The Path to Peace

by Daniel Schinhofen

  “Yeah,” Alburet said, his arm still around Fluff’s waist as he walked with her. “It’s nice to see that, and it’s also nice to know that one of us would love a simple cuddle as much as they love to make others pant and moan.”

  Fluff smiled softly as she leaned against him for a moment. “Cuddles feel like comforting love.”

  “Which is why your cuddles are the best cuddles,” Alburet replied. Lowering his voice, he whispered just for her, “Win this bet, Fluff. I want to do whatever you want of me.”

  A shiver ran through her at his words. “For you, Al, I will do anything.”

  “As we would for you, our pretty kitty,” Alburet murmured. “Now let’s catch up to the others before they think we stopped again.”

  “Karen would be all for that, as would Stacia,” Fluff giggled.

  “It’s in their nature,” Alburet laughed, earning curious looks from Stacia and Karen.

  Chapter Thirty-six

  The rest of that day passed with only one other fight. The undead that attacked them were cut down as easily as the first set had been that morning. A couple of times while they walked through the desert, they caught sight of an army of Infernals a few miles ahead of them, clearing out mobs before they could attack them.

  Fluff won by a hundred damage, but when they retired to the tent for the evening, she didn’t ask for anything but to be held.

  “Are you sure?” Karen asked.

  “Yes, but we should try the bet again when we reach Peace. It’s almost guaranteed that we’ll have to fight a lot there,” Fluff looked at the others, “and I want it to be a group thing with everyone involved. Tonight, though, all I really want is to be held after Stacia looks into my mind.”

  Stacia nodded, “Aye, we will do both then.”

  Fluff got comfortable, with the others gathered around her. A flutter of fear and uncertainty grew in her chest as she looked at each of them.

  “Shh, we will nay treat ya any different no matter what be there,” Stacia said softly, placing her hand on Fluff’s chest and bleeding away the negative emotions. “Ya asked for me to look, and they will be with us as we take a walk through ya mind.”

  Nodding jerkily, Fluff closed her eyes, “Okay.”

  Stacia sang the song to lull Fluff into the state needed while the other two exchanged a look of concern. Once Fluff was ready, Stacia glanced at the two beside her. “Be ya ready?”

  “Yes,” they said in unison.

  “Then let us begin,” Stacia said as they touched both Fluff and her. Placing her hands back on Fluff, Stacia sang a new song to take them all into Fluff’s mind.

  The four looked around at what appeared to be an art gallery, with paintings displayed on the walls at regular intervals. “What is this place?” Julia asked as she looked at the closest image, which began to play a snippet of memory.

  “It be ya memories, all laid out to be viewed,” Stacia said. “This be what I see when I lull ya to sleep for a dream walk. Me Ma’ called it the Gallery of the Mind. Iffin ya have another personality, then accordin’ to me Ma’, we might be findin’ them here.”

  They followed Julia down long hallways, glancing at the paintings as they went by. A young Julia was the predominant person in each one. The first few showed a baby with pale skin, but it soon became apparent that Julia was aging with each new image. They passed one with a heavy cloth crumpled at its base.

  “Stacia?” Karen asked, pointing at the portrait as they passed.

  “Her Ma’s death,” Stacia said softly.

  “The cloth?” Karen pressed.

  “She did nay wish to recall the memory, so she covered the painting and turned it towards the wall,” Stacia said, giving Julia a hug. “She recalls it now, so it stays as it is.”

  Alburet blinked as he thought of his own mind. “You knew from the first walk how badly damaged my mind was, then?”

  Stacia looked down. “Nay. Ya mind be different. Ya do nay have paintings, ya have stained glass windows. It was difficult at first to know with ya, as ya mind had covered up the old ones with the new.”

  “Oh,” Alburet said softly.

  A shadow flickered ahead of them, causing them all to pause. “Ya need to call out to them, Fluff,” Stacia said softly. “They be ya, they will heed ya call.”

  Gulping, Julia’s voice trembled, “Hello? I want to talk… is that okay?”

  “Why now?” The words came from all around them, and the shadows between portraits seemed to darken. “You don’t need me now. You are safe, and with them.”

  “But…” Julia faltered, not knowing what to say.

  “If you are her, then you know how much we love her,” Karen said firmly. “She wants to know why she’s starting to act differently than she has in the past.”

  “She calls to me often while she is out with you,” the room grew warmer as the voice went on. “She rarely needed me before, calling on me only a few times in her life, and only once allowed me to move her body. Since she has started Alpha World, she calls to me much more often.”

  “Rage,” Alburet said. “You were there to help and protect her with Pavel. That was the time you took control, wasn’t it?”

  A shadowy shape appeared a dozen feet away. “Yes, she needed me to save her.”

  “Thank you,” Julia sniffled, “I know that it was the right thing to do, now.”

  “Yes. They helped you learn,” Rage said. “With them, you have less need of me, but still you call on me every day.”

  “I need you to fight, to be their equal,” Julia said, stepping towards the shadow. “I’m afraid of you, yet I know that I need you.”

  “That’s why I stay away unless called,” Rage said, stepping back. “I will come when needed, but let you be otherwise.”

  “What if I want to be more like you, so I can be more with them and for them?” Julia asked, continuing to slowly advance on the shadow.

  Karen started to move forward, but Stacia caught her arm and shook her head. Leaning over, she spoke very softly, “Nay, she has to do this.”

  “Julia, you no longer need me,” Rage said, trying to step back, but an invisible barrier stopped her.

  “You’re wrong,” Julia said, continuing to advance, her body shifting into Fluffball’s, “for I wish to be with them forever, and to do that, I need you. Together, we can be what I want to be. Without you, I’ll be scared little Julia, huddled in the corner, too afraid to do what I could.”

  A sudden light flashed into existence and illuminated the shadow, which was a reverse coloration of Julia. Black skin shone while luminous white hair cascaded down her back. “If we merge, there is no saying what will happen to either of us,” Rage said, still trying to back away from Fluffball. Fear radiated from the figure.

  “They will help us, as they have before,” Fluffball said, shifting completely into the persona she was far more comfortable in than her own skin. “Join me, please. Together we can be worthy of them, equal to them, and able to protect them, as they have us.”

  Furred arms outstretched, Fluffball stepped closer while Rage began to hyperventilate. “What if you have need of me again?”

  “You will always be with me,” Fluffball said calmly as her hands inched closer to Rage’s face. “I won’t force you, but I ask you… please?”

  The single word seemed to break Rage’s will. “I’m only a fragment of you, I can’t resist our will. Will we be Julia or Fluffball going forward?”

  “Fluff. Not scared Julia, nor timid, yet yearning, Fluffball. We will be just Fluff— Berserker, lover, and wife of Karen, Alburet, and Stacia. Together, we will grow, and become what we always could have been if we had been allowed to.”

  Rage bowed her head. “As we say it, so it will be. I am the Rage that you will call upon to protect our precious lovers, and to kill the foes that would seek to do us harm.” The figure burst into dust and was drawn into Fluff.

  The others watched, unsure what to do. After a long second, Fluff turned around, he
r smile wide. “I am Fluff, your wife. I am Fluff, your claws to rend our foes. I am Fluff, and I will defend our love with my life.” Her smile grew blindingly brilliant. When they blinked their eyes clear, they were surprised to find they were back in their tent, kneeling next to a sleeping Fluff.

  “Tha’ was nay expected,” Stacia breathed.

  “Is she okay?” Karen asked, stroking Fluff’s cheek.

  Fluff nestled her head into Karen’s hand with a contented purr, which brought a smile to their faces. “I think she’s okay,” Alburet said.

  A soft flash behind them brought all three heads around to see Vicky sitting in a comfortable chair. “That was not expected, but from what I can see, it worked better than years of therapy.”

  Karen’s lips drew back into a snarl. “You!”

  Vicky sighed, “If you persist, I’ll do what I did last time. I’m here to thank you all. Repairing Seamus’ mind was a key test for Alpha World, and the results are going to be used to good ends. What just happened, taking a split personality, a deeply withdrawn split personality, and getting them to mesh so easily…” A bright smile lit her face. “Let’s just say that, if nothing else, Mindblown is going to be a leader in the mental health field.”

  “Not if you split us up,” Karen spat.

  Vicky gave an enigmatic smile. “Split you up?” With a growl, Karen took a step forward and froze in place. “I did warn you,” Vicky said with a sigh.

  “Vicky, let her go please,” Alburet said, stepping behind Karen and wrapping his arms around her.

  “Since you asked nicely,” Victoria said.

  Karen tried forward, only to find Alburet holding her. “She froze me again?”

  “Yes,” Alburet said, squeezing her gently, “calm down. She obviously came to talk to us.”

  “As perceptive as always, Alburet,” Victoria said. “I came to discuss the quest I set before you. The reward was a boon of your choice. You all seem bent on making sure all of you are able to go to Delta World. I don’t think you know what you are asking, but, if that is really your wish then I will grant it.”

  Karen settled back against Alburet. “If he completes the quest, we can go with him?”

  “I will make sure it happens,” Victoria said.

  “Overlord,” Stacia asked, her eyes averted, “there be a rumor that Two-souled can nay have children…”

  “You are wondering why, after all this time, you don’t bear his offspring growing inside of you?” Victoria asked gently.

  “Aye, is it me?” Stacia blurted out.

  “No child, no, it is not you,” Victoria said, her voice growing soft. “It is a limitation in Alpha World. It has not been decided yet if such a pairing will be allowed in Delta World. I will promise you one thing, Stacia. If he wins, and you all go with him, I will make sure you at the very least are able to give him children.”

  “Just her?” Karen asked.

  One eyebrow arched, and the corner of Victoria’s mouth twitched up. “Maybe it can be extended to others, but that will require me pulling some strings, Karen Young. Are you asking me for a separate boon?”

  Alburet felt the sudden tension in Karen’s muscles. “If you deny me, I’ll understand, but Fluff…” She trailed off, her eyes going to the sleeping Lunari.

  “Yes, part of her yearns deeply to be a mother. She hopes to name her first daughter after her mother,” Victoria’s voice grew soft again for a moment. “Contrary to how you view me, Karen, I do care for those that I am fond of… even you.”

  Karen went a little limp in Alburet’s arms. “Me?”

  “You care for people that I have grown fond of. They love you to such a degree that it is almost painful to behold, just as you love them, even if you have a harder time expressing those feelings with words. I know you believe that I’m trying to hurt you, and them, but that is not the case. When the time comes and I explain things to Seamus, I will let you all be there so you can understand as well. Between now and then, all hell is going to break loose. They will need your fire to weather the storm that is coming. Do your best so that he may do what he needs to.”

  “We’re on our way to the city of Peace,” Alburet said.

  “Yes, and you have help. The Dark Lord is smoothing your way again, even after I told him not to,” Victoria chuckled. “He obeys the letter of my words, if not the spirit of them. Let this be a lesson; children are a handful.”

  Stacia nodded. “I will keep ya words in me heart, Overlord.”

  “Stacia,” Victoria paused for a moment before continuing, “you have become so much more than I ever expected you to. You are the glue that binds them, and I am grateful for what you have done. You have given both Seamus and Julia love, not just with you but with each other, and with Karen. Thank you.”

  At a loss, Stacia bowed deeply to Victoria. “I’m honored, Overlord. I only followed my heart and helped them find the truth in theirs.”

  “Others might not have done the same,” Victoria said as she rose to her feet, the chair vanishing. “I have been here too long already. Thank you for helping my friend, and for helping me prove that Alpha World can be more than just a game. Good luck in Peace. You will need it, with what lies ahead.” A soft glow enveloped her and she vanished.

  “Maybe she isn’t a complete bitch,” Karen muttered, still held in Alburet’s arms.

  “We should get some sleep, and Fluff needs our love,” Alburet said as he walked Karen over to the bedding.

  “I can walk myself,” Karen huffed.

  “Yeah, but then I would have to let you go,” Alburet said, “and I didn’t want to yet.”

  A soft smile appeared on Karen’s lips. “Well, okay.”

  Stacia got their clothing put away in their bags before stripping and joining them in the cuddle puddle. “The Overlord be watchin’ over us, we be truly blessed,” Stacia murmured.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  Waking the next morning, Alburet found he was not the only one awake. Fluff sat in the corner with her back to them, her art supplies on the ground next to her. Shifting carefully so as not to wake the other two, he slipped out of bed and approached her.

  “Fluff, are you okay?”

  Looking over her shoulder, her smile was brittle. “I’m not sure. My thoughts have been jumbled since I woke up. I thought drawing would help calm me.” Looking down at her art book, she sighed, “I think I’ll be okay, but I’m not who I was yesterday.”

  Sitting down beside her, he glanced at what she’d drawn. Pavel was hanging from a tree, while Julia and her mother smiled up at the body. Lips pursed, Alburet nodded. “No, you aren’t, yet you still are.” Putting his arm around her waist, he nodded at the artwork, “You’ve held that inside for a long time, haven’t you.”

  “Yes,” Fluff said, leaning into his side. “I keep getting little impulses that I’ve never had before. Is that her, trying to be the one in charge?”

  “No,” Alburet said as his hand came up to rub her ears. “I would bet they’re impulses you’ve had all along, but never acknowledged. You wanted to be the good girl you were always told to be, so they’re a part of you that you suppressed for a long time.”

  “You think I should do what my impulses are telling me to, then?” Fluff asked softly.

  “I think you should do what you want,” Alburet said. “The three of us will care and support you Fluff, because we all love you. We love all of you—old, new, shy, forward... as long as it’s you, we will shower you in love.”

  “Okay,” Fluff murmured, setting the art book to the side. “Thank you, Al.” Lunging, she knocked him down and was on top of him, her lips meeting his with a hungry passion.

  Stunned at her sudden aggressiveness, Alburet’s arms went around her by reflex and he returned the kiss. Panting a little when she broke the kiss, Alburet looked up at her with a touch of wonder in his eyes. “Feisty kitty today?”

  “I think I’m going to be more aggressive and demanding,” Fluff said as she rolled away fro
m him and started to pack up her art supplies.

  “I think that will be interesting,” Alburet said, taking a few deep breaths to calm his libido.

  “Yes,” Fluff said as she stood, her eyes sparkling as she looked at him. “Give me a few days, and I think things will be very interesting.” She leaned over and kissed the top of his head. “I feel more energetic than I ever have before.”

  “Aye, tha’ is nay a surprise,” Stacia said from where she lay watching them. “He was right, we will love ya nay matter what. Can I be getting’ one of them kisses now?”