Teacup_Kitty

CW:

Spoiler

Non Malicious Forced Slumber, Kidnapping

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There were a number of reactions I was expecting when I came out to my parents. Some were ultra optimistic, with a full family embrace and being showered with so much love and support that I’d feel bad and want to find some way to ration it for other less fortunate transfolk. Some were more pessimistic with my parents disowning me and kicking me out on the spot. There were even some more absurd ones where they told me that they knew and had a special spa day planned for me to get pampered and prettified. That one was pretty optimistic too. But none of my various fantasies, or fears, came even close to what actually happened.

The look on my parents faces, previously one of fear, switched to panic as my dad lept up and over the table and got right up in my face. His pupils suddenly contracted to a narrow slit as I heard Lisa gasp beside me. I found out why a moment later as he pulled back and I noticed he had honest to god cat ears atop his head. Immediately after, my eyes were drawn to a swishing movement behind him and I found out my dad had a fluffy tail coming out from behind him. My dad was a cat-man.

I was so caught off guard by this unexpected turn of events, I barely tuned into Dad speaking rapidly to Mom.

“-see it clearly,” he started, shaking his head as my mom got up from the table and came over to look at me too. This time I noticed that there was a faint glowing aura about her when she did. 

“Damnit, I knew we should’ve double checked, but you were so worried that we’d spark his- sorry, her well,” she said as she turned quickly and roughly shoved the table aside. Despite being stunned by whatever the hell was happening, I felt a little flash of euphoria as she corrected her misgendering. She began feeling around the floor for something before a little light flashed under her hand and a section of the kitchen tiles lifted up revealing a staircase.

“We’re such bad parents,” Dad groaned, his fluffy ears twitching as he started for the stairs. “She’s not had any training, her well’s not even ignited, and we’re out of bloody time!” He moved around the stairway going down to the set leading to the second floor. He hurried upstairs, taking three steps at a time. 

“Could someone explain what’s going on?” asked Lucy as she looked back and forth between my parents as if they were strangers. I was beginning to think that they might be, with all this sudden information coming to light. 

Both my parents turned to look at her, Dad having just come back down. In his hands he had three backpacks that I’d never seen before. They looked old in design, but as if they had just been made. He glanced at Mom who let out a heavy sigh before getting up. 

“Where to begin,” she said as she grimaced– she looked like she had sucked on a lemon. “Ok, let me try and explain- actually, there’s no time. Let me summarize. Eighteen years and about nine months ago there was a prophecy about our daughter that we thought we had dodged because we thought Calliope,” she gestured at me, “was male.” My heart soared at my mom using my name. Between that and my world getting flipped, I was barely able to focus. She began ushering Lucy, and a still-stunned me towards the staircase in the middle of our kitchen. “Long story short, we need to get to the Other Side and prepare for what’s coming.”

Lucy wasn’t going to just be shepherded though, she dug her heels in and spun around on my mom. 

“Hold on a moment. You missed like a million different important details in all that. Like, why is Calli’s Dad a cat-man? Why do you have a staircase in your kitchen? Why were you just glowing? What are we prepar-” her rapidfire questions were cut short when Dad tapped her on the forehead and she just passed out. He caught her with a grace and ease that clashed so starkly with my mental image of him that it jumpstarted my brain again.

Dad began carrying Lucy downstairs as I shook off the last of my shock and turned to look at Mom. She gave me a consolatory shrug and followed him downstairs, waiting only long enough to ensure I followed.

“What did you do to Lucy?” I demanded as I began organizing my thoughts and feelings into a more manageable form. “Is she going to be ok?” I was pretty sure Dad would never harm Lucy, but I had also been pretty sure he was just a normal office jockey before today. 

“She’ll be fine. She was just holding us up, we really don’t have any time to dawdle,” Dad responded as he turned a corner in the hallway the stairs lead down to. I followed him around it and gasped when I saw the room he had stopped in. 

The room reminded me of the classic trope of a wizard’s tower. It was circular and made of plain stone bricks with wooden support structures holding the ceiling up. Bookshelves encircled the room with tomes of all shapes and sizes in a variety of colors and materials filling them. In the middle of the room were various glass enclosed displays with all manner of arcane looking items. There were gemstones, strange looking humanoid skulls that were very obviously not from this world; such as one that was three times too big and had a set of four gnarly curved horns. There were also two sets of extremely valuable looking armor, set up on stands near the farside of the room where an archway made of rune etched stone was embedded in a blank wall. 

Mom had begun running her hands along the stone arch, causing the etched runes to glow, while Dad was putting on one of the suits of armor. I hurried after them and checked on Lucy while they were busy. Sure enough, she was just sleeping soundly; she looked like she had just taken a nap rather than being forcefully knocked unconscious. 

“Hey kiddo, could you come help me tighten this strap?” Dad called out from where he was struggling to don the armor. I looked up and pointed at myself, confused why he was asking me. He laughed. “Yes you, c’mon Calli, times a tickin’.” It was still baffling how quickly my parents had adjusted to my name and pronouns; pleasant, but baffling. I pushed myself upright and walked over, taking a better look at his armor. 

I’d seen books on medieval armor, and even made my own set out of cardboard for halloween once, but what my Dad was putting on was not your standard medieval fair. It had clearly arcane markings along the inner plates of metal that when my dad touched them would light up a bright gold color. It wasn’t a full set of armor, though, mostly consisting of a breastplate, gauntlets and metal coated boots. The chestpiece was made of two interlocking segments, one that covered his pectorals and the other covered his abdomen, while multiple plates hung lower to cover his hips, groin and butt. The gauntlets were heavy, with thick knuckle plates that suggested they were more weapon than protection, while his boots were only barely armored. The strap he needed help with was part of a leather jacket he wore under it all and took only a few seconds to do up. 

I looked up at Dad, and I must’ve looked absolutely lost as his expression softened. He gave me a pat on the back.

“Sorry Calli, I know this must be so confusing for you, and I wish we had more time to really explain it all, and that’s on us. But your safety, and I’m sorry to say, quite frankly the world is at stake here,” he explained as he pulled on his gauntlets. “While your Mom’s getting geared up, I’ll try and explain a little more about what’s going on.” He took a deep breath, looking around the room before settling back on me. “Your Mom and I were part of a group dedicated to protecting this world from the Other Side. The Other Side is the well- other side of this world. A place that mirrors this one in many ways, but differs in one key aspect. The existence of magic.” I was going to try and ask a question but he held his hand up. “Let me finish before you ask any questions, ok?” I nodded and he continued, “When I met your Mother, we had been tasked with investigating a growing threat to the world, the Queen of a nation covered in perpetual darkness. The Night Queen, not the most imaginative name I know, turned out to not be the upstart minor threat our superiors thought she was, but a world ending apocalypse waiting to happen. Knowing there wasn’t time to report back and get help, we took it upon ourselves to fight her then and there. The only issue was we weren’t strong enough to stop her outright, so we had to seal her.”

As my Dad explained the fact that he and Mom were like magical Men in Black, a lot of thoughts passed through my head, causing me to zone out a bit, but I quickly snapped back to the conversation as something Mom had said clicked for me. 

“So wait, this prophecy, Mom said something was coming, is it the Night Queen?” I asked. My Dad nodded, his face filled with concern. “So what does this have to do with me?” I asked. Mom stepped forward, her armor now donned. It was much like Dad’s, only she didn’t have the heavy gauntlets, instead she had a rapier, pauldrons and an actual cloak that hung over her off hand. 

“The leader of the organization we work for is a prophet. When I found out I was pregnant with you, I asked her for permission to leave the order so we could raise you in peace. We didn’t want you to have to risk life and limb like we did. We just wanted to keep you safe,” she explained as she put on one of the backpacks Dad had gotten from upstairs. “She told me that when our daughter turned eighteen she’d have to defeat the Night Queen. When you were born, we thought she was wrong, or that we’d have more time and that we’d have a daughter later by accident.”

“And then I came out as trans,” I whispered, the pieces all starting to fall into place; well, mostly anyways. 

“We had some inklings, but Marcos was certain that if you’d been trans, you’d have started manifesting by now, but he didn’t take into consideration how careful we’d been to avoid exposing you to magic and igniting your well.” 

I blinked a few times as I tried to wrap my head around some of the concepts my Mom had just dropped on me. They’d mentioned my ‘well’ before, but manifesting was a new term. I was about to ask her about it when the archway she’d lit up suddenly began to hum and a silvery sheen spread out from the edges into the center. It looked like a vertical puddle of mercury or gallium with its metallic sheen and gentle undulations. 

Before I could even add the strange occurance to my constantly growing list of questions, the portal, for that’s what I realized it was, warbled and a tall man in similar armor to my parents came out. What surprised me the most was that I recognized him. It was my uncle Sylas. He barely spared me a second look before striding up to my parents. 

“Well isn’t this a surprise,” he said, chuckling darkly. “When I got your message, I thought the world had gone insane, but sure enough, you were right. The scouts report movement at the Umbral Pass. First in more than two decades.” Mom and Dad’s faces darkened when they heard that and gave me a worried look that sent chills up my spine. 

“How long do you think we have?” Dad asked.

“Probably a day or two before they reach the first settlements, maybe more if we can get a force up there fast enough,” he explained. Mom and Dad nodded, both looking contemplative before moving a little faster in the last of their preparations.Uncle Sylas finally looked at me and smiled. 

“You look good kiddo,” he complimented, throwing me for a loop before he strode over to Lucy. “This your friend?” he asked, already picking her up and slinging her over his shoulder in a fireman carry before I could respond.  “I’ll go on ahead to the Nexus and get her settled, I’m sure you have plenty to do on your own,” he said to my parents as they handed me the third backpack from before. He turned about and went back through the portal, causing it to warble again as he passed through.

I looked back to my parents, who both sported grim expressions as they guided me over to the archway.

“What’s the Nexus?” I asked, opting for my most recently added question in lieu of the fact that it seemed we were heading there. Mom turned to look at me as Dad went through the portal.

“It’s a place where this world and the Other Side intersect. Our order established our main base there so we could fortify it and protect it from those who would seek to conquer this world. It’s not the only place, but it is the biggest one, and doubles as something of a customs office and travel hub for those who want to travel between worlds legitimately.” She offered me a meager smile and gestured at the portal. “Go on through, you’ll see for yourself shortly,” she said as she gently pushed me towards the undulating silver surface. 

Taking the metaphorical plunge, I closed my eyes and walked through. It felt a little cold, like if someone touched a pop can that they had just taken from the fridge to your skin. The chill lasted for only a few seconds before vanishing and I could hear the sounds of numerous people talking all around me. Opening my eyes, I saw we were in a massive cavern that had been expanded with man-made tools into a great hall of sorts. There were people everywhere, and not just humans. More animalistic people like my dad, Elves, Dwarves, Orcs and plenty of people that didn’t fit into predefined fantasy races. The whole space was lit up with crystals and it gave off vibes of being somewhere between a Tolkienian elven city and a modern airport. 

Mom came out of the portal behind me and put a hand on my back. She gently guided me in the direction of what looked to be a forge. Contrary to what the fantasy novels would have you believe, it was neither a burly dwarf or tall muscular man hammering steel on the anvil, though they were tall and muscular. The amazonian woman looked up from her work and saw my Mom and I approach. Her face spread into a wide grin and she stomped over to us. 

“Carol! You’re back! I thought you’d quit for good!” she gushed as she wrapped my Mom in a tight embrace. Mom made some noises about needing to breathe before the large woman set her down. “Oops, sorry,” she said with a giggle. It was a strange noise to hear coming from such a statuesque lady that I had to bite back my own laugh. That seemed to catch her attention and she looked down at me. “And who’s this sweetie?” she asked, giving me the once over. “Thought you had a son,” she commented. Mom cleared her throat, drawing the smith’s attention off of me. I gave her a thankful look; the comments about a son had left me feeling uneasy.

“Good to see you too, Donna, and we thought so too, but turns out we have a daughter. Which brings me to why we’re here. She needs armor, as fast as you can get it attuned to her. A weapon too,” she explained.

Donna gave her a confused look before a light went off behind her eyes. “Oh. OH!” she gasped. “I’ll see what I can whip up. Guessin’ her well’s not been lit, so it’ll need to be flexible as she changes huh?” she confirmed as Mom nodded. I looked up at my mother, unsure what the mountain of a woman had meant about changes. I was about to ask when Dad came running up, his long loping strides making it clear he was more athletic than he’d ever let on. 

“Grandmother wants to meet her,” he said, his voice tinged with worry. Mom quickly shared an uncertain look with him before looking back at me.

“Alright then, well, Calliope, time to meet your Great Grandma,” Mom said with a tone I couldn’t quite decipher. 

It took us about twenty minutes to navigate our way through the big open great hall we had come into, and through a myriad of winding tunnels, until we reached a pair of big oak doors with carvings of the moon and other more esoteric imagery. Mom reached up a hand to knock on the door but they swung open before we made contact. Mom muttered something about a show off, while Dad chuckled at her. The three of us stepped through the doorway and into a large room. Most of the space was dominated by a massive, circular reflecting pool in the middle. Sitting off to the side was Lucy, sipping tea with a woman who looked far too young to be my Great Grandmother. At most she looked slightly older than Mom. She was wearing a plain black business suit that looked so out of place in this room ripped from a fantasy novel. I looked around to see if there was anyone else but it was just us five.

“Come, let us sit and discuss these troubling times we find ourselves in,” the suited woman stated, looking up at us. It was then I noticed her eyes were completely white. “I’ve already explained the situation to poor Lucibelle here. My eyes snapped to Lucy and I mouthed, ‘Lucibelle,’ while giving her a questioning look. She winced and nodded.

The three of us walked over to the other two and sat on a very comfortable sofa. My parents both took a cup of tea from the tray and nudged me until I picked one up myself. 

“Good, now that everyone has some refreshment, we can begin. I’m sure young Calliope has many questions about what is going on.” I nodded my agreement, but before I could begin asking, she held up a hand. “Before that, I should introduce myself. I am Maria Carnivesca, leader of the Gate Wardens and your Great Grandmother. Welcome to the Nexus Gate my child, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you,” she said, introducing herself, though that just left me more confused. She looked young enough to be Mom’s sister, not her Grandmother. “Now, time is short, but we should have some time to answer some of those questions of yours,” she said before she scowled. “Or perhaps not,” she managed to say before the entire cavern shook violently.

Everyone jumped to their feet as all the lights around us went out. When they flicked back to life, there were five new people in the room. Four were wearing concealing midnight blue cloaks and had a knife to each of my family members and Lucy’s throats. The fifth individual was wearing an elaborate dress of the same midnight blue that sparkled like the night sky. The sides were slit to reveal long, slender pale legs that met at wide hips. Those hips curved inwards to a trim waist that was accentuated by the plunging neckline of the dress that stopped just below the navel. I followed that up to cleavage that was impossibly contained by the gorgeous gown that was giving me all sorts of gender envy. Finally I looked up to behold the face before me, her otherworldly beauty marred by the hateful scowl she sported. 

With a flick of her wrist, and an unspoken command, the four cloaked figures disappeared, taking my family and Lucy along with them, leaving just me and this terrifyingly attractive woman whose identity was immediately clear. The Night Queen had arrived.

End Chapter 2

Teacup_Kitty

Oh no she's hot! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. As a quick reminder, I post my chapters as they are done up on my Patreon linked below! Anyways, take care and keep dreaming!