Filling in the gaps

The crown creature that hosts the monarch of undertakers to this kingdom, lives up to being the Phoenix of legend; shaping as a bird made of energy consisting of life, flames and light. Always in flight overseeing its nesting kingdom and mothering potential crops of newly forming kingdom crowns. The exact nature of how these crowns are made and become the puppet controls of the undertakers is unexplored and undocumented. They are always formed from outsider energy brought into a virgin tome. The abnormal energy pools into the silt ponds and it is the crown that borrows souls from the human world to become the undertakers. When settled long enough, the highest concentrated pond creates the soul inserts to new crowns. Thus reproducing a new crown kingdom. The new crown learns what it needs from the parent and leaves for make its own pocket or find a pocket. But there is a limiting factor for gemstone creation, this has to be likely the amount of outsider energy that is trapped within the space time of the lands they invade. Equally, there will be some push back by any governing gods or spirit system that isn't use to seeing undertakers. So making trade with death gods smooths these issues, or other similar soul shepherds. 

This undertakers Phoenix kingdom is located between the local systems death god domains and the ocean domains. A feather shape corridor that wedges to keep the city of the dead undetectable from death's divinity. Thus trapping human souls in a living land access and preventing death gods from finding this place. It's also on this natural feature this universe scars with, the beach of scars as they call it. A beach of broken time things washing ashore and the occasional monster that mages are having to keep secret from the rest of the world.

According to the souls around here, some of the very powers that shaped this universe came from this beach; rumours goes it was the god of war being washed up on this beach to several hell demon that become lord of this universe's hell. Her soul was washed up here once. 

The Ender is a old soul whom once saved Eliza's soul from being lost. Back when she lost her way, she just been unshackled from clothus enslavement and was a wondering homeless soul. This ender gave her start of teaching and in turn she helped restart this flame of creation from the very start. She has soul history here, being the one that taught the god souls to be gods. But now... she was a forgotten legend among gods; let along any awareness on the humans, demons and other beings. She is meaningless now among this ocean of tomes. 

"I knew I would find you sulking about around here." The local title keeper of Ender, his host is a mage that is royal Mage bloodline. This host isn't long to live, his been poisoned and his been pretending to be fine. It's no doubt that the Darkwood are killing each other to own the title of Ender. That hope in killing the current host will quicken it to pass hand to the next Darkwood, "You came back here." He sits at her side uninvited but she puts up with it given his this tome's final cut, "I learned how this beach was made. It wasn't some existence eater or the war among us Enders." Proving this Ender has history and is aware of things outside his universe, "It wasn't the gods and it wasn't naturally made." He pauses to wipe away black blood from blue lips, skin that looks like it will peel and smells like a rotting corpse. He been infected with a god slayer's spit, poison with what kills gods. Barely clinging because his a human host. 

"I want to guess it was the abyss of the ocean's doing. The entire Mage island was lifted from such a fissure." She guesses for him as his went silent. He smiles glad she thought like he does and that he sees the darkness as she does - not scary but unexplored, "The owner of this Abyss gate is the lady who controls that graveyard city." She play baps his arm, "Looks like your true title of Death has the knot tied in his future with such a beautiful lady." He twisted in horror of this fact, "Easy there, they were married and had kids in my origin. I will help smooth things as the road bumps." He takes a mulling thought on her awareness, "Death has it after you for some reason. Out to slay your hosts." she stares at the horizon of this worlds paths, fate threads and ties, "But she will help you keep them. You be safe from death by water. Not an easy time for your hosts." 

"Is this because your connected to the dream world that you know this?" He asked. 

"I am among the dead. I am a spirit. I know what will be a human's future because of my right mix of crazy." She shily tuts but still looking out at the sky meeting the sea, a grey that blends either way, "You're partly right, dreams. But it also omens, fate and tome. Gestured sort of like this." She signs and teaching him and he gingerly attempts it with shivering loosing strength, "It be our little greeting. If you teach this to other hosts, I will help. I do soul stuff, trades and whatever. I take a price for doing it but it be mate's price. Not my normal standards. I likely just want to have time over tea or just a dream stop by." She gave a warmth that he needed and relaxed him just talking so causally but he stiffed again to the next words, "I am not a human, even if I become one - I will have inhuman things. I said soul stuff... because I have the means to claw souls from corpses." She tilts as he was slumped at her side. Human host is dead... but title and host are body locked. She smiled and with claws plucked them out. She holds their souls softly with care. She summons out the tome, using her shadow tendrials. She made the edits needed and holds them warmly. The tome folds away and she stare forwards at the horizon. 

"Give it to Josh." She heard both these souls ask of her. She ponders why the title is breaking traditional of moving away from his bloodline but it could simply be a ginger step around to avoid one generation. She know the title has its personality of its own wishes.

"If that's how it be." She huffed and stays seated. She glamours herself up for what is next, using his corpse to sycnonize laws to her adapting. Soon she was a mimic human, passable enough. She softly hides the souls safely and she lowers to respect the corpse to lay better. She uses the dead's own clothing to cover face. She sits knowing just to wait. 

"Pardon me... there was meant to be some souls here." A demon here for a contract payment. A payment the host of ender was due to pay.

"You're mine now." She matter of fact tone and her smirk, "I beat you to the punch. The soul you want is mine. So you are also mine. Bow to me." the contract forced the demon to kneel, "You go inform the humans and whoever else. Tell the damned if you must. Have the mage's collect their dead." He bows lower in taking the command and runs for it. Doing exactly that. It wasn't that much longer that the Mage Association rolls up in SUV's to corpse collect.

In the secret agent black suits and not sun glasses. The average person thinks those are normal sun glasses; she knows the crystal lens is the same system the Sigil's pane is used. This means Humans are tragically aware of gods, demons, damned and path walkers. 

"Jessica! Long time no see." Eliza purred in seeing the lady, "Oh, You don't know me. Sorry." calming down, "Sir Darkwood came to me with a strange conversation. He was talking about the beach. He just slumped and..." Eliza paused with knowing it was not easy. Someone dying beside that can't be saved. Jess comforts and takes Eliza's statement, attempted several Identification attempts. Eliza being shown as a unknown anomalies being.

It's clear that Eliza had nothing to do with this death and the team wasn't in any doubt to bother untangling how she knew or was associated with the dead man. It isn't the frist time and unknown spirit tries to pass off human and uses excuse to speak to then for some favour. Had pass deals of demons trying to trick the team to some unwanted soul deals. Knowing the agents personal information was just set up for bad things. It was to late to redo that for Eliza. She could sense the team's energy of emotions and distrust.

"We take you back to the City of the dead, your guild is in need of you." Jess informs that much to Eliza and likely that was minimal enough information to lower Eliza defence from resistant to what comes next. Eliza knows whats coming and yet she hopes not. Hoping they trust her enough to not,"Unless you have business with Raven." She meant Matthew in his not mage name. This was also something gleamed from the public access that is on the main sigil ID access about Eliza.

"I want to talk to your partner Josh. We made a deal after all. I saved him from drowning in that boat, I have a way to cut clean our deal." jess sighed in that being great news about her husband but there is also that back feeling of it not being all that worthy. Not trusting Eliza to be honest either. Jessica doesn't trust Eliza. A fake human that seems to personally in the know and was beside a target on watch by the late king's order. The dead spirit of the king being among the keen to take the ender title.

And instead of trusting Eliza, Jessica took that precaution of just banishing this spirit from the human world. Jessica using the preaching of a goddess to Nature's wrath to swallow and steal Eliza from the human world and into the Sigil path. Jessica did the right thing and Eliza can only just smile that Jessica is cautious.

"Ugh, She banished me." Eliza landed on her feet onto the Sigil path. She barely has a moment of taking in or change her appearance when the crown's creature sings for attention.

Eliza faces before it and kneels. The crown softly came forwards, plucked the human soul from her hands and flew away proud of itself. Left behind a golden crystal leaf feather. She takes this as the payment for the soul and stands. She has been granted permission to walk among its kingdom, through such a feather. It recruited not only the Darkwood human soul but Eliza herself. Odd since Pride already forced Eliza's hand to spy Matthew for her. That is however way this world will twist with the host of the crown.

"Convert yourself into an Undertaker to hand off me to Josh." the title of Ender shaped as a mask, "I will just make do with seeing this side for a bit. You going back among the living world to find him." She shurgs as she not sure what will happen. She wants to hope that she just do that.

"You brought us here then." She nodded in guess and the Ender nods. 

"It's why death is always after me. Angry of me bending the god laws." She huffed at that, Ender's are odd balls that the universe allows to let break itself. A sort of mechanism that the ender helps remove anything it hates of itself. A sort of body immunity against the outsiders that break universe concepts. Not all Ender titles have awareness, control of itself or is even considered separate.

Just because she had to for the human host death, she already knows how this Ender was made. His soul name is echoed in all his bloodline of humans; all royal mages have two halves of this title name. It became itself when someone's soul was damaged, this fragment became the external force owner that allows the bending of shadows, sorrow and breaking of law. It gained at some point the strength enough to tear space temporary. It sacrificed some price, that death is cheated from, in order to welcome outsider souls. Having Matthew, eleven other homeless souls and herself brought in. So these outsiders are keeping the gods occupied from harming mages. Then you have Matthew being used to track the hosts of this tome's ender. Eliza being used as back watch of the fragment when its without a vessel of flesh or spirit body. It knows them because it brought them here, when everyone else including the gods are uneased by these unknown unstable possibilities. 

"I was going to need a body to fit in. I can't stay like I am or else I will be a ghost. He would feel the disconnection if I become one. I am barely getting by with the little remains of path gear I wear. I had hoped that my soul would just been transferred to where I last left off in this life." She paused with a flicker of realization, "I just forgot that my human life here died and I was a wondering spirit again." She holds the golden feather, "Shade I will be."

She hides away the feather, slowly dismantling all her important items on herself to her shadow inventory and takes the back hidden entry into the feather corridor realm. She crosses a crystal time stop gap into a branch closer to the monarchy lake.

Instead of entry from the tip of the pen, she was going to use the water system to swim herself into the spy segments. The main corridor that is the core through has a hidden underwater river, flowing out of the realm. In each branch of this unique realm shape is a small canal ending at a public pond. These ponds connect to the river and the river directly upstream is sourced from the deep lake in the private monarchs dip. The private monarch lake where only the crown's host bodies are made at and is the source of all clay silt part melting chemicals for all undertakers.

Eliza just knew about this from other kingdoms; but to the average soul, they take many dips to each pond before they become mud brick, then are craved dried and presented as underling to the crown. There are many turns of departments that are the up start of regulating and creating uniform undertakers. This is the first kingdom brought to this tome, thus what is had now will carry to the last kingdom this tome will close with. This feather will loose frills as the more crown gemstones are created into rival resource takers. But it is just the beginning, new-born kingdom and without competition for hand snatching human souls into undertakers. 

She finds just the pond she needs, and with swimming her soul through the deepest clay and chemical concentration. Her crystal nerve system structures automatically clinging to the clay. All her clothing and stuff was stored away by now.

It got dangerous blind swimming the canal of the kingdom, sharp surfaces cut holes and she was stuck on pin tight tunnel turns at times. But with being determined, she claws herself free and swims deeper into the water way.

Creatures of the abyss inside these waters were attracted and then in fear of being ate by her. To these monsters of water, she is clay crystal monster that scars the very surface it touched.

A god eater, clearly not one of her own and lived local to these domains bite her. She bite back taking the immunity of its poison. Both the blood and spit of this creature is the only cure. She can barely make it through the last final pond turn as it was the strongest current and she swimming against it. Her claws pricking the inside of this waterway as hand grapples. Using the very last energy reserve to pull and soon finally she made it into the main lake.

The lake resting the nest of the phoenix. She surrounded in the phoenix ash remains, gold shed feathers and the scraps this crown discarded. There was a lot more in this pond, giving explainantion of what the clay undertakers is made from.

Eliza's soul as exhausted, laying to the bottom of this lake. As it always is for all that becime pure souls without a vessel, she becomes sleeper status. The status all become during this clay altering, locking herself into converting deep sleep inside this golden clay. Her lazed perceptive staring up at the water morphic blurs above. The light of the phoenix bright gleams, rays rainbow upon the bottom of this gemstone lake. Even locked in herself, she watches the passage of time. Plenty of the phoenix's children became rough and some didn't have it to correctly exist in the laws of these lands. Drops these corpses of failed children, harsh as nature's way. A nest of eight gemstone eggs, only two became creatures of crowns as two new kingdoms.

Pride was exiled from her queen position but hired as the right hand of the monarchy. The city of the dead were so in lace by the use of undertakers that the sigil is the prime system that this kingdoms laws are. The gods are at peace with that, since they too access and control the crystal panel technology. Humans are unaware except for Mages. But Mages have been regarded as extremist religious cult people to the rest of humanities concern. This universe is always in some crisis state one way or another. The only ones able to flex with the times are the very undertakers stabilizing the Sigil system. She just barely then closed her eyes, it was simply just a fraction of a moment for her. 

"This has to be a miracle!" She shivered cold and soon at reflex was choking. Twisted to the side to vomit out all this sea, sand and whatever else. She held her hands as reflex on her admonine, where stuck a broken blade. This long sword remains all the way up. It cut open her intstines, misssed her lungs and heart. The tip barely scrapping her spine, which has not cut any important nerves of her back. The salt sealed it all and it being left stuck in has meant not further complication. The salt has kept her from having infections. 

"You're alive. I knew it. I knew you were." holding her tightly. He leans into her, supporting her and spoke a long string of prasing gods. Given his northern and deep cold, this version of Raven was ties to the northern gods of the Viking lands. It is by chance meaning that Omens (As his always got his talons stuck into Matthew) is renamed and is a part of that pantheon. She not sure how things tie yet and who she is right this second. 

"This was no blessing by any gods." someone hissed with warning, "That there is a path walker from the ocean abyss." Raven cares not for that fact, he cradles her and got them up off this sand, "You can't just accept that this woman is a human." 

"If only you knew." Raven sighed and still ignoring everyone else, takes her to warmth. To safety. She noticed her traditional family wearing, this dress... its the cult uniform that she always wears for formal meetings. It would mean her family have some unknown strange cultist ties in some backwards measure. In being carried, she felt that the clay mask her family all wears is still attached. She can barely move, but she managed to take it off her face. Allowing her to breath even easier then relying on her spirit side. She notes that holds three masks. One now. The one she came returned by. The ender.

She was put to a stretcher and she flinched by the torch eye check. She had another vomiting fit, and they helped her with providing the bucket. She being wrapped in a foil survivors blanket. She finds her left hand trying to hold his back, and she noticed his eyes. She looked into Raven and just sort of knew him. Those sad eyes in worry for her, deep and grateful of her being with him. 

"Raised from the ashes of a Pheonix." She can barely bring out the words and he smirked at that being what she chooses to be the frist thing. 

"Well its a good thing we know one." He seems a little hurt. She huffed that in just how compicated everything is, "When your well enough, can you tell me what it was like beyond the abyss?" she stares studying him about those words and clearly was thinking about it. She even scrunted her nose with being to much brain work to comperhend it, "What did you get out of doing it anyway?" he wondered. 

"A ranking that makes death afraid." she retorted easiliy, "I have so much paperwork to do." realizing her human job and her spirit job is the same. She hold his hand and drifted with resting. 

"She is fine." the healer voiced quickly in making sure Raven isn't about to disrupt the process, "She is surprisingly unscaved better then you imagine having a sacrificial ceremonial sword through the gut, to then be thrown off the side of a long drop cliff. I would say that the fact she isn't human has been more an aide to this mircale." and with that Raven is confused, "She is like the rest of her cursed bloodline family. All being half something... so their organs aren't in the places they are normally. Although she looks human, she hiding some not human features. Like her hands, you seen her hands?" he softly looked at her left hand holding his. There is indeed some off added retracting claw features about it. He still very relaxed for knowing she's not human unlike everyone else. 

"My lord told me that she wasn't normal or human. She tried to be human for everyone around her. Her family didn't approve of her ways." He replies smooth in just having what he needed about it all, "But I am more concerned that her soul left and came back." 

"It wasn't long ago that you did too." the healer tuts at him, "You were just laying here wondering if this was England." Raven eye rolls and then sort of got it. He had some new memories since his soul came back to his body. His sense of his god abilities has been refined and his been wiser. Confident of making predictions, "And with this removed, some deep sleep and pain killers. She going to be ok. Maybe basic rest days with making sure she eating." the removed sword at her side, "She's not the same... for sure. The way the magic healed her this time, its not the same." the mage healer frowns, "Well whatever, its your problem." The healer leaves them alone. She stays recovering in the ambiance. Her soul is in two halves, one looking up at the nest of a pheonix and the other barely awake in a moving van on a strecher. 

"Gah!" someone stepped in and back out quickly, Raven shook disappointed.

"That had to be Josh, he can see the hidden." She muttered and Raven shot stare at her, "Yo Josh. I have a thing for you. Its not my business." She can barely sit up and Raven helps her, "Come on over, I am not going to lick you." Josh slowly peers at the back doors and careful comes closer. She check over the three masks, and it was the enders that shuffles itself. She takes hold and barely can pass it over, "Makes us even. I saved you from the boat. You take this guy off me." Josh takes the mask off her. She leans into Raven, "I don't understand Enders. They all freaks of insanity." Raven nods agreeing at that and then frown of why she knows that. But in seeing her handing the ender mask over meant she must have had some dealing or something, "It's complicated but I promise you, Ace. That mask is why our souls are returned here." Raven frowns at this, "And now your god isn't about to have a fit that your soul went walks without him." Raven nods at that too and still frowns uncomfortable that she knows this stuff, "I have to twaddle tell you on your sister." she pats his side and leans with drifting back into sleeping. Her dream eyes are sparking in the ways the phoenix dances and flies its bed nest above her. Her body leaching in all these broken crystal beast creatures, bracing in elements of being a creature of crown. 

"How the hell is this woman here?" Jessica voices in a deep cut of shock, "She the one that found Elder head of the Darkwood estate and was the last spoken to him. Sitting along the scar beach. She is not a human." 

"We know." Josh stirring her away, "Raven knows. His been looking for her, rather it. The last known member of the Fallowns." Josh voice tappers as they all getting ready and moving on again. Raven listens about the land and the constant leaning to see out a window for watch of threats. 

"The god of death is mad at the ender for bringing a bunch of unknown souls back from the abyss. Little did death care it being about giving folks such as you and me a place. We would been wondering souls without a place otherwise. Ender brought more then just us, but I suspect he hopes for you to come back. You meant a lot to many of those he cares about. Not that he admits it." She finds herself in his lap, the two of them on the van seating. His always watching the windows, "And just think the amount of complaint your god would fuss about. I would even dare to suspect that your god made a deal with the Ender. Knowing that bird brain, it was that or leave this tome and chase after us." She tilts about the sword that been now removed from her, "Human made silver smithing. Not to shabby." she shadow pulled it over and inspected it with her hands, "Pure unnatural silver, magic smithing techinique and with many faults. Decoration then a war weapon." she sees it reactive about her hands. He takes it off her. He softly wrapped it and puts it out of reach, "I couldn't leave without you. I am sorry I dragged you with me. I used my hidden ability to take your soul with me. I must be a monster." he sighs glad to hear her acting as she should.

Sure it was different but at the core of it. She cares about his feelings and explained herself to the best of her ways. The sheer fact that she removed his soul because she was afraid of not having him with her, was tell enough that this is the girl that he knew. She not making some excuse, she plainly admitted it her fault then trying to make it sound better then it was. He not even afraid or mad over it. He was actually glad she did it. 

"I was going to chase after you if you didn't anyway." hugs around and leans with calm as her breathing is, "You know where we are and what is happening?" 

"I am alive again and somewhat human." She shrugs, "I lost a bunch of stuff and replaced it. I became a tome keeper like I had always ever wanted to be. I protect so many a book. I repaired many. I went back to where my soul came from, repaired that tome even if it rejected me. It was a very long journey, and I always had some way to keep in touch or finding you. Even when you got lost, I had you safe. You were the Ender of our origin tome." She sighed glad to tell him all this stuff, "In so many a word." she holds his hands that seem turned cold, "I always forgive and love. I had my time to hate and scorn. You matter to me the most, even when I had my soul into powdered dust. I always hide in the shadows at your back, being there when you needed me." she leans with warmth returning in his fast beating chest, "Your soul is always been my favourite." He so tense and trying really hard at not about to freak her out with being so full of raw emotions. 

"It is not the time to be making love conffession in my van. We are driving in the vast valley of monsters, and you had to do this right now?" their dirver snarls in finally speaking up after so long, "Be back from the brink of death changes you folks. Sheesh." That does nothing for poor Raven turned away bright red across shoulders, arms and face. Plenty sure of being struck in the heart and not really wanting to hold himself back. 

"Didn't you know, you feel the more alive the closer death is?" She voiced back, "Besides the bag of bones has yet to know his own heart." She looked to Raven trying to hide some of his embarssment, "His lovers have yet to shake that soul. But that is nothing to the events that crush the man into loving his future wife." Raven snorts at how that could be said about themselves. She wipes away the nose bleed his having and gave evil little wink. 

"Why do you know about death's personal life? That seems rather improper of a human soul like you." Muninn lands and shifted to a Nordic black feathered man, his gear consists of all the Viking old stories. She could tell this was not Huginn as there were many dream attachments over this being. Muninn is desire and mind. Where Huginn would be covered in threads and cloth of thoughts. But the two ravens are like brothers, or maybe they are. As Huginn landed as a raven on the shoulder soon after glaring upon this all situation, cooing in bird tongue of disapproving things. 

"I am a book keeper of souls. I read souls. I had that chance to read his, not that I wanted to. I don't get stop hearing what they all ache about if they grumble loud enough." She then pose in realizing a slip of tongue, that she was speaking to the two ravens fluently. Huginn huffed in glad she realizes it while Muninn sees uses in why Raven keeps her around. Although his very unsure how Raven fell in love with this stranger. Raven chuckles happy that she's able to see his god and that she understands them. He finds it more a sign to accept her. Given How Muninn displays his huff and approval, and that soon Huginn jumps and imprinted his mark to make her as his follower. She granted access to the whole pantheon of Norse mythology, and hidden mythologies attached about them.

In that mere scratch of marking her soul in Huginn's watch, Huginn was granted thread trace with hidden damned souls and lost ones. She felt all this imprint over to the other half of her soul in the silt pond, changing her configuration of her soul nerve workings. Her soul in the kingdom of undertakers sudden gained so much energy and grasp of herself. It took hold of a vessel shaping and frees herself from the depths of this lake. Her soul stirring the kingdom into chaos, as her soul finds gates exit to flee the afterlife.

This land around them in the van trembles and a landslide breaks the roads ahead, giving way to the van sliding with. Breaking park on this sliding land carried down. Water flooding that causes the earth to shifted the area, splashed the whole party of cars. Instead reaching a summit to some abnormal energy readings that had signature of some mage royal screw up about it. They taken on the ride, using magic to shift the earth around them to carry them safer.