[i]Evelyn stepped onto the shore, her heavy frame slightly sinking into the soft banks. Before her stretched an entire dimension, blank and featureless. A clean slate, claimed by her alone.[/i] “It’s… perfect…” [i]She turned, and summoned a stone machine. An amalgamation of sunshards, elements, eldritch brain matter, an orb of time and her own nanites all thrown together, the construct appeared somewhat like two dozen wheels all turning each other in random directions from a single point. [/i] [i]Evelyn brushed her hands against the side, and a few white runes lit up. The machine purred to life, then roared as the gears began to churn the fabric of space time. Evelyn stayed within the radius, she would see her masterpiece through. She pressed her hand to the runes, and concentrated. The construct reacted, bending to her will like a reed in the wind. [/i] [quote]“What do you desire, mistress?”[/quote] “Paradise.” [quote]“It shall be done.”[/quote] [i]The machine glowed brighter, and her own nanites began to take damage from the radiance. Evelyn didn’t care, she had nothing to lose. Here, she could gain so much more just by watching creation. It was the last magic item she would ever use. [/i] [i]The white light grew and grew, but Evelyn saw within. Inside, the whole spectrum lay before her, creation at its heart. While it did give one heck of a lightshow, Evelyn noticed her nanite shielding was failing, armor bending under the strain. [/i] “No wonder it is reserved for gods and not men to create. I was made by men, but I can wield this. If gods can create, and so can I, am I a…” Evelyn thought to herself. “No, you aren’t,” said a familiar voice. [i]Evelyn saw the rather simple figure of Zbruh behind her, his horn surrounded by a faint glow. He was unharmed by the powers at work, and trotted to her side. Zbruh pressed his hoof to the machine, and it responded to his simple power. [/i] “Eve, I just said goodbye to the others. But before I left you, I wanted to do you a small favor.” [i]Evelyn nodded, her arms disintegrating under the power of the construct but still crossed before her. [/i] “Take the Jewel off. Not for me, not for your mother, fathers or anyone else. Take it off for Izuma. You know how much you’ve taken from her, how much it has taken from you and our family. It takes and takes until you have no more, then finds another. Your plans for an anti-magic dimension? They won’t last long as soon as the Jewel is in your chest, and you know it. You rely on it now, Az also did at a certain point. For lack of a better term, you’re addicted. But you are strong, strong enough without it to control this machine and rule your Shore. Don’t let it convince you that you are weaker without it. So take it off, tear it out and cast it from thee.” [i]Evelyn took a step back, stunned. Eyes are the portal into the soul, and hers were no exception. Yellow light tried to flood them, but a dark, fiery red fought within. The Jewel had enveloped her, and would fight for its prey. [/i] “No… no… it’s… it’s strong… it’s powerful… I… want that…” “No, you don’t,” said Zbruh. “You want above all else for Izuma to be happy. Your plans for a grove in her honor, to show her how far you would go to make her happy, I see it all. And look! For once in your life just look at what you’ve done.” [i]Eve stopped, and listened. Zbruh fluttered his wings, and an image formed. [/i] “You harnessed a relic with powers I don’t even understand to have a daughter of flesh and blood in the first place. You gave her the best of everything, toys, books, even education. Always going the extra mile, but afraid to show it. You vowed to lay waste to an entire dimension in her name, vowed to slaughter countless innocents. And now, on the edge of greatness, you would let your love be distorted. Even I don’t truly know where you are, but you fought, stole, borrowed, begged and bought your way here. Why? For HER. And even greater, how many beings could survive that machine, let alone handle it? The Jewel cannot help you wield it, it could only show how to make it. It’s holding you, Evelyn-3, and your love back. Will you let it? Will you be the fire tyrant again, burning these Shores to the ground for your satisfaction? Or will you make the paradise you envisioned and labored for? I… I’ve gone so far, seen so much and instigated too many wars. I’m at the end of my days. But you, if you choose yourself and your daughter over the Jewel, will be at your beginning, everything before this washed away. A new chance to show your love. But if you don’t, if you let those flames consume your heart, it will all be in vain. What will it be, Cell-5?” [i]Evelyn fell to her knees, the nanites buckling under the strain of the two wills. Her’s, and the Jewel’s, both fighting for control. Yellow happiness and Red rage warred within her, her humanity long discarded versus a god’s crony. The red began to seep through her form, small, jagged spikes appearing all over. When she spoke, her voice was not her own, but struggled to keep her down.[/i] [quote][b]“You… tried to turn… her against… me? She is… a plaything… a tool… a machine!”[/b][/quote] [i]Zbruh sighed, and walked towards her. Eve’s frame could not rise, the conflict of wills preventing any nanites to move. [/i] “This machine? Is my grandaughter, you sick -blam!-. Get out.” [i]Zbruh stabbed Evelyn right through the chest, his horn shattering the Jewel. The nanites collapsed in a pile, covering the shards of ruby. Poking his horn through the remains, Zbruh separated the shards from Eve’s remains. [/i] “You can come out now. It is safe, little one,” said Zbruh in a calm voice. [i]The nanites slowly swirled, forming an old, streamlined frame with yellow accents. [/i] “Is it… destroyed?” “No, only its maker can destroy it fully. I can break it, but it always reforms on the Plane of Fire, my last stop.” [i]Zbruh stamped the shards, grinding them into dust. His wings fluttered, and Zbruh yearned for the world beyond. [/i] “I’m sorry I can’t impart any knowledge, any last words to help you,” said Zbruh. “You’ve done plenty,” said Evelyn as she embraced his soft, grey neck. [i]Zbruh’s wings returned the hug, and the duo stood there for some time. [/i] [spoiler][url]https://youtu.be/RE87rQkXdNw[/url][/spoiler] “Oh, one last thing. Don’t kill the demon, he has his own destiny to fulfill. Leave him be.” [i]Evelyn nodded, and stood proud as he vanished. The only thing left of the Grey Lord was a small, grey feather, and Eve treasured it where the Jewel once was. She smiled, and her world became brighter as the machine continued her work. [/i] [spoiler]Zbruh's tale is almost done, but Eve's is beginning. I'll probably finish that by the end of the week. [/spoiler]