@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Lynx stared in disbelief. No matter how dangerous their surroundings became, Sil was always ready to introduce them to another one of her ridiculous ideas. His tail flicked around as he thought of what to do next.

"I arrived in order to test out a theory. As I am a construct of light, there is a possibility that I am entirely invisible to the sightless. But..." he trailed off, eyes lingering on the fairy, "...we should swap roles."

"I communicate with Octavio and you take my place as the one to encounter the sightless." It sounded cruel, and for a moment Lynx felt like his old self again. But this truly was for the benefit of everyone present. He was certain that he wasn't the only one present who didn't want his life in the hands of someone who used the term Octavapoo.

Strength in numbers... He listened closely to Karina's explanation of their opponent's strategies. It was especially concerning for him to hear about them, as he and Octavio had been using similar tactics since their very first fight together. Overwhelming the opponent with an array of attacks, determining which ones were most effective, and then hitting harder the next time. The only way to win against an opponent like that was to stamp them out entirely, which wasn't an option given their numbers.

---

Sil nodded intently as Lynx spoke, but her eyes were distant. Her gaze slowly teetering off to the side.

"Em-hmm." She said, still nodding. "I agree. Those definitely are words..."

Swap roles, he said? Silly Lynx. And here she thought he wanted to be her equal. Is that why he suddenly wanted to be her?

"Okie dokie." She continued happily. She absently fluttered to the floor and turned into her ferret form. "I can be you and you can be me."

She looked to Lynx expectantly. Idly wondering where Lynx might sprout his wings. Her gaze shifted towards his bum.

Yes. She decided with a curt nod. That'll be the place.

---

Lynx eyed her carefully. Seeing her shift into a mammalian form made him feel uncomfortable for a reason he couldn't quite figure out. It was as if she was giving away that they weren't really regular beings, just complicated magic. Like if a human tore off all their clothes and reminded everyone else they were all just animals with larger brains than most. He didn't like it.

"Are you sure you want to er-, manifest yourself in that form?" he asked. If he were a human, his cheeks would have been red. "You are going to have to be as fast as possible. Wouldn't being your usual self be the most appropriate strategy?"

He sent a mental message to Octavio, explaining the situation at hand in the blunt and direct manner he usually spoke rather than the almost schoolteacher-like tone he'd taken on with Sil. And you say I'm not a people person. He shook his head, remembering his status as a lynx illusion. Whatever, he was people.

---

Sil felt a hint of disappointment as she began to realize that no wings were about to pop out of Lynx's backside.

Oddly Lynx's tone became more awkward.

What? She thought with a tilt of the head. Didn't he know that Butt-erfly wings weren't anything to be ashamed of?

"Well, silly, if I'm going to be you and not my usual self, I'd think this look would be much better. Or is it that I'm not fluffy enough for you?" Sil raised her snout into the air, unamused at Lynx's dislike for her lack of fluffiness.

---

Octavio raised his eyebrows at the sudden halt of information coming from Lynx. In their long time of having worked together no one had ever managed to get the jump on him. Now, Lynx was a lot of things. Still incredibly condescending towards other familiars, for one. Sil probably warrants that though. But when it came to dexterity, Lynx was second to none. Just what was happening?

---

"Sil! Listen to me!" he hissed, the slits in his eyes bearing down on the now ferret, "Our lives are at stake!" It seemed that every time Lynx thought that he had seen all there was to Sil's buffoonery, there was always something new, another stunt or joke that would leave him speechless.

He thought his words over for a moment, and then came up with a more convincing argument.

"Chres' life is at stake!"

There was no way this wouldn't work, right?

"Which is why you must approach the sightless and verify if it is able to see you!" He thought of adding the rest of the plan in, but Sil probably didn't care. He was almost salivating at the thought at being the one to take their opponent down with his claws and absolutely no chance of being detected. It was a rogue's dream. It would seem that his dream, however, would stay one.

"We are already outnumbered considerably. But... if they are on our side, then we should fight," said Lynx to Karina, in a much lower voice. Combat is inevitable, so why not seize the perfect moment?

---

"I see how it is. Sil said, ignoring the group's complaints. "You all prefer speedy Sil, over not fluffy enough Sil, don't you?" She sniffed at those words. "Rude." she said, followed by a 'hmph'. She turned turned to leave.

Sil, Chres's thoughts came to her follow Lynx's lead. We just need you to-

Lynx doesn't think I'm fluffy enough! Sil complained. She took her time walking away from Lynx, not really paying attention to where she was going.

What?! There's nothing wrong with your fluffiness. We just need you to-

"Chres says I'm fluffy enough!" Sil said behind her. "Tell you what, with my work done here I'll just scuttle back on over to my buddy Chres. At least Chres thinks-"

Sil's words trailed off. Something was wrong. Where the floor should have been there was nothing but air. Sil opened her eyes, startled. She had been so focused on telling Lynx and the rest off, she had walked straight into the giant hole in the floor.

Again?! She thought, as gravity took control for the second time this day. She felt it's pull tug her down into depths below.

She'd been tricked! Tricked by that sneaky Lynx! "Puddles take you Lyyyyynx!!!" Sil shouted. She shook one of her adorable paws into the air angrily as her words trailed off behind her...

---

^{@Pezz570@HokumPocus@Jerkchicken@Fetzen@13org}
DB and Karina made the jump down first, and Ferris quickly followed, taking a breath of the banana and vinegar scents he’d dabbed onto his mask. With the buzz of magic coursing through his body, he jumped, clutching and dropping from one floor’s ledge to the next. Without magic, the act would have started testing his strength towards the bottom; with it, he dropped easily, grasped readily, his movements fast and smooth. This wasn’t the first time he’d gone down stairs like this, but magic always made such actions easier.

At the bottom, he caught the end of the other two conversations, noting how Sil seemed to confound near everyone she spoke to. Despite knowing full well that she was a familiar and therefore an extension of Chres, Ferris was beginning to doubt whether she was anyone’s familiar. Surely Chres would be able to manage more control over his familiar than Octavio, whose familiar seemed to walk over him at times. But, then again, perhaps Sil’s individuality was too strong. Ferris doubted even he could curb her scatterbrained ways, not that he wanted to try.

Focusing on Karina when she spoke, Ferris listened, his eyes flicking between Týfurkh and Karina. Asking someone to fight without their magic was dangerous, but Týfurkh’s situation wasn’t exactly improving. On the other hand, the royal guard Karina mentioned sounded like an option. An unlikely one, perhaps, but an option nonetheless.

“I agree that we should fight, or at least attempt to extract Týfurkh. I doubt the Being recruited him as a sacrifice for our current situation,” Ferris said, his tone low as well as he looked to Karina. “Do the royal guard have any intention of helping us? If so, perhaps we can force their hand by bringing the fight to them. Start it here, with Týfurkh, and move it out the guard and tell. It’ll be hard to get to the door, with all the Sightless, but the fight’s already on the bottom floor.”

He paused, looking to Sil. “Sil, would you be able to test whether the Sightless can see you? If not, you could help us scout the best way out of the tower.”

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Hark narrowed his eyes at the sightless, "Funny you should mention annulling prior agreements", Hark let out a slim smile, "I was here checking up on your little cult because since our king has so graciously given you partial control over this town you all have managed to be at the center of every destructive event."

Hark took a step towards the sightless, "Now lets start this off by explaining to me why the bell tower is destroyed and why these two are detained." Hark said pointing at the giant man and young woman the cultists had detained.

---

Nieffar's eye twitched ever so slightly as he maintained his false smile. That damn woman. He thought to Tayla. She will be punished.

Nieffar focused the Insight's attention upon the men that followed this man Hark. These remaining town guards were the ones he was putting on a show for. They would come to his side soon enough, the Insight would see to that. However, with the right politicking, Nieffar speed up that process.

"Us? At the center?" Nieffar said innocently. "Why Hark, I seem to recall that it was this town's own people who started that blood bath yesterday. If I'm not mistaken, even some of you own town guard took part in that slaughter." Nieffar's eyeless gaze turned towards more than one of the men who standing behind Hark.

"No." Nieffar continued, waving aside the accusation. "We most certainly were not at the center of all that destruction. All we did was act. We acted, hoping to end the chaos. Yes we may have kill some men, but we only did so when we had no choice! Madness had swept the town. We saved those we could while killing those who continued to threaten the lives of others. We did simply what needed to be done."

"As for these two," Nieffar said, nodding to Tayla and the giant. "As I said this man and his companions upstairs attacked my own. Perhaps an after effect from the madness that took this town the day prior."

"It seems one of our own took it upon herself to see to these troublemakers. I suppose you can't blame her, these people did kill some of her fellows, as you can see." Nieffar said waving a hand over to the dead bodies that lined the floor. "However, that does not excuse the destruction. Rest assured, she will be punished." Tayla looked up to Nieffer as if to object, but stopped as she met Nieffar's gaze.

"As for the giant, we had an agreement. You and your men may police town, however any crimes committed against my own would be under my jurisdiction."

Nieffar raised his stump of a hand. "This man here attacked me, leaving me with this stump of a hand. By our agreement, the punishment for his crimes falls to us. Just like with your Captain of the Guard. Who, let me remind you, we have allowed to live despite having killed one of my fellow Sightless. As for this man's companions upstairs... Well, you are more than welcome to assist us in their capture."

Nieffar cut off to let the man chew on his words. He took the moment to focus the Insight outward, away from the tower. Fuzzy forms appeared in his mind. They made their way towards the tower. Sightless Syella at their head.

Nieffar's smile broadened. He hated the woman, yes. Wanted to tear her down and rip her reputation among the clan to shreds. But if things came to a fight here, her aid would be most welcomed.

"Liar!" Týfurkh's voice bellowed through what remained of the tower's base hall and probably well past the large hole in the roof that the falling bell had caused.

"One question, guard's captain..." he started to explain. "Why should anybody climb to the top of the belltower at late afternoon ? So he can ring the bells ? The ropes that need to be pulled to move them are down here, not way up there. Attack some poor, innocent cultists in the base hall and subsequently on the platform ? Possible, but this isn't exactly the most intuitive place for searching them. There would have been easier ways to find some cultists as, as Nieffar actually pointed out correctly, there have been confrontations on the open street."

Týfurkh paused, catching his breath before continuing.

"What if I said we, the people I belong to, had a reason to get to the top of the belltower that was not ringing the bells and that we found it to be vacant at first. Then Nieffar's men stormed the place and attacked us! All things considered this scenario doesn't pose fewer difficult questions than the other, but it also isn't less plausible!"

Nieffar would find himself confronted with pretty much the angriest stare Týfurkh could muster. The latter frantically searched his memory... Was there anything more he could say ? Maybe even anything to prove what he had already said ?

"So I left you, poor Nieffar, with this stump of a hand ? Well I think I have the right to defend myself with all means when being attacked while trying to escape! Guards... look around. I know this ground has been trampled upon very much, but there are chances you might find traces of steel scratching on stone or sand around the exit door giving indication that someone was dragged around. These traces end just where I am lying, so -- also considering how many people around here wear armor suitable to cause this kind of scratches -- how likely is it that this someone wasn't myself! And if it was myself why should I burden my own people with dragging me while I can still walk ? The only scenario that comes to my mind that makes sense and isn't extremely unlikely is that I have been dragged against my will... by him and back into the tower!"

Týfurkh pointed straight at the sightless.

"Why would anybody who is in a purely defensive position pull any fleeing attacker back to himself for the purpose of continuing the fight ? Tell me how this would make sense, where my theory about who was being dragged into which direction was wrong or simply don't believe stump-of-a-hand's words!"

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Nieffar raised an eyebrow at the man's words. "To be honest." Nieffar said coolly. "I came here after the initial fighting and the destruction of the tower. The only information I had were that my people were under attack. So I came here in defense of my own."

He turned his gaze to Smit. "Regardless," He said, his voice cold. "tell me Smit. What exactly were you all doing in this tower? Is there any truth to this man's words?"

Smit's eyes widened in shock. He obviously hadn't expected to take part in this conversation.

"I-" He started looking from Nieffar, to Tayla, to Hark. Nieffar frowned his eyes narrowing. Smit licked his lips slowly regaining his composure. "Th... three of our own were taken by these people. Tayla had us chase after them to this tower. I know not why they came here, perhaps they did it in the spur of the moment, or perhaps they had been using this place as some sort of base of operations. It all happened very fast."

Nieffar's frown deepened. His brow furrowed. He rubbed the back of his head with his stump of a hand, as if deciding whether to trust Smit's words or not.

"It seems to me, Hark, we have a case of 'he said, she said'." Nieffar said at last. "Nevertheless, one fact remains clear. This man attacked me. He even admitted as much. I, on the other hand, haven't put a scratch on him. Despite the fact that he looks worse for ware."

He look to Hark, giving the man a face of resolve. "I'll be taking this one back with me, Sir Hark. As for his friends, I claim them as well for the lives they stole of my Clan."

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Stupid Lynx. Sil thought, turning back into her fairy form. Casually,
she reclined onto her side, her head resting on the palm of her hand. She lay
in the air looking nonchalant, despite her downwards predicament.

Sil puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. She’ll have to find a way to get back at that sneaky Lynx. Maybe… she could draw a mustache on his snout… No, no… Too obvious… Spiders in his pants? No. She was being silly. Lynx doesn’t wear pants.

Lynx’s Octavapus, however… Sil thought. That one wears pants…

Sil rolled onto her back. Smiling as she watched world around her fall up in a blur. The fall was almost calming. It was weird to think most humans would tend fear a drop such as this. Puddles, most humans would freak out the moment one of their toes left the ground.

Silly humans. Sil thought. Didn’t they know that falling was just like flying? Only… without the whole flying thing…

She figured it would be nice if Chres gave it a try sometime. With the way that man went on, he could use a nice plunge off a cliff. Just the sort of thing to take the edge off. Surely he would understand the wonders of free fall! Who knows, perhaps the experience would even give him something to live for!

Sil nodded. Her decent coming to abrupt halt upon hitting the ground. Yes, that was just the thing Chres needed. She would have to pass the idea by him… After she gathered the enough spiders for Octavapus's pants, of course.

Humming softly to herself, Sil hopped to her feet and happily fluttered off the metal dome she landed on. She gave a wave and a smile to Metalman, who lay sprawled across the ground. His face was flushed, probably from all the fun he was having.

Good for him. She thought, happy to see him making friends.

She fluttered by No Eyes. He was a good man, that No Eyes. Making friends with an abnormality like Metalman.

She patted No Eyes on the head as she passed. The man’s head raised in surprise, before swiveling from left to right. Sil didn’t really see the point of it. It wasn’t like the man had any eyes to see her with. Why bother even turning his head?

“Wha-” No Eyes started.

“A familiar…” Said one of the men behind No Eyes.

“A… familiar?” No Eyes repeated, his head no longer swiveling. The man pursed his lips in what seemed to almost be a frown. His slowly turned his gaze back to the one heading the guard. The man who helped Chres at the Inn two nights before.

Sir Helps-a-lot. Sil thought, nodding to the man. Yes. That was his name.

Sil landed atop Sir Helps-a-lot’s shoulder and made whisper in his ear. “You know that weird mushy brown stuff dogs make outside? Whatever you do, don’t throw it at them.” Sil turned to look at No Eyes. “I don’t think they like it.”

---

They must be using the familiar to send messages between each other. Nieffar thought with a frown. There wasn’t much he could do about the familiar right now. What he really needed was for this conversation to be done with.

---

Karina heard carefully as Lynx mentioned his idea. She had never thought about that herself but what he said indeed made sense. At least in theory, the sightless shouldn't be able to see them, as they're made of light. The thing about Lynx's idea though was that it was still a gamble. They would have to be fast and deliver their message accurately, which was indeed going to be a challenge for Sil, who unfortunately misunderstood when Lynx said they would exchange places, transforming herself in a cute mammal with wings.

"Indeed. I don't feel good waiting, but just as you said, were outnumbered and should only fight after and if the royal guards-" Karina began to say, agreeing with Lynx but was interrupted when she saw Sil falling down the hole in the center of the room.

"I just hope she understood what she has to do..." Karina said, with a sigh.

It was then that Ferris said something interesting. His suggestion to force the royal guards to fight was a very good one, but only if they were careful.

"That... Could work. If we somehow can start a fight between both of them without showing ourselves first... A single attack, make the cultists believe that it came from the guard's side..." Karina said, thinking. She knew that it wasn't really the best situation to be thinking about a plan, but the best course of action right now was to wait for the chance to so something instead of blindly throwing themselves.

Meanwhile, the sightless, the guards and Tyfurkh were still downstairs. Fortunately, the situation was still under control. While Hark started interrogating the sightless of what happened, receiving some dubious answers from the same, Tyfurkh himself, despite his state, began trying to tell the guards what really happened.

"Damn... I don't think the guards will do anything if things continue like this. Somehow, the cultists seem to have the same authority as the guards under certain situations... If I had my magic I could do a long range attack, try to make it almost imperceptible to try and start a fight but.." Karina said as she gently rubbed the place where Smit's knife grazed her earlier, confirming that the deterrent was still working.

Hark was about to open his mouth when a voice from in his ranks cut him off.”Don’t listen to a word this lying creature say!” Hark looked over to who the voice came from and it was none other than Drew. Drew was the younger brother of Captain Rourke who was recently captured by the Cult and the youngest and most inexperienced of the guard.

”You locked up my brother and are destroying the town!” Drew shouted as he unsheathed his sword and pointed it at the sightless. Hark looked around at the rest of his men, some where nodding in agreement and readying their weapons and some looked as if they were about to run. “Now everyone hold on I’m sure we can figure this out without any bloodshed.” Hark said holding his hands up to try and show he meant no harm, ”Now if we could all ju-“

His words were cut off as his vision flashed. He saw that the cultist to his right would make a lunge at him with his spear. Shit Hark thought you himself, it was on now. He stepped back just in time as the spear went by his face. Before the cultist could pull it back Hark grabbed hold of it with his left hand and snapped it in half with his right forearm. He stabbed the spear right into the mans throat and as he withdrew it the man crumpled to the floor.

There was a moment of pause as everyone, cultists and guards alike, stood staring at each other before the area burst into fighting. Hark drew his sword in his right hand and cut another member of the cult down. He had to make his way to the giant pactmaker and the other girl, who Hark assumed was another member of the group that joined after he left. Hark dodged fighting bodies as he made his way towards the two.

Just before he reached the two Hark looked over and his heart dropped. The cultist, Smit, stood over the body of Drew with his sword plunged deep in his chest. ”NO! Hark shouted above the noise of the violence. This caused Smit look up and he pulled the blade out of Drew’s chest. A deep rage filled Harks body and he pointed his sword at Smit, “You’re going to die here.”

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Nieffar cursed as the situation devolved into choas. Everything had been preceding in a nice and orderly fashion. But then one of the younger clansmen had the bright idea to try and lodge a spear in Hark.

He failed to kill the man, thankfully. Hark proving to be swift on his feet, snapped the spear and kill his attacker with the spear leftover head.

Nieffar could sense the man’s life drain. The very thing giving him breathe fled from his form. His thoughts and mind dispersing back into the fabric of reality.

The Insight seemed almost sorrowful for his loss. Strange that. Nieffar would have thought it glad to be rid of any fool who knew not how to serve.

Hark’s attention seemed to have been shifted towards Smit. Good. Nieffar turned away from the commotion showing little concern. He refocused the Insight towards his capture who he slowly he approached.

A guardsman charged from behind an axe raised overhead. The Sightless absently raised his stump of a hand behind him. It extruded, with sudden grow, jutting itself squarely into the charging guardsmen’s abdomen. The man kneeled over in pain, his hands cradling his stomach.

Nieffar let his extruded arm collapse back in on itself in a rush. He stared down at his oversized capture and sneered.

“Get up.” Nieffar commanded. He poked his sharpened tendril into the giant’s precious cargo. Just enough to draw a bead of blood…

---

Smit yelped as the man named Drew dashed toward him.

DAMN! DAMN! DAMN! DAMN! DAMN! He thought, while quickly jumping out of the way of the man’s attack.

He stumbled to the ground, his hand landing on something cold beside him. Smit looked over to his side. A sword? Yes. From one of his fallen comrades.

Muttering a quick thanks, to the Unseeing, for a weapon with reach, Smit grabbed the weapon thrust through his attacker before the man had a chance to retaliate.

Smit exhaled a sigh of relief. Unfortunately, this man’s death quick drew the ire of Hark.

Nails on Metal! Smit thought. Why me? He scrambled to pick up the giant’s crossbow, only to realize it was unloaded.

Smit cursed. Oh, for the love of… He thought, tossing the crossbow aside. I wasn’t built for fighting! He pulled out a throwing knife instead. Using his other hand, he reached for his deterrents and pulled out his last chunk of wheezing pollen.

This man reacted quickly. Smit dared not get close. Instead he needed to stall. Smit threw the pollen at the ground in front of Hark. The pollen dispersed on impact. Yellow specs forming a cloud in the air around Hark.

---

The one restraining Tayla released his grip. His attention shifting towards the fighting rather than her. She knew what she need to do. Her time on the streets had taught her as much. In that moment, Tayla ran... or rather she ran as best as one could manage with a bruised foot.

Tayla fought through her pain and exhaustion. Her mind seemed unfocused, barely able to register what was happening.

Why was she running? Right… Nieffar… He… he was mad… mad at her… because Smit... he…

A different sort of pain threatened to overwhelm her. A pain from within.

Tayla grit her teeth. Don’t think about it. She thought.

She was a fool. She had let herself become far too accustom to his… What? Loyalty? His kindness? The way he actually seemed to care?

Damn it all! She had begun to feel somewhat secure… Safe… around a man, no less! She had begun to trust… trust that he would have her back! But then… but then…

Tayla shut her eyes. Don’t think about it! She thought ferociously. She wanted to block away the thoughts. Stuff away the hurt and lock it away. She didn’t want to acknowledge it. Didn’t want to care! And yet…

What right did he have to be angry with her?! She saved his life, hadn’t she? Yes… Yes she had but… but in truth… in truth it had been him who had come to rescue her... all because she… because had to… go and…

That woman… Tayla felt her pain turn to anger. Her thoughts shifting towards that little princess. The white haired woman. Head held high above the clouds. There she dared to look down on those she deemed beneath her.

Oh Little Miss Princess may pretend to care, but Tayla knew better. She didn’t really care about people like Tayla. She hadn’t really seen anything in her. No… All that woman really cared about was herself!

A fire burned in Tayla. Rage rushing through her veins. She grabbed hold of it. Channeled it. Used it to push away the pain and the cloud filling her head.

People like Miss Princess only pretended to care about people like Tayla. They did it as a way to boost their own sense of self-righteousness. The princess was the type of person who explained away her view of the world and expected others to fall in line and agree.

And those who disagreed? Those who saw things differently? The ones standing in direct opposition to her? Well, Tayla figured there was a reason behind the spoil brat’s that practiced cold stare.

Yes… It was the woman’s fault. All of this happened because of her! It was her fault Tayla failed the mission. Her fault the target got away. Her fault Smit-

DON’T THINK ABOUT IT! The words pounded through Tayla’s head. Were those tears streaming down her cheeks?

“I’ll kill her.” Tayla whispered. Her words shook with a mix of rage and sorrow. “Next time I see her… I’ll kill her for sure.”

It was then that Tayla ran head first into Sightless Syella…

---

Karina watched and heard the sightless and Hark exchanging words as one of the younger guards spoke inflamed and enraged words about his brother being locked up. Even though they were far from amicable and the tension was palpable in the air, they were still only talking, which was a bad sign for the group hiding upstairs and Týfurkh. Fortunately, things wouldn't keep like that for long. As an impatient cultist tried to thrust his spear into Hark, the first drop of blood was finally shed as Hark immediately countered his weak lunge and killed him with his very spear. Silence immediately followed as both groups looked at each other, the tension between them growing by the second. The moment Hark turned and saw the younger guard's dead body near a cultist, the fight finally began.

"That's our cue, let's go." Karina said briefly as she looked to the group before nodding towards the stairs. Even though the deterrent was still acting, even without her ice magic, Karina was still a fearsome opponent with her rapier.

Chaos soon ensued as the fight began, it would be highly unlikely that anyone noticed them going down the stairs, which meant they would have the precious element of surprise. The best moment to act was right now. Karina unsheathed her rapier as she ran down the stairs. Her aim was first secure Týfurkh, then to help Hark and the guards to fight against the cultists... As much as she could, that is. If things got too difficult and risky, Karina would certainly make a retreat with her group.

---

^{@Pezz570@HokumPocus@Jerkchicken@Fetzen@13org}
The calm dissolved as soon as a cultist launched an attack at a guard, and Ferris glanced back at Karina and DB, who were likely fueled by adrenaline at this point. Though it seemed only Karina had been hit by a deterrent, both of them had been in the tower longer, and the original plan had been to extract all of them, not just Tyfurkh.

Returning Karina’s nod, Ferris followed her down the stairs, drawing a sword as he did. The room was a mess of small battles, and Ferris noted one of the cultists throwing down a cloud of pollen. Getting anywhere near the area would very quickly negate his magic since wheezing pollen had a penchant for sticking to whatever surface was offered to it, and holding his breath would only stall until the next breath he needed to draw. Thankfully, the affected area was a fair distance from where Tyfurkh and the Sightless were, so Ferris figured that, with some luck, he wouldn’t have to worry about the pollen.

From the looks of it, with Tyfurkh on the floor and the Sightless looming above him, arms elongated into long, sharp vines of flesh, Tyfurkh was in imminent danger of being speared. The situation, then, elevated him from priority into immediate priority, and there was no time to waste. What made him pause was the ferret on Tyfurkh’s head—Sil. Either the Sightless had judged her no threat at all, or the earlier hypothesis was true, and Ferris couldn’t imagine Sil being ignored if both seen and heard.

“Lynx, Sil’s on Tyfurkh,” Ferris said, his sword raised and his eyes on the cultist who'd broken ranks to make a charge for where they stood. “If we clear the way, you could—” he grunted as he clashed swords with the cultist, bracing himself and hurling the cultist back onto the floor where a passing guard took up the opportunity and delivered the fatal strike. “You could distract the leader. Just enough for Tyfurkh to put some distance in.”

He turned to meet the familiar’s eyes, searching for some sort of understanding or agreement. Another charging cultist was sidestepped as Ferris turned instead to a preoccupied cultist on the path to Tyfurkh, slashing at the back of his legs and elbowing him forwards towards the waiting guard. One engagement at a time, he moved forward, utilizing the ire of the guards, who’d quickly placed him as an ally, to his advantage.

As soon as he was close enough, he made a charge for the Sightless looming over Tyfurkh, his weight behind the shoulder-level thrust. His comrades were either beside or behind him, but they were both worn from their previous battles. Lynx, despite being invisible to the Sightless, was not a front line fighter. And, besides those two points, there was that the Sightless could see the future—that there’d be no point in trying to sneak up on some demon-channeling seer.

But those were just reasons Ferris could have used. In reality, he engaged because he could. Because, alone, that’s what he did.

Lynx

---

There were a lot of things Lynx detested about physical combat. The bestial way in his body reacted to his surroundings, alerting him to every drop of blood exposed to the air, the clashing of metal that roared louder and louder from the same strikes, the overload of factors to consider, of risks to avoid. When the grand libraries he once resided in told of grand feats they did so with a focus on war above all else, raising it as a testament of glory and courage. Lynx never understood what any of those words meant beyond memorized definitions, and had seen his instincts as something vestigial meant to be hidden. But war had a way of casting all of it aside.

His heart raced to the quick beats of his paws striking the ground, or was it the illusion of a heart, worthless aside from immersing him in this world? He could feel whatever answers he had to that question blurring, overlapping, being overpowered. His jaw wanted to crack bone, his claws wanted to tear through sinew and vein. Who he was was disappearing, replaced by a version of him that he could feel every human see him as whenever an introduction was necessary.

At last he could see the man Sil had been distracting, a Sightless. His four legs sprinted faster.

What have I become?

It came out as a small whisper in his mind. Not even the person he trusted the most would hear it. His eyes felt inseparably drawn to the man's neck, and his joints and the pockets of fat where humans stored their organs.

Or have I... always been like this?

His lithe body pounced like a weapon and the lynx sunk his teeth onto the Sightless Ferris was fighting. Fighting alongside another was where he was in his element, and Lynx made sure to exploit every twitch and turn the man made in shock. A pair of canine jaws and multiple claws all greedily dug into these sudden crevices of flesh, eager to punish the opponent for every move made against Ferris. The man was a far more precise fighter than Octavio, however, and so Lynx found himself taking far more risks with his attacks, creating the moments of chaos his companion and him thrived off.

Lynx crashed to the floor and rolled just as fast after another bite to the man's haunches. He wasn't the only threat in his surroundings. Around him were other cultists, engaged in small and frantic battles with the others. Some of them had begun to notice him.

"Týfurkh, run!" he hissed, slamming his paws against the ground for another charge. The Sightless' calf was exposed.

His jaws clamped around what it could with more strength than he thought possible. If Ferris left him to battle the other cultists, it'd be a simple arc maneuver to tear into the wounded man's face. He gazed at Ferris with the wild eyes of something that was never human. Any feeling of trepidation was gone. All that was left was hunger for the kill.

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

“I said, on your feet!” Nieffar commanded.

Before large man could do anything, there came a flash of Insight. The Pact Makers charging down the stairs. There were… three of them? Who was the newcomer? He had not been with the original group…

A second flash of Insight. The newcomer lunging with his sword. Nieffar swiftly retract the tendrils that were his fingers away from the large man’s crotch. At the same time, he swept to the side with his stump of an arm, all the while extruding it. His elongated arm knocked away the attack, though not without the weapon hacking chips out of his wood like skin.

Beads of sickly yellowish green puss oozed from the new cuts in his arm. The pain, as always felt distant and dull.

“You should have fled while-”

Nieffar cut off. A third flash of Insight. His form tackled to the ground. A wound at his side- what?

An invisible force hit Nieffar, tackling him to the ground. The crack of wood rang out as he felt a strong grip bite into his side.

The pain this time was not dull. It was sharp and alarming. More yellowish green puss oozed out at his side. A few of the vine like spouts reconstructing his hand receded, as that wound had already been clotted. Instead the sprouts re-emerged out of the new wound, seeing it as a more crucial to patch.

Nieffar quickly got back to his feet. Instinctively, Nieffar re-extruded his good hand’s fingers back into sharpened tendrils. The tendrils launched his side striking nothing. His brow furrowed, a magic attach from the newcomer then?

A forth flash of Insight. Another attack where his leg met his backside. Nieffar launched his tendrils at the newcomer, only to be hit yet again. Another loud crunch. More vines from his reconstructing hand receded to patch up his even newer wounds.

Nieffar frantically searched for his attacker using the Insight. Something… something was wrong here… Nieffar closed his eyes and dove deep into the Insight’s embrace. Deep enough that it threatened to overwhelm him.

Yes… Now he understood. A patch of nothingness darted at him. So easily overlooked, as the Insight urged him to view past it.

”Tyfurkh, run!” Said a voice around where the nothingness should be.

Nieffar, ignored the fifth flash of Insight and allowing the Familiar’s teeth to clamp down on his calf. In an instant, his tendrils shot out. Wrapping themselves around the Familiar.

Nieffar frowned at the beast, kicking it with his good foot. A few of his clansmen had rushed to his side to protect him from further attacks from the Pact Makers.

“What am I to do with you?” He asked the feral animal. He tightened his grip around the beast as if to crush it. “Sightless Syella tells me that a touch of Shadow Metal works quite nicely on your kind.”

“Let him go!” Shouted a feminine voice behind Nieffar.

Something nipped at his ear. Its weight pulling his head to the side…

---

“You’re hurting him!” Sil cried, her words muffled by the chunk of ear between her teeth.

Sil hung from No Eyes’s ear in her winged ferret form. The moment No Eyes attacked Lynx, it had been like a switch went off in her mind. The world seemed a little clearer. Things seemed to make a little more sense.

Her friend was hurting! He needed her! She began clawing at No Eyes’s neck furiously. Her swipes barely making a scratch in his strangely tough skin.

“Another one?” Growled No Eyes. He swiped at her form with his stump of an arm. Sil swung herself out of the way, just enough for him to miss.

“Hurt me instead!” Sil pleaded. “I don’t feel pain so it’s okay, right?”

“Get Off!” No Eyes growled, his frustration growing. He swiped at her again. Again he missed.

“You’re… you’re not nice…” Sil said in cold realization. Why? Why had she thought that No Eyes was a nice person? He and Metalman were friends, weren’t they? No… They hadn’t been playing. No Eyes had been hurting him too! And all the while she just-

Sil’s frantic clawing began to slow. What was she doing? What had she been doing all her life?

“Let him go…” She pleaded more softly. “Please let-“

A powerful blow to her side cut off her words. This time No Eyes’s swipe hit. Sil felt herself go flying to the floor and landed with a bounce. Slowly, she changed back into her fairy form and curled up into a ball.

“Let him go-” She muttered to herself. She could feel her moment of clarity fading. Her thoughts starting to slip from her, like a floor wet with puddles.

“Please-” She whispered. “Let him go…”

By the time the sightless' tendrils once again had made their way below his armor, his trousers and even below his body's outer layer that was his skin in order to make him bleed at a rather important place, Týfurkh had mentally been ready to follow Nieffar's commands. There simply was no point in pretending any longer that he might still be in reach of control here. The guards did not seem to be all too impressed by his explaining efforts, so things were definitely lost for him. Maybe it was worth it as long as this would help make the others survive ?

Some weird looking being hit the bell, then flew nearby the sightless and himself before disappearing somewhere behind his back where he couldn't see. Wasn't that a familiar ? A familiar he already knew ? A spark of hope, and when suddenly he could hear the screams of first one, then a second man and the clashing of metal roaring up behind his back where the guards were it turned into a fire. Was the party indeed trying a rescue attempt ? Then why were they fighting the city guards ? That didn't make sense. So maybe one of the cultists could not hold back ? If that was the truth it probably was the one act of idiocy Týfurkh would remember for potentially having saved his life.

The giant had already retracted his feet closer to where he sat as the first step of getting up, but before he could continue the sightless threatening him started to face other issues than him. Ohhh that looked pretty nasty... that was... pretty enjoyable from his own perspective. Had he ever seen Lynx in that form before ? Definitely not, but it had that certain aspect of awesomeness as he found in that moment. Unfortunately it wasn't allowed to last long as Nieffar's furious and seemingly aimless attacks finally improved and hit the familiar hard.

Týfurkh could hear someone telling him to run. He certainly would have done that in a normal situation, but as he saw Lynx threatened to be crushed and Sil doing what she could in order to prevent that from happening that simply didn't feel right. It would likely mean leaving the familiar to his impending doom while saving his own life happily. Aside from this Týfurkh also was flat-out pissed off. It had not sufficed for Sightless Nieffar to just threaten him like ordinary people would have done. No, Sightless NIeffar had done it in a way only somewhat wicked people would do and tried to deprive him of his dignity on the spot!

When else would be a good opportunity to hit if not now with Mr. Tree-Skin's attention being divided between two additional attackers and his body's embedded tentacles being diverted towards freshly torn wounds ? Speaking of which... maybe damaging Nieffar's damage control was the first step towards make him stop healing and start suffering!

Týfurkh continued the process of getting up, but altered it from the slow and obedient execution of a given order to a buildup of forward momentum. He rammed himself into the sightless and tried to reach for the tentacles which were trying to plug up the newly gained wounds. His intention was to pull at them with all of his strength in order to rip them off. People said that once puss had started to flow by itself one should allow it to flow and preferably out of the body than back into it. The case was very clear here!

---

Since she was already under the effect of the deterrent, Karina simply unsheathed her rapier, lunging forwards as she arrived downstairs, cutting down the cultists who stood in front of her with swift and elegant movements. It did take a while for her to realize that Týfurkh was under the sightless, about to be impaled by it's elongated, sharp fingers. Almost at the same time, she heard Ferris' voice as he talked to Lynx about his plan. Karina would have tried to help Lynx, but just like Ferris, she had her hands full with the cultists, having to bend her upper body backwards in an impressive display of flexibility as she dodged an attack from a cultist, which she had no idea even where it had came from.

Giving a jump backwards, Karina kicked a cultist that was rushing towards her, making it bump in another one and resulting in both of them falling in the ground. With a little moment to breathe, Karina looked towards Lynx, who had darted towards the sightless and Ferris, who followed just a moment after. Fortunately, Lynx had successfully given Týfurkh a moment to retreat, but in return, Lynx himself was caught by the sightless' tendrils. Even though Sil tried to help Lynx, the sightless was simply too strong to even bother with her presence, seeing her merely as an annoyance as he swiped at her, missing a few times but hitting her afterwards.

Using her small and agile frame to dodge the cultists, Karina rushed towards the sightless, just behind Ferris. She would use his larger body to obscure the sightless vision of her. Even though she knew it could see the future, it didn't hurt try. The moment Ferris got nearby the sightless, she would give a small jump to the side and lunge at it's back, hopefully hitting it. Týfurkh's attack on the sightless would also give her and Ferris enough room to attack. The Sightless were still an enigma to Karina. She didn't know exactly how strong they were or their true capabilities, but she did know that they weren't impervious to pain and that they definitely could be harmed, as it became evident after Lynx' attack and the fact that the sightless itself was trying to plug it's own wounds.

Lynx

---

It took only a moment's hesitation, a brief shudder of human consciousness, to create hesitation within Lynx. He watched helplessly as the Sightless' magic enveloped his body and crippled him entirely. He realized the irony in having left himself open to attack, thinking to his previous encounters where Octavio and him relied on their opponents to behave that way.

For the familiar, who could not truly feel pain, the sensation that plagued him was something entirely different yet agonizing all the same. Just as an acrobat who takes to the stage engulfed in thoughts of failure comes crashing down, Lynx had effectively created his own torture. Every minor headache and moment of frustration he had managed to will into existence through mimicry of the humans around him had been recollected and amplified all across his body, as if his mind and it became one through being crushed together. The indescribable feeling surged and waned in synchronization with what he was able to see was being done to him, and in moments the sensation began dulling all together.

I am an idiot.

What he considered to be his mind swayed and stirred, as if it was gradually becoming aware of it being a projection made of light, stretching and wavering with the tendrils that dominated him. Thoughts became lost in the sea of bizarre feelings, growing to be distorted and in turn created even more warped feelings.

Octavio wasn't here to save him. He wasn't here to have gotten them both out with a smile that hid his serious concern over their own well being, or to remind Lynx of the dangers of revealing his position. He would never be here, he felt, not thought.

But something else was here amidst the chaos tearing his mind apart. A voice that he could never ignore, no matter how hard he had tried in the past.

“Let him go…”

Sil. Despite how he felt about the fairy hearing her voice sparked his mind to action. One by one he began to think of the rest of the party members as well, solidifying who they were in his head using only the faintest glimmers of thought. He could on an instinctual level feel the need to tether himself back to the world, and did so as fast as he could. His thoughts became actions, and the familiar began to claw back at the tendrils. A spectator would have seen none of the grace or dignity he had exhibited in the past. It was an act of desperation, the flailing a sickly bird does to prevent falling. If he could separate what was "him" and what was "other", then he could drag himself out just as a human did from a blazing inferno.

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Chres leaned against the alley wall arms crossed, doing his best to stay out of the rain. He tapped his finger impatiently.

No word had come from their familiars.

"Something has gone terribly wrong..." Chres said to Octavio.

---

Nieffar gave a shout as the giant man ripped off the shoots clouting his wound. He swung back his stump of arm to whack the man in the face. Greenish yellow puss oozed out anew.

This time the vine-like sprouts were slower to re-emerge. As if confused by the re-opened wound. Re-emerge they did though. Doing their best to bind the wound.

Multiple flashes of Insight alerted Nieffar. Too much was going on. The Pact Makers were converging on him. And with his damaged arm and other wounds, he could only do so much...

Was this how it would end for him? Torn apart by these lowly beings?

The Insight cooed at him. Urging him to dive even deeper into its embrace. He could just give in... Take the plunge into the Insight. It would mean loosing himself in exchange for power. Though his scant connection to the land made such a move risky, deadly even... But to just sit back an let this pact makers kill him?

Nieffar didn't react as the female Pact Maker lunged forward and stabbed him in the back. Rather, he closed his eyes. Releasing his grip on the familiar Nieffar dropped his knees.

The Insight began to flood into him. The room began to darken. Nieffar's toes extruded, bursting from his boots. They shot into the ground like roots. His body started to expand. His skin released several loud cracks. From the crack shot sickly green bone like vines. They lashed out and began attacking all those around him.

"Nieffar-"

His mind began to waver.

"Nieffar!"

His thoughts began to dim.

"Nieffar, don't be foolish!"

Nieffar snapped out of it. His body slowly deflating back to normal. The room brightened up a tad. The vines sprouting from his body wilted and fell away. Slowly the fog cleared from his mind.

It seemed Sightless Syella had arrived, bringing with her a wave of reinforcements.

---

"No..." Chres whispered. He stared eyes wide at the group of reinforcements surrounding the tower.

[color=00aeef]"Where are they? They need to get out of there!"

Distantly he felt a fearful Sil curled up on the ground.

"Sil!" He shouted. Without thinking he took a step forward as if to rush in there, but a firm grip on his shoulder held him back.

"You're all quite a troublesome lot, aren't you?" Said a familiar deep rich voice.

---

Nieffar smilled. Ironic that it had been Syella's voice that had brought him back. With all his plotting against her, she would have been better off letting him give in to the Insight.

Syella had been quick to jump in to the fray, her attacks on the soldiers were precise. Careful to not kill any of them. Her group of reinforcements had begun to surround the town guard and the Pact Makers.

A smug Nieffar got back to his feet. They had the Pact Makers now.

---

Malkev, the tall dark skinned man who The Kharu-Natjer proclaimed to be head of The Watch, stood behind Chres and Octavio. The man had draped himself in a cloak with the hood covering his head.

"You didn't honestly intend go recklessly charging in there just the two of you?"

In all honesty Chres hadn't intended to rush in there at all. It was only the unusual feeling of concern from Sil that moved him into action.

"You here to help?" Chres asked the man.

Malkev gave half chuckle. "Help? Not I lad. If I jumped in now, then they would start keeping a close eye on me. That wouldn't be good for any of us."

"Then why are you here?" Chres said absently, turning a worried gaze back to the tower.
"To stop you two from doing anything stupid."

"Well then I suppose you're a little too late."

Malkev nodded in agreement. "That much is all too clear."

Chres clenched his fists. His concern for Sil growing.

"Fortunately for you, Svephraey’s minions are on the case..."

Malkev pointed towards a growing group of bystanders running towards the tower. The shouted a cry, their weapons raised. It wasn't just them either! Some of the Cult's reinforcements had turned on their allies as well...

---

"Traitor..." Said a dying clansman to the left of Nieffar. Something was wrong. Some of the reinforcements appeared to be attacking some invisible force...

More familiars or illusions? No... the ones they were attacking were not invisible to the Insight. Rather they were just barely visible.

Strange... they appeared to be normal people, but then why were they so difficult for the Insight to notice?

Nieffar impaled one of these strange beings with his tendrils. the man cried out and bleed just like any other man.

There weren't many of the strange beings, just enough to be-

A growing battle cry rose from outside. More of these being rushed in and began attacking The Clan from behind.

"No!" Nieffar shouted. The beings were quickly clearing a path for the Pact Makers and Town Guard to escape.

"Run!" One of the beings shouted to the Pact Makers. "Get out of here, now!"

Nieffar screamed in rage, impaling the man's chest with his tendrils. Two flashes of Insight. Attacks from both sides. Nieffar lashed out at the attackers in a rage...

---

Karina watched helplessly as the sightless began tightening it's grasp on Lynx, almost crushing it. Even though Sil tried to save him, a single, swift blow from the sightless sent her back to her fairy form, curling on the ground in pain. Once again, they were in a difficult situation thanks to a sightless having appeared. They knew very little about them and their capabilities, but they were indeed very strong, in many aspects.

Fortunately, even to a sightless, being attacked so much and receiving that many wounds was too much for him to handle, as he fell to his knees, releasing his grasp on Lynx the moment Karina struck him with her rapier. Instead of reacting, he simply closed his eyes though, almost as if he knew he was beaten... A second later though, his body somehow started to expand, his skin cracking loudly as many green, bone-like vines erupted from inside him, attacking everyone nearby, making Karina have no other choice but to jump backwards to not be impaled by them.

When the situation was seemingly turning to their favor though, another sightless, the female they had fought before arrived on the scene with reinforcements, which made the male sightless somehow recover himself, getting up again almost as if revitalized by the presence of reinforcements.

For a moment, Karina's desperation was clear in her eyes. They were having difficulties dealing with a single sightless, dealing with two and more cultist reinforcements at the same time was impossible. Strangely enough, when all hope seemed to be lost, Karina realized that some of the cultist reinforcements were actually fighting against the cultists that were already there, creating chaos among their own ranks. Then, a loud battle cry was heard coming from outside, as many other of these people disguised as cultists began to flood the tower, attacking the cultists that were already inside.

It didn't need much for Karina's surprise and shock to disappear. The very moment one of these people who came to fight against the cultists shouted for them to run, Karina simply nodded, looking to the rest of the group as she got up from the ground after having dodged the green bone vines.

"WE NEED TO GO!" Karina said, as she went towards Sil, gently grabbing her and looking to the rest of the group.

Týfurkh was somewhat shocked to see that even the added bunch of blows did not seem to have been enough in order to take Nieffar out of the equation. However the sudden appearance of more troops that actually seemed to be on their side instead of that of the sightless caused enough of a confusion in his mind to lose track about that particular thought. Had the soldiers whose camp he had called out for on top of the tower already made their way here ? That would have been blazingly fast, too fast to be possible. But... what kind of people were they then ? Some good and healthy minds still left in this city who had gathered and somehow felt what was going on here ?

Anyway... It was pretty obvious that this was the opportunity to leave and various callouts confirmed to him that this not only was a legitimate, but also a desired move to do. Týfurkh twisted around, searching for a particular thing he simply could not afford to leave behind: his crossbow! That item was next to irreplaceable, given that it was pretty much specifically designed for him. He found it in a position clearly indicating that somebody had discarded it with no care at all, but it seemed to be undamaged still.

Getting away from Nieffar and whatever kind of wicked transformation he had started to pull off only to apparently abort it moments later as quickly as he could, Týfurkh reached for his weapon and started running. Close to the main exit he looked behind, checking if everybody else was trying to get out as well and if anybody had difficulties doing so that might require his attention.

One big question had not risen its ugly head over the giant's cognitive horizon yet, but it was only a matter of time until it would though: Where to go, or rather hide, now ?

@fetzen@13org@Jerkchicken@HokumPocus@Typical@Elevation

---

Sil huddled on the ground hugging her knees with her arms. She could sense the fog clouding up her thoughts. Clear thinking becoming difficult.

Vaguely she became aware of someone lifting her from the ground.

“Lynx… Have to help Lynx… Hurt me instead… Let him go… please…” She muttered the words in a vain attempt to focus her thoughts.

---

Karina held the small Sil closer to her body as she tried to calm her down. Even though she was an airhead, she did care a lot about others, as it became evident by the fact that she tried to fight the sightless even knowing it was much stronger than her.

"Shh. You have already done enough, Sil. Just calm down. I'll take you somewhere safe." Karina said, with a calm voice as she tried to tranquilize the poor Sil.

Even though the male sightless was wounded and had released Lynx, they couldn't just stay there as another sightless had arrived. Thanks to the chaos that the disguised cultists caused, they had a chance to escape and they had to make use of it.

---

Words... someone was speaking to her... Sil stopped shaking. Her tight embrace around her huddled knees loosening.

"Somewhere... safe?"

Sil unwrapped herself, shifting her position so that she sat on her knees. She looked up with a furrowed brow at the person's whose palm she sat in. The speaker looked familiar.

"I know you... right?" Puddles! Why was it so hard to think? Yes... yes she knew this person...

"You're the she-person... hair so pale..."

Sil's thoughts began to stray. Why was her hair so white anyway? Did she forget to paint it? Did She-Person want Sil to paint her hair? Perhaps Lynx and she could-

Sil's eyes shot open. "Lynx!"

Why? Why was it always so hard to think?

"Where's Lynx?!" She asked in worry.

---

As Karina opening a path and fleeing with the rest of the group, she heard Sil's weak words as she finally realized that there was someone with her and recognized Karina, sitting on her little knees in her hand.
Karina couldn't help but to let out a kind smile as she heard her voices. Whatever the sightless did, certainly affected the poor Sil.

"Shh. Lynx escaped. The sightless was wounded and finally let go of him but another sightless arrived... with reinforcements. It seems a few people disguised themselves as cultists and are buying us some time to escape but we need to be quick..." Karina said to Sil as she looked around for the rest of the group to be certain everyone was escaping safely.

---

Sil put her hand to her forehead as if about to faint. So many words. Too many words. So hard to think.

"I..." She stuttered. "I don't understand..."

What was this feeling? Was this sadness? Was this pain? She looked to the sky. Puddles falling from above.

"It... hurts..." Sil said looking surprised.

The thought was fleeting. Insignificant amidst the puddles. Where did the puddles come from? Did they live up in the sky?

A single drop landed on her head and dripped down her face.

"Why?" She asked. "Why can't I ever understand?"

---

Listening to Sil's words, Karina simply raised her a little bit, giving a single, delicate kiss on Sil's head as she looked to her with a kind expression for a moment, before returning to her serious expression as she focused on escaping with the rest of the group.

"Just rest a little bit. I promise I'm going to take care of you." Karina said, in an almost motherly tone.

"You were very brave today, Sil. You did well. Now, it's my turn. I promise I'll take you and everyone else to safety." Karina finished,, looking to Sil with a kind smile.

---

Sil blinked, surprised by the gesture. She rested a hand where she had been kissed.

"Rest..." Sil repeated. Yet another concept she didn't understand. And why did that matter again?

She moved her hand away and stared at it with vacant eyes. Was she even capable of rest?

Tatter, tatter, tatter went the falling puddles. Splish, splash, splish. The sound of ground puddles disturbed by footsteps. The sounds seemed to wash away her troublesome thoughts. The only thing that stayed was the pain.

"Over here!" Chres's voice in the distance. He waved to the group, gesturing them over. "This way!" He said, turning to run.

"Puddles..." Sil said, fluttering off Karina's palm. "All I know is puddles..." She zipped off into the sky, aimlessly heading towards the clouds...