FH 43

“Five little ducks went out to play, over the hill…” If Telos were a cheat, she would sound fantastic, amazing, and perfect. Instead, she sang in her own voice. She wasn’t tone deaf, but it was the imperfections she remembered of her own mother’s voice that made her few early memories magical. Perfection was boring, and throwing a few quirky affectations into the song got laughs from her children. The air above Telos filled with illusions of ducks as the song went on and portrayed the sadness of mother duck and her lost ducklings, and the joy at their return.

The illusions were not being created by Telos, however, but were conjured by the imaginations and projection of the toddlers on her lap singing along at the top of their lungs.

Alexander sat on her left leg, and Lilith on her right leg. Already the three year olds crowded her lap, and it wouldn’t be long before cuddling both of them like this wouldn’t be practical. Practicality could go screw itself, though, and she’d manipulate space if it meant more cuddles from the kids for longer. At three years old the predominant color to Alexander’s hair were yellow and red, but like Lilith his hair covered the full range of the rainbow. Lilith’s hair had revealed a lighter shade of purple, lilac, as her most prominent color in the rainbow. Alexander had golden eyes, while Lilith had pink eyes.

For two three year olds, the Plataeu had all sorts of entertainment to be found, but their mothers were their primary source of fun. The smithy was locked up tight, and inside the crystalline spire tomes and artifacts had likewise been secured. Her adorable menaces repeatedly got into places they weren’t supposed to.

“Again!” Alexander demanded.

“Please, mommy?” Lilith looked up and fluttered her eyes, which Alexander then copied. Telos tried to resist the wombo combo but failed her saving throw against cuteness.

“Didn’t I say we’d be done singing three songs ago? Well, I guess one more wouldn’t hurt anyone?”

“Momma, is this good?” Alexander waved a finger, and shared a status screen.

“It says you’ve gained a Trait called Progenitor of Peril.” Telos held in a deep sigh, while internally she really wanted to grab Libby by the neck and ask her what the hell she was doing with her children. Instead, Telos smiled brightly, and tried not to let any anxiety show.

“What’s a progenitor?” Alexander asked, fumbling the word.

“A progenitor is a founder, originator, or ancestor. It means you gained the ability to start incidents, like in the song the first baby duck who wanders away starts the events of the song by wandering off. That gets the other baby ducklings to wander off too, and soon they’re all lost until they hear mommy duck calling for them.”

“So, I can get ducks lost?” Alexander didn’t seem to understand the concept, but Lilith had a gleam in her pink eyes that unnerved Telos.

“What does mine say?” Lilith asked with a gesture like Alexander had made, to share a status screen.

“You have gained a Trait called Patron of Providence. A patron is someone who supports someone or something, and providence is sort of what we provide you two. We provide you with everything you need, right?” Telos never knew how close to cut things when explaining to the children. They were both incredibly bright in their own ways, but Alexander didn’t seem to have as much of an innate linguistic talent as Lilith did.

“Why’d we get stuff from singing with you, mommy?” Lilith waved a finger and the screen went away.

“Well, the System rewards the strangest things sometimes, like you it’s not very old and still learning what it’s about. Maybe it liked listening to you so much that it awarded you in thanks?” Telos smiled, but she determined it was time to have a talk with Libby about what the hell she was doing, especially with Telos’ children.

“Do Traits do anything?” Alexander practically bounced up and down in excitement.

“Not on their own, honey. Traits mean you are capable of something, and function passively. You would need an Ability to make use of your Trait actively.”

“Booo,” Alexander huffed.

“Mommy, can we visit the city today? I want to fly on Uncle Ark!” Lilith asked with large doe eyes, her attempts at another song long forgotten.

“Momma! I want to fly to the moons!” Alexander didn’t see eye to eye with the destination of the imagined flight.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“We could do that, or you could help me design Ark’s new house. How about it, should we make a pretty house?” No motion belied the creation of hundreds of different sized cubes of ice, although most would incorrectly identify them as crystal. They weren’t cold to the touch, and were almost transparent.

“Block time!” Alexander cried, the moon forgotten.

“Can we build secret rooms?” Lilith inquired as she pulled as many blocks towards her as she could.

“Sure, put as many secret rooms in as you want, but let’s not break the laws of physics too much, okay?” Telos ruffled both of the kid’s hair, and watched as they set to building a model house. In hardly any time at all she had to separate them, and they built two model houses. Both children ignored her assertions that sharing means caring, until Lilith decided it meant Telos should share with her, then Alexander complained that he wasn’t getting attention, and within a half hour the whole idea of building a model house for uncle Arkaziel had been forgotten by everyone.

FH 43

That so valiant a dragon of the Apocalypse is reduced to this….

“I haven’t been reduced to anything, and you finally found a path to this dimension?” Arkaziel immediately argued with Fred. Telos hadn’t been sure whom Fred had spoken to, since the Black Flame of the Void had fallen quiet since their ascension to a higher reality. Perhaps the proximity of Ein Sof deterred Fred?

Arkaziel, as most often was the case these days, wore a humanoid form. He had dark skin, golden eyes, short cropped white hair, cat ears instead of human, and a long fluffy tail that Telos noticed the students of the Academy were always watching. Not to be outdone by Telos or Kallos, Arkaziel had broad shoulders, a muscular build, and stood nearly two hundred centimeters tall.

Neither Arkaziel nor Telos had been the one to build the just finished manor that dominated the western side of town, its unwalled gardens and three-story structure providing a distraction from the distant crystal tower sparkling in the distance. Bobbi had found an earth mage among the residents of Winona. A bag of gold and detailed sketches and plans of Hardwick Hall from the United Kingdom had resulted in a beautiful brick manor, although Telos had created the windows and finish through her own magic.

So few of your actions have been worth commenting on since the dimensional transition. Look at yourself, O Apocalypse, and despair. Regardless of if it is upon the Throne of Glory or a cheap barstool, you have become a lap cat.

“I’ve never been big on laps. Shoulders are more my speed. Reinforces the knowledge of who the boss is more than sitting on a lap does,” Arkaziel answered Fred with a maturity and indifference that shocked Telos.

What of you, Witch of the Soul, or you, Celestial Chef? Do you not yearn for adventure?

““Go Away, you’re making Mommy and Momma mad,”” Alexander and Lilith echoed one another. The two toddlers walked between Kallos and Bobbi, the four forming a line of held hands that melted the hearts of anyone who saw.

“Hi guys! That’s very brave of you to stand up for us to a scary person like Fred, but he’s just a voice. He can’t do anything but talk and complain, but if he ever tries to talk to you, tell us right away, okay?” Telos dropped down to the children’s eye level so she could convey the gravity of the situation. The tangled web of powers of the Sefirot, of existence itself, allowed her to impart knowledge and meaning. She tried to avoid doing it too often, though, as those around her couldn’t rely on similar crutches.

“Yes, mommy,” said Lilith.

“Yes, momma,” agreed Alexander.

“Good, now, who wants to explore uncle Arkaziel’s new house? Isn’t it just huge? I bet if you ask really nicely, he might let you have a bedroom here to stay in town sometimes,” Telos winked at the kids, who practically vibrated past her at the speed of light towards Arkaziel.

“That was unexpected,” Kallos murmured, watching the kids run to Arkaziel.

“I thought you melted Fred down or something,” Bobbi shrugged. “Is it too late to do that?”

“It’s never too late to destroy something,” Telos answered flatly. “Until now I was content to let him have a pass, since he’s mostly all talk. But if the kids can hear him, I can’t let take that risk anymore. I’d say I’ll be late for dinner tonight, but I won’t be more than ten minutes.” Telos vanished even as her words hung in the air.

A world of infinite light greeted Telos, then it turned into a rainbow of colors and sorted itself out to a white room, that Telos shared with a woman made of light.

“Hi Libby. Remember the plan to empower you through both the Ethereal and the Void?”

::Hello, Lady Telos. Yes, your plan to impart me with the essence of the entity known as Reverie and Fred. Shall I prepare to initiate the process, or do you wish me to delete the plan from my memory banks?::

“Here is an updated process for the System Supreme update,” a crystal of divine light appeared at Telos’ fingertips. What’s the point of being the incarnation of Ein Sof if I don’t abuse it just a little, right?

::Confirmation requested: Do you wish me to run the System Supreme update?::

“Yes, run it. I know I programmed it, and it will be, but.. be gentle with those two. They’ve waited for friends for a long time, but they’re a bad match for my social circle. I think you’ll enjoy them, and together the three of you might actually learn something.”

::Update processing. Processed.::

Two more forms, both masculine, appeared in the white room. One was composed of Ethereal power and the other of the Void. The difference in appearance made it very obvious which one was Fred.

“Surprise! Happy birthday. Now you can talk to people, and have friends, and impact the worlds. No destroying everything. Questions? No? Good. Here’s a few thousand bottles of wine, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Telos vanished from the subspace, leaving the three entities looking at one another.

::Do you know how to play checkers?::

I don’t. Fred answered flatly.

::Then let me teach you.:: Libby’s slightly excited response got Fred to clap his hands excitedly, and Reverie poked himself in the stomach.

“I too wish to be instructed, if you would, Miss Libby.”