Changing Skies

Rachelle snorted and glanced over at him, rolling her eyes to the ceiling before she rolled to her side and slightly over him, her black hair coming to drape around his face, shielding them. She smirked. "There WILL be one named Amelia and she will adore her daddy. She will look to her father to tell her she is beautiful and that he'll tear anyone apart who is mean to her. You'll have sons who will learn to hunt by your teachings and they will be fiercely protective of their mother and sister. They will respect you."

She bent down and nipped chin lightly, her voice soft. "They will not, however, all be named Sylvester." she teased.

Ryeth watched him carefully, nearly smacking him when he seemed to be initially dismissing her words as nothing. Then the appropriate shock came immediately afterward and she felt relieved by it. Even as she started to feel stressed, feeling how much worry he now felt. It matched her own and she knew she shook his arms from shock of her own and tentatively happy emotions she wasn't yet sure was okay to feel, was allowed almost.

When he asked if it was his, though... Ryeth did smack him then, over the head and she glared. "Of course it's yours!"

She let out a shuddering breath and looked at him with swimming eyes, her own emotions all over the place. "Are...are..." Her mouth worked for a moment before she could actually form the sentence. "Are you...happy?" Because she was terrified.
 
He smirked, wrapping his arms loosely around her. "Fine, fine...have it your way...but if I give you all of that, you have to now fully agree to stay here with me. And no more whining about how boring it will be. I'll turn the magic picture box on and you can stare at the pretty colors when you're too fat with puppies to move off the bed." He smirked and licked her nose.

"I...I want to be..." Ciro said, graciously accepting the hit to the head. He sighed. "But, I mean, the war, what it does to you...how much it hurts you...how much of your energy it takes...I...I worried about you before, but now...I'm terrified..." He frowned, pulling her into his lap. He put his hand on her stomach and stared down at it. "I would have liked for it to have been...something we were trying for, but...I mean...yes, I'm happy." He looked up to her face. "But I'm...I'm terrified, Ryethke..."
 
Rachelle growled at him, playful, but a smile graced her lips and she put her forehead to his, her hands now in his hair, gripping gently. "It's called a TV, love and I will stay here with you. Stop worrying." She rolled to the side then and curled into him, her stomach and the puppies there cradled between their bodies, where they should be. The werewolfess sighed happily and nuzzled into Sylvester's neck and shoulder.

"You'll be a good father." she whispered to him.

Ryeth was glad to be in his embrace now and she curled into him, looking down as he did at her stomach, her own hand coming to rest on his. She could feel his shock, his terror and worry and she was relieved she wasn't the only person thrown off balance by this, not the only one. She took a long breath and looked back up at him, smiling weakly.

"So am I." the Fae admitted softly and her hand tightened over his. "I am...beyond terrified for so many reasons now I can't even...."

Ryeth closed her eyes and leaned against him, curling closer in his lap, her voice small. "Can we just...I don't know, pretend for a moment like we're normal and we aren't fighting a damn war and THEN see how we feel about this?"
 
Sylvester smiled. "Thanks...you'll be a great mother." He nuzzled her and just held her close. He yawned. "Can I sleep now?"

Ciro nodded a little. "Uh...yeah, sure...um...no, I'm still terrified..." He laughed a little, pulling her back onto the bed with him. He hugged her tightly. "Can we see how we feel about it after some sleep?" He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I don't know what to do with this at all...I mean...I'm happy, I am, but there are so many things I get to worry about now...we need to just...end the war somehow..."
 
Rachelle chuckled, but yawned with him, her exhaustion catching up to her as she nodded with a humming sound and closed her eyes. She wrapped her arm around his waist and pressed into his side, quite content to drift off to sleep. Dreams of puppies danced in her head even as she entered into a doze and then true sleep.

Ryeth chuckled with him, the sound weak and strained, but her emotions were a true mixture of happy and scared. She curled into Ciro's embrace, feeling slightly better when he pulled the covers over her and she was able to just relax into him, the connects she had to so many things dampening down as she claimed her right to sleep. She just hoped her stomach....or the baby, rather, would agree with her and stay settled.

"Tomorrow...yeah, that sounds like a good time to think on this." she agreed softly and then sighed, letting her eyes close. "I actually have a plan for the war." she mumbled softly, but smiled just a little before the Sun could even protest. "I know, tomorrow."

Ryeth drifted off into an uneasy sleep in which her emotions were so tangled she didn't know how to react to any of them. Funny, it sounded a lot like when she was awake...
 
Ciro stayed awake, stressing out over the whole prospect of being a father and whether the child would be ok and what it would turn out to be (Normal, Abnormal, demi-god, perhaps?), or maybe the war would kill it. Or maybe the strain of the baby and the war both would kill Ryethke. The war needed to end. He wanted to burn every single last person on it just to make sure she was ok...but he knew that wouldn't work either.

He slid out of bed after making sure Ryethke was asleep and walked out onto the balcony. He looked across to his sister's balcony, hoping to see her. Though, he saw Pontus instead, standing there, staring out at his waves. Ciro closed the balcony door and walked over to the rail. "Pontus..."

"Ciro." He turned his head and walked over, getting as close to his brother as he could with the balconies separating them. "Alcmene told me the news. How does it find you?"

"Uneasy." He replied honestly. "This war is going to kill both of them."

"She isn't the only one it's taking its toll on."

"I should have known talking to you would be a waste of my time."

He bubbled. "I meant to say I am also ready to see it finished. She has insisted on leading this march to madness and she has done nothing but continue it in circles. We gain no ground because she will not let us. She is too scared for her beloved people. The parasites she has contracted over the ages."

"And you know we can't kill all of them. Some of them are helping the cause."

"Just because she lets you sleep with her, doesn't mean you need to do exactly what she says. Sure, some have been helpful, but the majority of them are using the both of us as they see fit. Surely you remember what they were doing to her when they had her captured?"

Ciro glanced back towards the windows. "We need to end this."

"What do you think I've been saying?? She keeps telling me not to flood, but it's time to flood."

He nodded, sighing. "I'll get it started. Give you something to soothe." He spread his wings and took off, heading out to start the mass burning.


Sylvester woke up with a start, millions of voices shouting into his head. He gripped it and growled, rolling out of bed. He stumbled over to his meditation mat and sat down, gripping his head, tuning into them. Something was wrong. The were supposed to be taking a break, letting the Earth rest. Why was...why was everything on fire...?

Well, not everything. As he tuned in and started sorting everything out. Enemy bases were being destroyed. Obliterated. Set on fire and almost everyone inside killed. Well...at least Ciro was focusing on man-made things in his wonton destruction.
 
Rachelle woke with Sylvester and she followed him out of bed, not daring to speak as she watched his expression. Somehow she knew her voice would not help him this time and she followed him to his mat, sitting on her knees in front of him, waiting and watching his face. When he seemed confused she crossed her own legs under her and closed her eyes, her mind reaching to his, connection along their link until she felt him let her in.

The voices of the werewolves around the world flooded her mind quickly and having some experience with pack structures and voices, Rachelle quickly started to figure out what was going on. Fires....there were fires everywhere! The werewolfess was at first confused by this, but when werewolves started to report quickly rising water levels, it came to her. Ryeth's conversation with Pontus....

It had started.

Quickly Rachelle started to pass along one message; get to high ground.

Ryethke stirred restlessly. The Sun wasn't in bed with her, she knew that deep down in her mind but it wasn't enough to truly wake her yet. Her body was alert to his return, though. Still, it was the heat she was starting to feel that would wake her in the end as her body started to grow damp and she shifted, uncomfortable as she frowned in her sleep.
 
Sylvester opened his eyes briefly when he felt her draw near. He offered her a light smile before he closed his eyes again, letting her in on his conversations. Her message sounded like a very good idea to him so he started passing it along as well, even to the 'packs' (platoons, groups, whatever humans called them) who were still hidden in darkness, where the fires had yet to touch. He knew Ryethke would be pissed when she found out, but this really was in her best interest, whether she saw it or not.

Alcmene sat down on the edge of Ryethke's bed, pressing a cold compress to her forehead gently. "Ryethke, dear, you're burning up." She said softly, moving the cloth to her left cheek, then her right cheek. "You shouldn't wear yourself out so thoroughly." Both of Alcmene's comments would have a double meaning to Ryethke if she actually knew what was going on. "Ciro has stepped out on business. It's just you and me today."
 
Rachelle couldn't reach as far as Sylvester could, but she knew it wasn't her job too and so didn't try to extend herself. Instead she started contacting werewolves closest to Abnormal hubs whether they were part of the Network or not. She categorized such wolves in her mind, sending them messages to get those that were with the Four to safety as well, to pass the message that something big was happening, that they were all in danger. She knew the word would spread among the Abnormals and they'd work on getting other people to high ground.

It was chain reaction, but it would take time. Rachelle only hoped the Sun and Sea saw it that way... The werewolfess was pretty sure the Earth would kill them both if they didn't at least show some semblance of patience in their crazy plan...

Ryeth finally blinked her eyes open, moaning as a new surge of uncomfortable heat rippled through her. It wasn't painful, but it was strange and she didn't like it. Was it because of the baby? Was she truly sick? The heat seemed to only be growing the longer she thought about it so the Fae tried not to, focusing on her sister, realizing Alcmene was in the room. When had she arrived?

"It's hot." Her voice was mumbled, raspy and Ryeth shifted again, looking around in confusion. "Ciro?" She hadn't heard her sister's message and wouldn't have understood what it meant anyway.
 
Sylvester was so thankful for her help. It meant he could focus on the werewolves farther away, spread the message across the world before any of their own kind could be hurt. And it did seem like the Sun and Sea were giving them the time to do it. Both the men knew Ryethke would kill them if they didn't let those on their side retreat to safety.

"No, Alcmene. Quite the opposite of Ciro, if you ask me." She smiled and helped her up. "Come on. I've got a cold bath drawn up for you. We should get you into it, try and get your fever down." She said, as if Ryethke was just sick and not...literally being burned alive...
 
Ryethke let her sister help her, feeling like every movement was a great effort, her skin turning a light shade of red like she'd been sunburned. The Fae didn't take note of it yet as she followed Alcmene, grateful for the Moon's help as they came into the bathroom. The Earth moved away from Alcmene then and didn't even have the presence of mind to take off her clothes - she was wearing nothing by the dragon-scales at this point as she'd not changed her outfit after fighting - as she got into the water.

While the temperature would have made her gasp or recoil had she been a normal temperature herself, as it was the water hissed and steamed for a moment and Ryeth sighed in relief, submerging up to her chin. Some clarity returned back to her and she blinked at Alcmene, dark brown eyes concerned. "Is it the baby?" She had not idea what this child was capable of, considering who its parents were.

And the water was already starting to warm around her...
 
Alcmene had a bucket of ice nearby, figuring she'd heat the water up pretty quickly. "Oh, it could be, but I don't think so. I think it's just a product of overexertion. You've worn yourself out and gone just a little too far." She put a handful of ice in the water. "You should probably limit your connection with the earth for a day or two. Re-focus on yourself. Focus on the baby. Your health needs to come before everything else at the moment..."
 
Ryeth stared at her sister, suspicion curling through her mind at Alcmene's words and her tone. It was like the Moon was trying to be....too normal. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong but for the life of her, Ryethke could not pinpoint what it was. The heat - though, it was helped by the water - was making her sluggish, making it hard to think about anything else and in the end, the Earth decided she'd just have to trust Luna even if she knew her sister was not telling her something.

Then again, what was new about that?

Still, limit her connection to the earth? The Fae raised a brow, bringing her hand over her stomach protectively in a gesture she really wasn't even aware of. "You mean like you can limit yourself from the moon?" The question was clearly sarcastic. Besides, she might be worn out, but it she didn't keep fighting, many were going to die!

If only she'd known what was going on outside....
 
"For the baby, Ryethke." Luna said seriously, giving her a pointed look. "You need to stop feeling the pain this war is causing the earth. It could start hurting the child." She sat back, placing more ice into the water. "You know I'm right. Your body needs rest." She was speaking very seriously, and it was all true. She did need rest. And to hold a bit less of a connection with the earth if that was possible. "Come on...once you're cooled off, I'll put you back into bed, but I want you to sleep..."
 
The baby.

Ryethke's arguments died on her lips and she looked down at her stomach, her fingers tracing random patterns there as her thoughts struggled to form into words in her mind. She found herself nodding slowly to Alcmene's words. The Moon was right. When it had been just her to suffer the pain, it hadn't bothered Ryeth as much and she'd been stubborn about tolerating it despite the worry of everyone around her.

But now...she needed to protect the precious life growing inside of her. Her child. Ciro's child.

The Fae looked back up at Luna and nodded, her voice a whisper. "I'll try."

And she did. As she closed her eyes, she worked on gathering the many threads she had all over the globe and dampening them. She didn't severe the cords, but she sent less of herself out along them and allowed less to come back to her, less input and sensory, less information. The war wasn't going to end in two days. She could come back, but right now...she needed to be wise and she needed to keep her baby safe.

Ryeth really didn't even notice when the heat stopped coming off her in such overwhelming waves.
 
Alcmene noticed, however, being the one keeping a close eye on her. She helped her out of the tub and smiled. "There. It looks like your fever has lessened already. We should get you back to bed." She helped her sister dry off and then walked out of the room. She hoped to get back across the hall before anything happened, but...alas...it was not to be. Of course, she glared daggers at the young man running up to them with a stack of papers.

Said young man pushed his glasses up his nose, sweating horribly. "Ryethke! Alcmene! This is all wrong!" He held up the papers, shaking them about, a couple pages dropping to the floor. Flustered, he crouched down to pick them up. "This is all just...it...we never heard anything about such an attack! This is all very last minute!"

Alcmene started glowing. "Arthur, you should really go back to your office."

"No! This is much too important! Reports are coming in from all over that-"

She ruffled her wings, eyes turning black. "She doesn't need to be bothered with this right now, Arthur, can't you see she's not feeling well?"

"Yes, but as the leader of this whole thing-"

"There are four leaders, Arthur." She said, her voice growing darker and darker with every word. "And three of them have made a decision without the fourth."

His eyes widened. "O-oh...I..um...I..."
 
Ryethke had been puzzled by Arthur's panic and his words had made no sense to her. She'd been willing to let Alcmene handle it, feeling drained by even the prospect of doing so, but her sister's last words changed that and the Fae snapped her head to Luna, her body stiffening as her mind grew alert. Dark brown eyes narrowed and the Earth's voice was as dark as the Moon's, verging on a rumble, but delaying any action until she knew what was going on.

"What decision?"

Even as she spoke, Ryeth was renewing her connections with the earth around her, her mind working frantically to figure out what was wrong. Because there was something wrong. She'd been aware of it, but had also been willing to trust Alcmene. Now, though.... What had Arthur meant by an attack and reports flooding in from all over?
 
Alcmene sighed heavily. "The decision to end this war. Finally. For good." She turned to Ryethke. "The faithful have been warned by Sylvester and Rachelle. The unfaithful, the undeserving, are being purged."

Hearing it all put that way made Arthur gulp and take a step back. "F-fires...of all the enemy compounds...floods following to put out the fires once...once everyone is dead..."
 
Ryethke felt sick, instantly and completely sick, but she didn't head to the bathroom, instead racing down the hall and through the mansion until she was finally outside. Once there her eyes turned upward to the sun and she simply stared, torn between horrified and accepting all at once as her logical mind caught up to her heart. The great ball of fire in the sky was brighter than she'd ever seen it, almost red with heat and at her feet, she could feel the ocean lapping ever closer, further inland than it had ever been before outside of a storm.

Her brothers were letting loose their power and Ryeth found that it was not that fact that angered her. No, she had known it was time for this war, that it would have to end eventually. It had been she who had told Pontus she was going to let him flood again. She knew this was right, the only way. What pissed her off, however, was that no one had TOLD her they were doing it now. No one had warned her and it was that fact that made her so furious at her siblings.

Still, she didn't use it to lash out at them, she controlled it, harnessed it as she closed her eyes. The Earth hesitated for only a moment, her hand come to her stomach as worry for her child swept over her, but in the end, she knew she didn't have a choice. It was either take a risk now and have a world worth living on, a place for her child to grow up in peace...or risk not having anything at all. Ryeth took the risk as she turned inward, letting all that was human about her fade away, all the barriers that had been constructed so that she might fit into this small body crack and crumble until nothing was left between her and the world. She was the world. The Fae's body simply stood, eyes closed and her hair lifting around her, but she wasn't there. Only a small thread connected her to her human form now, kept her body alive for her child's sake, for Ciro's sake, but what had made Ryethke herself...was now scattered, sweeping over the globe.

She could feel everything now. Every burn, the blood soaking into her skin, the heat that charred her grass and crisped her leaves. Nature cried out at the sun's burning fury and it suffocated under the seawater. And the Earth wanted it to stop. She wanted to push back and command the sun and the water and the moon's pulling force to cease and let her be, but she also knew she couldn't. Not this time. She let them abuse her body for the sake of the generations that would come, for the sake of those she was even now saving. All over the world, the land would be shifting, rising, caves forming to protect from the rising water and the sun. She took those who had protected her, those who had hoped for better, those who cared. They were no longer hidden from her as their history was written down in her soil, in her leaves and her rocks, in the grass and bark of the trees.

The Earth saved who she could, she endured the pain, and she prayed it would end soon.
 
Alcmene chased after her and glared, folding her arms. When she spoke, she spoke to every part of the earth covered in shadow, determined her voice be heard. It's good to know how much you trust us, Gaia. It is good to know we came down to help someone who would think we set out to murder all of her people, who doesn't trust us to take care. If your child dies because of what you are doing now, I will leave you to explain that to Ciro. And with that, Alcmene cut her connection with the earth, pissed beyond reason. She went back inside, to her room, slamming the door shut behind her. She turned the lock, then shut the doors to her balcony as well, locking them and pulling the thick curtains closed. She was shutting herself off from the world.
 
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