“Thank you all for coming,” Roth began. He looked around the room, the Prism Girls and goddesses sitting around a large table. “First I’d like to apologize for the mayhem from earlier. I’d like to open the floor if anyone has any questions about the meeting.”
“I’m sure they have plenty,” Medi scoffed, from the chair beside Roth.
“Athena’s still processing it,” Jasmine chuckled as she snuggled up to Medi. “I’m not sure what to make of it either, to be honest,” she admitted as the lamia gently stroked her hair.
“That’s understandable,” Cheryl commented from Roth’s other side.
“I think that’s a good place to start,” said Annie. “Who here knew about it before this meeting?”
“It should just be MID’s agents, Cheryl, Ami, Sue, and myself,” Lilith stated. “And my precious familiar, of course,” she said as she pet the fox girl leaning against her.
“So, the rest of the goddesses didn’t know?” Carmen asked. Tiamat and the other goddesses shook their heads. “Why keep that a secret from them?” The goddesses all looked at Riri.
“I wouldn’t blab!” Riri protested.
“Anyway,” Lilith continued. “I think we should just have Sue and Ami tell us what they can about their world.”
“It’s honestly hard to really explain,” Ami admitted. “Our worlds seem to be pretty similar, and yet not. Our home is fairly technologically developed, but not really as much as yours, and I’d say the majority of our world is the same when it comes to general climates and wildlife. Well now anyway. The onset of mana seems to have awakened numerous magical lifeforms like those in our homeland. That aside, given our talks with Cheryl, I’d say a lot of our cultures are also pretty analogous to yours, but somewhat different. That said, the portal in… you called it Colorado?” Roth nodded. “Yes, well that portal seems to be connected to the land of Dracluce, which we only have so much information on.”
“Wait, our portal? Are there more?” Vivi asked.
“Not many,” Sue explained. “After the one appeared near here, the deities of our world felt the shift in mana. I believe some other deities then used their power to make their own portal, like Ami did, but powers like hers are rare even among us, so I don’t imagine there’s more than a few of them.
“As for our world itself, magic has always been a part of it. It’s a part of everyday life for most people. Even humans and their lower magical potential have managed to harness it in similar ways to how you use electricity, using it to create magitech devices. We have appliances for heating, cooking, lighting, even types of telecommunications and forms of entertainment, although how they operate are rather different. For instance, you have devices that you hold to play games on a screen, while we have talismans that play games with illusions. Beyond that, there’s certainly a lot of cultural differences. Most places still venerate local deities unlike many lands here. Dracluce is the one big exception there.”
“You said Dracluce is the land our portal is connected to, right? What’s it like?” Vivi asked.
“Like I said, we don’t know much.” Sue frowned. “There was a large war about a millennia ago, and a single deity conquered most of the continent. Ever since then, they’ve been a rather reclusive land. What we do know is that their people seem to have a rather fervent faith for their deity, even though as best we can tell, he doesn’t really interact with his people. What little information we have seems to indicate it may resemble what you call Europe. Other than that, they’ve been rather warlike and culturally deprived, which makes Zeus’s desires more problematic.”
“If he invades and stokes animosity from their land, we might get into a war rather quickly, is that right?” Roth asked. Sue and Ami nodded.
“Our land wasn’t really involved with the war back then," Ami added. "But one of the neighboring pantheons, led by Master Vishnu, was engaged with it before tensions stalled out. From what they’ve described to us, Dracluce is currently being pressured by a rather conservative movement that would likely be aggressive towards… um… Cheryl, what was the term you used?”
“You mean for the magical forms people have been taking? Like my being an elf?” Amaterasu nodded. “We’ve been using the term hybra.”
“Hybra?” Melody questioned.
“Yes,” Cheryl confirmed. “Like Vera stated during her presentation, our changes seem to have affected our genetics. From what we understand, mana seems to cause new chromosomes to appear during our transformations. Some early research seems to indicate that non-magical people may have them, thanks to some trace energies that have been found, but we’re not sure what causes it.”
“So, what, it just creates new chromosomes?” Annie asked.
“We’re not certain.” Cheryl frowned. “Early research assumed that, but some researchers have been questioning if it’s creating them or regenerating them. Like I said before, Earth and Gaia may have been reconnected, meaning they were connected in the past. If that’s true, then perhaps magical beings were commonplace here back then, and when whatever separated our two worlds happened, those genes decayed.”
“That… actually makes sense,” Ichika commented. “Mel and I have talked about how we feel like this is how we were supposed to be.”
“Yes, and that seems to be true of many hybra,” Cheryl stated. “As for the term, it just kinda stuck after early stages started to describe some people as ‘hybrids’ and they started calling our transformations ‘hybradizations’ since our new genetics seem to merge with our old ones.”
“Wait, are scientists really like that?” Carmen asked. “Wouldn’t they like, wait to make some fancier term?”
“You’re talking about nerds, Carm,” Annie stated bluntly. “We’re talking about the type of people who name genes after a hedgehog from a video game.”
“Wait really?” Carmen’s eyes widened. “Wait… no, that makes sense if Vivi’s mom is friends with them. I mean she’s a super nerd.”
“I-I’m not that nerdy...” Cheryl whimpered.
“Aww, I’m going to have to tell Mary about that cute little frown you have later,” Lilith giggled.
“Like you’re any better, mistress,” said Palu. “You two loved playing with Lady Ami and Sue.”
“Wait, how did you find out about that?”
“Huh? Was it some kind of secret?” Ami asked.
“Wait, wait, you two play video games?” Riri asked.
“Yes?” Ami answered confusedly. “What girl doesn’t like playing games like that?”
“Talking about cultural differences,” Sue grumbled. “For some reason, video games are seen as a toy for boys here, aren’t they? The equivalent we have back home is seen as a rather feminine pasttime.”
“That’s so cool!” Carmen chuckled.
“Girls, can we focus?” Roth sighed. “Are there any other questions?”
“Tons!” Carmen and Riri said at once, the others nodding. “Like-”
Annie clapped her hands, clawing attention to herself. “We all have plenty of questions, but we really should move on.” The others frowned and sighed while relenting, each accepting she was right. “So, what’s Zeus’s current objective? Is he heading to Fort Newton?”
“He’s gotten close to the area,” Jasmine stated, her posture straightening as Athena took the lead. “However, there’s a lot of surveillance there right now, and he’s been steering clear. That said, we suspect he’s finalizing his preparations. We’ve recorded five divinities in the area as well as a collection of lower magical energies, which would likely overwhelm the security of the area. We’re currently guessing that he’ll begin advancing on Fort Newton in the next week.”
“One week...” Vivi repeated to herself. “We’ll be fighting them in less than a week?”
* * *
Vivi took a deep breath as she lay in bed, Erika cuddling up beside her. The young dryad had insisted on staying over after hearing the news from Vivi. She quietly whimpered into Vivi’s arm, holding her close. “I don’t want you to go.”
“I know...” Vivi said. “But I have to. If I don’t...”
“I know. He has to be stopped. It’s just… why does it have to be you?”
Vivi went quiet as no answer came to her lips. She simply held Erika, her wings wrapping around her beloved and whispered, “I’ll be okay. I promise.”
“I hope so...”
Vivi took a deep breath as she shimmied lower to meet Erika’s face. “Eri...” she whispered. She breathed in the gentle lavender aroma that seemed to become her permanent companion. It comforted the young woman, settling her mind, and inviting a quiet rumble in her body. Erika’s eyes opened slightly wider as her jaw hung open. Vivi stared at her soft lips which shimmered in the lingering light in her room.
“Pink...” Erika whispered, her lips curling into a smile. Vivi quietly giggled as she leaned in, their lips meeting. Vivi’s arm wandered over Erika’s body, slender vines returning the favor as they traced Vivi’s own. The vines gently wrapped around Vivi’s white leathery wings. Vivi’s fingers gently teased at Erika’s cheek. Erika’s hand rested upon Vivi’s breast, gently pressing upon it. Vivi pulled her face away and leaned in further to nibble at Erika’s ear.
The room filled with soft noises as the pair explored each other.
“I’ll be okay,” Vivi reassured Erika at one point. “I’ve fought too hard to let go of this… to let go of you.”
Erika simply giggled as she snuggled ever closer to beloved demoness.
* * *
Vivi glanced at Erika’s sweet sleeping face before sighing, retreating into the hallway and towards the bathroom. As she finished her business, she glanced in the mirror, her pink eyes once again settling into a gentle indigo. As her new demonic nature settled within her, her blue eyes had begun to deepen, traces of purple granting them a new richness. She couldn’t help but be amused by it. At times her eyes appeared as an innocent blue and at others a more mischievous violet, at times they’d swell with a red hunger and at others brighten with a playful pink. It was rather entertaining, although it still took her off guard. Regardless, she couldn’t help but smile at the cute demon girl in the mirror. Smile and then yawn. Her body shivered, pining for her girlfriend’s warmth. She nodded to herself as her eyes began to grow red with hunger, and she left the bathroom.
As she left and prepared to return to the safety of her covers, she noticed her mama, Cheryl, sitting at the couch, a frown upon her face.
“Mama?” she asked.
“Oh, sweetie. I thought you went to bed.”
“I was just using the bathroom.”
“I see,” Cheryl giggled. "You seem to have been having fun."
"Yeah..." Vivi said bashfully, her head wings curling around her head as if to shyly hid her hunger.
"I'm glad," Cheryl said gently, her frown quivering slightly.
“Is something wrong? You look upset?” Vivi asked concernedly.
Cheryl sighed. “Your mother and I had a small argument about our mission.”
“Oh...”
“Yeah… She’s just concerned. She wants to come with us, but one of us needs to stay here, and I’m required to go. I kind of wish it could be her though.”
“Why’s that?”
Cheryl sighed. “It’s just rather stressful. Some of the people I have to work with can be… difficult.” Vivi thought back to the doctor that had spoken harshly to her mama back at the meeting and then back to Dr. Rosen and Todd. She grimaced.
“Hey, Mama,” Vivi piped up.
“Yes, dear, what is it?” Cheryl asked.
“Um… back when grandma talked about you having trouble coming home and everything, was it like what those guys were saying to you at the meeting? Are those the type of people you have to work with?”
Cheryl frowned. “Oh, sweetie. You don’t have to worry about-”
“But I am worried!” Vivi stated. “I… it’s not fair that we get singled out and bullied because we’re girls now. And it’s not just us. Ichika’s friend and Sue both get harassed too. Wisp’s parents scared her so much she ran away, and they were harassing Cleo about her until they moved near us, and… It’s not fair.”
Cheryl took a deep breath. “Okay… Come here,” she said patting the seat next to her, Vivi awkwardly sitting down beside her. “I… don’t really know how to have this conversation to be honest. I...” Cheryl took another deep breath.
“Mama?”
“Sweetie, I know it’s hard. It’s always been hard, because…” She frowned. “To be honest, even after all my research and engaging other cultures, I still don’t really get it. But, we as a culture single people out for a lot of reasons. Politics, religion, and even financial forces try to drive people apart to exploit them. I don’t know why they want to hurt people like us, just that it’s often something they think benefits them to stoke outrage over, or they’ve been convinced others are to blame for their pain.”
“But why? Why hurt people like that? I don’t get it. Isn’t it good for other people to be happy?”
“Of course it is,” Cheryl agreed, “and that’s what I don’t get either. All I know is that it’s hard to deal with.” Her expression darkened. “Maybe I shouldn’t tell you this, but I think you deserve to know. When you were younger, you’d sometimes ask why we never visited your other grandparents, my parents.” Vivi nodded. “A lot of it’s because my parents scare me. When I was younger, my father kept trying to push me to do things I didn’t want to do. He wanted me to play sports, told me to fight my bullies, yelled at me for not standing up for myself. He even threw out my things a few times, like the knitting supplies my aunt got me for a gift.
“When I was a kid, there wasn’t a lot of information about people like us. I didn’t understand why everything was so hard for me. I didn’t understand why I hated being with boys in my class, or why I felt both more comfortable with girls, or why I felt like an intruder with them.” Vivi whimpered as she looked down at the ground, the last bit hitting quite close for herself. “Yeah, you went through something like that too didn’t you?” Cheryl chuckled meekly, then sighed. “I… A part of me understood that I was a girl too, but any part of me that believed that was too scared to admit it. I was too scared of upsetting my parents any more than they already were.” She looked at Vivi. “That’s why I’ve stopped talking to my parents. Dad abused me, and Mom only ever took his side. I didn’t want to have that kind of influence in your life.”
“Mama...”
“It’s hard being in our position. That kind of pain, it never goes away. Even as I traveled to other places, and I learned different ways of viewing myself and finding ways to encourage positivity and self-esteem, I just kept feeling unfulfilled. It was something Lilith pointed out actually. She noted that my research always seemed to focus on women, and finding beauty in their agency and lives. And I...” She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I’m just rambling now.”
“It’s okay, Mama. I’m enjoying listening to you,” Vivi stated, her frown betraying her feelings. “It’s uncomfortable, sure, but I’m glad that you feel comfortable talking about it now.”
“Yeah...” Cheryl giggled. “The point is though, our abuse… I don’t think there’s a way to escape it. People just don’t understand. Heck, we often don’t understand either for much of our lives.”
“I just… it makes me so upset. We should be able to live our lives, right? Why do we have to suffer because of other peoples’ expectations? I just… I want to help others and be myself.”
“Vivi…" Cheryl frowned as she bit her lip and took a breath. "I-it sounds like there’s something else.”
Vivi nodded. “One of the scientists approached me and told me her daughter is trans too and how she looks up to me. But unlike us, the mist didn’t change her, and her father abandoned their family over her daughter’s identity. And that’s not fair. I want to get out there and help others like ourselves. I want people to stop hurting us.”
“Oh, Vivi...”
“But there’s really not anything I can do, I...”
“I think there is, actually.” Cheryl said. “I’m not sure I want to say it though.”
“Mama, please!” Vivi looked at Cheryl, her desperate red eyes quivering as she pouted.
“Okay, okay…” She looked at her daughter and took a deep breath. “I… If you want to, I think what people like us need is someone to look up to. Someone who lives proudly as themselves in a way that others can’t reject them. I’ve seen it plenty of times, someone who helps act as a figure to encourage changes and inspire hope can do a lot. Kind of like you...”
“But I’m not...”
“Sweetie, I heard girls talking about you in Japan. You’re getting quite famous. And you’ll be even more so if we succeed.” She grimaced. “In all honesty, that part worries me the most, but...”
“Then if we win, and I talk about who I am, then people will have to listen!”
“Vivi, you don’t have to do that if you don’t want to. People like that, they can become targets of so much pain. You might be put in danger or...”
“But I do want to! If it has any chance of helping others, then I want to do it!”
Cheryl smiled softly, her objections failing before her daughter’s glowing confidence. “Gosh, when did you grow up so much? You’re really becoming an incredible woman, Vivi.”