The Mother of Monsters

When Teyva and the others returned to the Pinnacle, their tasty luggage in tow, they found Azrael sitting on one of the couches with a pensive look on her face. Teyva glanced to Batel who shrugged, walking over to a nearby table to set the food down. Teyva walked around the couch that sat between her and Azrael and was surprised to see Elat’s bow on Azrael’s lap. He never went anywhere without it. Frowning, Teyva walked over and threw herself into the couch to Azrael’s left, letting out a yawn and stretching.

“Sup, Az?” Teyva asked, throwing her arm around her friend’s shoulder, “Whatcha got there?”

“It’s Elat’s bow,” Azrael said numbly, running her fingers over it, “He gave it to me today.”

Teyva blinked, leaning forward to get a good look at it. For a world like Orum it was pretty advanced as far as how it was built, from what she could tell anyway. The compound short bow was built of multiple interlocking sections that were joined with coils of thick thread that were wrapped around spools attached to points on its body. Teyva had seen him fire an arrow once through the body of a tree with this bow. She knew his hand was useless to him now, but it was still a precious item to him, why would he give it to Azrael?

“He loves that thing,” She reached up and gave Azrael a playful shake, “He really does like you huh?”

“I told him I’d think about it, I didn’t have an answer for him right away,” Azrael murmured, thumbing the bowstring before glancing at Teyva, she looked positively frantic, “What do I do? I have to say something, right?”

Teyva opened her mouth and shut it, tilting her head to the right. That was a weird way of putting it, what was the big deal? It was just a bow, right? Was it some kind of cultural thing? She scratched her nose and tried to think a little about what she knew about Orcs. The word for Male often translated to ‘lord of the hunt’ in their native tongue while Female translated to ‘lord of the house’. Obviously, that meant that primarily male orcs carried bows. She looked at Azrael’s expression, so what did it mean to give your bow to the lord of a house? It hit her like a slap to the face.

“Wait, did he like, propose to you or something?” Teyva asked.

Azrael narrowed her eyes, “Catching on already huh?”

Teyva didn’t know what to say, “That’s… awesome! Isn’t it?”

“Well…” Azrael looked back down at the bow, “He makes me happy, yes. But I just can’t help but wonder…” She trailed off.

Teyva frowned, “That he’s only doing it because of what happened to his hand.”

Azrael nodded, gripping the body of the bow tightly.

“Come on, Az,” Teyva groaned, squeezing her friend into a hug, “You know better than that. The big lug is head-over-heels for you. He was going to give you that bow one way or the other. Maybe his hand made the decision a little easier, who knows? That’s something you gotta ask him directly,” Teyva said, releasing Azrael and leaning back against the cushions. “Doesn’t matter, you make each other happy. I’ll start working on my speech for the reception.”

Azrael looked at her, bewildered, “Reception?”

“For the wedding!” Teyva laughed, then paused, “Do you guys not have receptions after your weddings?”

“The post-ceremonial festive?” Azrael clarified.

“Sure, we’ll call it that,” Teyva said with a laugh, “Seriously though, you already know your answer, you’re just being a brat about it.”

“I am not a brat!” Azrael grunted, giving Teyva a punch on the shoulder.

Teyva burst into laughter and rubbed her arm. Azrael’s hard expression faded into a warm smile and she let out a sigh, “Thank you, I’ll figure out how and when to respond to him, I’ve got to do it right.”

“Just don’t make the poor guy wait, yeah?” Teyva said.

“Right, right,” Azrael said, looking down at the bow and running her fingers over it one more time, “So what happened down below?”

“Your lady is a goddess now,” Paraklytus, who had been unceremoniously eavesdropping said as he glided across the floor. 

“A what?” Azrael blurted.

A few minutes of explaining later, Azrael was in tears, laughing, hunched over, and laying on her side on the couch. Teyva’s face had almost entirely turned a deep gray from the embarrassment. She glared at Paraklytus who looked immensely pleased with himself from his spot on the couch across from them. Azrael coughed and barked out a few more chuckles before sitting up, wiping the tears from her eyes. She looked at Teyva and struggled to restrain another bout of laughter, her lips trembling. Teyva rolled her eyes, “Har har, laugh it up.”

“I am never letting you live this down,” Azrael laughed, “No way.”

Teyva sighed, “I was afraid of that.”

Azrael struggled to catch her breath, “So when are you going to come out to Yaga about your newfound divinity?”

Teyva covered her face, “Please don’t tell Yaga.”

“Tell me what?” Yaga said as the lift doors shut behind her not far away.

Teyva looked up to the ceiling and closed her eyes as Azrael gave her interpretation of the events. Soon, Yaga was also tearily laughing on the couch next to Paraklytus, “Oh by the aspects! Be gentle with me tonight, your worship!”

Teyva was, at this point, completely deadpan in her expression. “You having fun?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Yaga said, “The King will of course need to be kept abreast of your relationship with the newborn Akurai.”

“I hate you,” Teyva grunted, crossing her arms, “And here I was thinking I would let you guys watch me absorb another aspect today.”

Azrael’s head whipped in her direction, “Hey now! Really?”

“I dunno,” Teyva pouted.

“Oh come on!” Yaga chimed in, “This is your fifth right? The only other being I know of with five aspects is the King! I can’t miss this!”

Teyva squinted at the two of them and at Paraklytus who was, of course, remaining remarkably still thanks to his bony body. She knew if he had a face he would be snickering right now. She sighed and scratched the back of her head, “Fine, just take it easy on the goddess cracks, the whole situation is really awkward.”

“Fine fine!” Azrael said, “I promise. Now let’s see it!”

Teyva shot her friend a playful smile and drew the box containing the [Aspect Stone of the Siren] out of her inventory. She placed it down on the table between them. Batel walked over to join them, leaning against the couch behind Paraklytus to get a good look. Teyva glanced over her shoulder, “The Marble? Can you call Nephral out here please dearie?” She asked. The creature obliged, using its flagella to open the door before rumbling out a quiet grunt as to not wake the baby sleeping inside. A moment later Nephral hurtled out the door and alighted on the couch near his mother’s shoulder.

“Hello mother,” Nephral said demurely, inclining his head.

“Hello nephy,” She cooed, scratching his chin, “How’s the baby?”

“The child is strong and rests well in her sanctuary. She is already making efforts to explore,” Nephral reported.

Teyva raised an eyebrow, “That was fast. I don’t think that’s normal.”

“A testament to her lineage, then,” Nephral crooned.

Teyva shrugged and gave the feline a kiss on the forehead before turning back to the business at hand. She opened the box and the others peered inside, Azrael being the first to react. “It has a smell to it, like wildgrass.”

“I smell freshly baked bread,” Batel said, “How strange.”

Yaga made a face and glanced up at Teyva, “What stone is this?”

“Aspect of the Siren,” Teyva said, “Perry gave it to me as a gift.”

“I maintain a collection of unusual aspect stones, this one was a particular favorite of mine when I still had a nose to appreciate it,” The Lich said offhandedly.

The others turned to him, “A collection?” Yaga blurted, “As in how many?”

“Oh well over a hundred, I daresay,” The lich said, “They fascinate me,” The room fell silent and Paraklytus looked around, “Did I say something strange?”

Azrael threw up her hands, “Let’s just get this show on the road! I didn’t get a proper view when you used the Labyrinthian Stone,” She said, “I’m not missing this.”

“Right,” Teyva said and took a breath, reaching in and picking up the stone. It was smooth and glittered beneath her fingertips. “Might want to clear me some room,” She added and the others moved away, Azrael standing up to give Teyva free reign of the couch.

You meet the requirements to consume this [Aspect Stone of the Siren] This Aspect Stone contains the irresistible powers of a Siren. Requirements: [None] as per [Spark of the Outsider] Would you like to consume this Aspect Stone and gain access to the Siren Aspect Tree?  Yes / No

“Yes.”

In an instant, the stone began to dissolve as if it were a dissolving tablet in water. It began to bubble and hiss, an intense, intoxicating aroma rising off of its surface. Teyva felt her entire body grow warm as a thick mist rolled across her skin. She felt it grow tighter, her body beginning to ache as the substance seeped into her skin. She winced when the pain began to increase, her body doubling over and falling onto her side. She curled into a ball, closing her eyes even as her senses were assailed with a mixture of pleasure and pain. The others had only caused her agony, yet for some reason, this was the worst of them all. She felt an unnatural hunger boil at her very core, something ravenous that roared and thrashed about within her very being. She gripped the couch, panting, her skin growing hotter, her bones beginning to creak and groan as the stone changed her physiology.

Finally, the mist faded and she felt her entire body relax. She gasped, sitting up straight as fresh energy rushed through her body.  Paraklytus had his hand on his chin. Batel had covered his face. Azrael’s expression was a mixture of horror, fascination, and embarrassment, her skin flushed. Yaga had leaned back in her seat and was chewing on her knuckle, her own face flushed. Teyva looked down at herself and realized she was sweating. She looked at her hands, the structure hadn’t changed much beyond maybe her fingers becoming a bit slimmer. Her skin had lost some of the glitter and shine from the titan stone and had instead become smooth with an almost metallic shine. She brought her hands up to her face, her face had become a bit slimmer as well, losing the hardness that had come from her [Naturalist] transformation. She still had a jawline but it was smoother. She looked down at her body and frowned, “Really? Of course,” She grumbled, examining her chest. “At least the damn thing didn’t do anything obscene, no change here.”

“Not big on size?” Yaga asked, a little breathless.

Teyva stared at her, “I like my spine shaped the way it is, thanks.”

“I didn’t expect it to be so, uh…” Azrael blushed again and looked away.

“Fairly certain it was unique to that stone,” Teyva said, “Did you know, Perry? You old pervert?”

“Of course not, this is my first time seeing that stone used, especially in such a direct way. Fascinating. Performing the ritual would have had resulted in significantly less theatrics, though,” He pointed out.

“Ah, thanks for the heads up,” Teyva grunted.

“Well? What are the new abilities?” Azrael asked.

Teyva pulled up the prompt that was waiting for her.

You have awakened an Aspect: [Siren] Your attributes have already awakened, choose an attribute as your focus for this Aspect. Your body has been infused with the irresistible powers of a Siren, you gain the following abilities:
Irresistible [Siren] Pathetic Passive Aura	Your body produces an intense sensory aura within ten feet. Nearby intelligent creatures that fall under its effects will be immediately attracted to you, finding it difficult to ignore or disobey you. This charming effect can have long-term consequences when utilized correctly. You may enable or disable this aura at will.
Voice of the Siren [Siren] Pathetic Passive Enhancement	Your voice carries across all barriers. Creatures that would normally be unable to understand you are now influenced by your words and intentions. Sound-related abilities you possess are 10% more effective.

Teyva raised her eyebrows and pulled out her Journal, calling up the relevant details and passing it over to Azrael. Azrael read them and swallowed, shooting Teyva a sidelong glance. “These are a little scary,” She said, handing the book over to Yaga who peered at it with Paraklytus joining her. The two of them looked up at Teyva and then back down at the book. 

Teyva crossed her arms and frowned, “Hey it’s not like I picked those two out intentionally!”

Before the others could say anything, another prompt appeared.

Alert!  You now possess six aspects! This is the maximum number of aspects. Your sixth aspect has been locked!

“What the hell?”