”Stand down, she’s a friend!” The voice of Nyx suddenly sounded over the clamor of people trying to find safety and immortals preparing for battle. “Though why she would be dumb enough to appear here in a form like that is another question.” She continued in a quieter voice.

Dee slowly descended to a nearby garden with Nyx following right behind. Dee looked at the small Meilin and gave a small mirthless laugh. “The portal was a lot more accurate than I assumed. Also, there are some circumstances.” The last part she said in a voice quiet enough to only be heard by Nyx. Or at least it was supposed to be, but she somewhat underestimated how far the voice of a dragon carries.

Suddenly another Meilin glomped on one of her legs. Dee had sensed Moirai’s approach and was not surprised to see her. The sudden hug was a bit more surprising, though the surprise was slightly dulled by the contrast created by the difference in size. Moirai was smaller than one of Dee’s toes in her dragon form. Her old master punched the leg she was hugging repeatedly. Dee was a little shocked by the outburst of emotion, and taken by surprise at the lack of any effect those hits had. It wasn’t that Moirai was holding back, they just barely even registered on her scales. Dee realized that the hits were meant as a sort of punishment as well as to vent Moirai’s feelings.

Even though the punches didn’t hurt, something else did. “Where have you been?! I was so worried about you!” Moirai said several small sentences that made Dee’s heart clench. There were very few people that cared for her deeply enough to shed tears of worry on her disappearance or tears of relief on her safe return. In fact, she could count the number of those people with the fingers of one hand, or at least she assumed so.

“I’m sorry for making you worried. I’m back now.” Dee mumbled apologetically and shifted into her kitsune form. She shrunk to the size of a small cat, climbed on Moirai’s shoulder and plunked some of her tails in Moirai’s lap to allow her teacher something softer to vent her feelings on.

The surprises continued as Razark was the next to arrive. The man looked worn, but there was a spark of something new inside his eyes. “Dummy disciple.” He greeted Dee with a small but weary smile. She wasn’t exactly sure if he had decided to adopt the old man’s way of addressing her or if he really thought this last little stunt truly qualified her as a dummy.

“Idiot disciple. You’ve seen better days.” Dee commented, deciding to play along and jab back.

“I got back yesterday. I’m done.” His words seemed innocent on the surface, but the two people knew the special meaning behind those words. Razark was letting her know he had gotten his revenge and the matters with the Order of the Radiant Sun and the freelancer’s guild were finished. That probably implied quite a few dead people.

“All done? No need to go back anymore?” Dee confirmed. Razark might have some unfinished business even if the main purpose was fulfilled.

“All done. The battle between the two groups is finished as well. It got pretty bloody there for a while, but it seems both of the sides got done what they needed to get done.” Razark explained briefly. He considered his next words for a short moment. “I’m fairly sure we’ll never know all that went into the struggle, but I suspect the grandmaster at least needed to get rid of some people. I may have inadvertently helped him in that. That most likely wasn’t the only reason, but…”

“And that’s probably the best news from the last few months.” Nyx commented with an angry voice. Not angry at Dee, just plain angry. “Aside from your return that is. Come on. Let’s get somewhere a bit more private. You missed a lot while you were gone.”

The group found themselves in the room where the representatives of the five races usually dealt with things. Dee noted that both Shioko and Kawhena, the Jun and Dagon representatives, were missing. That didn’t seem like a good sign. Nyx noted Dee’s look and answered the unasked question. “Shioko and Kawhena are dealing with the evacuation of our sub-communities.”

Dee, still sitting on Moirai’s shoulder, looked at Nyx with even more questions. “I’m assuming something happened.” It wasn’t a question. She knew something must have happened. Otherwise such measures would not have been taken.

Nyx gave a deep sigh. “Yes. One of the Night city communities thought it would be a good idea to acquire some hostages. Preferably ones that were not able to put up such stiff resistance. With the Radiant Sun and the other big groups that usually watch over the lesser circles otherwise busy, the security in the lesser circles has gone down significantly.”

Dee gave a small growl at the thought. Moirai’s voice sounded a little hollow as she spoke. “As you know, we have guardians protecting our sub-communities. That said, we’ve gotten too used to the Day city communities not targeting those sub-communities, so the enemy had an element of surprise. They don’t play by the same rules as us. Even with that, they had not sent enough strength to our sub-community to overpower the guardians, partially because we were not the only target. Once the enemy realized they would not be able to capture live hostages, they instead decided to kill as many of our people as they could. Our guardians did their best, but a cornered animal is always the most dangerous.”

A thought suddenly came to Dee. “Mina? Faylen?” She asked with worry. Faylen at least should be safe here. Emphasis on should.

Moirai shook her head. “Mina was here when the attack happened, and they didn’t even target the sub-community she was part of. Faylen is also here and has never left. However, Ngaire was less lucky. He died protecting others from the attackers, as was his duty.”

Dee remembered the gruff Dagon that used to be in charge of the security in the sub-community where Dee had trained under Moirai. The two had also sparred numerous times. “I’m assuming something is being done to avenge our fallen?” Dee asked with a grim tone.

Nyx grimaced. “Yes and no. We would have taken the appropriate measures, but it’s not quite that simple. We suspect they are trying to trap us. Something about the attack seems off. Somehow they managed to bungle the attack so badly, yet they still managed to kill so many of our people. I get the feeling that might have been at least a secondary goal they had planned beforehand, if not the primary goal in the first place. The actions of the attackers were at the same time too clumsy and too effective. We have prepared a retaliation but can’t send it out.”

The Anshar representative spoke up as well. “The community we’re dealing with is not something we can just crush easily. They might be a third circle community, but according to our information, they were on the edge of becoming a second circle one, much like us. If we wanted to take revenge, we would have to take along enough of our most powerful members to leave this place virtually defenseless. With our target being in the Night city, even with the gates, the trip would take time and we wouldn’t be able to return quickly if something happened here. We suspect that might be what they are after.”

“So at best it would be mutually assured destruction, and at worst your target in the Night city is just a fake target and you will have been lured away.” Dee finished in his stead. She remembered an old saying about luring a tiger away from the mountain to gain access to its cubs.

The Anshar representative agreed with a nod. “And that’s assuming they’re working alone. We might be running into a coalition instead of a single enemy once we get there. It would not be the first one. The Night city communities have gotten smarter in the last few months. And that’s without any Day city communities taking advantage of the chaos. Frankly it’s a mess. Retaliation would be an overextension on our part, but it would look bad if we do nothing.”

Dee suddenly gave a suggestion. “Well, there’s more than one way to take revenge. Instead of a large group of immortals, what if only a single knife goes and keeps striking at them from the dark?” That would also be a good way for her to get used to her new situation in a combat situation. After spending a bit of time absorbing Xinglong’s powers and knowledge of course. The other option was that she provided the method of fast travel if something did happen. That would be less fun though.

“Which would be you, I assume?” Nyx asked almost rhetorically. “That brings us to where the heck have you been all this time? We got word about a dragon abducting you. Moirai found out a bit more, but it was vague at best.”

“Well, long story short, demons and dragons are not a great mix when it comes to a heritage. I went a little crazy, got tortured for months by another dragon until I came to my senses, got another thing added to my heritage, killed a cursed rank 13 dragon due to his last wish and stole a mountain. And now I’m here.” Dee rattled off with a straight face.

That brought various expressions from everyone gathered. Nyx’s face seemed to be cramping as she spoke. “You might want to expand on that just a little.”

Dee gave a more detailed explanation which was received very differently. Razark and Moirai seemed to be more worried that Dee had been basically tortured for months even if it was for her own sanity. Nyx and the Anshar noted another important detail. “So the spot in the first circle is now open. It will only take a few weeks before the news spreads and things will really get crazy. We must prepare. Most would have assumed that there’s much more time until this happened. This will escalate things.”

Moirai noted that something was still bothering Dee. “There’s something else. Something you didn’t mention and it upsets you.”

Dee gave a deep sigh. “There were…consequences. My old form is no more.” She hopped off Moirai’s shoulder and allowed herself to turn into her new form. “This is my form now.” She had not really had the chance to study her new form in detail, so it was somewhat new to her as well. Her wings seem to have grown much bigger, both now being larger than her body, though of course she could control that. Her appearance was quite attractive and much more balanced than either of her old humanoid forms. The old angel form had been a bit too lush to be practical while her normal form had been a bit too athletic to be all that appealing. Now it had a nice balance, and the horns that seemed to be glowing with power added to the already significant effect that her mere presence had.

Despite the physical changes, the biggest difference came from the aura she seemed to be giving off. Some of the presence from her dragon form had carried over and combined with her angel side to give her an air of nobility and power. The old Dee used to just have the air of danger and death, but the new form was much more than that. Even with her Domain hidden, the others could feel a definite air of regality. Her new form was quite impressive and drew some quite a bit of praise from the others. It wasn’t as shocking as her dragon form had been, but that was only to be expected. Dragons were dragons after all and had very few equals in that sense. This form was more subtle in its impressiveness, although only in comparison to the dragon form. That made her presence about as subtle as a hammer to the head.

Moirai didn’t fully understand why, but she could see this positive impression from the others was affecting Dee negatively. She walked to her former student and simply hugged her, trying to comfort her. Dee’s own emotions on the subject were difficult to explain, even to herself. It was a feeling of losing herself and part of her connection to her past. She had felt she had been pushed to become something her entire life, and this newest change was just a continuation of that. She didn’t like being pushed. She also felt that her old form had been the truest representation of herself, and every time someone rejected it, it hurt a little. Now it felt like she had been rejected by the universe.

There was also an element of losing the last of what remained of her childhood. That form had been the original, even if there had been small changes later on. It was the only form her mother Selvaria was familiar with. Would she even be recognized if she ever reunited with Selvaria? On the other hand, growing up was a part of life. Maybe shedding her old form was also a sign of shedding her old self, the one who acquiesced to the demands of the others. Maybe the new form could also serve as the starting point of her regaining her autonomy and being her own master? That was worth considering.

------

After a long exchange of news, Dee withdrew from the gathering on the grounds of trying to get used to the changes that had happened. That was actually what she was planning on doing, although she also planned on dealing with what she had gained from Xinglong. As she found a suitable place for mediation, she started the process of assimilating the power she had gained and turning it into her own. At the same time, she started going through the information she had gained.

Dee’s knowledge on immortals, soul spaces, Domains, and totems was somewhat inadequate. Xinglong, on the other hand, had been an immortal for a staggering amount of time, so of course he had quite a bit of knowledge on the subject. She was aware of the basic theory, but the details were a little hazy. It seems her old information was correct in parts though as she went through the information. It seemed Mazatl’s lectures had not been entirely wasted although incomplete.

The main difference between a soul space and a Domain was that while soul spaces were almost entirely internal and defensive in nature, Domains could affect the world around the person. A normal soul space was like a shield and a source of life for an immortal, and the size affected mostly the strength of the effect it had on the immortal. Domains were a little different. They granted the same benefits as soul spaces but they also had other uses. The size of the Domain decided the power and the area of those other uses.

According to Xinglong’s information, a real Domain should have three basic effects: weaken the enemy, strengthen the owner of the Domain and finally bend reality in some way. Just like soul spaces and totems, not all Domains were created equal. Some of them focused on one aspect, while others could be powerful in all three of the main functions. Dee could instantly tell hers was closer to the latter kind. In addition the Domain had an effect on her totem.

Normal totems were focused on taking a single ability to the extreme. They came in all types and effects, but in general they only affected that one ability. A lightning totem of a mage would increase the owner’s power with lightning magic and would work as a second source of power, turning lightning magic into something that would take almost no mana. It might also give exquisite control over the element. On the other hand, the totem did very little to help that mage’s other abilities.

The totems that came from Domains were a little different. Xinglong had told Dee that they were the representations of a concept or an ideal. They reflected the personality and the deepest desires of their owners. Unlike a normal totem, they would not work as a second source of power or grant control over an element. On the other hand, they made all facets of their owner stronger and granted some abilities tied to the concept that spawned the totem. Usually those other effects were also tied to the size of the Domain so that they only worked in the area covered by the Domain. While most people would rather have a Domain if given the choice, it was not strictly better when compared to a standard soul space and totem. As with most things, your real advantage would come from how you used the powers you were granted.

In Dee’s case, she could sense that her totem was unfinished and wasn’t granting the full benefits yet, but it was mainly connected to three things. The first thing was the connection with the four blessings, which were now tied to the totem in a way that the ties could not be broken. That would have an effect on her blessings, but she wasn’t entirely sure what kind. The best she could tell, it would be something along the lines where she would benefit as if she had become an immortal based on the power of those blessings instead. That would greatly increase her ability to utilize those blessings, but the details remained unclear and would require further testing.

Second thing was that Death especially had managed to put her fingers in this pot. It was rather obvious from all the skulls, but her totem was heavy with the death element. That said, surprisingly the Tree of Life had introduced a Life element into the totem as well, in the form of the bonds that tied those blessings to her totem. Dee suspected that she would be able to bring that death element to bear inside her Domain if she decided to extend that power outwards. That would most likely be very unhealthy to most beings.

The third and most important thing was the original desire that had created the totem in the first place. She wanted to stand above others, but mainly because she no longer wanted to be afraid. It seemed both her Domain and her totem had a very strong element of not allowing others to affect her and exert their influence over her. Thus her Domain seemed to be able to disrupt the abilities of others from working properly and stop those abilities from affecting her. The effect was still suppression and not a complete denial, but it combined well with the standard effect of Domains, which was to weaken her enemies. It seemed that both the death element and the suppression made that weakening effect the strongest part of her Domain. Those effects probably also had something to do with the third effect of a true Domain Xinglong’s memories mentioned, bending the reality in some way.

Among the information she went through was a nice bit about immortals in general and how unfinished totems affected their strength. Obviously someone with a finished totem would have an advantage over someone with an unfinished one, but that didn’t simply translate into more power. Some totems were harder to finish than others. On the flipside they were usually also more powerful. That said, the state of the totem was not directly tied to the rankings of immortals. A rank ten immortal rarely had a completed totem, but it happened. Almost all rank twelve immortals had their totems completed, but that too wasn’t a universal fact. Even an unfinished totem might grant a lot of power.

Dee was in the weird position of having a half completed totem and a large Domain straight after becoming an immortal. That made her very hard to classify when it came to strength and ranks. In the end the ranks were based on pure battle ability and were a little vague at best. There was no strict threshold you needed to cross to be considered rank eleven or twelve. You just had to have enough strength to match others of similar rank in battle. Rank thirteen was a little different in that it required the being to have enough strength to either destroy a world or at least render it unsuitable for life. Alternatively they could have the strength to grant life to a world.

Dee theoretically lacked the raw amount of power to be considered rank eleven, but she was just in the middle of making the power from Xinglong her own, and she also remembered the little gift Selvaria had left behind one of the doors that had already opened. All that power and those souls gathered from the now destroyed hell would go a long way in making up for the gap. That said, it would take time to make that power truly hers and get used to it. When one gained a lot of power, they were, in essence, holding more power than their capacity allowed. They could use that power, but once spent, it would be gone. Truly making the power yours would raise your maximum level of power to include the new addition, so that power would regenerate as well as if it had always been a part of you.

The problem with ranking her wasn’t just about absorbing the power. She still wasn’t sure how much her abilities had changed after becoming an immortal, not to mention how much they would change after she had finished with her current effort. “I need some way to get used to this power and really test things out. I have no idea about the changes in my body or the powers of the dragon form either.” She muttered in dismay. Basically she had no idea how strong she was. That would be a serious problem if she got into a fight. She might be vastly stronger or weaker than she thought, and finding out at the wrong time might be catastrophic.

“Why don’t you go with the same thing as you did with the power from the Tree of Life? Go smack the old man around. I bet he would be all too happy to have a proper sparring partner and you’ve wanted to kick him around for a while now. I suggest you finish absorbing Xinglong’s power and then go and put him in his place. Might as well take Razark along as well. It would do good for him to see you’re no longer the same girl you used to be. It might help the both of you to put things in perspective as well. You need to get over the feeling of still being his student, and he needs to start seeing you as an equal. In some respects at least.” Croestia replied. She actually had a hunch about Dee’s level of strength. Despite losing her memories, she had passed through the hands of many powerful owners and her instincts were now whispering her things.