Alto quickly withdraws her hand, and Mud's growling subsides. She directs a deadpan expression at me, her voice almost...pouty.
"Why doesn't he like me?" (Alto)
I blink.
"What did you expect? Do you enjoy it when random strangers you've never met try and touch your face without permission? Honestly, you're lucky all he did was growl." (Mizuki)
Of course, he probably would have snapped at her if she wasn't standing next to me, clearly a friend.
Hearing my response, Alto's expression slackens. After a moment of silence...
"...I suppose you have a point. Hmm...that is disappointing." (Alto)
She lets out a sigh, looking back to Mud, while he in turn continues to stare at me expectantly. Ignoring his gaze, I raise my eyebrow at Alto.
"Since when is a dragon's affection so important to you?" (Mizuki)
She purses her lips.
"I was quite fond of the idea of having a dragon that would take me flying whenever I want. Nina has been...less than receptive." (Alto)
I open my mouth, then close it, simply staring at her for a moment longer.
"You know, I'm not joking...you really might have a few screws loose, Alto." (Mizuki)
She tilts her head slightly, her pale blue eyes slowly moving to meet mine. For the situation, they seem unnaturally serious.
"I've never claimed that my sanity is completely intact, Mizuki." (Alto)
The bluntness of the statement, something about the heaviness in her tone, it reminds me that I ultimately know very little about her life before we met. What I do know is filled with so much trauma that, in fact, I should be surprised that she seems as sane as she does. And before that? Nearly a century of life that I have intentionally avoided interrogating her about, despite clear indicators that it wasn't strictly pleasant. Now, for the first time, it occurs to me that maybe I erred in that approach.
My gaze softens slightly, a hint of sorrow invading my tone.
"Alto, if you-" (Mizuki)
"It seems that we've been noticed." (Alto)
Reluctantly diverting my attention, I take note of the approaching magic signatures I've been tracking since we arrived. Nine of them, all power levels over four, with no apparent affinities. Greater Spirits, no doubt mere seconds away from entering the clearing.
With a sigh, I nod dejectedly at her.
"Right..." (Mizuki)
Sure enough, just a few heartbeats later, several translucent, humanoid figures emerge from the forest's edge, led by a familiar dark blue-haired woman...Yona. Behind her, eight other Greater Spirits – six male-looking and two female-looking – float with tense expressions on their ethereal faces. Although, I can't help but notice one in particular stands out among the rest.
A spirit in the visage of an early-50s man, with silvery eyes and flowing white hair parted behind his ears, and a regal, commanding air about him. I can easily tell through magic sense that he's a step above the rest of the spirits, with a power level that'd give pre-Bond Nina a run for her money. Based on what I know of their culture, that means he must be their leader.
Yona's cheerful voice snaps me from my contemplation.
"Tchar'jee! You have returned!" (Yona)
She begins floating over eagerly, the other spirits meekly in tow, and Alto and I walk forward to meet her. Mud follows behind me obediently – if unprompted – his thundering steps no doubt rattling Alto's teeth.
I smile politely at Yona, giving her a friendly wave.
"Yes, hello again, Yona. This is my dear friend, Alto. I see that you brought company as well..." (Mizuki)
Yona beams, nodding fervently, and gestures at those behind her.
"Yes, Tchar'jee! I hope that is okay? The rest of the Greater Spirits wished to meet you..." (Yona)
The rest of them?
My eyes widen with realization, and I scan the faces of those behind her with a more discerning, more somber gaze.
"You mean, this is it? There are only nine of you on the whole planet?" (Mizuki)
Immediately, Yona's and the other spirits' expressions turn grim. She nods.
"Indeed...you can imagine now why everyone was so eager to meet you, Tchar'jee. After all this time without the Origin Shards..." (Yona)
She trails off, their unspoken expectations lingering in the air. I can't help but feel a pang of guilt at the reminder. No matter how busy I've been since our first meeting, how could I forget what I told her? That I might be able to help them make more Greater Spirits. Now, here I am visiting them again...just to ask for a favor of my own.
As if to capitalize on my remorse, many of the other Greater Spirits fall into kowtowing poses. One of the 'male' spirits speaks, his voice tight with desperation.
"Please, Great God Mizuki, can you truly help us?" (male spirit 1)
I spare the expectantly watching spirits a strained smile.
"It's possible, but...as I told Yona last time, I still need to investigate exactly how to do so." (Mizuki)
Yona's face lights up.
"Is that why you have returned, Tchar'jee? To 'investigate' our problem?" (Yona)
I grimace at the question, taking in the spirits' now hopeful expressions. I suppose that, before I go asking them to serve as glorified bodyguards all over Azura, I kind of owe them more effort towards my promise. Don't I?
I glance over and catch Alto's expectant – and mildly judgmental – gaze.
Guess so...
I sigh internally.
What exactly should the next step be, though? Last time, I came to the conclusion that the Greater Spirits, while they are considered beings of pure magic, must actually be composed of some enigmatic 'scaffold' particle. A particle that the so-called Origin Shards of their home planet were able to produce during their conception, but that the spirits have been unable to reproduce on their own. Alas, my experiments last time on Yona suggested that this scaffold particle, if it truly resides inside her without her knowledge, does not have rest mass, yet also isn't one of the matching elementary particles in Earth's Standard Model of particle physics.
In other words, it's an exotic particle, perhaps ethereal in nature like the fundamental magic particle that I presume exists. Naturally, that means I have no idea how it 'works', how it's produced, or anything else about it that's critical to solving the spirits' reproduction issue. My only real lead to speak of is Yona's qualitative description of the kinetics of magic accumulation within her planet's Origin Shards.
She said that the magic accumulated over time, before hitting some kind of inflection point and actually decreasing instead of just slowing down. Supposedly, that inflection point also corresponded to when the Origin Shards were 'ready' to produce a mature Greater Spirit. To me, those kinetics sound damningly like some kind of fusion process, where the mysterious scaffold particle is produced when magic particles reach critical density.
Of course, making kinetics-based inferences can be quite misleading, and I suspect it'd be foolish to treat magic particle interactions like nuclear fusion. Based on what I know about magic's natural ambivalence towards everything interaction-wise, even itself, simply accumulating it might not produce scaffold particles. The Origin Shards could be doing something more, perhaps pre-processing the magic somehow, acting as a catalyst, or even contributing another constituent to the fusion-like process that I'm inferring occurs.
Still...maybe...
"What is it that you wish to ask of us?"
My thoughts are interrupted by the sound of a new voice. Looking up, I realize that I've been silently staring off into space for several moments since Yona's question, and the person speaking to me is none other than the strange, older-looking spirit I noticed earlier. Unlike the others, he never dropped into that ridiculous kowtowing pose, nor does he exude the typical reverence for me that I've resigned myself to with the Greater Spirits. Instead, he just floats there, back straight, silvery eyes watching me with a mix of wariness and...assessment.
I raise my eyebrow at his question.
"Pardon?" (Mizuki)
My confusion elicits not so much as a flicker of emotion on his face. He just continues staring at me, and speaks, his voice slow, measured...like he's patiently lecturing a child.
"It is clear from your reaction that your arrival has nothing to do with remedying our crisis, and that you instead require our assistance with something." (strange spirit)
I freeze, temporarily stunned, before my lips twist into a faint, embarrassed smile.
"I'm sorry. Is it that obvious?" (Mizuki)
He nods calmly.
"It is." (strange spirit)
Yona's bewildered voice interjects before I can respond.
"Is that true, Tchar'jee? Do you need our help?" (Yona)
Glancing over, I see her staring at me innocently, her wide blue eyes full of concern. I sigh heavily and nod.
"I apologize if I got your hopes up. I really do intend to help you if I can, but...it's also true that another matter prompted my visit today. As he said, I truly need your help." (Mizuki)
Perhaps it's their inflated opinion of me, or the slight tinge of desperation beneath my tone, but Yona's and most of the other spirits' eyes widen in shock. Even the mysterious, older-looking spirit shows the first signs of emotion, even if transiently. He speaks, his voice carrying something that I could almost swear is amusement.
"It's truly the mark of youth to hear one with your level of power ask favors of the weak with such urgency. I assume that what you wish to ask of us is not for yourself?" (strange spirit)
Once again, I can't help but be briefly shocked by the odd spirit's insight. I nod grimly.
"That's right...I need help protecting my friends when they're not by my side, at least for the meantime. Would you all be willing to help me?" (Mizuki)
As I pose the request, hopefully heartfelt, I look from the white-haired spirit to the others, scanning their faces questioningly, one-by-one. Before my gaze even reaches Yona, she nearly materializes by my side, her voice as enthusiastic as it is overbearing.
"Of course, Tchar'jee! You can count on me to help you however you ask!" (Yona)
I blink, taking in her comically serious expression, now hovering less than a foot from my face. I smile wryly at the display.
Guess I should have seen that one coming.
"Thanks, Yona, I appreciate it..." (Mizuki)
As I glance back at the other spirits, however, I notice that their expressions seem conflicted. Moreover, they're all staring at one person...the strange, white-haired spirit. Looking his way, I notice that he's studying me with a calm, thoughtful expression, unfazed by the other spirits' gazes, as if their behavior is completely normal.
I'd say that anecdotally confirms my suspicions about him.
"I suspected as much given your magic power level, but...you're the leader of the Greater Spirits, aren't you?" (Mizuki)
Hearing my question, the white-haired spirit tilts his head slightly in acknowledgement.
"You may call me Deralt...the Original Spirit." (Deralt)