CHAPTER 25: PATHWAYS AND PLOTS 3

Aegis lay sprawled on her bed like a starfish. Face down. Arms spread. Dead to the world.

[Everything hurts. I can’t feel my legs.]

And yet, she couldn’t stop smiling.

Part of that was the post-fuck haze that she still had. Part of it was because the contraceptive Nazraya stealthily slipped into her dorm, a little nut-looking thing that prevented pregnancies called haltseed (bit of a play on words, there, apparently). Aegis recalled this bit of lore from the game but actually ingesting it taught her that it also, apparently, acted as a painkiller.

Across the room, Lune painted quietly. The soft scratch of brush on canvas filled the air. Suddenly, that scratching stopped.

"You’ve been lying there for thirty minutes."

"Mmph."

"Are you dying?"

"Mmm... maybe." Aegis turned her head slightly. "A whole new world opened up to me today."

"Ah." Lune dipped her brush. "Did you have some sort of academic breakthrough?"

"Something like that."

[If getting railed by your shadow magic professor counts as academic. It certainly was educational.]

Aegis groaned and rolled onto her back. Big mistake. Her sore lower half protested immediately.

"Fuck."

"Language, Aegis."

"You sound like Nazraya."

Lune paused mid-stroke.

"Professor Nazraya spoke to you about language?"

"Just during class. She’s very particular."

"Hmm."

The painting continued. Aegis watched the ceiling, trying to process what happened. She wasn’t sure if it was the new Intelligence having this effect (probably not) but everything felt sharper. Clearer. Including the memory of Nazraya railing her against the wall.

She almost wondered where else Nazraya could rail her.

[I’m never going to look at furniture the same way.]

Aegis turned her head and found Lune wholly focused on her art again. Which, if all her previous art was any indicator, was probably some painting of Aegis.

"Hey, Lune?"

"Yes?"

"What’s your deal?"

The brush stopped.

"My... deal?" Lune tilted her head.

"Yeah. Like..." Aegis gestured vaguely, getting on her side. "You’re always painting. Always watching people. But you never really talk about yourself."

"There’s nothing to talk about in that regard."

"Oh, come on. Everyone has something." Aegis rolled onto her side, ignoring her body’s protests. "Family? Hobbies besides art? Favorite food?"

Lune set down her brush. Pink eyes studied Aegis with that unnervingly blank expression.

"My family is House Solana. Minor nobles from the eastern provinces."

"And?"

"And nothing. We control some trade routes. Father manages finances. Mother handles social obligations."

"Boring." Aegis propped herself up on an elbow. "What about you? What do you want?"

"Want?"

"Yeah. Dreams. Goals. Secret desires to overthrow the government."

"I don’t have those."

"Everyone has those."

"I don’t." Lune turned back to her painting. "I observe. I paint. I attend classes. That’s all."

[Bullshit. Nobody’s that empty.]

"What about friends?"

"I have you."

"I’m your roommate. That’s not the same thing."

"Isn’t it?"

Aegis sat up fully, studying the other girl. Lune’s face remained perfectly neutral. No tells. No emotion.

"Do you even like me?"

"You’re interesting."

"That’s not an answer."

"It’s the only answer I have." Lune added another stroke. "You do unexpected things. And, your expressions are... educational."

[Educational? Just like Nazraya’s co- NO!]

"My expressions?" Aegis asked after clearing her throat.

"Mhm."

"Educational how?"

She didn’t get an answer to that one.

Silence stretched between them. Lune’s brush moved steadily.

"So... what are you painting?"

"You."

"Again?"

"You were lying there. The pose was interesting. You almost looked heavier."

Aegis stood and walked over, still sore but curious. The canvas showed her sprawled on the bed, one arm dangling off the edge.

"Why do I look dead?"

"Do you?"

"Yeah. Like a corpse."

"Hmm." Lune tilted her head. "I paint what I see."

"You see me as dead?"

"You almost looked dead just then."

"Right." Aegis backed away. "I’m gonna take a bath."

"Hm? The communal baths close at nine."

"Fuck."

"Language."

"You’re not my mom." She grabbed a towel and headed for the door. "Eh, whatever. I’ll risk it. I’m heading out."

"Have fun."

Aegis paused at the door.

"Lune?"

"Yes?"

"Maybe... try painting something happy sometime?"

"Happy?"

"Yeah. Like flowers. Or puppies. Or me not looking like a corpse."

"I’ll consider it."

Aegis left, shaking her head.

Her roommate was weird. Beautiful, talented, but definitely weird.

[Still better than some chatty gossip who’d ask about the limp I had on my way here, though.]

The hallway was empty. Good. She didn’t need anyone seeing her waddle to the baths.

[Tomorrow’s gonna be interesting. Gala prep, more shadow lessons.]

Her legs throbbed with each step.

[Worth it though. Intelligence +10 is no joke. And, besides, the day’s not over yet.]

It was time to meet Rosanna again.

---

Aegis approached the Sky Piercer at midnight, ready for another climb. Well, she wasn’t ready at all, but she didn’t really have a choice.

[Wait, what’s that?]

A faint shimmer caught her eye. Tucked behind a hedge, barely visible from the guards’ position, was what looked like a floating platform. Runes glowed softly along its edges.

[No fucking way. A magical elevator?]

She crept closer. The platform hovered inches off the ground, big enough for two people. Ancient script circled the edge.

[This wasn’t in the game. Then again, neither was Rosanna.]

She stepped on. The platform hummed and began rising. Smooth. Silent. Way better than climbing.

[I suffered for nothing last night.]

The city shrank below. Wind whipped her hair. In seconds, she reached the meditation platform where Rosanna waited.

"You found the lift." The ghost queen looked amused. "Good, I was hoping you wouldn’t ignore it and just climb again. Though that may have been funny to see."

"You made it? The lift, I mean."

"Of course. You think I climbed every night when I was alive?" Rosanna shook her head. "The wards hide it from those who haven’t proven themselves. Your climb last night marked you as worthy."

[Son of a bitch.]

"Shall we begin?" Rosanna gestured to the center. "Your pathways are clear. Time for actual spellcasting." Aegis sat cross-legged. "What do you know about magic theory?"

"The basics. Aether, Intent, Conduit."

"Good." Rosanna circled her. "Aether is your fuel. Intent shapes it. But the conduit determines everything."

"My body’s the conduit, right?"

"It can be. But, depending on how you use it, it could be limiting." The Rosanna-ghost raised her hand. Pure white energy gathered. "Watch."

The energy twisted into a whip of light. It crackled through the air, leaving afterimages.

"Aether Whip. A basic Aether Weaving combat spell that most never master." She let it dissipate. "Your turn."

[She makes it look easy.]

Aegis raised her hand. Drew on her expanded mana pool. Shaped her intent, a weapon of pure energy.

Nothing.

"You’re thinking too hard." Rosanna touched her wrist. Cool fingers adjusted Aegis’s grip. "The aether wants to flow. You’re strangling it."

"But I need to shape it into a whip."

"No." Rosanna moved behind her, hands on both shoulders. "Think of it as though the whip already exists in the aether. And you’re not creating it, but you’re revealing it."

[What kind of mystical bullshit—]

"Feel the energy around us." The ghost queen’s voice was patient. "Every possibility floats here. Swords, shields, whips. All waiting."

Aegis closed her eyes. The meditation platform’s dense aether pressed against her skin.

"Now reach out. Not with your hand. With your intent."

"That doesn’t—"

"Stop." Rosanna’s grip tightened. "Stop thinking in terms of logic. Aether is difficult to compress into the realm of logic, dear. It is about connection, not comprehension."

[Easy for the dead empress to say.]

"Breathe. Feel the aether’s rhythm. It pulses, yes?"

Aegis focused. There was something. A gentle throb in the air.

"Good. Now match it. Let your heartbeat sync with the aether’s flow."

This was different from Nazraya’s lessons. Nazraya taught Aegis like she wanted her to force her own aether into submission. Rosanna was teaching Aegis like she wanted her to dance with the aether around her.

"When you’re ready, ask the aether to show you its whip."

"Ask?"

"Request. Invite. Seduce it, in a way." Rosanna’s breath was cold on her neck.

"You want me to... flirt with magic?"

"In a manner of speaking. Magic responds to emotion, intent, desire." The ghost queen stepped back. "Try."

Aegis reached out again. This time, instead of demanding, she coaxed. She tried to be gentle. Persistent. Playful.

[Come on, beautiful. Work with me here.]

Sparks gathered. Not forced into shape but flowing naturally. The energy twisted, condensed, became—

"There." Rosanna smiled. "Hold it."

A pale whip of light extended from Aegis’s hand. Fragile but real.

[NEW SPELL LEARNED: Aether Whip (Novice)]

[Cost: 5 MP per minute]

[Damage scales with Charisma]

[Holy shit it actually scales with Charisma too!]

The whip dissolved.

"Better." Rosanna nodded. "Practice the connection daily. The stronger your bond with aether, the more it will reveal."

"That was... different."

"Naturally, it would be for you. Shadow magic dominates. Aether magic cooperates." The ghost queen smiled. "One leaves you empty. The other fills you."

Aegis looked away.

[..... Yeah, I know a thing or two about being filled up no- NO! BAD AEGIS!]

"Can I ask you something?" Aegis then asked.

"You may."

"Are you... tangible? Like, can you touch things? Feel things? I mean, I can feel you on me, but I’m not sure if that’s just a trick."

Rosanna’s eyebrow rose. Clearly not a question she was expecting.

"Why?"

"I could bring you something! Your favorite drink or food. Must get lonely up here."

Rosanna blinked. Then, the ghost queen’s laugh that slipped out of her lips was like wind chimes.

"How thoughtful. Yes, within this circle, I can interact with physical objects." Her purple eyes gleamed. "Very well. A test of your resourcefulness."

"Yeah?"

"My favorite drink can be made from ingredients found in these very grounds. In the Academy. Bring it to me, and I’ll teach you something special."

"What kind of drink?"

"That’s for you to figure out."

"That’s it? No hints?"

"Where’s the fun in that?" The ghost queen’s form began fading. "Same time tomorrow. With my drink, if you’re clever."

"Wait! How do I—"

But Rosanna was already gone. Dawn painted the sky pink. Time had passed by a lot faster than Aegis had felt.

The magical platform carried her down smoothly. At least she didn’t have to climb anymore.

[Two teachers. Two paths. And they couldn’t be more opposed in their approaches to magic. Interesting.]