#the xilvan seal
The branches snagged at Maria’s dress. She shoved herself forward through the undergrowth, and her foot caught on a twisted vine. The wind was hot as it rushed past, and she fell to the ground.
“I’m - I’m warning you,” she gasped, pulling herself back. “If you come any closer-!”
“The New Xaitel government demands your presence, maiden,” said one of the women approaching her.
“Please, we’re not going to hurt you,” said the other.
And Maria did stop, her whole weight leant against the tree. One of the women paused, briefly, glancing to the other. There was, strangely, an absence of light as she finally transformed -
It was a black which shone brightly, the edges fading around her form. Its dazzling shadows fell upon the ground, and twisted, there, as if they had their own minds. Maria looked up without eyes, mist forming on her breath.
“‘Maiden’…? Will you call me the Maiden of,” and black bile dripped from her teeth where words should have come, the droplets hissing as they hit the ground.
One of the women took a step backwards, and another, while her partner held fast.
“No… no, you wouldn’t. I’m not one of you, am I..?”
The fire which the braver maiden summoned stood no chance against Maria’s darkness. As soon as it came towards her, it was consumed. Dark lances erupted from the earth before she could move another inch, and she was pierced through, left dangling above the ground.
Her partner summoned twin discs of soil, and vines erupted from them to clash against the next round of spears. Again she sent her plants towards Maria; like the fire, they were swallowed as soon as they entered the shining black. The Vine Maiden took a step back, engulfing herself in the plants.
“No,” whispered Maria, slamming her palm against the earth.
A wave of decay radiated from the impact, catching all green things and warping them, melting them, ichor dripping from bark and stem. It expanded outwards until Maria heard a scream.
Maria stopped. Shuddering, she fell upon the earth, her magical form dismissing itself. Again her flesh had warped where that dress met her skin, weeping some dark substance. Her mind cried out, screaming at her, though there were no words to the feeling.
She curled into a ball and cried.
It was still a long way to the mountain.
-
Maria had to reach the mountain. It cried out to her, louder still than any impression she got from her distant sisters. At first she had ignored it - she knew the legends of that place, where such a great evil was sealed.
But her power was not like the others. Where some women exhibited control of light and feathers, hers were the cloying, thick shadows with their unnatural shine. To transform was to face the way the shadows burnt at her skin, the way her entire body protested.
When her parents discovered her secret, they sold her out. They were afraid of her. The agent who found her when she ran was afraid of her. She was scared of herself, too, but more frightening was the possibility of what they’d do if they caught her.
So she broke free, and she ran.
And she knew the mountain, calling to her, might have her answers.
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Maria favoured one foot as she made her way to the giant, barbed fence which encircled the widest estimation of Mount Xilva’s territory. It was the least-guarded area of its territory, and she knew she had to act quickly, before a patrol spotted her. She hard a buzz coming from the fence, and when she tossed a stick into it, it was lit up with electricity.
“How, then?” She asked the mountain, her neck craning to look up into the sky.
“It is too high to climb, and surely extends beneath.”
The mountain said nothing. Maria shook her head. She wasn’t sure what she expected from a piece of geography.
She transformed, tears stinging her eyes as the darkness ate at her skin. The calling was stronger, now; she fancied she could even hear a voice, in the smoky distance of her mind. Her first instinct was to lance through the fence, to carve a hole for herself, but she stopped short - if she destroyed the fence, they’d know where to look for her.
So, instead, she covered herself in the burning darkness, and began to climb.
Black sloughed from her brown fingers, only to be burned away by the electricity as she left it behind. It felt like a warm humming under her unnatural protection, fizzy and tingling and lacking all the bite the voltage ought to have. The barbs caught at her, and she found herself glad, for once, that the cloying darkness was her outfit in this form. The darkness she could summon back to her. Scraps of clothing would be more difficult.
She fell to the ground, cushioned from the fall by her powers. She pulled them back, wincing as her skin was exposed to the open air again, and transformed back into a girl. She laid there for a minute, looking up at the sky, before she managed to pick herself up and move to cover.
She’d found her way to the mountain.
Now she just had to climb it.
24:58 10/10/38 hairbrained: lol i cant believe i’m up this late
00:01 11/10/38 alicexplosions: I know, right? I just can’t sleep after the news.
00:02 11/10/38 hairbrained: u’d think theyd be more careful but nooooo gotta start bustin into ppls homes
00:03 11/10/38 hairbrained: u sure ur ok?
00:05 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Yeah, I’m okay. I live in the middle of nowhere. You should probably find a place to bunker down for the night, though.
00:08 11/10/38 hairbrained: ugh yeah but this spots got wifi and u kno i gotta keep in touch w/ my top grrl
00:09 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Haha, thanks. Love you too babe.
00:09 11/10/38 alicexplosions: But you seriously gotta find somewhere to sleep.
00:10 11/10/38 alicexplosions: I don’t care if you’re the ~maiden of coffee~, you gotta sleep eventually.
00:12 11/10/38 hairbrained: ughhhhh look at me gettin schooled by some NERD
00:14 11/10/38 hairbrained: movin around is just gonna make em more suspicious like tho
00:16 11/10/38 alicexplosions: If they’ve got one of us on their side, you know they’ll find you if you stay in one spot.
00:17 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Come on. Please.
00:19 11/10/38 hairbrained: f iiiiiiiiii n e ill get on it
00:20 11/10/38 hairbrained: kisses!!!!!
00:20 11/10/38 alicexplosions: <3
00:21 11/10/38 hairbrained is now offline.
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14:32 11/10/38 hairbrained is now online.
14:45 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Sorry I didn’t see you get online for a few minutes.
14:45 11/10/38 alicexplosions: The news has been crazy.
14:46 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Are you okay?
14:47 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Come on, you didn’t leave your computer out in the open, did you???
14:49 11/10/38 hairbrained: calm ur titters girlio in here
14:50 11/10/38 hairbrained: *im
14:51 11/10/38 hairbrained: was just in anothr window
14:52 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Phew. Sorry. How’s it going? Managed to evade them so far?
14:54 11/10/38 hairbrained: no alice i’m talkin from max security lockup numba 17
14:55 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Can we not joke about that??
14:56 11/10/38 hairbrained: yeah sorry.
14:57 11/10/38 hairbrained: im ok for now, chillin out in this fast food place cuz theyve got some top fuckin wifi
14:58 11/10/38 hairbrained: tho i did have to
14:58 11/10/38 hairbrained: uh
14:59 11/10/38 hairbrained: nvrmind
15:00 11/10/38 alicexplosions: No, it’s okat, you can tell me.
15:00 11/10/38 alicexplosions: *okay
15:02 11/10/38 hairbrained: oh kat u can tell me still works haha
15:03 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Haha, I guess it does.
15:04 11/10/38 hairbrained: neway its just
15:04 11/10/38 hairbrained: like
15:06 11/10/38 hairbrained: there was this girl right
15:07 11/10/38 hairbrained: obvs workin for em
15:08 11/10/38 hairbrained: so she tries to get me to come with her and i guess i kinda
15:12 11/10/38 hairbrained: i mean shes not ever gonna bother me again i guess
15:14 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Oh.
15:14 11/10/38 alicexplosions: Are you okay?
15:18 11/10/38 hairbrained: no
15:19 11/10/38 alicexplosions: I’m so sorry.
15:21 11/10/38 hairbrained: its ok
15:23 11/10/38 hairbrained: i mean its not ok but
15:24 11/10/38 hairbrained: not much u can do abt it
15:25 11/10/38 alicexplosions: I love you.
15:26 11/10/38 hairbrained: same 2 u
15:27 11/10/38 hairbrained: i goyya go
15:27 11/10/38 hairbrained is now offline.
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09:21 12/10/38 alicexplosions: Kat?
09:21 12/10/38 alicexplosions: Kat, I heard from my dad that they’re closing off the rail line tomorrow.
09:22 12/10/38 alicexplosions: You’ve gotta get on there now if we’re gonna get you up here.
09:23 12/10/38 alicexplosions: Gods, I hope you get this.
09:23 12/10/38 alicexplosions: Please stop running and find a hotspot.
09:24 12/10/38 alicexplosions: This is really important.
11:39 12/10/38 alicexplosions is now offline.
13:11 12/10/38 hairbrained is now online.
13:15 12/10/38 hairbrained: woooow u nevr leave a bunch of offline msgs
13:17 12/10/38 hairbrained: haha thats wild
13:19 12/10/38 hairbrained: can guess it from the temp of stuff here tho
13:25 12/10/38 hairbrained: i dont rekon i can catch that train
13:26 12/10/38 hairbrained: theres police everywher
13:28 12/10/38 hairbrained: i’m not gonna kill a bunch of innocent ppl
13:30 12/10/38 hairbrained: who think theyre just doin their jobs
13:32 12/10/38 hairbrained: im stealin someones unlocked wireless rn
13:33 12/10/38 hairbrained: but i think theyll find me soon
13:34 12/10/38 hairbrained: only so many backyards can hide a girl u kno?
13:38 12/10/38 hairbrained: i guess i wanted to say im sorry
13:39 12/10/38 hairbrained: and like
13:41 12/10/38 hairbrained: i’ll try to catch that train
13:42 12/10/38 hairbrained: but
13:43 12/10/38 hairbrained: just dont expect me i guess
13:43 12/10/38 hairbrained: ilu
13:44 12/10/38 hairbrained: bye
13:59 12/10/38 hairbrained is now offline.
