Chapter Text
The ring no longer glittered. It had not for years. It had not seen the sun for years.
That was normal, for Rhinedottir. No, the only light it reflected was that of the Lumenstone lamps and the glow of the Ley Lines, deep underground.
Sometimes, Rhinedottir missed the sun. Sometimes she wished she could live on the surface, with the person the ring was bound to.
But that dream was gone. Lost in the past, where things might have been better. Now, time marched on, and Rhinedottir was alone again. Her greatest creation flown from the nest, spreading his wings under the warm glow of the sun.
The alchemist knew she should be happy. For him, and for those she knew who gained his companionship. But it wasn’t enough. She was missing from the equation, a gap in the painting.
A gap torn apart by something she was blamed for. Named the Cataclysm, though it was much more, and the gods pretended it was less.
Rhinedottir missed Alice, missed her more than anything she'd ever felt. But for an endless amount of time she had been gone, exploring the boundaries of the surface world that Rhinedottir had locked herself beneath. She could not go back, could not surrender to her own desires and join the woman she still called her wife, not yet. Things needed to be done before Rhinedottir’s story was over.
But it hurt.
So much.
No curse from the gods could put the alchemist in more pain than the way she felt when she looked into her Lumenstone lamp and remembered the light of the sun that she'd first kissed Alice under, back in the past.
Sometimes, the sheer weight of that pain made the alchemist wish that it was possible for her to melt away, and for Alice’s ring to melt away with her. Even if it caused Alice pain, sometimes Rhinedottir thought it might be worth it.
But fate had not allowed her that. If it ever did, it would be a very long way in the future.
So for now, Rhinedottir's only goal was completing her work. Completing it, the way Irmin had intended her to do it.
…no. That was a lie.
That was the goal Rhinedottir was hanging onto, a remnant of the world she'd lost.
The goal she wanted to follow… was reaching the sunlight, and receiving that life of peace Alice had promised her on that fateful day- the first day she'd ever spent in the City of Freedom, and the day they got married.
Once Rhinedottir was done with her task from Irmin, she would take her rightful place with her family, and Alice's.
And Celestia would burn before they ever tried to stop her. Rhinedottir would make sure of that.
And so would her son.
The ring glittered. It always glittered, it was nearly never not in the sun. That was normal, for Alice.
Yes, the light it reflected was that of the sun, the moon, and the stars, hanging high in the sky.
Sometimes, Alice thought the sun was too bright. Sometimes she wished she could live underground, with the person the ring was bound to.
But that dream was gone. Saved for the future, where things might get better. Now, time marched on, and Alice had more people around her than ever. Her handmade son now under her wing, following a path he started beneath layer after layer of stone.
The mage knew she should be happy. For herself, and for those around her. But it wasn’t enough. Her wife was missing from the equation, a gap in the photo.
A gap torn apart by something she'd failed to stop. Named the Cataclysm, for it was nothing less, but so much more.
Alice missed Rhinedottir, missed her like nothing else she'd ever felt. But for five hundred years she had been gone, disappeared beneath the world that would no longer let her see the sun. She wished she could find her, find the woman she still called her wife and take her up to live on the surface. To finish their work together, to give their story a happy ending.
It hurt.
So much.
No injury gained from the countless rockslides and monsters and things Alice had encountered would put the mage in more pain than her heart was in when she looked at the Ley Line branch pinned to her lapel and thought of the darkness that surrounded her lover, here in the present.
Sometimes, the sheer possibility of the pain made Alice wish it was possible to put the alchemist out of her misery and melt her pain away along with the ring that still lay on her finger. Even if it caused more pain to Alice, sometimes the mage thought it might be worth it.
But fate had not allowed them that. It would not allow them that kind of peace for a very long time.
So for now, Alice’s only goal was finding her wife. Finding her, and bringing her home.
And Celestia would burn before they ever tried to hurt Rhinedottir again. Alice would make sure of that.
And so would her son.