Nyxara
[Sunday, Umbrafall 14, 4310]
—Ajei Main Branch Residence: Guest Room—
Looking at the learning capsule that I use every week, I can't help feeling that it looked like a weird cross between something that belonged in a clinic and a temple at the same time. The clinical part is the sleek metal bones wrapped in soft padding. The temple aesthetic is the crown-like apparatus made up of thin glass filaments arcing behind the chair like a divine halo. I truly feel like I should be communing with a medical god while I'm in it. If Azrail hadn't sworn he had nothing to do with the design; I would suspect his macabre humor was at play.
For reasons previously known only to him, Azrail insisted the learning suite be in the north wing so it would be close to his private study. What I found out one Sunday when I finished earlier than he expected was that my Sunday capsule lesson had become a cover for him to do secret alchemical experiments in his private study. I promised not to rat him out if he told me about his experiments. I always like chemistry, and alchemy is sort of like that.
We figured out that my talent in chemistry translated into a talent for alchemy too, so he started rewarding me with lab time with him if I scored well enough in my overall scoring from the capsule tests. I couldn't join him for any of his current projects because they are Obsidian tier in essence and materials, so I could only speculate with him, but some of my insights have inspired him, so I have been of help.
He promised after my upcoming 22nd birthday, we could build up my alchemy skills as a father-daughter bonding exercise. He was especially pleased about this. He wanted to brag to Korran and Nimra, but I warned him if he did, they would wonder when he had exposed me to his alchemy hobby. He sent me an additional month's worth of allowance for covering his ass like that. His words not mine.
Of course, he always wanted to nag about how I wouldn't let him add an alchemy lab in my study, and now that I've proven I do actually have talent, I can only come use his. He complained with his words, but his tone was pleased. He kept complaining about sharing until I threatened that I would just get a personal lab done in the Solvarin Pavilion if he didn't want to share.
His pout was so adorable that I snapped a photo and immediately uploaded it to our group family chat. This amused everyone, especially when he accused me of bullying him in the chat. His pouting face was the family phone wallpaper for two days until he hacked our phones and changed it to a live photo of him sitting at his desk looking all mature and serious. We couldn't change our wallpaper, and if we tried it would change to him doing odd things like counting coins or organizing mirrors.
We apologized to him, and he gave us back our wallpaper control. I didn't see him for two days. Korran did double sessions with me as a sub, and when I did see Azrail again, he looked irritated but calmer in an aura sense. When I asked him what happened, he muttered something about not wanting to discuss private matters with me. Lux, Keir, and Aspen later told me that our parents have a unique private dynamic, and it's best not to ask questions. So I left the matter alone for now, but I got a tingle of intuition that I would be asking Nimra questions about private dynamics in the future.
Back to the present, I sat down in the capsule, adjusting my shawl so it draped over my shoulders instead of tangling around my elbows. I loved how the fabric was hooded, soft, and warded. It kept the chill of this capsule away.
Azrail stood at a low console to my left, sleeves pushed up, hair tied back in a lazy way that still somehow looked deliberate. Creators, when I decide to jump back into the dating pool, if they aren't as physically attractive as my fathers I don't want them. Is he wearing eyeliner and eye shadow today? His gold coin eyes are popping. I had to shake my head to get out of that rabbit hole.
I've noticed over time that if I think about Azrail's weird behaviors for too long, my mind will start to wonder about the strangest things about him. The phenomenon has occurred often enough that I'm sure it's intentional. Korran and Nimra have neither confirmed nor denied the existence of this essence trap when I asked subtly. So I feel it is safe to assume he has a high-tier artifact or talisman that causes people to get distracted when thinking about him while looking at him.
It has honestly been a weird way to train my resistance to mental traps. I'll have to include this aspect into my perception barrier ward the next time I work on it with Lux. After pushing the influence of the trap away, the console gave a chime, then a ready notification appeared on the console screen. "You ready, Little Queen?" he asked, his voice bright. I tried not to smile at the nickname.
It felt too big. A nickname that felt more like a title. It didn't help that everyone in our family had picked up the nickname in some way. Plus, every time someone called me "Little Queen", I felt a small shift in my essence system. I don't even know how to ask about my essence approving of the nickname. So for now, I will make it a goal to be worthy of being called a queen.
"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied, closing my eyes, ready to begin the comprehension tests. I hate having test anxiety. "Relax, my daughter. You are catching up to your peers and even doing better than most in some subjects." He comforted me, without looking up. "Remember, you are just getting foundational knowledge, and your returned memories will fill in the gaps. So just think of this as seeding your foundation to reach Ember 5 after the ritual. A goal worth considering, yes?"
The proud twinkle in his eyes and the confidence in his voice calmed my frayed nerves. I smiled brightly at him through the capsule in thanks. It was only because I was already looking at him that I noticed, for half a heartbeat, his expression looked thoughtful as he gazed at me. It was a bit scary. He looked at me coolly, like he does when he is observing an experiment he had put into motion. Then he hummed, like he'd filed the moment away to revisit later.
Without another word between us, he tapped the console, and the capsule chair warmed under me—subtle heat, like sunlight that had been filtered through water. It spread across my back, down my spine, into the places my body always held tension. It relaxed my body enough that I could feel myself sinking into a trance.
"Last chance to bail," he stated, tone shifting into administrator mode for the briefest second. "I'm going down with the ship, captain. Let's do this." With a crazed grin that broke the serious moment, he responded with an "aye, aye." His eyes narrowed as he scanned the interface. "Semi-immersive overlay. Visual prompts, internal response mapping. Compressed time ratio set to—" He paused, smirked.
"—'2:1 for this four-hour session because my daughter has plans but wants to make the most of her time.'" A warmth sparked behind my sternum at the unspoken meaning: he wants me to live and learn. They aren't being so strict with me now, allowing me to leave the palace complex now for short periods. They don't want to control me. They want to support and protect me.
He hit the activation seal. A thin pulse of essence tingled across my temples, gentle as a fingertip. The filaments behind the chair brightened. The room didn't disappear—not fully. Instead, reality gained a second layer, like someone had placed a sheet of glass between me and the world and projected light onto it.