Sophia's Chronicles
Chapter 46: The Glimmer
(Zara POV)
Clarksburg, West Virginia – 30 July 2011, 8.01am
"Rise and shine," Zara leaned on top of him, cupping his head with her hands and kissing his forehead. A soft groan escaped Nick's lips as he stirred awake. It was an ordinary morning. The sun was up, the air was calm and the roads were quiet – just perfect. Zara felt fresh – almost like a whole new person.
"You're up early," he remarked, tracing her cheek with a thumb. The thin slice of light that crept in through the ignored gap in the curtains cast a radiant glow on her face and her brown eyes shined with the possibility of an entire timeline of happy days. Having her here, it made him feel something again. Loneliness be gone. Now there was someone to wake up to in the mornings. It filled an aching void he had become so familiar with over so many years.
"Yeah well, I get plenty of sleep these days," she replied as she got up and shot him a warm smile before turning to open the curtains, casting darkness away from the whole room.
Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Nick sat up and admired the view of her youthful, slim figure as she stared out the window. "Got any weekend plans?" he asked out of the blue.
"Plans? In case you didn't notice, I don't have much of a life," Zara chuckled. "Why do you ask?"
"How do you feel about going out of town for the weekend?" he suggested, eliciting a surprised turn of the head from her.
"I love it," she smiled.
"I figured that you know, with both of us holding jobs, we're making enough for a little weekend getaway," he reasoned.
"Yeah," she agreed, getting excited. "Sounds great, I'll look up places we can go."
"Uh actually," Nick interjected. "I have something in mind."
She waited for him to answer. "Are… you going to tell me?"
His greyish-blue eyes shot her a playful glare. "It's a surprise."
A mere two hours later, they were on the road, windows pulled down. Zara loved the feeling of wind rushing through her hair. She felt free on the road, with Nick in the driver's seat and just the essentials in the backseat. Nick passed her a cigarette and she puffed on it leisurely, blowing out the smoke through her plump, pink lips while resting an elbow out the window. The sound of a guitar riff playing through the speakers caught her attention. "I can turn it off if you want," Nick offered, his fingers ready at the dial.
"Are you kidding? This is my jam!" she grinned, enthused.
"Black Sabbath's your jam?" He looked pleasantly surprised.
"Oh hell yeah," she nodded. Excitement shone in her eyes and there was a wide smile on her face as she remembered all the good memories. "You have no idea."
Needless to say, the ride continued with the both of them competing to finish the lyrics of Black Sabbath songs. "What you gonna be, what you gonna be, brother, Zero the Hero," they sang together. That's how he knew she was for real. Her taste in music amazed him, especially coming from someone her age.
"Zara, were you an old white biker dude in your past life?" Nick jokingly asked.
"Maybe. Were you?" she answered.
"Well, you see, my dad…" he began. "My dad was a great influence on me growing up. He'd bring all these classic rock and metal albums back home and play it out loud. I practically slept to it." Zara smirked at his story. "What about you?"
Zara's smile faded a little, but she tried to keep it up. There was no need to let the distant past bring her down in the present, especially when she'd left all that behind a long time ago, she thought. "My parents didn't take too well to my taste in music," she admitted. "My mother said heavy metal was the Devil's music. So I said, 'Satan has a great taste in music!'" They both had a good laugh over that. "Unfortunately, that joke didn't land with them. My parents are pretty devout, so I was grounded for a while and they threw out my CDs and my mp3 player. Yes, they actually did that."
"Grounded for what? Bringing up Satan?" It was a genuine question.
"Oh, you don't know half the things my parents did." She chuckled sardonically. "They're crazy." She let out a sigh, though a sly smile found her way across her lips. "But that didn't stop me."
"Sounds… intense," Nick acknowledged. "So you had it rough growing up?"
"A little," she nodded. "My family was pretty tyrannical. But it's alright, I just snuck out at night when they were asleep." Nick could tell she was brushing it off as something trivial when it seemed more… psychologically scarring. But it did make some sense to him. Rebellious teen, evangelical parents – no wonder she was tempted to run away with the Devil. "And look at me now."
"Look at you now," he repeated her mantra.
(Sophia POV)
The Omniverse, The Void
The scratches on the walls were still there. My hand traced the grooves, remembering the time my fingers dug in so deep from pure terror. I was back in the cell. Though I had agreed not to disobey, Khaos thought it necessary to keep me in my cell again, for a while at least. He'd said I had to learn the "value of freedom" and that "friends must be helpful that way". I couldn't wait to be a "friend" to Him, if that were the case. To be fair, He did teach me some new tricks. He showed me how to channel my dark essence and express it despite the presence of Lucifer's light essence within me. Admittedly, I was a little freaked out when I felt the white sclerae of my eyes turning black, reverting to how they were before God took me in. This state was more conducive for me to channel the power of the anti-matter universe, He'd said, as compared to the way I was doing it before – the only time I had consciously used my dark essence was during the rebellion in Heaven, when we needed a quick escape. And that had taken a lot out of me. The moment I had successfully transitioned between both states, a new fear crept up on me. I was afraid that using my dark essence more would make me more like Amara.
"Don't be ridiculous," Khaos had dismissed my concern. "Did having the light essence make you more like God? Did it even make you more like Lucifer, since it was from him that you were revitalised?" I simply frowned in thought. Did it? "No! The answer is no, Sophia," He snapped me out of my thoughts, like it was ridiculous that I was even considering it. But there was a case to be made, yes? No matter, I was still here because of my cursed lifeblood and my stupid decisions. Again there was that rapping on the wall which came and went.
"Psst," someone whispered. There was a soft knocking on the door. "Sophia."
I squinted at the small opening which was reinforced with bars. Someone had pulled open the latch and was looking in. I recognised those green eyes to be my own. As I neared the bars, I realised who it was. "You," I recognised. It was my alternate self, the one who'd tried to convince me that Khaos was always right. I had nothing but scorn for her, after the things she'd said. "What do you want?" I asked pointedly.
"I… I wanted to apologise," she stammered. "I didn't realise the extent to which He'd go to… persuade you."
"Didn't you? You're the one who talked about whole universes getting destroyed because of our stubbornness!" I rebutted.
"I know… I know. But He said you were different. He said you were more important. He wanted to treat you better," her face looked sullen. "I suppose that's why He restored your universe. I can't imagine what you must have been through."
"Try this: Everything you love getting stripped from you along with your dignity and your spirit!" I didn't bother concealing the bitterness in my voice. She flinched at my tone.
"You must understand, there was nothing I could've done," she sustained. "But I see now that I can't stand for this anymore. After all that I've witnessed…" She leaned in closer, lowering her voice to a softer whisper. "Honestly, I was scared. Maybe that's why I simply did as He said."
"Way to take a stand," I shot back sharply.
"I had no choice! Do you know what He does to those of us with second thoughts?"
"I think I have an idea," I gestured to my cell.
"Listen to me very carefully, Sophia," her voice grew ominous. "You're not the only one here. You see those other cells down the hall. They're not empty. Our other selves are all in there." What? An uncomfortable feeling stirred in my abdomen, along with a rising sense of terror. "I think I'm the only one who's not in solitary confinement as of now. And you'll be out soon too."
"What does He want with us?" I asked. "Why is He keeping the lot of us locked up while only two of us are free to move? What's the point?"
"Trophies. They're trophies," she put a name to my worst nightmare. "You're the real endgame. I just happened to be compliant. And guess what, I'll take freedom any day."
"Wait, wait… I don't quite understand all of this…"
"There's no time for a history lesson! It's complicated. Anyway, I came here for one reason. Omega sent me here," she stated.
"Omega?" I've never met that one before.
"He's the good one." When she saw the scepticism in my eyes, she elaborated. "For real. He's the total opposite of Alpha. And Alpha's the one who controls all the others right now, by the way."
"I noticed."
"So short story is, Alpha and Omega are the most powerful facets of Khaos but they are also opposites of each other, and in their grand struggle for power, Alpha won and got control of all the other versions of Him," she summarised.
"Why doesn't Omega just seize control again?" I questioned.
"Because He's locked up, just like you are now. You think Alpha's just gonna let that guy walk free?"
"What does Omega want?"
"Just what you'd think. To get His revenge on Alpha and cage that son of a bitch up. But He needs your help to do it. Why do you think Alpha's been keeping such a close eye on you?" she said.
For the first time in all the time I'd been here, I finally saw hope again. This could be my chance. "What does He need from me?"
Through the bars, she passed me a small rolled up note. "I'm not allowed to speak about it. You see, Khaos can tell when certain… crucial information is being passed around. So Omega can only communicate with you using such… simplistic methods. They'll reveal small clues hidden in code that you have to decipher," she explained.
"Great," I sighed. "Just what I need. Puzzles in my spare time."
"It's the only way Omega could ensure that Alpha never finds out." She looked dead serious, clearly unamused by my sarcasm. Suddenly, she turned to look down the hallway, possibly checking to see if anyone was approaching, before turning back to me.
I held up the note, my gaze drifting between it and her. "Why should I trust you?" I finally asked.
"Are you being serious right now?" she sounded like she couldn't believe it.
"Deadly. You're looking out for yourself, as I gather. Why shouldn't I believe that Khaos isn't just using you to set me up for some kind of test? Why should I believe anything you say?"
"Sophia, there isn't time for this."
"Give me one reason. I want to believe," I reassured her.
She hesitated. "If you really insist upon it… Knowledge is currency around here. If you go to the mainframe, which is in a room similar to the main office – the one with the many screens – there is a contraption there which you can use. You can sell information for information in return. And here's the thing: whatever information you give the machine will replace information of the same magnitude in the mainframe, which means you can take data that Khaos already has and replace it with your own. You can see His secrets for a simple trade. Neither of us are supposed to know about it."
"Then how do you…?"
"It was an accident. But being compliant meant that He would trust me with information like this. See, it's not completely a bad thing," she reasoned. "Go try it for yourself and you'll see that I'm telling the truth. Make sure you're out of His sights."
"I will," I declared.
She gulped, her eyes becoming sullen. "I'm warning you, if Alpha catches one whiff of what you're doing, it's game over. For all of us." Knots of anxiety formed in my abdomen. "Alright, I've spent too much time here. I should go," she stepped back abruptly, hands trembling as she turned to leave. Before I could ask her anything else, she shut the latch, leaving me in the darkness again. I made my eyes glow as I sat back down in a corner of the cell. Unrolling the note, I recognised the Enochian writing. There were a few lines of information, the latter half looking like a codex. The first line, written in larger font, simply said, 'Right beside you'. The rapping on the walls from the adjacent cell resounded again.
(Zara POV)
Fayetteville, West Virginia – 30 July 2011, 1.15pm
"Wow," Zara held her breath as they drove across the New River Gorge Bridge. The view was spectacular, with the bridge towering over a thin river that snaked between two patches of thick forest. She couldn't believe that she had never been to this place before. Then again, travelling wasn't really something that her family did.
They spent the whole day walking around town, visiting various stores and libraries. It was the most mundane thing they could think of and that was the appeal. "So what's the surprise?" Zara asked, as they sauntered down a street after lunch. "Why'd you pick this place?"
"Oh, you know… I thought you might like the bridge," he shrugged.
"The… bridge…?" she narrowed her eyes at him. "We came all the way here for a bridge?" she chuckled. "Not saying I don't like it, but it has to be more than that, right?"
Nick shook his head nonchalantly. "Nope. Oh, there's also a miner's trail. Did you know that Kaymoor was one of the largest coal production operations in the 1900s? There's an interesting bit of American history for ya," he went on.
"Alright…" Zara's first thought was that something was off – that he wasn't being honest. But she'd seen him kill someone and that was as intimate as you could get with someone. So she didn't want to press any further. Maybe he really was an enthusiast for American history. But she did notice something different about him. He seemed to be unusually chipper. It was evident in his eyes, which looked like they were scanning around constantly. In moments where they were both silent, she saw him looking off into the distance and his feet would be tapping the ground restlessly if they were sitting. Sometimes he just seemed lost in thought. It wasn't completely weird – he still held conversation with her. It just seemed like there was something else on his mind.
Later, as the sun began to set, they wandered into a bar. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to get me drunk," she jokingly said as he ordered a row of shots. It was dark in the bar and it wasn't very crowded so there was a fair bit of space for people to move around and dance.
"Oh, I'm sorry if you aren't as tough as you seem," he taunted, a sly grin creeping across his face.
"You're gonna be like that, huh?" she rolled up the sleeves of her grey sweater in a display of courage. "Well, mister, I don't back down from a challenge." In an instant, she threw her head back as she gulped the first one. She made a sour face as the aftertaste of the liquid came to sensation. "Ugh, that's gross."
"Giving up already?" Nick mocked as he took his first shot.
A mischievous glint shone in Zara's eyes. "I'm just getting started."
Nick watched in amazement as Zara downed glass after glass. He'd stopped after two, but that was on purpose. He didn't want to get too high. Strangely, after enough drinks, she didn't even notice that he wasn't drinking as much. Soon enough, Zara became so dizzy that she began laughing at how drunk she was. As she got off her seat, her hand held onto the counter to steady herself. Her head kept spinning and she would have fallen if not for Nick holding her arm. "I… can stand," she declared, pulling away from him.
"If you say so," he relented with quiet amusement. He had no intention of hurting her, like what his actions seemed to point to. He had other plans. But for that, he needed to get her out of the way. And so they walked back to the motel, with Zara staring at the world around her in amazement, at how everything seemed to blur with everything else in her drunken state. She rubbed her hand across her chin and cheek, finding that she only felt numb. Things faded in and out of her vision and it felt like blinking took longer than usual. Before she knew it, she felt Nick's protective arms around her, guiding her along the pavement. Though she wanted to protest at first, she decided that his arms felt comfortable enough and put her arms around his waist for further support. When they reached the door of their shared motel room, her fingers fumbled inside her shoulder bag for the key. Nick watched her stumble inside the warm room as he closed the door behind them. She'd put the key back in her bag before setting it on the table, he noted.
Awaiting the comfort of their bed, Zara stripped off her sweater, revealing a black tank top underneath. "You should get some sleep," Nick said, peeling off his own jacket.
"Only if you join me," she flirted. Without warning, she threw her arms around his neck and stood on the tip of her toes, pulling his face closer to hers to kiss him. Her lips widened into a smile as they remained in proximity to his. She found sanctuary in his arms and she felt lost in his lips. Again, she moved in and kissed him, more deeply this time. Unable to resist, Nick kissed her back, tilting his head and lifting her by the waist. She sometimes chuckled softly in between kisses, excited by the possibilities of their intimacy. He held her tightly to him as he planted kiss after kiss on her lips until she was heaving for breath. Then, he stopped, putting her back down on her own two feet. Zara's hands moved to pull off her top but he stopped her.
"Not tonight," he refused. "You're really drunk."
She smirked, like it was the silliest thing she'd heard. "What, you're afraid you'll take advantage of me? Come on," she brushed it off. "You make me feel so hot sometimes, you know?" she drawled with a seductive voice, undeterred. Her hands traced down slowly from his waist, eventually moving to undo his belt. "Trust me, I want this." Again, he stopped her. Nick gulped as he saw her bite her lower lip. As tempting as it was, Nick held her wrists firmly and guided her to the bed, where he laid her down. He helped her take off her shoes as her head sunk into a pillow, relenting to gravity. He even spread the blanket over her as she turned on her side and closed her eyes, giving in to an alcohol-induced sleep.
He waited maybe ten or fifteen minutes, just watching her as she fell deeper asleep, before fishing for the keys in her bag. While he did this, his fingers grazed against a plastic surface and he instantly froze. He took out the keys, but now his attention was captured by a curious little thing at the bottom of the bag. He reached in and pulled out a small plastic bag containing a white substance. He held it up and scrutinised it, eyebrows crinkling. His eyes widened when he realised what it was. Glancing back at Zara, he regarded her with concern. He never would have imagined her to be the junkie type. It also bothered him that she seemed so happy around him, though what he just discovered made him question that. His gaze softened, realising that he never wondered what she must be doing when he was not around. He'd just tacitly assumed that she was okay, with the way she made him feel. They had only met each other two weeks ago, after all, even if they acted like they knew each other for years. It seemed like a mask they put on for each other to ignore the fact of why they were together at all. Normal couples don't behave like this around each other, especially within two weeks of meeting. She had known what was under his mask all this while but he didn't hers.
With a heavy heart, he put the cocaine back and left the motel room, closing the door as softly as he could. As he stood out in the cold, his eyes sharpened and once again, they looked dead. A twinge of excitement fluttered in his chest as he set out to begin his night-time activity. He'd waited two weeks to do this. Tonight's the night. A predator of the night, he moved briskly, driving to his chosen, isolated spot in the woods. A sadistic smile crept across his face as he spread the waterproof sheet expertly, in anticipation of the next occupant of this plastic hell. Satisfied with how the abandoned cabin looked, he went in search of his next victim.
Michael Hernandez. Late forties. Divorced alcoholic. Recently moved to Fayetteville from Clarksburg to live alone in a different town from his ex. Must have been a pretty rough divorce. Nick had spotted him in the pub one night when he came to watch Zara sing during her shift, which was what he usually did. Poor guy spilled his guts to anyone who would listen. Nick stalked him a few times after work and found out where he was moving to when he finally broke into the guy's place. Making sure no one else needed this guy – he didn't even have kids – Nick heaved a sigh of relief that he didn't have to look out for any more potential prey. When he reached Mike's house, he felt nothing but the rush from the thought about what he was about to do. He felt it deep within him, a dark, beastly urge to see nothing but pure terror in another's eyes as he released the anger pent up in his soul.
The victim's house was a stone's throw away from the cabin, situated in the same general area and hidden among trees. As he picked the locks and entered the darkness, he found the victim passed out on the couch, a nearly-empty liquor bottle slipping from his hand. On the table were an assortment of pills. They'll chalk it up to suicide. As he approached, a floorboard creaked under his foot. The unconscious man groaned awake. Nick hoped he would go back to sleep, but he wasn't that lucky that night. Yawning, Hernandez sat up and rubbed his eyes. He sluggishly pushed himself off the couch and dragged himself to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. There was an invisible tango in the darkness as Nick tried to keep out of sight. As Hernandez stood in front of the kitchen window and reached to turn on the tap, his eyes casually wandered to the window. A pale reflection that wasn't his made him catch his breath in his throat. Soulless, light-coloured eyes stared into his. Not a single gasp escaped his lips before a blunt force struck him in the head and he fell, unconscious.
"Uhhh…" Hernandez grumbled as his eyes fluttered awake. His vision was still blurry but he could tell immediately that he wasn't home. It was dark and the only light was a red glow. He tried to rub his eyes but he found out quickly that his hands were bound together and his arms were secured to his sides. He gasped. His breaths were shallow, hurried, as he scrambled to sit up. The walls were covered in some weird material, he observed. As his back leaned against a wall, his eyes found the source of the red glow – a work lamp was set up on the other side of this small, dark room. That was when his gaze rested on the figure of a man seated on the other end of this space. Nick simply sat in silence as he waited for his victim to come to, resting his arms on his knees. Hernandez made out the shape of something long in the grip of this stranger. It looked to be… a hammer. "Wh-who are you?" he stuttered, feeling himself shiver all over, and it wasn't just from the cold.
Nick simply stared, unblinking. There was something about the way he looked at the man, something so bone-chilling about the way his eyes could seem so… indifferent. They didn't even look human. His unrelenting silence made Hernandez hear his own heartbeat ringing in his ears. "Are-are you going to… hurt me?" Michael's voice quavered. Still no response.
Primal fear began to spread in this man's mind and at once, he began violently thrashing about, trying to be free of whatever bound him. But he was no match for the strength of metal cuffs around both his wrists and ankles and the rope around his body. Seeing this tension build up – an evolution of confusion to curiosity to fear to then paralysing fear – it sent the adrenaline rushing throughout the killer's bloodstream. His head grew light with anticipation of nothing but blood. Meanwhile Michael's lower lip trembled. "What d-d-did I ever do to you, man?" he sounded exasperated.
"Shut the fuck up, Michael," Nick said sharply. He put up a finger, his eyes wandering to some arbitrary spot in the ceiling. "Do you hear that?" Nothing but the sound of nocturnal creatures. "It's soothing, isn't it? Oh, and don't mind the lighting. It's a special occasion." Nick smirked, the first real human emotion he showed.
Michael gulped, feeling his words get caught in his throat. "Wh-What's the occasion?"
Nick exhaled slowly, stroking his stubble. "This is my last… thrill. Before Satan possesses me again." He sighed. "I can't say I'm not excited about it. I won't have to worry about cops if Satan's at the wheel. But I just met this girl and she's… amazing. I want to have a life with her. But I'll have to give it all up for Satan. What do you think I should do?"
He's crazy. He's so goddamn crazy. God help me, the victim prayed. "Um…" he waited to see if his would-be murderer was joking but it didn't look like it. He thought if he went along with it, he would be able to get off easy. "F-follow your h-heart…? Y-yeah, man. It's hard to find true love these days. Think about what the girl wants too."
"But she wants me to be possessed by Satan!" Nick suddenly yelled, causing Michael to flinch. "I guess I can't blame her. Who knows what she's been through. I feel for her, man. An ache in my heart." His glove-bound hand patted his chest softly. He thought about the drugs and the tears. "Then again, she barely tells me anything at all about how she's feeling! I mean, does she even feel anything for me at all? What does she get out of all this?"
Michael nodded in desperation, a look of horror still plastered on his face. "Yeah, yeah. Bitches be crazy, am I right? I should've known about my ex-wife!"
"What did you say?" Nick glared at him. He suddenly got up, invigorated. "What did you say about my Zara? How dare you speak about her that way!" He walked briskly towards the cowering victim. "You don't know anything about her!"
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry!" Hernandez cried. His body froze as Nick's gloved hand grabbed a tuft of his hair forcefully and pulled his head back. "I'm sure she's nice. I'M SURE SHE'S NICE!"
"You got no right, motherfucker," Nick growled as he swung the hammer. The man wailed as pain shot through his temple instantly. "She's a complicated girl." Another strike across the man's cheek sent shards of broken bone protruding through his skin. "But I respect her choice in the matter. She only means well, you know?" Michael's hands trembled as he cried in agony, seeking out his captor's feet to beg for mercy. Nick only saw red, both literally and figuratively. He became obsessively fixated on the splashes of blood on the victim's face and on the floor. He wanted more. His arm convulsed with repetitive movement, bringing the blunt end of the hammer down again and again until the skull was unrecognisable, remaining as bits and pieces on the floor. A fountain of blood sprung forth and cool sensation spread throughout his chest. The ritual was complete.
There was a spring in his step as he returned to the motel room after cleaning up. Another night, another great bloodbath. Now I can relax. Thoughts of Zara swirled in his head, including worry about her potential cocaine problem. He'd have to talk about it with her later, he realised. But right now, he couldn't wait to hit the sack. The knob twisted in his hand and the door inched open as he slipped in silently. That's when he noticed the dim light from the bedside lamp, as he shut the door silently. He slowly turned around, meeting Zara's eyes. She was sat upright on the bed and she regarded him curiously. "I couldn't sleep. And I was really thirsty," she began. An empty glass on the table next to the bed confirmed her story. "Where were you?" Her voice didn't seem angry; it was weary. She was tired.
"I… uh… just went out for a drive. I couldn't sleep either," he answered, sitting beside her. To his surprise, she moved over and her arms encircled his waist as she rested her head on his shoulder. Convinced that she didn't suspect anything, he put an arm around her and pulled her close. She exhaled slowly, sinking deeper into his embrace. The sound of his steady heartbeat comforted her. While they remained like this, his hand stroked her hair and she moaned softly. Amused, he thought of her like a cat that needed to be cuddled and petted.
"You know," she lifted her head to face him. "You don't have to lie to me about killing people."
As her brown eyes bore into his icy blue ones, she noticed his eyebrows crinkle slightly, before relaxing in surrender. "I didn't want to disturb you with the thought of it," he confessed.
"I'm not disturbed," she blankly stated. "This is a part of my life now."
"Fair enough," he conceded. "I'd tell you that I wouldn't lie about it again, but this is probably the last time before… you know…" he said casually. Zara nodded. She hugged him tighter, her eyes closing as though to wish that this moment would last forever. In her heart, she yearned for him, though her mind knew that this wasn't meant to last. She was grateful, nonetheless, for the days she got to spend with him.
A/N:
Alright, so that was a casual day in the life of Nick and Zara. Just thought it would be nice to see how they would be like, just having fun and not thinking about life and death. If you got the references I made, 10 internet points to you.
Oh, and things are brewing in the Void. I know things may seem confusing as hell now, and it definitely is for Sophia, but not to worry. Just think of the events in the Void as a spontaneous rising of conflict – their origin does not matter as much as what Sophia does and thinks. Her ultimate goal is to find out what happened to her son and take down Khaos (might be a lil difficult to do on her own). Lots of interesting revelations on the way :)
