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godsoftheshell · 8 months

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Baby Come Back

Chapter 1: muscle to muscle and toe to toe

Jacus was a living statue. Nevica didn’t know how he’d act for most days— often stuck in this perpetual state, frozen and occasionally walking around the house. His hair never stopped growing. He was beautiful, what with strong eyebrows, thick eyelashes, big eyes and full lips. His face was decorated with piercings— a septum, three studs beside each of his eyes, a single hoop on the center of his lip. His skin was painted with gold, but if the light hit it right there’d be hints of cyan and purple framing it. He never wore anything different, just the top that held a gap between his chest, the pants that halved with a draping curtain, cut out the side where it showed off his hips, exactly how Nevica had found him.

He was the least of Nevica’s worries, but whenever he needed him he was useless unless he decided to be otherwise. Adam always wanted to play with him, wanted to get his attention, but one day he stopped. Gave up, it seems.

Adam played by himself these days, without Nevica’s indulgence or Jacus’s attention. Nevica used to wonder what kind of powers the boy would develop later on in life; but it was starting to speak for itself the bigger he was getting.

He was gifted with knowledge:

“Jacus isn’t here.”

Ever so often, the thought would occur to him as he spoke it:

“The butterflies are dying.”

And without questioning why, he would know reason immediately:

“Mama can’t come. She’s afraid.”

Nevica found his knowledge useful when it came to that. Some level of reality grounded into his distant thoughts of earth, if he thought about it too much his imagination would come too far without him. It’s unfortunate that Adam didn’t have that level of childhood innocence to him like most kids did; he outgrew that the moment he started to have a personality and understanding of the world.

Just at five.

There wasn’t much for Nevica to think of when Adam went past that age. He was putting him through school with a little Caimoru to help him blend in with the humans, a Haenhaw to summon Nevica to pick him up, and he would take his hand as they walked home together. Adam would tell him about his day, and, mulling through the usual pain that Nevica harbored every day, he’d listen just enough to be distracted from it.

That was one of the few things Nevica was grateful for staying for. He didn’t enjoy staying in one place, he was a traveler, despite having seen the same world for eons.

He’s reminded, once more, that those eons still held a different world in them. That was what the Calyxphere was for. Adam told about the stories they tell in class, but as the years went by, Adam simply started dismissing his academics altogether. By the time he was 12 he’d been on the verge of skipping grade after grade with the knowledge he was garnering, but Nevica would ultimately refuse to let him up for the sake of Adam needing to have at least one friend.

That day hadn’t come yet. Adam never told Nevica about his friends, and even if he did it was probably just noise for Nevica to distract himself with when the pain got too much to focus on Adam. On one particular day, though.

The pain was sharp, piercing through his torso. For the first time in a long time the burn in his body had felt so immense it actively caused him to make a noise akin to a dying animal; stabbing, ripping, tearing, right into his body and causing him to collapse onto the floor. He didn’t know what was causing it, but as Adam helped him up, he heard the boy say it: “It’s from someone you know.”

“What?” Nevica hissed out. Adam took from the freezer a whole bag of raw chicken, holding it up to Nevica’s face. He clawed at it desperately, teeth tearing into the meat and swallowing down as the blood started dripping to the floor, up until blood was caking his mouth and all that was left had been bones, dropped to the floor.

“You know him. His name is…” Adam paused, humming as he was trying to think for more of the knowledge being given to him. “Seresa.”

Nevica stopped. He stared at Adam for a moment, the rumble of his agony still brewing at the pit of his core, just as he was recalling memories of Seresa. Seresa when they first met, Seresa when he left, Seresa when he was…

Adam tilted his head.

“Aren’t you gonna go?” he asked.

Nevica’s breath was shuddering as he let it out.

“Yeah. In a bit.” He said, turning his head away. He was directing his attention to Jacus— he’d been sitting, staring blankly at the ceiling, third eye wide open. Nevica turned around completely and took Jacus’s body by the hand, pulling him up.

“Lock the doors. Clean the mess. I won’t be long.”

He’d nearly wheezed that one out because the pain hadn’t subsided yet— it had to be a human if he wanted a good few months away from the pain. Adam simply nodded, moving to get the mop. The humans can wait.

Jacus didn’t respond, just walked along as Nevica pulled him out of the house.

“Come on,” Nevica grunted, slipping from his hold. “We have to get this over with, Jacus.”

No response.

He stepped forward, finger tips brushing over Jacus’s palms, right before their fingers interlaced. Nevica muttered again, “I need you. You have to help me.”

No response.

Nevica brought his hand away from Jacus’s, instead holding him by his hair and swiping his thumb over his third eye— he felt energy radiate out of it, but that wasn’t what Nevica needed right now. He thumbed at his third eye once more, seeing Jacus’s expressions twitch in response, but just as Nevica dug his thumb tip under the eye it immediately shut and Jacus sprung back to life. His eyes were wide, breath short from a brief stint of panic, but it melted into confusion as he looked back down to see their hands held together.

“What have you done?” Jacus asked, pulling his hand away.

“I—“

“Guessed.” Jacus finished for him. “You are in need of my company?”

“I need your,” Nevica gritted his teeth, feeling the little sting try its best to return, “assistance.”

Whatever Seresa’s doing now, it’s going to hurt like a bitch when he gets to him.

“You may have it.” Jacus said, facial expressions completely immovable.

“Tell me what you’ll see on our way there.” Nevica said, moving into his space to press his lips on Jacus’s cheek, passing his power onto him. His skin flared up in response, and Nevica pulled away as Jacus’s body started radiating with Nevica’s energy.

Nevica turned away and stepped forward. “Come on,” he said.

Then leaped into the sky.

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godsoftheshell · 8 months

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Baby Come Back

Chapter 2: nakakabaliw lumalabas sa 'yong bibig

On their way there to El Nido, I’zhar kept his eyes on him. They had been leaping into the air and landing lightly on the waters, using it as a way to catapult them back upwards with the strength of Nevica’s power in their bodies.

Nevica’s braided, upwards pointing hair was a bright blond, reflective of the afternoon sun. The eyebrows naturally furrowed to an angle that pointed downwards, eyes chinky and, just like the sky, settled on a bright blue. The lines, the drawings on the face were called tattoos, symbols that I’zhar hadn’t recognized for anything familiar, but looked close to the “life” he was the god of. He had a top that had a hood to the side, silver armor in the shape of one of the Earth’s flowers on his body. The rest were fabric that draped down to his knees. Blue, most of his body was, except his skin. It was a deep warm brown.

Their path wasn’t as far. It was much easier to blink forward to time, but I’zhar wouldn’t want to waste the extra power Nevica had passed on to him in this part of the timeline. It was a clean timeline, not like the other ones I’zhar kept going to. That thing had drenched them in its filth and none had ended the way I’zhar wanted them to end. This was the only timeline he hadn’t touched, but where it was going was different. He looked onwards, only to find many more branches of time split into unusual sections and shapes. Forks of those branches split the timelines, not in its usual manners but all were grouped in ways that I’zhar couldn’t find which one would be the right one to use. They were geometric, incoherent. He decided he’d pick the closest one to their current path— something covered in unusual lines.

It wasn’t going to be stable, I’zhar tracked, he himself had doubts about what could happen even if he was going to guide them. He didn’t want to guide them. Then Nevica turned back.

“What do you—“

“See?” I’zhar asked, then answered: “A cluster of timelines. They are not grouped the way they usually would be.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means it is difficult to navigate what with our destination not being reached.”

“Are we going to be okay?”

“Not for long. Be prepared for the pain you will experience.”

Then Nevica looked forward. “Like I’m not already,” he muttered.

In his vision he’s witnessed the sight of a god with red hair and red clothes draped over the body. Another, a younger, darker, taller god had looked more like the humans; except white lines curled and framed his face and over the bridge of his nose. The visuals were as faint as fast as they had come— staying present, staying conscious, especially in one timeline was usually the reason they moved too fast. He was used to his body being projected through time, not in one place in one time. Then he looked at Nevica once more, just after glancing back at how he would later approach that red-haired god and found out that they had known each other.

Or, that was what I’zhar understood. He looked through Nevica’s eyes, then moved backwards, only to feel a fist connect to his face and look back at the same red-haired god scowling at him, tears in the face.

“NEVER APOLOGIZE— YOU DON’T GET TO APOLOGIZE!” The red-haired god yelled, but he felt Nevica’s body turn away and leave. His feet crunched the wet— what they called, sand, the ocean waves push and pulling against the grains. It all disappeared once Nevica had left the island, I’zhar unable to see the state of the rest of it because Nevica hadn’t looked back. It took mere seconds before I’zhar returned to his own eyes. Nevica’s reaction— a small shudder, a few blinks, was the only evidence I’zhar had left as Nevica remained oblivious to the way he’d possessed his eyesight and seen his past timeline.

“Do you feel that?” Nevica asked, landing onto the surface of the water, before they both sprung back up into the air together.

“What do you feel?” I’zhar asked.

“Weird. Like my eyes felt like they were somewhere else.”

Their movement finally stopped as soon as their feet hit the ground. I’zhar’s first instinct was to stand on the tips of his toes— the pressure of the sand proving too much sensation in its little particles and grains.

Nevica glanced at him, “you’re gonna have to get used to that,” he said, then his breath shuddered as he held his torso because of the sting. I’zhar looked back at him as Nevica clenched his teeth, “as will you.”

“Fuck you.” He whispered, in his already soft voice. I’zhar still had no understanding on what that phrase meant.

They moved forward, just to what seemed like an extensive mansion came into view. I’zhar wasn’t sure if that had been the right word, he hadn’t seen habitats similar to what he was seeing, because a small array of houses decorated the same way had surrounded it, and a large, non-houselike shelter was at the center.

“What am I seeing?” I’zhar asked. Nevica’s footsteps had begun to get heavier.

“That,” Nevica jerked his head forward, “is a resort. The god we’re looking for manages the place. It’s a place to stay for visitors not from around here.”

“It is…”

“What?”

“Empty. There are no visitors.”

“It’s not—“

“—‘the season’?”

“A season’s a certain time of the year, made from changing months,” Nevica muttered, “nobody’ll be here until another few.”

“What creates the change?”

“The weather— needs to be hotter if people want to be here.”

Another pathway opened for them. Instead of following it, though, something strange happened.

The air around them was cracking. It was as if they were surrounded by glass, except there was no way to contain it at all. Nevica’s throat let out various clicks and noises, straining from reacting to the tension definitely building inside his body.

I’zhar moved towards the cracks, diverting the pathway for just a mere second— leading to a different timeline just as he decided to touch one of them. It was a small shift, but just as he ran his fingers over the cracks he saw one of the cluttered timelines show themselves.

“What are you doing?” Nevica asked, but both their heads snapped to attention to someone standing on the platform in front of the resort’s main building. It was the red-haired god. Unlike the previous appearance in Nevica’s past, the skin was blackening, filled with clusters of stars that went from the edges of the cheeks to the neck down, some parts of the limbs missing with bright white rings spinning on their ends, and a white void sitting in the middle of the body, the black spiraling down into it as if it was a wormhole.

“Seresa?” Nevica asked. “What…”

Seresa’s eyes went wide. “Nevica.”

“What are you doing?” He asked, but just as that happened, Seresa had taken a step back, and the clicks and whispers of breaking glass were coming louder and louder.

“You’re not supposed to be here.” Seresa said.

“I am now.” Nevica’s face softened, moving closer to him. I’zhar went to grab the back of his shirt.

“No,” I’zhar said, “it’s dangerous.”

“What?” Nevica looked back at Seresa, then, “Seresa—“

“You should listen to him.” Seresa hissed, and the wormhole in the core twisted inwards, and suddenly the air shattered until it was broken. The pieces of the atmosphere falling to nothing to reveal mirrors of the same place covered in colors and stars, and, what I’zhar could make out, massive differences from each other. I’zhar’s vision was starting to be understood now— the forked shape of the cluster of timelines were from these realities were dimensions. They didn’t belong to the universe they were holding. These alternate universes were from a much bigger scale, with their own beginnings, their own ends, their own timelines, and now with Seresa’s interference they were wide open and accessible.

Just before Nevica could reach Seresa, the cracked glass that suddenly appeared under his feet had shattered, dropping him into the next dimension.

“NEVICA—“ I’zhar stumbled forwards, then looked back up. The realities were overlapping into his vision, the timelines proving too much to handle, but following blind instinct he’d drawn Etreeni from his wrist and charged at Seresa. A bright light beamed into his face, and just by that simple distraction he stabbed forwards, hearing a yelp that didn’t belong to him, pulling the one he’d stabbed back into his space before hands started to grab and push them both around.

I’zhar’s stance broke in the process, and soon the god he’d stabbed and he, had fallen into the shattered entrance into the next dimension.

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