The Tale of Three
Chapter 47
Your Purpose for being here
"How much security does this place have?"
"As much as we want it to."
"Seriously?"
"I could have every man, woman, and child in Earthni grab a sword and come over to defend this place if I so desired. They would listen to anything I say."
"..."
"..."
"After you pay them, right?"
"...Yes, after I pay them."
This was a small snippet of the conversation that is currently going on between Meteora and her mother, while they both stood inside the kitchen at the Monster Temple, waiting for Globgor to return to give them the news. He had left a few minutes ago to scout out and see if any E.D.F. vehicles were approaching that he might have to take care of, and because of how long he was taking, both of them were worried that something might have gone wrong...
But regardless, they were safe. As Eclipsa mentioned, the Temple had much security. About fifty knights were patrolling the inside and another fifty outside as well, all of them ready and itching for a fight. Eclipsa had called them from the hospital and told them all to be prepared for their return, and prepare they did. With special bulletproof armor and swords that could cut through virtually anything, the small army of knights would be more than a match for any E.D.F. soldiers if they decided to storm the place.
Assuming that soldiers were all they got. Truth be told, their whole plan was only temporary at the moment. Jenkins might not wait much longer to strike, especially after what Meteora did to him, and even if it was in self-defense. And while the citizens would not be happy with him just showing up and arresting their Queen, there would be some...who might understand, considering the scene that she and her husband had created earlier, saving the life of the "mystery" person who had crashed an armored truck into a shop and then attempted to flee.
All in all, everything was going to hell.
And Meteora felt terrible.
Because in her eyes, this was her fault. She was the one who came to the past and started screwing things up. If she had never done that, none of this would have ever happened. And yes, while she was not fully responsible for Old Jenkins acting like a psycho, she couldn't help but feel a little guilty for getting her parents mixed up in this, along with this version of Earthni. She had tried to explain this to the Voice, but they just gave some crappy answer on how it's understandable to feel that way, and she should just keep her mind off of it, which was not what she wanted to hear.
And what would she do now? Even if she gained enough power to leave, would she? Just leave her parents to whatever fate Old Jenkins had in store for them? Yes, it's likely that he really couldn't do anything to them...but he'd certainly try, and Meteora didn't want that. If she just left, she'd be left with that guilt for the rest of her life.
She had to stay here until everything she caused was resolved. That much was obvious, even though she knew the Voice would have a different opinion in the manner.
But what to do first? The Voice had suggested that she simply hang back for a while and let her parents sort things out. While this was appealing, Meteora wasn't certain how it would actually help things along. Sure, there was the possibility that Old Jenkins would just piss off after Eclipsa told him to, but that was remote at best. She knew Jenkins...and he was not one to back down from a fight once the first punch had been thrown. And even if he had thrown that first punch, Meteora had retaliated and made it personal in doing so, so he might not stop until either of them were dead.
Which is what terrified her the most. There was no way in a million days she was going to kill him, even his younger self, unless he explicitly ordered it. Which was obviously not a likely possibility with Old Jenkins. But he wouldn't hesitate. How far would he go to get to her? Meteora knew from the story of the Brine Invasion that Old Jenkins wouldn't let anyone else harm the safety of the world, no matter the cost or loss of life. He might very well just bomb the entire Temple if he knew it would flush her out. And then her mother, baby her, all the guards, everyone would die. All because she had decided to go to the past and say a few stupid things when she shouldn't have.
All because…
But back in the present and out of Meteora's mind, she and Eclipsa were still talking. It was the only thing they could do at the moment, as they were both too nervous to eat, and going anywhere else was not an option. And Meteora wanted to...confirm a few things.
"Mom…" She started.
"Yes, Meteora?" Eclipsa replied.
"Old Jenkins-I mean, Jenkins. Just how far will he go to get to me?" She asked. "Would he actually invade the Temple if it came right down to it?"
"Would he…" Eclipsa mused, tapping her fingers on the kitchen counter before shaking her head. "I'm afraid I don't know the answer to that one. Jenkins has been...unpredictable at times, and this is one of those moments where that would kick in. He may storm the Temple, or he may see that it's not worth getting in our way. He sees now that we will do everything in our power to protect you, and there is a chance, however slim, that this will cause him to back off."
"Really…" Meteora replied. "I guess that's good news. But if he doesn't?"
"Then we have to be prepared for anything," Eclipsa said. "If he attacks this place in any way, no matter how small, he may as well be declaring war on us. You see, early on, all the Royals made a secret agreement with each other. If Jenkins attacks us for good reason, we will simply let it happen. But if he attacks us for stupid reasons, like this, then we will band together and tell him to stop what he is doing or be forced to face all of us."
"Talk about convenient…" Meteora mumbled. "So basically you're saying the Royals should come to our aid soon and help us out with everything?"
"Not exactly," Eclipsa said. "They will only come to our assistance if Jenkins directly attacks us, which he has not yet."
"Wha-"
"Remember that they are not aware of your existence at the moment." Eclipsa reminded her. "If Jenkins had launched an attack on me or Globgor, they would be raising hell. But he has not yet, at least directly and what's more, if he did, they would not know what it was all about at the moment."
"So...why don't we just call them or something and tell them who I am and what is happening?" Meteora asked.
"Because things are still not that simple," Eclipsa said. "This agreement we made had some very specific guidelines. We all know the risks of standing up to Jenkins and the E.D.F. Any attempt to do so will likely result in dozens if not hundreds of casualties. We will try to avoid that if at all possible. So we made a rule that all kingdoms have to agree to stop Jenkins if something happens that is pointless for him to worry about. And I'm worried that when they hear of your existence...they may vote against your favor."
"But why?! I'm your daughter!"
"Yew, but are you to them? Because they will be suspicious of you for that reason." Eclipsa explained/continued. "You are a person who claims to come from the future, and while your father and I believe that, it will not be as easy to convince them. We knew you were coming because of the dream foretelling your arrival. They had no such dream. All they have is our word, and if we don't find real proof then we may end up looking insane. We already may after that skirmish in the streets…"
"Fantastic." Meteora groaned. "But there's gotta be something I can use. Unfortunately, my version of Jenkins never talked about the other Royals as often as he did you guys, mostly because he hated them all. A few mentions there, a single short story here, but all in all, they were not considered that important in his eyes."
"No surprise there," Eclipsa said. "I recall one time during a meeting, Jenkins pulled me aside along with Globgor, River, Moon, Star, and Marco, telling us how we were-"
"The only ones he respected?"
"...Yes, actually. How did you know that?" Eclipsa asked, giving her an odd look.
"Long story," Meteora said. "But let's just say that when it comes to memories, I have a lot of powers in that department."
"You mean I have a lot of powers in that department-"
"Shut it." Meteora hissed.
"Ex...cuse me?
"Not you, talking to the Voice, sorry."
"..."
"..."
"Okay then," Eclipsa said, straightening herself. "But as I said, it will be hard to convince the other Royals. Some of them may side with Jenkins, while some of them may side with us. But either way, this isn't going to be easy."
"Nothing ever had been for me." Meteora sighed. "I don't think there's a single day of my life that I could have considered easy. Only boring...weary...and full of danger at every turn. But for some reason, I kinda...miss that life? Is that weird? Like, even though I could have a life here a billion times better than any I could have in my timeline, I feel this urge to go back. Like I'm missing something about it…"
"I think I know why," Eclipsa said. "You miss Mariposa and your version of Jenkins, don't you? You don't miss that wasteland you grew up in. You miss the people you grew up in it with. Am I right?"
"I...yeah," Meteora said, putting a hand to her chin. "I guess you're right. After seeing Old Jenkins try to kill me so many times, I miss my version of him, and that's not even talking about Mariposa, who I haven't seen in any way here. And even if I did, it would be her as a baby. Nothing that could effectively remind me of my sister...at least not in the right way."
"So you're homesick," Eclipsa said. "Or...personsick?" She shook her head and chuckled. "I'm not sure if there's a specific word for it. But I'm sure you know what I mean."
"Yeah, I do," Meteora replied. "But I wonder what they're up to now. It's been so long since I've left...well, not really, but I can't imagine how long it must feel for them. Jenkins has probably been searching nonstop, Mariposa alongside him, and because they're never going to find me like that..." She shuddered. "Now I feel even more guilty for casting that spell to take me back here."
"Oh, sweetie, you couldn't have known what would happen," Eclipsa reassured her. "Yes, they will be searching for you, but you're going to go back eventually. And when that happens-"
"But I'm not sure about that either!" Meteora said. "I'm on a time limit here. That spell trying to get at my heart could make it so that I can't get back at any time. All I'm doing at the moment is fighting against the clock...and I've proven that even with time travel, that's the one thing you can't fight against."
"Then leave."
"What?"
"Then leave," Eclipsa repeated. "Your father nor I will blame you if you leave now, Meteora. You have gotten yourself in so much danger, and that isn't accusatory. After facing so many hardships in the future, you don't deserve this. Your first real look at experiencing the past, and you're currently being hunted by the same man who raised you. You...have every right to simply leave all of this behind and go back to your family."
"But...you're my family-"
"You know exactly what I meant by that, Meteora."
"..."
"..."
"I can't," Meteora said. "There's too much unfinished business here that's all my fault. And remember that dream you had? I'm here for some sort of reason, otherwise, you wouldn't have been informed of my arrival. If my whole purpose was to come here, cause chaos, and then get out of dodge, then there would be no point. Everything would still be the same…"
"I'm not so sure about that," Eclipsa said. "But...are you sure? I'm serious, Meteora. If you need to leave, if this is all too much for you-"
"I've faced worse." Meteora proclaimed. "And I've seen things ten times worse. Did things ten times worse, depending on your point of view. I can handle all of this. I just need the proper time to adapt to it."
"But it's as you said, time is something you don't have." Eclipsa reminded her. "If you get stuck here…" She sighed and shook her head. "I'm not even sure where I'm going with that sentence. But you can't wait for too long, Meteora, no matter how much you want to help us. I'm not going to sit here and watch that spell make you slowly waste away. I'll learn magic myself if that's what it takes to send you back to-"
"Huh."
"...What is it?" Eclipsa asked.
"I wonder...is that possible?" Meteora asked, briefly confounding her mother. "For you to learn magic. Since I did it with enough time, could you do it as well, given enough practice?"
"I think that depends on how you learned it," Eclipsa asked. "As in, is this Voice of yours helping you with magic to the point where you can't perform without it? Because if so, then I won't be able to do anything."
"I don't think that's how it works. Janna was able to perform magic well enough." Meteora mused. "And she wasn't even born a natural magic-user, yet she cast plenty of spells back at her base, stuff that took me months to learn. I suppose that if she somehow managed to figure it out, then I might possibly-"
"If I could interject…" The Voice said, making Meteora stop short. "I would not be so sure of the fact that your mother will be able to learn spells like that."
"But why?" Meteora asked, after mouthing "speaking to the Voice" to Eclipsa. "Janna learned it, and she's just a human! Why shouldn't my mother be able to relearn it?"
"Regarding Janna, that whole thing is partially an enigma to me." The Voice explained. "Regardless of what I have mentioned in the past about it, I have a good idea about how she was able to do that, but I'm not one hundred percent certain of everything. And consider this. Even if your mother was able to learn magic, how long did it take you from casting your first spell to being ready to use the time-travel one? Months. By the time she learns magic well enough to send you back herself, you would likely be dead, or weak enough that your body wouldn't be able to handle the stress on it during the travel itself."
"Hold on, stress?!" Meteora gasped. "You never mentioned the fact that if I was weak enough physically, I wouldn't be able to travel safely either!"
"By the time that happens, you wouldn't be able to get back on your one anyway, so I thought it wasn't worth mentioning at the time." The Voice said sheepishly. "Sorry."
"Okay...but why didn't you mention it in the future, when I was first using the spell? What if I was too weak then?"
"Oh please. Look at yourself." The Voice said. "All that walking and fighting and training let you get more exercise in a day than most people get in an entire month. You were completely fine when it came to that."
"I suppose you have a bit of a point," Meteora admitted. "But please don't keep stuff like that from me in the future, okay? If there's something we're doing that could potentially harm me, I want to know about it, no matter how unlikely it is."
"...Okay." The Voice said. "It just might take a while."
"Don't care," Meteora said. "Now then…" She turned back to her mother. "So...apparently you might be able to learn magic, but by the time you learn enough to get to the time-travel spell, it will have already been too late. I'll probably be dead at that point, and even if I'm not, my body will be in too weak a state for it to travel through time safely. Sorry."
"Oh," Eclipsa said, with a rather sad expression on her face. "Well, maybe I should give it a go anyway. See if others can harness magic again. If we use it correctly, then we might be able to make some very positive changes to Earthni. Things that we need to have fixed. And since it seems only the most powerful former magic users can wield this, we can assume that it will be in mostly good hands."
"If you say so, I have nothing else to do," Meteora said. "Hey...is that why I was brought here, I wonder? To bring magic to this timeline? We kinda had a theory on how I was here for a purpose, after just randomly showing up like this. Could this whole thing you just came up with be it? Teach people how to use magic again for the betterment of this Earthni?"
"That would certainly be interesting," Eclipsa said. "Although if what you've told me is correct, that means whoever orchestrated you coming here wanted the time stream split on purpose. They made an entirely new time stream...just for this dimension."
"Seems that way," Meteora replied. "Voice, what do you think?"
"It's possible…" The Voice said. "But I'm not sure why some otherworldly levels three or four beings would want that to happen. This timeline didn't exist before you traveled to it, so it's not like they could have been keeping an eye on it for a while. It only phased into existence a day or so ago, when you arrived."
"Wait," Meteora said. "So everything in this timeline only started existing a day ago?"
"Yes."
"Doesn't that mean my mom is technically only a day old, and wouldn't even exist if not for me using that spell?" Meteora asked, to which Eclipsa suddenly looked like she had just been hit with the biggest bombshell of her life.
"...It's a matter of perspective, really." The Voice said. "Technically yes and no. The version of her sitting in front of you, that appeared when you arrived in this timeline, is only a few days old, yes. With memories of years past. But at the same time, not really, because the version of her from our timeline was still her until those few days ago, making the whole thing rather-"
"Oh, fuck it." Meteora cursed, before slowly glancing over at Eclipsa and mouthing "sorry". "But this is still not making much sense. This timeline version of my mom and dad had the dream telling them of my arrival, and our timelines versions didn't get that, otherwise, my mom would have mentioned it happening during the brief period in which we met. So this timeline had to exist before I arrived, meaning something else caused it to branch off."
"...Oh. That's right." The Voice mused. "Unless...that dream was part of those given memories. It never happened, she just remembers it happening. The timeline still branches when you arrived, and some being gave her that specific memory so she wouldn't be surprised when you got here."
"This is so weird…" Meteora said. "But that would mean an entirely new dimension was formed when I came back to the past. Shouldn't it like, take time for something that big to form?"
"No, because the forces that control time are more powerful than the forces that birth new universes." The Voice explained. "And don't think of this timeline as a new universe. It's more of a...parallel universe. Not new, just a copy with a few minor differences."
"I don't think you understand the meaning of "new"," Meteora said flatly. "But what is that supposed to mean? If I got a pair of dimensional scissors, and tried to cut open a hole to the Earth dimension, what's dictating it from going to our timeline or this timeline?"
"Those don't exist anymore."
"Then pretend they do!"
"Fine." The Voice said. "When Hekapoo was first making the scissors, she was keenly aware of the confusion that it would bring if a person not only had to decide which dimension to go to when opening a portal, but which copy of that dimension as well. So she made the scissors so that it automatically went to the future furthest in time. And the dimension furthest in time for Earth...is ours."
"But what about parallel Earths?"
"I'm not even going to get into that. That requires complex sub-rules and regulations and all that nonsense." The Voice sighed. "But long story short, you can't use scissors to get to this dimension from any other dimension that is not in the same timeline. And since this dimension is the only one in this timeline, as well as the fact that you are unable to get to any other dimensions because you don't have scissors or enough magic to create a portal...it will be impossible to get back here once you leave, as you will not be able to pinpoint the exact timeline you went to earlier. The travel spell, unfortunately, doesn't work like that."
"Wha-that's moronic!" Meteora complained. "If I'm creating an entirely new timeline with entirely new events, why shouldn't another multiverse be created?"
"Because it is not needed." The Voice said. "Listen to me carefully, Meteora. The gods in control of this multiverse allow mortals like yourself to use time travel, for now. But that doesn't mean they want you to create an infinite number of new timelines and stuff for them to keep an eye on. So if you make a new timeline, it will be that for only the dimension, and no others, all so their job can be easier. Now, if you had a pair of scissors, then a new split timeline version of whatever dimension you decide to go to next would be created by them to keep everything in place. But until then, as of right now, Earth is all there is in this timeline. Nothing else exists. Not even the Underworld does! That portal in the woods leads to an infinite void...until you step through it, upon which-"
"A copy will be made to keep the illusion going," Meteora said, scowling. "So all of this is just in the name of making their obnoxious lives easier, huh? I feel like I should be surprised, but at this point, I've learned so much about gods that I'm not."
"Yeah, most people tend to after learning about." The Voice said. "But you shouldn't be worrying about this too much. It won't affect you at all. Like I said, if you do something or something happens that requires another dimension, it will be created. It will be like it was there all along."
"But that means one of those bastards is keeping an eye on me right now to see if I do anything that requires them to stop lazing around," Meteora said. "Meaning someone has had their eyes on me this whole time...like maybe the same level four being who brought me here in the first place."
"Most likely." The Voice. "Although this may sound surprising to you, this doesn't help in my search for figuring out who is behind all of this."
"How, exactly?"
"Because I still can't sense them." The Voice reminded her. "Honestly, a god being behind this was obvious from the start. But it doesn't help if we now know this for a fact. They're still powerful enough to keep their presence hidden from me, and even if they weren't, I don't think I would be able to do much."
"But why not?" Meteora asked. "You're both super-powerful beings and stuff. Maybe it doesn't want to talk to me because I'm a loser level two or whatever, but you're a three, and they're not a five. Shouldn't they at least want to hear you out if you request to speak with them?"
"Alas, things are not that easy." The Voice said. "A few things here. One, this is a level four being, most likely. They do not talk to anyone they don't have or want to talk to, and they are almost always the ones to initiate the conversation. If they have not attempted to establish communication with me at this point, which they haven't, then they won't be bothered to speak with me. They don't care about what I have to say. If they did, I'd have already talked to them."
"Great," Meteora said sarcastically. "And what else? You said that there were a few things there."
"Yes." The Voice replied. "I am not strong enough to get them to do anything, even if they wanted to talk. They are a level four, and I am a level three with most of my powers heavily depleted and stuck inside the mind of some level two. Let's say I request that they stop this and take you and me back to your timeline. If they say no, there's nothing I can do about it. Attempting to initiate a fight with them will only lead to both our demise, or mine at the very least, and make all of our efforts up to this point worthless. Long story short, I could only talk with them and try to convince them to go away, which they won't, because a level four is not going to take my advice."
"So what you're saying is…"
"There's nothing we can do to get rid of this being at the moment." The Voice sighed. "At this point, the most we can do is sit back and wait for things to play out, keep going along with our plan of regaining our magic, stopping Seth, and leaving this timeline. I don't think it should be too long before we have enough...and I recommend that when we do, we leave as soon as possible."
"You already know how I feel about that," Meteora said. "I don't care if I'm risking my life, I'm fixing the problems that I created here."
The Voice sighed again. "But how far are you going to push it? Just how much a risk are you going to take? I know you can feel it right now, Meteora. That ever so slight tightness around your chest. The feeling of the spell closing in on your heart, only to be repelled each time. But it is getting closer, and you know it. I can't stop you from taking these risks, but if it reaches a point where you are almost unable to go back, and yet still refuse to travel to our own time…"
"..."
"Then I will make you."
"And how are you going to do that?" Meteora asked.
"Anyway, I can." The Voice said. "But trust me. I'm sure I could find a few ways. I'm in your head. If I really wanted to...well, I won't get into that. But just know that if you refuse at that time, we will be going back to the future, one way or another, even if you don't want to."
"Fantastic. Now you're threatening me." Meteora sighed. "And yeah, I know you're not. But I promise that if it reaches that point, I'll get us back to our own timeline. No matter what's happening here."
"Good." The Voice said. "Now I think it's time you turned your attention back to your mother. I imagine she's been waiting for quite a while."
"Right. Right." Meteora said, before looking back at Eclipsa. "Okay, I'm done talking to them now."
"Good," Eclipsa said, who was acting like the ten minutes she had been sitting in silence was no more than a few seconds. "So I guess that settles it then? Me using magic won't work that well?"
"No, same reasons as before," Meteora said. "Although there are a few other things I just learned about. In all likelihood, there's some level four being out there, a god, who transported me to this place after I fell asleep back in Ery's hut. I don't know why, but that's what's probably going on. And this is the same being that communicated with you in that dream, although technically...I learned that that dream of yours didn't really happen. Just the memory of it."
"Does this have to do with the thing I overheard?" Eclipsa asked, shifting in place. "About me only being a few days old?"
"Yeah…" Meteora said softly. "Do you want me to tell you the whole story?"
"I wouldn't mind. Whatever great twist you have for me, I'm ready." Eclipsa said. "I assume that my "birth" started when you arrived here, based on what I've already heard."
"Pretty much," Meteora said. "Since this timeline didn't exist before I came here, "you" didn't either, just the past version of my mother in...my timeline. But since I came here the timeline was split off and formed a new one, this one, and everyone in it was created anew and given a full set of memories to match."
"So what you're saying is…" Eclipsa started. "That everything that I can recall happening to me that occurred more than a day ago never really happened, the memories were just planted there?"
"Yeah. But at the same time, not really, since those memories did happen, just to my timelines version of you." Meteora said. "You're still the exact same. You still believe that you went through all those experiences and stuff. There's no real difference, just…" She sighed and waved herself off. "Sorry, this is getting confusing for me again."
"No, I understand," Eclipsa said. "And I think I'm going to continue believing that all those things happened to me. It'll make everyday life a lot...easier."
"That's probably a good idea," Meteora said. "But other than that, there's nothing me and the Voice talked about that's worth mentioning."
"Hm." Eclipsa hummed, before tapping her fingers against the table. "Meteora…" She started. "If your purpose is to bring magic here, then how about we do a little something while we wait for your father to get back?"
"What...like teach you magic?"
"Sure!" Eclipsa said, and for a moment, Meteora thought she caught an excited look in her eyes, almost like a child's. "Not anything too complex, but if you can do it, then I see no reason why I cannot. The rules shouldn't be different, after all. We are simply in another timeline, not another dimension."
"Before you say anything…" The Voice boomed in her head, just as Meteora opened her mouth. "Remember that one of the main reasons why you're able to cast magic so easily is because of the combination of your Mewman side, which supplies the magic, and your monster side, which supplies your insane levels of stamina. If you teach your mother something, she will have to be extremely careful so it doesn't negatively affect her body."
"...Noted," Meteora whispered. "Ummm...sure. I guess I could try to teach you something."
"Excellent!" Eclipsa said, before settling down. "Sorry. I'm just a little excited. I haven't used magic in so long, and the possibility that I may again is a bit too much to bear."
"I get it. I was pretty excited as well when I fists discovered the truth." Meteora said. "Now the spell I think we should do first…" She looked around at the kitchen and nodded her head. "Yeah. This should be fine. I'm gonna teach you one of my oldest and personal favorites. The Solus spell. The same thing I used to escape a group of guards when I first got here."
"You mean that light spell of yours?"
"Yeah," Meteora said. "A really simple one, you just have to be careful, otherwise you could permanently damage your vision with it. Almost happened to me the first time I cast it."
"Okay then," Eclipsa said, shifting in her chair. "So how do I…?"
"Uh, uh, uh," Meteora said, shaking her finger. "There are a few things you gotta know first. Quite a few things, actually. One, you're not going to get it on your first try. It took me a long time to learn any spell, and even then it was very physically exhausting. Only now am I proficient at it, after months of work. But even now...I am still a long ways away from reaching what you could call my "full potential". So don't be sad if you don't get it the first time...or the first twenty times. Because I sure as hell didn't."
"Yes, I figured that would be the case. I can't count the number of times I have seen Mewmans attempt to perform magic, even though it is completely gone in their eyes." Eclipsa explained. "So I don't expect to get the hang of this anytime soon."
"Good, because that's exactly what's going to happen. And I don't mean that in a mean way, I'm just stating the facts." Meteora said. "Another thing you should know, even if you do learn magic and get the hang of it, your stamina will likely be forever terrible. I'm different. I get my magic from the Mewman side and my stamina from my monster side, which usually allows me to perform magic quite readily and sometimes even casually. But since you're a normal Mewman, you can't expect those levels of stamina. More likely than not, you'll have to wait several hours or even a day to cast two spells in a row in order to keep yourself safe. And while this may improve over time, overall you shouldn't expect to gain...that much improvement."
"I see," Eclipsa said, now looking slightly less excited. "And what happens if I don't wait? Will I just be left in a severely weakened state?"
"Assuming by some miracle you summon up the willpower to cast a spell right after finishing one, you'll probably just drop dead," Meteora said, her casual macabre side coming out again. "Using magic too often puts a strain on your heart. Think of it like exercising. Your body won't like it if you push yourself too hard, and when you do, it's gonna come back with a, "well, I warned you", and you'll simply die of extreme exhaustion."
"Don't ever cast spells one after another. Got it." Eclipsa said. "But I have another question. Have you ever come close to pushing yourself too far?"
"A couple of times". Meteora said. "Although there was one in particular that stood out. All three of us were traveling down a road inside a truck, and we were stopped by a group of demons who hated and still hate us. We couldn't go around them with the truck, so our only option was to get out. Long story short, negotiations with words failed and I had to go into my butterfly form to prevent all of us from being literally crushed under their feet."
"So you grabbed Mariposa and Jenkins and flew out of there?" Eclipsa assumed.
"Uhh...no," Meteora said, her shoulders scrunching up. "I attacked and killed them all in less than a minute. Now that I look back at it, flying out of there probably would have been the less dangerous idea, but I didn't want to have to deal with these guys later, so I just took care of them. Like every other problem they had crossed our path in the past."
"Oh," Eclipsa said silently, clearly hoping for a story that didn't involve death or murder, of which all of Meteora's stories did. "Well, I suppose that's one way to take care of the problem."
"Pretty much our only way," Meteora said. "But after that, I went out of my butterfly form, and immediately collapsed to the ground. My vision got all dark, my ears started ringing like crazy, and my chest felt like it was about to explode. I didn't even hear the Voice for a few moments, which I didn't know was possible at that point, considering that it's inside my head. But I didn't, and I thought I was going to die. Until slowly, all the things I just listed that were taken away from me came back."
"That sounds quite unpleasant," Eclipsa said. "Does this mean you can't sustain your butterfly form for that long?"
"No, it was probably more of the fact that I had already gone butterfly the night before, for the first time ever, so my body wasn't entirely used to it and was still...recharging itself, I guess," Meteora explained. "I haven't used it that often since then, even if it is a ton of fun flying around and stuff."
"Of course," Eclipsa said with a small smile, her mind going back to the first time she had gone butterfly, and all the fun she had soaring through the skies effortlessly. "But that is a good story to illustrate your point. Not that I think I would ever be able to regain my butterfly form, that is. If casting one spell every day is all I will be able to do, then I suppose my most powerful one, in a manner of speaking, is entirely off the table."
"Definitely. And even if you do get it, the most you'll be able to safely sustain it will be no more than a few seconds." Meteora said. "But enough talking about what you won't be able to do. For now, let's concentrate on what you should be able to do."
"Right. That Solus spell of yours." Eclipsa said. "Is that one word all I need to say for it?"
"No, there's a lot more you have to do," Meteora said. "It's not like firing a gun, where saying a word is an equivalent to pulling a trigger, and instantly magic comes out without much effort. You have to visualize the spell in your head, usually closing your eyes first, and summon up everything you have inside you. All your energy, all our willpower, all of it. To give in to this one spell, to this little scrap of magic. It only exists in atoms now, and you're going to have to be insanely mentally strong to be able to pull it out of what's pretty much the smallest level of existence."
"Not by a long shot."
"Quiet," Meteora whispered. "Now does that all make sense?"
"I suppose it does," Eclipsa said, nodding her head to all of this. "But I am still a little bit confused. I have to concentrate, I have to visualize the spell in my head, I have to summon up everything I have...but I have attempted this countless times in the past. Hundreds, I'm sure."
"Not really countless…" Meteora said.
"But you get the idea," Eclipsa said. "I am excited, but everything you just described is what I and all the other former magic users have been doing for almost every day. Just checking to make sure. Why would now be any different?"
"Because now you know it's still around. Now you know you can do it." Meteora said. "It's not just thinking about the spell and summoning up energy. You have to believe you can do it. There can't be a single shred of doubt in you. Of course, there was before, because you thought magic was still gone! But...you're aware it's not now. And that will give you the confidence you need to pull this off. Hopefully, at least."
"That is true. All those times, I never expected it to work. And now it will be the exact opposite." Eclipsa said, before chuckling. "So essentially, it all boils down to some "believe in yourself and you can do anything" cliche straight out of a human movie."
"I've never seen any movies, so I can't tell you the answer to that one," Meteora said. "But yeah, that's it, cheesy as it may be. It...worked for me, so it should work for you."
"Let us hope," Eclipsa said. "So should we start?"
"If you want to. We're just waiting for dad to get back, so there's nothing else to do." Meteora said. "Okay...first things first...close your eyes."
Eclipsa did as she was told, nervously shifting place and closing both her eyes as tightly as she could. Meteora chewed at her lip for a moment, hoping that this wasn't going to end in a giant disaster. She didn't really expect her mother to be able to cast anything at the moment, but if she ended up tiring herself out from trying to the point where she collapsed from exhaustion, then this whole situation would be really hard to explain to Globgor.
"Good." She continued. "Raise your arm to the side. This isn't essential, but if you're going to be casting that spell, it's a good idea to have your hand as far away from your eyes as possible."
"Makes sense…" Eclipsa said, before doing this as well, holding her right arm out and leaning her head away from it. "And how do I just start the mental process? Visualize everything? Or do I say the word first?"
"Getting there," Meteora said. "You actually say the word last, after you've done all the mental stuff. Or at least that's how I did it. Now...yeah, do the mental stuff. What I said. Clear away your doubts. Imagine the light forming in your hand. Not too much, just enough to prove you can do magic. As I mentioned before, when I first did this, I got angry after too many failed attempts, so when I did manage to do it it was much either then it needed to be. And the more powerful you make a spell, the weaker you'll be after you're done with it. And that's a good tip right there! Only use the minimum amount of magic needed. It's safer that way."
"I'll keep that in mind," Eclipsa said. "But how do I do that? Just concentrate on the level of magic?"
"Pretty, much yeah," Meteora said. "Like, pushing yourself, but not to the point where you feel it's about to be too much."
"I am very impressed." The Voice chimed in. "You are doing an excellent job of teaching her, I must say. By this point, I expected that my help would have become needed constantly, but you are clearly capable of handling this all on your own."
"I'm really only repeating what you said to me," Meteora whispered. "Although that part with the not using any more magic than you have to was mine. I just figured that it would make sense."
"It does, and I applaud you for that." The Voice said. "But now comes the hard part, just like this was the hard part for me. Watching her fail time and time again, getting more and more frustrated...and don't say she won't. You did even though you said you wouldn't. It's just going to happen."
"Then I'll deal with it my way. And thanks, for the compliment." Meteora mumbled, before turning her focus back to her mother. "Alright. We've got the basics down now, so the only thing left to do is try and catch it. Your eyes are closed, your mind is clear...and I told you everything that should help you along the way. So now, imagine that light appearing in your mind. Imagine it showing up in your hand. Remember, not too bright, but just right enough. Think of all the magic that's swirling around you in those atoms, imagine yourself grabbing it with your other hand and using it. Now it's in your body, just like it was all those years ago. Now you have magic again."
"You do realize that everything you're saying is totally placebo, right?" The Voice asked. "Magic is contained in the inner reaches of every atom. It can't ever not be in her-"
"Just let me do my thing," Meteora muttered. "Okay, mom, now I want you to say the word. Solus. And at the same time, imagine your hand lighting up the second after you say that word. Right after, like if you pulled the trigger on a gun. No delay or anything like that. Now...go."
Eclipsa paused and hesitated after this, clearly worried about whether she would be able to do it or not. But after taking a few deep breaths, she said the single word, "Solus", and waited for something to happen.
...
And nothing did.
As they all had suspected it wouldn't. Eclipsa slowly opened her eyes and looked at her hand, currently devoid of any magic, and sighed.
"Well, I suppose it was to be suspected." She said.
"What I've been telling you the whole time." Meteora. "And I think you should know that you shouldn't even get your hopes up at the fact that you might be able to do magic at all. It might not work for you. Just for me. Because I also have the Voice in my head, helping me along."
"Didn't this Voice tell you that I was able to do it, given enough time?"
"It said you might be able to do it. Given a lot of time." Meteora said, before giving her a "sorry" look. "There's nothing else I or it can really do besides what I've already told you. So as I mentioned, we just have to keep doing it over and over and over and over and over until something finally...connects."
"...Very well then," Eclipsa repeated, not about to let this single setback turn her away from the prospect of making Earthni a better place with magic. She closed her eyes again and did the same as before, only this time tried it with more...intensity, one might say. And from then on it was a repetitive cycle of attempts that never seemed to end. It eventually reached the point where Meteora lost count of how many times her mother had said the word "Solus" and she was only a few seconds away from falling asleep at the table. However, just as she closed her eyes, Globgor walked in and was treated to a rather odd scene where his wife had her arm struck out, her eyes closed, and was repeating one word like a mantra, while her daughter was passed out on the kitchen table, looking like she had lost the use of every one of her limbs.
"Uh...what are you guys doing?" He asked, causing Eclipsa to snap out of her concentration and for Meteora to wake up from her stupor. They both looked at him like what they were doing was the most natural thing in the world, until Meteora smacked her lips and let her head fall back to the counter.
"I'm trying to teach her to do magic, but it's taking a while, so I was taking a nap." She explained. "We haven't been having much progress, so I just told her to do it repeatedly until she finally got somewhere."
"Of which I haven't," Eclipsa said, almost in an irritated manner, just like the Voice had predicted. "I do hope I can use magic after all this. If I wasted my time making my arm sore for nothing, I won't be pleased."
"Why do you want to know magic?" Globgor asked. "I mean, sure, it's fun, but isn't magic being gone the whole point of everything now? If magic is still around, shouldn't we do our best to keep it a secret and make sure we don't get another Mina?"
"It won't make much difference," Meteora said. "No normal person down there could ever hope to cast a single spell. Only the most powerful former magic users would ever have a chance. And even then, the worst spell they could do in the form of a destructive one would be a spell that could take out...maybe a car. Maybe. We won't get another person like Mina, ever. And especially not with the E.D.F. having snipers on every street corner. I don't think Old Jenkins would take too kindly to the idea of people having magic again."
"That's true. He would likely outlaw it immediately." Eclipsa said. "If he hasn't already, just in case."
"I'm sure he has. Exactly the kind of thing mine would do." Meteora said. "But yeah, you don't have to worry about someone going around and blowing things up in a giant rampage. They could launch one spell, destroy something, launch another maybe, destroy something else, and then their body would call it quits. And I don't think they would be able to practice it much beforehand. I have no doubt that Jenkins has machines that can sense magic from anywhere on the planet. I'm betting that's how he really knew I was here."
"That...is a disturbing thought, if anything," Globgor said. "But hold on! Doesn't that make attempting to learn magic even more dangerous? That means he would know what we're doing, and he might use it against us."
"How so?"
"Think about it. Everyone at the moment knows that something is going on between us and him that isn't the friendliest of encounters." Globgor said. "He is definitely pissed at the fact that you managed to get away." He explained, pointing at Meteora. "What if he decides that we're just not worth the trouble anymore? What if he shows the rest of the Royals that we're using magic and tries to convince them that we're trying to stage a rebellion or something against him and the other Royals in order to take over Earthni and make it our own?"
"..."
"..."
"Uhhh...I think that's going a bit too far." Meteora said. "Would the other Royals believe that we're trying to take over? And don't they hate Old Jenkins also?"
"Hate can change in an instant," Globgor said. "If they learn we have magic and Jenkins tells them that we've had it for a while and didn't tell them...then things won't end well for us. He may respect us, but that doesn't mean he likes us. If getting rid of us three works to his advantage, then I can confirm that he will do anything he can to make sure that we're disposed of, one way or another."
"Good level five…" Meteora gasped. "This is even worse than I thought. I mean, my Jenkins was capable of some pretty crazy things, but this is just asinine. And he believes that this is all for the better good of the Earth? Are we sure at this point that it's not just for his better good?"
"...That has been discussed several times, actually," Eclipsa said. "As selfish as his desires can be sometimes, in the end, they always do seem to benefit the Earth in some way. Not that his desire this time will benefit anything, but in the past, it's always been that way."
"I wonder…" Meteora said. "Do they actually benefit the Earth, or does he just make it look like they do? Because those are two very different things. And if I die right now, then he'd be in a perfect position to make it look like he did something good. A random magic girl attacks Earthni and wreaks havoc, but the E.D.F. stopped her and won the day! That's what the headline would be tomorrow, I guarantee it. And he would do everything to make sure that you two keep quiet."
"...You know, your overall relationship with him is really interesting," Globgor said. "I hope that when you get back to your timeline, what happened here doesn't affect how you interact with your Jenkins, because it seems like it's going to. You certainly sure do hate him right now."
"I don't...hate him," Meteora said. "I'm just stating the facts based on what I know about my Jenkins and Old Jenkins. My Jenkins is far from a perfect person. There are plenty of parts of his personality that I would call unhealthy any day. Then again, I have that too, but he was the one that Mariposa and I took our negative personality traits off of. Once he realized what he was turning us into, he mellowed somewhat...but we both still remember. That person back then was who he really was. And Old Jenkins is sorta similar. So I guess I'm angry at seeing this part of him again. At having to witness him act like this again. It brings up too many painful memories…"
"Oh, sweetie…" Eclipsa cooed, beige sighing. "Alright. I think I'm calling a stop to this. Your father and I need to go solve this problem, and you're going to get some rest. You need it. Those painkillers should have worn off by now, and while you are very good at hiding it, I can still see it in your face anytime you change positions on that chair."
"Oh...you noticed," Meteora mumbled, who had been in rather severe pain for several minutes now. "It's fine. I have a high pain tolerance. And I can take worse injuries than other people-"
"Yes, but no matter who you are, you're not going to shrug off several bullets to the chest," Eclipsa said. "I'm taking you somewhere to get some rest. You almost fell asleep a moment ago, so there shouldn't be any problems."
"I'm totally...no, you're right," Meteora said to herself. "Don't push yourself too hard. Let the others take care of it. You deserve a break after all of this. That's what the Voice said."
"And they were correct," Eclipsa said, before moving over to her daughter and picking her up off the table like a child.
"Hey! What are you-"
"Making it easier for you. Like I mentioned, your painkillers are wearing off." Eclipsa said. "Attempting to walk other now would probably lead to you doubling over in pain."
"I was fine at the hospital," Meteora said, as Eclipsa ignored this and began to walk out of the kitchen and through the halls. "I get that I need some rest, but I don't need you to carry me like this."
"You're right. But I'm doing it anyway." Eclipsa said. And the two of them then remained silent until the queen reached the same bedroom that Meteora had slept in earlier, one of the fanciest in the entire Temple. Eclipsa walked over to the bed and set her down in it, and Meteora instantly flopped onto her stomach.
"It's funny." She said. "You know, I thought I would be gone already. I didn't think I would be spending any more than a few hours here. And now I might be spending days, even weeks. All the while taking a huge risk to myself just to complete some mission of bringing magic to this timeline, which might not even be the correct one."
"I don't see how that's funny."
"Well, we grew up around very different people. I imagine our senses of humor differentiate." Meteora said. "But what I'm trying to say is that if I'm going to be staying here, I want to make it all worth it. So, while I'm asleep, keep trying to perform the light spell. If you do manage to do it, then come back and tell me. Wake me up if you have to."
"I will. As long as there is nothing else to do at the moment...which means that I won't, as your father and I are going to be contacting the other Royals very soon to inform them of the situation before Jenkins can give them his twisted version." Eclipsa explained. "But I will do it whenever I get the time."
"That's all I'm asking for. And if you do get it, then we can work your way up to bigger and more powerful spells." Meteora said, before flopping onto her back and yawning. "As long as everyone does what they need to do…"
"...I think I'm going to go now. You seem like you're about to pass out at any moment." Eclipsa said. "A word of advice, don't try to move around too much. Those bullets have been removed and everything is set in place so that you can begin healing on your own, but don't push it. You should still be in the hospital, after all. We only took you out because you have a greater chance of dying there now than here."
"A good point…" Meteora mumbled, before closing her eyes. Eclipsa smirked and then left her alone, but not before motioning to two guards in the hallway to "come here". "Stay by this door and don't leave until I say you can. If you hear anything suspicious coming from inside, you go in immediately to see if she is alright. " She told them. "As of right now, the safety of that girl is of utmost importance, do you understand?"
"Yes, my queen." They both said simultaneously, and she nodded in response.
"Good. I'll leave you to it." Eclipsa replied, before walking away. The guards looked at each other, still ignorant of what was so important about this mysterious teenager that had just shown up, but they had been given an order and they were going to follow it. They both took up positions outside the door and stood as still as possible, which had become a talent after so many hours of guarding things. They only peeked inside the room once when they heard shuffling sounds on the bed, and saw Meteora switching from the bed to the floor, still hating how uncomfortable and alien it felt to her. They both looked at each other, shrugged, and then went back to their duties.
Nothing else to report.
Eclipsa, meanwhile, went back to the kitchen and sat back down. Globgor has just gone to the bathroom, and they both agreed that they were going to set everything out as best they could when he got back. She frowned even deeper and looked at her palm, the same palm that she had been hoping would light up for the past hour or so.
But something told her that that would never happen.
Not if she tried a million times more.
End chapter 47
A/N: Hmm, kind of a short, not too much going on chapter here. But Eclipsa trying out magic will come into play a little bit in the future, as well as what her and Globgor are doing with the situation concerning Old Jenkins. But for now, however, this next chapter will delve a little more into the memories of the past...and what they mean for this timeline. More confusing things ahead, as per usual.
But as usual, thank you for reading and please PM me or leave a review if you have any questions or comments.
