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Kanin Fyre: Chapter 44 - Fallout
🕑 Added 2025-09-26 12:00:16 +0000 UTC[Planar Linkage spell ended.]
The tear in space collapses onto itself, crumbling into nothing as the air stitches itself back shut.
We try to pull ourself together. We canāt afford to wait for the pain to abateāwe donāt have time.
āLorata,ā we say. She must have only been a second or two behind us. Which means we have minutes, at most, to prepare for her. We struggle to get up. āSheās coming.ā
āDonāt,ā Fyre says, gesturing for me to be still. āItās alright. Weāre prepared for her.ā
Prepared for the head of the pantheon? āHow?ā
āWeāve erected a barrier around the city,ā Fyre explains. Yes, we recall seeing that form earlier tonight. Or, we suppose, that wasnāt tonight; that was three days ago. āItās capable of keeping the gods out, and itās powered by the Ruinās magic itself, so we donāt have to worry about its mana being exhausted.ā
We stare at her, unsure if weāre intimidated or impressed. How in the world did she gain this sort of power after spending only a little over a half a year on this planet?
Noliās brows are pinched in worry. āAre you okay? What happened?ā
Sheās only signing with one hand. The memory of her hand shattering beneath Lorataās attack comes back to us. Sheās hidden it in the folds of her dress.
We jerk upright. āHealer! We need a healer.ā
āIām okay,ā she tries to object, but weāre not going to let her deflect that easily.
āHer hand,ā we tell Fyre. āSheās hurt.ā
Fyre frowns. āLet me see it.ā
Reluctantly, Noli lifts an edge of her dress. Blood is staining the material black. Itās hard to make out much else.
Fyre sucks in a startled breath. āIāll send for a healer right away.ā
She doesnāt get up or speak to anyone else, but we have to assume sheās contacting someone with her telepathy.
āItās nothing,ā Noli insists. āMy life is in no danger. Is anyone else injured? Are you okay?ā
The room is crowded with confused Travelers, many of whom seem to be panicking. If Fyre is right, that most of these people havenāt spent more than an hour or so on this world, then they probably havenāt even contended with their own deaths yet. Thereās so much we need to tell them. We hadnāt realized what an ask this was of Fyre when she first agreed to take care of them.
āBetter,ā we tell Noli, finally letting ourself relaxāfractionally. The ethereal pain in our mind is diminishing. Not gone, but no longer overwhelming. Wearily, we separate our minds.
The sensation is unpleasantālike peeling off a scab. Some of the previous pain flares, but itās nothing compared to the agony weād first felt. And now that weāre separated, I can distinguish that most of the pain is coming from Inkās side.
Not all of it, though. I feel exposed nerves in myself as well.
āIt was the refiner,ā I wearily tell Noli. āYou saved me. If you hadnāt deflected it, it would have hit our void head-on.ā
Noli slumps, some of the worry lines soothed from her foreheadābut she still looks older, more worn, than Iāve ever seen her. āThen how did you get hurt?ā
āThe refiner still clipped us,ā I say, reluctant to admit that Noliās sacrifice hadnāt been entirely successful. āSome of Ink got torn away.ā And judging by the lingering pain in mind, a few of my memories as well.
Which is new. I donāt remember it hurting so much when the predator was partially torn away by a refiner in Emrox. Ink remembers the pain. It remembers taking over a day to fully recover. So this time is not as badāmuch less of it was stolen.
Yet, before, when twenty-odd of my memories were torn away with the predator, I donāt remember feeling such discomfort within my mind. Is it because this time I was working with Ink instead of against it? I donāt like to entertain the alternative; that I lost a lot more than just twenty memories this time.
Noli gives me a reassuring pat with her free hand. āDo you thinkāā
A distant boom sounds through the city. The throne room shakes, and a cascade of dust hisses down from the ceiling. Some Travelers shout, and other huddle close.
āWhat was that?ā I ask, alarmed.
Fyre is silent for a long moment, frowning intensely, though her gaze is distant. Finally, she lets out a breath. āThat was Lorata arriving at the city. She was unable to get in. That worked better than Iād hoped.ā
āYou hoped?ā I repeat.
āWell, it was just a theory,ā Fyre admits. āThereās no reason it shouldnāt have worked. But we havenāt yet had an opportunity to test it.ā
Great. If sheād said that earlier, I might have thought a bit harder about bringing all the Travelers here.
āExcuse me,ā Fyre says to Noli and I as the room begins to fill with confused chatter. āI need to start addressing our guests. The healer is on the way and should be here shortly. Can you manage until then?ā
āOf course,ā Noli signs, waving Fyre off. āPlease go. Weāll be fine.ā
Fyre parts with a thankful smile, spreading her wings as she turns to address the Travelers. Her fiery display of colors is an effective way to draw their attention.
āPlease,ā she calls, her voice carrying through the room, warm and confident. āI know this must all be a lot for you to process. But I have been where you are now, and there is an explanation for what is happening. Iāve called for some food and blankets to be brought upāonce everyoneās needs are attended to, Iāll explain everything. If there are any injured, would you please alert me so we can see to you first?ā
As Fyre continues to placate the crowd, itās all I can do to watch her. Her very presence seems calming. Now more than ever, I can see it; sheās a natural leader.
It should be me up there, talking to them all. But Iām not going to kid myself; Iām not cut out for this kind of thing. Iāll stay. Iāll help where I canāI owe them that. But Iām not the best suited to this kind of thing.
Itās funny, isnāt it? All I ever wanted was to be famous. And now that Iāve become the center of attention, Iād love nothing more than for no one to know my name.
āKanin,ā Fyre signs, drawing me out of my thoughts. āShould you end our spell now?ā
āSpell?ā I ask, somewhat confused. I closed the Planar Linkage spell the moment we made it through.
Noli gestures, and a flicker of green light dances over her hand. āThe bond. That was you, right? Why I was able to make such a powerful spell?ā
āOh!ā I sign. āYeah. That came from me.ā Although originally the mana came from Dizziās containment cubes and Shirasil, but thatās beside the point.
āNot that Iām not grateful,ā Noli signs. āIt was pretty fun!ā
āYou shot a god, Noli.ā I draw myself up, so Iām no longer a pair of hands floating over a puddle of void and broken glass. It will take a while to Sculpt something like a body again, but in the meantime, I can at least shape myself into the silhouette of a person. Or, a vaguely humanoid blob of glass and void. Close enough.
She grins. āThat doesnāt mean it wasnāt fun.ā
I shake my head with a laugh, focusing on the Core Bond spell thatās connecting our magic, then activate a second Sever Bond spell.
[Sever Bond failed,] Echo says. [Required Mana: NaN]
āWhat?ā I try again, but I get the same result.
Noli tips her head. āWhat is it?ā
āItās the Core Bond spell,ā I tell her. āI canāt sever it.ā What the hell did Shirasil get me to do? Goddamnit. I knew I shouldnāt have trusted him.
āIs that bad?ā she asks.
āI donāt know,ā I admit. āDo you feel any different?ā
She frowns in concentration. āI donāt think so. Justā¦ stronger, I think? But I assumed that was the gravity spell.ā
I donāt feel any different either. Maybe itās not as bad as Iām worried it is. Just to be safe, I Check her.
[Name: Noli]
[Title: PENDING]
[Species: Elf]
[Class: Woodland Ranger]
[Level: 33]
[HP: 93/125]
[Mana: 100/100]
[Allegiance: Kanin]
āWhat the fuck.ā
Noli doesnāt chastise me for swearing. Instead, she looks dead serious. āTell me whatās wrong.ā
āIām not sure,ā I admit, still staring at her stats. āYour stats changed. It now says you are āalliedā with me.ā
āWell, thatās not so bad, right?ā she says. āAnd itās technically true. I am your ally.ā
āIt also says you have a Title.ā
āWhatās that?ā
Iām not sure how to answer, because the more I think about it, the more I donāt like what it implies. āIt says PENDING, butā¦ā
āWhat is it?ā Noli presses after I continue to hesitate.
āBut Iāve only seen gods and champions with Titles,ā I admit.
Noli stares at me.
With mounting concern, I Check my own stats as well.
[Name: Kanin]
[Title: PENDING]
[Class: Arcane Attendant]
[Level: 28]
[HP: 10/10]
[Temp HP: 472]
[Mana: 127/575]
[Role: STATUS=NULL. Establish new parameters?]
āI also have a PENDING Title,ā I tell her. But unlike her, I donāt have an Allegiance.
āWhat does this mean?ā Noli asks.
āIām not sure,ā I sign. āBut I know someone who might. Hold on a second.ā
I open my Contacts.
[Kanin: What does the Core Bond actually do?]
Thereās a pause before I get a response, but it still comes sooner than I expected.
[L: Oh! Youāre alive. Delightful. Did you find what you were looking for?]
[Kanin: What does the Core Bond actually do?]
[L: What, no chitchat? Alright. The spell does exactly what it says it will do: it secures an energy source to a vessel.]
[Kanin: And what else does it do?]
[L: Hah! Youāre on the right track. But the question should really be, āHow does it function?ā]
Heās lost me. I mean, what more is there to āconnect magic to objectā?
I try to piece it together anyway. With my soul, Iām binding that to my glass core. With Noli, I was binding my magic to her, so sheād be connected to the System. Butā¦ why does that make her connected to the System? Is it because my magic is connected to the System? I guess it would have to be.
Ink is the only other magical connection I havenāt been able to sever. It isnāt connected to the Systemābut it does negatively interact with it. Like interference on a radio station. How is all this connected?
[Kanin: What does the System have to do with remnants?]
[L: Ah, now weāre getting somewhere! I suppose you could say they were made for each other.]
The evasiveness is starting to tick me off. Why does he have to be so damn cryptic? This isnāt a gameāitās our lives.
[Kanin: Why does the System exist? If remnants are the magical leftovers of the gods, then why donāt they work well with the System? Why would you guys make a magical interface that you canāt completely use?]
[L: Now, who ever said we created the System?]
That stops me in my tracks. If the gods didnāt create the System, then who? Is that why they all have Roles, too? I canāt imagine anyone would give themself one by choice.
This opens up a whole new can of wormsā¦ But it feels like a distraction to steer me away from my initial questions. I skim back over our conversation, trying to put everything together.
The System and remnants are linked somehowāand given I canāt sever my connection to Ink, that would explain why I canāt sever the connection with Noli, now, either. Sheās at least indirectly linked to a remnant, even if she isnāt capable of seeing the System interface itself. I have a strong suspicion Shirasil knew that would happen. But to what end?
The Titles. Did he know that would happen, too? Maybe he was just curious to see if it would. But considering both my and Noliās are PENDING, it seems the additional Stats werenāt processed correctly.
[L: Are we done already? It was just getting interesting.]
[Kanin: My Role is currently listed as STATUS=NULL and the System is prompting me to āestablish new parameters.ā Do you have any idea what this means?]
[L: Fascinating. To be honest, no, Iāve never seen anything like that. You should Accept the prompt.]
This feels like another trap.
[Kanin: Why?]
[L: Because I want to see what happens.]
āAre you kidding me?ā I grumble.
[Kanin: Iām not going to f*ck around with my Role for your personal entertainment.]
[Kanin: What the f*ck? Is this thing censored?]
[L: You can thank Lorata for that.]
[Kanin: Iām not so sure sheās interested in chatting with me again.]
[L: Oh? You met our glorious leader? Iām impressed you managed to get out. Canāt wait to hear how she spins this whole debacle.]
This is getting nowhere. I donāt know what else I was expecting.
[Kanin: Iāve got three dozen Travelers here I need to help stop from having a mental breakdown, so I donāt have time for this. Is there anything you can tell me that will be helpful?]
[L: Iām wounded! As if I havenāt already been helping. You did get that refiner you were looking for, didnāt you?]
I think of the other refiner, the one that tore through my essence and very nearly sealed us away. Ink growls at the memory.
[Kanin: Yeah, we got her.]
[L: Goodāthere are ways to get those things open, but itās not easy.]
I return my full attention to the conversation; now weāre getting somewhere.
[L: This has been a project of mine for the last few decades, actually. And I havenāt been entirely successful. But the key ingredient is void magic, so you may make progress where I have stalled.]
[L: Oh, hold on, Lorata is calling all the gods for a meeting. No idea what that could be about. Hah! I wonāt be able to contact you while in the Heavens. Good luck with the refiner. Iāve stored some research notes in the mortal realm.]
Echo abruptly pops up with a separate message from our conversation. [Location of Importance added to World Map.]
[L: Iāve sent you the coordinates. The location is protected, so enter with caution, if Iām unable to reach out again before you go. Good luck, my prismatic friend. Youāll certainly need it.]
[Kanin: What kind of protection?]
[Kanin: Hello?]
[Kanin: Wait, donāt leave yet! Thatās kind of important information!]
[Kanin: Shirasil?]
[Kanin: Sh*t]
[Kanin: Youāre an asshole for leaving right after that]
[L: Maybe so, but this way is far more entertaining!]
[Kanin: Are you f*cking kidding me?]
[Message failed to deliver]
Goddammit.
I turn to Noli with a defeated shake of my head. āI wasnāt able to get much information about the bond or our Stats. Sorry.ā
She smiles reassuringly. āThatās alright. It doesnāt appear to be negatively impacting either of us, so for now, I wouldnāt worry about it. Besides, weāve got more pressing issues to deal with at the moment.ā She nods back out into the room.
Fyre has managed to settle most of the Travelers down and is starting to get them organized. More Fyrethians have shown up to help pass out supplies and coral the frightened and confused humans. Well, they used to be humans, at least.
Now they come in every variety of species Iāve seen, from halflings and harpies to dracid and dhampyrs. A couple huddle together for comfort, but none of them can have known each other for more than an hour or two. I guess in times of crisis, we find comfort where we can get it.
A dwarf that looks faintly familiar hurries over to us. Echo calls her Opalāa Fyrethian I think Iāve run into once or twice. Her worried gaze skips over me and lands on Noli. āI was told someone was hurt?ā
āYes,ā I say, gesturing to Noli. āHer hand needs healing.ā
Opal looks a little shocked to hear sound coming from an amorphous pillar of glass and shadows. For Opalās comfort more than my own, I remove my coat from my Inventory. The dwarf jumps at the abrupt appearance, but her attention quickly hones in on Noli.
She holds out a hand. āLet me see it.ā
I struggle to stuff my amorphous body back into my coat as I pass the request on to Noli, though Opalās body language was clear enough. Noli winces as she lifts her hand, crooked and bloody. Opal gives a little gasp, and a deep guilt twists in my soul. Ink, for its part, fumes with anger. How dare someone hurt her? It will exact revenge. No one is allowed to hurt our pack!
Iām not sure we stand a chance at getting revenge on the head of the pantheon, I wearily think.
Ink dismisses this thought entirely. No one is allowed to hurt her, it emphasizes.
A soft glow appears in Opalās palms, much like Rezira, and the dwarf bathes Noliās hand in warm light. Some of the wrinkles in Noliās forehead are soothed away, and she lets out a breath of relief.
[Fyre: Kanin, I donāt mean to interruptāIām sure you have a lot to juggle right now as well. But these TravelersāI need some help handling them. Thereās a lot going on with the city right now that I need to address.]
Crapāyeah, of course she has more to deal with than all these Travelers I just dumped on her. Sheās one of the cityās rulers, after all.
[Kanin: Of course. I got this. Go do what you need to do.]
Fyre smiles across the room at me, her expression tired but thankful.
[Fyre: I appreciate it. Let me know if thereās anything you need.]
āCan you sign?ā I ask Opal as she continues to work on Noli.
The dwarf glances over at me in surpriseāI canāt tell if thatās due to my appearance or the question. I continue to attempt to stuff my glass shards and void inside my coat in the vague approximation of a human. A moment later, I give up. Iāll need to spend some time Sculpting my glass back into pieces that can act as bones before Iāll have any hope of obtaining a humanoid form. I toss the coat back in my Inventory, resigning myself to a floating blob of glass and shadow that orbits my core and translator. And honestly? Iām too worn out to be bothered by my appearance.
Or maybe it just doesnāt bother me that much anymore.
āNo, sorry,ā Opal says. āI only know Dunmorish.ā
āThatās okay.ā Not surprised; it seems Fyrethians donāt know many other languages, given how isolated their people were for the last several hundred years. āIf you need anything, come get me, and Iāll interpret.ā
I sign to Noli next. āI need to help with the Travelers. Will you be okay?ā
She smiles wryly. āThis isnāt the first time Iāve been injured you knowāthe perks of marrying a healer. Go on.ā She waves me away. āAnd Kanin? Donāt worry. Youāll do great.ā
I wish I shared her confidence. But if thereās one thing Iām good at, itās faking it.
I float to the head of the room as Fyre departs. All eyes turn toward me. I mean, I donāt really blame them, it isnāt every day you meet a sentient stained-glass window.
āHey everyone,ā I say, using a pair of hands to sign at the same time. A handful of Travelers have become lamia, but Iām not sure if theyāve figured out how to use Echoās translation ability yet. āFyre had some things to take care of, so Iāll be taking over for her.ā It should have been me up here in the first place, anyway. āI know how disorienting this all feelsātrust me, Iāve been there.ā
I pause, trying to figure out how to go about this whole conversation. Where to start? What would be too much? Should I dole it all out in bite-sized chunks?
Should I obscure my hand in all this?
No. That wonāt help anything. Lorata knows about me, now. She knows about all these escaped Travelers. They need to be as prepared and informed as they can be.
āMy name is Kanin,ā I tell them. āAnd like you all, I used to be a human from Earth. But then I died, and I ended up here, in this form.ā Well, something like it, anyway. āI suspect most of you already know or suspect this by now, but it deserves to be said, so Iām just going to rip the bandaid off; you all died as well. But instead of passing on, you were brought here, to Lusio, and given a second chance at life.ā The room is nearly silent as everyone stares and listens. All eyes on me. No running from this now. My void ripples nervously. āIn fact, I was the one who brought you here.ā
And like that, a pressure around my soul dissolves into nothing. Gravity seems to fall away. Iām lightārelievedāeager.
Eager? Yeah, I guess so. Iām eager to help these people. To get to know them. To offer them a guiding hand that I would have appreciated when I was first stumbling my way through this world.
āSo, thereās some basic things you need to know,ā I continue. āFirst thing is that you all have access to a magic System that will help you interact with the world. I call this interface Echo. The first functionalities you should become familiar with are Interpret and Check.ā
As I continue to explain, the Travelers continue to listen. Like Iām actually some kind of authority figure. And the more I explain, the more confident I grow.
I still donāt think Iām really meant for thisāthe people side of things. Iād much rather be entertaining people than instructing them. But it doesnāt feel as uncomfortable as Iād feared. Itās not as far off from acting as I would have thought. I doubt Iāll be the best person to turn to when the inevitable existential questions start pouring in.
But you know what? I think I got this.
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Author's Note: Two chapters left in this book. Thanks for reading <3
