Entropy [Closed]

[Krystal Itzume]

“Wow.”

It was the single syllable that could describe the entire scene before Erin Pierce, as she looked back briefly at the marble steps she’d just walked up to get into the gala.

The gala itself was huge, with a domed ceiling and obvious arches. Above them, the rain played on the windows, and an occasional burst of lightning illuminated the already-bright room, lit by glittering candles on each wall. The substance wouldn’t burn out, the flame eternal until doused. The wax never got shorter, nor did the wick.

Erin kept close to her companion, invited supposedly because he might be hired to do a portrait of the man who had risen up in the world. Erin knew better—the auburn haired girl of 23 years knew her friend was mostly beloved for his company, and he’d made plenty of friends through his life. They had invited him, and she latched on when he mentioned not having a date.

How could she resist a chance at this lux, just once? Given, she felt that she stood out in her cheap heels and short, Prom-ish green dress. It fell to her knees, just belling out a little. A black satin belt was around her waist and tied in a pretty bow, which she incorporated into her hair as a pretty black satin bow that held her red hair up.

Compared to everyone else, though…all the women in their long gowns, with their slender forms and perfect make-up, she felt quite inadequate. Not to mention they all seemed to have flawless skin; her face was speckled with freckles. Her eyes were even speckled, a green color that seemed flecked with gold.

However, that feeling faded when she looked around and let herself be overwhelmed by the technology in the building, the scents of foods, and the hum of strings. “They have a live orchestra!” It was small, but it was impressive to her, even though no one present seemed to be giving the musicians the time of day. The food table was attended, at least, with people moving about as they liked to grab whatever interested them.

“Now where are your friends,” she mused, thinking she’d find them and then go get herself and her own friend a drink. As she skimmed the room, her eyes briefly fell upon a woman who looked familiar. She paused in her walking, and looked around her friend. “Hum,” the familiarity seemed to be with her friend, as she took a glance at his face and then looked back to the woman.

Only to find her staring back.

Erin shrunk back around the body of her friend. ‘Creepy.’ Something in the eyes, or the way her skin seemed colored, something was…wrong. “Oh, there they are,” Erin took solace in the fact her shrinking away had let her see where their group of friends were. “I’ll go get us something to drink. What would you like?” She asked, bouncing back on her feet and trying to pretend she had good balance on her heels when, of course, she didn’t.

Her job didn’t require looking pretty or wearing heels.

She waited on her friend’s answer. Once she had it, she would dash off to the food table to get drinks, and perhaps a few of the hors d’oeuvres for them to snack on.

~***~

“You look beautiful.”

It seemed to be the only compliment that the man in the dark suit was capable of, but it was the only compliment that the woman needed him to be capable of. He wrapped an arm around her waist, covered by a dark purple fabric that matched his tie, and brought out the color of her own, purple eyes. He stared at her through the mirror, his face besides hers, and a lazy smile on his lips.

She stared back, admittedly pleased with the way she had pulled it all together. Naturally pale, the dark colors contrasted beautifully with her skin. Not only that, the glint of gold in the fabric played with the pearl sheen of her skin—she knew she was not fully human. Most weren’t quite sure. What they knew, was that she was abnormal. She wasn’t albino, but her hair was white, her eyes violet, and her skin as pale as if she were. It had a sheen to it that defied human understanding, but it was so subtle that most just rolled with it. Accepted it.

That day, she played it up. Her skin sparkled from added make-up, and around the left eye there was an elaborate design, akin to butterfly’s wing, that glittered gold, black, and purple. Her lips were stained burgundy, and her hair was up. It was done so that some of it still fell down her back, and metal and crystal trinkets jingled from the hair sticks and down into the fall of white hair.

Yes, she was beautiful in her flats so she wouldn’t be taller than her date. Beautiful, with the revealed tattoo on her back of a thorny vine that spiraled around to bloom a rose over her heart—that was unseen, of course. Beautiful, with black nails.

Beautiful, with a locket that held a small piece of paper wrapped around a crystal. ‘Tonight.’

“Are you ready to go now?” Her most recent patron and paramour asked, and she softly smiled into the mirror.

“Yes,” she answered, and moved as he did, rising and then stepping under his arm, and stepping with him. His long strides were easy to match, and each long step revealed her legs beneath the dark fabric. The slit up the right side was generous, and for that reason the woman thought it such a pity she didn’t get to wear heels. No matter; she’d feed the ego of this one as much as necessary.

He wouldn’t be alive much longer, anyway. ‘Just one more hour.’ She thought as they stepped out into the lighted city. Halos bloomed around many of them, for the rain that fell was misty. Neither bothered with a coat or an umbrella, though. Their destination was not far.

“What is it that Professor Layton is celebrating?” the woman asked as they walked to the gala with its marble steps. She hadn’t forgotten.

“His new employment. He won’t have to teach anymore at the rubbish university, and good riddance,” the man huffed as he stepped up towards the double doors, “His time was wasted there. He’ll be put full-time to researching now. He might finally figure out the key to stopping the atrophy of the universe.”

“Atrophy of the universe?” He was saying it wrong. He meant ‘entropy’. She did not correct him.

As if that were the thing to worry about, but her current paramour was obsessed with theories of energy, and she had needed that. It had been the final key to her own work.

“Heat death of the universe. It’s part of a theory of thermodynamics…,” he started to talk, and the woman knew he’d go on endlessly about this theory without noticing much of what she did. So, as the double doors opened before them, she took to glancing around. They were not the first. They were likely not the last. There were plenty of figures she’d seen before. They all ran in the same circles, even if she was an ‘outsider’.

Sure, she had the money now.

She had the degrees.

She even had the looks.

That meant little since she did not seem to have the blood nor ambition. Not to mention, too many in these circles knew where she began, as an oddity among other oddities. Unlike bearded women, though, her oddities weren't considered grotesque. It made her 'less', like a scuffed limited edition statue--but still, limited edition.

She ran with it.

“…it shouldn’t happen in our time, but we must consider future generations.” Actually he just wanted to have more access to more energy, so he could find a way to capture it and market it. “Possibly our generations, Mina.”

She blinked and looked away from the crowd, from a particularly strange individual and a woman in a short, green dress. The shock on her face was sincere, and he smiled at it, “I’ve been considering it.”

This was a point where she was supposed to act happy, wasn’t it? It was a queer way to propose, “We’re not even engaged, Constantine.” Nor did she want to be. Before he could say more, she lifted a single finger to his lips and held it there with a light press, “Later. Let’s enjoy this party and then we can discuss our future,” or hers. She let her expression offer him hope, as if there would be a future to discuss, though. “Come, let’s go see Professor Layton first. We need to make sure you get to speak, so everyone sees you.”

And by default, her. She’d steal his thunder. She already had plans, and she turned from him to look into the crowd again. She knew where Layton was, but pretended to look.

She let Constantine find him, and again they linked up, and he walked to where Layton was, with his other admirers who wanted to fund the directions of his research now that he was free from the university that had held him captive.

[Verse]

Erin was backlit by the sun. She was a smile in the morning, when the cold wind was redeemed when it raised her hair into a subtle fire. She was the glaxies of freckles on her skin. And she was energy to the meltingpot that was his circuit of aquaintences and friends. Probably a very crucial ingredient, like berries in a savory stew.

She was not the polished diodes and the brushed surfaces in here. For all the prettiness and cleanliness this kind of order provided, it always blared with its lack of soul when Erin was in the room. Such contrast, his little real friend in her dress and its black detail, and then the giant room, salted and peppered with the people from the other side of his social sphere. He threw his heart at everything, at the gutters they passed comming here, and the leather seats that had taken them alike, but Elac Tessmien wondered if he didn't throw it a little harder at Ms Pierce.

"Wow, me also." he'd said, glad to have provided something of wonder for her. She should have been his first choice, but he'd of course not been able to imagine her here. Good thing she had taken his small complaint, his contribution to their conversation, as an invitation. He felt ashamed he hadn't thought the thought before she did now. His skin was white, it's quality echoed once more in this place, though he'd not found her yet, and his eyes were almost the same shade, as though to underline or be underlined by the luxuriant purple of his lashes, brows and hair. Today he'd left it out, some strands brushing the shoulders of the black suit and some not so long. The tie had been an afterthought. He would have gone with black against the white shirt, but upon seeing her, he'd fished out a green one, her shade, along with a pocket square. A cartoonish, attraochious combination with his strands, but he'd rather match than be true to form.

He laughed softly at her reactions to this spectacle, and leaned into her everytime she retreated against him. "They're famous." he pointed out to further her glee about the living music. Or at least some of them were, hand picked to fit the atmosphere, surely. "And I think I'd like something light. See if they have fruit in anything tart." After placing that order with Erin, he went ahead as she went the other way.

"In time or early as usual?" he said to the preist. Priest Donair smiled brightly at Elac and directed the attention of the three others to him. "Everyone." Elac said with an inclination of his head. "This get-together is lush. I'm glad I came." he offered.

"Or inspired, perhaps?" the Preist said, his necklace with the foggy glass hung outside of his tuxedo to underline his standing within The House of Worship. Donair liked the idea of art, but liked others knowing his proxmity to it more. Elac gave a wink.

"Always. It's not as deep, but maybe my inspiration is a little like yours, as you've said, in that it is everywhere." It was a sentiment they'd talked about before, when Donair peddled his belief in the other world. The others lifted their chins, hopeful to see a little debate. The preist, pure in faith despite his social vanity, had not had enough to be provoked this early.

"If you belive so, Elac." he said and raised the glass that would probably start fueling a playful retort soon.


-


Doan Edner had already scanned the room. A force of habit, born from his familly's livelyhood. Their echonomical stance was unquestioned, a force that stemmed from early, solid placements. While they were heavilly submerged in the energies of the new boom, their nature was still gambling on the sucsess of individuals. Father had taught him to pick them out of a crowd. Buy early, was the saying. Doan wore the same black suit as the others, a red flower instead of a tie or bowtie. It matched his lips. The jacket and trousers matched his slicked back, volumous hair. He was young, after all, and wouldn't succumb to father's flat, lifeless interpetation of the same do just yet. Sometimes, just for the rebellion of it, he'd let a few strands be ruffled by his nape. Not today.

Edner was a tall creature, not as strong as he'd liked to be, but commanding when he minded his posture, and therefor few doubted his position, even when they hadn't heard of the Edner empire. Today he wasn't trying to be imposing, shaking hands and trying out topics. Most of the people here did know of him anyway, or atleast of his litter. He counted two brothers and one sister here, as well. Their eyes weren't as sharp as his, though they were as black.

He saw a familiar face across the room. He'd talked to father about Mina before. And father had agreed that she was intressting. Buy early hadn't applied back then, since she was already on her trajectory, but her potential had never really left Edner's mind. She seemed like she would be capable of doing more. He took his time greeting individuals on his way to her.

Upon arrival, he took Constantine's hand first, after having overheard something quite private. Edner pretended not have any idea of what he was walking into. "Constantine." he said and then quickly offered his hand to Mina herself. He would proceed to nod his head if she accepted the greeting. "And Mina. Here to try and keep up with Layton's ramblings?" he asked, hoping the joke would find its way through. It was unthinkable that an Edner son did not know at least in broad strokes what the professor was on about, since they were supposed to know of all matters concerning energy.

[Krystal Itzume]

“I’ll find something just like that for you!” Erin promised, even though she was not certain how easy it would be. Would things be labeled? Well, no point in wondering. She waved him off and gave a quick wave to the circle of friends, before spinning on her short heels and walking quickly towards the table that was laden with treats.

‘Well, they do have tarts.’ She scowled down at her options. Nothing was labeled. Why would it be labeled? Her eyes flickered to the glistening crystal cups with their many drinks. Those were labeled, the bottles near them, and there were men and women in white blouses serving the drinks. ‘Ah!’ Erin took up a couple of the tarts, gooseberry, and then approached one of the servers, “Excuse me,” she said.

His eyes fell upon her, and a smile came to his lips, “How many I help you, Ms….,” he realized then he didn’t know who she was, and he looked appropriately flustered, “F-Forgive me, I—”

“I haven’t been here before,” she said to ease his embarrassment, “I just need to know a drink that would pair good with these tarts.” She imagined that something which paired well with the gooseberry would work nicely for the taste that Elac sought.

The waiter eyed the tarts, then glanced down at his selections. “This rosé should work. It’ll be sweet, but it is a young wine, so it will also be a bit…tart,” he couldn’t help but smile a bit at the fact he was pairing a tart wine with a tart dessert.

“Oh good! I’ll need two cups, please.” She took a glance back to see Donair raising a glass, and nodded, “Two,” to her own assessment.

Two glasses were poured, and one after the other was handed to Erin. She struggled a bit, with the plate, a glass, and then another. In fact, she dropped the second glass, but before so much as a strangled cry could escape her, it was caught.

Black nails and long fingers wrapped around the clear cup, saving all of the wine. Erin took a step back to offer room, and then lifted her gaze as the woman of earlier straightened up. Her free hand brushed back a few stray locks of white hair.

For a moment, Erin was captivated by those dark eyes, before realizing she’d seen them before. In fact, “Thanks, El—er, sorry. You look just like a friend,” yet creepy. And female. Very clearly female. Her eyes had been drawn momentarily to the locket over her chest before she realized where she was staring and again averted her gaze up.

“You’re welcome,” she said, “Do you need assistance getting these back to your friend?” She inquired.

“I—it’s—,” it was hard for Erin to say ‘no’, “If it’s really no trouble.”

The strange woman nodded, and glanced to the waiter, “I will need one cup of the same rosé,” Constantine tried to like wine. He didn’t. He needed the youngest sorts, and never a white wine. “and one glass of any syrah that you have, or the closest thing to it. I will be back shortly.”

She simply wanted a closer look at the friend of the wildflower, and here was the easiest way to gain that.

“Right away, Ms. Tessmien.”

Erin nearly tripped over her own feet at the name, but kept herself upright. “Tessmien?” She asked.

“Yes. Mina Tessmien.”

“Oh. Okay.” She hadn’t heard it wrong. She had meant to ask if she had relatives, but a sudden and sharp sense of hurt stole over her first. Had Elac hidden his family from her? Was it mere coincidence?

Either way, some of her bubbliness faded as she approached the group. She smiled for them, of course, “I think I found a good one. And these!” She tried to offer to Elac one of the tarts, while the woman held out the wine.

“Your friend just had a bit of trouble with carrying it all,” Erin heard Mina speak, as if she did not know Elac at all.

‘Coincidence. It must be coincidence.’ But seeing them…

~***~

Constantine looked over the younger Edner, a man he considered something of a rival, when he let insecurities feed him at night. Doan Edner and his family were infamous for recognizing talent and reaping the rewards of their patronage. Constantine wondered now if this one was going to try and steal Layton from him, when he’d worked so hard to get into those good graces.

Even so, he faked niceties, “Doan,” he greeted as he took the proffered hand and shook.

One was then offered to Mina, and the fair woman reached for it and shook, grip light, though her nails dug in. One could take it for an accident; they were long, and no doubt, she forgot that at times. It wasn’t an accident, of course. She smiled, and she nodded, rather than repeat the name Constantine had spoken. Doan Edner stood out with his flower, but other than that, he blended in perfectly with the rest of the sycophants.

She’d known him through other relationships. It was always this way—his business always with the men. She’d be the dutiful wallflower, withdrawing her hand and letting her smile widen a touch at his joke.

Constantine shook his head, and his joke was less pleasant, “Don’t tell me an Edner doesn’t understand Layton’s words?” He looked amused, but it was a malevolent amusement. “We were just on our way to greet the man of the hour. Would you like to join us? He may be able to help you understand the basics of thermodynamic theory.” It was more that Constantine wanted to show himself as better than Edner before Layton.

Then he wouldn’t lose his own horse.

Mina touched his arm, and he gave her the barest of acknowledgements as she stepped around him and moved towards the drinks and foods, without so much as asking what he’d want. She knew, of course, and she’d know how to find him when he was done with his petty bickering and machismo.

Besides, she had her eyes on the pretty wildflower that stood out in the garden of roses.

[Verse]

He put some tinder around the fires he could see in their bellies, working the conversation into something that was consuming oxygen faster, but not frantic. He like the preist and his kind, brown eyes, and this company seemed to as well. Elac decided to remain open to them, and did not regret the descission the longer they spoke. Mrs. Olyat and her husband were blushing, refreshed accordingly, and sometimes distracted themselves by looking elsewhere. He noticed and brought them back to the conversation with a touch to her shoulder. This time she didn't laugh the way she had, her eyes not diverting from something behind him. In fact, looking at her now, she seemed startled in the smallest sense.

It was not hard for him then, to turn when he heard his friend call for his attention. At first he only saw the slight befuddlement on Erin's usuall sweetness. He extended his hand swiftly and took the small plate with three fingers. His focus widened soon and it became clear what Erin might be mulling over in her head. "Thank you, Erin." he said and then took the glass from his own image. He placed the vial beside the tarts on the small place and locked the foot of the glass to the enamel surface with his thumb so his other hand was free to exstend toward the new person's.

"Hello and thank you." he said. Their colors were reversed, his hair the color of her eyes, but the similarities were there. "I'm Elac Tessmien." There was an open end to those words, hoping she'd shake and introduce as well.

Mrs. Olyat lifted gloved hands as she stared at the two, and the preist remained silent. The woman left her husband's side to round the two similar beauty's to swat at Erin's arm, without knowing who she was. "You see it, don't you?" she asked with too much breath in her throat.

Elac heard the lady implore audience from poor Erin, and it had him smile to himself, eyes still on the new person. His heart was beating faster, but with softer contractions. He'd been obsessed with familly from not having one, and it seemed almost cruel to put a creature like this one infront of him, to remind him of that. What would it feel like to touch her black-tipped hand? Would it be foreign and cold, like a copy, or would it feel like home?

-

Her nails left a little ring in his hand. Memorable but not a brute's strength. A very tactical little signature. He wondered if his eyes conveyed he was impressed. Shaking hands was part of his living, and he noted when something new was introduced. He hadn't been wrong when he deemed her worthy of a closer look. She didn't stay for conversation, and unfortunately that left him with Constantine.

Doan almost laughed when Constatine bit at the little opportunity. Explaining modesty and jest would be far too condecending and time consuming, so he simply went along with the direction this conversation was going. "I'll be a better man for it, too." he agreed and patted Constantine's upper back in a friendly manner. He supposed they were going there now, even though Mina was going the other way. Might as well try to squeeze Constantine for information.

"Pretty little something for your arm you have there." he said and tossed his head back to aim at the lady that had left them. "Are you smitten?" He supposed Constantine was as good a step as any on the ladder toward power. In fact, someone smarter than the man could probably controll him and his position very well. Surely, despite her projected loveliness, Mina had thought about this.

[Krystal Itzume]

Mina Tessmien knew it when her eyes met his, the purple hues not quite identical, but close. His hair, too, was that purple shade, contrasting his own paleness quite beautifully. Yet, their facial structure was similar, and there was something to his pale skin that made her think of a face she knew only from pictures.

Mina took the hand, warm but not soft. He worked with his hands, or so it seemed, “You’re welcome, Mr. Tessmien,” she said it with just the faintest indication that it was a joke. Her lips lifted a bit as she said, “I see now why your friend reacted so obviously to my name. I am Mina Tessmien,”

Was this, then, the twin she was supposed to have? The humming beneath her skin seemed to suggest so, as she left those faint moons on the back of Elac’s hand before withdrawing hers, “What a coincidence,” she mused, “I’ve never met another,” not even her parents. She’d been denied knowing them, and separated from her sibling. She had wondered if they would ever meet, and then…would they know each other?

Yet, he held onto the surname. Somehow, that had survived whatever transitions happened in his life.

What a story it would be.

If only she had the time. A woman spoke behind Elac, noting it. They all did. Erin leaned back towards the woman to say, “Of course. And her name…,” it was eerie.

“We will have to talk more, Mr. Tessmien. I’m afraid I must return to my own group, however.” And so she turned from him, noting then that they were the same height.

As she walked away, Erin stepped forward and put a hand on Elac’s shoulder. She let it lie there for a moment to ask. “Do you think, maybe…?” Erin couldn’t say it all. Her hand slipped from his shoulder to steal a tart from the plate.

She knew of her friend’s longing for family, but was this even possible, this woman who seemed so…foreign…could be related to her Elac? The woman didn’t seem to fit at all. Despite looking the part of everyone in the room, Erin still got the terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach that she didn’t belong here. She wasn’t sure she belonged anywhere. It was a terrible thought and Erin knew it, but she could not stop it from occurring all the same. The woman had done nothing to inspire these wretched thoughts, after all.


Mina returned to the waiter, who had the drinks ready, and she easily took both of them and then located Constantine and Doan. If she knew what Doan drank, she’d bring him something just to rattle Constantine, but she did not. ‘That does not mean others don’t.’ She took a glance to the waiter. “You must know Doan.” Who didn’t know him? “What is it he drinks?”

And soon enough, the waiter was handing her a beverage with promises it would be something to the liking of the young man.

~***~

Layton was of course mobbed, so getting to him would take a bit of time. Constantine could endure Doan for it, though, especially with a sweeter topic to consider. His little bird. His eyes shifted to where she had gone to see her holding a drink and walking with a woman who stood out, but for all the wrong reasons. His chuckled a bit at the query, “Not quite smitten,” no, he’d never admit to being under anyone’s influence, “But I would like to keep her.”

Better to control than be controlled. He knew Mina moved on to others, and that didn’t matter—so long as he was the last. “I don’t suppose you know her well, do you?” He considered that for a moment, wondering if he had been one of those ensnared by her once upon a time. He had known her name. It was possible he simply knew of her, as it seemed many did.

Well, they all ran in the same circles.

As Doan would finish answering, Mina would rejoin them. If she heard the topic, she made no indication of it as she passed to Constantine his pink drink, and then offered one to Doan under the scrutinizing gaze of Constantine, “The waiter thought you would like this, Edner,” she spoke at a distance for the sake of Constantine, and before he could comment, she took Constantine’s hand, “This way,” and with a slight pull (and a push others wouldn’t see, the blood beneath her skin rolling faster to make that invisible pressure appear), there was a path to Layton that Mina stepped into, making it so Constantine could be at his left when he turned his head.

And Mina fell back to be a step behind, so that Constantine was all he saw for the moment.

[Verse]

The silver of his eyes readjusted around the deep pupils when she revealed her name. His skin held on to the formations her nails had left on his backhand when he received his hand back. Purple lashes flared when the lids themselves didn’t widen when he took in the implications of this new person and her possible connection to him. He couldn’t help but look her up and down as she introduced herself and remarked on how-- remarkable this was. He was slow to turn to Erin when she injected the cut off sentence. Too soon she had to leave, and there was a subtle expression of panic before he could reel that desperation in, and nod his head.

“It was nice to meet you, Mina Tessmien.” He said. Odd to speak his own last name to another person. He let her go, he had to, and watched her leave when he picked the glass up from his little tray, and looked to Erin, who was tasting a tart, the comfort of her hand still freshly remembered on his shoulder. He poured some of the drink between his lips and swallowed slowly, eyes downcast as he wondered.

“Maybe.” He managed against the rim of the glass, to answer his friend. He perked up soon, a new determination subtle but absolute in the back of his manners. “Not every day, eh?” he said to the people around him. Erin, who knew him for his sincerity, might recognize something stiff in his persona, but even the priest would not. Elac’s attention and interest in others was genuine, after all, even when things were on his mind. Every now and then, as he nurtured the conversation back to life, he would throw and eye to the woman who had looked just like him, where she stood by the host of the party.

-

“You might have trouble with that, my friend.” Doan said when Constantine let slip his intentions for Mina. It was meant to soothe like a compliment, and scratch like cardboard. Their lot played with insecurities as a courtesy, after all. Did he know Mina well? Better than he knew the taste of durian, and less than he knew the inside of his own mouth. “She’s radiant. I’ve seen her shine here and there.” He said and grinned at Constantine.

Then she came back. Doan took the cylinder she offered and looked at the clear liquid. The cold crept into his fingers. He nodded in approval and wet his upper lip. “Thank you. I was getting thirsty.” He said to send them off. He stood in their wake, enjoying the cool of his vodka as he observed the lady pave way for his sometimes friend. He laughed to himself. She was commanding, to have been able to get an audience when the audience was already so thick.

The Edner son quickly produced himself by her side while her partner was speaking with Layton. At this angle, it would be hard for Constantine to see him, and it was quite intentional, so he wouldn’t try to lecture him on thermodynamics. It would be unfortunate for Constantine to learn publicly Doan’s ignorance had been in jest. He leaned in closer to Mina. “What are you plans for him? He seems attached. Well done.” He said in a voice only for her. If she gave him the attention, he would smile and shake the glass, as though she needed a reminder of where she knew him from. He wore a light air, meaning to pry, but not meaning to insult or insinuate.

[Krystal Itzume]

Erin observed where the woman went, noting the importance of those who seemed to be there. ‘So others must know her.’ And Erin felt pained for Elac’s sake, because this had ended too quickly without resolution. Was she, or wasn’t she?

Did she know of relatives?

Had she been orphaned?

Or did she know Elac’s family—could she show him the way home? ‘Is he some sort of rich prince?’ Didn’t all those without family dream of being someone important? The way the woman held herself, it seemed quite possible that if Elac was tied to her, then he could be important.

It was a thought she dismissed as it lingered on turning selfish, and instead she brought light to her green eyes as Elac turned back around to the group and the conversation, which he didn’t allow to linger on the woman. Erin almost huffed with frustration at his inability to pursue this important subject, but didn’t. She followed along, dutifully waving away tension and potential faux pas with silver linings or secondary interpretations.

The priest had drunk enough to want to share his opinions, after all. Though most present were devout, there were never two people in one room that shared the same opinions on faith, inspiration, and especially, art. So the conversation went to art, and of course, to Layton who was to be the inspiration to all—in the arts and in the sciences.

Mina Tessmien was still near him then. “We should find out if he does want to commission something, shouldn’t we?” A glance to the priest, “He may not want a picture of himself. He might be more interested in something astronomical, considering his work.” She wanted to go over there. She wanted to help Elac get over there.

~***~

Mina had meant only to stand back and listen, to wait for when Constantine would want her. It took little effort on her part, so she heard the approach of Doan as she felt the eyes of Elac fall upon her constantly. Layton and Constantine were quick to fall into conversation, a lively discussion of the future and what Layton could do—with not so subtle mentions of how to market it.

Her head remained pointed towards Constantine and Layton, but Doan’s words were heard. Everything about them suggested he knew far more than he ought to know, but then, wasn’t that what the Edner were good at? She knew their reputation. This was not how one spoke to the inferior. Edner recognized where she stood compared to Constantine, and she could act dumb, but….

‘There’s hardly any time left.’

So a gleam of truth shone in her dark eyes as her lips twisted up, just a little, in an uncharacteristic grin. “Why, Edner, if I tell you now it’ll spoil the surprise. You’ll know before the night is done.”

And Constantine turned then with an inviting, “And you’ve met Mina, haven’t you, Layton?” and Mina stepped into the opened arm, letting herself be taken and pulled close. That cunning smile was gone, replaced with something bashful. Her eyes lowered demurely.

“Oh, a time or two,” Layton chuckled, “How are you tonight?”

“Well, thank you. Congratulations on your success,” she offered, “Constantine has been raving, you would think it were his own triumph.”

Layton’s smile widened a touch and Mina held out her hand, palm down, and he took it, resting his hand atop hers as he recognized the imploring gesture, “Won’t you let him make the toast tonight? I promise you I have an addition to it myself.”

“Oh?”

Mina smiled, “Just a stupid little magic trick, but I think it will help men like Edner understand how energy works a bit better,” her jest, as she looked back to bring Doan into the conversation, if he wanted to join.

“Well,” Layton squeezed her hand, “How could I possibly refuse such an introduction?”

[Verse]

With his white eyes, alabaster because they were part stone, fortifying themselves against the desire inside to flicker over to that Mina, he compeller some debate out of Donair. It wasn’t so heated yet, and Elac was afraid to become frantic if any inward fuse was lit, so he kept mellow. His friend, the dearest one in here, made a strange point, suggestion. It took him a while to understand her intentions. Saint Erin of his emotions. There stood his image, with his reverse colors, her eyes like his hair, and his eyes on hers. In her proximity, dwindling in importance as far as Elac was concerned, the host, the professor.

“That inspires me.” He said both for himself and to agree with Erin. He turned to her, the hardness of carrying the act dissipating from him for a while, looking at Erin. “Maybe I will prod around and see what I can learn. Would you like to come?” He had not taken her along to be some kind of crutch, he usually thrived in these settings, so he wouldn’t mind if she did not follow, Erin should see experience venue however she wanted, but he’d never go off on his own if she wanted to come. Whatever her answer, he would excuse himself from the cauldron of opinions that had become of the priest, some fun for later, and raise his glass to the others before walking over to Layton’s gathering.

-

When Doan’s back straightened it was as dramatic as it could be, and still be concealed enough from the others. It was a teasing show of  shock for what she’d said. “Secretive.” He with a trailing end to the word. A compliment, but said in a way one might when inspecting the coat of a mare. He was always shopping, after all. Her demeanor was familiar to him, and her change from it to another when Constantine took her back was well crafted. Hah. This lady. He should pursue her, he decided.

She marketed Constantine well. How could the good professor say know to her now, holding her hand. It was a very polite way to ask if she, in fact, could toast. Would could Doan do but raise the glass she had given him with a familiar smile to Layton, whom of course might have attention toward the Edner fortune now that he was browsing for backers. “Let the lady talk and bring some sense to this black craft you’re conjuring.” He said. There was laughter in the crowd. Why wouldn’t there be? He held the social weight, and it was a good show of modesty on his part. He winked at Constantine, not sure if even this level of show would finally catch the older man on to Edner’s know-how in the field.

Elac Tessmien was transfixed on her, as she charmed the three men along with the rest of the crowd. It was odd to see someone so much like himself play a part he couldn’t. He invented a hand-full of possible backstories for her as he stood there. What was she doing here? Had she known about him? Had she been defined and reshaped by the abuse she’d received from a particularly posh orphanage for those with potential? His stomach and back ached when his muscles and flesh remembered. His nose burnt to keep back the tears when he thought of hardship coming to Mina Tessmien. And he didn’t even know her. He drank her rosé. A magic trick? He wouldn’t miss it for the world.

-

On the other side of forever there was a creature with a torrent in its eating belly. The creature, height of three men, had seen Mina and Elac’s world before. And that world had seen it, and recanted it with murals, misinterpreting its intentions. It was made mostly out of bone, shavings of it mounted on long arcs on it back. A domed helmed over its scalp obscured where the eyes should be, the surface littered with pores. It was wearing all the old weapons. Claws on its torso, and mouth with teeth on its shoulders. The arms were tipped in blades, all of that white-to-yellow material. It had evolved since its last visit, deeming, inside the chaos of its mind that Mina and Elac’s world was of evil. It felt that it would get a chance to exterminate this evil today. The toothless mouth underneath the helmet sung a wordless, quaint song.

[Krystal Itzume]

Mina found it amusingly easy to get her way, but then, hadn’t she always? Beautiful and underestimated was the easiest way to the top. People had given her things with the idea she wouldn’t know how to use it, or else, she’d be in their control when she did use it. So Edner vouched for her with a joke that caused a snort and then a laugh from Layton, and Constantine smiled amicably because he could not lose his chance to speak.

Ah, the whims of humans!

Erin, who had chosen to follow Elac, now stood on the outskirts of the group looking in, listening in. ‘Magic?’ What a queer addition to this group. Were they not all men of logic and practicality? They certainly seemed it. Magic seemed to have more of a place in Donair’s discussions. She wondered if the priest would appreciate such a thing, or speak of its blasphemy later.

“What is this trick?” Constantine asked, for he had not been informed.

“Something that came to mind when mentioned the entropy of the universe,” she said it correctly. If Constantine noticed, he was careful not to remark, or ‘correct’ her. “I promise it will not detract from anything you are doing,” a careful smile, “Only add.”

Layton shook his head, a cheerful dismissal of the idea that she could ever steal his thunder, “I’m sure it will be enjoyed. And who am I to deny Edner a chance to understand?” It was a joke--Layton knew how well Edner understood. He'd simply caught on that his ignorance was, apparently, the joke today.

A glance to the room showed him those outlying, and he turned a bit so he could see the man with the purple hair closer, squinting as he tried to recall him with the red-head besides him, before he remembered, “Oh, you’re Donair’s friend, aren’t you? Mr. Tessm—” before it was out of his throat, he realized, and he laughed. “Tessmien!” He looked back to Mina, then to Elac, and then motioned Elac towards them. “Mina, you never said you had a brother.”

“Brother?” Mina canted her head, “No, I’ve never seen him before,” she admitted as Erin stepped up with Elac, “He’s just a man who shares my name. Mr. Tessmien,” she said it almost as if it were a scandal, an upheaval of a norm.

Wasn’t it, though? “Odd,” Constantine managed to remark. He’d tasted the rosé, and he was put out by it, by tried to pretend to enjoy it all the same. He couldn’t help but noticed the similar faces, and the reflected colorations. Were he feeling friendly towards Edner, he’d ask him. Edner ought to know why this oddity existed.

So far as he knew, Mina had no family. Any she had certainly would have been kept near her. “And who are you, dear girl?” Layton asked the red-head, grin amicable, but hardly caring about her presence.

“Erin Pierce,” it came out too soft. She was embarrassed, she realized a moment later, under that gaze that clearly didn’t care about her existence at all. “Um, Elac Tessmien—” and yet she could not finish. There was the sound of metal on glass, and attention was drawn to where food was being brought out for the banquet.

“Well, tell me later,” Layton said dismissively, “Now it is time to feast, and enjoy a trick or two.”

Constantine nodded, and walked to follow after Layton, though Mina stayed a moment, staring at her opposite. “Do you have any family, Elac?” she asked.

It was a rude question, but then, she needed to know. The woman, Erin, let her eyes blaze with the offense Elac should feel to be asked that question so bluntly.

Perhaps she should tell him to run—it was on the tip of her tongue to do so. ‘Run. Run because I can’t promise if this trick will spare you, even if we are kin.’ But if they weren’t, did it matter? ‘No.’ Not at all. Everyone in the room deserved what was to come.

[Verse]

Elac watched as she juggled the men. There was a social element to what he did, to selling his pieces and aquiring galleries, but he did it automatically, and with all the benefits of all the doubts in his heart. Mina, his new found Mina, was effortless, but he thought he could detect something beneath her flawless nature. Somewhere in the back of his head, without his knowledge, he felt Erin's pressence. He wouldn't know about this until he was broken from his transfixation on Mina by Layton's attention.

Elac's hand first brushed Erin's and then snatched it up as he turned his head to the professor, who proceeded to connect the lilac hair with the lilac eyes. He squeezed Erin's hand harder when Mina explained. A little tinge around his heart even though she only spoke the truth. Perhaps his friend noticed, her innocent aura sensing something dissrupted in his, because she made to say something that sounded like some kind of defence on his behalf.

Layton moved on quickly though, toward the sound of staff's failure that didn't crash loud enough to measure up with the tension inside Elac. The group followed the professor. Elac was still holding his friend's hand when Mina came to him. Again he squeezed that hand hard. "I do not." he been asked many times before, and while the fact of the answer hurt him, speaking the answer did not, anymore. "And you?" he asked back, feeling bad for wanting her fate to be the same. He moved closer to her, fingers sliding away from Erin's. He didn't know why, not entierly, but he needed to be close to Mina Tessmien. "Are there others?"

-

Doan followed the crowd, one hand on Layton's shoulder and one on Constatine's lower back. He pretended to be part of their camraderie, but his ears were listening backward, where they'd left Mina. He couldn't make out the words, only voices, and that was fading as well, since the distance grew. "What will you do now, porfessor? Surely you have the next steps in your career well mapped out, a man like you." People like talking bussiness without talking business. With the edge off, every intention becomes sharper. He could play along, investor that he was. It wasn't their favourite trade, The Edners, but betting on already well-fed, winning horses was also lucrative.

[Krystal Itzume]

Erin was grateful for the hand, and for each squeeze, as it relaxed her back into the scene and reminded her that she belonged there. Or rather, she belonged with Elac, and he belonged there. By default, then, she belonged. It had suddenly been so strange to find herself beneath Layton’s gaze, that she’d nearly panicked, but she had tried.

Tried and failed.

Not completely, though. Elac now stood before the strange woman with his name, and the conversation was proceeding as it should. It was painful, yes, but wasn’t this the topic that Elac needed to broach? The woman seemed to know. Erin watched as she let those purple eyes relax. Her entire posture changed, for what seemed a moment.

“Once,” was her answer.

And then Erin lost Elac’s grip, and she no longer belonged with the two beautiful creatures. She felt small, and found her steps retreating back to where the Priest and his group was to seek solace among them, now that her job was done, and Elac would not notice she had left him.

Mina’s eyes didn’t so much as move to follow Erin. “You ought to leave,” Mina told Elac, knowing her rationale had a chance of being wrong. “This place is not for you.”

There was then the voice of Layton to interrupt them, and invite them all to eat. Mina observed the herd move from where she stood, in no hurry even as she felt what was to come. She dared not smile nor alter her own disposition again, not around someone who might pick up on it in a way different from Doan.

She caught Layton’s gaze, and gave a nod, before looking back to Elac. “The fates are conspiring to keep us apart,” she noted to him, before walking to where the trio were—Layton, Doan, and Constantine.

~***~ 

Constantine hardly appreciated the low hand and the way it seemed to be guiding him, but making a fuss would make a scene, and he did not feel like causing that. He glanced back as he realized Mina did not follow to see her standing before her reflection. He was tempted to turn back, but that would be wrong, wouldn’t it?

Yes, in this case.

Layton answered, “Oh yes, I’m planning to take a trip south where there have been some developments in technology to locate dark matter and examine it closer. I already have the tickets and the place to stay,” he was beaming broadly as he considered the possibilities that this venture could bring. Of course, it wasn’t only dark matter that was there, but so many other chemical elements that he could start to test, so many examinations of heat—he would be part of the group that found the ‘God’ element, as it was erroneously called.

And perhaps, he’d name it.

God indeed. It would take on his name.

They reached the staff, and Layton pulled away from Doan and Constantine, smiling a bit at the mess of metal and glass, “I thought I paid you enough to prevent accidents like this,” a jest, but the waiter looked nervous through his smile all the same, “Well, no matter,” he raised his voice, “I’m sure everyone was getting hungry anyway, eh?” He looked to his crowd of admirers, “So we should get the eating out of the way so you all can stop acting like civil human beings and we can clear away the tables! Come on then, don’t be shy,” he spread his arms over the banquet table, “Let’s eat, it’s all on me today.”

Some appropriate chuckles, some careful smiles, as people started to move forward to get food, and Layton gave a nod to Constantine, silently acknowledging that once the fuss and noise settled with people getting food, he’d then let Constantine speak. His eyes then sought Mina, and when he caught her gaze, he made a gesture for her to return, as well.

[Verse]

Once.

It was a small word, and enough to catalyze something endless inside him. For a moment he lived inside the implication. One person, or a cluster of them with gradients of his hair, running from vibrant to light like hers. What an impossible image. Her word had also dissallowed such a fantasy, hadn't it? At one point, yes, but no longer. "How..." he started, and realized by the time she spoke again to end that question before it was asked, that he didn't know what he would have said. How do you know? How have you been? How do you bare it?

Her voice was calm when she delivered her next words. His head fell slightly to the side, like some trusting pet, looking at its master's cruelty without wanting to recognize it as such. His heart sank with every beat, and the hand that was comming to her, reaching for her face, retracted with a tremble. He had questions on his face, but the hurt of them was somewhat halted when Layton called, and then Elac felt reassured of her kidness, that he had solely dreamed up, when she in some way regretted that she had to go. He took it as a sign of her wanting him to leave for other reasons than that she wanted him gone.

"Some conspiracies fail." he said, for himself but to her as she left for the people he'd seen her with first.

He stood alone, correcting the green tie until it was crooked, in a room full of people. Eventually he would take that deep breath that would leave to the first step out of the moment he'd shared with Mina. He smiled at people on his way back to Erin. He wanted her hand again.

-

Doan kept his attention on Layton. It was good infromation, and a promising endavor. The best horse is the one that wants to go to where you want to ride it. "I would love to hear updates. My familly has been keen on an expansion in cutting edge research concerning energy. I would like to have a hand up on my sibblings, if you wouldn't mind." he said.

The hands retraced to stay by his side, surely a welcome departure as far as Constantine's tense back was concerned, when Layton adressed the waitor. Surely the server was sweating bullets underneath that cheap uniform. Doan was not a sadist, he thought asserting dominance by belittleling those with lower social status was a sign of weakness, but he also abhorred incompetence. He gave the man by the shards a glance before lending his attention to Layton again, listening to his pompous invitation.

His hands were clasped behind his back when he turned to look toward Mina, so she could easilly pass him on her way to Layton, should she decided to come. It was her turn to speak soon, after all. As she did walk by him he smiled. "Keep it short, will you? I've got my eyes on the quale." he joked.

-

Elac held the chair out for Erin. She deserved the whole experience. There was a real smile on him then. She'd be worried for him, and really, there was no reason for it. He simply wanted to know more about Mina. Perhaps it was not as dire as he felt in his heart. Surely he could make a meeting happen. Despite these thoughts, he was still reeling from the gravity in her words before. Should he leave?

[Krystal Itzume]

‘And some do not.’

Mina was not sure if what she was doing could be called a conspiracy, just yet. Soon, of course. The theorists would connect all the dots and put her in the center, before she wiped them away. The victors wrote history.

There would be no conspiracy in her history.

Just what she felt was the truth: that humanity got what it deserved.

And so she walked by Doan to Layton, and paused as he mentioned the frivolous quail, “Then get it now.” For it might be his last. He ought to enjoy it. That change from before was back. It was in her stance, her height, that she did not mask anymore with a downturned gaze.

Her steps resumed to bring her again to Layton, and her eyes looked out to see that the one with her face was not leaving. No, he was with his own group again. Mina’s hand lifted to her locket and flicked it open as she asked, “Shall Constantine open, or myself?” Crystal and paper slipped into her hand, and then the locket was shut just as Layton looked over to her.

“The trick will catch their attention,” he said, “That ought to make them pay attention to Constantine.”

“I was thinking the same.”

Constantine would never speak, then.

~***~

Erin was still fretting, worried, and hurt, when Elac returned and pulled her chair for her. Her smile was flighty, though his was locked in a warm contentment. Erin wanted to ask Elac if it was her, if this stranger was family, or if she were something far more threatening to Erin.

However, she held her tongue. The words would not come out right. Food was brought and set for them all, and Erin found distraction in her hunger before Layton called out to them all again.

“I know you’re all starving, but we have a treat tonight. Ms. Tessmien here has thought of a way to explain energy to everyone who may not know it so well,” a chuckle, and he shot Doan a knowing look, “and then Constantine has some words to share on the matter as well, as my long-time supporter and friend,” he noted.

Erin’s eyes fell onto Mina then, and noticed now the way the make-up beneath her eye seemed to glow. She could see a tint of red to it. If she could see the crystal, she would have seen blood tipping it, sprung from an index finger. “It’s only a little show about what happens when energy fades, which is what our dear professor is trying to prevent.” Mina admitted. Words that normally would have been said humbly, no longer sounded so.

Hard to fake humility when on the brink of greatness.

“Watch.” And Erin watched as Mina turned her back to them. She saw the flash of the small crystal and heard a few words, but the words were indecipherable to her. With a breath, the crystal seemed to turn to nothing but sparkling powder that rained down before Mina, but did not coat her.

What she could not see was that Mina’s eyes no longer had color.

It was for that reason that Constantine took a step back, for he saw the change. He saw the symbol on Mina’s face grow and shine, giving Mina a second sight to see the veil between. The crystal helped to break the wall, and they all fell to create a true line of sparkling powder on the floor.

Mina crossed her left foot over the line, and then spun around to be behind it, but not directly. She was a step to the right of it—and it caused quite the reaction.

When the last bit of crystal fell, it was as if a wall had moved. There was a rectangular opening in the room that showed a different scene entirely, a world of decay, and a creature armored with claws and teeth.

“What is this?” Layton asked, horrified, his grasp of history leaving him. How he had forgotten that this grand room was built over a battlefield, a sign of victory, and a way to forget what had happened here many, many years ago.

Erin felt frozen to her seat.

[Verse]

He was so engulfed in the mystery of the new woman that he almost didn't notice the heavy air around Erin. When he sat by her, and was served small foods on big plates, he saw that his friend was not entirely alright. He was about to place his hand on hers so he could lean in and ask her, when the host spoke again. Elac's hand remained by his side. Elac and Erin listened to Mina when she tied her presentation together with the theme of the night, which was of course the decay of energy. Her voice had a new ring. His back straightened as he listened.

He gasped at what happened next; the break of the crystal and the tearing of this reality, to open it up to another one. His hand did move over, an impulse to protect as he grabbed Erin's forearm before sliding his grip down to clasp over her backhand, fingers wrapping around and digging into her palm when he stood along with the inhales and yelps of others. He knew science, not out of practice or from tests, but the look of it, and he knew art. This was neither. "We ought to leave." he echoed Mina's words to Erin, trying to pull her along. "This place is not for us."

The creature Virtue saw the door open, and stuck its head in.

Elac's eyes flared when he saw the monster´s head, the pores on its skull taking in the room. He saw it in full when it moved itself to fully stand in their universe. On its back, the scales of its wings vibrated, keeping it elevated at a steady height. A guard was fast to break formation, hurrying to get between Layton and the beast of bones. With speed that Elac failed to register the creature moved from where it stood, at the mouth of the rip, to the guard with hostile posture. The bone blades at the ends of its arms divided the man, and the room became a concert of screams.

Those panicked sounds dulled slightly, muted when the creature stated singing. It wasn't a voice, not really, but multiple things, pitched ends and somber body, coming together in something that felt a little like anger and sadness. His joints ached in tune with the vibrato.

The creature stuck its blade in a second guard and lifted his body to its shoulder, where a giant mouth was. It was a matter of mincing after that, and the fluids that a human body is composed of leaked out between the bone plates over the rest of the creature. All Elac could do at the sight of this was try to and wrench Erin along when he intended to aim for the door at the other side of the sea of panic.

-

Virtue continued to sing for them as it rediscovered their anatomy, and stored it in its memory. The shell with its hollow eyes recorded the light in the weapons that some of the soldiers held in their hands before those hands were cut off. Such a violent race. Virtue sent the information back to its own, dying world as spores, loaded with genetic information.

Then it saw something surrounded by a color it had not seen in a very long time. White hair, bipedal like the rest of them. She glowered like their missing element.

-

Doan's hair was disheveled. People had clung to him, for some reason, and he'd had to push them off. The situation was dangerous, surely, but not so much that they had to bother him. He was throwing his head this way and that to look for a safe exit when he caught a glance of the giant creature. It had stilled somewhat in the mayhem. It was staring at Mina Tessmien.

He hurried to her, then, even though it was abundantly clear to him, who had seen it all at close range, that she had something to do with this. He didn't grab her arm to take her to safety. What good could come from a passenger trying to save the captain? "What is your plan?" he asked, voice concealed by the screams to everyone but her. "I'll follow you."

[Krystal Itzume]

‘This place is not for us.’ Erin heard the words but still found herself frozen, awe-struck and terrified, by the thing that came through from the other side.

Who was Mina?

What was this thing?

Staying was not a good idea. What Mina brought, sought destruction, food, or something that meant their lives were going to end, and though Erin knew this, all she wanted to do was curl up into a tiny ball and hope to go unnoticed.

Erin watched as a guard died, and Layton got the hint to turn and run. Constantine stood gaping, going from shock to anger in seconds. He was not a fighting man, not with weapons, though.

“Mina! What is the meaning of this?” He shouted across the din.

Erin saw as Mina turned her head while the second guard’s fluids ran down the terrifying creature. She saw Mina smile, “It’s meaning should be blatantly obvious, love,” and she turned to face him, the make-up under her eye burned there now, a black scar, as her eyes once again took on their purple hue from white. “Run, if you want to live another day.”

And although Constantine hated orders, he saw the creature distracted by Mina, and so, he ran, with plots swimming in his head of revenge. Of military. Of anything to make sense of this event and put him back on top.

The creature’s attention shifting seemed to catch up with Erin and bring her back to the present. She gasped and yelped as Elac pulled at her, and she was finally brought out of her chair in stumbling steps that caused her to collide with the back of Elac. She took a look back, and then, followed the way Elac was pulling—out, in the sea of people, taking advantage of the creature’s distraction.

~***~

The song vibrated in Mina’s blood. She felt it in her marrow, and her heart seemed to slow to match its beat, its call. It ached in a way she’d felt for years, and did not let her revel in the chaos that was springing up around her.

This was only step one, and all of this would be undone.

The flesh beneath her left eye hurt, and she shut both for a few seconds as Constantine took his leave, only to open the purple orbs onto the creature which had paused to look at her. ‘It could all end now, too.’ She had no control over what she released. It did not know she was its savior, either. She was not even sure it could understand her.

It must have sensed she was not human, though. Not fully, at least. “I am sorry it took so long,” she spoke to it, before she noted Doan out of the corner of her eye.

She shifted only a bit to look at him, and she smiled, raising her eyebrows at his gesture. “Follow me? Don’t you understand,” her tone played at mocking, “My plan is a change in your world’s order,” not excluding the possibility of genocide. “You ought to be running with the rest of the herd,” she didn’t dare to say she wasn’t safe to be around, lest her fragile grasp of the situation reveal itself.

For all intents and purposes, everyone ought to believe she did have control. That she was in charge. 

[Verse]

The weapons directed at the monster were mostly ones with charged projectiles, fragment weapons, in their chambers. The energy that surged into the relatively light fragments quickly overloaded when the triggers were pulled, melting and exploding the rifles and handguns instead of sending the fragments off toward the monster. Elac saw this, drawn by the beauty of the blue light and the desperate state of things that the light-show signified. The presence of the monster must have something to do with it.

He had other things to think of, holding Erin's hand as he struggled in the stream of bodies flooding the exit. "Stay close." he barked back at her to try and penetrate the screams and the heavy song in the air. With some violence that he regretted, he was able to get ahead of a group of people, and ride their force to get himself and Erin outside the doors. In this corridor, laden with glass panels, people were already trying to break out.

-

Doan had elated breaths in his lungs when she lectured him on her intentions. Not even the guns would fire at her. She had a plan greater than he'd though. What was all this? How could this be? Was the new religion real, of angels coming through a hole in the world? He looked at the creature of bone, slicing its way through the people that littered the path between itself and Mina. What was her plan for it?

"I'd rather see this new order than run from it." he replied, and came closer to her. His heart was beating in a way that told him he was frightened, but he still didn't know what else to do than stand by her side as the monster came. Whatever this was, it was imperative he saw it through.

-

Virtue could feel little fires in the room, designed to burn it. But it could not be burned by a bastardization of the flame that should be burning in its own world. The pores on its face were still directed at the familiar hue around the creature a few paces away. It wanted to see what this was.

Suddenly it was pelted with dull objects.

-

A new guard, young and fresh-faced, had not gotten his license for fragment weapons yet, and was left with an old weapon, used by terror cells, its projectiles launched with co2 rather than magnetic or energy rails. It was the only working device in the room, it seemed. The monster's plates seemed invulnerable to the assault, more than this and that crack, but it served in getting him its attention. He took a knee as the monster turned to him, so he could rummage through a fallen guard's belt, and retrieve a chemically based bomb.

When he lifted the cylinder to throw it, there was a blinding pain in his side.

-

Howard hadn't been running. He'd been listening and staring at the angel. It was everything he'd waited for. He'd donated a third of his fortune to Donair and gone every time there was a sermon. He'd even cut down a sinner once, when the sinner lived a life of debauchery and theft. Now every word Howard had said about religion in his life had become true.

That was why he'd ran up to the young guard and stabbed him with a steak knife. You can't shoot at an angel. The angel needed to judge every sinner.

Howard didn't even feel regret even as the guard turned, pulled out the knife and cut Howard down. As he bled, he looked up at the woman who had ushered in this new era of enlightenment.

"Prophet." he said with wide eyes and iron on his lips. When his head fell back, he stared toward the hole in the world, and saw several other creatures looking back at him. They did not look like angels.

[Krystal Itzume]

Erin did not know Elac to be violent, but desperate times meant desperate measures. She was dragged along, arm all but pulled out of its socket as she was pulled to keep up with him. He made a passage with force of strength, and Erin could only try to keep up.

She hated her shoes then.

She hated her dress.

There were still screams and the sounds of chaos as they exited the main room and entered into the corridor. Desperate people broke windows, which confused Erin. “Aren’t the doors unlocked?” Why would they be locked, unless Mina meant to trap them all?

Even so, the glass was breaking, the pretty shards cutting into people. Blood stained the floor, but people were getting out. Erin pushed for the door. Perhaps it was just the straight-shot that scared people, but the creature that had appeared did not seem to be following.

Erin didn’t dare to look back, though.

~***~

Mina could practically hear the fear in every beat that came from Doan. His eyes were wild, but he was not running away. Fool that he was, he was staying near. He wanted to be a part of this, and her lips slid easily into a smile as she canted her head at his declaration. “Really? I wonder if you are sincere or if you are afraid.”

It did not matter in the moment, but it would matter later. Mina sized him up, purple eyes raking over the usually composed man. “It is your family’s way to jump on untested ships though, isn’t it?” And usually, those ships sailed smoothly.

Mina should take it as a compliment. “Let’s see how long you last,” Mina saw the distraction of the creature, and what caused it. She saw the stranger who took to worship rather than fleeing, who fell before the portal but saved the creature. She did not imagine he would survive. As the other creatures followed the example of the first, he would be taken down by them for crimes his ancestors had committed.

Perhaps Doan would be different. She reached for his hand, and then pushed energy out, keeping him just within the field so he would not be pushed away.

Mina walked towards the creature, a field of sorts existing four feet around her. If anyone did try to shoot her now, it would be deflected. This was more for her to clear a path for herself, the way she’d cleared one for Constantine. “Do you understand me?” She asked it, uncertain if it would try to harm her, or if it was curious—if it sensed she was more like it, than the humans around them.

She didn’t even give a glance to the one who spoke the term “Prophet”.

She was not a prophet.
 

[Verse]

Elac’s tense eyes turned to Erin when she reminded him of the obvious exit. He nodded to agree, even though he had no real way of knowing. One man grabbed hold of a large piece of glass still stuck in its frame and tore it back, breaking it off to make a way for himself. He could have kicked it, or gone around it, instead he chose to shred his fingers. People were mad. Elac was awakened from that sympathy, that trademark empathy, when he was pulled in Erin’s direction. He followed as soon as he had collected his wits, sharp elbows and hard shoulders helping her.

Well outside, through the nightmare of the receiving hall, there was enough space for people to fan out. The danger of being crushed by others diminished. Out in the open, everything felt so—of this world. Atrocious, but familiar in a stark way. It was hard to believe they’d fled from a literal monster. He looked back, tried to see through the many windows of the building they’d come from. His hand was still on Erin even as an early officer tried to pull her aside to take her statement. He thought he saw the bone structure. It seemed to be rather still.

-

Doan wondered that himself. Wasn’t all their investments a move for self-preservation? Their world, on the echelons of society, was a moving thing, a devouring thing, and the Edner clan was as viable for consumption as any other old family. But this was different. His life was in danger, but that wasn’t the only reason he’d stay with her. If he thought she could control this event, this happening, then she was indeed something he’d like to be connected to, loyal to.

He was confident in his tongue. But he had nothing more to offer her than what she knew he had. When she weighed him, his use and his possible adherence to any kind of contract they’d join in, verbal or unspoken, his heart was frozen. In what seemed like a whim she agreed to let him be alive, or save him.  He took her hand, and he thought he saw something in her, then. He imagined it was a complete and deeply rooted disregard for this situation, and the mayhem she had caused. Then, when he heard the dying man refer to her as a prophet, Doan realized what her value was, for him. People would worship her. This was supernatural, beyond understanding. People hadn’t even made it out of here before they’d put a religious view on it. Mina Tessmien could be all-mighty in this world. And what was religion if not good PR? He walked with her and wanted her hand again when he saw more monsters rear their heads. But somehow he felt safe with her, in this field. Not that he trusted her. He trusted in her.

He was about to ask her what would happen next but before he could, she spoke to the angel.

-

Virtue, with stolen blood still pulsing through the crevices of its natural armor, looked down at the field around her. The sphere, that it could see clearly, was another color than the sheen that came from her inner. She used her mouth, and when she did, Virtue’s song quieted. It had not learned communication in this world. What use would it have been to listen to pleas of mercy when their want for such had nothing to do with whether Virtue would grant it or not? But it understood what she wanted.

It pointed the tip of one arm at a collection of bodies by its feet, and then it lifted its other arm to point out of the window. To finish off the sentiment of the destruction of their world, it extended its arms to the side. Death, everywhere. It then looked her over and then pointed at her as well. It had not thought about bringing their precious element home, Virtue was mostly made of vengeance these days, but seeing her glow now, it felt that it should at least try.

-

The other creatures looked at Virtue, and were particularly surprised by its calmness. Usually only a show of great power that could quell it. Now it seemed to converse with the thing from this world. When the handful of monsters saw Mina’s sheen, they started walking through the world-mouth as well. Two of them snarled and the other two gasped when the lips of the portal started to close, the rip between dimensions blurring and tightening.

Outside Elac had twisted around, letting go of Erin. “I have to go back in.” he said, white eyes turning to look at his friend, showing off determination and bewilderment. “She’s…” he started and then shook his head. He couldn’t know what she was, but he had to save her, since she’d not come out. The officer started to protest. Before Elac could offer a protest in return, both the officer and Erin would be able to see a flaring of black, sharp flames from his collar, up his neck, as though the flames were inside him.

In rhythm with the tattooed flames on Elac’s skin, the mouth that would have bitten the monsters ready to enter the room with Mina were saved, the edges of the hole stabilizing to a flawless oval, and letting the handful of monsters in.

Doan looked up at the creatures, most of them larger than the angel. One had a black crown of horns, another had four legs that came to apelike, naked torso. “Theatrical, aren’t they?” he whispered to her.