5-Thorns in the Void

  -As a newly freed ghost, Briarfallen

  Entry 57 - The Sky-Ways - Year 950

  I am Aarakocra. I was born to the sky. When I first arrived, the shifting hallways felt like a tomb. I would have panic attacks, the walls closing in, the ceiling too low. I thought I would go mad. It was Briarfallen who saved me. I never saw her. Only a silken thread that dropped from the rafters, with a note attached. It simply said, 'Look up.' And I did. I saw the network of beams, pipes, and ledges high above. The sky-ways. Now, I rarely touch the floor. I live in the canopy of this strange forest, and for the first time since my arrival, I can breathe.

  — Sky, Aarakocra Scout

  Freedom. Such a common Trope, and just another form of enslavement promised by those with the keys to your cage. Even here, even now. With a balance as unremarkable at ten silver coins, nothing prevents me from demanding my release, my investment…

  Even as I sit above the rabble, as that arrogant Newt glances back and up to me, I can’t help but… Smile. To know, even an ageless being can laugh, can learn. That such an arrogant, emotional fool as him can be humbled by the likes of me. Pitiful.

  Alas, I’ve now attended my second miserable Hearth Day now, and I’ll never have to do so again. Only a handful know I exist, and even less can see me when I’m as such… Selene, the personal blanket of our humble Newt, the Ledgar-Scribe knows of me, yet not whom I am. And two others, whose senses have left them and gained a keener sense of feeling. A Gardner, of all things. They’ve caught me several times when I tend to my personal garden… And a Merfolk, whom knows better than to prattle me with details on the rare occasion I visit the Sauna. Miserable folk.

  A new day…

  A new Dawn, a new Dusk…

  The Dragon-Newt left some time ago with another load of material to sell. A slow, arduous thing such a being does. The wealth he can create is in the billions, yet he keeps his results slow. If it’s one thing that bird-brained dragon does correctly at least, it’s economics… The vaults below are secure enough, yet you only need to ask to walk in. Strange, honestly. I’ve asked for resources worth tens of thousands and it was merely handed to me like it was a simple towel. No balance change, no asking why… The wealth of worlds that feathered-dragon wields, and it’s merely a tool to him, and nothing more…

  The days have dramatically slowed down now, now that my debt has been cured. Yet I find myself still observing the hunters on their journeys, or how one of the newest drama-riddled purchases, Rosin, fails to copulate with an overzealous Queen… At least I still find enjoyment in those little failures…

  Speaking of failures, it appears we have a New Arrival. A black bundle of fur, he carries. Oh it writhes and shudders. Poor, frail, miserable thing must have passed out seeing such a being as him… Yet, how they curl into their self, becoming a perfectly forgettable ball of shadow… Am I feeling…? No, they are also a creature of shadow. Nothing more. Another jaded soul that will be forgotten in the next century…

  Another day, another dusk… Even as I peruse the ever-changing Estate, from the Greenhouses to the Kitchen, the communal Showers to the Hotsprings… I’m finding myself… Hollow. I’ve always had the agency to walk, to talk, and go as I please. Inside, and out of the Estate. We all have. I’ve seen beings lounge for months, their balance never moving. It’s perfectly acceptable… Yet here I am, unsure of my own existence now. Perhaps treating my time here like another war to be won was… Pah, foolish. I am free. That is what matters.

  Just as this new arrival matters to him. The Bird-Brained Dragon-Newt. How he brings them food, drink, clothes I’ve spun, like they’re special. He would treat us all this way, I suspect given the chance… Or perhaps… It’s to those who need it…

  Yet as he leaves the room, welcoming them here…

  His gaze as the door quietly clicks shut, lands on me atop the hallway. Look away, damn dragon. I do not exist for you to gaze on me. Yet he doesn’t speak, he doesn’t nod. His eyes hold all he could ever ask of me, that damned dragon always begging for my help. I will not give him the satisfaction; his new broken toy is not of my ward…

  He simply walks away. Cloakless. An empty plate that looks like it was hastily eaten from. The room he left is silent, quiet, but the being within is awake, unmoving…

  Why must I bother with such a troublesome task? At least a hundred Hearthbounders reside here, all better suited for such a task. Even a dozen have walked by since I’ve curled up here, tucked between the ceiling and the window as the moonlight finally dances inward. Even the Pillow Princess Selene dared walk by. Her damn smile pisses me off, I know it’s because she sees me sitting here, waiting…

  The rustling from inside the room grew stronger after some time. I merely procured various goods, various meats, from the kitchen from unwitting cooks hard at work and snuck them into the room when I knew that shadow creature was sleeping. Selene’s Soul Dew in a large pitcher should do the trick, to drive them outwards. Strong in flavor, and filling for the stomach, if that doesn’t cause them to…

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  The door’s knob turns quietly, slowly. Like the creature behind it is asking a question. How miserable… Nobody has walked this hall in over an hour, it’s the middle of the night. Yet this damned…

  Slowly, the black-furred newcomer’s head pops out, slow, unsure and uneasy. They hear nothing around them, yet they clearly are shaken. Their eyes… No, her eyes are like transient pearls glimmering in the full moon… Yet, they are eternal for her… It’s strange, how she looks upward. With no visible pupil, it’s hard to say if she’s looking at me or—

  “Sh-shadow…?” It mutters, so tenderly, so… “Are you… The one who… Will order Void-Pelt?”

  Order you?

  Void-Pelt?

  A simple shift from my personal space, my leg merely shaking off the cold air the hall now felt to hold and she nearly scurried back into her room… She can see me… Or, at least where I am.

  “You can see me?” I mutter, her face careens like I’m about to whip her.

  “O-only… Void-Pelt only sees… The shimmer, o-of where you are… Miss Master…” This ‘Void-Pelt’ whimpers… I noticed a peculiarity of the situation… Her Collar is on her wrist, the same color as that loathsome dragon’s feathers… And she’s wearing his cloak…

  “How peculiar…” I must have muttered, as their ears ‘flooped’ upwards, at attention despite the hood. “You desire to be unseen?”

  “S-sir Dr-dragon said… Void-Pelt would… Not be seen in this Cloak…” They muttered, stuttering, but their gaze… Oh their gaze was almost delectable.

  “Only a dozen beings out of the hundreds here can properly see his cloak.” I responded, slowly moving now. It was an… Odd, sensation. Her gaze didn’t bother me. “What do you seek, little miss Voidling?”

  “I-I… Need to… Clean these… And… Bathroom…” She spoke, her eyes never wavering as I traversed the ceiling, coming to rest right above her, still huddled behind the door. If not for my excellent eyesight, I fear even without the cloak she might suddenly vanish into the darkness. How lucky.

  “Then hold onto this string, so I don’t have to talk aloud, and may pull you to your destinations.” I mutter, slowly producing a thin string of velvet. It took mere seconds to produce a long enough leash, as I stopped producing such silks when my balance became zero… So, my reserves were at capacity.

  The little ball of fur hesitated, for too long… But eventually grabbed hold of it. Such a waste of time… She closed the door without a single sound, and the pads of her feet let nothing to let me know she was walking along with me as I began. Only the light tug of the silk and the feeling of her constant gaze…

  The first hurdle, the first tug on the lead as another miserable soul turned the corner in front of us. A tall man, a grumpy man… “He sees you as nothing more than a random passerby, if at all.” I muttered through the string.

  The gruff man merely padded past her, never a simple look or glimpse. She might as well have been part of the damn wall… She slowly turned, glancing behind as he continued down the hallway.

  “He… Didn’t notice Void-Pelt…” She spoke in a hushed whisper.

  “I did say you’re practically invisible, Little Voidling.” I reminded her, a pang of distaste must of left my lips at how she hastily looked up.

  “S-sorry, M-Miss Master. V-Voi—”

  “I am not your Master, Voidling.” My voice rang through the line, as she shuddered, leaning against the wall. She acts like I was to beat her for this transgression… Where in the world did that dumb dragon save her from?

  “Just call me… Briarfallen… And drop that ‘Miss’ nonsense.” I reluctantly spoke, glaring down at her… Yet her eyes… Those damned eyes… “Once we’ve relieved you of your duties, I’ll teach you how to avoid the filth that damn dragon brings to The Hearth.”

  “Th-The Hearth?” Her quiet voice rang out as I pulled lightly on the leash, she complied… Quickly… Like following orders was the one thing she was good at… Perhaps I can use that to… Help? Pah. She’s just another means to an end… An end… What end…?

  “The Hearth is the Estate in which you currently reside, Little Voidling. You eat, sleep, clean, and commune with the other ‘Hearthbound’ here.” I rambled…. I never ramble…

  The kitchen was always a place, no matter the time of day, someone or something was cooking, brewing, concocting… The damn Selene was here.

  “Tch.”

  “L-Lady, um.. Miss… No… B-Briarfallen?” The damn welp whispered, clearly hearing my disdain. Of all the lousy heathens to hear and see this series of events, the one that sleeps with the damn fool had to.

  “Carry on, dishes in one of the racks. They’re done in bulk later. Lets get you to that bathroom.” I scowled, and the Little Voidling quickly complied. Even as she hesitated to walk by Selene, the… Stop looking at me you lousy bed-warmer…

  Perhaps I’m too heated, having yanked the leash a bit too hard as we came back down the hallway. Yet Little Voidlings padded feet made no sound. That wasn’t something the cloak would do, no. That was all her.

  It took another hallway, my heated agitation finally quelling as we came across one of the few smaller bath houses, one of the ones I’ll frequent… It was time I made my way off the ceiling as I felt her stop at the corner. Tilting a portrait, moving a small table in the hallway, I landed with ease down in front as the entryway before us was just big enough for one such as me.

  “Come now, Little Voidling.” I spoke, brisk, to the point… But I didn’t pull on the leash this time, merely waiting… She slowly came forward as I led the way, her gaze still deeply on me.

  Inside the bath house was… Calmness. Various stalls, various supplies, various enjoyments… “To the left you can relieve yourself.”

  Her movements were shockingly quick as I heard a stall door close. I was thankful she didn’t need to be potty-trained at least…

  The leash I made expanded as I walked allowing her to follow me if she chose. This room was rarely used, and I liked it that way. Allowing me to merely exist in the comfort of a warm shower, or long, deep soak…

  “B-Briarfallen…” The Little Voidling snuck up on me… I must have moved too quickly, as she winced and tensed… “V-Void-Pelt is… Is done…”

  A part of me froze, as she waited for punishment… Part of me considered entertaining her. “You’re hardly done… Tell me, are you afraid of spiders?”

  “I-is… Void-Pelt… Supposed to be? V-Void-Pelt… Can be… If—”

  “Enough…” I whispered with a light peeve. Was I really going to…

  Her eyes grew wider, her mouth opened slightly as she looked upon my form. It wasn’t a fear, nor was it a lust. Yet she looked at me like I was…

  …

  …

  …

  I’m unsure how to… Phrase… What transpired… Nobody sees me. Nobody should have to. Yet this… Little Voidling, now responds so… Differently… Than others. I’m not letting that damn dragon nor his little elf princess mock me for what I’ve done. This Little Voidling is mine to tutor in the acts of Espionage and Stealth Encounters. Until she’s damn well and good to do so without that bird-brains cloak, I’ll make sure she gets the proper teaching…. Even if it means I need to brush and tend to the knots in her fur myself…