Pip's heart raced as he crouched low behind a colossal glacier, seeking refuge from those that pursued him. The icy blue contours of the glacier towered above him like an ancient sentinel of a frozen realm, and he knew he needed to stay hidden.
The sound of his rapid, shallow breaths mixed with the soft crunch of snow underfoot, and his nervous exhales formed spectral puffs that quickly dissolved in the frigid atmosphere. He cursed the meddling witch who had set the seekers on his trail. He couldn't quite believe she had actually done it.
He knew of the seekers; everyone in the land knew of them. However, he could never have imagined that the Blood Mistress would unleash them against him. When she had questioned him about the human, he had thought he had tricked her and alleviated her suspicions. He had been wrong.
The cunning woman had seen through his deception and lies. Of course, she had, for she was a master manipulator herself. Still, to awaken the seekers... He knew what she had to sacrifice to bring them to life.
The seekers were not humans; they were constructs born from a unique ability. An ability that birthed intelligent beings, capable of marvels and horrors, all bearing a piece of the Goddess. They were unique in nature, possessing no skills but singular abilities that made them exceptional trackers. Once they locked onto a magical signature, escaping their relentless pursuit became nearly impossible.
Pip wasn't particularly worried, but he couldn't help but feel indignant at having to hide from their pestering presence and impatient at their untimely appearance. It was time to visit her, to see her one more time. The opportunity for a visit arose only once every six months when all three moons shone down on Helios. He couldn't let the presence of those creatures squander his chance to see her.
Pip opened his eyes with a determined focus. In one hand, he tightly clutched a handful of coins, and with the other, he cast a simple yet potent spell. His vision shifted, allowing him to perceive the world from a top-down perspective. From this vantage point, he beheld the desolate, frozen landscape, with its unforgiving terrain of icicles rising like icy daggers from stagnant, lifeless lakes and rivers. Amidst this frigid expanse, he saw four distinct red lights. Four...
A sigh of relief escaped him as he counted only four seekers remaining from the original twelve he had first detected three days ago. Initially, he had appeared oblivious to their presence, continuing with his daily routines without making contact with the human or his avatar, which always monitored the mortal’s progress. However, as the seekers persisted and the scheduled meeting time drew near, Pip was left with no choice but to abandon pretenses, and a game of hide and seek began.
Thankfully, his aura worked, as always, to his advantage. The enigmatic force was an extension of himself, capable of manipulating the ebb and flow of events, perpetually tilting the scales in his favor. Remarkably, Pip didn't need to exert conscious control over it; his aura acted as an unseen hand, deftly guiding circumstances to ensure he was perpetually bathed in favorable conditions. His remarkable luck had enabled him to elude and, ultimately, lose most of his relentless pursuers.
However, the ticking clock left him with a nagging sense of urgency. Time was slipping away, and the impending meeting loomed on the horizon. With more time, he could have confidently counted on his aura of good fortune to intervene once again, causing some untimely misfortune to befall his pursuers. Time, however, was the very thing he couldn't afford to lose.
Pip lifted his gaze, scanning the world around him. The once luminous sky, an ethereal shade of bright blue almost bordering on white, had undergone a dramatic transformation. Now, it bore streaks of vibrant orange and deep red, resembling a celestial canvas set ablaze by a cosmic artist. In the distance, a new sight caught his eye, etched against the fiery backdrop.
There it was, the distinctive outline of the moon, hanging above the landscape. But it wasn't alone; another celestial body, significantly larger, appeared to follow it closely, like a parent guiding its child on an evening stroll.
As Pip watched the sky intently, he knew that when the third moon emerged, it would signal the moment he had been waiting for. His heart raced, a mixture of excitement and yearning, intermingled with a growing sense of frustration. The anticipation was almost unbearable, and his clenched fist sent his tightly held coins clattering together in a dissonant symphony.
In a swift, decisive motion, Pip released the coins into the air. A distinct tinkling sound resonated through the cold, crisp air as they momentarily collided with an unseen barrier, and then they vanished from sight. To any onlooker, the coins simply disappeared into the ether, but Pip was privy to the hidden truth. He bore witness to the extraordinary power his cherished coins possessed.
Invisible to the naked eye, the coins erupted into streams of radiant golden energy, reminiscent of his ever-present aura. They unfurled like supple, liquid tendrils of luck, shooting across the desolate landscape and draping every available surface with his sheer will. These ethereal ropes of luck cast their magic, enshrouding the environment in a shimmering cocoon of his influence.
The landscape transformed as Pip's coins wove their intricate tapestry of fortune. Each golden thread, imbued with his indomitable will, coated the terrain with an invisible, otherworldly power. It was as if the very essence of luck and serendipity had taken root in every nook and cranny of the desolate world around him.
As Pip's coins wove their intricate enchantments, the seekers unwittingly fell victim to a cascade of bad luck that unfurled with uncanny precision. The first seeker lost its footing when the treacherous patch of ice beneath its feet started cracking with an ominous sound. Before the seeker could react, it found itself plummeting into an endless chasm that was several hundred meters deep.
The second seeker, consumed by his relentless pursuit, stumbled into a thick veil of icy mist that appeared out of nowhere. The mist was so thick and charged with mana from the nearby ley line of ice magic that it negated most of the seeker's abilities. The mist obscured the seeker's vision, disorienting it and sending it careening off-course.
The third seeker, in its unyielding determination to close in on Pip, found its path obstructed by an ominous, jagged ice formation. With an ill-fated misstep, it collided with the ice, sending crystalline shards cascading like a frozen waterfall and trapping it in an icy prison.
However, as the fourth and final seeker hesitated, a dramatic turn of events unfolded that neither Pip nor the seekers had foreseen. With an eerie rumble, the frozen surface of a nearby lake trembled and cracked. From its depths emerged an enormous, primordial beast, an ancient guardian of the frozen waters. With gaping jaws and glacial eyes, the beast seized the fourth seeker in its colossal maw, devouring it with a thunderous crunch. The beast, awoken from its icy slumber, was no ally of Pip's, but in that moment, its emergence served as an unexpected stroke of luck for the God of fortune.
Pip watched in astonishment as the seekers' relentless pursuit ended in a manner that none could have predicted. With the fourth seeker vanquished, the remaining three, trapped and scattered, Pip found an opening to slip away. He knew that his pursuers would eventually pick up his trail again, but he would make the chase as difficult as he could for them.
Pip teleported from place to place for the next hour, leaving behind small gifts in the form of his beloved coins, adding a layer of difficulty and peril for his pursuers. When he was finally sure that he was momentarily free and safe from the seekers, he made one last preparation.
He procured a small amulet, a simple, crude medallion made from wood. But inside it lay something precious: the tear of a null beast. Those creatures were long gone, wiped out by the Gods themselves, because of a simple truth. Their tears could suppress the powers of even the Gods.
Pip had come upon this treasure when a desperate elf was trying to barter it for another round of cards. None wanted to take up his offer, seeing the simple necklace as nothing more than a cheap trinket, despite the elf's vows that it was incredibly powerful and even the Gods would desire such a treasure. And he had been right...
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Once Pip realized what it was, he had transformed himself into a giggling gnome and volunteered to play a few rounds with the elf. He had let him win a few rounds, and then, the elf fell into a string of bad luck, losing game after game. Pip had grabbed the necklace and fled into the night, leaving behind a despondent elf that drowned his sorrows in a bottle of cheap ale.
Pip had wanted to use the tear of negation against some God. He knew that war was inevitable when God was pitted against God, and the THEOMACHEIA would begin, and the land would tremble with their desperate bid for survival.
But for her, for her... For just one more glimpse of her, he would lay down his own life. A simple necklace was nothing for him. An image of her came to his mind, and his heart seemed to double in size, and a small, quivering smile graced his lips.
He tossed the necklace, unleashing all the yearning and desperation he felt inside him, and the wooden necklace shattered into tiny fragments, and with it, the tear of negation activated. All around him, for hundreds of meters, the land transformed, the color was leeched out, and he saw cracks in reality all around him, sucking away whatever ambient mana was left.
Pip felt weak and drained, a feeling that for a fleeting moment reminded him of a long-forgotten past. He sat down, folding his legs under him and waited. His gaze traveled through the distorted environment and reached the sky, where three moons shone merrily with their mesmerizing radiance.
Pip felt his breathing grow faster from anticipation. He wanted to pace, in an effort to get rid of some of his pent-up energy, but the tear of negation made even moving a painful chore. So, he simply waited. And waited...
Finally, the effects of the tear wore off, leaving behind nothing but dead space, devoid of mana, smells, or any other hint of life. It was as if he was standing on a dead canvas. The effects would persist for a while longer, obscuring from everyone what he was about to do.
With trembling hands, he took out one more object, a golden apple. He merely clutched it in his hands and did something that no God ever did. He prayed. He prayed to see her again. His eyes had closed in his fervor, and when he opened them again, the three moons shone down on a breathtaking visage.
A round portal had opened up. A portal to another plane, where she was. With weak knees and watery eyes, he stood up. His sheer will overwhelmed the weakness of his body from the effects of the tear of negation, and he trudged on with determination.
He reached the portal and saw a colorful meadow unfurl before him. A tear tracked down his cheek as he touched the ethereal barrier, and he saw it shatter like a broken mirror. He quickly wiped his tears, not wanting her to see him like this, and plastered a smile on his face.
He took a deep breath and entered the portal.
Pip's wandering gaze met an enchanting sight that unfurled before him like a vivid dream. It was a meadow seemingly plucked from the realm of fairy tales: a breathtaking tapestry of wildflowers, resplendent in a kaleidoscope of colors, swayed gently in a soft breeze. Their delicate petals caught the dappled sunlight, casting a mesmerizing dance of shadow and light across the emerald expanse. Small, lively creatures hopped and scampered merrily among the wildflowers, adding a harmonious rhythm to this natural symphony.
At the heart of this celestial meadow stood a grand apple tree, its boughs heavy with an abundance of ripe, succulent fruits. The apples glistened like jewels, their gold and red hues bursting with the promise of sweetness. Underneath the sheltering canopy of the majestic tree, Pip's gaze fell upon the most precious person in his universe, Elpis.
Elpis sat there, a vision of grace and beauty, her eyes big and round with surprise as they met Pip's. A smile, radiant as the sun and tender as a whisper, graced her face. It was a smile that stirred something deep within him, a surge of emotions he could not conceal, no matter how hard he tried. His eyes glistened with unshed tears, revealing the depths of his feelings as he gazed upon the person who meant more to him than the entire cosmos.
“Daddy!” The small girl exclaimed with excitement and began running, her long hair flowing behind her, and her white dress shimmering. Pip felt his feet quicken their pace as he ran to meet his daughter.
The small girl leaped into his arms, and he enveloped her in a fierce hug. He inhaled her scent, and the tears he had been desperately holding back found their way down his face. They remained like that for long moments, unwilling to let go. After a while, though, he felt her squirming. “Daddy, come. I want to show you my new friend!”
Reluctantly, Pip set his precious daughter down in the midst of the dreamlike meadow, his heart heavy with a mix of emotions. Crouching down, he gently cupped her delicate face, his touch tender and filled with unspoken affection. "Wait a moment," he whispered softly, his voice a gentle caress amidst the serene beauty of the meadow. "I want to see your face."
Pip's keen eyes meticulously studied Elpis's visage, searching for even the slightest change or difference from his previous visits. In this ethereal realm where time flowed differently, the passage of time was elusive, and he was acutely aware of the need to ensure he hadn't missed any subtle alterations in his daughter's appearance.
A wave of guilt washed over him, cutting at his gut like hungry daggers, a familiar sensation that gnawed at him every time he came to visit. But he knew there was no other choice. Elpis had to remain hidden, away from prying eyes, to protect her. He vowed that no harm would ever befall his daughter, and the weight of that responsibility rested heavily on his shoulders.
Elpis pouted playfully as Pip scrutinized her face, and with a small, grubby hand, she traced his tear-stained cheek, her touch delicate and inquisitive. Her wide eyes clouded with curiosity and a hint of uncertainty as she regarded him. Pip put on a fake smile and spoke with a cheerful tone. “What did I bring for my little apple-pie?”
Elpis's little mouth fell open in surprise, and her eyes sparkled with delight. "What? What? What?" she exclaimed, hopping excitedly, her tiny figure swaying in anticipation as she tried to peek behind his back, where he had hidden her present.
With a flourish, Pip revealed the small mechanical horse, creating bursts of dazzling mana that burst forth like miniature fireworks. Elpis's eyes filled with wonder, and her small tongue peeked out from her lips as she eagerly reached for her new toy.
"Oh! What's this?" she wondered aloud, her fingers dancing over the intricate details of the mechanical toy. "It's called a Pegasus," Pip explained, his heart swelling with emotion as he watched his daughter's curiosity and excitement. "Pegasi are creatures with big, strong wings that let them fly in the sky."
Elpis's eyes grew wide with childlike wonder. "They can really fly?" she asked in amazement. Pip nodded and gently placed his hand on the toy Pegasus. "And so can this." With a surge of mana, he breathed life into the toy, making it come alive. Elpis clapped her hands in pure delight as she watched the mechanical Pegasus take flight. The toy executed two graceful circles above them before landing softly in front of her. The girl swiftly cradled her new treasure in her arms.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you! It's the best present ever!" she squealed in sheer joy. Pip couldn't help but laugh, his eyes brimming with affection as he extended his hand to her. "Now, let's go meet your new friend."
As they walked side by side, Elpis chattered away, regaling him with tales of everything she had done during his absence. Her sweet voice filled the meadow with the music of her life, painting the surroundings with a vibrant tapestry of her adventures. Yet, as she continued to speak, her features gradually shifted, her soft expressions giving way to a pout.
"Daddy, when will I leave? I'm bored," Elpis lamented, her impatience evident in her pouting expression. Pip sighed, feeling the weight of her question that he had answered countless times before. "Soon," he muttered unwillingly.
"You always say that! How soon?" Elpis demanded, her foot tapping with frustration. Her agitation, however, triggered something that hadn't occurred in a long while. Her dormant magic stirred, and a disconcerting hunger blanketed the previously cheery meadow.
Pip's eyes widened for a fleeting moment, realizing what had transpired, and he swiftly crouched down to comfort Elpis. "Okay, I'll tell you a little secret," he said conspiratorially, glancing around theatrically as though they were sharing classified information. Elpis, still pouting, couldn't resist the allure of her father's antics and drew closer. However, her magic surged with intensity, and Pip felt the oppressive sensation of an insatiable maw poised to devour him.
"I found someone," Pip continued, speaking softly and choosing his words with care. "If you can be patient for just a little while longer, that person will come and help you, and you'll be able to leave the meadow." Elpis looked at him with hope that tugged at his heartstrings, her small lips quivering with anticipation. Despite the pain he felt seeing his daughter like this, Pip knew he had to stay strong for her.
Her volatile void magic responded to her tumultuous emotions, and Pip felt the wild, unrestrained magic reach out toward him. The void force lashed out, attempting to grasp and consume whatever could sate its insatiable appetite. Pip didn't let the power intimidate him; instead, he hugged his crying daughter tightly.
Elpis nestled her head in the crook of Pip's arm and cried, and with her, Pip shed tears of his own. They stood there, amid the swaying wildflowers, for what felt like an eternity. Finally, with a small, trembling voice, Elpis spoke. "When I'm free, can I see a Pegasus?" Pip laughed through his own tears and replied, "Not only will you see one, my love, but you can also ride one as well."
Elpis sighed contentedly, her voice a gentle murmur amidst the tranquility of the meadow. "When I am free," she whispered, her words carrying a weight of longing and hope.