In the dark blue sky you keep,

And often through my curtains keep,

For you never shut your eye,

'Till the sun is in the sky.

Chapter 11:

Harpering Around.

"U U."

'What's with the intense staring?'

I observed what I presumed to be a shrug in Othe's mannerisms and advanced to touch the sturdy, chalky thingamajig hampering us.

While my walls were like immense, capsulated marbles, he differed. Obviously. Although mine appeared never-ending, there were limits. Hence my limited exposure to the Outside. Othe's, on the other hand...

Once you crossed a line, that was it. Simple.

I poked at the point, upright structure, and noted it lacked any security 'til the fence had the gall to slap me back.

Simple, my ass. I huffed and drew a deep breath, adopting a human's regular physiological process.

Human? I mouthed to Othe.

Moving my lips is a voluntary action. Despite most meat-based living organisms-

My eye twitched.

-directly use it to produce noises for communication; my mind rectifies that and emits my thoughts aloud. Old habits die hard, I guess.

Breathing consists of two phases: iNSPiratioN and EXpiRAtion. During the first, the dIApHragm-

'Dai-uh-fram.'

"Uuuu?"

'Bet you can't repeat it ten times without stuttering.'

"Uuu-Uu-UUu!"

-and intErcosTal mUscles contract, allowing AiR to enter the lungs. OxYgen from that air moves to the blOod. In the second, the insPirAtIon muscles relax, forcing gAses to flow out of the luNgs. During that phase, CarbOn diOXide, a waste gas, moves from the blood to the lungs and is breathed out.

Breathing is usually aUTomatic, controlled subconsciously by the reSpirAtory center at the base of the BRAIn. Breathing continues during sleEp and usually, even when an individual is unconscious. People can likewise control their bReaThing during speeches, singing, or breath holding-

It's like someone came in to scream "Surprise, bitch!", and dump all sorts of data on me.

I'd claim to appreciate random trivia, but it jars my poor brain. I wasn't much of an A-grade student at school. I'm lucky enough to remember my-

N̴̠̓̐͊̈́̓̉̅̐͋̔͂a̴̢̢̦̜͇̱͓̫̜͋̽̉́̅͑̓̓̓͌̚̕͜͝m̷͖̤̣͕͙͓̐e̸̫͉̬̥̰̠̪̖̲̳͔͆̂̉̊̽̚͝.

-multiplication charts! Don't get me started on adding and subtracting fractions. I can't waste my memory storage on that. They're handy-dandy solely in specific situations. For example, is there a practical application for recognizing our ability to see various colors?

When different wAvelenGths of light hit our eyes, we discern different cOloRS. SUN light or light bulbs have many wavelengths. We commonly perceive this great mixture of wavelengths as white. If the LIGHT hits an object—a road, tree, house, anything really—the object absorbs some wavelengths.

...

We often take for granted the little things, but sometimes…

I took in some air and then expelled it.

... Such things are better left unnoticed.

(This process, called gAS eXchange, is essential to life. But why is a chill accompanying my deep breaths? Where is the exhaled warmth?

A diluted and incomplete heat is underneath my skin. As if I were in a desert desperately seeking gulps of water, I drowned and coveted heat. A nagging tells me I don't NEED to breathe, only this dearth of warm-energy.

My soul and mind lacked understanding, but my body didn't.)

I kept my eyes peeled, and with a single leap, I jumped over the embankment.

When nothing occurred, I fist-bumped the open air.

"U. U"

'Would you stop that?' Is it because he thought that if I could go into his mind, the possibilities would be endless?

It has me speculating...

What can I do, or rather, what can't I?

'You can't come along, Othe. Just stay put. It won't take long.' Again, all I received was a dismissal from him. What a mood!

Ah, they grow up so fast.

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

(̶M̶y̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶n̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶s̶i̶m̶p̶l̶e̶.̶)

I stumbled on a mindscape filled with nothing but equations. Floating formulas everywhere. Numbers will haunt me forever.

Another debated about a particular light meal in the category of two slices of bread with filling in between for their master's degree in philosophy.

I.e., a hotdog. Is a hotdog a sandwich?

Great, I'm also contemplating the question now, which is probably the objective.

(̶E̶a̶s̶y̶.̶)

Being besieged by the imagery of pineapples mixed with tomatoes and cilantro can change a gal. Pineapples on burgers, pineapples on tacos… I'm sorry, Hawaiian pizza; maybe I treated you too harshly.

I prodded their wall and noped the fuck out of there when the surroundings transmogrified to spherical objects adhered to a squelching mass of flesh.

They silently squirmed and wailed from within.

(̶S̶t̶r̶a̶i̶g̶h̶t̶f̶o̶r̶w̶a̶r̶d̶.̶)

Like a thunderstorm, I viewed a faint flash of electric blue in the upper atmosphere before darkness swallowed it anew.

'𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

'𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

'𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

'𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

'𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.' '𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

'𝚂𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑.'

A multitude of bioluminescent sprites echoed out in chambers of pods stocked up on one another. Bodies flicker and contort themselves.

Totally not creepy, dude. Not. At. All. Just your regular day here at the Outside Express.

Whispers were reiterated and ricocheted against the walls until many voices tied to one spoke.

'𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚑 a𝚗𝚍 s𝚑𝚞𝚜𝚑, 𝙶-𝙶𝚗𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚜 m𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚋𝚎… 𝙻𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐.'

… I admit, perhaps this wasn't such a good idea. At least I uncovered something worthwhile. That's got to count for something, no?

(̶M̶a̶n̶a̶g̶e̶a̶b̶l̶e̶.̶)

'Who are you?'

The collision of high-energy electrons with air molecules triggered sensory disturbances. The currents of electricity were ephemeral, but the voices were tumultuous.

'𝚆𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎.'

'𝚆𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎.'

'𝚆𝚎.' '𝙰𝚛𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎.'

'𝙰𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎?'

'That… doesn't explain much.' Should I be amazed or alarmed? 'What are you, if I may ask? What happened?'

They, whatever I'm engaging with, copied my actions and alit the darkened mind-space, shaking me to the core.

Limbs that could pass off as large mandibles clicked collectively in unison—robotically, stifling.

'𝙰𝚜𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐?' '𝙽𝚘𝚝.' '𝚃𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐?'

'𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝.' '𝙻𝚊𝚜𝚝.'

'𝙽𝚘𝚝.' '𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝.' '𝙾𝚏.' '𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚍.'

'𝙽𝚘𝚝.' '𝚃𝚑𝚎.' '𝙻𝚊𝚜𝚝.' '𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚍.'

'𝙷𝚘𝚠𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚝.'

'𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝.' '𝚃𝚘.' '𝙶𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚝𝚑.' '𝙺𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎.'

'𝙻𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚎𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚝𝚑 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎.'

They uttered incongruent, resonant cacophonies, aligning and scattering opinions. Static-y to the body, distinct to the mind. Contradictory and sensible, yet unmistakably puzzling.

'𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙻𝚊𝚜𝚝. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚟𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚞𝚜.'

'𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢.' '𝙵𝚛𝚘𝚖.' '𝙿𝚛𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐.' '𝚂𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝.'

'𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢.' '𝙵𝚛𝚘𝚖.' '𝙱𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍.' '𝚃𝚑𝚎.' '𝚂𝚔𝚢.'

'𝚆𝚎.' '𝙷𝚎𝚛𝚎.'

'𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢… 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎.'

I licked my lips. 'Where is here, exactly?'

Their masked-not-masked face was silenced. The streaks of light from their underbody died down, shrouding me thereof.

The unpleasant, prolonged blend of discordant inputs ceased, basking afresh in solitude.

(̶I̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶i̶n̶ ̶s̶a̶i̶l̶i̶n̶g̶.̶)

After an undisclosed period, they provided a slew of information.

'𝙵𝚊𝚛.' '𝙵𝚊𝚛.' '𝙱𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚠.'

'𝙱𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚝.' '𝙻𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍.' '𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚍.'

'𝙱𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚝.' '𝙾𝚏.' '𝚆𝚎.'

'𝙻𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍.' '𝚃𝚘.' '𝙴𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛.'

'𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚍.' '𝙸𝚗.' '𝙿𝚊𝚒𝚗.'

'𝙰𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐.' '𝙿𝚊𝚒𝚗.'

'𝙿𝚊𝚒𝚗.' '𝙰𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐.'

'𝙸𝚗.' '𝚃𝚑𝚎.' '𝙳𝚊𝚛𝚔.'

'𝙳𝚊𝚛𝚔.' '𝙿𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎.'

'𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚞𝚙 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚜.'

Eventually, the reality of the situation sank in, and I was unsure what to do about the bombshell they dropped.

'𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙲.𝙰.𝙳.𝙼.𝚄.𝚂.'

(Cadmus?

CADMUS?)

My tenuous hope and my duty to Othe were the only things preventing me from breaking down on the spot. The promise of escaping together from this unfeasible reality—this maddening familiarity.

Even if I wished to break down, they robbed me of the opportunity.

'𝙺𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚝, 𝚕𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚍 𝚞𝚜..'

An ashy material surfaced in the mindscape. First, it was one, then two, until it coalesced into a mountain of unidentified solids.

They weren't rocks. It was a pile heavier and denser than most prevalent materials, but soft and malleable. They cut a sizable chunk from the steep hill, shining gray with a hint of blue.

'𝙸𝚝 𝚑𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚜.'

Exposed to trail thoughts, the precious mineral tarnishes into a dull gray and becomes stronger than iron, pressuring the mind to enclose itself.

'𝙺𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎.' '𝙽𝚘.' '𝙱𝚎𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎.'

It's unclear whether the mutated-looking fireflies are referring to me, to themselves, or something else. Something that battered the covered walls with strenuous fervor, paralleling drums banging vociferously and mercilessly.

Factors accumulated and veered into a myriad of eyes to be opened.

'𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚞𝚜.'

Pupilless eyeballs stare me down.

'𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎.'

'𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚎.' '𝚆𝚎.'

'𝚂𝚎𝚝.' '𝚆𝚎.' '𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚎.'

Six jointed legs burst the screen of their pods, and a pool of unnerving emotions swelled at their following statement.

'𝚃𝚘 𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚘.'

I bolted amid an entropy that blared for miles and miles. Electricity buzzed at the chemical element plastering the walls.

Lead is an excellent conductor of electricity.

I'm powerless as my vision is impaired and mutated front legs with rows of sharp spines grab me. 'Let me go!'

Shockwaves propagate, and the awful din distorts, becoming strained and elongated.

'𝚂𝙴𝚃.' '𝚆𝙴.' '𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴.'

'𝚂𝙴𝚃.' '𝚆𝙴𝙴𝙴' '𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴.'

'𝚂𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴𝚃.' '𝚆𝙴.' '𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴.'

'𝚂𝙴𝚃.' '𝚆𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴.' '𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴.'

'𝚂𝙴𝙴𝙴𝚃.' '𝚆𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴.' '𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴𝙴𝙴.'

'𝙼𝙰𝚈 𝚆𝙴 𝙴𝙰𝚃 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙻𝙰𝚂𝚃!'

Lightning crackled up.

The light grew brighter and brighter, blinding us in an outburst of gray and blue.

'𝙼𝙰𝚈 𝚆𝙴 𝙱𝙴 𝚂𝙴𝚃 𝙵𝚁𝙴𝙴!'

(Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

It's been in front of me all along.

Project Cadmus. DNAliens. Clones. Superboy. Othe, Me, we are—a-am I…?

I'm–no. No! I-I think I'm going to be sick. Dubbilex-

Dubbilex.

I foolishly spieled everything. Did he know?

Did he use me?

Is this me… or is this what I was led to believe?

What am I to depend on? Have I gone insane?)

*Snip.*

*Pop.*

*Crack.*

(I didn't tarp my vision with the creatures' foregone luminance or minerals, but with the shade originating from dainty hands.

They were smooth and without blemishes. As fragile and perfect as porcelain, as small as a child's.

'Are you having fun?' The child giggled angelically as hair strands woven in gold tickled my neck. 'More, more!'

Hands too flawless, too pale and gaudy, skimming my face. Nimble fingers and sharp nails.

'Watch.' A smile too curved, features stretched too far. 'And play with us soon.'

Clothes dyed in charcoal and anarchy, of crystals and eons of war, of mangled bodies beneath their toes.

'Aw, did you ʞɐǝɹq again?' The child tee-heeded macabrely. 'Forget sɐ many sǝɯᴉʇ as pǝpǝǝu. It's fun to see ʎɐʍ ɹǝɥʇᴉǝ!')

The amalgamation of all has quashed the absence of color. Cries rang about as a cascade of black goo saturated, encased, and devoured life.

The world blacked out again.

Once again forgetting how it's steeped in beautiful scarlet hues.

(Pursed lips made flaws in the child's inhuman nature known.

'̵͖͝ƃ̵͕͍̪̣̃ȗ̴͎̼̇ᴉ̶̜͈̔̏̑̓ʇ̵̡͈͎͛̿ᴉ̸̖͍̓̋̏͆ɐ̵̧͍̤̊ʍ̵̲̭̟̬̓̈́ ̷̨͕͉̓̅̀̋ǝ̷̮͎̿̒̕ʇ̶̳̺̀̚ɐ̴̡͖͂̍̈́͜ɥ̴͇̙͉̍͗̌ ̶͍̍̔̃ǝ̸͈̲̎̊̽́M̴͙̌̈ ̷̸̳̠̀̈́͋̾̄ƃ̷͓̘̔u̶̩̞͈͖͘͠ᴉ̸̩̽̒ɥ̸̧͉͇̪̂͌̕ʇ̶͎̾̈́ʎ̸̠̮̓͊̚͜ɐ̶͇̳͇́̇̀ḽ̸̳̅͗͂͜͠d̸͖͇͝ ̶̺̞͒̀̿̈'̶̠͎͊̎̇͜ƃ̷͔̤̍ṻ̴̳̗̩́̕ᴉ̵̘̲̺͊ͅʇ̵̬̱͊̋̕ᴉ̸̨̳͓̀͊̆ɐ̷̫͇̼͂̆̈ʍ̵̘͇̪͛ ̸̝͔̾̍̀s̸̜͎͛̾͘ͅn̵̝̪͖̆̈́́ ̷̞̰̦̖̈́̽͘̚d̴̫̖̓ǝ̷̺̄́ǝ̴̺͓̉͠ʞ̵̨̡̪̦̄͝ ̸̫̞̥̆̀̔͜͠ʇ̴̨̬͍̊͆̅̌,̷̟͍̪̭̅ u̶̼͗̇͜͠õ̵̺p̴̣̻̓̎̄͝ ̸̩̯̍͂ʇ̷̩̱̭̥̿n̶̛̫̔̄͜͠q')

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

"Dr. Desmond, did you blow up another fuse?"

"You imbecile! Project 0424 constantly emits electricity. The lights can't be turned off."

"The only thing shutting down is you."

"Quit your yapping and get the power running! What am I paying you for—to stand around and act like a buffoon?"

"Do we have a minimum wage? Since when?"

"Just go!"

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

For my plan to be effective, I couldn't simply go one step and boom, problem solved. It's complicated.

All I want is to get out.

Is that… w̴̨̠̺͇̪͈̫̻̯̥̣̫̺̘͉͈̯̗̣̝̫͙̃͌̈́̉̍͑̋͋͆̈́́̔̀̈̊͒͝͝ŗ̶̢̧̧̛̞̖̩̰̭͙̘̖̞̫̗̙̫̯̀̍́̆͊̽̓̓́̄̽̄͊̄̑̏̓͛̏̈́̄̅͊̊̿͌̆̓̅́̀͊̂͂̎͜͝͝͠͠͠ǫ̸̧̨̢͎͓͈̘̼̟͍̼̜͔͍̼͉͎̬̪̮̹̣͔̟͔̟̣͓͙͖̩̹̰͉̭͕̥̭̻͓̝̯̤͇̠̀̀͂͋̓̀́̆͊̄̀̈́̈́͆͐̍̏̂̕͘͜͜͝n̵̡̛̛̛̛̤̞͉̻̘̠̜̫̫͖̣͖̹̪̼͕̮̬̠̰̟͈͕͇͉̭̐̊̊̔̏̅̓̄̎̈̀́̽̒͂̓̎̍́̋͑͘̕̕̚͜ͅg̶̢̡̢̡̡̛̛̲͕̜̥̩̺̻͍̫̯̖͎̠͎̤̲̦̥͚̼͇͇̳̞̳͌̊̑́͐̒̈́̉̈́̆͌́̑̋̉̔̌̀̊̅̓̍̿͌̃̓́̋̒̑̽͛̄͊̄̈́̆̿̍̐̓̐̐̚͘͘͜͜͝?

(Night befell a massive, frigid airspace. An infinitude of an infinitude. The colors of a spectrum shine where darkness predated the birth of the universe.

From the dawn of time, stars twinkled akin to the bright jewels they were, but bore no calm. Asteroids emerged from their depths, splintering the light.

" "

Monstrous hands beckon forth, gazing at the flesh and the universe. Past the world and infinity, before creation and eternity.

Beyond all that is life itself. Innumerable worlds beyond.

Things inside the asteroids glow black, craving hearts and demise.

"F l e s h," a triangle pointing downward with five lines radiating upward from its base, interprets. "G i v e y o u r o a t h."

A red, eternal force intervenes and seethes.

'Na-ah. We got dibs on the meat bag. Finders keepers! Stay in your cage a little longer, why don't you?'

'Mreow.'

'That's what I said!')

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

Othe had no face, but I understood.

'Yeah,' I said. 'You told me so. Maybe I should've named you Murphy instead.'

'U?'

One moment I jumped to the outside wall, and the next I returned to where I began.

I remembered little, but the recollections of fear were prominent. He must have sensed it because Othe glued himself to me like a koala bear and wouldn't let go.

After many attempts at prying the ball of sunshine from my person (and failing stupendously), I gave up and carried him.

'Alright, let's go.'

"Uuuu!" He cheered.

There's a reason I didn't want him to tag along. I'm unaware of why or how, but a dreadful impression gnawed at me.

Do not go. It rang nonstop.

Here's hoping it's just that: a feeling, not a terrible premonition.

When we walked out, the first thing to greet us wasn't my typical scenery. There's no way to expect what awaits on the Outside. Sometimes it's idiosyncrasies from people and garbled creatures alike, or-

('Is this why doctors advise not to consume steroids?' I cried out as I accidentally went too deep and the host's defense mechanisms activated.

Feral malformations roared.

All with blue irises and black scleras.)

-mundane topics. Sometimes, when I navigated through minds, they ushered in the embodiments of their thoughts.

Not all of it is pleasant, but conjured greenish-gray gremlins aren't the craziest concept out there.

These people need therapy, and fast. I won't delve into details because I have a kid here.

"u u."

'Yes, Othe. I'm talking about you.'

He pouted, but cuddled further into my arms.

Anyway, back on track. At present, we are in a green area. The displayed tropical setting is an interesting touch, but that won't distract us from our mission.

There has to be someone, who has the means to accomplish a breakout.

There has to be. (̶E̶v̶e̶n̶ ̶i̶f̶ ̶I̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶p̶l̶u̶n̶g̶e̶ ̶i̶n̶t̶o̶ ̶e̶v̶e̶r̶y̶o̶n̶e̶'̶s̶ ̶b̶r̶a̶i̶n̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶d̶o̶ ̶s̶o̶.̶)

And lo-and-behold, my pleas were… answered?

I squinted.

'Is that a cosplayer or are my eyes playing tricks on me?'

"u Uuuuu."

I'll take it as, "I dunno."

Othe flies off like a rocket and hovers around the dead body, ketchup and mustard chap, newcomer. This is his first meeting with a human besides me. A stranger masquerading as a Robin Hood boy scout, lying on the ground, in the middle of nowhere inside his damn head.

Striplings these days, geez.

(Shouldn't I be elated as well?

Why am I queasy about the prospect of interacting?)

I hacked off a thin piece of wood from an adjacent sapling—sorry tree, I'll return your stick soon— and nudged the stranger.

He's here. Is it because I'm technically invading? An avatar's presence demands expertise in mental abilities or external factors at play. Judging from his muscular physique, he has exercised, but that's not the training I'm alluding to.

On a closer analysis, why is he napping? Most don't fantasize about, well, sleeping. Unless he's a college student.

No wonder he's got a frown even while he's immobile as a standard facial expression. What a waste.

The stranger dons a non-elastic reddish costume, a yellow bycoket accessorized with a feather, boots, and a belt containing a bunch of pockets. He must be dedicated to his role if he's hauling loads of tools around.

"Uuu."

'Yeah. In the slumbering aspect, he'd give you a run for your money.' The stranger's similar to Snow White—if she were grumpy, her tiara was stolen and ditched in the woods thereafter. Am I collecting princesses or what?

The tips of my fingers tapped on his forehead.

No response whatsoever. Inert and cold to the touch.

-CereBRAl activity fluctUates. AUtoMatiC, but vivid, unlike minimal signs depicted in coma patients. Alive, stAsis, no indication of awArENEss yet. Unresponsive to his environment for an indefinite period. Deep UnConsciousnEss. Cryogenically frozen-

Yikes.

The stranger's a sight for sore eyes, and by that I mean, he's a sad sight to behold.

Mmm. Most of the information flew overhead, but I got the gist of it.

There's an idiot-proof solution: the prince requires stimulus.

I cackled.

And I knew just the perfect method.

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

'Ready, Othe?'

'UuU.'

He cradles the prince's head, albeit awkwardly since he, you know, has no hands. Othe offers a thumbs-up in a sequence of lights.

I closed our proximity. So close that I could perceive the rising of his chest and his relaxed breathing.

I approach the sleeping prince before me...

Ever so near...

'WAKE UP!' And slapped him for good measure.

Heh. Works every time.

A tad excessive. However, if that failed, Othe would step in and turn into a scintillating miniature sun.

As in, flashing the stranger's kipping mug 'til he awoke. Except Othe was beaten to the punch.

'Ack!'

Seriously, the ingrate cosplayer punched me—my mistake. It was his palm that struck, not his fist. Still, who does that?

Putting in as much distance as possible, he narrowed his eyes at me. They weren't as deep as the sea or as clear as the sky. Or red.

(Why am I relieved?

Will I ever understand?)

They were equally striking because all the blues I'd glimpsed were identical. Copy-and-pasted, lacking originality. Duplicates.

But not him.

Not this fellow.

'You…' I coughed out, suffering from the aftereffects of his prior assault. 'Did you just karate-chopped my neck?' I asked incredulously.

'Where am I? Identify yourself.' His voice is gruff, practically accusing.

How prosaic.

'Oliver, if you abandoned me in a jungle again, I swear to God-!' I doubt that was meant for my ears. Oops.

I spied his arm reaching towards his back as if to grab something, then he glared harder when he received nothing but air. He looked quite silly, to be honest.

I massaged my nape and, surprisingly, there wasn't a lick of pain. Huh.

'As a gesture of goodwill, I'll overlook your senseless, and very unwarranted, attack.' I stepped forward.

His body tensed.

'For the love of–' I wanted to pull my hair out. 'What danger do I pose to you?' Looking back, I too was hostile when I initially met Dubbilex.

… Goodness, am I the stranger-danger?!

"U! U! U! U!"

'Othe, you're supposed to be helping me out!' I whined.

The awakened prince quirked an eyebrow at the glowing orb, who endeavored to appear as menacing as possible by floating up and down.

"uuuuuU?"

'You're not.'

"U…"

Bringing his hand to his face was the only sign of him chilling the eff out. 'Green Arrow, the things I go through because of you...' He froze.

Green Arrow?

Haa.

That's what all this has been about. To achieve happiness nowadays, he does this…

Somehow, his already stern features turned sterner when he touched his face, right below the eye area, and directed his gaze at me with a scowl.

I gave the poor sod an empathetic look.

'I won't judge your larping. You do you, my friend.'

･ﾟﾟ･:｡.｡:ུ۪: ｡.｡ *･ﾟﾟ･

SI be Like:

SI: I'm going to wake up this random dude and nothing bad is going to happen.

A/N: If for some reason the chapter is jumbled or you can't read it for some reason, you cand find this story in ao3.

Sorry I took so long, but y'all.

Be prepared for what's coming.