plot The Cosmic Battle to Save the Thread

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star smiled faintly. "Heather, it's okay. What's done is done. We can only look to the future." Star sighed again. "I just wish the universes were back together. I want to give you a hug more than anything." Star reached out with her fingers to touch the face of what she thought was a hologram. Her mouth dropped when she felt something solid and tears came to her eyes. 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Heather scrambled up and gave Star the most passionate hug ever. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star let the tears fall from her eyes. She was surprised that Heather had hugged her first, and absolutely delighted. She held her in silence for a moment more, letting her love sink in. Pressed up against her as she was, Star could faintly feel the spikes in her torso. It saddened her greatly. Heather didn’t deserve such pain. In her opinion, no one did. Still, Star would do as much as she could to ease her burden. She pulled away slightly and kissed Heather on the forehead. “I love you, sweetie.” From someone else, those same words might have sounded condescending, but from Star, they felt as genuine as anything. Star felt as much a connection to Heather as she would have had the girl been her real child. She loved her like her own daughter and she would have traded her very life if only so that Heather would be happy. How she wished that the Inquisitor truly understood just how precious she was to Star; then perhaps she would feel more comfortable in her own skin. 

Ember looked at the pair with interest. Heather was so happy now, with Star. Why was it that Ember could not elicit that joy in her friend? She picked at her fingernails, feeling hollow, wishing she had something else to be doing. 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

If the Inquisitor could cry, should would. It wouldn’t be for sadness nor happiness, but something in between. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star sniffed, wiping her eyes. "I don't know how this is possible.. but I'm glad it is. Is there anything you want me to do for you? I... Have some tips and tricks for those spikes of yours."

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“What about the others? Are they in danger?”

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star briefly checked with her telepathy to make sure everyone's signatures showed no damage. "They're fine. My time is your's."

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“Well…I would like some advice on my spikes…”

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

“Right then. The gel only lasts about five hours, I’m afraid. But there are a few ways to make it go a little further and you can put it on as often as you like. In just a second I want you to go and take a nice hot shower. Those spikes aren’t natural and your body doesn’t like them. If you don’t know what you’re doing, you’ll start to cramp up everywhere and that’s just no good. Some warm water on tight muscles sure goes a long way though. I know a thing or two about Inquisitors. I was married to one.” Star smiled, her old wounds only just evident in the wisdom of her blue eyes. “Now, if you’ll let me, I’d be willing to put the gel on you myself. Ember said you were able to put it on yourself, but I know it can be hard to get around the linchpin.” She sighed regretfully. “I’m so sorry you have to deal with this, my dear. I wouldn’t wish such pain on my greatest enemy. Much less my... my daughter.” Star stared at Heather for a moment, then swallowed. “Heather, I…. I would love it so much if I could call you my own. Do you think… do you think it would be alright if I could, perhaps, adopt you? I love you very so much, I hope you know that. You truly mean the world to me. And if I could really call myself your mother…” 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Heather went as wide-eyed as an Inquisitor could get. “I would love to be your daughter.” She said in amazement. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star's eyes crinkled with joy. "Oh, you have no idea just how happy that makes me. I... honestly have no idea how to make that official." She chuckled. "There's no one I need permission from, I suppose." Star took a deep breath, the air seeming fresher. Things were looking up. Everything would turn out alright, in the end. "Oh!" Star exclaimed. "There's something you should know about the gel. While it is in effect, you can’t use your powers. I hope that isn’t much of a problem. You shouldn’t have to use them much anyway. Besides, that pain is too high a price to pay for power in my opinion.”

[BringerofShadows she/her]

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Hmmm, pain isn’t worth the power you say? But pain is strength…

“Well, I haven’t even began experimenting with it anyways, so I guess it doesn’t matter.” But I’ll have to try it someday…

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

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"Pain is weakness leaving the body!"

"Oh, good. Very good." She sighed. "If you run out of gel, you can just ask me, I can make it for you with a snap of my fingers. And... I think that's about it." She thought for a moment. "Yes, that's it. Would you like to hop in the shower now? A hot tub is typically better, but I'm not sure if Tom has one."

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Quote

PAIN IS STRENGTH 

LOVE IS WEAKNESS

MAGIC IS POWER

“Yeah, I’m a mess. I can just take a shower. Although, the bathroom is kinda of a mess…” She said while grimacing. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"I can fix that." Star winked. She stood up. "Ember can you show me where-"

"Yes, yes. Yes!" Ember leapt up and pointed Star to the bathroom. 

Star raised her eyebrows at the mess. "Oh my." The mirror repaired itself, the bathtub was cleaned, the door was put back on its hinges. And every speck of dust or mold was done away with. She smiled. "There. Much better. It's all yours, Heather. Oh! And one more thing." She snapped and a perfectly folded pile of clothes appeared on the counter. Heather's button up shirt and suspenders. "Anything else you need, dear?"

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“Nope! Thank you so much…Mom.” Heather smiled for the first time in a long time.

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star felt her heart flutter. Mom. It was nice to be called that. Very nice. "Right. Well, if you do need anything, you have Ember."

Ember's face fell. She would have liked to go with Star. But she didn't offer a word of protest and instead bowed her head submissively.

Star waved and vanished, teleporting back to the entrance to the dream branch, hoping everything was alright. She was not all that excited at the prospect of seeing Pheonix again - he made her stomach turn and her fingers shake - but she had words for him and she'd have to say them eventually. 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“Hey Ember…I wanted to apologize. For real, this time. I’m sorry I’m such a horrible friend…” 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember stared at Heather for a few moments and hardly moved, expressionless and inhumanly still, not even blinking. "You frighten me sometimes," she admitted. "I do not like being yelled at." 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Heather laughed humorlessly. “I am kinda scary. I’m just really sorry…is there anything I can do to make it up? 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember considered. "No," she said. She looked away. "But... you said you are a horrible friend. I... am just glad I have a friend at all. I should be grateful..."

[BringerofShadows she/her]

The Inquisitor smiled. “Thank you, Ember. I’m glad to have you as a friend. Now, I best be taking a shower.” Heather got up and went to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember stood still for a few minutes, staring at the closed door while thinking over what had happened in the hours passed. She breathed in and out to calm herself as she thought. Her master had praised her for what she'd done. She'd implied that what Ember had done had been... difficult. Harder than it should have been. That made her feel much better about everything. She hadn't liked her task. It was too emotional for her to execute properly. Ember was made to preform physical challenges. Yet... she had done well. Apparently. It wasn't enough to disillusion her about her own lack of knowledge. Obviously there was a large gap between what Ember had been able to accomplish with Heather and what Star had. How did her master do it? Heather seemed... happy when she was around her. Ember never seemed able to elicit that reaction in anyone. Not that it really mattered. That wasn't her purpose. 

Ember put her back against the wall and slid down it to sit, wrapping her arms around her waist. The one part of her task that she had enjoyed had been playing with Heather's hair. Such a curious thing that humans had. Heather had been so quiet while she slept. Ember had liked that. The quiet was soothing. It was quiet now, as well, save for the sound of running water. But that was a nice sound as well. Ember leaned her head upward, turning her gaze to the ceiling. Heather had said she was her friend. What did that really mean? Was that title now a part of her identity, like being called the Destroyer? Ember, Heather's friend. That was nice enough, she supposed. It was a title she was willing to take on. 

Ember looked back down, this time focusing her gaze on her toes. Such strange things, those were. Her feet were different from the rest of her body because they were the coldest part of her. But more than that, they were shaped quite oddly. She understood that they were the way they were to make her look more human, but... why did she have to look human in the first place? She wasn't human. She didn't have soft hair or flesh, she didn't even breathe. She was made for different things. Better things? No. No, Ember was no better than any of them. If anything, she was worse. She was a servant. And that was okay. It was her place, her identity. Perhaps that was why she wanted Star to return so badly. She felt useless without anything to do. But Heather would come back sooner or later. Things would be better then. 

@Jaywalk

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You're next to post, buddy. 

 

[Jaywalk he/him]

On 5/28/2020 at 7:59 AM, xinoehp512 said:

"Mime HQ, S side," said Xino, sitting on a platform of red crystal he'd conjured into the wall. "They deserted it. We've been exploring it."

@Jaywalk

"Hm." Jaywalk glanced around, taking in his surroundings. "It's quiet. Nice change." He turned to Xino, folding his arms. "What have you found around here so far? Any weapons? Artifacts? Snacks? I'm starving."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star allowed herself to take her time walking through the abandoned headquarters. This day had been too fast paced for her. Waking up to find Heather with spikes through her eyes, then the realization that Pheonix was not what she expected, and the hectic scramble from the collapsing branch. It was too much. But Heather was alright now and that took a huge weight off of her shoulders. She was alright and she'd agreed to be Star's daughter. Asking her if she could adopt her had been a split second decision, but it felt so right, so natural. Star smiled, taking a deep breath. Things would turn out okay in the end. This morning, she'd been convinced that Pheonix was her happy ending (and the thought of telling him anything otherwise made her skin crawl, but it had to be done and soon) but... she already had her family. Made up of her, Heather, Xino, Ember, and... sure, why not Pheo? Oh, add Jay on the list as well. Things were finally looking up. And she'd make sure that it stayed that way. 

Edited June 2, 2020 by Shard of Thought