Shattered Moonstone

It's finally time! Hecatolite’s cheerful voice rang out, waking Amethyst.

“What?” Amethyst jumped from their bed, stumbling in a haze as she wildly grabbed for the sword that was next to her bed. 

Over the course of the last few years, she had been training not only in her magic but her sword skills as well, even more so in the few months since the last solstice offering.

It's your birthday. Hecatolite giggled in her mind as she slowly got her bearings, looking around the empty room.

Amethyst let out a sigh as she lowered the sheathed weapon. “It's our birthday, Hecatolite.” It wasn’t the first time Hecatolite had woken her in such a manner, yet it was never pleasant to have someone yelling in your head. She rubbed her eyes as she looked out the window, the sky barely showing the first signs of light. “Barely. Why did you wake me up?” She groaned as she fell back into the bed, the sword clamoring onto the floor beside her.

Because it's your birthday! Hecatolite broke into an ear-splitting song, the song would have been nice if sung by anyone other than Hecatolite but… it wasn’t that she couldn’t sing. In fact, Hecatolite amazingly had a rather soothing voice when she wanted, it was just she always insisted on yelling when she sang and never remembered the lyrics. Happy birthday to you! Who's birthday?! Why it’s you! you should get cake and donuts too!... yae! birthday! Let's go get gifts now.

The song was followed by an uncomfortable amount of clapping and cheering, Amethyst was sure she heard fireworks at one point but couldn’t be sure. “Hecatolite… Do you want to know what would be great right now? All I want for our birthday?”

What? Is it food? Our tummy is all rumbly, we should fill it with cake.

“And we will, later. But right now, all I wish for is 3 more hours of sleep.” Amethyst groaned covering her head with her pillow doing nothing to quiet the voice in her head. “Please?”

There was a long pause causing Amethyst to think she may have hurt her enthusiastic sister’s feelings. Ok nap then cake. No wait, donuts for breakfast.

Amethyst chuckled dryly as she buried her head deeper into the soft bed, “fine donuts then cake. Good night Hecatolite.”

Hecatolite yawned in her mind before Amethyst could feel her settle down, she could hear her sister start to hum. It was that low inhuman hum she did whenever she relaxed, the one that sent a calming tingle running down her spine as her whole body relaxed. The low hum quickly lulled both of them back to sleep.

As for why Hecatolite was so excited, it was actually very simple. Today was the first true milestone in their plans to separate, their 13th birthday. After today, they would finally be able to register as adventurers, which had a whole list of benefits.

As adventurers, they would get an ID, one that is recognized anywhere in the world that an adventuring guild had been established meaning they could even cross the borders at a reduced cost depending on their rank. This was of course as long as they completed “requests” while in a neighboring territory or nation. 

They would be able to take requests from the guild as well. This would help them train for their trip as the request could take anywhere from a few hours to weeks, everything from picking herbs to slaying mighty beasts was possible if one was capable… if their rank was high enough of course. 

But most of all, what she was excited about, Hecatolite wanted to hunt. More specifically, she wanted to eat what she hunted, but to do that she needed to hunt first. An adventurer’s badge worked a bit like a hunting license, it would permit someone to hunt beasts as well as sell their parts in town. She already had plans to sell whatever she didn’t eat to buy different food inside of town, mainly because the two's growing appetite had been quite alarming as they grew. 

Though they had been assured that it was no problem by their family, Amethyst and Hecatolite’s insatiable hunger had turned several heads in the past few years, so they had agreed they needed to come up with a more sustainable solution to alleviate it. And there was still the problem with Hecatolite’s missing hand. 

Hecatolite refused to use her sister’s body to eat another person, even if it would be the fastest way… and their mother could acquire a person; Amethyst decided to just ignore their mother’s willingness to sacrifice another person with the same even tone she used when deciding if the city could afford to paint the walls. The way Hecatolite had phrased her unwillingness to do it had bothered Amethyst as it had hinged not on the moral problems with eating a person, but “Amethyst’s” apparent dislike of doing it. 

They created the “if it can talk it's not food” agreement, that they embarrassingly had everyone agree to… it was strange how many people didn’t question the agreement. Hans even had posted the saying with the city laws on the gate, most people just assumed it was a cultural thing with so many races and didn’t question it…. the world is weird.

This only left the moral problem of eating a soul but Hecatolite, always the crafty one, had stated that, “I will only eat a little bit of a lot of souls. That way it can still reincarnate like normal.” Which… would have to work despite Babylon's protest on the matter. She did also agree to only do that when she needed to heal so Amethyst couldn’t really argue given Hecatolite’s injuries were normally because of her…

“I have to get stronger.” Amethyst whispered into her drink as she sat at the dinner table.

The day had been nice, if a little lackluster in terms of birthdays. They wandered around the city receiving heartfelt wishes from people even visiting Applejack and being gifted a lovely cake… though the young man was as warm as ever to Amethyst, she couldn’t help but notice his dismissal of her sister whenever she came up. She had made a mental note to talk with him about it later.

They returned home to find both their parents and Alexa, who came back from the capital, though she arrived a little later than planned; waiting for them in the dining room where they spent the rest of the day just relaxing while talking. There was no world politics, no threats of war. Just them, together enjoying each other’s company as the day slowly came to an end.

Are you ready? Hecatolite asked in her mind, causing a slight feeling of uncertainty creep up Amethyst's spine as she tried to think of what her sister was talking about.

“Ready… for what?” she asked, looking at everyone at the table. 

Only the best gift ever! Hecatolite exclaimed as a Babylon terminal appeared with a crack behind her. 

Amethyst could hear the terminal instructing Saffron, who was never far from them, to “go and get the thing please.”

“Do you guys know what’s going on?” Amethyst asked as the woman’s footsteps faded into the house.

“Well,” Alastair scratched his beard, “you are planning…” he was cut short when Taaffeite elbowed him in the side.

“It's a present, one Hecatolite put a lot of work into.” Her mother finished.

“Her and everyone she could rope into it...” Alexa was cut short by her mother’s stern look. 

Before she could inquire more Saffron returned, a large black bundle in her arms. “This,” she gently placed it before Amethyst, “is a gift from my mistress. Please let me know if you require assistance putting it on.”

Amethyst couldn’t help but hesitate as she placed a hand on the strange leather bundle before her. “What is it?” She asked rubbing the soft leather before unraveling it to reveal something that she never expected to receive.

Laying before her was a complete set of what looked like mages armor. The robes were a soft black leather with a blackened metal chest plate attached in such a way that one would have to pull it over their head to put it on. It also had a strangely light set of matching metal greaves, and gauntlets as well as a… large brimmed hat? The top of which came to a point that flopped to the side.

Amethyst held the hat up looking at the detailed designs in the black leather like fabric… “What is this made out of?”

Leather duh. Hecatolite mocked her mind.

“It is made from my wings that had been removed during my captivity.” Saffron’s answer caused Amethyst to pause as the succubus began separating the armor bundle, “would you like to try it on? My mistress has put a lot of work into crafting this armor for you. I am sure she would like to see you wear it.”

SAFFRON you weren’t supposed to tell her! Tell Saffron she wasn’t supposed to tell you!

Amethyst looked back to her family who all just shrugged before looking back to Saffron, “are… are you ok with me having this?” She secretly wished the woman wouldn’t be, though she doubted it.

“Of course, lady Amethyst,” Saffron chuckled, “you are my mistress’s dear sister. Your safety is one of my top priorities.” She took the robe and held it up to Amethyst as if sizing it up to her. “The leather from my wings is not only a great mana conductor but it would offer protection from most elements.” She picked up one of the gauntlets, “along with the mithril armor the church had donated will protect you from most anything you will run into while adventuring. All of that with my mistresses’ personal enchantments I can confidently say this armor will be more than sufficient to guarantee not only yours, but my mistresses continued safety even while away from the protection of the city.”

“m…mmm…. mithril?” She stammered looking down at the blackened metal. She had seen mithril before but to be gifted an entire suit of the rare magical metal. “I can’t wear this! It’s gotta be worth more than our whole house!” She yelled only to be caught off by her father’s boisterous laughter.

“Our house,” Alexa laughed as Taaffeite shook her head, “That armor is likely worth more than the entire city after Hecatolite enchanted it.”

“Only the finest protection for my girls!” Alastair bellowed slapping the table

I didn’t do that much to it really! Hecatolite yelled jumping to defend herself. Just a few protection enchantments… and color changing… and cleaning…. self-repair, that was a hard one, well not as hard as the sizing enchantment. This armor will always fit by the way… the hat has a lot of protection enchantments on it since it’s the helmet, gotta protect the noggin. Oh yea, I kind of made the whole thing into a relic, it stores mana! But more specifically prayers! Now I won’t puke when people pray to me! Well unless its full then it’s a ride down to barf town so you must wear it and use it! or I'll puke in your shoes! Do you have any idea what that much pure mana will do to your fancy shoes, because I don’t! but I’m sure it won’t be pretty… also a temperature enchantment so you don’t get hot and sweaty. Saffron gets kind of sticky when she’s wet…. Leather! Leather gets sticky when she’s… Hecatolite’s rambling was cut abruptly short by an image of Saffron’s bare butt sticking up in the air leaving Amethyst there looking into the eyes of the woman she had just envisioned naked on a bed… and her family who were laughing and smiling unknowing of why she was suddenly turning red.