[she's silent for a moment as she lifts her free hand and places it over her heart. there's something distracted about her expression as she recounts these memories.]
. . . I did, yes.
Perhaps my memories and my sense of self were gone, but my heart. . . that remained. I remembered things as I traveled across the spirit realm and saw familiar landmarks of places I had visited in the realm of man. When I slept, I dreamed of Jude. I remembered meeting him. I remembered traveling with him. I remembered. . . how much I wanted to be the Maxwell he adored.
[her hand clenches into a fist]
With the help of the Four, I received an ancient arte from one of my predecessor's specters-- concentrated forms of his consciousness that he could send out to various parts of the world in order to carry out the cycle of purification and reincarnation. Origin purifies the souls of the departed now, but back then, before the Schism was destroyed, my predecessor used those shadows to monitor the process himself.
With this arte in hand, I climbed to the top of the Nia Khera Hallowmont, which was the only entrance to the Temporal Crossroads-- the door between the realms of spirit and man-- from the spirit world. From there, I saw my comrades. . . I saw Jude. . . engaged in battle with my predecessor.
Seeing his determination, his unwavering will, and his desire to keep fighting. . .
[a deep breath]
That, in tandem with the ancient arte, brought back to me my memories and everything that made me. . . Milla.
[notably she is just using "Milla," not "Milla Maxwell." because back then, she wasn't Maxwell, was she? not officially, anyway. she was Milla, the woman who made herself Maxwell through sheer determination and heart]
no subject
. . . I did, yes.
Perhaps my memories and my sense of self were gone, but my heart. . . that remained. I remembered things as I traveled across the spirit realm and saw familiar landmarks of places I had visited in the realm of man. When I slept, I dreamed of Jude. I remembered meeting him. I remembered traveling with him. I remembered. . . how much I wanted to be the Maxwell he adored.
[her hand clenches into a fist]
With the help of the Four, I received an ancient arte from one of my predecessor's specters-- concentrated forms of his consciousness that he could send out to various parts of the world in order to carry out the cycle of purification and reincarnation. Origin purifies the souls of the departed now, but back then, before the Schism was destroyed, my predecessor used those shadows to monitor the process himself.
With this arte in hand, I climbed to the top of the Nia Khera Hallowmont, which was the only entrance to the Temporal Crossroads-- the door between the realms of spirit and man-- from the spirit world. From there, I saw my comrades. . . I saw Jude. . . engaged in battle with my predecessor.
Seeing his determination, his unwavering will, and his desire to keep fighting. . .
[a deep breath]
That, in tandem with the ancient arte, brought back to me my memories and everything that made me. . . Milla.
[notably she is just using "Milla," not "Milla Maxwell." because back then, she wasn't Maxwell, was she? not officially, anyway. she was Milla, the woman who made herself Maxwell through sheer determination and heart]