The Succubae Seduction Bk. 02: The Twins Ch. 26

Shelly wondered if the other woman could defend herself against the Myrmidon Queen. Nanny had the upper hand in that last altercation, but she was wise enough not to mention that.

She weighed her words for a long moment before responding. "Despite what you may think or feel, I still care about you. I don't like seeing you suffer. I know I've mistreated you, and I don't expect you to take me back, but I'm a better person for having had you with me. I intend to continue being a better person, also."

Sonia regarded her for a while before giving a firm nod. "You seem to be healthier. Whatever that thing did to you seems to agree. I've never seen anyone recover or be so energized after a thirty-seven-second nap. We should get moving if we want to catch up with your other ex."

Those last words stabbed deep into Shelly's heart. The old her might have turned and hidden away, crying. But she wasn't going to be that person anymore. No more running! Of course, she had to wonder if she'd truly been that awful to Sonia, to deserve such hostility.

Nanny stepped into the hallway, still cradling Rain. Shelly moved to her, reaching for her baby. Rain sensed her mother, opening her eyes and giving a soft burble before reaching for her.

Shelly felt her breasts start to leak a little as she held Rain close to her chest. How could she be ready to feed again after having fed Rain a bit ago? Without saying a word, the two turned and followed after Sonia. Must be a side effect of the accelerated healing.

For just a moment, Shelly was able to imagine that there was peace around her until they turned into Gaia's antechamber. Two giant rocs crowded the balcony that led out into open air. The massive birds turned at their entrance, and pandemonium ensued.

Both birds tried to enter the smaller room at once, screeching as they attempted to reach Shelly.

No, they were after Nanny! Shelly forgot that these rocs had fought and killed Myrmidons before. The ant creatures were a tasty snack to the birds that were big enough to carry whole elephants.

Nanny tried to tell her something, but Shelly couldn't hear over the cacophony of the birds. The rocs were slowly getting closer, though the room was far too small for one, much less both avians to enter. And they were destroying the place in their attempt.

Shelly turned to tell Nanny that she should probably sit this one out. But the creature was gone, and with her, Rain. For a moment, Shelly panicked. Her baby was gone. She was defenseless and so fragile! How did Nanny take her from Shelly without her noticing?

It took the rocs a few more seconds to realize that their quarry escaped. With plenty of squawks and no small amount of additional damage to the room, the birds backed out. A few massive feathers littered amongst the broken furniture and overturned detritus that was once a well-organized room. Shelly knew the birds rather well, and she couldn't help but think that they were proud of themselves, despite having missed their prey. They must think they'd scared away an enemy, rather than someone who was currently on their side.

"It looks like the coward fled," Sonia said, seeming quite happy with Nanny's retreat, though she'd had nothing to do with it. "At least it took your child with it. We're better off not having to worry about it while we try to track down Jessica."

Shelly looked at the other woman with a bit of suspicion, as she tried to force herself to calm down. She knew that the android resented the child, and remembered the way she'd coldly put a bullet into Aecus. But at the same time, Sonia made sense. They were better off not taking the tiny baby with them.

Why, then, did she feel so bereft without her child around?

"I won't hurt it," Sonia said, seeing into Shelly's emotions. "My mission is to protect you, and I can see that you are bonding to it, despite everything. If I harmed it, it would hurt you. I'll protect it the same way I'll protect you."

"It has a name," Shelly reminded her. "Yet you can't even say her name."

Sonia grimaced but nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. Every time I look at her, I'm reminded of how you looked when we stormed in to rescue you. But my statement earlier stands. Despite our recent issues, and despite what Aecus did to you, I don't hold Rain responsible. I've done some terrible things in the name of national security, or to accomplish my missions, but even I'm not monster enough to harm an innocent child."

Shelly thought the apology was too quick, but then she remembered the speed at which Sonia could compute information. And she used Rain's name without any malice. It wasn't much, but it showed progress.

Shelly considered her child, still a little surprised at her maternal instincts. Why did she care so much about a child that only yesterday she didn't want? Rain was forced upon her. Sure, she was integral to the ecosystems of both worlds, but Shelly was ready to shunt her off before she was born.

Then she remembered the feel of Rain in her arms. Remembered feeding the infant, and knowing that she was innocent of the circumstances of her conception. Shelly hated Aecus and what that monster did to her. But Rain... Rain wasn't Aecus. Wouldn't be raised to be like Aecus.

"Let's just go," she said, instead of responding to Sonia. Nanny would take care of Rain while she went to face Jessica. Part of her felt guilty for abandoning her responsibility, outweighed by her knowledge of the importance of stopping Jessica.

Sometimes it was hard doing what was needed, rather than what was wanted. Like giving birth to the child of rape so that the world could live... Or stopping her ex-girlfriend from destroying their universe.

She looked back as she finished climbing onto her roc, and saw Nanny cradling Rain deeper within Gaia's home. Take care of her, she thought to the telepathic creature. I expect her to be healthy and strong when I get back. She couldn't be sure but thought she saw the Myrmidon nod as the roc leaped from the ledge.

Shelly's stomach flipped over as the massive bird plummeted. Its wings caught the air after only a second, and they were soon heading towards the Pillar of Fire's domain. They needed to skirt around Darkness's area.

Shelly held herself close to the bird's neck as they dropped towards the ground. They'd flown over the border between Fire and Air twice, but saw nothing out of the ordinary from above. She hated to admit it, but that meant they would have to look for clues while grounded.

On the shared border between Light, Fire, and Air, Shelly dismounted and stretched her legs.

"So, this is your half-sister's domain?" Sonia asked. They were in Angela's portion of this world, and while there was a little bit of ground in Lysa's, it was a turbulent area. Stray gusts of wind whipped around them, helping to cool the sweat that beaded Shelly's brow.

Sonia walked to the edge of the ground and looked down, shaking her head. Then she looked into the distance and gave a low whistle. Her hair whipped erratically, blowing first one way, then another.

Shelly understood the sentiment. Of all the areas in this world, The Pillar of Air's demesne was the most alien. The wind always blew, and there was very little ground. Lysa once told her that if she were to jump from the ledge, she would fall forever. However, in the distance, floating islands of various sizes bobbed in the unending sky. Birds, griffons, harpies, and many other flying creatures could be seen around those islands or flying in between floating land. She hadn't seen it for herself, but she'd heard ghosts tended to haunt the islands near where Darkness's influence pierced Lysa's control.

"Any ideas on how we're supposed to track down your sister?" Sonia asked, her voice raised above the wind.

"She's not my sister!" Shelly snapped, more heat in her tone than she intended. Only when she looked to Sonia did she realize that the android hadn't meant it.

"I know, but you know what I mean," Sonia stated. "She's your father's girlfriend's daughter. Or something like that. Unless she can fly, I don't know what she'd be doing here, though."

Shelly wanted to argue further about Jessica but decided this wasn't the time nor the place. Chances were, Sonia was trying to get under her skin, and knew that the other woman was the best way to do so. She took a steadying breath and looked around.

"I'm sure someone of your superior intellect, and with your processing power could come up with a solution much quicker than I," Shelly said, deciding to do a little digging of her own.

Instead of getting offended, or even defensive, Sonia chuckled. "Well, since your brother got me fired, and I got demoted to babysitting, my abilities are reduced," she said, laughter thick in her voice. "But I'm sure someone who is infallible could certainly point us in the right direction."

Shelly ground her teeth, trying to keep her emotions in check. Was Sonia trying to tease her or piss her off? If the former, she wasn't in the mood. If the latter... Well, she wasn't in the mood for that either.

Shelly dropped down close to the ground, looking around. While marred by plenty of footprints, none of them looked human. She tried to think of what Jessica's plan could be. The other woman was trying to disrupt reality by killing Pillars. She'd failed against Gaia. Not many people or creatures could kill a Pillar, except for Firsts and Generators. Did Lysa still fall under that protection, since she wasn't a First? She took the Mantle of Air after Fujin's murder over two decades ago. Only Light, Dark, and Earth were originals. Would Lysa's death—heaven forbid it to occur—actually be enough to accomplish Jessica's goal? Or would it take the death of an original Pillar?

Standing back up, Shelly shook her head. Still too many questions with no answers in sight.

"I think our best option is to walk the border between Fire and Air and see what we find," Shelly said as she stood and looked along that delineation. "Hopefully, we'll see something along the way."

For some reason, Sonia looked disappointed with that but didn't say anything. Shelly dismissed the rocs to go frolic in their home territory and started walking, keeping an eye out for anything that stood out.

The two women remained silent for most of the trek. Multiple times Shelly would think of something to say, some way to apologize, or to defend her actions, but every time she looked at the other woman, she decided to remain silent. She liked Sonia and even cared about her. But she didn't think she could ever truly love her. Not that Sonia didn't deserve love, but that Shelly wasn't the one who could do her justice.

It was better that she let the other woman move on. Hadn't Shelly done enough damage? Sonia possessed a soul now, and even though it came from Shelly, the android acted nothing like her. And despite her new attitude, Shelly felt like the woman deserved to find happiness.

Without any warning or indication, Sonia started running. Shelly took off after her.

"Did you see something?" she asked, but Sonia waved her to be quiet. A little further and Shelly heard what sounded like someone yelling for help, carried on the wind. The ground was flat except where it dropped off sharply at the border, but she couldn't see anything or anyone ahead.

Sweat dripped from her brow when she reached the spot where she could hear the person, and her heart plummeted when she realized it was coming from over the ledge. Sonia beat her there and was already looking over. Joining her, she was shocked at who she saw.

"Schrödinger?" Shelly asked of the cat-man. "What are you doing here?"

The man was wedged into a crack, far down the side of the drop-off. His hands, a cross between cats' paws and human hands, were bloody as he held on for dear life.

"You're... You're Lyden Snow's daughter, right?" He looked up at her, recognition dawning on him. "Wait! Don't look away from me! I think I can climb up while like this, but I need you to keep looking."

Shelly barely stopped herself from looking at Sonia to see what she made of the situation. She remembered that as long as someone watched him, he was in that were-cat form. But if he was unobserved, he was fully human.

The last time she'd seen this man was when they visited him in his hidden underground town. Her family fled that town when Schrödinger disappeared, suspecting that he'd gone to do something... To betray them?

Now that she thought about it, their flight from that underground floating island didn't make a lot of sense. She remembered being woken up by Jessica and then fleeing in a rush early the next morning.

She also remembered turning herself into a swimsuit and hugging every curve of Jessica's lithe body.

Shaking her head, she tried to focus on the man slowly climbing up the baked rock cliff. Why was he here? Was he an agent of Jessica's? Had she used her power on him that night and given him orders? If so, was he still under her control?

"Be careful," Shelly whispered right into Sonia's ear. "He may be working with Jessica."

She saw the woman nod next to her but didn't say anything in response.

As Schrödinger climbed up over the lip, both women backed away but kept their eyes locked on him. He had whiskers, dark black fur on his head and cheeks, and golden eyes. He also looked much the worse for wear as he lay on the ground panting. Shelly noted that he was completely naked, and very human in the genitals department.

"I don't suppose either of you two has a cigarette on you by chance?" Erwin said with a hopeful glance, his Germanic accent light. "No? Well, no matter. I guess since that bitch sent you, she still has a use for me after all, then?"

This time Shelly looked at Sonia, trying to see if the other woman had a clue what Schrödinger was saying.

"Who are you?" Sonia asked.

Before the man could answer, Shelly stepped between them. "Sorry, Sonia is new to working for Jessica," she said, thinking fast. That had to be who Schrödinger was talking about when he referenced 'the bitch.'

"She lets you use her actual name?" he asked her, one eyebrow cocked. Before Shelly could think of an answer, he shook his head. "Oh, that's right. You two were pretty cozy. Figures she'd be nice to you."

Sonia must have caught on to the ruse as she spoke. "We were told to meet her here, and update her on our last assignment, but we seem to have lost her. Any idea where she went?"

Erwin looked at them funny, then slowly got to his feet and sniffed the air. "You don't smell right," he said to Sonia. "And if you can't sense where she is right now, that means you're not under her control... This means you don't work for her, and you're trying to get me to tell you where she is."

Shelly tensed and prepared to transform into a sword or a weapon of some type for Sonia to use.

"Please, relax," Schrödinger chuckled. "I'd be more than happy to tell you where she is, and I'm going in the opposite direction. That bitch ordered me to climb down there and see if there was a bottom. She left me to die. I might not be able to ignore any orders from her, but I already knew there was no bottom."

"Then where is she?" Shelly asked, not letting her guard drop altogether.

"When that cunt discovered that she couldn't navigate the Pillar of Air's lands, she went after the Pillar of Light," Schrödinger spoke as though he were talking about a crazy person. He pointed back the way they'd come and a little to the right. "She's almost on the edge of where I can sense her, but if you go that way, you'll be able to find her. A warning, though. Don't let her touch you, or she can take control of you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find the deepest, darkest hole I can find, and get myself completely wasted."

"Come with us," Sonia asked before the man could leave. "Help us stop her."

"Did you miss the part where I said I had to follow any orders she gives?" he demanded, baring his sharp fangs and arching his back much like a cat might. "I can't stop her. Even if I somehow snuck up and pounced on her, she ordered me never to do her harm. I have no choice but to run and hide."

The man turned and headed deeper into Fire's lands.

"She's going after the Pillar of Light," Sonia said with concern. "According to records, when the original Pillar of Fire was killed, both worlds almost went into an ice age. Only Angela taking over stopped that from happening. What would happen if the Pillar of Light is killed, and no one can step in to replace her?"

The Pillar of Light?!? Shelly thought with dread. She was the original First that created the space of order that they survived in... She literally created the universe! Shelly didn't want to think about what would happen if Jessica managed to kill her.

As much as she hated the idea of going back into the Pillar of Light's area of influence, she knew she needed to. Perhaps she'd run back into Amenadiel, and find a way to pay him back for what he'd done to her.

That was something she wouldn't feel an ounce of guilt over.

* * * *

Jessica cursed as she peered over a large boulder. The massive rock was more gray than brown, and like everything else in this realm, it looked washed out. Three angels appeared to be having tea out in the middle of nowhere, and directly in her path. She could sense the presence of a powerful being up ahead that she knew to be her target.

Who has tea in an ugly, white-washed place like this? she wondered as she tried to figure out a way past them.

If it were only one angel, it'd be no problem. She could trap it inside her other space, and then take control of it. But doing so always sapped her of some strength. She couldn't do three at once. Especially not three as powerfull as she sensed these beings were.

With a soft groan, she knew she'd be going around this trio. With how wide open this area was this close to her mother's lands, that meant a long detour.

The other one inside her mind pushed her to go on. It wanted freedom, and Jessica wanted the same thing. She was tired of the nameless thing's incessant drive to destroy the divide between the two worlds. She wanted to be rid of it. Maybe then she could lead a healthy life and be happy.

Maybe she could even find Shelly, and show her that what she was doing was for the better. She'd seen the hate that existed on Earth for those from this side of the veil. A hatred that was able to be fanned and goaded because there was a separation. Only by forcing the two sides to live together could they find common ground.

Or so the thing inside her insisted. All she had to do was look at all the different races that lived and thrived in this world to see that it was all true. They could live in peace, despite their multitude of differences. If regular humans were forced to see that, and not able to turn a blind eye, then such hatred could be eradicated.

Some humans were good, like her father, Lyden. He might not be entirely human, but it was evident that he didn't care about race. He loved her mother and had other wives, some human and some not. He was a good man, full of love and understanding. And once she was done showing what she could do by creating a better, unified world, she would present herself as his daughter.

She pictured him taking her in his arms and holding her tight. He'd wash away all those years of torment that her mother subjected her to. All that loneliness would go away. She'd have a real family.

Carefully, Jessica moved to remain out of sight. Angling to the right, she could avoid going any closer to the Pillar of Darkness's domain. She kept her focus on where she sensed the Pillar of Light, making sure it didn't move.