The heat turned more and more extreme as Dee traveled towards the core of the Plane of Fire. She didn’t really feel the heat in her current form, but she could tell it was there. If she had not been fully made of fire, she would have turned to cinders long ago. It was said that the core of this plane was the most extreme in its hostility against strangers, but it wasn’t really by design or due to malevolence. The core of the plane was an actual star, though it didn’t quite behave like one as most of the heat seemed to be confined to the immediate proximity. Still, any being not made of fire would be unable to approach as some of the heat inevitably leaked out.
It took her weeks to get this close from where she had left Nyx and Moirai, though her traveling speed had increased tremendously. The two Meilin had their strengths but were not Dee’s equal in speed. The extreme heat made it impossible to shorten the way by opening portals. For some reason she didn’t quite understand, the portals simply refused to open. If she had to guess, then it was either a defense mechanism or the other end of the portal was immediately destroyed by the extreme heat and flames while trying to open. The reason didn’t matter in the end, though it did make her curious.
The denizens of the plane had stopped running away from Dee two days ago. In fact, they seemed to be coming closer to take a look, as if called by something or someone. They didn’t show any aggression, but they were gathering nonetheless. Before now, she had not quite understood why. The sight in front of her gave an explanation of sorts. The gathered elementals still didn’t behave aggressively, in fact almost opposite. Not that it made her feel any better about the situation.
As far as her eyes could see, millions and millions of elementals of various forms had gathered around Dee. They ranged from roughly humanoid in form, though often not in size, to beasts associated with fire like Phoenixes, or even spirits of fire like the Ifriit. To be exact, they were all leaving her a path open to walk towards the core, while ranks upon ranks of elementals closed all other paths. The strongest elementals rivaling immortals in power were standing at the front rank, while rank nine and eight equivalents were behind them, and so on. The elementals got progressively weaker the deeper the ranks got. Not that they ever got all that weak, because the lower ranked elementals were unable to approach this close to the core. The weaker elementals were kneeling, supplicating, or performing what passed for submission for their form while staying motionlessly in place. The elementals at the front did not lower themselves in that way but were giving her a respectful, though somewhat appraising looks as she passed.
The path for her had been laid out, so she firmly moved forward. It would have been a lie to say she was not worried this might be a trap of some sorts, but something about the behavior of the elementals convinced her she was not in danger. As she was approaching the corona of the white-hot star, she noticed something coming out to meet her. To her surprise, what effortlessly walked out from the star was a being identical to her, except made of perfectly white flames. Dee could see that the being was made entirely of energy and could assume any form it wanted, but had chosen one identical to her, except contrasting Dee’s black flames with white.
“The Plane of Fire greets the Flames of the End.” The being greeted her in a voice eerily similar to her own. It was not quite the same, as it had a minor hopeful tinge to it that was missing from Dee.
“Flames of the End?” Dee asked a little confused.
“You carry the Flames of the End, as I carry the Flames of the Beginning.” The being stated and seemed to be staring at Dee for a while. “But I see this is news to you. I can sense Tiamat’s blood inside you, but I suppose it is not strange that the famously savage Old One didn’t stick around to teach you. I would be interested in finding out how your ancestor managed to keep the Old One around long enough to get pregnant in the first place, but I digress.”
“I’m guessing there’s significance to the names?” Dee prodded a bit. She had a feeling this being was prone to getting lost in tangents and its own thoughts. Just what she needed. A scatterbrained star that was somehow alive. “I hope I’m not supposed to end the universe or anything? That sounds like a job I’d rather take a pass on.”
The white being seemed to smile. “No, though that is also one possibility, if rather minor. The Flames of the End are called such because they have the potential to bring end to anything, be it beings of power, immortals or even gods. That also includes things like worlds, and yes even the universe, but I don’t feel that we're approaching the time of that particular end. No, the Flames of the End have been carried by more than one being, and that will continue after you are gone. One of them might bring the final end, but that will most likely not be you. Your ancestor, the great Old One Tiamat is a much more likely candidate truth be told.”
“So what exactly am I supposed to bring to an end?” Dee tried to clarify. She didn’t exactly cherish the thought of adding another responsibility to her pile and was planning on skipping this one if at all possible.
“Anything. Everything. Perhaps even nothing. The Flames of the End are just something that appear and don’t carry any responsibility. You use them as you see fit. You can choose to end everything, but you can also choose to end nothing.” The being seemed to shrug its shoulders, but the form wasn’t exactly ideal for the motion.
“And them?” Dee motioned towards the gathered elementals. They seemed to be expecting something from her.
“They are here for many reasons. I wanted to greet my sister with the glory she is due. They are here because I am here, because they feel thankful towards me and because they feel instinctual fear towards you. They will come when asked, and they will go when commanded. The other elements might not respect you for what you are, but the fire has not forgotten. The fire never forgets.” The being’s voice took a very firm tone at the end, as if laying down a decree.
“Forget what?” Dee asked carefully. Was she supposed to remember as well?
“Where they come from and how they might come to an end. You carry the Flames of the End, but I am the Flames of the Beginning. The elementals began with me. They all did. The other elements forget, but it started with us.” The being looked at Dee and seemed to know what she was thinking. “No not the universe as a whole. Gods and the Old Ones are responsible for that. But the Planes started with me, even if they have a life of their own now. They grow on their own, and there will be new ones I have never touched. There always are. And as I was their beginning, you could be their end.”
Dee would never be able to say exactly what drove her to ask the question, but for some reason she did. Perhaps she still had Croestia’s idea for her hoard still in mind. “Could you make a Plane of Pillows? I could really go for something soft and comfortable.”
“No.” The being stated firmly. “I could never go there myself without burning everything, so no. I’m not letting you have all the fun” The being’s tone got a lot more amused.
“How selfish. I’m guessing this ability to end things is why my flames feel so wrong and unnatural?” Dee changed the subject to cover her own embarrassment at her earlier words.
“In a way yes. That feeling is the universe rejecting the flames. Even though you will not end its existence, the universe isn’t an intelligent being capable of knowing that. It simply rejects something it deems dangerous. There’s nothing wrong with your flames, they just are. Though I see the flames have been changed slightly by your other abilities, that is not wrong either. That is just the nature of the flames. They adapt.” The being explained. It felt good will towards what was in effect its counterpart, so small explanations like this were the least it could do. It didn’t get to meet its counterpart very often.
“Speaking of adapting, as much as I’m enjoying this conversation, that’s not why I’m here.” Dee brought up her real purpose.
“Yes, judging by your companions, I’m guessing you’re here to become stronger. I can see why. You still lack the power to really control your flames or your other abilities. That is as it should be. We all start small and grow into our power. I have to ask a question though. Are you planning on traveling to the other elemental planes?” The being inquired. For the first time Dee realized the whole star might be the real body of this being and that it might be more powerful than anything she had ever faced. Making it angry might be a bad idea.
“I was planning on that, yes. Why?” Dee asked a little more carefully.
“In that case, good. I would like it if you did. The others have forgotten, and it might be better if you went there and helped them remember. Don’t worry about going out of your way. Just you being there will be enough. They will sense something is wrong and get uppity. Simply put them in their place when they do. In return, I will personally help you in your attempt to become stronger. Absorbing the power of the plane will help you, but not as much if I let you absorb some of my own power. That will help you gain true control over the Flames of the End. The process will weaken me for a while, but the power will come back soon enough. It will also be more than worth it if you remind the other planes of where they come from.” The being seemed almost excited.
“I have a feeling this might take a while. I’ll have to send a word to my companions, so that they will not worry or try to rush their own improvement.” Dee stated after a moment of thought. She had stored a method of communication inside Croestia. The talismans were one use consumables but would do the trick. The only problem was that Dee could not take them out. ‘I wonder if Croestia can use them instead and fake my voice…’
“I’ll send a word to the elementals not to bother your companions as well. If something comes up, they can simply try and contact one of the nearby elementals and I’ll pass the word to you.” The being added. It also knew this would take time in mortal terms, although it had a slightly different concept of time. To it, the whole process was barely a blink of an eye, but it would be a pleasant distraction at least.
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“What?” Nyx asked, looking at the frowning Moirai. She knew Dee had contacted them, as she had seen the talisman flash in front of her daughter.
“Dee sounded odd. Almost…happy. Also a little sultry for some reason.” Moirai replied feeling something was off.
“Well, as much as you personally try to avoid such things, your friend is a sensual being and has her own needs. She can be sultry when she wants to be.” Nyx assumed a more lecturing tone. She still wanted to push Moirai to become more open. They never did get to that celebration they had planned…
“No, I’m aware that she can be charming and even erotic at times.” Moirai gave a small shudder. She still remembered the time she found Dee and Nessera after Dee’s romp. “But sultry isn’t a word I would associate with her. Also, really? Even in the Plane of Fire you’re trying to get me laid?”
Nyx coughed a bit. Moirai was right about this not being the right place. “What did she want anyway?”
“Apparently we’re in for the long haul. She reached the core, and apparently the core will be helping her. It seems our stay on this plane will be longer than any of the other planes. It seems we can stop worrying about the elementals as well. In fact, if something comes up, we can just contact them and send a word to Dee.” Moirai explained the rough contents of the message. The talismans didn’t really allow enough time to go into detail.
“Oh, goody! As much as I dislike the heat, I had an idea but I was worried we might not have the time necessary to implement it. But if she’s staying for a long time, then we’ll have the chance to do our thing too.” Nyx clapped her hands due to the good news.
“What do you have planned?” Moirai asked, now truly curious.
“Well, we both excel in using psionic lightning, but we’re not all that great with the other elements. In fact, we have little to no skill with them. I was planning on absorbing the element of fire as a new part of my repertoire and if things go well, maybe even as a new part of my totem. You haven’t started your totem yet, right? This is the ideal surroundings to incorporate at least one extra element into it. Even if that doesn’t work, I intend to develop fire based psionic abilities to add to my offensive capabilities. If all things go great, we might even be able to absorb a little fire into our bloodline. How about it? Do you want us to be the start of a new Meilin bloodline?” Nyx was really excited at the prospects. The ample amount of fire energy offered so many opportunities if they could stay here peacefully for a while.
“You want to become a flaming squirrel? Is this about the time you got your tail singed? You just want to avoid that happening again, don’t you?” Moirai wasn’t so enamored with the idea, even though she noted the possibilities as well. She actually saw even further. They were going to other planes after this, so why limit themselves just to fire? She still didn’t want Nyx to get smug due to coming up with the idea, which is why she was planning on arguing for at least the next three hours before planting her own idea in Nyx’s head.
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Dee felt unbelievably refreshed as she stared at the sun of black flames that now existed in the sky of her Domain. It was wrong to say the new sun was shining, as it seemed to be doing the opposite by absorbing light instead. The sun had a clear purpose in increasing her control over the black flames, as well as increasing their potency and the volume of flames she could use. The sun had mostly been created by absorbing the energies in the Plane of Fire, and a large chunk of the power from the Flames of Beginning. The new fixture of her Domain felt slightly imbalanced since it only held the energy of fire, but that would be fixed with either time or absorbing some of the elements usually prevalent in her Domain, like death and darkness.
‘Did you get all that you needed?’ Dee asked Croestia as she was leaving. She had said her goodbyes to the white being already and was now traveling towards the Meilin duo she had left behind.
‘A long time ago. You are now as close to immune to fire as one can be. I was ready by the time your new tail popped out.’ Croestia replied.
Dee looked at the snow white eleventh tail that had appeared rather quickly after she had started the process. The whole time she had been creating the black sun, she had also been absorbing the souls from the container Selvaria had left for her. All the power from Xinglong combined with the power she had gained from other sources had already brought her closer to the eleventh rank, so this period had easily pushed her over the invisible line that governed the number of tails of kitsune. When it had happened, it had been like a vortex had appeared above her head, crazily absorbing all the power in the surroundings and adding to hers. That little episode had greatly helped in the creation of the dark sun.
Her totem had also reached a point where only the skulls of immortals would add to it. Only the final tier of the pyramid of skulls was left unfinished, though it seemed those immortal skulls would take a fair bit of effort to gather. Still, it made her feel more complete. Hopefully, by the time she had finished absorbing all the souls in the container, the number of missing skulls would not be too large. She wasn’t exactly feeling like cutting her way through the ranks of the immortals on Pantheon, and she would rather like to finish her totem before starting her activities towards the larger goals pushed on her.
‘You do realize you now have two tails without an element absorbed? Have you considered which ones to choose? Now might be the perfect time considering we’re touring the planes.’ Croestia asked, bringing Dee out of her thoughts.
‘I have, though I think I’ll get feedback from Nyx and Moirai. If they have a particular plane they want to visit, then that might work too. While we’re on that subject, are we starting to approach a point where we could add a new ability for you as well?’ Dee countered.
‘I think we’re close to that point, yes. The resistance ability is starting to reach its peak and will be complete once we finish this little trip. Did you have something in mind? If you did not, then I have a suggestion.’ Croestia had noted a clear problem in Dee’s abilities, as powerful as they were.
‘I think I know what you have in mind, and I’m thinking the same thing. A way to store power, right?’ Croestia was originally based on Dee’s personality, so their thoughts ran on similar lines quite often.
‘Exactly. As you know, my memories of my previous owners are hazy at best, but I know that has been one of the most commonly used abilities. You also have a nasty habit of running out of power, which is why I’m suggesting it. As you grow in strength, the need for that extra boost grows less important, but it never goes away.’ Croestia was correct. Dee was already much more capable of using the more extreme skills she possessed after the increase in rank, thus reducing the power consumption and the strain on her body. The higher her power grew and more complete her totem became, the more that would hold true. That said, even a rank thirteen being could run out of power eventually.
‘I’ll keep that in mind. I want to try something else first.’ Dee knew the idea was good but held out for now in case something else came to her in a sudden moment of inspiration.
She then gestured forward and tried forming the portal that had refused to work in the other direction. One of the things about Croestia and her tails completing her resistance to fire was that the resistance now also affected her powers and not just her body. Her own attacks would now also be resistant to fire based abilities, and she hoped that resistance would allow the portal to work as well. She was not in the Astral Dragon form, so it would be the slower type of portal, but it would still cut most of the time required to return. If she could spare herself weeks of flying, then of course she would try.
Happily, the portal did form, although there seemed to be something like a protective film stopping all the heat and fire from entering the Astral Sea. It only took her ten minutes with the portal to reach the place she had left Nyx and Moirai. She had a moment of surprise as she exited the portal, as the appearance of the two Meilin had gone through a shift. The color of their tails and hair had shifted to a fiery reddish color. She could also see plenty of fire energy inside them. Apparently, they had also benefited greatly.
“A new look?” Dee asked, announcing her presence.
One of the things about Dee’s portals was that they were difficult to sense if you didn’t know what to look for, but the clear shift in the energy around them had already alerted the two. “Yeah, I decided it was time for something new for a change. You sure took your sweet time.” Nyx replied with a grin. Truth be told, the two of them had also barely finished their own project. Moirai had been a little faster since her changes were easier. Nyx had much more trouble altering her totem to accommodate for the new fire element.
“I told you this fire squirrel thing would make us the butt of so many jokes.” Moirai pointed out with a sigh.
“It looks good to me. I just didn’t expect it from Nyx considering she already got her tail singed.” Dee countered.
“I still maintain that’s the main reason she did this.” Moirai fake muttered, clearly letting both of them hear.
“How much time had passed by the way?” Nyx suddenly asked, ignoring her daughter. That brought a start to the other two as they had not even considered the question.
“I don’t know. It’s hard to tell time here with no changes due to the time of day. I was meditating most of the time anyway, so keeping time would have been hard even if that was not the case.” Dee admitted reluctantly.
“I’m not sure it would matter if you could have kept time. I’ve heard time can work differently in the planes. For all we know, years could have passed in the material plane. Or a day.” Moirai shrugged the thought away.
“Well, then. Maybe we’ll find out once we return. I can’t really portal us to another elemental plane from here.” Dee pointed out.
“Just remember that it might be bad to return to the Five Winds.” Nyx added. “So it might be best if you aimed for somewhere else.”
“I think I have another volcano in mind.” Dee suddenly grinned.