The sky was as dark and starry a void as she remembered from last time. It didn't seem as if there was a true sense of night or day here, not that it surprised her. She did, however, feel a sense of unease that she didn't have during her first visit—not initially anyway, and then she had been in and out of the place before the feeling had fully settled over her. Now—with part of the wonder that had gripped her before somewhat muted by the familiar surroundings—it was becoming difficult to ignore.

Hat Kid eyed the tall towers, shimmering falls, and broken, floating columns that encompassed her, then froze when she caught sight of the ghostly apparitions that snaked around a cluster of pillars in the distance before diving out of sight. Their red color was a striking contrast from the pale blues, greens, and whites, making it impossible to camouflage themselves. She'd seen red ghosts among the Subcon Dwellers, but there was something off about these, their forms taking a slightly darker tinge and—even more rattling—their matching masks practically faceless, as if someone had sanded off all of the intricate details they commonly displayed. Even the eyes had been smoothed away, disturbing her more than the ghosts themselves could.

These Dwellers seemed to be unique to this place, with abilities that countered the rest of their kind's. While others could materialize spiritual barriers and pathways, they could only break them down, leaving behind a distorted haze of red lines wherever their power reached. Not even her own mask's abilities could reverse their work.

She dug it out of her backpack now, holding it in front of her with both hands. While the child loved her usual top hat, there just wasn't as much of a use for it here as there was for the mask. During her first trip to the Twilight Bell, she'd kept it on for almost the entire time. Now that she'd be doing a deeper search through the area, it was needed more than ever. She clasped it over her face and put away the other.

The marble structures scaled deep into the abyss, their lower levels either fading from view or breaking apart at the base in a collection of floating rock. There had to be a safe route down, one where she could at least see where she was going. Hat Kid scanned the edge of each platform with a careful gaze before going on her way.

Stopping before she crossed the first spirit bridge, the young alien noticed that the red Dweller stationed there last time was missing. Maybe it was one of the two she'd seen earlier? The difference gave her enough pause to take another look around. Nothing else was out of the ordinary. There weren't any newly revealed platforms, it was just that the ones already placed there were able to manifest completely when she used her mask's abilities.

Hat Kid approached the curved monolith—it looked almost like a horn—jutting from the center of the sun dial carving that shaped the bulk of the platform's surface. It was decorated by a trio of the wide, patterned ribbons that were randomly scattered across the area either tied to columns or draped from the various structures like banners. Tracing her fingers along the intricate, smooth grooves in the rock, she then placed her palm against the stone.

The monolith shifted: Not by more than one or two centimeters, but enough that she shuffled in surprise as it scraped along the ground and threw her weight forward. It was like some kind of switch! When she tried to move it again, however, it barely wiggled in place. She grimaced: If she was one of the goat's she could probably move the piece with ease.

Her gaze was drawn back to the ribbons thoughtfully. Taking hold of the longest one, twisting it to strengthen it like a cord of rope, she pulled the two halves into a simple knot and braced the fabric in a tight grip close to her chest. Hat Kid propelled herself in a burst of speed to one end of the platform, digging her heels against the ground to keep from flying back as the ribbon snapped taut. It took all of her effort to pull and she tightened her jaw against the strain. Little by little though, she heard the rock drag in place behind her until the still air was pierced by a resounding click.

The ground shook under her. Letting go of the ribbon and sidestepping around the dial, she watched with wide eyes as it suddenly cut itself open along a thin incision in the stone. Each marker along the clock dipped low, one by one, to form a winding stairwell around the circumference of the monolith—deeper and deeper beyond her line of vision.

Still with amazement, she didn't move under she heard the final step clank into place somewhere far below. Hat Kid beamed, huffing from exertion. Eagerness mingled with a child's curiosity brushed away any hesitance she might've felt. Each drop was a small jump for someone her size. The girl raced down the large steps with a hand against the wall for support.

A part of her wondered what was the point of having a secret passage, or even gates or bridges for that matter. If only ghosts lived here, then couldn't they just float around and fade through everything? Then again, the Dwellers' homes in Subcon Village—different as they were, fashioned from the stumps—had doors. The only exception was Snatcher's large tree. Maybe it was because the spirits mostly needed them to get around? She didn't know. Their realms were never quite like the rest of the world, acting with their own set of rules.

And if this was a type of spirit realm, or limbo, then what kind of rules did it go by? What sorts of spirits would she see here? The thought both piqued her interest and made her nervous. She'd been to the fire spirit's territory before, where everything was permanently washed in undying flames. Would there be any of the foxes here too? Or maybe she'd eventually she one of the living constellations that the Badge Seller told her about.

Minutes passed in thoughtful silence as Hat Kid made her descent, at last reaching the final step with a wide exit spitting her out on a craggily ledge. While most of the place seemed almost frozen in time, this area had clearly seen a lot more wear. The marble was fractured and broken, much like the other bases she'd seen from a distance. Still, there was a path of uneven slopes and floating rock leading even further into the abyss.

It was the only direction for her to go besides back the way she came. With a glance up, she noticed just how far she was from the Twilight Bell's entrance: The towers above seemed to fade beyond view, swept in the stars. From what she could tell, there weren't any goats or Dwellers nearby either.

Hat Kid leaned over the side of the ledge, her mouth twisting as she hawked up a wad of phlegm and spat over the side. It dropped into darkness and no matter how hard she tried to see or hear where it landed, it was no use. All it did was guarantee that she had a long way to go.

A few water droplets trickled against her scalp and she lifted an arm to block them off. Right, there was a channel above her too. Craning her head to peer around the side of the stairway, she noticed the made-made waterfall slide across the marble before propelling into the shadows as well. She thought she remembered something about following waterways if she ever got lost, but she was pretty sure that was only in the wilderness. Nevertheless, it gave her a bit more encouragement to move onward.

Hat Kid leapt from shelf to rocky shelf, moving slow at first to avoid slipping on puddles and then with the rapid, well-practiced fluidity she was used to. Granted, she was also used to spotting the ground below… As soon as this search is over, she thought to herself bitterly, taking a running jump off one of the ledges to land in a crouch on one at least five meters below, I'm staying away from the mountains for a while. The sea sounded nice, so maybe she'd keep looking for the Time Pieces there. Any way that she could keep her feet on solid ground.

A green haze flickered before her, but the child didn't notice it until she dropped down another two meters. It was one of the Dweller Raccoons, as she called them. She guessed it made sense that animals had souls, but she didn't know they could turn into ghosts. Then again, the animals on this planet were far from normal. The spiders were huge and moved with a kind of strategy, the crows made an effort to be mean, and the raccoons could levitate and slept in pajamas.

This one was dreaming, curled up in a ball, until her sudden presence woke it. Although she needed to activate her mask's abilities anyway to jump over to the next ledge, Hat Kid weaved around the creature as it dropped to the ground—attempting to crush her out of surprise and instinct. She used to lash out before they could attack when she'd first had to deal with them, but after a while she realized that they didn't actually mean any harm. Any time they woke up, they'd just look around in a daze before falling back to sleep again. She didn't want to hurt them if she didn't have to.

She made it beyond the spectral platforms before her mask's effect ebbed, catching her breath and looking up at another glimmer of red speeding above her. It was another of the faceless Dwellers, although this time she was able to keep track of where it went. Gliding like a shooting star, it zipped somewhere into the depths. Good: Maybe that meant she was headed the right way.

Something built up in her throat and Hat Kid released a strangled cough. The air seemed thick and she stayed like that for several seconds until the feeling passed. Even after facing Queen Vanessa's ice, the chilly mountain air, and the Alpine Skyline's strange, purple flowers, she hadn't gotten sick. Even if she did now, she was determined to fight through it.

She leapt over the next raccoon she came across, rolling in the air before surging to the next floating stone. As soon as her feet touched the surface, she felt it quake underneath her. There was no choice but to jump, but she didn't immediately see anywhere she could go! Hat Kid released a panicked yelp as the rock gave way underneath her. When her eyes locked on a ruined piece of column, she threw her body to it for safety. The marble was so smooth that it was hard for her to find purchase. She skid across it on her stomach, wrapping her arms around its jagged left side. Her feet flew ahead of her, her body swinging around as she held on with all her might.

She only relaxed after her momentum ebbed away, leaving her daggling. What jarred her more than the collapse was the fact that there still was no sound from below. There would've been a noise if it crashed on something. What if she was basically walking down into a bottomless pit?

No going back, the alien reminded herself. She looked around and spotted another green shimmer around a wider, more stable pillar. Reactivating her mask's abilities, she watched as a wrap-around walkway manifested before her. The jump over to it wasn't too bad, but as she ran across, she came to a dead end. There was only a violet, ghostly barrier that lead inside the pillar. To pass through it, she had to temporarily deactivate her mask yet again, leaping up so that she wouldn't fall and tossing her body beyond the purple haze within a matter of a second.

Her foot slipped: The ground angled sharply and she fell on her back, sliding down a narrow tunnel. She spotted another viridescent glimmer, but relaxed when it took a spherical shape. There were pons below here—lots of them! She must've stumbled upon a hidden cache, and she couldn't resist gathering them before moving on through another opening that spilled her back out among the floating rocks.

By now, Hat Kid was well beyond the spectral city above with carvings and statues inspired by the goats themselves. There were a few runes—she wished she could read them—etched into the stone now and then and the occasional, red ribbon still guided her path; however, overall, the designs had gradually become more simplified. It gave her fewer footholds and she looked down wishfully, hoping to find some other, stable structure coming into view below.

There was no such luck, although she did spot a peg protruding from one of the stones. It was a little far, so she had to take a running leap away from the ledge she was standing on to dive over to it and get within a close enough range to fire her hookshot. Metal clanked against metal as it caught the peg in a firm grip. The girl swung in the air for a bit before readjusting her momentum to toss herself at a slight angle over to a lower platform. She continued down with long jumps between breaks, covering her mouth under her mask as another small cough racked her.

Balancing along a column that levitated at an almost perfect, horizontal line, she stretched her arms and peered down again. After the long climb it seemed too good to be true, but she'd finally stumbled on solid earth. The craggily landscape rolled in an unnatural way, breaking apart further into the abyss in one direction and arching in the distance as a blurry curve, like she was gazing at it all the way from space rather than from however far she still had to go to get down their safely. Her journey so close to an endpoint, a new wave of energy fell over her and she picked up the pace.

Hat Kid ran along the length of the column, kicking off a nearby slab of marble to ricochet onto another, wide rock further down. While her leaps and rebounds were less precise than her usual movements, she was able to quickly make her way to flat ground. Heavy dust curled at her feet upon landing, as if the area had long gone undisturbed. She coughed a third time as it billowed around her, then looked around.

There wasn't anything that caught her eye. Dusty and empty, she may as well have been standing on a small, long-abandoned terrestrial world. The more she observed her bleak surroundings, the more she began to believe that she really had made a mistake coming down here. That was, until she spotted another familiar ribbon. There were more further ahead, creating a kind of path. It was as though someone had placed them there in advance, just for her.

The trail led Hat Kid over the rough terrain until she stood overlooking a wide, gaping canyon. Beyond the barren wasteland, however, was a sight that took her breathe away. There was a small town, similar, but different to the home of the spectral ghosts she'd left behind. It seemed to be crafted from the same kind of rock, but was constructed like an ancient, mythical kingdom nestled within a valley of stars. Its high walls were a polished white and there was a deep forest of the realm's candescent flora stretching as far as the eye could see to the right of it. On the left side, overlooking the town and fashioned from the cliffs of a nearby mountain, was a shining castle—its towers built along the slope in a steady incline that appeared to reached for the cosmos.

Another wave of red snapped her back to attention. Not a ribbon this time, another Dweller. Was this where they lived? Hat Kid tried to follow after it, calling for help, but whether it heard or not it sped ahead across the canyon. There was no easy was for her to cross it and her whole body seemed to protest at the thought of another long climb. Maybe there was a bridge somewhere, or an easier way around. The child backpedaled, hoping that the ribbons would lead her along another path.

As she turned around, she skid to an immediate halt. She wasn't alone.

Without her noticing, somehow a masked ghost had crept behind her. However, he was a far-cry in appearance from the Dwellers she was used to. First off, all save for a translucent tail, the phantom had a humanoid shape. He was dressed with a professional, yet bold look that made him stand out from the muted colors of the area and his own, pale blue flesh. He wore a scarlet inverness cloak over a xanthic vest decorated by a black trim and brass buttons, and a cravat was tucked in around this neck. Shackles partially hidden by the sleeves of the cloak were chained to his wrists, masculine hands with claw-like fingers hanging relaxed at his sides.

Most jarring though was the mask itself, which seemed to meld with his skin in both color and design. It had a crescent shape along the crown, its features plastering a wide, eternal smile on the man's face. Each eye socket was different, one patterned with diamonds and the other like a target. Twin lines ran parallel from each, and from the bottom of the mouth, to the sides of the mask. Teal blue fabric tucked along the cloak's collar hid the back of his head from view.

Beyond the subtle rise and fall of his levitating, he didn't move. Instead, he greeted her with a faint, inspective tilt of his head and an almost breathy tenor, "Hello, child. You seem lost."

Hat Kid didn't notice how tight a grip she had on her umbrella until the phantom spoke, breaking through her surprise. She forced herself to relax and tried to play dumb, "Why's that?"

"Well, you're a little… early, to be in a place like this," he explained with careful consideration to his words, lifting a finger to his mouth in thought—though it was impossible to tell what he was thinking behind the mask. The shackles on his arms faintly clinked together as he moved. "You'll have to forgive my curiosity. We don't get many visitors among your kind."

All at once, another coughing fit hit her, this worse than the previous ones. It must've been all of the dust. She needed to drink something. She bent forward a little, cradling her stomach with her free hand, as she tried to let the feeling pass. She sniffled and a faint, sharp pang coursed through her head.

The ghost watched her in silence until the fit had calmed down a little, then gave a steady shake of his head, "Oh dear, perhaps you aren't too early after all. I should've guessed that the ether here wouldn't be suitable for you. Where are my manners…" He gave her a small, polite bow, "I am the Moonjumper, and I live and breathe this horizon. It is my home. And now, I think it's best if you come with me, child."

The alien stifled another cough, "What do you mean?" She regarded him cautiously. Her experiences with ghosts and spirits thus far hadn't been the best. Most had tried to kill her and, young and positive as she was, she wasn't naïve enough to trust just anyone.

"We need to get you something to eat—something from this realm," he further clarified when he noticed her almost retort, "This place isn't connected to the physical world and you've strayed far from any waypoint. The ether is incredibly strong here and you need something to counter its effects."

He held his hand out to her in a guiding motion, but she took a step back and brushed it aside. "I'm not sick," she said, although it was more for her own assurance than for his, "I'm fine."

His shoulders drooped in a casual or bored kind of sigh, "Oh child, I don't think you understand how grave your situation is.

"If you don't eat something from this world soon, you will die."