Lilith's Fall: Eden's Rise Ch. 01

Taking some time, I made sure I'd fully digested everything she was saying. I nodded once and opened my eyes.

Start with a seed. A small little seed. Now a stem seed its way free of the seed.

The streams of aether in the air began to stir, growing agitated as they slipped around without any pattern. Those aimless movements worked closer and closer to the point in the air that I was focusing on, the energy coalescing and pulsing.

Leaves bloom on the stem, nurturing the plant by capturing sunlight and converting it into growth.

A portion of the aether broke off as the roiling ball reached an equilibrium point, the construct possessing enough energy to force my desires into reality.

Now a bulb. Small and green until a bit of yellow pokes free. Then it unfolds, spreading its delicate petals wide with the bobbing little antenna in the middle.

I blinked my eyes as the flower of my mind took shape, appearing fully formed as it floated in the air, soft yellow petals as thin and as precious as I'd imagined. My hand approached the floating plant just as the spell completed in truth and the flower plummeted to the ground.

I looked at it with stunned surprise before releasing a little giggle.

I've done it! I can work magic in the way that it's meant to.

Wobbling with excited joy, I danced around within the comforting curl of Helal's body. She let the embrace linger for a little longer before letting us drift apart.

"It's also important to remember that everyone's soul touches upon different sections of the firmament, which means certain things will come easier or harder for you than others."

"How do I tell what I'd be good at?"

"No way of knowing other than trial and error."

I snorted. "Seems I inadvertently stumbled onto the right path. Do you want to see what I've been working on."

"Of course." She seemed genuine with her interest and it brought a childlike smile to my face.

It feels like I'm back in school, showing my girlfriend a project I was proud of.

Taking the recent lessons into account, I decided to give her a display grand enough to knock her socks.

Thick brown stalks, hard as tree trunks, twining together into a solid wall. Each seed digging deep into the ground, pressing their way both directions.

The dirt stirred as I reached out and funneled the wisps of energy, spinning them around to get the stirred up, agitating the environment making me easier to draw in. My brain flexed against reality, imagining each step in minute detail. Accounting for every piece I could think of with one very important exception.

Scale.

My enthusiasm outstripped my control, my eyes wide as the wall of woven trunks sprung up, as tall and wide as a castle wall. Frost began to spread across the ground and the smooth bark as the energy was leached from the air to fuel my spell. By the time I thought to cut off the flow of energy, the wall was twenty foot high, with sharp points at the top, the interwoven strands seemingly inseparable and as wide as my torso. Helal, wrapped her knuckles on the wall, producing a solid thunk. Spreading her hands out, she pushed against it, trying to topple the oversized, free-standing fence over.

It didn't budge.

"That was certainly... impressive," she finally said after taking a little to find the right word.

"Yep. Definitely what I meant to do." Flustered and embarrassed by the slip up, I played it off as best as I was able.

Helal was so impressed by my ability to channel the aether, that she failed to notice the small ruse. The silence stretched out while she continued testing the wall, thoughts swirling around at the implications.

"This is beyond amazing, El. The fact that it's this solid is a testament to your skill with plants. With this kind of fortification, we don't have to live a life on the run. Between the two of us, we can set up permanent defenses."

That's what she said.

What I heard was far more profound.

She wants to build a home with me. She wants to build a home. With me. And once we do, she won't have to go on so many scouting missions and she can stay with me and we can be a family. And I can grow fruits and vegetables and wheat to make flour. Or even make flour itself. I have magic now! And then I can bake her another pie and we can live happily ever after in our little oasis.

My thoughts rampaged through my brain in an ever accelerating stream of consciousness. Pinching my lips, I clapped my hands once.

But before that can happen, first we need to build a home.

For the first time in a long time I had a goal that burned warmly in my heart.

I turned to face Helal, my eyes fervent. "When? Can we start now? I can start now." I pointed to the junction next to the wall I'd created accidentally on purpose."

"Love the enthusiasm. But this spot is not the best for what I've got in mind."

My frown was pronounced.

Helal noticed and smirked, pulling me into a sideways hug that faced my living wall. "We'll get there. I don't like living out of a cave and sleeping on a bedroll any more than you do. How do you feel after that large of a spell? Any weakness?"

My eyes darted around as I took internal inventory of my body.

I am a little tired. But it's no worse than if I tried to lift anything too heavy.

"I'm okay. Maybe a little winded. But I don't think that's what you're talking about."

She whistled, gaze darting up and down the wall in appreciation. "Damn. The aether practically leaps to respond to you."

"I don't understand."

"Let's return to the painting analogy. Different people, or paint brushes, interact with paint better or worse than others. Each plane has different aether, which can make it easier or harder to empower spellwork. To normal people, the aether of planes other than the one they were born in is slippery, hard to grasp and slow to respond. Instead of a paint brush you are like a sponge. The aether willingly flocking to you. I think it has something to do with the melnad and the way the runework altered your firmament. Some sort of alteration that left you fuzzier, more open to influence."

"Runework... that's like what the wooden stick thing did. That's magic too, but it's different somehow?"

Helal nodded. "Aether is paint. And the firmament is the canvas. Runework is one way of safely changing the firmament. Usually safe," she amended. "Firmament tampering is like trying to paint whilst simultaneously changing the nature of the canvas, dreadfully tricky and liable to go horribly wrong and leave you with a smoldering pile of garbage instead of art." She ran a hand through my hair and I leaned into her touch. "Which makes what happened to you all the more amazing. The interfacing of the control rune with the memory core created that entirely new rune that shaped your firmament into what it is today. I don't know if what happened with your connection to the aether was a result of the unknown rune or the cause. Your access to the aether is beyond amazing, especially from a plane that is not your own. And the way you can channel the aether safely into others... Eve would give her left tit to study..." She winced and looked away, her expression tightening up from some painful memory. "Let's just say that I haven't heard of anything like it."

"Is that the warning?"

"One of them. Don't touch the firmament. That's an important rule. I don't care how desperate or curious you are. Without a great deal of caution and control, anything messing with the firmament has the capacity to go wrong and do a great deal of harm." Her finger thumb brushed across my forehead that once had a shining sigil.

Capturing her hand, I gave it a kiss, reassuring her without words. "Got it, no fucking with the firmament." I frowned then. "But, I would have to recognize what it looks like before I know not to touch it."

"Again, everyone touches and interacts with these sorts of things differently, but there's one universal way to get a glimpse of the firmament."

"Oh?"

She carefully guided me to sit on the ground before sitting right across from me. "Now, I want you to look through my eyes. See beyond what sits on the surface."

I tried to do as she asked. At first nothing happened, her captivating red eyes were all I could focus on. Then a glimmer caught my attention. Twinkling in the center of her pupil, it was like a mirage I had to chase down a winding tunnel of darkness. At the end I was left with a vision that was beyond sight, coming to me in formless impressions and ideas more than visual stimuli.

Judgement. An iron determination that smelled of heated metal was the core with which other ideals floated around.

Pride. Golden wings and a burning need to prove herself.

Will. A heaviness that distorted the space around it with her conviction to see things through to the desired end.

Then it was over. After the experience, I understood both Helal and firmament better.

It's less a thing, and more an element of nature, unseen but still felt like gravity, lurking in the background but touching and affecting everything.

"Eyes are the window into the soul," I whispered reverently. The sight felt seared into my brain. It was something I would cherish for all the years of my life, that glimpse of the truth about Helal, about what she stood for.

After that, I practiced magic under her watchful eyes. She praised me for my speed and stamina while commenting that I should practice my control.

"It's important that the aether does what you tell it to. And only, what you tell it to. That's why the visualization process is so vital. Otherwise you can end up with unpleasant unforeseen consequences."

The next week was nicer than the previous. Helal's scouting trips were closer to home and I continued to gain experience with magic, or aether manipulation, as Helal insisted on calling it. Her honest joy at my progress was infectious, coloring random contemplative moments with growing pride at my accomplishments. Besides that, it also wasn't quite so lonely and even though no more indigenous insects fluttered by to say hi.

On one such peaceful day, Helal returned in a rush. Her words were calm but undermined by the shadow of fear that lurked in the hollow parts of her face. "You need to hide in the cave. Whatever you see, don't come out, okay."

I trusted Helal, but before I did what she told me to, I forced myself to step forward and squeeze her into a tight hug. "Okay. Love you. Be safe."

She returned my embrace for a moment before giving me a gentle shove where she wanted me to go. I jogged over to the cool darkness of the excavation-expanded cave. I'd barely made it inside before two shapes appeared over the hill in the distance. I debated with myself for a couple moments before curiosity got the best of me.

Peaking my head out from the cave, I observed the meeting from my concealed position. Helal approached the two men in battle-mode, eyes blazing with fiery wings and sword, an angel of judgment in all her glory. "Adam, Belial, what are you doing here?"

The smaller of the two men spoke. "Funny, you took the words right out of my mouth. Commander, why did you desert? God is positively fuming. Come home so that we can resolve this."

The two men's appearances could not be more different. The one who did the talking was on the smaller side of big. Dressed to the nines, he wore a sleek suit and oozed aristocratic confidence. He had a face that was easy to trust without standing out too much. He possessed the kind of look that every standard man aspired to.

The other man said nothing and glowered. His darker toned skin reflected the red tone of the sand into an ominous mask that complemented his eyes which remained locked on Helal's face. I didn't like the way he looked at her, a mixture of respect and enmity that had my stomach roiling. He was large without being bulky, complete with a body built for fighting. The dark scar that ran along his jaw only complemented that aesthetic. Clad in muted metallic armor with chainmail along the joint's, he seemed every bit a conquering crusader that they labeled themselves.

Helal's response was seething. "That isn't a home. It took me some time but even the foolishly gullible can spot a truth if it stares them in the face for long enough." Helal's posture was defensive, her head jerking every few seconds, her eyes alert for potential reinforcements. "I've never liked you Adam. You're cocky and self-centered. But, for that sake of your partner and my second, I'll let you leave unharmed."

The large black crusader scowled while the well-dressed man held his hands out wide. "Ouch. I thought we had a wonderful relationship, sister."

The lines of Helal's jaw pulsed as she clenched. "We aren't a family, we are tools to be used to spread the 'glory' of his name." She spat the words out as if they offended her. "Come on, Adam. You had to have seen it too. You've always been the smartest among us." The man grew quiet, thoughtful, contemplating her words.

Or so she thought.

The moment she'd begun her castigation of their father, I noticed a strange distortion surround Adam and the other man. The two split like a cell undergoing mitosis, two similar sized pods moving away from each other but connected with a small tether in a middle. The surface of the haze was beautiful and fascinating and I looked closer. It was almost like they'd been enveloped by a cocoon of...

Aether! They're casting a spell!

I sprung from my hiding place, fear for Helal overpowering her commands. My hasty actions had the unfortunate side effect of drawing Helal's attention away from the potential danger I was trying to bring to her attention. The ball of haze that'd been moving increased it's speed, closing on the now distracted Helal. Desperately reaching out, I pulled at the aether waves near me, imagining a spell of my own.

Water. A pillar of water. Each droplet colliding with the next. Ricocheting down the line, one after another as it pours from my hand. Flying faster and faster. Accelerating even as it hits that veil of magic. Hard enough to throw them back and force them into the light.

The aether responded eagerly to my desperation, waves of it coming to my call, sucking out of the tenuous grasp that Adam had, circulating back to touch me before springing forward into a raging torrent that a firehose spray dreams of becoming.

My draining of the ambient aether had a few consequences. The first being the dissolution of the illusionary constructs that occupied the space where the invading crusaders once stood. The second being the appearance of those same two men in the space near Helal, that same space occupied by the magic. The final being that Helal's magic was not unaffected, as her wings and sword flickered and went out as my crudely formed spray of water closed in on the now-revealed Adam.

Unfortunately they reacted quickly, Adam's companion pulling them both to the side without missing a beat. Shoving the well-dressed man even further out of the way of the continuing water beam, he drew a very-real, non magically driven sword, and closed the distance on Helal.

Raw, distilled panic clawed at my chest. While fast, he couldn't beat the speed of thought. Gripping the aether, I shunted it toward Helal, shoving it into her with one desperate thrust. I tripped over some craggy ground, tumbling into a sliding spill that took me out of the encounter for what might as well have been an eternity but didn't last more than a few seconds.

During that time, Helal took advantage of the stirred up aether I'd given her. A full set of blazing golden armor, bright as the rising sun, enfolded her body in it's embrace, the heat turning the ground to slag beneath her feet.

"Belial... I've always liked you. Appreciated your service. In the name of that, let us not fight."

Belial, skidded to a stop on the water-slicked ground, brow furrowed in confusion and anger. "You... You left me, Commander! Abandoned your post without so much as a warning. After all those years... No." His eyes flicked towards where I was still struggling to get to my feet. "Deserters get what's coming to them," he said coldly, flicking his arm. A thin-blade of ice sliced through the air toward my unknowing back. It wasn't large, but it didn't need to be with the speed it traveled.

Helal scrambled, swinging her hand as a blade of living flame lashed out from her palm in an attempt to deflect the projectile. The ice moved too quickly. The heat only kissed the backside, making it slick with water, droplets flinging wide as it slipped past the molten sword. I'd only just managed to get my limbs underneath me, raising my head to catch a glimpse of the glossy wet death flying my way.

My savior came from the sky. A black carapaced tail swung near my head, batting the deadly christmas decoration into a flurry of glistening snow. Dust swirled as delicate-looking wings furiously beat, bleeding away the momentum of a dive. It was a thin, elfin woman, not quite five feet tall with wings bigger than she was, decorated with fuzzy black eyes on each of the four fluttery appendages. A bulbous black tail with a wicked looking stinger at the end twitched like an angry cat's as she assumed an aggressive stance, shielding me with her body.

There were no attacks forthcoming, upon seeing that the ruse was up, Adam scurried over to Belial and withdrew an ancient looking jade broach. The aether around them was sucked into the thing like a vampiric explosion and then they both vanished, leaving behind nothing but a crackling ring of frost on the ground.

I shivered, the aether teasing my skin as it rushed to fill the void left by the activation of what I presumed to be an artifact. My insect-winged protector relaxed her stance wandering off a couple steps where she took her tail into her hands. Bringing it to her mouth a thin tongue darted out to play across the scuffed section left by the would be murderous icicle.

Helal ran over to me and slid on the ground to collect me into her arms. "Who is that?"

"What was that?" I asked at the same time, our words spilling around the others.

We both turned to look at the newcomer who had saved me.

"Hello. I'm not sure what was done to me, but I woke up a few days ago and my mind seemed different. I heard a noise and came to investigate. Upon arrival I witnessed the attack and reacted to intervene. Who are you people? And why does she-" The bug-girl pointed at me with her bulbous scorpion tail. "- feel like something called family?"

End of Chapter 1