Chapter 8

Age of Solstice, 16:71

Tulasquss, Drazul's Plane

Drazul drew lines in the snow, surrounding the cottage in curious symbols and shapes. Whisper stood a distance away, wondering what she was doing. She noticed Drazul was drawing in the snow with her bare hands rather than using her powers to do it for her. Aren't her hands freezing? She waited patiently until Drazul finished, who she saw flying towards her so as not to ruin her work. She stood directly in front of the cottage, her hands reaching into a small tear to pull out a pouch. From it, she sprinkled something like dust onto the closest line in the snow. Whisper believed Drazul whispered something, but she couldn't make out what. Instead, she was startled by the bright light that glowed from the lines before slowly fading out in pink light.

Whisper shielded her eyes only to open them and find the drawings in the snow gone. Whisper gently tugged on Drazul's cloak, her signing sluggish from the cold,

"What was that? Why's it gone?"

Whisper was confused as anyone unfamiliar with magic would be. No matter how many times she watches Drazul perform, she can't get over the wonder that washes over her every time. Drazul dusted off her hands, putting the pouch back through the small tear before turning to face Whisper,

"It's a ward of protection I laid upon my home. It will stay hidden until our return."

"Truly? That's handy, that is. And what of your hands, then? Why not keep the gloves on?"

Drazul put on her gloves, seemingly unbothered by how chilled her hands are,

"Whenever one lays a hand on any part of nature with a spell, doing so bare-handed conveys our sincerity. It strengthens the spell, like any and all spells that are aligned with the Earth Mother. To do anything otherwise beckons death at her hands."

Whisper gulped, suddenly aware of her surroundings. Perhaps she should never kick the ground ever. Should she stop running? Drazul patted Whisper's head,

"Don't think about anything useless. You need only think about how you conduct yourself in the world," she stepped forward and opened a tear big enough for them to walk through, "now come. We have matters to attend to."

Whisper smiled and hopped towards her, leaping into the tear. Right when Drazul was going to step through, Whisper jumped back out, her arms reaching for her, knocking Drazul off her feet. Drazul shook off the snow, feeling Whisper wrapping her arms tightly around her, terrified. Drazul, surprised, looked through the tear and had forgotton she never introduced Whisper to the Depths. She let out a loud, beautiful laugh. Whisper never heard her laugh before; hearing it calmed her down, making her loosen her grip. It was definitely a laugh you hear at someone's expense. Whisper suddenly felt embarrassed, crossing her arms.

When Drazul finally composed herself, she helped Whisper rise with her,

"How refreshing."

Whisper tilted her head,

"...What?"

Drazul looked at her warmly, making her feel shy,

"Laughing. It's refreshing. I haven't laughed like that in two centuries."

Whisper stared at her questioningly, wondering exactly how someone can live without expressing human emotions. Drazul caught her gaze,

"Whisper, you may relax. As a reward for being amusing, I will allow you to hold my hand."

Whisper rolled her eyes as she took her hand and together, crossed through the tear. Whisper closed her eyes, fearing she may fall but she felt Drazul squeeze her hand. Whisper was still afraid but she trusted Drazul. She clutched Drazul's hand fiercely before slowly opening her eyes, finding herself standing above the stars. If she could scream, she would have. Instead, she stumbled towards Drazul, clutching onto her in fear. Drazul spoke, sauntering with Whisper in tow behind,

"This is the Depths, child. Do not fear, you will not fall. My power is holding you beside me."

Whisper nodded against her cloak, feeling somewhat reassured. She loosened her grip, slowly moving herself apart to stand on her own. Once she accepted her footing was secure, she slowly took a step, finding it solid beneath her feet despite the stars glittering beneath her. Drazul began walking, showing Whisper all was fine. Whisper took a deep breath and followed behind her, taking a look around as she got her bearings. She saw large balls of water scattered throughout, noticing the sky above her was pink as if sunset was eternal here. The clouds looked fluffy as they cradled the balls of water. She caught up to Drazul, tugging her cloak,

"Where 'xactly are we again? What am I lookin' at?"

"This is the Depths. We are at the heart of existence." Drazul proceeded to explain everything about the Depths and what she knows of it. She explained how dimensions were separated by these balls of water, functioning as doors as well as windows into other worlds. Whisper was in complete awe as she looked around at them as they walked past. There were so many and all so different. As she grew comfortable in this place, she began to wander around near Drazul, nearly unable to contain her curiosity.

Drazul stopped in front of the world that represented her plane, sliding her hand across the water, scanning the pictures that moved across. Whisper returned to her side and watched beside her. Whisper's mouth was agape as she realized Drazul was using the 'window' as a way to search through her world,

"What are ya lookin' for, Drazul?"

Drazul responded, glancing to read Whisper's signs and her action of scanning the pictures,

"I am looking through the provinces to see where the White Witches are currently residing. They travel for their work as healers across Tulasquss, providing aid where it is most required."

Whisper continued watching the pictures flash passed,

"Gee, ain't that handy... What are White Witches?"

"You will see."

At that moment, Drazul found them. The White Witches were assisting the Tuldar Cathedral of Calcette. Drazul turned to Whisper, a smile forming as she grabbed her wrist before stepping into the sphere of water. Whisper was startled, believing she'd gotten wet but surprisingly, she wasn't. She found herself in the sky, floating. She was afraid for a second before realizing Drazul was beside her, hand in hand. Drazul glided down behind the church, dragging Whisper down with her. Whisper's legs touched the ground, her legs feeling like jelly from standing on space to flying, to getting back on solid ground.

Drazul let go of Whisper's hand to allow her to grab her bearings before they set off towards the church's entrance. Calcette's Cathedral was the second largest building in the province, the first being Calcette's palace. The church was located towards the edges of the border between Calcette and Kadess in the outskirts. The aristocracy of Calcette and Kadess pushed most of their low-born outside of their cities, forcing them to live in small villages scattered throughout. This is where the clergymen vote to have their largest buildings be built, but they do have a separate church in the cities for nobles.

'After all, a church would be nothing without its practice of preying on the poor to support their corruption.'

Drazul doesn't particularly care for other Gods that are not worshiped by witches. Her interactions with many outside her sphere who worship Tuldar come in all forms. She has had her fair share of murdering many religious officials of Tuldar as she stumbled upon their victims within the Dream Web. The investigation into these murders has always dried up, resulting in folk calling it Tuldar's Smite, as their crimes would emerge upon their deaths.

Drazul would always roll her eyes at their whispers for they do not know that their precious God seemingly does not exist.