Anne knelt down before the imposingly beautiful statue of her grandaunt, setting her knees to the cold stone flooring as Zharris watched with interest, saying nothing even as he had a hand on the pommel of his sword, the glistening, sun-kissed claymore shining brightly in the unnatural darkness of the place. Without much further ado or even a word given, the first princess focused herself on the thought of her heaven-bound relative, sending a minute prayer to Phexris, though nothing audible was spoken.

Much akin to but a few minutes prior, fluorescent lights of a myriad colors erupted from the statues, flowing from it as if bursts of spellwork from a particularly talented mage. The paladin behind her shook with uncertainty and fear, causing Anne's lips to curl upwards in a smirk and smile, as a vivid memory of those same lights tearing his fellow acolytes apart like blades of wind cropped up on the mans soul. Despite the clearly traumatic memory raking his mind, he stood tall and silent, without bending, breaking or showing any further physical discomfort. He was proud and stalwart, much akin to what Anne often perceived a paladin should truly be like.

It made it somewhat difficult to hate him, though she hadn't much reason to do so in the first place. After all, Zharris was an elf and not a human, though that did not place him above any other mildly interesting ant. Perhaps, had he been a child of the NAO, that might have been a different story. For now however, the lioness considered the elf to be little more than a particularly shiny piglet.

The multicolored lights then coalescent themselves around Anne, drowning her body in a primordial shield of pure, rabid mana. Wisps of ancient powers and arcs of arcane electricity roared across the walls, uncaring of the elf behind the lioness as the poor man had to dodge quite a few bolts seemingly randomly fired from the shield.

Eventually however, Anne was completely consumed by the colorful display of magic, her visage disappearing into what seemed to be the physical result of a seizure, or a copious amount of drugs. Much to Zharris' own relief, the untamed magic that had attempted to fry him multiple times disappeared with her, with all that was left being a small, Anne-shaped hole, seemingly torn out of reality itself. Nothing the paladin had at his disposal seemed to be able to penetrate the thing, with his own magic being quickly drowned out by whatever wove this thing into reality from the other side.

It was quite clearly a portal, but to what or where, he could only guess.

---

Anne's Point Of View...

---

As soon as I opened my eyes, I was blasted with immeasurable sights, sounds so beautiful that nothing on the mortal world could ever compare. Tall spires of multicolored marble forming a beautiful castle, resting at the top of a magnificent mountain, sprawling outwards to showcase a mystical and mythical valley of infinite wonders.

Taking in a deep breath, I felt myself rejuvenated, my useless lungs springing with life and making me want to breathe in again, though it wasn't needed, almost like a newfound addiction. The air was crisp, clean and somehow palpably delicious, as if it was stuck by a continuous stream of lightning. It was cool, yet comfortable, the perfect temperature, with naught an even remotely unpleasant scent to pollute it.

It was, and still is, perfection. Just as I remembered it. "Mhmm..." A small breath of relief escaped me as I continued to take in the landscape. It had been a long time since I was last here, after all, walking amid these immense, fantastical halls of a magical castle, of my grandaunts home. Yet unlike back when I was a child, I now understood that this is all just a front.

An illusion, not in the magical sense, surprisingly. The castle and its beatific surroundings are not a lie, as much as they're really only there to fool ignorant mortals and keep them unaware of the true nature of this place. Much the same way as it is for Anea Sedea, beneath all this bluster and fantastical magic, lies an intricately scientific element. Yes, the living colors plastering the walls are indeed magical, but the 'marble' walls were not.

The silvery stones are actually a form of living metal, connected directly to the will of Phexris, shaping and reshaping themselves to her every whim. "Compass." I whispered to the air and extended my hand, watching with interest as the very air seemed to collapse together to form itself into the object I desired. An unseen atmosphere, filled to the brim with billions of nanomachines, curating and perfecting the environment of both the castle as well as the entire realm itself.

And just as beneath the anomalous matter of Anea Sedea lies an unending stream of blackened pipework and machinery used to process souls, I can feel the pulse of raw electricity beneath these living walls. The flooring in particular seemed to be alive with energy coursing through it, yet barely any mana could be felt inside.

Aestra, it seems, is a fantastical world operating on science, yet its 'magic' seemed as real as the nanomachines in the air around me. They were not the same thing.

I checked!

Multiple times.

Almost like I wanted such a ridiculous thing to be true. Maybe, it would make things simpler to understand? Perhaps, because otherwise I have to accept that this magical realm, or perhaps Aestra itself in its entirety, is much akin to a laboratory operated by gods and their respective creations, with myself being one of them.

"Done musing yet, Anne?" A familiar voice echoed from behind me, its velvet tunes rebounding off of themselves in beatific cacophony and, as I turned, my aunt's form came into view, though I only know its her due to the presence of her implausibly massive soul and unique aura. Her current self appeared to be female, though strikingly less than feminine. Her hair was black as midnight, long enough to reach her waist, even as her the right side of her head had a rather rebellious undercut. Her clothing was also something to behold, as my grandaunt was clad in a black overcoat which was complimented by a rather form-fitting top, being a black, long-sleeved shirt and a golden necklace, while the rest was just baggy pants, a belt and leather boots, all of which were equally dark as her hair.

It all seemed rather uniform in color, offering a rather obvious contrast to her entire realm and causing me do to a double take. I'd never seen Phexris look like this, as her usual styles are far more akin to that of Yvonne while this is something you could catch me wearing instead. "Uh, maybe?" A response finally managed to get out of my mouth as my former wonder was replaced with shock.

Auntie let out an annoyed sigh, showcasing black, fingerless gloves as she rubbed was seemed to be an aching head. "Bad day, don't ask, anyway, glad to see that you're finally here." She let out a chuckle whilst rolling her eyes and walking over to me. "I um- see?" Admittedly, I had to blink several more times before my eyes adjusted to the new scenery.

The first time I came here, Phexris looked like an actual fantasy Queen, granted her physical body was that of an Inerti and not an elf. "Good to know that your eyes still work fine." With another snort, Phexris signaled me to follow her with a lazy right hand before pivoting on her heel to turn around, beginning to walk in the direction of the castle gates. "Now come, as much as I'd love to chat, this isn't a leisure visit."

Now that, got my attention, causing me to quirk an eyebrow at the strangely-dressed goddess of magic. "Oh? And here I thought you just wanted to chat over coffee." My amusement was shared by her as we reached the castle gates, which were easily flung open with a single hand, revealing not the throne-room I expected and thought I knew for sure was behind them, but a glowing portal of swirling, multicolored magic not unlike everything else this realm had to offer.

Without further quips, Phexris walked through it and I followed, appearing in what seemed to be some kind of enclosed, experimental area. A large, white and well-lit room somewhere beneath the ground, with windows present on all four sides of the box-like structure, almost as if it was some form of testing chamber. Unlike above, the air here was sterile, clean but not quite as enjoyable as its predecessor. In fact, the sheer brutalism of the place reminded me of Anea Sedea rather than anything else.

Colorless magic pulsed within the walls as my aunt re-adjusted her gloves, causing me to turn my attention back towards her. "Why are we... wherever this is, grandaunt?"

Phexris rolled her eyes and replied. "Oh cut it out with the whole 'grand' thing, would you? Makes me feel old. 'Auntie' will do just fine." She smirked towards me as I looked away somewhat sheepishly. "Sure, I guess, Auntie?"

"Much better. Now then, we're here for the safety of my subjects and realm. These walls have been infused with so much of my power that not even I can break through them without giving it some effort." She cracked her fingers and then pointed at me. "As for you, you're here for two primary reasons. One, because we need to discuss something I want you to do for me in the mortal world..."

She seemed to stop, not so much for dramatic pause but to take in a breath, which was then promptly and immediately exhaled, indicating a rather sizable amount of annoyance. "And because my brother asked me to tell you the truth about your origin on this world, as well as undo the damage done by those around you in an effort to stunt your progress."

I had to blink, even as my body shook with uncertainty. The truth about my origin? My growth was stunted?...

I threw a look at the walls around me before turning back to Phexris with a suspicious gaze. "... We're here because you think whatever it is you've got to tell me will make me furious." Phexris shrugged and nodded in response to my conclusion. This explains her outfit too, since her usual dress would get in the way of combat.

"Its highly probable." She clicked her tongue before putting a finger to her chin in thought. "Actually, you getting mad is desirable outcome."

Blinking with confusion, I could already feel myself getting slightly mad though I reeled the irritation in for the moment, crossing my arms and making an audible harrumph. "Right, whatever you say, Auntie. Now, how about you actually tell me what's up instead of avoiding the subject."

She tilted her head and blinked, much as I did moments prior. "Eh? But I was just answerin-... you know what, never mind." She coughed into her fist and then continued. "So, say Anne, just for context, what do you think happened that got you reincarnated into Aestra?"

Quirking an eyebrow, I answered, though doubt had already begun to gnaw at the edges of my mind. "Uhhm... well, mother wanted a baby, so she made a body for it, but just as she was about to infuse it with soul, that whole hero summoning thing happened and I possessed the body instead?"

Phexris nearly laughed at my answer, causing my body to twitch. "Oh, come now, my dear Anne, you can't seriously believe that things were really so simple!"

I grit my teeth, but eventually let out a sigh and nodded. "Well, yes. It all sounds a bit much too 'fateful' to me. I mean, even if everything that I said so far was true and I really did possess the body intended for Yvonne, why exactly did I fly into that body instead of any other? I mean, there are literal hundreds of Inerti nobles carving away at their own flesh to create their future children, so how come I 'just happened' to possess the body of a princess instead of any of theirs?"

Auntie's lips curved upwards into a smirk as she offered me another nod of approval. "Good question, Anne." She chuckled as I looked away and let out a sigh. "And to answer it, that would be because my dear brother guided your soul there."

Now, I had to blink in shock. "... grandfather... guided me there? But how did he do that? I mean, even if he did that, it still does not explain how exactly he 'caught' my soul during transit? I was under the assumption that absolutely nobody had that kind of power."

She nodded. "And nobody does. Even we, the NAO, can only influence or demand a soul to come to our realm, but this can only happen while the soul is still bound to a living body. Take Lusith, for example, which soul would willingly go to his tower? Nay, his servants or he directly, marks the souls they want to go there after their demise on the mortal plane."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure there's freaks out there that would love to be punished by-" Phexris teleported in front of me and promptly blocked my mouth with her hand, a poorly-blocked snort betraying her amusement. "I didn't ask, thank you very much."

Then she warped back to where she was, a good distance away from me. "Anyway, back on track: the reason why Atlyon managed to snag your soul even as it was carried away by the human hero summoning ritual..." Now she really did pause for drama. "... is because he orchestrated the entire thing himself, of course. And your soul was already marked for delivery before you even died."

This revelation gave me some pause. "... seriously?"

"Yep! All of it! Every single thing, from the random decision of your friends to hold a strange ritual in school, to the humans of this worlds seemingly incredible tactical decision to abuse the short peace they managed to gain with demonkind, to summon heroes from another world, INSIDE!; of a county controlled by DEMONS!" Auntie was very close to bursting out in laughter as I continued to express shock.

I mean, I knew from the start that the whole story of my rebirth was scuffed but... this is not what I expected. Another sudden realization caused me to blink with uncertainty. "Wait, does this mean that you guys can influence Earth?"

Much to my surprise and no small amount of fear, Phexris nodded once again. "We can, yes. Though, that particular form of magic is severely limited by the Creator, so we can only use it for 'soft interactions', things like watching anime, for example... or influencing the dreams of hormonal teenagers."

A twitch sent rivers of irritation up and down my spine. "I-.. see." Managing to speak through gritted teeth, I continued. "So let me get this straight; grandfather orchestrated everything from the summoning to me possessing Yvonne's body, which I suppose explains why he was both awake and ready to help mother 'fix' the situation."

"Yes~. You seem to be taking this better than predicted, too!" She mused openly with a knowing smirk, causing my irritation to rise somewhat higher. "Predicted by who?" I then shook my head. "Never mind, its not important. I just... I have one question for you guys, if that's okay?"

"Of course, Anne." Her strangely joyous demeanor seemed to instantly switch to a more somber one, almost as if she knew what was coming. "... why me? Why would grandfather, out of the billions of humans on Earth, choose me?... and actually, while you're at it, what really happened to my friends since I was the main target of the summoning?"

"Your friends are 'fine'. Or well, as fine as they can be. They're heroes now, much like you, even though that was definitely not part of the plan." Phexris seemed to grit her teeth in rage and frustration, walking over and placing a hand on my shoulder. "Listen Anne, before I continue, please believe both me and your grandfather when we say that you are our family. Despite you being fed half-truths out of necessity, I am still very much your aunt and would like to stay that way forever." She hugged me close and I fought to hold back an onslaught of emotions.

"Telling me that now is really not fair..." I felt my fist dig into my own hand, but relaxed and hugged her back, with slightly more strength that I perhaps should have, though thankfully nothing happened. She released me and smiled, her own expression wrought with doubt and an undeniable sadness, alongside no small amount of rage.

"Its alright to cry, Anne. If your grandfather and I know anything, its that family can often be a painful thing." With that said, her expression turned fully into anger. "And he's gonna feel the full brunt of that pain for forcing me to do this shit in his stead, ARGH!"

She promptly warped away from me again and punched a wall, which easily cracked from the force of her strength. Gee, and here I thought 'not even she could break them easily'...

Phexris took in another breath, followed by a massively audible sigh. "Anyway, moving on from that rollercoaster of emotions, your grandfather chose you because he felt that you and he were likeminded people."

I blinked and nodded. "Well, I mean, even with this, he's not exactly wrong." A tinge of guilt bit at my back, remembering how many times I lied or spoke half-truths to Yvonne, even if only with the intent of protecting her. Was this really any different? Perhaps, all these falsehoods weren't there to protect only me, but my mortal family as well? If that is true, at least, then maybe I can forgive it more easily.

"He rarely ever is." Phexris chuckled to herself for a reason unknown to me, before turning around to face me once more. "So, as I was saying, while the whole 'bring your soul into Yvonne's body' was planned, the 'hero correction' is most certainly not as it goes against everything we intended for you to become."

"And what was I supposed to be? I mean, without the hero correction, I'd still be on Sarcopha, probably engaging in high course incest with my sister as I'd have no reason to deny her advances given that, y'know, I wouldn't eventually be forced to run off to see the world like some kind of tragic hero." Phexris merely shrugged at my answer, a slight smile appearing on her expression.

"True enough, though since you mentioned the incest, I suppose you're indirectly asking for our opinions on it? Well, I have no problem with it. In fact, I support you two wholeheartedly!... your grandfather will never live it down, though." This made me tilt my head in confusion. "Eh?"

"Well, you see, some of the other NAO have been paying close attention to your progress, Davith, for example, accusing my dear brother of intense hypocrisy as apparently, you sleeping with your sister is on the same level of 'degeneracy' as his harem of loli catgirls." My body visibly cringed as my irritation returned to me in full.

"I-.. see. I'll be sure to make my own opinion on the subject known to him as soon as possible." After all, that statue of the white wolf back in the Katedra could certainly use some 'beautifying' of my own design. "Back to the topic at hand; what was I supposed to be then and how exactly does the correction ruin it?"

Phexris' expression twisted into an insane grin. "Anne, if you were given the power of a god, what would you do to a world that already had life upon it?"

"Eradicate everything in existence and reshape it all in accordance to my own design, obviously?" Auntie let out a cheery laugh. "Indeed, that is what most people like us would do. So why, do you think, that my brother chooses to sleep instead, disregarding the creators presence?"

"I-.. I actually asked this question myself multiple times and um, I.. I don't know." I scratched the back of my head in a lame manner, causing Phexris to nod and sigh. "The answer is as simple as it is ridiculous: pride."

"... Pride?" Now I was even more confused. Atlyon is asleep because of.. pride?

"His job as the creator of souls set aside for the moment, my brother's power is rivaled only by a few of the NAO, myself included. All of our number however, are feared by the mortal races for our destructive and chaotic behavior, whilst only Atlyon, as well as The Dreamer to an extent, causes no direct harm and supposedly continues to sacrifice himself for the benefit of the world." She grinned and snorted at her own words, seemingly taking what was said as some form of joke.

Then she collected herself and continued to explain. "My brother sleeps, because if he didn't, Anne... he would not be able to contain himself. Even when we were still humans back on Earth, he often claimed that if he would gain any form of superpower, my brother would work to annihilate everything on the planet, aside from a chosen few others. He fears the Creator yes, but that would not stop him from going on a rampage to destroy the world."

A sudden image formed within my mind: the sleeping form of my grandfather. I could only see one side of his face, a peaceful, restful expression, perhaps even a soft, grandfatherly smile. Then, his body slightly shifted to show the other side, a wide-awake, grinning mouth of savage fangs, eyes glistening with gold and a menacingly crimson iris. So much rage, so much unspent hate, so much violence... A form of palpable sadism and cruel expectation that I almost didn't not believe could actually be coming from him.

My eyes grew wide with revelation. "Is that what I am, then? A tool to destroy the world in his stead?"

Phexris offered me a slow nod. "You, Domina, the Inerti, even my own children; the monsters. All different versions of a machine with the same intent, you're just the latest model, so to speak. And just as with all the other models, we fell in love with you before we could actually use you." She shrugged and admitted without any sense of shame.

"And I guess that the hero correction is the Creators attempt to prevent me from actually succeeding?" Much to my surprise however, Phexris shook her head. "To be perfectly honest, we haven't the slightest clue as to why the creator marked you with his own power. You see, while the summoning was orchestrated by Atlyon, your friends are still legitimate heroes, being chosen by False Gods for their innate potential... but you weren't. You are no 'hero', Anne. Without Atlyon's interference and should the summoning have happened at the exact same moment in time as it did, you would have likely been skewered to shreds by the rampant magic of the spell. Who knows? Maybe you'd even have appeared in this world... as a steaming pile of butchered body parts."

"So I wasn't chosen but he decided to mark me, anyway?" Phexris nodded and then sighed. "Now, I know what you might be thinking; the creator did this to prevent you from becoming a tool to express me and my brothers desire for violence, but that does not seem the case. I mean, if it was, why would he make it so your correction was tied directly to him and not some False God who could use it to tailor your mind for their own personal needs? As far as we know, the Creator hasn't even used it to contact you, only feed your growing powers in ways that not even we could imagine was possible."

She cleared her throat. "After all, you are half as strong now, as that bastard Davith's own son and herald, Kral Vid, was at the beginning of his heroic journey."

"So the Creator has made me stronger than you'd be able to in this amount of time? Isn't that the opposite of preventing me from becoming a destroyer? Wait, is my hatred for humanity also influenced by him?!" Could it be that my hate isn't entirely my own?! Turbulence wracked my mind, but thankfully, my aunt merely smiled and shook her head in negative.

"The Creator gave you power, but the hate you feel is yours and yours alone, Anne. A natural reaction, as any would have towards something that hinders their personal self-determination, though that wrathful nature of yours is curious nonetheless." She mused with a smile as a terrible cold raked across my body, almost as if I was being cut apart, expertly divided into pieces just to see what made me tick.

Phexris' eyes glowed with the signature bluish pink of arcane magic before the feeling died down. "With all that said, we can only assume that the Creator has his own plans for you and that perhaps, they aren't as far from our own goals as we might think."

A nod was my reply. "I suppose we'll just have to wait and see. Anyway, you mentioned how the people around me have stunted my growth?"

"Not willingly, mortal ignorance can be an astounding thing, after all, but yes, they have indeed." Phexris let out another audible sigh. "But I'll not point blame towards anyone and just get straight to the point; you are NOT, a herald, Anne, nor will you ever 'become' a herald."

"... excuse me?" A quirked eyebrow was all I could offer in response as yet another sigh escaped my inexorably beautiful aunt. "To preface, there is a limit to how many heralds a NAO may have. The only way to create a new one is to replace an existing herald; this is what Yvonne is to become once your mother goes to sleep."

"So I was never meant to become the Empress in the first place, eh?" It makes sense, in a way. Domina wanted for the next empress to be friendly and have a much easier time forging relationships rather than spending a lonely existence, neither of which applies to me. Yvonne, on the other hand...

"No, you were meant to take on the role of a military leader. A possibility that is still open to you once you return to Sarcopha." A general of some kind, eh? Well, having armies at my disposal would certainly make causing genocide easier and its not like I haven't thought of it myself.

With a nod of my own directed at my aunt, I said. "Good to know. However, with me not being a herald and thusly not directly a part of Atlyon, where exactly do I get my powers from?"

Phexris just pointed at me.

Me.

Myself?

But that's just not possible. "But.. when I pray, my spells get stro-"

"Your grandfather is certainly more experienced at using your power more than you are, but its still just your power. Your aura and that of my dear brother are nearly entirely the same, but you are a separate creature nonetheless, not just an extension of his soul projected onto reality. A person, not some manifestation of his own considerable powers." Phexris nodded in a sagely manner, in spite of interrupting me.

Rising my right hand up and staring into my own palm. "Are you saying that Yvonne isn't her own person?"

"She is. This is exactly why your mother will be made to 'sleep' instead of being replaced directly. Domina will remain the Herald she always was, acting as a funnel for Atlyon to channel his power into Yvonne without making her a puppet." A sour tone filled her voice as Phexris hugged herself. "Your mother however, is just an extension of Atlyon himself, as all heralds are. They may have their own hopes, dreams, voices and thoughts, but they will always coincide with the views of their creators. They may be our children, but they may as well be androids that we personally programmed instead of people."

A massive sigh escaped me. "Y'know, learning all this puts grandfather calling me 'very, very special' on a whole other level."

But before Phexris could reply, I turned my head around to face the walls of this box-like room. "Anyway, looks like this place wont see much use after all, eh?"

Auntie merely shrugged. "Perhaps, that's for the best. I'd still have liked for you to get angry and get this out of your system, but we'll have plenty of time for that, later."

So I'll be coming back here, is that it? Probably for some kind of special training. "And finally, we can get to why I wanted you to come here~." Oh boy, her tone is full of repressed irritation again. "Oh? And why would that be, auntie?"

Her expression softened somewhat after being called auntie. Aha! A weakness to abu- I mean, use sparingly and affectionately to get what I want. "Your other aunt, Aranvea, has a false goddess girlfriend. A human, false goddess, of death. Your grandfather seems to insist that what they have is a 'rivalry' but I think he's just an anti-shipper at this point."

She snorted and chuckled before continuing. "Anyway, this false goddess, whose name is Leythene, has decided to encroach upon my territory and is currently attempting to rise one of my fallen children, a dragon, as her undead mind-slave. Her servants have infiltrated the ranks of both the adventurers guild, as well as the Katedra priestly communes. This is the true reason for which you were sent to Avarest instead of Ennergres directly: to aid me in destroying this arrogant goddess' plans. No one, not even the definitely-not-girlfriend of one of my adorable nieces, raises my children into undeath!"

I put a finger on my chin in thought. "One of the priests I met mentioned something about, and I quote, 'every monster this side of the continent gunning for the city'. I'll assume that this is your reply to Leythene's little ploy?"

Another nod was my answer. "Correct. I'll make sure to... 'lessen', the monsters aggressions for the time being to buy you some time to conduct an investigation and potentially stop the cult. If you don't manage to do it on time, that entire city will burn." She beamed me a smile and I returned it in full. "And if I do manage it on time, some monster will be there to comment on how my heroic actions saved the city from certain doom, yes~?"

"Two birds with one stone, no?" She winked at me, then let out a sigh and sent a wave of colorful magic near me, resulting in the formation of a familiarly seizure-inducing portal, same as the one that brought me to this realm, to Neam Divina, in the first place. "Now, as much as I'd love to continue talking to you, my sweet little Anne, I'm afraid that your aunt is a very, very busy woman. So, if you don't mind, you should go back before your pet projects get worried that their newfound surrogate mother is gone for too long."

My entire body cringed and twitched at the mention of the debatably-undead twins. "I- uh.. yeah, I'll do that." With that said, I turned around to walk towards the portal, waving a goodbye to my aunt in the process.

Before blinking as Phexris' voice once again echoed behind me. "Oh, and one more thing, Anne."

"Uhm?" My confusion was only increased once she replied. "Beware the Child of Adamant."

I blinked in confusion and opened my mouth to speak, only for Phexris to warp in front of me and promptly kick me into the portal with a smirk on her face.

Well shit, now I know exactly who was the role model for Domina...