Amdirlain’s PoV - Demi-Plane

  Amdirlain lifted her hands as the others started to argue with Klipyl. “Please stop. I’d planned to address it later, but I can sense the same tension as Klipyl caught. Her understanding of emotions is better than mine, so I trust her judgement.”

  They stopped to listen too readily, their compliance set Amdirlain’s nerves on edge with worry for them.

  “You asked what I need you to do. What I need is for you all to work on setting your guilt aside. I know that is hard to do, but it’s poisonous. I’ve felt what billions of years of guilt did to Orhêthurin, and I don’t want any of you destroying yourselves the same way. Let’s start with a simple question: can you honestly say guilt didn’t factor into your decision not to ask me to change you back into living Lóm??”

  When the silence persisted and no one moved, Amdirlain nodded. “Welcome to the club. Guilt hurts, even when you’ve no reason to feel guilty. You will all take time for yourselves and heal.”

  “What?” N?r regarded Amdirlain, emotions whirling in her gaze.

  Amdirlain listened to their theme, checked it against the composition, and found no related problem.

  I can change any of them back with the same song.

  The strength of concern coming from Klipyl spiked, and Amdirlain smiled sadly. “While it will always come down to your own choices, please follow Klipyl’s suggestion and focus on yourselves for a time—not running around training anyone or keeping busy like I did.”

  Klipyl regarded them contemplatively. “What I’m feeling from you isn’t healthy. Do you want Amdirlain’s daughters to pick up the mess in your songs when their powers grow?”

  Fainil half turned to look between Klipyl and her fellow angels. “But what do we do now?”

  “You’re in a unique situation. What you wanted to do was the straightforward answer—give your oath to someone and not have to look back,” said Klipyl. “Isn’t that similar to what got you in trouble? You’re not normal folks, so you need to take more care. While Amdirlain is trustworthy, it doesn’t mean it's the best answer for personal growth.”

  Fainil grimaced. “Sorry, you’re right. I’m not exactly normal.”

  “None of us is normal, and I’m one of the worst offenders for the name I selected,” agreed N?r. “Lady Amdirlain, what would you have us do?”

  Though Amdirlain raised an eyebrow, she didn’t correct N?r’s title use.

  Fainil touched N?r’s shoulder and offered Amdirlain an apologetic smile. “If you need someone to handle any errands, just let us know.”

  “When was the last time you stopped and took a break?” asked Amdirlain.

  When they hesitated to answer, Klipyl frowned. “Too long from the looks of them.Maybe before their transformation, even though I’ve heard them comment about how you worked too hard.”

  There was a sheepish murmur from among the gathering, and an idea sparked for Amdirlain.

  “Right.” Amdirlain clapped, and a mischievous twinkle showed in her gaze. “Now, about gear.”

  “Please don’t make us anything,” protested Fainil.

  Stacks of mithril and adamantine came into existence along the shoreline.

  Sarah didn’t need their mental link to figure it out. “Retail therapy.”

  Amdirlain waved casually at the materials. “I told you we’d make you some, but I devised a new plan. Step one, take that lot to The Exchange and buy what you want. You’re all too high a level to have rubbish gear, you’ll take on something dangerous and get in trouble.”

  “You don’t have to go to trouble over us; even bare-handed, we can protect ourselves,” reassured Fainil, though her gaze darkened.

  “I know you can protect yourselves, but it’ll put you a step ahead,” said Amdirlain. “It’s also only the first step.”

  “Amdirlain, we’ve skills enough to forage for materials, make equipment, and trade for whatever we can’t find. Let us prove we can stand on our feet,” said Fainil. “That is how independent celestials gain their equipment, so we should do the same.”

  “It will give us a reason to venture out to other planes. We can work in the teams again, like when you stripped our classes as succubi,” offered N?r.

  “And how does hunting let you take time for yourselves? It gives you a way to distract your mind so you don’t think,” said Amdirlain softly. “I’m a big fan of lists for that reason. I’ve always had another item to check off, so I didn’t have to look within. This also establishes your presence in The Exchange and gives you a reason to find the best crafters for part two.”

  “But-”

  “Part Two! This isn’t just for you,” said Amdirlain. “I want you to mess up bad guys' plans and help Livia.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Step two, while you’re in The Exchange, I want you to find every individual there who deserves a better chance or has a hopeless cause and sponsor their attempts to get help. People go there looking for mercenaries to fight off demons and other threats. Find and help them achieve their goals without leaving The Exchange yourselves. Lastly, give them Livia’s name as your overseeing benefactor and pass along her tenets. If she declines involvement, be free celestials with a payday of treasure you found in this strange tunnel near the Spire. If anyone asks, it's perilous, and you can’t recommend going in.”

  “The one you and Gilorn set up to bait those hunting True Song Crystal,” Sarah purred appreciatively.

  “Lerina grew past the Mantle by helping people,” noted Fainil softly. “We’re spreading your daughter's name to help her safety?”

  “Gear for yourselves first, and don’t go starting fights in The Exchange,” ordered Amdirlain. “If I have to come to negotiate your release with the Amethyst templates, it will give too much away.”

  N?r frowned at the mound of materials. “What do we do when we run out of funds? This is only a droplet in a huge bucket compared to the realm’s needy.”

  A combat option will also let them vent any frustration.

  “Most of whom don’t know The Exchange exists. I have these high-end trials no one uses now. Spawn points for monsters magically created that you can harvest for materials useful to artificers.” Amdirlain tossed her a memory crystal with a Demi-Plane’s name and details for the entry point of the trap near the Spire. “Enjoy.”

  Some of them started to gather the materials into spatial items.

  “We’ll go to The Exchange and speak to artificers,” said N?r.

  With that, the gathered celestials said their farewells and vanished.

  “They didn’t stay long,” sighed Klipyl. “I could have started them thinking if they had.”

  “They’ll have plenty of time to think while watching the marketplaces of The Exchange,” said Sarah. “We met a Fallen there looking for hopeless causes to help and serving as a contact for those seeking Redemption’s Path. He said he spent much time in self-contemplation since there was nothing to do.”

  “Let’s enjoy ourselves for a time,” Klipyl smiled and tucked her hands into her sleeves. “I’ll need to wait until Jinfeng can summon me. I think she’ll be asleep around now.”

  “You don’t need to go anywhere, do you?” asked Rachel.

  “I’ve got an invitation for a tea ceremony tomorrow,” replied Klipyl.

  Sarah smiled. “You’ve become such a social butterfly.”

  “If anyone asks about your return, should I tell them anything besides you’re off tending to family?”

  Amdirlain shrugged. “That works.”

  “We won’t be keeping her much longer,” said Rachel. “We’re nearly to the point of getting our first T7, and then we should also stand on our own feet.”

  “Even without a T7, we’re at the point where we can handle small biome repair work with just the two of us,” said Noltar.

  “I won’t share that information with the court,” laughed Klipyl. “But that’s good to know.”

  Klipyl sent a Message, and Amdirlain noticed she used a discrete variation that would wait for Jinfeng’s acknowledgement and deliver the words to her alone.

  Oh dear, loud Klipyl is growing up.

  Sarah looped her arm through Klipyl’s. “Let’s leave our singers to their work and catch up.”

  “I was about to suggest they take the opportunity for some reverie, and I’ll meditate for a while,” said Amdirlain.

  “I’m glad they dropped in to talk. Hearing how they can’t set their past behind them confirmed our choices.” Rachel squeezed Ilya’s hand. “I hope you can put up with me and find our way forward together.”

  “Anything for you, my love,”

  Rachel smiled brightly. “It’s okay if you call me that as well. I’ll let you.”

  “So kind,” murmured Ilya.

  “Then let’s tie off more old issues. Ilya, while Rachel rests, let’s deal with your family’s murderer.”

  Amdirlain used Analysis to determine a location away from all planned works within the Material Plane and opened a Gate. She then created a protective bubble beyond and stepped through to float in space.

  Ilya eyed the smothering darkness but joined her. “This place is darker than the lower layers of Carceri; at least there you have the frozen worlds sending out their dull illumination.”

  “It makes them look like icy pearls floating in ink,” noted Amdirlain. She set some light globes to illuminate the void but they did little to press back the darkness once the light from the Demi-Plane vanished.

  “You won’t need a solid surface for summoning?”

  “I can get around it, but I need something to maintain the prison.” A short song created a crystal sphere with containment barriers. The once sizeable amount of experience wasn’t enough to push her to another level in Songbird.

  “Do you want to let her know why? Or should I pull her directly into a stasis field?” asked Amdirlain.

  “She doesn’t need to know,” said Ilya.

  Amdirlain added another song, and tied the sphere to the thin mana flows. The summoning took less effort than any she’d ever performed, and a black-winged Erinys appeared, ivory skin and black leather armour. Comically, her mouth was ajar as if ready to demand answers. “I should thank you for this request, Ilya.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ve another arsehole that deserves to drift, and you brought him to mind.”

  The song she formed used Gilorn’s references to slice through the wards around Orcus’s castle. The blazing vessel that imprisoned the Demon Lord appeared a kilometre from them, and Amdirlain could see his skull face pressed against the crystal side. After double-checking that she hadn’t disrupted its protections or maintenance, Amdirlain added an increasing velocity to both prisons. They rush away through the void with a growing separation that Orcus would never again see the devil’s prison.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Who was that?”

  “Orcus, but unlike you, I’m not nice. He’ll know every second of his imprisonment for all the lives he’s ruined. He wanted to bring death to everything so now he can float in nothingness,” said Amdirlain. “The only issue is he might enjoy it.”

  She stabbed a contemptuous blade of thoughts into his raging mind. ‘Enjoy a place as dark as your Soul. You’d have been better off letting your demonic shell eat you.’

  “You captured Orcus,” swallowed Ilya.

  “No, Gilorn did,” chuckled Amdirlain. “She knew what he’d been up to, but after she sensed what his forces had done to a world firsthand, she got miffed.”

  Ilya blinked. “The few times I’ve spoken to her, she’s come across as so personable. Remind me never to annoy her.”

  “I don’t think you need to worry about Gilorn. She saves her ire for those ruining worlds. Well, not quite true since she’s irritated by the Lóm?, who aren’t stepping up to regain what they lost,” said Amdirlain.

  “What’s it like having memories so old?” asked Ilya.

  The question halted Amdirlain before she opened a Gate. “Are you worried about Rachel?”

  “I hope I’ll always be enough for her,” said Ilya. “Even with all the singing you three have been doing these last weeks, Rachel has had a constant cheerful buzz like her most stable days.”

  “It’s always a choice to grow together or grow apart, but I’m not the right person to talk to about relationships,” laughed Amdirlain sheepishly. “I’m still on the beginner’s steps with Sarah and can still mess up. Klipyl is a gentle sounding board when you don’t need a kick in the butt.”

  “I might bend her ear,” said Ilya. “Let’s hope I never earn a kick.”

  Amdirlain smiled reassuringly and teleported them away so Orcus couldn’t glimpse the Demi-Plane’s entry.

  When they reappeared in orbit above the planet Amdirlain had made, Ilya flinched in surprise. “There wasn’t a sensation of a shift, just the sky suddenly different.”

  “I didn’t want Orcus getting a hint of the Demi-Plane. While I expect him never to get free, that place is Sarah’s, and I won’t risk it. Shall we go back?”

  Planar Shift carried them to the grassland with the radiant sunlight, and Amdirlain caught the energy residue signalling Klipyl’s summoning. Ilya inhaled deeply, savouring the breeze from the inland sea as she jettisoned tension.

  “You’ve been carrying that emotional weight for too long,” said Amdirlain. “Is there anything else I can do to help?”

  “They are long dead,” said Ilya. “There is nothing I can do for them now.”

  “True, they’d be in their deity’s domain or reincarnated by now.”

  I won’t offer to look back through time to trace their souls; they might not have ended up in good places.

  Ilya patted Amdirlain’s shoulder and headed for the house, eyes glistening with unshed tears.

  Sarah was busy feeding Rachel and Noltar, so Amdirlain knelt on the stone and cycled Ki through her sigil to feed into her wounds. When the others settled to rest, she changed the cycle and considered the orbiting lives. Unlike the last stage, there was no clear next lifetime among them; the half dozen elves she had seen before seemed to radiate the same apparent need. Unsure how long their memories might run, she released the meditation.

  It seems I hit a block until I heal more of my past lives.

  With their levels having grown, the next few days allowed for rapid advancement, including creating the planar seed for Cornucopia.

  They’d gotten past level ninety-five when Rachel stopped. “Mr Message says: ‘That powerful Prestige classes require particular achievements, not just levels.’”

  Noltar frowned thoughtfully. “Let’s start on repairing biomes. We could take care of Gideon’s list in between teaching lessons.”

  “But...” protested Amdirlain playfully.

  Sarah laughed. “Such a shame that you didn’t finish power levelling them.”

  “We might not be as physically strong as we were, but we know plenty of songs to keep each other safe,” said Rachel.

  “I’ll be there to guard their back,” offered Ilya.

  “I’d hope to help you regain more of your levels,” sighed Amdirlain.

  Noltar nodded sympathetically. “You helped us reach a footing where we can earn more. You pointed out to Father that stretching skills in smaller groups was important. Is there a difference between singing with large choirs and singing with you doing most of the work?”

  “I guess not,” replied Amdirlain. “But stay with us between planetary trips.”

  “We might have to get a bigger place,” said Sarah.

  “Tell us when you get to the South Wind’s Court. You can ask for a bigger place there and not throw things into disarray now,” said Rachel.

  “Hopefully, they don’t mind me visiting, but they’ve not objected to Klipyl,” added Ilya.

  She stepped close nervously, and Amdirlain bridged the distance to hug her. “Don’t be strangers.”

  “Thank you for setting Rachel free,” said Ilya.

  Amdirlain exchanged hugs with the others and gave Rachel a crystal to let her summon Ilya if they visited populated worlds. By the time they were done, Sarah had tended to the few items needed before storing the house.

  Rachel eyed her curiously. “It just sits there squatting in your inventory?”

  “Now I’ve got the dormancy protocols right,” confirmed Sarah.

  “It used to emerge with its grumpy pants on,” added Amdirlain.

  Rachel smiled. “It takes after its mum.”

  Sarah offered a lopsided smile in response.

  The trio hopped away to the Outlands.

  “The kids grow up fast,” said Sarah.

  Amdirlain shrugged helplessly. “Time to get back to it then and see if any of the instructors at the court will talk to me after being away so long.”

  “Have you made progress on the song to align a planet?”

  “I believe I have it completed,” Amdirlain admitted warily. “I’d just kill myself if I was stupid enough to try singing it.”

  “Which means you need to get stronger or learn more to improve its efficiency,” said Sarah.

  “Or door number three,” responded Amdirlain.

  They smiled and chorused. “Both.”

  Sarah stole a kiss. “See you soon.”

  With that, she vanished, and Amdirlain felt the call shortly afterwards. The single level she’d gained made no difference in the reflection she saw as she raced through the conduit to the Material Plane. There was no drama on arrival, and when they returned to their accommodations, Cyrus was in the living room surrounded by assorted scrolls spread out on low tables. His layered robes pooled around him like a green and red pond.

  “Have you entered cross-referencing madness?” asked Sarah.

  Cyrus grimaced sourly. “They are all slightly wrong, but the oldest scroll is the furthest from what I remember.”

  “Did someone copy the rest from a more accurate copy?” asked Amdirlain.

  “According to the librarian’s records, they were all copied off this one,” Cyrus tapped the oldest one. “It’s an annoying mystery but not one I’ll bother you over. I remember most of the teaching involved, so I’ve used the scrolls to jog my memory. How have your meditations been going?”

  “I’ve reached a bit of a standstill with new stages, so I’ve just been focusing on sending Ki into the wounds,” said Amdirlain. “Rather than doing something silly like just randomly trying lives.”

  Cyrus nodded approvingly. “How is Rachel? Klipyl returned and advised me of her name change, but she is rightly silent about matters she deems as your business.”

  “She and Ilya are doing well, even if Ilya is still trying to figure out who she is now. She achieved a small measure of justice for her ancestors and with Rachel being safer she is a little unsettled,” said Amdirlain. “I’ve got a bunch of angels still feeling guilty about a mistake a half-million years ago. I was going to let them settle first, but Klipyl called them on their bullshit.”

  “She was a touch more delicate,” noted Sarah.

  “That explains a few questions she asked me. I thought perhaps you’d not gotten the result you hoped from Soul healing,” said Cyrus.

  Amdirlain smiled. “The Soul healing works fine with the Ki, but I can’t get the Mana down to my Soul.”

  “I’ll leave you two to your discussions and hassle the enchanters,” said Sarah.

  Cyrus nodded politely.

  “Have fun,” Amdirlain said, giving her a quick hug. When Sarah let go, she reappeared in the courtyard of the Enchanters Pavilion.

  “Why were you trying to feed Mana into your Soul?” asked Cyrus.

  “A Power called Mana Font. Jiutian Xuannü advised me her similar Power required Mana to be cycled in the same way as the Soul healing techniques,” explained Amdirlain.

  His brows lifted, and he methodically marked and furled the scrolls he’d been checking. “What did you feel the Mana do?”

  “It started down the conduits but tumbled around in them and wouldn’t reach my Soul,” said Amdirlain. “The Mana Font sends Mana out fine. Anyway, I was going to speak to my technique instructor again.”

  “Why don’t oil and water mix?” asked Cyrus.

  “Oh. Do I need an emulsifier?”

  “When I taught you to cycle them together, we went through the process of twisting like strands of dough,” said Cyrus.

  “I had to get the Mana to the source of my Mana Font that’s down in my Soul,” grumbled Amdirlain.

  “Jumping ahead,” chided Cyrus. “You’ve barely opened the door on one technique, and you’re rushing through without knowing what awaits.”

  “In my defence, I only experimented a few times, listened to the sound of the energy and stopped,” said Amdirlain.

  Cyrus’s serene composure didn’t waver. “That approach has never gotten you in trouble before?”

  Amdirlain coughed sheepishly and knelt nearby as Cyrus continued to pack up scrolls.

  “I can understand there are some abilities where you have no option for instructors, but Ki techniques aren’t one of those.”

  “It’s a Power.”

  “You were trying to use a modified Ki technique to trigger it. Though you are getting better at seeking understanding, you like a scientific approach to gathering information. You make observations, try things out, and check the results. However, to observe properly, you need to comprehend the whole,” said Cyrus. “There is a problem in that for you—the headband.”

  “My filters,” groaned Amdirlain.

  A bitter gleam showed in Cyrus’s gaze. “The headband has forced your growth in some areas, but your required survival approach left you blind in others. Mana is all around us, so how is your perception of it filtered?”

  “I know what it is, so it’s just a basic recognition of its presence.” Amdirlain pressed the heels of her palms to where the headband had briefly sat. “I want this damn thing gone. Everything outside my prior experiences, my brain can’t translate, so all I get is the music and a jumble of ‘not quite’; it's frustrating proximity is like a song name on the tip of your tongue. I’m not an Aspect, I can’t keep existing completely isolated from the physical. My brain tells me Sarah’s hugs are warm and comforting, but I want to feel her touch properly.”

  “Amdirlain, I’m sorry I failed you,” said Cyrus.

  “Stop with guilt, please. You didn’t fail me. The brat was the arsehole on the spot, but he was still the monkey’s paw, and that’s who better watch out when I get this off. I’m going to shove it back on him and send him fucking home. He can stay as a rock until the cycle turns within your old realm,” said Amdirlain. “I heard your realm’s song in that textbook on nuclear physics.”

  Cyrus blinked.

  “Sorry, venting pain.” Amdirlain closed her eyes and let out a long exhalation. “I’m so tired of being manipulated by forces and beings, Cyrus. The former Lóm? turned up because they found out who I was, not just to catch up as friends. Still, it was superficially nice. They wanted to apologise and insist they’d do whatever I needed to be done. Yet it was sad. I could feel the guilt and sharp sour notes cutting into them. Klipyl’s Power caught on to that in their connections, so she called them on it. I’d been uncertain if I wanted to buy more trouble.”

  “Klipyl lanced the guilt that was infecting the situation before the relationship could settle?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Klipyl appreciates flaws that accent beauty, but not for those that lessen it,” said Cyrus.

  Amdirlain flopped backwards, folding over her heels.

  “Most improper,” said Cyrus, as he tucked the last scroll away.

  She wiggled and removed the pressure folds in her wushu uniform.

  “You’ve knocked me on my arse enough,” said Amdirlain, stretching her arms out along the floor. “You’re too much the wise Sifu, and I feel I can be the little child. The chick caught in her egg, the sides pressing in, squeezing tighter as I grow.”

  Shrouded Phoenix, caught up in my egg. What will I be when I hatch? I’m so scared some days I could explode.

  “I’m honoured by your confidence in me.”

  “Cyrus, I can’t sing the song I told the winds I’d research yet; it’s beyond my capabilities.”

  “The one to align a planet to the Jade Heavens?” Cyrus folded his hands in his lap.

  “Yes.”

  “The realm doesn’t have to move at any pace but its own,” reassured Cyrus. “You took on a task you didn’t need to though you have the song ready, perhaps the courts should look to change. We are also caught within the shell of our boundaries. You achieved much by composing the song even if you can’t yet sing it, so let’s focus on what you can do today. What is the next item on your list?”

  “I need to move beyond lists,” said Amdirlain. “They’re a crutch I used to avoid facing issues. I leave too many undone things I don’t want to face.”

  “Then what neglected tools in your arsenal might you strengthen so they’ll combine with stronger powers?”

  Amdirlain lifted her head just enough to meet his gaze. “Why do you ask?”

  “I was honing a neglected blade last night, and I thought of you.” Cyrus smiled ruefully. “Not a precognition, just a general consideration from past conversations.”

  “Thank goodness.”

  “You’ve had powers and skills in the past that you combined and grew stronger with your new acquisitions. You turned seduction into inspiration, and that helped me and thousands of others advance in enlightenment. What tools do you despise among your powers? Might we find something to grant a new purpose?”

  Allegiance Bond hasn’t increased again. Maybe I need to stop smoothing the energy flows when I pass Ki to Sarah in the mornings. Will I need it?

  “Daylight, I’ve barely used too many spells, True Song, and Ki.”

  “Given its name, I can’t imagine you despise that Power. What does it do?”

  “I’m just working through my profile. It creates a burst of purifying radiant sunlight. While I’ve fought undead susceptible to natural daylight since gaining it, I had other options I was working on. I could go to some nasty graveyards at night and spam it, but that would scare nearby locals.” Amdirlain hummed at the back of her throat.

  “What else?”

  “Death Strike doesn’t get a workout now I don’t need its guidance. Dominion, my charisma is so strong that it’s easy to get people’s attention, and the Power doesn’t have to do a lot of heavy lifting. It is hard to get insights when something is easy. Flight, it became redundant after I improved Ki Flight, especially since Ki Flight scales its speed off my Willpower.”

  “Since you can’t turn off your sense of music now, pushing Death Strike won’t happen. From what you’ve said about other powers, I imagine Flight uses the residual Mana in an area. Perhaps look for a Ki Flight technique that lets you twist Mana and Ki together to empower your speed.”

  “Point. It would be good to trim my profile even a little, and the mastery I’ve earned might give me a leap. Greater Teleport has stagnated since the notes to hop me and others to a location are much faster.”

  Amdirlain continued down the list.