The House of Bone

by kiben007

The Lord of the Locusts has been mankind's greatest enemy since time immemorial. But what if he wasn't the ultimate evil the Disciples of Venu thought he was. What if he was a mere tool. A weapon, more accurately, designed to destroy a Goddess. If such a thing were true, two questions are left open: Who was it that could have forged such a weapon? And who could have wielded it?

34. Chapter 27: Metamorphosis

"Fone!" Thorn's voice drifted through the woods behind Fone and Havaki. As the pair walked forward, her shouting began to diminish until it could no longer be heard.

"No going back now, huh…" Fone muttered.

"Of course not." Havaki said, turning over his shoulder to face Fone. "All the Vedu wants from you is your power. And if they can't control you, they'll kill you to get it."

"It still doesn't feel right, though. Leaving Thorn behind." Fone looked down at his feet. "I promised her I wouldn't leave again."

"She will understand, in time." Havaki smiled. "You both have a great role to play. She is the Veni-Yan-Cari, and you are the Successor. Your destiny is to set the world right. And I am her to protect and train you until that day comes."

"Who are you, exactly? You're no child, that's for sure."

"And I'm no human either. Though you probably already had that pegged down. I am the Spark, speaking to you through a constructed personality so that I may guide you and nurture your growth."

"You're the Spark?" Fone thought for a moment. He stopped. "Wait, hold on. Aren't you… Don't you want to end the world or… Something?"

"Nagratek told you the Vedu's creation myth, did he?" Havaki chuckled. "Poor soul. At best, Nagratek is misguided. By the time he was born, the story of my birth was already a legend known only to a select few. The tale of the shattered god, the two halves yearning to be whole, and the Dragon Queen who tore me apart. Nothing more than a convenient fiction Mon'Yaran concocted to convince the Dragon Council that Mim was acting against the will of their god. The truth is much more pedestrian. While I was responsible for creating the Mother of Dragons, I did not do so consciously, and I not help her fill the world with life. I don't even know how I arrived here myself, or what I really am. But I do know that I won't be a slave to Mon'Yaran's fanatical desires. And you are the only person I can put my faith in to stop him."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" Fone asked, crossing his arms. "You'd better have a good reason why I shouldn't just turn around and go back to my friends."

"You saw what Nagratek had planned for you." Havaki frowned, stopping to turn and face Fone fully. "But, if you insist, I suppose I can show you." Havaki reached forward and touched Fone's chest. A golden light began spreading from his palm, enveloping Fone's torso. After a moment, a golden disk came forth from the light, resting in Havaki's palm. It appeared solid gold, but as it sat exposed to the wind its surface rippled like water.

"That's the Spark?" Fone raised an eyebrow. "That's you? And you've been inside me this whole time?"

"Since you met Lorimar, yes." Havaki nodded, pushing the disk back into Fone's chest. "After the boy, Tom Elm, put me back together, he entrusted me to Lorimar for safekeeping. I wasn't happy about the arrangement, but there wasn't much I could do against Mon'Yaran and his power. He possesses an object quite like myself. The "other Spark" Nagratek no doubt told you about. He used it to keep me contained. But, under duress, I can take many forms, so when you met Lorimar in Deren Guard, I escaped into your bloodstream and merged with your body."

"I've got about a million more questions…" Fone sighed, rubbing his temples. "But right now, I'll settle for just one. Where are we going?"

"We're going to go train." Havaki said, turning back and continuing to walk through the forest. Fone recrossed his arms and didn't move. Havaki sighed. "While you're learning to harness your power as the Successor, you'll need a well of reserve energy. The deepest natural wells of Dreaming Energy occur where the Waking and Dreaming worlds intersect. Mon'Yaran sits on the Crown of Horns, which rules that one out. But there is another tear we can use. The one opened by the Locust when the Councilman stitched him together."

"I'm going to train in the birthplace of the greatest, most terrible evil that has ever walked the earth? That doesn't sound like the best plan."

"Do you know of any other holes in the fabric of reality readily available for us to use?"

"I'm just not comfortable with the idea. I've had part of the Locust in me before. I'd prefer to stay as far away as possible from anything to do with that thing for the rest of my life."

"Well then, maybe we could open up a tear right here." Havaki motioned around at the trees. "Who knows, given a year of concentration, the two of us might be able to get one open just in time for Mon'Yaran to swallow us whole." He took a step toward Fone and grabbed him by the shoulders. "We are staring into the abyss, Fone Bone. We are a hair's breadth away from destruction. Mon'Yaran will drown the entire Waking World in his wretched soul if he is not stopped. I am trying to save the people you care about, but I need you to cooperate." As he spoke, his fingers dug into Fone's skin.

"You sound just like Nagratek." Fone stepped back, breaking out of Havaki's grip. "Forget this, I'm going back. You can find someone else to drag across the Valley to the worst place on earth." Fone turned around and started walking back up the mountain. Immediately he ran into a person-shaped wall of crystal.

"I wouldn't advise it." Shard said as Fone reeled back, rubbing his nose where it had smacked into Shard's chest.

"Shard?" Fone asked. "What are you…? You know what, forget it. I'm sorry about throwing you down the hallway. I'm just a bit… overwhelmed." He glanced back at Havaki. "And I'd really like to know what's going on."

"No apologies necessary." Shard waved his hand dismissively. "Before you say anything else, I need you to hear me out. You assaulting me was within the scope of the plan. I needed to get you away from Nagratek so we could talk, but he wasn't going to let you out of his sight. Hence the provocation. Nagratek wants to use you to repower the Cipher."

"The Cipher… That's the big energy weapon you guys made, right?"

"It's actually the crystalized remnants of all the past Veni-Yan-Cari and it wasn't originally supposed to be a weapon. I originally made it to separate Mon'Yaran from his Spark, but we ended up having to blow it on stopping the Councilman, and Nagratek used its shell to form Ven's new body. And now, he wants to use your power to refuel it so Ven can stomp both brothers into the ground."

"I can do that?"

"You're certainly powerful enough. Too powerful for him to control. That scares him, and frankly it scares me too. Because he's afraid, he'll kill you the second you've topped off Ven. I, on the other hand, have the clarity to recognize that you're the best shot we have at stopping Mon'Yaran for good. Certainly a sight better than relying on the broken husks of a dozen Veni-Yan-Cari. But you can't do that dead."

"…" Fone stared at Shard, unable to find words for a moment. "Wow. Alright. Scratch returning, I guess."

"Right now, you need to focus on controlling your power. I would train you myself, but Nagratek can't suspect I'm helping you, so you'll have to make due. Once things calm down on this end and I can move around more freely, I'll contact you. We'll figure something out. Just stay out of sight until then." Voices began drifting down the mountain again, calling out Fone's name. "That'll be the search party. I need to go. I'll stall them, so you get out while you can." He turned and began running back up the mountain. "I'll be in touch."

"Wait!" Fone shouted, turning around to point at Havaki. "What about-" He turned back to Shard and realized that he had disappeared. "Where did he…" Fone muttered squinting through the forest.

"You heard him, let's get moving." Havaki said, once again beginning to walk down the mountain. After a moment's hesitation, Fone started after Havaki once again.

"This is…" Fone said as he followed Havaki. "This is a lot. This is a whole lot. Is Shard working for you? What's going on? He didn't seem shocked you were here."

"We share a common goal." Havaki replied. "We have for millennia. Shard found a part of me after the Councilman's initial defeat. He filled me in on what happened since my shattering, and what Mon'Yaran was trying to accomplish. The two of us agreed it was best to avoid such a situation. So here we are. Working to help you realize your full potential."

"And to do that, we need to go to the Locust's birthplace." Fone sighed. "Fantastic. Where is that, anyway?"

"The Crystal Councilman had an underground laboratory to the north of what is now the Valley, where he conducted all manner of twisted experiments. When the Locust was created, his presence tore the earth itself apart, forming a vast canyon network stretching out from the Councilman's lab. That's where we're going."

"The other side of the Valley? That'll take us days at this pace."

"We can't risk attracting too much attention right now. You can't control your powers well enough to properly defend yourself, and there's only so much I can make up for in my current state. We need to lay low until we're clear of the Councilman's dogs."

"Wait hold up. Until we're clear of what now?"

"The Nightmare Entities who escaped Shard after the Councilman's awakening. They're prowling around out there as we speak. I doubt any of them are at full power, but running into one could prove disastrous if we aren't careful."

"I think I can handle myself." Fone smirked. "I did manage to fight off Nagratek, though admittedly I'm not sure how."

"You beat Nagratek through sheer luck. Your powers managed to activate under duress, but we can't guarantee it'll happen again."

"Alright, I get it." Fone put his hands up. "Fighting is a last resort." The two continued to walk in silence for another few minutes. "Since we're going to have so much time on our hands, would now be a good time for those other million questions?"

"Shoot." Havaki responded.

"Why are you a kid? I mean, obviously you aren't a kid, but why do you look like one?"

"I…" Havaki paused. He stood still for a moment with his eyes closed. "I don't know. I'm not actually sure why I took this form, but I can't seem to change it. Give me a moment, this requires investigation." Havaki closed his eyes again.

"No, go ahead. Take your time." Fone rolled his eyes. "It's not like we have anywhere to be." He looked around, placing his hands on his hips. Suddenly he realized the ground had leveled out. They stood in the middle of a clearing, still surrounded by trees, but he could see the Eastern Mountains cresting the horizon a great distance away. That's when he also noticed the sun had set, and his muscles were starting to become sore. "How long have we been walking?" He muttered under his breath.

"Run!" Havaki yelled as his eyes flickered open, startling Fone. Havaki began sprinting forward, motioning for Fone to follow.

"What's going on?" Fone shouted as they tore through the underbrush.

"I found out why I've taken this form." Havaki responded. "I suspected it was from Tom Elm's memories. But when I began exploring the connection, I accidentally reached out to him through the Dreaming. That may have exposed our position. We need to get out of here before any-" As Havaki was speaking, something crashed through the trees beside them and landed in between him and Fone, throwing up a cloud of dirt. As the dust cleared, Zakaita stood from the impact crater.

"Well what have we here?" Zakaita said as he smiled at Fone. "Who could have guessed we'd find a lamb so far from Nagratek's flock? Or perhaps you're one of Deyavara's toy soldiers?"

"Shut up." Linara shouted, emerging from the woods behind Fone. "I can't believe I have to travel all the way out here with you while the others get to enjoy a delicious meal."

"Who are you?" Fone asked, his eyes darting between Zakaita and Linara. "Nightmare Entities?"

"Oh, it knows of us?" Zakaita said, putting his hand against his chest. "I'm flattered!"

"Deyavara didn't free us so that we could waste our time jesting with mortals." Linara sighed. "Besides, judging from his reaction, we can be fairly certain he's with Nagratek. We should kill him and get back to our search."

"And how do we know he didn't have something to do with that delicious burst of Dreaming Energy a moment ago?"

"You really think this one's the Successor?" Linara asked, eyeing Fone up. "I don't see it. Besides, I can't sense any energy from him. He'll barely…" Linara narrowed her gaze and crossed her arms. "Now that you mention it, he does give off a faint hum. It's almost as if-" As she spoke, Fone and Havaki darted forward into the trees.

"And there he goes…" Zakaita sighed, watching Fone dash through the forest underbrush. "I suppose we should go catch him." Zakaita squatted for a moment before launching himself into the air, sailing down in an arc and landing in front of Fone again. "Do me a favor, will you, and don't make this more difficult than it has to be." He said as stood from the impact and turned to face Fone.

"You want it easy, do you?" Fone asked, balling his hands into fists. "Sorry, but I don't go down easy."

"Well, that's one way to do this." Zakaita shrugged. He lunged forward and grabbed Fone's face. "At least this gives us a chance to see what you're made of." He slammed Fone head first into the ground. Fone crumpled against the dirt and lay motionless under Zakaita's grip.

"Wow…" Linara whistled, walking up behind Zakaita. "What did I tell you? He couldn't even take one hit."

"Weird." Zakaita muttered, standing up and releasing his grasp on Fone's head. "I could have sworn he-" As Zakaita spoke, Fone shot up, striking Zakaita's chest with his fist and sending the Nightmare Entity flying into a nearby tree. Linara stared at him, her jaw slightly open, as he regained his footing.

"Alright, this is officially freaking me out." Fone said, staring at his own hands.

"You really are the Successor." Linara said, eyes wide. "I never thought I'd see the day." She began walking toward Fone. "We need to get you back to father immediately. He'll be so happy to see you, brother." As she approached him, Fone backed away from her, putting his hands up as a shield. In response, she reached out to touch him. As soon as her hand touched his, however, electricity arced from Fone's skin to hers, sending her flying backward. She rolled across the ground, skin crawling with tiny sparks. Fone took a step back in shock.

"You're not half bad." Zakaita groaned, having finished untangling himself from the tree Fone put him through. "And I realize we might have gotten off on the wrong foot. But that's our sister over there. I'm going to have to teach you a little respect before we take you to meet dad."

"I'm not your brother." Fone replied. "And I'm certainly not going anywhere with the two of you. You can leave me alone, or I can make you. Your choice."

"Oh, big talk from the little guy." Zakaita said, sauntering forward. "If you're putting up a fight this time, then I guess I don't have to hold back." Zakaita began crystalizing his body. Black crystalline armor sprouted along his arms and his fingers grew into long claws. He ran forward, claws outstretched and a grin plastered wide on his face.

"Stop!" Linara shouted, catching them both by surprise and grinding Zakaita's advance to a halt. She had struggled to her knees and was leaking a black substance from her nose. She lurched forward, keeping her eyes locked on Fone, as she continued to shout. "Parasite! Usurper! I will not let you defile him!" She launched herself at Fone, attempting to grab his face. Fone sidestepped the lunge and grabbed Linara's outstretched arm with both hands. He swung her around and threw her into Zakaita just as his claws came within reach of Fone. The two of them cut a long scar in the ground before they came to a halt.

"Quickly!" Havaki shouted from behind a nearby tree. "Restrain them! Before they recover!"

"Right." Fone nodded. He jumped forward and stumbled, unaccustomed to his newfound strength. With another attempt, he landed next to where Zakaita and Linara were recovering. Before either of them could attack again, he grabbed their heads and held them against the ground.

"Alright I'm going in!" Havaki shouted, running up next to Fone. He placed his hands on top of Fone's and began vibrating. Linara and Zakaita began screaming and convulsing. After a moment, they collapsed, unconscious.

"What was that?" Fone asked, stepping back from the pair of Nightmare Entities.

"I scrubbed their memories of the two of us." Havaki panted. "Come on, I'll explain while we move." After taking a moment, he began running off through the forest again.

"You wiped their memories?" Fone asked, catching up to Havaki. "How?"

"Nightmare Entities are, by and large, information. Memories and such stored as Dreaming Energy. If you know what you're doing, and you're good enough at manipulating dreams, you can force your way into their minds and rewrite those memories. It's dangerous though, so I wouldn't recommend it except as a last resort."

"Can I do that?"

"Probably. With enough training."

"If you were in their minds why not just erase everything? Kill them on the spot?"

"We don't have the time or energy to pull that off. I'm running off your energy reserves, which are already depleted enough, and if we started the process, no doubt another Nightmare Entity or two would show up to interrupt us. What I had the stores for wasn't a clean job. They won't remember us specifically, but they'll remember most of everything else. We need to be long gone before they wake up and try to piece together what happened."

"So those were Nightmare Entities back there? Other than Nagratek, I've never seen one in person before."

"Yeah, they were. The loudmouth idiot was Zakaita, and the overzealous woman was Linara. Though I have no idea what they were doing out here."

"You know their names? I thought you were in pieces for the last few thousand years?"

"I was. And the Crystal Councilman used my largest piece to power both his laboratory and his fortress at Hoken Guard. Since I wasn't whole, my memories from that time aren't complete, but I remember enough."

"What'd you do to get them so angry at you? At least I'm assuming Linara was yelling at you."

"I'm not sure." Havaki chuckled. "Maybe they just don't like the idea of you and me sharing a body."

"Yeah, about that." Fone came to a halt. Havaki frowned but stopped as well. "I'm not sure I'm much of a fan either."

"What does that mean?" Havaki asked, crossing his arms.

"Maybe you thought I wouldn't notice, but it's night." Fone pointed at the sky. "We left the temple sometime this morning, and I can account for maybe twenty minutes of the in between. Care to explain that?"

"I sped up your perception of time and managed to squeeze over eleven hours of travel into about two minutes of you not asking questions."

"You what?!"

"You walk faster when you're not talking, so I thought I'd speed things up."

"And your first idea was to mess with my brain?"

"I get the feeling you don't approve."

"Of course I don't! Who want's their brain messed with? It's an uncomfortable proposition, at best. If we're going to do this, then I need to be able to trust you. So no messing with my head from now on."

"Got it. Ask permission before I change anything."

"That's not what I…" Fone sighed. "Whatever. We need to get moving again. We've still got plenty of travel ahead of us."

"I could speed things up again." Havaki said. "With your permission, of course."

"Actually I've got a better idea." Fone snapped his fingers. "I jumped pretty far during the fight back there. If I could do it again, we could probably get to our destination much quicker, as long as you're giving directions."

"That's not a bad idea." Havaki nodded. "And this means we get to start training early." He walked up next to Fone, grabbed his shoulder, and pointed in the direction they had been running. "We need to go that way. Think you're up for it?"

"We'll find out, I guess." Fone shrugged. "Next stop, the Councilman's Lab." He crouched down and began concentrating, Havaki still gripping his shoulder. After a moment, he jumped, but the two of them didn't move much.

"Huh." Fone said, opening his eyes. "I did this a minute ago. Why can't I do it now?"

"I think I know why." Havaki sighed. "I forgot that you possess a Black Dreaming Eye. Give me a moment." His hand began emitting a golden light and he stuck it through the back of Fone's head. Fone didn't feel anything, but after a moment Havaki retracted his hand and smiled.

"What'd you do?" Fone asked.

"Just close your eyes. And focus."

"Alright…" Fone frowned but did as Havaki said. After a moment, his eyes shot open.

"There's this… It's not a sound, exactly, but there's this humming in the back of my mind. How come I've never noticed it before?"

"That'd be the Dreaming. Since you were originally a Morudagni, your Dreaming Eye never formed properly. Despite how powerful it is, it's never been fully open. I fixed that just now. You should be able to fully interface with the Dreaming and feel its flow. Now try jumping again."

"Alright, here goes nothing." Fone muttered. He crouched down and closed his eyes again. The air around the pair began vibrating, and after a moment, they shot into the sky, sailing far beyond the tops of the trees.

---

No one moved for a moment, their collective eyes fixed on Linara's smoldering corpse. Her body had begun to lose coherence, the intense heat of the plasma coating her having pushed her crystalline body well beyond its melting point. Bubbles in the surface of her semi-liquid skin expanded and popped, releasing an unknown cocktail of gasses that had formed inside her body once it began to break down. Next to her, the geometrically perfect shapes of the Extinction Drives lay on the ground, Linara having used the last of her strength to protect them from the worst of the plasma's effects.

"Move!" Xondriss shouted, breaking the stupor the two groups of combatants had fallen into. "Get the Drives!" He rushed forward, forcing the humans back and raking his claws into the side of the Great Red Dragon. The Dragon caught Xondriss's arm as they pierced his side, keeping the claws fixed firmly in place. With a grunt, he then began pummeling Xondriss's face with his free hand. While the two dragons struggled, Reina broke from the melee and ran back to where Linara had collapsed. Seeing the mountain lion move, Ven instantly rushed out of the cave and slammed into Reina's side, sending the two of them into the ground nearby.

Reina struck Ven with several arcs of electricity as she regained her footing, throwing Ven off her. Ven landed and the two of them lunged for the Drives. Ven reached Linara's body just before Reina and reached out to touch the Drives. The instant her palm touched the three crystal cubes, however, some invisible force pulled them into her arm, forcing it to partially liquefy. She screamed and recoiled, clutching her arm as the Drives moved up it toward her chest. Reina jumped at Ven, jaws open, and attempted to tear her in half. Ven staggered back and struck Reina's snout with her free elbow, pinning her to the ground. From the elbow up, her arm morphed into a blade, which she brought down on Reina's neck, decapitating her. Before Reina could recover, Ven kicked her head toward the woods. Before it touched the ground, Zakaita emerged from the tree line and caught it.

"So, you're one of us now." Zakaita whistled, hefting Reina's head under his arm. "Oh, how the mighty have fallen." He sidled over to Ven and Reina. As he neared them, Linara's body came into view.

"Whoa, who's that?" Zakaita asked as he stopped to examine the charred corpse. Ven took the opportunity to limp her way back up toward the battle with Xondriss, the Drives still imbedded in her arm.

"That's Linara, you idiot!" Reina's disembodied head snarled from under Zakaita's arm. "Now stop Ven before she gets away!" Zakaita dropped Reina's head and sprinted toward Ven. As he ran, his body expanded, growing into a hulking, black, crystalline giant twice his original size and proportioned like an ape, with elongated arms and a large upper body compared to his lower.

"Harvester!" He screamed, raising his arm to slam down on top of her. Ven braced herself for the impact. As it descended, Gran'ma Ben ran down from the hole in the mountainside and threw herself under the fist, catching it just above Ven's head.

"Go!" She grunted, struggling against Zakaita's weight. Ven nodded and resumed limping up toward the Temple. As soon as Ven was clear, Gran'ma Ben threw Zakaita's hand aside and tackled him, wrapping har hands around his waist. He barely noticed, reaching out to try and hit Ven again. Before he could, Gran'ma Ben lifted him into the air and, with some protest from her bones, threw him back toward the forest. He landed with a loud thud, kicking up a cloud of dirt.

"I'm gettin' too old for this." Gran'ma Ben wheezed, leaning backward and cracking her back. Zakaita stood up and lunged at Ven again, but Gran'ma Ben jumped in his path, slamming her open palm into his chest and digging her heels into the ground. She forced him to a halt, cracking her arm in the process. He tried to swat her to the side and keep moving, but she blocked his incoming fist with her calf. She kicked his arm to the side with her raised leg and pushed off the ground with the other, putting her at eye level with Zakaita. Before he could hit her, she punched him square in the face with her good hand, sending him flying back and tumbling across the ground.

"Impressive, for a human." Reina said. She had managed to roll her head over to her body and reattach herself, and now approached Gran'ma Ben. "And you're not even a Veni-Yan-Cari. Where do you draw your strength?"

"Another talkin' cat." Gran'ma Ben sighed. "And you've got… Lightning." Gran'ma Ben frowned, looking over Reina's energy cloak. "Alright let's get this over with."

As Gran'ma Ben ran at Reina, Ven pulled herself back into the Temple. Nearby, the Great Red Dragon and Xondriss still traded blows. Mermie had moved up behind them and flashed illusions at Xondriss as often as she could to throw him off balance, but the Great Red Dragon was still bleeding from several claw marks on his sides. Ven tore the arm with the Drives off her body as she came through the hole, throwing it across the cavern before the Drives could cross into her torso.

"No one touch that!" She shouted, collapsing against the wall. Sybron ran over to her while her arm reformed.

"What's going on?" He asked, looking around frantically. "Where's Queen Rose?"

"She's down there." Ven motioned toward where Linara had landed. "She'll be dead soon if I don't go help her."

"I wouldn't underestimate Rose." Sybron smirked. "Still, it couldn't hurt to give her a hand." Sybron threw up his hood and charged down the mountainside to where Gran'ma Ben held Reina's jaw's apart, energy crackling around her. He drove his sword through her eye, freeing Gran'ma Ben just in time for Zakaita to crash into her and attempt to throw her into the mountain. She planted her foot as she and Zakaita collided, hefting him over her shoulder and slamming him on his back. Ven, meanwhile, walked over to Shard's body and kicked him in the head.

"Wake up." She hissed, stretching her newly formed arm. "This is no time for a nap."

"Wha…" Shard's eyes flickered back to life and he sat up, trying to regain his bearings. "What happened?"

"Something I think was Linara's corpse crashed outside, carrying three of the Extinction Drives." She pointed to behind him where she had thrown them. "I managed to snag them before Reina did."

"Well that's certainly something." Shard said. He stood up and walked over to the Drives. He bent down and touched them, absorbing them into his body. He vibrated for a moment and let out a small grunt before standing back up.

"Find anything?" Ven asked.

"Some of Linara's final memories, but none of my own. I'll tell you later. Right now, we need to-" Shard was cut off by Gran'ma Ben who, having taken a stray hit from Zakaita unprepared, flew into the Temple at blinding speed, crashing into the ground and skipping several times before hitting a wall and falling to her knees. She stood back up, her head bleeding and her legs shaking.

"I can do this all day, boys!" She shouted, spitting out a tooth. "Come and get me!" Zakaita howled with rage and jumped into the Temple after her, but Shard intercepted him and struck him into the ground amid the Bone corpses.

"Take a breather, granny." Shard smiled, cracking his knuckles. "I'll handle this clown. Ven, you take Xondriss." Ven nodded and ran to back up the Great Red Dragon as Zakaita stood back up and swung at Shard.

"Red, get back!" Ven yelled, forming an energy blade between her hands and jumping into the air. She brought it down through the top of Xondriss's snout, pinning his jaws to the ground and releasing the Great Red Dragon from his grip. The Great Red Dragon rolled backward and stood to his feet next to Gran'ma Ben as Ven raised a hand-turned-sword to decapitate Xondriss.

"Begone, whelp." Xondriss grunted. He blasted fire from deep within his throat. As it spewed from the gaps in his teeth, some also escaped from where Ven's blade had pierced him, bathing her in a column of fire. She held on for a moment before the force of the torrent threw her from his head. As he stood up, Mermie ran forward and flashed him another illusory specter, driving him back unconsciously. "Enough illusions, you wretch!" He screamed, raising a claw against Mermie.

"Cover your eyes, dearies." Mermie said, raising her own hand toward Xondriss. She closed her eyes, and instantly all three Nightmare Entities burst into flame. They writhed in pain as Mermie assaulted their Dreaming Eyes, throwing them into such chaos that they lost control of their energy intake and began to explode. This continued for what seemed to the ones burning an eternity but lasted only a minute before Mermie's grip weakened. In that time, the rest of her allies had regrouped in the Temple. Once her grip weakened, however, Reina was able to regain control of herself and fire a bolt of lightning, knocking Mermie to the ground. Gran'ma Ben ran to her and pulled her inside as the three Nightmare Entities recovered.

"What. Was. That." Reina panted, her lightning cloak flickering on and off from a lack of energy. Zakaita and Xondriss were similarly short of breath.

"A Dreamin' Master." Gran'ma Ben replied, checking to make sure Mermie was still alive. "And a damn good one, too."

"The humans found a way to fight you without the need for a Veni-Yan-Cari." Shard chuckled. "If Glaian Nagratek hadn't executed most of the Dreaming Masters during his invasion, I dare say this would have all been over by now."

"I am far from done here, Shattered One." Xondriss spat back. "If you must rely on mere mortals to fight your battles for you, then I will have no trouble dealing with you myse-" As Xondriss spoke, Breshet descended from the sky and slammed him into the ground. She grappled with him from above, restricting his movements.

"Get the other two!" She shouted to Shard. He nodded and resumed his fight with Zakaita and Reina, who had drawn closer to the Temple and now stood shoulder to shoulder with Xondriss.

"Breshet!" Ven exclaimed. "Am I ever glad to see you. Where's the rest of your men?"

"Helping the refugees escape the Temple." She grunted. "There was an army of dead Bones waiting for them at the other entrances, but my men have it under control. I did bring one friend with me, however." She smirked and released Xondriss. "Now!" She shouted. Instantly the ground beneath Xondriss burst open and a green, serpentine dragon slithered out. He wrapped his body around Xondriss's, completely restricting his movements.

"Hello Xondriss." Balsaad smiled. "Remember me, the timid little river dragon?" Xondriss attempted to speak, but his jaw was held shut by Balsaad's body. The green lizard noticed Gran'ma Ben out of the corner of his eye and twisted his head around Xondriss's body to get a better look "And is that Rose Harvester I spy over there? My, the years have not been kind, have they?"

"Didn't I kill you?" Gran'ma Ben asked, crossing her arms with a huff. "I seem to distinctly remember hackin' you into pieces."

"You did!" Shard shouted, cracking Zakaita in the jaw with a hammer-fist. "I tracked down all his bits and pieces and put him back together, though! I thought I'd figure out what the Locust did to him!"

"And I'm ever so grateful." Balsaad said, clasping his hands together. "Almost enough to make up for you imprisoning me in crystal thereafter."

"Balance must be maintained, right?" Shard asked. "You dragons love that shit." As he spoke, Reina lunged forward and struck him with two bolts of lightning. They forced him back slightly, but only left surface-level burns on his skin "Ven, can I get a hand please?"

"Coming!" Ven replied, stretching her hands into blades and jumping into combat next to Shard. "The rest of you can sit back, enjoy the show." She sliced through Reina's body as Shard and Zakaita resumed pummeling each other.

"Not likely." Xondriss grunted, wriggling his snout free of Balsaad's grip. He twisted his neck around to face Balsaad and spewed forth a torrent of fire, forcing the river dragon to retreat. Instantly both the Great Red Dragon and Breshet rushed forward and began wrestling with Xondriss. Breshet slammed his jaws shut while the Great Red Dragon pinned one of his arms, attempting to rip it loose.

"Rat!" He shouted, turning toward Bartleby as Breshet and Xondriss wrestled nearby. Bartleby frowned but his ears shot to attention nonetheless. "Get the humans out of here! They won't last if this keeps escalating!"

"Fat chance of that." Gran'ma Ben scoffed. She picked up Mermie and draped her over Bartleby's back. "Get her out of here, but I'm stayin'."

"Your highness, we-" Sybron began speaking, but Gran'ma Ben put up her hand and silenced him.

"This is not a discussion, Headmaster. Accompany Bartleby to th' refugees and get them somewhere safe. I've got unfinished business here." Reluctantly, Sybron nodded, and he and Bartleby retreated further into the Temple. As they left, Gran'ma Ben ran forward and joined Shard in beating back Zakaita.

"Hold him!" Shard yelled at Gran'ma Ben as he knocked Zakaita off balance. Gran'ma Ben nodded and pinned him to the ground as best she could. Shard scrambled over Zakaita's large body and grabbed him by the head before he could recover. Zakaita began screaming as Shard started to liquefy and absorb his body.

"Well." Gran'ma Ben said as the melding points between Shard and Zakaita began to glow. "Things just keep gettin' weirder with you. No one told me you could turn people to liquid. What else can you do?"

"I can absorb them because they are a part of me." Shard replied. "It doesn't work on others. And I'm just a First Folk. I can manipulate what I inhabit, and like the rest of my kind I'm functionally immortal, but that's where it begins and ends with me."

"So that's how you trapped Balsaad? By surroundin' him in yourself?"

"That's one way to think of it. To be honest, I didn't think it'd work at the time. I'd never done it myself before. The Councilman had sealed away the Nightmare Entities the same way, but I wasn't sure I would be capable of it. Lucky us, I guess."

"I'm not so sure." Gran'ma Ben frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Balsaad tried to free th' Lord of the Locusts by fusin' with th' Emancipator before I killed him."

"Emancipator?" Shard asked.

"Old Venu prophecy about th' one to free th' Lord of the Locusts. A Veni-Yan-Cari who would turn on their own. I suppose you could call Briar th' Emancipator, but she didn't exactly free him. People panickin' took care of that for her. Anyway, the point is I don't think Balsaad is going to change sides so easily, even if th' Lord of the Locusts is dead."

"But the Locust is…" Shard muttered. He frowned as best he could. "What was that you said about the Emancipator?"

"It was supposed to be Briar, but she's dead." Gran'ma Ben replied. "And th' Locust's dead too, so why does it matter. I never took you for the type to put much stock in prophecy."

"Back up. You said the Emancipator was a Veni-Yan-Cari, right? According to Ven, Briar wasn't one. What if she was never the Emanci…pa…tor…" Shard trailed off as a large shadow moved across the mountainside, and a low humming noise began filling everyone's ears. They all stopped fighting, Shard withdrawing his hands from Zakaita's face unconsciously as he looked up. In the sky, approaching from the west, was a gargantuan swarm of Locusts. Shard looked frantically to where he had left Rankyne's body. Balsaad clutched it in his hands, smiling from earhole to earhole.

"No!" Shard shouted. He leapt from Zakaita's body just as Balsaad touched Rankyne's forehead to his. The swarm of locusts reached the mountainside a moment later, as Shard still traveled through the air. The insects rushed over everyone present, forcing them to struggle against the oncoming swarm. Reina fired bolt after bolt through the mass, Ven hacked away with her blades, and the dragons all collectively spewed forth an inferno. None of it seemed to impede the swarm in any way. The locusts knocked Shard out of the air as they crashed into him with unnatural speed. He was not their target, however.

They moved past him with no concern for their individual wellbeing and enveloped Balsaad and Rankyne. After a minute of sustained flow, the swarm subsided, all the locusts either dead or crawling around on Balsaad's body, forming a skittering mass that filled half the Temple. The mass then began to shrink, quickly growing smaller than Balsaad's original coiled size. After a moment, the mass was the size and shape of a human. Then the locusts dispersed, flying off in random directions. Standing in Balsaad's place was Rankyne. His eyes were open but completely glassed over with a glowing white energy. The earth began to tremble, and clouds began to gather overhead.

"Finally." He spoke. His voice was layered with a myriad of others almost incomprehensible to the human ear, all speaking in unison. He took a step forward and shuddered, a smile growing on his lips. "I can move in the Waking World, free of Mim's interference!" He began floating in the air, cackling, as tendrils of energy extended from his back.

"That better not be what it looks like." Gran'ma Ben grunted, walking over to Shard.

"Unfortunately, it is." He sighed, standing to his feet. "The Lord of the Locusts is back." He turned to Xondriss, who stood next to Breshet and the Great Red Dragon. None of them moved, and all of them stared up at Rankyne, mouths slightly agape. "Truce?" Shard asked.

"It dies first." Xondriss nodded, tearing his attention away from the Lord of the Locusts. "Then you do." He looked at his other comrades. Reina had gotten back on her feet and was hissing at Rankyne's floating body, but Zakaita still lay on the ground dazed from Shard's attempted absorption. Xondriss caught Reina's gaze and they locked eyes. Reina projected her energy form, falling unconscious. It floated above her, climbing up to where the Lord of the Locusts hovered, surveying the Valley.

"So you're the one I was designed after." Reina's energy body smiled. "My name is Reina. I'm the one who'll have the pleasure of killing you." The Lord of the Locusts didn't respond. He didn't even look at Reina. Instead he simply floated forward, ignoring her.

"We'll do this the hard way, I guess." She sighed. She fired off a bolt of lightning at Rankyne's body. It collided with some invisible barrier before it reached him, scattering in several directions. The attack did, however, manage to get its target's attention.

"Chittering insect!" The Lord of the Locusts replied. He turned and raised his hand slightly in Reina's direction. Instantly her form began to dissipate, and she became distressed. "I am the new ruler of this reality!" He screamed, halfway between angry and ecstatic. "I will spread plague across the lands! Bring ruin to all of Mim's creations! Crack the Crown of Horns and drown the Dreaming in darkness! One insubstantial flea means nothing to me!" He closed his hand into a fist and Reina dissolved. Back on the ground, her real body began screaming and convulsing. After a moment, it began glowing, and exploded from the inside out, sending steaming black gunk flying everywhere.

"That was…" Shard said, staring at the former Nightmare Entity's leftovers. "Well we just lost the big gun." He turned to Ven. "Are you ready to do something incredibly stupid?"

"That won't be necessary." A new voice spoke. Everyone, including the Lord of the Locusts, turned to see Archibald Bone, his eyes glowing red and his face cracking apart, standing at the edge of the tree line. Behind him stood Ronuba, quizzically eyeing Rankyne's body as it floated in midair possessed.

"Havaki." The Lord of the Locusts smirked. "You look different, but I can tell it's you. You've the same stench about you. What a pleasant surprise this is. You've just saved me the trouble of seeking you out." He began to descend toward the Crystal Councilman.

"I made you." The Crystal Councilman replied. The earth began shaking more violently as he breathed in and out. Spikes of rock tore themselves from the mountainside and began orbiting the Lord of the Locusts, poised to skewer him. "And I can unmake you."

"You're welcome to try." The Lord of the Locusts chuckled. He waved him hand and the spikes crumbled to dust. "You didn't succeed then, and you won't succeed now. You are but a stumbling block on my road to ascension."

"And you're a talkative weapon. Nothing more. I am your wielder, and you will bend to my will." The Crystal Councilman also began floating. Everyone on the ground was forced to their knees by increasing air pressure as the two titanic beings began circling each other. Overhead, the gathering storm had become a whirling maelstrom, and it began to descend, enveloping the two floating gods as they began their battle.

---

Fone Bone sat, legs crossed and eyes closed, on top of a pedestal in the center of a room Havaki had crafted for him to train in several days ago. Havaki stood in front of him, speaking directly into his mind, trying to impart the knowledge of the latest lesson.

"There is a reason the Dreaming is always thought of as a river. It flows, sometimes placid and sometimes raging, and you can see that flow even from the Waking World, as if you stand on its bank. This flow supplies life to all living things and is heavily tied to the processes of the natural world. Animals, dragons, and even the rat creatures can all read this flow. Humans, and by extension the Bones as well, cannot. No one knows why. Some say they have forgotten how, but whatever the reason a normal human can only feel the Dreaming in their dreams. This is what makes dreams significant. They are the interface between a human or Bone mind and the Dreaming. And, with enough training, you can learn to dream even when awake, to sense the Dreaming with your conscious mind. To see into others' dreams, to see beyond what your eyes will show you, and to even control the great flow itself. But, like someone standing on the shore of a great river, you cannot comprehend every turn it takes. Yet a hawk, flying above the river, can see it in its entirety."

"What are you even talking about?" Fone asked, opening his eyes. "What, are we on flying lessons now?"

"No, sadly." Havaki shook his head. "Now that you can control your body's physical abilities, we've reached the limit of my understanding of channeling Dreaming Energy. To learn more, you'd need a Dreaming Master or a dragon to teach you. Instead, we're going to focus on learning how to control the Dreaming itself."

"That's possible? You can't teach me to see into people's dreams, control Ghost Circles, create illusions, or any of the other things I've seen actual Dreaming Masters do with these sorts of abilities, but you can teach me to control just… The whole Dreaming… Just all at once?"

"Fone, I am not a Dreaming Master, or a Veni-Yan-Cari, or a dragon, or the Lord of the Locusts. I can't do what they do because I lack a Dreaming Eye, and frankly, beyond what little information I've gathered second hand over the millennia, I have no idea how they work. But I do share a connection with the Dreaming on a fundamental level. A circumstance of my birth, I suppose. It gives me the ability to shape the flow of the Dreaming itself. To dictate where it can exist and who can interact with it."

"And that's a skill you can teach me?"

"There's not much to teach, actually. Theoretically, anyone in possession of me and enough knowledge of the Dreaming would be able to use this skill themselves. But the process generates waste heat that far exceeds the physical tolerance of almost all living beings, including Nightmare Entities and dragons. To date, only Mim and Mon'Yaran have been capable of it, Mim by dispersing the excess energy with her Dreaming Eye in a process I do not remotely understand, and Mon'Yaran by spending hundreds of years constructing himself a body capable of withstanding it."

"I take it we'll be going for the latter approach."

"It does appear that the Crystal Councilman designed you with that specific purpose in mind, which is why we spent the last few days learning how to push your body's limits. Now you just need to learn how sense the entire Dreaming's flow."

"Yeah, just that." Fone rolled his eyes. "No big deal."

"You can start by trying to feel the Dreaming on a local level."

"I'll give it a shot, but I doubt it's gotten clearer since last time." Fone closed his eyes and began talking. "The humming is still there. And it's still… Chaotic, I guess would be the word. But there seems to be some kind of… Direction… Like waves in the sensation, all travelling that way." Fone pointed at the wall beside him. "That's the direction the tear is in, isn't it?"

"Anything else?"

"There's something… Not exactly underneath, but… Underlying the whole mess. It feels like…" He laughed and opened his eyes.

"What?" Havaki asked.

"It sounds crazy when I say it out loud, but it feels like being in a Ghost Circle."

"That's not crazy, that's progress." Havaki smiled. "What you're sensing is the well of Dreaming Energy constantly being generated by the tear. Now that you have some grasp of local Dreaming perception, try expanding the range you can see. Feel out the outer boundaries of the "Ghost Circle"."

"How do I do that?"

"I do not know." Havaki shook his head. "We've already reached the physical limits of my abilities without a wielder. I'm afraid you'll have to figure out the rest on your own."

"Super." Fone sighed. He closed his eyes again and began concentrating on the analogy of the river Havaki had relayed to him. In his mind's eye, he imagined standing on its banks. Then he began to imagine a bird, flying above the river. Something in him felt different as he made the mental switch. At the edge of his perception, he felt something in the Dreaming he hadn't before.

"Dreams." He muttered. He opened his eyes again and turned toward Havaki. "Havaki can you dream?"

"I…" Havaki began speaking but stopped for a moment. "I understand what a dream is, conceptually. But, since I lack a mortal body, I also do not need sleep. The closest I have come to dreaming was during the time I was split, and I cannot fully recall the experience."

"That's why." Fone clapped his hands together. "That's why you can't perceive the Dreaming like everyone else. Gran'ma Ben once said that a Veni-Yan-Cari was one who could dream while they were awake. I think that's the key. If I dream that I'm walking around the room, and recreate the sensation in my mind while focusing on the Dreaming itself…" He closed his eyes for a few moments. "Bingo. I can "see" things I couldn't before, literally by dreaming of it while I'm awake."

"Congratulations." Havaki smiled. "Now, can you expand your range?"

"I can try." Fone shrugged. He sat in silence for several minutes, his face screwed up in concentration. Eventually, though, he reopened his eyes. "I've got good news and bad news."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Havaki asked, crossing his arms.

"Good news is I can just about see to what I think is the edge of the "Ghost Circle" from where I'm sitting. It's a little fuzzy, but my perception ends just when the energy begins to thin out. Bad news is I think something's in here with us."

"What makes you say that?"

"I'm not certain, but hear me out." Fone frowned. "First, I think I can feel something moving through the hallways nearby. It's hard to make out through the noise generated by the tear, but there is a constant, faint ripple. I'm pretty sure that's what a living thing should feel like. There's also something going on in the room below the tear. Can't make it out, but it's much more chaotic in there than anywhere else in the entire complex. And then there's this vague feeling I can't shake. It feels like the farmers from the Ghost Circle did. It's like… A mass of people, all unconscious, floating in the air around us."

"Intruders." Havaki frowned. "Councilman's lackeys, maybe. And that presence is most likely Mon'Yaran. His soul fills the entirety of the Dreaming World, so it's no surprise you can feel his presence near the tear. We should get moving before whoever the Councilman sent finds us. How close are they to the room?"

"Let's see…" Fone closed his eyes and began concentrating again. He reached out and looked for the signal he'd been feeling earlier. He found it just as it entered the room. He opened his eyes and stood up, balling his hands into fists as he heard the intruder come to a halt in the doorway. A moment later he dropped them to his side. He stood on the pedestal in the middle of the room, staring face to face with Thorn.

"Fone?" She asked, taking a step forward. "Is that you?"

"Who else would it be?" He asked. He stepped off the pedestal and walked over to where Thorn stood. They stared at each other for a moment. "Listen…" He began, looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry about what happened back at the Temple. I couldn't control myself. Didn't know what was happening. But I'm better now."

"Are you?" She asked. "You look like you haven't slept or eaten in days."

"I haven't." Fone smiled. "One of the few perks of my new body. Apparently, I'm a Nightmare Entity. Or something close to one. I only really need Dreaming Energy to stay alive. And, as I'm sure you've noticed, this place is chocked full of it. I'm in the best shape of my life."

"I'm not so sure." Thorn shook her head. "You don't look… Wait, you can sense the Dreaming Energy in the area?"

"I figured out how to a couple of days ago." Fone replied. "I'm no expert, but I saw you moving through the hallways just before you arrived. Didn't know it was you, though. I guess I'm not that good yet."

"Fone, you… You know this is a Ghost Circle, right? What are you even doing here?"

"Yeah…" Fone sighed. "Not my idea of a good time either. But I needed somewhere with abundant energy to train my new powers. Watch, I'll show you." He took a step to the side and faced the room's wall. He punched it dead on with his fist and managed to penetrate several inches into the wall. Cracks began forming in the crystal. He withdrew his hand and gave Thorn a slight smirk. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Fone…" Thorn began speaking but stopped and took a moment to compose herself. "I'm not going to lie, you're starting to freak me out. I'm glad you're alive, but we really need to get back to the others and get out of here. It isn't safe. I don't how you managed to get past the… things guarding the hallways, but they've trapped some people further in the complex and it doesn't look like they're going to let us leave without a fight."

"Nightmare Entities?"

"I think they're some creation of Mon'Yaran's, actually."

"Must've arrived after I did." Fone furrowed his brow. "Or maybe they were dormant or something. The place seemed deserted when I got here."

"That's…" Thorn stopped herself. "Listen, Fone, I'd love to catch up, but we really need to get out of here. There's something strange happening with the flow of time inside this Ghost Circle. Nagratek and I think that the energy well-"

"Wait, back up." Fone interrupted. "Nagratek's here? You brought him?"

"Yeah, he stayed behind to delay the things that attacked us while I came to get you." As Thorn spoke, Fone frowned and began walking back toward the pedestal in the middle of the room. "Fone, where are you going?"

"You shouldn't have brought Nagratek." Fone shook his head as he paced around the pedestal. "It's not like you knew, but it doesn't change facts."

"What are you talking about? Sure, you two had that fight outside the Temple, but you said it yourself that you didn't have control over your powers then. I'm sure Nagratek's not going to hold a grudge over it."

"That's not…" Fone paused and rubbed his temples. "He wants me dead, Thorn. He used you to get him here and now he's going to kill me. I need to get out of here before he-"

"Fone." Thorn said, stepping forward and grabbing him by the shoulders. "What are you talking about?"

"Shard told me." Fone replied. "He found me just after I left, and we talked some. Turn out Nagratek only kept me alive so I could repower the Cipher. Once that's done, he plans on killing me."

"Shard was unconscious." Thorn replied. "For three hours. We'd mostly given up the initial search for you by the time he pulled himself out of that wall and came to join us."

"He came and spoke to me!" Fone shouted. "I saw him!"

"You're not well!" Thorn shouted back. "Look at yourself. You've got bags under your eyes and I can see your ribs. You look worse than you did when you came back from the dead. Come back with me. Let's get this sorted out."

"She's defending him." Havaki said, leaning against the wall where Fone had punched through. "I wonder whose side she's really on?"

"Don't say that." Fone replied, turning to reprimand Havaki. Thorn glanced at the spot on the wall where Fone stared for a moment.

"Fone, I love you, but you have to listen to me." She continued. "This place is dangerous. There's something in here with us and it wants us dead. We can sort everything out after we're gone, but right now we need to get back to the others and get as far away from here as possible."

"She doesn't love you." Havaki shook his head. "She only thinks she does. What she's really attracted to is your power as a Nightmare Entity. She doesn't care about the rest of you."

"You're lying." Fone replied. He turned back to look at Thorn.

"You don't believe me?" Thorn asked. He let go of his shoulders and took a few steps back. "Fone, what reason would I have to lie to you? What is going on with you?"

"No that's not what I-" Fone began speaking. Havaki cut him off.

"I've got proof." Havaki smirked. "The day you came back from the dead, Nagratek reacted strangely. He passed it off as heat exhaustion, but he almost drew his gun on you. He was seconds away from killing you but decided against it. He knew who you were because he could sense you'd changed. Even if Thorn didn't realize what it meant, she must have felt that change too. And that's what she fell in love with. Not your winning personality or your dashing good looks or your coquettish charm, but the Dreaming Energy you were radiating unconsciously. Go ahead, ask her yourself."

"When did you know?" Fone asked, studying Thorn's face. "That you were in love with me."

"Where is this coming from?" Thorn responded. "This isn't like you at all."

"Just answer the question." Fone spat. "Please?"

"Around the day you came back." Thorn replied. "I guess that's when I finally started being honest with myself. What is this about? Fone, talk to me."

"She admits it, plain as day." Havaki took a step forward, opening his hands. "You heard her. You know I'm right."

"That's not true!" Fone shouted, stepping toward Havaki. "There's no way that's true! I didn't change! I'm still me!"

"Fone, are you even listening to me?" Thorn asked. He continued to stare at Havaki.

"No, you did change." Havaki chuckled. "You're no longer bound to the whims of others. You have power. You're free. None of that was true before you died."

"So?" Fone asked. "Maybe I did. What does it matter?"

"Fone, you're scaring me." Thorn said.

"It matters because she brought Nagratek here." Havaki snarled. "She brought the man who would see us both destroyed right to us. She may be attracted to your power, but she knows she can't control you, just like Nagratek does. Maybe she's decided to see things his way. Who knows?"

"She wouldn't!" Fone shouted. He ran forward and swung a punch at Havaki, hitting the same spot where he had previously. Startled, Thorn grabbed her scabbard. Havaki moved out of the way with little effort.

"Fone, tell me what is going on." Thorn said. She slid her hand up her scabbard to grab the handle of her sword.

"Can't you see we're in the middle of something?" Fone asked, whirling around to face Thorn. "I'm on your side here. He'll come around."

"Who are you talking about?" Thorn asked.

"What kind of a question is that?" Fone replied. He motioned his hand toward the empty space near where he stood. "Havaki, of course! This guy, right here!" He pointed at nothing. Fone and Thorn stared at each other. There was no one else in the room. He stared at Thorn with sunken eyes and an emaciated frame. His gaze caught on her hand gripping the handle of her sword.

"What is that?" He asked, nodding to her sword.

"You're not in your right mind." Thorn said. She let go of her sword and took a step toward him. "Frankly, I don't even know who I'm talking to right now. This place did something to you."

"He was right." Fone shook his head. "You were the one person I thought I could count on, but you sided with Nagratek. You don't care about me. You only care about my power."

"Fone." Thorn stopped and composed herself for a moment. "I know you're not well, so I'm going to ignore that last comment, but you need to start making sense. Quickly. I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on."

"You don't want to help me at all." Fone spat. "You brought Nagratek here to kill me."

"This isn't you." Thorn said. "It's Lorimar, that's what this is. Her and that thing inhabiting this place. They're connected to you through the Spark somehow. Trying to turn you on us."

"You know about the Spark?" Fone asked.

"I know it's trying to take you away from me."

"You really did side with him, didn't you? How else would you know?"

"Fight through this." Thorn said. She closed the gap between her and Fone and dropped to her knees, pulling him into a hug. "I know you're still in there. Now pull yourself together. I am not leaving here without you."

"You-" Fone stuttered, looking around. He looked down at his hands. "You're right."

"That's more like it." Thorn nodded she broke their embrace and held him out at arm's length. "Now let's get out of-"

"We can't let her stop us." Fone said. His eyes were glazed over. Thorn tried to move, to shake him awake, but before she could something pierced her stomach. She coughed up a wad of blood and looked down to see Fone's hand run clean through her abdomen. "This is our destiny." Fone's body smirked. His eyes were clear, but there was cruelty in them. His lips were twisted into a thin sneer. He wasn't Fone anymore. The same voice that had spoken through the dead First Folk now spoke through him. The last thing she heard before her consciousness faded was its laughter.