Chapter Summary: Nephis has some family-bonding time with a gargantuan two-headed raven. It says a lot that this isn't the weirdest summary so far.
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"The only thing you know to do is bring ruin to those around you."
Nephis did not react at first.
She simply watched the creature as it drifted amidst the rain, its face shifting little by little into her own. The transformation was nauseating to witness. It looked as though countless tiny worms crawled beneath its skin, endlessly rearranging every detail with subtle movements until the resemblance became unbearable.
Its eyes became hers, its expression became hers, even the way it stood became hers.
Disgust stirred within her chest at the sight. She had been warned of the existence of a creature like this, but had thought it unlikely she would meet another with the same power.
It turned out that she was wrong.
And looking at it… Nephis felt something visceral, a burning disgust she reserved solely for the Ghouls and the Spell itself. There was something in those gray eyes, and in that mocking smile the doppelgänger wore, that made her skin crawl.
For several long moments, neither of them moved while thunder rolled across the black sky above.
Then Nephis spoke. "Fire."
Within the same instant, she invoked her Aspect, and radiance swallowed the storm all around her.
Her flaw answered the invocation with its familiar cruelty, agony erupting through her body hard enough to blur her vision for a brief moment. The world disappeared beneath white flames, and when the light faded once more, the creature was set ablaze.
And still, it looked at her with that same, mocking smile.
"Is this what you will do to them, if they don't submit?"
Despite the agonizing pain it must have been in as its skin bubbled and its flesh dissolved to reveal the bone beneath, the creature laughed.
"The Great Changing Star, nothing but a murderer with airs of grandeur."
Its laughter still echoed long after it died.
[You have slain a Corrupted Devil, Fledgling of Zephiras.]
[Your soul shines brighter.]
Nephis hovered silently amidst the rain while gray, ashen flakes drifted downward into the restless sea below.
"The only thing you know to do is bring ruin to those around you."
The words lingered unpleasantly within her mind, refusing to go away no matter how much she tried to banish them.
Even as she watched the distant flock warily, her mind refused to let go of the damning words. They kept playing on repeat, carrying the bitter taste of a truth she did not want to accept yet knew too well couldn't be denied.
People around her suffered.
People around her died.
No matter how desperately she fought against it, no matter how fiercely she struggled to protect them, or how dearly she wished it wouldn't happen, ruin always seemed to follow in her wake eventually.
Her parents at first, then her clan, grandmother, and so many more.
Before the thought could dig its roots any deeper, Nephis noticed movement in the distance.
The flock had grown agitated.
Dark silhouettes circled beneath the storm clouds with increasing unrest, their shrieks quieter now, uncertain. Keeping her eyes fixed on them, Nephis tilted her head slightly toward the right.
A radiant golden light flickered far away amidst the storm before vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared.
Nephis' eyes narrowed slightly at the sight. They had already changed course five times, and yet the light kept growing closer.
There were many possible explanations for that fact.
Maybe there was more than one source of light, or maybe it was moving in the same direction as they were. However, she knew very well the one that was most likely to be true.
Whatever the source of the light was, it was stalking them.
Her grip on the [Blessing of the Moon] tightened reflexively at the thought. They did not lack in challenges, and this one was raring to be a harrowing one.
And still, they would have to face it. There was still plenty of travel left before they could exit the Stormsea, and she didn't fool herself with the possibility that they wouldn't meet the horror behind it.
Yet another impossible challenge to beat.
She almost missed the feeling. Almost.
Nephis turned around when she sensed a vile presence approaching from behind.
Immediately, she spotted another Corrupted Devil gliding silently through the rain while its flesh shifted rapidly into her likeness.
Nephis raised her sword, preparing herself to deliver burning death upon this creature before it could speak—
Another presence entered her senses before she could, stronger and twice as vile.
The flock scattered violently as a massive shape burst through them, barreling through the storm with overwhelming force. The creature was enormous, easily thrice the size of the biggest Nightmare Creatures surrounding it.
Just like its kind, it was avian in shape, with sharp talons and a vicious-looking beak. Unlike them, it also boasted a serpentine tail that ended in a ball of yellowish spikes.
For the briefest moment, wariness coiled within her chest before being doused by her determination.
It was a Great Beast, the first she had ever faced directly.
Nephis inhaled slowly, acknowledging the danger it represented before discarding all of her reticence. It was the strongest Nightmare Creature she had ever faced, but it would die all the same.
A faint smile tugged at her lips for the briefest moment when, inwardly, she asked herself -with a voice that sounded suspiciously like Sunny- if she was crazy.
She wasn't. If anything, at times, she felt like the only one who was sane in a world gone mad.
The Great Beast descended upon her instantly.
Its beak alone was nearly thrice as large as she was, cutting through the storm with terrifying speed. Nephis barely managed to intercept the strike in time, white flames erupting around her as the impact forced her backward through the air.
The beast screeched, the edges of its sickly-yellow feathers singed from the brief contact. Still, it pounced again, striking with its left wing this time in a fast motion that made the air whistle and cut through the rain.
Nephis parried the blow and answered with more fire while gritting her teeth at the pain it brought.
Screeching once more, it retreated, nursing the burns on its offending wing. What would have been enough to reduce to ashes a Corrupted Beast had only lightly injured it.
Anything less, and she would be disappointed.
Though not as disappointed as she was in the Ghouls and humanity itself. A single creature like the one before her, and all but a quadrant's capital would be destroyed with ease.
And yet, somehow, nobody seemed to care. The number of Saints in the world -the only ones after the Sovereigns who could reliably fight one- didn't even reach the three digits, while there were likely to be millions, if not thousands of millions, of creatures like this one.
Math alone already said it all, yet nobody seemed willing to do anything about it.
Suddenly, a voice cleanly cut through her thoughts.
"You think yourself the savior of humanity."
The Corrupted Devil had finished reshaping itself, the new creature already bearing an uncanny resemblance to her.
She fended off another attack from the Great Beast and sent a gout of flame in the direction of the Doppelgänger, but it dodged easily while it kept talking.
"You also believed yourself the savior in the Dark City."
Its voice was hers, down to every last detail and inflection.
The Beast dove down, its screeches tearing through the thunder strikes. With a beat of her wings, she evaded, yet couldn't completely dodge the sharp talons that cut straight through the [Undying Chain] and carved a gouge on her right shoulder.
"In the end, you only killed the Tyrant to take his throne."
Nephis crossed the distance between herself and the Devil in a burst of white flame, but the Great Beast intercepted her immediately, forcing her aside before she could reach it.
"You promised them all a better future, but only cared about your revenge."
A clash shook the sky as her blade met the beak of the Beast.
"You trampled over their corpses to save yourself."
Another clash echoed amidst the storm, followed by the agonized screech of the Beast.
"Not even he mattered enough to stop you."
White fire engulfed the sky, swallowing the Beast whole.
Nephis didn't spare it, and its harrowing screeches a single thought before rushing toward the Devil so fast she produced a sonic boom.
It tried to dodge but failed. It tried to block but failed. It tried to fight, but failed too.
The [Blessing of the Moon], more akin to a star given shape than a sword, cut through its body and split it into two charred halves. The accursed Spell announced its death mockingly, but she didn't care to listen.
Around her, the storm continued raining down upon her, thunder still splitting the sky, and the burning Beast kept screeching in pain. She did not notice any of it.
Her mind was warring against itself, the very same words that the Devil had said swimming through it in circles.
It was the truth, wasn't it?
She had made grand gestures, promised a way out to people who had long given up hope, and in the end, barely a tenth of them came out alive. And what she had done atop the Crimson Spire…
Nephis clenched her fists so hard it hurt.
It was unforgivable. She knew that.
The mere existence of the Bond was. She remembered the silent horror in his eyes as he stood there, turned into a statue by her order.
Nephis remembered Hope next, and what the Daemon had done to her. Being a prisoner inside her own body, forced to watch as she killed Noctis and the other Saint.
The idea that she could do the same to him with nothing but a careless word was enough to make bile rise to her throat. She hadn't lied when she told Sunny that she, too, wanted to destroy the Bond.
Nobody, much less her, should have that kind of power over someone else.
The Great Beast attacked again before she could keep thinking about that.
It made for a pitiful sight. burns covered most of its form in patches of blackened flesh that almost seemed to be melting off. The left wing was featherless, all of them having been completely burned off, leaving its flight crooked. One of its eyes was gone, boiled to nothing within the eyesocket, while the other stared at her with even more intense madness and hatred.
Despite its sorry state, it attacked, lashing out with its spiked tail, and twice its previous savagery. Hurt as it was, it still had plenty of fight left.
A part of her couldn't avoid finding some measure of kinship with this pitiful creature.
As she parried a talon, only to get her arm pierced by its beak instead, she saw herself reflected in an abhorrent mirror.
Wasn't she the same? Soldiering on no matter the injuries she suffered or the pain she had to endure?
Was this how others saw her, too?
A rabid beast incapable of anything but mindless aggression?
Pain flared sharply across her side when a strike slipped through her defenses, but white flames swallowed the wound, healing it almost instantly.
Someone who would never stop until the objective was accomplished? No matter the destruction left on its path?
The beak pierced her chest and burst through the other side, but nothing but a grunt escaped her before erupting in a white conflagration that sent the creature away.
Was she the monster, perhaps, but was too blind to see it?
Questions like that and others swam through her mind as the battle dragged on.
Again and again, Nephis attacked while the Great Beast retaliated, caring for its safety less and less as long as it could cause her just as much suffering. The pain was maddening, both from the injuries and her flaw, but she did not allow it to stop her; her flames undoing any and all damage as soon as it appeared.
The Beast, on the other hand, kept slowing down, the blood loss and burns weakening it, until, eventually, the next time the Great Beast attacked, she allowed the weakened strike to graze her defenses just enough to deliberately force her off balance.
The opening appeared for less than a second. That was all she needed.
With her left hand, she let go of the handle of the [Blessing of the Moon] and placed it on the creature's massive head. Before it could react, white flames coated her palm and then its whole head.
It died before pain had the chance to register.
[You have slain a Great Beast, Herald of Zephiras.]
[Your soul shines brighter.]
Nephis had no time to enjoy the victory before horrible pain assaulted her once more, announcing the formation of her third core.
It was a sensation she had grown somewhat accustomed to, and yet, it still felt like there were needles stabbing at every cell of her body.
By the time it was done, she was face-to-face with yet another Corrupted Devil. This one already bearing her form and more and more similar with each breath.
Nephis exhaled slowly, wishing to be anywhere but here, then she met it head-on.
Lightning split the sky while white flames illuminated the rain around them. The Devil attacked without pause while the other members of the flock circled in every direction, striking at her instead of staying passive any longer.
One after another, Nephis destroyed them, either cutting them down or reducing them to ashes, until only one remained.
The Corrupted Devil stared back at her, smiling eerily despite its injuries, with a face that was a carbon copy of hers.
When white flames covered its body completely, its face twisted in agonising pain, burns spreading through its form at an alarming speed while also healing at the same speed. They were not hers.
It didn't take long for her to realise what was going on.
The Devils copied all of their opponent, with time being the only limiter, and this one, between the distraction brought by the pain of forming another core and the assault of the flock, had survived long enough to imitate her Aspect itself. Though so far, it only seemed to have access to her dormant ability.
The Doppelganger lifted its gaze toward her when its last injury disappeared. For a long second, it gazed at her, gray eyes meeting gray eyes, and its lips settled on a disdainful line.
It did not bother to give any sign before exploding forward to meet her in a violent clash of sword against claws.
White flames exploded outward violently, evaporating the rain around them while thunder rolled endlessly above. They collided again and again amidst ferocious winds and flashes of lightning, two identical figures wreathed in pale fire.
"Destruction." Nephis invoked the Name without hesitation.
A far greater explosion devoured the sky, and for several moments, only blinding white radiance remained.
When it faded, the Corrupted Devil was still alive, if only barely. Its body had become little more than a blackened husk suspended amidst the rain.
Then white flames enveloped it once more, and at an astonishing pace its ruined flesh restored itself piece by piece until another perfect replica of Nephis floated before her.
"How long will it be before another person who put their trust in you dies?"
Nephis attacked harder, her sword bit into the Devil repeatedly while white flames raged around them, but the words refused to leave her mind.
How could they when she had asked herself that same question countless times already?
When she had already failed so many times?
When the proof of her own weakness stared back at her every time she gazed upon the Ivory Tower?
The Devil's flames suddenly swelled, shaping themselves into a pair of fiery chains that tried to bind her. She broke them with ease, but it did not stop, manipulating the flames time and time again into different shapes.
Nephis uttered the name of fire, and the Devil's flames shone brightly for a fraction of a second before exploding outward, swallowing it whole.
Even before the light dissipated, the creature resumed its assault, coming out of the smoke with half its body melted off.
"You will keep marching on, never once looking behind you."
Sword met claws, and the Devil lost its arms.
"You don't really care about the Ghouls or the Spell."
They regenerated within a heartbeat, and they clashed again.
"You only want everyone to be in just as much pain as you are."
Another clash.
"Your mother, your friends, even Sunny... "
Another.
"You will gladly sacrifice them all for revenge." A wide, mocking smile appeared on the Devil's face. "After all... if that is your will, then who dares stop you?"
Suddenly, Nephis stopped moving, merely hovering in place.
The Devil halted as well and widened the distance between them, something akin to fear passing through its maddened eyes.
Nephis extended her right arm, and atop her palm, a small white flame sparked to life, flickering precariously with each raindrop that fell on it.
For a moment, she simply stared at it, seeing it flicker time and time again, threatening to go out.
With a tug of her mind, the flame shot forward instantly. Two names followed, fire and destruction entwined in a sinister combination.
The Devil tried to dodge, but the small, flickering blaze followed with unerring precision, drifting through the sky and the rain without pause or rest, until it finally caught up to it.
The Devil recoiled as white fire spread across its body, clinging stubbornly no matter how desperately it tried to extinguish it. The flames continued spreading, crawling through its body slowly, gently, almost like an embrace rather than fiery death given form.
It staggered through the rain, its attempts to put out the fire more and more desperate with each breath. It's own roared to life, brighter than ever in an attempt to destroy her flame or at least heal from its damage. The only thing it achieved was making the flame stronger.
It was a combination of names that she didn't like. She found it too cruel to use, even on a Nightmare Creature. That flame would keep on burning until nothing was left, body, mind, and soul. None would be spared, unlike the one she could create with just the name of Fire.
Nephis merely watched as the fire crackled across the creature, burning.
And burning.
And burning.
The Doppelganger screamed all the way, tearing its lungs apart with its screams while its form slowly broke down, returning to its own original shape. And still, the fire burned.
Until at last, not even ash remained of the Corrupted Devil.
[You have slain a Corrupted Devil, Fledgling of Zephiras.]
[You have acquired a Memory, Halcyon Days.]
[Your soul shines brighter.]
Silence returned afterward, broken only by the fury of the storm surrounding her.
Inside her own mind, however, there was a deafening noise as thoughts collided against one another with singular purpose. Bringing as much anguish as possible.
It was nothing she didn't deserve.
Nephis remained motionless amidst the rain for several long moments before releasing a tired breath, her gaze drifting toward the unseen golden light hidden somewhere beyond it, hoping for a distraction.
It appeared as if on demand, shining bright for a second longer than the previous time before blinking out. Following its disappearance, even more Nightmare Creatures arrived, flanking her from all sides.
At the moment, there were many things swimming through her mind. Regrets, insecurities, fears, and so much more.
She couldn't help but welcome their presence; the battle and pain of her flaw would keep her from paying heed to the poison flowing inside her own mind.
With practiced ease, Nephis tried to summon the cold certainty with which she faced everything in life.
But this time, she failed.
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The final Nightmare Creature fell beneath the arc of Nephis' sword.
The [Blessing of the Moon] cut through the avian abomination cleanly, its pale edge leaving behind a silver trail amidst the rain before the creature separated into two halves and disappeared into the raging sea below.
Silence followed.
Nephis remained suspended in the air for a few moments longer, white flames flickering weakly around her battered armor while rain hissed into steam against her skin. The pain brought by her flaw still lingered beneath her flesh like molten needles, refusing to fade no matter how many times she forced herself to endure it.
Far away, thunder rolled across the horizon.
And somewhere in the distance, beyond the endless curtains of rain and darkness, a radiant golden light appeared once more.
Five times.
They had already changed course five separate times during the journey toward Ravenheart, and still the light continued appearing closer and closer each time.
What horror would they have to contend with this time?
Nephis exhaled slowly before turning away from the distant horizon and flying back to the Ivory Tower.
The floating island emerged gradually through the rain, already looking far better than it had just a few days ago. The debris had been removed, repairs had begun, and the corpses and blood had been cleaned away. There were even some small, tentative shrubs poking out of the soil thanks to Shakti's tireless efforts.
Nephis noticed all of it, but hardly found the motivation to appreciate it.
The moment her feet touched the fractured edge of the island, she noticed the eyes of the Firekeepers on her. Or rather, she sensed them. Their desires, more specifically.
All of them were directed toward her. Protection, something to belong to, camaraderie, a savior, and so many more flashed through them.
She could have found them comforting, were it not for the Devil's words still circling through her mind.
"How long will it be before another person who put their trust in you dies?"
Nephis gave them all a curt nod and then turned away, pretending to gaze at the storm beyond the island, if only so they wouldn't see her expression.
They believed in her, adored even.
She couldn't afford anything less than complete certainty. Anything else would be a betrayal of their trust.
Shortly after, she felt something else. Someone was watching her.
Her gaze drifted sideways, and she immediately spotted the culprit.
A massive raven perched atop one of the few surviving trees nearby, its black feathers unmoving despite the violent winds tearing through the island. Its dark eyes were fixed upon her with unsettling intelligence.
Nephis regarded the creature silently for a moment before offering a slight nod, the greatest amount of acknowledgment she could currently tolerate giving Ravensong at a moment like this.
Before she could look away from its watchful gaze, the raven moved.
Its black feathers scattered through the storm as the enormous bird descended soundlessly from the tree, landing before her with eerie grace.
Nephis turned to face Ki Song directly, looking up to meet the beady eyes of the Ghoul.
Just a few weeks ago, she could barely look at her without the fire of hatred burning in her chest, threatening to spill out. Time, as it usually did, had managed to dull that edge, and while the fire still burned just as brightly, it no longer threatened to overwhelm her.
For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.
The raven simply stared at her, the emotions behind those cold eyes alien and mysterious.
Nephis stared back just as coldly, refusing to be the first to speak. She was nowhere close to being in the mood to engage with whatever game the Queen of Worms had in mind.
Sunny had already informed the cohort about his encounter with Ki Song earlier, speaking beneath a veil of silence so that she could not overhear. He had been clear enough about his suspicions regarding her intentions.
Was it her turn now, then?
The raven tilted its left head slightly, as if the new angle granted further insight.
"My daughter seems rather displeased," Ki Song observed lightly.
Nephis' expression did not change. "I only have one mother."
"Sunless said that, too," the Queen agreed, making a soft, almost amused croak. "You two are very much alike."
Rain continued falling between them, the cold starting to seep into her bones, and still she did not move.
Eventually, the raven spoke again. "You encountered one of the flock's Devils."
"A Corrupted Devil," she clarified.
"And?" Ki Song prodded.
"It spoke too much."
The raven regarded her quietly, her dark eyes analyzing her the same way she would analyze the weak points of a Nightmare Creature.
"They certainly like to do so." She leaned forward, looking at her even more intently. "Satisfy my curiosity, would you? What did it say to you?"
Nephis' gaze drifted briefly toward the distant sea.
Thunder illuminated the horizon for a fraction of a second before darkness reclaimed it once more.
"Nothing I don't already think."
Ki Song laughed softly, the sound bizarrely melodious in comparison to the monstrous vessel she wore. When the laughter stopped, she regarded Nephis with a knowing look.
"That is what makes them dangerous." Another short laugh escaped the Queen. "I wouldn't pay them much heed. Creatures like those only intend to cause as much damage as possible, after all."
Nephis remained silent.
Whether Ravensong had been listening or not, just like she had done with Sunny, she did not know, and she had no intention to give her the satisfaction of volunteering the information on her own.
The Queen studied her for several long moments before speaking once more.
"You are tired."
"I know."
"You are hurt."
"I know."
The raven's gaze drifted toward the Firekeepers, who mingled about, working on different tasks while subtly glancing their way from time to time.
"And yet you continue carrying all of them on your shoulders anyway."
Nephis' eyes hardened slightly. "They would do the same for me."
Ki Song's eyes weren't any softer. "Would they?"
"Yes." She replied without a trace of doubt.
Nephis held many doubts, but the loyalty of her cohort and Firekeepers wasn't among them. The mere fact that the Queen of Worms dared question it made the fire in her chest burn brighter.
Ravensong, wisely, did not push on that topic.
"You are just like your mother," She suddenly said, her tone surprisingly gentle.
"In what way?" she asked despite herself.
The amused gaze of the raven made it clear that her curiosity had not gone unnoticed.
"She, too, liked to take on all the burdens of those around her." Nostalgia shone in her beady eyes for but a second. "There was this one time, back when we had just become Masters. The Government called on us to defend against one of the first Category Three Gates. We were lucky, and the Guardian wasn't too strong, so we managed to beat it back. However, your mother was grievously injured in the process."
Ki Song paused briefly to let out a chuckle that carried a mix of fondness and exasperation.
"And then, instead of heeding our pleas, she went and helped literally everyone else before even considering the idea of receiving the care she needed herself."
"You are asking me not to do the same," Nephis said evenly.
The Sovereign nodded. "I am."
A soft, weary exhale left her.
"I loved your mother with all my heart. I still do. But those tendencies of hers led us all into endless headaches and dangers that could have been avoided if she had just stopped for a moment and allowed us to help instead of trying to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders."
She shook her head sadly.
"A part of me cannot help wondering what would be different if she hadn't decided to face that Gate in America on her own instead of waiting for reinforcements or escaping."
It was a scenario that Nephis had imagined many times herself.
What would have changed if her mother had not become a Hollow? Would her father be alive, too? Her clan whole? Her grandmother? What about her? What would be different about her without the constant grief, isolation, and assassination attempts?
The implications of Ki Song's words settled in next, and her fists closed on their own, the nails digging so deep the skin broke.
"Am I meant to just... let go?"
Nephis' question started quietly, but with each word, her voice grew more intense.
"Pretend that it's not my problem? Let people die simply because it's convenient for me to do so? Should I just stand aside while the world ends?"
Another chuckle escaped Ravenson. "Your father's arrogance, too. It makes quite a pair with your mother's stubbornness."
Ki Song did not flinch beneath her glare.
"You cannot solve every problem in the world on your own. Believe me, we have tried before." She admitted in a remorseful tone. "Trying to do so will only lead to bitter disappointment after bitter disappointment, or even your death. No, Nephis, you are not meant to stand aside. Only to do what you can while still taking care of yourself. No more, no less."
Both heads sighed at the same time, the simple sound transmitting the wariness of someone who had fought against the world time and time again, and found herself wanting. "You are not all-powerful, Little Nephie. In fact, you are still pitifully weak."
Her mouth opened, a retort on the tip of her tongue, but Ki Song interrupted before she could speak.
"Anvil could have killed the two of you easily if he had wanted to. Even I, with this subpar vessel, can kill you without effort." The raven shook both its heads. "And even we are nothing compared to the true Overlords of the Dream Realm."
Ki Song gestured with one wing toward the flashing golden light.
"I cannot tell what the source of that light is, only that it is far stronger than me. So tell me, what should I do?"
Nephis only needed a fraction of a second to think before giving her reply. "Avoid it unless there is no other option."
The raven blinked both pairs of eyes.
"...Well, you just ruined my lead-up. Given the stories, I expected you to tell me to fight it with nothing but a spoon or something."
Despite herself, a faint smile crossed Nephis' face. Inwardly, she vowed to cut Effie's food budget; she was sure it was her doing.
Coughing awkwardly, an odd sight coming from a massive two-headed raven, Ki Song continued.
"What I was trying to say is that you should know how to pick your battles. If you try to grasp everything, the only thing you will succeed in doing is losing far more than if you only tried to hold on to what you can. But more importantly, you shouldn't try to do everything alone. There are people around you who care, who would gladly help."
To Nephis, Ki Song's words sounded like excuses. Like she was trying to absolve herself of guilt for all the people who had died because of the way she and the other Sovereigns had handled things.
Doing only what she could?
How could she know what she was capable of if she didn't give it her all?
How could she live with herself if she didn't try simply because it was dangerous?
How could she look at the state of the world and pretend everything was fine as long as her little corner remained safe?
Her mouth opened, but no sound came out.
She couldn't disagree more with the first part, but the second...
Ki Song had a point.
"You think the world revolves around you."
Sunny's words returned to her, and she couldn't avoid thinking they were playing out right before her eyes.
She did not think herself all-powerful, far from it, in fact. However, she was still acting as though she alone could solve everything that was wrong with the world.
As though her will alone could carry her to victory.
Anvil had proven her wrong, and so had Ki Song, in a way.
"It seems like I have given you much to think about," the very same woman said softly. "You don't have to give me an answer now. In fact, I won't bring this topic up again if you don't want me to. But think about it."
Unable to muster any words that wouldn't sound childish, Nephis simply nodded.
A mischievous glint entered the raven's eyes next.
"Well, now that the heavy topic is dealt with, how about we engage in some family bonding?"
Nephis blinked, then grew horrified when she realized that Ki Song's idea of bonding was gossiping about the most scandalous happenings in Ravenheart.
Just like that, what little her opinion of Ki Song had risen, fell even lower.