Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

Today was her day off. It was a day that was so free it felt surreal. For once, there was absolutely nothing to do. Ritunen was taking care of Kiran so DeVian could enjoy this time to herself. Stasia was fucking off in god knew where. Marjorie held down whatever duties had to be delegated to Dev at Law Technologies so the free day could be enjoyed.

DeVian Law-Noba sank deeper into her bathtub, squinting her eyes to filter out some of the light that came streaming through her bathroom window. Out of all the places she owned, this was one of her favorite bathrooms. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bustling city never ceased to amaze her. Humans were so small and unremarkable - from this height, no different from ants, really. The funniest part was that from this height there was also no way to tell who was a claimant or even if there were Ancients down there. They were all unremarkable. It was nice to be humbled in such a way.

The dark-skinned Brazilian woman hummed a light tune under her breath as she sank back into the water once more with a renewed desire to relax. One press of the jacuzzi jets and it was turned into a euphoric experience. It was so calm and quiet in the bathroom that it seemed even the walls screamed when the door opened and Ritunen Desvoy sauntered in.

DeVian didn't turn, instead putting her hand over his when he put it on her shoulder as he kissed the back of her neck. He didn't pause before continuing with running his hands over her body as if refamiliarizing himself with it. She leaned into his hands and was rewarded with a kiss on the forehead. His long black hair fell into the water just barely but he hardly seemed to pay any mind. The apartment disappearing under his feet probably couldn't deter him from his mission.

"You didn't close the door," Dev noted, fully paying attention now. She had expected a kiss in passing and for him to go about his day but this was not unwelcome.

"The kid's with Bruno, we'll be fine," was his quick answer, already taking off his T-shirt. His haste made her laugh and her laugh pulled a genuine smile out of him.

"What are you in such a rush for, lover boy?"

"Have you seen the news?"

"No. I'm on vacation." Nor did she have any intention of asking why he would question her watching the news. Whatever it was, she didn't want to be bothered with it.


"Well since your vacation is ending early, I figured I'd give you something nice to think about."

"What makes you think it's ending early?"

"We'll talk about it after."

"I want to know now."

"No, because then you'll be mad and I don't have any gags on me. Definitely not. " He went to the countertop and took a ponytail holder to tie his hair up with, some of the ends lightly dripping onto the floor.

"You didn't even ask me if you could join my bath," DeVian scoffed at him, rolling light hazel eyes far into the back of her head.

"Of course I can." He stepped easily into the tub and effortlessly picked her up out of it so he could sit and reposition her on top of him. She blushed at the way she was manhandled - not sure if it was more out of embarrassment or lust. He was completely oblivious to it, taking a moment to settle in. When he was done he immediately splashed her with water and started a splashing war that left half of the bath on the floor.

The Law heiress frowned as she moved wet hair out of her face. "I don't like you."

"Give me five minutes and we'll see."




Ritunen was right: Dev was extremely mad about the news he presented her with. She had to go to Rome on her day off because Echowix decided to show her scummy face outside of the Citadel and fuck up the human realm. What kind of timing was that? The Ancient hadn't been seen, like... ever!

DeVian couldn't resist grumbling under her breath in her native Portuguese as she walked around the extended walk-in closet to collect her necessary gear for the mission.

"Why are you sharpening your halberd?" Ritunen yawned from the doorway as he leaned against the frame. He had a permanent self-satisfied smirk after their morning in the bath together but his good mood did nothing to mellow her sour one. "Come on, why don't you sit and braid my hair to calm down before you go."

"Ay, fuck you, seu pequeno vigarista," the death claimant shot back. "I'm sharpening it because if I have to work on my day off, people are going to die."
Portuguese: you little con artist

He laughed it off with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. "You're so cute when you scowl murderously like that."




The throne upon which Novevu sat was truly awe-inspiring. It was beautiful. Usually Dev liked to admire the details of it and the amazing craftsmanship, but today it didn't work. Novevu, her Ancient, could tell she was annoyed from the way she stormed in.

"So you decided to turn on your TV," the pale, dark-haired man threw out. His expression remained a bit pensive as he considered the fiery Aikekunai before him.

"You didn't summon me."

"Let's just say I don't need you biting my head off because there's work on your day off. That was an experience I am not keen on replicating."

The memory actually managed to make her laugh. She could remember it as clear as day: she had cursed at him for hours on end in every language she knew (Portuguese, Spanish, and English, in order of usage from most to least pissed off) and completely wrecked the area he had sent her to. It was meant to be a pretty straightforward mission to recover what was apparently a very important book that had been stolen from his personal library. The original thief had pawned it off to some humans who had no idea the likes of the people that would be after it. Dev had managed to track them down to an antiques shop where they were consulting an expert on the book's worth. In her anger with the fact that she had to be there at all, DeVian sliced everyone present to ribbons without asking any questions. Afterward she trashed the shop and eventually burnt it down - and still didn't feel better until she had gotten done giving Novevu a good piece of her mind.

"Well tell me what I need to do so I can get it over with." The Brazilian tech heiress rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she felt the annoyance of the day ahead settling in. She wanted to calm down and was trying to but she couldn't help it.

"I'll keep it brief. Echowix dropped a quill off in Rome and... Froze... Time."

"She froze time?"

"Yes, within the confines of the city. The people don't seem to be hurt, but I'm sure you can imagine it is a bit of a sensitive manner. The houses are at odds and I need you to find out what you can about this."

It made sense now why he would call her in to do this. This was pretty high-profile. Still she couldn't shake the anger that came with being the only one capable of doing this. It was flattering, though. "How long is this supposed to take?" she finally relented enough in her attitude to ask.

"However long it takes you to collect some information."




Did you see the news? Are you heading there?

Dev considered the text from her wife, Stasia, for a long time. She should've expected to be hearing from her since they were both Aikekunai. This wasn't how she had hoped to be meeting back up with the woman, but it was kind of a relief. They hadn't spoken in months since an argument had torn a rift between them. DeVian had apologized as sincerely as she knew how but Stasia just didn't think it was enough. The argument revolved around a one-of-a-kind nail polish... The only ones it made any sense to were the two women themselves.

DeVian didn't know how to respond to the message. Of course, Stasia should've assumed Dev would be assigned this task, seeing as they were both Aikekunai for their respective houses. Could the message just be her way of reaching out to initiate conversation? No... Stasia would let them both die without speaking another word to each other before she did that. Dev stared at the screen so long that it timed out and she was left gazing at herself once more. It was not often that the Law Tech heiress found herself at a loss for words, but here, she couldn't think of a damn thing to say. Mostly she was excited Stasia had reached out at all. Maybe she wasn't so mad anymore?

No, she was probably still mad. Stasia could hold a grudge longer than either of them had been alive. Even in the face of her wife sobbing her eyes out and begging and forgiveness, Stasia could be unmoving.

Yes, I'll be there... On my day off, Dev wrote back, barely quelling the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the very sight of Stasia texting her. It could almost completely make her attitude subside... Almost.

Making her way to Rome was not difficult. It was as easy as opening up a portal to the Void and spitting herself out of the other end, and extremely time-efficient. The downside was that using her abilities screwed her immune system over, and even though it was warm outside, she shivered every few minutes.

She looked around the spot she had stepped out of. It was not a place she recognized. All over the sidewalks and even halfway in the streets were humans snoozing peacefully. Some cars seemed to have come into an easy stop against poles or walls. No one seemed grievously injured. For a catastrophe, it looked pretty tame so far.

Ghosts of the dead whispered to DeVian Desdon anything they could thing of. Some wailed infinitely; some tried to get in her head; most just wanted any conversation she could offer. DeVian did not often use her ability to speak with the dead because it annoyed her more than anything. She wished she had gotten the power of necromancy to at least make them useful to her.

"Find my wife," she spoke into the air. There was no detectable response by anyone that wasn't a death claimant. From her point of view, though, a thousand ghosts pored in every direction at her beck and call just for the chance to have a sense of purpose. The location of Stasia Noba was revealed no later than two minutes after Dev had touched down in Rome. This brought a smile to the woman's face for the first time since receiving the assignment.

When Dev finally laid eyes on Stasia, she couldn't keep her heart from jumping to her throat. Everything in her wanted to jump on the blonde woman, shower her in kisses and resign them both to bed indefinitely. The reality was that they were working and still in a heated argument in their personal time. She hated it.

"Hey, it's me," the dark-haired death claimant announced as she approached Stasia from behind. The woman was bent over one of the sleeping humans, her bare hands on their wrists. DeVian knew what that meant. She touched Stasia gently on a part of her shoulder covered with clothes as she came up behind her, speaking lowly so she didn't interrupt her work. "Stasia. Can you hear me?"

When she was finally acknowledged, Dev couldn't help the flutter of a smile that floated onto her features. Stasia looked perfect every time she saw her. Even if there was a hair out of place... There wasn't. Waking up to her and Ritunen was a continuous dream come true... Not having seen the woman's face in months just made the adoration stronger. Dev wanted to forget the mission completely. If it weren't for the fact that they were both working, Dev would not have hesitated to fall at Stasia's knees and grovel.

The air carried the scent of other claimants... Dev couldn't tell what she was supposed to expect. Her grip on her halberd tightened accordingly.

“Ballafex!” Flori’s voice echoed through the air. “Ballafex, I know you’re here! I’ve been calling you for hours!”


The ancient waded through the thick forest for what seemed like hours attempting to get the claimant to show himself. It seemed as if her were completely ignoring him, so much time passing since Echowix had chosen to make her appearance that it was aggravating. It would make sense that Ballafex would know nothing about it as he never chose to stay too close to civilization, but it was for that exact reason the ancient chose to keep him within the realm as often as possible. Although he wouldn’t admit it an air of worry arose from his most loyal claimant choosing to ignore his summons. However, as he finally came across the male it seemed his worries were unfounded.


“There you are. I suppose I should have expected that you’d be meditating, but I remember ordering you to do your meditations within the realm. It’s difficult enough to keep track of you as is. No one has time to track you down like this… are you even listening to me?”


He watched on as his claimant did not even move. His meditation deep and unbothered, as it had always been. Ballafex often chose to meditate in this manner and the other ancients agreed that it was good to have him do so without disturbance. He was a troubling boy after all, and when he wasn’t meditating he was roaming about the earth without restraint or purpose; leading to his tendency to often find himself in the domains of other ancients disturbing the lives of humans whenever he saw fit. However he would meditate for years at a time, doing what he would call ‘becoming one with the earth’ and there was no better description than that. Flori could never get used to the sight of his very skin crumbling off, his bones clearly visible as nature grew through his very flesh if it could even be called that anymore. It was almost as if he were entirely dead when meditating and it wouldn’t be a first if someone mistook him for a corpse. However it was easy to wake him up, this being proven by Flori’s choice to stomp his foot against the ground to which the earth beneath them shuttered and all the nearby creatures scurried off.


“Are you awake and focused now?” he questioned him. “I’d hate to have to cause more damage to your surroundings, but I do have more important things to attend to.”


Following his words the skeletal figure began to shift and creak, dust and dirt falling from its frame to reveal his flesh beneath the very gaps of crumbling and cracking skin and bone. As the form stood to its feet did the very earth beneath his feet shift and stir, rising up to fill in the erosion of his bones and body until he no longer had the form of a dilapidated corpse. Instead he now stood tall, tall enough to look down on the ancient as the dust which now swirled around them settled to the ground beneath their feet. His skin looked as dry earth yet with time it would begin to look more like that of normal skin, tanned and soft. His long blonde hair folding over his shoulders and his golden jewelry still adorning his body, the only thing he was missing would be the robes he normally wore which no doubt withered away with the passing of time.


“Flori! It is good to see you! I did not believe you would personally come to awaken me. For what do I owe this honor?” he spoke as he opened his arms as if expecting a hug to which the ancient stepped back slightly.


“There’s no time for that. I need you to do something for me right now.”


“A request? For me? This is new! You do not often give me many things to do. Unless… this does not have anything to do with Florita, does it?”


“No, of course not. Not like you’d listen if it did anyway.”


“You should really try to get along. The two of you go hand in hand, you should be the closest to one another. Then again all elements must be birthed from the foundation of the earth. No one is going to like you if you keep acting that way.”


“Enough of that! Echowix has finally made a move, and I need you to go and see what has occurred.”


“Echowix has shown herself? Outside of the Citadel? I see, so things are beginning to change somehow… interesting. Very interesting indeed. Well then,” he spoke as he lowered himself to one knee. “What will you have me do, my master?”


“I’m glad to see you’re finally taking this seriously… you will be working with Marjorie, although I doubt she’ll have her hands directly in any of this, or really be on our side at all. As such it will mainly be up to you to gather as much information as possible regarding Echowix’s appearance. You’ll be going to Rome. Something must be there for her to have shown up.”


“Is that so? Blasphemous though it may be, I will not raise a hand to your Champion."


“Avoid Marjorie unless she approaches you. The last thing we need is for you doing something to upset Novevu's Aikekunai."

"Qrow? Why would that one care about our house? If I'm correct he cared very little for anything outside of his lover's health."

"Just how long has it been since you've socialized with the other houses?!"

"You know, I have no idea... regardless I'll be heading to Rome immediately."

"Before you do that, please find yourself some clothes. There will be other claimants there and, although you’re rather good looking by normal standards, I doubt anyone will want to see you wandering about naked.”


“There’s no need to worry about that!” the claimant spoke with a bellowing laugh as he reached down to the ground beneath himself. His hand plunged directly into the dirt and stone, from within drawing out a perfect set of robes as well as his rifle and bayonet. “I remembered how upset the others were the last time I showed up without any garments so I made sure to bring a spare set of clothes!”


“How thoughtful... now are you ready?” the ancient asked as he watched the claimant fix his robe over himself and place the bayonet and sheath into his waist wrap. With that he stood tall and gave a smile and nod, the ancient sighing as he opened the way for him. “Normally I’d have you make your way there on your own, but for some reason you’re all the way in South America and I doubt you have any proper means of transportation. While you could always travel underground or just do your ‘dust-walking’, I would prefer you don’t draw a scene on your approach. Now then, go.”


The claimant stepped toward the portal, stopping just before entering without even turning to face the ancient. “Flori. What are my permissions for combat?”


“Refrain from it at all costs. While normally I wouldn’t care and let you do as you please, there will be too many houses involved for you to act too freely. If combat is unavoidable focus on restraining your enemies or fleeing. The last thing I need is for you to collapse a building and draw everyone’s attention to yourself. However, if you feel your life is in danger then show no mercy. however, no one should be expecting you, so try to keep to yourself if you can.”


“Understood.”
The moment the portal was gone, and he could once again feel the distance between himself and Flori, that feeling of separation set in once again. It was sad every time he thought about it, and yet he couldn’t be bothered with it now that he found himself with the excitement of finally having something important to do. It was a feeling of giddiness he found himself enjoying every moment of as he walked down the empty roads. Or rather there was a sense of greater joy since he had been forbidden from entering cities and towns since everyone was afraid he would destroy the buildings. He couldn’t bring himself to understand why everyone was so afraid though, he had only done it once!


He took a deep breath and with it the ground beneath his feet had begun to turn to dust, but before he could do any real damage he stopped himself and let the dust fall back to the earth. Part of him wanted to just waltz around and feel everything out, but another part of him remembered that he was told not to dust-walk mere moments ago. Instead he looked around for a moment only to realize he had no idea where he was or where to go. Perhaps it would be best to ask for help, but then again that might end with him getting into a situation he didn’t want to be in.


Perhaps it would be in my best interest to just move around underground. I’ll come out if I feel I must, but for now it might just be a better option to remain out of sight as Flori suggested. Keep to myself.


Or at least that was what he thought, compared to what would actually come to be. Once again he remembered just how few chances he would get to actually roam around a city and as such he would walk the streets and take in as much as he could. Get a feel for the foundation around him, the feeling of the vibrations through the earth beneath his feet, the minerals which made up each building around him, the construction beneath the ground under his feet. With every step an echo and with every echo a new construct to memorize and add to his collection of things he could create at a moments notice. He would explore this place and while doing so keep his eyes open for any other claimants. The moment he spotted one would be the moment he found a target to follow, and that would no doubt lead him to something important.


Perhaps I should have asked Flori which other claimant would be present. It has been some time since I have spoken with other claimants. I wonder if all the Aikekunai are still the same as before…

He cast the thought aside as he began sauntering down the road in his normal manner. If any word were to be used to describe his movements it would be intimidating, his stature not lending any aid to reduce the aura of  grandeur he senselessly exuded from his person. It was mainly the reason he was always met with so much hostility. He did not believe himself to be better than anyone, but he believed his element to be greater than everyone. As such everyone was treated equally regardless of status or title, no one received special treatment, in his eyes everyone was the same from the lowest human to the most esteemed claimant. Once anyone came to realize this they would certainly succeed in understanding the male better, albeit also understanding why so many people disliked him. However, not many people cared to put themselves at risk fighting him over it. He was certainly arrogant with his words and assumed everyone was on the exact same level of importance as himself unless they were and ancient or treasure, but that arrogance was followed alongside a troublesome ability which made him difficult to approach with hostility. All it took was single aggressive touch after all and you might find your body's mineral breaking down and being extracted into the dust of the earth.

Even so, everyone would agree it was a far easier choice to leave him be if possible. He was far too kind for his own good and it was because of this that it was rather difficult to properly anger him enough to start a fight. Ballafex was known for many things, but most importantly he was known for being a teacher to humans. Viewing them not as their own separate existence and rather closely intertwined with nature itself, as a very part of the earth. It was also for this reason he would spend much of his time here in Rome picking up the slumbering human bodies he came across and moving them off to the sides of the roads and streets. If anything did manage to happen he would at least like for them to be directly out of the way.

“Ballafex!” Flori’s voice echoed through the air. “Ballafex, I know you’re here! I’ve been calling you for hours!”


The ancient waded through the thick forest for what seemed like hours attempting to get the claimant to show himself. It seemed as if her were completely ignoring him, so much time passing since Echowix had chosen to make her appearance that it was aggravating. It would make sense that Ballafex would know nothing about it as he never chose to stay too close to civilization, but it was for that exact reason the ancient chose to keep him within the realm as often as possible. Although he wouldn’t admit it an air of worry arose from his most loyal claimant choosing to ignore his summons. However, as he finally came across the male it seemed his worries were unfounded.


“There you are. I suppose I should have expected that you’d be meditating, but I remember ordering you to do your meditations within the realm. It’s difficult enough to keep track of you as is. No one has time to track you down like this… are you even listening to me?”


He watched on as his claimant did not even move. His meditation deep and unbothered, as it had always been. Ballafex often chose to meditate in this manner and the other ancients agreed that it was good to have him do so without disturbance. He was a troubling boy after all, and when he wasn’t meditating he was roaming about the earth without restraint or purpose; leading to his tendency to often find himself in the domains of other ancients disturbing the lives of humans whenever he saw fit. However he would meditate for years at a time, doing what he would call ‘becoming one with the earth’ and there was no better description than that. Flori could never get used to the sight of his very skin crumbling off, his bones clearly visible as nature grew through his very flesh if it could even be called that anymore. It was almost as if he were entirely dead when meditating and it wouldn’t be a first if someone mistook him for a corpse. However it was easy to wake him up, this being proven by Flori’s choice to stomp his foot against the ground to which the earth beneath them shuttered and all the nearby creatures scurried off.


“Are you awake and focused now?” he questioned him. “I’d hate to have to cause more damage to your surroundings, but I do have more important things to attend to.”


Following his words the skeletal figure began to shift and creak, dust and dirt falling from its frame to reveal his flesh beneath the very gaps of crumbling and cracking skin and bone. As the form stood to its feet did the very earth beneath his feet shift and stir, rising up to fill in the erosion of his bones and body until he no longer had the form of a dilapidated corpse. Instead he now stood tall, tall enough to look down on the ancient as the dust which now swirled around them settled to the ground beneath their feet. His skin looked as dry earth yet with time it would begin to look more like that of normal skin, tanned and soft. His long blonde hair folding over his shoulders and his golden jewelry still adorning his body, the only thing he was missing would be the robes he normally wore which no doubt withered away with the passing of time.


“Flori! It is good to see you! I did not believe you would personally come to awaken me. For what do I owe this honor?” he spoke as he opened his arms as if expecting a hug to which the ancient stepped back slightly.


“There’s no time for that. I need you to do something for me right now.”


“A request? For me? This is new! You do not often give me many things to do. Unless… this does not have anything to do with Florita, does it?”


“No, of course not. Not like you’d listen if it did anyway.”


“You should really try to get along. The two of you go hand in hand, you should be the closest to one another. Then again all elements must be birthed from the foundation of the earth. No one is going to like you if you keep acting that way.”


“Enough of that! Echowix has finally made a move, and I need you to go and see what has occurred.”


“Echowix has shown herself? Outside of the Citadel? I see, so things are beginning to change somehow… interesting. Very interesting indeed. Well then,” he spoke as he lowered himself to one knee. “What will you have me do, my master?”


“I’m glad to see you’re finally taking this seriously… you will be working with Marjorie, although I doubt she’ll have her hands directly in any of this, or really be on our side at all. As such it will mainly be up to you to gather as much information as possible regarding Echowix’s appearance. You’ll be going to Rome. Something must be there for her to have shown up.”


“Is that so? Blasphemous though it may be, I will not raise a hand to your Champion."


“Avoid Marjorie unless she approaches you. The last thing we need is for you doing something to upset Novevu's Aikekunai."

"Qrow? Why would that one care about our house? If I'm correct he cared very little for anything outside of his lover's health."

"Just how long has it been since you've socialized with the other houses?!"

"You know, I have no idea... regardless I'll be heading to Rome immediately."

"Before you do that, please find yourself some clothes. There will be other claimants there and, although you’re rather good looking by normal standards, I doubt anyone will want to see you wandering about naked.”


“There’s no need to worry about that!” the claimant spoke with a bellowing laugh as he reached down to the ground beneath himself. His hand plunged directly into the dirt and stone, from within drawing out a perfect set of robes as well as his rifle and bayonet. “I remembered how upset the others were the last time I showed up without any garments so I made sure to bring a spare set of clothes!”


“How thoughtful... now are you ready?” the ancient asked as he watched the claimant fix his robe over himself and place the bayonet and sheath into his waist wrap. With that he stood tall and gave a smile and nod, the ancient sighing as he opened the way for him. “Normally I’d have you make your way there on your own, but for some reason you’re all the way in South America and I doubt you have any proper means of transportation. While you could always travel underground or just do your ‘dust-walking’, I would prefer you don’t draw a scene on your approach. Now then, go.”


The claimant stepped toward the portal, stopping just before entering without even turning to face the ancient. “Flori. What are my permissions for combat?”


“Refrain from it at all costs. While normally I wouldn’t care and let you do as you please, there will be too many houses involved for you to act too freely. If combat is unavoidable focus on restraining your enemies or fleeing. The last thing I need is for you to collapse a building and draw everyone’s attention to yourself. However, if you feel your life is in danger then show no mercy. however, no one should be expecting you, so try to keep to yourself if you can.”


“Understood.”
The moment the portal was gone, and he could once again feel the distance between himself and Flori, that feeling of separation set in once again. It was sad every time he thought about it, and yet he couldn’t be bothered with it now that he found himself with the excitement of finally having something important to do. It was a feeling of giddiness he found himself enjoying every moment of as he walked down the empty roads. Or rather there was a sense of greater joy since he had been forbidden from entering cities and towns since everyone was afraid he would destroy the buildings. He couldn’t bring himself to understand why everyone was so afraid though, he had only done it once!


He took a deep breath and with it the ground beneath his feet had begun to turn to dust, but before he could do any real damage he stopped himself and let the dust fall back to the earth. Part of him wanted to just waltz around and feel everything out, but another part of him remembered that he was told not to dust-walk mere moments ago. Instead he looked around for a moment only to realize he had no idea where he was or where to go. Perhaps it would be best to ask for help, but then again that might end with him getting into a situation he didn’t want to be in.


Perhaps it would be in my best interest to just move around underground. I’ll come out if I feel I must, but for now it might just be a better option to remain out of sight as Flori suggested. Keep to myself.


Or at least that was what he thought, compared to what would actually come to be. Once again he remembered just how few chances he would get to actually roam around a city and as such he would walk the streets and take in as much as he could. Get a feel for the foundation around him, the feeling of the vibrations through the earth beneath his feet, the minerals which made up each building around him, the construction beneath the ground under his feet. With every step an echo and with every echo a new construct to memorize and add to his collection of things he could create at a moments notice. He would explore this place and while doing so keep his eyes open for any other claimants. The moment he spotted one would be the moment he found a target to follow, and that would no doubt lead him to something important.


Perhaps I should have asked Flori which other claimant would be present. It has been some time since I have spoken with other claimants. I wonder if all the Aikekunai are still the same as before…

He cast the thought aside as he began sauntering down the road in his normal manner. If any word were to be used to describe his movements it would be intimidating, his stature not lending any aid to reduce the aura of  grandeur he senselessly exuded from his person. It was mainly the reason he was always met with so much hostility. He did not believe himself to be better than anyone, but he believed his element to be greater than everyone. As such everyone was treated equally regardless of status or title, no one received special treatment, in his eyes everyone was the same from the lowest human to the most esteemed claimant. Once anyone came to realize this they would certainly succeed in understanding the male better, albeit also understanding why so many people disliked him. However, not many people cared to put themselves at risk fighting him over it. He was certainly arrogant with his words and assumed everyone was on the exact same level of importance as himself unless they were and ancient or treasure, but that arrogance was followed alongside a troublesome ability which made him difficult to approach with hostility. All it took was single aggressive touch after all and you might find your body's mineral breaking down and being extracted into the dust of the earth.

Even so, everyone would agree it was a far easier choice to leave him be if possible. He was far too kind for his own good and it was because of this that it was rather difficult to properly anger him enough to start a fight. Ballafex was known for many things, but most importantly he was known for being a teacher to humans. Viewing them not as their own separate existence and rather closely intertwined with nature itself, as a very part of the earth. It was also for this reason he would spend much of his time here in Rome picking up the slumbering human bodies he came across and moving them off to the sides of the roads and streets. If anything did manage to happen he would at least like for them to be directly out of the way.

“Ballafex!” Flori’s voice echoed through the air. “Ballafex, I know you’re here! I’ve been calling you for hours!”


The ancient waded through the thick forest for what seemed like hours attempting to get the claimant to show himself. It seemed as if her were completely ignoring him, so much time passing since Echowix had chosen to make her appearance that it was aggravating. It would make sense that Ballafex would know nothing about it as he never chose to stay too close to civilization, but it was for that exact reason the ancient chose to keep him within the realm as often as possible. Although he wouldn’t admit it an air of worry arose from his most loyal claimant choosing to ignore his summons. However, as he finally came across the male it seemed his worries were unfounded.


“There you are. I suppose I should have expected that you’d be meditating, but I remember ordering you to do your meditations within the realm. It’s difficult enough to keep track of you as is. No one has time to track you down like this… are you even listening to me?”


He watched on as his claimant did not even move. His meditation deep and unbothered, as it had always been. Ballafex often chose to meditate in this manner and the other ancients agreed that it was good to have him do so without disturbance. He was a troubling boy after all, and when he wasn’t meditating he was roaming about the earth without restraint or purpose; leading to his tendency to often find himself in the domains of other ancients disturbing the lives of humans whenever he saw fit. However he would meditate for years at a time, doing what he would call ‘becoming one with the earth’ and there was no better description than that. Flori could never get used to the sight of his very skin crumbling off, his bones clearly visible as nature grew through his very flesh if it could even be called that anymore. It was almost as if he were entirely dead when meditating and it wouldn’t be a first if someone mistook him for a corpse. However it was easy to wake him up, this being proven by Flori’s choice to stomp his foot against the ground to which the earth beneath them shuttered and all the nearby creatures scurried off.


“Are you awake and focused now?” he questioned him. “I’d hate to have to cause more damage to your surroundings, but I do have more important things to attend to.”


Following his words the skeletal figure began to shift and creak, dust and dirt falling from its frame to reveal his flesh beneath the very gaps of crumbling and cracking skin and bone. As the form stood to its feet did the very earth beneath his feet shift and stir, rising up to fill in the erosion of his bones and body until he no longer had the form of a dilapidated corpse. Instead he now stood tall, tall enough to look down on the ancient as the dust which now swirled around them settled to the ground beneath their feet. His skin looked as dry earth yet with time it would begin to look more like that of normal skin, tanned and soft. His long blonde hair folding over his shoulders and his golden jewelry still adorning his body, the only thing he was missing would be the robes he normally wore which no doubt withered away with the passing of time.


“Flori! It is good to see you! I did not believe you would personally come to awaken me. For what do I owe this honor?” he spoke as he opened his arms as if expecting a hug to which the ancient stepped back slightly.


“There’s no time for that. I need you to do something for me right now.”


“A request? For me? This is new! You do not often give me many things to do. Unless… this does not have anything to do with Florita, does it?”


“No, of course not. Not like you’d listen if it did anyway.”


“You should really try to get along. The two of you go hand in hand, you should be the closest to one another. Then again all elements must be birthed from the foundation of the earth. No one is going to like you if you keep acting that way.”


“Enough of that! Echowix has finally made a move, and I need you to go and see what has occurred.”


“Echowix has shown herself? Outside of the Citadel? I see, so things are beginning to change somehow… interesting. Very interesting indeed. Well then,” he spoke as he lowered himself to one knee. “What will you have me do, my master?”


“I’m glad to see you’re finally taking this seriously… you will be working with Marjorie, although I doubt she’ll have her hands directly in any of this, or really be on our side at all. As such it will mainly be up to you to gather as much information as possible regarding Echowix’s appearance. You’ll be going to Rome. Something must be there for her to have shown up.”


“Is that so? Blasphemous though it may be, I will not raise a hand to your Champion."


“Avoid Marjorie unless she approaches you. The last thing we need is for you doing something to upset Novevu's Aikekunai."

"Qrow? Why would that one care about our house? If I'm correct he cared very little for anything outside of his lover's health."

"Just how long has it been since you've socialized with the other houses?!"

"You know, I have no idea... regardless I'll be heading to Rome immediately."

"Before you do that, please find yourself some clothes. There will be other claimants there and, although you’re rather good looking by normal standards, I doubt anyone will want to see you wandering about naked.”


“There’s no need to worry about that!” the claimant spoke with a bellowing laugh as he reached down to the ground beneath himself. His hand plunged directly into the dirt and stone, from within drawing out a perfect set of robes as well as his rifle and bayonet. “I remembered how upset the others were the last time I showed up without any garments so I made sure to bring a spare set of clothes!”


“How thoughtful... now are you ready?” the ancient asked as he watched the claimant fix his robe over himself and place the bayonet and sheath into his waist wrap. With that he stood tall and gave a smile and nod, the ancient sighing as he opened the way for him. “Normally I’d have you make your way there on your own, but for some reason you’re all the way in South America and I doubt you have any proper means of transportation. While you could always travel underground or just do your ‘dust-walking’, I would prefer you don’t draw a scene on your approach. Now then, go.”


The claimant stepped toward the portal, stopping just before entering without even turning to face the ancient. “Flori. What are my permissions for combat?”


“Refrain from it at all costs. While normally I wouldn’t care and let you do as you please, there will be too many houses involved for you to act too freely. If combat is unavoidable focus on restraining your enemies or fleeing. The last thing I need is for you to collapse a building and draw everyone’s attention to yourself. However, if you feel your life is in danger then show no mercy. however, no one should be expecting you, so try to keep to yourself if you can.”


“Understood.”
The moment the portal was gone, and he could once again feel the distance between himself and Flori, that feeling of separation set in once again. It was sad every time he thought about it, and yet he couldn’t be bothered with it now that he found himself with the excitement of finally having something important to do. It was a feeling of giddiness he found himself enjoying every moment of as he walked down the empty roads. Or rather there was a sense of greater joy since he had been forbidden from entering cities and towns since everyone was afraid he would destroy the buildings. He couldn’t bring himself to understand why everyone was so afraid though, he had only done it once!


He took a deep breath and with it the ground beneath his feet had begun to turn to dust, but before he could do any real damage he stopped himself and let the dust fall back to the earth. Part of him wanted to just waltz around and feel everything out, but another part of him remembered that he was told not to dust-walk mere moments ago. Instead he looked around for a moment only to realize he had no idea where he was or where to go. Perhaps it would be best to ask for help, but then again that might end with him getting into a situation he didn’t want to be in.


Perhaps it would be in my best interest to just move around underground. I’ll come out if I feel I must, but for now it might just be a better option to remain out of sight as Flori suggested. Keep to myself.


Or at least that was what he thought, compared to what would actually come to be. Once again he remembered just how few chances he would get to actually roam around a city and as such he would walk the streets and take in as much as he could. Get a feel for the foundation around him, the feeling of the vibrations through the earth beneath his feet, the minerals which made up each building around him, the construction beneath the ground under his feet. With every step an echo and with every echo a new construct to memorize and add to his collection of things he could create at a moments notice. He would explore this place and while doing so keep his eyes open for any other claimants. The moment he spotted one would be the moment he found a target to follow, and that would no doubt lead him to something important.


Perhaps I should have asked Flori which other claimant would be present. It has been some time since I have spoken with other claimants. I wonder if all the Aikekunai are still the same as before…

He cast the thought aside as he began sauntering down the road in his normal manner. If any word were to be used to describe his movements it would be intimidating, his stature not lending any aid to reduce the aura of  grandeur he senselessly exuded from his person. It was mainly the reason he was always met with so much hostility. He did not believe himself to be better than anyone, but he believed his element to be greater than everyone. As such everyone was treated equally regardless of status or title, no one received special treatment, in his eyes everyone was the same from the lowest human to the most esteemed claimant. Once anyone came to realize this they would certainly succeed in understanding the male better, albeit also understanding why so many people disliked him. However, not many people cared to put themselves at risk fighting him over it. He was certainly arrogant with his words and assumed everyone was on the exact same level of importance as himself unless they were and ancient or treasure, but that arrogance was followed alongside a troublesome ability which made him difficult to approach with hostility. All it took was single aggressive touch after all and you might find your body's mineral breaking down and being extracted into the dust of the earth.

Even so, everyone would agree it was a far easier choice to leave him be if possible. He was far too kind for his own good and it was because of this that it was rather difficult to properly anger him enough to start a fight. Ballafex was known for many things, but most importantly he was known for being a teacher to humans. Viewing them not as their own separate existence and rather closely intertwined with nature itself, as a very part of the earth. It was also for this reason he would spend much of his time here in Rome picking up the slumbering human bodies he came across and moving them off to the sides of the roads and streets. If anything did manage to happen he would at least like for them to be directly out of the way.