Eight years later...
Time passed by in a flash, a blink and without even a nudge of realization from our resident First Princess, whom awoke to greet the morning of her twelfth birthday much the same as she did every other day; by standing outside, in the morning blizzard, while stark naked in order to think, meditate and wake herself up.
She'd grown quite tall these past few years, having already reached a meter and fourty centimetres, figuring that she would reach her mother's height soon enough and stop there. Before, she would find herself dressed in a nightgown whilst braving the blizzard, but that had changed after having her one hundredth nightgown torn apart by the freezing environment.
It should be noted how this has never truly been part of her training, but something she did of her own accord, as a means of acclimatizing to her new home more efficiently. Recently, she'd noticed how the blizzard carried with it a distinct lack of ash, meaning it was far more full of sharp ice and snow. The mountains have been silent as of late and concrete production has slowed down somewhat, which brought some worrying signs. A few doom sayers even kept spouting on and on about how the volcanoes had finally dried up and ran out of lava, which was basically impossible. The world wouldn't be able to function properly if that was the case; even though she couldn't blame the Inerti for panicking.
After all, they couldn't possibly know these things. "And you have done extremely well with suppressing your own desire to teach them such technologies, darling."
Anne smirked lightly as she turned her eyes to the left. "Hi, mom." The two meter tall figure chuckled lightly at her child as she walked onto the balcony with her. Unlike her child, the woman was dressed in full plate armour, as she pretty much always is.
"Hello, sweetie. I see you're still as indecent as ever." Anne tilted her head and let out a yawn, stretching herself lazily even as the frost raked against her bare flesh. "Is there someone around that's capable of seeing me through the blizzard? If not, its not like I have any reason to restrain myself."
The less clothing one had to wear, the more comfortable they could be, or so was the opinion of the Princess. Her mother let out a sigh before giggling despite her clear disapproval. "Well, not as far as I know of, but you should get dressed soon."
Anne quirked an eyebrow at her mother. "Why? Its not like my training starts anytime soon." Having pointed that out and despite the tone of her question, Anne did as she was told and turned around to clean herself of soot, melting the glacial icicles on her body with magic and using them up in the process.
"Well, I simply figured that its finally time for you to meet your grandfather as tonight is the end of the most recent soul cycle, meaning that he will finally be awake." The first princess blinked in surprise and confusion as she dressed herself in casual, black clothing, the same type of shirt, gloves, silk jeans and sabaton boots as always. She loved these clothes and had a full wardrobe of the exact same set, though today she made the exception of wearing underwear as well.
"Already? Weren't Soul Cycles supposed to happen once every two decades or so?" Her mother nodded as she closed her daughters stone balcony door, wiping away the soot gathered on her armour before replying. "Indeed. It would seem that several wars have broken out across Aestra, particularly on the continent of Ennergres."
Domina hummed for a moment before continuing. "Something about a demonkin barony failing to provide the safe heaven they promised for several human regents, with one of the aforementioned humans dying via assassination."
"So the humans are getting revenge for that?" Domina nodded towards her daughter just as her child finished dressing up. "I believe it has something to do with a failed ritual to summon heroes about a decade ago. The chaos left in the wake of the dead king has been settled, so everyone is looking for a new target to continue the fighting."
Anne blinked and then jerked her head around to face her smirking mother, prompting an exasperated sigh to escape once she saw Domina's expression. "Wild guess but uh, does that 'hero summoning' you just mentioned have something to do with me?"
Her mother offered Anne a soft nod and the pointed towards the outside with an open palm. "Walk with me, daughter." Anne swallowed down hard and steeled her heart. Her mother did not appear to be angered or even tense, but that meant very little when one realized the possibility that they may have enraged a literal goddess.
Taking several silent steps out of her room, Anne found her hand being taken into that of her mothers, who looked at her with a slightly saddened face which poked a deep hole in Anne's heart. "I have known about your hate, as well as your 'heroic curse', as you so call it, for quite a long time now, my child."
Her mothers hand tightened around her fingers, to the point where the little girl could feel her mothers worry and sorrow as their powerful bond continued to reverberate through the souls of both. "I know how much it hurts you, how much you suffer because you are forced to love a people that are not yours."
"Not any more..." Anne muttered out with equal rage and sadness, with shame clearly lacing her tone. Domina stopped and picked her daughter up instead of walking, surprising her child but quickly steadying herself. "Anne. You are Inerti. You are not human. In reality, you haven't ever even been human. Everyone's soul is reborn as something other than their previous species upon death, you just happened to remember your past life as more than simple talents."
Domina's words of comfort reached her child as Anne hugged her mother tightly. "I know that... I really, really do... but its just not enough... I want it gone. I want to be able to be your daughter without feeling like running away everyday..."
"You would not be running away, my child. You would be going on an adventure, to find yourself before you come back home again." Domina spoke softly, as Anne realized that this must've been a mantra that her mother was repeating to herself every single day, knowing full well that she would eventually leave to remedy her own fate.
Guilt and shame ate away at Anne as she remained silent.
Neither of them shed a tear, for they both believed that they had to be strong for each other. Eventually however, Domina patted the back of her shaken child and smiled. "But the day that you leave is not today." Anne pulled her head back and looked at her softly smiling mother before hugging her again, as tightly as possible.
"Even when I do, I'll come back as soon as I can." Domina, however, did not stop smiling. "I know. That's why we're going to see your grandfather today."
A few minutes later...
After what felt like an eternity hugging the one mother she truly loved in either life, Anne finally released her hug once she felt Domina lightly tapping her shoulder twice. Clearing away her sniffles and the few tears that managed to escape her control, Anne lightly jumped out of her mothers arms and took her first steps on what looked like time-frozen stone.
Greyish, with an almost foul green or teal light, this unnatural, petrified material was everywhere in the dreary room that she found herself in. Ancient cracks within the stone all lead her sight forward, to the centre of an absolutely massive vortex of souls, with millions upon millions entering and leaving it with every second and moment that passed in this strange place.
The centre of the vortex was a swirling mass, liquid, yet not, as soul upon soul passed through it. She looked up to see the vortex extending to the sky, which was impossible since they were surely underneath one of the worlds tallest mountains, while the bottom of the vortex seemed to penetrate deep into the earth itself.
"Please! Save me!"
"Nooooo!"
"I don't want to go!"
"Don't leave me!"
"Mommy? Daddy?!"
"It was hot... it hurts..."
"Christina! Where are you?!"
"Daddy?! Daddy! I'm here!"
"I can't find you! -Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Sounds of perpetual torment could be heard, echoing through the very souls of those present. Nothing was making these sounds and they had no tone, no voice, yet each could be clearly distinguished, the kind of place which would quite assuredly drive anyone insane simply by being near. But for Anne, this place was...
Calming.
Relaxing.
Peaceful.
The screams of the souls had no effect on the First Princess. In fact, the rabid energies leaking from the portal, from the very gate to the realm of the dead, seemed to soothe and empower her. For the first time in her life, she felt as if she was truly, truly home. Anne relaxed fully, closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, feeling rejuvenated, as if a cold wind had blown through her whilst she was red with fury.
Entropy... death... cessation... sterilization.
All the great forms of the inevitable end, of the very demise that she, as the child of a goddess, was born to represent, for it was not the act of killing that Anne sought, as she was now realizing, but the merest cessation of the act of living. The heroic curse, was forcing her to live, to seek out mankind and save them, to move ever forward and seek ever greater power for no reason at all.
It was making her malcontent, whereas her entire being is based off of contentment. It was a falsehood, a mistake, a disease, a cancer that had to be cut out. And from the whispers, Anne already knew that her grandfather fully agreed. Grinning and regaining her pride from her previous onset of tears, Anne moved closer to the portal, intent on entering it.
"Not so fast, sweetie." Domina gently spoke from behind Anne, grasping her shoulder before her child could enter the realm of death. Anne turned to look at her mother with a confused expression as she watched the tall woman rip out a small stone from the ground, then douse it in the rampant energies of the passing souls, before handing the stone over to Anne.
"Eat this first, darling." Now, Anne had to do a double take, quirking her eyebrow at her mother with an incredulous look. Nevertheless, after a few moments of stunned silence, Anne took the rock and put it in her mouth, fully expecting this to be a joke or a trick. However, it was far from it, as she felt the energies of death filling her insides, with a stinging pain striking against her chest, causing the little girl to fall on her knees, clutching her heart.
The stone turned to dust in her mouth and she was forced to swallow it whole as something new appeared on her soul; a new correction, a new power, a new spell. Etching itself on the very essence of her soul, the spell worked its finer details into her head, forcing every potential outcome and observation that it could, and once the process was complete, Anne found herself capable of summoning a strange, almost alien rune carved into the very stone that she had swallowed moments prior that, when it had mana channelled into it, would form a minor gateway into the realms of the dead.
Anne's expression turned to a full blown smile as she realized that this meant she could come to see her family regardless of where she was. "Thank you... mom..."
"Don't mention it, Anne. Besides, your sister would have strangled me in my sleep if I allowed you to go without this..." Her mother rubbed the back of her head in an almost lame manner before coughing as Anne found herself agreeing with the older woman, seeing as her little sister had become immensely protective of Anne.
Well, truth be told, she always was, just that she didn't always possess the magical power of an arch mage to back up her overprotective nature. "Well? What are you waiting for? Go and say hi to your grandpa." Anne blinked in confusion as she turned towards her mother, only to see the woman's foot bearing down on her face.
And by the time Anne's consciousness caught up to the fact that she was kicked right in the face, by her own mother no less, she found herself falling down a sea of souls, where no sound seemed to be able to form. She fell and fell and continued to fall through the endless sea of teal and white and green, before eventually closing her eyes, turning her body around and kicking off straight forward, rushing through a myriad souls as if they were clouds of liquid.
Anne's Point Of View...
"Damn, never thought I'd be fine with getting kicked in the face..." Muttering to myself as I finally reached what looked to be 'solid ground', I took a look around. This entire place was as if desolation itself got made physical by some outward, all-powerful entity. Stone pathways, shattering and reforming, seas of teal, viscous fluid and dry, white earth.
Everything was cracked or broken in some manner, only to reforge itself and shatter again. Nothing was stable, yet nothing was unstable, as if both eventualities existed in a perpetual manner. There were no cycles here, only extremes, only the ending points of all things. That, of course, included myself.
As I dusted myself, I noticed how my vision swam and for a brief moment, my body was an equivalently teal colour, just as the realm and my hands pushed through my own flesh as if it were a form of gas, as if I was one of the souls flying everywhere. Another blink and I was back to normal, but regardless of where I was or how I looked, I could feel nothing.
Not even the 'dust' I shook off of myself. I could breathe in once, but that 'air' would never be spent. I would not need to breathe again, even if I had food in my system, or was it just that breathing isn't required at all when one is here? Either way, entering this place, this realm of the dead, has already been quite the experience and I've only been here for about four seconds.
I took a step.
Or I think I did? Maybe I was always here, a step ahead of my previous location and simply never noticed it? "Hell, seems like even walking around here is like a drug trip." My voice echoed out, sounding equally like the tone of an old, decaying woman, as well as my normal, youthful self.
Perhaps, that's the truth of it? Since both extremes exist at the same time, both of them are true, regardless of logic? But should I even apply logic to a place like this? From the books, I know that Anea Sedea is a place where the 'act of living' does not exist. I never really understood this phrase before, but I think I get it now.
Living, is not a state that is an extreme, but everything between. To live, means to forever walk forward on a moving staircase. If you stop, you die, if you go to far, you also die. Regardless of what happens, death, or rather entropy, is an inevitable force that seeks to return you to its eternal constant. And regardless of personal nature, all things are inexorably guided to a 'preferred state of being' which is always simple sterility.
Peaceful, unmoving, sterile and most importantly; without energy, without heat or ability to move. "Halt, priestess. Why does thou approach the gates of death without offering?"
A powerful voice shook me from my thoughts as I forced my head upwards to see a rather terrifying sight; that of a faceless void bound in humanoid armour, of deep, silvery-black plate and glowing eyes that reflected a world as empty as its armour. "I'm.. not a priestess." Somehow, I managed to reply, wincing from the echo of my own voice as the knight seemed to be taken aback, taking a few steps backwards and pulling out a great, grey claymore out of the ground.
"H-hey, no need to get violent, alright? I'm just here to see my grandfather." The knight's actions became even more impulsive when I said this as he took upon a combat stance. "The living have no place within the lands of the dead. Any trespassers shall be allowed inside only on the condition that their life is taken away."
I let out an exasperated sigh and rolled my eyes. "I don't know if this is some weird test orchestrated by my mother or something, but I can see that you aren't willing to listen to reason." Having finished saying that, I took on my own combat stance.
The knight 'rose an eyebrow' at my response, then let out a chuckle. "That is correct. Explain thyself to I, Equillion, through the honesty of your blade!"
"Ain't got no 'blade'. You're gonna have to do with my fist!" Charging ahead as a mental command was sent to my gauntlets, making the wondrous piece of artifice reassemble itself mid-flight, I surprised the knight with a straight, shoulder-powered jab aimed at his chest. Seemingly startled by the unexpected assault, the Knight let go of his claymore and rose his right hand in order to catch my fist.
Boom.
An explosion of sound tore through the nearby land, sending what looked to be a wave of air and kicking up a ton of greyish dust from the ground. Still surprised by the force behind my blow, the knight took a step back and, when he realized that he couldn't prevent being pushed back further without acting, tried to enclose his hand over mine.
Snorting to myself, I quickly pulled my hand away, lightly jumped up and then send a roundhouse kick straight to his 'neck'. He took it like a champ, seemingly offering me a slight grin as a creepy, fanged mouth appeared on the black void that constituted his face before swinging his sword at me from the ground up. Thinking quickly, I used his head to push myself away, which created an opening that he took without missing a beat, reforming his combat stance, raising his massive claymore up and rushing towards my landing point.
Once there, he rose his sword even further before swinging it down, seemingly intent on severing me in half, though I got the distinct feeling that he was holding back. Perhaps, he does not often get challenged by a worthy opponent? No... this does not feel like anything quite so simple...
Anyway, I managed to predict his course of action, so I took a stance and dug my heels into the ground, kicking the earth to gather power as I deflected the massive claymore with my left gauntlet, before sending another jab straight into my opponents abdomen. This one struck hard, causing the knight to let out a terrifying grunt that shook my soul.
Geez, talk about a morale breaker.
With that done, the knight promptly backhanded me across the field, ripping my heels out of the soil as I flew a couple meters away, feeling like I just got wrecked by a heavy-duty sledgehammer. "Tch!" But this was something my training had long since prepared me for; all those days of being pummelled by people stronger than me weren't for nothing.
Gritting my teeth through the pain, I joined my hands in prayer and uttered a spell. "Oh, Atlyon, o' father of sleep, grant me thy blessing and shield me from change!" The knight 'blinked' again as he saw a bright, pale light coalescing around me, covering my skin in a glow not unlike that of the souls passing through this place. I do not normally pray when I cast my magic, but it doing so noticeably improves the spells performance and I need my best for this fight.
Within moments, I was back on him, this time aiming a mana-fueled strike straight at his chin, which resulted in a blow that resounded through his armour, as if I had just punched a massive cathedral bell. Shaking his head, the knight covered his face with his left hand, while using his right to move the pommel of his claymore to the right, promptly joining the silvery orb with my face.
A resounding crunch followed afterward as I defiantly spat out a tooth. If I didn't have my grandfathers protection, that ridiculous blow would have been enough to decapitate me, so I made some distance and healed myself without a chant, restoring my tooth, though my cheek remained slightly bruised.
The knight seemed to grin as he took up his sword, rising it with the intent to charge once again. In silence, we both prepared our stances and nodded to each other, then charged forward like true warriors. I can practically feel my chuuni heart bursting through my chest at this point!
But then, just as we were about to strike at each other, a massive scythe blocked my path to the knight and cruel chains appeared out of nowhere that brought him stumbling into the ground face-first. Now, my heart was beating even faster. "God damn, I nearly pissed myself..."
Muttering out in embarrassment before I could stop myself, I frantically looked around for the owner of the scythe, only to have my face bound in a set of gigantic tits out of nowhere. "Oh, you poor thing! What has my idiotic sister been teaching you?! No child should be able to fight like that!" A familiar voice echoed through my skull as I struggled to breathe, reminding me of mother, yet somehow much, much older.
"Her soul is wrought with pain and suffering... She has been made far too strong for any twelve-year old." Another voice could be heard, just as the sound of tearing metal followed it. "I don't know what you guys are on about. Domina has raised a true warrior and I could not possibly approve of my little niece more!"
The Knight yelled out with a jubilant tone as I was finally released from the 'breastful' stranglehold, confused and highly flushed. "Uhmmm...? Hi?" I blinked as my brain finally caught up to reality, allowing me to notice a cloaked, skeletal king floating in the sky and the woman that was still hugging me tightly. She looked exactly like mother, but with black hair and wearing a wedding dress made out of spider webs.
I mean, I'm wearing a shirt and pants made out of spider webs so why am I judging?
Anyway, a few moments of silence followed as I processed what I heard and was seeing. After a bit of utter confusion, things finally clicked in my head: Mother is the daughter of Atlyon, these guys are his heralds; the legendary knight Equillion, whom protects the gate to the realm of the dead, the mistress of webs, Aranvea, whom is tasked with gathering souls unwilling to pass on and Messos, the great administrator of Anea Sedea!
In other words, my aunt and two uncles!
A bright smile etched itself on my face before I grinned. "I really wanted to meet you guys!" My joy was met with equal fervour from the present trio, but especially uncle Equillion, who managed to dust himself off and promptly threw his sword away before giving me a thumbs up. "Same here, little one. You're one hell of a fighter."
"Indeed, though I doubt that possessing a skill in battle is necessary for a child...?" My other uncle tilted his skull in confusion. "Though, it is good to finally meet you, Anne." He quickly added on in an awkward manner, which caused me to chuckle.
"And I would prefer it if you two did not test our adorable niece any further! I'd like for her to enjoy visiting us more frequently, you know!" Aranvea scolded her two brothers, who both seemed sheepish in response. Meanwhile, I blinked and tilted my head. "Ehh? But that was a really good fight, though? I wouldn't mind having another spar or two with uncle."
Auntie's expression turned to one of immense shock and subtle fury.
Messos didn't know how to react.
And uncle Equillion gave me a fist bump.
Yeah.
This feels like family and home.
A few hours later... - Normal POV
Having spent some precious time with her newly-met family members, the First Princess was eventually lead into a vast chamber that practically sang with power, where nobody seemed to dare to follow her.
And she could instantly see why, for there was a strange figure floating above an endless sea of souls, a vortex not unlike the one which brought her here. "Hey, wait a minute..." Anne thought to herself and looked upwards, only for her eyes to widen in realization when she saw that she was actually beneath the castle, yet the vortex split once more, its vast energies flowing through the blackened figure and downwards, into what seemed to be a teal abyss.
There was more to that story that the books could tell her, it would seem. Swallowing down hard, Anne approached her grandfather with some trepidation and growing anxiety, caused by the fact that everything around her was practically drowning in soul energy, in a form of ambient mana that leaks out whenever anyone's storage reaches their peak.
What was making her slightly terrified is just how familiar this particular 'mana' was, since its form and makeup was the exact same as the radiant, entropic power that coated the entire realm of the dead. "No... more than that, the strange magic that's affecting the entire continent of Sarcopha..."
Her thoughts trailed off as she tasted the magic in the air, filtering it through her own as if making an effort to disillusion herself from what should be an impossibility, yet managing to only further ascertain herself of it. "The aura of this realm, the death magic on the surface... its all just this guy's ambient mana..."
"Its a bit rude to refer to your grandfather as 'this guy', don't you think, Anne?" An echoing voice, without tone, without life, yet somehow immensely amused and joyous at the same time, erupted all around her. It wasn't as if anything was spoken, but more akin to having someone else's thoughts etched into your very mind.
The floating figure turned around slowly, showing off a malnourished body, wearing nothing but a black shirt and pants. Anne's grandfather chuckled when he saw her, followed by a sly grin. "I like your style, kid. Real nice choice of outfit."
His ancient, lion-like ears twitched as Anne grinned right back at him. "Right back at you, old-timer. Besides, would you have preferred to have me call you Walmart Jesus instead?"
Atlyon snorted and retorted with an amused tone. "Oh, believe me, I'm nothing like Jesu-" He then offered her a sudden blink, before his lips curved upwards in a smile. "Clever girl... that was well done." He complimented her with a grin of his own.
Anne's grin now went from ear to ear. "So you're a reincarnator too, eh?"
"Not in the same manner as you, but yes." Atlyon's reply caused Anne to relax as she walked closer to the blacked-wearing figure, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier. Rubbing her nose, followed by a wince of pain, Anne's confusion was shattered as quickly as it formed due to her grandfathers reply. "It would be for the best that you remain on the other side of that barrier, little one."
His tone was wrought with slightly worry and embarrassment, almost as if he forgot the barrier even existed, though Anne didn't hold it against him. Looking a bit more around the place and particularly at the spot that her grandfather was floating, she noticed the presence of a tornado of grey ash which stormed around and beneath him, likely having been formed from the bodies of those who came too close to the God Of Death.
With a nod, Anne simply smiled at her grandfather. "So uhm... nice to meet you?"
An awkward laugh escaped her as Atylon chuckled and nodded. "Same to you, granddaughter. Don't worry, I didn't simply call you here because I wished to meet you."
Anne coughed into her fist, feeling slightly bad about even considering that and remembering the fact that him being awake means nobody gets to be born back in the real world, as if reality itself had been put on pause. People were probably freaking out and greater chaos was inevitable if they don't finish their business quickly. "Take a seat."
As her grandfathers voice etched itself into her mind once more, Anne found herself watching in awe as a throne made out of bones grew out of the pale, lifeless soil. Shrugging and doing as she was told, Anne waited patiently for whatever was coming next. "As you may know, your soul is afflicted with a certain..." Atlyon clicked his tongue in annoyance, an action that Anne found rather familiar. "... drawback. However, as much as I would love to rid you off it here and now, I simply cannot override the Creator's power."
A deep gloom formed within Anne's chest. "Nothing's ever easy, eh?"
The man chuckled morosely and nodded. "I'm afraid so, darling. However, there is a chance that we could modify the correction somehow. After all, regardless of its origin, a correction is still just a correction. Removing it may be impossible, but changing it is a whole other can of worms."
Anne's hope returned as she blinked. "Like something an administrator of a video game server would do. We can't delete the stuff that the owner put in, but we can balance it!"
Chuckling at her enthusiasm, Atlyon nodded even while his tone remained morose. "Indeed, but doing so will require some 'field research', if you will."
"Oh?" Anne raised an eyebrow and grinned, knowing where this was going due to her previous conversation with her mother. "I've done my own research into your problem, you see; and it turns out that the 'hero correction' has multiple stages that it can reach should certain conditions be met. One of them allows you to possess the powers of a heroine without being bound to humanity."
"And what conditions do I have to fulfil to get that?" Atlyon let out a heavy sigh at her question. "I'm afraid that I do not know for certain, little one. Perhaps, the Creator is blocking me from finding out or I simply need more time to properly ascertain it, but either way, I cannot say for sure."
Anne hummed for a while before nodding. "Well, it shouldn't matter, right? Even with just this information, its safe to say that I have to go to Ennergres. Someone there probably has the information I need, such as the human royals or maybe even some fallen hero."
With a nod from her grandfather in turn, Anne rose from her seat, bowed before her god and creator, which caused his eye to twitch in annoyance, and turned to leave. "Not so fast, little one."
"Eh?" Anne turned her head with a blink, almost expecting another kick to the face, only to see her grandfather flicking his fingers towards her as a portion of the blackened, grey ash flying beneath him was forcefully fed to her. "... geez, why does my family love feeding me inedible shit?"
Despite her thoughts, the First Princess once again began to experience alien emotions and experiences etching themselves upon her very soul, this time adding onto the stone rune 'given' to her by her mother a few hours prior. This time, she was given a gateway that lead into what seemed to be a mansion of teal stone, with the entire construction practically overflowing with souls.
Flashes of memory showed her many places, such as an extravagant bedroom, a training yard, a kitchen, excessive storage area, living room and many, many other facilities. "Remember Anne, as you are my descendant and technically a herald in the making, you cannot truly die unless I allow it. So should you receive fatal damage in the waking world, you'll return to Anea Sedea and find yourself in the mansion I just created for you."
Anne blinked as she reopened her eyes. "Wait, I'll become a herald one day? What about my sister?!"
Atylon nodded. "I would suggest you keep this a secret, but it will take far longer for little Yvonne to ascend than it will you. This has nothing to do with me preferring you over her, by the way. You can blame your own understanding of death and entropy for that, which is only further empowered by the hero correction."
"So its because I'm a reincarnated person, huh..." Her grandfather nodded, but then smirked. "Well yes, but actually no." Anne blinked as her eye twitched. "... huuh?..."
Atlyon let out a laugh. "I mean, not everyone has the ego required to firmly accept themselves as being in a state that is both alive and dead at the same time, during their very first entry into this realm, no less." His laughter turned to restrained chuckles as Anne's cheeks flushed with red. "It is fortunate that you managed to delude yourself as such however, as without that realization, you would have been ejected right back from whence you came."
Anne blinked in momentary confusion before replying. "Wait, does that mean that the reason mother didn't follow me here is because she cant?"
Much to Anne's relief, Atlyon shook his head. "My daughter can walk through these lands, but she was made for life, not death. As such, she cannot stay here long, as the energy of the realm would sap away her strength, much as her sister, Aranvea, can only remain in the mortal world for a short period of time and has her power diminished to the level of a mere False God while doing so."
He then looked at her with a grin. "But you? Oh, you are very, very special, my little Anne, for you can walk both the realm of the living, as well as Anea Sedea, as I can."
With her eye still twitching due to her grandfathers cringy speech, Anne blinked and asked. "Wait, you can go to the mortal plane?!"
Atlyon nodded, but then sighed as he looked up to the 'sky'. "Indeed, I can, but doing so would incur the Creator's wrath. Even simply being awake causes my power to stifle the world above. Appearing on it directly ... well, lets just say I don't hate anyone enough to do that, not even that scum called Davith, though his 'chosen people' would be far better off dead." Atlyon hatefully muttered with a grimace before turning back towards Anne. "With that said, you should leave and I should go to sleep, preferably before the Creator comes to investigate why the flow of souls has stopped."
Blinking with her mouth agape, Anne let out a snort, chuckled and waved her grandfather goodbye without another word. There was no need to speak, for she was certain that he could see the farewells etched into her thoughts. "Oh, and by the way, Anne?"
She blinked and turned around for a second time, slowly, hoping not to get another piece of inedible matter in her mouth. "You should offer a couple prayers to Phexris. I'm sure your grandaunt would love to hear from you too!" Anne quirked an eyebrow as she looked at her grandfather. The face that the God of Death happened to show at this moment pretty much spelled out 'do it or my sister will kill me'.
"A-ah, sure. I'll uh- do that when I can."
The god of death fears his sister, as all good brothers should.