Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

"Well, I've got some pretty impenetrable defences," I say, making the crystal I used before slither between my fingers before it disappears again, "Though, granted, it comes at the cost of having no offense while using it."

 

"Does it block erasure? She needs the victim to be in our reality for it to work, but... well, I doubt that'll help you if she goes that far off the deep end." Idhaenna warns.

 

"I think so, actually. It'd absorb the hit, so I'd have a chance to get out of there," I say, "Though I don't know if it could still function afterward, I'd probably need Praecantatia to make another one."

"She had some other abilities too, though she recommended I use the defensive one over something more offensive." I add.

 

“I don’t know how erasure actually works. It’s not an actual strike, though... regardless, Ihra’s a mess and Xlentia’s pissed. Plus, Emerald’s still who-knows-where, so that kind of exascerbates the Xlentia issue.”

 

"Praecantatia said nothing could get in or out of this thing, so I think Xlentia would need to somehow get inside a me-sized ball to try and erase me personally; else it'd just be directed at the shield," I explain, "Though from the sounds of things, it seems like I should wait until the heat dies down a little before going back to your reality."

 

“Usually I’d agree, but the longer you’ve been away the worse things get. Kinda a catch-22, but you specifically should be okay in the same room as Xlentia. She’s just cranky, lonely, and in agony, but mostly just cranky right now.”

 

"Well...I guess it'd be a good chance to test out my defences..." I say, glancing toward the large forest that surrounds Praecantatia's main tree, "So how did Katie kill her sister? I know the novelty sort of wore off on her after a short while, but I didn't think she'd actually go out an kill her to get rid of her. I am proud she was able to, though."

 

“She clubbed her upside the head with an iceberg after her friend electrocuted her. Mind you, she feels terrible and doesn’t know she died yet. Abigail’s also in bad shape, but she’s recovering.”

 

"Makes sense. To the mountains!"

 

"Wow, that's amazing. I'm surprised she went for the blunt force attack rather than some kind of sharp icicle attack. I can respect it though," I say, "So what made actually her kill her sister? Did she say something about her parents liking her more or something?"

 

“Abigail told Kiin that Katie’s parents never loved her, and Kiin being the aspect of sorrow, got depressed and went into a feral rage. Kiin broke most of Abigail before being electrocuted, but Katie and her friend overshot knocking out Kiin and left her dead by the time Ihra was called over. None of Katie’s family know Kiin’s dead.”

I like your enthusiasm, but... are you going to jog yourself over or did you just forget to let me out?

 

"Wow...I mean...she was half right, but that's brutal," I say, shaking my head, "Kiin put a strain on Katie's life because I think she saw part of herself in her. She grew up without her parents around much, but Abigail was her older sister in a way. I think Katie realised she probably had to act like Abigail toward Kiin in order to support her, but she still needed Abigail to be her older sister because she still needed the support herself."

"As for Katie's parents, I think it's more a matter of bloodline. I mean, they're hardly around for Katie, but they still care about her. Kiin was just sort of alien to them, she's not someone they asked for or wanted, they just had the responsibility of another child thrust upon them," I add, "That's how I see it, anyway. Abigail probably saw it the same too, she's just a little more...forward."

 

“Strain or not, Xlentia entrusted Katie’s parents to protect Kiin as part of herself. They were made aware that letting her die would not be without consequences. Xlentia doesn’t know Kiin’s death was an accident, only that Katie undermined Xlentia’s trust in her parents. As naive as she was entrusting any mortal from here in the first place, Katie killing Kiin is betrayal in her eyes.”

 

"Does Katie know this?" I ask, "I don't want her going back there only to get flattened into a puddle on the ground. She's not a demigod like Stephanie, I don't think she'd survive it."

 

“For the please-count-yourself-th time, neither Katie nor her parents know.”

 

"Oh, well, that's a problem." I say, thinking.

"So what happened with Abigail?" I ask after a pause.

 

“She’s healing, currently in dragon form so she doesn’t up and die. Kinda in a crater in her friend’s rental, though. So much for his deposit.” Idhaenna snickers.

 

"Well, at least the casualties have been kept to a minimum," I say, "For a change of pace, how are things back in your realm?"

 

“Pretty good. Stella hasn’t been tampered with yet, there have only been five rogue black holes since Shadow Stephanie pushed back the Hive Master, and I’ve just about finished adding soul-blocking cloaks to active military mechs. Most of last week was spent resupplying the Stareater, though. That once-in-a-decade pain never gets easier.”

 

"The stareater? Is that some kind of nuclear reactor that uses stars for fuel?" I ask, curious.