Riva buried herself in her work. Carefully cultivating the herbs in her greenhouse, slowly building back what had died in the long night. She pruned away the dead, to give room and energy for those still living to grow. Knowing, as she did so, that she could not do so for the living. She could not chase away the ghosts that plagued herself and what was left of her family.

She hadn’t left her den in days, and the little healer girl was skin and bones. Having wasted away in her sickness during the long night, and not found the wherewithal to care for herself now that it was over. Not that it was over, and her little girl was dead.

She likely would have remained in her den for days, a newly-turned recluse, afraid of the world beyond her doors. But the day had something different in store for her. The scent of Dante drifted past the open door. Impossible, tantalising, and heartbreaking. She gasped, dropping her pruning tools and looking to the door. Somehow, despise everything, almost expecting the face of her daughter to appear. Was it a side effect of her illness? She had not seen things since daylight appeared. Tentatively, she approached the door, breathing in deeply. The fading scent led away, and so she followed it. Chased it to the trees to the West of the lake, head to the ground she didn’t look up until something spiked at her senses. Head shooting upwards, she found a pair of glowing, ethereal eyes watching her from the trees. Just like the eyes at the start of the long night. Just like what had started this nightmare.


"Speech"

The puppies in Asmodeus' care were growing quickly, napping less and spending more time on exploration and troublemaking. Deus had started to resent them, not for the difficulty in raising two puppies, but for the reminder of the man who had gifted them to him, promoted him, and then slaughtered his sister. The puppies pushed their way out of his den in a tumbling pile of fur, and for once Deus did not chase after them. Let them die and be buried as Danta was. The dog's playful yips faded as they moved further from the den and Deus merely shuffled his forepaws upon the dirt and lay down his head, trying to ignore their absence and the desire to chase after them. His eyes slid shut a brief moment, but a frightened cry brought Deus fast to his paws. He peeled from the den quickly, sprinting across the grasses toward his companion's call. He came upon them quickly, finding they had hid themselves behind the figure of another small wolf. His heart lurched at the sight of his mother's form, wasted away by the season past. Deus stepped towards her, opening his mouth to speak when suddenly the glowing eyes in the tree line caught his attention. He stepped up alongside the woman, angling his body slightly so he could put himself between the creature and Riva without obstructing her view. "Go home mother, I'll take care of it." He murmured, soft into her ear. "Speech"

Suddenly, there were puppies swarming her. Little malinois, scampering around her feet. At least, until they caught sight of the glowing eyes that had rooted Riva frozen and immobile. She could almost swear that the owner hadn’t blinked, like trivial, mortal needs were forgotten by it. When the puppies saw that glowing in the trees, they let loose a frightened cry and buried themselves behind her petite, wasted, form.

She couldn’t move to comfort them, she could only stand there as the scent of Dante wafted away into nothing, until she found herself doubting if she had ever sensed it at all. But still the eyes watched her, and as the rooted healer stood there, Deus suddenly appeared. Her towering, tall son found her, and she found herself wondering what he might say. Their relationship had been (with good reason) strained since the death of their little Dante. She would never know, because he too found the glowing eyes. A single tear escaped her as he pushed himself in front of her. She had never wanted him to defend her, but the sign that he was still willing to do so was almost too much for him. “No… Deus. I was led here. If he’s here for me, then there's nothing you can do. I wont lose you, Deus, not as well.” she whispered, finally pulling herself free of its spell. She gently placed her paw against Deus’s shoulder as she moved to stand beside him.


"Speech"

Riva was stubborn as ever and Deus clenched his jaw in silent disapproval as she stepped forward to put herself in harms way. Every fiber of his being wanted to protect his mother, but he could not deny her words. If Abraxas sent this messenger for her, there was nothing Deus could do to save her. His ears flattened against his skull and he took a step back to observe, his puppies flocking to his side as soon as their small protector unfroze her paws. As far as Deus was aware, Riva and her disbelief had played a massive part in the sickness that had taken over the world and taken his little sister's life. If Abraxas needed to punish her for her part in it, what right did Asmodeus have to deny his God's justice? "Be careful." He managed, wrapping his paw around one of his Malinois gently as it whimpered. "Speech"

Despite her words, she was still surprised when Deus stepped back. His desire to protect her did ease some of the deep-set pain in her heart, and she wondered if she was doing the right thing. Asking him to stay back, letting her take the lead. She took a soft, steadying breath. Determined to regain some appearance of control in front of her son, especially after he had seen her at her worst. After all they had lost.

She nodded softly towards her son “I love you” she whispered gently, and moved towards the glowing eyes. As she approached, the creature stepped out from the cover of the trees. The lynx stood equal in height to the healer, and there was no denying the ethereal quality to its eyes. It was something not of this world, even after all the other creatures of the Long Night had faded away.

“Are you a messenger of Abraxas? Are you here to punish me?” she asked softly as it took another step forward. Her legs quaked, and its glowing eyes drifted down to them and back up to her face again. It said nothing. It glided gently across the grass, and kissed her brow. She stood stock still, fear locking her limbs again as its sharp teeth sat so close to her temple, but it made no move to hurt her. It held the gesture for a moment, and then released her, stepping back again, and turning towards Deus and his puppies.


"Speech"

Deus closed his eyes as the lynx stepped towards his mother, visibly pained by both devotion to his faith and family. He could not defy Abraxas to protect her, he knew that, but why was it so painful to stand by and watch if it was wrong? His eyes snapped open as she spoke, softer this time then the last interaction she'd had with an Abraxas messenger. The lynx stepped up to his mother and leaned it's jaws toward her skull. Deus' head turned swiftly, his eyes squinted shut as his puppies yipped fearfully against the act. One puppy's yipping was growing further away, and Deus was forced to turn back to watch the scene that now one malinois puppy was swiftly joining. The Lynx placed a kiss upon his mothers brow, not a bite, not a deathblow. His paw raised to follow the dog but paused mid-air, locked in place by confusion. The bravest of the puppies realized her mistake about two seconds after she'd leaped at the 'violent' cat, and now mid-air in a pounce was unable to stop herself in time. The Lynx caught the flying pup with it's shoulder, but lifted it's paw to stabilize the dog rather then assault it. Deus' malinois cried softly beneath the paw, and then received a gentle kiss of her own. From where Deus stood he saw the dog freeze, a flash of glow moving from the lynx's eyes and into the puppy's. He moved up cautiously, pulling his companion from the odd lynx's embrace protectively. "What is it?" He whispered to his mother. From beneath his stable paw, his malinois gave a happy bark, catching his eye and displaying to him the new crystalline formations decorating both iris' - bearing a striking resemblance to his quills. "Speech"

So engrossed in what was happening before her, she didn’t realise one of Deus’s puppies had decided to take action until it was too late. She turned, horrified, as the little puppy placed herself in danger to protect her. No!” Riva thought, turning to do… something. She didn’t know what. Maybe she was starting to believe in this Abraxas god, but belief would never be enough to stop her from doing what was right. Protecting others would always be her blessing and her curse.

Whatever she was going to do, she stopped immediately. As the lynx gently steadied the puppy instead of hurting her. She watched in confusion as the lynx gently kissed the little pup’s brow, and something…. Something strange happened. As Deus grabbed his malinois protectively, and Riva paired at her from under her boys arm, she could see the strange formation in the pups eyes. Healer mode on, Riva stepped closer. “Follow my hand” she ordered the puppy, and proceeded to do a quick examination to see if there was any damage to her vision.


"Speech"

Deus was confused, and without the healers instinct that kickstarted Riva's reaction, he simply stood in place silenced by bewilderment. What had happened? The lynx had not harmed his mother, nor his dog, but it had done something. That something, whatever it was, frightened him. Beneath his paw his puppy wiggled happily as his mother approached, but Deus' eyes remained locked upon the lynx. "Is she okay?" He asked after a time, the concern for his companion enough to - momentarily - allow him to forget the ghostly cat. "And what are we going to do about... that." The Abraxas youth's head pulled in the cat's direction, concern in his eyes as he waited for his mother's decision. "Speech"