As Velvet watched, the crimson moon painted the world a deep scarlet. Like fire or blood, even the water looked as if the world was bleeding. No more was the forests and village homes of old, but metal buildings and crystal-like spires. Werewolves and wyverns swarmed the streets and skies, grabbing whatever remaining humans, shredding them, or dropping them for a meal to other daemons.
The carrion corpses splattered across this city, but there were some who tried to escape. Velvet looked down. A pair, a young woman and a boy tried to make their way through the infested land. She took a second looked. It was like staring at a mirror, but with different clothes. Just the same with her mirror, the young boy was the same as Laphicet.
"Is this really where it started?" the former therion looked to her brother.
"Yes and no. So many simulated lifetimes. So many things based on history's past and our own experiences. The world you saw with Eleanor and Niko was very real in its own way."
"But why was I brought back? Why show me this?" She turned. "I was happy. We were together again. Family sticks with family. Even – even if you were a little shit."
Laphicet closed his eyes, shaking as the mirrored pair hid behind crumbled ruins and metal carriages. "Because in here lies why it keeps happening in these dreams. Look up again."
Velvet's gazed turned skywards. Just like the previous dreams, was the apparitions of Innominat and Laphicet conjured, struggling over the dream's control. Thunderheads formed as the Fifth Empyrean stood supreme over the domain. Laphicet grunted, swiping some blood off his cheek.
Never had she seen him this charged before. Did he always have this fight in him? Velvet wasn't so sure anymore.
"These dreams are MINE! Mine and Mine alone! The cycle will continue, as it always had!"
"I… I will not… Allow you!"
Laphicet charged and grappled with the Empyrean, circling and circling. The nightmare below them accelerated, shadows and beings disappearing in rapid blurs. Day twisted to night, stars, and clouds undulated. Even the grass and trees grew until the images finally stopped.
The end of one lifetime, hauled as several people stood at a graveyard. Names all scribbled into stone. Velvet bit her lip.
"These dreams were getting worse and worse."
"Innominat still had some control in the realm. No matter what, it could never go beyond how old we were when we first entered the dream."
"Where does the line between the Empyrean and my brother get drawn?"
Laphicet closed his eye, pursing his lips. "It's… hard to even know. The hunger and drive come from Innominat but the actions and words… it gets blended all in and…"
His body shivered. Pulled close. When he opened his eyes, Velvet was hugging him. Just as tightly as they did when the dreams first started.
"Was I wrong…?" He finally asked. "… to fight my own way for a better world? Heroic sacrifice and…"
"That…" Velvet bit her lip. "I don't want to say you're wrong. The plans, who it was made for, how do we make of it… I don't even sure where I'm supposed to go now."
The dream flickered before them, strains of multicolored rainbows and sparkling twilight burning around them. Like parchment slowly burning away from the edges to its center, the dreams collapsed around them until they were in a deep white void.
"So why, why are you still here, and I'm out there?"
The young boy let go of the hug, hands thrown at his side. "The dreams were reaching their end. Innominat was threatening to break free again. I tried searching through him, through Phi, and myself, anything that could stop him. I thought that because you had absorbed mo-, Seres, it would've been enough. She was the other piece. I thought two pieces over mine would've been enough. But the Empyrean had grown. Some time ago, it learned how to overcome this. I finally found something. Something that could rewrite it so that Phi was in control.
"But I needed your key for it."
"Then why didn't you ask me? I would've given it to you if you had just asked!" Velvet asked more harshly. Her tone critical, seeing the same act play out again.
The young boy started to walk as she joined alongside him. Even as the initial dream broke down, hundreds of thousands of still images appeared. All of them, different lifetimes and cycles they played. But as much as she wanted to go forward, they all seemed to stop just around the time Velvet was nineteen years old. She closed her eyes. With only so much experience in life she had, the forever dream could only go for so long.
How could a perfect dream go to be perfect, especially after seeing life?
This world was named Desolation.
The seraphim of the Heavenly Steppes made sure of it.
"Innominat still had control of the dream, and he was very focused on me."
For a moment, it seemed like Velvet was going to snarl again. Her face falling to shadow before finally looking up. Her anger was tempered, before and now. "That… that doesn't make any sense. If he was so focused on you, then having me do whatever you needed me to do…"
"… it might've led to you dying, Velvet."
She blinked. Processing everything that happened. The dreams, the focus, the drive. They had been together through these lifecycles together right? Then, why was he..?
"It's just like before." She finally said. "Then and now, it's been a near forever. Not telling me anything."
"Do you hate me?"
"No." The former therion stared at her younger brother. As much mental time has passed between them, as many lifetimes they spent, but the scars of trust and betrayal remained. The fact that she was never asked how she felt, even if it may be a goodbye. How could they?
"But I am disappointed that you'd do this again."
Laphicet looked up at Velvet. His shoulders slumped and muscles all worn. It looked like he hadn't slept in a while with disheveled hair.
"You could say I've made a habit of doing it. But… who exactly do I have left out there?"
Velvet almost spoke before he added, "Besides you."
"Don't try that. Not now." She shook her head. It was clear she was realizing what was going on. "That doesn't mean you can't start again."
"And what about you?" He rebuked, shaking his head. "I'm in no place to make any sort of who's more guilty here. But even when you were out there, you found people out there, didn't you?"
Velvet paused, arms falling to her side. "We fought for ourselves. It's just that our end-goals were the same. If anything, Eleanor and Phi were the most heroic of all of us."
A small smile on his face. "Even then, after everything, they weren't just allies of convenience were they?"
"No. No they weren't. When we helped Eizen finally complete that mapping of his, he was damn proud of what we did. Sure, it helped just gather resources, but the fact that we helped chart the entire thing. Besides the fishing trip, it was the main thing that we really did together as friends."
"You made connections, discovered the world. Saw the things that I wanted to see." He said sadly. "I'm envious. You saw so much."
"I never did. Just focused on the goal."
"Your memories and our lifetimes say something else Velvet."
As frustrated as she was, as the older sibling, she was supposed to be the mature one. But the emotions of having to see him again, only coming to this. "You brought me in here… just to say goodbye again?"
"Yes and no. I managed to contain Innominat. The code where he's in charge has been changed. Laphicet is now in full control. But there's a catch. It's not complete yet."
"So I am talking right to you? Or just a message?"
Laphicet pulled his sister into another hug, just as they did before. The dreamscape's color was fading. From the light white to a deeper and deeper grey, but his voice continued to pierce through the darkness.
"This is me. The actual me. It could take me… a week? A year? Decade? I… I don't know how long it would take me. Especially being in here."
The young boy looked up at his sister. A little patter of water dropped on his hair and cheek. The same redness she's seen her like this. In some dreams when he would go off on his own journey; without her.
"Why?" She asked. The same ending again. But this time… separated? But the young boy hugged her tighter. The darkness of the dream collapsing around them.
"I'm not a fan of goodbyes. After everything that's happened, I won't say it again. Wait for me Velvet. I'll be there. It may take time, but… I'll be there to see you."
She could feel a rumble in the world. A sleeping god's breath blowing against them as Laphicet clung to her like a limpet.
"Hey Velvet? Do you remember how, even after what happened, you'd… you still give me a second chance?"
Her voice stuttered, fighting back. "Y-yes, I remember."
"Have you ever thought of giving yourself a second chance?"
No words came from her mouth and then silence.
-.-.-
As they watched Velvet concentrate on Innominat and that dream realm, Eleanor couldn't help but feel a bit of helplessness on her end. For all the faults of the Abbey, that fell upon her. She was their leader, they trusted her. For her closest legates, taking on this elemental journey, she was there for them.
Even after the Malakhim Incident a few years ago, they still managed to hold on.
But in this moment, the Shepherd couldn't do anything but watch. Just as it was those seven years ago when Velvet sealed herself with Innominat.
The discontent was palatable on her face as Aoife tapped her should. "You shouldn't look so grim, Shepherd. The Therion will be fine."
"I know. At least, that's what she told me."
"Maotelus is watching over as well. You worry too much."
"I know, but I wish that I could help her in some way."
The Flamebrand crossed her arms. "Shepherd, remember what I said following the Earth Temple and the return of the Therion?"
"I do. But this time is different?"
"How so?"
"We're together this time. Isn't that enough?"
"Perhaps. However, I doubt she will want to linger inside that dreamscape than she needs to."
"Because she knows of the world out here?"
Aoife sighed. Was it not obvious to the both of them? "Because she has a reason to return to."
Eleanor's lips opened for a moment, then closed. Her mind already processed what the Primarch said. "Have you been spying on us?"
"I can tell by the tone of your voice, the emotions that stir in you. And her. The way she speaks softer to you. The various adventures you told me about. You both wear your emotions on your sleeves." A stern face slowly peeled back in intensity as she said, "She will pull strength from her feelings about you and come back."
Her face matched the color of her hair. Hands covered her face to Aoife's amusement. "Ah, she's returned."
Velvet's daemon claw slipped off the body of the sleeping Empyrean. Malevolence scattering like leaves in wind. Bangs falling over her eyes as tears continued to fall like droplets.
"V-velvet?" Eleanor hesitantly asked, reaching out to her.
A little blur flashed by her eyes. Velvet was already heading up the stairs before she could even get a word out.
"H-hey! Velvet, come back here! What did you-?" She looked to Aoife, seeing if she was going to do anything to stop either of them. The Flamebrand just bowed her head, letting her go. Eleanor immediately taking off to follow the former therion.
Maotelus looked over to his Primarch, "Did you mean every word you said to her?"
"I told her what she needed to hear." She keenly watched the two until they were out of sight. "Sometimes people forget the smaller picture."
If given a Second Chance, what would you do with it?
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Author's Note:
Hello everybody, it has been quite some time since the last story update. So a little story background as to why this chapter took so long.
Around the time of the last chapter, my graduate studies started to pick up, especially with my thesis paper. Added to the fact I had a near mental breakdown due to some unfortunate living conditions with messy, dude-bro undergraduate studies in an apartment, I had to seek therapy.
Following a shift to a new place (I still feel that I was effectively kicked from my own place because of them), I was just focused on getting my thesis done.
After all of that, I was job searching. Things have settled now and I'm in a good spot.
TL;DR: Busy with college, mental breakdown, now I'm back.