Lateral Movement

by Alzrius

794 - Two Heads

“I can’t believe you made me eat myself!”

Groaning, Akna – currently in her humanoid form – pinched the bridge of her muzzle. “You know, my grandmother told me that as the future spiritual leader of my tribe, my people would come to me to confess all sorts of weird and uncomfortable secrets. Ever since then, I prepared myself to listen to things like a village matron admitting that she’d been unfaithful, or a jealous young warrior revealing that he’d sabotaged a competitor’s weapon. But I never thought I’d hear someone say what you just did.”

Sulking, Solvei gave the adlet a sour look. “If you didn’t want to hear it, then you shouldn’t have made me do that!”

Sighing, Akna sat up from the snowbank she’d been laying in, giving the winter wolf a flat look. “I didn’t make you, and you know it. You agreed to it just as much as I did.”

Solvei’s ears flattened, a shudder running down her spine. “I didn’t really agree to that...”

She trailed off, and Akna shifted in place, feeling Solvei’s emotions as though they were her own. “Look, at least this way, Ma-, Lex doesn’t have to deal with it.”

That sent a shiver of relief through Solvei – and Akna as well – recalling what had made her set her trepidation aside. “I’m glad he doesn’t have to worry about that either, I just...don’t get why we had to eat it is all.” Raising her ears, Solvei lifted her head from the flat rock she’d been lying on. “That wasn’t how your tradition goes. It’s supposed to be something you only do for other adlets.”

Akna shrugged. “I know that it is, I just...didn’t know what else to do. I mean, it’s so the spirit stays within the tribe, but your spirit is already a part of me, so I figured it was sort of appropriate. And leaving it behind for the Keeper and his acolytes just seemed like a bad idea, especially since he hates Lex now. Plus ritual consumption is the only way I know to get rid of a body...well, that or breaking it down into parts that can be used for raw materials, like we did for the yetis, but that would have been-”

“Worse,” finished Solvei with a wince. “Master would never have accepted that, and I wouldn’t have blamed him.”

“Yeah...”

The two of them lapsed into silence then, listening as the wind caused the trees around them to rustle. As one, the two of them glanced over the wintry valley that lay spread out before them, showing a magnificent vista of white mixed with the occasional patch of green. It was a familiar sight for both of them, causing the two to smile in unison.

“I didn’t know that you’d seen the valley where I grew up,” murmured Solvei.

“It was only one time,” answered Akna quietly. “I’d just learned how to take to the wind, and I was so thrilled I accidentally traveled far outside our usual territory. But I never forgot how beautiful this place looked.”

Neither said anything further, not that they needed to. Both of them had the other’s memories now, and felt the other’s feelings as they experienced them. Talking to each other was more like looking at a smooth patch of ice and talking to their reflection than to another person now. Even so, both found it comforting, if only because of how it served to undercut the surprise of finding themselves together after having fallen asleep.

“So, how long do you think we’ll be like this?”

Akna was already shrugging before Solvei had even finished her question. “No idea. Until we wake up I guess.”

Solvei rolled her eyes. “You know that isn’t what I meant. Granted, being able to see you in my dream – our dream – like this is nice, but-”

“You meant how long we’d be in this...in-between state, where we’re still separate but deeply connected,” finished Akna. “I don’t know. Maybe forever, or maybe only for a few days until we-”

“Completely turn into one person,” finished Solvei.

Akna bit her lip. “I still think it’s worth asking Lex to try and fix this. With all the power he has-”

“Master already said he didn’t have any magic that could undo what’s happened to us, remember?” cut in Solvei, shaking her head.

“But if he can call upon the Night Mare herself to put his mate into hibernation, he can ask her to separate us!”

Solvei arched a brow. “He also said that if we were separated, my soul wouldn’t have anywhere to go. I’d be just a spirit following him around again.”

“So the alternative is what? That I have to spend the rest of my life being his slave?”

Heedless of her nudity – in that regard, being with Solvei felt no different than being by herself now – Akna stood up, turning so that she was standing in profile to the winter wolf as she pointed to her hip, where Lex’s cutie mark could clearly be seen against her fur, just like it was on Solvei. “That’s what this means, doesn’t it? That whatever connection you had with him is part of me now, too?”

“I don’t know. Probably. You’re the one who worships Master’s goddess. Try praying to her for answers.”

“For all I know, us being here like this is her answer,” huffed Akna. “In Lex’s language, ‘Night Mare’ means ‘bad dream.’ So this might be Her doing.”

“In that case, maybe she wants us to use this time to figure out if our powers work differently now.” Standing up, Solvei stretched and padded over to the adlet. “I mean, I don’t know if we can use them in a dream like this, but it might be fun to try.”

“Why bother?” Akna let herself fall back into the snowbank she’d just risen from, glaring up at the sky. “I wanted more power. That’s why I went back into the Confluence; so that I could get Headhunter or one of the other Umbral Regalia. But I didn’t do it for me. It was all so I could help my tribe.”

“Which is what we’re going to do,” argued Solvei, ignoring the surreal feeling – just as Akna was trying to do – that came from arguing with herself. “We’ll wipe out Grisela and the rest of her family of monsters just like we did the yetis-”

“And then what?” Swinging one arm around, Akna knocked some of the snow away, spraying the white powder into the air and watching it dissipate into flakes. “After we win and they’re all dead, what happens then?”

“You know what happens,” pressed Solvei. “Master fixes his mate, and then he goes home.”

“And takes us with him,” continued Akna, her voice turning bitter.

“Of course he will! He said that before, that I’m – that we’re – precious to him, and always will be, and that we belong to him now and forever!”

The words sent a rush of joy through them both, but the emotion was immediately weighed down by distress as Akna groaned. “But I wanted-, no, I want to stay with my tribe! With my people! Even if I can’t bring them around to the Night Mare’s worship, I never wanted to leave them! One way or another, I’m still their only shaman! I wanted...”

Her shoulders slumped as she turned onto her side, pulling her knees up to her chest. “I wanted to find a mate of my own. I wanted to be a mother someday. To have a family of my own again.”

Solvei could only look down, registering the depths of her other self’s sorrow.

“...but I don’t get to have that now, do I?”

“That’s part of the Night Mare’s teachings, isn’t it?” Sitting down next to the adlet, Solvei gave her a sympathetic look. “That power comes with sacrifices?”

“I figured I’d already sacrificed,” muttered Akna. “I lost my parents when I was so young that I barely remember them. And after losing my grandmother when the yetis attacked...I didn’t think I had anything else left to lose.”

She glanced up at the winter wolf then, peering into the golden eyes looking back at her. “I know we talked about this in Darkest Night, but...you really don’t mind that Lex made you leave your family? Even after you just got them back?”

A sad smile crossed Solvei’s face. “It’s because of him that I know they’re alright. Besides, he needs me more than I need them. He’s my family now, and that means Drafty is too, since she’s his mate. And when she recovers and gives birth, their little one will be my family also.”

Akna made a face like she was gagging. “That’s just what I’d expect from an unatattik,” she snorted, using the adlet term for a creature that only knew how to follow orders. “You’re happy to do whatever you’re told, never thinking for yourself.”

A sneer crossed Solvei’s lips. “Your kind betrayed Hrothvitnir after he created them, and you turned your back on your own tribe’s traditions. If that’s what thinking for yourself gets you, I’m happy not to bother.”

“Oh really? What about the time you almost drowned as a pup? I seem to recall your father told you to stay away from the river, but you went right up to it anyway, not realizing how thin the ice was.”

“I saw a fish and wanted to catch it! I didn’t think I’d fall in!” Blushing, Solvei raised a paw and poked Akna in the ribs. “Besides, at least I was trying to be helpful! Not like that time you pretended to be drowning because you wanted the warriors who were out spear-fishing to compete to see who could rescue you first, only for your grandmother to out-swim them all and do it instead!”

Cringing at the memory, Akna sat up and gave Solvei a light shove. “Oh yeah?! That’s not nearly as embarrassing as crashing headfirst into a tree during your first hunt!”

“Hey, I almost got that squirrel!” countered Solvei. “And at least the only ones who saw me were my siblings! You’re the one who threw up in front of everyone the first time you tried to lead a tribal prayer to your ancestors!”

“I was sick! And everyone forgot about it once I grew up” – standing up, Akna folded her arms under her breasts, hefting them – “and turned into a beauty, whereas you stayed a runt!”

“Oh yeah?” Solvei drew herself up to her full height, glaring down at Akna. “Well this runt wound up being bigger and tougher than you!”

Akna got right in the winter wolf’s face then. “Prove it.”

“Make me,” growled Solvei, leaning forward.

...until her nose touched Akna’s.

Instantly, the two of them dissolved into mirth, leaning against each other as they sank back down, howling with laughter. It was only after several minutes that they managed to calm themselves, wiping their eyes in motions that mirrored each other as they got their breath back.

“I’m glad that it’s you,” panted Solvei, giving Akna a grateful look. “This whole thing; becoming part of someone else...it’s strange and it’s scary, but I feel better knowing you’re the one I’m in it with.”

“I’m glad it’s you too,” agreed Akna, giving Solvei a smile. “If we have to go through this, there’s no one else I’d rather go through it with.”

Taking a deep breath, both of them sat up and stretched, looking out over the snowy valley from their combined memories. “So,” grunted Akna, putting her hands on her hips. “If we’re going to be here for a while, let’s go ahead and see if we can test out what our turning into one person has done to our magic. Since there’s two of us, maybe that means we’re twice as strong!”

“It’s worth a shot!” barked Solvei enthusiastically, tail swishing. “I want to be ready for when we face Sissel again. I owe her one for that lightning bolt!”

Looking at each other one last time, the two of them – now united in purpose as well as memories and emotions – gave a firm nod.

Then they began to train.

Author's Note:

Solvei and Akna confront what it means for them to become one person, learning to work together far more closely than ever before!

Will they discover new strength within themselves as a result?

Comments

[Not so New Brony]

Akna and Solvei have certainly grown closer since their merging, part of it is undoubtedly due to their souls being intertwined like this though I suppose their sisterly bonding moments in the Darkest Night probably helped ease the process of whatever this is since if there had been any hostilities, they'd be fighting constantly for control.

Hmm, now that I think about it, I wonder if Lex has gained any habits or instincts from the aurumvorax or if he's completely subsumed the creature's mind?

[TheAbsoluteRadiance]

Glad to see Akna's and Slovei's side. things aren't bad as I expected Looks like it will be a peaceful merger.

[Booster Spice]

This promises to be very intresting, training lets them work out how to not only use induvidual magics but also combinations, giving more variations?

[Alzrius]

11493491 While there's no way to know for certain, I suspect that a blending of two souls who were at odds with each other would be bad, to put it mildly. Since they're becoming a single person (or at least, that's the theory), potential results of a merger where both souls were fighting it could result anything from severe mood swings to dissociative personalities flip-flopping back and forth to complete incoherent madness. Fortunately, the Solvei and Akna were already forming a genuine friendship before this happened, and seem to be building on that here.

As for Lex...the situation is slightly different. Because the aurumvorax he merged with has only animal intelligence (i.e. its Intelligence score is 2), it doesn't possess true sapience, meaning that it has no true sense of self. In that regard, it can't influence Lex's personality or other aspects of his conscious mind. However, there's a flip-side to this, which is that the creature possesses powerful instincts, which Lex now has to wrestle with. We've already seen repeated references to "the beast inside of him" reacting to things; the good news is that Lex has some experience tangling with powerful emotions. The bad news, I suspect, is that exhaustion is blunting a lot of that; once he gets some rest, he might find that it's a lot harder to ignore the new set of urges that he's now subject to.

[Alzrius]

11493547 Fortunately, that looks to be the case. If it weren't, there'd likely be far more adverse effects of their souls being shoved together into one body.

[Alzrius]

11493715 Well, the idea here is that they're not so much learning how to work together as how to be together, in the most literal sense. Presuming that means that they have both of their powers combined, it might indeed allow for some heretofore unseen combinations of abilities, since both Akna and Solvei have magic of their own.