In one moment, Serena saw Amelia’s eyes filled with fear, hope, and determination. Then Amelia Spoke, and night became day. The aetherfield twisted and boiled as energies manifested at levels she had never seen or experienced before. These forces didn’t harm her; they simply flowed about, announcing to the world, ‘I am here!’.

Then the night returned, and Amelia was gone. In her place, a pair of gigantic taloned feet gripped the ship, each one large enough to wrap around Serena’s body. She gulped and turned her head upwards to see that much of the night sky was covered by a pair of enormous black feather wings. Each stretched for more than a hundred feet, and the dark feathers twinkled with hints of colour, reminding Serena of the sky during moonrains, where the crystals burned up in the atmosphere in bright flashes.

Much of Amelia’s elongated form was now covered in the same dark feathers. They covered her shoulders, chest, and arms in layered patterns that reminded Serena of scale armour. She had to do a double-take but saw that Amelia now had four arms, each ending in a four-finger hand, boasting nails that looked as sharp as any aura-covered sword.

The parts that weren’t covered instead boasted pure white fur. White fur. That brought a memory to the forefront of Serena’s mind. Asclepius was described as a great winged angel with shining white fur and glowing golden feathers. Amelia’s wings should be golden, not black. Also, what was with her talons and nails? There had been no mention of an Asclepius embodiment looking like… like this!

Wasn’t she bigger than she was supposed to be? Fifteen meters was the number she remembered but Amelia seemed to be almost double that. A four-armed, thirty-meter-tall angel with black wings and feathers. Serena tried to get a good look at Amelia’s face, which was turned away from her, facing the night sky. She could tell it was heavily feathered with long, sharp ears, similar to the demons in the far west.

“Scree!” Amelia made an animalistic noise, its tone sounding alien and unnatural. Amelia’s aether flared, and Serena caught a vague sense of the endless reservoir of aether she possessed. It was a genuinely titanic amount, perhaps more than a hundred First Words.

The ship jerked as it suddenly slowed and Serena lost her grip. She was thrown off, causing her to reflexively push her aura into yellow, an action that was easier than normal. Was the presence of Amelia in this form aiding her? Nevertheless, she comfortably wrapped her body in yellow aura and smashed through the forest canopy. For a moment, she tumbled, breaking smaller branches and bouncing inelegantly off the bigger ones.

Then she was clear, and the forest floor approached her as she flew down past the enormous ironwood trees, each one reaching over a hundred meters in height. Serena landed with a thud, quickly gathering herself and looking up, sensing the presence of Amelia and the ship approaching.

The Sakamoto breached the forest canopy first, its weight too much for even the mighty ironwood branches. It tunnelled through, but not before visibly slowing. Amelia followed the ship, still gripping it in her taloned feet. Her black wings sliced through the canopy and Serena could see those feathers were scratching the bark of the ironwood as easily as a shawa’s claws could dig into flesh.

The ship was lowered, its weight counteracted by Amelia’s tremendous reserves of aether pushing against the lumina kilometres below, until it hit the forest floor. The collision was bad enough to crack the ship's hull but not enough to be overly dangerous to those inside. Amelia let go of the ship, which for a moment was balanced perfectly until it fell to one side against the trunk of an ironwood. The ship rolled to the side and fell to the forest floor, and as it did, waves of magic erupted from Amelia’s divine form.

The rapid firing of spells that came from Amelia was unbelievable in their frequency and power. As far as Serena could tell, these were healing spells, each one cast far and wide. Unlike Amelia’s previous healing, which was loving and gentle - these instead skipped such superfluous emotions. They hit Serena and simply demanded the body and soul to correct itself, as if any scratch or bruise was an insult to the order of the world. The scratches and cuts Serena faced in the engine room didn’t so much as heal as they simply vanished.

Whatever condition the travellers were in previously, they were surely all better now.

Serena looked at Amelia, who must have sensed her presence because she turned her face, locking their eyes together. Serena swallowed. Amelia’s brilliant blue eyes were gone, and there were no signs of the golden grace of Asclepius either. Instead, two enormous crimson eyes stared back at her, each with one large black pupil surrounded by two smaller ones. For a moment, Serena was transfixed by the otherworldliness of those eyes.

“Amelia?” Serena asked, trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice. Amelia was silent, simply observing her as she hovered in the air. The giant face tilted in confusion, or maybe it was curiosity.

Amelia’s mouth opened, consisting of pearly white teeth. “Demon…” she said in an alien voice that sent shivers down Serena’s spine.

Serena’s mind raced. This was the first time Amelia had ever Spoken the Second Word. She didn’t know too much about what it entailed - Speakers with such capability were not that forthcoming regarding what happened. She did know that the first time was the most difficult, and hardest to control. How much of Amelia’s mind was her own, and how much was Asplecius influencing her?

“Scree!” Amelia screamed into the night sky, before clambering onto a tree, her sword-like nails and scythe-like talons easily digging into the ironwood bark as she made her way away from the crash site.

Where was she going? Serena didn’t know, but knew she had to chase after her. She ran after Amelia. Passing the fallen ship, she could hear cries of surprise and fear from within the vessel but no sounds of pain. Something Amelia had done had also put out the flames, as only the slightest whisps of smoke escaped the hull. Serena left the ship behind and delved deeper into the forest after Amelia.

Making her way through the enormous ironwoods, Serena felt small. Very small. These trees were the ancestors of the wilderness that dominated the continent a thousand years ago - and they were still here, standing tall and proud. Each one of these trees contained tens of thousands of cubic meters of wood. Each one could be used to build a thousand homes or a dozen small ships. That is, if you put in the extraordinary effort to cut through the metal-like bark and defend yourself against the wilderness’s inhabitants.

Speaking of, where were they? Serena’s senses were tremendously heightened by the yellow aura she cloaked herself in, yet she couldn’t sense any monsters at all. Could they sense Amelia? Were they avoiding her? She gritted her teeth and ran on through the dark forest. Amelia was her priority.

Stopping atop a rise in the terrain, Serena peered through the darkness. Amelia was gone, and Serena couldn’t see or hear her, but she could sense her. It was almost like they were tethered. Serena just knew where she was. It wasn’t a matter of her aether picking up on the fluctuations caused by Amelia’s vast reserves. It was something more, something deeper. It was as if there was a line linking them together. A line she couldn’t see but could feel at the very tip of her enhanced senses.

She ran for a few more minutes, covering several kilometres as her aura-enhanced body put the best athletes to shame. Rounding a large ironwood tree, she stumble across a clearing.

In the centre lay Amelia, her enormous feathery body curled into a ball, black wings folded tight. Her white fur glowed under rays of moonlight flittering through the forest canopy. Serena could see the huge body rise and fall as the angelic being breathed.

Serena couldn’t help but think it looked like Amelia belonged in the vast wilderness. It was almost natural to see this unnatural entity in an unnatural environment.

No. Amelia was hers. Amelia belonged to her and her to Amelia.

Serena cautiously approached the resting giant. After only a few steps, Amelia raised her head, facing her with those crimson alien eyes that seemed to see not only her but through her as well.

“Tired?” Serena asked with a weak smile. She didn’t really know what to say, only that she felt an overwhelming need to be here, with Amelia.

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Amelia didn’t respond. Instead, she repositioned so she was standing like an animal, with her four arms and legs supporting her weight. Honestly, she was behaving more like a peeka than a person. Her enormous black wings kept half-expanding and then retracting as if she didn’t know what to do with them.

With an awkward movement, Amelia approached Serena. Her approach seemed almost cautious, which in itself was weird considering how strong Amelia was. As Amelia pushed her face towards Serena, she was reminded once again of how massive Amelia was. Her head was almost as big as Serena's body. The somewhat human face amongst all the feathers looked strange, and those crimson eyes never left Serena.

“I am…” Amelia intoned, as she pushed Serena with her face, forcing Serena to stumble before getting her bearings. It wasn’t an aggressive push, but one of curiosity, like an animal finding a strange toy. “Who… am I?” Amelia mumbled, before sniffing Serena.

“You’re… you’re Amelia,” Serena said. “Amelia Thornheart. Remember?” Amelia’s face frowned at that, and she looked like she was struggling with something.

“Amelia…” Amelia circled Serena, using all six of her limbs to pace around her. “Who… what… is Amelia?”

“You are Amelia. You are human.” Serena put a bit more force into her words. “You’re my… my friend.” Serena resisted a sigh. “My maid, remember?” She swallowed. “My lover.”

And the person I love, she said silently to herself.

“Ah…” Amelia nodded. A wild grin, so large it almost seemed too big for her face, appeared before being replaced by an expression of confusion. “So I am… Amelia…”

“Yes, do you remember me?” Serena reached out a hand and Amelia sniffed it. She slowly reached forward before placing a palm on Amelia’s enormous cheek. It felt soft and warm. Serena moved her hand to the side, where Amelia’s dark feathers began. When she made contact, they felt as hard as metal, but something changed, and they became flexible and silky. Not knowing what else to do, Serena began awkwardly stroking them, moving her hands behind Amelia’s long and sharp ears. Amelia responded, leaning her head and neck down.

“Amelia… Thornheart… me…” Whatever was happening, Amelia seemed to be coming around, so Serena kept stroking the feathers. Then, Amelia’s breathing started to change, a low rumble could be heard as she breathed. The noise grew louder quickly. It sounded like a propulsion engine.

Amelia was purring.

Trying to ignore the ridiculousness of the situation, Serena began recalling events to Amelia. She avoided topics of fights and battles, instead recounting other times. When they caught sardis, and Amelia had to wash plates up for hours under the stern eyes of the head cook. When Amelia discovered toffee apples and other sweet things. When they had loqua for the first time. When they had danced.

Serena prattled on, not knowing how long had passed. An hour? Two? Serena eventually ran out of things to say, and Amelia had been quiet for a while, with only the sound of her purring filling the clearing. “Hey,” Serena whispered. “You there?”

Amelia turned her head and Serena noted it was looking more… human. “Mmm… thank you, little Ren.” Amelia smiled, and a red bulge appeared between her lips. The sight of it confused Serena for a moment, and just as she realized it was Amelia’s tongue, that very same tongue darted out and licked her from the knees to her forehead.

This idiot!

Serena wiped the saliva from her face. Amelia chuckled, the noise of which sounded deep and rich, somewhere between a human and… something else. “Imagine that between your legs! Har har!” Amelia grinned wildly, and Serena saw a familiar twinkle of cheekiness in those crimson eyes.

Well, it was definitely Amelia.

“Are… you back then? You know yourself?”

“Yes… I was lost for a moment. Asclepius was not a happy bunny!” Amelia shook her head, the action causing her feathers to ripple, like waves on a lakeshore.

Serena almost asked what in the seven hells a bunny was but stopped herself. Now wasn’t the time. “How do you feel?” she asked.

“Powerful! And…” Amelia stood up, twirling as she stretched and unfolded her wings. The clearing wasn’t quite big enough, and her wings slammed into the trunks of the nearby ironwood trees. The bark cracked and a large number of branches and leaves fell around them. “... And strange,” Amelia finished, before looking around at seemingly nothing. “I see so much more. Other planes. Layered upon this one.”

“You can see the seven hells? The heavenly halls?”

“Maybe. It might be something else. I can see things moving around in them. They can see me too, I think.” Amelia stopped looking into nothing and focused on Serena. “How do I look? Am I magnificent? Look! I have four arms!”

“You look… breathtaking.” Serena took a few steps back so she could fit Amelia’s huge frame in her vision. “However… I think I prefer you smaller. How can I ever hold you now!?”

Amelia laughed. “You could ride me! Into battle!” Serena smiled. A ridiculous idea. Any battle Amelia involved herself in that form would be a battle Serena would have little impact in. What Amelia was, what she had become, was on a whole other level.

Serena didn’t know what the following months and years would bring, but the Words Spoken tonight would send ripples across the political landscape of the world. Suddenly, a concern burst into the forefront of her mind and, while trying to keep any notes of panic from her voice, Serena asked, “Amelia, can Asclepius see and hear us?”

“Mmm… Yes. The connection is strong. He sees what I see. He hears what I hear. Still… my thoughts are my own.”

“Is he… talking to you?”

“He was. Now he’s sulking. Har har! What a baby!”

Serena forced a smile. If Asclepius could see what Amelia - fueled by his power - had become, then that knowledge would be shared with the human church. In fact, he might be sharing it right now. Serena bit her cheeks as her thoughts raced. If, no, when the human church got word of this event, that the form of Asclepius had been - in their words - corrupted with demonic traits, red eyes and black wings, then… then…

It would be war.

“What’s wrong?”

“Thinking about events… and the ship,” Serena told a half-truth. “A rescue vessel should come within the next twelve hours. We’ll need to protect the ship from the local wildlife.”

“Ah… I can sense them. Hiding so far away. Hiding from me…”

“But we can’t have you staying in that form! Can you… change back?” Serena asked. If Amelia stayed as she would, how could she explain it to the travellers on the ship? Or to whoever was on their way to rescue them? With the magnitude of the Second Word, every Speaker in the East would have sensed it. It wouldn’t surprise Serena if the overlord himself was moving to meet them.

“I’m not sure how… I think-” Amelia went silent, something interrupting her thoughts. “Ah… thank you, Asclepius. How very helpful.” Well, it appeared the deity was only too happy to assist Amelia in breaking their connection. Serena couldn’t help but feel a touch of sympathy for the poor human god that had Amelia storm into his life, much like Amelia had to her own.

“Before that… did you heal everyone on the ship?” Serena was sure Amelia had, but she wanted to make sure. The nature of whatever spells Amelia had cast, which must have been somewhere in the seventh, eighth or even ninth tier, was beyond her ability to comprehend.

“Yes… even my friend…”

“Your friend? Oh.” Serena looked away, feeling guilty. “She’s alive, then?”

“Her body was broken, but the soul hadn’t yet left. I remade her.” Amelia sniffed, and her enormous eyes wobbled slightly. “Why didn’t you tell me, if you knew?”

Serena shuffled her feet awkwardly, “Her background check did come back clean! Only after your last meeting did I push deeper; we found out she was a Federation spy.” Serena sighed. “Remember what I told you? That people would approach you, pretending not to know you? Still… you seemed happy you had a human friend… so I let it go.” Serena clenched her fist. “But I can’t anymore. Somehow she, or people she was working with, put a bomb on the ship. She tried to kill us.”

“It was no bomb,” Amelia said as softly as her mighty form could manage.

“What?”

“She has a blessing. Two of them. I can see them on her soul. I can see her right now.” Amelia peered into the distance, eyes focused on a point beyond the ironwood trees.

“What!?” Ignoring the fact Amelia could see blessings, the knowledge someone had two of them was something she would reject if it wasn’t coming from Amelia’s mouth. Never before, in any conversation, text, or lesson had she ever been made aware that such a thing was possible.

“I’ve put her to sleep.” A note of sorrow filled Amelia’s voice. “What’s her real name?”

“... Polina,” Serena said. “Polina Volkova. She was part of a Federation cell operating in Kenhoro. We discovered them the morning we left. It was why everything was so rushed.”

“Polina…” Amelia mumbled. “Polina. Not Tatiana. Polina…” She sniffed. “Nice name.”

“She’s not your friend,” Serena said sternly. “Remember, she blew up the ship. Condemned a hundred demons to die for a chance to kill us.”

“Maybe. Yet… she blew herself up, right? Tatiana- I mean, Polina didn’t seem like someone to martyr themselves.” Amelia shook her wings, “Maybe there was a reason. I want to talk to her.”

“In… that form?”

“Yes. Until I know the nature of her blessings.”

“Shall I… bring her here?”

“No. I’ll put everyone else to sleep. Bring her outside the ship, if you could… uh, please.”

Serena sighed. If it weren’t for Amelia’s healing, she would have a headache right about now. Even so, the urge to grab her horns in frustration was highly tempting. Why did things keep getting more and more complicated!? She had never felt so uncertain about the future. What would happen when Amelia talked to that spy? What would happen when she met her father? What awaited them in Shimashina? Questions upon questions.

Ah, whatever. She’ll go along with the flow. She’d rolled her dice, and they’d landed firmly upon Amelia. What’ll happen will happen. War or no war. As long as she was there to help manage the walking disaster that was her girlfriend, things would eventually turn out alright, right?

“Come on then,” Serena said, guiding Amelia back through the trees.

It was time for an awkward conversation.