First Demonic Dragon

As shown with Bashenga, the rooms inside of the Tathamet home can be as big, or as small, as one likes it to be.

Despite this, there aren't many in the house who take real advantage of that.

Mira can barely keep her own room clean, so she wasn't going to foster an entire realm for her to keep up with too.

Belloc, Melanie, and Stheno weren't that needy. So they settled for a modest 2,500 square feet apartment layout.

Nubia, Apophis, The Twins, and Thea are the only ones with rather sizable realms as their 'rooms'.

Thea's realm is quite similar to Tehom.

Luscious greenery, vibrant wildlife and cooling blue waters, with a soft salmon-colored sky overhead.

Thea's realm is only about the size of North America, but they are preparing to expand sometime in the next calendar year. (10 Months instead of 12.)

Her realm is solely populated by humanity, but not just any branch of humanity, the evolved.

These were the descendants of those who had been guided to enlightenment forever ago.

By now, several generations have come and gone, and challenges new and old have arisen for her.

And yet, Thea loved her people, and she loved being queen.

Perhaps this is the reason why she decided not to fold her society into Tehom.

She liked being independent of the shadow of her parents. Succeeding or failing on her own.

Well... not necessarily on her own.

"Are we ready?"

Inside of a gorgeous white palace, a group of women were standing around a metal cauldron.

Sabine, Nita, Jasmine, Aisha, and Aubrey were all staring at the one who tied them all together.

She looked like she was going to pace a hole into the floor.

Thea shuffled back and forth on the marble floors lining the observatory.

"I, umm... I think I need to use the bathroom for a second." She decided.

"You don't pee though?" Jasmine tilted her head.

"I-I figured that it was time to start trying new things..?"

"""""Babe.""""

"I-I just needed a moment to get some water, but I promise that I'll be right back!"

Thea bolted from the room before any of the girls could invoke more questions her way.

True to her word, she traveled to her kitchen and opened up the fridge.

She pulled out a bottle of water and unscrewed the cap.

But instead of putting the bottle to her lips, she squeezed it as hard as she could and blasted her entire face.

The effect was surprisingly calming.

"Okay... I think I feel better now... Maybe one more for good measure." Thea started to reach back inside of her refrigerator.

"Am I to blame for your current state of insanity...? If so, you have my sentiment."

Thea was so on edge that she nearly jumped out of her own skin.

She didn't notice Bashenga even enter her realm. Maybe she was even more in her head than she realized.

"I... What are you doing here and... What are you wearing?"

Bashenga looked down at the baby carrier that was strapped to his chest.

Odessa was strapped inside of it- not a single thought behind her adorable eyes.

"...This was at Gaia's recommendation. Since I am unable to hold a child properly due to my lack of finesse, this was the only safe alternative." He shrugged.

There were several aspects of that statement that left Thea entirely perplexed and she wasn't exactly sure of what she should address first.

"I... What are you doing here, Bashenga?" Thea sighed. She draped her body over the sink and let the remaining water on her face drip into the drain.

There wasn't an answer for a while, and Thea started to believe that her brother had come here to rehash their argument from a few days ago.

"...I do not like myself."

"Huh..?"

She looked back at Bashenga and found him staring at the floor shamefully.

"I am... incapable of creating. I lack basic consideration for others because I am fated to destroy all that I touch and come across.

Father told me once that just because I personify something that doesn't mean that I have to limit myself to only engaging with that specific part of me.

I can branch out... learn to be more of a... well, whatever I want.

I just would like to be a greater man than I have been before.

You asked me for reassurance before. I could not give it to you because children have always invoked a certain insecurity within me... but the moment was not mine to consider such things.

I ruined an occasion for you... and I intend to make up for it."

Bashenga had been holding a small tote bag at his side for the duration of this conversation.

He reached inside of it and pulled out two articles of clothing.

Thea covered her mouth in a hush as her eyes began to water. (And not because she had just blasted them a couple of seconds ago)

Bashenga pulled out a hoodie that said 'I'm Going to Be a New Uncle!' He also placed a beanie on Odessa's head that read 'The Abyss' Best Auntie'.

"I believed that this was silly, but Gaia seemed to insist that-" Bashenga began.

Thea wrapped her arms around Bashenga (and Odessa).

She cried silently as she held onto him for dear life. It was as if he was the only thing keeping her upright anymore.

"I'm really freaking out here, Bash.. What if I can't be a good mom, what if I can't do things perfectly like our parents did for us??" She asked hollowly.

Change was hard. Bashenga already knew that this journey was going to be an arduous one.

But getting thrown right into the fire like this was downright unfair on every single metric.

He brushed his fingers through his sister's hair and reflected on their father- and his innate inability to invoke positive emotions from others.

At the surface level, it occurred just by looking at him. As Bashenga thought about his father, he realized that maybe he did know what he might say after all.

"I think.. chasing perfection is a flawed ideal. Something will be outside of your control, but that doesn't mean that they are lost causes.

I'm sure that our parents wish that they could have done many things differently with us-but you yourself remember your childhood to be perfect.

I believe that is what matters. Just be present and be nurturing… the rest may take care of itself."

Thea had been inside of her 'room' ever since the night of the festival, but she had started to feel like she had missed too much in here.

Obviously she knew Bashenga's words to be true. She had seen examples of this many times before as she handled fates.

She was only surprised that she had forgotten them. And that Bashenga of all people had to be the one to remind her.

What the hell could have brought him to such a level of understanding..?

"Babe! Please don't tell me you're in here splashing water in your face again!"

Jasmine and Aubrey burst into the kitchen- obviously looking for Thea.

When they found her wet, teary-eyed, and holding on to Bashenga, they weren't even sure what to make of the situation.

"Uhm… hey, you two? Is everything alright down here?"

Thea dried her face and hair instantly. "Actually.. things are better than fine. I actually feel a lot better now."

"So you're not having second thoughts anymore..?" Aubrey asked hopefully.

"Are you kidding me? What would ever make you think that I was having second thoughts?" Thea shrugged coolly.

""Well, you were..""

"I-I get it, but I swear that nothing is wrong at all!"

Thea gave her brother's neck one last squeeze and whispered a soft 'thank you' into his ear.

She went to Jasmine and Aubrey's side and the three of them interlocked their fingers with one another.

"Will you stick around..?" Thea asked hopefully.

Bashenga didn't even waste a moment to think about it.

"If that is your wish."

-

Now with a clear mind and heart, Thea was ready to undergo the ritual a second time.

Together, she and her other wives shaved off bits of their souls and let the energy meld itself together.

Sabine made a grabbing gesture and gathered their discarded pieces of soul and congealed it all into one.

She breathed in deeply to steady her own heart as she pulled the amalgamation into two.

Finally, she pressed one orb into Thea's pubic region, and the other one into Aubrey's.

Light faded from the room with the end of the ceremony.

The women stood around each other-breathing heavily and more than a little anxious.

"Did… did it work?" Aubrey asked hopefully.

There was a pop and confetti rained down on the wives from out of nowhere.

"Congratulations. In nine months you will all kiss your uninterrupted nights of sleep and peace of mind good bye." Bashenga said.

Odessa grabbed at some of the confetti and tried to put it in her mouth.

It took a moment, but eventually it settled in the girls' minds that things had gone well. Their wish was fulfilled.

Even a spaceship couldn't match their level of elation.

*Ungodly loud fart*

Everyone slowly turned around to stare at Odessa, who breathed out in relief.

Bashenga's expression was grim. He recognized a shit-up-the-back scenario when he heard it.

… And smelled it.

He unbuckled the harness keeping her tied to his chest and held her out for someone, make that anyone, to take.

"Here. Practice."