Woven

Olivia: Chapter 17

Olivia had no idea about anything anymore. Kyo had only just shared what he remembered via telepathy and was now facing off against Anima. Knowing what she knew about him now, she could imagine how he felt. Or at least how she would feel in his situation; scared, defiant, and angry all at once. She would be placing the blame on Anima, as well.

The deity in question seemed less brilliant now, more sinister. It was almost as if the collective thoughts of those she had recruited transformed her image into something with which they couldn't possibly follow. Anima bore it and dignifiedly spoke, "What I have done is of no matter. It only matters that I am undoing my mistakes to the best of my ability."

"And what exactly are you doing?" Dom shot back.

Though she remained outwardly peaceful, her supernova hair spoke otherwise, "I have gathered you to close the portal, of course. The six of you-"

"Seven," Therin interrupted, "Kyo's with us, no matter what."

Anima gave her a fiery glare, but Therin, defiantly, did not wither, as Olivia imagined she herself would've. When Anima gave up, she resumed her orders, this time with layers of contempt evident in her voice, "The seven of you shall go to where Enrem once was in order to shut the gate that Kyo so foolishly opened. After that, the Reaper should disappear."

"And what happens to Kyo?" Therin asked.

"I suppose, since the Reaper is his mind embodied due to a connection with the portal, he will go into a vegetative state. A coma, if you will."

Kyo glared at her, That's not what's going to happen. As soon as we close the portal, the Reaper will know exactly where we are. It -- he won't simply vanish. And the connection isn't between the Reaper and the portal, it's between me, him, and our heart.

He held out the crystal in his hand to identify it as the source of his being. Sira looked at it, taken aback, "That's your heart?!"

Yes. It's what produced Essence when I was whole. My mind stored it and my body manipulated it. That's why-

"Why the Reaper is absorbing everything," Olivia finished. That made enough sense, at least in her head.

Kyo nodded, Regardless, Anima, we're going to need your help in order to get to Enrem. It's north of here, so there's no way to get there without encountering the Reaper. If we come to meet him, he'll know what's up and the demons will flock around the portal. I don't suppose you could teleport us there?

"Me? I've come to believe that you are the one with such transcendent powers."

It's true that I can teleport short distances, but I don't think that even with my heart back, I could transfer us all to Enrem.

"I detect passive aggression in your thoughts."

Do you, now?

Olivia couldn't help but smile at the way he was handling Anima, since it was so unheard of. Even though she was nervous about the whole thing, this banter somehow put her at ease, even though Anima's head was likely to blow up. For such a composed deity, she had a hard time concealing her feelings.

She could hear Anima take a long, sharp breath, "Very well, I shall transport you there. I will wait at the edge of the city in order to transport you to a safe distance from the Reaper. I will not touch that profaned place myself, so it is you that will have to close the portal."

Olivia wanted to say that the woman wouldn't touch anything anyway, but the world around her seemed to break into pieces. Suddenly, she couldn't see anymore, she could barely think. Her thoughts were muddied and she could feel something missing. After a brief moment, she realized it was her heartbeat. Then she realized she couldn't move her body. Perhaps she didn't have one at this point.