Wish upon the Stars chapter 1044

The first thing I noticed about the Void was the power. Not like it gave me strength or anything like that. It just returned what so many places in realspace had taken. The Void wasn’t a place, not really. Not was it exactly the absence of place. It was more of the idea of place, but backwards. As such, the Void lacked something crucial. Something fundamental to the way the real world worked. Impact.

Void spawn and Children seemed to have Impact, or something analogous to it, but the Void itself had no weight. No substance. And as such, the suppression that higher ranked places had on Ascendants like me was completely gone.

It was intoxicating. Every step was lighter, freer, and every breath filled my lungs more deeply. The sensation of the still air gliding across my skin as I walked, the feeling, of the ground pushing back against my feet as I stepped, my mind racing in a way I hadn’t ever really experienced before.

Dayna walked beside me, her red eyes solemn and sharp as she watched for danger. She had a mission and wasn’t planning to fail.

“So…are you excited to see anyone back at Verdyn’s world?” I asked as we trudged along the endless road. “Family? Friends?” She glanced at me coldly, then averted her gaze, and I sighed. “Look, you’re my bodyguard slash guide here, but we’re going to be together for a while. Wouldn’t it be less lonely and annoying if we became friends? Found some common ground?”

She snorted. “You are verbose. It is unnecessary.”

“She speaks!” I cheered. “I was beginning to forget what other people sound like. Now we’re talking. A few more stellar insights into the inner workings of your mind and we’ll be best friends. I think Bethy would like that, don’t you? Her minion and her ‘bestie’ getting along?” She ignored me, so I kept talking. “Speaking of which, I’m a bit curious about that. I wasn’t around for a lot of your time together, so why are so attached to Bethy? She just beat you up and now you act like she hung the moon. What’s up with that?”

She didn’t pause exactly, because she didn’t stop walking, but she did…still. Aside from her steps, her breath, facial expression, everything else about her paused for a moment. Finally, after a beat of stillness, she sighed.

“Imagine if you would, you were in an accident,” she said slowly. “And were terribly burned. Not just your skin, but your lungs. The very air you breathed was like acid. Every inhalation was agony, unceasing pain and fear. For me, that was my existence. Verdyn kept me, but I wasn’t powerful or important enough to warrant too much attention. It kept the others from overtly stealing me away to be put in some zoo or put to death, but it wasn’t…freedom.”

I grimaced. “Wow, it was that bad? I knew your people were special, but I didn’t think it would make anyone THAT desperate. I can kind of understand the urge to kill you, no offense, but what’s the point of having you in a zoo?”

She chuckled, in a way that had nothing at all to do with amusement. “It is apparent to me that you are a scion of a powerful bloodline. Abilities, bloodlines, racial traits. They’re all types of power. Power, to those that do not have it, is the ultimate lure. There are methods to subdue a being and force it to your will, to capture a body and puppet it as you would drive a vehicle, or even to strip the identity from a member of a species and infuse it into yourself.

“Consider your wife, or your friend Jessie. They have harmed none, it is true, but that is by your virtue,” she made a face that I was pretty sure was supposed to be a smile but didn’t quite make the cut. “Do you know the easiest source of catalyst for a racial trait? Easier than complex rituals or brilliant skillsmiths? Potions. Potions made from material RELEVANT to the species in question.”

“You’re saying they…” I felt my gorge rise. “They want to cut you up for parts?”

The elf shrugged. “Of course. A single heaven murder elf, if used by a skilled alchemist, can provide the materials for dozens of potions. But more than that, if managed properly, we can be kept alive to provide a steady supply. As I said. A zoo.”

“But Bethy saved you from that,” I said in understanding. “Verdyn wasn’t too involved in your life. You were a possible long term investment, but only to the point of declaring you his. If something had happened he wouldn’t have cared at all. But Bethy had her dad declare you under his protection. REAL protection. And people don’t screw with the Vampire.”

Her smile turned softer and more genuine. “Of course. And suddenly, my days are free of pain and fear. My breath tastes sweet on my tongue and fills my lungs with respite. She didn’t just give me a home. She gave me peace.”

“Sounds like you really care about her,” I said matter of factly. I very carefully did NOT acknowledge that the girl in question was dating my twin sister.

Dayna picked up on it anyway and chuckled. “Fear not, I have no romantic intentions toward my mistress, nor toward anyone else. Growing up a heaven murder elf, I was coveted for my bloodline, and theft of such things can occur in many ways. For those too squeamish for butchery, breeding was an easy alternative to steal my people’s gifts.

“I never had any interest in such things, however,” she shrugged. “I’m not looking for a partner. Just enjoying my time as my own person. It’s a novel experience.”

I could understand that. Actually, a lot of people in my circles tended to pair off. It wasn’t too strange, we met lots of people so it made sense that we’d find someone who suited us if we were looking. Not to mention every Ascendant was pretty good looking, and our lives were stressful and dangerous, so having someone to count on could be hugely therapeutic.

But not everyone was looking for a relationship. Not that I’d been assuming, I had just been momentarily curious if my sister and Gabe had competition for Bethy’s affection. “Well, fair enough,” I nodded. “What do you like to do with your newfound freedom? Paint, read, write? I’m a big fan of cooking, and my wife loves it so it kind of works out for us. Do you have any hobbies?”

“Tattoos,” she said frankly. I blinked at her, and she noticed my silence and explained. “I’ve been training to be a tattoo artist. I enjoy the permanence of art on the canvas of fellow living beings. It’s a complicated and fascinating discipline. There are so many types of people in the universe, racial traits, human form beasts, even special bloodlines that affect the physique. Learning which needles to use, which inks work best with which people, and designing the artwork to ascend alongside the recipient. It requires real skill.”

I hummed with interest. “That actually does sound awesome. Are they purely an artistic expression, or do they like…do things? I know some people seal special effects into stuff like that.”

“An advanced technique,” she admitted. “And a difficult one to master. For the moment, I am content simply learning the methods of applying my artwork. Engraving permanent images on those who choose to become my canvas. Once I’ve reached Master I’ll begin learning to imbue the inks with special abilities. Of course, I’ll need a harvesting medium. Otherwise I would only be able to inscribe abilities I myself possess.”

“I might actually be able to help with that!” I said brightly. “I used to stockpile effects to pay for wishes. I still have a decent amount of them. They’re mostly low level, but that sounds like exactly what you need. Maybe you could buy them off me and use them to practice. I should be able to transfer them over to scrolls.”

My stored attacks, barring Callie’s recently contributed Adherent Fire (which I couldn’t access through the bond) were mostly unused these days. Between Dantalion and the library I didn’t really need them on hand at this point. Helping a new friend with practicing her hobby was a perfectly fine use. I’d honestly have just given them to her, but I suspected she’d be more comfortable with an exchange than a favor.

She shot my a surprised glance. “That would be…very welcome. Thank you.” She opened her mouth, clearly ready to continue, but stopped. “Do you feel that?” Her eyes darted around. “Something feels different. The shape of the Void has been altered.”

At first, I didn’t get what she meant, but after a moment, I COULD feel it. It was like…a faint smell that I hadn’t noticed. But not smell. “What IS that?”

“I…I think it’s a shallowing,” she said slowly. “I’ve never felt one from this side. Despite the godworlds residing in Voidspace, we rarely venture out into the Void itself. We have methods of traversal and we utilize them, as well as treaties with certain Void Children to make such things easier, but the Void Roads are dangerous and unpredictable.”

I nodded slowly. “Let’s go in,” I said after a moment. “Yes, the shallowing is probably unrelated to our route, but the Void is notoriously unstable. If we enter there and then leave, it could drop us somewhere completely different, and potentially closer to where we need to go.” 

It sounded like an insane plan, granted. But Azazel was in my head right now, urging me on towards the unknown. Something in that shallowing was useful. Whether it was the travel arrangements or some object we didn’t even know about, there was some kind of reason to enter, and I trust my first minister.

To my surprise, Dayne didn’t eve blink. “Very well,” she said with a nod. When I cocked my head in surprise she shrugged. “As I said, your safety is my concern, but this is the Void. We are almost always in constant danger. Danger here or danger there makes no difference, my job is still the same.”

“Huh,” I said in surprise. “I think that’s the most well adjusted approach to apathy I’ve ever heard.”

“That aside,” she observed. “How are we going to access it? Shallowings aren’t IN the Void. Being able to sense this one means it’s extremely stable and well developed, but it’s still simply an impression from realspace. There isn’t any dedicated entrances, or we’d be able to see it.”

I laughed at that. “Normally that would be a problem, but like I said a minute ago, I make a habit of collecting interesting abilities, and I have one for this.”

Adherent Fire was a spatial flame that could traverse the Void with ease in a short range. Callie’s ability to attack from the Void out of realspace was just a short range rapid Void traversal ability. Which meant it could bring us BACK from the Void, and return us when we were done. I’d have to be careful to reconnect with the Void Roads and not just drop us into the emptiness, but I could use Azazel and Dantalion for that, and worst case we could just leave from the same spot and come back here.

Something inside that shallowing was calling to me, and I needed to find out what it was. After that…well, we’d figure it out from there. Nodding at Dayne, I reached for a charge of Adherent Fire, putting my hand on her shoulder as I triggered it.

We were consumed by blue flames, and as they blazed up, the Void Road melted away, revealing the inside of a huge bronze castle. Full of people. Who were surrounding us. Not like an ambush. More like we’d popped up in between two armies who were about to go to war. As soon as we appeared, they froze, their killing intent faltering as their momentum was thrown off. I looked around to both sides and cleared my throat in embarrassment. “Wait…this isn’t where I parked my car.”