Felicia ran forward, frantically looking around. She was more or less aimless, but she still remembered how his ether felt. However, the ether from the woman she had just ran into overpowered her other senses, clouding her mind. Whoever she was, they were somehow connected. There was a tinge of corruption crawling in her eye, but it wasn’t any normal blight, it felt like her own, like her arm. She looked down to the crystalline appendage and flexed it’s fingers outwards. It wasn’t draining as much ether as before, but she still needed to concentrate to keep it there.

Quickly shaking her head, she focused harder, trying to find him. He was somewhere close, close enough for her to feel his signature pulling and calling out. It was so faint, yet it sent a rush of urgency through her. She revelled in the familiarity as she continued running, knowing for certain that she was on the right trail. The little bits of his ether only made her want more, to get closer. Melancholy memories of happiness floated through her head, telling her of calmer times she couldn’t fully piece together. They knew each other, she had known him for what felt like forever or at least what she wanted to be forever.

She kept running, dodging the trees and decrepit stone barricades in her way. Everything started to fade as his signal got closer and closer. She was barely thinking as she neared it, trying to take it in more and more. She came across a small building, the walls barely held up and the door slumped inwards. Pushing it open, she scanned the room, examining the rotting furniture and broken ceiling. The room led to another set of doors which she briskly walked toward, anticipation lumping in her throat. With her walk turning back into a run, she flung the entrance open. Light poured in from above as she stepped into a courtyard filled with overgrown grass and bushes. Frantically scanning, she stopped in her tracks as she saw him.

The sunlight around him seemed to glow as he turned, his bright amber eyes glistening and his hair messily shifting. They stared at each other in silence, and without a word, started to run towards each other. Wrapping their arms around one another, they embraced in the middle of the garden. Felicia collapsed to her knees and he went down with her, whispering. “I thought you died, oh god I thought you were dead.”

“I-”

“Felicia, how are you alive? I… you’re here, you-”

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” She felt her tears start to spill out as she shook her head. “I- I don’t remember, I don’t remember you, I’m so sorry.” She buried her face in his arm and held onto him tightly, desperately trying to recall who he was. She cared about him, she wanted to be with him, but she couldn’t figure out why.

“... What are you saying? I don’t understand.”

“I don’t remember anything, I don’t know who you are, I don’t know who I am, I don’t… Oh god, I’m sorry, please, I’m sorry, don’t… Please, don’t leave.”

“I won’t, I’m here.” He stuttered for a second. “I… I’m Raynauld. Do you…?”

“Raynauld, I… I’m sorry.”

He winced and looked down. “... You don’t have to apologize, it’s okay.”

She hugged onto Raynauld tighter, keeping herself close. She whispered under her breath, choking on her words. “Who are you? Who was I? I don’t know, I don’t know anything. I thought I would remember when I found you, but I don’t even recognize your face and...”

“It’s okay Felicia.”

“But it’s not, how is this okay? I can’t remember anything-”

“It’s going to be okay, I’m here.”

She squeezed him tighter and heard him grunt in pain. Quickly releasing, she looked down to her arms and then shuffled away. “Sorry, I… I’m still getting used to it.”

“It’s alright. That’s… crystalized ether?”

“Y-yeah.”

He slowly nodded and stared at it, the expression on his face somewhere between wonder and surprise. Felicia turned her head to the side, trying to hide the arm. “Raynauld, who are you?”

“I… I’m… we knew each other, I was assigned to train with you, we… we saw each other almost daily, and…”

“But where? Why?”

He looked over to her, his anxiety and uncomfortableness evident even from a glance. “The city, it’s… well, it’s a version of where we are now, but… we…”

“We what?”

“Don’t mind that, it’s not important right now, how are you alive?”

With a shaking exhale, she nodded, realizing he also needed answers. “My.... my mother transferred her ether to me, and, well, I guess this is what happened. She’s… not awake anymore.”

“... I see.” His gaze flicked down to her arm and then back up to her eyes as he shifted in place. “Are you feeling alright?”

“I believe so? I’m not sure, it’s all so… unfamiliar. I’m… I’m asking you to explain too much right now, aren’t I?”

“Well, it’s… hard to say just out of the blue. I don’t know what to do.”

“... I understand.” She let out a small sigh and shook her head. “…What now then?”

“We should move, I don’t know if it’s safe.”

Felicia nodded and stood up with him, hugging her body with her arms after wiping the tears off her face. Raynauld hesitantly started to reach his hand out for her but stopped and let it fall to his side before slowly walking. She followed him, quietly talking, knowing that panicking would only make him more anxious. “Where are we right now?”

“I don’t exactly know, another world of sorts, everything here is similar but different.”

“You said… the city, right?”

“Yes, this is what the city looks like, but…”

“Intact?”

“Yeah.”

“... Did we plan to go here?”

“No, we followed people in here, after they escaped.”

“We were hunting them?”

“... Yes.”

She slowly nodded and looked down to the clothing they were both wearing. “... What exactly was our job?”

“We… well, we were soldiers, but we were assigned to find particular people.”

“But you were training me?”

“Yes, for a few years.”

She looked down to her arm, feeling her ether gently pulsing before she nodded her head. “...I was also one of your assignments?”

“Sorry?”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“You said you were assigned to train me, was it the same deal with this?”

“... Sort of.”

Felicia nodded and breathed a long exhale before shaking her head. “... Who were we hunting?”

He hesitated for a moment. “Two powerful and dangerous deserters. They harmed a lot of people, and we were supposed to stop them.”

“And did we?”

“... One of them is still out there.”

Felicia nodded and looked away. “It wasn’t just us two hunting them, was it?”

“... No.”

“Did I… know any of them?”

“... Yeah.”

She watched Raynauld’s movements, trying to be careful with her words. “How many of us were there?

He took a moment to respond. “Six.”

“... I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He spoke quietly to the point where she almost didn’t hear it. Felicia slowly walked closer, trying to make it to his side. With a small amount of hesitation, she stayed next to him, unsure of what to say. She lowered her head, knowing the pain he was in, pain that she wasn’t feeling. What could she say? She knew nothing about the people who he lost, nothing about how to comfort him, nothing about how they were supposed to talk. She didn’t even know how much she would’ve cared. Even so, she didn’t want to see him hurting, for some reason she didn’t fully understand.

Raynauld stayed reserved, his eyes nervously flicking around them. Felicia carefully spoke up, making sure to keep her tone gentle. “Is anything wrong?”

“There’s someone out there who would want to hurt both of us, we need to keep watch.”

“Were they one of the ones we were hunting?”

“Yes, he has ether reaver chains that he can control.”

“Chains?”

“They can drain ether, it can debilitate you quickly.”

“Alright.” Felicia shivered as a gust of wind hit her, the air cold against her skin. She looked around as the buildings which lined them seemed to crumble even more. “... Are we going to fight him?”

“… I hope not.”

“Aren’t we supposed to hunt them?”

“I’m not risking letting you get hurt.”

“O-oh.” She looked down to her hand and while she was admittedly happy, shook her head. “I… I don’t think it would matter though.”

“Sorry?”

“I got these powers from my mother, and if I’m anything like her, I don’t know if death would do too much to me. I already came back once, right?”

He winced and looked away, struggling to find his words. “I- well… I still would rather avoid it.”

“But… okay.” She kept her questions to herself and continued walking with him, knowing that he knew better than her. The air continued to send chills through her as she rubbed her arms, feeling the cold crawl on her skin. Raynauld looked back to her, scanning her movements. “Is something wrong?”

“No, just a bit cold.”

“Cold?” His pace slowed as his eyebrows furrowed. “... We need to move.”

“Huh?”

He grabbed her hand and started to run in the opposite direction. Felicia followed, her eyes flicking around their surroundings. Concentrating, she reached her senses outwards. A faint signature loomed close to them, and blank spots started to snake through the air. Suddenly, a surge came from their left, to which she instinctively pushed Raynauld out of the way. A chain whipped through the air, almost hitting her as she jumped back. Turning to face their attacker, she was met with a dark cloak and a malicious yet gleeful smile. “I thought you were dead.”

She stared at the man in front of her, failing to recognize him. Raynauld drew a sword and turned to face the man while hisisng to Felicia under his breath. “Run, as far as you can.”

“What? But he’ll kill you-”

“Felicia, please listen.”

She hesitated and stayed in place. The chains whipped out again before she could respond and Raynauld grunted in pain as he deflected one but let a second hit his side. Felicia leaped forward, blocking a blow with her crystal arm. As she stayed in front of Raynauld, another chain slithered up to her from behind and shot up, wrapping itself around her throat. She choked in pain as everything started to go dark, her ether quickly shutting down and leaving her whole body in cold shadows. As she fell to her knees, her crystal arm dissipated into a purple mist, leaving her other desperate hand to claw at the chains.

Laughter came from the man as he circled another chain around her. “Well, aren’t you a surprise! It makes so much sense, the pre-existing training alongside your absurd ether reserves, I should’ve just waited for you to grow up instead, it all would’ve been so much easier.”

Felicia shivered and kept grasping at the bindings, trying to break free. Raynauld got up and quickly jumped at the man with a stab but was batted back. He recovered and blocked a chain but failed to start an attack of his own before another line of metal slammed into him. As he fell to the ground, metal wrapped itself around his neck, choking him before he was flung into a stone wall. He let out a gasp before crumpling to the ground, his sword clattering against stone. Felicia watched in horror and willed herself upwards, still grasping at the chains.

She wasn’t able to find her footing and collapsed back down, but kept forcing herself to get up again. The man moved towards Raynauld, pulling out a knife. Felicia’s eyes widened and she whispered through choked breaths. “Stop. Get away from him.” She stumbled forwards, gathering the ether she could muster. “No.”

As he turned to her, she quickly formed her crystal hand, reaching out to grab onto him. The man jumped back, sending another chain around her stomach. She moved both of her hands to the one around her neck and struggled with it momentarily before ripping it away. As she tried to will her ether forward, the chains kept draining more and more, sending agony through her. With a scream, pain erupted from her back and the sound of ripping clothing came alongside cracking ice. She felt her ether start to burn through her as unfamiliar appendages sprouted from her back. They were wings, dark black crystal wings that extended outwards, both of them almost as tall as her whole body.

With grit teeth, she lunged forward, a chain still around her waist. Bits of the wings broke off and small shards shot towards the man like arrows. He jumped away from a couple, but more came forth and embedded themselves in him. He grunted and swung a chain upwards, smashing into her crystal arm. The jagged black surface broke and her hand shattered as she wasn’t able to maintain enough ether to keep it stable. Focusing, she poised the rest of the arm and continued her lunge. The broken crystal punctured his chest and she continued, pushing in and up to the elbow. A small gurgle came from the man as she stumbled forward, breathing heavily.

He looked down to his chest and hoarsely chuckled before she grabbed onto his neck with her normal hand, pulling on his ether. A warmth flooded her body as she felt a surge flow through her, slightly counteracting the chains. The crystal hand reformed on the other side of his body as she kept her arm through his chest, letting him drop to his knees. As she drained even more ether, the grip of the chains loosened. An immediate burst of power flooded her whole body and the wings on her back flared outwards, shimmering in the light. She moved her hand from his neck to his face, letting a small bit of ether loose from her palm. A blast rocketed forth, smashing into his skull. His entire head splattered outwards in a red mist, coating the walls with a squelch.

Felicia lowered her hand from the headless shoulders and the neck which spouted blood upwards in a rhythmic pulse. Ripping her crystal hand from the torso, she let the body slouch over. Bits of the now red painted stone building started to crumble from the blast as she looked over to Raynauld while wiping the blood off her arm. He tried to push himself up as she ran over to him, quickly touching her hands to his chest to heal him as her wings curled around the two of them, providing shelter.

Raynauld grunted and sat up while staring at Felicia, his eyes reflecting the red glow of hers. She finished healing him and then grabbed onto his hand. “Are you okay? Does anything else hurt?”

“I… No, what…”

Felicia looked to the wings, folding them behind her back. “I’m… not sure, it just happened.”

“Those… do you know what those are?”

“Not really.”

“... They’re abbadon wings.”

“Sorry?”

“I- nevermind, are you feeling okay?”

“I think so, what about you?”

“I’m better now.” He pushed himself up and glanced over to the slumped over corpse beside them. Taking a moment to stare, he quietly spoke. “You killed him?”

“Yeah, is there anybody else we need to look out for?”

“N-no, not right now.” He turned back to her. “You sure you’re okay?”

She looked down to her arm and checked her stomach. “I don’t think the ether draining has any lasting effects, so yeah.”

He stared for a moment before pushing himself up, looking back at her wings. “What do those do?”

She spread them outwards, lightly flapping them and testing their range of motion. “I’m not sure, but…” She willed a piece of them off, forming a small crystal spike in the air. Concentrating, she pulled off a few more, letting them float in place before dissipating them. Shaking her head, Felicia folded the wings and let them disappear into purple mist, feeling her ether start to slow down. Giving a small smile, she looked back to Raynauld. “I don’t exactly know.”

He nodded and picked up his sword from the ground, sheathing it before walking forward again. “We should move from here.”

Felicia glanced over to the body and nodded, following him again. As she wiped off a few more smears of blood, she felt her ether start to wind down even more. Her eyebrows furrowed as it kept going, the surge slowing to a crawl. Stumbling forward, she caught herself on Raynauld’s arm. He quickly turned to support her as her legs started to wobble. “Felicia!?”

“I-it’s okay, I’m just… a bit tired…” She felt her crystal arm start to disappear as her grip faded. Her limp body was held by Raynauld as she fell to the floor, leaning on his shoulder as consciousness slowly left her.