"This is what you're looking for right?" Zenesha asked, holding up an amber-like substance that was gold in color that let off a faint glow.
"Yeah… That's right." Laura confirmed keeping a good distance away from Zenesha for once. "Ather, substance of creation. Or at least a lesser form of it."
"Mm, and you're saying we have rouges with this stuff?"
"Well, not with Ather by itself, but tools created using it."
Laura and Zenesha were currently in The Vault. A place located deep underground and only accessible to a very select few. It's where most rare, valuable, and dangerous items are stored. Which also includes the little amount of Ather the Zari Legion had.
Laura had requested to be shown this little stash of Ather, but even then, she couldn't help but feel agitated. She could feel the influence of the Void's counterpart coming from the golden amber. She may be the antithesis of reality and creation, but even she had her limits, and Ather was one of them.
"Is there anything missing here?" Zenesha asked the curator standing nearby.
The older gentleman was holding a large book in his hands, flipping through the contents. None of the items in the room was recorded digitally and was all recorded inside the ledger in his hand. There was even a copy of the ledger in the possession of Zenesha herself.
"Looks like everything is in order my Queen." He answered after comparing what he saw and what was written.
"I see, thank you." Zenesha thanked as she turned her attention back to Laura. "Do you want to check and see if each one is real?"
"... Sure." Laura said, stepping forward.
With everything so close together she wouldn't be able to make out a fake clearly. So, with great reluctance but also impatience she reached out and touched one. Her fingers instantly felt like they were on fire, and she very quickly removed her hand from the Ather.
"You, okay?" Asked the fox in a low whisper, her tail drooping with worry.
Laura looked at her hand, seeing how the pink pads on her fingers started to turn black. A side effect as her void constitution tried to purge the lesser Celestial energy from her system. She couldn't stop. There was probably a safer way to do this, but in her impatience and agitation Laura didn't care.
"I'm fine."
Zenesha frowned as she looked at Laura's hand, noticing the slight difference. Just to be safe she had the curator leave the room, afraid he might learn who the she-wolf really was. After the older man left Laura continued testing each of the ambers with her hand, the smell of burnt flesh slowly growing stronger each time.
"Lola, you need to st-"
"I'm fine." Laura said, cutting Zenesha off as she raised the fourth piece of Ather.
By the time she was finished a black web-like pattern had climbed up her arm and even removed any fur wherever it was located on her skin. Zenesha looked at her bodyguard with ears pressed flat against her head and tail tucked between her legs. She felt even worse when the wolf turned her way with a forced smile.
"All of these are the real thing, Princess." Laura said, sweat dripping down her face.
"... I think we should stop for today." Zenesha said, her voice soft. "Let's get that healed up."
"Nah, there isn't much you'll be able to do." Laura explained, wincing when she moved her arm. "Just have to wait this one out."
Zenesha frowned at this. She didn't like the idea of being unable to provide help. Despite the fact she was placing trust in Laura she was never able to fully trust the woman. This was just a fun game, nothing serious and she would soon move on and forget her.
At least that's what she thought.
=======
The two of them ended up in Zenesha's bedroom. The freaked-out fox had demanded Laura rest in her bed as she went to her bathroom to grab something. She soon came back out with a bottle in her hand.
"I told you already there isn't anything you can do." Laura said exasperated as Zenesha tried handing her some medicine.
"It's just painkillers, figured it might ease the pain."
"Thank you, Princess." Laura said, giving the other woman a smile.
The fox didn't say anything in response, just watched as Laura took one of the painkillers and swallowed it whole. Her emotions were a mess, but the biggest one was guilt. She had let Laura hurt herself for her sake. There had to be a safer way to do such a thing.
"Why did you do that Lola? it was wholly unnecessary." She eventually asked the wolf in front of her.
"Because it was for you Zenesha." Laura answered.
"...."
"Also, I'm impatient." She added, "If the enemy is using Ather, that means I'm in real danger, and if I'm in danger you're in danger. I needed to make sure as fast as possible so we can move on."
".... Does this mean you aren't playing with my feelings?" The fox asked in a quiet voice, full of both disbelief and a small bit of hope.
"Can you repeat that?"
".... I'll make dinner for you." The fox said suddenly, her cheeks red. "Stay here, don't move, I don't want you hurting yourself even more."
"Don't worry about me princess, I'll be here awaiting your return." Laura said, smiling at her. "Just seeing you makes my pain barrable."
Zenesha quickly turned around and retreated from the room, feeling more embarrassed than usual at Laura's flirts. They had always affected her before, but there was always the little bit of doubt that Laura didn't truly care. Now, however?
… She would rather not think about that!
"Let me just make her some food." She said to herself, picking up the pace.
=-=-=-=
Laura watched the blushing fox leave with a smile. Once the door was closed behind her, she let the pain finally show on her face. It felt like every nerve in her arm was on fire. She didn't want to do this while Zenesha was in the room but….
"I'm going to have to cut this arm off." She muttered.
Getting up from the bed, she reached into her bag and pulled out a gladius. With a sigh she teleported, bringing her bag with her, and reappeared in an alleyway in the middle of the city. Using her senses she made sure there was no one around before using her power to lift the gladius.
The blade gleamed in the little light that reached the alley, humming with power that originated from the void. Outside of something like Ather, only something from the void could truly hurt her, and that's what she needed. The Ather currently poisoning her body needed to be cut out.
"This is going to hurt so much." Laura complained, bracing herself as she manipulated the floating gladius over her arm.
Unable to look away fearing she would mess something up, Laura brought the blade down, cutting through her arm just below the shoulder. With a solid thud her newly detached limb fell to the ground, black blood oozing onto the dirty concrete.
"GAAAHHHH!" She cried, feeling a part of her true form disconnecting from her body.
Collapsing to her knees, Laura forced herself to stay conscious as she summoned flame in her hand and placed it on her wound to stop the bleeding. She cried out in pain again as her wound cauterized.
"Haah haah." With shaky breaths the injured wolf reached for her bag, grabbing the gallon of essence kept inside. She drank the substance while concentrating on growing a new arm. This wouldn't heal her real body, just the mortal one, meaning she would have to rely on natural regeneration or find herself an item to heal her true self.
"Uhg, fuck." She cried, before turning around suddenly, sensing a presence behind her. What she found was a man staring at her in frozen shock.
She frowned and slowly stood up on unstable legs. She hid this weakness from the intruder however and leveled a glare in his direction. He saw. She couldn't let anyone know that her Zenesha was working with a monster such as herself. There was no telling the kind of reaction the mortals might have.
She already had to deal with traitors after all.
"I- I didn't see anything." the man stuttered when Laura took a step in his direction.
The wolf however didn't answer instead she disappeared from view. Before the man could even process the fact, she was no longer in view she appeared beside him. The next thing he saw was his point of view now much lower to the ground, staring up at both the woman and his body.
'How strange….' He thought for the final time.
=======
"Thanks love, your food is just the best." Laura gushed as she slurped up the simple soup in front of her.
"You definitely cook better than me, don't lie." Zenesha responded, rolling her eyes.
"Anything you make is automatically the best!"
"... Thanks." She then looked at Laura's arm again. "You sure it's fine now? Cutting it off sounds… extreme."
When Zenesha returned to the room, she found a still bloodied Laura heading into the bathroom. She was of course shocked and worried. The dinner she brought in was nearly dropped to the ground in her hurry to check on Laura.
"Yep, never better." She answered with a smile waving her left arm. "See?"
"No one saw you though, right?"
"Not a single living soul is aware of what happened." Laura said with a bright smile.
No one would know. Her purpose is to make sure Zenesha is safe, and she won't let some nobodies ruin that. She's sure if the man knew he died for Zenesha's sake he would agree.
"Good, just rest up for the next day or two" The fox said sitting down next to Laura. Ignoring the weird way she answered her question.
Laura didn't like the idea of resting when she could be out looking for the traitor. She was about to protest but stop herself when she saw how worried Zenesha looked. Well as worried as an expressionless woman can look. Laura was getting better at reading the micro movements though.
"Alright I'll rest, so long as you're by my side."