Trigger Warning: Child loss is painful. Toofy's pregnancy has not been going well.
---
Toofy lay weakly on her side atop the bed, staring blearily at people around her. Not hearing them, not understanding them. Not feeling... A single damned thing.
She knew what had happened.
Toofy knew exactly what had happened, she didn't want to hear it put into words.
Didn't want anyone to tell her that because she had lost control, because the elf hurt her and left behind the attentions of a monster, Toofy's son was dead.
Before he was even born.
Tears rolled out of her dull eyes, and she fell off the edge of the bed with a thunk. The cat crawled in under it, and curl into a ball. She bit into the back of her hand as her chest began to heave in pain.
A pain that would never leave her.
She had been willing to let the kitsune violate her, if it would save her son, and now... Now there was no point.
No point to anything.
Her flopped against the hard ground and she closed her eyes... And stopped breathing.
---
Trician looked around the table of allies in concern, "The... The future has changed. As things are, we are all doomed to die. Soon. And when we die, so shall the world."
"Because of Toofy." Sai said darkly, "I... Can't you do something, Astadia? Arina?"
Astadia sneered, "I fuck with dead elves. A dead cat's kid is asking a bit much. Besides, a draug baby sounds like a fucking terrible idea."
"The goddess was difficult to convince to allow me to save Twenty Four's life, m'lord." Arina said, tears welling up in the handmaiden's eyes.
Trician didn't know what the fuck to think of the newcomer.
The human was soft-spoken, and gentle. She always seemed to speak formally, and showed an incredible amount of deference towards Sai. She seemed, on the surface, to be such a fragile thing.
On the other hand, she was the avatar of the god of Death.
When Trician had given up, and Toofy's life had been slipping away, Arina had stood between Death and the neko, and brought her back. The woman had been fearless as she denied nature, and denied what was arguably one of the most powerful gods.
A deity... Had acquiesced... To this fragile little human.
Trician only became more confused when she had tried to read Arina's fate.
All of them were bound to Toofy. That, she had got used to.
Toofy didn't have a fate, that she found disturbing.
When Trician had read the fate of the handmaiden, she saw that she wasn't just an avatar of Death. One day, not soon, Arina was fated to become Death.
She had been chosen to become the next incarnation of a deity.
Trician hadn't even known such a thing was possible, hadn't dreamed that it could be, and was finding it incredibly fucking disturbing. Especially with how soft and gentle the human was.
Or, that had been Arina's fate until Toofy had woken up.
When that happened, the future had simply disappeared, like last time.
The elf felt a pang of guilt. She was worried about the future, and the neko, but she hadn't even had a chance to mourn for her companion.
She had lost control when Kaleid had died, but Tyre wasn't even buried, yet, and she was moving on. Granted, their relationship had been vastly different, but he had still fought by her side.
She glared at the neko's lord.
Tyre had served with him, under him. Trician couldn't see a single hint of anything approaching grief on his face. He seemed to not be feeling much of anything.
His companion was dead.
His son had just died.
His mistress had nearly died.
He leaned on his elbows, green eyes burning magic, as he seemed to be plotting something.
Trician sneered, "You treated this heartless bastard as a friend, sister?"
"Slag's a fucking bastard, alright." Astadia chuckled, "Don't get on his wrong side, Tric. It wouldn't matter if I was damned or blessed, there'd be no way for me to save you."
"I'm not heartless. I'm angry." Sai whispered.
The salamander curled up under the table suddenly sprinted for the door with a puff of white smoke. She leaned against the wall, staring in horror, "Not hurt. Not hurt. Not hurt."
Trician raised an eyebrow.
Orli's hand closed around her own, "Mia... Smelled Lord Sai's anger. She is afraid of him... And... So am I."
"My magic. It was my magic, that infected our son. Hurt our son." Sai slammed a fist onto the table, "Toofy blames herself, for my sins. No one should... Ever have... Died for me... And... And..."
He broke off, hanging his head as he began to weep.
That seemed to upset the salamander even more, who disappeared completely out of the room, trailing white smoke in her wake.
Trician gently looked into Sai, staring at the crystals embedded into her hand.
She nearly wet herself in terror when a demon stared back at her.
Not the image of a demon, a vision or a prediction.
She stared into the soul of a living dark god, and it stared into her. Snarling from behind the great gate, trying to break free. Demanding rage and destruction.
She felt herself swallowed up by the storm of its wrath, drawn in.
A hand touched her forehead, and Trician let out a small and ragged gasp. She looked up, seeing Sai's fierce gaze, and again felt the need to empty her bladder. "What... What are you?"
"Don't read me, prophetess. It isn't safe." He ignored her and began walking down the hall, "I will be with my mistress. Trying to convince her to live. You should be planning a counterattack."
Trician had to admit he was right.
Arina had permanently disabled the royal guards that had attacked, that was true. All of them were too traumatised to continue.
