Episode 18: "A Wrinkle In Time"

Snow was falling peacefully in Ishgard as the group gathered in the living room Shiva found herself leaning on her girlfriend as everyone came into the room. She wondered what kind of training session they were going to have…Tuya herself sat as she tried to go through everything that she was told. She was not sure how Anthi got into the room, but she's learned not to question anything with that girl. Instead, she reached up to move some hair out of Shiva's face and smiled.

"So... Anyone else freaking out about A'mara being the one to lead this training,” Tuya asked.

As Tuya began to speak Yue looked up from the wall he was perched against, "She was just finishing training with both sets of twins and Dorion...she should be here any moment."

As Yukio came into the room, she slowly sat herself down on the couch, lightly brushing Yue's arm as she walked past him. She let out a small sigh, feeling a bit tired. She looked around a little, wondering where Kuro was. Perhaps he went out for his morning walk and would be back later.

"It seemed Kuro would know about training with her since they were in Limbo together, but I'm not sure where he is at the moment,” Yukio explained.

"I am sorta of excited,” K’enion mumbled, “Then again...I am scared..."


"I am sure A'mara is going to help us get better skills...why would it be bad,” Shiva signed.

"You think you're scared?! I'm the one that that cut off her head, remember?! You just KNOW she has it out for me after that,” Tuya added.

Before the group could speak any further on the matter a heavy feeling came over the room as the door swung open. Standing before The Legacy was A’mara herself…looking on with a sly smile. Pushing a few strands of hair out from her face she eyed each person in the room.

"Good Afternoon," she smiled grimly.

"Before we begin, I just want to express how terrible I feel for any and all negative actions between us in the past,” Tuya said looking towards A’mara.

"Funny you say that. Hang onto it,” A’mara winked.

"Fuck me…,” Tuya mumbled.

"Oh hey! You,” K’enion said nervously.

"All of you take a seat before we begin our training, I have a series of questions to ask you,” A’mara smirked, "My first question will be this...if you could change anything about yourself what would it be?"

"If I had to pick anything... I wish I was a bit taller? Being short has more drawbacks than benefits, if you ask me,” Tuya said.

"Losing those I love,” Yue said simply.

"To be stronger," Yukio mumbled.

"Well if I had to pick..." K’enion paused humming to herself. "Maybe...gosh…to better control my strength I would guess...and to be a little taller too.."

A’mara listened to each member of The Legacy’s answers…she sighed deeply at how simple their answers were. She knew this training was going to mess with their minds entirely but it needed to be done. She was older than Yue but, she knew he had become a little too soft in recent times. With babies coming into the world and him falling in love…she knew he would need to learn alongside them…the time for play was over.

"Akane, you have trained them weakly...they should be further into thoughts...they are too simplistic...very well...you all have left a very nice training session for me...I must modify this training,” A’mara smiled waving her hands into the air.

A portal opened as some of the members began to feel different, one of them being the young mage Shiva. Shiva was adorned in a dress she once worse in battle. Yue instantly had an idea what was happening and the anger began to set in.

"What are you thinking,” Yue said angrily.

"Mara...why,” Shiva signed looking at her dressed confused.

Tuya herself knew what A’mara was doing and remained silent as the outfit changed; she knews it all too well.

"...What are you planning…” Tuya asked cautiously.


As A’mara began her mind games to The Legacy Kuro had returned from his outing.

“Oh- am I interrupting something,” Kuro asked.

"Just in time...care to join us on a training session to better ourselves physically and..........mentally....,” A’mara chuckled darkly.

As A’mara began to chant a spell The Legacy was taken into a portal their eyes blindfolded by the spell A’mara had placed on them. The air felt damp and cold…wherever she took them was silent and eerie feeling. As the blindfolds began to fade from their eyes The Legacy knew where they were. For some of those among them this location was a first time sight for them…while for others it was a dark and hard memory from their past.

“Remember…you faced a version of myself here yes…” A’mara mocked…


Shiva’s heart began to rest…her breath growing heavy as the panic began to set in.

"n...no..." she said in a hushed whisper.

Tuya glared at A'mara as she reached over and held Shiva’s hand tightly.

"You. Fucking. Bitch,” Tuya laughed darkly, "You WANT something to happen…She didn't do anything. It was me and Zakuro. They fought us. And I killed one of them.

A'mara raised her hands into the air, her body now covered in Red Light. The earth like gear she normally wore melted off and she wore the outfit she wore so long ago. Her hair fell out of her ponytail and turned to the curls she was more often seen in.  

"rugam in tempore....(a wrinkle in time )...Remember the version of me you all fought here...was brought on the very woman you all fear...HARUKA,” A’mara shouted.


As Shiva’s panic began to set in more Trunks went to check on her with concern in his eyes. As he got close to her the Saint within Shiva began to awake from her rest. Although Shiva should never resort to her voice it was Saint who always made her whisper so coldly.

"No. One. Touch. Me,” she whispered harshly.

Trying to help Shiva Tuya tossed her sword to the side to face Shiva. Ignoring Saint’s words to not touch shiva Tuya instead matched her energy with her own…with Saint and Odin’s energies around them.

"Calm down. Look at me. Listen to my voice. I'm not going to hurt you,” Tuya tried to reassure Shiva.

But as soon as Tuya touched Shiva...a flashback of a blade entering her stomach entered her mind. Shiva could feel the blade in her once more…her mouth tasting of copper…The panic was strong as Shiva dropped to her knees covering her ears. Shiva was visibly shaken as tears began to fall from her eyes so fast.

“Shh... It's going to be alright. I promise you,” Tuya tried to say calming her.


Yue drew his blade almost letting The Legacy did not to move or speak. As Yue drew his sword A’mara leaned back smiling…she knew he was mad. She knew that showing Shiva this moment alone destroyed a minor portion of the healing she had undergone under his care.

"Tell me why I shouldn't use this right now...This was supposed to be a training session not a destroy the warriors,” Yue yelled.

A’mara knew she had poked the beast with a stick as and she instantly slapped the blade out of Yue's hand. Yue squinted as her as his sword clanked hard on the ground echoing in the air. She knew that if was to understand why she was doing this she was going to need to be hard on him too.

"And who helped you get over her mind control...Watch who you are talking to.... As I stand before you I grow stronger....don't even try to stop me. You want me to keep them alive...kindly stand the fuck down,” A’mara screamed back to Yue.


As the two has a stare off for a moment Yue scoffed and began to walk away knowing this was not the time or place for the two to fight.

"Any OTHER OBJECTIONS,” A’mara yelled.

It was time for the first hit A’mara could make the first move on The Legacy.

"I wonder can you hit me first?"

For a moment The Legacy is unsure if they were to hit her and A’mara laughed…she knew they were wondering if she was testing them…she was. She decided to continue the minds game and looked to see which members would be able to withstand her techniques.

"One thing Haruka is a master at is mind control...if you can't handle what I am about to do...then...you will lead more training for her,” A’mara explained.

Yue's mind fills with fog he knew what A'mara was doing...he could picture himself in his old village...the memory of the man who took him in filled his mind...the memories they shared all flooded back to him and as he felt bliss he watched as Haruka murdered him...tearing limb from limb...Yue dropped to the ground...tears fell from his eyes. –

"Father,” Yue whispered as he grabbed his head.

Trunks dead eyes begin to glow a violet hue. They begin to flicker as his mind races and a vision from the past consumes him. Darkness and then as if a movie were playing out in his head he watched as the airship he boarded as a soldier with his father sails through the sky. He is standing beside his father as he jokes about how they will be the ones to rescue the far east from the disaster that was about to consume the land. His vision goes white and once more he realizes that he is walking away but not in control. While Trunks thoughts began to be plagued so was Yukio. Yukio's mind was flooded with memories of her past. She clutched her head, feeling like she had the wind knocked out of her. She saw her village, herself dressed in all black, taking her blades of ice and silencing screaming children of her kind. How they looked at her with fear as she she shot arrows into the backs of kids who were running away from her.

"Be wiped from existance..." she whispered in her vision.

Yukio dropped to one knee, covering her ears, "N-no... I'm sorry... please…forgive me... I'm sorry,” Yukio cried.

Shiva found herself in Snowcloak...battling against an alligator like demon...the battle was hard but it was won...She was Selene...She found herself looking at the demon fading away before her as Red Cloaks filled the area around her...She watched as King Eden descended upon where she stood...stabbing the blade into her waist as she bled out...As she began to die...faces she knew began to appear on the hill...Zena, Delgado, Yue, Leric, and Jai all stood and smiled as her life left her body.  Although Tuya was not controlled by A’mara…she was plagued with the vision of her lover. Tuya closed her eyes as she fends off the attack on her mind. She sees it. Everything that Shiva sees. And at that moment, her aether explodes in a mix of her's and Odin's. But there was something darker to it. Something more...primal.


A'mara smiled as she walked the line her heels meeting the marble with every step- "Kuro.K'enion.Tuya you passed...the rest of you Pathetic."

Kuro was worried for Yukio as he watched her crumbling and breaking down. She not only needed more mental training but physical too. He wouldn't admit it out loud. but he noticed as soon as Yukio joined the Legacy, she had become much weaker. He hoped he could help change that for when it really mattered.

As soon as she sees the flashback, everything changes inside of Tuya. She had prepared herself for killing every member of the Legacy that night. But things were different that night. Now... Now she couldn't stand to see Shiva gone. As this plays through her mind, her aether begins to concentrate around her. The temperature drops further and further. What most people likely forgot is that Tuya is Ice inspected. And while Shiva and Yue were fine, the others found their clothing was beginning to freeze. Frostbite quickly set into their hands and feet. In the more extreme cases, flesh would actually begin to fall off of the body in frozen chunks. Tuya was already in a terrible headspace. But seeing something like THAT was enough to drive her over the edge. And it keeps pushing her. To the point that anyone who actually touches here right now would be able to experience Absolute Zero.

As A’mara continued her spells another primal within was bothered by the mindgames.

"Stop this," Saint yells to A'mara speaking through Shiva Aetherically.
A’mara walked along the marble swiftly now eyeing the awakened Saint as she laughed, "Did you think I forgot about you."

A vision overcame Saint and she could hear the shaken voice of a hidden lover...She sees a beheaded man before her...the vision blurring far too much for anyone to understand...Saint's eyes fill with tears

"No! No he's alive,” Saint cried.

A'mara tilts her head, "Are you sure about that?"

As Yukio's mind was invaded by another vision, she dropped from one knee down to both knees, still covering her ears as her eyes remained wide. She saw Haruka killing Yue, her heart felt like it stopped. When her kind's mate is taken too early, they live the remainder of their own either completely isolated or they take their own life. She saw herself forming a blade of ice and stabbing her heart with it in her vision. The loss of Yue was too great for her. In Yue's vision he could see Haruka and him working together side by side...taking out each member of his clan. He watched as each member of his family took their last breath but before the vision ended Yue could see Scarlet, Trisitan, and Isabella in the corner...with a barely alive Anthi trying to protect them

Yue instantly growled and with more tears than before he looked to A'mara. "How dare you!"

A'mara shrugged her shoulders," Watch your mouth with me. You know she would control you to do this."

As A’mara kept her spells going it was now beginning to effect Kuro. In Kuro's mind he was now taken over and he found himself looking to the sky as he stood completely still. His black eyes were tranced, the vision before him of a young Yukio murdered before him. He felt anger, rage, and despair. He picked up her lifeless body, lifting his head and screaming into the blizzard that surrounded them in Corethas, much like Yukio did when she found Kuro dead.

"If you thought what you just saw was bad...You are not ready for the Queen of the Damned...I can only do a fraction of what she can do to you mind,” A'mara turned to Shiva and pointed, "She already knows this."

As A’mara grilled The Legacy she began to run her scythe along the ground.

"Know that she will do this to you. And then she will expect you to fight!"

A'mara's scream echoed...instantly causing the rage to grow in their hearts. A'mara uses her magick and sent every member of The Legacy into air seeing if they could withstand her move. As the Legacy flew through the air...Shiva danced along the wind making a ramp like trails to skate down

"Nice. Try." she whispered.

The magic may have sent the others into the sky, but Tuya was way too grounded to be moved. Still, any attempt to send her up would require extra force to rip the stone up with her before it all just lands as if nothing happened. Messed up by the visions Yue's wings could not extend...he found himself hitting the ground hard...he stared up at the light...broken...beyond belief. A’mara watched as the others began to struggle landing leaving her to question the group further. The Legacy continued awhile longer with some physical moves before A’mara finally drawing the battles to end. This left many of the members to fall to the ground in exhaustion.


"Damnit A'mara, you didn't show me any of that in Limbo, I didn't know you were holding out on me,” Kuro sighed.

Yukio watched Yue closely, her heart breaking for him. She slowly crawled over to him, putting her hand around his shoulder, and bringing his head to her chest. She rested her head over his and gently glided her fingers through his hair, not knowing what to say to comfort him. Tuya sat there, breathing; she was trying to calm herself and her aether down considerably. Luckily the kiss from Shiva had done most of the work, so now she's just sitting there with her hand over Shiva's, trying to force herself to calm down once more. Shiva began to trace letter's into Tuya's hand...black bags under her eyes looked towards her lover...

"I want to go home." she traced onto Tuya’s hand.

The more the Legacy stayed within this wrinkle from their past...the sadness and dark thoughts consumed Shiva...Saint was dormant...more than she ever had been for some time the need to go home was strong.

"I think we've been here long enough...shall we go,” A’mara asked looking at the tired warriors.

"Home," Shiva whispered.

The Legacy rose up and began to walk through the portal that A’mara began to make. If there was one thing the group learned today was that although they could fight, they needed to work on more than just physical skill. A’mara was the student of Haruka…and she learned her best methods from her. If A’mara was just a fraction of what she could do…they were not ready…it was time to work on what they needed to do best…win the fight of their minds.