“Lily, you wanted my help so go inside your house and watch us from there,”

“But mum...”

“No buts Lily, you can step in if I go too far but I need to focus on her,” Lily doesn’t like being sent away but it is hard to focus on the girl in front of me when I just want to hug my daughter. I have been showing her affection for so many years it is hard to stop even when I need to be serious and she needs me serious and as focused as I can be right now.

She vanishes and I can already sense she has made her house visible on the other end of this rock. I guess she wants to make it clear that she is still nearby.

“She lives here?”

“For now. Anyway, Adaira, right?

“Yes, you are her mother?”

“My wife gave birth to her but yes,”

“She has your eyes,”

“Let’s keep focused for now. I am going to give you instructions and I need you to follow them okay?”

“Lily is watching us right?”

I sense the magic slightly but I am guessing time was slowed or stopped as I see nothing except Adaira’s face turn red.

“Let's start with a teleport, say about a meter to your left,” She does so and I can’t help but feel something is off.

“Is something wrong?” Yes, something is certainly off but it is too fast.

“Lily, slow time for during her next cast for everything except me. Now Adaira, teleport back to where you were,” I watch as carefully as I can but it is still too fast. I keep making her do it again and again while Lily makes it slower and slower until I notice it. Lily, I have no idea what you did but you made something completely different.

“Lily, you can come out now,” I am not surprised she is already there, her hand is around Adaira’s waist, interesting…

“What is it mum?” I snap back to reality with that.

“She isn’t a witch,”

“What?” They are in sync with that outburst.

“Witches teleport by expanding a void at the target destination in their shape and then switching with that, there is a minimal pressure difference but it often causes an apprentice witch to cough when they are not used to it. You generally use this method to Lily but with some differences that cancel pressure changes but we won’t get into that this time. She isn’t doing that. She is actively crushing herself down with magic and reappearing at the destination. There is a slight implosion where she leaves and an explosion where she appears, honestly, I am not sure how she is alive from it,” I won’t go into the details that all her organs and such should be turned to paste from the act, making her die before she even has a chance to reappear.

“Is it that odd?” Adaira seems nervous and Lily just seems to give her a slight squeeze, there is definitely something there, I am going to need details later it seems. It might be something to leave for Rachael actually, no no Alex keep focused.

“I can’t say for sure, but I need to go ask a few people, Lily get her to safety, and then meet me at my home,”

“Who?” Lily asks but as I try and answer the words catch and I just kick the ground under us. Lily gets the hint and just starts talking to Adaira, I just walk away through a rift that opens on my command back into the hells, back into my infernal witch form with a little stretch, mortal form is so limiting, I can see why so many never used it...

“Mum I need magic help,” I call out from just inside the front door, she comes from the living room. I give a slight smile to dad who is still sitting and he gives one back before I am guided to the kitchen with hot chocolate almost appearing out of thin air.

“This is rare, what is it?”

I keep it brief giving her the details, actively having to calm her down that Adaira wasn’t hurt when I describe the teleport.

“Alex I think you need to get some actual help, there are no records of this just like there were no records of celestial magic effects that shaped Lily,” I swear at that and my mother almost scolds me before remembering my age. A quick hug, then I vanish. I will do a proper visit again later but this is too important to wait.

Home, Rachael greets me with a kiss but I struggle to return it too focused on the next step making her stop.

“A bit later ok? I need to see Luci,”

“I know that look Lexi,”

“I might be doing another heavens trip with this,”

It takes a bit of preparing but I am looking at Rachael and Lily both ready before I teleport in front of Luci, a small boy form today almost seeming to cloud watch with some others.

“Luci, can we talk?” I try and keep myself polite and contained but I must not be giving off that impression this can’t wait and he ages up in moments but keeps a little scruffy.

“Everyone it seems like I will have to leave you for a little business,” He gestures before teleporting and I appear inside his house, “So Alex what did you need?”

“How could a mortal implode themselves to teleport without any harm?”

“They can’t, it would be like a supernova splattering them on the attempt. Their soul’s core bouncing back against the flesh,”

“And if it was possible?”

He doesn’t reply, no Luci I am starting to pick up on your secrets, that isn’t the laws of silence kicking in you are hiding something.

“TELL ME LUCI!”

“Don’t make demands, I might like you but I keep the uneasy balance and chaos of my home. This is much more important than keeping you happy,”

Have it your way Luci, I grab him by the throat and lift him against the wall. There is no fear in his eyes as he changing into an almost fire being, his full power released and my hand starts to burn a little against his flesh but he is holding back knowing how my emotions can be.

“Don’t test me Alex, I like you and your family but what you are implying is sacrilege to the heavens, hells, and mortal plain,”

I let fire fill my eyes, starring at Luci with my anger and Rachael picks up on the signal grabbing Lily’s hand. Her power bursts through me enough to crush Luci’s throat a bit, now it is my turn to hold back and he is showing true fear that it might be his end.

“Enough Alex, I relent. Let's talk a little without resorting to such violence,” Even celestial beings can feel fear when they see their end.

“Start talking Luci...”