Well, half rounded up, anyway.
She flickered for a moment, revealing herself as a projection of the mirrors rather than a being separate from them. When she spoke again, her tone was much flatter. “I recognize your emotional attachment to Nora. However, her thaumic signature does not conform to this world’s animus-amity polarity.”
“I don’t know what any of that means, but—”
“Entities lacking stable thaumic patterning present unpredictable risks to divine infrastructure. She cannot be permitted to interact with the NAUGHT system.”
“Nora wouldn’t do anything to harm this world. She loves it too much!”
Aina extended one hand and summoned a parchment to her fingertips. “Please review this letter I removed from her, receipt of which is timestamped 2.2 seconds before the one you recently received.”
At first, it appeared scrambled, but Aina flashed, and I could read it in its entirety.
To: Elenora Beatrice Perez
From: Clare Mercure, Manager, IT
Re: URGENT: Advisory on Direct Interface with NAUGHT Systems
This correspondence is provided as a precautionary measure prior to your continued accompaniment of Rachel Emily Smith into restricted systems, specifically NAUGHT and its subordinate processes.
Please refrain from initiating direct contact with any NAUGHT subsystem, terminal, or core access point. Your thaumic signature remains unclassified in Speranza and cannot be cross-referenced against the animus–amity spectrum or other standard energetic constants. Direct interface with NAUGHT’s primary systems may yield world-breaking consequences arising from your origin-level thaumic resonance.
In accordance with HR Policy 14 (“Inter-Thaumic Integrity and Responsible Reality Management”), all direct technical operations are to be performed by Rachel Emily Smith.
You are encouraged to remain present as moral support, tactical backup, and/or friendly witness to any procedural miracles, but not as a primary participant in the interface process.
Thank you for your continued cooperation and for modeling inter-dimensional professionalism under challenging conditions. Your steadfast adherence to established safety protocols will be noted and favorably reviewed during your subsequent employee evaluation.
No wonder she was upset… Being told she wasn’t allowed to touch the miracle machine!
I wish she had told me… Wait a minute!
“Now see here!” I shouted, stabbing at parchment. “You are encouraged to remain present as moral support! Clare herself said it’s okay to be here, she just isn’t allowed to touch it!”
Aina’s projection glitched again. “Universal safeguards enacted. Until subject’s intent is discerned, Nora will remain in quarantine.”
I put my hand on the hilt of my sword. “I refuse to let you decide—”
“Please proceed quickly, Chosen One.”
Aina vanished along with all the scattered mirrors, revealing another set of gold gates at the far end of the white chamber. They swung open soundlessly, bright light spilling through to reveal a soft, pink-and-green courtyard garden with petals drifting through the silent air.
“Aina!” I shouted into the space of the chamber. My voice bounced off the walls, growing angrier with each echo until it faded into an irritated sigh.
Or maybe that last sound was just me.
Fine. I’ll play along for now, but only because I don’t know how else to get her attention.
I stepped through the gates and onto the soft grass, shielding my eyes as sunlight flared. The garden spread, revealing spiraling hedges of emerald and pale rose, all pointing toward the single cherry blossom tree standing at its center.
Its petals never stopped falling. They drifted in a slow, endless spiral, yet the ground beneath remained spotless, as though time for them had frozen, refusing them their final rest.
And there, beneath its branches, lay what I could only describe as a crystal sarcophagus.
Raela.
The sitting form within was both sharp and translucent, her expression serene as she reclined against the tree’s trunk, her hands clasped in her lap. There was a faint glow that pulsed with the now-almost-silent klaxon that had followed us here, as if she herself were summoning us.
Relias’s request came unbidden to memory:
When you find Raela’s tree, I would ask you to pay my respects. Please tell her that I continue my journey, and that even if my path is not always straightforward, I continue to grow from the experience.
I slowly made my way over to her.
“Hey, um… my name is Rachel. Also Raelynn. And a whole bunch of others. But the nickname Rae kind of sums it up. Anyway…”
This feels weird. She’s sitting, and I’m towering over her.
I sat down beside her, resting my hand on the crystal where her shoulder was beneath its warm surface. “I can’t spend too much time filling you in, but there are a few things you should probably know about—”
Light beneath my fingers flickered once, twice, then it flared, swallowing everything in a blinding rush.
“What the—”
I staggered back to my feet, but the garden and everything else in it were gone.
In spiritual form, I stood at the foot of an endless line of black basalt cliffs, their edges jagged and gleaming somehow against a dark sky. Dry, angry cracks covered the stones beneath me for as far as the eye could see.
Raela was several feet away, lounging on her stomach, idly kicking her sandaled feet behind her. All my attempts to interact with her failed, and after a few minutes, I gave up with a sigh.
“Are you ready to come out yet?” she eventually asked, lifting her head and pushing up her straw hat to stare at a large crack in front of her.
“No,” a curt voice replied, drifting up from the ground.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
She propped her chin on her hands. “Then I shall wait here for you until you are.”
“Away with you. I have already reunited you with your hat.”
“Hmm…” Raela smiled, then began to trace idle lines in the dust with her fingertip. “Is that truly what you want?”
There was a long pause.
“What if… I have no Name? No Purpose?”
Raela sat up quickly. “How wonderful that would be!”
“Explain your rationale,” the voice commanded.
She clapped her hands on the stone with delight. “To be made only to exist. To choose your own self, your own becoming! That would be wonderful indeed.”
A small, shadowy tendril grew from the crack. Raela watched expectantly, discarding the hat from her head. The tendril thickened, and small buds began to appear as a deep, solidifying green spread through it.
“Oh, wait, I know this one. Freesia!”
The buds unfurled, revealing their golden petals.
“Yellow freesia,” the voice clarified in a softer tone.
“You look lovely,” Raela proclaimed, folding her arms in final judgment.
“So you say, no matter what shape I take. I am beginning to think you are not very discerning.”
Raela shook her head with a playful but somewhat confused smile. “I will pretend I know not what that word means.”
“Yet I would wager you don’t know the meaning of yellow freesias.”
Raela frowned. “Beauty? Flowers are beautiful.”
“You’re simply guessing. Yellow freesia. Friendship, optimism.”
“Oh! Then you foreshadow your exodus from this barren land?”
“…Yes.”
The flower faded back into shadow and expanded upwards.
“Human! Oh—a woman!” Raela guessed gleefully as the form continued to solidify. “Ah, it’s me!”
“Perhaps I’ll gain your optimism if I take your shape,” said the other Raela, now in her voice.
“Smiling may provide even greater reward.”
The other Raela smiled, awkwardly at first, but then mirrored the real Raela completely.
“Now…” Raela paused, then instructed, “Stick out your tongue.”
Her doppelganger complied, making a face as it did so.
“Hahahahaha!” The original Raela fell over. “So ridiculous!”
“Me or you?”
“Both!”
The shadow Raela laughed too as the scene slowly faded into light. Their chortles echoed, softening to something wistful.
When the light dimmed, Raela was walking side by side with the once-again shadowy figure across a vast expanse of sand.
“Who said you are not welcome in Paradise?” she asked, tossing an apple back and forth between her hands.
“Relias-Sage.”
Raela stopped, her fingers tightening around the fruit. “Oh.”
The dark figure paused as well. “You know him.”
She looked away. “Yes.”
“You are exuding an animus of discomfort.”
“What?”
“You dislike him.”
“That is not accurate…” She looked at the ground. “Our relationship is… not simple.”
“What is his Purpose?”
“To guide humanity,” she answered quickly.
“That must be very difficult for him,” the shadow noted as it swirled, irritated. “He is already very busy, thinking about himself.”
Raela jumped slightly, then let out a nervous laugh. “I am sorry he was not nice to you. I will talk to him. I will explain that what he did was wrong and will make him apologize.”
“There is no need. I do not wish to talk to him again.”
Raela’s face fell. “Oh.”
“...You wish me to establish a relationship with him?”
“My Purpose is linked to his Purpose,” Raela replied, as if that explained everything.
“You are not his mate, are you?”
Raela choked on the bite of an apple she had just taken. “No!”
“Bad apple?” the shadow asked in a somewhat impudent tone.
“No, you just scared me with such a thought!”
“That was not my intention... Yet I am content with your reaction, nonetheless.” The shadow man seemed to bounce a little more as it matched Raela’s quickening stride.
“I do interact with him frequently. It would be best if you had a relationship where you could talk to him, too.”
“... I shall think about your request.”
“When?” Raela pressed.
“Later. Not now.”
“I will ask you again tomorrow, then.”
“What if I say no?”
Raela shrugged. “I will keep asking you every day until you say yes.”
The shadow stopped moving. “You are very stubborn.”
“Yes,” Raela agreed.
“Fine, if it will make you happy, then I will try to get along with him.”
The scene brightened again, dissolving into light. Before I could fully digest their obviously private conversation, the two were walking through grasslands.
“… And what form should I take?” the shadow asked.
“Any form you like! They are all impressive. Just be yourself.”
“I do not know what I am,” he confessed.
“You are my friend. You may stay even as you are.”
“No,” he replied slowly. “First impressions are important. I must look my best.”
Raela pulled at the brim of her hat, intentionally hiding her face. “I like the tail.”
A bushy tail, resembling that of a wolf’s, sprouted from his backside. “This one?”
She gave him a sidelong glance. “Yes… It is cute.”
“I do not wish to look cute,” he said, though his tail wagged back and forth despite his protest. “I should appear strong and capable for my Purpose. I do not wish to disappoint my creator.”
“Sparkles is the strongest and most capable creature. Do you know of her? She can change her form too…” Raela paused. “Although you respond more to my whimsy.”
The shadow stopped pulsing. “Sparkles is… a dragon,” he said as if confirming newfound knowledge. “I will adopt dragon features. Dragon horns, wings… Even the tail is a sign of strength. Yet I prefer a humanoid appearance of a similar size to yours, for ease of communication.”
“Ah… Indeed?” Raela said, appearing a little lost.
The shadow took shape as a tall, elegant demon silhouette. “What say you to this one?”
Raela frowned. “You must add color and make it solid for my full consideration.”
A whirl of hues spread from the center of the shadowy demon, filling in his form. Large, polished onyx horns swept aside the long, dark lavender locks that spilled from his temples. His bright emerald eyes appeared faintly reptilian. He flared his enormous, bat-like wings once before settling them in a neutral position on his back.
At this point, I screamed and tore my gaze away from him, though neither reacted.
Oliver—No, Olethros—Olethros is the spitting image of his father!
Raela pursed her lips. “You are acting as a peacock, aren’t you? With the purple hair… You are most assuredly vying for someone’s attention.”
“Whose attention would I vie for?” he asked with mock innocence.
“Euphridia’s,” she said confidently as the demon's face fell. “Oh, but one other thing.”
“What?”
Raela folded her arms. “When you meet her, be sure to wear clothes. It is not respectful to be naked in front of her.”
He added a dark gray toga that hung to his mid-knees. “So many useless customs.”
“Now, the important question. What do you think of your form?”
“I... I like this one. It feels like me.”
“Then you should appear before her just like that.”
An explosion of light blotted out everything before returning us to the garden.
However, it was Euphridia, in all her white and golden splendor, that sat beneath the giant, ever-blossoming cherry tree.
Raela ran in from the gold gates, waving. “Euphy-Creator! I have returned!”
“Where have you been?” Euphridia demanded as she stood up, her face pale and shaken.
“I have found your lost creation!” Raela exclaimed. “Prepare yourself to receive him. He is very clever and skilled, using many insightful words. I believe he knows many things, even as you do!” Raela paused. “Some would say he is quite handsome as well.”
“A handsome, intelligent creation that speaks? Surely you are describing another human…” Euphridia exhaled in visible relief. "Though not as handsome as Relias-Sage, of that I am certain."
A rather strange look crossed Raela's face, but she forced a smile and moved on. “He wishes to know his Name and Purpose.”
“How can one forget and deny what I have directly assigned?” the Goddess questioned, even as Raela shrugged. Euphridia started to move forward toward the gates, but Raela held up her hands.
“I will bring him here so that he may come to know you as I do.”
Euphridia let out a small, wistful sigh. “I suppose standing on ceremony, as you are so fond of, will ensure he does not forget again. Go, and bring him forth.”
Raela darted back through the gates and returned arm-in-arm with the demon.
“Please, Euphy-creator, please tell my friend his Name and Purpose!”
Euphridia, however, drew back, trembling with consternation. “Epiales!” she gasped.
“My name is… Epiales?” he repeated slowly as he unlinked his arm with Raela. “I am… Epiales…” His eyes started to fill with horror. “Origin of Evil?”
Raela’s mouth opened to answer, but Euphridia screamed. “How dare you come here, you foul demon! You aren’t supposed to exist! You wicked and terrible thing!”
“Euphy-Creator?” Raela reached for her, but Euphridia’s fury only grew.
“You are a mistake! Your only Purpose is to destroy all the things that I love! You care for nothing except the death and destruction of all my creation!”
Large black swirls of shadowy energy emanated from the ground around Epiales, who was now in shock. The black animus engulfed him as a bell tolled loudly, its dooming visage unseen.
“Euphy-Creator… why?” Raela cried. “Why would you give my friend such a terrible Purpose? I don’t—”
She gasped as a shadowy claw drove through her chest, bursting from her back as it held her heart within its clutches. Her body lurched as he tore his arm sideways, cleaving her collapsing corpse.
He solidified with a flinch the moment she hit the ground, as if coming out of a trance.
“No! That was not me! I did not want to do that! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Epiales fell to his knees, gathering her in his arms as the world dimmed.
“Please,” he wept from somewhere in the darkness. “Please… just destroy me.”
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