Aperio let her senses wander, taking in Ebenlowe and the world beyond. She was trying to find the change Mayeia had mentioned. The problem Aperio was running into, however, was that they all felt pathetically weak to her. It was true that she could inspect each mortal even more thoroughly, but then she would violate their privacy even more than she already was.
She found herself mildly curious as she let her aura inform her of the happenings on continents beyond Vetus, but did not redirect her focus. While she was no longer as unwilling to discover the full extent of her own power, she would not do so now. Being aware of one continent is enough for the moment.
“Well,” Mayeia began, tapping her chin. “Your mana is purer than what is normally available and most mortals refine their bodies with it at least to a small, unconscious degree. Being given a higher quality resource would obviously make the progress faster. What is weird is that it also works on me…”
A moment later a pen and notebook appeared in her hands, the Goddess mumbling her next words. “It also varies from person to person. Maybe she unconsciously knows who everyone is and helps them along? No… if she knew, the slavers would see no benefit at all.”
“Don’t mind her,” Caethya said, placing her hand on Aperio’s cheek and trying to turn her head. The All-Mother glared at the mumbling Goddess for a moment longer before she obliged, facing her disciple.
“And why should I?“ she asked, tilting her head slightly to rest it lightly on the Elf’s hand. Why that had been her first reaction, she did not know, but neither did she mind. Aperio focused her eyes on Caethya’s own before she continued. “I do not enjoy being talked about as if I am not present.“
Her disciple sighed after a moment of silence. “This is just who she is. It happened to me too, after she looked at my [Status]. She just started mumbling ideas to herself and taking notes.”
The All-Mother pulled her head free of Caethya’s hand and directed her gaze onto the Goddess who was still preoccupied with muttering to herself as she took notes. “She comes to my home unannounced, wanting to learn from me even though I have no idea who she is, and now I am being treated like I am her new science project. I do not like that.“
As Aperio's mind 'helpfully' supplied her with memories in which researchers of the Empire talked as Mayeia did now, her aura flared slightly in agitation. She breathed deeply, trying to center herself before she did something rash.
A hand taking her own caused Aperio to avert her gaze from Mayeia. Caethya shook her head as she looked at the All-Mother. “I’m the only mortal here, and yet, it feels like I am the mature one.”
Aperio tilted her head slightly. “You are not a mortal, you are a Demigoddess.“
“A Demigoddess whose legs are falling asleep,” her disciple mumbled, trying to find a more comfortable position while still holding onto Aperio’s hand.
The All-Mother simply stood, carefully pulling Caethya up with her. A touch of her magic removed the dirt from their forms and straightened any creases that had appeared in their clothes.
“I should have left a while ago; now is as good a time as any,“ Aperio said, fixing her eyes on Caethya. “As Mayeia seems to be… busy, and Lord Terenyk does not appear to have an answer at the moment, you could accompany me. If you wish.“
“I would love to,” Caethya replied, “but are you willing to leave Mayeia here? It did not seem like you had the best impression of her.”
“Just because I am on Procul does not mean I cannot keep watch of my temple.“
Her disciple rubbed the back of her neck at the words. “Right… Sometimes I forget just who you really are.”
A smile bloomed on Aperio’s face in response. “That is good! Perhaps others will follow suit.“
“I doubt that. You are not as friendly with others as you are with me.” Caethya paused briefly, looking at Aperio before averting her eyes again after just a moment. “Nor do others feel for you like I do.”
“Oh…“ she replied, the hand of her disciple feeling oddly heavy in her own as a slight pressure took root in her chest. “I still do not have an answer for you. I apologise.“
Mayeia had suddenly stopped her mumbling and was now looking intently at the two, the conversation seemingly of more interest to her than what Aperio’s aura did to mortals.
“Is there something you need?“ Aperio asked, turning slightly to face the Goddess.
“No,” Mayeia replied. “I am just surprised that I misjudged your relationship. That doesn’t happen often.”
With a slight shake of her head, the All-Mother directed her eyes and attention back to Caethya. What Mayeia thought about any perceived relationship mattered little to Aperio. The Elf looked at her old Goddess a moment longer, turning away after Mayeia had given her a small smile and a thumbs up that she had to have known Aperio would see.
“I have prepared a room for you,“ Aperio said to Mayeia without facing her, simultaneously informing Roots of where it was. “Roots can guide you there should you wish to remain here. The mortals that call my temple their temporary home are your equals as long as they are here. Understood?“
“Yes,” the Goddess replied, bowing slightly. “Very clear.”
For a moment Aperio considered if her words might have been a bit too harsh, but she quickly dismissed that line of thinking. If Mayeia wanted to be treated with more friendliness, she could start by not treating her as a science project.
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After confirming through a mental query that Caethya was ready, Aperio let her senses spread again; let her mind accept the information her aura always provided. She took in the vast oceans surrounding Vetus, the countless creatures that called the depths their home.
A few of the monsters attempted to flee her aura’s reach, a task that was doomed to fail. The stronger beasts steeled themselves for battle as the All-Mother’s senses swept over them, seemingly unable to differentiate between her aura and an attack.
Aperio paid them no mind, instead closing her eyes to better immerse herself in what her aura sensed. Even though her senses had made the journey from Vetus to Procul faster than the blink of Caethya’s eyes, for Aperio it was a long and informative journey.
Before, she had always been scared to use her aura for more than keeping track of her immediate surroundings. She still was, in a way, but by now she realised that not using what she had — rejecting, again, who she was — would lead to more trouble than it was worth. Eventually she would have to come to terms with the fact that her senses would touch more than she wished.
A flex of her mental muscles twisted reality apart, taking her and Caethya to the shores of Procul, a little ways away from a bigger city Aperio had found. Another thought caused the armour of her dress to slowly form, creeping its way across her shoulders, chest, and skirt.
Her wings were the next to be changed, and they vanished, leaving the icy breeze to brush against her exposed back. Ever since she had returned, neither scorching heat nor freezing cold had bothered her in the least. Her body was uncaring of the temperature of her surroundings, and thus the current wind and cold did not bother her.
Caethya seemed to mind the wind, as a mantle appeared on her form, loosely hugging her. Aperio expanded a bit of her mana, letting it flow into Caethya and warming her disciple from within. The Elf let out a small sigh, shuffling a bit closer to Aperio.
“Thank you,” she said, tugging her mantle a bit closer. “I did not think a continent known for volcanoes and Dragons would be so cold.”
“I did not pay it any mind,“ Aperio said with a small shrug, the motion feeling somehow off without her wings. “Temperature means little to me. Perhaps the same will be true for you too when you get a little stronger.“
“Hopefully. Avoiding freezing to death as well as turning into a liquid Elf would be very nice.” She hesitated for a moment, inching a little closer still to Aperio. “Whatever you are doing to warm me feels nice.”
Aperio smiled at her disciple. “I wanted you to be comfortable.“ She had used no convoluted magic, she had simply wished for Caethya to be warm, and her mana obeyed.
“Better not answer others if they ask you what you did with your magic,” Caethya said with a small shake of her head. “That would only create more questions.”
“Learning to be a mortal,“ Aperio said with a small, ethereal laugh. “Never thought that would be something I’d have to do.“
As a slave there had been no need for her to know how to behave like a normal person, and as the All-Mother it was painfully obvious that what was normal for her was very much not for the people surrounding her. Not that that should’ve surprised me…
“But you have a bona fide mortal as your teacher!” Caethya said, taking hold of Aperio’s hand. “Or, well, ex-mortal, I guess.”
“You are still an outlier amongst them, though,“ Aperio rebutted. “Your level is far higher than most mortals I have seen.“ She paused for a moment, lowering her head slightly. “My blessing made a normal life impossible for you before you were even born.“
“And I do not mind,” Caethya replied, giving Aperio’s hand a squeeze. “I am thankful for what you have given me. Though, I do have one question.”
“Yes?“
“How old are you?” Caethya asked, looking up at Aperio. “Technically, you are as old as all of existence, but I think how long you have been alive as a… mortal, would be more accurate.”
The All-Mother let out a small sigh. “I do not know. The only hint I have is that I was sold into slavery at the age of three. How long I was trapped there is not something I know.
“Neither do I know how long I was in my Void after I… died,“ she continued, her eyes wandering towards the sky above. “A few millennia at least, if I go by what I know of Vetus and what I believe happened after the ritual.“
Aperio rubbed the bridge of her nose as she looked at her disciple again, her ears twitching slightly as she heard distant yells of mortals. “I was asleep for most of that as well; not aware of what was happening.“
“Perhaps it is best if you don’t tell people how old you are,” Caethya said with a small smile. “A stern look should be enough to silence most people.”
“Oh? I thought I was not that scary.“
“You tower over nearly everyone, look like you could throw most people through the nearest wall, and your eyes not only shift between shades of blue and silver but also seem to pierce with a look into a person's very core,” Caethya said, holding Aperio’s gaze despite her own words. “It can be quite intimidating if one doesn’t know you. Most Adventurers are not friendly, and Elders aren’t either.”
“I can see that,“ Aperio said, pointing in the direction she had heard the yells from. While the mortals that were fighting each other were still a good distance away and hidden behind a hill, Aperio had no doubts that Caethya could see them through her own aura. “They seem to be having a disagreement.“
Two leather clad mortals were protecting a third while three others were circling around them, yelling at them in a language Aperio did not understand.
Caethya scrunched her brows, either trying to find the people Aperio was talking about or trying to understand what they were saying.
A step accompanied by a small flex of her mental muscles brought both of them to the top of the hill that had hidden the squabbling mortals before. Caethya looked around confused for a moment before she focused on the group below them, giving Aperio’s hand a last squeeze before letting go.
“I think the one on the ground stole or hid something from the group,” Caethya said with a puzzled expression. “They want him to admit to it while the other two are saying that he could not have done it.”
She wanted to say that their reaction seemed a bit dramatic, but she had done similar things since she had returned. Like yelling at the only people that care about me…
With a sigh and an unneeded wave of her hand, the mortals froze in place, only their heads still able to move. They all looked around frantically until, one after another, their eyes came to rest upon Aperio and Caethya.
The All-Mother took another step, twisting reality apart to bring herself and her disciple in front of the group. Intervening was perhaps not the best choice, but at the moment it felt like the right thing to do.
“Killing one another over what is likely a misunderstanding is a little extreme, no?“ she asked, a small smile creeping onto her face as the mortals somehow stood even more stiffly than before.