Nona fell to her knees, whimpering. A blind, thoughtless fear consumed her. She was alone, helpless, without even the security of clothes. Simply being in the presence of Avak's manifestation was torture; when he spoke, spikes of suffering pierced her mind, causing agonizing pain. The former Keeper took great pleasure in her torment. He approached, settling one colossal, pointed leg on the ivory-white ground of this plane one at a time. His leechlike mouth hung open, as if it were feasting on its victim's terror. After a few moments of this, the abominable being spoke again. [b]SEE HOW YOU COWER BEFORE ME? IT IS YOUR RIGHTFUL PLACE. YOU WERE NEVER MORE THAN A PAWN FOR ME, A MEANS OF RETURNING TO LIFE. YOU MIGHT HAVE FOOLISHLY THOUGHT YOURSELF IN CONTROL, BUT IT WAS I ALL ALONG. WHERE DID YOU THINK YOUR MAGIC CAME FROM?[/b] Finally, the behemoth stood over the girl's body. It grabbed her with a single callous claw and lifted her up so that her last moments could be spent staring fixedly into his four cruel, vile green eyes. Up close Avak was even more hideous, and his telepathic influence all the more forceful, and Nona's mind was on the verge of shattering. [b]STUPID, TINY WORM. HOW DARE YOU THINK YOURSELF MY EQUAL—MY RIVAL.[/b] Each word was accentuated now, his reverberating, rattling voice dripping with contempt. [b]YOU. DISGUST. ME.[/b] The circle of fangs opened wide once more, and without any hesitation Avak's jaws snapped shut around Nona's upper body, severing it and swallowing it whole. He sneered and tossed the remainder of the corpse aside. Avak then became aware that nothing was happening. The plane upon which he clung to life existed in the mind of the being called Clotho; with the death of her mind, he should have immediately awoken in control of her body. For the first time, an uneasiness came over the colossal insect, and after a brief bout of growling and hissing he settled down to ponder the situation. As he did so, he became aware of a slight noise. Further observation pinpointed the sound as a mad laugh—and coming from within him no less. As he irately considered the implications of this, the laughter grew steadily louder, until it was hard for the Swamp Keeper to think. A new ache began, but in his head now; as the laughter increased in intensity, the pain did as well. Finally it was so loud and so hurtful that he clasped his claws against his shelled head, wailing. [b]AAAAAAAAAAAAGH WHAT IS THIS MAGIC!?[/b] he shrieked, swaying back and forth on his crablike limbs. A second voice came from within, barely audible through the mocking laughter. It was spiteful and terrifying, yet familiar. [b][i]YOU CAN'T CONTROL ME.[/b][/i] The infinite whiteness in every direction began to collapse, and the bodies of the monster and the maiden swirled away into nothingness with them until all that remained was noise. -=-=- Wind whistled through the tears in the Heart Chamber's wall. Within, the Scorrow on the ground lay limp and still, yet alive. Next to her lay the body of a young woman, twenty years of age, wearing the clothes that had disappeared the day she had transformed. Her eyes opened slowly, and she took her first breath. Her mouth twisted into a grim smile, and her eyes shone with yellow light. Clumsily but with determination the woman worked herself to her feet. She shambled toward her Heart, and fell into it. Around her the warm, soothing threads closed, wrapping around the human body more tightly than a clay mold. A few minutes later she tore free of the cocoon and stepped out into the room's chilly, fresh air. Her avatar was more or less like the one that came before, with the exception of slightly improved armor and some green coloration. At that same time, the Scorrow regained consciousness to study the Keeper standing above her with bleary eyes. “Are you free?” Clotho looked down as if noticing the woman for the first time. She knelt, and as she did her new wings -four long, radiant ones, shiny green with yellow membrane- flared out into position. “Yes,” she whispered, a trace of throatiness in her voice. “The monster in my head is gone, and some of his power has fallen to me. Now I am nobody but me.” The Scorrow breathed a raspy sigh. “I am glad.” Clotho laughed maniacally. “You shouldn't be, scorps. The beast took poor little Nona away, and all that's rattling around up in here,” she flicked the side of her horned head, and her yellow eyes gleamed like stars, “is Clotho.” [u]Compendium Update[/u] Clotho the Swarm Keeper - A low-born human girl called Nona was stung by an insect carrying the soul of a Keeper from an age long past, and the fusion of the two minds made her. A confrontation with the Keeper inhabiting her turned in her favor and has almost erased her human side. She is a tall, lithe physical fighter that prefers speed to brute strength and is a master of bugs. She is a foot taller than most men, with long arms and legs, and has a brown and green spiny, chitinous exoskeleton. Four gossamer rounded wings form into a cloak when not in use. A mohawk of sorts adorns her head, made of a rough, leathery material that resembles scales. Her favored weapon is a barbed sabre. Using the power from the Biomancers' Guild's amulet, she has improved armor and a needle-like protrusion from her arm called the Stinger. Her armor, though still slim and compact, was improved again following her experience with Avak. The Stinger is full of corrupted life magic, capable of injecting toxins as well as being a potent tool for exerting her will.