Interconnected: Spliced Souls

Nimyra held her breath and my hands as I told her what happened according to what I was permitted. Harold didn't impose [Geas] on me, nor did he force me to sign an agreement or magically binding contract, so I wasn't forced to lie.   

But I wasn't a fool.   

Nimyra wasn't told anything she didn't need to know.   

For now, at least. One day, I wanted to tell her the whole truth-- not only of tonight's events but also of my existence.   

How do I do that…? 

I thanked Nimyra from the bottom of my heart for trying to get those mercenaries to track me down. She, between her watery tears, held much distaste for that foolish duke.   

“But you're back… That's the best thing… I couldn't sleep, Servi. I couldn't eat or focus… When Srassa and Momo came to ask questions, I… I don't know how I held myself together.”  

“They came to the grotto?”  

“Yes. Jony accompanied them. After they left, I heard he used his lord’s name to pull some strings to ensure the visit went off without a hitch. But are… Are you okay? And not physically… I mean mentally. What you–”  

“I've come to terms with it. I was beaten for talking back– you see my cuts and bruises– but no one…molested or raped me. I was saved just in time. But I can't say the same about the others… They had these rooms… The ones where–”  

“You don't need to say more.” Nimyra placed a finger on my lips. “I understand completely.”  

We shared another tender moment, felt the carriage take a turn, and I asked about what had happened while I was indisposed.   

Nimyra told me of her and Lucy’s deteriorating relationship. After Srassa and Momo visited, the Goatkin had grown more violent and angry. Every little thing ended up setting her off. She chased away her clients, injuring them with scars, scratches, and bruised egos. With her reputation taking a nose dive, the manager stepped in and threatened to kick her out. She only remained there because Nimyra used her position and power to give her a final chance.   

Basically, she was thin ice. During one of their arguments– and this happened a few hours before a messenger told her to fetch a carriage and head to the noble district's central headquarters– Lucy just… She just shut down mid-scream as if she had died.   

But she still carried breath, and her heart was pumping like usual.   

She was merely sleeping. 

Yeah, that's because Myrokos died.  

But what about Cassidy? I asked Nimyra, and she went quiet.   

She shut down her shop and locked the doors the night after I went missing. The old bat hadn't emerged since then. Saline and Cue–the elf and dog I saved– had left Canary. Nimyra didn't know where they went, but I hoped they were safe and sound. Life was a bitch to them, and they deserved joy.   

Cue was still injured, but maybe he had recovered enough?  

A few moments before the carriage pulled into a familiar downward ramp and stopped at the Crimson Grotto, Nimyra suddenly remembered something. “You're probably a dead woman,” she said, explaining that the missing person's report my friends had filed most likely marked me as deceased. It made sense when I thought about it.   

A pretty girl going missing in the slums?  

The mortality rate was sky-high. And those corrupt bastards didn't want to do their jobs– or perhaps Viridian used his authority to intervene. But I suppose I could see how they concluded that I wouldn't have survived.   

Nimyra told me to go to the central headquarters in the morning to prove I was alive. That was if they weren't already changing their records. But it depended on if the city was going to remain on lockdown. An order came from Viridian moments after the smoke began to fill the noble district.   

That explained why I only saw soldiers.   

But Harold struck me as the type of guy to already have a handle on that stuff. Then again, it wouldn't hurt to show up and ensure I wasn't a dead woman walking.   

The carriage stopped, and Nimyra helped me out. Together, we walked into the building– the only people I saw, inside and out, were the Crimson Grotto's guards. Meghann wasn't anywhere to be seen, but Nimyra said the employees were safe and sound.   

She told me Grogn was still all smiles. Getting that wounded from sex was like a mark of conquest or something– something to brag about. I didn't see it, but maybe I could almost understand it?  

Grogn would be back to work in a few weeks. But the man was loving the attention he was getting.   

Before ascending the stairs, we stopped by a locked door. Nimyra pulled a key, unlocked it, and gathered a vial of red liquid. It was a potion designed to recover and heal minor injuries like scratches, bruises, and cuts.   

I don't think it will work, Servi. Wounds inflicted by your catalyst are different, but to what extent? I don't know.  

However, I have an idea. Could you drink it, Servi? 

I thanked Nimyra and drank the potion. She took it back and placed it into a small slot marked ‘Empties,’ locked the door, and started up the stairs. I followed and looked at my scythe wounds. It took a minute before the injuries slowly healed, and I didn't understand why until I heard Albert's voice.   

As my revenant, he could take my injuries for himself, which was what he did. But since they were inflicted by my catalyst, they weren't going to heal with time.   

When asked why he did that, Albert said that, as a skeleton, he could not bleed. However, the injuries manifested as damage to his bones, leaving more than a few dented. Some oozed with a purple mist and made it difficult to move.   

If my theory was correct, either I or he had to cause damage to heal those wounds. I thanked Albert and continued to follow Nimyra. 

---

“Aahhh… The bath does feel good… It's been a long time since I've had…this…”  

I was in one of the many bathrooms, resting my dirty body in water so heavenly it felt like I was being nurtured on all sides.   

When we entered her apartment, Nimyra ordered me to take one while she prepared food.  

Albert, the gentleman he was, said he would leave me to my privacy. Like Itarr, he saw what I saw and could ‘turn off’ that ‘ability’ whenever he wanted.   

That was nice of him. It was the same for my voice, so we only conversed via messaging. He told me to let him know when I had finished.   

Itarr was here, though. I happily lathered my body in the apricot-scented soap while she discussed our soul world.   

Albert had his own room in the tower. She managed to make a second floor and put him there. He had a bed and a dresser-- really, his room was a direct copy of one I had absorbed in my ring during the infiltration.    

Itarr chose to make her room on the first floor. More specifically, the one where she obtained her body. It was also where she kept the breeding mount. Just bringing that up made her go quiet as a mouse. She said she knew the trust I had in her was shattered when she cared more for climaxing than talking or helping me.    

But no.   

We were close enough to progress past that point. We both made mistakes, and I should've talked about my feelings instead of immediately barging into a verbal assault.   

Back to her room, however. Well, it was more like a copy of Viridian’s room. The bed was big enough, so I suppose that was mine too. Whereas Viridian hid a door behind that painting, Itarr did no such thing. She just had a door leading to where she kept the breeding mount. The expensive jewelry was placed elsewhere. She was still adjusting the designs, so it was highly likely the tower’s entire layout would change shortly.

Neither of us had any experience in this kind of department. Albert probably didn't have any, either.   

But I think I might do that, Itarr said, her lovely voice filling my ears. I believe I can expand the island. Maybe I'll move the graveyard elsewhere.  

We chatted about going furniture shopping until the water ran lukewarm. 

After everything that went down tonight, I didn't even get horny when I cleaned my cock. Self-pleasure could wait until this whole event was behind me… I still had to talk to Srassa and Momo, first and foremost.   

However, Nimyra was waiting in the kitchen, and I didn't want to keep her.  

---

Nimyra immediately broke into a thousand tears once I walked into the kitchen. I wore a simple shirt and panties that showed proof I was working with a little extra, but her emotions came from a relieved feeling of having me home.   

She ushered me to the table and placed a warm bowl of soup down, then sat across with her chin resting in her hands.    

I wanted to tell her the truth. She deserved to know what kind of girl she was sharing her home with. But doing so would definitely put her in danger.   

And I didn't want to betray Harold's trust in me. He obviously had access to information I could only dream of. Pissing him off? That was definitely a mistake I didn't want to make.   

“Darling? What's wrong?” Nimyra reached for my hands and asked why my food was untouched.   

Wait… What if I tell Nimyra what I didn't tell Harold? About the dens I destroyed and the mind control? If nothing else, she deserves to know that much.  

“I…have something to confess. But you need to realize it's going to put you in danger. Hell, you're probably in danger just from my being here. But you need to hear it, I think. Part of it concerns Lucy. It'll explain how and why she acted as she did.”  

“Servi… You’re… No, you aren't joking. I can see it in your eyes. But if it's– Tell me, please. I promise to deal with the–”  

“Don't say that! Promise you won't act on what I have to say. Promise me, Nimyra!” I didn't mean to raise my voice. It almost took her back, but she swallowed her uneasiness and nodded.   

I quickly finished the soup and said I'd do this in her room.   

---

“You're telling me you were responsible for destroying those dens?!?!”  

“Yeah,” I replied, in bed beside her. We faced each other while under the warm blankets. “And there's more.”  

Harold believed I was a victim of the underground slave market, and I told Nimyra how I assisted the freedom fighters in destroying it and freeing the captured slaves.  

Harold knew one story. Nimyra knew the other. And I stayed true to my word and refrained from divulging the parts Harold wanted me to keep secret. Necromancy, Viridian Keywater, Adam, Eve, the Golden Reliquary?  

My lips were sealed on that, my newfound status as a goddess, my immortality, sharing a soul with the goddess who gave me her power, and being able to raise the dead.   

“You weren't kidnapped. You joined in on the attack to destroy the underground slave market? And Lucy’s mind was being controlled?!”  

“I swear I speak the truth. Here.” I rolled out of bed, naked as the day I was born. Nimyra leaned up and gasped as I took out the expensive jewels, which sparkled in the filtering moonlight. 

“I know it's hard to believe, but I wouldn't joke about this.”  

I climbed back into bed. Right away, Nimyra buried my head between her soft, warm breasts and tightly hugged me. Her hot, salty tears danced upon my hair. Who knew what exactly fluttered through her overwhelmed heart? “Deep down, Lucy's still the same sweet girl you know and love. And I'm sorry I kept a lot from you… I honestly didn't know how to bring it up. Please don't be too upset with me…”  

Nimyra was crying too much to reply. She eventually drifted asleep, but I remained awake to hold her in my arms.   

---

Morning eventually rolled around. I must've fallen asleep during the night because when Itarr woke me up with a pleasant ‘good morning,’ the Drow Elf I'd come to care for wasn't in my arms.   

The lavishly soft bed felt illustriously empty when it was just me. I patted the pillows and slowly leaned up. An unnecessary snap of my fingers later, I was dressed in a familiar pair of overalls.   

Seriously, this outfit was just so comfortable. It was rugged and durable, tough enough to sustain me throughout my day to day. Albert's voice rang in my mind when I grasped the handle, and we chatted for a few before I made my way to the kitchen.   

I heard two people talk, so I slowed and crept along the wall, barely peeking my head out.   

Nimyra, dressed in a skimpy nightgown, held a cup of steaming coffee between her soft hands. She looked at a Goatkin, whose eyes were trembling. The pajamas she wore were girlish and cute, but the girl with apricot-colored hair found it hard to look up from her empty plate. It was difficult to hear what they were saying, but it was clear that both women had been crying for a while.   

“I know you're there, Servi. You don't need to spy,” Nimyra said. I walked around the corner with a wry smile and apologized.   

“I didn't know when or how to–”  

“I'm… I know you must hate me,” said Lucy. She suddenly stood up and cut me off. “Ni-Ni told me what happened to me. It isn't an excuse… Even though I couldn't…control what I did… Even though I was forced to watch my body from an outsider's perspective, my voice still said those things. I still did those things. You were only trying to help a stranger, and… And…”  

“Believe it or not, I don't hate you.”  

“Wha–”  

I approached Lucy and put my hands on her shoulder. The poor girl trembled so badly I thought she would break like fragile glass. “I said, believe it or not, I don't hate you. I actually want to apologize for not doing anything sooner. If I wasn't a coward… If I had some bravery, I could've probably done much more instead of making it worse.”  

“But that's not. Why won't you… Why…”  

“Why won't I hate you? Because there's nothing to hate. There's nothing to yell, scream, shout, or hit you for.”  

“But…” It was clear that Lucy was one of those types of girls.  

“Just let it go, Lucy,” Nimyra said, offering a teary smile.   

But no. Lucy didn't want to let it go. But she did after I hugged her. To be fair... I couldn't hazard a guess as to what burrowed through her mind. Being forced to watch your body and voice do those…things… Being unable to reign control of yourself and forever being a bystander to actions that didn't come from yourself?  

Has that ever happened to me?  

Or to Itarr?  

I knew it did to Albert, so perhaps he almost understood Lucy? Even just a little bit?  

Lucy's emotions ran dry until she fell asleep in my arms. Nimyra and I put her to bed. “She's so cute when she's like this,” said the Drow Elf when she placed a stuffed animal in Lucy’s arms. She offered a forehead kiss and gently shut the door.   

Back in the kitchen, she told me the truth Lucy told her before I woke. While it was true Lucy needed a lot of money, she was spending it all on bounty hunters and mercenaries to search for her family.   

She didn't know if they were dead or alive. But Lucy said she was alive. She wanted to believe the same for her relatives. The village she was born in was raided one night, and she was sold like wild meat until she was in a cage in Adenaford. That was when Nimyra came across her. 

“She never told me this because she didn't want to put any stress on me. That's just the type of girl she is. When you get down to the nitty-gritty, her soul is caring. Almost too kind... And to a fault. She's stubborn and hardheaded, but that's just her charm. I would very much like it if you could become her friend. You don't know the Lucy I know... The Lucy you knew was someone completely different, so I hope it doesn't make you see her differently. The good divines above know that she needs someone like you.”  

“Suppose someone like me could use one more. You know, the whole lost memory thing? But the last thing I want is to make more enemies. This is my new life now. I don't know if my memories will ever return, so I need to make the most of this." 

“I haven't told her about that, so I'll leave it to you. But even though I know what I asked you… It might be hard.”  

“I don't follow,” I replied, taking a long sip of this black gold in a cup. It was slightly bitter with a roasted burn. But it was very smooth and went down easy.   

“There's a school in the capital called Adenaford Academy. It's where Lando's nobles attend to get a quality education. I don't know if you recall it, but I brought it up the day Lucy and I had that argument. It was when you said you were leaving?” I nodded and said I remembered. “I'm close with the headmaster, and there's a new term starting soon. Lucy brought it up before you awoke, and she's seriously considering it.”  

“And that's a good thing, right?”  

Nimyra nodded. “If she can get an education, she'll have more opportunities than most. She'll have more avenues to make money, and it'll be easier to search for her family. She's partial to animals, and the academy offers horse breeding and falconry. She could work for the military and train their war hawks. Or get work at a stable and care for their steeds." 

“The world's going to open up for her... I really hope she finds them.”  

“It would be nice. Oh, the city's not on lockdown anymore. It was lifted early this morning, but there are still far more soldiers than usual. You're heading out, right?”  

“That's the plan. Need to stop by the central headquarters in the noble district. But I want to check on Cassidy. That kid and his sister died from my actions. Cassidy didn't take it well.”   

“About that… Cassidy's… She's not there. When I went to the lobby earlier, Meghann told me she stopped by before her shift using that secret path we took when we first met. The door was unlocked, and her place was empty. And she didn't say anything about seeing any corpses, so…”  

“She’s gone?” I asked, surprised.  

“It seems that way. But I don't think you need to worry about her. I don't know much about her, but she's a survivor. She'll be fine. She's a tough old gal.”  

“I hope so. I only knew her for a bit. She’s blunt and brash, but she really did care. And I liked that about her.” 

What's going to happen now? If Cassidy's not here, how will the people of the slums receive health care? Or assistance? What are the chances someone else will step up to the plate and take her role? Probably close to zero… 

Nimyra put her hand over mine. We shared a moment and chatted, but then it was time for me to go. My boots materialized on my feet when I walked towards the door.   

“I would tell you to be safe, but I know you can handle yourself. You're strong, Servi.” She opened it for me  

“Some might even call me the toughest,” I joked, walking into the hallway.   

Nimyra giggled. She looked flushed in the cheeks before suddenly leaning in and giving me a peck on my cheek. “Come back safe, and there might be more than that waiting for you, okay?”  

“Point taken, Ni-Ni.” 

“Ni-Ni?”  

“It's a cute nickname. I'll see you later, okay? I promise I'll be safe.” I waved to her and made my way to the lobby, but I didn't see Meghann.