Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

"Only the bottom three levels are being melted. We're on the lowest."

 

“So, two spires we get to find on our own... there’s no way he’s mind controlled.”

 

"I mean, they were going to see family. That's why I was kinda inclined to let them go."

 

"True. Let's go."

 

"We were pulled into it. We may as well fight." Shadow Atephanie shrugs.


Gail almost drops the coin after seeing it, using the wind to bring it up to her.

"S-Seriously?" Gail asks, shocked.

 

“Yet you had every right and reason to leave and disconnect.”


Alice nods as she walks off.
“Consider it an apology.”

She nods, starting to finish her cake.

“That’s meaningless nowadays. Everyone’s lost a family member, it’s a numb topic. What’s one more, anyways?”
“Hey, we’re here to break crystals, not squabble over morals.” The fae pipes up, angry. “Get moving.”

 

"And leave business unfinished? Our friends behind?" Shadow Stephanie asks.


"For what?" Gail asks, still surprised.

 

Gaia just nods.
“I hope you can forgive me for failing to realize just how much you have invested in our petty war.”


Alice doesn’t respond.

 

"If our reality doesn't stop it, then others will suffer. If your reality falls, then so will others." Shadow Stephanie says.


Gail just looks at the coin a bit longer in a state of disbelief.

 

Gaia doesn’t respond, thinking.


A few minutes later, Gail can hear a gunshot from Alice’s house.

 

Shadow Stephanie waits, eyes looming.


Gail flies over, worried, knocking on Alice's door.

"Alice?" Gail asks.

 

“...I only fear the debts we have to repay, should we cut this evil from its source. We owe you too much, considering the ruins it has already left.”


No response, but the door opens slightly, not having been latched.

There’s parasols everywhere inside, and a checklist with the final box torn off hung on the wall along with dozens of other notes left on the table.

 

"That is in the future. It hasn't happened yet, so we needn't worry." Shadow Stephanie says.


"Alice!?" Gail calls, looking around inside.

 

“Yet.” Gaia sighs.


There’s shadow crystal dust next to a spent light gun, along with a series of notes on the floor.
“I took a life, yet even the spirits couldn’t calm me... is this the price of freedom?”
“I’ve tried meditation, tea, everything. Praying to Mother Tenebrae. Nothing. It eats at me.”
“I am one step below the royalty’s equal. I thought I could hold off the primal urges that paint my kin in a poor light. I was wrong. Only they can.”
“These primal urges... in my hands, something terrible would happen. Is this why shadows consume flesh? To sate this bloodlust?”
“I cannot let someone as strong as myself fall to these primal urges. My will is in the kitchen. Katie, tell your parents it was worth it.”
There’s two other blood-soaked notes, but they’re unreadable.

 

"We must make the most of the present. If we stay in the past or worry about the future, we won't get anywhere." Shadow Stephanie says.


Gail falls to her knees, tears forming in her eyes.

"...No..." Gail whispers, gently touching the dust.


Alice feels...awake, yet asleep. Somewhere. Nowhere.

A dark hand reaches for her essence, pulling her from nothing.

 

“Fair.” She nods.


She hesitates before letting it take her.

 

"I hope you have found the palace welcoming. You're an extremely important guest, after all." Shadow Stephanie says.


Alice can't seem to fight it at all.

Alice is dragged into darkness. A darkness that feels familiar. After a short moment, a pair of red eyes open above her. However, the eyes do not look intimidating in any way. Instead, they seem comforting.

 

“I have, thank you.” She nods, smiling.


“I couldn’t take it. I can’t take it.” She says, stressed.

 

Shadow Stephanie smiles in return.


The eyes seem to turn to a look of disappointment and sadness.

"And so, you took your own life." Tenebrae says, disappointed.

 

“Well, I’ll try not to waste much more of your time. Please, if there’s something you need of me, just ask.”


“I lost my identity, my pride, and my confidence. I tried to be something I wasn’t. I paid for it, and unless I found some miracle cure that would let me control my instincts, someone else might have too.” She shouts, crying yet frustrated.