Respite

Ginger had once more fallen asleep against the wall of Bopo's tiny hut. The place really wasn't built for a family of Mudpots, a fully grown Warmblood, a deity, and a sleeping teenage Warmblood all at the same time. Lady Tethys was keeping a vigilant eye on Dust and Fidget, who was still snoring softly on the boy's chest as it rose and fell. She'd kicked around a few times, as had Dust on a couple of occasions — evidently, things hadn't been going incredibly smoothly within Dust's Soulscape. Lady Tethys could only hope that the two would wake up.

Ginger stirred and sat up slowly, massaging a stiff back and neck as she did so.

"Any sign of them waking up, my Lady?" she yawned. Lady Tethys shook her head, her aura a worried orange.

"Not yet…although they have calmed down in comparison to earlier," she replied.

"I have sensed both the presence of Jin and Cassius' souls returning," the Blade of Ahrah informed. "I would imagine that Dust and Fidget will awake very soon." Ginger perked up and rushed over to the bedside. As promised, she had indeed made Dust's favourite curry (Taka and Ash had fetched the ingredients from Aurora during their rounds), and it was currently being kept warm over the fire in Bopo's kitchen. Hopefully, she would be serving her son's favourite meal soon.

Fidget was the first to make any sort of movement. Her nose began twitching violently and she began making sniffing noises loud enough for Bopo to hear from the next room over. Before long, her eyelids began fluttering and she groggily raised her head.

"Morning…" she yawned, stretching herself out. Ginger giggled when she saw that, stretched to the furthest she could reach, Fidget's feet nearly reached Dust's kneecaps while her paws were almost touching his nose. It was rather cute, to be honest. "Wazzat amazing smell?"

"Dust's favourite," Ginger smiled. "You got here just in time."

"Yay!" Fidget yawned widely. "M' I up first?"

"Yes, it looks like you beat Dust," Lady Tethys noticed. "But, as I said, you would not have been able to return without him. I'd imagine he'll be joining us any…"

A small groan sounded from the sleeping teenager. Ginger gasped quietly and knelt as close to the bedside as possible, while Fidget scrambled up Dust's chest so that she was directly over his face. Ginger nearly broke into tears of joy when Dust began to stir, and she could no longer hold back her now-restored tears when her son's eyes finally fluttered open.

"F…pfft!" he mumbled. "Fidget…gerroff…" he grunted, swatting Fidget back with his hand.

"Slowpoke! I beat you out of your own Soulscape!" Fidget grinned sleepily. Clearly, a trip to a different dimension really took its toll on you.

"Nnnngh…" Dust groaned, pushing himself upright — thankfully he was short enough to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he finally noticed his mother sitting beside him. "M…Mom?"

"Dust!" Ginger exclaimed, bringing Dust into a hug as she wept tears of joy into his shoulder. "Thank goodness you're awake… I was so worried about you!"

"I'm sorry, Mom," Dust hiccoughed as he choked back a sob of his own. Fidget sat back and smiled. Having just spent time with the old adult Dust she had once known, there was something so sweet and heartwarming about this child Dust being reunited with the woman he called his mother. She couldn't be happier to know that she'd played a part in this happening.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Ginger whispered gently, kissing her son on the forehead. Dust grinned back into her shoulder.

"Jin says 'hi', by the way," he said.

"It is good to see you again, Dust," Lady Tethys smiled, her aura blinked between a happy golden-yellow and a gentle blue. Dust broke the hug with Ginger to face the deity — after bobbing the best bow he could give while bedridden, he gave his thanks to her for helping him wake up from his self-induced coma. "I am only glad that I was able to help you, Dust. You really should be thanking your friends once you see them again."

"Welcome back, Master," Ahrah spoke. "I am glad to see you well."

"You and me both, Ahrah," Dust smiled as the talking sword began floating at his bedside. "How long was I out?"

"Almost three days," Ginger replied. "I don't want any complaints about you not getting enough sleep after this."

"Oh, come on! I beat the cockerel to sunrise six out of seven days of the week!" Dust protested, sounding ever inch of the thirteen-year-old boy that he was. Fidget, Lady Tethys and Ginger all laughed softly at Dust's remark — the noise brought Bopo into the room out of curiosity.

"Well, I'll be darned!" he exclaimed. "Fidget really did it!"

"Bopo?" Dust blinked in surprise. "Is that you?"

"Surely I ain't changed that much, Dust," Bopo laughed. "Least, not as much as you have."

"Well…long story," Dust grimaced. Bopo chuckled and explained that Fidget had already told him what had happened. "It's good to see you again, Bopo. Have you been doing well?"

"Been doing just swell, Dust, thanks to you and what you did for Mudpot all those years ago," Bopo smiled. "My eldest is named after you, plus we gotta honorary memorial in the village for ya." Dust flushed pink under his pale fur again.

"You didn't have to, Bopo…" he mumbled modestly.

"Suck it up, Dust," Fidget shrugged. "You really should be used to this by now." Dust's stomach suddenly growled angrily, and the boy remembered that, due to his prolonged sleep, he hadn't eaten in nearly three days — if anything, the noise made him blush even further in embarrassment as laughter echoed through the hut. Ginger immediately headed through to the kitchen to serve up her curry, aided by Bopo who fetched some bowls and rice.

"Dust," Lady Tethys spoke while Ginger was preoccupied. "As I understand it, you are in fact made up of multiple souls?" Dust's smile vanished as he glanced worriedly around himself. "Do not fear, little one. The power of the Eye will not reach you while I am by your side."

"Phew…" Fidget sighed with relief. Dust echoed the sentiment before answering the question.

"Yes…and I've apparently gained a third one since being reborn," he replied. "The other two…"

"…are no longer part of the mortal world, I understand," Lady Tethys nodded. She held up a necklace, made of a simple silver chain with a pendant that looked similar to her coral-like collar. "I made this charm so that your souls will be protected. As long as you wear this, the Eye of the Life Thread cannot be used against you."

Dust let out a heavy sigh of relief and gratefully accepted the pendant (Fidget muttered a few "I told you she was going to sort something out"s under her breath which Dust either ignored or silenced by shoving the nimbat off the bed. Twice), placing it around his neck where it settled against his tunic. As Ginger came through with the curry, Lady Tethys explained that the pendant's power would weaken with proximity to the Eye of the Life Thread, but will nonetheless keep it from controlling Jin and Cassius' souls.

"How can we ever repay you, Lady Tethys?" Ginger asked as Dust and Fidget both began tucking into the curry.

"Put an end to this so that Dust no longer has to live in such fear," Lady Tethys replied. As Dust and Fidget finished their meals, Lady Tethys began glowing bright gold as she beckoned them to follow her outside. "Come. Your friends will be waiting for you."

As soon as Dust felt that he had enough strength to stand and walk, the group headed out of Bopo's hut and into Mudpot itself. There, a few Mudpots who Dust had known from a lifetime ago came up to greet him, many in awe of his child-like appearance (Fidget refused to keep explaining things and so left it to Bopo). The chatter of the Mudpots was soon broken by a cry of delight and a raven-haired Moonblood crashing into Dust with such force that he was nearly knocked off his feet.

"DUST!"

"Ack!" Dust croaked. "Ash…! Can't…can't breathe…!" Seriously, what was it with girls in his life nearly strangling him when they saw him? Ash quickly calmed herself down to a level where she was no longer choking Dust and released his neck, apologising profusely.

"I knew Fidget could do it!" she beamed, overjoyed at seeing her friend awake once more. "We all did! We knew you would pull through!"

"Oh, you don't know the half of it…" Fidget grumbled. Ginger frowned and asked what had actually happened within the Soulscape, but Ash suggested that they reunited with the rest of the party before explanations began, to save both Dust and Fidget the trouble of telling the same story over and over again. She went on to say that the others were stationed above ground in Aurora, having just deterred a small legion of Souldiers in Abadis Forest (the very mention of them made Dust shudder, and ever more determined to get moving once more), and so suggested that they head back up top to rejoin the others.

"Sounds like a plan," Fidget agreed. "If the Souldiers have already reached Abadis, we need to get moving soon and stop them before they reach Aurora."

"Agreed," Dust frowned. "I'm really sorry I kept everyone waiting for so long…this shouldn't have happened."

"Dust," Ash said. "We're not adding this to the list of Things that Aren't Your Fault Even Though You Insist on Blaming Yourself for Them."

"Don't you have a better name for that list?" Dust joked lightly.

"If you can come up with something better, we'll go with it," Ash shrugged. "For now, it is what it is."

"Let's take the short cut to the surface," Ginger suggested. "I don't fancy facing any more Trolks."

Saying farewell to the Mudpots, the group travelled to the village exit to the surface, where sunlight was streaming through into the caverns. Ginger was the first to exit, followed by Ash and Fidget, but Dust lagged behind as Lady Tethys called him back. Alone, the two began a private conversation.

"Thank you, Lady Tethys…for helping Fidget wake me up," Dust smiled sincerely. "I don't think I would have ever woken up if she hadn't come along."

"Think nothing of it, Dust," Lady Tethys replied. "I am glad that we were able to meet again…although I cannot say much for the circumstances."

"I wish they had been better too," Dust agreed. "Maybe that's just how Fate works."

"Perhaps," Lady Tethys nodded slowly. "Dust, you will need to know how to rid this world of these…Souldiers…that King Julius has called from the Life Thread."

"You know how to do that?"

"To return the souls of the departed to the Life Thread, one will need to place the Eye back upon its alter in its shrine within the Blackmoor Mountains," Lady Tethys explained. "Provided that you can separate the gem from the King and keep him occupied while it is returned, then his army of souls will be recalled to the Life Thread without further harm to innocent life."

"I think we can manage something," Dust figured. "We'll just need to find the shrine so that we know where to put the Eye when we get it."

"Indeed…" Lady Tethys said. Dust noticed that her aura had turned melancholy indigo, and he asked her why she sounded so sad…so concerned. After the boy pressed her a few times, the deity finally answered.

"Dust…there is something that you must understand about returning the Eye of the Life Thread to its shrine."

"What was with the hold up?" Fidget asked once Dust finally emerged above ground, shielding his eyes against the sun as they adjusted to the light again.

"Lady Tethys was just telling me about what we need to do with the Eye of the Life Thread," Dust replied. "If we return it to its shrine in the mountains, then the King's army will disappear."

"Well, provided we can get close enough to take it from him in the first place, that shouldn't be a problem," Ash noted. "I say we get Taka to pinch it."

"Somehow I think we'll need more of a plan than that," Dust smirked. "But it's not a bad start." Ginger studied the boy's face closely — despite the sly smirk she knew all to well from his pranks, there was a sadness in those eyes. She decided to ask him about it when they had a moment alone — if he wasn't saying anything now, it might not be something he wanted a lot of people to know.

"Let's head for Aurora," Ginger suggested. "We'll let the others know and then decide our next move from there." The fact that she had included 'we' and 'our' in the sentence caught everyone's attention.

"You're coming too, Ginger?" Fidget spluttered. Dust also looked less than happy with the idea.

"Someone other than Sanjin needs to be the responsible adult in the group," Ginger smirked. "And no, Taka and Kim don't count."

"But technically…"

"I'm not losing you again, Dust," Ginger said firmly, cutting across her son's protest. His eyes narrowed as he glared at her.

"And I'm not risking losing you again!" he argued. "You've been through way too much already — I'm not putting you in danger again."

"Dust, as much as I agree that it would be best for Ginger to stay as far away from danger as possible…" the Blade of Ahrah sighed. "I doubt there is anything we can do to change her mind at this point." Ginger made a statement of agreement and began marching towards Aurora while Ash, Dust and Fidget all shared an exasperated look and a frustrated sigh:

"Grownups."

Dust was met with the same joyous welcome the moment he stepped into Aurora as he'd done in Mudpot. The entire village was there to greet him, cheering and shouting congratulations of saving Ginger and making it back, some even lifting him up onto their shoulders before he scrambled down. Ginger was able to disperse the crowd before it got to overwhelming, but she didn't even attempt to stop the group of two Moonbloods, a grey cat Warmblood and a squirrel Warmblood running over.

"And Sleeping Beauty awakens," Taka remarked jokingly. Dust pouted.

"I preferred 'Shrimp' as a nickname…" he muttered. "And that wasn't an invitation to start calling me that again, either!" Taka laughed as she pulled the kid into a hug, ruffling his hair as she did so.

"It's good to have you back," she smiled.

"You really had us worried back there, Kid," Kim chimed in, slapping Dust on the back once he'd escaped Taka's arms. "You get first watch next time we set up camp."

"Just because I was asleep, doesn't mean I'm rested!" Dust protested.

"Yeah, I can vouch for that," Fidget nodded. "Not exactly the most peaceful of places in that Soulscape of his."

"You going to tell us what happened in there?" Jarin said. It was then that Dust actually acknowledged the noble-boy's presence.

"Wha…?! Jarin?!" he spluttered. "What in the name of the Overseers are you doing here?"

"Only helped get that deity underground help you out in the first place," Jarin shrugged nonchalantly. Of course — the last time Dust had seen him when his mind was his own, he'd been telling Jarin to leave Everdawn and go home before the battle had even started. "So, you're welcome."

"I told you to stay out of this!" Dust snapped. Ginger placed a hand on the boy's shoulder to stop him from going ballistic — no doubt Dust would. Still recovering from a stint in a twisted internal dimension was not doing good things to his temper.

"Dust, Jarin has been a great help to the team since you fell unconscious," she said calmly. "Like it or not, he's as much a part of the team as I am now." Dust buried his face in his hands in frustration, letting out a loud groan as he did so.

"DUST!"

The shriek pierced through the village like a wolf howl in the night. Dust barely had time to register the voice before he was tackled to the ground by something purple.

"AH!" he yelped, grunting as his back slammed into the ground.

"You're awake! You're awake! You're awake!"

The voice was coming out in relieved sobs, and once Dust's head was no longer swimming he smiled when he realised that it was Kalyn.

"It's okay, Kalyn…" he murmured. "I'm alright…"

"You sure?" Fidget snickered. "Because you might want to get your back checked after that tackle."

"Nice one, by the way, Kalyn," Ash giggled. Kalyn pushed herself off the ground and helped Dust back to his feet before throwing her arms around him again.

"I was so worried about you," she whispered. "When everyone came into Aurora, we saw Ginger and…we all thought that you'd done it…that you were home safe but then Sanjin was carrying you and you weren't moving and we were so scared that you…"

"Breathe, Kalyn!" Dust cut across, patting his friend gently on the back in reassurance. "You'll be next to pass out, otherwise." Kalyn took a few deep breaths before stepping away, turning to face the others.

"Thank you, everyone," she smiled. "I was scared I wasn't going to see my best friend again."

"Most of it was Fidget, really," Sanjin shrugged. "Without her, Dust would still be comatose." Kalyn asked what exactly had happened — after receiving a reassuring nod from his mother and a warm pulse from the Blade of Ahrah, Dust told her everything.

He told her that he was a creature made up of multiple souls, two of which died to create him in the first place fifteen years ago. He told her what happened in Everdawn, and how he'd locked his souls away to stop the King from controlling them…using them to hurt his friends and family. He told her…and told everyone present…that Fidget had found him within his Soulscape (explaining what that was to Kalyn as well) and tried persuading him to release the chains trapping his souls within it. He told them how he'd initially refused to do so, and the resulting argument between the two friends spiralled into a brawl which Fidget ultimately won. He told them how they tracked down his twin souls: Jin and Cassius, and told Kalyn who they were and how they made him who he was. He told the team how he'd unlocked those souls, allowing him and Fidget to return to the waking world, and how Lady Tethys has given him a charm to protect him against the power of the Eye of the Life Thread.

"She told me that the Eye needs to be returned to its shrine in the Blackmoor Mountains," Dust explained as his tale came to a close. "If we do that…then all the souls that have been torn from the Life Thread will return. The King's army will disappear."

"We'll stand a far greater chance if the Souldiers are taken out of the equation," Sanjin noted. "The King's own men feared them so greatly that many left the battlefield after they emerged. I don't think they were expecting their leader to commit such a crime against nature."

"So, provided we get the Eye back to its shrine…we've won," Kim surmised.

"More or less," Dust nodded.

"So what's our plan, then?" Ash asked. "I still say we get Taka to pinch the Eye."

"If you guys can give me a decent enough distraction, then I'm game with that," Taka shrugged. Dust thought for a moment.

"I might have one," he said. "In the Soulscape, I was able to talk with my twin souls. Cassius said that he wanted a chance to talk to the King…they were friends once."

"No," Ginger said firmly. "You are not letting that monster take control of you again."

"Cassius was just as horrified as anyone else was at what the King was doing, Ginger!" Dust snapped back. At the use of her first name, Ginger recoiled in shock — in this life, Dust had only ever called her that once before…on Everdawn after she'd woken her brother's soul within him. His eyes met hers…

They were the same colour as hers.

"Jin?" she whispered. Dust nodded, and when he spoke it was with Jin's voice: gentle and kind.

"He was fighting the Eye's power when Dust put us on lockdown," he said. "He won't make a move against anyone Dust calls a friend."

"He made a vow on that, not that I trust him as far as I can throw him," Fidget confirmed. Dust's eyes returned to their normal pale blue, signifying that Jin's presence had receded.

"I doubt any of us do, but it's the best chance we have," he pointed out. "Lady Tethys' charm will protect me from the Eye's power…though it will get trickier the closer I get to it. But if I can distract the King, whether that's by talking to him or if it gets to a fight, that should give Taka an opportunity to steal the gem."

"I don't like the idea of the inner assassin taking over, Shrimp," Taka frowned. "But it it's our only chance, then I guess we have to take it. Anyone have any better ideas?"

There was silence.

"Fine," Dust nodded firmly. "It's settled."

"We'll need to track down the shrine before confronting the King," Kim pointed out. "It's not going to do us any good if Taka manages to pinch the Eye but then not know where to put it."

"Elder Grey-Eyes…may he rest peacefully in Elysium…" Ash began, murmuring the ancient blessing before continuing. "…said that the shrine was located not far from New Zeplich. We start there and fan out, we should find it."

"There aren't many who know the exact location anymore," Sanjin noted. "Except the King himself, clearly, but he's off the books." Jarin's eyes lit up.

"But his research isn't!" he exclaimed. "Apparently he's spent the last fifteen years looking for this thing — his notes are bound to have something on where the shrine is. And I think we know exactly who to ask to go snooping around in his office."

"Okay, you successfully nabbed the Starsheen Knives that one time, Coat-Tails," Taka deadpanned. "That doesn't make you a sleuth."

"I was talking about Ellie!" Jarin protested. "She's pretty much got free reign of the castle while her father's out."

"Elissa?" Dust remembered. "Of course! How fast can you get a message to her, Jarin?" Jarin was already scribbling something down on a piece of spotted and crumple parchment from his pocket.

"How fast can your pet fly?" he asked.

"Fidget is not a pet," Dust growled in response. Fidget looked as if she took personal offence from the remark as well.

"Whatever. How fast can she fly?"

"Weather depending, nimbats can fly between twelve to sixty miles an hour," Fidget said smugly. Dust didn't know whether to be impressed or suspicious — that range seemed rather large. "I can get the message to the princess and bring back a reply before tomorrow."

"Can you manage flying that long?" Dust asked.

"Pfft! Ye of little faith, Dust," Fidget chuckled. Dust shrugged and pointed out under his breath that Fidget was A) Scared of heights (which still made no sense to him) and B) Didn't fare well when her stomach was empty. Fidget elected to ignore him and proceeded to take the note that Jarin had written. Kalyn, in the meantime, stood awkwardly to the side.

"So, you're really leaving again?" she asked Dust. The boy turned to face his childhood friend and nodded sadly.

"Things still need to be done, Kalyn," he replied. "I can't leave business unfinished again." Kalyn nodded in understanding.

"Just…come back conscious this time, please?" she asked. "And stop worrying your mother and teammates so much?" Dust didn't answer immediately — from the side, Ginger could tell that he looked almost heartbroken, as if he was going to make a promise that he knew he couldn't keep. Kalyn let out a small squeak of surprise when Dust pulled her into a hug.

"I'll try…" he whispered. "I'll try."

"'Try' isn't good enough," Kalyn muttered.

"I can't promise, Kalyn," Dust sighed regretfully. "But I'll do my best." Kalyn squeezed him tightly before breaking the hug. Fidget was just about to head off with the note for Elissa when Kalyn's face suddenly lit up.

"Hold on…Fidget, did you say that you fought Dust when you were in his Soulscape to wake him up?" she asked. Dust frowned, as did Fidget, Ginger and everyone else present. What did this have to do with anything?

"Yes?" Fidget nodded slowly, trying to catch on with what Kalyn was thinking.

"And you won?" Kalyn recalled. Dust's frown deepened — he thought he'd explained that loud and clear not ten minutes ago?

"Evidently, why?" he quizzed. Kalyn's face slowly shifted into a knowing smirk and she winked at Fidget whose face lit up with realisation before she giggled loudly. Not for the first time that week, a memory flashed through Dust's mind but this one wasn't one of his previous life, or either of Jin or Cassius' memories. This was his own.

From this life.

From less than a week ago.

Trolk fingers.

"Oh…oh! Wha…you're seriously going to…?" Dust stammered as he twigged onto what his friends were talking about. His eyes went wide with embarrassment and his fur was being tinged with pink again. "That does not count!"

"Oh, it does so, you sore loser!" Fidget cackled, clutching her sides with laughter.

"Dust, is there something you need to tell me?" Ginger frowned, raising a brow.

"NO!" Dust yelled, his voice cracking as he desperately tried to save his skin from further humiliation.

"Dust lost a bet with Kalyn," Fidget explained without skipping a beat.

"FIDGET!" Another voice crack.

"Again?" Ginger sighed, unable to stop a smile spreading across her face. Honestly, when it came to bets, Dust had the worst luck in the world, she swore by Elysium.

"Yep!" Kalyn laughed, her eyes watering.

"What was it this time?" Ginger asked, crossing her arms as Dust tried burying his face in her apron. The other members of the team were also beside themselves with laughter.

"If Fidget beat Dust in a fight then he has to wear a satgat," Kalyn explained. Dust let out a loud groan of frustration — not the stupid hat…not the stupid hat! The Blade of Ahrah was floating at his side and the runes on its blade seemed to twinkle playfully.

"Now, now, Dust," it said in what could only be described as a joking tone. "Be gracious in defeat."

"You're not helping!" Dust cried. "And you're supposed to be on my side!"

"A fight is a fight, Dust," Ahrah said simply. "Regardless of which dimension it took place in. Fidget defeated you fair and square." Dust groaned again — he really thought that, for once, he'd actually made a bet that he could win. He hadn't taken into account exactly how determined a ticked-off nimbat could actually be.

"You wouldn't get yourself into these situations if you weren't so terrible with bets, Scamp," Ginger snickered. Dust grumbled incoherently, crossing his arms sulkily as he avoided eye contact with everyone in the area. "Come now — you lost a wager. Now deal with the consequences."

Kalyn squeaked with delight and grabbed Dust by the arm, half dragging him towards the shop where the satgat was waiting. Dust shot a pout over his shoulder.

"I hate you all, capische?" he grumbled. Ginger chuckled and wiped a tear of laughter from her eye.

"I love you too, Scamp," she called back.

After everything that happened, laughter was the best respite that anyone could have hoped for.