The Mother of Monsters

Before the end of Teyva’s watch, she went through her inventory and situated her new outfit. She was surprised to find that as long as she equipped the gear straight from her inventory instead of pulling it out and putting it on by herself it fit as if it had been made for her. The [Traveler’s Gambeson] was the off-white of linen and was made of thick padded fabric that crossed over her chest before affixing to belts attached to a thin leather underlayer. The sleeves stopped just at her wrists with narrow cuffs. It had a short collar with its own leather clasp. Her Mockeries took the opportunity to move from her sleeves to the dark space between the padding and the leather. Six of them snuggled in and waited for the order to hunt. She kept her [Simple Linen Shirt] on underneath, the fabric of the gambeson turning out to be a little too scratchy for her taste.

After using [Simple Shift] a second time to return her hand to normal, she tried on the gloves. The moment she slipped them on she felt an odd lightness wash over her body. It was not dramatic, but still noticeable. The [Gloves of the Woodspeaker] were dark leather and had bands that secured them to her wrists made of what looked like black-dyed vines. A simple leaf print was burned into the dark leather to accompany the vines. The [Traveler’s Britches] was a dramatic upgrade from the [Simple Linen Pants], flexible and fit well enough that she didn’t feel awkward when she ran. She had been nervous that the long cloth of the pants would have been caught underneath her feet. Speaking of which; the biggest upgrade, in her opinion, had to be the boots. A similar dark leather to the gloves with metal tips over the toes, the boots had metal clasps going up the calf and stopped about six inches beneath the knee. When she put them on she felt another wave of lightness wash over her. Satisfied, she checked her stats.

An extra point into health and stamina was a good start, she was disappointed that her MP didn’t go up but she imagined the extra point would have a more dramatic effect on her abilities. She looked herself over, wishing she could get a better look. As much as she knew the tribulations of a new character - the mismatched hobo look of piecemeal gear - it would be nice to at least not come off looking entirely like someone who’d picked through bodies to get her outfit. Then an idea hit her; she willed one of her mockeries to crawl out onto her palm and stroked it on the side.

“Could you become a mirror for mommy, please?” She asked. There was a pause and then the creature complied, its body becoming a simple square of reflective material about seven inches tall and four inches wide. She held it up and got her first good look at her face. Before she could only make out general features on the dark surface of the marble in the crypt.

Teyva was pale as a ghost, appearing to almost have some kind of albinism. Her eyes were a startling yellow that reminded her of the off-gold of a panther. Her pupils were small and slightly oblong. Not exactly slit but they certainly weren’t human either. Her ears were pointed with a sharp flare to them that twisted a little at the tip. Her nose was long and thin with a button tip to it that stopped just above thin lips that when she smiled went a little wider than should be natural. She opened her mouth and took a look at her teeth. Two rows of thick, needle-like teeth greeted her with razor-sharp points and coiled around a long thin tongue. She closed her mouth and shuddered; no wonder Azrael had been unsettled.

She had just moved to her hair, also eerily white, when Azrael stirred nearby. She willed the mockery back into its coin shape and returned it to its resting place. “Get enough sleep?” She asked cheerily.

Azrael sat up and gave her a deadpan look, glancing over at the fire which Teyva had been doing her best to maintain, with limited success. She looked back at Teyva and gave her a quick assessment; taking in the new gear she was wearing. Eventually, she sighed; “Your good humor doesn’t match your face,” She said, pulling herself to her feet and brushing herself off.

Teyva laughed, “Yeah, just had a good look myself. Eating is going to be a little tough for a while,” she admitted, rubbing her jaw at the thought of trying to chew with interlocking teeth. How had she been managing it so far? Instinct?

Azrael shrugged and stretched before patting herself down. Her hand went to her throat, her sides, and then to her weapon. Nodding, she walked over to the stump where Teyva had been sleeping. “You don’t look tired.”

“As I said, I’ve been unconscious a lot recently,” Teyva said, “I’m pretty restless.”

“Well try to get some sleep anyway, we leave at first light.”

Teyva looked up at the sky, noting that - thankfully - this world only had one moon.

“Something wrong with the sky?”

“Nope, just the opposite,” Teyva said, “It’s beautiful out here.”

“I guess,” Azrael said, staring up at the sky with flat eyes, “Looks the same as it always does.”

Teyva opened her mouth to try to explain light pollution in modern cities but changed her mind. The last thing she wanted anyone to know was that she was from another world. Instead, she bid Azrael good night and went to find a spot next to the fire to sleep. She eventually leaned up against a fallen log and faced the fire, watching it dance for a while before she was carried away into the land of dreams.

Teyva woke with a start, a sharp pain in her side driving her to wakefulness. She rolled over, gripping the spot with a groan as her mockeries hissed and chattered angrily. She looked up to see Azrael’s boot just a few inches from her face. Behind it, Azrael was scowling, her figure framed by a slowly brightening sky. She rolled her eyes; “Finally, been trying to wake you for an hour. Sun is coming up - time to go.”

Teyva scrambled to her feet, rubbing her eyes and looking around. The fire pit had already been put out, and dirt and rocks were thrown on top to destroy what little evidence remained of their campsite. Azrael had packed up the tin mug she and Teyva had been forced to share as well as the rations she carried into a small pack she’d thrown over her shoulder. She pointed over to the left of where she was standing, indicating a break in the trees. “There’s a path through here worn down by some wildlife. Followed it to a small watering hole, we’ll get a drink there and be on our way.”

Teyva frowned at Azrael but decided not to make a big deal about the swift kick to get her to her feet; she’d always been a bit of a heavy sleeper. She yawned and patted her chest, checking on her Mockeries. All six were accounted for. She conjured up a pair of ration bars and slipped one into her gambeson while popping another into her mouth and bit down. Tiny pointed legs reached out and dragged the offered meal into her clothes, precluding an eerie sourceless crunching as the creatures ate. She washed it down with a big gulp from her waterskin, she hadn't realized how thirsty she was.

Azrael turned, following the sound, and stared at Teyva’s waist, she made a face and looked back to the trees; “That will never stop being weird.”

Teyva laughed; “They’re comfortable! Leave them be!”

“I intend to.”

Teyva scratched the back of her neck and looked her gear over one last time. Everything seemed to still be present and accounted for. Deciding that she didn’t want to go off walking without a little support - she hadn’t gone hiking more than a few times in her previous life - she called up the [Right arm of The Guardian]. The creepy-looking stave popped into her hand, the long copperish rod making a small thumping sound as it hit the ground. Azrael glanced back and just rolled her eyes before waving her hand to beckon Teyva.

“Come on, let’s go.”

Teyva hesitated.

But then she wouldn’t have a walking stick! How would that even work? Would she just have a big pole sticking out of her arm? She frowned, trying to imagine it, and dismissed the prompt. She kept the thought at the back of her mind though. She rationalized that the system wouldn’t have suggested it if there wasn’t a practical purpose behind it. Though she also wondered if she memorized the item would it lose its growth property? She shook the thoughts away at an attention-gathering cough from Azrael. The Warden gave Teyva an impatient look.

“Right! Sorry! Coming!” She called, hurrying to catch up with the Azar. She took one last glance back at the entrance to the cave where everything had begun. It was there that she’d been reborn. She had suffered. She had been changed forever by that place, her body, and probably her mind. She wasn’t sure how much, but she had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before she realized just the full extent of the changes. Either way, she doubted she would ever return. She closed her eyes and inclined her head to the place wishing Teyva Rani a silent farewell.

“Rest well.”