Rebirth of the Nephilim

The silver ring turned out to be a chakram. When enough magic power was put into it, a fan of blindingly bright blades would appear around the edge that were incorporeal to the holder, but very much physical to anyone or anything else that touched them. When thrown, the chakram would bounce off the target and automatically return to the wielder, making it instantly reusable. In the right hands, Jadis was certain that the enchanted silver ring could be an absolute menace.

Unfortunately, those hands weren’t hers.

Through various tests and trials, and with a little guidance from Jack, Jadis was able to determine that while she had no issues throwing the chakram with power and precision, the damage being done was almost entirely through the sheer raw force of a metal ring striking the target, rather than the magic blades that appeared upon activation. However, when Meli wielded the weapon, the blades had a far more noticeable effect. It seemed that the enchantments that made the silver chakram what it was were dependent upon the user’s Divine attribute. Since Jadis’ Divine stat was at zero, the magic blades were all but useless.

Jadis was still tempted to take the ring, simply because having a ranged weapon that always returned to her after throwing it had a lot of potential. That potential was what kept the chakram on the short list as she and her companions continued to test the collection of weapons under the watchful gaze of Vetregin for several hours. However, by the end, most of the choices Jadis had available to her had been eliminated for one reason or another.

All four of the swords ended up being excluded, though it was the one meant for a human-sized wielder that had lasted the longest. That cutlass had a powerful magic effect that presented as a red-colored trail of energy that followed behind every swing of the blade, lasting for three seconds in the air. Anyone who touched the crimson ribbon would be cut just as though they were being slashed by the blade. Jadis definitely would not have wanted to duel someone wielding such a weapon. Ultimately, she had to put the finely crafted sword in the rejection pile. It was just too small for her hands.

In fact, Jadis had to eliminate all of the weapons that were too small for her to use. She was there to find a weapon for herself, after all, preferably with the intent of replacing her war axe, though that didn’t mean that she had to take an axe from Vetregin’s collection. She just wanted something that would give her the biggest possible boost in power, which was why things like the intricately decorated wand or the gauntlet were all carefully considered. As long as it was powerful, Jadis would take it.

Of course, if she found a weapon that was better suited to one of her lovers yet was so powerful that it couldn’t be passed up, Jadis would spend her favor on that weapon without complaint. That circumstance didn’t happen, though it was close.

The three spears and two halberds that were too small for her were relatively easy to pass up, but the bow with the golden string wasn’t. When the weapon was restrung, the enchantment on it proved to be extremely valuable. Each time the string was pulled back, an arrow made of a random element would appear. It cost magic to use, but so long as one had the reserves, it seemed that the bow never ran out of ammo. Jadis would have loved to give Kerr a bow with magic ammunition, but since the archer didn’t have any magic of her own, the weapon wasn’t the best fit for her.

The staff with an oddly smoky glass orb at the top was another difficult choice to set aside. Jadis couldn’t tell exactly what all of the enchantments were on the staff since she and the lovers she had brought with her to Weigrun were not skilled magic casters, but one effect was immediately noticeable upon wielding the bejeweled rod. The users magic reserve capacity was doubled. That alone was an amazing enchantment for any spellcaster to have at their disposal.

Those two excellent options were also put on the short list next to the chakram as backups in case Jadis couldn’t find a weapon for herself.

The maces were eventually eliminated from the running due to their enchantments being comparatively underwhelming, as were three more of the spears that were Nephilim sized. The overly intricate wand was also crossed off the list, not because it didn’t have amazing enchantments, but because Jadis and the others couldn’t figure out what the thing did. No matter how the tried, no effect came from the wand one way or the other, and since Jadis wasn’t willing to take a chance on them maybe solving its mystery later down the line, it was set aside. So, too, was one of the axes placed in the discard pile thanks to their inability to determine what its enchantments did. It was possible that the effects were only visible under specific conditions, or the enchantments were only usable against certain enemies. Either way, that axe was gone.

One after another, the weapons were tested and retested, compared, contrasted, examined, and debated. The last spear was too focused on ice elemental damage. The halberd with a bearded axe head took way too much magic to power its enchantments. The chainmail cape was meant for assassins, not front-line brawlers. The gauntlet was too big for her hands, having been crafted for someone with much wider fingers than her, and couldn’t be adjusted without damaging the enchantments woven into the metal.

In the end, the final three choices came down to an axe, a halberd, and a staff. All three had powerful magic effects inlaid into their finely constructed forms, making each one a weapon fit for a king. Or, possibly, a Hero. Jadis didn’t know if Vetregin had ever crossed paths with a Hero of old or one of their companions, but she honestly would not have been surprised to learn that one or more of the weapons had been wielded by one their vaunted number long ago. Their quality was just that good.

Which was why her final choice being the staff was such a surprise to her.

The axe had a lightning enchantment built into it that could cause paralysis, and the halberd had some kind of armor-eating acid effect that was triggered upon command. The staff, however, wasn’t just a staff. In fact, it didn’t appear to have been intended for spell casters like wizards or sorcerers at all. It didn’t enhance any of the three main casting attributes, nor did it provide Focus or Will. In fact, when Jadis put some of her magic power into the weapon to figure out what enchantments it possessed, she realized that the staff wasn’t really a staff at all.

Made from some kind of black, iron-like metal, the haft had a strangely beaten appearance, as though the craftsman responsible had hammered the cold material into the shape they wanted, rather than melting and forging it in a fire, almost like brute force was the only means of taming the metal into its final form. The base ended in a rounded point, and there were no grips or straps of leather along the shaft meant for handholds. From tip to tip, the weapon was nine feet long, and the metal was wide around enough that any hands that weren’t giant would have some trouble wielding it. At the very top, the metal was twisted outward in a slowly spiraling pattern that closed back in on itself after about six inches, creating a kind of cage. Inside that cage was a gemstone.

And what a gemstone it was.

A black opal, jagged and sharp, filled the cage and overflowed it like the stone was trying to escape but had frozen solid, caught in the act. Striking colors trapped inside the opal reflected the light, ever shifting like flames caught in the wind. Blues, greens, reds, and more flowed through the stone, some shades so deeply iridescent that it was hard to tell if the gem was reflecting the light, or if it was the source.

The stone was not eleria. Jadis had been around the magical material often enough that she could identify it at a glance. Perhaps the staff’s gem was a naturally occurring material that she had never heard of before, or perhaps it was some sort of crafted alloy. Maybe it really was just a magnificent example of a black opal. Whatever it was, the gemstone was filled with magic.

With the staff in hand and an exertion of will, the flaming black open changed. Flowing like ice over water, the stone grew, shifting its form until instead of being an eye-catching jewel, it had become a vicious-looking axe head. Or a spear. Or a spike. Or any other shape that Jadis could think of. The weapon was, in essence, pure adaptability in martial form.

There were other enchantments in the weapon. Jadis could tell as much via her enhanced sight. However, with the limited time she had to experiment with the weapons, she wasn’t able to determine what else the opaline staff was capable of. Regardless, the fact that she could control its shape with her mind and a little magic made the weapon the clear winner in Jadis’ mind. Whatever the situation called for, at least one of her bodies would always have the tool to suit the task. That the weapon could be capable of even greater wonders was just icing on the cake.

With prize in hand, Jadis and her lovers had politely thanked Vetregin for his favor and his time, and Jack for his information and hospitality. Declining to stay for the midday meal, they had departed as quickly as possible without being rude. Jadis had promised that they would return to Volto by that night and with half the day already gone, there wasn’t much time left for other matters. And there were other matters that definitely needed attending to.

“So, this is where it all began, huh?”

“Yes, it is. Well, technically, I was reborn on the top of that cliff up there,” Jay answered Maeve’s question while pointing to the north. “I woke up next to a little creek with nothing but a loincloth on, all alone.”

“Sounds like something you might read in one of Cora’s romance novels,” the Fetch said as she poked her head inside one of the open doorways.

“Yeah, I guess,” Jay shrugged as she stared at the top of the distant cliff. “Kind of worked out like one of those stories, too. At least in the amount of sex had.”

“Do you mean before or after leaving this village?” Meli asked while picking her way through an overgrown garden.

“Yes,” all three of Jadis answered with a grin.

“Do you have a preference for where we perform the ritual?”

Dys’ question was directed at the woman who stood silently by her side. Noct had been her usual self, quiet and composed, throughout the majority of the trip. Even in the face of Jack and Vetregin, the stoic Valravn had kept her cool, barely reacting to the various events and provocations that had presented themselves. Here, however, standing in the abandoned village where Jadis had spent her first day on Oros, Noct looked nervous.

“Tower,” she finally said, indicating the belltower that crowned the temple dedicated to D.

“Sure,” Dys nodded. “Should be nice and private.”

Privacy was one component of the equation that had led Jadis back to Sweet Pine Valley, but not the most important one. Noct had traveled with her to Weigrun not just for company, but because they were going to perform the Lewd Lover’s Bond ritual, with the intent of boosting the Valravn’s Strength attribute. Distance from anyone who might be harmed in case Noct had any difficulties while her Strength was enhanced was the other reason for their relocation. Yes, they could have asked for a private space in Yorath’s valley, or they could have stayed in Vetregin’s cave. If they had wanted to risk dealing with the headache of General Egilhard, they could have even gone to Far Felsen and occupied the old guild hall building that had been the original headquarters of Fortune’s Favored. However, when it came to the mix of privacy and distance from other people, nothing quite beat an abandoned village in the middle of the woods.

That was a fact that Jadis was eminently familiar with.

Landing at the top of the tower, Dys checked to make sure that there wasn’t anything unsavory that might get in the way of her and Noct’s imminent activities. The belfry was simple in design, with four open arches that would allow the single bell inside to be clearly heard when it was rung. The arches didn’t go all the way to the floor, though, and for someone of more average height, they hip-high walls made for safe railing. The corners were, of course, solid, and the roof was completely intact. The bell itself, however, was gone; what had happened to it, Jadis couldn’t begin to guess, as she had never seen or looked for it during her time in the village. At least the wooden hatch that led down the tower was still in place, and thus there was no risk of accidentally falling down an inconvenient hole.

Landing next to Dys on a pair of silent black wings, Noct looked around the small space with a critical eye. Seemingly satisfied after a few moments, she turned to Dys expectantly.

“Process?”

“My other two selves will stick with Thea, Meli, and Maeve,” Dys explained while taking her helmet off. “We’ll keep an eye out for any trouble, though I doubt we’ll have any. If you feel like you need any help with your self-control, we can come running right away to help. Just let me know how you’re feeling as we go, okay? I know you’ll do fine.”

Noct gave her a small smile, then her expression shifted into a more complicated emotion.

“Ritual process.”

“Ah,” Dys said, her lips twisting into a smirk. “Well, there are really only two requirements to the ritual. One being time, the other a kiss. I’ll shorten the time to half an hour, since we do have a time limit we have to work around. But the kiss, well, there’s no other way to go about that but the way it was intended.”

“How?”

“We’ll need to share both of our… fluids, when we kiss.”

“Ah.”

Noct did not show any embarrassment at the prospect of the lewd act. Not outwardly, anyway. Jadis had gotten well used to reading the tiny signs that showed how the Valravn was truly feeling, so she could tell that Noct was far more nervous than she let out. Unhappy with the idea of the sexual activities to come? Not a chance. But the potential for danger that came after… that was something Noct was still struggling with.

Having turned away from Dys, Noct had set her polearm in one corner of the belfry and had used whatever skill she possessed to cause all of her bindings to fall to the floor around her feet. This did not disrobe her completely, as she still wore a leather outfit under all of the straps and chains that typically wrapped her body. However, she moved quickly, unsnapping the buttons and buckles that held her chest armor together, letting it fall away in a light clatter.

Before Noct’s hands could find the ties to her pants, Dys’ armored arms embraced her from behind.

“Don’t worry,” she whispered. “I’m right here. Nothing bad will happen. You won’t hurt me. Even when you have the power to. I know you won’t, because you love me.”

Dys felt the shiver that ran through Noct at her words.

“Yes.”

Smiling, Dys let Noct go and backed away a few steps.

“Give me a minute to get my armor off, okay? I don’t have any fancy tricks like you do—”

Dys’ words were cut off as Noct’s lips smashed against hers. With hands on either side of her head, she pulled her close, practically devouring her with the intensity of her passionate kiss. When she pulled away, her eyes were dark and hungry, and her breath panted heavily against Dys’ face.

“Yes,” Noct repeated, her voice low and husky.

“Thank you,” Dys murmured at the dark angel hovering in the air before her. “I love you, too.”