Please tell me about the jestrid apocalypse :)))
Jestrid apocalypse is set in an alternate timeline where Cognouza got free of the astral plane and caused an apocalypse in Exandria. Jester is flung back into the material plane and finds herself returning to a very changed Nicodranas, where her mother is holed up not just with others from the Chateau but also a very familiar wizard...
Anyway, I have around 7,200 words of this and I really want to finish it! I got to do a lot of fun worldbuilding around what Exandria would be like after such an event, and Astrid and Jester just have such a [chef's kiss] dynamic, it's so great.
“Shh,” her mother whispers. “It’s not safe. Follow me.” She leads Jester to the darkest corner of the cellar and glances her over. “My darling. How many do you have?”
Jester’s heart sinks like a stone. “How many what?” she asks, aiming for bright and landing completely off the mark.
Her mother rolls back her long, lace-covered sleeve to reveal a red eye on her forearm, the pigment just slightly off from her normal complexion. “Do you have less than five?”
Jester stares at the eye, her stomach filled with lead. “Yes,” she says in a hollow voice. “I have four.”
“Come on, then,” says her mother, and leads her to an empty wall. She pulls her past the wall into a space that should not be there, and it takes Jester a moment to realize it is an extra-dimensional portal, similar to when Caleb used to cast the Tower. Someone has cast their own variant of the Magnificent Mansion here in this basement, and they are using it as their base.
It’s very smart. Jester doesn’t let herself think about Caleb.
They emerge into a pristine foyer, the floors made of wood that echoes under Jester’s heels. There is no sign of personality in this space; it is nothing except a room.
“I’m sorry, my darling,” says her mother. “We will have to confirm your number of eyes before I can show you more.”
Jester is familiar with this routine by now; she begins to unlace her bodice, pulling her skirts free and dropping her petticoats right there in the foyer. It is only her mother, after all; her mama has seen it all before. She unlaces her boots to remove the tights that cover her legs and reveal the first of the red eyes, broad and lurid on her thigh. The second is on her hip, cresting the curve of the bone. The third sits upon the back of her neck, as though it is staring behind her. The fourth is on her palm; she removes her gloves to reveal it.
Her mother waits until she is completely disrobed before looking her over with a clinical eye, having her lift up her arms so she can check under them, walking in a circle around her. “Just four,” her mother murmurs. “We are all fortunate, today.”
“Very fortunate,” says an accented voice. To Jester’s astonishment, Astrid Beck steps out from behind a hidden panel in the wall, her eyes narrowed in distrust. She looks similar to when Jester saw her last, when she allowed them to escape Yussa’s tower. Her hair is a bit longer, as though she hasn’t had time to bother to cut it.
Jester is hardly one to be bothered by nudity, but she wouldn’t be herself if she didn’t say something. “Astrid!” she gasps. “Did you want to see me naked?” Beside her, her mother snorts a soft laugh and hands her back her skirts.
Astrid doesn’t seem to know how to react to this question; she opens her mouth but says nothing. The tips of her ears are red – light-skinned humans blush so easily. Jester grins at her in a way that doesn’t quite reach her eyes as she shimmies back into her skirts and laces her bodice up. Astrid seems to finally find her voice. “I did not—we are not here for this,” she says. Jester has never seen her flustered before.
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