{Your steps echo throughout the dark chambers, louder than any sound this place must have heard before. Darkness doesn’t have a weight, but in this world, reality, it feels like it always has. Void. An ocean. An endless sea of inky blackness.}
|. . . H-how do you stand it. . . ?|
{Stand, it?}
|Yeah it’s, scary. . .|
{Scary. Not to me? It feels cool. Homey. Calm. You walk through the cave without eyes, letting the darkness guide your stride. It is the same reason, I like my well.}
|I guess I can get that. I do like the corner of the shed. . .|
{The shed?}
|Yeah, there’s a corner behind some stuff in the shed where it’s dark and stuff. It’s kinda nice but uhm. . . I dunno. . .|
{It is, okay. I will face the dark. Go, if you need. Others may come, if they want.}
|M’kay. . .|
{. . . . . Silence. . . .}
{You do love the dark silence like this. You hunch over a bit more as you walk. The scent of damp, of grass after rain, of well watered moss. The taste of rocks. Salt. The nothingness that is not nothing at all. You reach up to your mask, and lift it off. Still, darkness persists. . .}
{. . . Why are you limited by your body?}
{The dreaming and the waking worlds are as one. Breathe deep. Embrace who you are. Become the darkness that once swallowed you.}
{And. Melt. Away. . .}
(Bonnie) [Crux] <Eight> |Ember|
[Even with a little light, it’s really hard to make anything out. The cave’s big. REALLY big. So crazy big that you’re sure you’re gonna get lost. Embers light twinkles against some of the walls, almost like stars. . .]
(I don’t see anyone anymore. . .)
[‘S okay, let’s keep going, okay? They’re gonna be around here, okay?]
(I guess. . .)
|Yep! We’re gonna find them, I promise. You, Crux, and Eight did really good finding the Groundskeepers already, so I know you can do it again!|
(. . . We.)
|Huh?|
(WE’RE gonna do it again! Crabface!!!)
|Hehe!!!|
[Yeah! You smile a bit brighter and walk a bit faster.]
[. . . What’re we gonna do when we get to Perci?]
(Uh. . .)
|. . . I, hmm.|
<Beat him up?>
|P-probably not a good idea!|
(I REALLY want to, but. . .)
<. . . AFTER everything’s over, can we beat him up?>
|No promises?|
(Bleh. You huff and take a moment, breathing in and out. . . Huh? There’s a figure ahead of you. Running, reaching through the darkness! It’s Isabeau!!!)
“ISA!!!” [Go! You run! After him!!] “‘ZA!!! OVER HERE!!!”
(Isabeau)
(There’s a cold creeping across your back. A shiver that’s slow to spread. It’s a similar feeling to when you’re on the verge of a sneeze. Something that’s going to come around eventually, but you’re just teetering on the edge of it.)
(Your whole body shakes, and you tug your coat a bit more around yourself. It smells like, the feeling of a rained out weekend day. No-one wants to meet up because they’re studying, no-one wants to go outside because of the rain, so you’re stuck in your dorm, staring outside.)
(Ha, oh how you wish you could go back to those days now.)
(No, no you don’t, not really. Sure, it was okay, but if you’d stayed with the defenders you would’ve never met Sif, or Mira, or Madame Odile or Bonnie. Even if they got someone to replace you and still saved the world, you’d just. . .)
{Slip back into the crowd.}
(You snap up. That wasn’t your voice, that. . . Wait, no.) “Where are you?!? Why are you back?!?” (Your eyes are wide and alert, even if you can’t see your hand in front of your face.)
{Ah silly little soldier boy~ as if anyone could kill your fears in any way it mattered.}
(You keep walking. You just HAVE to! You glance around even now, still ready for an attack.) “Shut up.”
{Running away again? Oh of course. But what are you running to? No. You are lost. A puppet without a string. How sad~}
(You walk faster, but stumble as your arm scratches against the cave wall. It’s sharpp.) “Will you just, leave me alone?!?”
{And leave you to your darkness? If you insist.}
“HEY!” (You yell out into the void.) “WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!?”
(. . . No response.)
(You shudder, and feel your wound. Just a scrape, nothing dangerous. You continue walking, taking a few side-steps to the opposite wall. The floor is still even, at least, even if that sweet smell isn’t going anywhere. Just, don’t listen to that thing. It’s just going to try and hurt you. Urgh. . .)
(You eventually end up scraping against the left wall. You move a bit more towards the right, and keep walking.)
(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} <Altiare> |Jasmine|
{Another sense. Another being. Human. You glide through the darkness. Still, you are human. But still, you rebel against your humanity. Let others believe what they see. But you are not. Human.}
{Footsteps, walking in a straight line. Frustrated, steady, and determined. You step forward one, two, three steps. You let them be loud. You let the stranger hear them. They stop. You breathe in, and out. Steady your breathing. Lower your heart rate, and listen. . .}
{. . . Breathing. Not your own. Fast. An attempt at calmness. The breathing slows. They’re listening for you, too. You take another loud step forward.}
“Who’s there!?!” {The voice, at the edges of familiarity, casts echoes through the cave and gives you a perfect direction in which to go.}
{You step forward, gently, and in a rhythm.}
{Breathing quickened. Stepping back. Why does the branch lean away from the sun? You want to know who. You glide forward. . . A caught breath, a ruffle of clothing. . . A smell of. . . Cinnamon.}
{Right.}
{You move right as a blast of craft runs by you. No bother. Fear. It’s fear. But who is fearing? You step forward more. More frantic breaths, more frantic steps.}
{Left.}
{You move left. Again, craft whirls by you. You reach forward, glide forward. A cold hand of darkness. . . Contact. You feel skin. Cloth. Clothing.}
“AAH!!!!” {A scream. A slice. A dance back. Curiouser, and curiouser. . .}
{You feel something drip down your arm. Ah. You were cut. No matter, it will heal easily here. Perhaps you should calm this person? Wait. No. The voice this person has sounds familiar. Who are they. . ?}
“Get AWAY FROM ME!” {Screams the voice. You start to stalk.}
(Bonnie) [Crux] <Eight> |Ember|
"HEY!!!" [You know someone’s here. You know they're here but they keep running away!! Why?! If it's 'Za or 'Oz then, they should be looking for you right?!?] "HEEEEEEYYYY!!!"
(What if it's just a ghost, like back in the house? We could chase those ghosts but only one time did we get to actually catch it. We could be running after nothing!)
[Yeah, but, you could hear the footsteps! Do ghosts make footstep noises?]
(They're ghosts? No?!?)
<Hey! You dunno this ghost! Maybe it DOES make footstep noises!>
(BUT GHOSTS JUST FLOAT AROUND!!!)
[O-ow, you shake your head. No yelling, needa hurry, focus!]
[You keep running ahead in the bitch black cave, chasing after a faint glimmer, a sound in the darkness. The mossy smell of darkness fills your nose even now, the smell of wet dirt, of driftwood. Who knew darkness had a smell. . .]
|Learn something new every day!|
(It’s. . . Nice! You didn’t know how much you missed the dark until you were here. . .)
[Mmmhm, you were getting really annoyed by the sun. Gotta headache ‘n stuff ‘n you missed the dark, it’s just. . . You don't like the cave, ‘n can't see the stars. . . C-can you please switch?]
(‘Kay! You take the metaphorical torch and start trotting down the cave even faster. . . Huh, weird, Crux was right! There ARE proper footsteps! It’s distant, but that's gotta be your family, right?!? You break into a sprint.) "HEY!! HEY OVER HERE HEY!!!"
(You hear muffled, frantic footsteps, someone's quick breathing. You keep running even though your feet feel sluggish. You gotta catch up, you HAVE to catch up! You gotta find your family, you don't want them worrying about you, you can't LET them worry or get hurt or do something stupid or--)
"WAH-"
(You crash right into someone and go tumbling and someone, the person you tackled, they grab your wrist. Before you can even react, you’re thrown to the ground with a weight on your chest. Heavy. Weight. Grip on, you, hard, ground, can't, c-ca)nt movecant-- Metal, strong and cold and scary and squeezing you so tight let go let go let go let go please let go no no NO!
They're all hurt, all hurt and you're, y-you're gonna, and it's, they're, y-you-- 'Frin, someone! HELP!!!
"H-HEY!" |You get up in the other person's face! Even if you just look like a little glowing moth that's gotta do something! You’re struggling to stick around or to properly; Bonnies panic, your panic, it’s, y-you, you can feel the panic welling and, b-bats!| "G-GET OFF!!!"
|The stranger blinks, and immediately lets go.| "Fl-?! I'm sorry- I thought they were someone else, I. . !" |There’s a clatter as a pair of scissors he was holding falls to the floor.|
Needtogetout needtogetout needtogetout needtogetout need, to, t-to, get, out--- You groan and clutch your head, a sharp migraine striking your skull making it hard to think, and, dizzy, can't, think, straight---
|B-bonnie!!! Crux?!? Come on just, just breathe! It's okay! It's okay!|
Your vision narrows, your head is spinning, you feel cornered. Your chest feels tight, and, twisting! Your heart is twisting and turning and squeezing a-and, and, and. . .
. . .
"Just breathe! It's okay, you're okay, you're safe, you're not back there okay? You're okay." |You flutter onto Bonnie's nose as a distraction, focus point, even though you're internally shaking just as much.| "You're not in the House, okay? You're here, with us, okay?"
. . . . . You blink a few times, and breathe, breathe, breathe. . . . Breathe. . . Breathe in. . . . And o(ut. . . . Urgh. . . You shake your head. That, hhhhhhhh. . . .)
(You look up at the stranger you bumped into. Stars thank you for Embers light. You squint to see who it is in the dim glow. Short hair, drowsy eyes, tall and- WAIT!!!)
(YOU KNOW THIS PERSON!!!)
>>>
(Isabeau)
(You put your palm on one wall, step away until you can barely reach it, then wave your other hand around. At the end of your reach, you feel the opposite wall. You let out a shaky sigh, then continue forward.)
(This confirms it, the walls are closer than they were before. You try to keep your breathing steady as you take step after step. The echoes of your footfalls become less and less pronounced as you walk. You try not to think about it. You’re definitely still thinking about it.)
(Of course the cave is closing in. Why wouldn’t it? Crabs, that’s just how this place works, huh? The spooky dark cave that makes you afraid. Stars Ramos ran in here because they were afraid of something! You shudder. So what does this cave think you’re afraid of?)
(You sigh. The dark is something everyone fears in a way, yeah, but. . . You tried to help your friend, but couldn’t, then you tried to get Bonnie, and couldn’t! Now you’re stuck here, alone. You couldn’t help them, and you have no control on the situation.)
(You reach out both your arms, you couldn’t fully extend both of them anymore without touching the opposite wall. You get another scratch from a jagged piece of stone.)
“Hell-oooo?” (You yell as you walk, now much more aware of where you are in the cave.) “Anyone else out there in this big spooky cave?!?
(No answer! Great!)
(Okay, c’mon Isabeau, just keep breathing. You’re just on a nice, relaxing walk. In a cave. Alone with your thoughts. Your thoughts and that sweet smell that won’t go away! It’s still there but smells more like. . . Like laughter and chubby cheeks. Like the sweat of a good sparing match. The hot kisses before bed. It smells like. . .)
(Siffrin. It smells like Siffrin.)
(You have to stop for a moment, and breathe.)
(Siffrin. . . Oh Siffrin. . . You try and hold it back, try to bite back the feeling of dread, the growing horror as you try not to think about what you saw. You put a hand to your mouth. It’s wet, you’re, you’re crying? Ha, haha, you’re crying!)
(You don’t want to think about it, but the memory shoves itself to the forefront of your mind. Waking up blinded by light, yelling for someone to come help. Siffrins chest was open, blood everywhere, Perci holding his heart in his hands. Siffrins eyes, they were, they were terrified, or in agony, or sleepy or, o-or. . .)
(Dead.)
(Stupid, stupid, STUPID!!! You slump to the floor, crying. You’re so stupid and, useless, dumb, weak, slow, coward. Siffrin is, Siffrin might be, m-might be dead because you thought Perci was just going to let you go! Just, give up after all this! You’re so, so, STUPID!!!)
(. . . Even if you got out of this cave, even if you beat Perci and put the world back together, Siffrin might, be. . .)
(You hear footsteps in the distance. Eventually you realize they’re getting louder.)
(That’s fine with you.)
(You hang your head down, knees tucked in. Whatever it is, it’ll just pass by you, and you’ll be safe to mope by yourself.)
(What a loser you are. . .)
(The footsteps get louder slowly but surely, each footfall coming at the same rate as the last. Until at one point, the steps stopped. Then, after a brief moment, the sound of walking became the sound of sprinting! Sprinting directly at you.)
(Once this realization hit your brain, it took you far longer to react than usual. Your head shoots up, you start to stand, and fumble. You raise your fists and open your mouth to say something as you struggle under the disadvantage of surprise. You brace yourself, ready to swing at whatever-)
“Isabeau?!?” (A voice with an unplaceable accent echoed to your ears.) “Oh sweet Lune you’re here! A-and, and ALIVE!?! Where’s the rest of your party?!?”
“I-I u-uh, don’t. . .” (You blink a few times, looking into the darkness for the familiar voice. You’ve heard it, it was- Wait, Lune? Oh!) “Vixul?!?”
“Yeah?!? Crap right- I’m going to reach out to you now, okay?” (After a few moments, you feel a cold, gloved hand on your knee.) “There! Are you feeling okay?”
“I uh. . .” (You take a breath and lean back, placing your hand on her gloved hand as you did so.) “Just, I was just, having a moment, haha. . .”
“Ha, right. . .” (Awkward pause.) “. . . Do you, still need a minute? Or. . ?”
“O-oh! No no, I’m, I think I’m alright, just. . .” (Something’s itching at the back of your head. Your previous brain fog was chased away by curiosity. She must have seen you, or known you were here, paused, then ran over. Hmmm. . .) “Vixul, can you see in the dark?”
“I- u-uh, uh--” (She stutters, then clears her throat.) “Uh, yes! I can! Bit of a secret though, so. . .”
“I’ll take it to the grave if it means you can help me get outta here. . .” (You breathe a sigh of relief and slump back a bit more.) “How’d you get here, anyways. . ?”
“One second we are taking a nap at an inn, and the next we are stuck in some sort of cage made of knives. Does that answer your question?” (A new voice, cold and consistent, makes you jump.) “Ah, did I spook you?”
“N-noit’s okay! Just, uh, unexpected, is all!!” (You chuckle nervously. Vixul’s a system, of course she’d have the same stuff going on as Ramos and Bonnie.) “Yeah uh, knife cage?”
“Vixul has crippling aichmophobia; specifically, knives.”
“HEY!!!”
“Hey that’s okay!” (You try to assure.) “We all have fears, after all.”
“Right. . .” (You hear her sigh.) “That’s Orcane, by the way.”
“Good to meet you!”
“A pleasure.”
“What about you, ‘Za?” (She asks, patting your knee.)
“I woke up to being puppeted by my sadness. It nearly made me kill a kid, but then I ate something this kid shoved in my mouth and-”
“Wait, let me guess. Is their name Hiroshi?”
(?!?!) “How’d you know that!”
“I know things~”
(Hurmph, you continue.) “Well he got rid of the sadness but I was stuck doing what they told me until we met with Ramos and Bonnie, and this hunter called Rani. They all were able to get Hiroshi's control undone, some other things happened, and then we ended up here.”
“So you, Bonnie, Ramos, this ‘Rani’ person, and Hiroshi?”
“O-oh! No, we split off from Hiroshi and Rani, they’re off on their own little quest right now.”
“Got it.” (Vixul jumped to her feet and put a hand on your hand.) “Let’s get going, the faster we get lost, the faster we find our friends.”
“U-uh, alright!” (You stand up and keep holding her hand. Heh, she’s in and out like a whirlwind! Thinking back, she was like this at the inn too. Always doing something- hang on.) “Wait, what about Polaris and Wren? Do you know where they are?!?”
“Ssshhhhhhhit right.” (Vixul starts dragging you along as she talks.) “I was able to find Wren, but we got split up in this cave. Gods I hope I can find Polaris and Muenos before something dangerous does.”
(You stop) “Wait, Muenos?”
“Oh yeah! He told us you guys saved his ass.” (She lets out a chuckle.) “We bumped into him and Bell on our way to Dormont, and Muenos wanted to join our traveling! I think you left an impression~”
“Huh! Small world!” (You smile, perking up already.) “Is he uh, doing okay?”
“He looks sad all the time, but he’s happier than he looks. I’ve even seen him smile.” (She starts cackling.) “Oh but you’ll never believe what he and Polaris have been up to.”
“No. . .”
“Yes!” (You both break into a full on laugh.) “Polaris was SO embarrassed when I called him out on it. Tsundere, if you will.”
“Yep, that fits.” (You nod.) “Well uh, I’m glad Muenos is happy and healthy.”
“Yeah, I’ve been lo fuck-!” (You hear Vixul inhale sharply and stop in her tracks.) “Fffffff. . .”
“Oh I’m sorry does that mean you don’t accidentally bump into things?!?”
“RIGHT! S-sorry.” (You rub your shoulder, a bit embarrassed.) “You gonna be alright?”
“Yeah I’m just sick of all the sharp ass outcroppings!” (You hear her take a few deep, ragged. . . Inhuman breaths.) “Okay, okay, calm now, okay. Okay. Just need a second just, okay. . .”
(You gently squeeze her hand, and she squeezes back.) “You good?”
“Yeah just. . . Okay fuck this, I’m cheating.” (You hear the sound of moving cloth and grumbling.) “Don’t ask how I got this or why I didn’t bring it out earlier, I got secrets I can’t- okay where the hell is it. . . THERE it is!!”
(Before you could really respond to her you were blinded by light for the first time in a while. It wasn’t even that bright, but all of a sudden you had to cover and shut your eyes! Crab, that was sudden! You take a second, then start blinking your eyes open.)
(The light is softer than you thought it’d be, but despite that you could see down the cave by quite a few meters now! You shake your head and turn back to Vi-) “W-WHAT THE--”
(The only things that stayed the same about Vixul was her height, her necklace, and the style of her clothes. Apart from that, she was like a walking animal! She had pale fur, fox tails, a snout, a crystal patch over her right eye, and claws. She turns to look fully at you, and you see her other eye is now wearing the eyepatch, almost like what pirates did to preserve their night vision. But that was a fact which was waiting in a long, long line for your attention.)
“. . . What, something up?” (She cocks her head like nothing’s wrong. Then after a few seconds she sharply inhales and steps back.) “R-RIGHT, CRAP! UH. . .”
“. . . . .” (You’re stunned and stuck staring for a few more seconds before you shake your head free of the surprise. Okay, okay! Definitely a logical reasoning for this, uh. . .) “. . . Uh, I’m, guessing this is just how you look in your head??? So uh, you, look like this uh . . Here?”
(The pale fox turns and starts to walk, she waves for you to follow. As you start walking along, you could feel your shoulders relax now that you could finally see the cave you’re in. The walls that always seemed so sharp and jagged now seemed dulled.)
“. . . Can you keep a secret?” (Vixul keeps walking as she talks.) “A big one?”
“I promise.” (You’re already keeping Siffrins time craft a secret after all.)
“Not even your party, unless I tell them myself that is.”
“I Swear to Change.” (You make an o-k symbol over your heart.) “This stays between us.”
“Right. So. . .” (Vixul takes a deep breath.) “What’s the 4th dimension?”
“Huh?” (You blink, surprised.) “Uh, well we don’t know what the 4th dimension really is, but a lot of people say that it’s time. It does make sense, it’s movement in a direction we can’t go in. Oh yeah! That also theoretically means the 5th dimension is parallel universes!”
“Oh you’re sharp.” (She glances back, grinning a big, toothy grin.) “Answered my followup question before I even asked it.”
“H-heh, it’s just some, nerd stuff.” (You bashfully rub your head.) “But. . . Where are you going with this?”
“Wanna guess?”
“Usually? Yeah. Today? Not really!”
“Fair!” (She laughs.) “Well I’ll put it bluntly; Siffrin gets dragged back through time, and I dig holes through realities.”
(There is a long, long silence as you take time to process that.)
“Dig holes through realities? To travel to parallel universes?? That’s unreal! But is it possible? Well if someone can use time craft to go through time, or freeze it, and someone can use wish craft to bend reality, then someone could use transportation craft to go through whole worlds! Wait, is it even transportation craft? Scratch that, is it a craft at ALL?!? It could be a completely separate set of rules that goes against everything we know about craftonomy and physics!”
“You do know you’re talking out loud, right?”
“HUH?!?!” (You snap to attention, then cover your face.) “C-CRAB!!”
“KEKEAKAHAHAAHAA!!” (Vixul cackles like a, well, a vixen! Hey wait a sec.)
“Are you called Vixul because you’re a vixen???”
“Huh? Oh HAH!” (She was grinning.) “Close! Where I’m from, I’m a kind of snow fox that was called ‘Alolan Vulpix’, my name’s an anagram; Vixul Pollana.”
“Oh! Huh!” (You nod, makes sense, but. .) “Wait, was? Did something happen?”
(Her grin disappeared, and she turned away. Silence fell upon the two of you for a few seconds; a soft wind blew that sweet smell through the caves.)
“. . . My home’s gone, Isa.” (She finally replies.) “And it’s starting to look like I’m the only one who got out.”
“Oh. . .” (The cave feels ever so slightly colder.) “. . . I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. You would never have known.” (Her tone is dry.) “I go from world to world and try to keep out of the way. Learn a few tricks, take a few trinkets, make sure no-one’s trying to mess with things they should, then I move on.”
“Sounds. . . Lonely.”
“It is.” (Another pause.) “You can see why I want to keep it a secret.”
“Yeah, the same kinda reason you don’t want to cause a paradox if you travel through time, right?”
“Pretty much. But I guess that doesn’t fucking matter with the state your Universe is in.”
(You tilt your head.) “Huh?”
“Your house is more holes than foundation at this point!” (She waves a hand wildly.) “Why the hell is everything monochrome? Why is there a place no one can remember? Why has magic been replaced by this craft system?!? Why was a country nearly frozen in time?!?!? I’ve seen other worlds that are similar to yours down to the monochromia with their OWN weird things going like flesh eating viruses or vampires or where it’s a post apocalypse and you’re STILL one of the more fucked up ones I’ve seen! Hell, one of the only ones that beat you out has the whole world saturated in red, everything smells like sugar, and the whole ass SKY is falling!!!”
(Vixul takes a few breaths, and you walk a bit more in silence before responding.) “. . . Sounds, stressful?”
“Just another day in the office.” (She grumbles.) “Sorry, I’m spoiling too much.”
“No it’s okay- well. . .” (You think for a moment, tapping your chin.) “Well maybe just don’t talk about the uh, worlds that’s similar to this one?? I guess?!? How weird can it get?”
“Humanity dies because of the global temperature rising and sea life gets imbued with their hopes and dreams and evolves to walk on land, turn into humanoids on demand, and use paint guns to shoot ink at each other for sport.” (She glances back at you.) “How ‘bout that?”
“. . . . . . . Yep! Got it!”
“Thought so.” (She spins a finger around.) “My turn, do you have any idea why the world’s like this?”
“Yeah actually!” (Since Vixul was so open about her secret stuff, might as well be the same.) “Remember Percival? He ate a star and used something called wish craft to break the walls between the real and unreal, though his actual wish is to bring someone back who was uh, very, important, to him.”
“Huh!” (A shrug.) “He has someone he likes? I thought he was just an ass.”
“Well. . .” (You shudder, thinking back.) “I think, me and the rest the saviors, we saw whoever it was disappear right in front of us. And, Perci, his left ear, it looked like it should’ve been a bonding earring, but. . .”
“. . . . . Oh.” (Her voice is suddenly very quiet.) “. . . Okay.”
“Yeah. . .”
“. . . . .”
“. . . . . . . . . .”
(The two of you kept walking in silence, as the implication of what was forgotten dangles over you like a sword ready to fall.)
[Featuring characters, from @neoncityrain and @fungal--wastes, also art from neoncityrain]
(Bonnie) [Crux] <Eight> |Ember|
"Muenos!!!" (You sit up straight and point at him.) "You're Muenos! I remember you!"
(For a moment he froze up at being recognised, before he leaned back against the wall of the cave with a heavy exhale. He takes a moment to catch his breath as you move to sit down next to him.)
"And you're, you're. . . Y-you had food, you were making chili, one of my saviors. . . (Muenos shakes his head.) "Err- Bonbon? Or- n-no, it was Bonnie, was it? I am so sorry, there's danger in this- there's someone else here, voices- quiet-" (And he was back to panting; he put a hand to his chest to try and catch his breath)
"Yeah! Yeah I made you chili and gave you a snack!" (You wanted to be excited, but it looked like he was having as much of a panic as you were.) "Voices? Was someone else around here?"
|No no! It's like with Siffrin, remember? When he gets all scared and weird?|
(Oh. Oh right.)
|You flutter over to Muenos and gently land on his nose with your soft, glowing light.| "It's alright, it's just us here, okay? Just breathe. There's nothing bad here, okay?"
"And if there is, I'll beat the crab outta it!!!" (You say with a big grin)
<Why's Muemue here though??? Didn' we leave him with that nice lady? Why's he here?!?>
"...R-right. Thank you, er. . .” |He took a deep breath and kept his eyes focused on you. Good!| “I do believe you, but I- I must insist that I should be the one to protect you both."
(You pouted and crossed your arms.) "Bleh, you'd be surprised." (You wrinkle your nose. What stinks?)
"I heard. . . family. Who would drag me back, and-" (You made a face at the word ‘family’, and Muenos definitely noticed.) “. . . They are dangerous people, and I will keep you out of danger."
|You flutter off of Muenos' nose after a moment and instead land on his hand. Still here and grounding, but now not blinding and in his face.| "We're not going to let them, alright? Even if they are here, which uh, I don't think they are!"
"This place is weird and tries to make you scared. I don't like it." [You peek out from the other side of where Bonnie was sitting, having appeared out of practically nowhere,.]
"So this is more akin to a dream, then. That explains... a lot..." (Muenos blinks, looking between you and Crux. Then chuckles and gently reaches the hand Ember was perched on towards you.) "We've certainly started this meeting off on the wrong face, and for that I sincerely apologize."
"No need to be sorry! It's okay!" |You flutter off of Muenos' hand and land on Bonnies head.| "A-apart from, well, all this, a lot’s happened since we last met. "
"Yeah! ‘N don’t worry about grabbing me, you thought I was your crabbin’ parents." (You nod, and begin to explain your story very animatedly.) "It was really weird. I woke up in this recurring dream I had, then everything went weird and Crux- that's Crux by the way -helped me run away from some sadness! Then we bumped into Ramos and Jasmine and stuff and then we met a GOD!!!"
(Muenos couldn’t help but giggle at some details as you talked.) "I suppose you're right, ye. . . Ah, and thank you, Crux, for saving our sunny friend."
[Your eyes brighten, but then you tug your hat down and hide behind Bonnie! No! Nice to you! No!!!]
"They are definitely not my true parents. Dad would murder them if he knew. 'Least the viscera would be entertaining." (Muenos smiles, a hand in front of his mouth.)
"Your not-parents are’a buncha BATS! Your dad seems cool though." (You go from making pouty face to excited on a dime.) "Uhm, maybe we could meet him once all this crab is over or something?"
<Ew, viscera’s gross though!>
(We've guttedd fish before you crab!!)
<But this' diff'rent!>
(Muenos blinked, confused, then rubbed his shoulder.) "I do recall, er. . . 'Joint custody,' they called it. . ?” (He shakes his head.) “Sorry, it's been a while, my mind is clouded."
"That’s okay, dunno what that is though." (Shrug.) "'Nille just said we ran away from our parents a while ago because they were crabs. I dunno though, I was just a baby."
[You blink. Huh? Did you see that?]
(No? I smell something weird though.)
<Haha Crux's seeing things!>
[Hey!!]
"A-anyway, once we met up with Ramos, we got saved from some sadness by The Dreaming One." |You take over, since those two got distracted.| "T-that's uhm, actually, how we found out we were like Siffrin. S-so uh. . . Yay?"
"The Dreaming One, they are quite kind like that.” (Muenos nods.) “If this is a dream, it's no wonder they stepped in where they could."
"Yeah, Dreamy's real nice!" (You say with a big smile.) "We had a lotta nightmares for a while n' Ramos asked them to help, n' then they started showing up in dreams and helping us out."
"They looked a lot like Ember does actually. . ." [You think to yourself.] “Uhm, where do you know them from. . . ?”
“Oh, they helped me with my own nightmares.” (He looks down and away.) “My family worshiped their mother, and I wanted to rebel. I suppose the Dreaming One took notice.”
“Ooh. . .” [You’re getting distracted. You coulda sworn you saw. . .]
"Oh yeah! Wanna snack?" (You dig into your pockets and find. . . Malanga Fritters!) "Here! Fritters for you!"
[. . . You look over]
"AND for you!" (you turn and give Crux some malanga fritters too.) "I got tons’a snacks!"
[Yay!]
(Muenos nervously reaches out, but takes the hand back.) “Er, that's alright, keep the Fritters, I'm. . . not really hungry. A bit nauseous, if I'm honest. But, thank you.”
"M'Kay! I have tons of food if you want it though. I have onigiri if you want, too!" (You unconsciously pronounce it perfectly.) “Okay.”
"I do appreciate it, my savior." (Muenos says sincerely.)
[H-HUH?!?]
|?!?!?!?! AH?!?!|
<WEH?!?!??!>
(“MY savior” ?!??! Hello?!?! You pout and look away.) "UH-- SHUT YOUR CRAB-HOLE!"
|. . . . Well, it is deserved. We did save them, and we saved Vaugarde. . .|
(Yeah but I don't wanna HEAR IT!!! You rub your nose. UGH. . . Oh yeah!)
“Headmates!" (You gesture to Crux and Ember in turn.) "This is Crux (he/they)! They're a uh, factive? Yeah factive of Siffrin! And they’re really smart! Oh ‘n this is Ember (They/them), who's super nice, too, and helps me feel really calm. Oh! And there's also Eight (They/them) who's an octopus thing but they don't wanna be around right now."
[You wave absent mindedly, but you're more focused on something else. . . You’re focused on the thing behind, next to? Around? Around Muenos. What is that. . . ?]
[It blinks at you.]
"Ah- it’s nice to meet you all, then.” (They wave, a bit awkward.) “I am Muenos, (he/him). I'm not quite a crafty hero, but I have a lot of skill in patching wounds."
"That's good!! Uhm, hopefully we don't gotta do that but y'never know!" (You nod enthusiastically.) "I'm pretty strong! Uhm, and I can cook, and uhm. . ."
"I can read stars." [You state flatly, still distracted.]
"I can help with uh. . . Light?" |You mumble, unsure.|
<AN I CAN HIT PEOPLE WITH A PAN!!!>
"And Eight can hit people." (You relay, smiling.)
[You're still only half paying attention, too curious about the creature behind Muenos. You slowly blink back. It blinks back again! Friends! Hopefully. You lean in closer to it and talk in a loud whisper.] “Can you speak?
[The shadow responded in the exact opposite of a whisper.]
"You can SEE me?!"
>>>
(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} <Altiare> |Jasmine|
{You circle the stranger, as curious, as, ever. You know this one. You can feel the mind, strong, dangerous, determined. You step around slowly. How to, proceed? You wait. Listen to the stranger. Let the wet mossy smell of darkness lull him.}
“I, I know you are there! Show yourself!!” {The voice is stern now, angry. There’s a sound, and then a flash of light from a craft. Miss.}
{Switch out? But to whom. You don’t care. Others are not here. Maybe a, connection, is needed. You creep closer still.}
{Left.}
{You dodge to the left as another blast of craft dashes the ground you had stood upon. Your foot makes a small crunching noise as you disturb loose rocks.}
{Jump.}
“THERE YOU ARE!!!” {You jump up before you’re struck, and hold there for a moment.}
{The stranger is aggressive, and walking, looking, hearing for you. You wait. You wait until he wanders closer. You reach out a hand, a tendril, reach out to touch. To connect.}
“GODS!!!!!!” {He screams as you brush the cloth of his shirt. You recoil and move as he wildly strikes the darkness.} “Cold, slimy, and, Sweet Blood Diamonds what ARE YOU?!?”
{Hmm. clothes. Too bad. Right.}
{You dash right as the person lunges. The rush of air, the clatter of metal against the floor. A dagger? A weapon? Fear. Of course. You should help. You circle again.}
“Whatever, whoever you are, don’t get in my way!” {Threats, calm voice, no wavering. Yet, still panicking.} “Unless you want to have your skin parted from your body!”
{Is that a threat? Or an invitation. You move in. The stranger turns, turns again, wild, confused. You reach out, closer, closer, hesitate? Why. . . Something is, wrong.}
“Get AWAY!” {His breathing is picking up. Panicked? Yes, panic.} “I don’t have, I don’t have time to deal with this nonsense! I need to go, I need to get going.”
(Turning and walking, almost running. Keep pace, get closer-}
“I need to find Vixul. I need to find Polaris and Muenos, and then we can look for other survivors!” {Vixul? Polaris? Muenos? You know these names, but he is not talking to you. His breathing is faster, hyperventilating} “Then once we’re to safety, I can, I can study this! I can work with this! All I need to do is just, j-just--”
{The stranger wretches, and doubles over.}
“I-I, I, just--” {Wren, for it must be him, is interrupted by a coughing fit.} “I-I, I need--”
{Something’s wrong. Something’s wrong with him. He is struggling to breathe. Choking-}
<What’s going on? I got kicked out of front, Nihil, what did you DO?!?>
{Nothing.}
<Then stop that and start HELPING HIM! You damp sock of a sadness I swear- >
{You approach. Wren sounds more and more panicked, gasping for breath.} “G-go-- gg-oa-HRK--” {Another coughing fit. You kneel down and go to gently lay a cool, human hand on his cheek.}
{. . . You pause. There is something on the floor. You pick it up.}
{. . . A flower petal.}
>>>
(Isabeau)
“Soooo. . .” (You lean against a wall of the cave, with Vixuls lantern set down between you and her. You were taking a break! Good thing too, because you had started getting light headed) “. . . Have you uh, met other versions of me, then?”
“Yyyyyep!” (Vixul’s writing something down in a big, leather-bound notebook.) “Duplicates are surprisingly common. Hell, I’ve run into other me’s out there.”
“I bet that’s confusing.” (You chuckle.) “‘Hey guys, this is me, and this is my clone from another universe!’ I’d have no idea what to say if that happened to me.”
(Vixul looks up at you, then grins.) “I know what I’d say.”
“Oh yeah?”
“‘We’re dating.’”
“PFFF--” (You have a good laugh.) “Really?!?”
“Nah, hasn’t happened yet. I usually try to keep away from myself.” (She looks off at nothing, thinking.) “Theeere was one or two times where I couldn’t avoid it, but those ended up alright.”
“Is it really that important? To stay hidden, I mean.” (You rest your head on your fist.) “You, theoretically, shouldn’t try and mess with things in the past because it could make a paradox. But how does that work for a parallel world you’re not even a part of. Wouldn’t your actions just create another parallel world?”
“That’s. . .” (She thinks about it for a while.) “. . . That’s. . . A, really good question I don’t have an answer for.”
“It’s a thinker alright. . .” (You look away and rub your shoulder. . . You. . . You, you gotta know.) “Oh yeah! I wanted to ask about, u-uh-”
“You and Siffrin stay together.” (Vixul replies flatly, going back to her book.) “In almost every tapestry of the universe I’ve seen, the threads of your story and Siffrins end up entwined until the very end.”
“. . . Almost?” (You’re thinking too much about it, Isa, stop!) “N-nevermind just- t-thanks, Vixul.”
“. . . it’s alright, Isa.” (She huffs, jots down another note, then closes her book and looks at you.) “I. . . I get it. Having someone you. . .”
“Y-yeah. . .” (There’s a long, uncomfortable silence. Your breathing quickens.) “. . . I. . . I, can’t bear it, Vixul. He, he might be gone. Sif might be, m-might be dead and. . .”
“Hey you don't know that! We’ll get out of here and find Siffrin, okay?” (Her voice reaches your ears, but not your mind.)
“I-I don’t know, I don’t know if it’s even possibly to get out of here I, I-I, I--” (You cough a few times.) “Change, I, how do we even find them?!? This place is a maze and- -cough-”
(You double over, and hear Vixul stand.) “Isa? Are you okay?”
“I-I, I’m--” (You cough again and again, until you start to wretch, feeling something bubble in your throat, your gut. You’re choking, you’re dying, you’re, y-you’re--)
“SWEET ARCEUS-”
(You cough up a wad of bloody and, a-and something else y-you. You can’t see properly, eyes blurry with tears. You’re gulping in air with your throat clear again. Vixul pats your upper back, and wipes a hand up your forehead, keeping your hair out of your face.)
“O-okay, I’m okay. I’m okay.” (You take a few steady breaths, before breathing in. . . And out. You straighten up and take a step back, dizziness waning.) “W-what, what was. . .”
(Vixul crouched down looking at something on the floor. You step closer as Vixul grabs the lantern and brings it closer until you can finally make out what it is. A small pile of blood, bile, and. . . And flower petals?!?)
“Now I’m just making a wild guess here.” (She looks up at you, then back to the mucus glob.) “But I don’t think you’re one to eat flowers.”
(You try and think of a funny response, but a word is hanging at you from the back of your brain. Oh what is it. . . Oh!) “Hanahaki? That looks like Hanahaki disease but I’ve only seen that in fiction stuff. Why is- O-oh, right.”
“. . . You’re full of surprises, and flower petals, apparently.” (She grabs her lantern, stands up, and offers you a hand.) “Yeah, that’s Hanahaki, and it’s probably feeding off of your desires.”
“G-great!" (You chuckle nervously and take her hand. Huh, desires? Like, like, Siffrin?) “Do you, do you think it’s connected to that smell?”
“Crap, so you can smell it too.” (She tugs on the fluff on her head.) “I shouldn’t have ignored it.”
(You heard a semi-familiar voice mumble “I told you so” from somewhere behind Vixul. She winces, you chuckle.) “So, just more of a reason to find the exit, huh.”
“Yeah, fresh air will do some good. Let’s get going.”
“Yes ma’am!”
>>>
(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} <Altiare> |Jasmine|
“Easy, easy.” <You shove Nihil out of the way and feel around for the stranger. Eventually, you find his back.> “Easy there, just keep breathing and take your time.”
“What-” <Another coughing fit interrupts him.> “W-who--”
“Altiare. I’ll explain in a minute but I need to know if you’re okay.” <Nihil would you get off your ass and do SOMETHING useful?!?> “What’s six times seven?”
{You sit down, and stare at the flower petal.}
“What-?! O-oh. You are testing, my mind. Forty-two.” <He takes a few more breaths.> “My turn. Who, or what, was trying to attack me?”
“It’s name is Nihil, and it was just being its creepy, curious self. What’s your name?”
“Hmph.” <He starts to stand up.> “You may call me Wren.”
“Wren?!?” (What?!? You haven’t seen him since, w-well-) “Like uh, with, Vixul and Polaris?!?”
“Yes? Do I. . .” <He snaps his unseen fingers.> “You’re Ramos, aren’t you! I remember your voice from the inn.”
“Y-yeah, uh. . .” (Oh this will be awkward.) “S-sorry, uh, about Nihil, it’s just, we, uh. . .”
“You’re also a system and discovered so after our meeting?” <Wren cuts you off.> “And headmates can manifest physically in this world, I’ve seen it. That would explain why Altiare, and you, have shown up so suddenly.”
“Alright Sherlock, slow down.” <You chuckle.> “Some of us are a bit slow on the draw.”
“H-HEY!” (You pout.) “I said I was SORRY!!”
“Now while I’m sure we could continue this riveting conversation.” (Wren grumbles.) “I, for one, want to get out of here.”
“Agreed.”
“Same, yeah.” (You rub your face.) “We just, need to catch our breath real quick.”
“Good. Now, can your friend see in the dark? It was able to find me very easily.”
{No. I just have good. Senses. In the dark.}
“It says it’s just good at sensing things in darkness.” <You huff.> “We’re as blind as you.”
“Prime.” (Wren sighs heavily, waits for a moment, then starts walking.) “Well, just follow me then, and the sound of my footsteps.”
“A-alright!” (You quickly jog to catch up.) “A-and uh, are we, gonna, ignore what happened just now?”
“And what would that be?”
“The uh, flowers?”
“Ah. That.” (Wren pauses for a moment.) “. . . That has happened four times to me already in this cave.”
“O-oh.” (You bite your lip.) “. . . If, you need any help, uh. . .”
“It is appreciated.” (Replied Wren, but by the tone of his voice, your offer was probably filed away as ‘take under advisement’.)
(Great.)
>>>
(Bonnie) [Crux] <Eight> |Ember|
"HUH!?!??!" (WHAT!?!?!? You jump to your feet. Huh?!? Uhm, what?!? HUH!?!?!?)
[Muenos froze up at both Bonnie and the beasts yelling. The shadowy figure itself just leaned in closer, eyes eager, grinning wide, and wagging its tail like a puppy. After a second, Muenos shook his head free and looked uncomfortably at you.]
"Uh." [He looks at you, then at Bonnie, nervous.] "S-sorry- yes, um--”
"Yeah!!! Yeah I can see you!!!" [You reply, not picking up on how Muenos was trying very much to ignore it.] "You look really cool, I think. I dunno. I can't see you very well though. . . But your eyes are cool."
|You're flying around the grop now, huh! W-well, I was wondering what Crux was looking at. . .|
(I wasn’t PAYING ATTENTION!)
"They’re kinda like a cats eyes. . ." |You flutter a bit closer so your glow can spread to the newcomer too. It looks pretty excited, but then you got close and it makes a lazy swipe like a cat at you|
"Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires." |That’s a very different voice! Kinda Loop-ish?|
[You catch a glimpse of its face and it’s not human; its pupils turn to slits, woah. . .]
"You... uh... can ignore that..." (Muenos mumbles, shifting stiffly to the side, a frown clear on his face.)
"Hey! That's not very nice!" |You say with a defiant huff, now insistent on landing on its head. You flutter closer.| "What's your name?"
"'N what are you?" [You stand up and creep forward, hunched down in your cloak, with eyes big and wide and sparkling.] "You look really cool. . ."
|Muenos lunged forward and grabbed the creature by the wrist as it tried to swipe at you a bit more directly. You catch a glimpse of fangs, but not much more. You stop in place as it wrenches its hand back and steps out of your glow again.|
"I'm still Muenos, but don't light me up, sunshine, that's not my style.” |It seems very, what’s the word, flamboyant? Flashy?| “Hmm, maybe you could call me Pitch (any/all)~ Because I'd rather stay in it, you see."
|It winks.|
(You shuffle over to Muenos’ side and offer a hand.) ". . . You okay?"
"S-sorry. Yes, I'm fine, just. . .” (He lets out a heavy exhale.) “Ah. . . I'm unsure how to put it into words quite yet. Are you okay?"
"Uhm, I'm fine, I think. . ." (You keep looking over to check if Muenos is okay.) ". . . I got split up from Isa and Ramos and I'm worried about ‘em, but I found you, so that's something?"
"That would stress anyone out.” (He looks squarely at pitch as he talks to Crux and Ember.) “If you're looking for them, I'd be honored to help, if you'd have me?"
"Yeah! We should stick together anyway! This place is weird, and dangerous." (You nod enthusiastically.) “Oh yeah, did you show up here with anyone?”
"O-okay! Okay, sorry Pitch! I'm sorry." |You instead decide to move over to Crux's hat.| "Uh, nice to meet you Pitch!"
"Nihil's kinda like that, with not liking light? Same with Mal." [You blink at Pitch.] "Are you a sadness?"
"I am as much sadness as you are, little bug.” [Pitch went back to its curious peeking from the shadows, its tail curled up into a little question-mark.] “Not all that is made of shadow is made of tears."
[It reaches out with its tail- black and hooked- and playfully taps your hat down over your eyes. ]
“ACK-!!!" [You dramatically scramble with your hat, very clearly playful!] "H-hey!!! Hey!!"
[As soon as the hat is back to its place, Pitch flicks your hat up and 'politely' folds its arms in mock innocence. You make a dramatically offended face and huff, tugging the hat down.]
(It looks like Muenos is being soothed by your enthusiasm and Crux’s playfulness. He sighs, and responds.) "Mm, no, I don't know where the others of my party are. I've been alone for as long as I've been, ah. . . Dreaming."
(The two of you get up. Muenos hesitates, then leans down to pick up the fabric scissors that he dropped earlier.)
"Well we can find them together! Okay?" (You rub your nose then offer a hand.) "We gotta light and we can help each other, we got this!
|Nose still weird?|
(Yeah, can’t stop smelling this stupid crabbin’ smell!)
|Aw, we’ll figure it out! You make a jingling noise and land on Bonnie's head.| "Okay! We should get going then. Right?"
[Yeah!]
<MMHN!>
(Muenos took your hand and, jokingly, half-bowed.) "Yes, my savior, let's go."
“Crab yeah!!” (Air fistbump! Though this time being called ‘his’ savior felt a bit, better?) “Alright gang, let’s get going!”
[You followed along, third in line behind Bonnie and Muenos. Looking back Pitch followed behind you. Its tail moved with little fwipping sounds in the air.] "If any of you need to rest, especially you Ember, I'm not afraid of the dark. I can keep you safe."
"Oh! 'S okay!" |You chirp again, hopping to the back of Bonnies hat to look back at Pitch and Crux.| "I'll be okay, I think. But uhm. . . That's, really nice, thanks. . ."
[You keep hanging back on the edge of Embers light, keeping Pitch company.]
(. . . So uhm. . . . Are Pitch and Muenos, uh. . . Like, us?)
|Maybe, but, let's meet up with everyone first before talking about it. . .|
(M’kay!)
[Yeah good idea.]
[. . .]
[. . . You’re not sure why, but after a few minutes of walking, you find yourself slipping more and more into the shade, closer to Pitch.]
>>>
(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} <Altiare> |Jasmine|
(It was surprisingly easy to keep up with Wren, and to keep track of where he was. It should’t have surprised you, really, Wren thinks a lot, and you have nothing to distract you. One plus one equals two.)
(-Obviously a sadness taken form as an alternate personality. As Vixul described it, that can and does happen. Blood Diamonds, and of course it was the strange one that wouldn’t, couldn’t, talk to me. Even forgetting that, how can I trust-)
(You were still undecided if you should tell Wren or not you can hear him, honestly. . . You, need some distraction, or, something! Uh. . .) “. . . Wren?”
“What is it?” (He replied, grumbling.)
(Ouch, overly aggressive but okay.) “. . . How much uh, do you know about wish craft?”
“Hmm, more than you would expect. And considering your traveling companions I assume you also know about wish craft?” (he huffs.) “If only I had a light, I could check my notes.”
“That’s fine!” (You tap you chin.) “I ask ‘cause uh, Perci made a wish, and that caused all this.”
“Why am I not surprised.” (You just KNOW he’s shaking his head.) “It takes a certain kind of person to make wishes as strong as this.”
(Like myself.)
(. . .) “Y-yeah, uh. . . Do you, know any strong wishing rituals? Or researched them? Or. . .”
“I have a few, yes.” (His voice gets more energetic as he starts to talk with passion.) “While it’s not my place to give details, I have been told that many people wishing for a similar thing, despite incorrectly doing a wish ritual, can effectively boost the wish of an individual who does a wish correctly that lines up with the collective wish.”
“Makes sense.” (Isn’t that what happened to Siffrin?)
“What’s more, however, is it takes more than a powerful will, or collective will, in order to make a powerful wish. It also must be combined with a powerful wishing ritual. Do you know what kind of wishing ritual, or rituals, lead to this?”
“W-well. . .” (Oh boy.) “. . . Perci, cut open Siffrins chest, and ate a star from inside their heart.”
(Wren stops suddenly. (No. . . He ate the star, the same one. . ?) What? (Loop described it as they ate a star. Their wish, it reset the world, of course-) WHAT??)
“Y-you know who Loop is?!?” (You yelp.)
“What? Wait, you’re reading my thoughts!” (You hear a shuffling, then feel Wren kick you in the leg.) “And how do YOU know that!”
“S-sorry I can’t stop it- a-and, Loop, they, t-they showed me!” (You wince, taking a step back.) “S-sorry really! I’m sorry! I legitimately can’t turn it off, it’s, I-I-”
“It’s second nature, isn’t it. Like hearing.” (There’s an annoyed huff before Wren continues walking again.) “Fine. And yes, Loop told me who they are.”
“. . . Why?”
“. . .” (You feel sorrow seeping out of your wandering companion.) “. . . They did not want me to make the same mistakes they did.”
“. . . O-oh.” (There is a long, awkward pause.)
“. . . . . . . . So, Perci wished upon a star.” (Wren continues like nothing had happened.) “That is by far the strongest wish ritual I know, but not the only option. Perhaps someone could make a counter wish? The will of the people who all want to awaken from this nightmare may make up for a weaker wishing ritual.”
“Yeah, we don’t exactly have a star to take a bite out of, do we.”
“Exactly.” (Wren let out a single “ha”.) “There are complex, multi-people wishing rituals, but those require people who know exactly what they are doing. There are ones that take sacrifices, but those are archaic and I don’t know enough about them. There is a rather dangerous one that could work, but that requires stabbing yourself in the heart.”
“What?!?”
“And surviving it for twenty-four hours without help. I haven’t found any records of it actually being done, only its name; Bladeheart Ritual.”
“. . . I. . .” (You shudder.) “M-maybe, that should be a last resort.”
“Agreed.” (Wren hums.) “Now, my turn. Tell me about your mind craft.”
(Oh boy.) “Well, it started with me being an idiot. . .”
