[center][h2][b]Ophelia[/b][/h2][/center]

Ophelia's world had narrowed down to Arrayah's chilling gaze in that instant, as the whispers in her mind lost the sense of surety and serenity she'd relied on so far. It panicked her like nothing else, and feeble though her grip was before a monstrosity like Arrayah her grip on the Holy Moonlight Sword did not relent or yield for a second, almost as though rigor mortis had already set in. The breaking and repairing of her wrist repeating over and over was some dull background concern compared to the final reserves of stubborn defiance and adrenaline she felt surging, and she did not even hear the gunshot that ended her grip on consciousness nor feel its sultry kiss any more than the other torments visited upon her leading up to the crescendo as nothingness overtook her... and she awoke within the Dream, as though from a slumber that never was. 

She could feel the comforting grip of the Holy Moonlight Sword in her hands, see its sidereal radiance, hear its whispers... she was whole, preserved, and had another chance. Most of the panic had been chemical, her body pushed to the very brink of expiration and desperation, and here in the Dream there was a haziness that made those final moments feel so... far away, like she only had to focus upon them if she truly wished to. Again she reflected on how many times Gerlinde must have done this, how the promise of constancy afforded her the luxury of abandon... how easy it could be, truly, to forget that the Waking World had ever existed at all... or to forget that it was distinct and different from these realms of Dream.

A good ten seconds passed in solemn reflection before she knelt to beckon forth the Messengers, bidding them deliver the runebrand. She was amazed not only by the efficacy of Arrayah's power, by how it seemed to convince their minds so thoroughly it was not there that they physically weren't capable of reacting to it, but by the prospect of obtaining that power for herself. Against such a power, what could possibly stand? Adelaide's gift once again had proven its worth, and her mind drifted towards the sweet lightbeast even as her right hand gripped the brand firmly. After they were done... they had to go and direct Adelaide to the Crow's Nest... and explore the Woods. She'd been foolish, she realised in hindsight, to delve so deeply into the mystery behind it all--anonymity would have afforded them ample advantages, let them learn the lay of the land in peace before their enemy knew to mobilise. Arrayah's rune and the Holy Moonlight Sword made whole would make up for it, though, of that Ophelia was certain.