The Chalice of Ascension

Leti

Following Ciarán, I decided to ask him some more questions. "So, how long have you and Affi known each other?" Clearly, they were close, with the way they act with one another. "I met Affi when I was a kid. Not long after the war ended." He answers. "You seem pretty close." I say, eyeing him. "We were both orphans of war. Even though we were given homes here, most people looked down at us. Not out of anger or hate, but pity. None of us could stand it. Áine and I spent a lot of time with her. We became close friends pretty quickly."
A trauma bond that turned to trust and friendship.

"Hmm, are y'all more than friends?" I question, with a sly grin. Lili stiffens next to me. Giving me a 'what the hell are you doing look'. "She's like a sister to me, there was never any romantic feelings from either of us." He replies, a knowing look in his eye. "Besides, I'm not her type anyways." My eyebrows raised in curiosity. "Oh? What is her type, then?"

"She prefers the company of women." He says. "Oooh, and is there a woman?" He glances at me. "For the moment, only Selene. She's a very dedicated priestess. Between that and volunteering as a healer, she hasn't had much time to... mingle." So she has magic too and a healer at that. Somehow, that seems very fitting.

"Ya know for a magic city, I kind of expected there to be some form of transportation. All this walking is killing me." I say, stretching both my legs. "Walking is good for you. It keeps your heart rate up and circulation flowing." Ciarán replies. "We don't have too much further to go."

As we continue to follow him, the buildings start changing. They seem almost like they were straight from a cyberpunk movie. Neon lights glowing against the metal buildings. Some of them are quite tall, like skyscrapers.
A few drops of rain hit my head, and I pulled my hood up. The blue glow of magic became more prominent as the day grew darker.

"The mixture of magic and modern life is fascinating and beautiful." I say, pausing before continuing. "If there isn't anyone to open portals anymore, then how do y'all have such modern and futuristic architecture?" I ask, jogging up next to him. "Hmm, it's been a while since the fae have gone to the mortal world, but there was still a lot of  influences there before, mostly sci-fi movies. Enough to inspire some of our architects. We just kind of went from there." Contemplating his reasoning, something still seemed off, but I let it go.

"Selene said the fae used to travel freely between worlds. How did that work exactly?" I ask. "Before the war, yeah. You still needed approval and a pass to go." He seems to be dodging the subject of the portals. "Well, how did the portals work? Was it like how Lili and I came here?" I pushed further. Lili behind me quietly, listening. "No... There was a line of fae who had the power to create and stabilize portals for long periods of time. Making it easier to travel." I notice hesitation in his voice while he explains.

"Was? They aren't around anymore?" There was a wave of saddness that passed over his face before quickly turning dark and emotionless. "No, they were wiped out during the war." I know I should stop, but I want more answers. "Wiped out?" I ask. "They were the first ones the king went after. Cutting off all escape before ravaging this world." His voice was cold and cruel.

I wanted to ask more questions, but Lili grabbed my hand, shaking her head. Silently telling me to stop pushing. I slow down and walk beside her. "He lost his parents, remember? Talk of the war probably upsets him. Let's hold off on questions for a bit." She whispers.
"My place is just around the corner." Ciarán stated, keeping his back to us.