"A sort of hidden in plain sight village of mages with spell crafting trades. We have became world leaders in many specialist things like glassware and hand sculpting materials that otherwise couldn't be free formed by machines in modern technology." Kyle having got past the whole making her know what a mage is and to keep it a secret was easier then he thought but stumbled as it was hard for her to grasp why there was a settlement hidden as a shopping mall, "It's became a sort of refuge for time displaced people and those with afterlife attachments. Matthew is one of them, a guy found displaced and lost from his original history. Given the time disparity of when he should have died and now, the undertakers of the Dragonfly crest have been in hand helping. They claim to run the realm eclipse, which I don't understand that. Its a supernatural phenomenon that I do know."
Jessica has been at full throttle at the driver seat, the motorway is full of hitchhiking creatures and unpleasant fortunes. She has been in deepest force to make it to the eclipse boundary, area of strong energy spilling into the living realm. Likely how mages pick up the powers in them to build spell craft from.
"So it's like St August area but with an undertaker attachment instead. What are the realms the undertaker kingdom wedged between?" She ponders and Kyle shook not sure. He didn't even understand fully her meaning.
"You can use access of Sigil's access to figure it out." Omens coos.
"But your not meant to use that in the living boundaries." She points out, "unless that you mean that with the eclipse of the kingdom that its became a stabilized functional area."
"There an oath guild establishment." Kyle moved her attention back to her in the next little thing he did know, "It's why when you said you were an oath keeper, I want to guess that you have ranks already."
"I guess so... but would I break it?" She turned away thinking about it, "Best that I send ahead a submission of ranker to the highest in the area. Make sure to keep peace with them. I don't want folks panicking that I bringing the army to clean the place." She cups hands and inky black liquid pools inside. It lifts and formed into a bird shape, "Loki?" She asked and it shook not, "Then you are one of the proxy." It nods, "will you make sure I don't cause a rank break down. Let them know that a cog oath will be around but I am not interested in positions of status. I rather keep to the hire as needed quota. If a high ranking situation comes to be called in, I will observe and only intervene if it matters."
"Yes beloved mistress of Nocturm. Your their neighbour beside this particular undertakers anyway. Having you be finally a physical presence will be of use." It floods back from once it came. She thinks deeply of that making sense and works out that the dragonfly crest will also neighbour the dark realms. There be access to the nightmare city of dreams. The damned gathering spot. Interesting few evil god domains. Not that odd that it's a British American boundary. It be near the hotel that she slain the creature during the fallout life and the trades stand of chalk sketches that she loves appearing to. In some way, she knew this place already.
"Mistress of Nocturm?" Kyle wanted clarification.
She rolled eyes at knowing he was likely protected by law to truly understand the extent of preventing her going the full depth. Even if she subconsciously was to pass information about the other side, the reality laws would cause a interruption or lapse of memory. She could have told him thrice over and he will have no recollection of her doing so. This happens a lot, forcing her to be used to being left out. If Kyle has some allowances, maybe a little of it will be retained to no ask her further. She doesn't want to be relied on, that much is clear. Its like how her brother sort of knows she into business but cant really bother in in business because of it.
"What's your full entitled ranking?" She asked him. He shrugs at not knowing that meaning. She pulled from what seems a pocket, a phone size piece of crystal slate. She posed that he poke it. He does in fear but finds it did nothing visible nor did he feel it harm him. She skims it surface like a touch screen phone and muses the information.
"I guess by having royal mage diplomacy, you can at least be taught some ounce." She puts it away to a back pocket, "You will have to read up about the proxy master land laws. But essentially I am the claim owner of a what would seem a broken messed up domain. I am most sought for my accessibility to unopened tome sections that even gods can't do. I have sway for allowing some creatures around boundaries. I gift my favourites a form. Sometimes this has been a race of beings and its normally soul made creatures with soul problems. My reach is everywhere in the most uncomfortable darkness where lurk the soulless and starved ones."
She checks if he understands and sees even Mat behind Kyle's eyes being lost. At different levels. Mat knew what she meant but not her understanding of her position. Kyle knew her place but not how her high position works. The more they both grasp, less they understood and she nods at this stage. Its about as she expected them to get. The Jeep engine was switched off as the journey to this place was finally over. Mat was out first and held a solid form, not needing Jess to be a human stand in anymore. Even so, he helps with carrying shopping from the back. Kyle and Eliza were out themselves peering about the unending parked cars. It's clearly a basement level car park. Her shadow side had to step aside from her human side, to only then pick her up and sit her on shoulder. Eliza's human side leans lazed with being glad to not need to walk with human energy wasted.
"Who are you?" Jessica posed asking.
"Me. I am Eliza." Both sides mirrored the left hand pose to the chest.
"It's like me." Kyle nods, "the mask side. So your cursed."
"Cursed." Her mask purred at that and human expression was sadden smile, "Sure, we go with that. I like the way I have became, although it taken some god centuries to pass my acceptance." The mask lifted up a busted sack that might have been an old style potatoes sack. The holes through wouldn't contain anything but it's held ready throw over use. The mask surface looses the human shape and carved as one eye surface in a wide stare ahead.
"Something the matter?" Kyle approaching carefully and her human side posed silence. They all do in looking around. The humans slides to stand at the floor and the mask side moved creeping ahead, prowling gentle soft taps. That sac was soon deployed as net and pulled swift to the whole thing wiggling and riving. The mask side proud of the catch walked tall tower proud, twisting shape of a nightmare hollowing clay form of which the armour held scaled gemstone like structures and her mask creaking with black dripping the creaks.
"That was to easy." Lea noted at her human form, "Maybe that be a good stew. Anyways, my mask is starving, it's been a while for something decent. This eclipse attracts a lot of delicious foods, which was partly why I choose to have my darker half own the sands." She confidently strides direction in spite of no signs and magic prevention measures. She have even started skipping like a little girl she should be. They straggled behind her as she navigated out to the elevator without them. She recognized this stretch of wall, the realm beyond the curtain here was a trader market she uses a lot. There was even a cue of customers hovering in hope to find her stall there. She watched as when traders that aren't her try to set there are shooed off by the crowd. They all gesture in a collective; house on the edge of sand dunes and darkness. It was like the in code.
"Excuse me, are you alone?" She studies the stranger stepping from the wall into the car park. The ribbon on their eyes; blind from gods. The sinner chains and how those chain cut into them - affecting their overall stance. The armour of a path walker; ragged pieces of hell boundaries.
"Are you alone?" She returned back this question, standing tall of her short height and twirls bending the shadows around her, "Are you sad?" given there wasn't reaction to her asking that first time.
"Is it tasty?" her mask stepping through and held at her human shoulder. The guy ran back through the wall, "It was interesting flavour." She twirls at the spot and perked when hearing everyone else finally appearing, "Peoples not for taking." her mask leaves back hidden.
"Shadows don't eat things." Kyle has finally clicked on. She acts like she didn't hear him. He was also talking to Curiosity about such things that has to do with damned. At least from the little they both knew. It breaks no issues hearing the clueless talking clueless.
"I am happy to be here." She give a warm welcomed smile to them as they approached to the elevator, "About time you lot stopped walking in circles." they ignored her and call for the elevator door. A spirit version opened and her mask climbed into it (breaking human height and began climbing the shaft without machine assistance). The folks that were getting off were plastered at the floor, Curiosity steps into the elevator with being confused about what they were fussed about. As the spirit elevator closed, the human side has one. Eliza blindly went first, she cares not for whom was stepping in or out. She quiet used to being overlooked, ignored or seen as stranger without face.
"Eliza!" failed to reach her on time as she already on board and doesn't have second thought of the not humans there. She posed left hand at the panel in requesting if anyone was going to press anything. Kyle steps in after her and bowed apologtic to the strangers.
"If only you knew." the vessel of a god was among them, by their uniform it would be a trained death god sort, "Little miss, my lord wants to know an update about the nocturm tomes."
"Tasty like always." She picked a button, and finally others were loaded in. The door rolls closing and everyone is tilted all sorts of poses. Some were in dread. Some were confused. There was one guy in sheer fear of moving. She would give a sweet mock innocent smile to any that bothered her way
This is mostly those that don't know who or what she is. Once the door rolls open there was what seems a sea of chaos. Bodies of beings and people everywhere. Demons would take one glance and hot foot it away faster. A angel looking sort flew to the air and avoid the elevator. Plenty were leaving the evaluator off the first available floor they can, only to turn and wait for the next one. The brave and clueless stayed on, staring in wonder what among the folks that shoos them away.
"Are you going to use your other names?" Kyle asking the mages.
"Maybe I should. That might help with settling the chaos around here." Lea sighed, "Anyway, I think now I can answer your question better." She steps around to beside the death god in mock, "The tomes in my care are in count. I have balanced densities, a equal portions and the divide of chapters in satisfaction to soul population densities. I was very proud of Luna keeping the free loaders off my turf. I did hear there was some fuss with Isolde in your home domain and for that, I am sorry. She knocks her noggin a lot when to over focused. How bad was the disaster?"
"A rift creaked between those realms." She nods at this hurt reply, touching soul pain and regrets the reaper felt. She could even see the link sway heavy from meer notion of making it mentioned. She can understand the complicated of torn veil curtains causes energy spill and creature crossings.
"I guess I will sew it soon. I have some left over clip pins." The people hearing this conversation all have a sharp look right to the elevetor door opening itself on a not level, in fact the cabin is still moving in motion. There seems a substance that crawls in and the door closing again. This goop sits at her feet, she doesn't seem bothered giving it to much attention. Death having understood she meant to close a rift herself, lowered himself to sit on the floor. The cabin finally makes it to the floor that Jess has clicked on, and holds for them to exit.
"You should salt the area ahead of me." She removed a pouch from her pocket and pulled his left hand to her. Placing it by her right hand, "I will fix it." she brushed his face as she stands and leaves last out of the elevator. When she left out, Jess moves away but Lea held it open a little longer, "Come along little things. Cant have you eating the reaper." the goop flows slowly, "Now." it moves faster and she lets the door close. The meeting of his eyes, the hope that lit and the breaking chains. She had even smiled like him - feeling that peace too.
"Eliza." the sound of someone she knew. Eliza treads her sight slowly from the closed doors, "Sis."
She knew from how she gazed over a death god, the next person she will look to is often a soon to be departed. She held this hope of not looking at her brother just that bit longer, wish it wouldnt be. But she will have to, and his every bit the person she knows. From how his used to her strange, the expression of annoyance of being ignored and that glad to see each other safe.
"You're wearing the thing wrong." She walked right up to him and clicked the arm gear to flex back to shape - protecting his lower arm correctly, "Better." She punched his arm, but she did carry the dark feeling in how she hit him. That being a slightly to hard of a punch then he was expecting her to have.
"How did you fix that?" he rubs the pain away while looking at his arm gaurds.
"Like this." she does this to the other arm now and he peers confused, "I have the magic touch." she wiggles in posing this as a joke. He peers about the arm gear more, "Anyways Glader and Curiosity are waiting for me. You better not drool." Her brother has a dig for trying to please royalty.
"Of course you fricking in the know with the prince." her brother grumbles. Following after her, joining the party of folks trying to reach a sort of common area of rental flats.
"We are in flat 394." Jess explains with unlocking the door for them, "Mat is your main point of ask for anything. You listen to him." posed like expecting the two children to be riot.
"Can I buy some of your candles?" her brother helping take the shopping and with the three kids unpacking in the kitchen.
"Depends on what your using the light or barrier for." She causally muttered in reply, "Dont expect a rate price being family tie."
"But I can skip the mile queue waiting for you. I seen your stall spot here. I know them werid folks have been hovering there a long time."
"Is one them a dementor?" She asked.
"Nine of them." She sighed annoyed, "Why?" She picked up something from the floor and inpected the shapes. She forced pulling the weird flex materails into something sharp. She then was weight testing it. She walked to the living room for a bit more swing room. They all followed her, standing back and wondering what she was going to do next. She goes for a lean, holding the spear to throw. She gives it a few tries and then someone puts a hand to her shoulder. Begging, kneeling in grovel. The materials of the spear splashed into black. She stands with foot on shoulder.
"What rifts have you messed up? Why are there holes in the patch work? What were you thinking!" She hissed at the mass at the floor and they sink even more from her wrath. Soon it pulls a mass from itself, lifted in presented offering. She takes it and has a close inspection. She gives it a swing and a rift to the underworld temporarily held open. She peers about inside this rift and back out. She is petting the object a lot, giving it a little scratches or even sharpens the blade with spark of blue spraying. She waved her left hand to the thing and it sprints it through a wall. She dropped the item to the floor, sinking it to her shadow.
"If a god wants to go wander into places they don't belong, they are going to not come back in one piece." She hand to hip and back to the kitchen, "What a moron... now I wonder which of my children has the fragments. I wonder if the same soul that death was stuck on. He would have made it easy for me to track." Muttering in her own world, forgetting she speaking English. She opened the fridge unfazed of Omen's stood glaring at her. Totally ignoring his vessel trying to be intimidating. Her brother is crawled backwards on the floor in fear already, "fix you jaw before I make you." She hissed in making note she noticed him.
"It doesn't." He hissed back. She waved that he lower to her. He glared but complies. She brut forced luanched at him and forced clicked the jaw rows to correct posture. She shakes the spit off and was back to whatever she was doing a second ago. Omen's pats about his form, blinked a few times in shock.
"Stop eating the stuff at the god hall, its going to break your joint there." She dropped something to omens hands, "Bird brains." knocked him in the head for good measure.
"Stop treating me like one your pets." Omens hissed on standing up and hovering over her.
"You're soul name is my watch. If you want death to play you around, more then welcome. I have no hang ups about the souls the enter and leave my domains. Just know you loose a lot from loosing touch to the outside." She was to busy with getting things to ready cook. Jess poked her head in to see how things are, picking Joseph off the floor. She then also stumbled herself in seeing omens in human form.
"The veil is thin around this girl." Omens huffed.
"My lord here says that the perception between veils is thin around Eliza." Curiosity having to translate, "That be why the death order became visible in the elevator." He looked around, "And why it seems so crowded in this flat."
"Their hungry." Eliza huffed, "They will wait!" She barks at the figures and they all lower in strange poses. Some went for a sprint. There six figures whom sit themselves into cat forms, at acting like cats. The annoying of knocking something off the counter beside her or sctratching near her. One was howling loudly. The biggest one was rubbing up between her legs. There a big one that entered and barked - which made the cats hiss and zap towards. Eliza stomps and they all back down, "You will wait until I tell you." She pointed at the dog figure that grow into a snowy white fur. It barked and then sprints off. Trading places with a more marked with apricot texturing to the colour of fur, doing dance feet. This one is bumped by a marked masked grey fur on white coat - smiling like a crazy dog. This one is wooing a sort of tune. Fourth dog sort wedged with wooing, looking similar to the grey one, but this one has blacker marks and a softer mask shaping. They are all going nuts, at least all these strange creatures underneath Eliza's feet.
"Scatter!" her mask swoops in the loudest over them, long limbs stretching at tossing something through a rift. The creatures all dive after the smell of corpses and dying. Even last cat, dog and rat shape; altering into horrific skin patched creatures upon entry into the rift world. devouring the mountain of fleshed things.
"Just sew this neat..." her mask doing exactly that to the air as it pulling the edges of reality like silk fabrics. The needle was her own claw fingers and the thread questionably pulling from a spool that looked to solid to be acting like that. Everyone was so intense of watching the mask side, that Eliza was about to the finishing touches in cooking her of shrimp pasta. One of her small time proxy creatures in damned form was laying out the table for everyone and putting set potions for each to enjoy. She sprinkled something strange over the food portions that was for the god and Curiosity. She then did something really unnatural with passing something from the mask to the human side... through their own torso. This strange item was promptly butchered by a fast wack. This was scooped and over her own portion of food. She carries this to her spot. Rudely began eating in spite of the invite for everyone else to be seated at this table. She posed her left hand in wordless reply while no one can articulate their meanings. Passing strange gaspy sounds or half word not words. But some looked at the time and others just weren't going to turn down a once in a chance moment.
Curiosity especially in eating beside his god ally, not every day that gods do something so mundane among the other beings. Everyone tucked in (eventually). Nods of impressed by taste or textures. Not a word of conversation will pass, it was just a hollowed silence. No one could really break what was going on and nothing outside this room was of no consequence. You could even forgive how some reclined to relax with this meal, and smirk at the now empty bowls. Almost wishing more and plucking some confidence to do so. But the good things go so fast.
"Beloved Lady of Noturm! I beg thee. I ask forgiveness in being in your way. Yet please. Please." Sobbing on the floor, really harsh real emotion. They were expecting to loose their head for sure. She had seemingly been debating it, holding her bowl in protection and a low grumble of being disturbed, "Bless by thee of void touch. I vouch this." She had to finish quickly now, inheld what was possible. Few chest bumps to digest quicker. Some shadow servants at fast pass to clean for her. She stands right over the fella, eyes narrowing in pondering for a bit longer then comfortable. She claps hands now. The two sides are one form, aged older looking lady and befitting of her path walker - outsider status. Upon clap return to unfrozen time, she grappled the Messager by the collar. Tucked them under her arm like a puppy.
"I might be dead when I come back, laters." she voiced causally.
"No!" her brother hissed in blocking her leave, "I dont want those to be the last words I heard from my little sister!" he at least knew her in this form to be indifferent. He knew her the longest and was not about to loose her in the blink of an eye.
"The dont make this my last time with you." She bumps him on moving him out of the way, "You promise me and you keep that promise." She uses the human tone and the human meanings. He doesnt realize it, just took this promise at the face value. She walks unhindered to the front door, having to stop and hover in hestation at the threshold. Looking back to them all, "Hey Curoisty, I expect you to take care of things." She gave him a deep into the eye look, "If I cross where there is no reach, I expect you will do what you beleive is right." she sees he doesnt know or understand. She turns properly and with hand right over his soul, "I expect you to follow your soul's wishes. That's all I ever expect from you." she may have sank her hand to scare him, but it is only to jolt some sense of danger to him. She removed her hand away, "I am not the only thing cloaked in human flesh and a mile wide of teeth. You seen my pets... your going to need them. They are tools, after all." she turns away in crossing the door now. Hurt that she had to take that tone so deeply. She had even stopped herself turning back around, shivering every step.
"I am sorry." the stranger under her arm states again.
"Don't be." She flexed her claw to adjust, "Not every soul as equal ideas of what normal should be. This is the only universe where soul shapes carry racial meanings. The only universe that is everything I hate it being." she was at her own way of travel - breaking the boundaries by using inaccessible pathways, "I was made this way, and I shall just have to embrace the flaws it carries." The being was long dead (not having the protections to cross the ways she did). She carries its soul, petting it and then devouring it with broken shape, "You are just another among my many, you are to be recycled until you find your peace." her prayer to this soul she ate. She fast steps across some many places, taking small pauses to fix rifts and pull things back to where it should be. Pulling the stuffing off this patchwork plushie back to its original shape. She exits upon to the seats among the true titles, having then slam her claws deep into the banister railing that guards them from falling bellow. She makes another loud creaking to this crystal and silence finally fell for her.
"Stop your bickering at get back to your day jobs. If you don't, I will hunt you down and break you all bit by bit. I will pick your bones and use your skins for the tome leathers. Do not ever mock me. Do not ever think my domain is some free to play games." rung loud and clear. None dare contest this. This was no empty threat, this was someone who has sway over souls. This was a seasoned god hunter, god slayer hunter and creatures master. She is, as they see, the lady of the nocturn. The realm that even the gods of nightmares fears to walk in dreamlands.
In one pose, she brought out the tomes. They all came to fly from her shadow. Pages fluster and flew. Names were suddenly vastly exchanged and plenty lay as corpses around her. All these dead were dropped to her shadow realm - of which her creatures were feasting. She hovered right over death, bowing in grace of being permitted this time on his request. He wasn't expecting to this extent, but she was certainly very effective. She gave flutter to her order by gesture and the tomes dropped all around. The only ones that returned to shadow are those that did belong to her watch. The barrel of lost blades is rolled at deaths side - plenty sharpen and maintained with love. She turned away from death to face life, and life always has a curveball. Life was jealous that death has claimed all for this work by making the abyss creature appear. Life in her twisted way, grafted a new something over Eliza. Only with a bit of time to grow will this ever make any sense. There a feeling traveling through her, warmth and love. Lady summons in doing her duty, pulled Eliza back among the world of the living. And given was through into a reverting stage - Eliza had been returned back to the way history flows.