NIKA
It’s so dark.
The darkness never scared you, did it? Said the girl.
No, that’s right, the Darkness is now my ally.
As is Death, Frost, Fire, Chaos and Light. You always had a knack for getting people on your side.
But I wasn’t able to help Aerix.
You are an Echo of Time, not an Echo of the Future. No matter the power of those discs you carry, you will never be quicker than the past. Just learn to adapt, you can at least do that at an accelerated rate. Technology is about adaptation; being an Echo is about improvisation and acclimation, she told me calmly.
The woman stood in the dark void; her warm, brown lids closed over her once bright, hazel eyes. Short, curly, black locks swirled around her head, framing her soft face, emphasizing her welcoming features. Her purple sweater hung loosely from her slight frame, ripples of fabric in the nonexistent breeze.
I lived the life of a popstar before coming here. That’s not something you just adjust to.
You adjusted from having me, she pointed out.
Did I? I retorted. You’re still in my head, aren’t you? You aren’t real, just a memory.
That’s where you’re wrong.
Okay, then tell me what’s right, Miss Engineer Major.
You still refuse to acknowledge the boundary between heart and mind. Your mind is the vessel for our memories, but not for our bond and relationship.
Do you ever stop playing perfect?
I did when I died, she smiled at me.
Yet you still remain smug as ever.
Only because it’s the way you remember me. Now go help your allies.
How do I do that when I can’t help myself? You’re the smart one, I thought to her gravelly.
The same thing you always do.
Lacy opened her eyes. I spoke the next words aloud along with the voice in my head.
“Make it work.”
Sifyx expanded and pulverized the icy barrier surrounding it and me. The cloak settled itself around me in a form similar to the way Blu wore it, but there was no ripple pattern on the front and back or the plus signs that lined the sleeves.
Instead, emblems of a clock appeared on the front and back of the torso, and circuit patterns were wrapped around the sleeves. A bluish light pulsed underneath the black designs, like the reflections of water on a cave ceiling.
“I got that shit on.” I raised my head and set my sights on the abomination before me; I considered it for a moment before shifting my gaze to Aushen. Only then did I look at the Realm Wiper.
Blu flipped me off in response to my disgusted look. He flicked his hand, and his bat turned into a sword identical to the other in his hand.
That slight movement upset the Realm Wiper, it darted towards us like water gushing from a pipe, its skin chipped away at the walls. Aushen threw down his knives and jumped on them, transferring to a slide next Blu, who he dragged to my side on a path of ice. He bent down to retrieve his blades afterward, ignoring a protesting Blu behind him.
I stepped forward while the Realm Wiper continued its rampage, I lifted my hands and Sifyx responded instantaneously. Black fabric flew from the jacket, and several tendrils reached for the Alt and raised it before me. Behind me, my usual illusion of a clock was fading into existence alongside a clock made of shadowsteel that outlined it. A number of ropes and chains lashed onto the suspended disc that turned slower and slower as each length of fabric attached itself. Sifyx also pulled Blu over and placed his hands on Alt, causing a swirl of darkness to emanate from it.
“Status Field,” I found Blu saying along with me. “Midnight Stillness.”
At that point my disc stopped spinning completely, something that had never happened before, the illusion behind me also stopped moving. While I am the Echo of Time, I control the flow of time, but not the direction in which it flows. Stopping time is not something the discs should be capable of; I had thought it impossible since I’d tried it with Aushen once.
“Ice doesn’t reach absolute zero, but knock yourself out,” he would always say.
Oh, how I would laugh at his dumbass now.
The Realm Wiper was completely still, as was the debris that was being disrupted by its movement. I picked up my other Ego and strode into the field, unaffected by the frozen time field except for slight resistance that felt like tearing through plastic wrap. I took a few tentative steps, though they made no sound due to the frozen time. It was that detail that made me aware of something: There was no oxygen flowing into my lungs.
I stumbled out of the field, coughing and sputtering to replenish my lungs with air.
“That’s the first time I’ve seen someone else use Sifyx without speaking. Usually, it only bends to my silent will,” Blu observed.
“Does it smell that bad?” Aushen asked.
“No,” I clarified. “The oxygen can’t move, so I’m not able to inhale anything.”
“Expand your personal field so it goes beyond your skin and clothes,” Blu suggested.
“Alright, I’ll try that and head back in. I won’t be able to hear you guys from within the field because sound won’t travel. I’ll make it quick like always.”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
I walked once more into the time field, this time with the ability to breathe. shadowsteel threads connected the clock and disc-mount back to me and Blu’s cloak, alluding to a trail of wires. I thrusted my hands forward, commanding Sifyx, and more clocks formed against either wall of the hallway, and the hands began spinning gradually faster. The clock hands began flying off the clocks and piercing the skin of the Realm Wiper, embedding themselves in its flesh. The arrows plowed into it continuously in the fashion of a Gatling gun, rapidly propelling the projectiles at terminal velocity.
The time field dissipated when I clapped my hands, I moved myself and my friends farther back when the momentum resumed. The gargantuan corpse slid at us, stopping a mere few feet in front of our group. The monster toppled on its side with its jaw open, further amplifying the disgusting smell wafting through the corridor. Without acknowledging my companions, I stepped into the mouth of the Realm Wiper.
***
“Is there a reason it got split apart?” Aushen questioned.
“Momentum shift, same concept as my normal time fields, the entire body was not encased in the field, so it folded on itself and ripped, then the front of it continued its movement, separating it afterward.”
We were all gathered in between the two halves of the Realm Wiper, looking for an exit that didn’t involve slugging through the rest of the demoryn's rotting corpse. Fortune was not in our favor, it seemed, as there were no doorways or weak points in the walls. Blu, after relieving me of Sifyx, had tried to tear through the wall and instead nearly caved in the entirety of the passage, filling it partway with dirt and debris.
“So that didn't work,” he said obviously.
“Time to get goopy,” Aushen mumbled.
I shot him a look. “Never again.”
Taking a tentative step inside the hollowed inside of the Realm Wiper, I placed my hands outward for balance, so I didn't slip on the nearly frictionless surface. The boys stayed close behind me, periodically asking about my current condition, despite me telling them I'm fine more than enough times. It took some strain to keep the irritation out of my voice; being viewed as the weak link of the trio was not doing it for me.
“Why didn’t you use the Gatekeeper?” Aushen asked.
I wheeled on him, furious. “The hell do you take me for?! I’m not going to just leave Aerix here.”
“Why not?” Said Blu under his breath.
“Shut it.”
Aushen lit the end of his staff, broadening our range of vision in the organic tunnel. “So, where do we go to find them? Any idea where you left them?”
I popped a piece of gum in my mouth and thought for a moment, I got so lost in thought, that by the time I had remembered to speak, the flavor had been leeched from the gum. Aushen looked at me expectantly, next to him Blu wore a look of superiority, clearly convincing himself of my brainlessness.
“Fumes fried her brain. Or at least what counts for it.”
“Piss off, man.” I waved him off. “I remember where they are, I just need to retrace my steps.”
“So, why the hell did you have us walk through the Realm Wiper?” Blu asked incredulously.
“Did it occur to you that maybe Aerix was… Oh, I don’t know… IN THIS DIRECTION?!”
He yawned and picked at his nails. “It might’ve, had I bothered to care. I’ve been fairly transparent about the fact that I don’t think about Aerix, or most of you, for that matter.”
“What about Nova, you just keep her around for fun, do you?”
“What did you say?” Blu whispered dangerously.
Aushen was oblivious to the volatility in his tone and moved to take my side. “Well, Nika has a point,” he began, despite my motioning for him to stop, “you’re rarely ever nice to her, and-”
The Son of Shadows moved with untraceable swiftness and choke-slammed Aushen against the mushy surface of the Realm Wiper’s flesh. The tips of Blu’s claws dug into his skin. He was baring his teeth in fury at Aushen, who didn’t appear afraid, just a little confused. Blu’s eyes glowed a deep shade of ocean blue, which only emphasized his anger in pulsating flashes of lighter blue.
Blu closed his eyes and exhaled before staring Aushen dead in his eyes. “Listen closely, home wrecker. I would advise you not to comment on the state of my marriage, or I’ll carve out your tongue, piece by piece. I will listen to the coherence in your screams diminish with every cut while you slowly choke on your own blood.”
Aushen, despite his natural docility, did not back down. He clasped Blu’s wrist and pried it from his neck. “Last time we fought, there were three of you, and I held my own. Do you seriously think you can handle an anomaly on your own without the others by your side?”
“Okay, let’s get some things straight.” Blu let his arm drop to his side and took a step back. “I don’t need anyone else to live my life. And you didn't hold your own; we were interrupted; even then, I didn't need their help.”
“Yeah, I can tell by the way you treat your-”
I intercepted Blu’s fist faster than either of the boys could blink; the punch wasn’t even close to connecting with Aushen’s jaw because I had anticipated an abrupt strike. I didn’t even use my discs.
“Both of you need to stop,” I sighed.
The Echo of Flame and Frost nodded at me silently; Blu narrowed his eyes in a puzzled fashion, but I felt the resistance from his hand lessen.
“I have my reasons for portraying myself in the manner that I do; you have no right to question it,” said Blu with noticeably less belligerence.
“Then, can we get going again?”
“You two head back. I’m going to go and find Aerix. Alone. because truthfully, I don’t need anyone by my side to do this, either.”
Blu dropped his arm and stepped into the shadow on the wall and disappeared through the darkness like a portal.
I turned to Aushen, who blinked at me dubiously. “We aren’t gonna just leave and make him find Aerix by himself, right?”
“He may be an overly aggressive prick, but he’s nothing if not reliable. If he says he’ll do something, I have little doubt that he’ll get it done.”
“All right then, say we return to the others?” I asked, feeling the tension dissipate.
“Fine by me, he probably needs some time to himself anyway.” Aushen spun on his heel with a squelch and sauntered off down the tunneled corpse.
I really am sick of him.
Lacy touched my mind once more. That’s because you were him; before I died.
Here we go again.
You aren’t listening, Nini.
And you’re still being a know-it-all.
You kept your feelings hidden for the duration of our relationship. You didn’t want to show any weakness in front of me, even if that weakness was from your love for me. She gave a slight breath, sending a neurological shock through my senses.
That doesn't seem like the way Blu acts.
Let me break it down for you. Take the way you guys’ brush things off. He does it with indifference, while you do it with pretend superiority. It’s your way of being strong for the sake of others. Although you may not have brushed me off in the past, you did try to minimize your presence when witnessing my success, as though you were ashamed not to be as accomplished as I was in some areas.
I found myself nodding in reluctant agreement, Aushen oblivious to my dissociation.
And whenever you weren’t at any of my ceremonies or exhibitions, you tried so hard to make a name for yourself other ways, like you couldn’t stand the thought of having to need me, because you wanted to be the one to support and protect me.
Yeah, but with Blu, he’s fine letting Nova do her own thing. She’s literally the most well-known therapist in the eastern zone, and despite that, he doesn’t try to surpass her for the security of their life, I explained thoroughly.
They’re married for one, equal bearing of burdens is normal for husband and wife. So, making a comparison of every minor detail between the two of you would be futile, but the concept is the same: You two act above it all to stop the people you care about from worrying.
But it didn’t stop you from dying.
I update on M/W/F; Patreon has early access chapters.
- Midnight Stillness – Nika Aika + Sablune M?rkluna: Allows the echoes to stop time in a localized area by employing Nika’s dominion over Time overlapped with the null nature of Sablune’s Darkness.
Status Fields are distinct from individual Concepts, representing a capability or result of combined Concepts, often affecting an entire area or the state of reality within a localized zone. They are not direct Concept abilities but rather a broader application or outcome. Status Fields combine the Concept Energy of two echoes to achieve an effect neither could produce by themselves.