Beyond the Barrier: Unraveling the Veil [Vekraihr/Juumbled]

[Vekraihr]

Silas couldn’t help but notice the way the Celestial girl was getting all bashful on him again, and it made him grin and his heart skip once or twice if he were to be honest. Though, he wouldn’t say such a thing and embarrass himself out loud. At least, not in that regard and not right now. However, as she dismissed his opinion with her nonchalance, he detected a hint of dishonesty within her. It was as though she was trying to keep something from him and, judging by the blush on her face, he was quite certain he knew what that was. However, he kept quiet about it, just allowing himself to smile happily knowing that she took him into such deep consideration when he spoke.

As Lilith closed her eyes and his warm, pleasant-smelling frame pressed up towards hers, he heard the protest she made against his advances. Although, once again, Silas could hear it in her voice that she didn’t actually mean what she was saying. Especially so in this circumstance, as she’d never once considered how the clothing lay upon her in such a trivial fashion. So, immediately after she’d said this, his grip around her waist tightened and his fingers lightly pressed into the muscles of her lower back, dangerously close to the rise of her feminine backside. Silas silently wished for them to stay like that for as long as time still ran. However, he knew there was far more which needed to be done and he was not one to delay too long from a task.

As Lilith moved away from him, she seemed...dejected, almost? She really was enjoying his presence, wasn’t she? Silas could feel the mirth the thought gave him bubbling through him like the carbonation in champagne and his smile became more evident as his cheeks flushed with crimson. She did as he asked, though, placing some of the gems her kind bore in sorrow as collateral for the clothes she took and soon enough he was fully dressed before her and adjusting some of his fasteners and ties while he stood in the mirror, admiring the attire she’d chosen for him. A note was made in his mind that more of those gems rested upon the floor of the bathroom and probably even more so in the bed. He did also notice as she took in the full view of his body while he was disrobed and his body reacted with a pleasant excitement that left him feeling tingly all over. It brought him immense joy that she looked at him in such a way, adding to the beaming, toothy grin he had as he looked at himself in the mirror.

He almost didn’t see Lilith as she slipped behind him, though he hadn’t caught her until the very last and he felt her arms wrapping around him. As her hands reached around, Silas could feel his heart rate rising and he gave a soft shudder. She was so very close and touching him with such smooth motions, so very close to his already awakened loins. As she fastened the clip around him, her hand would brush up against the now tented fabric of his pants. Arousal raged against the constricting fabric, making Silas blush softly and another shiver ran all the way through him as his body effervesced with her touch.

She looked almost subservient to him at that moment and, almost as if in kind, his gaze was dominant but affectionate as he looked down into her eyes. His yearning for her calling through the air silently as he turned towards her. ‘There, you look ready now,’ she said to him and he felt his heart flutter once more. Such simple words, though Silas felt such gravitas from them that he was moved deeply within at how she complimented him in his new appearance.


Lilith appeared to be confused as he spoke of the language she’d used with him the night previous. Had she really forgotten about what she had said? He certainly thought it was possible, considering the magnitude of which she reacted to his demise. She also, apparently, couldn’t see what he did and he pondered upon this development with an intense furrowing of his brow. However, he forged on with his examination of the charm as her hand began to loosen upon it.

Lilith withdrew from him as she once again made her confusion known to him, and his brow furrowed a little as his mind was set into overdrive. She questioned him, his existence, his motives with her words and he found himself taken aback. Though, this was very brief, as he could feel the desire...No, the need to comfort and protect her as panic began to set into her. Silas became as calm as the resting waters and just as collected as he pulled her back up against him with a firm grip. His fingers dug softly into her back as he pulled her soft, delicate frame against his sturdy, firmly muscular one. His warmth was intoxicating as he held her tightly to him, his fingers beginning to trace shapes upon her back as he had tended to do in the past. However, he knew now what he was writing, to a degree, as he had been shown a precious droplet of knowledge by the astral figure which felt so similar to him that he wondered if it was just a personification of his inner self.


“Protection...Heart...Body...Mind...Love...Peace...Repel...Harm...Violence...Death...Fire...Heat..” he muttered absentmindedly in Celestial, translating some of the shapes he was tracing onto her. There was a more potent tingling from his touch as his power entered into her again, reacting to the presence which was already there, strengthening both effects as the runes were woven along her flesh. He stopped his translation after a few seconds, though, and began to rest his head atop hers as he pulled her head in close to his chest.

“Lily...I do not truly understand what I am just yet...However, I am more than human...That much is apparent to me...And, in some way, I am connected to the soul magic contained within your necklace...And it feels ancient...However, I am certain of one thing...My name is Silas Montblanc and you, Lilith Adeline Piper, are the crux of my current state of being. I will not allow anything to come to harm you, especially myself,” he spoke to her with an intense affection blatant in his tone, squeezing her firmly but not smothering her against him. His fingers continued to trace the runes across her skin as he danced his fingers along one side of her back, over her shoulder, caressing the soft ridge of bones. His fingers drove along the slope of her neck, catching softly under her jaw as he lifted her gaze up towards him. His eyes were intense like fire, the stars shining so brightly in his eyes that they might as well have been emitting light into the room. Her eyes were a bright purple in this moment and Silas pondered upon whether it was he who was having such an effect on her or if it was a reaction innate to her kind regarding the type of magic he was using. However, his eyes would close slowly as he held her chin gently but oh so steadily as his firm, amorous lips pressed slowly up against hers.


This kiss contained the culmination of his emotions, his lips moving against hers like waves softly crashing upon the shore, with just as much rhythm as he allowed himself to be fully overcome by the dominant presence in him and the love which he felt for her. Were she to go weak in the legs, his strong grip would glide lower on her waist in order to prop her against him. Silas felt something reaching into him from her, like a silent messenger between the two of them whispering of her inner workings. Was it because of what he’d done at breakfast? He didn’t think long on how to respond as he sensed a delicate vulnerability stemming from her and his urge to support and protect her grew deeper. His arm dropped lower still, sliding past her feminine curves and locking under upon the back of her legs. He lifted her with ease, straightening his back while he did so, not allowing his lips to part from hers for even the briefest of moments. Once she was in the air, his hand spread out along her physique to hold her aloft, almost as though it was a seat with how large in comparison he was to her, while her legs moved to lock around his waist. His hand which had cradled her head began to slide along her jawline, thumb caressing the length of her cheek as the tip of it brushed her cheekbone before passing under her ear and around to the back of her head, resting half upon it and half upon her neck. Using his nimble fingers, he began to softly caress the back of her neck and the lower half of the back of her head as his lips continually and rapturously devoured hers.


Lilith’s body was trembling, but she no longer felt afraid. Her arms moved to match her legs and, soon, her entire body wrapped around Silas, never wanting to let him go. She breathed him in with every touch of his lips against hers, barely able to get air, though enjoying each gasp of it as she began to moan into his mouth. She wanted him badly, and both of them could feel it, though they both seemed far too content with what they were doing to stop. Her body pressed closer to his as he used little effort to hold her against him, the heat mixed with her chilling skin creating a whole different sort of sensation that built up between their bodies, though it was there if only to pull them in closer, not tear them apart.


Perhaps time was standing still. It was hard to say how long Silas stood there with the smaller Celestial clinging to him with such need and desire, kissing him as if her life depended on it. Her wanting only grew, and she began to act out, biting onto his lip as he kissed her, causing him to moan with a bit of a growl.


Her ministrations against him only fuelled his desire into a nova of sorts and his pants grew tight with the effort of containing his masculinity. Silas legs began to move forward, one after the other, until he felt the cool wall of the bathroom pressing into Lilith’s back. Once there, he pushed his body more hungrily into hers as the hot, twitching bulge between his legs began to press precariously betwixt her thighs. Another lusty moan rose from his throat and into her mouth as he returned some of the bites, tugging at the lower of her plush lips.


Lilith was slipping away, into the passion, lust-- and dare she think more feelings than just those-- as he rammed her into a wall. She could feel his desire building, pressing into her own warm and wet arousal. She would gladly be his, she knew it deep in her own soul, and perhaps there was reason enough for those feelings. They shared something that others simply couldn’t. She would be his, he could take her there, where he stood. All he had to do was tell her.


At that moment, a familiar glint of light bobbed its way into the doorway and the now familiar metallic voice rang out into the room. “You have been away for quite some time, creat--” it stopped as if somehow seeing what was going on between Silas and Lilith. If there were ever a moment in Silas’ life where he had been unhappy to see a successful invention, this was that moment. Silas slowly broke his lips away from Lilith’s, a strong hesitance as part of him urged him to proceed, despite the intrusion. It’s only an invention...Sure, it has a soul...But can it really FEEL anything? The voice in his head desperate to continue on. Silas ignored this thought, instead, opening his eyes slowly with a deep draw of breath through his nose.


“Lily…” he began to speak in Celestial, his voice warm, deep, with love and desire both dripping from his tone. In that pause, he gently placed a tender kiss upon her lips. “I need you to come with me…” his voice wavered with his emotion and another soft kiss was shared between them before he drew her essence deep into his core while he drew air in. “I can’t bear the thought of not having you alongside me…” his voice cracked ever so slightly, then a little more deeply but still softly he kissed her. “I need to go home…” a resolve was building in his tone now and it felt as though he had made his mind up about something, though it was unclear exactly what it was. He pressed his lips gingerly against hers and took another breath through his nose making cool air rush against her skin. “And I need you to be with me when I do…” he said with finality. There was clearly a dual meaning to his words, both wanting her to physically be along with him as well as to ask her one more time to be his. She did tell him to ask again and every fiber of his being was calling upon him to do so now.


“S-should I come back, or…?” the metallic voice rang out with a sort of timidness.


Lilith, looking so enthralled with Silas’ words, suddenly glared at the orb. “Get out!” she shouted, her eyes lit like purple fire, ready to burn the very soul out of it. Wasting absolutely no time, the orb zipped back through the doorway and made an audible “clang” as it struck a wall in its desperation to flee from the intimidating presence of Lilith.


Lilith cleared her throat and her eyes settled down, the purple slowly receding to reveal the blue hidden beneath. “Uh,” she paused, some of her senses returning to her head. “I mean, I already told you I had to go with you, so…” she said, her tough words not as effective while being pressed against the wall, wrapped around the man she wanted to call her own.


“I mean. Yes. I’ll go. W-with you.”

 

[Jumbled]

Perhaps there was something special about the washroom they were in because every time the two of them ended up there together, Lilith and Silas wound up all over one another. Lilith’s arms still held tightly around Silas’ neck. She was nowhere near ready to let him go. She cursed under her breath at the orb, wishing to tear it apart with just her hands. Perhaps his use of the Goblin language was rubbing off on her. She was fairly convinced she could shred it. Her eyes were focused like lasers pointing at the doorway. She couldn’t shoot ice from her eyes, but she looked like she might learn such an ability just for that nosy invention of his. Her desire to destroy that trinket came back to life with a new sense of vigor.

The soothing sound of Silas’ voice pulled her attention back to him easily. She gazed into the star-filled eyes of his, taking in his every word like she depended on it to breathe. He wanted her with him. Her chest felt weightless in that moment while the hard beating of her heart pounded against her like a drum. She’d first responded the way she always would to anyone, with some typical, unemotional response. But, as she stared longer into the pools of color that seemed to carry universes within them, she gave a more heartfelt reply, even if it was a bit of a struggle for her to say such things aloud.

Silas lowered her down carefully, but her eyes remained locked with his. Lilith was so incredibly drawn to him she didn’t want to miss a single thing about him, and she didn’t want to leave his side. However, he wished to get going and there were still things to take care of in the bedroom before they left. Lilith left Silas to finish up in the bathroom while she wandered out, hissing audibly at the orb when she passed it as if she were a cat. She entered the bedroom with caution. Even in the daytime the chamber was dark. Silas kept the room shrouded in shadows with the help of heavy curtains. Much like before, Lilith lifted up her hands, focusing on the moisture in the room and pulled the water up from the floor, this time in more of a snowflake filled mist that pooled over to her. The snowflakes touched her skin and were drawn inward, reinvigorating her in the process.

As Lilith went about her business and left the bathroom, Silas had made his way down the hallway and watched as she entered the room. He’d wanted to go in to gather the rest of the Glacien Gems she had the misfortune of calling forth the night prior. However, it seemed she was set upon taking care of the room and, rather than inform her of his presence, Silas leaned against the door frame with his firm, toned shoulder and crossed his arms over his chest. A warm smile had spread on his face and the stars in his eyes flickered energetically as he watched her with unabashed affection, occasionally biting his lip.

Feeling refreshed and more certain she wouldn’t nearly die again, Lily walked over to one of the windows, tugging at the heavy curtain, allowing the light to cascade in along the floors and walls. She then took curious steps over to his work desk, nearly kicking the instrument that wished to impale her earlier that morning. Lilith’s mind cycled back to Silas in the bathroom. What had he said? Something about protections. He had listed so many things out and she began to understand that the aura which had saved her from a bloody mess had been from him. Each time he traced patterns against the skin of her back he was creating a ward of some kind. She tilted her head at his tool, picking it up from the floor and placing it back onto the table, though further away from the edge than it had been before to prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.

Lilith scanned over the papers on the desk, her curiosity getting the better of her again. It seemed as though Silas never stopped creating things. Complex shapes and diagrams filled her vision, though one looked very familiar-- his gauntlet. It appeared so simple in person, however the diagrams written showed an incredibly complex structure within. Specific ratios of materials were mapped out, color-coded and woven together like a beautiful tapestry on the papers, making up the structure which lent the gauntlet its mysterious capabilities. She looked for any signs of soul-trapping in his sketches but she couldn’t honestly imagine what that would even look like. Most of the other papers were of weapons which she hadn’t seen as well as other military implements. She told herself to stop looking for things that weren’t there. Silas didn’t mean to trap the soul, so why would she find intent for it in his earlier innovations?

Walking to the overly large bed, Lilith pulled at his sheets, shaking them gently like rolling ocean waves, letting all of the Glacien Gems drop onto the main sheet so she could gather them. Lilith didn’t like to leave evidence of her pain behind unless she was using it for currency and even that was more out of necessity. Celestials did not practice the use of coins, but her home turf was a far different place compared to most. They did not want for things the way that others did, usually.

After gathering the gems and tucking them away in a small white pouch that Lilith secured to her waist, she folded up the bed sheet that she’d dropped by her feet, then placing it on the bed in a neat square. She returned to the window, placing the curtain back to its standard position as well, leaving the room looking more or less the way it should.

Silas stood and watched her the entire time, remaining silent as his eyes followed her around as if to capture every moment of her exploring the room and cleaning it. Then, when it seemed she had finished, he silently slipped back out into the hallway and walked down the stairs briskly, footsteps falling loudly on the wooden planks as he went into the living room and began to look around as if searching for something.

“Oh..!” She exclaimed in such a way that sounded as if she’d remembered something of importance. She had left the formal attire of her people in a pile inside of the tub. Lilith didn’t want to leave that behind either, and went back out into the hall, off to send the clothing through a portal of her own making.

After sending the clothes away, Lilith slipped into her white slipper-like shoes that she had been wearing from the time she’d met Silas. Good pairs of shoes were essential when traveling and those were worn-in in all the right ways.

“I think that’s everything,” she said, taking the room in with a circular turn of her body. She couldn’t think of anything more to get and the Glacien Gems that had scattered down onto the bathroom floor before her encounter with Silas appeared to be gone. She slowly exited the room and wandered toward the staircase, peering down with curiosity as she wondered why Silas had been away for so long. She hoped she hadn’t done anything wrong. Was he avoiding her after the bathroom incident?

 

[Vekraihr]

Silas smiled warmly at Lilith as the stars in his eyes roared and flared energetically while she looked into them. He didn’t even blink as he looked into the beautiful hues of hers and, for a moment, time seemed as though it was standing still. His heart was pounding in his chest at her reply and the elation he felt was plainly obvious upon his beaming face. He was almost in disbelief at how she’d lowered her guard for him, though he remembered how she had cried for him and told him to ask her again. I didn’t think it would be so soon...But here it is! She’s going to come home with me as my beloved! His thoughts were loud and clear in his mind, as though he were shouting at the top of his lungs.

As she left the room, Silas quietly followed along behind her to the doorway and watched her with a large, almost goofy grin. He’d been biting the inside of his lips nearly the entire time, afraid to start spontaneously laughing due to how pleased he was. He watched on as she drew the moisture from the floor and into the air, crafting beautiful flakes of snow before absorbing the refreshing ice within herself. He could see how important being cold was to her and his mind began to churn with ideas, thinking of ways he could improve her life and vitality. A blueprint began to form at the edges of his consciousness and inspiration began to take hold of him.


Lily drew the curtains back and the light of morning spilled into the room, giving everything a warm color. Silas took a deep breath as he watched her bend down to pick up the tool upon the floor. Something about the way her body moved sent excitement coursing through him in the form of a shiver which rolled through his spine. His eyes flickered as she began to look over the work he had done while on vacation so many years ago. Breathing out slowly, he wondered if she could understand any of it. The concepts were vague and poorly understood, Silas had not been the most expository on paper but with his voice. However, nothing looked even remotely complicated enough to match up with the intricate workings of the soul-orb he’d crafted.


His eyes again followed her as she went over to the bed and pulled the sheets in a manner which allowed her to shake the gems free from the many folds of the soft fabrics. Enraptured by her movements, Silas grinned more as he watched her gather up the magical little crystals and tucked them into a white pouch which hung on her waist. His eyes followed her curves as she bent over to pick up the sheet, biting his lip towards the outside a bit as he looked upon her with passionate intent. Now was not the time, though, and he decided he’d better get on with his preparations.

Jogging down the stairs, Silas remembered an old trinket his mother had left behind for him there, telling him if he’d ever gotten a special lady in his life and they visited this place, he should give it to her. He intended to do just that and set about pulling the drawers on the cabinet next to the sofa on the wall. Grumbling as he dug through the various assortment of knick-knacks, trinkets, and baubles, Silas’ eyes lit up when he found what he was looking for. A barrette fashioned of silver which had been engraved to resemble the way the wind blows, gently flowing and waving along the length of the clip and beyond by about a half inch on each side. Inlaid upon the curves of the wind were sapphires, which were deep and vibrantly colored. Each gem was carved into a snowflake and highlighted at the tips with tiny but dazzlingly cut diamonds, each sparkling with the light they captured. Inspecting the piece in the light, Silas chuckled happily with his own mental assurance that Lilith would certainly enjoy the gesture.


Silas began to rush over to the stairs only to see Lilith peering down at him. He had nearly tripped over his own feet because he’d stopped so fast and he smiled happily up at her as his orbs shone with excitement. “Lily, I have something I would love for you to have!” he said eagerly as he began to stride up the steps, two at a time to make his way up to her quicker. Once he’d gotten within a foot of her, he held out his closed fist within which the barrette was hidden. “Close your eyes,” he said warmly with a bit of a demanding quality to his voice. He’d not meant for it to sound like a demand, more like a request, but his voice was so deep and powerful that any such request might as well have been a command.



Lilith looked as though she wanted to question Silas, but the words didn’t ever make it to her tongue. Her lips parted for a moment, suggesting she might speak, but she then closed them, followed by her eyes. Once her eyes were shut, Silas opened his hand with his palm facing upwards and he positioned the barrette so the silver and sapphire face would be aligned with her eyes and shimmering a little with the light which filtered in through the windows that lined the wall of the stairs. “Okay, you can open them, dear,” he said to her with excitement bubbling in his voice, practically laughing for how cheerful he was. “My mother told me to give this to the person I choose to be mine,” his voice was soft, but he spoke with intensity as his eyes glimmered with hope and luminosity


Within his mind, he was continuing to plan the device which he was going to craft for her. Those gems she had cried were very well attuned to her, he thought and would serve perfectly for a focus for a tool much like the ones he bore. However, he had to figure out how to get every tiny little gem into one concise shape or structure in a way which allowed them to resonate with each other.


Silas called the orb over with a wave of his hand, looking at Lilith with his affectionate eyes. “Are you all ready to go?” he asked her as he reached up with his other hand and stroked Lilith’s cheek affectionately, tracing his fingertips along her jawline. Once she was satisfied and agreed to leave, Silas pulled her body up against his own with one powerful arm and grabbed the orb in his other hand. He then began to trace shapes upon the surface of the sphere, causing it to glow with the purple energy Lilith had been getting so familiar with.

As the feeling of time and space began to distort around them, Silas put his hand which had been on the orb on the back of Lilith’s head and he nestled her face into his chest. He then wrapped his other arm around her head, preventing the light from shining into her eyes, remembering how disorienting it’d been for her the last time.


This time, the travel seemed much quicker and easier, as it should have been since they were staying in the same realm. The brightness and sensation weren’t any less dizzying than it had been, however, it was much briefer. Upon their arrival, they stood within the workshop where Lilith had first met the inventor who had stolen her away on this grand adventure which they had undertaken. He had changed so much since then, despite only a few days passing. He was bolder, more charismatic, and certainly seemed much more comfortable with her company.


The room was dimly lit by the glow from the orb and the low gas lamps which had been left on within the chandelier and the bronze sconces which lined the room. They were stood next to the large mahogany table upon which Silas had been tinkering when he achieved his breakthrough. There were still metal shavings upon the table from the etchwork which he’d done upon the surface of the orb. Papers and books cluttered that table and the others which rest around the perimeter of the room, with various instruments and machines of arcane and mathematic origins resting upon and under. There was a gentle hum in the air, the sound of the crystals and gears in his machines buzzing with the ‘life’ he’d given them. The lights started to come up, the sensors within the walls and floor of the room detected their presence within and began to power on the things which Silas typically always needed when in these four walls.


“Lily, do you have those ice gems from the sheets? I would like to have them if you wouldn’t mind...I need to study them so I can better protect us against those who would bring us harm,” he said ardently as he loosened his grip from around her head, allowing her to pull her face from his muscular, finely-clothed pec. However, his arms didn’t leave her and instead draped over her shoulders in a soft embrace as the inventor smiled his beaming, toothy grin at her. He wasn’t telling her the full truth, though, intent on using the gems to build her something like one of his metamagical instruments. He didn’t want her to know that just yet as he wished to surprise her with its completion.

He remembered back to the elves, when they used those weapons charged with gems which had come from a celestial. He remembered this old poem which he had heard other kids say as a child:

Stars that bless and stars that fly,

Watch me as I grow and try,

If I fail, and you shed a tear,

That gem I’ll keep forever near.

Some said it was just a silly little metaphor for learning a lesson and keeping it close, but Silas had taken it quite seriously, given his family's past dealings with a Celestial. He was fairly confident of the gems having origin from Celestials and he was even more certain of it coming from their tears, given how many were present in the bed and what had transpired the night they appeared.

 

[Jumbled]

Whatever insecurities plagued Lilith quickly dissipated as Silas appeared, bounding up the stairs toward her. She took a cautious step back, not wanting him to land right on top of her from the rate he was skipping steps. She wondered if he always moved in such a way in his summer home, or if this was all due to his newer strength and build. She stared at the bouncing mop of hair that hung around his face, finding his starry eyes almost hiding beneath it, though his orbs were impossible not to see. Lilith smiled before she realized she was even expressing her joy to see him and it stayed on her face for some time before he told her to close her eyes.

Lilith tilted her head, seeming puzzled by such a statement. Had Silas always been able to command attention like that? She could feel the dominance rolling off of him like a steam that filled the open space around them, thick and difficult to fight against. She opened her mouth as if to ask why she would close her eyes, but the words never found her. It seemed like such a strange thing to want from her, but she did as she was told, allowing her eyes to slowly flutter shut with her long and dark eyelashes resting against the milky complexion of her skin.

Lilith wasn’t sure how long he expected her to stand there like that. Not much time passed, however, until Silas instructed her to open them once more, calling her ‘dear’ as he did. Her heart fluttered in her chest at the pet name, her understanding of his terms of endearment becoming clearer the longer she stayed along side the inventor. She opened her eyes as he explained something his mother told him once, and she stared up at him with timid eyes, not even seeing the hair piece yet. There was a shiver that traveled up her spine as he said ‘mine,’ and she felt herself grow warm, though she didn’t blush in that moment. Inhaling slowly, Lilith looked down at the glittering gems that formed tiny snowflakes along the length of the barrette, twisting up like it was dancing in the wind. The sparkling stones shined in the light and reflected in Lilith’s peculiar, two-toned eyes.

“It’s very beautiful, thank you. Uh, but, Silas, what is it…?” she asked hesitantly. She wanted to be as excited about it as he seemed to be, but she didn’t understand what he wanted her to do with it. Silas smiled softly at Lilith and closed his hand slowly around the barrette, looking into her beautiful, radiant eyes. “Here, allow me,” he said to her as he stretched two fingers from the hand holding the barrette and stroked her brunette locks in a sweeping motion away from her face and allowed them to rest behind her ear. “So, a barrette is a piece of jewelry,” he began while he took the piece in his other hand and opened it with a soft ‘click’ and began to slide the metal clip underneath the locks of hair which he’d so gently placed behind her ear, “which holds your hair in a certain position.” he finished his sentence with the sound of the barrette clicking shut over her ear and a slow, gentle kiss upon her cheekbone.

Silas’ kiss caused her skin to tingle the same way it felt when snow touched her. Although his lips were warm, it was the same refreshing sensation that filled her when she pulled the moisture from the rooms before. She might have pondered more on that, but was too distracted by the hair piece at the time. So, instead of questioning Silas and his abilities as she normally would have done, she lifted a delicate hand to touch the barrette and tilted her head toward Silas. “Does it look okay on me?” she asked, wondering if he approved. If the trinket held so much value to him and to his mother as well, she didn’t want him to be disappointed. “You can always take it back and save it for a different girl,” she suggested, though her words weren’t meant to belittle his feelings toward her. “You look absolutely beautiful, darling. There is no other girl for this piece,” Silas’ honeyed words left his lips upon a smile as he gazed upon her with smoldering intent. He’d never spoken a greater truth in his entire life and the sincerity in his voice was tangible it resounded in such a pervasive fashion.

It was difficult not to react to the way Silas spoke to her, but at the same time, he kept leaving her in such a state where words were lost. Lilith found herself wondering if this was how other Celestials felt when they gave up their positions for love. A Celestial, like Lilith, was once part of Silas’ family. Did he romance the human in the same way that Silas spoke to her now with such certainty? There was an overwhelming sense of protectiveness that Silas carried for her. Lilith was a stranger to a lot of his culture, but his body language was reading loud and clear. Silas would fight for her, he would keep her safe. He would try to move the very earth to get to her, that she could feel in her core, though she couldn’t fathom why. She wasn’t even nice to him, well, not usually.

Lilith straightened her posture as Silas motioned to the orb, and she resisted hissing at it once more. She settled for a quick glare before beaming up at Silas when he asked her if she was ready. She cleared her throat softly, shaking her head to free herself of such foolish expressions and the gentle stroking from his hand, then exhaled after collecting herself. “I believe I am,” she replied, taking one more quick glance around the room. She hated the nagging feeling that came with leaving one place and going to another. There was always something left behind, and sadly, it wasn’t going to be his dumb orb-- Though she didn’t want anyone else to find it and put it to use, she was still bitter at its untimely interruption. “Yes, we can go.” she decided as she looked up at him.

It took no time for Silas to close the gap between them, and he held her against his toned chest, careful not to press her face into the buttons of his vest. It was as if his every move was somehow calculated and deliberate. While Silas focused on the orb, Lilith’s guard dropped and her expression softened as she rested the side of her face against him comfortably, watching as he navigated the workings of his invention like he’s purposely made it the way it was. Had she not felt so peaceful, she would have questioned that thought more, too, but instead she watched on in what seemed like wonderment of him. The orb began to glow purple, and she realized it was the same color she had seen around herself, but she couldn’t remember it doing that before. She peered up as if to start a conversation, but Silas quickly cradled her head into his chest and she was filled with the sense of security and love as he held her, blocking her eyes from the blinding lights that came from the orb’s teleportation. She closed her eyes reflexively, though she harbored no fear of feeling pain, knowing that Silas was shielding her from harm in that moment. Indeed, in that moment, Lilith was his.

She could feel the pulling sensation of their traveling tug at her sides, but Silas’ presence was so powerful that she was anchored by him. Her feet felt the ground shift below her, and slowly his embrace loosened from around her, but only enough to allow his arms to hug her shoulders. Lilith looked up, finding the inventor smiling at her. Her attention was split, however, as she realized she was in a semi-familiar place. It took her a moment or two to piece together where she was standing, the first time being a frantic race to find and catch the obnoxious spirit that wouldn’t go into her necklace. This was where she’d first met Silas; his crazy workshop. The lights, as if they had a mind of their own, became brighter and illuminated the dark corners of the room, shining on scrap metals and parts that only looked like piles of junk to her. Lilith suspected that Silas didn’t feel the same way about his garbage, though.

Silas’ voice lured her eyes back to his and her expression turned quizzical with a defensive hand hovering over the pouch at her side. “Ice gems?” she asked, her tone tensed at the mention of them. She studied his features, as if searching for ill intent, but only found his warm features staring back at her. “How will they protect us? They’re just tiny stones.”

Her hand slowly worked to unfasten the pouch at her side and she cautiously gave Silas the entire thing. It was clear she wasn’t concerned with them from a financial standpoint, but more guarded about why she had them in the first place. The look in his galactic eyes turned to that intense fire that she’d seen plenty of times before, and she could practically see the gears in his mind turning. He had switched back into his inventor mode, and she took a step away, understanding his attention was going to be off of her for some time. She dreaded the idea of not having his hand caress her face and that look of adoration staring back at her, but she swallowed and waved a hand at him, brushing off his thanks. “Just don’t ask me for more of those. And they’re called Glacien Gems, not ice gems.” she corrected him, sounding the slightest bit haughty.

 

[Vekraihr]

Silas found comfort in the presence of Lilith and the warm nostalgia which washed over him as they stood within their meeting place once again. His house was all around, but he felt truly at home there in his workshop with the beautiful Celestial girl. A soothing hum from the machines and the magical essence which pervaded every corner of the room sent excited ripples through the inventor’s nerves. His face was beaming with the biggest grin he’d ever given as his eyes stared down at Lilith, filled with love and glistening brightly from the stars held within his hues. Silas allowed his arms to hang loosely over Lilith’s shoulders as he began to trace symbols upon her shoulder blades, quicker this time than before.


Lilith began to draw the pouch and Silas’ eyes flashed a little while he gazed upon her, excitement building within him. He had so many ideas running through his mind as to what sort of device he could manufacture for her, though he was starting to have a more concrete idea with which his mind was beginning to run away with. He envisioned two circles of silver or perhaps white gold or even platinum, overlapping each other in an cross shaped pattern. He’d have to figure out the specific alloy which would best attune the device to Lilith’s energy, which he could feel so strongly emanating from her and from the small amount of gems he’d taken from the bathroom floor. He pictured little orbs, like planets or satellites, running along the length of both circles of metal. He pondered if there was a way to make them float and move when placed upon her, each band and crystal independent of each other but connected via magic entanglement. Envisioning an anklet would be the best suited application for what he was crafting within his mind, the image became clearer as his hand was weighed down with the pouch of Glacien Gems Lilith had collected.


Suddenly, the far off look Silas had melted away as he was brought back from his machinations and to the pressing matter of her attention. His green hues were bright and vibrant with that inquisitive inventiveness which so strongly burned within him. Stars which were too small and faint to normally be seen burned enough to become pinpoints of light among his verdant irises while coronas of the different shades of starlight reached out from every one. Placing the gems into his tool belt, Silas’ smile grew more brilliant as he almost began to shake with eagerness. “Thank you, thank you so very much! You really haven’t any idea how much this means to me. I can find a way to protect you with these, I just know it...They’re so strongly attuned to you and I should be able to do something wondrous with them. Even if it takes me months to do so,” Silas spoke in a rushed manner, as he did when his mind switched gears in this manner. However, the last sentence he spoke more carefully and weightedly and the desire in his heart was conveyed through his tone.


As Lilith corrected his assumption as to what the gems may have been called, he gave a soft grin laced with the pain of understanding how the gems had come about to begin with. “Lily...I...I do not ever wish for you to need to cry like that again,” his tone had suddenly shifted back as the protective, masculine nature was drawn out of him once again. His hand reached to her face and he palmed her jaw, his thumb stretched to caress the corner of her lips, fingers brushing softly against the soft flesh of her cheek. “I will do everything and anything I can to stop that from happening…” He leaned forward and lifted her chin up carefully, while at the same time removing his other arm from her shoulder and casually swatted the orb which hung over near his side. With a sudden “EEE!” the orb was pushed rapidly from the room, almost bouncing off of the stone doorframe as it jetted through the opening by Silas’ nonchalant shove. Slowly, his lips advanced upon Lily’s and pressed in with a sense of purpose and longing, opening himself to let her feel his heart.


Lilith’s face slowly lifted with his guidance and, as her expression softened, her eyes looked almost heavy with her emotional response to his movements. Her mood broke as she burst out with a “Ha!” as the orb went flying away, and soft giggles followed after her outburst. It was at that point Lily found herself blushing a bright red as Silas kissed her. Her eyes widened as if she were surprised, though it was really embarrassment that took hold of her in her moment of childish satisfaction of seeing the orb getting reprisal for its earlier intrusion. It took her moments into that kiss to settle her mind and close her eyes, feeling Silas’ spirit fill her and love warm her.


Silas smiled against the soft, cooling lips of Lilith as he felt her cooling, loving presence filling his core, much to his delight. He gave small, affectionate kisses between the longer, more intense ones and a soft sigh of desire and passion left him. Before too long had passed, Silas slowly broke away the kiss, giving a few more delicate, short kisses as his face moved away from hers hesitantly. “You make me so happy,” the short sentence was laden with feeling, his tone warm and resonant with its deep timbre.


Lilith, with a face still quite pink, looked as though she was struggling to find an adequate response to his simple, yet deep, statement. She brushed away the hair from her face that was on the opposite side of the lovely barrette that he’d lovingly positioned for her earlier. It was then that a shimmer of light in a strand that glittered, like a spider’s web with the morning sun shining upon it, split down between them. Lilith’s expression shifted to alarm and she quickly took her hands and shoved Silas away from the thin abnormality that slowly expanded, opening up triangularly with bright, white light on all three sides. Silas took a few steps back, sensing the urgency with which Lilith had pushed him. However, the shove didn’t hold enough strength for the small Celestial to move his larger frame, rather causing her own footing to be pushed away. There was an extreme cold which seeped out of the tear in their current realm, granting a view into the Celestial Plane from either side.


A thick darkness, speckled with twinkling stars, was cut into by a glowing, icy blue kingdom that floated freely like a massive star-shaped station that had sharp points jutting out along all its axises. The image of Lilith’s home city didn’t last long enough for examination as everything sped forward, zooming into a specific room filled with monitors that showed images of different realms floating in holographic circles that could be spun with the swipe of a hand. Several Celestials wandered through the room, but the focal point of the newly formed portal focused on a tall, wiry framed Man with bright blonde hair that was pinned up with a fashionable gold hairstick that held a bun at the top of his skull, followed by a long ponytail that fell down to his knees, bound by several links that matched the style of the stick. The portal was strange. Although it was a two-dimensional image, flat as can be, Lilith could see into the whole room from her front facing position, while Silas could see the room from a very different perspective. He did not see a mirrored image, but instead, the back of the room and the man that faced Lilith.


Silas looked upon the dimensional tear with amazement as the station filled his eyes and the background stars in the void reflected his own. In the midst of the starry field a large station rested, with jagged peaks radiating from every side. Icy and beautiful, Silas couldn't help but wonder if this was where Lilith called home. His disbelief shifted to curiosity as the field of view expanded upon the station, hurtling into what appeared to be a control room populated with monitors and tall denizens of a nature with which he only recently became familiar. Among them was a man who very obviously commanded the rest, his poise reminding the tinkerer of the royalty which he'd served under. His breath almost didn't come as he briefly forgot himself with his studious gaze.


“L838; We have received your report of a disturbance on Realm 52.” he began. Everything was always numbers with the authorities, though the Celestials like Lilith used the given names of places according to the inhabitants of that specific realm.

“Yes, sir,” she said with a tone she used when showing her strength; a tone she’d nearly lost when it came to interacting with Silas. “Your presence is requested home for a full debriefing. Come at once, L838,” his voice resounded with all the authority and might his station afforded him and his stern expression and steely gaze propounded action on her behalf. Upon the completion of his demand, the rip in the fabric of time and space shut just as suddenly as it had appeared and Silas looked to Lilith with a gaze of mixed wonder and concern.

“I suppose this means you must take your leave, Lily,” he walked towards her as he spoke, offering a warm, but solemn smile as his shimmering hues flickered with the knowledge that she must do what was asked of her and it would take her away from him for some time.


Lilith nodded slowly as she clasped her hands together. She had barely managed to make Silas move out of the way before that portal opened and she wasn’t sure what would have happened if they’d been seen together. She wasn’t ready to end her mission, but she didn’t want to live without the inventor, either. Both were of equal importance to her, though at that moment, Silas was somehow winning her attention more than the energy crisis.


His arms wrapped around her for one more embrace before she set off and his fingers hurriedly, almost frantically, traced intricate patterns along the entirety of her back. It felt so long for those seconds to pass by before his arms fell away from her and he gave one more slow, loving kiss in farewell. “I’ll see you again soon,” his hopeful tone conveyed his deep desire to continue adventuring with her at his side as he took a few steps back away from her to permit her the space to jump realms back home.

 

[Jumbled]

When Silas rambled off, like he typically did while talking about inventions and the many ideas that spiraled through his mind at any given time, Lilith couldn’t help but let her eyes roll off to the side. She wasn’t annoyed, but rather entertained by that point. It was something she simply grew to expect from him. Her amusement transitioned into a warm fondness as he expressed his determination to create a device to protect her from harm. Hopefully it wouldn’t take him literal months to do, though, because Lily had a feeling Silas wouldn’t be able to focus on anything other than his inventing until he completed what he sought out to do. She noted that while there were dozens upon dozens of inventions lying around, there were no real signs of a female’s presence in sight. If he was so wrapped up in his efforts to craft, he wouldn’t be mentally available for her until he finished.

Days stretching out into months didn’t bode well for soul collecting and energy restoration, either. Lilith wouldn’t be able to just stay with Silas the whole time if it took that long, but she couldn’t stand that idea of being away from him. The very thought of parting ways caused a pit to form in the depths of her stomach. But, she couldn’t think of any reason to leave him currently. They had some time, she was sure.

She looked taken aback as Silas mentioned her crying. How much had he actually seen the previous night? She looked down, biting at her lip in a nervous way. In a timely manner, Silas’ hand caressed her face, bringing with it a sense of comfort that she greatly desired from him. It was odd, she thought, how much she enjoyed the feel of his hands on her skin. She never let people touch her, and yet he did so frequently without her protesting. The unease in her stomach left her for the time, filling with the fluttery wings of butterflies flapping around instead. She really did love him, she realized, but such a thing was too much to admit out loud.

His fingers grazed over her lips and they tingled, suddenly aching for his kiss. She leaned her face further into his palm, her lips barely parting as they caught the tip of his thumb again, kissing it slowly. He tilted her face up, but she felt his other hand leave her shoulders, and as she waited for him to hold her some other way, his hand instead went to the no-good orb that flitted around their faces. Silas barely moved his hand, pushing the thing away, but perhaps it was the intent in his mind that sent the thing flying. “Ha!” Lilith exclaimed in a joyous outburst, followed by giggles that filled the air like a pleasant song. Even through her laughter, Silas leaned in and kissed her and she grew still as her face turned hot, realizing how silly she had acted in front of him. Her eyes went wide with embarrassment but he didn’t seem to think any less of her. She settled down, melting into his kiss and embrace once again, allowing him to hold her there as he was.

These kisses had a heat to them similar to earlier in the morning, but Silas remained focused on his thoughts more than his urges this time. When he told her how happy she made him, she could feel the weight of his words. As she stalled for time, waiting for her words to find her, she saw a familiar light fall before the two of them. They had been so close to one another, it was lucky she even managed to see it at all. With a hasty shove against Silas’ chest, she stumbled back on her feet a few steps, stopping with knees slightly bent as she caught herself. As the light widened into an opening triangle, she corrected her posture much like a soldier would, waiting for her orders.

The Celestial on the other side of the portal was a commander of her home city. The Celestial Plane was made up of many large stations much like the one they both got a glimpse of before the image zoomed and focused in on the man Lilith secretly referred to as “Cheekbones.” His skin was aged and light gray with bright silver specks freckled along the bottoms of his dark gray eyes. His face was narrow with high cheekbones, but he didn’t look frail the way his age might suggest he should be. His blonde hair was kept nicely in a tight loop of a bun, pinned up on the top of his head that fell down into a kept ponytail that dropped down to his knees, adorned with fat, metallic gold cuffs after every foot of hair. He wore a suit that was the complete opposite of the formal wear. A dark gray jacket with black buttons covered his torso, and pants of the same color fell to his feet. His shoes were black, and almost the same style as Lilith’s. Such casual wear did not make him seem any less imposing and he stood an inch taller than Silas did then.

After the portal closed, Lilith stared at the space where it had been, blinking as her eyes readjusted. It seemed she suddenly had a reason to leave Silas, afterall, though she sorely wished that wasn’t the case. She sighed softly and Silas knew she had no choice. He didn’t make her feel worse about it, either, which somehow surprised her, not because of who he was as a person, but because maybe she wanted him to speak out and tell her to stay. They were both adults with jobs to do and, as such, they both held their tongues when it came to what they actually wanted.

With a heavy heart she nodded in response to him and he scooped her up into a hug while reinforcing the protective symbols that he was constantly tracing onto her back. Lily was starting to feel the strength that each of the etchings had as it encased her with its layers of power, fortitude, and protection. Finally, he pulled her away from him just enough to lean in for a last kiss goodbye, though it didn’t feel nearly epic enough to be their last kiss for an undetermined amount of time. She didn’t know how long she’d be gone and, the way time carried in the different realms, it was possible she’d be gone for a month when it was only days for her. She didn’t want to tell him that; she didn’t want to cause him any more heartache than what he was possibly feeling in that moment.

He backed away to give her space to leave and she hesitantly started to speak. “Y-yeah. Okay…” her tone was unhappy. She looked to her side, eyeing his different tools and scraps, though not really seeing them at all. She didn’t want to leave. Her mind filled with so many reasons to stay. She could proclaim herself in love with a human and be banished then and there. Still, she had obligations. “Okay,” she said one more time as her hands tugged and twisted at the skirt of her dress. She looked back at Silas more directly then. “Silas…!” she said, her call sounding more urgent than normal. Before she understood what she was doing, she rushed him, leaping onto him with her arms wrapping around his neck. She leaned in, kissing him hungrily, holding herself as close to him as she could manage.

Silas was watching Lilith as she anxiously fidgeted about and fussed about with her skirt, swallowing a little bit as he felt a lump forming in his throat. He really didn’t want her to go, but duty called to them and he dared not to interfere at this time. Her gaze cast to the side and then back to him, and his own eyes were upon her, glimmering with passion and dimmed by sorrow. She called to him in a way that tugged at his heart and made him feel as though it would fly from his chest as its rhythm increased in pace. Suddenly and shockingly, Lily rushed to him and Silas’ feet shifted in anticipation to receive her, his arms opening up and then clasping around her so very tightly as she held onto his neck. Leaning towards her as she did the same, his eyes closed as his lips met hers with reciprocated hunger and passion as his arms tightened upon her in order to leave no gaps between them. His lips closed around her lower lip and he pulled it into his mouth a little, running his tongue along the supple flesh as he gently whimpered with need. His lips separated far enough for him to speak and a whisper left him, though his words sounded more powerful and true than any others he’d spoken before. “I love you, Lilith...You’re my sweet star angel.”

Their kiss broke as Silas whispered against her lips and she looked at him timidly with eyes that expressed feelings equal to his own. She leaned in once more, kissing him softly, then kept her nose against his, whispering back. “Don’t forget about me, Silas. I will come back to you.”

She slowly uncurled herself from her tight hold on Silas and lowered to the ground with some assistance on his part. As she stood before him, she looked over to one of his work stations and walked over to it, placing her hand onto the corner of the desk. She twirled her other hand around in circles, her eyes glowing, the purple shifting in and out as she called forth more power than normal until her hand lifted and a tiny ice sculpture that looked more like glass was left behind. The figure was a unicorn, raised up on its hind quarters in what looked like a whinny with a long flowing tail and mane. “It’s not much, but, it will never melt.” Lilith said as she looked back at him over her shoulder.

Silas walked over to Lilith as she focused her energy into crafting what was probably the most thoughtful thing anyone had ever desired to give him. His arm wrapped around Lilith’s back and his hand rest upon her shoulder firmly. “It’s beautiful...I love it,” he spoke with a warm smile as he leaned down and closely inspected the glass-like ice sculpture. “The Unicorn…Is it supposed to be Ctesias?” he asked her curiously as his intent eyes drew their focus to her, the pose reminiscent of the way the constellation was drawn in artistic depictions.

“It- it is.” she responded slowly, surprised that Silas had picked up on what she’d made so easily. Her ice sculptures had always looked exceptional, but she didn’t think they had ever been that good.

“Is there any particular reason for it to be Ctesias?” Silas continued his questioning, his eyes alight with curiosity. He had the notion that it perhaps was where her star was held, vaguely recalling her mentioning that each Celestial had a star which was their own in the sky.

Lilith’s eyes shifted to the side as she laughed just a little. “Always so inquisitive. I have to go, love.” she said as she pulled on his vest to make him lean down closer to her for another kiss.

“Alright, my dear. Do what you must and return to me swiftly,” he replied to her as a little bit of crimson threatened at his cheeks at her use of the word ‘love’ towards him. His lips pressed warmly and happily against hers as he made a soft sound of delight from all the affection she was showing him. He’d hesitantly pull away once she began to and he took a few steps back while straightening himself up, adjusting his vest and smiling his farewell to her. His eyes locked on her form lovingly and the stars in his eyes burned intensely.

Lilith stared at Silas longingly as her body was surrounded by a light fog that smelled of lavender. Her body faded from sight leaving only traces of the fog wafting in the air where she once stood.

 

[Vekraihr]

Silas gently squeezed Lilith’s shoulder as they kissed one more time before truly saying their farewells, his grip firm but unharming as he pressed his lips needily against hers. His heart was racing in his chest as he continued to think on how she’d called him ‘love’ and the smile that gave him never left his face. She stepped back away from him after what felt like too short a time and Silas’ green eyes twinkled with admiration as the emotion on his face could best be described as bittersweet. These moments with her helped him to understand how much she truly cared, though now she was leaving him for an amount of time he couldn’t calculate. As a pleasantly-scented fog began to fill the air around Lilith, Silas reached his hand up towards her as if to grab her before she faded, watching as the mist began to dissipate after her figure had vanished from his sight. Slowly, he brought his hand back to his side and looked to the ground forlornly for a moment. Kicking at the air for no particular reason, Silas gave a huff before turning his head back upwards as his visage became resolute and strong.


“I have work to do,” he said to himself with determination and walked over towards one of the mahogany tables which was placed carefully about the room. He set about the business of tidying it, clearing away his previous works and scrawlings before setting about to the next one. After a short while, Silas was standing in a freshly cleaned and prepared workshop. In the corner was a desk with a single lamp upon it, a comfortable chair nestled against it and there were blank papers, pencils, quills, and inkwells organized neatly upon its surface. Silas took the goggles upon his head and placed them over his eyes, walking over towards the desk after collecting the sculpture which Lily had made. Feeling the cool sensation on his skin, he placed the sculpture on one of the shelves of the bureau and pulled the chair out to accept him. Getting himself comfortably settled at the desk, he pulled out the Glacien Gems and began to study them through the various filters of his multi-lensed goggles. Picking up a sheet of paper and one of the pencils, he began to write out complex formulas and numbers upon the paper. With each filter change, he wrote new computations and revised old ones. It would be a long and tedious process, but a critical one as he needed to understand the ebb and flow of the energy from the gems in order to craft an alloy which would enhance the energy within while intertwining it with the specific wearer, which would be his beloved.


Lilith appeared standing tall, for her at least, mere feet away from X37. Some of the others referred to him as Xenon, which was his given name, but ‘Cheekbones’ was a far more fitting one, she thought. With her arms folded behind her back, hands clasped together, and no nervous fidgeting in sight, she waited for him to finish speaking.


As Lilith's form began to appear in the Celestial Plane, Supreme Overlord X37 stood attentively with his arms behind his back and wrists slightly crossed. “L838, I expected a faster response,” he said flatly, perhaps in response to the fact that she'd extended her goodbye with Silas for as much as she had. “On to the matter at hand, however,” his tone shifted to a more authoritative pitch while bringing his arms about to his front and adjusting the sleeves of his jacket. “You reported on an anomalous behavior from members of the society of Realm 52. We also noticed the presence of strange fluctuations in the fabric between the realms. Following up with observance after your missive, we discovered a strange human male with whom you began consorting and a device which uses unknown means to transport the two of you and the spherical object to other planes. In just 48 hours, 3 complete realm jumps were performed, and one planar jump as well. This is far above and beyond anything we expected from a human and I am looking forward to hearing an explanation from you,” he spoke factually and without pause, putting emphasis on ‘human’ and gesturing to the rotating circle of monitors briefly upon the mention of observation before turning his body fully towards her once again. His eyes were like focused beams directly staring into and through her, the icy tone of his voice accented by the deep, ominous gray in his eyes.


She ignored his first statement, knowing he didn’t want excuses from her and, as she suspected, he flowed right into his next thought. Lilith could feel her chest tighten with anxiety but she didn’t allow the feelings to alter her stone-faced expression. She pursed her lips inward, licking them slightly before speaking. Why was her mouth always so dry when it was important to talk?


“Sir. Upon arrival, Realm 52 was semi-hostile. After staying in an estate for a night, myself, accompanied by the… human of… intrigue were led into a trap. My beacon was sent to notify you regarding weapons crafted to defeat Celestials. Somehow they understand our weaknesses and the implements of battle were designed to exploit them specifically. I nearly perished.” Her voice almost cracked with her last sentence and she cleared her throat softly.


“Nearly perished?” Xenon asked with an incredulous tone, seeming to be taken aback that she would even be attacked, let alone nearly killed. His eyes widened a little with the shock of it and his wizened hands tightened slightly into fists.


“As I entered the great halls of their council, the head member, a Druid named Adresin, spoke of Celestials in a familiar way. She seemed to suggest she either worked alongside a Celestial or, more likely, had captured and tortured one to discover our inner and outer workings. I was imprisoned in a heat as strong as the desert while others weren’t affected at all.” It was becoming harder to speak in unfeeling monotony. This was one story that brought emotional responses forward in her that were difficult to reign in.


“Go ahead, L838. I can understand your emotion in this. Even I am shaken to learn of this and you were there firsthand,” his tone was almost comforting, though not quite reaching that level of warmth. The others in the room paused and took notice of his tone and as they looked, Xenon cleared his throat forcefully and gave a quick sweep with his eyes around the room to ensure the others returned to their duties.


Lilith searched within herself for the right words. It was evident in Xenon’s earlier questions that he knew something about Silas, though she wasn’t sure how much he had actually seen. The very thought of being spied on while in the bathroom with him, either of the times, was horrifying.


“Sir, had it not been for Silas, I wouldn’t be here. He’s a remarkable person, though I’m convinced there is Celestial in his blood. . . not that it changes things, but… There’s a power that sleeps within him, and I owe him my life. But, please understand my mission is of importance to me and I wouldn’t just abandon it for--” her words grew almost as fast as Silas’ did when he rambled about inventing.


Before she could finish her sentence, Xenon rose his hand to stop her as he began to speak, his voice back to the calm flatness as it had been at the beginning of the conversation. “Indeed, we are aware of Silas’ Celestial heritage...His family has been monitored since O23 consorted with his ancestor some one thousand years ago. However, you are right that it does not change things...But...Silas has some hidden power and has crafted a device which shatters our notions of realm travel and...I’ve received reports that he’s physically changed, recently. A human does not change at his age. Not like that. It is cause for more in-depth investigation and, given your history with him, we would like you to continue to accompany him as a companion. Due to the...Curious and incredible nature of his talents, it is imperative that he behave as he normally would...As such, we will be turning a blind eye to any fraternizations you may be inclined to utilize, until such a time that we can determine just what he is,” Xenon spoke with deliberation, seeming to carefully choose what he was revealing to her and his inflection at ‘fraternizations’ seemed almost playful, if such were capable of him.


“Just what he is... “ she quietly whispered his words back to herself, bothered by the statement. Lilith’s face betrayed her with a flush of heat on her cheeks. She tried her best to move past Xenon’s instructions, instead trying to pull his attention to matters she found more pressing. “Sir, that druid is a threat to us. Silas is just an inventor. He’s bound to have one good creation in his small lifetime. That druid should be priority, not some man that doesn’t know what he’s even making when he makes it!” She’d forgotten her place and slowly quieted before her outburst brought more attention to herself.


Xenon waved his hand towards Lilith as if to dismiss her concerns before speaking authoritatively once again. “We have already prepared a force of some of our most elite fighters to engage with this druid. They will be leaving within the day. You have your orders, L838. Once you have written a full report to be handed off to me, you will be returning to the inventor on Realm 4. Now, we’ve prepared an escort for you while you are here. Purely precautionary, as you’ve gone through quite a lot,” he assured her, however, there was another motive which he did not disclose to her. Upon her arrival, she was preceded by her energy and there was a difference which had a volatility they were hesitant to trust. “You are dismissed, L838. Your escort is in the hall,” he commanded her as he turned his back and focused his attention back upon the room filled with those under his watch.

 

[Jumbled]

Lilith turned away from Cheekbones and paced toward the hall, avoiding eye contact with the others that occupied the room. She could feel their subtle glances fall upon her figure before slyly shifting back to their main focus. A delicate hand rubbed at her temples, shielding her face further from the onlookers as she exited the room full of spinning holograms and figures adorned in the same gray attires at their leader wore, though the shade was lighter than his and he seemed to wear it far better.

The command room she promptly exited opened up into a wide hallway. The walls were shaped in such a way that it appeared like a square tunnel with blue panels of light that wrapped around the walkway and up to the ceiling every five feet, precisely. There was an ever-present chill in the air that was comforting to the Celestials, but hostile toward the other races. One breath of the frigid air would start to collapse the lungs and send the invader into such a shock that they’d be paralyzed until their death, likely minutes later, if they didn’t perish from the shock first.

Lilith’s hand fell from her face and her arm rested against her side as she looked around the hall for whatever guide she was supposed to meet. She didn’t really buy Xenon’s explanation regarding why he thought she needed someone to follow her around, either. Everything seemed just a little too suspicious in general and it made her incredibly uneasy. Her multi-colored eyes scanned the immediate area, finding a familiar, slouched figure leaning back against the wall with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. His face hung low with his eyes half-open and an overall level of sadness followed him like a heavy aura that never left him. Lilith contained the sudden sigh that almost left her lips, finding her cousin, William, one of the more dreary people to be around. It was likely that he, in his lower level position, was to be her guide. Hesitantly, Lilith took several steps toward the sulking man, stopping with enough distance to avoid any awkward embraces he might otherwise attempt to give her. She cleared her throat softly and looked at him expectantly.

“William? Are you waiting for me, or…?” she hoped he’d say no.

“O-oh...Uhh...Ye-yes...Uh...H-hello, Li-Lilith…” William would barely manage to stammer out his greeting, his gaze cast downward at an awkward angle in order to keep from accidentally making eye contact. “I-I was...Uh...Wa-waiting.” His brown hair had fallen in his face a bit from keeping his eyes on the floor though he was wearing the traditional dress of the military arm of this Celestial Keep, light gray like all the others.

Lilith felt sorry for her cousin, but found herself reminded of Silas when she first met him. Perhaps that was the reason she was so instantly short with the inventor. She considered it for only a moment longer, then gave William her attention again. She needed to go write a statement, then get going on her way. She knew time passed so differently between the two realms that Silas might fear she was never going to return. Hopefully her words held strong in Silas’ mind when she told him she would come back to him.

“Yes, well… I’ll just be going to my room. I don’t really need you to follow me.” she told him.

“I-I’m a-afraid I can’t...I can’t...I-I have orders…” William said with an almost pathetic sounding whine to his voice, disdainful about even having to do something that someone else wanted him not to do. Especially Lilith, as she particularly intimidated him for some reason.

This time, Lilith did sigh. “William, you’ll never climb ranks with that stuttering. Get ahold of yourself, please. We’re relations. Don’t embarrass me.” her words were very stern, as if she were scolding a child that had done something wrong.

“S-sorry...So-sorry...Sorry…” WIlliam stuttered out a few times before managing to get out one without stuttering at all before shuffling his feet together a little and standing a little straighter. Not that it did much, his back still hunched a little from his naturally timid posturing, making his 6’3” of height seem more like 5’11”. Turning towards Lilith’s room, he started to shuffle forward awkwardly. “F-follow me, please,” he said to her without even the slightest intonation of authority to his voice.

Lilith almost objected to William again, but silenced herself knowing that Cheekbones was only a room away. Almost defeatedly, Lilith followed after her cousin. It was all so absurd, she could get to her own room without trouble. What was Xenon really after? The walk wasn’t long, but it felt as though it took hours with the awkward silence that filled the space between them walking. Lilith just wanted to be free of him. There was already so much talk about them being paired off someday, and that alone made her cringe. She wanted nothing to do with such a weakling of a person, especially not with someone of relation to herself.

Finally stopping just short of her door, Lilith stepped around William with a deliberate bit of distance between their bodies. “I’ll just be going in here now,” she told him as she pressed her hand against a touchpad on the wall. It read her hand and the door slid open, disappearing into the wall. “I’ll… meet you outside in the morning, William.” she said flatly, being sure he understood he wasn’t invited inside.

As they neared Lilith’s room, William shuffled alongside her door opposite of the pad and looked towards Lilith’s feet before glancing at her face momentarily. “A-alright...V-very well...S-sounds good. I-I’ll just...I’ll j-just be out here,” he said, giving a half-hearted nod and fidgeting with his fingers a bit. He’d been told not to let her out of his sight, though he knew there wasn’t anywhere she could go once she’d gone into her room. He’d be able to stay up and stand watch over the doorway all night, ensuring she wouldn’t be able to sneak out. Or at least, that’s what he believed.

With much relief, Lilith entered her room, a small cubical of a space with a panel on the wall. At that current moment, the square space was void of anything except the cool, slate flooring that felt the same as walking on ice, without the added slickness. Lilith input a command and watched as the walls opened and slid forward, offering an office setting for her to work in. Every piece of furniture left the room feeling colder and more prison-like than she’d realized. After adventuring with Silas and seeing all of the extravagant rooms and places they had in such a short time, it was far easier to see how little there was and the lack of warmth she so craved as she thought about Silas’ embrace.

Stepping out of her shoes, Lilith padded across the cold floors over to the desk, pressing a small button on the metallic surface that caused a large portion of tile on the ground to open and provide a thinly framed, metal chair for her to sit on. She stared at her work setting for a while hoping that it would change into something more comfortable, but soon gave up and sat on the chair. As if the pressure from her body activated it, a holographic monitor and set of keys appeared on the desk, shining in a blue glimmer against the silver surface. How much did Cheekbones want her to include? He already heard her story. It was irritating that she had to recount everything all over again when it was probably going to be filed away and never looked at again. With a hefty sigh, she began to type.

Hours had gone by, and Lilith’s detailed report was completed and transferred onto a portable tablet in which she could hand over to Xenon. She held onto the device and walked back to the panel, switching the office setting into a resting place. The walls shifted and pulled the chair and desk away while a long, clear tube dropped down from the ceiling all the way to the floor. The tube opened and inside lay a firm padding that was indented to the exact shape of her body.

After propping the tablet against the wall, Lilith entered the sleeping tube, and it lowered and slanted as she got herself in place. A gas released around her as the tubing closed and as it did the lights in the room dimmed until there was nothing but the dim light coming from a timer that was set for 8 hours that had slowly begun to count down.

● ● ●​

As Lilith was beginning to fall asleep within her tube, Silas had yet to sleep for the week he had been working back in Realm 4. His eyes were bleary and red with dark circles hanging from his lids. His skin was dirty and marked with the various filings and char from the metalworking and casting he’d done for the past week. Perhaps it was the drive and purpose which creating this device for Lilith gave him or, more likely, the absence of Lilith’s soothing presence and his worry for her safety which kept him from resting as his body so desperately craved. He was nearing completion of the anklet and was looking forward to when he could see it finished. He had constructed the rings and the spheres which he needed to figure out the placement of in order to attune them to each other in such a way as they would float within the air and spin around a mutual center of gravity.

● ● ● ​

As the last few seconds counted down, the glass covering of the tubing lifted several inches before spinning off to the side, opening with a release of fumes that was used to send Lilith into an instant sleep. As the chemicals wore off, Lilith slowly opened her eyes then, oddly enough, shivered at the chill in the room. ‘Cold… chill?’ she thought, utterly confused. Since when was a Celestial ever cold? She shrugged it off, thinking she was mistaken as she stepped out of her bed and onto the floor with her bare feet. Since she was home, she decided to change into the more local and fitting attire. After a few presses of some buttons, a wardrobe was revealed and Lilith stripped down. Lilith traded out her fun, colorful dress for a plain one with white flowing fabrics, much like the one she wore when she first met Silas.

A mirror lay against the side of the wardrobe and Lilith tended to her hair, being sure to readjust the barrette as close to how Silas had done it the day before, or week prior in his case. After looking herself over and gazing at the lovely purple that now resided within her irises a bit longer than everything else, she grabbed up the tablet from the floor and exited the room with soft steps. She was sure her cousin would be there waiting for her. As she left, the room scanned zero lifeforms present and everything went back into its rightful place, leaving it an empty cube once more.

 

[Vekraihr]

Toiling away in his lab in Realm 4, Silas had never felt such pressure or excitement from designing something before. He had finished his computations after about a day and a half in his time and had begun the process of figuring out a way of casting the Glacien Gems into a shape which would fit the application. He briefly considered arranging them into the bands which would go around the ankle, but he thought that might compromise the integrity of the magical attunement. His brow was furrowed intensely as he attempted to melt them within his forge, only to pull them out just as cold as they had been when he put them in. sazX2‘Very curious,’ he thought as he continued to think. Silas thought a change of clothes would be in order as he was about to begin the hard work and the inventor went up to his room to change out of his fancy attire and into a pair of denim pants, leather boots, a sleeveless shirt, and a leather half-apron. His newly formed muscles rippled in his shirt and pants, both of which he noticed were almost an inch too short on him now.


Suddenly, a flash of insight hit him and he remembered a method of creating a cold fire using alchemical means and he rushed around his lab to gather reagents. Once he’d grabbed the materials he needed, he began to place them into a reaction vessel of heat-tempered glass and applied an electric current through the solution using a pair of electrodes. A bright, shimmering blue flame shot out of the reaction vessel and Silas gave a happy chuckle before passing his fingers through the flame. Sure enough, it was cold to the touch and left this tingling sensation as though his fingers were getting pierced by thousands of icy needles. Placing the gems into a special crucible, he held it over the flame with his tongs and watched happily as the gems began to melt. Putting a holder for the crucible over the reaction vessel, he set it onto the holder and began to prepare the metal casts he’d crafted and magically attuned for making perfect spheres of the gems.


After he’d finished setting up the templates, he picked up the crucible with the tongs and began to carefully fill each mold with a precise amount of the fluid Glacien Gems. The metal alloy he’d used for the casts pulled away the magical essence which had made the Gems enter a fluid state, leaving behind Lilith’s raw essence within as the spheres hardened. As he awaited this slow process of hardening, he began to combine precious metals in a larger crucible along with flux and other chemicals to allow them to better bind together. Silver in large quantities, gold, platinum, iridium, and other trace elements would be what attuned to her energy the best, Silas had calculated. He carefully weighed each piece of metal, cutting away pieces when needed and placing them in the crucible once he was wholly satisfied that the ratio would be perfect. Placing the crucible into his kiln, he left the metals to melt over the next few minutes as he began to prepare the casts for the metal rings. His brow was sweating he was working so feverishly and there were soot and other debris covering his hands, arms and face, as well as his torso. His bleary eyes were sparkling with intensity, the stars within alight from his passion despite the call for him to rest. He didn’t know the time, nor did it matter to him, as he wouldn’t relax until he’d finished his creation for Lilith.


Once satisfied that the metal was fully melted, Silas pulled the crucible from the furnace and gave the container a small jostle around to ensure it had homogenized and he began to pour the viscous fluid into the holes in the forms, carefully so as to fill every space with the precious mixture. Once set in the cast, Silas placed the crucible down on top of the furnace and began to polish the surface of the Glacien Gem spheres, noticing they had taken on a deep ombre blue hue. What’s more, the potency of Lilith’s essence within the now polished spheres seemed to be even greater than before. Had he somehow imparted more energy into them during the process? He wasn’t sure the answer to the question, but he examined them closely through his different lenses to ensure that his calculations for the end result would remain accurate. Satisfied with the spheres, he began to place them into a wooden box upon the table for safekeeping before moving over to the desk upon which he began his descent down the rabbit hole that was creation.


Seeing the sculpture she had made for him, Silas smiled happily and lifted it up, feeling the familiar cooling sensation she gave him running through him. It rejuvenated him, almost, as he took in a deep breath and sighed out, “Lilith.” With renewed fervor and the sculpture in hand, Silas walked over towards the table with the casts and placed the sculpture down upon it. Opening up the template, he used tongs to pull out the one metal band and he cut away the excess using a saw and then a special grinding tool to remove any sharp edges. He then placed the hoop into the furnace, heating it up until it began glowing. Taking it over to his anvil, he picked up his hammer and he placed the ring onto the rounded portion of the anvil and began to pound it to shape. Singing out with every strike, the anvil reverberated with the power of each one. Sweat was dripping from Silas’ face, his eyes were focused and intense as he looked upon the glowing ring as he formed it to exactly what he needed. Once satisfied with the first band, he placed it into another kiln to very slowly bring the heat out of it so it wouldn’t warp. Bringing the second ring from the mold and cutting it to shape as the other, he began to work the metal just as he had with the first, a smile on his face each time the anvil rang out. Placing the halo into the kiln when he finished, he began to carefully adjust the temperature down every few hours while beginning to etch the spheres with tiny little symbols which would attune with each other and the bands to allow them to interact with totality.


Silas took several days accomplishing this, the symbols being intricate and requiring steady and consistent handwork and the gems were quite a difficult medium for him to etch upon, requiring his hardest tools and the deftest of fingers. His determination would not be surmounted, though, as he finished the last gem sphere with a large grin on his face and bags starting to settle in under his eyes. Placing them back into the wooden box, Silas walked over to the kiln and pulled out the fully cooled and brilliantly silver rings. Taking them to his engraving table, he mounted the first ring onto a special holder which had markings on it for each degree around the circle he was working on and he began to etch the metal by hand as he had done with the spheres. This long process took him another couple of days to finish, leading into his 7th day now of restlessness and all but ignoring his other needs. He’d barely eaten enough to sustain him, yet somehow he continued to work with the energy seemingly coming from deep within him.


Silas began to polish the metal rings and he looked at the lustrous shine they had and the little starburst pieces which he’d put at regular intervals in the cast and touched up with his etching and grinding tools. Looking at the metal through the magically attuned optics of his headgear, Silas could see the way the magical energies were interacting from the etching and the alloy as well as from the box resting upon the tabletop. The tendrils of essence were even trying to grab hold of one another in the air, affirming his calculations for attunement to be absolutely perfect. He’d never done anything so precisely and quickly and he had truly outdone himself in the craftsmanship department. Silas now began to create a form which would hold all the pieces in place so that once the final piece was locked in, they would all become harmonious to each other and become inseparable.

● ● ●​

As Lilith exited her room, William was indeed there with his back slumped up against the wall and his gaze down at the ground. Upon hearing the door opening and the footfalls, he grew a little more upright and he looked over at Lilith briefly. “A-ahh...H-hello L-Lil-Lilith,” he’d say as he took note of the tablet in her hand, “I-I as-assume you finished the report?” His gaze never found her for longer than a few seconds, too timid to continuously look at her nor make eye contact with her. He’d stayed up the entire night, just leaned up against the wall and probably not as attentive as he should have been.


Lilith gave William a side glance before sighing and offering him a nod of her head. “Yes, the report is complete. I’m going to get my rations of the day now,” she said flatly as she started walking down a hallway that looked similar to the one outside the command station. If one didn’t have a fair sense of direction it would be easy to get lost in their home station.


William merely nodded his head a little and shuffled along just a bit behind Lilith as he looked around at the walls of the hallway. “S-sounds good...C-could u-use some myself,” he said quietly as he tried to make himself stand a little more upright as she had chastised him the day previous for his faint-hearted behavior.


“You should have slept.” she huffed at him. She was always so quick to grow annoyed with William. His demeanor made it so easy; she found everything about him quite repulsive. It was hard to understand how they could possibly be related. Lilith took a sharp right turn then noticed William struggle to correct himself in turning. His sense of direction could be so awful. “Don’t you know your way around here, yet?” she snapped at him, her patience leaving her so quickly it was hard to believe she ever had any in the first place.


“I-I know my way around...I was just...C-confused…” William stammered out, seeming to ignore her first comment as he walked along, his footwork clumsy at best and unbefitting of a soldier in the slightest. He had, in fact, not known where they were headed to, as his sense of direction was about as competent as his communication skills. He found these corridors very confusing, with their similar architecture and labyrinthian proportions. However, he did seem to get to where he needed to go, sooner or later. Sometimes, dumb luck really was his only ally. Even the sound of his footsteps was disorganized and discordant as his clumsy shuffling echoed through the halls.

 

[Jumbled]

The hallways opened up into a large room with cascading blue and gray banners that flowed evenly down the walls in between terminals that were used to measure the contents in the Celestials bloodstreams. The banners depicted images of the various foods that the dispensers offered, all of them placed so precisely in the same fashion the Celestials often carried themselves: uniform and rigid. The color schemes in the halls, combined with the cool steels and blues of the decor in the eatery, created a crisp and cold, perhaps even unwelcoming, environment.

Lilith approached one of the many machines and inserted her right hand into the device, palm up, waiting five seconds for it to scan before pricking her index finger, pulling the silvery blood up from within her. The machine analyzed the contents of her blood, then spun around to reveal the back-side panel that lifted up with the small release of an airlock. Inside the inner tube was her ration, specifically modified for her needs of the day, which she reached forward and grabbed with a sunken expression. She already missed Silas’ cooking. Her two-toned eyes hoped she wouldn’t find her cousin there with her, but alas, he was only a terminal away from her getting his own rations. The machine he was at seemed far more concerned with his heath than hers, as it was spitting out several different packaged that began to topple out onto the ground by his feet. Lilith stared, feeling embarrassed for him, then wondered when the last time he’d truly eaten was. There was clearly something wrong with William. As her delicate fingers tore open her own meal bar, she bit down on the bland food, grimacing as she bit into the healthy, but flavorless, food. The inventor weighed heavily on her mind and she wondered if she could somehow sneak a moment away to look in on him; she missed him more than she wanted to admit.

William was standing there with a look of shock on his face as packet after packet of food dropped through the waiting opening, into his hands at first and then to the ground. If he were being honest, he couldn’t really remember the last time he’d eaten. He had such a hard time finding his way around the city, and would frequently get lost within the halls and wind up not eating for days at a time. It was at least days, by his count, and the machine finally sputtered out the last packet of food. This was met with a sigh of relief from William, who began to carefully but clumsily collect the satchels of foodstuffs, occasionally dropping one and having to pick it up. Attempting to stuff some into his pockets, he tore one open and smeared the contents of the packet on his jacket and pants. “Oh no...Oh no…” William groaned defeatedly before starting to wipe the food from his clothing. Oddly, he chose to clean his hand by eating the food off of it, looking around slowly as if to see if anyone was staring.

Lilith watched with a blank stare as she idly chewed on her meal, finishing it after only a few bites. She was obviously better at taking care of herself than her cousin, or rather, Silas knew how to care for her. As he licked at his palms she blinked several times, having absolutely nothing positive to say to him at all. She turned around, as if to leave him to his horrific scene, only to bump into someone that was clearly standing too closely to her to begin with.

“Apologies,” Lilith said, her tone clearly annoyed as she spoke, and obviously not the least bit sorry. Perhaps being around William was causing her attitude to spike so drastically, or maybe it was the absence of a certain inventor, or better yet, the fact that Cheekbones knew all about Silas that had her in such a huff. Regardless of the reason, as Lilith backed away, she found herself looking up at a slender woman with a straight frame and long platinum blonde hair that framed her angular face. Her slit eyes, far more piercing blue than Lily’s, stared intently down at her with an arched brow. Her expression shifted, quickly, though, as she tilted her head, lowering it to stand eye-level with Lilith.

“Well, well. If it isn’t L-8-3-8.” the female spoke with almost a chiding tone. Lilith’s stare narrowed in return as she took a step further back, only to bump into her fucking cousin. “It’s Lilith, Nickel.” she corrected the woman directly. Nickel straightened and gave a flirtatious wink to William. “And you know I go by Nick. Don’t I, Billy?” she asked, shifting her attention to the man with a coy tone as she glided past Lilith, running her hands through her hair, stringing a long strand along with her as she walked over to the flustered male. Lilith flared her nostrils and brushed her hair back into place with her hand.

Nick flicked some crumbs away from William’s jacket, leaning lazily on him, then rubbed at the side of his mouth with her thumb. “So, what are you two up to?” she asked, looking back at Lilith to see how much of a rise she could get out of the shorter girl.

William stood there, almost frozen as Nick behaved in such a provocative manner and his face displayed a mixture of confusion, shock, and mild terror. As she began to touch him, he just let out a pathetic, high-pitched “Hhhhhhhhhhhhhh”. He almost fell over when she leaned up against him, his feet shuffling about clumsily as he started to hyperventilate. Somehow, he managed to just grab his footing. Rather than continue to pay any attention to Nickel, the panicked male instead opened another packet of food and began to eat the nutritive paste therein, sucking it out of the opening a little bit.

Lilith shifted the tablet against her side protectively as she began to walk away from the two, finding a trash receptacle to toss the wrapper into. The bin buzzed softly as it instantly deconstructed the wrapper into its constituent elements that then traveled through a specific pipeline leading to laboratories that would later analyze and reprocess them for other uses. If she could navigate back to Cheekbones quickly enough, perhaps she could just turn in her report and get back to Silas. She wasn’t sure how much time had already gone by, but she worried about his state of mind and whether or not he doubted her return.

As she took several calculated steps away from her cousin and the dreaded Nickel, she could hear the sudden throat clearing from behind her, and the nearly silent steps of Nick as she caught up to her in no time at all. Having a shorter stride was painful at times. “Is there something you needed, Nick?” she asked her without making real eye contact.It was clear that she was in a hurry and Nickel seemed very aware of it as she stepped out in front of her, stopping her in her tracks. Nick’s hands grasped each of Lilith’s shoulders and she leaned forward to get eye level with her once more. Lilith grew very suspicious of how close the woman was getting to her face. This Celestial, a direct descendant of Cheekbones himself, as well as a high ranking member of the community-- being born with a given name-- never bothered with the likes of her before. She was too proud and full of herself. So why was she bothering her now?

Again, the blonde cut her eyes in an intent stare, and Lilith shifted her gaze off to the side, feeling more than a little uncomfortable. She would have pulled away, but the woman’s nails were practically digging into her flesh. “Nick. What do you want?” she asked, though her voice was more demanding of an answer. The woman smirked, then lifted away from her once again, chuckling a little as she turned away with a hand waving in the air at the question, as if to swat it away. “You won’t find X37 today. He was called away to a sister colony. You can give that report to me if you’d like…” she began, her smirk only curling further into a sinister twist. Lilith didn’t move her hand from her side, and as Nickel looked back at her with long bangs covering one of her eyes, she felt chills of dread rush down her spine. That woman was unsettling. “The report is for Chee-- X37’s eyes only. Sorry. It’s above your security level, Nickel.”

William had finally collected himself, at least for the most part, and was somehow right behind her again. Lilith jumped as he’d snuck up like that, his footfalls extremely quiet for how awkward and clumsy he was. “William!” she exclaimed in frustration. She huffed as she walked off, gripping the tablet close to her chest. “I don’t need an escort. Go eat the rest of your rations, William!” she commanded angrily.

She stormed off, her tiny legs fueled with rage as she zipped through the corridors at a much faster pace than before. She had rounded several corners in no time at all, and it was unlikely her cousin would be able to find her, especially not with his awful sense of direction. She hoped Xenon wouldn’t be gone for long, but if he had to leave their station, she wondered if it had to do with that druid she’d told him about. Having to stay in her own realm another night left a hollowness in her gut and she needed to do what she could to fill that void. Lilith decided she’d go find a private setting to go check in on Silas. She needed to see him; needed to know he was okay.

Lilith slid into a doorway just before it shut behind a person that had authorization to go inside, then turned behind a long wall of monitors that hid her from sight. She trailed down to the back of the room until she reached a shelving unit with neatly stacked communication devices, grabbing onto a small, disk-shaped telecommunicator that she held close to the tablet. She kept close to the same wall as she made a quick exit, the Celestials in the room not even noticing the door opening and closing for her because of how into their work they were.

Glancing to either side, Lilith made sure the halls were clear of any unwanted followers, then darted off toward the privacy of her own room.

Nickel was following after the frantic Billy with a skip in her step. His stride was so discombobulated that she barely had to take one step for every four that he mustered. Like an earth squirrel looking for his nut, he scampered left and right, unable to find Lilith.

 

[Vekraihr]

Silas sat on a stool next to the table where he had begun to fashion the form which he was going to mount the rings and orbs made of Glacien Gems to. If all went according to his plan, the material he used to make the mold would melt once the last piece was placed and the magical attunement was completed. His brow furrowed with concentration, droplets of sweat formed upon his forehead as he used several sizes of razor blades in order to shave the pieces down to size ever so carefully. Each mount had to hold the piece which it had been designed to exactly in place, and even the slightest amount off would mean the whole thing would have to be disassembled and attempted again.


Taking several more hours, Silas’ skilled hands whittled away material from the form little by little. He’d look through the magnifiers of his goggles, then make minuscule adjustments with a very fine blade before moving on to the next. Every time he went around, he seemed to find another piece which needed just a little bit of fine-tuning. Honestly, he wasn’t sure it would work, though he hoped it would as he had spent a considerable part of his day on it already, let alone all the time he had put into the project itself. His lack of sleep had begun to get to him and he started to suffer from brief microsleeps which made his eyes shut for a few seconds before startling back to consciousness when he’d begun to slump over.


“I can’t rest yet...Not until this is finished,” Silas told himself with a conviction of a man obsessed, the whites of his bleary eyes almost hidden behind a sea of reds and pinks. Dark, heavy bags weighed under his eyes, tugging upon the lids which struggled to keep themselves apart as the tinkerer pushed himself harder and further than he’d done since he was a much younger man. Still, the steely will which resided in his irises never wavered, even if the stars within seemed a little less energetic than they’d been previously. It seemed that as he weakened, the little points of light in his eyes did the same as if they were intrinsically connected in a more meaningful manner.


Finally, with one final shaping with his tools, Silas felt the piece was finally ready for assembly and he heaved a deep sigh as he stood. Walking around to the other side of the table, he retrieved the box which held the orbs he’d crafted and picked up the metal rings from another part of the table. Setting them next to the mold, he gathered up the little starburst pieces he’d created and set them at his workstation. Pensively, Silas grabbed hold of the statue Lily had made for him and lifted it up with his fingers. Holding it between them, Silas let the cooling familiarity wash over him and he let loose a deep sigh.

“I miss you, Lily...But I know you’re out there. I can feel it. And I can feel you yearning to return to me. Know that I feel it too,” he said to nothing in particular, or maybe perhaps to the statue itself. ‘As if the sculpture were intrinsically connected to her in a way that allowed communication through it,’ he thought with a chuckle. Though, he gently cradled the object in his fingers and lightly caressed the surface of the cool figure before slowly setting it down. He seemed almost refreshed by it, some of his vigor renewed as he smiled happily.

Grabbing one of the metal bands, Silas began to fasten it with careful precision to the shape which he had made specifically for it. Picking up the second, slightly larger one, his eyes focused upon the etching and he switched his goggles over to see the way the essence of her energy played about between the two hoops. Gently settling it into the mold, Silas adjusted it around slowly until the magical energies of the two rings began fully intermingling and freely flowed between the two pieces. Heaving a deep sigh, Silas couldn’t help but feel like Lilith was out there, wishing to return to him as much as he wished to have her back.

One by one, Silas placed the orbs and the starbursts in their holders, making minuscule tweaks here and there to ensure the energy flowing was stable and resonant. Each one that he placed, a beautiful, crystalline humming began to fill the air. Each orb vibrated with a different frequency but harmonized with each other in such a beautiful way. Silas could feel the magical energy flowing about energetically as he began to place the last few orbs and the sound of the gems grew louder and more intense.

“I’ve got to be quick so this stabilizes,” Silas said to himself as he picked up the last orb and carefully began to move it into position. The flow of energy seemed to part and accept the final orb as if waiting for its arrival. Suddenly, the melodious chorus of tones crescendoed before transforming into a pleasing, gentle hum. The form melted away like wax as the hoops, orbs, and starbursts began to slowly spin around a point directly within the center of all of them while hovering in midair. Silas looked on with his special lenses, seeing the focus of the orbitals as a point of radiant, energetic flow which stretched outward beyond even the walls of the laboratory.

“I-I’ve done it! I’ve DONE it!” Silas shouted out, laughing like an absolute madman as his lips spread into a huge smile and he pumped his hands up into the air. “This is my greatest work, save for the orb!” he yelled out excitedly and he rushed over towards the anklet and began to scoop it up in his hands. As if to preserve the momentum of the revolution, the device kept a few millimeters of distance between itself and his hand. Tendrils of energy gently tickled at his flesh, almost as though it was affectionately familiar with him. He also noted how some of the harmonics which resonated within the device now matched his own, which he found odd as two people never shared the same harmonics. Especially not as many frequencies as he could hear shared between the two of them. As he held the apparatus, each of the gems lightly shone with blue and purple light outlining their edges.

● ● ●​

Lilith had only just stepped into the privacy of her room when she suddenly froze in place, causing the door to remain open as she felt a surge of power ripple out from somewhere, calling to her. It hit her like a wave. Ice began to form around the room, spreading up the walls and up to the ceiling. Her hair flitted around her as if she was standing out in an open field buffeted by strong winds. She looked around the room, searching for something, though she wasn’t sure what it was. It was as if somehow her abilities were amplified, and yet, they weren’t within her currently. Her eyes glowed on their own accord and she stood there like a statue staring into her vacant room for answers that could only be found from the disc in her hand.


Finally finding the clarity to move out of the doorway, Lilith stepped into the center of her lodging, though not before placing the lock code on to keep pestering people out. Lilith propped the tablet back against the wall where she had it the previous day, irritated that she was forced to wait longer for Cheekbones to accept her report. With a defeated sigh, she returned her attention to the center of the room, tossing the disk out of her hand, watching as it spun in fast circles, levitating above the ground. The rapidly spinning device began to warp and expand outward until there was a large glossy bubble filled with nothingness that blocked the other side of the room from visibility.


With a hand pressed firmly against the outer barrier of the bubble, she allowed her thoughts to take form inside of the large orb and watched patiently as Silas’ lab became crystal clear before her.


Silas noted a familiar energy shift just as a gossamer tendril of silvery light reached down from a point which extended beyond normal reasoning. He stepped away from the strand, knowing full well what was going to appear where it touched down. Within his grasp, the apparatus hummed, glowing softly with the radiant energy which had been bestowed upon it by his and Lilith’s combined ethos. Waiting patiently, his eyes focused upon where he assumed the porthole would open and awaited something more to happen.


As if she were standing in the same room where he was, Lilith was suddenly looking upon the inventor. Silas was alert as if he understood she was about to transmit to him, though he seemed a little rough around the edges.


Silas stood before Lilith, his nice clothes having been exchanged for more utilitarian garments, ones which hugged his newly muscular form and were dirtied with soot and metal shavings. The shirt he wore had no sleeves and his muscular arms were glistening slightly with the effort he had put forth earlier. Upon his brow sat the multi-lensed goggles, which were currently set up to the lenses which allowed him to see the ethereal energy which flowed about the room. However, as Liliths’ form began to materialize in the portal, he moved the goggles up to his forehead and held the anklet he’d crafted in one hand. Immediately, his sclera were noticeably reddened from a lack of sleep and the bags on his eyes were more apparent without the thick goggles obscuring part of them.

“Lily?” Silas asked, his voice a little bit hoarse from weariness and the lack of caring for himself. He’d not eaten, barely drank, and not slept for the whole week as he prepared the device which he’d now fully completed. “Look, Lily...I made this!” he said happily, the joy in his voice palpable as he held the device towards the portal. “I made it specifically for you...I worked for...A long time,” he said warmly with a big smile, the pleasant tone indicating positivity in his voice swelling immensely.


“Silas,” Lilith said, though her connection seemed to flicker in and out as if something was suddenly interfering with her transmission to him.

● ● ●​

William sighed a little as he wandered relatively aimlessly through the halls, attempting to find Lilith’s room. His abysmal sense of direction was about as good as his sense of time, so he wasn’t really sure how long it had been since they’d gotten separated. Judging by how many times he saw the guard changed, he presumed it had been at least 2 days, perhaps even 3. Rounding a corner with a pouch of food in his hand, he left a crumb trail behind him as he ate from the bar which resembled compressed cereal.


He’d been knocking on doors at random, mostly receiving no response. When there was an answer, however, he’d receive icy glares and rushed explanations of where he was and how to get where he needed to go. It never helped. At one point, he’d camped out in front of a door he was certain was Lilith’s and stayed there until the door opened. The frustrated Celestial male which looked down upon him quickly allayed any such notions.


With his hopes diminishing with every passing hour, William sighed as he slumped up against the outer corner of a 90-degree bend in the corridor. Placing his face into his hands, he rubbed his temples a little and then stretched his eyelids a bit with his fingertips while groaning. “Why is it so hard to find anything around here?” William whined pitiably, his voice a little higher pitched than it normally was.


“Well, well, well.” said a familiar, sadistic voice.

 

[Jumbled]

Once the connection opened to Silas, a warm smile returned to Lilith’s face for the first time since she’d arrived back home. She giggled as he rambled about his invention, and she could feel a pull from the item hovering above his palm as he stood there, cheerfully greeting her with his enthusiasm. She could see, underneath the layers of sweat, soot and other things she simply didn’t know how to place, that he was drained of his energy. His eyes were duller than normal, and the twinkling of stars seemed so faint that it troubled her. She tilted her head thoughtfully before shaking it with a soft sigh and half a laugh.

“Silas,” she began. She stopped speaking, however, as she saw the quality of her transmission flicker in and out. It wasn’t normal for their technology to have such issues, so she waited with a perplexed expression for it to correct itself.

As Silas’ form cleared and she could see him perfectly again, she sighed a breath of relief. She’d been longing to see him, and from what she could tell, he wasn’t tending to himself properly. He needed a shave and a meal, not to mention a proper night’s worth of sleep. “You don’t look well. You should be resting, not tinkering away like that. I can’t come back yet, there’s been an unforeseen issue that’s arisen. The commander that demands my report has gone away. Silas,” her expression softened as she gave him another long look, soaking in his form with a hunger. She bit her lip as she found his eyes once again.

“Please take care of yourself. Time moves differently here. If I can’t get to you in time and you’ve wasted away I’ll be so cross with you.” she scolded.

Silas looked upon the window to Lilith’s realm, waxing romantic with his eyes swimming with emotion. His face was stubbly with a bit of a beard starting to grow in, giving him a more grizzled look. As he looked upon her, seemingly unchanged in the week that had gone by for him, a smile spread over his face. All she had truly changed were her clothes. She had said that time was a little more fluid between the realms and he was certain her lack of a notable change indicated this. His eyes focused upon her with ravenous intent, wanting to devour her in so many different ways.

“I’ll do as you ask, Lilith...Hurry back to me, please. I am a foundation with nothing to support without you,” he said with pining desire echoing through his tone.

Her image began to flicker and become static with unpleasant buzzing noises that filled the rooms. She winced and spoke, trying to reach him, though she wasn’t sure he could hear her at all anymore. “I don’t know what’s going on. There must be something wrong with this communicator. I’ll try to get back to you when I can.”

The bubble that once held a crystal clear image of Silas and his lab was only filled with gray nothingness inside. Lilith placed her hand against the barrier of it once more and it shrunk down into the small silver disk that slowly rotated in the air where she had originally thrown it. Looking slightly discouraged, Lilith stepped forward and grabbed the device out of the air, giving it a proper look over as she flipped it one way and then the other. It didn’t look defective.

● ● ●​

Nickel had wandered off after Lilith as she snuck away. She abandoned William with his handfuls of rations, far more interested in the brunette that had hastily run off toward the business section of the station. There weren’t any rooms in that direction, and from what Nick could tell, Lilith didn’t have the awful sense of direction that Billy did. It really was a shame that those two had been paired up together, well, a shame for L838. She was a bright girl with a lot of potential, meanwhile, that boy should have been kicked from the guard years ago. There was not one commendable thing Nickel could think so say about him. He was worthless.

Nickel hid behind corners as Lilith emerged from a room with a com-disk in hand. Civilian Celestials really had no reason to talk to anyone outside of the realm, but, she knew what the girl was up to. Nick had been watching Lilith and her adventuring for a while now. She binged the girl’s life while she’d been galavanting about with the strange man called Silas. There was far more to both of their stories, and as luck would have it, Nickel knew a little bit about both of them, though she wasn’t planning on being very forthcoming with any of it.

Nickel followed Lilith back to the girl’s room, watching with curious eyes as she entered, wondering what she was going to do once inside. Nickel, admittedly, was highly addicted to watching the cams from other realms, finding the more intimate moments quite pleasurable. She knew what Lilith had experienced with the inventor, as she’d watched them rather intently with bated breath. She was probably even more angry with the weird floating orb that had interrupted the bathroom romp than they had been. Nick really liked to watch things, especially when no one knew she was. Her panties grew a little warm and damp just remembering it. She bit her lip, staring at the back of Lilith’s head. The girl had frozen in place and for a moment, Nickel was worried she’d been found out. But, Lilith never turned her head. Instead, her hair started acting all crazy, blowing out behind her like it was being tousled in a gentle but steady breeze. Her powers also flared up. Nickel, not wanting to take any chances, tucked herself away, to avoid the risk of being seen.

The sound of the door shutting behind the girl didn’t go unnoticed and, sneakily, Nick emerged once more, padding softly up to the girl’s room. She pressed her ear up against the door. She could feel the lingering cold from the surge of ice that she’d covered the room in and it made things difficult for her to hear. Frustrated, Nickel disappeared from the living quarters, hastily maneuvering the halls until she entered her private command room.

Tapping into someone else’s com-disk conversations was frowned upon, though Nickel wasn’t much for rules. She always held herself above such silly things, being the third generational “Nickel” of their race. That was the thing about Celestials, while some were nameless at birth, others were born with a name, like her and her father, Xenon. When a named Celestial passed away, another could eventually be born with that same name. Such individuals were always more powerful and held in high regard among their people. Nick was not worried about a slap on the wrist, and aside from her Xenon, there was no other higher ranking than herself on their home station.

As she tapped into Lilith’s call, she created some interference. Her brow furrowed as she rolled her finger around a round dial, clearing the image and sound up, hoping she didn’t miss the opportunity to listen in on them. After several minutes, she found herself bored, however. These two weren’t remotely steamy like she’d hoped they’d be. Rolling her eyes with a huff of aggravation, Nickel cut off the device’s ability to call out at all, leaving a very confused Celestial with nothing more than a dead connection.

Rolling around in a chair from desk drawer to drawer, Nickel grabbed several, paper-thin tablets and flipped through her notes she’d been gathering on Lilith and Silas since the beacon had been sent out in Realm 52. Since then, she had uncovered quite a bit of information, a lot of which she didn’t technically have proper access to see, though she knew her way around all of that.

Nickel closed her eyes, recalling the thin shade of purple that hid near the pupils of Lilith’s eyes. Whatever that energy was, Nick wanted it for herself. The likes of Lilith wasn’t deserving enough to hold such power within her. There had to be an easy way to transfer such a thing from one Celestial to another. She just needed help coaxing the essence out of the girl. She needed an extra pair of hands, hands belonging to someone she could easily push around. Perhaps Billy wouldn’t be so useless after all. A thin smirk fixed on Nick’s face as she schemed about her next steps. She’d only need a day or two to set up while also running interference between Lilith and her lovely inventor.

● ● ●​

Lilith felt as though she was going to lose her mind. For several days she had waited for word on Xenon’s arrival, receiving no answers regarding his return, meanwhile struggling with every com-disk she got her hands on. For a mission the commander seemed so concerned about, as far as gaining more information about Silas, he was certainly taking his time with the debriefing. She didn’t understand why there wasn’t anyone else she could hand off her report to. Lilith sat in her room, the office setting back in place, glaring at the tablet that sat on the surface in front of her. She wanted to pick it up and throw it at the wall, her bottled emotions finally reaching for the surface, but she held back. She ran her fingers through her hair, starting from the front of her scalp, pushing them back until she rested with her head in her hands. She groaned loudly with a dramatic exhale of breath.

● ● ●​

Nickel walked down a hallway not far from the shopping district. She’d been tracking William for a while. It was incredible to watch him wander around. A rat in a maze could find its cheese faster than William could figure out how to navigate through his own room, Nickel was sure. She folded her arms in front of her small chest. Her uniform was similar to that of the others, though it was part of the male dress code. Nick wasn’t one to wear a dress. She approached William quietly, her footfalls silent as she moved.

“Well, well, well.”

Nick sidestepped around William and stopped in front of him. She towered over his slouching frame, though their heights were actually the same. She lifted her head, her chin pointed up showing her sense of importance. “Billy. I require your. . . assistance.” she hissed suspiciously through a twisted smile.