Amentia

Chapter 72 - Across the universe

Dear Nati, Anna and Meiko:

I hope you're all doing amazing. I would love to know what's been going on with each of you, so if you could get started on calling your portals, that'd be great. Ideally, you'd visit, but I'll take a letter if that's all you can do at the moment. I will keep writing to you until you miss me so much you will have no choice but to visit, although it's more likely you'll end up being annoyed with me more than anything. I do have a few updates this time, but first I wanted to say I hope you enjoy the portrait of Maylin that I attached in the envelope. It took me a bit of work to draw three copies of it and I wanted you all to have it at the same time, so that's why I couldn't send it with my previous letter. Do take care of it please.

For the updates, I'll start with the easy one first. We recently finished writing Through the storm, the play that depicts what we went through together and how we defeated the giant darkness monster with the power of unity and a pair of ridiculously keen eyes. Nati is officially a legend in the history of Amentia and we are showing her prowess to the world every night because it's what she deserves. It's been wild seeing the audiences react to the play. I don't want to boast, but we did a really good job with the writing and the stage sets. I've been using my power to make a fake darkness monster and everyone always gasps when they see it appear on stage for the first time. Every performance has been pretty epic, and it's fun to see the troupe play themselves on stage and also play us (the rehearsals for our impersonations were so much fun, you can't imagine). We did add a bit of comic relief to it so our audiences don't get really depressed or triggered by the unpleasant memories. It's been a success so far. Caeli has been to several performances and always cheers way louder than necessary when his counterpart shows up on stage. He's so weird. I like him.

The second update is one that I'm still a little sad about, which is that Zoe has left the troupe. We haven't fought or anything, and she is still technically a member. She's more on leave, really. About a month ago we went to the Deep Forest to perform for the elf villages that reside there, and Zoe found Radix in the nearby area. You may recall that Radix is the Goddess of the Earth here, and Zoe had a million things to ask her, starting with the healing roots she'd covered her with that time. After a few days of performances, it was time to move on to a different village, but Radix offered Zoe to stay there with her and learn more about the nature of Amentia and Zoe's own power. Obviously she couldn't refuse such an amazing opportunity, and I wasn't going to guilt her into staying with us. This was just too important for her. After all, the real reason she was staying in Amentia was because of its nature, not because of the troupe. So she stayed and we left. There was a lot of crying on my part, but I got through it. Adam has been a champ.

But no worries, I did see her again once before I starting writing this letter. I've found that Amentia is actually quite small and you can travel the entire continent east to west in a little over a month, if you don't make too many stops near the south shore. So I eventually ran into her again, when we made our way back to that area. She'd cut her hair short; not as short as me, but still quite short, up to her earlobes. She said it was more comfortable like that because it doesn't get tangled in any branches. And she was completely naked. From head to toe, not a single piece of clothing on her, just dry dirt. And she walked around completely nonchalant, as free as nature itself. I'm sure you all remember how gorgeous she was, but I intend to draw a nice portrait of her the next time I see her. She was so mighty and sure of herself, and so happy. She really was in her element, so it makes it easier to bear her absence. I know I don't have to worry about her. And she told me she always knows where I am through her feet no matter if I'm on the other side of the world, which is honestly mind-blowing. And it was nice to know she always checks. She didn't leave and erased us from her life; she still looks for me in the ground. She plays aloof, but she's such a romantic. She told me she misses you girls a lot and sends her love.

Anyways, that's all I have to say for now that's of any relevance. I've been trying to get Aurora to create a new spell for me so I don't have to go all the way to the Temple whenever I want to send a letter to Earth. It would be a real time saver, the closest thing to an email we'll ever get here. She says it'll be ready soon, so start preparing yourselves to get letters from me every day. And please do try to write back sometime. Nati did send us one letter not too long ago, but we'd like a new one please; Omylia really wants to know how you're doing. Anna and Meiko haven't written yet, so consider this your final warning. We'd love to know if you guys are alright and if you are still together and possibly engaged to be married. Just kidding. But if you are, you better send us an invitation.

As usual, I love you and I miss you. Thank you for being my friends and fighting a giant darkness monster with me. I will never forget you and I will never stop writing to you, even if the world ends again.

All my love from across the universe,

Nina