There is much to learn and much to change, much to see and much to be.

I will learn it all and change the world, see the stars and be the suns.

-From pamphlets distributed after the Apotheosis.

[Fen POV]

Fen smashed her antlers into the Sunkindred in front of her. She felt the sharpened tips bury themselves into her enemy’s breasts and, as the blood flowed over her horns and into her eyes, she could feel the nourishing feeling of [Soulrending]. Had she been alone, she could have indulged in the ecstasy of foreign life filling her, but no, she was in the middle of a bloody fight to cross the Thnufir River. She could feel Varali’s Call as it reached its tipping point, the heat of the fireball above her scorching Fen’s eyes as she squinted and lashed out with her front hooves. These beasts were persistent if nothing else, and if Fen hadn’t had her magic and race then she wouldn’t have been able to do anything against them.

There was a brief flash from her pre-cognizance and, without thinking consciously, Fen dodged out of the way of the pair of stone-headed hatchets headed for her chest. Her scales weren’t strong enough to deflect something so heavy and powerful if it hit her head on, but she couldn’t think about that any longer, instead dodging back and forth in a holding pattern until the gathering flames could be held back no longer. Several times, a hatchet’s strike made contact with her, but between her scales and her [Divine Body], nothing notable happened.

With a roaring fwumph, the blaze burst into existence in front of the two soldiers of the Veratocracy. The torrent of flames lanced forward so forcefully that Varali was nearly thrust from the saddle from the blowback, so Fen lifted her rear and braced herself so as to not be sent tumbling while Varali guided the cascading flames to annihilate the battalion of Sunkindred rallying before them.

The damnable barbarians had seen the assault coming, though, and while there were about ten that left only smoldering ash as their corpses, the rest were able to retreat sufficiently quickly to escape death. Before the Calling lost all its potency, Varali growled her frustration at the countered assault and kicked Fen into a quick retreat. The impacts at her side started Fen from the ambient aura of death that had comfortably settled into her, and she began to beat a retreat as the horns of the Sunkindred called their rally to return the attack in kind.

Sure-footed, Fen tapped into the [Life Bestowal] part of her magic and bolstered the small troop of Speakers that had been entrusted to Varali’s command as she led the retreat back across the fjord. Fen wasn’t sure how many there had been when they’d set out, and she wasn’t counting them now, but Varali wasn’t freaking out about any missing, so that was good. In her peripherals, Fen could see several other shock troop squads retreating back to the Veratocracy’s side of the river. Another pointless attack, then. She shook her head and continued leading the retreat while fires cracked behind her, only audible for a short time before they were drowned out by cheers and cries from the Sunkindred.

…

Varali’s frustration had already bled over into Fen before they’d arrived at the fortress, and while she was in the meeting with Mualtir, the nervous energy communicated through their bond had set Fen to pacing. Fen figured that Varali was trying to convince the commander to commit to a full offensive again and wasn’t listening to the reasons she was being given. Fen didn’t care, she was exhausted from the attempted assault today and she just wanted to relish the oblivion of digesting the fruits of her [Soulrending]. She guided herself to her stable, where grasses and raw flesh were laid out for her to eat, whichever it was that struck her fancy today. Neither.

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She slumped against the wall, her legs giving out underneath her as she placed her face in the corner. Fen let her eyes close as she felt the fog of soul digestion wash over her. She knew that she was being strengthened by this, but she didn’t want to look at the [System]. It hadn’t helped her, not really, ever. Sure, she was stronger and healthy now, but… all that she did was carry Varali around and help protect her these days. Some days, she couldn’t bring herself to stand up after waking, the exhaustion of facing another day making her want to cry, but the reality of crying was too heavy and tiring to actually do. Feeling nothing was better than being so completely and entirely fatigued, so she actively sought the loss of self she found in [Soulrending].

While she wanted to wallow in self-pity and depression, Fen reminded herself how happy Varali would be to hear how she had grown. Varali knew Fen. She cared about her. She wanted her to grow.

With a grunt of effort, Fen summoned up the energy to look at her [Status].

[Status:

Name: Fen

Race: Lifebringing Death Scaled Deer Yearling

Titles: None

Current Quest:

-Embrace the duality of your nature, evolve and merge Soulrending and Life Bestowal. Reward: accelerated progress towards evolution Harmonic Stag. Harmonic Judgment Skill. Progress: 0/1

Stats:

-Constitution: 85

-Strength: 58(+12)=70

-Agility: 61(+10)=71

-Intelligence: 50

-Magic: 95

Skills:

Divine Body

Evolutionary Foresight

Life Bestowal

Preternatural Reflexes

Soul Sympathy

Soulrending

Telepathic Binding

Evolutionary Possibilities:

-Lifebringing Death Doe: Reach the age of 500 days. Progress: 318/500

-Harmonic Stag: Acquire Harmonic Judgment Skill. Progress: 0/1

Other evolutions possible, but not currently foreseen. Progress further, and such possibilities will be presented to you.]

Now that she had looked at her [Status] and would be able to make a full report to her master, Fen let her head sag to the ground and think about nothing. Unfortunately, while she rested for a short while, it was far from long enough when the door opened. Fen didn’t look, she knew who it was. Frul, the kindly Soulspeaker she had met with the others when she and Varali had joined with the army stationed within the Thnufir Fortress..

Frul said nothing, just settling onto the ground with a grunt as she sat next to Fen. Her hand rested on Fen’s back and the gentle touch of her magic began to loosen something within Fen. She wasn’t sure what exactly it was that Frul did when she used her magic, since Varali seemed to think that Fen and Frul’s magics were the same, but they weren’t. Beyond that, Frul’s touch was gentler and kinder than Varali’s, though Varali’s magic brought the peace of oblivion and formless bliss. Both brought change. With Frul… the desperately tamped down emotion within Fen was loosened, wave by wave, bit by bit, until she could finally allow herself to cry. Initially soft whimpers grew and crescendoed until heaving, wracking sobs shook Fen so strongly that Frul herself was shaking with each of the deer’s breaths.

Outside, Varali waited in a stupor, conflicted and unsure, feeling more than hearing her bond’s cries for mercy, for her mother… for an end.