Jackalopes

Birth

Down below they could see the male jackalopes train under Cornelius watchful eyes. After about half an hour, some demons were seen and chased away.

"I have heard they sometimes take their armors off to practice for the Mars games" Urminora whispered conspiratorially in Jane's ear.

"They are held in the nude, you know..."

Everybody but Martha sneaked a quick peek from above.

"Eh, I think Cornelius is the only one who will do it and that is nothing I won't see again later tonight" she said and took another sip of wine.

"The night in three days time when the moon is full, instead of smiling, we can finally turn you into a jackalope" Scrivens said casually the next morning.

"Thank you for waiting, dearest Jane"

Jane naturally met with a great deal of Jackalopes to discuss what life (such as it was in the underworld) as one was like and what was in store for her. Apparently she would need a great deal of time after the transformation to recover, which worried her a bit. Nevertheless, she had promised and had to go through with it now.

It was finally time.

Jane was going to step over a threshold that she would never be able to return from. The magic and everything was prepared by Totte and his scribes and they had reserved the grounds where Scrivens would use the power of The Silvercrowned One to turn Jane into a jackalope, a powerful warrior, servant and messenger of the underworld and The Silvercrowned One.

Jessica was doing a last minute to check so that Jane's body was ready. Urminora seemed very happy for her, laughing and slapping her on the back.

"Finally, you can help protect souls from demons instead of sitting there with paperwork like a big...what is expression...khuem grushi okolachivat! Well, not that you could do that, could you...?"

Urminora chuckled loudly, not understanding or caring that Jane did not speak her mortal language.

"Unless you took dip in pool of silver spit near city of the dead, eh?"

"A pool of spit?" Jane said, not remembering that place from her first trip through the underworld.

"Yuck!"

Jane was very surprised when, the evening before the transformation she was visited by lady Permeter of Spring, the wife of The Silvercrowned One.

She was a short, almost round woman wearing a bright white crown (which seemed to float in and out of existence like fog) and little else. However, she was covered in trees and leaves which seemed to grow directly from her skin. Her eyes had a most peculiar yellow glint, like they were somehow multi-faceted.

"I am very sorry, dearest and most brave Jane" Permeter said with her thick face, with the eyes almost inhumanly far apart, the mossy thick eyebrows and low cheekbones turning into an expression of joy, but also apology.

"Usually, when a soul is transformed into a Jackalope, The Silvercrowned One is there to congratulate them in person.

However, a certain situation in the mortal world has arisen that needs all of our attention. The Silvercrowned One is here but has to leave shortly. I hope that I can be a suitable replacement for your comfort and offer my sincere congratulations?"

And Jane did what many others could not help but do when Permeter talked to them. With a big grin she fell into her strong soft arms and gave her a big hug, making Permeter's cow tail wag happily. Urminora ducked in really quick to wish Jane good luck.