such a thing to an innocent creature… However, even though you have your father’s name and aren’t allowed the throne when you’re ready, you can’t just leave the twins with Oceana if she’s as corrupt as you say.” he argued. Comet sighed and looked down to the ground. “Leah? What are you doing out here, so late in the day?” Oceana’s voice came from the entrance to the palace. “How did you know I was out here?” Comet said, confused. “You really thought I wouldn’t hear you two bickering?” Oceana asked. Comet felt stupid for not realizing that if she shouted at Earwyn it would catch someone’s attention. “You won’t have to hear our fighting anymore, anyway.” Comet said as she picked her things up again. Her wings flew open, and she lifted off before Earwyn could catch her again. She looked back and saw her mother running to the edge of the wall, careful to not fall off, with an angry expression on her face. Earwyn, standing right next to her, looking saddened to see Comet leaving. She turned back to look ahead of her and where she was going and felt a sense of freedom and relief.

She flew above the clouds and was amazed at how beautiful they were. She flew for a while, eventually coming across a giant, floating, abandoned kingdom, being seemingly suspended by the clouds themselves. She looked around for a while and decided this was where she wanted to stay. She found where people slept in the castle and fell asleep on the old, tattered covers.

•••

Oceana had already gone back inside after yelling at Earwyn for a few minutes for seemingly nothing. Earwyn stood, staring out to the sun disappearing behind the waves, as if willing Comet to return. Based on how she acted before she flew off, however, said that she wouldn’t want to come back. Earwyn sullenly walked back into the palace to see the twins. Even though Earwyn had only looked after Cordelia and the twins for 5 years, he still felt like a father to the three sisters. When he got to the twins’ room, they were fast asleep in their beds. He quietly closed the door and went to his own room where the servants stayed. He was about to close his door when he suddenly heard a young voice outside in the hall. He looked and saw that Nixie had followed him. “Dad, I have a question.” Nixie said. Earwyn crouched down to meet Nixie’s eyes. “What is it, princess?” Earwyn asked, still uneasy at the fact the twins called him “dad.” Nixie had a concerned, yet stern look. “How long will Leah be gone?” Nixie asked. “I don’t know, Nixie. She never told me her plan.” Earwyn answered her as he stood back up. He started to turn back to go to bed, but Nix suddenly asked, “She’s not going to get a late birthday present, is she?” Earwyn turned back to her, seeing her saddened expression. He knew immediately that she was starting to figure things out. Nix was young, but she was as smart as her mother. Earwyn sighed and slowly shook his head. “I’m sure she might visit, though.” Earwyn said to try calming Nix down, as he noticed her eyes starting to well with tears. He noticed a small amount of steam coming from the small tears that fell down her cheek. He pulled out a cloth and started to dry her face. “Dad, why do my tears hurt?” Nixie asked. Earwyn looked at her, thinking. “I don’t know, I presume you might find out later in life, however.” he answered. “All I know is your tears could scar your face permanently.” He said. Nixie gently grabbed the cloth from him and took it with her as she walked off and said “goodnight” to him. He said the same and closed his door to go to sleep. 

•••

Through the next year, Earwyn helped Nixie and Kitsana with the fact of Cordelia leaving. Leah’s disappearance didn’t have as much an effect on Kit. Even after the first 3 months, she was hopeful she would come back soon. After a while, it was visible to Nixie that the loss of their older sister was affecting Kit after all. Earwyn seemed to be more protective of Nixie than Kit, but he still showed his affection fairly, whereas with their mother, Oceana, she practically never talked to them. Whenever either of the twins made an achievement that Earwyn praised them for, which they showed Oceana afterwards, she seemed to brush them off, claiming she was too busy. One day, Kit asked Oceana if they could go to the beach to play. When their mother refused, Kit grew upset and told Earwyn. He sighed in disappointment and started towards the throne room. “Where are you going?” Nixie asked him. “To talk some sense into your mother.” He answered. The twins shared a look and started to catch up to him. With the twins trailing behind him, he stood in front of Oceana on her throne. “Your majesty,” Earwyn said to get her attention. She looked up at him with a confused look. “I feel it’s a bit smarter to spend time with your daughters, so that way if anything happens to you, they might be convinced to take your place.” he said, with a hint of sarcasm. Oceana’s expression turned to surprise at Earwyn’s tone towards her. Oceana got up and got a few things from her room and told the twins that she was ready to leave. Kit and Oceana started to walk off, but Nix looked back to Earwyn who had a smug face, proud he made the queen spend time with her daughters and not leave them to someone else. Nix smiled back at him, and she started to hop across scattered prismarine stepping stones that were installed so her and Kit could use them. Earwyn said they were specifically for Kit, since Foxes never liked water, as their mother explained to them in the past. Nix caught up to her mother and sister and continued with them. They got to the wall and climbed down a steep slope which the twins helped each other get down.  

They stayed at the beach for a few hours, the twins making sandcastles, with Oceana smiling at them. The twins went looking for shells, Kit giving Nix a basket to hold the things they found along the sand. Nix steered clear of the water, figuring that if her tears stung, so would the ocean. As Kit filled the basket with anything she found valuable or useful, Nix’s arms grew tired. To Nix, the basket seemed about half her size, even though Kit said it wasn’t when she complained about it. Kit ran over to a bottle in the sand to dig it up. Nix got distracted by seabirds flying overhead. Kit placed the bottle, still filled with damp sand, into the basket. Because Nix wasn’t paying attention enough to brace the basket so that it didn’t break, the weaving came loose and all of the things that Kit wanted to keep fell out through the bottom. Kit stared at the new pile of things and shells, then up to Nix with an upset look. Nix looked at her, watching Kit reach for a large scallop shell. “Kit, I’m sorry, I was distracted.” Nix apologized. “I told you to hold it. You had one simple job, Nixie.” Kit said angrily. “I said I was sorry!” Nix said with a look of fear and confusion as Kit started walking towards the water. “It doesn’t matter!” Kit shouted as she splashed ocean water at Nix’s face. Nixie tried to avoid the splash, the water catching the left side of her face and shoulder. Nix stood, staring down at the sand, steam starting to form from her face. Kit looked at her in shock and fear. She dropped the shell and ran back to their mother. Nix ran after her and they both started shouting to Oceana at the same time trying to explain what happened. Kit let Nixie explain and Oceana had a surprised expression. “You’re mostly Merling, what do you mean the water hurts?” Oceana asked, genuinely confused at the situation. “Go dry off, I’m sure it’s just a reaction to the salt of the water.” Oceana said. Kit gave an unseen look to Oceana which looked like she was trying to say “seriously? There is literal steam coming off of her face!” Nixie ran back to the palace to look for Earwyn. She couldn’t find him, and she figured he was going around the city.

She went back to her room and quickly pulled out the cloth Earwyn gave her. She quickly tried to dry her face off, not noticing the friction of vigorously rubbing her face would make things worse. Her face still stung afterwards as she looked in the mirror to see that her left eye was blinded. She lay down to make her head stop spinning with panic as she tried to fall asleep. She closed her eyes and heard her sister walk in. She heard Kit say “Oh, Nix, I never meant to hurt you…” as she drifted off to sleep. 

Chapter Text

Kitsana was slowly starting to wake up from a long night of nightmares of the previous day when she heard the door open. She drowsily opened her eyes to see who it was. She saw it was Earwyn and sat up. “Good morning, Kitsana.” he said, gently. “Good morning.” Kit said through a yawn. “Is your sister awake?” he asked. Kit looked over to Nixie. “Nope. Doesn’t look like it.” she said sarcastically. Earwyn went over to wake up Nix. She mumbled incoherently as if to say she didn’t want to get up. She turned over to reveal to Earwyn her scar from the water. His face lit up with shock as he started panicking. Nixie startled awake when he did this and winced when her sudden change of expression made her scar sting a little. “Princess, what happened?” Earwyn asked her. She stayed silent, seemingly debating what to say. She looked over to Kit, who thought Nix was about to tell Earwyn what actually happened. “I did it.” Kit said, quickly. “I tripped.” Nix said at the same time. The twins looked at each other in surprise. Earwyn blinked at them in confusion. “What actually happened?” Earwyn asked them. Nix nodded to Kit, signaling she could tell the truth. “I got wrongly upset over something Nix did and I threw ocean water at her face, not knowing what would happen. I’m sorry.” she finished as she looked at Nixie, apologizing to her. “I’m glad you told the truth, Kitsana. Come, let’s see what we can do to help.” Earwyn said. He and Nixie walked off, Kit following behind them. They went down into the armory to the medical table and Earwyn told them both to sit down, gesturing to a couple chairs. He reached for a cabinet which had a leafy plant stored. The inside was gel-like, almost gooey. “This is aloe, it’ll help with the sting.” Earwyn explained as he helped Nixie apply it to the scarred area. “Thanks, it burns a little less now.” Nix said. 

•••

Four years later, Earwyn was showing the twins how to look over the city from on top of the wall, since Nixie couldn’t touch the water and Kitsana didn’t like to swim. Nixie was asking all the questions while Kit was trying to keep her away from the edge, even though Nixie was perfectly capable of being safe. Kit insisted they go back inside, looking like she was unimaginably paranoid. “We should probably head back, before Kit loses her head.” Nixie laughed. Earwyn chuckled and led them back inside. They were stopped just inside the entrance by Oceana, who had a very angry expression. “Your majesty-” Earwyn started. “What do you think you’re doing?” Oceana cut him off. “What do you mean? I’m showing them how to watch over the city-” Earwyn tried explaining. “With Nixie able to accidentally fall off at any moment?” Oceana started to yell. “Mother, you know I could just fly if I did?” Nixie said. “And who do you think taught you to fly? No one, your sister ran away before your wings grew enough to start practicing!” Oceana argued back. “Hate to burst in here, but I’ve been learning to fly on my own-” Kitsana defended. “How? No one is there to help you, or to tell you what you’re doing wrong.” Oceana said. “I’ll know what I’m doing right if I lift off the ground.” Kitsana said, sarcastically. Oceana had a shocked expression at Kitsana talking back to her. “Just go stay in your room.” Oceana said. It seemed as if that was all Oceana could say. Kitsana and Nixie went off to their room, Earwyn trying to follow them, but Oceana stopped him and started shouting at him. 

•••

Nixie and Kitsana went to their room, Kit shutting the door behind them. A moment of silence flooded through the room. “This wouldn’t have happened if you had never splashed me.” Nixie said. “What, you think this is my fault? You’re the one who let the basket break.” Kit shot back. “I was distracted-” Nix started. “-by a bird. Why are you even bringing this up, After four years? Why are you yelling at me and blaming me now?” Kit asked. “Because our mother hasn’t yelled about it until now.” Nix said. “She was taking it out on Earwyn for bringing us on top of the wall in the first place.” Kit explained. “Why would she be angry at dad?” Nixie asked. “Because he isn’t our dad.” Kit said. There was a pause between them. “What do you mean he’s not our dad?” Nixie asked. “Look at it logically, we have wings, I have a fox tail, you have an allergy to water or something, as well as purple-black tips on your hands, feet, and tail. I’m questioning how Oceana is even our mother with how she treats us.” Kit said. “That makes no sense, though. Why would Earwyn call Oceana our mother if she weren’t?” Nixie asked. “That’s what’s keeping me from believing she isn’t.” Kit said.  

They heard a knock on the door and saw Earwyn walk in with a sullen expression. Kit stared at him for a second. “Were you eavesdropping?” she asked. Earwyn had a surprised expression, then something like trying to cover his emotions up. “You have no proof that I was, nor wasn’t.” he said. Nixie glared at him behind Kit. “You were eavesdropping.” Nix said. “Yeah, I was eavesdropping…” Earwyn said at the same time. The twins shared a look, silently agreeing that Earwyn would do pretty much anything if Nixie looked so much as disappointed in him. “I didn’t want you two to find out this way.” Earwyn said. “Were you planning on telling us or leaving our mom to explain it to us herself?” Kit asked. “I told myself I wouldn’t get too attached to you two. Oceana only told me to be a role model for you while she took care of the kingdom.” Earwyn explained. “If you’re only supposed to be our role model, why do you act so much like our dad?” Kit asked. There was an awkward pause, Earwyn thinking of what to say.

“Your mother used to be a sweet girl, before everything that’s happened before you two were born. The only family she had was killed, leaving her to take the throne at a very young age compared to the rest of the Miriam family. After she claimed her power, she’s not been the same. I hate to say it, but I have to admit she’s been a bit intimidating recently. She’s become unpredictable. I used to be able to understand her as if she were myself, now I take a guess and it’s always something completely different behind her eyes.” Earwyn explained. Nixie stood, fidgeting with the hem of her dress, which went down to her knees.

“You really think our mother is intimidating?” Kit said, skeptical. “Yes, she’s made her power very known to the kingdom.” Earwyn said. “Like what?” Nixie asked. Earwyn hesitated, having an uncomfortable expression. “I fear Oceana might reveal that when you’re older.” Earwyn said, quietly. “I think he’s just over exaggerating. He’s probably just trying to scare us. Either that, or he’s being a coward.” Kit said, rolling her eyes. Kit noticed Nixie was starting to relax after what Kit had said. That was her goal; to put Nix at ease to not be terrified of their mother. Nix caught Kit staring at her and smiled. Kit returned the smile as Earwyn walked out, seeming nervous.

          Eight years later, tension between the twins grew, so much to the point that the only time they stay in the same room with each other is if it’s necessary. Whenever they did talk, it almost always ended in an argument having to be stopped by Earwyn, preventing it becoming an all-out brawl. One day, Kit was sitting in the dining hall, trying to think of something to do. She wandered through the castle, aimlessly. She noticed her mother on her throne, brushing off the servants that needed her help. “A helping and supplying kingdom.” Kit scoffed under her breath. She went to tell Nixie, who was in their room. As she passed the throne, Oceana noticed her. Kit gave her a glare and went into her room to find Nixie reading. Predictable… Kit thought. Nix looked up at her, looking surprised that Kit is coming in to talk to her on purpose. “Nix, I think we need to get out of here.” Kit said, calmly. “Why? I think it’s fine here.” Nix said. “No, it’s not. Our mother isn’t the ruler Earwyn claims her to be.” Kit said. “What do you mean?” Nix asked, confused. “Oceana doesn’t help the other servants unless Earwyn is around. I’ve also noticed from on top of the walls that the people look miserable.” Kit explained. “I never noticed,” Nix said. “Besides, you’re probably misunderstanding what you see.” Nixie said, hopeful. “How are you so blind?” Kit burst out. Nix looked at her, hurt. Kit remembered her blinded eye from the scar. “I didn’t mean- I’m sorry, I meant to how terrible our mother is.” Kit apologized. Nix looked down and sighed. “It’s fine. I’m sure if you go up and ask our mother, she’ll say she loves us equally. Sure, she's been a little protective over me ever since… you know…” Nix said, indicating her scar. “But that’s only because she learned I had this… allergy to water or something.” Nix finished. Kit rolled her eyes. “Fine, come with me and let’s test your theory. Even though she might say she loves us, it’s a lie.” Kit said as she followed Nixie out.  

They caught one of the servants walking away from Oceana, sullen. Nixie went up the stairs, Oceana noticing her. “Mother, Kit and I were wondering…” Nix started, pausing, wondering how to say it. “Do you actually love us?” Kit cut her off. Oceana blinked in surprise. “Of course, I wouldn’t be protecting Nixie from water if I didn’t.” Oceana said in a sweet tone, drastically different than how Kit heard her earlier. “See? I told you.” Nix said, turning to face Kit. She noticed Oceana was looking at her behind Nix. She shot her a glare once Nix turned back to thank their mother. Nix walked back to their room, Kit pausing to catch Oceana glaring back at her. Kit followed Nixie back to their room. “If you’re not going to heed my warning, I’ll just leave without you.” Kit said as she started gathering her things.

The twins were startled when Earwyn tripped and fell into view, not noticing the door wasn’t closed completely. “Earwyn?” Nixie asked. He looked up with a guilty face. “That’s it, I’m done with this place, everyone is too intrusive and always lies here.” Kit said as she quickly started packing the rest of her things. “Wait, don’t leave!” Earwyn said as he caught her before she walked out. “Why?!” Kit yelled. “I can’t lose you too.” Earwyn said. “Well, too bad, because I’m leaving!” Kit shouted. She felt Oceana staring after her as she stormed off, Earwyn chasing after her. They got to the top of the wall and, before Earwyn could catch up, Kit took off. Kit didn’t even look back, but she knew Earwyn was staring after her. She somehow caught the sound of someone running up beside him through the sound of the wind against her ears. She decided they must have been Nixie, but she still kept her gaze ahead. She flew for quite a while, finally coming across a mountain range that she could build a place to stay. 

Chapter Text

About a year after her twin sister had run away from home, Nixie sat alone in what used to be the room she shared with her two siblings. Nixie was staring at a wall, lost in thought. She remembered what Kit had said before she stormed out, “Everyone is too intrusive and always lies here.” That was the part that troubled Nixie. The fact that Kit said everyone was dishonest. She started to debate in her mind if Atlantice was truly as terrible as Kit made it out to be. She decided to go up to the wall to observe the city and went out of her room. She noticed Oceana on her throne, talking to Earwyn with a stern expression, Earwyn looking tired and like he wanted to walk away from the situation.

Nix was staring out to the sunset-painted clouds when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She calmly looked over to see Earwyn standing behind her. “What was mother yelling at you for now?” Nixie asked sarcastically. “I can never tell anymore, if I’m honest.” Earwyn responded. “What’s been on your mind, princess?” he asked. Nixie sighed. “I’m thinking of following my sisters’ ideas and get away from this kingdom.” she explained. Earwyn looked taken aback by her response. “Princess, are you sure you want to run away?” Earwyn said, slightly distressed. “Leah and Kit must have left for a reason, right? While I’m not as strongly opinionated in the matter, Oceana does seem… different from how you described her when she was my age.” Nixie said. Earwyn stood, thinking. He looked back to the palace, seeming to debate on Nixie’s words. He looked back at her, thoughtful. “Perhaps you’re right, Nixie.” Earwyn said after a moment. Nixie looked at him, slightly confused as to why he’s considering helping her, after how hard he tried to convince Leah and Kit to stay. “Do you have your things together?” Earwyn asked. “No, I don’t. I don’t know where to begin with what I need.” Nixie said, truthfully. “I can help you. If you wish to leave your mother a letter good-bye or tell her face-to-face, you can do that while I pack for you. Nixie nodded and they went inside. Nixie rummaged through her things to find a notebook she could write in. She found a pencil and thought for a moment, considering what she could say.

Dear mother,

While I will miss you dearly, I have to follow in my sister’s footsteps and find my place in the world outside of Atlantice. I plan to write back frequently, and I hope you do the same. I am truly sorry I must leave you without an heir to the throne, but I simply can’t live here in the conditions you’ve created.

Your youngest daughter, Nixie

She read over her words and, satisfied, tore out the page from the notebook and left it pinned to the outside of her door. Earwyn announced that he was done and gave Nixie her things. By the time they walked out, Oceana had already gone to bed. They quietly went up to the wall, saying their goodbyes. Nixie tried to take off but ended up losing her balance and crashed into the rim of the wall. She got her bearings again and clumsily took flight. She waved back to Earwyn who returned the wave and went on to find a place to stay.

She flew into the night until she saw the shine of the sunrise on the horizon. She came across a towering building she assumed to be a Lighthouse and landed at the top where the lamp was. The entire place was ruined, almost all the glass around the bulb and the glass walls were shattered. She turned around and noticed a small island in the distance. She flew up closer and noticed it was completely destroyed as well, almost as if it was an explosion site. She landed and looked around. It seemed to be some sort of lab by the look of it. She found something that resembled a picture frame with a scorched picture, only silhouettes were able to be distinguished. It looked like it was a picture of a young man with a daughter, but Nixie wasn’t completely sure. Suddenly, Nixie’s head seemed to pound with sharp pain. She started to see images in her mind. She saw a man who looked like he was Elytrian and Fox with dark hands and talons. Directly after, her vision clouded with overwhelmingly bright light followed by thick smoke. She saw a figure which resembled a Merling fade in and out of view, but Nixie unable to make out any defining features.

She snapped back to reality, gasping as if she forgot how to breathe. She looked around at the ruins, questioning if that was a vision of what happened to the island. She backed away and took off to fly closer to Mainland. She saw a Sunflower field surrounded by a savanna on one side and a swamp on the other, separating the field and a mountain range. Within the field, she saw a quaint, abandoned village. She explored a bit, finding an old, tattered banner she assumed to be the representative flag of the village. It was a vibrant flower design decorated with green and teal vines on a black backdrop. She explored a bit more, keeping the banner with her. She came across a tower filled with bookshelves with a spiraling staircase up to the top. She set her things down on a nearby desk and started examining the books. The shelves were covered with a thick layer of dust. She picked up a deep purple book labeled Study of Panthera’s Creatures. She dusted off the cover of the book, blowing to get the rest of it off. The dust created a cloud which irritated Nixie’s nose, making her sneeze. She accidentally dropped the book and quickly raced to catch it before it hit the ground. She landed, book in hand, her heart racing. She flipped through pages, stopping at different pages labeled “Merling,” “Elytrian,” and “Enderian,” which showed a sketch of a person who had similar qualities of Nixie and the man she saw in her vision earlier, having black-tipped hands, feet, pointed ears and a slim tail with a black puff of fur similar to a lion’s tail at the tip. She read the description and saw that Enderians had severe allergies to water and often roamed in the dimension called the End. She put the book back on the shelf that she found it on and looked back to the flag she picked up. She decided she was going to stay there, so it needed a name. She thought long and hard for a moment before finally coming up with a name, “Earthlands.” She set up her place to sleep and continued to explore the village that she would be watching over from then on. 

•••

Meanwhile, back in Atlantice, Earwyn was pondering Nixie’s words. Maybe there really was a reason the princesses ran away… he thought to himself. He remembered back to how Oceana was before she claimed power. Now it seems she yells at me to pass the time. No doubt when she finds out she’ll yell at me even more somehow- his thoughts were cut off by Oceana shouting behind him. “Earwyn! Explain why Nixie left this on her door.” Oceana said sternly, holding the note up. Earwyn noticed Oceana was getting ready to read it aloud, but he stopped her. “Nixie wanted to leave, so I let her.” Earwyn explained. “Why would my daughter want to leave?!” Oceana yelled in confusion. “They all seem to be leaving for the same reason...” Earwyn trailed off. Oceana gave him an expectant look. “And that is…?” she said impatiently. Earwyn paused, as if backed into a mental corner. He wondered what the best way would be to say that Oceana was the problem. Oceana slowly started walking up to Earwyn, trying to make herself intimidating, even though she was about three inches shorter than him. Regardless, Oceana’s power was what gave her intimidation. Earwyn was forced to speak due to what she could do to him. “Your daughters believe that you’re… corrupt.” Earwyn said, carefully, blaming the sisters because Oceana couldn’t do anything to them now that they’re gone. Oceana looked at him, Earwyn unable to decide what her emotions were in that moment. She inhaled slowly and looked down, not moving her head. “What do you mean ‘Corrupt’?” Oceana said quietly. Earwyn stuttered, unable to find words. Oceana got impatient. “What do you mean by ‘Corrupt,’ Earwyn?” Oceana said, starting to laugh. Earwyn had a feeling of pure, unbridled fear run down his spine as her laughter slowly increased to something only someone who had gone insane could muster. “Your majesty...?” Earwyn started, carefully. Oceana sighed and looked at Earwyn, looking joyful for a moment, even though Earwyn knew that wasn’t what she felt. “All I meant is… I’ve been raising the twins for their entire lives and Cordelia since she was thirteen. They feel like your negligence is part of your corruption. A couple of them also mentioned how you don’t find time for your people in general.” Earwyn explained, monitoring her expressions to see whether he should stop talking or not. “I just have better things to do whenever people ask something of me.” Oceana said. Earwyn suddenly felt a burst of defiance to stand up to her. “You mean you’re always counting gold or something?” Earwyn said bluntly. “Or just enjoying your time on the throne? I’m surprised someone hasn’t gone up to kick you off of it, because it wouldn’t be much of a fight if I’m being honest.” Earwyn explained, backing up as Oceana advanced. Oceana looked as if she wanted to kill Earwyn on the spot. He took that at a sign and dove into the water. His skin stung a bit from how high he had jumped. Once the bubbles cleared, he could see Oceana just leaning over the edge in a rage. He swam to the bottom and people started asking questions. “We have to get out of this kingdom.” Earwyn told them. Some of them nodded and went to tell other people who weren’t in the town square. As people discreetly passed the word from one person to the next, Earwyn got to making a plan. One citizen went up to Earwyn with a frightened expression. “Earwyn, what happens when we don’t have Oceana to rule wherever we run?” they said. “We’ll figure that out once everyone has settled down.” Earwyn said. People started crowding trying to ask questions about how this change in their monarchy would affect the city. Earwyn kept trying to tell them not to form a crowd so Oceana wouldn’t notice what they were doing, but he knew she might have already figured it out. Everyone started gathering near the bell in the Square with their carry-able belongings preparing to leave. As Earwyn was making a head-check for whoever was going to leave, he heard Oceana start whispering in his ear behind him. “What do you think you’re doing?” she said with an eerily calm tone. Earwyn pivoted around with a startled expression. “Oceana! I didn’t- why are you here?” he said, trying to stay calm as well. “You’re not planning to leave my kingdom, are you?” she said as her eyes scanned the crowd. Earwyn looked around as well, noticing some people were inching toward the entrance which had been made taller to open above the water's surface because of Oceana’s Elytrian children. It also made it easier for people who were coming in by boat. Earwyn looked back to Oceana and noticed archers lining up behind her. The queen had a mischievous and conniving smirk on her face as the archers prepared to launch the tridents they had through the water. Earwyn was examining Oceana’s expression closely and noticed her head tilt up almost unnoticeably. Earwyn immediately knew what this meant and shouted to everyone to scatter. They all quickly gathered what they could and attempted to evade the open fire. Everyone started flooding out the entrance to the city, some getting caught by tridents that were enchanted with a loyalty magic, making it so that when a trident hit its target, it immediately returned to the one who threw it. This made for a very deadly attack, since the target bleeds out faster when the trident lodges itself very violently out from their body. This, fortunately, didn’t happen to very many of the Atlanteans, only about fifteen out of about one-hundred were lost. Eventually, those who remained of the people escaped and swam for who knows how long off to the south, left of Atlantice.

Earwyn was filed up to the front to lead where the crowd went. They eventually stopped at a large destroyed underwater civilization able to hold more than enough people that were fleeing from Atlantice, allowing for them to expand if needed.

       Over the next week, people decided to elect Earwyn as their leader. He promised to make sure to keep their new town safe and hidden from anyone who might pose a threat to their lives, even if it meant closing them off from the world yet again.

Chapter Text

Two years after Kitsana founded Alpines, she had a little girl named Nightingale. Gale was a very helpful child, when she was old enough. When she was born, Kit thought Gale was only a Merling. Once she was around nine years old, her wings started being visible, making it clear that she was also an Elytrian. While she was helpful, her favorite thing to do was explore outside Alpines. One day, while Gale was running around, playing with other kids, Kitsana pulled her aside to give her something to symbolize their relation as mother and daughter. She made Gale close her eyes and hold out her hands. She felt something a little heavy droop her arms down at the unexpected feeling. She opened her eyes and saw a simple, yet shiny golden chain belt. It was about as thick as Gale’s thumb, but it was pretty all the same. “I love it!” Gale exclaimed. “But… what does this have to do with how I’m your child?” Gale asked. Kit looked around to see if anyone was listening. “Don’t tell anyone I said this, but this is… similar to how my mother gave me these ear cuffs.” Kit said reluctantly, pulling her hair up to show her ear. After Gale saw it, Kit quickly fixed her hair to conceal it again. Gale smiled excitedly and put the belt on over her soft, sage-green dress. It drooped to one side of her hip as she tightened it, the excess hanging down. She ran to hug her mother as thanks and ran off. 

         A few months later, Gale was exploring near the cliffs of Alpines when she heard a faint whimpering coming from a bush nearby. She parted the leaves to find a tiny, scruffy wolf pup curled up into a ball with its ears folded back in fear. Gale heard a low growl behind her and slowly looked over her shoulder. There stood a wolf, about twice as big as Gale herself, almost foaming at the mouth with anger. She thought this might be the pup’s mother, but quickly realized it wasn’t, based on how it was acting around the large wolf. The pup ran and cradled itself into Gale’s arms, only making the situation worse. The wolf lunged, ready to pounce on Gale. She fled, trying to use her wings to propel her forward, but only slowing her down. Kitsana had only taught Gale how to fly recently, so she was doing a pathetic job of lifting off into the sky. Gale found herself cornered at the base of a cliff, the wolf prowling around her.

Gale closed her eyes, ready for the end, when she heard a loud yelp of pain and rapid sprinting to get away from Gale’s mother who now stood, imposingly in front of Gale, her back turned. Kit faced Gale with a stern yet worried look. “Gale, are you alright? What happened?” Kit said, frantically. All Gale could do was slowly nod her head, silently saying “yes”. Kit reached for Gale’s hand, Gale taking it. Kit finally noticed the wolf pup in Gale’s arms and put on an angry expression. “What are you doing with a wolf pup?! No wonder you got attacked!” Kit yelled. “That wolf wasn’t her mom, it was a different member of a pack or something, the pup was completely terrified of it.” Gale said, desperately. “How do you know it’s a girl?” Kit asked, skeptically. “I just… know.” Gale said, smiling. “Come on, let’s get you… both of you… home.” Kit said, eyeing the pup. Gale scrambled up, trying not to squish the pup while doing so, and followed Kit home. 

           Over the next few days, Kitsana and Gale cared for the pup, cleaning it and feeding it. “So, what are you going to name it?” Kit asked. Gale paused for a second, thinking. “What about Sally?” Gale’s eyes lit up. Kit stared at her in confusion. “...Sally…?” Kit said.  “That’s the best you could come up with?” Kit sighed in disappointment. “Well, what were you thinking of? It better not be anything silly like “Fluffy” or something.” Gale said as Kit took a breath to speak. Kit let her breath escape as she gave Gale a glare. “I think something like Anna would be better-” Kit said, cutting herself off. “Never mind, that’s a bad idea.” Kit said, looking angry at herself. Gale gave her a confused look but decided not to pry. Gale smiled down at the pup, walking home. She found a bracelet that matched her belt that Kit gave her, and used it as a collar for the pup, whose name Gale decided would be Sally after all. She got ready for bed that night, Sally following her everywhere she could. Gale crawled into bed, pulling the covers over her head. Once she was settled, Sally hopped up and curled up between Gale and her arm. Gale pet Sally a few times, falling asleep as she did so. 

•••

After three years had passed since Nixie discovered Earthlands and repaired it, she decided she wanted someone to carry on watching over Earthlands. She had a daughter named Harpy. Nixie knew right away when she was born that she was going to be an Elytrian, since Nixie had studied her books thoroughly. Harpy grew up to charm the entire village, though she was a bit clumsy. Whatever Nixie did, Harpy would follow her wherever she went, except for her mines and when Nixie told her to stay in her house. When she was eight, she spent her time inside sewing and making clothes for herself. She was very skilled at this hobby, she even made things for her mother. 

          One day, while Nixie was out in her mines, Harpy decided to explore Earthlands. She walked out of her house, which was small; just enough for Harpy to live there but be able to make her own food eventually, even though Nixie was the one who cooked for her at that time. The house was nestled with the farmhouses, which held the livestock the butcher and farmers used. She said “hello” to some chickens that were wandering and went along. She puzzled her way through the elaborate mazes of walls that her mother built to better protect the villagers of Earthlands. She passed her mother’s tower, which she spent most of her time in. She didn’t allow Harpy to enter it, nor did she let anyone go in. Harpy was always curious about why this was, she could only see books through the windows. She wondered what could be so special about them that Nixie had to lock them up and keep other people from seeing them. Her thoughts wandered as she walked back to her house. Before she opened the door, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to find Nixie behind her with a smile. “Hello, Harpy. Are you doing, okay? You seem distracted.” Nixie asked. “I’m fine, I was just thinking.” Harpy responded, returning the smile. “I have a gift for you.” Nixie said, Harpy noticed her hands were behind her back. She tried to see what it was, but quickly gave up. Nixie revealed it and held it out for Harpy to see. It was a simple headband made out of pearls. Harpy excitedly snatched it out of her mother’s hands and put it on. It almost fit perfectly, though it was a bit big. No one would be able to notice, it seemed. She hugged her mother out of happiness to get something meaningful from her. “Okay, I get it, Harpy, you’re happy. Please stop suffocating me-” Nixie said, rushed. Harpy quickly let go of her as Nixie let out a sigh of relief. “Alright, Now I have to deal with a couple more things, don’t get into trouble while I’m gone, that will only add to my task list, okay?” Nixie said. Harpy vigorously nodded and watched Nixie leave. 

          Soon after, Harpy’s headband slowly drooped over her forehead. She noticed and fixed it as she went back inside. She got to her bedroom and sat down at her vanity. She opened a side compartment and made space for her new headband. She inspected the large pearls, the largest ones about half the size of her hand. The pearls got smaller in size as they reached the edges of the headband, being about as big as her pinky nail. They were all white and shiny, looking as if they had just been pulled out of the water directly before being made into this accessory. “That’s probably what happened…” Harpy mumbled under her breath. She placed the headband into the drawer and carefully closed it. She looked out her window and noticed the sun was already setting. Had she spent that long out in the village? She got ready for bed and fell asleep once her head hit the pillow. 

Chapter Text

Nixie finished up her chores around the village and decided to check on Harpy. She quietly opened her door and silently entered her bedroom. She saw her daughter peacefully sleeping, smiling. Nixie couldn’t help but smile as well and left Harpy to sleep. She remembered she had to check her storage house to see if they needed anything. She entered the storage house and was again stunned at how many chests of things there were. She felt like she would never get used to it, but at least it was tidy and organized. She scanned the shelves for the names of materials they might need and stopped at “Mining Supplies.” She looked through the chest, seeing it was barren. It was as if there were nothing but spider webs spun in it, even though it seemed clean, other than the dust from the ores. She gathered her tools and set out. She got stopped by a very curious Harpy who asked where she was going today. “I need to gather more iron and things. I’ll be back later, okay?” Nixie said as Harpy aggressively nodded her head, making her headband that she was wearing fall down over her eyes. She very clumsily put it back up and smiled at her mother and ran off. Nixie started navigating her maze of bridges and staircases down into a ravine which she used as her mines. She didn’t even get halfway down when she noticed a faint, warm glow, almost as if it was from a fire coming from an opening near the top of the ravine. It was a spot where the earth started forming a sort of ceiling for the caves and this small opening was halfway toward the back of the ravine. Nixie decided to check it out, opening her wings to carefully fly through vines that hung from where the caves were exposed to the sky. She landed on the ledge that protruded from where the opening Nixie was looking at, which turned out to be a small cave. She debated taking a swing at the stone to get in but thought against it. If she tried to make the opening larger for her to get through, the stone ceiling was sure to collapse. She was about to turn away to go back to her mines when a small glimmer shone in the corner of her eye. She looked back and noticed there were golden yellow, reptilian eyes meeting her own. These eyes were owned by a humanoid silhouette that had bat-like wings and a barbed lizard tail dragging behind this person. 

Suddenly, Nixie’s foot had slipped, and she started falling. It all happened so fast, but Nixie saw an arrow had pierced the stone beneath where she was standing, causing her standing surface to crack and crumble. She tumbled down and down, trying to right herself with her wings midair. She made a splash into water that was at the bottom. She had her eyes squinted shut, so as to not get water in them. She felt a very warm heat near her head, and she looked up. Lava was inches from where she lay. She quickly but carefully scrambled up, trying not to slip on the sleek obsidian that formed when the water came in contact with the surface of the lava. She made it to dry stone and saw something shine at the edge of her vision again. This time, instead of golden eyes, it was a blue-tinted ore, lodged into the stone: Diamonds. Nixie’s heart leapt with joy as she unslung her pickaxe and prepared to swing at the stone around the diamonds. One by one, each gem was freed and dropped to the ground. She picked them up as they fell and put them in the satchel, which she had brought with her to carry what she found. She mined around to see if she missed any when suddenly her pickaxe gave way to an open space. She looked through the hole she made and saw that there was a room on the other side of the stone she was mining. Not only that, but it was also made from stone brick. She mined the hole to an opening she could walk through. She struggled her wings through the hole and finally popped out the other side, which she noticed it wasn’t just a room, it was a series of elaborate hallways. Her senses flooded with the smell of old pages and looked to her right. There was a point where the room turned to wood, and it opened up to a grand library filled with books.

She started looking through the shelves to see if there was anything useful. She got so focused on the books that she stumbled right into a spider web. She freaked out, fighting with the web to get it off her face. After her struggle, she came face-to-face with another shelf with similar covers. Probably because they cover similar things, the authors aren’t the same… Nixie thought to herself. She scanned the spines of the books and noticed one of them had a pale lavender color. One of the more vibrant of the books in the entire library. The title was faded, too much for her to see what it was about, but the author title read “L_ke _nde_s_n.” She couldn’t recognize the author off the top of her head because a few letters were missing, but she was sure that if this was underneath Earthlands then a few books by this person must be in her tower. She carefully took the book off the shelf and opened it to a random page. She started scanning over what she could see in the dim light and noticed a few things mentioned. “Floating islands?” Nixie muttered out loud.

She heard a hissing noise from another room and quickly put the book into her bag. Nixie carefully navigated the halls, trying to find where the hissing was coming from. The sound seemed oddly familiar, but she didn’t know why. She turned a corner and suddenly realized why. She had entered a room that was lit by troughs of lava. A small staircase that led seemingly nowhere sat in the middle of the room. She noticed a few wiggling, silvery, spikey bugs in the corners of the room, a ton more flooding out of a nest that was sitting comfortably in the middle of the staircase, seeming lodged but meant to be there. “Silverfish...” Nixie muttered under her breath, dreadfully. A bunch of them seemed to notice her and started scuttling towards her. She quickly unsheathed her sword, which was attached to her belt and sat on her left hip. She fought the silverfish, one by one, until she could get to the nest and destroy it with her pickaxe. She finished the rest off, which were running around aimlessly. She looked around, looking for more that might have been nestling in the cracks of the walls when she noticed one of them was sneakily crawling up her leg. She frantically turned in a circle multiple times, trying to get it off. It finally got flung away, Nixie kicking it into one of the lava troughs. She caught her breath and walked up the stairs to see if they actually went anywhere. It turned out they did, but they led to something even stranger; a large portal being suspended over a man-made lava pool. It had four sides, three slots to fit something circular into. She noticed each of these slots were filled with something spherical. She took a closer look at one of them, noticing it looked like a shut eyelid. She got startled backwards when the thing she was looking at actually was an eye, which had flung open to stare at her. She looked to the rest of them, each eye opening with her gaze and staring straight at her. She stared back at them, noticing one of them seemed different; one was a milky white, looking blind. She stepped across the portal frame, careful not to step on the eyes. She crouched to inspect the blind eye closer. She wondered if the blind eye was why the portal wasn’t open, the eyes seemed to be keys of some sort. Nixie, out of curiosity, tapped the blind eye to see what would happen. As soon as she did, the eye looked straight up to the ceiling instead of her, the milky white slowly fading away, as if a veil of liquid was slipping off the eye’s surface. It twitched, as if agitated, when suddenly Nixie was flung to the wall by an invisible force. She looked back to the portal, which she had been flung back from, and noticed it was like a black hole was opening up in the center of the portal. She walked back up the stairs, surprised when the “black hole” didn’t have any pulling force. She watched as the sphere of nothing spilled into the corners of the portal frame. She stared, noticing small stars were starting to fade into her vision. She found herself entranced, unable to look away. She started walking toward the portal, her body moving uncontrollably. Her foot dangled, as if expecting to step on the floor. Her weight finally released and let herself fall. She snapped out of her trance, finally realizing what was happening. She felt herself falling, seemingly endlessly. She also realized that she could die from the height she felt she was falling from. Her life started flashing before her eyes, her heartbeat growing in speed. She heard young voices echo through the nothingness. “Mother, where’s Leah?” She heard her twin sister, Kitsana say. Nixie saw through her own eyes when she was younger, watching as she looked all around for her older sister. Nixie finally flashed back to the present and shouted out “Leah!” as if she were looking for her, desperately hoping her sister, Cordelia would answer. Nixie was breathing heavily, taking in her new surroundings. She was standing on a slippery-smooth obsidian platform, surrounded by a small cavern made of a yellow stone, the kind she imagined the moon would be made of. She saw the cavern led into a narrow cave that she started following. She felt like she was walking for hours, her legs starting to become numb. 

She finally saw light other than the cold, eerie glow that stalactites and stalagmites gave. She saw the sky, only it wasn’t a bright blue like she was used to, it was a dark purple-blue, almost black. The weirdest part is there weren’t any stars, just endless nothingness. She noticed her surroundings, seeing obsidian pillars in somewhat of a circle around where she was, pink crystals levitating above pedestals. She heard a loud noise of wingbeats, growing closer and closer. She saw a beam of some sort of magic shoot from one of the crystals into something that blended into the sky. It was a humanoid figure, similar to that which she saw in the caves back in Earthlands. It was almost pitch black with its scales, between such was a dark skin tone, which took Nixie by surprise. She expected people who lived in this place to be pale as ghosts, not what she saw as she looked around and noticed Enderians wandering through crowds of Endermen. She remembered something she read in the book she had picked up in the library. She recalled something talking about an Ender Dragon that guarded the End Dimension. She figured this person was the Ender Dragon, especially when their features started being lit by the magic flooding from the crystals. Nixie looked closer and noticed this Dragon was a woman. She seemed to be channeling the magic toward her, holding it in her hands. The magic suddenly stopped as the Dragon landed almost directly in front of her. The Dragon stared deeply into Nixie’s eyes, Nixie noticing a cut on the Dragon’s arm starting to heal. Nixie’s fascination seemed to be noticed by the Dragon, who quickly backed off. They stared at each other for a long moment before the Dragon suddenly cleared her throat.

“Hello, little Enderian.” The Dragon said, sweetly. Nixie blinked in surprise. “Hello… Where am I?” Nixie asked. “Who are you-” Nixie started as the Dragon cut her off. “My name is Jean. I’m what people call the Ender Dragon. Where you are is Elysia, people from your world would call it The End. You must have stumbled here through the portal.” Jean said, matter-of-factly. Nixie stared, wide-eyed at Jean, trying to decide if this was a dream or not. “Are you alright? You seem faint.” Jean asked. Nixie noticed she was holding her breath and inhaled. “This is just… a lot to take in…” Nixie trailed off, looking around. “Don’t stare at the Enderfolk.” Jean said suddenly, turning Nixie to face her again by grabbing her arms and pinning them to Nixie’s sides. “Why?” Nixie asked, terrified. “They don’t like to make eye contact. They tend to get… aggressive when you do.” Jean explained. “Oh, I didn’t know. I always thought I was a bit weird for not liking to hold eye contact with someone…” Nixie said, thinking. Jean seemed to calm down, now that she had warned Nixie. She straightened her standing posture, Nixie never noticed she was hunched over to hold her in place. She watched, horrified, as Jean straightened to around eight feet in height, almost double Nixie’s. Jean seemed amused by Nixie’s surprised expression, looking up at her. “Surprised by how tall I am? I thought you might be used to taller people.” Jean said, cheekily. “I am, just not people about double my size!” Nixie said, half tempted to shout up to her. After a moment of silence of Jean looking Nixie over from head to toe, she sighed, intrigued. “You’re an odd mix of things.” Jean said. “What is your mix, exactly?” she asked. Nixie questioned what she could mean but noticed Jean looking at Nixie’s wings. “My mother was a Merling, and I’ve always assumed my father was Elytrian, Enderian, and he gave my twin sister the Fox race.” Nixie explained. “Quite interesting…” Jean trailed off, wandering. “Well, I’ll leave you to explore on your own. Again, I will warn you, do not look anyone in the eyes. I’m the only one here who doesn’t mind it.” Jean said. Nixie nodded and went to explore. She turned almost fully around when she noticed another portal was behind her. It was made of the same hard stone Nixie assumed to be bedrock as the pedestals that the pink hovering crystals were on top of on the obsidian pillars. She walked to the far side of where she was and noticed it had an edge, dropping off into an abyss of nothingness. She noticed someone dangling her feet nearby. She looked like a child, Nixie wondered where her parents might be. She clumsily flew over, her legs not quite working yet from her trek through the caves, causing her to have a rough takeoff. She landed hard on her feet, her ankles seeming to scream in protest. Looking closer, Nixie noticed the girl was a bit different to the endermen and assumed she was Enderian.

••• 

She sat on the edge of the main island of Elysia, staring out to the void. She recalled all that had happened a few years ago; Someone came to her home and destroyed it, for what? Her family was never the richest in resources, there was hardly anything to take. The last thing she remembers was a bright light and never seeing her parents run out after her. Her thoughts were cut off by the sound of someone stumbling behind her. She didn’t turn her head to see who it was, just adjusted her ears to hear more clearly what was going on. “Hello, little girl.” said a feminine, soft voice. “What are you doing out here?” the person asked. She stayed quiet, not answering the person. The person put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Noticing the hand was an Enderian’s, she turned to see who it was. She was met with surprise when the person she saw wasn’t Enderian, at least not completely; The person had gray wings, webs between her fingers and toes, having cloth wrapped around her feet for comfort when she walked. She had interesting fish-ears instead of an Enderian’s long, pointy ones, and a thick purple tail similar to a salamander, which she had read about in her books which she had collected over the years of being a nomad.  It had only been about three, but it felt like it had been a lifetime spent on her own. The woman, noticing her shock, tried comforting her, but she made a dash for anywhere away from the woman.

After a moment, she heard wingbeats and the woman was suddenly right in front of her, holding her in place, gently. “Please, I don’t want to hurt you.” said the woman. After a moment where she was shocked into not speaking, the woman said, “are you lost? Where are your parents?” The woman had a concerned expression, letting her relax just enough to speak. “I’m on my own.” she said, quietly. The woman had a sympathetic look at these words. “Well, my name is Nixie. What’s yours?” the woman said.  “A Ne-naim?” she said, confused. “What-” she said, words not forming anymore. “A name is something you are called when you’re born.” Nixie explained to the best of her ability. She looked blankly at Nixie, wondering what she could possibly mean, it was as if Nixie was speaking in another language. Nixie seemed to know what the problem was and repeated herself in a way she could understand. “Oh,” she said, understanding what Nixie was saying now. “I don’t quite remember what my name is. The other kids, when I was younger, called me V.” she explained. “Well, V, do you still have a home?” Nixie asked. V shook her head. “I’ve been traveling ever since…” V trailed off, trying not to cry and cause herself pain. “I could give you a new home, if you wanted.” Nixie offered. V looked at her with confusion. “How?” V asked, simply. “You could live with me in Panthera.” Nixie said, sweetly. V gasped and shook her head vigorously. “If I visit Panthera, I’ll die!” V shouted out, distressed. “And how do you know this?” Nixie asked. “Anyone who went through the portal never came back.” V explained, pointing to the portal behind Nixie. “Well, I’m part Enderian, and I’m alive.” Nixie said, trying to calm V down. V started steadying her breathing to calm herself down instead, and nodded to Nixie, showing she was ready. Nixie offered her hand and V took it, them walking to the portal.

Before they fell into the portal, Nixie turned to V. “Before we go in, you’ll need a Pantheran name…” Nixie trailed off. V tried thinking as well, but Nixie was quicker. “How about Vacía?” Nixie asked. V thought, considering. She nodded, accepting the name. “Vacía… it’s pretty.” Vacía said, happily. Nixie took Vacía’s hand again, guiding her into the portal. They fell, Vacía’s head starting to throb. She scrunched her eyes shut because of the pain from the headache. She squeezed Nixie’s hand, silently begging for comfort. Before Vacía knew it, they were standing under a small gazebo on an overgrown island. Vacía looked around, trying to remember how they got there. She realized she could hardly remember anything before she met Nixie, even that was fuzzy. She saw where the island ended, but instead of cutting off into a void of black, it faded into a shimmery blue. As Vacía walked back, her feet kicked up some sort of dusty substance that reminded her of the color of the endstone, but almost as if it were crushed into powder. “Nixie?” Vacía shouted over to her. “My feet feel weird…” Vacía trailed off, trying to kick the sand off of her feet and out of her toes. Nixie chuckled. “This is called sand, Vacía. Don’t even try to shake it out of your toes, it’ll just get stuck more.” she said through a laugh. “Come on, I’ll take you to where we live.” Nixie said, flying up into the air to grab Vacía’s arms to carry her. Even though Vacía was younger than Nixie, she was strangely taller than her. Vacía felt her feet leave the ground, Nixie holding on strongly to her arms, though Vacía was paranoid that she could lose her grip any moment while flying over the blue expanse. As they were flying, Nixie was explaining that what they were flying over was called the Ocean and it was made up of water, which they couldn’t touch. 

A few minutes passed and Nixie started going higher into the sky. Vacía started getting more nervous, grabbing Nixie’s arm. They got over the clouds, Vacía not noticing she was starting to clench her fists. Her nails dug into Nixie’s arm, causing her to flinch and drop Vacía. As she was falling, Vacía could see Nixie rushing in a panic to catch her. She dove, trying to catch up with the speed Vacía was descending. Nixie reached out her hand, almost grabbing Vacía’s, when a black bird flew between them, separating them again. Vacía looked down, seeing the surface of the water quickly becoming closer and closer. Vacía was about to lose hope when she was suddenly jerked back into the air at the last minute. Vacía scrambled to grab Nixie’s hands, climbing to hold on to her neck.

They flew like that the rest of the way, Nixie announcing they were almost there. Vacía looked upside-down to see where they were going. She saw a large village encircled by walls, which were separating various districts and farms. Vacía noticed movement outside the village and saw fluffy white animals wandering around. “What are those?” Vacía said, pointing to the fluffy animals. Nixie followed her gaze. “Oh, those are sheep.” Nixie said, smiling.  “They look like the things we flew above before you dropped me.” Vacía said, annoyed. “Clouds, yes. I’m sorry, you startled me when you got nervous.” Nixie said, looking guilty. “You almost didn’t catch me!” Vacía shouted. “Only because of the Raven that flew in my face.” Nixie said, calmly. “I still caught you, though, and you’re safe now.” Nixie said, calming Vacía down. Vacía looked up to the entrance to the village which had a sign Vacía couldn’t read. “What does it say?” Vacía asked. “Earthlands. That’s the name of my village.” Nixie answered. “That seems fitting.” Vacía said, looking at the various plants and flowers scattered around. “I think it’s time to show you where you’ll live.” Nixie said, walking into Earthlands. Vacía’s face lit up with excitement as she hastily followed her.

After they had walked around a bit, Vacía continuously grew more curious. “So does this mean you’re my family now?” she asked. Nixie looked at her with confusion. “Yes, it does.” she answered, smiling. “You have a sister, too.” Nixie said. “A sister?!” Vacía exclaimed excitedly. “Yes, you’ll get to meet her tomorrow.” Nixie explained. “Why not now?” Vacía said impatiently. “Because you need rest after all that has happened today.” Nixie said, chuckling. “Go off and get settled, I need to attend to a few things.” Nixie said. Vacía nodded and walked off to her house. Before she walked through the door, she noticed a Raven perched on her mailbox. Vacía blinked at it, confused. It gave a short “caw” sound, as if expecting something. Vacía gave it an annoyed look and went inside. 

Vacía was minding her business the rest of the day, when suddenly she heard a repetitive tapping on her window. She opened the curtain to see the Raven still there, pecking at the glass. Vacía violently shut the curtains and tried to ignore it, but it kept tapping, annoying Vacía even more.

Chapter Text

Vacía was woken up by more sounds of tapping, but this time it wasn’t from a bird’s beak. She glanced out a window and saw rain falling from the sky and hitting the glass. Her eyes widened and sat back on her bed, staring into space. “What am I supposed to do when the sky is trying to kill me-” she asked herself when she heard the door open. She walked out of her room to see Nixie standing in the doorway, holding something that was protecting her from the rain that resembled a blanket but was waterproof. Vacía gave her a blank and confused stare. Nixie smiled as a hello. “Good morning. Did you sleep well?” Nixie asked. Vacía debated whether or not to tell her about the bird. She looked out the window and saw it staring back at her yet again. Vacía glared at it and pointed. “That thing kept me up almost all night.” she explained. Nixie followed her gaze and saw the bird. “Is that the same one from yesterday…?” Nixie trailed off, confused. “Yes, it is.” Vacía grumbled. It flew off as she looked back at it. “Mind if I distract you from that for a moment?” Nixie asked. “Sure.” Vacía said, not knowing quite what she meant. She said something in her own language, Vacía unable to understand her.

A girl who looked a little older than Vacía walked in, tracking water everywhere. “Harpy!” Nixie yelled at her, indicating the water. “Oh, sorry, I forgot.” the girl whose name was Harpy said. She grabbed a towel from nearby and sopped up the water and dried her feet which were like a bird’s talons with the same fabric wrapping around them like Nixie had. She looked like a younger version of Nixie, though she only had the wings and complexion in common as opposed to the fish-like tail and ears and the black-tipped limbs. Her wings were similarly a little larger than herself like Nixie’s, making them truly like mother and daughter. “Vacía, I want you to meet your older sister, Harpy. Harpy, this is your new little sister, Vacía.” Nixie explained to both of them, Harpy vigorously waving her hand as Nixie spoke. Vacía was convinced Harpy would whack herself in the face if she waved her hand too roughly. Nixie had to gently tap Harpy on the arm to get her to stop. Vacía noticed Harpy was just a little shorter than her, but a bit taller than Nixie. “Alright, you two be nice to each other and have fun, I need to check on the town to make sure this rain isn’t damaging anything. Here, take this, Vacía. It will protect you from the rain.” Nixie said, handing Vacía something that resembled what Nixie walked in with and was draping over herself to go outside. She handed Harpy one as well and walked off. They waited for the door to shut, Harpy piping up at once. “So, you’re an Enderian?” Harpy said, rushed. Vacía blinked, confused at her. “I guess so…?” Vacía said, trailing off. Harpy smiled, seeming content with that answer. “So, what do you like to do for fun?” Harpy asked. “I don’t know.” Vacía said, unsure. “Here, follow me.” Harpy said as she put on her rain blanket.

Vacía followed suit and followed Harpy out the door. They walked through the rain for seemingly forever, wandering through a labyrinth of walls and paths. They finally got to a spot where only a single house stood, closely surrounded by walls, similar to Vacía’s. They entered and Harpy carefully took off her rain blanket, Vacía copying her, so she didn’t get wet. They hung them up on a stand next to the door, Harpy wandering off to a different room. Vacía followed her and saw a mysterious metal machine with spindles of thread strung in it. Harpy sat down in front of it and picked up pieces of fabric. Vacía watched in amazement as Harpy seemed to make beautiful clothing out of nothing. When she was done, Harpy noticed Vacía staring intently at her work. “Want me to make you something?” Harpy asked. Vacía stared at Harpy’s new clothes that she made and found herself nodding “yes.” Harpy laughed and started pulling out some fabrics, comparing them to Vacía. “Have you had any other clothes before?” Harpy asked. Vacía shook her head as Harpy gasped. “Well, I’m honored to give you your second ever outfit!” Harpy said excitedly. “Do you want something completely different to your outfit or do you want something more similar?” Harpy asked. Vacía looked at herself in a nearby mirror. She had a fairly simple outfit; simple beige leggings and a vibrant purple long-sleeve shirt. “Something similar to what I'm wearing, but keep it simple, please.” Vacía said, eyeing what Harpy just made. It was a very elaborately pleated dress made out of a flowery fabric. “Okay, here change into this while I modify your clothes.” Harpy said, handing her a simple white dress. Vacía went where Harpy directed to change and got out quickly. She wasn’t used to small spaces. She handed Harpy her clothes and looked in the mirror again. She was stunned, she looked like a different person. 

She found herself unable to look away from the mirror for a long while. Harpy finally shouted, “Done!” as she handed Vacía her new outfit, neatly folded. Vacía went back to change into her new outfit and gave Harpy the dress she borrowed while she reworked her outfit. She looked in the mirror, and yet again, it was like a new person stood before her. She shortened her leggings to knee-length and made them baggier. There were also tons of pockets on the sides, but it was still the same beige color she had before. To her shirt, she gave it a layered look, having a gray cloth drape over her right shoulder. She turned to Harpy and smiled. Harpy inspected her, circling her work. “Something’s missing…” Harpy said as she rummaged through an accessory drawer. She found a dark brown belt and fastened it around her waist. Harpy stepped back again and ran off to her fabric storage. She found a red fabric with pinkish-white polka-dots. She draped it over Vacía’s left shoulder to “balance it out,” as Harpy mumbled to herself. Vacía looked back into the mirror and saw her new completed outfit. She turned and smiled at Harpy. Thank you… I don’t know what else to say.” Vacía said. “It’s no problem, this was a good challenge.” Harpy smiled back. Vacía noticed it wasn’t raining anymore and walked outside.

Waiting for her was Nixie with a soft expression. “Hey, V. I got something for you.” Nixie said, holding out her fist. Vacía stared at Nixie’s outstretched fist, puzzled. “What am I supposed to do, tap your hand?” Vacía said, sarcastically. Nixie chuckled and revealed a pair of simple, silver chain earrings. They had pearls strung every so often, though they were only about as long as her index finger. She took one of them and carefully put it through her left pointy ear. “Are you not going to wear the other one?” Nixie asked. “I wanted to give it to Harpy, that way we match.” Vacía said, giving it to Harpy. She put it through her right ear and Harpy gave her a hug. “Okay, please no hugs-” Vacía said awkwardly. Harpy pulled away quickly. “Sorry, I sometimes forget that not everyone likes hugs…” she said, apologetically. “It’s okay. You’re welcome.” Vacía said with a smile. Harpy took Vacía’s arm and tugged her along. Harpy took her all over Earthlands, so much so that Vacía had it already almost memorized. They found tons of houses, a library, trading stalls, and all sorts of places to buy things. They passed by a very tall tower, Harpy seeming to walk right past it. “What’s that?” Vacía asked, pointing to the tower. Harpy followed her gaze. “We’re not allowed in there.” Harpy said, quickly. “But what is it?” Vacía asked again. Harpy hesitated. “It’s our mom’s library tower. She does all of her research there. She says the books in there are so ancient, so we’re not allowed to go anywhere near them.” Harpy explained. “She doesn’t let anyone in there.” Harpy finished as she walked off. Vacía was left staring at the tower. She quickly caught up to Harpy, not saying a word. They saw Nixie wandering among the townsfolk, Harpy waving to her. Instead of their expected reaction, Nixie’s face lit up with terror. “Harpy what are you doing?!” Nixie yelled. She pulled Harpy aside and started talking to her. All Vacía could pick up were the words, “...Know…Can’t go…water.” Harpy nodded as Nixie turned to Vacía again. Vacía pretended not to be eavesdropping, though she didn't hear much. Nixie wandered off again, leaving Harpy with Vacía. “What did she say?” Vacía asked. “Oh, you can’t go near the water.” Harpy explained, hesitant. “Why?” Vacía simply asked, but Harpy had already walked off.

Vacía made her way to her house, getting lost occasionally. She finally made it back and went inside. She plopped down on her bed, puzzled by Nixie and Harpy’s behavior that day. She lay, staring at the ceiling, her thoughts circling. She eventually started drifting asleep, her mind racing with ideas of what that day’s events could mean. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Vacía’s head didn’t feel quite right. It was as if she was floating in the clouds, things seemed blurry. She started seeing bright flashes of orange light fading in and out of her vision, which was as if someone had put her head underwater and forced her eyes open. The same thing kept happening over and over, never ending. She saw the rough image of a face similar to hers but older staring at her. One last flash of light happened, forcing Vacía awake. She sat up in her bed, safely in her new home. She got up and stared at herself in the mirror. Something didn’t seem right; her head still had the empty feeling it had when she was dreaming. She wandered out of her house, staring up at the sky, which was a bit overcast. She started walking through Earthlands aimlessly, people giving her weird stares, as if they were happy that she was there. She couldn’t seem to understand why, though. She eventually found two faces she recognized. Nixie was standing in the town square, watching Vacía’s new older sister play with townspeople. 

When Vacía approached, Nixie noticed and gave her a warm smile. “Good morning, Vacía. You seem tired, are you alright?” Nixie asked. “Mom… I think something’s wrong. I don’t feel the same anymore.” Nixie gave her a blank stare, seeming to be trying to understand what she meant. “Oh, I see you picked up English very well, did Harpy teach you?” Nixie asked. She looked to Harpy who had an equally confused look. “Well, I don’t know how you learned so quickly, but I appreciate you calling me your mother on your second day here!” Nixie said, excitedly. Vacía looked at her confused, she didn’t know what Nixie meant by all of this. She decided to ignore it and moved on. “I’m going to go explore a bit.” Vacía said. Nixie and Harpy both nodded and let her go wherever. 

She found a nearby path with a bridge over a river. She stared at the water, seeming intrigued by it. She moved on and found herself in an area with tons of trees with flowers growing on the branches. She navigated through the grove and found another bridge leading to a place that had a tower built on a small hill. She stared at the tower, feeling intimidated by its height. She looked around and noticed there was sand lining the piece of land, which was also surrounded by water in most directions. She reached the sand bank and reached out to touch the water. She hesitated, her fingers inches away from the water’s surface. She heard a twig snap, startling her. She slipped, falling into the water. She felt terrible pain trying to scramble out of the situation. She opened her eyes and saw she was in a different place. Her stomach turned and tumbled as the world around her warped with different locations flashing in and out of her vision. Vacía could stand up as if she were in place, but the world kept spinning around her. Her skin still stung with pain as she tried to stop the world from spinning. She saw places start to slow down, finally able to see where she was going. She finally stopped where she was before, but her insides still churned. She looked at her arms, steam curling off of them. She started to see her skin bubble a bit, being burnt before her eyes. She started walking back to where she last saw Nixie and Harpy, clutching her stomach as she walked. 

She reached the square, but only saw Nixie. She looked as if she were talking to someone invisible. She approached Nixie, who noticed her and had a surprised expression. She looked Vacía up and down, seeming to see her skin boiling. Suddenly, people showed up out of nowhere, surrounding Nixie and soon flooding to see Vacía. She saw Harpy nearby who looked at her as if she had grown a second head. “Where did you come from?” Harpy said, surprised. Vacía questioned what she meant. “What do you mean? I just walked up here, and you weren’t anywhere until a few seconds ago.” Vacía said, confused. “Vacía, I think we need to talk.” Nixie said, pulling her aside. People dispersed, now that Nixie was gone. “What is going on?” Vacía asked once they were alone. Nixie took a breath and sighed. “You just teleported. It’s common that if you are experienced enough, you can seemingly stop time and walk as if everything was normal, being able to see and talk to other Enderians and Enderfolk. Though, it makes no sense, seeing as this seems to be your first time. I haven’t even mastered my abilities yet.” Nixie explained. “But, seeing as you’ve been burned, I’m assuming you’ve touched water, am I correct?” Nixie asked. Vacía nodded slowly. “Why? You should know you can’t touch water. Didn’t Harpy ever tell you?” Nixie asked. “...No, she told me she couldn’t say anything.” Vacía said, confused. Nixie looked stunned. “She must have misunderstood me, then. I’m sorry, I told her to tell you at some point and she must have thought I meant not at that moment.” Nixie said. “Couldn’t you have just told me instead?” Vacía asked. “I was too busy to make my way back to you, the people had me pinned in one spot. The only person that they let pass is Harpy and so I tried to get her to tell you, since you were too far away.” Nixie explained. Vacía thought that was just an excuse and started walking off. Nixie said nothing and let her go. 

Vacía found herself making her way back to her house, seeing people staring at her again, but this time it was of confusion. She started trying to cover her arms with her sleeves and continued on. She got to her house and sat on her bed, wanting to get away from all that had just happened. She stared in the mirror and saw her earring she wore to symbolize her connection to her sister and mother. Just as she was finishing a thought, Vacía heard the door open. “V? Are you here?” she heard the voice of Harpy call. Shortly after, a knock on Vacía’s bedroom door sounded. “Yeah, I’m here.” Vacía said lazily. Harpy poked her head in, seeing Vacía looking sad. “Are you alright?” Harpy asked. “I don’t know anymore.” Vacía started to trail off. “You know… I’m sure there are worse people out there than how you see our mother sometimes. She talked to me and I’m the reason you got burned, I’m sorry.” Harpy explained. Vacía looked down and gave a quiet sigh. “Like whom?” Vacía asked. Harpy looked at her confused. “Oh, I don’t actually know. Maybe our grandmother, since Mom doesn’t talk about her much. I’ve noticed that’s something that happens when someone doesn’t talk about someone else very often is if they did something to them that they don’t want to talk about.” Harpy observed. “Do you think we have other family?” Vacía asked. “For sure! I know we have at least one aunt. That would be our mother’s sister.” Harpy said. “She doesn’t really talk about our aunt either, though. I learn things through rumors.” Harpy explained. “How would that work?” Vacía asked. “I hear many different stories. If some details match up in those different stories, I can be sure what is most truthful.” Harpy said. “Can I go visit our aunt? Where is she?” Vacía asked. “Mom doesn’t really let us out of the village. She says it’s safer here than outside the walls. I’ve heard stories about people who’ve gone outside of Earthlands, too.” Harpy explained. She glanced out the nearby window and stood up. “Well, I have to go to bed too. I’ll see you in the morning, V!” Harpy said, yawning after she spoke. Vacía waved goodbye to her and fell asleep on her bed after Harpy left. 

Chapter Text

Kitsana was watching Gale play with her puppy, Sally. Kit still thought it wasn’t the best name for the dog, but she couldn’t convince Gale to use anything else. Gale was laughing as Sally came tumbling down a hill, bringing a stick back to her. Kit smiled and went inside for a while to prepare for winter which was soon to come. 

        A few hours later, something caught Kit’s eye out the window nearby. She looked and noticed a furry tail vanishing out of sight. Kit walked out of the house and looked frantically around to see what it was, desperately hoping it wasn’t what she thought it was. Her heart started to drop as she realized Nightingale wasn’t anywhere to be found. “Gale?” Kit yelled out, hoping for an answer. Suddenly, a scream sounded from nearby. Kit flew up and tracked the scream down to its origin. She found Gale surrounded by a pack of wolves, pinned in one spot where she was eight years ago. “Gale! Fly out of there!” Kit shouted to her. “I can’t!” Gale yelled back. Kit had a confused expression. Gale pointed up, indicating more wolves that were at the top of the cliff. “Stay there! I’m going to do something.” Kit said. “Not like I can move!” Gale shouted after her. Kit started flying up higher until she started diving through the air. Before she crashed to the ground, she angled herself where she wouldn’t get injured. When Kit landed, a gust of wind blew out to the wolves on the ground, throwing them everywhere. Kit grabbed Gale’s arm, urging her to fly up with her. “Wait! I need to find Sally.” Gale said, rushed. At the sound of her name, the puppy came running. Before Sally reached them, however, a large wolf stepped in front of her, blocking the dog’s path. One of the other wolves pounced at Kit and Gale but missed just narrowly. “We have to get out of here. If we don’t, we’ll be ripped to shreds as soon as you can cry ‘wolf’.” Kit said. Gale hesitated but quickly flew up with her mother. 

They landed back at their house, Gale worried out of her mind. “Okay, you know what? I’m going to go back and see what happened to Sally, okay? She’s a strong wolf, I’m sure she managed to get out of there.” Kit reassured Gale. Gale nodded her head and sat down in a chair to wait. Kit flew off in search of the dog. She got back to where they fled from and spotted a figure on the ground that resembled Sally. Kit flew down and realized the cruel truth. She found Gale’s dog, but not alive. She had cuts and gashes all over her body and it looked like she bled to death very quickly. Kit stood for a minute, trying to decide what to tell her daughter. “I could lie and say the dog went wild again, but she wouldn’t fully believe that. Or I can tell her what happened without… scarring her imagination.” Kit mumbled to herself. She flew back and prepared herself for a lot of tears from Gale. Probably a little screaming, too. 

When she got back, she found Gale running out to see what Kit was going to tell her. Kit watched Gale’s hopeful expression fade and Kit explained to her. Gale’s eyes welled with tears, eventually streaming down her face. “I’m sorry, but there wasn’t anything we could have done, Gale.” Kit said, gently. Gale sniffled and nodded sadly. 

•••

After Kit left, Gale was left to her own thoughts. “There’s no way Mom actually found her dead… maybe she went wild, and she didn’t want me to feel betrayed or something…” Gale mumbled as she started walking out. She flew over to where they were before they flew away and found nothing. At first, Gale thought she was right that her mother lied to her, but she noticed a big pool of semi-dried blood and quickly rethought her conclusion. She started hearing a low growl from nearby. Gale turned to see what it was, dreading what she would see. She saw a wolf larger than the one that prevented Sally from reaching Gale looming in the trees. At first nothing seemed to be odd, but when Gale looked closer, she saw Sally’s dead body slouched over the wolf’s back, cold and lifeless. Gale started slowly backing away, sitting down, trying to get away. The wolf noticed this and dropped Sally’s body, starting to prowl slowly towards Gale. Gale kept trying to back away but found herself hitting her back against a tree. Soon, she was face-to-face with the wolf on the ground. Gale slowly rose up to stand, making sure to go slow enough that the wolf didn’t attack. She looked to her right to see if she could run in that direction and found a very rocky path, but it was capable of being traversed. The wolf seemed to catch her gaze and growled as if to say, “don’t you dare”. Gale braced herself to run for her life without moving too much, which the wolf didn’t seem to notice.

Gale bolted, trying to get as far away from the wolf as possible. She hopped from rock to rock, using branches to gain momentum and swing through the narrow forest path. She heard the wolf gaining ground on her and decided to make a sharp turn left. Using her arm to grab a tree trunk, she swung around and heard the wolf crash into a bush behind her and give a yelp of surprise. Gale kept running, feeling more confident in outrunning the wolf when suddenly, her wing caught on a stray tree branch. Gale yelped in pain but tried to quickly get up and keep running. She found herself stopping suddenly when she found she had nowhere left to flee. “Why is this empire made completely of cliffs?!” Gale said, out of breath. She heard growling yet again behind her. She turned and saw not only one wolf, but half the pack circling her and cornering her to the cliff. Gale tried backing up more, but felt rocks fall out from her foot. She rebalanced herself, looking over her shoulder, trying to think of what to do next when she couldn’t fly or run. I could try to catch the wind with my wings and float down… Gale thought to herself. Suddenly, she heard paw steps dashing towards her and bumping into her. A wolf had run into her and caused her to fall. 

It happened so fast; Gale didn’t know what was happening. She tried to right herself but ended up crashing into the side of the cliff, injuring her other wing. She was gaining speed, falling and falling. Gale tried to spread her wings to catch the wind, but pain surged through her shoulders and bones. Her head suddenly stopped spinning and she saw nothing but black.

          After a moment, Gale’s vision started clearing and she saw her mother, Kitsana through blurry vision crying over Gale’s body. Gale tried to scream to her mother that she was here, but no sound came out. Gale started feeling tears fall down her cheeks and float out as if she were in space. She tried to go up to Kitsana, wanting to give her a hug, but it seemed like she was going nowhere, even though she thought she was walking. She looked down to her feet and saw they were replaced with nothing but mist fading into her actual legs around just above her knees. Gale looked back to her mother and her dead body and saw Kit get up and start walking away. Gale reached for her, but it was no use. As quickly as her mother vanished, so did her vision, and everything went black again. 

•••

In Earthlands, Harpy is sitting at her sewing machine fixing her rain-blanket. She had let her mother, Nixie, use it while she went out to her mines in the rain. She ended up wandering through a forest on the way back and the blanket caught on one of the branches. Luckily, Nixie said she was in a heavily wooded area, so she didn’t get wet. However, Harpy’s rain-blanket now had a new big hole in the middle of it. She got to thinking and was thinking of how she could improve this to be easier to wear. She could include a hood, so she doesn’t have to hold it above her head the entire time, which she decided was a good idea. She eventually got it almost done, but she ran out of waterproof thread. When her spool ran out of thread and it wasn’t feeding through the needle anymore, it left Harpy very confused until she looked at what the problem was. She was planning on asking her mother for more later, but for now she was stranded in her house while it rained. 

Harpy was threading some bracelets when she suddenly heard a knock at her door. She rushed up and opened the door for a very drenched Nixie. She walked in and carefully took off her blanket and hung it up. She grabbed a nearby towel and dried her feet off. “Hey, Harpy. Why are you not outside today? Did you not get your rain-blanket fixed yet?” Nixie asked. No, I ran out of the thread I needed before I could finish.” Harpy explained. “Oh, I’ll get some soon, don’t worry.” Nixie said. “Otherwise, is everything going, okay?” Nixie asked. Harpy nodded and Nixie smiled. “Good. Now, I need to go back out for today. Even the weather doesn’t slow people’s problems down.” Nixie said through a chuckle. Harpy returned a smile as Nixie walked back out, leaving Harpy to her own thoughts. It had been about eight years after Vacía had become Harpy’s sister, as such, her sewing abilities improved very well, she even started to teach her sister a few things. Harpy certainly couldn’t wait too long before needing her materials, but she was going to wait a little while longer before trying to go out on her own. 

          Later in the afternoon, Nixie still wasn’t back with her thread. Eventually, Harpy ran out of things to do and ended up needing tons of other things. She couldn’t easily find what she needed in Earthlands, so she would have to take a trip to the village that was across the Savanna and through the Dark Forest. The only reason Harpy knew about that village is because Nixie was telling her about it in case Harpy took over as Watcher for Earthlands in the future, and the neighboring village was how Earthlands got some of its visitors and vendors. Some of the people even mentioned that they came from an Empire in the mountains, but Harpy found it hard to believe that people would live in such a cold place. 

Eventually, Harpy got fed up and decided to head over to that neighboring village. She noticed it was getting dark out, so she packed her lantern and attached it to her basket she would carry to get her supplies, as well as payment. She grabbed her cloak and made her way out of Earthlands. She started seeing the south entrance come into view right as a little girl popped up out of nowhere and startled Harpy. “Harpy! Where are you going so late?” the girl asked, stumbling over her words since her speech wasn’t the best because of her age. “I’m trying to sneak out to get materials I need.” Harpy said in a hushed tone, shushing the girl. “But why?” the girl asked. Oh no, she’s at that point of life where she asks “why” for everything… Harpy thought. “Because I need stuff for sewing. If you’re quiet and let me go, I might make something for you as thanks.” Harpy said, feeling smaller and smaller as she crouched down to meet the girl in the eyes. The girl’s eyes immediately lit up with joy as she hopped up and down with excitement, motioning as if she were zipping her mouth shut. After she settled down with a muffled giggle, Harpy booped her on the nose as she got up to walk away.

Harpy sneakily walked out the South entrance to Earthlands. She awkwardly went out onto the dirt path, expecting instantaneous death, but she was fine, though her mind raced with paranoia. She eventually got to the Dark Forest and tightly grasped her basket and detached the lantern to use it as a guiding light. One of the things she needed was worm silk, so she kept an eye out for anything that shimmered on leaves. She eventually stumbled across what she needed while in the woods and got out her spindles and started collecting the silk, careful not to disturb the worms. The collection process was tedious and long, but she was going as fast as she could.

Suddenly, she heard a twig snap behind her. Immediately, she thought a beast was getting ready to attack or a killer was getting ready to strike. She turned around only to find a little bunny rabbit munching on leaves. She heard wings flap to her left but was unable to find what made the sound. She eventually saw bright blue bird eyes staring at her through the darkness, who eventually hopped down to become visible in the light. It was a little black Raven bird that was crowing expectantly at her. “I don’t have any seed; you can buzz off.” Harpy said, quietly. However, the Raven only tilted its head in curiosity. They stared at each other, Harpy getting an uneasy feeling that this bird looked somewhat human with those eyes. Then, out of the silence, the bird cawed and flew off in a panic. 

Next thing Harpy knew, she felt a cold metal in her back and a piercing pain. Harpy stared into space for a few seconds before clutching her stomach. She looked down at her hands, now drenched in blood. She turned as much as she could to see if she could catch who it was, but when she turned, she only saw a faint purple-black glow fade behind trees. Harpy’s head hit the ground before she saw a different type of purple glow, this one more familiar as she recognized her mother’s teleportation pop up out of nowhere. She saw another person teleport in after her, this being Vacía. Nixie held Harpy in her arms, Vacía giving a scared look before Harpy’s vision faded to black and everything went cold. 

•••

“Harpy! No, stay with me, please!” Nixie yelled. She saw Vacía crouch on the opposite side of Harpy, trying to see what happened. Vacía reached for one of Harpy’s wrists, gripping them with the tips of her fingers. Nixie looked at Vacía’s expression carefully, noticing Vacía’s expression change from confusion quickly to sorrow and Nixie immediately knew her daughter was gone. Nixie was trying everything she could not to cry, that would just be another level of pain added to the situation.

She saw Vacía start to stand up and walk back to Earthlands. “Where are you going?!” Nixie said, distained. “Getting away from my sister’s murderer.” Vacía said. “I don’t think they would stay at the crime scene, Vacía-” Nixie started as she realized what she meant. “No! Why would I kill my own daughter?!” Nixie yelled up at her. “You’re always busy with other things, you might’ve gotten tired of constantly checking on her and being unable to get as much done as possible in a single day.” Vacía said, carelessly as she went into teleportation. Nixie was left alone with Harpy in her arms, Harpy’s skin losing warmth by the second as blood rushed out of her back wound. Nixie crippled into painful tears as she cried over Harpy’s dead body. 

Chapter Text

Vacía left Harpy’s body still in her mother’s arms, still unbelieving that Nixie was innocent in this encounter. She stopped to consider that it was an awfully quick murder, for how cold Harpy’s body was. However, Vacía was still new to teleporting. For all she knew, she could have jumped time as well as between places. She went directly to her own home, where she stayed for the rest of the day. She didn’t want to be at her sister's funeral, since she knew that her mother would be there and Vacía couldn’t stand being near her sister’s murderer, much less the comprehension that said the murderer was her own mother. 

      The next day, Vacía was awake at around 3 in the morning. She was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling and fidgeting with the corner of her pillow, which she held over her chest. She was so sleep deprived, she started seeing hallucinations on her ceiling. She saw two little kids playing in front of her, blurry as if she were in her Enderwalk state, which she fittingly gave the name for what happens when she teleports but is able to see the world around her in real time. She finally got up a couple hours later and decided to Enderwalk to her mother’s house. She needed answers, and she was going to get them. She reached for her door handle, but her hand went right through it. “Right, can’t touch things while teleporting.” Vacía mumbled to herself. She reached her mother’s home and fazed through the door. She looked for her mother upstairs, expecting her to be asleep still, but found nothing. She finally heard sniffling from downstairs and scribbling on paper.

She followed the sounds and found her mother, sobbing over a piece of paper, holding a brown and black striped quill, which was dripping with blue-black ink. Nixie didn’t seem to notice Vacía until she stopped Enderwalking. Nixie seemed to catch her breath and held it as if it were in a cage as she dropped her quill, letting the feather side slowly fall to the table, leveling with the heavy, ink-filled nib. She stayed in place for a moment before Vacía took a breath of her own to speak. “Mom, I want answers. Now.” Vacía said in a gentle, yet demanding tone. Nixie slowly turned to face Vacía, struggling to hold back tears. A few rolled down her cheeks and started sizzling, causing her to wince from the pain. She tried to take a deep breath to calm down before she started explaining to Vacía what happened. “I never saw who did it, Vacía. And you should know that I didn’t do it. Harpy was of my own blood, why would I hurt her? Why would I ever want to?” Nixie explained. Vacía looked over to the letter her mother was writing. She caught in the top right corner that it was to Nixie’s mother, Oceana.

It read, “Dearest mother, I know we haven’t…” and that was all Vacía could see from where she was. That, or her mother didn’t continue writing from there. She saw a few tear marks on the page. “Fine. You don’t have to tell me the truth, I can find somewhere else to go.” Vacía said, chillingly cold. There was a moment of silence as Vacía glanced back at the letter. “You can’t visit my mother. She doesn’t take kindly to strangers often.” Nixie said, hesitant to say anything about her family. “I’m not visiting your mother. I’m going to try and find someone else.” Vacía said vaguely. Nixie said nothing as Vacía felt her gaze follow her as Vacía entered her Enderwalk state again and walked out, heading to the mountains, where Harpy had mentioned at some point that someone might live there. It was her biggest chance at finding her aunt. With her goal set in mind, she didn’t bother to go back and get any supplies. The only thing she carried with her was the earring that matched Harpy’s. She didn’t need to get supplies, since, when she’s in her Enderwalk state, the state she was in before Enderwalking stays the same. So, when she goes to the mountains, she can stay warm. She navigated various walls and paths, sometimes having to faze through the next wall just to understand where she needed to go. Once she finally found the north entrance, she got stopped by a little Enderian girl.

She stared at Vacía for a good few minutes, seeming to try to understand how she was slightly see-through. After a moment, the girl tried to match her and entered her own Enderwalk state, granted she was glitching as if she was struggling to hold that form. “Where are you going?” The little girl said in a high-pitched, echoing voice. “I’m finding somewhere to live.” Vacía said, bluntly. “Why are you running away? Bad things happen when you leave.” The girl said vaguely, yet sad. Vacía was reminded of her sister, Harpy, and how she died once she left. “Don’t worry, when I’m in this state, all see-through and stuff, no one can hurt me. See?” She said as she tried to put a hand on the girl’s shoulder, but it fazed through at contact. The girl gasped, squirming as if she didn’t expect Vacía’s hand to go right through her. The girl’s eyes turned misty as she stood there. “Are you already dead?” She said, glumly. “What? No, of course not. I’m alive, you’re alive, there’s nothing to worry about. This is just… an in-between state of teleporting and walking normally. I call it Enderwalking. You could get really good at it if you practice enough.” Vacía finished with a smile. The girl smiled back and turned solid again and nodded to Vacía, but still looked unsure. 

Vacía heard voices so echoey that it was difficult to make out what words were said, but she was able to pick out bits and pieces to be able to hear legible sentences. “…we’ve…looking…you…disappeared…don’t…again…” which Vacía figured out was “We’ve been looking for you. You disappeared, don’t do that again.” Which she felt bad about, but she knew that the girl had an adventurous side that couldn’t stop her from trying anything. Vacía continued on her search for her aunt and went out the North Entrance. She stopped a few feet outside, slowly turning to face Earthlands for seemingly one last time. She saw the face of the girl glance back at her, checking to see if she was still okay. Vacía looked down to her own pitch-dark hands, seeing grass through it, the ground as fuzzy as the rest of the world around her. She started her trek towards and up the mountains, avoiding a swamp as she went. 

       After hours of exhausting work of trying to stay solid enough to climb the small rocks yet stay in her Enderwalk state so she kept warm, she finally saw plumes of smoke, seeming to come from chimneys. Chimneys. Those meant houses, and houses meant civilization. She continued up, still concentrating on her physical form, finally able to rest and explore the place she found. Looking for someone she recognized, someone who would look similar to her mother.

Chapter Text

Vacía looked for an hour or two, getting lots of glances from those who didn't recognize this wandering young Enderian. She noticed there weren't as many people here as there were in Earthlands, even though this place was much larger despite the restraining cliff edges. She resisted the urge to peer through the windows of every house she passed, however she didn't want to stir up any suspicion that she was a wandering bandit looking to steal. She eventually came across a large fountain that was still flowing, which puzzled Vacía because she knew it must be freezing here, seeing how people were dressed and the nearby ponds were frozen over. The water rushed quickly, preventing it from freezing like the still water at the edges of the fountain that stood relatively still. One thing the quick water did not prevent though, was dramatic splashes going a few feet outside of the fountain itself. Vacía decided to stray away from it and found herself face-to-face with someone who seemed to be of high stature, possibly the watcher of this large village.

"Who... who might you be, young Enderian?" the woman said, gripping the hilt of her sheathed sword strapped to her hip. "You can see me?" Vacía asked, not realizing how stupid a question it was. People who weren't remotely Enderian could see her just fine. She must have been more visible than she thought. "Yes... I can. Are you quite alright? This cold must be getting to your head. Follow me, you can sit by a fire as we talk." The woman said sternly, having a hidden undertone of sentiment, similar to her own mother. They walked to a house on a high mountain. The woman led her inside and gestured to a chair for Vacía to sit. The woman walked to the fireplace and tended to it to make sure it was giving off enough warmth. She took her place in the chair opposite of Vacía and let her calm down a bit, trying to be as welcoming as she could be with the intimidating air that seemed to follow her. "So, you were saying?" the woman said gently. 

After Vacía didn't respond, the woman gave a sudden look of surprise. "Oh, my apologies, where are my manners? My name is Kitsana, you can call me Kit. I'm the leader of this lovely empire here, Alpines." Kit said with a formal tone, seeming playful as if being formal was a form of a joke. Vacía's eyes widened with excitement. "Aunt Kitsana? I've been looking for you, I never expected it to be this easy-" Vacía got cut off by the abrupt confusion from Kit. "Hang on there, 'Aunt'? Are you my twin sister's daughter?" Kit asked. "Yes, I am Nixie's daughter, Vacía." she replied excitedly. "Vacía... So, she had another child. I shouldn't be surprised; she doesn't tell me much. I had to learn of your older sister by way of rumors." Kit explained. "Harpy isn't my sister... not anymore." Vacía said with a pained look. "May I ask what happened...? Though I feel I already know the answer." Kit said sympathetically. "I'm sorry to have brought sad memories of the past, I never intended this to be a sad day." Kit said apologetically. "It's alright." Vacía said, trying to get the memory of Harpy out of mind so she didn't shed tears and cause more pain than necessary.

They sat in a grueling silence for a while, the passing moments seeming almost more painful than the feeling of her skin melting from tears. Vacía noticed a shine in the corner of her eye, noticing it was from the window. She got up to investigate closer, finding out it wasn’t a sun ray glinting against the glass. There were many tiny white dots falling from the sky, some looking like they had crystal-like designs. Vacía dashed outside without another thought, Kitsana following behind in puzzlement. Before Vacía got far, Kit placed a warm coat over her shoulders. She slowly wandered to the edge of the sheltered porch, her nose and long pointy ears starting to chill. Despite the cold, she was mesmerized by a suddenly blanketed ground. She could see her breath in front of her, bewildering Vacía further. 

She found herself moving forward on all fours, wanting to touch the white blanket of cold, which looked as fluffy and smooth as a white bunny, which she saw quite often around Earthlands. Vacía felt a thrilling cold run up her hand as she touched the white fluffy stuff, but Kitsana dragged her away before she could pick it up. “Are you crazy? This is snow.” Kit said, matter-of-factly. Once Vacía didn’t react the way she wanted, she changed her approach. “It’s frozen water from the sky, Vacía. Water hurts, remember?” Kit explained softly. Vacía’s eyes widened with confusion as she looked back to the comforting snow. “But it looks fluffy…” Vacía said, saddened. “Yes, it’s very deceiving. Even if you could touch it without being in immense pain, it could give you hypothermia and completely freeze your hands. It’s best to stay inside when this happens.” Kit explained. Vacía nodded and followed her back inside and sat back at the fire. They continued to talk a while before Kit got up and walked towards some stairs. “I believe I should show you where you can sleep.” Kit said, amused at how childishly excited Vacía was to be with her aunt despite her age. “So how old are you, exactly?” Kit asked her as they walked up the stairs. “Oh, I’m fifteen. Why?” Vacía asked. “Only fifteen and she ran away…?” Vacía overheard Kit mumble under her breath. “Yep. How old were you when you left home?” Vacía asked. 

Kit paused as if not expecting Vacía to have heard her. “How did you hear me…?” Kit asked, puzzled. “I hear a lot of things.” Vacía said, tapping her ear with her finger. “Almost nothing gets past me, especially not something that is said directly above me… very quietly… oh… I probably wasn’t supposed to hear that… was I…? I’m sorry.” Vacía said apologetically. “No, it’s okay. Sometimes that’s a very important gift, as long as you don’t go around responding to every whisper you hear.” Kit explained. Vacía nodded and kept quiet the rest of the way to her room. “And to answer your question, Vacia.” Kit started before Vacía closed her door. “I ran away when I was eighteen. Knowing your mother, she’d be worried sick about you. I don’t know why you left, but at your age, you probably shouldn’t have.” Kit said, closing Vacía’s door for her. 

       A moment of contemplating passed before Vacía opened her door and rushed to catch up to Kit. “She murdered Harpy.” Vacía burst out. Kit stopped in her tracks at this claim. “What?!” Kit said, looking over her shoulder at Vacía. “Nixie killed Harpy. I saw her in mother’s arms when I got there, her body was cold.” Vacía explained firmly. “Little Enderian, listen well when I tell you that your mother is no killer. It’s my mother you should be concerned about. Me and Nixie may be the daughters of a villain, but we did everything we could to not go down that path. Of either of us, I would be the first to take that path if at all.” Kit explained. Vacía stood in the hallway, her jaw feeling like it dropped to the floor. 

“I didn’t… I didn’t know. And you don’t. People can change, especially when you don’t keep them close so you can prevent that.” Vacía defended. “What makes you think I don’t?” Kit questioned. “You have to keep tabs on her from rumors, I never see you around Earthlands, and mother never talks about you. How would you consider that ‘holding someone close’?” Vacía explained. Kit stood in front of her, opening and closing her mouth as if she wanted to say something. 

“You’re very observant. Too much so, in fact. Goodnight, Vacía.” Kit said before turning on her heel and closing the door to her bedroom. Vacía was left standing in the hallway, alone. It felt like a familiar yet alien feeling, being left alone. She never remembered being abandoned, yet it felt so, so familiar. She turned and headed straight to her own bedroom, debating whether or not to go back home or not, rethinking Kitsana’s words. 

        The next morning, Vacía was surprised when no one woke her up. She got out of bed and sloppily fixed her hair with her hands before heading downstairs where her senses were flooded with the warm smell of food. Kitsana noticed her and gestured for her to sit in front of a few breakfast items. One of which was a small plate of bacon, another was a slice of toast with an egg on top. Somewhere in the center of the table was a basket supplied with bread roles and a couple jars of differently flavored jams. “Woah…” Vacía said, sitting politely before she ate. “Eat, you must be starving.” Kit said. “I am…” Vacía said, still a little drowsy from yesterday. “Look, I can clearly tell you might be a little upset from last night. So, I decided to try to make it up to you with the language all of us understand perfectly; food.” Kit said jokingly. Vacía chuckled a little and finally started eating. 

        After they ate, Kit started cleaning up her dishes as well as Vacía’s. “I can help.” Vacía said, taking the rest of her plates and following Kit, who had a relieved and appreciative expression. “Well, I’m glad Nix at least taught you some manners.” Kit joked. “Want to have a look around?” Kit asked Vacía as they finished cleaning up. Vacía nodded in excitement as she grabbed a spare coat and went out with Kit. 

As they walked around, Kit told Vacía about more and more of the Alpines’ history, regardless of how little there was. They continued for a while and Vacía noticed there were even fewer people than yesterday. “Why do people keep disappearing?” Vacía asked. “Oh, a lot of them are just hiding from the cold.” Kit explained. “Oh. That makes sense.” Vacía said. They went back to Kitsana’s house, Kit telling Vacía about the things she has to do around the Alpines and how to take care of it. Vacía pointed out similarities and differences from Earthlands, Kit praising her for her memory. “I help out a lot, even though mother likes to do things alone a lot of the time.” Vacía explained. “Well, I could always use a helper, though I bet your mom would need it more, seeing how many people are there in Earthlands.” Kit said. 

       A few days passed from this regular routine, and they became very close. One day, the snow melted enough for people to come out of hiding more. However, the number of people kept going down by the day until it seemed only a few remained. Even they didn’t seem keen on staying, giving unseen glances to Kitsana and whispering something about the empire’s downfall, or whatever that meant. 

      With each passing day, Kit continued to try convincing Vacía to go home, getting more concerned and the more urgency was in her voice which she attempted to mask with more concern. Eventually, she seemed to get frustrated and Vacía spent more time in the room Kit provided for her. Eventually, she decided it was better at Earthlands than here. At least Nixie tried to seem like she cared. It was getting to a point that Kit wasn’t even trying anymore. That night, Vacía packed up her things and left a note on Kit’s door explaining where she was. She carefully snuck out with a coat over her shoulders to protect from the cold and made her way down the mountain and finally back to Earthlands. 

She hesitantly walked through the entrance which she left, and thought would never walk back through again. She got excited looks from those she passed, some whispering in a way that Vacía couldn’t understand, since they figured out Vacía heard a lot of the things meant to be left unsaid. Vacía eventually went into her Enderwalk state and avoided the majority of the stares she would’ve gotten otherwise. She made her way back to her own house, careful to try and avoid Nixie. 

     Eventually, she got caught in a large crowd shuffling towards someplace. Vacía tried to walk through the crowd, eventually coming to a clear area. Just when she thought she was free from people, she heard a concerned voice coming from behind her. “…Vacía?” Said the all too familiar voice of her mother. Vacía looked behind her shoulder and tried to stare Nixie in the eyes, however her eyes were obstructed by her hair and a flower crown she often wore. “Hello, mother.” Vacía said bitterly. She saw a stream of tears fall down Nixie’s face. She knew they burned her, but she didn’t seem to care as she rushed toward her daughter and wrapped her in an embrace. This forced Vacía out of her Enderwalk out of shock. Vacía wrapped her own arms around her mother, returning the embrace. 

They stayed that way for a while, the crowd mostly dispersing, except for a few people whom Vacía had to give a stern glare to get to back off and go back to whatever they were doing before they needed Nixie’s help. “You’re finally home.” Nixie said, her tears leaving a raw trail down her cheeks. “Yeah… I guess I am.” Vacía said with a faint smile. Nixie tried to hug her again, but Vacía playfully nudged her off. “Okay, that’s enough touchy-feely for one day.” Vacía said with a chuckle. Nixie smiled and reached up to hold Vacía’s cheek in her palm. “You know I wouldn’t do it.” Nixie said so softly she knew only Vacía could hear it. Vacía nodded faintly and looked down to her feet. “Come, we need to celebrate your return.” Nixie said, excited to give Vacía one of the best days of her life. They both went back to Vacía’s house, Nixie telling Vacía about a cake she wanted to teach her how to make before she left. 

      They spent the rest of that afternoon having fun baking and laughing before Vacía was finally tired out and needed rest. “Good night, Vacía. I love you very much. I never want you to forget that.” Nixie said before she left. “I love you too, mother.” Vacía said before Nixie closed the door. She went upstairs and plopped down on her bed, glad to be back in her own room and home. 

•••

Kit sat in a chair by the fireplace, debating whether or not to visit the caves she found a couple days ago while Vacía was there. She got up and grabbed a pickaxe and a lantern before heading out. She made the long trek to the cave opening, ready to explore. After going down a while, she noticed a green gem poking through the rocks. She continued and found them showing up more often, eventually leading to a large chamber that she could hardly see five feet in front of her. She put out her lantern and let her eyes adjust. She started seeing odd shapes seeming to float above the ground. She started to be able to see more of her surroundings and saw a giant crystal embedded into the rock around it. The floating shapes she saw were much smaller, similar looking crystal shards which were either as small as her forearm or double her own height. She wandered down to get a closer look at the main crystal. 

There was a very enticing gleam to the fluorescent green color of the crystal, making her want to reach out and touch it. She noticed there wasn’t a reflection, just a glassy surface that seemed to fade into a haze the deeper she looked into it. She started seeing a pulsing glow on the inside, but it wasn’t clear what it was. She tried to get closer to see what it was, pressing her palm against the smooth surface, when all of a sudden, she got a sharp, painful headache causing her to stumble back in shock, feeling a force as if she was shoved back. She tried to crawl backwards to get away from the crystal, with every inch decreasing the pain. Once she got back up to where she entered, it was as if nothing had happened. She turned back to the crystal, curious about what had just happened.

       As she headed back, she started to feel a faint throbbing in the back of her head. She figured she must have just bashed her head against the ground when she was seemingly pushed back. Besides, she was tired, and she would probably feel better in the morning. She got back to her house and hit the pillow as soon as she could, almost immediately falling asleep despite the headache rising through her head, clouding her thoughts and causing vivid dreams.

Chapter Text

She began to regain consciousness to the sound of rushing waves and sea birds cawing. She opened her eyes slowly, temporarily blinded by the brightness of the sun shining off to the west, casting an orange-pink glow over the crashing waves of the ocean encircling her odd surroundings, which she assumed was an island. There wasn't much there, a few young trees and brush scattered occasionally. She looked up again and noticed an odd-looking bird flying past. It seemed to notice her and started to fly down. As it did so, the bird looked more like a person than anything. They landed in front of her, when she noticed they were a woman.

"Hello there. How did you get here? You don't look like you're from Elysia..." The woman trailed off. "What is your name?" She asked. "I... I don't know..." She said, "Well, you have to know your name, it's silly of you to not. Then again, I know a person who's had your problem as well. I'm Nix, Nixie Miriam." She said, as she introduced herself. "Why don't you come with me, I can show you where you can stay." Nixie said with a smile. She nodded and was surprised when Nixie picked her up quite easily and flew in the direction she was initially going.

      About half an hour passed and they came upon a large village, one portion of it as if it was being built. It incorporated the ocean and stalls where it looked like people could trade underwater. They arrived at what seemed like a main entrance, Nixie putting her down gently before landing as well. “Welcome to Earthlands… You still need a name, don’t you?” Nixie asked. She thought for a moment, muttering to herself. She eventually joined in and did the same, without whispering like Nixie did. “What about Maia?” Nixie blurted out. She then gave a look of surprise as if she regretted speaking so soon. “Never mind- Maya is better.” Nixie amended. “What’s the difference…?” She asked. “Different spelling.” Nixie said bluntly. “Why would that have anything to do with it?” She asked, confused. “Don’t worry about that part. So, I’ll call you Maya for now until you remember your name.” Nixie said cheerfully, looking accomplished. “I’m not sure I like it all that much…” She said slowly. “I feel like… maybe Kagome is better…?” She said, carefully. “Oh, yes that is much better.” Nixie said nervously. “Kagome, then. It’s a nice name, I can see why you picked it.” Nixie said. “Thanks?” Kagome said, puzzled. “Follow me, I’ll show you where you can stay.” Nixie said, wrapping her arm around Kagome’s and tugging her along gently. Nixie toured Kagome around for a couple hours before finally coming to a stop at a vacant house.

“This is where you can stay. Everything is furnished and nice! I can supply you with food if you’re planning on staying for long.” Nixie said, friendily. “No, thank you. I think I belong somewhere else, if I woke up on a beach.” Kagome explained. “Oh… yeah that makes sense.” Nixie said, trying to cover up the fact she was saddened by this answer. “I’m sure I’ll visit again, though!” Kagome said, trying to cheer her up. “Here, I’ll help you get settled in.” Nixie said, bringing out a key from a satchel she was carrying on her shoulder. She unlocked the house and told Kagome where everything was. “Thanks, I think I’ll go exploring a bit, your village could be considered an empire to some people.” Kagome said jokingly. The corners of Nixie’s smile tipped downward a little bit, too little to be noticed by anyone else except keen eyes. “Are you alright?” Kagome asked. 

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Nixie said as she was walking to the door. “Okay… I’ll see you around later.” Kagome said reassuringly as she saw the door shut. Kagome continued to the bedroom and saw a vanity set up against the wall opposite of the bed, which was just big enough for two people to sleep comfortably. She noticed the large mirror attached to the vanity and saw her reflection. She was a fairly normal looking woman, looking as if she were in her forties’ or so. She had sun-struck fair skin, raven black hair and very odd eyes; they seemed to be an empty gray, not a silver which you would find in someone naturally. This seemed like it was almost black, with a tint of green around the edges. She was wearing a sleeveless pantsuit and a gold corset, to which a long, sheer outer skirt was attached that fell just below the hemming of her pants. Just a few inches below her shoulders were gold arm cuffs with strips of fabric hanging loosely, simulating off-the-shoulder sleeves.  She found her appearance quite royal-like, though she couldn’t place her mind on why. 

She put that thought away in her mind, deciding to find someplace to visit and get a meal. It didn’t take long for her to find her goal; a food stall. She saw raw fish hanging in bundles and the same cooking over a fire, creating an alluring aroma. She wandered over and asked for a fish to eat. The storekeeper was kind and gave her a first-time free meal. They said they did this for everyone so they can decide if they want to buy more in the future. Kagome thanked them and went back home with seemingly the food of her dreams, though it felt familiar.

     She was around halfway back when she noticed a river flowing past a tall tower. She saw a figure through one of the windows and tried to make out who it was. She noticed the figure had wings and a long, scaly salamander tail before she realized who it actually was; Nixie. On the brief tour Nixie gave her, she pointed out that tower and told her not to go near. She started going over one of the bridges around the tower and saw a shimmer under the water. It was a small group of fish swimming against the current. Her eyes wandered to the plant growth under the surface of the water and became mesmerized by the way it flowed. She got snapped out of her trance by a loud cawing sound from above her. She looked up and noticed a black raven perched on top of the bridge she was halfway across. She gave it a curious look, the bird returning the same with a head tilt. She curiously smiled at it, as if she felt she knew this bird as an old friend.

The raven blinked at her before taking off towards the ocean that lined the west side of Earthlands, leaving Kagome confused and bewildered. She finally returned home and sat at her vanity, staring at her complexion as she reflected on all that had happened that day. Her memories were a little blurry, but she could otherwise think clearly. She laid on her bed and tried to fall asleep, almost silent whispers starting to sound in her mind. She decided they were just the faint whispers of a few memories still dancing around in her head, creating a sort of lullaby for her to fall asleep to.

     The next day, the whispers weren’t as noticeable, and she decided to go on with the day. Once she closed her door, she started counting her footsteps, oblivious to the world around her. She got to about 23 before she bumped shoulders with someone, making her jump out of her skin. The face she was met with was a young girl who seemed like a giant compared to Kagome. Her skin color was the same dark color as Nixie’s hands and feet and half of her hair was a striking white. “Distracted?” The girl asked. “Yes, sorry. I get trapped in my thoughts occasionally.” Kagome said. “I can tell.” The girl said, seeming to examine Kagome from head to toe with only her gaze. “My name is Vacía, Nixie’s daughter.” Vacía said, hesitating at the word “daughter” as if she wasn’t quite sure she knew what she was saying. “Oh, it’s nice to meet you. I’m-" She started. “Kagome, yes I heard.” Vacía cut her off. “Oh, did Nixie tell you?” Kagome asked. “No, I’m just… very observant.” Vacía responded. “But I’ve never seen you around before.” Kagome said, curious and confused.

“Well… I was at a distance. It makes sense you wouldn’t notice me; I tend to blend into the crowds.” Vacía explained, glancing at something behind Kagome as she spoke. Is she…lying to me…? She seems unfocused, as opposed to her staring at me the entire time we’ve been talking…? Kagome thought to herself. 

      A moment later, Nixie suddenly came up behind Vacía with a pleasant smile. “Oh, you’re awake already!” She said, excitedly. “I see you’ve met Vacía.” She said with a hint of surprise. “Yes, your daughter seems like a nice person.” Kagome said hesitantly. “Oh, that’s great!” Nixie said with a curious glance at Vacía. “Well, I’m glad you were able to get to know her a little bit, Kagome.” Nixie said, appreciative. Vacía rolled her eyes in response, which went unnoticed by Nixie but was picked up by Kagome very easily. “Well, if you’ll come with me, I’ll gladly show you where you can get some breakfast.” Nixie said kindly.

     Later that evening, Kagome was sitting by her vanity again, staring at her reflection. The longer she stared, the more she felt this wasn’t her actual face. The second this floated across her mind, the whispers came back, stronger than before. She became entranced, lost in her own thoughts, and got up from her seat and started wandering around Earthlands until the sun was long beneath the horizon and the stars began to show. She found herself eventually coming to a stop at the river where she met the raven, except this time she was on the sandbank beside Nixie’s tower. She was again mesmerized by the water’s surface, watching the moonlight cast over the ripples as time went by. She eventually was brought back to reality when Nixie placed a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, you’re up late. What’s going on?” She said with a worried tone. Kagome looked back to her emptily, still recovering from her thoughts.

     After a painfully long moment, Kagome finally looked at Nixie with severity in her eyes. “We need to talk.” Kagome said, harshly. Nixie gave a brief look of fear, which resolved to understanding. “Come, I need to show you something.” Nixie said, gesturing to her tower. “But you never let anyone in here.” Kagome said, a bit confused. “This is a special situation.” Nixie said vaguely. They went inside, Nixie flipping through a book it looked like she drew in.

“This is my sketchbook.” Nixie said, showing a rough looking drawing of someone who vividly resembled Kagome herself. “This woman is my mother. I haven’t heard from her in years, but I wanted something to keep remembering her face. Then you showed up, and I didn’t want to believe it then, but I knew by some wild chance I was right.” Nixie said, not giving any clarification whatsoever. “So…do you know what I came to ask?” Kagome said curiously. “I’m guessing.” Nixie said. “Who am I, really?” Kagome asked. Nixie sighed and nodded her head. She gestured towards the sketchbook in Kagome’s hands. “I’m…your mother?” Kagome said, utterly confused. “Well…not exactly. You used to be, at least. I don’t understand how you became…human…but the resemblance is too uncanny. And I’m not aware of Oceana having any other sisters, my only aunt died far before I was born, or so I was told.” Nixie explained. “So…is this a good thing?” Kagome said, hopeful.

“Not exactly…” Nixie said, hesitant. “What do you mean? I need to know who I really am.” Kagome said desperately. “Well…” Nixie started, hesitant to say anything, but was eventually convinced by Kagome staring intently at her, expecting an answer. “If I am correct, and you are Oceana, then you did unspeakably horrible things. You used to be an Empress of a kingdom, Atlantice. But…from what I understand, you drove them out trying to go behind your back. Especially your advisor, Earwyn. The man who raised me when you neglected me and my twin, Kitsana, as well as our older sister Cordelia.” Nixie said, pausing occasionally as if looking for a specific reaction.

“I was…royalty?” Kagome said, dreaminess in her eyes and voice. “You missed the point…you weren’t the best ruler. You ruled with an iron fist, but only one that crushed your own kingdom.” Nixie prompted. “Oh…well, I’m sure I’ll be a better ruler this time!” Kagome said, hopeful. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Kagome…” Nixie said, hesitant to call her by her chosen name after what she just told her. As Nixie spoke, she gently pulled the sketchbook from out of Kagome’s hands, grasping it close to her chest. Kagome’s hands stayed hovering in place as if she were still holding the book as a feeling of determination built in her mind. “I want to visit Atlantice, tomorrow.” Kagome added hastily, her heart fluttering with excitement. “Oh… I guess we can go first thing in the morning, if you want to.” Nixie said, something sounding like dread resting in her voice, which Kagome didn’t quite understand at the moment. “Oh, thank you, Nixie, truly!” Kagome shouted, her hands finally wrapping around each other, pressed against her chest.

She suddenly ran out, her mind circling with emotion she never remembered feeling. She finally reached her house, struggling to find her way back since she was entranced the entire way here. She found her way to her bedroom, taking one last look into her mirror and slowed down just enough to notice most of her hair had tinted the slightest bit teal, leaving only a small streak to be her natural color. That’s…very odd…? She thought to herself before shrugging to dismiss her thoughts and practically jumped into her bed and drifted off to sleep, feeling the soft pillow against her cheek.

Chapter Text

Kit found herself awakening earlier than usual as the warm morning light shone through the windows onto her kitchen walls, which she was leaning against. The young morning left her mind clear for her thoughts to wander, leading her to a sudden realization which she never connected before. “I cannot let the Empire of Atlantice see the light of another day in the hands of my mother.” Kit said quietly and sharply as if others were around to hear her but weren’t. She flung open the door to her main room, accidentally letting two mischievous foxes scurry out. “Hey! You’re not supposed to be out, it’s too cold!” Kit shouted, scolding the furry tails which continued to vanish around a corner. She couldn’t be bothered to take them back; she had business to attend to.

She left her house and flew towards her planning room, making a graceful landing with her paws gently touching down to the old, blanketed ground. She started weighing her options, reminiscing about her past with her mother. She had felt like an outcast in her own family her entire life, not to mention the rumors of Oceana driving her own people to the same point of insanity she had reached. She finished her thoughts, jotting down notes to ponder later and went to begin her daily routine of fight training. Kitsana always carried a weapon on her, unless it was an inappropriate occasion. When she got to her training grounds, she immediately got to work training on her dummies which she had woven with pride when she had first built Alpines.

      For a few hours, Kit’s head was clear of any thought until she got back home to find the letter from her sister Nixie which had arrived a couple days earlier. Kitsana didn’t take to mind writing a response, she didn’t see a reason to. One thing that struck her as odd was just the amount of letters Nixie had been sending lately, as if they had been in contact their entire lives.

In one of her more recent letters, she claimed Oceana was “different,” almost as if she were a new person. The person Nixie had described seemed nothing like their mother, even the girl’s name was different. She said she chose her own name, which was “Kagome.” Kitsana looked into the meaning of the name and was quite curious why Kagome chose the name she did. What was even more curious was that Nixie described her as “with a lost nature.” Kit didn’t quite understand what she meant by that, but that still didn’t prevent her from wandering to vengeful thoughts as she read the letter over again.

Dear sister,

I hope everything is well, I do hope my letters are reaching you, since I have not been getting any replies from you. On the topic of letters, I am writing this to inform you that our mother doesn’t seem herself lately. She has been acting oddly and she does not look like herself; she looks as if she is human. She gave herself the name Kagome which I don’t quite understand the reason for. It’s as if she’s a different person who is lost in nature. I do not know the reasons for all of this, but I hope to help her remember herself in a good light. 

Sincerely with love, Nix

“If Oceana really is gone, at least for now, then this may be my best opportunity to lay siege to Atlantice…” Kit said quietly to herself. Kitsana’s mind wandered to how Oceana had treated her people and how, even when she was younger, Kit knew it was wrong. Kitsana wanted nothing more than to march through those gates, rest on the throne her mother once did and not care if she would be considered a usurper, since the people of Atlantice would certainly recognize that they had a better ruler than they have had for the past decades. Along with this, she wanted her sister there by her side, cheering her on and complimenting her as well as she did in her letters. She could practically hear the cheers of salvation from the crowds now… she could bathe in the riches their mother never cared to share with anyone besides herself and her selfish desires.

She knew her dreams were possible, she just needed to put them in action. As far as she knew, “Kagome” still existed, which meant that Oceana did not. With Atlantice without a ruler, that meant the throne was free for the taking. Kit’s mind wandered to her past with Oceana. In turn, her sisters as well.

       In her childhood, their mother always seemed to favor Nixie over Kitsana, and it was like Cordelia didn’t exist. She mostly saw Nixie treated as if she needed to be padded with the softest silks in all of Panthera. More than a few times, Kit had caught Oceana faking a smile and lying about loving Kit as equally as her sisters. In reality, Oceana was treating Kit as if she were an insignificant speck of dirt on the floor needing to be cleaned up. Because of the scar Kit had given Nixie all those years ago, without knowing the consequences, she was treated as if she were a danger to her own family. Even after all of this, Kit attempted to forgive Oceana for her deeds many times. She was on edge about Nixie’s safety and thought Oceana would take no part in “protecting,” though she saw their mother attempting to in a very controlling way. Nixie saw this as an act of love, but Kit viewed it as trying to mold them to her liking, as if she even liked them in the first place. 

This debate eventually started tearing the twins apart, especially after their older sister Cordelia left. As the twins grew, resentment towards each other grew along with them. This hatred had grown for eighteen years before Kit had had enough. She left Atlantice, one day in the hopes of turning it for the better and getting revenge on her mother for something that it seemed only Kit had seen and realized. She put all these thoughts aside for one main goal. “What harm would paying back a past burden do?” Kitsana mumbled to herself with a menacing smirk tugging on her mouth. The least Oceana could do for her daughter whom she refused a happy life was a life in return. Kitsana’s conscience whispered to her to turn back and take a more peaceful path and not end up like her mother herself, but all Kit could think of now is all the inventive ways she could torture her mother and carry out every thought she had as a child in the moments of emotional torment Oceana dealt to Kit. Even if Oceana has returned to Atlantice at this point, she would be caught off guard and too far from being her full self to be able to fight back.

All of these ideas might be reckless, Kit did take this into account, but if it meant Atlantice be freed from Oceana’s powerful grip on her kingdom when she inevitably changed back to her former self, it was far too worth the trouble. She pondered when she would take action, knowing she couldn’t take too long or possibly her only chance would be gone. “Before the end of this week would do.” Kit mumbled to herself, sketching a sloppy drawing of Oceana. Her plan played in her head as she finished the drawing and threw the paper up in the air. She quickly drew a small knife and pierced the paper through, momentum pinning it to the wall. “Vengeance.” Kitsana said with a triumphant and menacing grin.

Chapter Text

Kagome was very excited the next day, seeming to wake up before all of Earthlands did. Almost the entire morning, she was sitting on her bed and wandering through the village daydreaming about what she could discover about herself. 

         After an hour or two had passed, she eventually saw Nixie walking about and getting her day started. Kagome walked over to her, eager to start their journey to an empire Nixie claimed was Kagome’s. When Nixie saw her, she had a look of surprise as if she wasn’t expecting her to be awake so early. After Nixie had finished a few more important tasks, they set off to find the Empire of Atlantice. Nixie brought out an odd contraption which looked like a small raft with ropes connecting to each corner. Kagome gave her a look of confusion as she told her to climb onto it. “This is to make it easier for me to carry you. It also makes it a little more comfortable for you.” Nixie explained. She continued to strap it over her shoulders and wings and, surprisingly, lifted off the ground quite easily. “You’re much stronger than you appear.” Kagome said, a bit nervous. “Well, I did have young children, once.” She said, jokingly, however her expression turned to regret soon after. 

         They flew for seemingly hours before a tall, dark green wall protruding from the water came into view. Nixie glanced down, as if looking for a reaction from Kagome, only seeing pure bewilderment and amazement in her eyes. They landed near what Kagome assumed to be the entrance to the palace from the wall and carefully got off, her legs not used to walking anymore. “Careful, the first time you fly, you’re not used to landing very well.” Nixie said cautiously. “Yeah, I could tell.” Kagome said, mocking. She straightened her legs and continued down the stairs into the palace. 

They got to a hall, Nixie taking the lead. “If you go down to the end, that was your bedroom.” Nixie said, pointing to the room to the right, down the hallway. Kagome excitedly skipped down to her bedroom and was greeted with a fancy bed filled with water and a beautiful wood vanity against the wall. She walked over to it, tracing the gold designs around the mirror, once again checking her reflection. Focused on her own complexion, she noticed a shadow in the corner of the room. She pivoted around to see and immediately noticed Nixie in the doorway, the shadow was nowhere to be seen.

“Are you alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost…” Nixie said, concerned. “I think so…” Kagome said, unsure about which she was answering. A glimmer caught her eye and noticed a large painting she was surprised went unseen at the end of the hall. It was a portrait of what she assumed to be the ruler of Atlantice. “This was you… once.” Nixie said slowly. Staring at the painting, then back to the vanity, she started to notice many similarities between her and this Empress. 

“What was her name, again?” Kagome asked. Nixie hesitated, taking a deep breath. “Your name used to be Oceana.” Nixie said, finally. As soon as she said her name, Kagome got a very powerful headache, followed by whispers she could almost understand. She started to question who she was, even though the answer should have been obvious. “Are you okay?” Nixie said, rushed and worried. Kagome gave no response, trying to understand what she was hearing. 

          Eventually, Nixie went over and shook her to bring her back to reality. “What just happened?” Nixie asked. “I.. I don’t know…” Kagome said, confused. She looked back to the portrait and saw a glimmer in Oceana’s eyes. One of the main differences between Oceana and Kagome. “Where is that?” Kagome asked, pointing to the throne Oceana was sitting on. Nixie followed her indication and looked regretful. “I’ll show you…” Nixie said, worried. 

Nixie started to lead Kagome to where the portrait was taken, Kagome hesitating as she took another glance at Oceana’s eyes and the sly glint they had. She followed Nixie to a grand throne room, pillars on each side leading to the throne, which was presented on an elevated plane. It was very intricate, carved like a large clam shell with the seat in the middle. She glanced at Nixie for permission before she went up to what used to be her throne. Nixie seemed very unsure, but she nodded, nonetheless. Kagome nervously stepped up to the throne and sat down, resting her arms on those of the throne. She felt surprisingly comfortable, considering it didn’t look all that well upholstered. “Do… do you want me to leave you alone for a little while?” Nixie said after a moment.

          After she got no response, yet again, Kagome staring into the distance, she backed away and explored the palace a bit more, leaving Kagome to her thoughts.

Well,  hello there, I wondered when you would find this place…

Kagome heard a voice similar to hers whisper. “Who are you…?” Kagome said, quietly.

I think you should know the answer to that very well… After all, don’t you think you should know yourself?…

“What do you mean? Why would you ask such a thing?” Kagome responded.

All I’m saying is that I think a change of power is in order…

“…You’re Oceana… Aren’t you?” Kagome asked.

I see my counterpart wasn’t left completely stupid…

Oceana gave a condescending giggle. “Why are you in my head?” Kagome asked desperately.

It’s not that I’m in your head… no… You simply have control over my body… You are not who you think, Kagome… Have you ever wondered why you chose your name…? You gave yourself this name to describe simply what you are…

This left Kagome’s head spinning with questions, all of which she knew Oceana could very well hear. “I’m not lost…” Kagome said, questioning herself.

Oh, you may not be… But I was… All I am now is a simple, unwanted memory to those who knew me, and to those who feel wronged by me…

“Get out of my head, Oceana. We are not the same.” Kagome said firmly, holding her head between her hands.

Well, you got one thing right… We in fact are not the same… One of us is weak… The other is far greater…

Kagome’s head continued to erupt with echoing laughter that sent a chill down her spine. She violently shook her head, trying to get Oceana to leave her alone. When nothing worked, she resorted to splashing herself with water. As soon as the cold water hit her face, the laughter faded. She quickly got up from her throne and rushed back to her bedroom, staring at Oceana’s portrait, terrified. 

She supported her weight on her vanity and looked back to herself, seeing her hair had turned more teal in color than the night before. She also noticed her skin starting to form patches of light blue scales. She looked to her own hands, hoping this to be just another vision in the mirror, however they were just as changed in her own eyes as they appeared in her reflection. 

She looked back to herself, her reflection flickering between her terrified face and Oceana’s terrifying smirk, the room around her fading to darkness as all she could focus on was what she saw in the mirror. Kagome closed her eyes, trying to make all of this stop. As she did, she felt tears gently roll down her face. 

          Suddenly, her mind seemed quieter. Emptier. Finally able to feel relief, she laid down on her bed without thinking about the fact it was half submerged by water. She fell asleep quickly, trying to block out any trace of Oceana.

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          The few weeks that passed, Kagome continued to change, and with every passing day, she looked more and more like Oceana. This fact terrified her, so much to an extent that she wanted to keep herself in her room and not go anywhere near her throne anymore, afraid it would bring Oceana back. She also tried to keep away from her mirror, but it was a habit for her to constantly look at her reflection and fix her hair.

          One day, she noticed her ears had changed to fish-like gills. On the opposite wall of her bed was a large wardrobe which held fabulous dresses and outfits that seemed for specific occasions. She sifted through the clothes and found one that was very different from the rest. It was a black bodysuit with a flowing top that was cut right at the collarbone. She noticed a corset with gold etching similar to the designs on the mirror hanging right next to the top and bodysuit. Hanging on the inside of one of the doors to the wardrobe was a brown leather satchel that looked like it fastened to the hip. She wondered if this outfit was for exploring or something where she went outside of the kingdom.

            For once in a week or so, Kagome decided to go to the throne room again. The voice of Oceana returned, starting to mock Kagome again.

I didn’t think you would be back… Not after the spook you got from the first time…

Oceana said, chuckling in her terrifying, creepy way. “How many times do I have to tell you to go away…?” Kagome said, trying her best to be stern towards Oceana’s menacing presence.

Oh… don’t give me that… I’m simply here to guide you… to lead you to greatness… All it starts with is sitting on that throne… and accepting who you truly are… those terrible things Nixie told you we did… you should be proud of what we’ve achieved… Not everyone can bring themselves to do such things…

Oceana said, starting to sound closer and closer to Kagome’s ear, as if she were real and right next to her.

Just sit on that throne… and all of this can stop… all of this mental torture… you can stop it… Just let me take control… Let me take control…

Oceana’s voice echoed those words over and over, Kagome’s body moving without her control. She felt the smooth copper of the throne against her touch. She sat down, finally, staring out to the entrance of the throne room. She saw Nixie poke her head around the corner to see what was happening, only to be met with a look she never wanted to see again.

By this time, Kagome looked exactly like Oceana again. All that needed to change was her composure, which now had changed as well. Now who sat before Nixie was no longer Kagome, but Oceana, back in her original state of power. She gave a smirk to Nixie and chuckled.

“Hello, daughter. It’s been a while.” Oceana said condescendingly.

Chapter Text

As Oceana sat on her throne, reminiscing her time as ruler over Atlantice, she started to feel her reign over the Empire was becoming obsolete. Perhaps her people wouldn’t come around to reason and return. Maybe sitting here, every day with no result and no avail, really was 'useless.' “I recall I had a few hobbies as a young girl…” Oceana mumbled to herself.

         By that time, Nixie had already left Atlantice, presumably because she had no other reason to be there besides helping her mother regain her memory. “I mean… She does have a daughter, herself. She probably needed to check on her.” Oceana said.

        Right as she finished that thought, a familiar face popped out of nowhere. “Vacía… for what do I owe this visit?” Oceana said formally. The young Enderian rolled her eyes at this, but quickly turned her expression to intrigue. “So, you regained your memory, I hear.” Vacía said, looking Oceana up and down. “You certainly don’t look the same, Kagome.” Vacía said, trying to seem warm and friendly. “Yes, well… Kagome was a former name. I have returned to being myself, Oceana.” She corrected her. “Right…” Vacía trailed off. “So, Vacía, why are you visiting Atlantice, the birthplace of your mother?” Oceana said sarcastically. “I came to tell you that one of your daughters might be… planning something.” Vacía said hesitantly.

Oceana’s posture immediately straightened at these words. “What kind of plan…?” Oceana said, narrowing her eyes to slits. “All I know is that she has a plan against you. I don’t know what, or why, but you might want to be cautious.” Vacía explained. Oceana relaxed back into her seat, thinking. After all she’s done for me, she decides to double-cross me the second I regain my power… Oceana thought to herself. “Thank you, Vacía, for your loyalty.” Oceana said. Vacía opened her mouth, as if to say something else but just backed away before vanishing in a veil of purple particles which looked like small stars fading out of existence. “This should be a wonderful next meeting with my daughter, Nixie… I will show her just how much power she helped me attain within these past weeks.” Oceana said, chuckling to herself.

       Oceana felt as if she were still being watched, though Vacía had already gone. Oceana subtly looked to her side, trying to see if someone was there without them noticing. All she could notice was a faint movement in empty space. “You should know, child, I am not taken for a fool very easily.” Oceana said as her head straightened with her gaze, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips.

She heard a quiet breath and the movement had disappeared. Oceana chuckled to herself, proud of her own cunning.

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Weeks passed and Oceana found herself in the common room where she recalled memories she once shared with her sister as a child. Oceana had taken a liking to writing her memories down, so she didn’t forget what wasn’t already forgotten. She would sit in the surprisingly comfortable seats decorated from gold and the same type of aquatic stone which the walls that protected Atlantice were constructed from. 

She took out a small journal, almost every day, and recalled memories from the past when she felt less alone, when everyone she loved hadn’t abandoned her and when she felt happier and free. This journal held memories from her past love, her family and her friends. She also recalled the worst times she had with those people and decided to write how she saw those events to truly understand them.

         A few hours passed and she decided to take a break and close her journal. She needed a name for it so she could spot this book among a shelf of others; something fitting, yet poetic.

She decided on one which she thought was perfect: Timeless Memories.

She reflected on her thoughts, remembering more and more detail about her past. Part of which was the childhood of her children. She recalled what Vacía had said, and a plan started to form in her head. She remembered what she would do to all who stood in her way, and planned to follow through, family or not.

Oceana finished her thoughts and set towards the library, which she visited often when she was younger. She walked past all the servants' rooms, up the stairs and through the library’s doors. She found a shelf that held notebooks and similar types and placed her journal on the far left, towards the door. She looked around for letter parchment and began putting her plan in motion by writing a letter to her daughter.

Dear Nixie, 

It has been a few weeks since we’ve last spoken.

During which, someone paid me a visit, which led me to remember that we have not seen each other, despite how often you used to visit. So, I would like to invite you back to your home, as I have noticed a change in my perspective. I’ve remembered how you treated me well in your youth. I’ve been feeling that Atlantice has been empty without you here.

I hope to see you soon,

Your mother, Oceana Miriam

She began to call out for her messenger raven, only to find it right next to her a second later. She felt like she jumped out of her skin and yelped. “How do you always turn up when it’s most necessary?” Oceana questioned. It only gave her a blank stare in response as it slowly opened its beak to receive the letter. Oceana carefully gave it to the bird; afraid it would snap her fingers off.

         As soon as it got hold of the letter, it took off as quickly as it came. She regained her composure and went to prepare for the upcoming events. She returned to her personal room and decided to have a change in wardrobe. She found the outfit she noticed before she became herself again and put it on. She fastened the sturdy corset which partly acted as a chest plate and buckled her pouches and knife to her hip. With her preparations set, she went back to her throne and waited for Nixie to arrive. 

          Eventually, Oceana saw Nixie arrive and straightened her posture, which she let slouch for the time being. “Ah, Nixie! I was hoping you would receive my letter.” Oceana said as warmly as she could. Nixie gave a small smile and walked up the few stairs to meet Oceana’s eyes. “Why did you invite me here?” Nixie said, trying to be skeptical. Well, I hate to admit it, but… I missed you.” Oceana said, trying not to hesitate at the word ‘missed,’ but failed. Nixie gave a curious look as she processed what Oceana said. “I also found some books in my old library that I think you would enjoy.” Oceana said, making her eyes seem brighter with excitement. “Oh, okay.” Nixie said, walking off, seeming to try and hide her excitement. 

As soon as she saw Nixie scale the stairs of the common room, Oceana went to her private quarters. When she got there, she started to carefully remove bricks from the wall behind her bed to reveal a secret room she had been making when Kagome was in control of her to calm down whenever any thought of Oceana caused a panic attack. It was a pretty empty room, except for a few things to distract her mind from thinking normally. Most of it was potion brewing supplies which Oceana had a few years back, that was why she had the outfit she was wearing now.

She was messing around with the bottles and flasks when Nixie walked in. “Mother? What is all this…?” Nixie said, Oceana noticed her gaze drift to writing on the wall that Kagome wrote to give a physical 'voice' to Oceana without talking, herself. 

These included “Just accept it”, “Give up” and anything similar. 

          Oceana gave her an intrigued look. “Nixie, I didn’t expect you to be here.” Oceana said, trying to seem surprised. “Well, I noticed you weren’t on your throne, so I wanted to see where you went, and this was my first guess… I just didn’t expect there to be a room you never told me about.” Nixie said, glancing warily at the writing. “Yes, well… I wasn’t myself when this place was created.” Oceana said, waving her hand dismissively. 

“Right… No wonder you never wanted me in here, even then.” Nixie said, looking down at her feet. “Why did you really bring me back?” Nixie said after a moment. Oceana stared at her, confused. “I just wanted to catch up, see how things were going in the family.” Oceana said, giving a small smile. “I also wanted to see if I could… mend some mistakes.” Oceana said, thoughtful. “I see.” Nixie said, trying to hide a smile. “What are you saying, exactly?” Nixie asked. “Can’t a mother apologize?” Oceana asked in response. Nixie’s smile grew to a small grin as Oceana held her arms out, prompting Nixie into an embrace. 

          Nixie practically ran into Oceana’s arms but let out a sharp breath in response. She took a step back from her mother to see what Oceana had done. Nixie saw a bright red stain of blood in her side as Oceana pulled her knife out to let her bleed. Nixie had a horror-struck expression as she realized what her mother planned to do all along. Nixie’s eyes welled with tears as she opened her mouth to ask a simple question.

“Why…?” Nixie said, struggling for breath. Oceana chuckled as she examined her knife, now with crimson blood streaming down the blade to the handle. “Mother…?” Nixie said faintly, seeing an uncaring look on Oceana’s face.

          The light fading from Nixie’s eyes, Oceana crouched on one knee to meet Nixie’s gaze as she clutched her side in pain. “Let this be a lesson to anyone who tries to get in my way.” Oceana said coldly. Nixie finally fell limp on the floor as Oceana sheathed her knife, blood now trailing down her arm. Oceana noticed a picture fall to the floor, seemingly once held by Nixie. Oceana picked it up and examined who it was and recognized the young face quickly; it was Vacía, Nixie’s daughter.

Oceana replaced the bricks to the room, sealing this dark secret away for good and went back to sit on her throne, worry-free as she could be. The only thing she had to worry about was what Vacía would do, now that her mother was dead. She might retaliate, so Oceana needed to take precautions. We know how I deal with threats… Simply get rid of them.” Oceana said, chuckling to herself as she glanced at Vacía’s picture.

          Oceana let the picture slowly fall to the ground, holding her knife just above it when she let go. She released her knife and saw it pierce through the paper and pin it to the floor. Oceana picked her knife back up and set off for her new target. 

•••

All she saw was black, feeling as if she couldn’t breathe. She started to panic, unsure of what to do. Suddenly, her entire body jolted with pain as she gasped for air...

Chapter Text

Nixie quickly sat up, clutching her stomach in pain. She tried to regulate her breathing but found it difficult with her new wound. She looked around as she tried to recover, noticing she could hardly see anything but the slow gleam of a brewing stand. The potion that was brewing gave off a pink hue. She assumed her mother used it before she went out for something. She tried to squint her eyes to see her way towards the potions. 

She hoisted herself up to peer inside a chest where Oceana put her brews. Nixie didn’t have much information about how to identify what a potion could do, but she did learn how to describe the smells certain potions gave off. She picked a few random ones, desperately searching for a potion she could use to help her pain.

          She finally identified a healing potion and drank it quickly. She felt her wound heal a little bit, but it didn’t have its full effect. She assumed the strength of the potion wasn’t for larger wounds like what Nixie had, but she could stand well enough. She felt along the walls as her eyes adjusted. She found a spot that felt rougher than the rest of the walls and tried to place where she was in the small room from her brief memories she had before…

She shook her head to discard that thought. She didn’t want to believe her mother would do such a thing, but it was hard to deny it. She thought back and figured out where she should be. There used to be an opening here… she thought. She pressed forcefully on the rough spot, startled when it moved under her fingers. 

          She saw light leak into the room as she heard the brick fall and made a splash as it fell into Oceana’s bed. She was then able to find each large brick and move them to make an opening she could go through. She carefully walked about, trying to keep her footsteps as quiet as she could in the echoing atmosphere of the palace.

          She heard her mother quietly laughing to herself before she got to the start of the hallway or to the stairs to the wall. She hid behind the corner as she heard her mother’s footsteps echoing. They sounded like they were headed to the main entrance before Nixie heard a splash which she recognized as her mother finally leaving. She made her way onto the wall, careful to keep an eye out for Oceana as she swam.

          She reached the point above the entrance to the city, seeing the rough outline of Oceana swimming off. Once Oceana was out of sight, Nixie tried to open her wings, pain running up her spine, reminding her of her wound.

She winced at the pain but continued to try to fly. She lifted off, her wings beating unevenly as she tried to stay airborne. As she flew, she noticed an odd structure in the sky that resembled the tip of a floating island, the rest of it was hidden by the clouds. She tried to fly higher to investigate, but the wind fought her, and she couldn’t. Clutching her stomach, she went back to her goal of finding where her twin sister called home. She continued to Earthlands to see which direction she could go first, then noticed the mountains nearby.

It occurred to her that she never really investigated that area, so she decided to muster her strength and fly over. The longer she flew, the stronger the pain grew, but she persisted in the hopes of finding help.

          She reached the mountains and a large gust of wind started to blow against her, making it even more difficult for her. Through squinted eyes, she tried to see where she was going as it started snowing harshly. After a few moments, she started to notice shapes on the ground. 

As she got closer, the shapes looked more like buildings and houses. She tried to slowly descend, but the wind made it difficult to. She felt exhaustion start to set in, making her weak. She tried to clear her vision of snow, but it only made it worse. She lost consciousness for a moment, leaving her to fall against the wind. She quickly regained her own mind and flung her wings out beside her to break her fall, trying to ignore the painful sting being made worse by the bitter cold. 

She tried desperately to not go crashing to the ground, however her landing was cushioned by several feet of snow. She propped herself up with her arms, trying to see above the snow. Her skin started to sting as the snow melted against her body heat, but she had a goal she needed to achieve. She stumbled through the snow for countless moments trying to find some form of life, keeping her wings close in an attempt to keep her warm. 

          She started to see a faint, warm glow in the distance, unsure if she was hallucinating from the pain or the cold. She got closer, noticing movement inside the house which the glow was emanating from. She reached the door and knocked, desperately hoping there would be an answer and that it would be Kitsana. 

      After a painfully long moment, the door finally opened, revealing a strangely familiar face. “K-Kit…?” Nixie stammered from the cold. The woman’s expression lightened in surprise for a moment before she returned solemn and gave a nod. Nixie smiled in relief. “Kit, you have to help me… Our mother, she-” Nixie got cut off by Kit holding up a hand for silence. 

“First, you come crawling back when you realize something that’s been obvious for years. Then, you have the audacity to try explaining something I already know? I’m far too aware that our mother is insane.” Kit said, rushed. “N-no... I wasn’t going to say that, exactly…” Nixie said, moving her arms to reveal her stomach to her sister.

        Kit’s eyes flew open a little wider in concern she obviously tried to conceal. “Was all you came here to do was ask me to heal you?” Kit said, dismissive. Nixie opened her mouth to say something, but she felt her legs give out as her mind succumbed to darkness again. 

Kit caught her quickly, her tail puffing out in surprise. She gave a sigh of annoyance, but she carried Nixie inside and wrapped a blanket around her. Nixie awoke to Kit tending to the fire, seemingly unaware of Nixie.

         She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off again. “Glad you’re awake. Finally.” Kit said condescendingly. Kit turned to Nixie to look her in the eyes. “Now, why exactly are you here?” Kitsana asked, a hint of impatience in her voice. After Nixie didn’t respond, she tried again. “Let’s try an easier question: How are you here?” Kit asked. 

Nixie thought for a moment, still recovering from her blackout. “I just… flew.” Nixie said, confused. Kitsana rolled her eyes at this remark. “I noticed the mountains near Earthlands and I remembered that I never explored this direction.” Nixie explained further. Kit thought for a moment. “You really tried your hardest to find me… didn’t you?” Kit asked. Nixie nodded. “I want to protect our family. Shortly after I last left Atlantice, I believe Vacía visited, though she tried to be discrete about it. Knowing how our mother deals with… anything, really… she might be after her next. Who knows who’s next.” Nixie explained. 

           Kit looked down to the floor and looked to be deep in thought. “No one is truly corrupted until they have no heart to love their own child…” Kit mumbled.

Nixie heard her and started to feel guilt set in, as well as despair... 

•••

“So, what do you have planned, exactly?” Kit asked. Nixie blinked in confusion which Kit found slightly amusing. “If you came here for my help, you must need a plan to stop the threat, correct?” Kit prompted. “Well… yes, but what did you have in mind?” Nixie asked. “I would tell you, but I have a feeling you wouldn’t like it.” Kit said condescendingly. Nixie gave a look of curiosity. 

       Kit drew her knife and stabbed the table as a hint. “What?! No! We can’t kill our own mother!” Nixie lashed out. “Didn’t she just recently try to kill you…?” Kit suggested. “Well- yes- but… isn’t there a more peaceful option?” Nixie stuttered. “You want to show mercy to someone who’s neglected us our entire lives?” Kit asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Nixie looked down for a brief moment before meeting Kit’s gaze again.  “I’m sure there’s a better option, there has to be!” Nixie exclaimed. Kit sighed. “Well, we can’t just talk to someone who’s too far gone for reason to be… reasonable. We need to speak with our actions, not our words here.” Kit explained. We can’t start a possible war with our own homeland-” Nixie cut herself off in realization. “There isn’t anyone to even begin to start a war.” Kit said for her. 

          A long moment passed, both twins deep in thought. “We could throw her in the dungeon.” Kit suggested. “Throwing our mother in her own dungeon. Of which she seems a little too excited about. That sounds like a wonderful plan.” Nixie said, obvious sarcasm in her voice. “Do you think she’d actually know how it works? She lets her guards do the dirty work for her; she hates it down there.” Kit explained. 

Nixie looked down again, considering. “If we don’t agree on this, I’ll kill her myself.” Kit threatened. “Okay fine! Just don’t do that.” Nixie exclaimed. Kit smirked. “Good, so we have a plan. Since we’re aiming to… injure… and not kill-” Kit got cut off. “Maybe not hurting her at all…?” Nixie said, optimistically. Kit gave her a small glare. 

       Nixie responded with a small, nervous chuckle. “Since we’re not killing her, we need to prepare for a battle. A fight. Only problem is, we don’t know anything about how Oceana fights, so we have nothing to go off of.” Kit said. 

Nixie thought for a moment. “What about our older sister?” Nixie said. Kit gave her a confused glance. “Leah? Do you not remember her?” Nixie said as concern grew in her eyes. "Yes, of course I remember her. We don’t even know where she could be, though.” Kit said. “Actually…” Nixie trailed off. 

       Kit raised an eyebrow in intrigue. “On the way to try and find you, I saw something I couldn’t look into further. It looked like a floating island above the clouds, but I wasn’t sure.” Nixie explained. “That seems like a good place to start…” Kit said, thoughtful. Nixie started to get excited and jumped up. “Woah, not until you’ve healed completely, Nix.” Kit said, gently sitting her down again. “Until then, we plan what we’ll do.” Kit said, still holding Nixie’s shoulders.

Chapter Text

Cordelia landed on a strange floating island and explored around, each building shrouded with vines, webs and other natural corrosion. One thing she noticed immediately when she found this place was a large castle seemingly carved and built right into the ground. She further explored the castle and its various rooms and found the servant’s quarters, the kitchen, the dining hall and the living quarters for whoever owned this kingdom before Cordelia found it. She soon found a banner with an image which she assumed to be the kingdom’s symbolic crest, which depicted the island above the clouds. There wasn’t any indication of the kingdom’s name, but Cordelia could imagine it being an aethereal paradise when it housed more people. For now, she decided to fittingly call this place “The Aether” until she finds further evidence of its true title.

       Some time passed, around a few weeks, and Cordelia had started making The Aether a place of her own. She couldn’t be bothered to completely fix this kingdom, seeing as she didn’t have the necessary resources to do so. She did become familiar with how this kingdom and castle were laid out, though. There were some wings of the castle she didn’t explore completely, so she didn’t know her entire way around just yet.

       After a while, she started feeling lightheaded at times, as if her mind was being tampered with. She was sure it was just the altitude and started setting up a makeshift laboratory in what she assumed to have been the kingdom’s treasury. After some looking around, she found a healthy supply of gold and jewels. Whoever once lived here left in a hurry. Or maybe they never left at all. The thought of this sent an unsettling shiver down Cordelia’s spine as she went up to make the room above into a storage room for her future experiments.

       More time went by as she spent her days getting materials and tools for her lab. While she was making The Aether more like a home to her, she found signs of who might’ve resided there before her. She also started to remember times with her father and how they would read about the most powerful beings known to Panthera, at the top of the list being Starbornes. She had always wondered what it was like to be a Starborne, but her father told her it was impossible to alter the genetics of anyone. However, Cordelia thought otherwise. She was sure she could swap or even change different DNA completely; she just didn’t know how yet.

She decided to look for her notebooks and journals, some of the only things she had from her father. She found that her father had actually looked into genetic modifying but did so in his usual form of potions and magic. With no other options, she studied her father’s methods and experimented with simple subjects like squirrels from the world below The Aether, as she started calling it. She managed to change them into different rodents, other small animals, and the like. With this control test working, she started studying to see how she could modify herself. After refreshing memories about the Starbornes, she found a hypothesis that, if she were to attempt to change herself into a Starborne, it would require the DNA of the creature. Along with this, they would most likely be very dangerous materials to consume.

       With this in mind, she also found research about an Elysian race called “Shulks” with tough skin and higher pain tolerance. It would be very difficult to obtain the materials necessary, seeing as the race’s existence is barely known to anyone. Cordelia packed a bag of necessities such as food and supplies for a long exploration. With her items and courage gathered, she set off to the west, chasing the sunset which was soon to dip into the horizon. 

       For hours, she saw nothing but the ocean stretching to what seemed endless. After she almost gave up and turned back, she caught a faint silhouette of land coming into view. She continued on, hoping to find civilization somewhere. Her tired eyes searched longingly for signs of a village, town, city or even a kingdom’s flickering lights through the dark hours of night. After what felt like an eternity of trying to dodge tall trees, mountains and anything in her way, she finally found the sight of civilization as the sun started creeping above the land. 

When she landed, the sky had already turned a warm glow with the sunrise. She watched as the various shops and markets came to life with the start of day, desperately searching for what she needed. She wandered for a while, seeing what was in store from these sellers. She felt her stomach rumble at the smell of food nearby, which she assumed to be a bakery. She stopped by after she looked in her bag and saw she didn’t have much food left. Cordelia approached the baker and asked for food, paying with what currency she had from The Aether. The baker stared, confused at what he had been presented with, but accepted it, nonetheless. While the baker prepared bread for Cordelia, she asked if he knew of any “rare material sellers” that might have been around. 

He once again stared at her but seemed intrigued and inquisitive. He asked what type of rare items she was speaking of, but she simply kept words vague. “Something that could be from another world, you could say.” She replied, trying not to alarm anyone since she didn’t know anything about lands outside of what she knew. The baker thought for a moment, but soon came up with an answer for her request. “There should be someone who might have what you may be looking for. He tends to keep on the down-low, so he isn’t along the main paths. If you just continue to the right, here, and reach the village walls and take a left, you should find him. Not many know about him, but you’re lucky I’m one of the few who do.” He explained.

Cordelia thanked him when she was given her bread and tipped him for the information. She followed his directions and found a strange place that seemed built into the side of an already existing shop that looked as if it wasn’t in business anymore. She made three solid knocks on the make-shift door and waited a moment. Soon, a small panel only a few inches in size slid open and Cordelia was met with a startlingly emerald-green eye. A voice sounded from the other side of the door, presumably whoever was looking at her. 

“What do you want, runt?” They said, rudely. Cordelia remained calm, trying to hide how offended she was. “I’m here to trade… specifically some other-worldly, rare items.” She said in a whispered tone. The eye looked her up and down, even noticing her satchel resting on her hip when Cordelia grasped the strap along her chest, before sliding the panel shut and the sound of multiple locks being undone sounded. The door swung open enough for Cordelia to step inside as the door shut behind her. 

She was startled and twirled back around to see a young-looking boy, maybe a little older than Cordelia and about the same height, light a torch and proceed to light more mounted torches along the walls. The boy had deep brown skin, rich black hair with ears of the same color protruding from his head with a matching furry tail trailing behind him. He was fitted with simple, dark gray clothing, one of the only things that made it easier to see him in the shadows, apart from his saturated green eyes glinting back at her. After the room was lit, the boy went behind a table and sat down on a chair and gestured for her to sit as well. She did so, keeping her satchel close to her. “So, what is your name, girl?” The boy asked. “I go by Comet. And you?” She asked in response. The boy squinted at her and replied after a long moment. “You can call me Lucas. Folks who know me refer to me as Lucky.” He said, examining Cordelia with an odd expression seeming to be a mix of intrigue and suspicion.

Cordelia was taken aback by his name, bringing flashbacks to her mind of her father and his fascination with odd trinkets. “What are you here for, exactly? I sell practically everything not many could obtain, but never ask questions about how I do so, got it?” Lucas warned. Cordelia nodded and leaned in closer, in case they could be watched. She could never be too safe in unexplored regions. “I need materials from a race presumed to live in a place called Elysia. Shulks, to be exact.” Cordelia said, cautiously. 

      Lucas thought for a moment, looking at the storage he had along the walls either side of the both of them. “I might have a few things. For what purpose do you need these types of things?” He asked. “That is classified information.” Cordelia said bluntly. “Understood.” He said with an inquisitive grin, showing sharp teeth like a cat. “Let’s see… I have only a few things actually obtainable from Shulks, such as the shells they actually use to protect themselves in combat, forming a sort of cube around them with the corners. I have… maybe 20 of them, four to eight from each person I found. Then, there’s these projectile bullet things that they can shoot from… somewhere, I dunno if they just conjure them or what, but they can make a person levitate once they’re hit by ‘em. I have about 15 of those in stock, not many people come across my market often. Either of those sound interesting to you?” He asked. 

       Cordelia thought for a moment. “Can I see how large the shells and bullets are?” She asked. Lucas nodded and took her to a chest somewhere in the middle of his storage lineup. He pulled out a shell with one hand and a bullet with a sort of clamp meant for metalworking. The shell looked relatively large, about as large as the length from one shoulder to the other, it was like an L-shape and was a light, pale purple with smooth corners and surface with a few scratch marks. The bullet was fairly small, it was maybe about the size of Cordelia’s palm, and was a yellow-ish off-white color with multiple blunt spikes covering the round shape.  

       Cordelia thought for a moment before making a decision. “I’ll take ten of the bullets and a shell.” She said confidently. Lucas looked skeptical of her, but his mind was quickly changed when Cordelia showed him what she had to pay with, and he agreed to give them to her. Cordelia carefully put the materials in her satchel and thanked Lucas for his time. He thanked her as well and asked if she would return. “I’m unsure if I will, but maybe our paths will cross someday.” She smiled. He nodded and smiled back before waving goodbye.

Cordelia, now with what she hopefully needed, took off for The Aether to get to work on her project, hoping she wouldn’t get lost on the way back. Once she finally returned home, she once again felt like she was lighter than before, as if there were a barrier around the strange island. She put that thought away in her mind and felt more focused than ever on her goal to make herself into a Starborne. She laid out her Shulk materials and got to work extracting and examining samples from the shell and a few bullets by scraping their surfaces and collecting the fine powder left over. She set up her chemistry tools and equipment and got to work on understanding what materials she was working with. It took hours just for the samples to run through the various tubing and flasks, but she stayed vigilant throughout the process. She took note in a journal of the reactions as they were processed and set one batch aside as a control test for comparison. She repeated the process multiple times, sometimes considering having some rest before continuing, but she changed her mind with the fact of how time sensitive this would be.

With her vision becoming blurry from lack of sleep, she found a version that might work. She carefully consumed it and took a blunt knife to her forearm to test the pain resilience and tolerance. This, unsurprisingly, failed and left a light gash with pain shooting up her arm. She winced in pain and treated the wound. She decided to sleep after this to give her time to heal and continue in the morning.

       Once she woke up, she repeated the same process with the advantage of longer daylight, as she originally started late in the day the first time. This process of comparing, testing, and failing went on for over a week with no avail. She now had multiple gashes on both her arms with varying severity and felt as if she were already building a resistance to the pain naturally. After what felt like an eternity, she finally concocted something that worked. She felt her skin thicken upon consumption and did her pain test. She used the same force as the past few attempts but hardly a mark was made. Cordelia grinned in accomplishment but gave a sad glance at what she had done to herself in the process. She was very sleep deprived from her work, so she didn’t think much more of her consequences other than the stinging sensation from the more recent cuts. She took some hand-made pain killing medicine for her previous wounds and started brainstorming on how to get the materials necessary for a Starborne potion.

       After a few moments of thinking, she started investigating the nearby houses and buildings once inhabited by whoever lived here before in hopes that this was where Starbornes might have lived. She searched a few houses before she heard odd noises starting to follow her. A few minutes of these noises and she just assumed it was her paranoid mind making things up and thinking The Aether was haunted. A while later, she was looking through a bedroom in one of the houses when she heard a twig snap outside. She froze in place, careful not to make a sound. She thought it could be a small rodent, but she remembered she had to find animals from below the clouds, since she couldn’t find any in The Aether itself.

She looked around for a weapon and found a brick that had fallen from the decayed walls. She held it up, ready to strike, slowly creeping around a corner to where the noises following her were coming from. Eventually, she found a room where the noises seemed to stay, and she prepared to jump out and defend herself. She peeked around what used to be a doorframe, hidden by what little remained of a wall, but she could only see a faint purple glow in the corner of her vision which faded and seemed to leave a solid person standing around two feet taller than Cordelia. She tried getting a better look at them but hid herself again when they turned around to look at an old dresser on the other end of the room. Cordelia peeked around the doorframe again and took note of what they looked like. The person looked like a relatively young man, though he was noticeably older than Cordelia, herself. 

One thing she first noticed was his odd appendages: his legs resembled those of a deer, but they seemed to be covered in or made of stars, with swirling black and purple between like the night sky. She couldn’t see much of his arms, but they seemed to act as normal arms and hands but were still starry. He had a cloak with the same scattered constellations with colorful nebulas in bright blues, greens and purples. The strange man had well-kept, dark hair made to look messy. He was mumbling about something Cordelia couldn’t make out when he suddenly started turning towards her, making her hide again, but he was only examining a vanity beside the door, opening and rummaging through the drawers and picking out anything seemingly valuable or useful. 

Cordelia took one more cautious look at the man, seeing his eyes glowing a startling purple-pink color. She was barely able to see where his pupils would be, frantically scanning the contents of the vanity. His pointy ears were adorned with small, simple, gold hoops, and she soon noticed he had a few gold anklets around the bottom half of his left leg. She noticed his ears twitch in her direction, and she hid again, clutching the brick close to her chest, trying to regulate her frantic breathing.

       She heard footsteps creeping closer to her before she decided to attack. She managed to pin the man down, seeing a look of fear cross his face. Cordelia held the brick up, threateningly as her other arm pinned his shoulder to the ground. “Wait! I don’t want to hurt you!” He frantically blurted. This comment froze Cordelia out of confusion. She blinked at him, slowly lowering her weapon of choice.

She backed off of him and stood up, not thinking to offer a hand of assistance to him. He got up, hands raised in front of him to keep her away and caught his breath. Only now was when it sank in just how much taller he was than Cordelia as she peered up at him. “What are you doing here?” Cordelia asked forcefully. He stared at her for a short moment. “I could ask the same, seeing as I’m the one who’s family used to live here in this very house.” He said. 

“Who are you?” She continued. “Cirrus. And… your name reminds me of a flower…” he trailed off. Cordelia blinked at him in confusion. “How have you heard my name before?” She questioned. “I haven’t, it’s just a thing I can do. Normally I would know a lot about you just by looking at you, but… my abilities have been stunted for now.” Cirrus explained. “My name is Cordelia… but I like to go by Comet.” She added. He stared, fascinated. “I once knew someone by that name, though it wasn’t their nickname.” He said. Cordelia tilted her head at him, wondering why he would mention something like that. 

       A moment passed of Cordelia staring at him and thinking, while Cirrus continued to glance around the room. “You’re a Starborne, aren’t you?” She asked. He looked at her with a hint of surprise, but not because he didn’t expect her to make that conclusion, it was that he did expect her to conclude that, and he was surprised she was even asking. “Yes, I am. What took you so long?” He joked, sarcastically. Cordelia raised her brick arm again and his smug smile faded instantly. “Okay, sorry- I didn’t remember surfacelings being so violent…” he once again trailed off in thought. He looked back at her inquisitively. “You don’t seem like you should… did something change once you got here?” He asked vaguely. Cordelia again blinked at him in confusion. “I… didn’t notice anything different…” she said. 

       Now that she thought of it, she couldn’t remember what she used to be like before she found The Aether. She put the brick down and started to circle around Cirrus who stared at her, confused, and spun around with her before she held his arms to put him in place so she could examine him. She circled him multiple times before coming to a stop in front of him again. 

He could only blink in confusion at her as she looked deep in thought. She was considering how she could get DNA samples from him for her experiments. “Uh… what was that all about…?” He asked. Cordelia remained silent and went behind him again, pleased that he didn’t move this time. Without hesitating, she quickly grabbed his cloak from off his shoulders which triggered a response from him making him try to grab the cloak back from her. She held onto the bottom of the cloak which seemed unhemmed or tattered.

       While he tried to get his cloak back, Cordelia tore off a decent handful of the strange fabric and hid it in a fist behind her back without Cirrus noticing. He fastened his cloak around his shoulders again, mumbling to himself in a language Cordelia couldn’t understand. “Well, Comet, I must be going… though I don’t wish to leave. I fear my life might be in danger… regardless, I wish you good luck with what you may be planning, and I may see you again soon.” Cirrus said with a strange smile, as if he knew her intentions of becoming like him. She noticed a small glimmer of hope behind his eyes as well, but before she could ask him what he meant or what he knew, she watched him disappear in a flash of bright light surrounding him where his figure used to be, only a deep purple glow remaining after he vanished.

She blinked in amazement and began walking back to her castle. As she went, she held out the strange fabric material out in front of her, noticing it seemingly blinking in and out of existence with the sunlight. She wondered if this was how he disappeared and why he got so defensive when she examined his cloak. She got to her lab and started testing to see what the cloak material was, exactly.

       Upon further examination, it seemed like a more organic material as opposed to a natural fabric like silk or cotton, almost as if the cloak was a part of Cirrus himself, even if he could take it off. With this discovery, she now had the ingredient she needed to begin her potions. She put samples of Cirrus’ cloak through the process she used for the Shulk materials, being careful about how much she puts in. 

       After more than 3 or 4 weeks of trial and error, she never got any results other than a mild headache, blurred vision, and frustration.  All of which are also signs of sleep deprivation, so she couldn’t be sure anything was actually happening. While she was doing a test, her eyes got heavy, and she collapsed on her notebooks and fell into an instant sleep out of pure exhaustion. When she woke back up, it was early in the morning, before the sun even rose. She looked around, realizing she had accidentally traded sleep for progress, and she now had lost her place in the process.

She started all over, never daring to sleep a single wink in fear of starting over again. She spent much longer than she had hoped for this time, yet nothing seemed to work. She eventually came to a conclusion through exhaustion: she needed to use a stronger amount of material than what she was already testing with. She looked over at her supply and realized she only had enough for a few more tests. She ran a larger amount through the process and it failed. She made a few adjustments and yet again burned up and wasted material. She now had only enough for one last test.  If this hadn’t worked, she would be at a loss and never able to try again unless another Starborne passed by, which was very unlikely.

She took a deep breath before looking through her notes seeing what worked and what didn’t. Through the process of elimination, she narrowed down what she needed to do. Once she read through everything, she brought out a piece of chalk and started writing on a nearby wall to keep track of her findings. Fueled with a newfound hope and a realization, she planned out the whole process that she never saw before. Through careful preparation, she finally used the last of her material and went through the various fragile and complicated steps, begging in her mind for this to work. 

       She never broke focus through a long three days of processing before the final potion came to fruition. She carefully dropped the solution she had into a vial and carefully dropped the liquid into a flask she had of other potion bases and chemicals. Once the two solutions came into contact with each other, the first potion, which was a vibrant, light blue color, suddenly burst into a swirl of purple and deep blues like she saw on Cirrus. Speckles that looked like stars started floating into groups, followed by a sudden burst of energy emerging from the flask and forming a cloud of magic, showing constellations forming in front of Cordelia’s eyes before the magic plume forcefully retreated back into the flask. 

Cordelia rushed back to the table in amazement, as she had stepped back to admire the show which her chemistry had performed.  She saw the potion settle into a perfect swirl of color before carefully picking it up. “This has to be the one… none of the others have acted like this before!” She whispered under her breath. She excitedly drank the potion, waiting for a reaction.  When met with nothing, she was disappointed and went back to her bed after she had gone a couple months without sleep, dejected by her failure.

       When they woke up, their eyes were discomforted by a seemingly sharp pain. They got up to see if something got caught in their eyes and if they could wash it out at a sink. They reached the washroom to check their reflection to see what was wrong but found they could hardly open their eyes wide enough to see what was going on. In their blurred vision, they saw the color of crimson flowing from their eyes. They tried to flee out of the washroom, however, due to their blurred vision, they ran into the door and fell backwards and bashed their head against the sink behind them.

They regained their footing and made their way to the spiral staircase leading to the various floors below their current location. They stumbled towards the stairs and misplaced their first step and started tumbling downwards. They desperately tried to slow their descent, but to no avail. Their attempts only made them gain speed. They eventually reached the bottom of the staircase and tried to get their sense of surroundings back. 

They hobbled to their potion shelves, searching for the deep red glow of a healing potion. They found what they were looking for and reached for it, sending various other potions tumbling and shattering on the ground. They opened and drank the healing potion, pouring a little on their eyes for good measure. This only made the pain much worse as they peered back into the mirror. The blood dripping from their eyes had now started turning purple-blue, like their Starborne potion. They held their head over the sink under the mirror until the pain ceased.

They looked back up at their reflection to see the star-blood fading and dripping away from their once golden eyes which had now turned purple and pink like how they saw Cirrus’ eyes, however one was pink with a purple iris, while the other was opposite. They looked down to the sink where the star-blood had pooled instead of draining.

       It had started to levitate and float towards their wings, covering the feathers and transforming their wings into pure galactic material, seeming to drip down but leaving nothing on the floor. They reached out and tried to touch their wing, but their hand never touched anything solid and went straight through their wing. They tried to look on the other side but did not see their arm. They pulled their arm back, perplexed. They stared back into the mirror once again and saw a faint glow around their head.

       After a few moments, two halos materialized. They didn’t obstruct their vision, it seemed they were only visible when looked at from another angle. The strings of emeralds they had tied around her left wing had now fallen apart and the jewels were aimlessly floating nearby like stars and comets. 

Comet… They suddenly had a vision of sitting under the stars with someone who seemed familiar, like a father. They felt happy staring up at the night sky watching comets and stars shoot by. They recognized “Comet” as something like a name to them. They realized they didn’t remember anything about themself before they woke up and became this star-like creature. They looked over to the table with all their chemistry supplies to find notebooks about what they tried to do. They read through the pages and found that they were now something called a “Starborne.”

Something caught Comet’s eye in the corner of the room and noticed a tall man standing with a cloak tightly wrapped around him with a faint glow surrounding him. “Who are you?” Comet asked. The man blinked in confusion. “You can see me?” He asked, confused. “Yes.” Comet responded, slightly confused as well. “You’re not supposed to see me… wait, you’re actually a Starborne as well- how?!” The man shouted, letting go of his cloak and striding towards Comet. He shook their shoulders when he didn’t get a response. Comet pointed to their various flasks, causing the man to swivel around to see what they were pointing at. He turned back to them, looking even more confused than before. “You must have some sort of supernatural intelligence to have figured that out… how did you even begin to think of a way to transform yourself?” He asked. Comet thought for a while but couldn’t come up with an answer. The man backed up and remembered something Comet had said. “What do you mean “who am I”? We met a couple months ago. The effects of this island aren’t that potent…” he trailed off. Comet tilted their head at him inquisitively. He shook his head dismissively, seeing how curious Comet was. “You really don’t remember my name?” The man asked. Comet shook their head. “My name is Cirrus. You don’t remember anything about me… It’s as if what you’ve done is rotting your mind…” He said, confused. 

       Cirrus backed away, deep in thought, leaving Comet’s mind to wander as well. Comet stared at him, images starting to flash in their mind, as if from the perspective of someone else. They saw him with a surprised or fearful expression. Comet felt powerful. They looked around and noticed they were in some sort of throne room. 

       Comet was brought back to the present by Cirrus snapping his fingers in front of their face and calling their name, looking concerned. “I have met you before… wait…” Comet trailed off, starting to wander around their castle in search of a throne room, Cirrus trailing behind them. They found a room with an old throne right inside the main entrance, but it didn’t look like what they saw in their vision. “But not here… or did you meet someone else before me…?” Comet asked. Cirrus blinked in confusion at her. “How did you know-” Cirrus stumbled over his words. “Who did you meet?” Comet continued. 

Cirrus paused for a moment before answering. “Someone named Oceana.” Cirrus said hesitantly. Comet once again stared blankly, now seeing images of an older Merling woman with a condescending smirk. “That’s her. She’s your mother, or so I believe.” Cirrus explained. “You can read my mind…?” Comet asked. “Sort of, things are blurry for me, but I can fill in the blanks.” Cirrus said. “Can you tell me who I am?” Comet asked, walking up to him. “I can say that who you are now is not who you were before.” Cirrus explained vaguely. He watched as Comet wandered off again, but stayed where he was until they came back.

       Comet reached their living quarters, staring into their mirror again, trying to figure out who or what they were. They didn’t even know if they were a man or a woman. As they stared at their reflection, more visions and memories flashed back. They remembered how her last name kept them from becoming ruler over their mother’s kingdom one day. In their visions, they saw blood and dead bodies with Oceana standing over them with blood-stained hands and clothes.  

They heard screaming in the back of their mind as they saw these things. They realized they must have run away from their home because of these things and how their mother must have raised them. They remembered the first vision they had of their father and looking up at the stars. They were happy then, now they’re haunted by these images in their mind.

They made a mistake trying to become immortal like this. That was one of the reasons they wanted to be a Starborne: to never reach the fate their father did. They went back to their laboratory to read their notebooks again. They read about how they became a Starborne and realized this never would have happened if Cirrus never came here. It wouldn’t have happened if their mother had managed to kill him.

       Comet went down to the armory in search of a weapon and found bows and arrows. They didn’t want to make it obvious what they intended to do, so they picked out a single arrow and found a vial of poison in their lab and dipped the arrowhead in the dark green liquid which emitted a foul smell of death that lingered in the air. 

They climbed back up a few stairs to the throne room and found Cirrus acting strange and frantic. His eyes flew wide when he finally noticed them and stepped back a little as they approached, carefully hiding the arrow in their sleeve. “You seem odd, what’s going on?” Comet asked, innocently. “I’m not sure, but I’ve started having the feeling of existential dread, as if something bad will happen.” Cirrus explained, seeming wary of Comet’s gaze. They were focused on Cirrus very attentively, waiting for an opportunity. “Listen, Comet. I don’t know what you have planned for the future but trust me… you don’t know anything about how powerful you will become. You might not even survive.” Cirrus said. 

Comet thought about his words and noticed he was starting to look around, paranoid that someone was watching. While he was distracted, they wrapped their arm across his throat to disarm him, listening to him lose breath before revealing the arrow and slitting his throat, letting the poison begin its work. Comet let him fall to the floor, clutching his throat in agony. They watched as he writhed in pain, deep blue blood starting to pool around him. It only took a few moments for him to take his last, struggling breath.

       Comet walked away, remorseless and disposed of the arrow. They stepped in front of a mirror to examine their clothes once they returned back to their living quarters again. Seeing a few specks of Cirrus’ blood along their sleeves, they washed out the blood in the sink in front of them. They looked into their own eyes and realized they were becoming more like their mother. The surprising part of all this was the fact that they didn’t care, they even enjoyed the thought of becoming something powerful like their mother, except they believed they were even more dangerous than she could ever be. 

They smiled at their reflection and gave a light chuckle, knowing what power they would have...

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      Years passed and Comet started to notice their skin start to lose color in places, as if their body was rotting in front of their eyes. It had started to become painful to even step outside, after a while. They were often thinking back to their childhood and daydreaming of what it would be like if their father was still around. They questioned why he would leave when they were just a kid. 

       They remembered that they had a pet rabbit and an idea popped into their head. What if they made a humanoid version of their pet? It would be something to keep them occupied for a long time. The only question would be how to give the rabbit arms and legs like a human. 

They found the journal from their father and searched for solutions. There had to be something obscure they could fuse with a rabbit. They scanned the lines of text before finding something that could work:

Slimecican

Known to be shapeshifters, these creatures can take the form of anything they know of or can think of.

They’re friendly, but they can be mischievous when given the chance.

Life span is unknown, weaknesses are unknown, strengths seem to be anything gelatinous.

This was something Comet would have to take a chance on, but they theorized that they could extract DNA from a Silmecican when it is in a human form. They went looking for somewhere the Slimecicans would live and soon found a community. Comet’s father was right, they were very friendly. 

       The person Comet found took the form of a human to shake their hand and communicate with them. The slime residue that was left behind after the greeting was exactly what Comet needed. They quickly took out a flask and collected what they could. It took a while before the flask was full, but it wasn’t difficult to pull off. Comet thanked the Slimecican for showing them around and flew back to The Aether to start working on her next project, but not before finding a field and picking out a rabbit that reminded them of their pet when they were younger. 

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       Many months went by with hundreds of experiment attempts that failed. Comet was now up to number 560, carefully going through the process and making sure they never broke focus. They were about to pour a solution to complete the process when they heard a loud knock at the castle’s main door, causing Comet to pour just too much and causing a puff of smoke to burst up into their face, creating an eruption of coughing as Comet tried to swat the plumes away. They looked down at their failed experiment and sighed. They picked up their chalk and marked the failed experiment number on the wall before seeing who was visiting. 

       Comet opened the door to find two women standing and waiting. At the sight of them, Comet got a pain in their head as they saw two little children, presumably the younger selves of the women standing in front of them, except one looked a little different. One of the women had a large burn scar across the left side of her face and shoulder, which the younger version didn’t have. She was noticeably shorter than the woman next to her and her gray wings and purple Merling tail seemed a bit large for her. She was wearing a light pink blouse with a slightly darker pink corset around her waist, and a tattered, dark green skirt. 

The taller woman had the same features as the shorter woman except she had an orange fox tail, and she was wearing a layered outfit in shades of greens and grays. “Hello!” The shorter woman said enthusiastically after Comet gave a confused look to both of them. “Who are you…?” Comet asked. 

       The women now both looked as confused as Comet did. “We’re your sisters… I’m Nixie, this is Kitsana.” Nixie explained. “How do you not remember us?” Kitsana asked. Comet only stared, trying to figure out how to get answers on their own. Comet shook their head to think clearly again and gestured for their sisters to come in.

Chapter Text

Kitsana cautiously flew behind a still injured Nixie, who seemed too confident for someone who just had a brush with death. Slowly but surely, Nixie led Kit out into seemingly nowhere over the ocean. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind started combatting the twins, making it even more difficult to go any further. They struggled to fight the wind, but they eventually made it above the clouds and the angry currents died down as a large floating island came into view. 

They landed and tried to find signs of life, all of which pointed to the castle on the island. Nixie pounded a fist on the old wooden doors and waited for a response. A large rumble sounded from beneath their feet, causing them to share a look of confusion and concern for a long moment before one of the large doors slowly creaked open to reveal a tall woman that could have only been Cordelia, although she didn’t look the same from the childhood all three girls shared. No, now Leah had odd glowing eyes in hues of pink and purple and what were once her wings were now dripping from a purple-black substance that seemed to be made of stars, similar to what Nixie saw in the portal to Elysia, but this looked different than that. Along with these changes, Nixie noticed Leah had large box-like shells floating near her, seemingly ready to form a shield around her at any moment. 

        An awkward moment passed before Nixie broke it and attempted to calmly greet her long-lost older sister. “Hello!” She said, a little too enthusiastically than intended. Cordelia gave them both a confused look and asked who they were. This question took Nixie aback, and she tried to make sense of the situation. Nixie tried to calm down a little more and continued. “We’re your sisters… I’m Nixie, this is Kitsana.” Nixie gave a small smile. “How do you not remember us?” Kit asked, rather rudely in Nixie’s opinion. Cordelia only continued to stare for a long moment before she seemed to snap out of a trance. “Oh, uh… come on in… this seems like an important conversation.” Leah said slowly. Nixie’s curiosity and confusion only grew at this comment, of course reuniting with your family was important to talk about. The twins followed Cordelia to a common room, much different to what they grew up on but somehow familiar and sat down to talk. 

        After Kit and Nix were settled, Cordelia continued the conversation. “So… you claim I’m your… sister?” Cordelia said, seeming unsure of her own words. Leah continued to examine the twins' appearances, looking as if she were trying to find a resemblance. “It’s not so much a claim as it is a simple fact.” Kitsana said bluntly. Nixie gave Kit a look of annoyance at her impolite nature, but she just continued. “Let’s cut to the point of us being here, shall we?-” Kit tried but Nixie interrupted. “-Before that, I can tell the fact of us three being related is a little challenging for you, Leah.” Nixie said, softly. “It’s Comet. Just Comet.” Leah interjected. “Umm… right… take our wings, for example- well, if yours weren’t like… that… Before your wings seemingly changed, we all had very similar wings. Light gray feathers and a strong build.” Nixie explained, using Kitsana as a reference, though she didn’t seem very inclined to be such. 

Comet looked at one of her wings where the shape of her feathers were still visible through the stars and compared it to the twins. “Surely enough, the feather shape is almost identical…” Comet trailed off. “Anyways, can I explain why we’re here now?” Kit complained. “Yes, please do.” Comet responded. “Okay. Long story cut short, our mother has descended into madness and doesn’t intend to stop here. She’s already started attacking us.” Kit explained, gesturing to Nixie’s wound. Comet stared at Nixie’s injury and held up a hand, signaling for the twins to stay where they were until she got back.

        When Comet returned, she held up a glowing red potion, but it was a deeper hue than what Nixie found in the strange room that her mother had left her in. “Take this, it’ll heal you fully. It looks as if you’ve already come across something like this, but it must have been with weaker ingredients or processed incorrectly. When made right like this one, your wound should fix itself up immediately.” Comet explained. Nixie drank the potion, despite the frantic warnings from Kitsana. 

        A short moment passed before anything actually happened. Sharp pain coursed through Nixie’s body as she felt her wound begin to heal itself completely, leaving a scar in its place. “Where did you learn to make these kinds of potions?” Kitsana asked. “From my father’s notebooks.” Comet answered.  

She showed the twins one of the journals, prompting Kit to quickly glance through it. “You still have notebooks from our father…?” Nixie asked, curious. “Yes, and I hope to return them someday.” Comet said with a faint smile. Nixie and Kitsana both shared a look again. Nixie nodded and gestured for Kit to tell Comet the truth.

        Kitsana gave a heavy sigh before taking a breath to speak. “Corde- I mean… Comet… our father has been gone for years…” Kit said slowly. “Yeah, and I want to see him again soon.” Comet said. “No, I mean he… died a long time ago.” Kit continued. Comet froze, her expression slowly falling into despair.

Her eyes wandered as if she saw right through the twins and backed up to sit down again, seemingly off balance from this information. Her eyes started to gloss over as if tears were beginning to form. However, instead of watery tears, the same material that seemed to cover Comet’s wings started silently dripping down her face. 

Kit walked up and cautiously put a hand of comfort on Comet’s shoulder. “She did it, didn’t she? Oceana?” Comet asked, anger starting to rise in her voice. Kit nodded and stepped back a little. “Which is why we need your help. You might be the smartest out of all three of us, Comet.” Kit explained. 

        A sudden realization popped into Nixie’s head. “You're Starborne… I don’t know how you managed it, but you’ve managed to make yourself into something more powerful than anyone else.” Nixie said quickly. Kit and Comet looked at her with confusion as to how she knew this. “I read books.” Nixie responded simply. “Either way, having all the help we can get is the best solution to taking our mother down.” Kit continued. 

Comet looked at Kitsana, rage coursing through her mind. “I’m with you. I’ll do anything to make sure Oceana pays for what she’s done.” Comet said sternly. Kit smiled proudly, but Nixie couldn’t help but feel uneasy around Comet, as if she saw her own mother in her sister’s eyes. 

        The rest of the afternoon was spent preparing and explaining the plan to Comet. Before long, the trio lifted off for their childhood home, Atlantice, with Nixie in the lead. They flew in silence, their minds each racing with something different; Comet was fueled by nothing other than pure rage, Kitsana was questioning Nixie’s sense of fairness, and Nixie herself was mainly worried of what her sisters would do to their mother. 

The moon was high in the sky by the time Atlantice came into view, tension lingering in the air. The three sisters landed and made their way through the palace to meet their mother, who was seemingly waiting for them, sitting on her throne with a confident smirk. “I thought you three would return someday, it was only a matter of time.” Oceana said with a cold yet calm tone in her voice. 

Dread started sinking Nixie’s heart as they approached their mother cautiously. “Yeah, well don’t expect a warm reunion.” Kit retorted. Oceana slowly paced towards her daughters, knowing what was about to unfold as she prepared to unsheathe her blade. Oceana’s expression fell into a frown of disdain as she stopped toe to toe with Nixie and looked down at her. “Now, do you want to explain to me how you survived?” Oceana asked casually.

Nixie stayed silent for a moment before Comet suddenly slammed into Oceana, knocking her to the ground. Oceana quickly got to her feet and raised her knife defensively. Kitsana drew her sword in preparation for a fight, but Comet was set on overtaking Oceana herself. Their fight was almost like a dance, with how Oceana dodged, but Comet got a blow here and there because of her unpredictable movements. Kit eventually caught Oceana off guard and kept her from swinging her knife by restraining her wrists, allowing for Comet to throw Oceana yet again. 

        Before Comet could continue, Nixie held her back and prevented her from doing any more damage, shouts of protest coming from a very angry Comet. Oceana clutched her ribs as she wasn’t used to this amount of physical combat. Kit kicked Oceana’s knife away so she couldn’t cut anyone before Kit held Oceana at the tip of her sword. “You dare turn on your own mother?” Oceana said, attempting to put on a warmer guise. “Our mother? You think you count as a mother? You hardly ever took care of us, never cared about us, never spent time with us. You think you qualify as a mother after all those years of neglect?!” Kitsana asked, slightly laughing through her words as her voice continued to raise in anger. 

“Kit… calm down.” Nixie tried to calm everyone down but to no avail, Comet still slightly flailing in Nixie’s arms. “Calm down?! This woman is one of the worst people to ever exist! How do you still find love for her when all she’s done is mistreated us?!” Kit yelled, even leaving Comet shocked into stillness. 

        The entire room echoed with silence as the last words were spoken. “The reason I never paid any attention to you-” Oceana started. “Because of why? Your queenly duties and obligations?! I’ve heard enough from you, just tell us where the dungeon is and get this over with.” Kit interjected. Nixie helped her mother up, who clearly didn’t want the help but had no choice due to how battered she was. They eventually reached the dungeons and locked Oceana behind bars for good.

        Oceana was left in the room with just Nixie, as the other two already left the dungeon. “Dear, you don’t have to let them boss you around. You can let me out whenever you want.” Oceana tried to coax Nixie. “No, mother. This is where you belong. I thought I could change you… I thought I could trust you… all you’ve done is gone back on everything you’ve ever promised or said, and you’ve had absolutely no regard for my safety.” Nixie explained, her hand subconsciously resting on her stomach where her mother had stabbed her before. “Goodbye, mother. If I can even call you that anymore…” Nixie trailed off as her footsteps echoed through the room as she left. 

        When she emerged from the dungeons, Nixie was met with Comet and Kitsana arguing about today’s events. “-listen, I don’t want her alive, either, but Nixie wouldn’t have gone through with it otherwise. Need I remind you that our mother is psychotic and unpredictable?” Kit’s voice faded into earshot. “She was already on board; you could’ve just let me finish her off!” Comet shot back. “That wouldn’t be a trustworthy thing for me to allow you to do. Unlike you, I actually know how trust works. You’re no better than Oceana herself!” Kitsana shouted.

As Nixie stepped into the room, Comet fell silent at Kit’s words. “Fine. You clearly don’t want me around, if you think I’m that much like Oceana. I’ll have you know I’ve grown better than she will ever be. That’s why I don’t want to see any of you ever again after today. I don’t want to hurt you.” Comet explained, seeming to prevent her voice from breaking as she spoke. “Have a great life, Kitsana. Same goes to you, Nixie. Don’t try finding me ever again.” Comet warned as she walked off. 

Kitsana spun around in surprise as Nixie walked up to her. “So, I guess this is goodbye.” Kit said. “It doesn’t have to be.” Nix said, sadness in her voice. “It’s for the best. We all took down our enemy, there’s no reason for us to be in each other’s lives anymore. Goodbye, Nixie.” Kit explained as she started to walk off, but Nixie ran up and tightly embraced her twin sister. Kit was stunned for a moment but eventually returned the gesture. Nixie stepped back again, and Kit gave her a warm smile, something she hadn’t seen from her twin ever since they were young children. Nixie smiled back before she was left standing alone once again. 

        She wandered around the palace for a while, remembering what little fond memories she had of the place with her siblings. When she was done, she reluctantly left for her home in Earthlands.  

She got home and found Vacía pacing around anxiously. When Vacía saw her mother, her eyes lit up with relief as she rushed up and gently hugged her. Nixie spent the rest of the day talking to Vacía and telling her all about today’s events before they continued on with their normal lives.

______________________________________________

Years later, Nixie had found a husband and was very happy with her life. Vacía was very fond of him, and they were a wonderful family. Nixie enjoyed talking to him about her adventures and he loved listening. 

        As days turned into months and gone, a new addition to the family was soon to come. A son to be named Cislo and being the main thing giving everyone excitement and anticipation. What Nixie looked forward to the most, however, was getting to tell those same stories to her son and getting to experience his curiosity of the world as he grows up. She could hear his voice already, asking Nixie eagerly to keep telling these adventures to him. She felt him kick at these thoughts and looked up at the night sky with a warm smile. 

“Hey! That’s me!” A young boy’s voice giggled. 

“That’s right! Now it’s time for bed.”  She said quietly with a kind tone as she tucked him into bed.

Chapter Text

Cislo’s eyes glimmered with wonder listening to his mother's stories. He heard of great adventures, tragedy and so much more. He loved hearing about daring heroines and listening to the mystery in every word his mother spoke. He desperately begged to hear more but she told him he had to rest. She tucked him in and kissed him on the head before turning the light off, leaving Cislo alone with his thoughts and dreams of going on adventures like his mother had described. With his head dancing with pictures of greatness, he drifted off to a sound sleep only to be woken up early because of how restless he was with excitement.

         He got up and dashed out the door, speeding past a tired Vacía who retorted with a yelp as she was caught off balance from him running past her. “Sorry, sis!” Cislo yelled behind him. “How do you have so much energy?!” Vacía lazily shouted after him. He started giggling before he almost crashed into his mother, Nixie. “Woah, slow down there. You seem in a good mood this morning.” She said with a slight laugh in her voice, the same tone Cislo adored about his mother. He rapidly nodded his head up and down, as if he had too much sugar. “So, what do you need help with today, mom?” Cislo asked. “I don’t need much, though you can tend to the animals if you really want to help.” Nixie said.

Before she even finished her sentence, Cislo dashed off to the barn to feed the livestock. He prepared the food and gave it to the cows and pigs. He filled up a bucket with water next, his mind wandering to the stories his mother had been telling him for the past two weeks or so. He thought about what his mother was saying in them, with an odd attention to detail as if she had lived most of it. 

        That got him thinking of a particular person she mentioned occasionally: Oceana. From what he heard; she was Cislo’s grandmother. He remembered the stories mentioning her and the royal lineage she had. It seemed as if Cislo’s mother was a bit hesitant to tell him everything about her, especially when he would ask questions. 

Sometimes she would comply and start telling a tale of something seemingly unrelated but still having to do with Oceana herself in some way. While Cislo was lost in his thoughts, he tripped and spilled all the water he was carrying. He gave a defeated sigh and went back to fill it again, this time curiosity taking over as he felt tiny water droplets rolling over his scales on his left arm.

What if I found Oceana and learned more that way? He thought to himself.

You would think it’s crazy, and it was, but Cislo didn’t think of the consequences and got excited over the fact of meeting someone his mother made these stories about. It never crossed his mind of just what role Oceana played in those stories.

        He finished up in the barn and started making his way back home, taking a detour to walk around the village. He visited the seaside portion of Earthlands and was met with familiar faces. “Hey Weirdo, heads up!” A young boy yelled before Cislo was hit directly in the face with a leather ball, knocking him down to the floor.

Those would be the kids who pick on Cislo for only having half his scales.

        The boy who calls him names is Eshu. He’s an Elytrian boy who gets praised because his wings started developing earlier than the others. And the Merling girl who always accompanied him, Sinoe, always smiled and laughed but never really said anything hurtful, even going so far as to tell Eshu to back off a little when he starts going too far.

You know the type of kid like Eshu; stuck up, thinks themselves to be higher up than everyone and takes that for granted by using it to pick on those they see below themselves.

But Sinoe… she was different. She was kinder and funnier than anyone Cislo knew... 

        She was also different in the sense of appearance. While most of the other Merling kids were brown or pink, Sinoe was a deep emerald green that always seemed to reflect the sunlight just perfectly so that she shines like a true jewel. Just to make her even more beautiful, her warm brown hair always seemed to fall perfectly into place.

You would think it odd for Cislo to seemingly have affection for someone, especially when he was at a young age of 11. Nevertheless, Sinoe was unlike anyone else and had something about her that drew Cislo to her.

        Cislo was snapped out of his trance of Sinoe as he heard her voice asking if he was okay and yelling at Eshu for hitting him. He stood up, nodding and clutching his nose as it throbbed from pain. The next thing he knew, Sinoe and Eshu were being called inside their separate shops. The two kids exchanged sarcastic jokes about their shop “rivalry,” as their parents both separately sold similar things.

        As they walked off, Cislo continued back towards his home. On the way, he noticed his mother’s tower overshadowing the village. He caught glimpses of the numerous bookshelves through the slim windows and started wondering if his mother had anything he could go on to find Oceana. He considered going into the tower right then, but his mother’s words from years ago rang out in his mind, warning to not go into her library for any reason at all. She claimed there was dangerous information within those books that Cislo simply wasn’t ready for yet. 

He hurriedly continued on his way when he started wondering why he was only halfway covered in scales. He saw the other Merling kids and every one of them had all their scales. He was often made fun of because of this, prompting many nicknames being thrown almost every day, like “two-faced,” followed by comments that seem to get more creative each time he encounters someone. 

        Once he finally reached the doorstep of the house he shared with his mother, he gave a heavy sigh and made his way to the comfort of his bed. It was only around midday, but he already felt exhausted. As if his own thoughts and ideas dragged his energy down. Unsure of what else to do, Cislo stood back up and began wandering through the halls, noticing his mother’s door was slightly open.

As he walked past, a slight glint shone in the corner of his eye, sunlight making his irises glow a golden hue. He looked through the small crack of the door and decided to investigate. What caught his eye was a bundle of large arrows tied together with a leather strip. He picked out one of the arrows and examined the head of it, not immediately recognizing the material. It wasn’t anything like flint or obsidian, it was a dark stony material with a blue-green tint barely visible without sunlight.

        He looked up to the wall in front of him to see a large longbow that looked as if it would be used for a soldier of some kind. He remembered his father was an Elvon craftsman who made many things similar to this, anywhere from leather armor and daggers to full royal armor and halberds.

His crafts also included ranged weapons, like this. 

        After a moment contemplating these things, Cislo remembered what material these arrowheads were made of; it was called Elfstone, one of the most aerodynamic materials, often used for more lightweight weapons. Even lighter than steel, it was perfect for clans of warriors and assassins to get their jobs done easier. From what Cislo could remember when he studied these types of materials, there were multiple different types of Elfstone for different species of Elvons. He never looked too much into it, but he figured he’d study it sometime later. 

        He looked down to the arrow in his hand, noticing the fleshy skin tone on his right arm in contrast to his rough scales on the other. This difference trailed down his legs and up to his face as well, including running down half his back and tail, though there were more patches of skin instead of a half-tone like the rest of him. It was almost as if he was two different people stitched together, though he felt like he was one person. 

He decided he needed to get more answers for why he grew up like this and if his mother wouldn’t tell him, surely the person that made up his other half would know what he needed.

He put the arrow back and made his way to his father’s workshop...

As always, his father’s shop had customers trailing for too far to see, people needing repairs on armor, tools, weapons, you name it.

Cislo dodged and weaved through the crowd and found himself running into Mason Alston, his father. He was a fairly tall man, though he was shorter than most Elytrian men, he had pointy ears and bright yellow eyes like Cislo’s. “Woah, slow down, son. Where are you going in such a hurry?” Mason asked. “I came to talk to you.” Cislo answered. “About what? As you can see, I’m quite busy.” He flitted a hand at the line of people of numerous races winding outside the shop. “Yes, I know, but this is important.” Cislo said with a hint of urgency in his voice. 

Mason’s eyebrows raised slightly and nodded. “Sorry everyone, I’m going on a brief break. You can come back later this afternoon!” He shouted as some people started looking agitated. 

        He turned back to Cislo and looked intent on listening to him. “Okay, so I was wondering about some things having to do with Mom’s family. Every time I bring it up, she doesn’t tell me everything, if anything at all. I was hoping maybe she told you something.” Cislo explained. 

Mason blinked in slight surprise at his request. “And why are you wondering about that?” He asked, cautiously. “For one, Mom has purple scales. Mine are clearly blue. That’s something I’ve always questioned. I also haven’t seen any other purple Merlings, either. And this is a trading village.” Cislo said, slightly making his voice a bit dramatic. “Well, that would probably have to do with the fact that your grandmother was a blue Merling. Your mother is purple because… I believe it’s because she’s also part Enderian, like your older sister. She’s still technically a blue Merling, she just has some extra color. That’s all.” Mason explained. “…I also don’t see any blue Merlings, either.” Cislo added. 

“Oh, well… that I’m not too sure about. You’re right, your mother does keep the details of her family safe in her mind, doesn’t she?” Mason asked, now realizing that even his own wife wouldn’t share with him about her family. “I honestly don’t have any more answers for you, son. You’re fresh out of luck, I’m sorry.” He apologized. “Oh… thanks anyway, Dad.” Cislo smiled as he stepped out of the workshop.

        He gave a heavy sigh and went back home, back to thinking of how to find out more about Oceana. The only option he circled back to was sneaking into his mother’s tower. He tried convincing himself it was a terrible idea, but he couldn’t shake the feeling he would find something in there. He laid in bed, thinking of how to get into the tower and have enough time to find what he needed. 

        He woke up the next morning fueled with new determination to find out more of his heritage and more about Oceana, herself. Cislo quickly peeked into his mother’s room and noticed she was, in fact, not home. He knew that his mother was always busiest in the mornings, giving him the perfect opportunity to sneak into the tower. He made his way there and kept a keen eye out for his mother, as he didn’t want to be caught. 

        He quickly went inside and was taken aback by just how many books there were. Shelves upon shelves, even some books stacked in corners and open on desks. He didn’t know where to start, so he just started at the nearest bookshelf, scaling all the way to the ceiling which felt like it was one hundred feet high. Cislo rapidly scanned the shelves for any type of section that related to what he was looking for, he even found a history section and didn’t find much. 

        He kept searching for what felt like hours upon hours, not even noticing the sun beginning to sink down. He was about to move on from the section he was scanning, but then his gaze glanced across an interesting book spine; it read…

“The Mystery of the Depths”

Cislo pulled the book from the shelf and a piece of folded paper fell to the floor, as if it were wedged between the one Cislo picked up and the one next to it. He picked it up and unfolded it on a nearby table. It looked very old, yet its ink seemed to be newly applied, as if someone carefully went back over what they could see.

        He examined the locations and recognized a portion of land that matched the outline of where Earthlands was. He followed where the oceans stretched and found odd islands scattered across the way, charted as “The Aether” which he recognized from his mother’s recent stories. Not too much farther East from those islands was a kingdom labeled “Atlantice.” This was what Cislo was looking for.

He couldn’t even believe it was this easy, I mean, you would think it would be much more difficult, too. But not in this case, it was as simple as could be.

With what he had clutched in his hands, he cautiously left the tower only to be met with surprise…

•••

Vacía was making her way to find Nix, since she was actually feeling somewhat productive that day and decided she wanted to help with something, when a rambunctious Cislo rams straight into her, knocking her off balance. “Hey, watch it you little elf!” Vacía yelled after him when he kept running. “How do you have so much energy?!” She asked, annoyed. Cislo shouted over his shoulder a quick apology before he kept going.

        Vacía got back up, brushed herself off and sighed. She shrugged to herself and figured she wouldn’t have to ask for any chores now, because she knew Cislo would get to their mother before her. 

        By the time Vacía got to her mother, Cislo was already running off in the other direction. Nixie met Vacía’s eyes for a brief moment before faint particles surrounded her, although Vacía could still see her. This was how Nixie told her daughter she wanted to talk in the privacy of an Enderwalk. Vacía followed suit and waited for Nixie to say something.

“I need you to keep an eye on your brother, V. I can’t help but think something’s up. You noticed how energetic he is, right?” Nixie’s voice rang out in an echo.

“I was thinking the same thing, though I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to or not.” Vacía said. 

She didn’t think she’d ever get used to the weird feeling of hearing her own words echo back to her; sending an eerie shiver down her spine making her long tail quiver a little. Nixie nodded after Cislo to tell Vacía to hurry before he disappeared. 

That’s one thing he was always good at; hurrying off somewhere and vanishing so that no one could find him. He didn’t ever do it intentionally, he always just seemed to have an accidental gift for sensing when people were looking for him and unknowingly moving to the next place he was going, further confusing whoever was chasing him. And that’s exactly what happened this time.

        Vacía kept trying to find her little annoying brother but every time she finally found him, he already vanished somewhere else. This, of course, lasted the entire day, leading to a lot of frustration on Vacía’s part. She gave up for the day and just decided to keep an eye out for him the next morning. 

        Lo and behold, she saw him seeming to sneak around before dawn even broke. She entered her Enderwalk state and quietly followed behind him. Cislo was young, but he at least had a brain. He grew up with Vacía around his entire life up to this point and he seemed to be getting really good at knowing when Vacía was invisible. She didn’t know how he did, but he learned one way or another, which is why she needed to stay a little behind, but not too far because otherwise she would lose him again.

She rounded a corner and saw Cislo enter their mother’s tower, something Nixie had made clear never to go into since day one. She decided to try teaching him a lesson by waiting for him to sneak back out. 

        It seemed to take a short eternity, but he eventually made an appearance. Vacía noticed he was clutching a piece of paper rolled like a map. “And where do you think you’re planning on going with that?” Vacía said, leaning against the doorframe. 

Cislo seemed to jump out of his own skin and scales just upon hearing her words, not even from seeing her towering over him with her arms crossed and a suspicious expression lingering on her face. “Uh.. no-nothing, I’m not doing anything! What… what are you doing here?” Cislo stumbled over his words. Vacía felt a smirk try to tug at the corner of her mouth, but she suppressed it for the most part.

He was really trying to get defensive around her. “How adorable.” She thought.  

        “I’m making sure mom’s little ‘golden boy’ doesn’t get himself in any trouble he shouldn’t even be considering, and yet what do we have here? Sneaking into mom’s library while she’s preoccupied all day. You know, it’s awfully suspicious sneaking around in the dead of night where you’re not supposed to be, especially when it seems you’ve even stolen something that isn’t yours.” Vacía finished with a raised brow and nodded to the rolled-up parchment in Cislo’s hand. 

        “Is that a map…?” Vacía questioned. 

She wondered where he could possibly think of going that required a map to reach. She noticed Cislo gently scratching at the back of his hand, a sign he was nervous; possibly hiding something.

        “What are you trying to find, exactly?” Vacía muttered, a curious yet concerned tone in her voice.

Cislo gave her a confused look as he didn’t fully hear her. She shook her head and dismissed him with a wave of her hand. “Listen, just don’t get yourself into trouble, ok?” Vacía said, her tone of voice shifting from soft and concerned to stern and firm. 

        She faded back into an Enderwalk state, seeing Cislo’s eyes follow her for a moment until the shadows overtook her figure completely, just enough to be able to sneak away without him detecting her. Cislo seemed to stand still for a moment to listen for signs that Vacía was still there before cautiously making his way back to his house to get some supplies for his little adventure. 

        A few long moments later of lurking in the shadows, away from the faint candle light gleaming through the windows, Cislo finally emerged once more with a tied cloth seemingly filled with some supplies for a decently long trip. Cislo was still glancing around for anyone watching, urging Vacía to carefully step further into the darkness to avoid being seen. 

He timidly tip-toed through the night, weaving his way through the village towards the ocean docks. Vacía watched on as Cislo seemed to struggle to untie one of the smallest fishing boats, eventually freeing it and hopping in. 

        Vacía cautiously tried to get closer to get in the boat with him but decided against it, figuring that if she did, he would notice. Not to mention that any small splash over the edge of the boat would burn her. She watched as her little brother got further and further away, fading into the night horizon. 

        She noticed a dimly lit lantern that Cislo seemed to have forgotten on the side of the dock, making her heart sink into her stomach as it suddenly dawned on her that the sudden absence of her mother’s youngest child would strike some questions that Vacía wouldn’t necessarily be able to answer without putting herself in an awkward situation.

        She stepped closer to the edge of the dock, feeling the sting of the water before a small wave lapped over the wooden planks, splashing dangerously close to Vacía’s feet. She stumbled back, wide eyed and hopeless. She saw the salty water splash over the lantern, not fully putting it out. 

She got her bearings and stood back up, letting out a large breath, blowing strands of hair away from in front of her face. She carefully walked up and turned the knob to extinguish the dying flame, plunging her surroundings into full darkness. She took a step back once again and gazed out to where Cislo was still drifting away. 

        “I’m doomed…” she whined quietly as she hesitantly wandered back to her house, dreading the next morning lecture from her mom.

•••

        Cislo made his way back to his house, swiftly finding and gathering supplies on a small table. He found a cloth large enough to put the stuff he found into and tie it with a thin but strong strand of leather. The items he gathered were traveling tools such as a compass and his map, as well as a couple bottles of freshwater and some food that consisted of random berries he found and a few small fish. He bundled it all up and wrapped the leather strip around the excess fabric to tie it neatly together. 

“There, you think that’s good enough?” He muttered to himself under his breath.  

        He stood for a moment longer, gazing at his little bundle before nodding and slinging it over his shoulder, blowing out all the lights, and stepping out the door, glancing around just to be sure he was alone. 

A few times, a small bird or rabbit in the corner of his eye startled him and he froze like a deer in the middle of a path before continuing on. He peered beyond every corner and was extra quiet when he saw a light nearby, but it tended to just be a random lantern that got forgotten when the villagers made their rounds to turn them off. 

He saw how dark it was around him and realized he might want a light when he got to the docks. He reached up on his tip-toes and unhooked the lantern from its hanging post and held it out in front of him to guide the rest of his way. 

        He crossed the main bridge, gazing out to his left to the ocean. He paused and saw the reflection of the lantern’s light on the calm surface of the water, beginning to build his courage to leave. He reached the docks not too much later and found a small fishing boat that no one really used. He set his lantern down next to him and fumbled trying to untie the rope keeping the boat tethered to a docking post.

He eventually freed the boat and quickly tossed his bundle in, swiftly following. He looked back and realized he left his lantern behind. He panicked for a moment, searching for oars in the boat’s hull. He found them but noticed how far he was already drifting away and decided to leave it. 

The lantern would go out eventually on its own, right?

Not a moment later after Cislo finished his thought, he saw the water overtake the small flame, but it seemed to fight on. This symbolized a bit of hope for him, seeing such a weak flame keep burning after being splashed by the strong ocean. He stared on, eagerly seeing how long the lantern would stay alight. 

        His hopes got smothered along with the flame when it seemed that an invisible force turned the lanterns extinguisher, and the flame sputtered out. Cislo continued staring for a long moment, confused with an odd sense of sadness for the flame. 

He eventually turned his gaze away and toward the horizon split from the ocean’s surface by a thin line telling the coming of dawn. 

A small flame extinguished and soon replaced by the brightest and strongest light there is…

“How poetic.” Cislo thought to himself.

______________________________________________

As Cislo sailed across the ocean, he watched as the sun creeped across the whole sky, following him as he got swept along with the currents. He pulled out the compass he packed, trying his best to read it with the evening sun blinding him. He tried to follow the compass to where North was off to his left, though the waves often fought him when they began to stir with the coming of the moon.

        Before long, Cislo got plunged into darkness, the waves rising larger than before as the moon peeked over the skyline; a full silver disc of light reflecting out onto the energetic movement of the water. Cislo’s arms grew tired as he attempted to keep to the east, with only the light of the full moon to see his map and compass.

For a brief and sudden moment, it was as if he entered a mysterious force field that had calmed the crashing waves around him. He looked around, seeing it was as if he was in a valley of water. A great area around him was raging on, but the expanse he had entered was almost like glass. 

        He stared in amazement, wondering if he had made it to his destination, but saw no signs of a grand kingdom, above or beneath the water. He paddled to the edge of the mysterious water and took a deep breath before his boat bobbed onto the turbulent waves once again. He realigned his compass to the east and kept going, continuing to fight the waters as they grew wilder as the moon rose above his head. 

        After what felt like another eternity of navigating the ocean, Cislo saw the moon dip beneath the waves behind him to make way for the golden glow of the sun to make its appearance once again. With its seemingly heavenly halo of light, what seemed like a small island came into view. As he got closer, the sun’s rays seemed to bounce off of nothing, making phantom-like shapes of a large wall.

He inched closer and closer, his head beginning to throb with a quiet pain. This headache grew stronger and stronger before suddenly the translucent walls began to glitch in and out of his view. These grand walls eventually stayed in his vision as he seemed to drift through an entrance decorated with vibrant orange corals and sandstone. 

He carefully peered over the edge of the boat, trying to see under the surface of the waves. He could make out battered and beaten structures that looked like they could be a marketplace. He got deeper into this city and saw giant bubble-like buildings on the seafloor. These bubbles seemed to have once been floating, but no longer.

        Soon he found ruined houses of various sizes, seeming to range in tandem with the people’s social statuses when they lived here. Overall, this so-called kingdom seemed very abandoned. He got to the main entrance of what he could only assume is a palace and carefully tethered his boat to a bit of rock sticking out. He gathered what he had left of supplies and stepped out of his boat and into the palace. 

        Suddenly, the headache he had grew much stronger and made him stumble forward. He clenched his eyes shut, rubbing at his temples to clear the pain. It eventually subsided, and he opened his eyes to see a much livelier palace in front of him. It was no longer dark and decrepit, but as if it were in its prime.

He looked to his left and there stood a brown Merling soldier looming over him. He jumped back and stumbled over his own feet once again. 

        “What is your business here, youngling?” The soldier bellowed.

Cislo sat there on the floor, eyes wide and mouth open but unable to make a sound. Before much longer, a young man who seemed to be half Brown and half Blue walked up to them. He blinked rapidly at Cislo and the soldier, seeming very confused. He studied Cislo, seeing only half blue scales and flesh on the other half.

The man took a breath and said only a few words: “Well… this is a sight.”

The Soldier glanced once more at Cislo and turned to the man. “Shall we bring the child to the Sorcerer, Apprentice Rue?” Cislo looked on in a confused daze and his heart sank in his chest.

“What did I get myself into now…?”

Chapter Text

A new dawn overtook the landscape as Nixie opened her eyes and looked around her dimly lit room, lighted by small lines of sunbeams peeking through the simple curtains hanging over her window. She wiped away sleep from her rested eyelids and slowly stood up out of her bed. She looked into her vanity mirror and fixed up her hair as her mind slipped into a deep thought. It had been only a couple months since the world had been freed from Oceana’s villainy when she herself was locked away. 

She grabbed her satchel off of a table and wrapped it across her torso. She stepped through the doorway of her house into the warmth of the rising sun in the east and took in the fresh air with a deep breath. The world felt peaceful. Too much so. It felt odd not worrying for your own safety with every passing moment. It was almost taboo to be happy anymore; Nixie was filled with an odd numbness in her mind.

       She wandered into town, greeting those who would smile or wave as she passed by. Now this morning walkthrough had become routine; mundane, even. She almost yearned for a new adventure, but she was too scared for her own growing town for anything exciting. As the days and weeks passed since the start of peace, Earthlands shot into an ever-growing momentum: new people called for more space: more space, more vendors and houses. More people meant more need for farming, so more space for that even then. 

They had expanded so much almost in the blink of an eye; numbers of unique races Nixie hadn’t even met before started showing up to her doors asking for solace and a place to settle. Where Earthlands had been expanded most was the trading market. She passed through people of any race, shape, and size, mixed or pure blood. It was beautiful to her, seeing increasing equality since her mother’s rule in the ocean. Those ways had fallen away, making way for new ideas, new people. Endless possibilities.

       Suddenly, Nixie was caught out of her deep trance of thought when she bumped into an older Enderian man. She quickly apologized and quickly ran into someone else, a cloaked figure that had brown scales of a mudskipper Merling. She apologized again and subconsciously reached for her satchel and realized it was lighter than it was a few moments ago. 

She no longer heard the clank of a glass bottle she had left in her bag and never removed. She had forgotten if it was just a glass or if it were filled with an elixir of some kind. Whatever it was, it was gone and the Merling she had bumped into was now dashing away from her. She ran after them, dodging citizens with a set goal to catch this thief. Finally, a little action. Nixie thought to herself as she weaved through crowds. Some noticed her and attempted to get out of the way, others were oblivious with their own tasks and got spooked when Nixie dashed in front of them.

       Moments got longer and longer as they seemed to dance through the endless labyrinth that was Earthlands, when a dark shadow flew past her face, which Nixie assumed was some kind of bird. Her attention was caught away from her target for a split second, but that was just enough for the thief to slip away. Nixie stood at the center of a large crowd, which was warping around her, so she was in a small circle of open space surrounded by many who were taller than her. 

She scanned everything around her, desperately looking for who she was chasing, and found them nearby, almost at a standstill near a stall which a young girl was galloping away from to tell her mother that she bought something all on her own. Nixie snuck up on the figure and grabbed their shoulder to turn them around. Both the eyes of the cloaked figure and of Nixie flew wide as they had come face to face, but not for the reason Nixie was expecting.

       Standing before her was the very man who raised her in her early life, Earwyn Skipper. The world around them seemed to slow down and her ears deafened to the voices surrounding them. 

       “…dad?” Nixie breathed in disbelief. “Princess…” Earwyn responded.

       “Why- what possessed you to steal from me?” Nixie questioned, trying to keep her composure. Earwyn’s expression filled with confusion, his brow furrowed.

       “Whatever do you mean? I’ve never stolen once in my long life.” Earwyn answered confidently. “But- I bumped into you, and my glass vial was gone-” Nixie stammered over her words more and more, battling between confusion and betrayal.

       “…I haven’t run into anyone yet today, Nixie. Perhaps your thief ran away, and you mistook me for them? See, I possess nothing of glass except my own spectacles for reading. I am no thief.” He explained while overturning every pocket on his body. “I’m terribly sorry, Princess.” Earwyn finished.

Nixie thought for a moment longer, the name Earwyn called her echoing through her mind. She had never heard that name, Princess, since her time living at Atlantice. Without a moment longer to process, her own feet pushed her forward without warning and she embraced her father-figure. Earwyn paused, his hands hanging in space while this sudden embrace processed in his mind. He blinked and wrapped his arms around Nixie warmly.

       A long emotional moment passed, and they each took a step back. “What are you even doing here?” Nixie asked.

      “Well, you see, I helped the rest of the Atlanteans escape from your mother's twisted monarchy. Every last one. Those who remained never lived under her rule. Many died or were injured. For the time being, we’ve all been nomads traveling together as a sort of new family. They elected me their leader that very day we left. We were short on supplies, so we traveled where the currents took us. We were led here, where we could either buy or forage food and supplies. These people are quite generous; I’m impressed by whoever their leader is.” As soon as Earwyn finished his story, a wide smile spread across Nixie’s face, puzzling him. 

      “Thank you,” she said. This puzzled him even more, but he realized a moment later what she meant. “You raised this city?” Earwyn breathed out in disbelief.

      “Well, from a foundation when I found it years ago, yes. It simply expanded under my hand.” Nixie explained. Earwyn nodded in proud approval. “You’ve grown into more than your mother ever was,” he praised. 

      “Speaking of her,” Nixie started, her mouth growing bitter with dryness. “How do we know she is still secured? She was locked in her own kingdom, of course.” Nixie said, her voice filling with anxiety. Earwyn’s brows raised. 

      “Her own kingdom? You mean to say she’s locked back in Atlantice?” Earwyn chided. “Well- yes, we weren’t able to put her anywhere else otherwise risking her running away.” Nixie defended. 

      “You could have at least lured her away from the kingdom- well…” Earwyn cut himself off there, realizing just how reliant Oceana really was on her own walls. “…perhaps not,” he corrected. 

Nixie nodded, not saying anything, though this was a very fitting ‘I told you’ moment. “With that being said, could I implore you to return back to the kingdom to be sure she doesn’t escape?…” Nixie asked slowly. Earwyn eyes her cautiously. 

      “…Go back?” Earwyn questioned. “After everything we’ve done to escape?” His voice had an undertone seeming to ask if she was crazy for even suggesting they went back. “It’s a better option than letting her slip under the radar with no supervision, able to turn herself into her own personal assassin to wipe out any, if not, all of us.” Nixie answered, somewhat believing she might have gone crazy, herself, but she did have a thread of logic behind her motive. 

Earwyn pondered for a moment, then finally answered. “I will see what I can do.” He stated. It wasn’t a ‘yes’, but it was further from a ‘no’. Nixie gave Earwyn a warm smile, wishing this moment never ended, but the world they knew needed to be protected. While Nixie was lost in thought, Earwyn embraced her once again, his arms wrapping tightly and warm around her. Nixie held back silent tears, not wanting him to go. 

      “I’ll see you around, Princess.” Earwyn said before letting her go. He gave a warm grin and stepped away, beginning to return to the Atlanteans.

Nixie stood, once again, in a busy crowd. The voices around them began to flood her ears as the moment with her father subsided. Nixie stared into space, towards where Earwyn walked away, and a single tear rolled down her cheek, sizzling slightly as it did. For once, this tear wasn’t of fear, anger, or sadness.

A single drop was filled with a countless amount of melancholy and memories.

She took a breath and turned to walk back to her house to rest after these short events, but it was that much to her that this was a small adventure. She went about her life the rest of the day before finally reaching her welcoming bed. She fixed up her bed coverings and crawled into them, feeling the warmth of the down feathers within the fabric over her body.

With one more breath, she slipped into unconsciousness filled with dreams littered with fond and bitter memories. Soon enough, days turned to weeks, turned to more months passed. Each night, haunted by images of her mother, spurred by anxiety and uncertainty. As the days went by, these nightmares morphed into more than simple memories; they began to evolve into much darker images of death, murder, and unpaid debts. 

      These dreams seemed to gain their own consciousness, their own stories, almost as if Oceana herself were shoving her plans of murder into Nixie’s head from afar. Nixie’s days turned to restless nights, her eyes darkened from sleeplessness and insomnia, anything to keep the dreams out. 

She had gone almost a week without rest out of fear of her own mind, afraid of her mother’s memories’ recent hauntings. Her health was at risk; she couldn’t go on much longer. Vacía had urged her to get some sleep, even offering to stay by her bedside during the night. Vacía’s concern finally got Nixie to give in, and she reluctantly let sleep take over her tormented mind. 

      Unlike the past few months, however, this dream was different. Nixie was standing on her own, as usual, but only her. Instead of the walls of Atlantice or the waters of the oceans enveloping her, she was standing among seemingly endless stone as if she were within a cavern. She had the unsettling yet familiar feeling of being watched, but it wasn’t from her mother’s cold gaze. Instead of eyes glowing of murderous intent, these eyes felt as if they were golden. This golden glow seemed constant in the skirts of her vision, she felt like a fool’s dog chasing its tail by how many times she had pivoted attempting to locate the onlooker. 

Her vision blurred in and out, her surroundings unchanging, but something was different. She found an opening. A small crevice hardly small enough for mice and rats to crawl through. She peered through the stoney gap and was met by an odd warmth of a firelight. Someone was trapped. She desperately tried to strain her eyes to make out who or what this figure was, but Nixie was conflicted if her eyes were playing tricks on her or not. 

A silhouette seemed to show wings, but unlike what was familiar. She recalled her visit to Elyssia, where she met the ruler of that realm, Jean. She was a dragon. This one wasn’t that strong ruler, however. This one was slightly shorter, and Jean had no glowing gold eyes.

      Nixie continued pondering this figure, when suddenly it turned those glowing eyes towards her. Nixie’s vision lit up in a large heat, as if the firelight were burning everything around her, despite it all being stone. As suddenly as her mind was heated, it was black. Her mind was blank. No dreams continued to haunt her from that day, her thoughts tormented by another curiosity. 

An intrigue as opposed to fear. Questions instead of dread. Who was that dragon? And why was her dream different this time? Whatever it was, she was grateful her mother had ceased to torture her any longer.

•••

Now a brief word to remember, my child; Every book has others that share the same tree, as do apples that share the same branch. Every story derives from another’s past, and not everything has a good ending.

THE END…?