[center][h2][u]The New Way[/u][/h2][/center] [i]“It’s time to wake up.”[/i] A voice, one she knew well, stirred her from her slumber. With a sigh, she pulled the seemingly luminescent blanket over her head and curled up in bed before whining, “Must I?” “I would imagine you’ve had enough rest by now, Ivona.” “Pft,” She threw the blanket off her and pouted at the smiling face of a Goddess, “I’d hardly call the complete obliteration of my soul rest Asceal. Besides, do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve seen a bed? Because I don't!” Asceal stepped up to the bed and all but hauled Ivona to her feet before remarking, “At least I managed to capture your ability to complain incessantly, I was worried about that one you know.” She grinned at Asceal and retorted, “Well, you could have done better. I don’t have a bad thing to say about the bed.” “Oh?” The shimmering Goddess before her chuckled, “In that case, it’s not too late to try again.” Ivona waved her off, “I think dying twice was enough. Besides, why go to all that work? Almost perfect is close enough to perfect for me.” “Come on then,” Asceal, still grinning, gestured to the door, “There are people you have to meet. And after that? We have something to do, and all the time in the world to do it.” At that Ivona could only match the Goddess’s smile with her own, “That we do.” She strode after Asceal, out of the door and into the crystal hallways of a Goddess’s palace, before adding, “My thanks for that by the way. I could hardly have faulted you for reneging on your promise, what with the whole god of death destroying my soul business. Imperfect I may be, but I think eternity is enough of a gift to make up for any errors.” “You don’t need to thank me.” Asceal looked back and dimmed before admitting, “Your re-creation isn’t something I did for the sake of honouring a promise, as much as I wish it was. I have as much to gain as you.” “Yes you made sure to put that little detail up there,” Ivona laughed and tapped the side of her head, “But I don’t think you’re right on that one. I’m alive, and this time my biggest worry is a job I think I’ll enjoy. Sure, you get your agent, and an old friend, but I’m not sure the scales are balanced on that one.” Asceal pursed her lips, but only nodded before leading Ivona further into the palace. A few minutes of traversing the ornately decorated halls later the pair stepped into the meeting hall where Liana and Asceal’s children waited. For all Asceal’s apparent enthusiasm, the four within seemed uneasy. Moreover, it seemed that Asceal’s arrival had cut short something of an argument between Makab and Eline. The two had cut themselves off to stare at their mothers new companion, but the look in their eyes said more than a little about exactly how settled their feud, whatever it was, had been. Nevertheless, silence fell as every set of eyes present fell on Ivona. As it was, the woman’s looks were hardly remarkable. At least when one considered the audience. Ivona, much like everyone else in the room, save Liana, sported a human appearance and a set of wings. That said, she was a being apart from Asceal’s children. Whereas the three Angel’s had feathery white wings Ivona’s seemed to be made from iridescent crystal. Furthermore, her eyes glistened in every hue in much the same way as her wings. Beyond that though? Ivona had long black hair, soft white skin, and a simple blue dress. For all her quirks she paled in comparison to Asceal, or even Liana, who were markedly stranger creatures. Seemingly amused by the attention Ivona waved and spoke with a smile, “Well, hello there. Asceal’s children, and Liana, I presume?” Liana nodded, but of the trio of Angels only Makab greeted her, “Ivona is it? Mother told us about you. Glad to see you, well,” He shrugged, “Alive.” At that Ivona could only chuckle. Before she could issue her own retort Eline glared at Asceal and all but shouted, “I’m sorry, Mother, but I can’t do this! Am I the only one who sees that this is ridiculous? You summon us back here after [i]decades[/i], tell us that everything [i]you[/i] taught us is wrong, and then go about making some ridiculous replica of some long dead companion?” Asceal furrowed her brows and opened her mouth, but Eline didn’t give her the chance before she went on, “And then, after all that, you expect us to welcome this Ivona into our family without any further explanation? I’m sorr- No. I’m not. This is too much. I’ve always done what you wanted but no. This, you, you aren’t making any sense!” The Goddess was, to put it simply, gobsmacked. As was everyone else in the room, save Ivona. The aforementioned ‘ridiculous replica’ put a hand over her mouth in mock shock, but barely managed to hold the expression for more than a moment before breaking out into laughter, “Pft! She does have you there Asceal! You really sprung all this on them didn’t you!” Ivona wiped a happy tear from her eye and sighed, “And me! While I can’t deny being ridiculous, or a replica, I do hope you’ll consider me part of the family, Eline. Then again, I suppose I can understand if you aren’t ready for that. After all, I’ve been dead longer than you’ve been alive! And it’s never easy to welcome the risen dead into the family,” Ivona grinned before adding, “But at least I don’t smell! That’s always a plus.” Eline stared at Ivona, temporarily stunned into silence. It seemed the woman had something on her tongue, but the pause gave Asceal enough time to speak, “That’s enough, Eline. And you too, Ivona. I’ll ask you to restrain yourself, regardless of how amusing you find my famililies… difficulties.” “No. It’s not enough.” Eline smoldered, “I don’t care what your new pet says Mother, and I don’t care what you say. Ever since you brought us back here it’s like you’re not even yourself. You tell us that the mortals aren’t worth being saved, after you’ve dedicated your life to doing that. After you [i]made us[/i] to help you do that. You say we need to start punishing people, and not even the evil ones, but the ones that don’t stop them?” Eline finally lost her temper entirely and snapped, “Who are you!? Why have you, why have we done any of this if it was just some vanity project for you to discard once it didn’t go your way? You’ve made that [i]thing[/i] to do what? Wreak havoc on Galbar in the hope that people will act better if they’re afraid of being punished? That they’ll behave if she gives them trinkets here and there? They’re [i]people[/i]! Not animals!” This time it was Makab who stepped in, rounding on his sister while Akam stared at his siblings with wide eyes, “It’s something we should have been doing earlier! You’ve spent just as much time with them as I have. You know what they’re like Eline. The mortals will do anything if they think it’s worth it. Mom’s right, if we want a better world we have to [i]make[/i] one. If they’re not afraid of punishment, if they all get saved by Azura, what’s stopping them from being worse than the Selka mom told us about? What’s to say they won’t be as bad as Sartarvius was!” Eline opened her mouth, face red with anger, but rather than speaking she simply raised her fist and struck Makab. For all he postured, the blow came as a surprise and the brown haired angel crumpled, hands holding his stomach. “Enough!” Asceal’s voice boomed and the room took on a reddish glow as the Goddess’s rage reflected on her features. She turned her gaze onto Eline and the blond angel, in spite of all her strength, couldn’t help but flinch, “Words are one thing Eline, but [i]you will not touch your siblings[/i]. You will go to your room and wait for me. You don’t know enough to say anything, let alone what you have. I have seen mortality in its completeness, you have not. Now, go.” Perhaps all those years ago, when Eline had last seen her mother, she might have complied. Now though? Her feathery wings flared out and she retorted, “No. I’m leaving, Asceal. Unlike you I’ve actually spent time among mortality. I didn’t gain my revelation by staring down at them from some distant sphere like they were insects.” She turned, and offered a last word before she stormed off, “They don’t deserve what that thing will do to them. What you’ll do to them.” Asceal took a step in Eline’s direction, but no more than that. As her daughter fled the palace the Goddess of Light’s angry red form slowly reverted to a pale white. There was a moment of silence, broken by the last two words Asceal wanted to hear at that moment. “I’m sorry.” Akam muttered, and took off after his sister. Liana, Asceal, and Makab watched him go, each of them as unsurprised as they were conflicted. A rift had formed, and now the only question was how large it truly was. Not one of those assembled, nor those departed, could say. [hider=Summary and Costs] Asceal makes an avatar from her memory of a bitch she knew in the vortex before this world. The bitch is like, lemme sleep, Asceal is like, naw. They go to meet the kids, Eline is like 'the fuck is this' with all the new punishing and rewarding nonsense and Asceal is like, it's the new way bitch. Title drop. Eline decides that's bullshit and punches Makab for liking it. She fucks off, Akam follows. Nobody is happy. -2mp Avatar Ivona in da house 10mp/19fp remaining. [/hider]