[b]Ourania![/b] “Your radiance, I am [i]appalled[/i] at the state of these bindings.” Underneath you, Argossa trembles. You remember when you came to this place, this beautiful jewel; the memories are a thin and welcome skim over a deep ocean of pain. Far away, you tremble, shake, slip for the first time in centuries. Water trickles away into the black from cracks in your wall, islands tilt and flood, and magic bleeds around you. If Hyperborea survives, it will be lesser in some small way because you failed, here at the very end. And it is the beauty of the world you protect that it will forgive you. [i]How your head towered over the mountains full of dragons and crystals! How the devils offered you gifts! Jewels and silks and bouquets and other silly things. All they needed to offer were the epic mushroom quatrains of the lachrymose poets of Deep Hollow, and the smiles on the faces of gardeners in lush Feloria; you were caught, as if bound, by the light shining through fountains in Ilumina, and the serpentine dances of the nomads of Jedad, and the lazy sunbathing of the cats of Askaia. You hold this world in your coils for love, the greatest invention of devilkind.[/i] Around you, the Garthim go still, and the fox princess shifts you in her arms. You are limp, your head nestled in her shoulder, your train trailing behind her as your heels bob inches from the ground. Your nerves are alight with pain, but you don’t let yourself worry about that. You are being held by one of the foxes of Konkon, your old rivals, your fondest foes, and you know that she will do her best to treat your agony, and that your little princesses will save the day. They are so brave. You are so [i]proud[/i] of them. You feel Oberon coming before Kyouko does. You try to warn her, but your cry is garbled and weak. He grabs her by the scruff; her grip around you tightens by instinct, stopping her from using her clever tricks to escape. You wish you could tell her to leave you behind, please, just get to safety. Oberon tears you out of her arms; you hit the ground, and the pain bursts through your thoughts. You scream, and only through tears see him fling the fox skywards, hurtling to her doom miles and miles away. You’re so sorry, Kyouko. Oberon drags you to the edge, fist knotted in your dress, and hauls you upright. You can see the princesses behind him, converging tightly, but hesitant to strike while he has you in such a dangerous position. (And if they knew that your death throes would crush and drown this world in blind agony...) “You know,” he says, between rough kisses to your neck, your jaw, leaving bruises where he bites, “this will be the soonest I’ve ever lost a wife. I’m sorry, my love.” And while he doesn’t fool you... You can tell that he’s managed to fool himself. [HEART OF IRON: Jessamine’s attack automatically fails, and Alina must relive her pain and choose to pay a price, stand down, or attack him now.]