Lilith: Origin of Succubi

Chapter 357

Summary of the previous chapter for people who skipped it:

Spoiler

Lilith woke up experiencing the memories of a man named Liam as a passenger. After taking a shower and experiencing Liam's gender dysphoria, he met with his sister Ashley in his living room. Lilith recognized Ashley as Fortuna, though a bit older looking compared to the Fortuna she knew. Ashley talked with her brother Liam about going back to therapy, and despite refusing at first, he lied and said he would meet with a therapist when she returned from her chess tournament in Las Vegas. Ashley had expressed a lot of concern for her brother. She knew that he was suffering from significant dysphoria and offered to help him in any way that she could. Once Ashley left for her trip, Liam bought some alcohol, visited the construction site of a building he designed in his job as an architect, got drunk, and stepped off the ledge.

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<~> Chapter 357When I opened my eyes again, I wasn't back with my loved ones in my bed. I was floating inside a room I had seen only once before. A circular room of featureless black walls surrounded me, and there in the center sat two gods I recognized. Charon and Fortuna were sitting across from each other with a chess table between them. It looked early in the game with only a few pieces lost so far. My emotions were muted and numb. I knew that I should be processing the emotions that came from my memories, but right now, they felt so distant. The only thing I could focus on was watching the scene in front of me.

"Lilith has regained her memories," Fortuna said.

Charon took his turn. "Are you upset by this?"

Fortuna paused for a moment before taking her turn and shaking her head. "I'm not sure yet. It depends how my sister comes out of this. If she hasn't lost her new zeal for life, then I suppose it would be fine. I'm just worried she'll fall back into her old ways before the demon gave her a new body."

With a nod, Charon moved his piece. "Is the demon upset by how your deal with him has turned out?"

"No, things are going according to plan. He's upset that Lilith chose to renounce her place as his champion, but he doesn't blame that on me," Fortuna said, taking her turn.

"Why not? It seems to be your fault," Charon asked.

Fortuna paused for a moment, studying the board, before taking a rook with her bishop. Charon's usually placid face grimaced as she set the piece next to her side of the board. They played in silence for a few turns before Fortuna eventually replied. "The demon told me that Lilith chose to take a harder path, and because that falls into his domain, he welcomed it, even if it was personally disappointing."

"The demon seems to like that one more than I would have expected," he replied.

Fortuna shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure what his fascination with Lilith is about, but as long as he keeps to our deals, I don't see a problem with it."

Charon smiled as he took a knight with a pawn. "Are you not worried about how Lilith will react to you now that she knows who you are?"

With a sigh, Fortuna lazily moved a piece. "I am worried about it, but what can I do? She won't know how much I've done for her, and from her perspective, it might look like I've done horrible things to save her. My domain itself has harmed countless people who have no self-control. All I can do is play the hand I've been dealt. Despite our setbacks, I think things are going well."

"Is continuing to intervene in her life worth ruining your relationship forever? She may not take kindly to you moving her around like a queen on a chessboard." He paused for a moment before taking another turn.

"I'd do anything for my sister. It hurts so much when I think back to how I failed to stop her from killing herself. I knew she was off back then, and I chose to leave town anyway. I failed her. I couldn't do enough to help her then, so I will do everything I can to help her now. I will be fine watching her from afar if it means she's happy," Fortuna said placidly.

Charon grimaced when he moved a piece. I wasn't following the game closely enough to know why, but he seemed to be taking it much more seriously than Fortuna was.

"Will her memories endanger our plans? There's nothing there that will push her into the arms of our adversaries, is there?" Charon asked.

"No." Fortuna gained a wistful smile. "She's always been a bit straightlaced, but she has a strong kernel of rebellion in her. There are certain injustices that bring even her to anger, and what they're doing is one of them. The more she learns about them, the more she'll become aligned with our plans. Her memories won't have much effect on that. Worst case, she may just become less willing to deal with me directly. I'm sure she will still be willing to deal with you when the time is right."

"She seemed close to Sorsette. Are you sure being complicit in her death won't stop her from dealing with me either?" Charon asked.

"Lilith doesn't know the two of us are working together. As long as we continue to keep our distance, things should be fine. Regardless, I still believe she'll take our side in this war, even if it's begrudgingly. We can't allow our adversaries to accomplish their goals. It would be akin to letting them enslave the world. I can't allow that to happen, and neither would she." Fortuna took another piece, making Charon wince.

Charon took Fortuna's rook with his queen. "I didn't think you would trade that piece."

"Sacrifices have to be made," Fortuna replied.

"Things will be a bit more difficult without Sorsette's help. She was never going to help us early on, but she would have been on our side in the end," Charon said.

Fortuna paused to study the board. "I did everything I could, I swear. Lilith put me in an impossible position, and I chose my sister over her. You could even put the blame on Sorsette for clinging so strongly to the accords. It also opened up more options for us, so her sacrifice wasn't a total waste. I liked Sorsette a lot, so I was really sad to lose her... Speaking of, how did that deal with green go?" Fortuna moved a piece as she waited for Charon's answer.

"She agreed, but isn't happy with my meddling. The only reason she bent her principle was because I give out so few favors that she recognized the value of what I was offering," Charon replied.

"Good. That will set up a reliable fallback contingency," Fortuna said with a nod.

Charon took his turn. "I doubt she would accept the same deal if it were Lilith involved."

"I have no doubt. It's why I've been so protective of her. I think green feels a little burned after our last deal, but so publicly switching sides placated her a bit. I'm still working on the others. 'ol Bolo is being resistant to any dealings with me," Fortuna said before taking her turn.

"You're better off going after purple. He would be more amicable, and 'Bolo' will follow his lead." Charon took another piece, but Fortuna didn't react.

Fortuna scoffed. "That doesn't sound much like pathfinding. Why would he let another take the lead?"

"They have a unique relationship. Just trust me on this one," Charon said tiredly.

"They're not like... together are they? I know that purple kinda gets around a lot, but..."

Charon cracked a rare smile. "I don't think it's like that, but who's to say? Purple can be very persuasive."

"Okay, I really don't want to picture him with you. Please at least tell me that isn't a thing..." Fortuna begged.

Charon's lips twitched in amusement as he watched Fortuna take her turn. "Of course not. Aren't you being a bit of a gossip hound today?"

"My sister gets me in that kind of mood, I guess. Watching her makes me feel a bit more human again."

"Check," Charon said with a smile...

The two focused on their chess game for a few moves before continuing their conversation. Charon tapped the side of the table. "Have you approached the three others who sat out yet?"

"I approached the huntress, but she wants to stay out of it for now. She doesn't have strong opinions on what they're trying to do," Fortuna responded.

"A shame, she would have been a good asset," Charon said as he took his turn.

Fortuna nodded and moved. "We shouldn't rule her out yet. She didn't seem hostile toward me at least. I've already seen rumors of her taking advantage of the accords going away. She's raising a small army."

"From what I can tell, nearly everyone is. I believe only Bolo and metal haven't done some form of putting together paladins," Charon replied.

"Check," Fortuna said with a smile.

Charon's brow furrowed and he moved a piece.

Fortuna immediately took her next turn. "Check again."

He paused, looking over his options for a long moment before moving another piece.

"Double check!" Fortuna said, moving one piece into check and revealing another piece threatening his king.

Charon sat back in his chair and cupped his chin. He looked over his options for a while before hesitantly moving his king.

"Checkmate in six turns, thanks for the game!" Fortuna said happily.

"Wait, would that have been avoidable had I moved somewhere else?" Charon asked.

"Not really, if you moved here, it would have been checkmate in three, and here, checkmate in four. You made the best move you could," Fortuna pointed out to him. "You're getting better though!"

Charon scoffed. "You've been saying that for the last century."

Fortuna shrugged. "It's been true for the last century."

Shaking his head, Charon waved, and the board in front of him disappeared. "What will you do now? Will you approach Lilith again soon?"

Fortuna leaned back in her chair. "She has a lot on her plate. I have a little niece now, you know? Her group is going to spread magic to Eastern Torlimal."

"That is good news. Does the child count as your niece now that the two of you inhabit different bodies?" Charon asked.

Fortuna frowned. "Lilith is still my sister, no matter what body she inhabits, which makes the baby my niece, like it or not. Things are up in the air on whether or not I'll ever be able to meet the kid, but that cute girl is definitely my niece. Lilith even named her Ashe! That's only a few letters from my old name! I think that's a sign that even if she didn't remember me until now, Lilith still loves me."

"Wishful thinking," Charon said.

"You have to be optimistic in a world like this. You'll never win if you don't take a risk, and it's hard to take any risks if you aren't hopeful that you'll win," Fortuna said with a smile.

"Approach the crops next. I think he would like your enthusiasm," Charon said.

Fortuna smiled. "You think so? I'll do that as soon as I can then. Everyone is busy, and you're the only one of us that will indulge me in a game of chess now that Sorsette is gone."

Charon grumbled. "Now that she's gone, I only have you to play with. Sorsette and I were more evenly matched."

With a sigh, Fortuna deflated. "Again, I'm sorry about that."

"Let us not go down that road. I understand. Thank you for coming to visit me," Charon said.

Fortuna nodded. "I'll return when I have more news. Keep an eye on Lilith for me."

"Of course," Charon said with a nod. "She has my mark on her. At this point, I'm almost as invested in her success as you are."

"I'll see you next time, my friend." Fortuna disappeared, leaving Charon alone with only my apparition watching him.

Charon turned his head to face me. "You're gathering power faster than you know, Lilith. You should not have the ability to listen in on conversations about yourself, yet."

I paused, not expecting the sudden address after all this time.

"I could feel you watching the moment Fortuna brought you up. Only I was able to sense you, since this is my realm you've entered," he said, gesturing around.

I nodded slowly. I couldn't speak in this form.

"You now know the truth about Fortuna, and some of the many threads she's attempting to weave. I hope that she's right, that you'll become more aligned with us as you learn more about the scales and the cowl. They are working towards an end that is foolish and horrific. I will never tell you what you should do, but I can hope that you will forgive the actions of my friend, and your sister. She has suffered endless hardship from the very moment I plucked her soul from your world to help save mine."

I nodded again, unsure what I would say even if I could speak. There was a lot to process after this conversation, and I was still unbalanced from the vision of my past. The only reason I was holding things together was that everything felt so numb at the moment.

"Wake then and take comfort in the presence of your family, your daughter, and your lovers. They are beginning to worry for you. You have slept much longer than what is usual for this ritual."

With one last nod toward Charon, I closed my eyes.

When I opened them next, I was surrounded by my family in my bedroom again. I sat up and touched my face, only to feel the wet tears that were still flowing from my eyes. I shivered as I recalled the moment of my fall, and I quickly looked up to try to get the image out of my head.

Bella, Morrigan, Torien, and Mimi crowded in front of me. Each of them had a look of worry on their face, and it made me smile. They were worried about me. I reached out and pulled all four of them into a crowded hug. I felt comfortable in my body again. I didn't feel gross or strange or weird. I felt like me.

I sobbed as the four of them moved to cradle me from all sides. They rubbed my back, kissed my face, and nuzzled my neck. I felt so happy to be with all of them again after the depressing memories of my previous life had flooded back to me.

But I was here now. Here with my lovers. My family. My baby daughter.

I wasn't sure how much of it to truly attribute to Fortuna, but I knew in my gut that she had been responsible for bringing me here and fixing my body, even if it was Felketh who had apparently crafted it.

"Thank you, Ashley... Fortuna," I whispered.

I felt her power cover me like a blanket. The system was no longer there to decode the feeling, but I knew she was watching over me, like she always had been.