Upon Vestia: Chapter Thirty-Six

First topic message reminder :

Ellie frowned a little at the question. "Yeah, I've talked to them. They're glad to know I'm okay. It's so strange how much older they are now, though." In the photos she'd seen, they both had a lot of gray hairs she didn't remember from before.

~~
Ethan looked amused. "The library's always open. You can stop by any time you want, as long as you don't get sugar on the books."

Kay smiled. Your species learn quickly don't you? He vuagely remembered this. Perhaps it's a matter to discuss with Starr. Have you learned more of your magic?

Vela grinned at that, happy to have the chance to try and to have someone encourage it. "Maybe we should draw it out first, so I can see what I'm making?"

~~~
Danika frowned a little then gave another wing shrug. We learned from Aunt Nova and the few dragons who were able to come by without being suspicious but we haven't been able to actually use it much.

Kay nodded. Being able to practice is important. though given some of the dragon's abilities, maybe NOT on the ship. You won't have to hide here.

Ellie nodded. "That's a good plan. What should we start with, the lights, the light switch plate thingy, or something else?" So many options!

Danika nodded and settled again. Yeah, some of our abilities can't be done on any ship or planet.

~~~
Vela thought about that a moment before looking to Ellie again "The plate, no wires that way."

Kay nodded. There are many dragons here, i'm sure you won't have to worry about not being able to find a competent teacher. He patted her head affectionately.

"Good plan. Do you have a piece of paper we can draw on?" Ellie asked. "I don't think I have any, unless you think drawing on my tablet would work?" She pulled out her tablet from her pocket for Vela to see.

Danika purred again, content with a simple nod in reply. She was happy even with her mom not there and Jerral not the same.

~~~
"Can you draw on the tablet?" Vela asked, she hadn't seen any paper in the suit, though it could be there.

Kay sat for a while longer in silence, petting Danika. Her purring was pretty relaxing.

"Yeah, let's do that," Ellie said. She switched on the tablet and opened a drawing app. "I'm not that great at drawing, how good are you?" she asked Vela.

Jarral returned to his room, settling into the relative comfort of the dim gloom and his books.
The shadows settled around him, whispering to him in their strange insubstantial manner as he picked up one of the large tomes and started to read.

After a while he paused, glancing up from his book. The room had become ever so slightly darker and the shadows had fallen silent.

Jarral frowned and closed the book. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. “Hello?” He called warily, rising to his feet and drawing his cloak a little closer around himself.

“Well I will say, this IS novel.” A voice replied from the darkness.

Jarral tilted his head.

A man stepped forward, shrouded in shadows, his shock white hair just visible beneath his gloomy shroud. His eyes like dark pools of nothingness.

“My Lord.” Jarral bowed his head respectfully. “What brings you here?”

“Well, i'm not really.” The man replied with a thin lipped smile.

Jarral frowned. “I... do not....” He began.

“I'm in your head.” The man explained, gesturing.

Jarral looked for a moment confused, then he nodded. A vision, nothing more. “To what do I owe this... visitation...” Intrusion perhaps was a better word but he dared not use it.

“So this is the mythical Vestia?” The man appeared not really to be listening to Jarral, looking around the dark room curiously.

“My Lord?”

Those black eyes flitted back to Jarral's face. “ah yes, why am I here. Have you learned any more that may be helpful?”

“no more than I have already informed you My Lord.” Jarral replied. “I have been researching, reading... trying to learn more about the Abyss.”

“and what have you learned?”

Jarral lowered his head. “Sadly little I did not already know.”

“And what does that tell you?”

Jarral stared into the ghastly pale face of his god. “I... do not believe I understand the question My Lord...”

“How long have you been doing this?”

Jarral considered the question. “I.. four years... I... think. “ it was easy to lose track of time when one shut themselves away and poured over ancient tomes all day.

“and what have you done in that time?” His lord pressed.

“I have … resurrected three dead languages, I have translated countless tomes, I have translated approximately sixty three percent of the Tome of the Nine Hells. I have... I... “ Jarral shook his head. “I have found nothing that could help us close the rift.” He lowered his head, looking defeated.

“And what does that tell you?”

“that.. the answer does not lie within books?” Jarral guessed.

His lord nodded. “or indeed perhaps we cannot close the rift at all.”

“My Lord, with all due respect, none of this explains why you are here... or rather, why you are in my head.”

The man nodded. “Kevali are disappearing, not just outcasts. They shape space and then...” He gestured with his hands. “poof, they're gone.”

“You think the rift has something to do with it?”

“I think the demons are more aware, more active than they ever have been. I believe they are encroaching, threatening Fate's domain.”

“why do you not speak to her? Ask her if she knows what has happened to the missing people?”

The man smiled wryly. “Alas, if only I could but I am not that powerful my boy. The shadows cannot reach through the rift, as you should well know.”

Jarral frowned. “What do you expect me to do?” He asked, catching his tone and bowing his head. “I... forgive me My Lord.”

The man chuckled and waved a hand dismissively. “Oh come now Jarral Dekar, you know I don't stand on ceremony. I prefer it when you speak your mind.”

Jarral winced.

“Right now, I expect you to remain here. The people on this ship are fascinating, and their presence here and now is no coincidence. I have a feeling the answers to our problem lie with this crew.”

Jarral stared at the pale form of his Lord, frowning a little. “You are not telling me the whole truth.” He accused, he knew the man well enough to know when he was lying.

The man smiled, spreading both hands in mock surrender. “You've got me there.”

Jarral's frown deepened.

“Alright, i'll level with you.” The man began to pace. “As you well know the rift encroaches into the shadow realm as well, and while the demons were distracted by their war with the nine hells and their attempts to pass through into this realm they were no real threat. Fate kept them away from us both but now... The nine hells has gone silent, the demons are regrouping but it's only a matter of time before they notice the shadows.”

“And if they notice the shadows, they may realize the tactical advantage access through the shadow realm would grant them....” Jarral nodded, looking troubled.

“If they break through into my realm I must defend it.” The man explained. “But i'm not sure we can fight off an army. Should the worst happen, I need a contingency plan.”

Jarral tilted his head, perplexed. “I... do not understand, if there is a threat to the realm surely I should be back there, researching, trying to find a solution to close the rift? To bind the demons where they belong?”

“No, you must not come anywhere near the realm. Do you understand me? You must stay as far from the rift as possible and as far from the eyes of the demons as you can.”

“My Lord?”

“If the worst should happen, they can destroy my physical form. Scatter my essence to the winds. Which is precisely why I didn't put all my eggs into one basket.”

Jarral looked a little concerned as he realized what his Lord was saying.

“You carry within you a fragment of my divinity Jarral, as per our agreement. As my Proxy you are... an extension of me, a part of me as I am a part of you. So long as you remain safe, I can reform. Given time of course.”

“What would become of me? Should the... worst happen?” Jarral asked uncertainly.

“Well, with luck that won't become an issue. But, for the sake of argument.. I would need a body. Temporarily of course.”

Jarral nodded slowly. “What is mine is yours...” He murmured faintly.

“Let's hope the demons are unobservant shall we?” The man replied cheerfully.

“I am not much given to hope My Lord....” Jarral replied dully.

“oh.. one more thing, before I go...”

“Yes My Lord?” Jarral asked, sounding a little wary.

“I really DO need to know what's going on with Fate and as I mentioned, I can't communicate with her directly and well... those who can survive her presence without burning up are few and far between. I'd sooner not incinerate one of the Scribes.”

Jarral looked bewildered. “What is it you would have me do?”

“Your father, he's the best link we have, a direct line, so to speak.”

“It does not work both ways My Lord...” Jarral cautioned.

“Perhaps not, but Fate notices you. She may have relinquished you to me, but you still stand out from the other ants. I'm banking on her sending your father to you.”

“Fate communicates in... obtuse manner, second hand it will be all the more difficult to decipher.”

“Then show me what he sees.”

Jarral hesitated. “m... My Lord?”

“you have a great many tricks up your sleeve my boy, don't pretend otherwise. You've spent four years reading books of dark magic.”

Jarral nodded slowly. “There is.. a spell... to allow one to peer into the mind of another for a brief period. It is possible that I may be able to use such magic to see what he sees, but there is a risk... it may open his mind too much, it could kill him... it could kill me.”

The man nodded. “I do hope it doesn't come to that. The shadows are very fond of you and it wouldn't be the same around the library without you.”

“your concern is... gratifying My Lord.” Jarral replied dully.

“You'll be fine. My own power should protect you from being consumed by Fate's light.”

“Should...” Jarral repeated, he looked troubled.

The man paused. “I was serious about the answer to our problems lying with this ship and her crew. Stay close. Stay safe. Have faith. We will speak again.” He nodded curtly and melted into the darkness of the room, gone.

Jarral sat down heavily upon the edge of the bed, a troubled expression of his face.

Of course, from Vestia's perspective he'd just had a strange one sided conversation with himself.

Vestia was still wary from the last time she'd overheard a guy talking to someone she couldn't see, so the moment she noticed Jarral talking to... someone... she focused on the conversation, piecing together as much as she could from the half she could hear. Fate, a Lord who was presumably the one Jarral had mentioned before, a mind spell that could kill people. It didn't sound like when Esk had been possessed, at least.
It didn't sound good though, either.
"What was that about?" she asked Jarral when the conversation seemed to be over. She sounded as wary as she felt, she couldn't help it.

Danika was happy to bring some peace to her dad, she would continue this as long as he would let her and they were undisturbed.

~~~
"I'm alright and the tablet can help clear up mistakes if I make any." Vela said then smiled brightly. "Of course the picture doesn't have to be perfect to be able to be an image to hold to."

Ellie nodded. "Sounds good. We could make the light switch plate have like, a sparkly dragon on it," she suggested. "Maybe with a tiara on her head? And like, other things in the picture too."

Jarral's gaze flitted to the camera, he'd forgotten about it. "You are always watching." He observed and shook his head, rubbing his face in aggitation. "My Lord has instructions for me, it is... unusual for him to speak to me so directly. Usually he would send shadows." His own shadows tightened around him, as if trying to be some sort of comfort. "I am to remain here. " he didn't sound very happy about that.

---

Kay was fairly content to not converse, just sitting was nice. Talking was complicated after all, too much time had passed.

"Well, I'm often watching, anyway. Not always," Vestia admitted. It was hard to actively listen in on every conversation at once.
"Remaining here wasn't the only thing he asked you to do though, was it?" she added. She was very certain that she'd heard more than that, but she was trying to be tactful here.

Jarral frowned. "People are disappearing, Fate seems unable to protect them." He didn#t like that news, not one little bit. He looked uneasy, averting his gaze from Vestias camera.

After a long while of being silent aside from the purrine, Danika lifted her head to look up at Kay again. I love feeling how content you are. I'm not keeping you from work or anything am I?

~~~
Vela frowned in thought as she used the tablet to start drawing. "Where should the light switch itself be?" She asked once she had some basic shapes put in place.

"Who's disappearing?" Vestia asked. "The Kevali and Kalvair?" she guessed a moment later. Those were the only people Fate cared about, as far as she was aware.

~~
"You mean where should the switch stick out from the plate?" Ellie asked. "Hmm, good question. They always look dumb, no matter where they are. Maybe we can paint it to hide it better or something." She looked thoughtful.

Kay shook his head. No He looked a little sheepish. I've done all the paperwork at least three times over already. and even HE had to admit, that was excessive and there was no more work to be done right now.

----

Jarral nodded, brushing a loose strand of hair out of his face as he thought about what to do here.
"Fate cannot communicate directly, nor it seems clearly." He sighed. "I am not certain how useful her visions may be..."

Vela nodded then looked at the drawing, tilting her head a little. "Yeah, that's really more up to Vestia though. The actual switch is a part of her."

~~~
A quiet chuckle sounded and Danika nodded a little, settling again. I'm glad you can relax for now.