The Piercing Fang (Celeste)

[Mirage]

15th of Winter, 513 AV
Location: The Prairie

It was a cloudy day as were all the others. When Celeste awoke in the Lab she would find a quickly scrawled note from Riyanna, simply telling her to meet her in the Testing Grounds, and to make no delays. There was something about the letter, and the quick and urgent scrawl about it, that felt off. There were no usual signs of playfulness that Riyanna usually left for Celeste in similar letters. No signature saying 'have a good day sweetheart' or 'good luck cutie'. Simply the message was there, and nothing more.

The temperature was getting closer to 60 degrees now, and Riyanna had advice that whenever she was able Celeste should take one of the thicker coats from the large trunk to use until she masted the art of covering her body in fur at all times. All in all it was a normal, very dull day. It looked as if it might rain, but then that was not new.

When she entered the testing grounds Celeste would be able to see her master Riyanna in the distance, a tiny figure from so far away. It looked as though she was in a deep conversation with Tierra, in her Eypharian form now. Many arms were waving, and obviously the conversation was a heated one. Riyanna's body language was stiff, not the usually free and light hearted way she usually moved. Her facial features could not be made out at this distance, but there was a sense that something was not right.

"Celeste." Brom's voice broke the silence, and the man suddenly appeared from the trees behind her, jugging to stand between her and Riyanna. The Initiate was dressed in simple robes, and looked as if he had been looking for Celeste all morning. He looked back over his shoulder, brow furrowing as he turned back and looked at Celeste, "What did you do? Riyanna is furious, Tierra has been trying to calm her down all morning." His body stiffened, and when he looked back Riyanna was staring directly at them both, and though still her expression could not be clearly made out there was something very dangerous about the look. A note of worry crossed Brom's own features as he looked at Celeste once more, grabbing her shoulders urgently, "Look I think you should leave for now, run and get out of here. Give her some time to cool off. I don't know what you did, and right now it really doesn't matter. Just go, or you might get hurt." His eyes were softer, kinder than they ever had been before, and a clear note of concern marked his body language.

Riyanna was growing closwer, and now her features could be made out. Her hair was a fiery red, streaks of gold falling down to about shoulder length. Her eyes were were their usual violet, flecks of indigo in them as well, but there was no smile on those lips. Something cold lay there, contained fury written in her every movement, every feature, and when she looked at Celeste there was definitely anger there. The Warden wore nothing at all, the scars standing out as each toned muscle moved beneath her skin. It might have been a trick of the light, but her nails almost seemed to lengthen and sharpen as she drew closer. Tierra jogged beside her, her own expression pleading, arms still moving as she continued to talk to Riyanna, imploring her for some reason or another.

Brom put his back to Celeste, between her and Riyanna, and he spoke over his shoulder, "If your going to go then go now, while you still can."

"Celeste!" The Warden's voice easily carried over the distance, and her eyes never left the girl's as she called out, "Come here. Now." It was an order, and there was no kindness in those tones.

Brom's jaw worked as he moved a bit more in front of Celeste, gently nudging her to leave, if she so chose.

OOCCeleste's call. Does she run for it or does she face Riyanna. The choice is yours ^.^

[Celeste Arumen]

x
x
The young girl glanced at the note and felt a sense of deep unease. Something was not quite right about it. There was no sunny signature, as was the woman’s usual. No, this seemed serious. Was something wrong? Had there been an accident in the Testing Grounds? She began to worry. Celeste drifted off to the chest, her head in the clouds. She dragged out a particularly fuzzy coat and set off immediately, not bothering to change into her arcane robes. No, instead she wore plain cloth pants and a shirt, unconcerned for her appearance. She nearly broke into a run on her way there.

Illia was floating along behind in total silence. It was as if she was one with the growing dread in her heart. Riyanna wouldn’t simply leave a note, would she? Had Kouri come looking for her? Did something happen to Brom or Tierra? Each step carried her faster still. Celeste nearly broke into a sprint, somewhere near the Mudpools. It wouldn’t due to get sidetracked by Gresshal.

But as she skidded to a halt, the scene she encountered was wholly unlike the one she’d anticipated. Tierra and Riyanna seemed to be arguing about something. What on earth was going on? Brom’s voice broke the silence and she nearly jumped out of her skin. ”What do you mean?” She replied, voice cracking. What did she do? That didn’t seem right. She hadn’t done anything wrong, had she?

Brom warned her, but she barely heard him. Her ears suddenly felt very hot. The shame in her heart was different than it’d ever been with Grams. Riyanna had learned of her meeting of Amaryllis. She’d learned of her betrayal. The other initiate wedged himself between her and the hurricane, advising her to go. But she couldn’t move.

At the command, two separate voices began waging war. Stay or go? Move or be held accountable? The girl from Alvadas said run, wait until the woman was no longer angry. But Celeste the Apprentice would not. She owed this woman far too much for that.

”No, it’s okay Brom.” She said softly, head hung low. She brushed past him, eyes dejectedly staring at the soil underfoot. As soon as she stood in front of the Warden, she slowly looked up. ”Go ahead,” she said finally, breath caught in her throat. ”Whatever you’re going to say, whatever you’re going to call me… Go ahead. I deserve it.”

And she winced, in anticipation of the coming storm.

x

[Mirage]

Brom raised a hand after Celeste, as if he wanted to pull her back, but his fingers pulled back at the last moment. His expression though did not grow any less concerned. The Warden waved her hand, and Tierra was instantly silenced. The woman fell back, retreating without turning her back on Riyanna as she did. Brom also moved cautiously to the side, undoing the bindings of his robes just in chase, never taking his eyes off of Riyanna as he did. Both Initiates watched their Warden like one might a wild animal, unsure if it were going to strike or simply snarl.

Riyanna slowed her walk, stopping just a few paces from the girl. The woman set her hands on her hips, and the expression upon her face was not one that seemed ready to forgive.

"Then it's true. I wanted to doubt, to pretend that it was just a coincidence, that it was just random happenstance. I knew it wasn't true though. I just knew it." Cold rage bottled within that frowning face, eyes light those of a beast, her voice close to a growl itself, "I received a message from a particular embalmer, personally requested for you to aid one of her own during a task that will take her into the testing grounds. Do you, by chance, know where she wanted you to guide this apprentice of hers?" Her lip curled into a snarl, sharp fangs growing to hook over her lips, and her eyes clearly said that she did not Celeste to speak, "Now, why would Amaryllis request for you personally? She should have asked for me, or Brom, or Tierra, but no she asked for you by name and title. She was very insistent that you should be the one to act as a guide on this mission. Do you know where that mission is going to take you?" Her hair color was already changing, becoming bone the color of ash even as it shortened, the tips hardening to bone to form spikes that just barely avoided brushing her own skin. Her nails had been lengthening, and now they were nearly half an inch long, black as ink, and those once purple eyes now burned red with a single slit running vertical in each.

"You petching idiot of a girl, you are going to the HEARTLANDS!" She shouted these words, her voice morphing to become larger, deeper and seemed to echo somehow. It was almost guttural, feral and vicious as was Riyanna's appearance becoming more wild and untamed. Just as she shouted those words the Warden was already upon Celeste, and with the back of her hand she slapped Celeste with enough force to lift her off the ground and send her tumbling to the dirt. Hard enough to split her lip and send the taste of iron over her tongue.

"Riyanna no!" Tierra cried, making to step forward just as Brom did, but a single look from the Warden stiffened both Initiates, pushing them back a couple steps in the process.

Riyanna turned back to Celeste, her face a mask of rage, fury, hurt, anger and all other negative emotions. She grew before Celeste's eyes, reaching nearly seven feet in height. Those fangs curved over her lips, her face angling and becoming more cat like even as her limbs stretched and limbered, each muscle coming to perfect definition underneath her skin. Reaching back the black hilt rose from her skin, and with a yank Riyanna pulled the sword free, the blade arching toward Celeste, but it would strike the ground just an inch away from the girl's flesh, leaving a thin cut on any exposed skin in the area.

Baring her bestial teeth the Warden growled, "Get up and face your punishment."

[Celeste Arumen]

x
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She knew, then. Could she have denied it? Maybe. It seemed Riyanna had her suspicions. Still, she did not regret the decision to stand and be judged. Not yet, anyway. She didn’t bother trying to answer the woman’s rhetorical question. Celeste merely grimaced, gritting her teeth. She should’ve seen the warning signs; the way Riyanna began to shift, growing taller, fanged, her hair shifting from silk to bone. It was only when her eyes went red and she began to yell, that the initiate began to shrink away, instinctively reacting to the aggression.

In a tick, she was reeling back into the dirt, lip split wide open. The pain was a dull hammer to her face, adrenaline and anger welling up in reply. Celeste scrambled back on her hands and feet, desperate to put space between her and now enraged Warden of the Prairie. But she froze, eyes wide in horror and she unsheathed her inky blade. Punishment? ”No!” Illia cried helplessly, the familiar rushing to put herself between the two women.

Inside, Celeste was a storm. She wanted to fight back, but knew she would lose. She wanted to rebuke the woman who once had claimed to love her. Worst of all, she was afraid – really afraid. Every part of her body was trembling. No, she wasn’t strong. She couldn’t stand up and be brave. Instead, she started to cry. The tears came freely, running down her cheeks as she openly wept, suddenly weak, helpless and totally inept.

”I’m sorry,” she croaked. Struggling to her feet, she took a step forward. She couldn’t stop crying. Every time she wanted to scream back at the woman, all she could think of was how much she loved her. ”When I went to her office, she said if I didn’t convince her I was useful, she would kill all of you, but she’d have something so much worse for me. All I wanted was to survive her, to become strong, to succeed.”

She looked up, sobbing, her nose running like a spigot. She sniffed and wiped her nose on her wrist. ”You saved my life. You have the right to take it.”

Celeste didn’t want to die. She never wanted to see Riyanna so mad, so disappointed. She never wanted to shame them as she had. Truly, she didn’t even really grasp the gravity of just what she’d done wrong, other than put their lives in danger.

”I’m sorry,” she said again, but under her breath, this time to someone else, someone far, far away.

x

[Mirage]

The Warden bared her teeth, a quick swipe of her blade and the air pressure whipped the familiar out from between them. Then stepping closer Riyanna would slap the point of the sword into the ground, leaning one hand on it and grasping Celeste's chin with her other. She looked into the girl's eyes, "And you believed her? She played you like the fool you are. She tricked you. She could no more harm me than I could harm her." She released the girl and stepped back, yanking the sword from the ground and swinging it suddenly, creating a whistling sound as it cut through the air. Growling she turned once more to stare at Celeste, "You are not read to play these games Celeste Arumen. You are a girl playing games that most adults cannot play. You are young, so young, and you think you can play this game of chess with beings who created it in the first place?"

Her breathing was fast and hard, her eyes wilded and suddenly she reeled back, sucking deep breaths to release a loud, feral call into the air. When it ended she straightened, both hands gripping the sword's hilt as she looked at its blade. Some of the anger had receded somewhat when she finally spoke, "You are not ready. You're still too young, too inexperienced. I have not given you everything you need yet to survive the most dangerous place of all..." Sadness, despair and crippling hurt flecked across those hard features, "No one returns from the Heartlands Celeste. No one ever returns, unless they are very lucky and Kierra Doma allows it. I've lost an Initiate there on a similar errand..."

Brom and Tierra remained silent, simply watching the proceedings. Riyanna's eyes hardened once more as she lowered her sword, glaring at Celeste, "Your not ready for this. You are no where near the level you need to be to go on such a mission, let alone lead someone there as well. Amaryllis knows this. She is probably counting on you to die before you return, and if you live then she will simply have another pawn to play with. Because you were impatient you have now trapped yourself in bindings that cannot be broken." Raising the sword over her back the blade became ink once more, slipping beneath her skin, "I would have prepared you myself. I was going to teach you everything I knew, at the pace that you would learn best at. I was going to help you get to where you wished to go... but now..."

She looked away, turning her back on Celeste, "Brom, take her to the Pit."

Tierra gasped, and Brom's expression hardened, "But Riyanna, you can't mean..."

"Just do it Brom. If she wants to grow up so fast, then I will accommodate her. She has 10 days to become prepared for this. If she dies before then..." The woman's voice cracked, but she did not turn around. Her body was already shrinking, her hair becoming less brittle. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, hand moving to her lips as she fought back her own tears, but with a shake of her head she continued, "Then that will be her punishment."

Brom didn't say anything, but he looked at Celeste, something close to pity in his eyes as he extended his hand, C-Come on Celeste. You have work to do."

[Celeste Arumen]

x
x
It was a death sentence.

Celeste stared, uncomprehending. No one returned from the Heartlands, the Warden said. So this was the errand Annalisa had spoken of, to curry favor with Lector Qiao. She was chosen to be a bodyguard, so that she might die in the place of the apprentice Amaryllis held in such esteem. The young apprentice went numb. Death tasted bitter, she thought sadly. It was worse to know it was coming than to catch a glance of it a tick before the end.

She trembled as the woman released her chin, cringed in fear as she swung her sword. It’d all been a bluff on the Embalmer’s part, one she would have known for what it was, had she simply asked. The mageling still cried, though now the tears simply flowed freely. It was hopeless. The woman would get her pound of flesh.

The Pit? She watched in horror as her Master exchanged anger for sadness. In a way, it was worse to see the woman mourn her. She never wanted to be responsible for her pain. All these things and more tore through her mind. Yet there was something that broke through, something profound. The Pit was a graveyard, yet it was also a glimmer of hope. This might give her a chance, were she to survive it. If Celeste lived through the agony, whatever it might be, she would grow stronger. Maybe even strong enough to see Riyanna again.

”Okay,” she replied meekly, placing her hand in Brom’s. ”But wait a tick,” she added, turning to the Warden.

”Riyanna.” Her eyes swam. ”If I don’t come back, thank you. It was wonderful, to be loved, even if it was just for a little while.” What else could she say? The tears washed over her face anew and hand in hand, she walked to wherever Brom was going to take her.

x

[Mirage]

Riyanna did not turn as she was spoken to. She did not knowledge Celeste's words at all. She simply stood as a still statue, facing away and bottling within the welling tide of emotion.

Brom accepted Celeste's hand, and in a very uncharacteristic manner pulled Celeste close to place his own arm around her small shoulders. One hand firmly held the girl's upper arm, the other still held her hand, but his eyes were on the Warden who stood back turned. He looked conflicted, uncertain of what he should do. Tierra caught his eye, and with two of her arms motioned for him to go on before she moved to stand by their Master's side instead.

Accepting this as his cue Brom gently nudged Celeste, leading her on into the Prairie. He would walk in silence for many chimes, unsure of what to say. This was never what he was good at. Talking, comforting, all of these things were so alien to him. He was a fighter, simply that and nothing more. At length though he would finally break the silence, "Celeste..." And silence fell once more. By this point Brom had released the girl, it being awkward to walk so close anyway. Rubbing a hand through his hair he tried again, "Riyanna is worried about you... She... Cares for you a lot. It is really obvious to Tierra and myself. She smiles a lot when your around." He fell silent again, cursing his lack of social graces. Luckily they were quickly approaching their destination.

The Pit was just that, a deep hole in the ground. It was in a very unremarkable area, a place that Celeste would have passed often, obscured by short shrubs and rocks. It was about four feet in diameter, and the bottom was several feet down as well. The Pit's walls were perfectly smooth, almost like glass. With one hand to guide her Brom lead Celeste closer to the Pit, leaning over to look down at the bottom, "This is the Pit..." His voice was strained, his eyes series, as though he were reviewing some rather unpleasant memories.

Stepping back from the edge of the pit he looked at Celeste, "Riyanna is right, your not ready for this. The Pit is supposed to be the final stage of your training as an Initiate. It is intense, and will call into question everything you know about yourself. Some have gone insane, other's have died during the process... But each of them has taken the full time and undergone every step of Riyanna's training. You, your still only just beginning. This trial will probably kill you." Even as he spoke the words the hurt was written on his expression. Quickly looking away, back at the pit, he continued, "We don't know exactly where the Pit came from, or what made it. When you are down there though you begin to lose your sense of... self. The djed from the earth interferes with yours, and it slowly pulls apart your mind and body. You start to lose control over yourself, and over time your djed will start to randomly shape on its own. You constantly have to remain focused to keep your shape, and if you are not very careful you will completely forget who, and what, you are."

Brom grimaced and folded his arms over his chest, "Usually you spend several bells each day meditating down there, and by doing so you free your mind from the body and open up yourself to the true nature of Morphing. This is done in stages, over the span of several seasons... but in your case, you have ten days. That means you will need to remain down there almost constantly. I don't know what that might do to you, under that kind of strain for so long. I can only take it for five bells before I must return to the surface."


Bending down the Initiate produced a simple rope ladder from beneath one of the bushes, lowering it down into the Pit. Straightening he offered his hand to Celeste to help her, "Be careful... Before you go though, is there anything you want to ask? Anything you want to know? It would be best to ask now..."

[Celeste Arumen]

x
x
She walked along, trying to reconcile whatever regrets she might’ve had. Brom tried to make her feel better, but it was too little, too late. He only ended up reaffirming what she already felt; the power to make Riyanna happy came along with the power to cause her pain. No matter what, she couldn’t forgive herself for taking their relationship for granted. Celeste not only betrayed the woman, but she had also betrayed herself.

The girl blinked, having seen this place before. It had seemed so inconsequential at the time. Gravely, she peered past the smooth edges into the inky darkness below as Brom explained the nature of her training. She’d lose control over herself, her djed pulled slowly pulled apart by that of the Pit. She would die in there, he said. Other initiates died while training over the course of seasons. There was no way that she, Celeste Arumen, could withstand ten days of it whereas Brom could only handle five bells.

She turned to face him, gaze soft. ”Will you stay? I know you’ve got work to do.” Without hesitation, she took the proffered hand and began climbing down into the abyss, trembling all over. Halfway down the ladder, she paused and looked up for what might be the last time.

”Thanks to you too, big brother. I promise, I’m going to live.” Her eyes grew hard. She had a job to do.

If Isolde were still alive somewhere in the world, she knew what the woman would say. ’Celeste, you got yourself into this mess. Now you’ll be the one to dig yourself out.’ Even Kit and Wren would likely agree. She’d been foolish enough to take the bait. Now was her one and only chance to arise from the ashes, to make Amaryllis eat her words, to see the plan she’d so artfully formed against her turn to a weapon far greater than even her own Master’s imagining.

She was going to live or she would die giving every last ounce she had.

As soon as she was a little over halfway into the Pit, she could feel the djed interacting with hers. It felt alien, akin to the pressure of holding a shape, only it was bearing down upon her from the outside. She managed to make it to the bottom and as soon as she did, the girl promptly folded onto the ground.

’Illia,’ she said softly, her thoughts carrying to the beast like lightning. The familiar had been there, silent in the face of her grim trial. ’We’re going to get stronger, together. You talk to me if I start going mad, okay? Snap me out of it. Try to remember what I look like and show me, when I start to lose who I am.’

’Okay,’ the voice sang warily back to her. ’Master, please don’t die.’ She sounded so very sad, just the same way Celeste had been. The place was already doing it’s best to take her apart. The momentary lapse caused her djed to slip, shifting something out of place. Angrily, she reached forth with phantom hands and grasped the disordered strands, forcing them back to where they once had been and holding, the pressure increasing almost imperceptibly.

Ten days. Ionu, give her strength.

x

[Mirage]

Setting his jaw, his own eyes showing slight emotions he gave a very curt nod to the girl, "Yeah, I'll stay. Tierra will be here soon as well. I don't care what Riyanna says, I wont leave you here alone. I can't let a stupid brat like you do something so dangerous on her own..." Her gave a very small, very thin smile that only just raised the corner of his lips. Worry was obvious as he watched her slowly crawl down to the bottom.

"Listen to me Celeste, do not try to stay down there the entire time... Petch what she said, I want you to come up whenever you feel like you are losing control. This is too much for one who hasn't even began her real training." He swallowed hard, leaning over the edge to look down at her, "Don't let pride cloud your judgement. Take this slow. Try to meditate down there as long as you can, and come back up for a break when you feel you need to. We will accelerate the process, but we wont take necessary risks... OK?"

Pulling back from the edge, Celeste was then left alone. The strange djed flowed around her, through her at times, pressing upon her like curious fingers. While she sat there she would feel her mind slowly starting to drift back and away from her physical body, like it did when she prepared to use morphing only now it happened all on its own accord. She had to focus to keep her awareness of her limbs, her fingers and toes. Those places that she lost focus on began to lose their feeling, going numb like a limb did when it fell asleep. Two chime sin Celeste would feel an odd prickling sensation at her scalp, and a streak of blonde would begin to fall down her read locks, unbidden. At five something similar would occur on the back of her right hand, a small patch of skin growing rougher, forming scale like patterns.

The longer she sat the harder and harder it became to stay focused on her physical self, the less and less attached she became to her body. Random, small changes would occur at the places that she lost focus on, causing odd things to occur. Scales, feathers, sometimes claws for nails, and even eye color shifts. At fifteen chimes the changes began to happen in rapid succession, growing more and more extreme. If she sat in the pit past 20 chimes she would begin to feel her bones responding, twisting and bending in odd directions, fingers turning around backwards, hair becoming bone. If she stayed past twenty five she would find she could not control any of the changes at all any longer as a pounding headache filled her mind from the level of concentration required simply to remember who she was.

Brom sat cross legged near the pit, head turned to the side and eyes closed as he listened for the sounds of Celeste in the pit. He would not move to help her, not unless she called for him in which case he would quickly jump down and help her out. Tierra would arrive soon as well, a bag over her shoulder with supplies for Celeste should she need them for whatever the reason.

[Celeste Arumen]

x
x
Inside the Pit, she could practically feel the djed in the air, the strange energy flowing over and around her. The pressure was light, akin to probing, curious hands, like a child assessing just how it wanted to play with its brand new toy. She sat with her knees drawn up to her chest, eyes set in grim determination, fighting the urge to let her mind wander. Yet wander it did. Despite how she tried, her focus was drawn away and for each aspect she lost hold of, she lost feeling as well, physical feeling, as if her body was no longer her own.

The tingling sensation came, setting her teeth on edge. She tried to deny it, but it happened regardless. Celeste felt so helpless already. How could she fight a force unseen, a force so much stronger than her? In horror, she looked within, desperately trying to force the radiant corona of her djed back into place, the kink of gold an obvious flaw in the otherwise perfect webwork of her being. But as she redistributed her focus, this power saw another opening to strike, phantom fingers turning silken energy weathered and unruly, causing itchy scales to emerge.

’Focus,’ her mind said calmly. So she did. The young initiate sharpened her focus, pushing as hard as she could to hold herself together, harder than ever before. She took stock of her toes, her hands, her feet, trying to redistribute her sight evenly, even as the strange energy found ways to tamper with it. She tried to be as immobile as stone, yet she could not maintain control everywhere, all at once. As time passed, the changes became more extreme and even though she held desperately on to the strands of djed, they twisted in her grasp, manipulated by a power beyond her control. Her eyes were black as night, her hair thirteen different colors.

After what seemed like an eternity, but in reality was not, her bones began to shift. Desperate, she beseeched Illia, the morph now finding a foothold in her distracted mind. 'Illia,' she began in desperation. 'What did I look like?' Was her hair red? Blonde? What had it been before? The djed was so muddled, so affected by this unknown entity that it was miles away from wherever she began. Worse still, attributing any thought to anything other than holding herself together caused the force to work quicker.

”Um, wellll, you had red hair and a cute little button nose, which was straight I think, though you humans all look alike,” she drawled.

Anger spiked in her, amplified by her wrist painfully wrapping in circles. She cried out softly. ’No description! Just send me an image!’

The being transmitted her a splash of who she once was. In horror, she glanced around, noting her clawed hands, scaled skin. The pressure was now unbelievable. Who was she now, if that was how she began? How long had she even been in there? Her elbows were bending inside out. If she didn’t get out soon, she soon wouldn’t be able be to.

With herculean effort, she forced the djed of her limbs back into their proper place, as per the image of Illia. She’d need them to climb with. But as she did, her head began to blare, the pain a dull roar echoing from the back of her skull. It was quickly becoming too much to bear.

’I need out… I need to get out,” she said softly, struggling toward the rope ladder. Slowly, she put one hand in front of the other, dragging herself up each rung, barely managing to hold on to material as her toes began to curl into tight circles. The pain was unbelievable; she would surely overgive. There was no doubt. She’d already been pushed to the end of her limits. How long had it even been?

Gasping, she clawed her way out, vermillion tears silently streaming down her cheeks. The girl laid upon the ground, the throbbing slowly beginning to fade.

”How long… Was I down there?” She asked between gasps.

x