Upon Vestia: Chapter Thirteen

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"Probably," Asher said. "That's the consolation prize."

"Go ahead," Vestia said. "One of my bots will lead you there."

"Thank you." Was all she said as she followed the bot. "You may come if you wish," she called back to them, "But please remain quiet."

The male Creator just shrugged and returned to daintily drinking tea.

Swarm split in two, so half of them could follow the female creator. They were still mad at her and her ineffectual ability to leash the other of her kind, but they were super curious about this summoning.

They entered the large, empty chamber, and the first thing she summoned up was a large, heavy stone statue out of thin air. It was a nine tailed fox, beautifully carved with flowers and rice grasses carved in with it, as well as three fox kits sitting underneath it, each of them with something written on their chests in footprint runes.

Next she summoned bread rolls and bowls of rice, setting them out as if they were gifts, before finally waxed lit candles appeared from no where. The room dimmed. The Creator sat on her knees, folded her hands, and closed her eyes.

She began to pray.

Swarm scattered, settling on the walls and surfaces to watch this.

Moone sniffed and looked to the male creator then shook her head and vanished to her room, too sad and angry to even try to talk to him anymore.

"It's gonna be okay, Moone," Vestia said softly. "Your sister is tough, they all are. They'll come back."

"How did Skye get taken anyway? Magic doesn't work on her" Moone asked, looking to the camera then putting the babies down for their nap. "How can she come back?"

"I don't know, I don't understand magic at all," Vestia told her. "But somehow she got in there, and somehow she'll get out. You have to believe that, Moone."

Moone shook her head and looked down at the chicks. She didn't understand all of this and just wanted her sister back now, not years from now.

It took fifteen minutes of full on praying when a thick arcane presence suddenly filled the air. It was the presence of an un-tempered Keeper, the ones that didn't have that control over their arcana the same way Merith and Heny did.

The stone statue's eyes started leaking. It leaked water, as if they were tears. The stream ran down the gray chiseled surface and pooled into the rice bowl perfectly placed underneath it. The rice started to glow a warm summer green, shifting into a single orb and slowly floating upwards...

"The Goddess of Fertility, Agriculture and Motherhood. I call to thee." The Creator said softly, and the orb suddenly widened into a large portal, its soft breeze of forest green escaping its confines as noises of trees and small plants bloomed around it. Slowly, the woman stepped out. Inari, the goddess of foxes, looked down at the Creator, and stopped, as if frozen in surprise.

Sonata worked on calming the children that were with her, making honey tea and letting them all sleep in a giant pallet in one of the rec rooms. With warm blankets and tea, Sonata had the lights dimmed for them to sleep off their sorrows. She sighed, looking a bit crestfallen now that the kids were asleep, and went to go get a drink.

Meanwhile, the Creator and the Keeper stared at each other for a moment longer before Inari spoke.

"Why does one of your kind call me? And why... On this ship?" She tilted her head up slightly, as if knowing exactly where she was. The Creator sighed, noting the woman's obvious confusion, discomfort, and wariness.

"We have not summoned you to harm you, Inari. We... request you help."

Inari tilted her head slightly, like a curious fox. "My help? You request my help?"

The swarm recompiled, bowing their head respectfully to Inari.

"Help, yes help, we plead."

Inari watched Swarm in silence, as if studying him behind her kabuki mask. "What is requested of me to have those who consider me a manic enemy call to me?" She asked nervously, now focusing her attention on Swarm, her contempt for the Creators leaving the other woman in the room forgotten.

"Much trouble, much dismay. Our friends and crew taken, elsewhere.. another realm, mirror universe? we do not know. Dark creator of the technomagi was found, brought aboard, was not grateful, not grateful at all. Sent them away! Cannot return them." Swarm explained in their many voices.

Inari listened to Swarm, nodding once and turning back to the Creator. "The Mirrorverse? They were sent to the Mirrorverse? Truly?"

The Creator nodded. "I assume that you are one of the few that knows its existence is no legend?"

"Of course." Inari sounded almost smug. "I am, after all, one of the few Realm Jumpers left. But, still, I do not understand, why you request MY help? I am an enemy, am I not?"

"If not out of the goodness of your heart, Inari, at least do it for them, as friends of Merith, and if not for them, at least for Merith." The Creator replied. This seemed to make Inari ponder on it. She suddenly whistled, and through the portal an Elite hopped through, landing daintily and straightening in Inari's presence, as if standing at attention.

The Swarm bowed their head again and fell silent.

She sighed, looking down at the Elite. "Prepare five Squadrons, have them each sent out and begin traversing the mini realms until we can find a pocket link to travel to the Mirrorverse freely. Keep in contact with each other always." The fox bowed respectfully, and jumped off again into the portal.

Inari sighed. "Very well, I will help you."

"We thank you gracious mother, we thank you." Swarm bowed again.

"Mother?" She appeared to frown behind the mask. "I see why Merith was not fond of the Family. It is a bit odd, being groveled to as such. I am Inari now, mother to only the Abandoned Souls of the Leash. Nothing more, and nothing less."

"We mean no offense dear and blessed Inari." The swarm told her. "We have learned that submitting to gods is usually expected, and safer than any other option."

"You know that Keepers are not gods." Imari sighed, "The ceremonies you see for me are facades, devout only to request my aid..."

"the woman before you is no god either, nor is the boy who sent our friends away, yet he banished them for one not showing the desired respect. We do not wish to die. We are already so small, so few. We must preserve ourselves as best we can." They tilted their head. "Can you bring our friends and crew back?"

"With time to find them, I believe I can." Inari said quietly, nodding. "Whether they accept my help or not, however, is a different story..."

"We have faith in our crew." The swarm told her. "We thank you." They bowed their head again.

Inari bowed her head at him. "Of course. May the arcana leylines favor us."

"Good luck." They managed to declare a series of different blessings and wishes for good fortune in multiple languages across multiple cultures.