The spirit area of the Mage tower is so desolate of any hidden beings. Not a soul dares without human attachment walks the shopping mall or any spaces between the gates. At best maybe a couple of demon enslaved to contract. Mostly living damned shadows, but no long term shadows. No nobility. No undertakers. Not even clothus. Humans make the most of the spirit densities and even then it's them refuelling energy into the emptiness.
"Here is your flat keys. Residence cards. You have to cross for Guild counter affairs. Sigil doesn't reach here." Eliza handed her parts and they wheel cases to the elevators, a touch card key to allow further floors up. No matter how much she looked hard around for anything her abnormal sight clings for, the less there was to be noticed. For a first time, she felt the isolation and void emptiness of what nothingness should be. She makes a few tome turn pages to be sure, feeling why this place detached as it had. As she felt the accessing of a crossing tome of the spirit lands. This empty area was a heavenly realm that has fallen into human laws, it's more work of clothus from past dealings; with history and it's purpose erased.
"If this was fallen down, what about the realms underneath this?" Joseph asked the crow on his shoulder.
"Pancake." Eliza replies over it, "Or broke through. Most fall further down. Some are locked in chains, sandwiched between the layers. It make god metal ore not that hard to find here." The exit the elevator and follow the demon servant that the lead directions giver. The two siblings have a pulling faces match. The crow huffed and they stopped to listen to it.
"I'm glad you made it here." Grandfather in his spirit form welcomes his daughter and grandchildren. He muttered about this having a undertaker crystal gate directly to this isolated space and lands of Mage. He has the daughter sit with at the breakfast bar of this flat, going through what will be next and missions. Joseph took bids on a room and Eliza stood about a while, picks no room. She rather instead stares back to the crystal gate of undertakers, watching it intensively. She maybe had even hope, but she noticed now her chain had no other end, that the end that bids to her undertaker was gone. She also noted that the tomes shuffled. However, she isn't concerned enough to search him out.
"The dream casters aren't making any new moves. The cult of keepers is still enacting blood slavery over their controlled ones. These mages are just suppressing the knowledge of gates, monsters and magic from the peaceful world. Demons aren't making any moves. God followers are without divine glamour. The walls are thin for now." Eliza snaps attention to this topic from grandfather. She softly kicked her suit case to shadow for the time being and right to the breakfast counter the adults are on. She pulled a few of the papers. Skims the content broadly.
"So harvesting the empty space of what exactly?"
"Minerals. Some sort of metallic sand. It's reactive to spirits folks. We will have to find someone with the gear to make ingots. Divide it between ourselves, mages and undertaker crest. Make our own gear depending the property." He slips gaze to Eliza that was staring over a drawing suervay of what had been explored. He sees as she wipes over it, she was changing the states this survey shows. Each new way, she altered it on some strange language crossings.
At one moment it was blacken. But she posed fingers at spots in 'reading' them. She lets it be with stretching then after. The paper back to how it was. He looked at that survey now and couldn't repeat what she did. He huffed and then puts a chalk down at the paper, slips it to her. He makes a deep stare. She shurgs and marks some runic path walker graffiti at key areas. She was hesitant for a mark at the edge of unexplored space. She wafted a few times with herself. She eventually marks it with four signs. She slips it back and they both look at these marks.
"Did that undertaker teach you?" Mom asked.
"Book." Eliza huffed with leaving them, "path corpse picking is one the easiest and safe jobs." Grandfather turns away at that and is back to inspection. Mom stares in how Eliza is back to staring at the crystal gate area. Tracing the worried concern Eliza makes and how Eliza soon crossed her stomach like she does in stress. She snaps a look at some corner with a even darker expression and then smoothly to the gate.
"Did you pick a room yet?" In just checking on Eliza response to being spoken to.
"Its to bright here." Eliza leaving the flat. Grandfather stops his daughter.
"She has to be cautious with her books. She will figure things out." Back to the man, "Some of these marks aren't normal but I know this one. This is a death realm marker. This way is angelic realm marker. She had even made a court loop with this one here, thus bit be worth inspection." They look at this together, "She likely knows these other marks from Sigil." He brought up a search, "Clothus job marks." He muttered, "This clothus mark is highest respected." He peers about the map plan, "What exactly happen?" He wondered.
"If it's those organ freaks, then its nothing good." Mom shakes, "It doesn't matter now. This space is empty, right?" He nods at that, "So likely these are just traces of them before it was empty." He thinks about it deeply, "Maybe before this land mass fell, it was something else. This is what she traced." He couldn't argue that being a good answer. As none of the rules around things ever made sense.
Eliza closes the flat door softly. The area around her was cut out, the air turns stale. She wasn't afraid. Rather she smiles in seeing the waving things. The black body things of distances, all waving her to follow their direction. She carefully approached, a dagger from her shadow in case. She steps across a threshold. These black being were corpses laying the corridor. She approached a few the corpses for harvesting bits. She picked up goods from the now accessed flats of this space. She making good for gold, silver and trade goods. The kitchens having dated tinned foods that she inspected. She finds a room that was a mages; spell craft pouches and a spell book. Crystal charms. God marker. She softly peers the next threshold, being back to them wavy dudes. She made them jolt but they moved accordingly with guiding her around. The leader pointed her to a book, it is a tome. He provides a ink pen for it, posed that she needs to write.
"Nickname OK?" It nods and she thinks about it, "They say I am broken. So something like that." She thinks hard and it posed an item of resemblance to her. As according to their veiw of her, "Looks like a totem. A broken totem?" It posed at a mask, "mask. I guess I have one. Broken mask." He posed about that she should draw this, not write a language. She softly smiles and indeed draws her entry in. This mark was now grafted to her skin of shadow and on her human back. She felt it too, but she mentally knows this pain is worth the cost. Tingling like a fresh tattoo and bruised like a single punch.
She bows respecting the black being, it closed the tome from her. Bowing. It posed that their members will no react differently. Sure enough plenty shake her left hand and some posed trading wishes. There was most that gifted her things. She suspects they been watching her back a long time, based on these plants being sigil path material. They treat her as one of them. Knowing she will guide folks in between realms. She softly walks this space with exploring it. Soon crossing threshold of the other side, a time space where they are corpses. This very wrinkled space of extremes.
"Wow, what the hell?" She crossed back to human realm space, "You just walked out of paint." She studies the god follower.
"It doesn't matter where I came from just now." she slows in how her mark stings, "Are you going to see your god?" the words dripped out of her mouth and they nod gently, "From here? You must be a devoted." She huffed, "Right. You will need help. The crows will only take you so far."
"What?" She takes their hand, "Wow, you really are a person." she walks them both along this corridor, "Who is that?" Eliza sees the wavy men and they made a gesture she understands. She nods and now hugs the god follow, "Hey!" and then the god follower was muffled with a mouth cover. They are both pulled from this realm to three over. Left to a blacken fire burnt corridor of the mage tower. She posed the god follower to be very quiet.
She sees the corpses and just knew then, she has to lead them through. Holding their hand the whole way, ducking from things and softly past another gate. She not visible here and this was the realm the god follower needed to be. Eliza makes the most of harvesting from the god domain. She noticed that the god can see her just fine, but she clearly poses no threats at all. Eliza has even then made offerings and bows to the god that owns this strange domain. The god posed that she need to take the follower back. She holds the god followers hand again, pulling them back to the decaying spaces and then through to the mage space. Exiting from some store of mage spell bits. She lets them go and mixed with the crowds.
"Stella, you don't use magic."
"I just came back from seeing my lady. My guide left me here." looking around confused, "She was human and young." the agent frowns and looked around to.
"There aren't any unranked here." he reminds, "You might have met one the red hands. Their a isolated group of folks that do dirty jobs, but with the intention of good will. Like guiding lost people out from the path and have strange contacts with not god related groups." They stick together, "Was there anything else about the girl?"
"She spoke with a strange accent and knew things. If someone so young is a red hand, that must have been their youngest member. She seemed cursed... she didn't have a shadow. I couldn't see her at the domain." the long stare for any last glimpse, "I don't think she grow up to be anyone bad. My lady said the kid is a thoughtful one."
"Red hands are all the same. They bring mercy when you have no choose, but they will find any other way to find hope before it gets to it. Red hands aren't all humans. So the practice of good will sometimes is mistranslated." Giving up to find this girl. He helps Stella down levels on the elevator. When the door opened on a floor that wasn't there, the girl steps onto the elevator. She looked right at the two and then forwards of the doors closing.
"Excuse me." Stella voices with patting the girls shoulder, "Here. In payment for guiding me." left hand gifts a pouch of metal scraps. The girl takes it with a nod. She says nothing and back forwards, "Do you have your ID?" Eliza posed that she indeed has a card, "Do you folks know your running around?" putting the card back. Eliza stares prolonging with not wanting to say words.
"Love of the gods." the elevator opening, "Where have you been?" Mom hissed.
"Running errands for the neighbours." Eliza spoke honest and made the mage flinch in how it wasn't a lie at all. She follows her mom's forceful push away from the strangers.
"I am so sorry if she scared you all. She does it naturally."
"It's fine. Your daughter is a smart girl and clearly makes good for her ranks. I wouldn't worry about her." Stella voiced, "Being a good neighbour is a wise move for this tower. This place isn't dangerous for us, but it can to much for those not able to bend." That last part was more a wavered warning to mother then about the daughter.
"Good to see you lot settling. I will report good word to management." the guy behind, "Come on Stella." they break away. Trading soft head bows. Eliza follows her mother closely, often stepping the shadow to stay at her side as much she can without 'disappearing'.
"There you are." Joseph joined them, "Can you help me?" She shrugs shoulders of this. She stared deep at him and he play punched her arm for being a creep. She smirks glad its the real him.
"I was just helping the hidden around here. If we going to be staying here long enough, I sort of have to make good with them." She voiced, "It's pretty bad around here. I wouldn't be shocked if you being asked for find lost shepherds." He frowns but nods, "Yeah. The little I have see this far. I can see a lot of souls being lost here. The creatures that call it home are monsters for sure." She made a nervous toned laugh.
"You better be ready." Grandfather voiced to them all.
"You don't need that unless your giving it to me." She pointed at the guy holding a tribute. The guy slowly looked about her and softly lowered with dropping the bundle of sticks to her. She drops it to her shadow, "Mmm. Very neat. Really nice quality sticks. That is a decent tribute." She shakes out of it, "Point me the way you want." she voiced and sees one them at a distant. They give her the gesture, "Back to the goddess? Well Ok. I think we could get there faster with one surface." she pondered, "But it passing the corpse pile." she pondered, "I don't trust moving corpses."
"Oh boy. She's insane." The new guy of the group looking to grandfather.
"Cursed sighted, book keeper and time crossing." grandfather huffed, "She's unique for sure. Are we going?" Eliza nods.
"I think we should take the safe dark way. Darkness hides the not nice things." She waved for them to follow her, and then it began. She was mute the rest of the time, waving at them to follow her lead. Taking a shadow corridor and thrice crossing. Back to the goddess domain. They do business with the goddess here; Eliza makes another carved wood tribute. Since they lingered long enough for her to make one from scraps. She makes them exit the magic shop again. The spare guy whom is ring partner to grandfather had finally stopped being doubtful of her and turned gaze with teaching the adult woman trainee bits. The children don't need it.
"You can see me?" a sad voice muttered of Eliza looking at the shop window. She stares eventually of how the reflective surface of the window shows a injured looking spirit person. Eliza reaches through the reflection and pulled them from the trapped realm. This person pulls as a undertaker body being, dusty at some of the broken limbs they held. Eliza stares deeply of the lady she saved and then turns with Joseph, made him open a tome. He nods and summons both a crow and a book. He lets the book turn itself and slowly an empty space is found. Eliza nods of guessing that tome placement suited and warmly welcomed the spirit person with several greeting gestures. The lady returned with her own; a demon race being or someone that travels the highway of hell. There is also several undertaker kingdom poses. Lastly a soft bow of gratitude, thanking her. Eliza looks at the reflective world, the gateway here that was now stable for two way crossing. Joseph was having his work check over with the Death crow whom now took this news to the gods. Looking at Eliza on flight and still onwards.
"This place is No man land. It isn't safe for soul people like us." Eliza speaking gentle, "You should maybe ask the black coat for some recovery." Posing about grandfather's ring barer. The men both were staring deeply of the event and her mother was trying to wrap her head around how her daughter pulled someone from a reflection.
"Do you pull people out of things all the time?" the guy asked.
"Her soul was chipped, I repaired that." Eliza voiced in staring at the lady, "She reminds me of myself a little. Not this me."
"You're mask side." Joseph nods, "Yeah, broken clay lady look. But this lovely lady isn't creepy like you. She's wearing death order uniform, which means she was with the death gods domain at some point."
"She was in another tome." Eliza nods, "This gesture." repeating it, "That isn't here. There isn't a kingdom of this either." meaning an undertaker pose she repeated, "You were pulled from the Abyss. You will have some temporary issues and be loved by the god eaters. But once you settle, the abyss's gaze curse will be removed. So in the meanwhile, with the abyss's watch. I wouldn't do anything crazy if I was you." the lady thinks about this a lot, "Undertakers cross books a lot. They aren't a stable existence. This isn't the only time an undertaker lost from other pages came here. Many come through my lands." Eliza twirls and the with a warm smile, "Don't worry about it. I am not going to let any harm befall any that cross my hands, for as long as the abyss is gazed over you. Even death himself has to ask me."
"Stop being creepy!" Joseph hissed at her.
"She owns a domain." the guy with grandfather and then lowered to Eliza's height, "You own the book of that domain." she only smiles warmly to the guy, "When you say that folks cross your lands, you mean it."
"I leave the souls that are whole. They tend to be crossing because that is natural law of souls. I save the chipped ones. I contain the broken and the soulless." She looking at the lady again, "She's all better now. It was a nasty soul eater you escaped from. But they stay there to keep things balanced. If to many souls leave, laws will destabilize. We have more gates. Its bad enough. So many unaccounted ones in the tomes the gods can't reach. We have the human keeper at fault for such thing. The dreamers are restless."
"You're a Seer too." he noted with looking at the lady. He stands now and offered a left hand, "Welcome to the human realm, its not safe here for us. This girl is a human, she a native."
"Are you sure about that? She's not all human." the lady looking at the girl.
"Mmm, I guess the abys cruse allows you to see the world like me. It really is a curse. Even what seems normal will kill you." She nods, "It makes being friends with the god eaters a blessing." she twirls, "Selene is around here. She's a big dire wolf. Grey fur and black mask face marking. She likes hugs and dancing. Food... you be good bait for her. Don't get licked by her. Her habit of eating demons has made her poison demonic nature. Holy purification is what you need more." Eliza smiles, "She is living art, she can smell you across the curtains."
"Don't use those terms around others." the guy huffed.
"She can't..." Eliza started but then shook, "You need to keep her close until she settles, undertaker. She might walk into a god domain without knowing it. This place is full of fragmented gates." he glares.
"Gates are a human term too." Grandfather voiced, "Having the lady along in company until she found to a suited kingdom is a good call. If she cursed sighted as my granddaughter, we can make use of it, without taking our youngest." Mom steps up and with providing a temporize partnership ring. The two women make a eased vow. Its a light one for now.
"Go home." Joseph pushed Eliza away from them. She nods about that.
"If the lord settles this soul in a place, I will let the abyss curse go." Eliza tells Joseph, "But if she is killed before then, One of my god eater will collect her. I will take her soul. She will have to be processed into the system another way. She is fragile right now. That chip needs care. I can't have any grim or death god scoop her soul carelessly." He hissed at her and yet he heard her words plenty. He the last to leave her behind. Eliza watched them disappear, be it the crowds or the filtering curtains. She stood at the front of this spell store. She turns back to staring at the window, looking at the reflection world. Sad place it is.
"Useless!" a customer leaving the store and froze in seeing her stood staring memorised of the window. He looked about her a lot and softly began to move away. She felt his aura and snaps stare of his back. Ender title? But not this tome. A visitor... I know his books. His not a trouble maker. She slowly forward about this shop, the signage above. Shadow's treasures chest. Beside in Damned small print, Twilight's signature. I guess she isn't in the liquids business yet. Eliza looked about the items of the window again, the postings... guild requests and tasks. Some even Seer stamped, but its just general public stuff.
"I guess the sigil guild counters are in here." She opens the door with ease. She stops of the signs. SO many rules. Gestures to be repeated. It was quiet a learning experience to read the signs and the many versions of them. She smiles at some that seem a joke, but with the mark at the corner, "She must have a lot of not humans." Eliza crossed the last passing and this place was an open bar pub. A beauitful dragon humaniod with stary scales is mopping the counter. There's a clothus seated at her right. Enslavement chain spell connected them. Eliza noticed that clothus marks and his history sewn to his layers. That's... so then. Maybe. They... I know them? Why do I know these beings?
"Can I trade?" Eliza goes through her needed postures and the dragon lady gazed in shock of a human girl in perfecting the gestures, "I want to make a long term exchange merchants request. I have many materials and need of sources. You smell like someone who will have the qualities to reach those places." She sits down at the bar, "Not only a clothus trading point. You smell of the Donots. You met my god eaters." the look of a damaged scale, "Luna is a hype dog. She didn't mean to hurt you." Eliza softly tilted to the Clothus, "You're an Ender title. Not these books I am in. You're cursed too... a mage user. Crimson soul, right?" he breaks the drink glass in his hands, "It's fine. I am cursed human too. My soul is powder dust. I see things I shouldn't. I am of two cursed bloodlines. A book keeper and not welcomed. Three ranks... no two. I have two sigil screens. I can take souls if I wanted. But that frowned upon. Even the god titles dislike me playing their game." She forward, "Can we be allies? Friends even? We just tools to the ender that controls the overall tomes. That's not a bad thing. Compared to..." She looked around, "The wrinkles around here are bad. I keep slipping between the corpse world and mine. It's only corpses in that broken world... looked like a god purification nuke came through."
"Strange girl... stop." twilight huffed and bought her book out. She started writing.
"Mmm... that isn't going to work. I am with the Abyss. All my information is not shared." indeed the ink rolls off the page, "See... It happens to me a lot. My information of the multiverse. It gets me ghost a lot." the clothus stares of this too, "But I will exchange items anyway. I have a lot of good corpse skins, plants, drinks. I could part with meat that I cant feed my god eaters. I can tome deals, if the gods aren't so fussy of me to do so. I will shepherd souls where needed or take them to shepherds suited to the journey. I take broken souls. Broken ones are my trade. I like broken tomes."
"Ah, I now I get it." closed the book, "We do trade on a deal to deal base. Since you look to repeat trading." started up a card, crystal and some other bits. The sigil pane flashed up as new tabs are adding and functions of ranking are in place. The dark pane shows these updates and messages of requesting dreamers since now she makes their minimal, "These... no strings. No souls. No questions." left hand pushed away from the dragon lady. Eliza takes with left hand and storage it.
"You take these too then. I am just delivering on several requests." Eliza dove hands through the dark sigil pane and was removing items to the dragon lady. Lines entire rows of unknown demon labels. She then brought a mummified hands too, and dagger stabbed it to the counter for it to not run away. Eliza then tick off the completed request markers. Swipes the screen away for now, "I already been paid for my service. No payment needed." Eliza then voiced about each item of origin as according to her access. Speaking of who and what. Twilight storage these things at a time. the hand was freed and gifted to her clothus master's care.
"What do we contact you as?" He asked sternly.
"I am a human girl in the mage tower here. I will not be ale to give you my living attached names. No even my family cursed ones." She thinks about it, "But... here." she pulls a paper, "My guiding mark. I guide between living world and dreams." drawing her broken mask shape to the paper and left slide to Twilight, "You're scales are like the night sky. Purple tint. You must be Twilight. I think I met you in a past life. My broken soul lets me feel these strange things. I know you too." to the clothus, "You were a human before. You going to be something else. Sadly clothus are cursed living objects in my tome laws. So if you escape to my tome access, be ready for that. You too twilight."
She makes a few more exchanges. She felt other patrons of this guild counter. She felt folks of her Seer side here. Felt mages. She knows her exchange to this place when in public notice. Yet she also knows they didn't hear her speak. They didn't speak the language she spoke to both of them. Eliza exits with a better managed inventory and some orders she will need to craft before returning here. Candle wards against several types and powder pouches of elemental erasing. All very mythical ranking exchanges; thus granting her a three rank titles. One to pretend to be among human. Her real one among undertakers. Her outsider ranking for abyss keeping.