[center][h3]Forbidden Kingdom - Tyrannia[/h3]

[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG3CsmeQY7g][img]https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2017/nc/fossils_club.jpg[/img][/url]
[i]♫[/i][/center]

In the northwest reaches of the Forbidden Kingdom sprawled the vast and untracked Tyrannian Plateau, an arid and rocky table-land dotted by towering volcanoes and carved up by great canyons and valleys of steamy, primeval, heavily [url=https://survivetheark.com/uploads/monthly_2021_12/1890512087_ARK_LostIsland_Screenshot_04_2560x1440(1).jpg.b64d93c37251017a1920d4d2f081dde3.jpg]jungled riverland[/url]. From the pre-sumerian [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/61a7bc5dd788.png]suburbs[/url] to the [url=https://oyster.ignimgs.com/mediawiki/apis.ign.com/super-mario-odyssey/5/5c/2017082715403400-8AEDFF741E2D23FBED39474178692DAF.jpg?width=1280]breathtaking cascades[/url] of the central basin to the bone-littered [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/1e8e60814bcc.png]lava flows[/url] of the Skelos Badlands near Death Mountain, it was a realm perpetually locked in the distant past, the stomping grounds of [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/03eb2762d00f.png]cantankerous cavemen[/url] clad in leopard-pelts and [url=https://cdn.artstation.com/p/thumbnails/000/387/597/thumb.jpg]giant reptiles[/url] where size and strength were everything. Over this savage land the Avenger soared unnoticed, blissfully free from the gaze of watchful binoculars, radar towers, and satellite tracking, to rattle off a salvo of four hellpods bound for a high, dusty [url=https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/review/98/171998-3.jpg]ridge[/url] crowned by spiky, coniferous monkey-puzzle trees. Once the four operatives recovered from their drop, shooed away a couple curious dinosaurs, and hiked a short way to the nearby overlook, they were afforded a spectacular look at their destination. Before them lay an enormous sandstone city, its domed towers radiant in the early afternoon sunlight, not at all to the absurd scale of Midgar, but impressive nonetheless.

After a long, deep breath, Anais Partridge turned back toward her companions with the aid of her crutches. Though she’d come a long way from her childhood home, as evidenced by her very modern white silk blouse and black newsboy cap, the lavender-and-brunette seamstress had been indelibly marked by her time here. It had changed a great deal, but so had she. It need not be a woeful homecoming.

“This is it,” she told the others. “Warfang. The capital of the Tyrannian Plateau.”

[center][img]https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/ace2fcb7346e.webp[/img][/center]

When her companions offered no comment, she turned back toward the wasteland metropolis below. Her gaze lingered on the huge [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/dc071a6e8959.png]stone fortress[/url] that dominated the city center, adorned with carved faces several stories in height and constantly rotating. “Well, it’s not like Tyrannia has any other cities to speak of. The people of this region mostly fight over this one. As recently as ten years ago, it was home to the Mokai, a society of dragonriders. Now, it is home to dragons.”

[color=ec008c]“Dragons?”[/color] Susie’s baby-blue optics widened slightly as the robotic secretary tried to get a better look at Warfang. [color=ec008c]“Are you serious?”[/color]

“They’re mostly friendly, but yes, dragons.” Anais smiled teasingly. “No hostile takeovers today, hm?”

Susie gave a staticky scoff. [color=ec008c]“Hmph. Dragon or not, money talks. But since it’s just a quick trip, I guess I’ll mind my own ‘business’ for now.”[/color]

With a slight tilt of her head, Poppi gave Anais a thoughtful look. “It sounds like you’ve been keeping eye on place. Friend Anais visit often?”

“Oh no, no.” Anais shook her head. “The Warfang I knew is gone. There’s nothing for me here now. But I stay informed enough that it’s still my area of expertise.” This time, she gave a wry smile. “It’s why SJ picked me, after all. Hopefully I won’t be too much of a burden.”

Furrowing her brow, the Artificial Blade shook her head. “Friend of Poppi is never burden.”

At that point, the team’s taciturn fourth member, who’d been staring in solemn silence at Warfang from a higher precipice nearby, hopped down. Sorely out of place in a daylit wilderness, Grimm landed as light as a feather and stalked forward on spindly ink-black legs, his cloak rustling softly in the warm breeze. The gloomy insect said not a word but passed by the three ladies on his way to the edge, then jumped down and vanished like a dream upon waking. 

Careful not to overbalance, Anais leaned over the edge and peered down to see Grimm sliding down the rocky slope below. “I suppose we’d better get going,” she muttered, looking around until she found a less steep, more plausible route down the mountain toward Warfang. “Don’t wait for me. I can manage on my own.”

“Well, that not do,” Poppi chuckled. “How about piggy-back ride? Masterpon ride piggy-back all time, and nopon not [i]that[/i] different from human.” 

For a second or two Anais blinked at her, not sure if she was joking. It was long enough for Susie to grow impatient. [color=ec008c]”I’ve got a much better idea. Here.”[/color] With the press of a button, the secretary summoned her heavy-duty [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/893cfaded4f1.png]mech[/url], painted as pink as her hair, which slammed down hard enough to send Anais’ own waist-length hair billowing. [color=ec008c]”Normally it costs a pretty penny to rent this thing out, but since you’re basically crippled, this one’s on me. Just be careful. It’s sturdy, but if you do damage it, I’ll expect repayment in full. Plus interest!”[/color]

“Thanks…” The seamstress eyed the machine dubiously, then gave a sigh after a moment. “Well. If a nopon is basically a human, a mech is basically a dragon, right? Might as well.”

After Poppi helped her into the machine and Susie gave her a quick tutorial, the mech got moving. Its drill allowed for a controlled descent down the steep, dusty surface of the mountain, and despite her doubts Anais got a feel for the mech quickly. That left the two mechanical maidens to follow behind, keeping an eye on the Lost Number as they hovered after her.

[color=ec008c]”It’s weird having you around without Tora,”[/color] Susie remarked to Poppi idly. [color=ec008c]”I kind of like it, actually. What’s this super-important project he can’t tear himself away from?”[/color]

“Poppi not at liberty to say,” the Artificial Blade replied. “...Although, between Susie and Poppi, it seem like Masterpon hard at work -literally- on next generation of Blade-style ladybot, bigger and better than ever.” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Poppi try not judge anypon for freaky tastes, but if Masterpon try replacing Poppi, he in serious trouble.”

Susie narrowed her eyes at her comrade. [color=ec008c]“Replace? You think he doesn’t want you anymore after he rebuilt you in Midgar?”[/color] She tilted her head. [color=ec008c]“Well, since he used mostly Vandelay tech for your new body, I guess you’re not really a ‘Blade’ anymore, hm? And if you’re not a Blade, he’s not much of a Driver. I see where you’re coming from…”[/color]

“‘Friend’ Susie really not helping!” Poppi snapped.

At length the three reached the lower plateau. Naturally, they found no sign of Grimm anywhere, but once they made the short trek from the foot of the mountain to the gates of Warfang they found the big bug already veiled in shadow. Up close, the city of dragons seemed bigger than ever, with everything from doorways to drinking fountains scaled up to suit the draconic citizenry. Draconic imagery was everywhere, most obvious in various majestic statues depicting important members of the four guilds: Peacekeepers, Artisans, Beastmakers, and Dreamweavers. In a place like this, the three did not mind an unseen presence watching their backs. It did not take long at all for the newcomers to spot a couple peacekeeper dragons, since two happened to be guarding the gate: the purple-colored, triceratops-horned [url=https://i0.wp.com/monsterbrainsoup.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/HalvorRT-1024x974.png?resize=1024%2C974]Halvor[/url] with his metallic slab of a greathammer, and the quintessential tough guy [url=https://i0.wp.com/www.monsterbrainsoup.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Gunnar_Reignited.jpg?w=692&ssl=1]gunnar[/url], who flaunted a spiky black mohawk and proud green scales. Not every reptile in sight was a person, though; there were plenty of [url=https://www.pokemon.com/static-assets/content-assets/cms2/img/pokedex/full/783.png]scaly beasts[/url] accompanying residents on their day-to-day activities, which could make telling who was and wasn’t sentient a difficult task.

Pretty much right away, Anais pulled a large leaf off a plant to fan herself with. “Whew…it’s just as hot as I remember. The one thing that hasn’t changed, I suppose.”

Once the trio talked their way in, they found dragons most everywhere, from refined artisans to sleepy dream-weavers. They also found a surprising number of moles, sometimes underfoot, and after nearly tripping over an especially [url=https://banjokazooiewiki.s3.us-east-va.io.cloud.ovh.us/4/41/Bottles_Spirit.png]shortsighted fellow[/url] Susie began to get annoyed. [color=ec008c]“What’s with all the moles? I thought this was a city of dragons.”[/color]

Anais seemed much more at ease as she hobbled onward, leading the group deeper into the city. “The moles built Warfang in honor of the dragons, who they revered,” she explained. “Actually, what you’re seeing isn’t the original Warfang. Back when…oh, look!” The young woman excitedly pointed out a [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/dc838e65e68e.png]crude wheel[/url] and a very bored-looking attendant by a nearby marketplace, in front of which a handful of dragons, cavemen, argonians, and moles either dozed or watched the wheel slowly turn. “The Wheel of Monotony. That thing spins for hours…I can’t believe it’s still around.”

Grimm emerged from the shadows, drawn by the smell of a particular market stall. “Omelettes, get your omelettes here!” a [url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/7e77855828eb.png]Tyrannian Chomby[/url] declared. “Fresh from the [url=https://cdn.staticneo.com/w/neopets/Giant_Omelette.gif]giant omelette[/url] out west! We got cheese, bacon, sausage, barbeque, mushroom? You want Ugga Melon? We got it! Omelettes, omelettes here!”

Realizing he was getting as distracted as the others, Grimm narrowed his scarlet eyes and moved on, sweeping in to appear suddenly by the others. [color=ef6069]”The Consul,”[/color] he rasped, his voice low. He stared upward at the rotating fortress with its ghastly graven faces, very different from its sandstone surroundings. [color=ef6069]”Surely sequestered within a seat of power such as that.”[/color]

Now recovered from the brief scare, Anais nodded. “I thought so too. This is R’s domain, and I’m sure he must depart from there. We just need to find out when and how.”

[color=ef6069]”I shall slip inside,”[/color] Grimm decided, and the next moment he was gone.

Susie put her hands on her hips. [color=ec008c]”Guess that leaves us to find out what we can out here. And try to find that Kayna girl Primrose knows.”[/color]

“You two go ahead,” Anais told the robots. “I’ll find somewhere up high where I can keep an eye on the fortress from outside. Make sure R doesn’t fly the coop before we get a bead on him.” She nodded, her expression serious and determined. “Let’s move.”

[center][h3]Forbidden Kingdom - Ashwat Village[/h3]
[b]Setting:[/b] Cloudy Friday Afternoon
Lvl 15 Ms Fortune (282/150) Level 11 Big Band (221/110)
Amaterasu’s [@DracoLunaris] Roland’s [@Archmage MC] Pit’s [@Yankee] Sakura & Juri’s [@Zoey Boey] Captain Falcon’s [@Double] Yayama’s [@Chevaleresse] Grima’s [@Goggy]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1209

[img]https://i.imgur.com/p6tvyk5.png[/img][/center]

By the time Nadia finally sauntered through Esaka’s northern gate, aloof in the face of two watchful Aurumaton gatekeepers, the weather had begun to change. Since she crawled out of bed that morning the region had been overcast, blanketed by thick, morose, gray stratocumuli stifling and drizzly enough to convince many folks to stay snuggled up indoors. Now though, rays of sunlight sliced through the depressing cloud cover to shine down upon the rolling fields of golden grain to the north. It was a beautiful sight. Nadia was a city girl at heart, but after two whole days holed up in Esaka, some fresh air and wide-open space thrilled her with a sense of boundless adventure.

Of course, her mission this afternoon amounted to little more than assassination, but if anyone deserves to be knocked down a peg or two it was the Consuls. If the Seekers did manage to take down the Moebius member rumored to be on his way to Esaka, their campaign to save the worlds would be that much easier.

Admittedly, Nadia had no idea how she and the comrades she’d be meeting soon would accomplish that, but as far as she knew there were people on the case. Plus, the smarter and more responsible people on the team, like Big Band and Pit, could handle the particulars. In this case, Nadia didn’t mind playing the role of a gun that the others could point and shoot. Having originally planned to go solo until she won Mortal Kombat, the feral knew that she needed to do her part and get back into the others’ good graces. If luck was really on her side, the attitudes of Primrose and Roland represented the rest, and her mistake would be met with forgiveness–or at least, indifference. What happened, Nadia told herself, had been an accident. A brutal one, but an accident nonetheless.

Once she reached Ashwat Village, Nadia slowed her jog to a stroll and kept her eyes out, but didn’t see any other Seekers yet. Right now, she was alone. Not even Beowulf kept her company, since the wrestler had separated from her to see if he could take her advice and snag a useful spirit before his next match. As for Nadia, her fight against Taokaka and Bullet had actually been her ticket into Top 16, which meant no more fights today. And if she won her match tomorrow, a coveted Top 8 spot would be hers. She hadn’t quite memorized the bracket format yet, so she didn’t know how close that put her to the Grand Finals, but she was close. Close enough that she could already smell it.

…Or was that the scent of freshly baked bread?

Thanks to the improved weather, plenty of villagers were outside enjoying a late lunch, while the bakers and housewives who supplied such meals were already at work on bánh mì không baguettes for the evening. With wheat or rice flour fresh from Ashwat’s mills and the grains themselves harvested from fields mere hundreds of feet away from the settlement’s perimeter, visitors couldn’t eat any more locally than this. Nadia was still full from her consolatory kebabs, but she could still appreciate the aroma as she wandered around, waiting for other Seekers to show up.

She paused at the village center, the plus-shaped crossroads that made Ashwat a travel destination for anyone who was anyone in the Forbidden Kingdom. With a grin she remembered the yokai riot from two days prior…what had that pleasant woman called it? A Seethe? That one yokai who thought he could block her ‘wack-ass’ mixup still made her laugh. Her stunt had been a parlor trick back then, but since then she’d needed to put all that devilish trickiness (and more) into practice against the likes of Maya, Mira, Taokaka, and Bullet. And now that Maya’s power was hers, it would only get crazier from here.

A familiar heavy trudging caught the feral’s attention, causing her ears to swivel toward the south. When she turned, she laid eyes on the giant detective Big Band, who had already spotted her. Her first instinct was to disappear into the backdrop, but Nadia let out a sigh and braced herself instead. This was always going to happen sooner or later, so she might as well get it over with. Putting one hand in her pocket, she used her other to wave as Band approached.

“Afternoon,” the detective greeted her, looking her over. “Nice new duds you got there. That your idea of layin’ low? Or are you livin’ large on the money you stole?”

[i]Here we go,[/i] Nadia thought. She would have rolled her eyes if Band didn’t have a point. “Hey, a girl’s gotta live a little,” she joked weakly. “Ehh…if only everyone at Banishing Flats got that chance.” Though her gaze remained shamefully pointed at the ground, she snuck a glance at Band. He raised an eyebrow at her but kept quiet, his incoming repartee pre-empted by Nadia’s admitted guilt. [i]Heh[/i]. Though she was genuinely remorseful, and not the brightest banana in the bunch, the feral had enough emotional intelligence to tip the scales in her favor. 

She continued. “I didn’t know who I was messin’ with, or the length’s he’d go to. That’s on me. But I’m gonna make up for it by doin’ my job and then some.” Nadia gave him a wry smile, wondering how many more Seekers she’d need to show contrition for. “I tracked Kazuya down this mornin’ and tried to take him out. Things didn’t go so hot…he knocked my block off with a single punch. Survived by fakin’ my death. I’d show you my scars to prove it, but…healin’ powers, and all that.” 

“Tracked him down?” Band asked, moving aside as a villager walked past with a bushel under both arms. “How?”

[i]Uh oh.[/i] Nadia’s slight fib had already backfired on her, as she hadn’t expected Band to focus on that part. “Uh…made a new friend. Wrestler by the name of Beowulf. He’s in Tekken, knows all the big players.”

“Uh huh.”

The feral tried to keep her ears from flattening as her tail twitched uneasily, but as always her smile held firm. “In fact, I think he might be a candidate to win for us, since Roland’s the only one left. Went ahead and freed him.”

Band didn’t reply for a moment. Then he gave a shrug. “Well, in my younger years I mighta been all ‘you reap what you sow’, but we’ve all done things we ain’t proud of. In the end, the fault lies with Kazuya, not you. The fact you’re here is all I need.”

With a long exhale, Nadia allowed the tension she’d been holding in to leave her body. She made a show of wiping sweat off her brow. “Whew. Purr-etty nice of you…you sure you’re a cop?”

The detective snorted. “I ain’t worn a badge in years.” He paused, his brow furrowing, then gave a wry smile. “Actually, with how things are ‘round here, I guess I ain’t ever worn one. Life’s a funny thing sometimes.”

Nadia gave a half-hearted chuckle, turning to scan Ashwat Village for any more Gold Team Seekers. “Hahaa, yeah…”

[center][h3]Frozen Highlands - Moon Mountain[/h3]
[b]Setting:[/b] Frigid Friday Afternoon
Lvl 10 Sandalphon (99/100) Level 8 Heismay (80/80)
Edward’s [@DracoLunaris] Blazermate & Sectonia’s [@Archmage MC] Ace Cadet’s [@Yankee] Roxas & Ganondorf’s [@Double] Ramattra’s [@XoXKieroBombXoX] Mokou’s [@Goggy]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1606[/center]

Flanked by his new companions, Heismay brandished his scythe and braced himself. He tried to throw together a battle plan to make the best of the cat brothers, but leadership was not his strong suit. He had no idea what the pair could do (if anything) and had very little experience ever thinking beyond himself in combat, always laser-focused on the head-to-head fight rather than the bigger picture. It involved a complete perspective shift, and right now, such a thing was totally beyond him. His mind raced and his heart pounded, galvanized into wild overdrive by the young voice he never thought he’d heard again, the cherished memory nearly erased by the ravages of time and alcoholism. How was this possible? It shouldn’t be. It must be some kind of trick. An insidious illusion, meant to disarm and deceive.

The shadows before him, however, seemed to be a very real threat.

Several bulled forward to attack at once, while others remained in the back, pitching hardened slumps of darkness that never seemed to end. They aimed cruel kicks at the young cats, though the brothers quickly proved more combat-capable than the average feline. Whopper dodged many the blows and thrown stones, then returned fire by hurling nails like tiny spears, small but sharp. Baconator lacked his littermate’s agility, but his clash slashes hurt a lot more than the nails, and thanks to the Bruise status inflicted by his Nip ability he could slowly turn fights in his favor as his damage output constantly ramped up.

Right now, though, Heismay wasn’t really focused on his charges. Instead he faced off against several Paripus shadows, unarmed but empowered by a savage rage. He couldn’t commit to any target for more than a second or two at a time, so his quick, glancing blows could not dispatch them. As time went on, however, he became increasingly convinced that he wasn’t doing any damage at. No matter how many times he slashed at the rioters, they just kept coming, the shadowy substance of their bodies none the worse for wear. This kept him on the backfoot, steadily pushed farther and farther away from the main throng, where his son’s cries for help were lost amidst angry shouts.

Beginning to panic, Heismay let out a snarl of helpless frustration. “Damn it, I need time to think,” he muttered. His mind raced to come up with a solution, and it landed on a technique he’d used back during the sandworm’s den, a form of practical magic that predated his discovery of Archetypes. Its flaw made it more useful against mindless beasts than intelligent opponents, but hopefully it would work here. “Secret Technique: Clone Art!” With a series of hand motions, the eugief summoned three illusory duplicates. When a Paripus lashed out at one, the clone instantly burst into light, which threw the attacker back, stunned. “Have at you!” Heismay launched forward with the other two doubles and slashed at the other three rioters. They reeled, giving the eugief the chance to push forward, and with a bullet jump Heismay surged into the crowd.

“Son!” The three Heismays pushed in with a whirlwind of bladed attacks, slowly cutting a route through the rancorous throng. “I’m coming! Where are you?”

[i]“Dad, I’m over here!”[/i]

Heismay glared between the shadowy legs, but he saw no sign of the young eugief he sought. For a terrifying moment, he wondered if it was because he could no longer remember his son’s face…but no, even if that was the case, surely there had to be a spot of cream-colored fur somewhere. Somewhere! “...Where!?”

[i]”Over here!”[/i]

That came from a different direction. With a growl, Heismay deflected a rioter’s grasping hand with the flat of his blade. Behind him, both of his leftover clones were gone, so Heismay leaped into the air to escape the enclosing crowd. From above he tried to get a better look at the situation while gliding. He saw nothing but a sea of shadowy figures. They were too tall, too boisterous, looming over his little boy, crushing him beneath their feet. Heismay gritted his teeth. He was running out of time.

“Just stay put!” The hermit summoned another batch of clones and descended, landing atop a rioter whose face he began to hammer with his scythe’s pommel. “I’m almost there!”

A pained yowl from behind made him jerk his head back toward the alcove’s entrance. Heismay watched, aghast, as Whopper landed near the cliffside path’s edge, his gray fur matted with blood. Baconator ran back to take up a defensive position in front of him, hissing as the dark figures closed in. They needed his help.

“Hold on,” Heismay called as he searched the area desperately for any sign of his son. “I need to- he must-!”

Groaning, Whopper began to hurl nails at his brother’s back, each one spurring Baconator to make an extra attack. With his attack speed roughly doubled, the scruffy cat beat the Paripus back with a flurry of blows, but the friendly fire damage piled up quickly. Their desperate strategy would last only a few seconds.

[i]”Dad, it hurts! Please!”[/i]

Heismay’s shallow, ragged breath caught in his lungs. His son’s terrified voice sounded close, but the cats…they were going to die. Less than an hour after they’d chosen Heismay as their owner, and they were moments away from being destroyed by their guardian’s failures. Another dismal failure on the eugief’s part to weigh on his fractured conscience. A chill ran down his spine. For a moment, the muscles in his shoulders and arms went slack, his mouth hanging open as he perched precariously atop a stupefied shadow.

“...No more,” he growled after a moment. “Not this time.” He glanced at the leering Paripus around him, all slobbering grins and taunting words. Tears pooled in his eyes. Then he sprang forward, bouncing across the furry heads like stepping stones, until he landed in front of his cats.

“My son…is dead. Dead, you hear me? Dead!” He howled, tears streaming down his face. He seized his amulet with his off hand and held it aloft. “I carry him with me, here! Always! You have not taken him from me…and you’ll take nothing else!” Orange lines spread across his body before he transformed into the Assassin. “These youngs ones are still alive, and as long as I draw breath, I shall keep it that way!” He reached down and scooped his cats into one arm before shouldering his curved greatsword with the other. “We are leaving this place. This memory. Try and stop us, if you dare!”

Meanwhile, Sandalphon struggled to stand as her feline companion Saranwrap stood before her. Every joint ached with the grinding pain of the Petrification Disease, her frayed nerves alight with pain. The Staff of the Frost Atronach was sturdy enough to support her weight, but whether or not she could push herself upright after her fall was another story. Saranwrap glanced back at her, confused why her new partner wasn’t rising, until she realized that she needed to take action herself.

[center][hider=Cat Obtained][url=https://cdn.imgchest.com/files/e434fe9fc12b.png][b]Saranwrap[/b][/url]
Class: Cleric
Con++/Cha++/Dex-/Spd-
Active: [b]Pray[/b]
Provide a minor heal to all units in an area
Passive: [b]Heathens![/b]
At the start of battle inflict Weakness on all foes for 30 seconds, decreasing all outgoing physical damage[/hider][/center]

Putting her paws together, Saranwrap meowed a quick prayer. A little light filled the area around Sandalphon, and she found her wounds restored somewhat, although the Petrification Disease within her remained unaffected. The assistance proved sufficient to allow her to stand up with her staff’s help, just in time to see one of the crippled archangel shadows to take a swing at Saranwrap from behind. The old cat yowled in surprise as she went tumbling, although the Weakness inflicted by her passive allowed her to withstand the blow.

“Little one!” Sandalphon stepped over the scruffy old beast defensively, shaking from cold and fear alike. Bit by bit the specters of her fallen kin dragged themselves closer, their agonized and accusatory voices even worse than their gruesomely broken bodies. With no other allies in sight somehow, the more human part of Sandalphon felt dangerously close to panic, but her original, more logical self fixated upon a fact that she couldn’t ignore, a truth as crushing as it was liberating: this wasn’t right.

Or rather, it wasn’t [i]correct[/i].

“Invalid,” she muttered through gritted teeth.

The shadows paused, as Sandalphon looked up, her pupil an inverted triangle. “This is illogical. Whatever it may be, whether trial, torture, or some attempt karmic justice, it is irrelevant. Mistaken. Fundamentally illegitimate.”

Sandalphon braced herself, breathing deep of the ice-cold air, and committed herself to the correct perspective. “I am not Sandalphon. I am but an instance. An iteration. These memories that confront me were implanted. I never did those things. I never knew these people. These are immutable facts. As such, I feel no complicity. No guilt. This cross is simply not mine to bear.” With a disdainful look she turned to hobble off, between two motionless phantoms, away from this perilous stone tower and back toward the upward mountainside path. Saranwrap trotted after her, still understandably nervous, but when the old cat looked back she saw nothing but shapeless shadow. 

“This iteration of Sandalphon will terminate soon,” the archangel grumbled. The bitter cold seeped into her, yet her body held firm. Like stone. “But I need to get just a bit farther.”