Ele was worried about her state for a good reason, it seemed. The fight was a vicious one, one she was glad that Eternia had apparently prevented the rest of the camp from seeing. Kiko felt less of a person and more like a beast during the fight, and Ele kind of mirrored her. A little more coherent, but a woman who was enjoying herself far too much to really pay attention to what she was doing. Though for Ele, it seemed to be a temporary thing, as Kiko was eventually bodied by Eternia when whatever was pushing her ran out of charge. 

The next few days were painful. Not only did Eternia decide to take Kiko’s grounding as a reason to double her lessons, and didn’t bawk Kiko’s attempts to run away from them as before. Still, that did help with her getting better with projection and sustaining creations. She was no longer in the ‘going to kill yourself by existing’ area anymore, which was always good, regardless of situation. 

The other thing that she was getting tutored on, was the Tao. And that, was a heavy subject.

“Why sex?” Kiko asked, dangling upside down and doing pull ups. That was a good thing about being under Eternia, you didn’t skip workout.

“I don’t know, particularly. I bEleeve it has something to do with the intimate conjoining of bodies and hearts that happens during sexual relations. An idea reinforced with the variable application sexual transfer” Eternia was sat, watching while sipping a cup of tea in a fine china cup.

“Ehh? You got that in my language?” Kiko asked, stopping the pull-ups for a moment to stare.

“Sorry. The better the sex, the more you get out of it. Lying there like a plank and letting someone grunt and gyrate above you will not help you much. But if you and your partner have a loving exchange of passion that rides for hours before finally reaching a crest that renders you insensible…that does a lot more for you” 

The creative description had Kiko blushing and just focusing on the pull-ups till she did her set, and then dropping off from the bar and half-flipping to land on her feet. 

“So…me, and, Ele…” Kiko commented, scratching her head.

“Will do little. As much as she is confident, and as much as you are being a dumbass and letting your Yang burn away inhibitions, neither of you have any actual experience in that area, and will be awkward, grabby, and probably won’t get anywhere with it” Eternia voiced her disagreement in such a firm but still polite tone it make Kiko feel cowed and awkward.

“...Hmm. So someone trustworthy, that also won’t feel any obligation around or after the fact. That sounds hard to find” Kiko exclaimed, shaking her head and using an Hydros spell to take away the sweat and flick it outside. She was still no good at Soul-Speech, but it sounded awesome, so she took every opportunity to try it out. And then, like a light-bulb clicking on in her brain, she remembered something.

“Ohh! What’s Bloodsoaked Orchestra? Mum sa-” Kiko asked, her chipper tone immediately getting smashed by Eternia’s cold reply.

“Not for you”

With that said in such a final manner, Kiko couldn’t argue, and so didn’t. Just accepted it and nodded. It seemed a secret she accidentally stumbled into by being nearly killed by it. And Eternia’s voice was not a ‘hey, maybe press me for some secrets’ kind of voice. So, cupping her hands, she would exhale and spiral air within it. It was a good way to exercise her spiritual muscles without having to have too much of an impact on the surrounding areas. First, one plumb of air, and then a second one, spinning them in counter to each other, quick and quicker.

Then her concentration was destroyed when Yeni entered to the tent. Arms crossed under her breasts and with a stern motherly look, she glared at Kiko for a few moments.

“You are still grounded” she stated.

“....Ok?” Kiko asked, confused at the exclamation.

“Good. Now get dressed and follow me” Yeni replied, turning and leaving the tent, leaving Kiko to get her robes back on, and glance at Eternia. A shrug from the other woman was all she got, so she left the tent and followed Yeni into the town again. It was much more lively this time, with SIR Foot Squads outside the Warehouse and the scent of Kitsunes she had never smelled in the air. Seemed the cultists had kicked the hornet’s nest with their presence.

The hole had been expanded as well, made into a full tunnel system that allowed easy access into the whole honeycomb labyrinth that the cultists were using. Kiko stayed silent because she was amazed at the whole thing, and so just followed, to a room where a woman in a large ice crystal was floating. 

“So, we’ve spent the last few days trying to get her out of that. It’s an emergency capsule spell that protected her from the people trying to hurt her. But, because she is pretty young as her race goes, and this was such a sudden thing for her, she can’t undo it. We eventually decided to make use of some more extraordinary assets under our command to try help her” 

Yeni’s explanation was a good one, though Kiko was lost, admiring the beauty of the woman inside. She was..otherworldly. Taller than most, with a lithe beauty and slightly elongated proportions. It suited her size, but was still pretty amazing to see.

“H-” Kiko started, before being cut off suddenly.

‘Thank you’ a voice came in her head. Gentle, like ringing bells carried by the wind. ‘Your mind is quite beautiful yourself’ it spoke. Kiko’s eyes bulged and she jolted backwards, slamming against the wall.

“She can read my mind?!” Kiko exclaimed, lightning crackling at her fingers in an attempt to protect her from the thing that had just shocked her.

“It’s ok” Yeni spoke, at the same time as the gentle voice spoke. 

‘I am sorry! I, I was told everyone coming into this room was told about that. I didn’t mean to pry!’ he spoke, a stuttered haste in its shock and dismay at hurting Kiko’s emotions.

“I forgot to mention that part. Sorry” Yeni commented awkwardly, exhaling. “But yes. She speaks by planting words into your mind. The crystal disrupts normal telepathy so she needs to use Fae Arcana to communicate. She’s not reading your mind on purpose, it’s just that your surface thoughts are as real to her as the wall you are currently pressed up against” Yeni explained, helping Kiko’s hackles drop, and being replaced with curiosity and interest.

“She’s a Fae?” Kiko asked. It was quite amazing that Ele, who had made a deal with a Fae, was so close to another.

“Yes. In fact, that’s what drove Ele to be so persistent in getting down here. She felt the Fae, and though didn’t know it in her heart, wanted to be close to her. It’s a thing, Fae are addictive” Yeni would then turn to the crystal, and shake her head. “We don’t want to hit the crystal with anything too powerful that might hurt her, but the lighter stuff is just bouncing off. We hoped you could help” 

Kiko would, taking some breaths, detach from the wall and walk up to the crystal. Putting her hand on it, there was a chill,but no radiation of temperature even this close.

‘Here, let me help you out here’ Vanaet spoke, filling Kiko with a deep, heavy energy. It was like being charged with static, her whole body lit up and wanted to move and be active. Sending this energy into the ice crystal, it would quickly melt, freeing the girl to collapse onto Kiko, who was prepared to catch her.

“Thank you” the Fae spoke. Her mental voice was exactly the same as her physical one, which was both amazing and made Kiko envious. Getting her footing and standing up, she would look down. Her eyes were the freakiest part of this whole thing, like they were just all Iris and no pupil or Sclera. A gentle blue, not deep but not light, shined from them.

“You are young. What are you doing here?” Yeni commented, stepping up to support Kiko, who was subtly slumping downwards as the energy Vanaet had lent her drifted away. 

“...It’s an awkward story. Mother told me not to come here, that I was too young. But I thought ‘I am a Blue Fae now, I can handle myself’. And, apparently, can’t handle myself as well as I thought” she spoke, hooking some hair behind a pointed ear. 

She would then lean down, and kiss Kiko gently on the lips. Contact sparked for a moment, like a static shock, but it quickly dispersed. 

“Come visit me in Agartha some time. I’ll get Grandmother to throw us a party for your help. You can even bring your mother if you wish” The Fae would stand, before standing, giving them a nod, and vanishing. Cleanly and instantly, there wasn’t even that popping noise that Eternia’s teleportation made as the air rushed to fill the suddenly vacant space. She was simply, gone. 

“...Why do I get the feeling I just met a baby Cthulhu?” Kiko asked, stunned at the whole event.

“Because you have. Now come on, you are still grounded” Yeni, not one to be dissuaded, got to the crux of the matter and took Kiko back to the camp.