Dev stood around and did nothing.

He wanted to help in some way, but Bit's Mets were doing all the work on their own. The gorilla they'd planned this with stood beside him. Chewbacca wore iron armor with his shield and axe. The metal plow was strapped to his back and the worn log was on the ground next to him.

It had been crowded on Krabby, but Chewie had managed to bring all of his path-making equipment.

It was more gear than any singular person could use at once, but it was also the bare essentials - as far as the Jungleclad was concerned.

Dev had thought that he might've been required to help. He hadn't exactly been looking forward to it, but it still felt strange to stand around and do nothing.

He glanced at the log. He could sit down... but that felt like giving up.

He turned back towards the fight that continued. Bit was behind her Mets as they tore through the jungle. There was a white mist that surrounded her and presumably blocked any poisons the jungle might try to use. Her robots sliced vines, chopped roots, and tunneled through the ground to prevent any plants from ambushing them.

They even chopped down the trees that were in their path.

It was horrifying.

This... wasn't exploring. It was pure destruction.

...But Chewbacca didn't object. The Red Jungle wasn't his home. It wasn't a place that his tribe lived in harmony with. It was the enemy. An enemy that...

"Why do you guys live here?" Dev turned to look at his equally useless companion.

'Trees grow back quick.' Chewie grunted. 'No other people around.'

Huh.

So they lived in the jungle to chop down trees? But they didn't send the wood anywhere... And why did it matter that no one else was around?

"..."

Dev shook his head. He'd been thinking about something, but it was gone. That had happened a couple of times recently, and he hated it. He must be more stressed out than he'd thought. With a sigh, he grabbed the log that was supposed to pound down the dirt - and keep roots from growing underneath.

There was no need for it, but Dev just wanted something to do.

They were making great time!

Riley nodded in satisfaction as her Mets widened the clearing. They'd camp here tonight. The tower that they were heading towards wasn't too far off. With the terraforming her Mets were doing, she could actually see it - if her robots raised her up high enough.

Or, rather, she could see the trees that were growing out of it.

Unless something changed, they'd make it there tomorrow.

Riley wasn't sure what would happen after that.

She'd probably go and find that titan guy. Pinky knew of him, and the Jungleclad knew where to find his... company? From what they said, it sounded more like an occupying force than anything else.

But, that's apparently how things worked on Baleros. Given what she'd seen of this world, a warlord made sense. The jungle was a dangerous place, and sometimes people needed troops to protect them.

Of course, the rest of the world supposedly wasn't as deadly as the Dyed Lands. That was a good thing.

...

She woke up in the morning.

Riley sat up, stretched, and yawned before looking around.

It was a war-zone.

Riley ► Met A, report.

Met A ► The jungle attempted constant incursions throughout the night. It was stopped.

Ah. That explained it. Her Mets didn't have anything to break down wood or other biological matter. All they could do was tear it up and toss it aside.

"Man..." Dev was already awake and sitting on the tree stump the gorilla had insisted on bringing. "It's a good thing that your robots don't sleep or need time to..." He gestured at the Mets that were still chopping vines that tried to reclaim the clearing. "Recharge. I didn't get much sleep last night."

The gorilla nodded and grunted.

Pinky walked out of her tiny, red house. "I know what you mean! There's just so much... red in the air! It's exhilarating!"

"Right!" Riley clapped her hands together. "Let's continue!"

...

"I don't think we're going to make it today." Riley sighed. Her Mets were still working tirelessly, but they were fighting an entire jungle.

Not literally. The Red plants might be hostile, but they couldn't exactly mobilize against them.

Maybe.

It hardly mattered as the ones that stood in their path were re-growing as fast as her Mets could destroy them.

The gorilla grunted and motioned at the emerging path.

"Chewie says that the combination of physical damage, red blood, and no slime is causing the jungle to respond too much." Dev translated their guide's words. "The Mets are powerful, but the jungle is too enraged. We should hold here until it settles down. Or even retreat some."

Riley scoffed.

"This isn't the first animated forest I've had to put down." She still had a vial of the mixture she'd used to destroy Lost Garden somewhere. "I didn't want to do this, but I don't think we have a choice. The tower we're heading towards is covered in trees. I'm betting that they'll grow back far too quickly unless I take some drastic action."

Dev frowned. "Are you going to burn them? Trees can survive forest fires. Some of them even need them to clean out the smaller plants."

"Nope!" Riley shook her head. "I'm going to poison them!"

"What?" He seemed taken aback. "You can't do that! I know the Red Lands aren't exactly normal, but poison spreads." Dev looked at the trees around them that were still attacking. "I admit that it's hostile, but we can't cause an ecological incident! Besides, the amount of poison you'd need could seep into the ground and kill... lots of other things in time."

Riley rolled her eyes. "Please. I'm very good at making things with a short life-span. I'll have it dissipate in two... no, let's make it three days. The jungle can grow back then." She shrugged. "Besides, we don't need a poison that kills the forest. I'll just whip something up that paralyzes it. That way the trees won't grow back while we're here. Won't that be better anyways?" She gestured towards the war between the plants and her Mets. "That constant regeneration has to be using up something."

"Well..." Dev frowned. "I guess that's alright? I'd prefer not to disturb anything, but that's clearly not an option." He let out a sigh. "I suppose it's the lesser of two evils."

"Exactly!" She beamed at him.

Dev was getting nervous.

They had stopped for the day, and Bit was doing something with the Milk Box. That was a little concerning - especially after her announcement that she would be making poison. He'd mostly gotten over the Milk Box... and its new rat-like tail.

But poison?

Like real, designed by nature to kill you, poison?

That was cause for alarm.

However, he now wished that she'd hurry up.

Animals had joined the assault on their position. The Mets were holding them off, and Chewbacca was standing beside him with his armor, axe, and shield. But still...

A thundering roar shook the air. It hadn't come from a person or animal. It was the sound of trees snapping. The source was immediately obvious as a cross between an elephant and a rhino charged them.

It was three times as big as one from Earth, and a deep, dark red. It was also silent, aside from the noise its passing had made.

Wait.

All of the animals that had been attacking them had been completely silent. Dev hadn't noticed when it had just been a stray quill-cat or two. Or the red, python-like snakes. But the redno was another matter. It should be bellowing, or something, right?

The Mets repositioned themselves and the majority of them focused on the large beast. The rest had to fall back, as the jungle continued to press inwards. It had reclaimed the path they'd made a long time ago, and even the compacted soil hadn't done much to hold back the invading roots.

Chewie glared at the redno, and took a step forward.

Dev placed a hand on his arm, and shook his head when the Jungleclad looked back at him. Something was wrong here. He could see the occasional quill-cat investigating things, or other aggressive animals being drawn towards the noise... but the house-sized creature was too much. Something in his gut told him that this wasn't natural behavior.

"Ah ha!" Bit stood up and stretched. "It's ready!" She smirked at the monstrosity that was tossing her Mets aside with its long trunk. The Milk Box then burped, and expelled a thick, white mist. The cloud spread across the ground. When it got to the redno, the creature stumbled. Its legs gave out, and it toppled to its side with a crash.

The mist continued on, and as it reached the tree-line, everything stilled. The vines and roots stopped moving before falling to the ground also.

Dev nervously looked at the poisonous cloud that was also at his and Chewbacca's feet. His legs felt tingly. "Bit, I don't mean to criticize or anything, but is this safe?" He was glad the jungle had ceased its efforts to kill them, but 'A Scout is a friend to animals and loves nature.'

Then again, plants back on Earth weren't this bloodthirsty. Literally.

"Don't worry." She smiled at him and pointed at the redno. "It's super safe! It's also going to kill all those nasty little spores that are inside of you."

"What?" Dev gulped.

"Yep." She nodded at the redno. "Sorry it took so long, but after the cats started attacking, I realized we were dealing with a Ophiocordyceps unilateralis-type spore. The slime that controls the rest of the jungle must stop it... or use it."

"Ophiocordyceps unilateralis?" Dev frowned. "Isn't that the stuff that makes zombie ants?"

"Sure is!" Bit skipped to the redno, and began to cut it open with the help of some Mets. "I'll find some so we can take a good look at it. I wonder if it's another color-magic thing. Like, is it transmissible via their blood or something?"

"So..." Dev took a deep breath to try and calm himself. "We're infected?"

"Not any more." Bit shrugged. "You probably weren't in the first place. My mist is really good about sterilizing stuff like that, but you weren't standing next to me the whole time so... maybe." She turned to look at him. "You'll be all good soon though. I'll look you over. Then, I think I'm going to spend some time whipping up a counter-agent that will kill any trace of the fungus and spread through the jungle. This is a pandemic waiting to happen."

"Awww..." Pinky had climbed on top of the Milk Box, and was poking it. "Does that mean we're not going to the tower yet?"

"Yeah, sorry." Bit shrugged. "I combined it with the sedative, but I'll need something else to inoculate all of you. Better safe than sorry! While I'm at it, I think I'll make something to clear the path for us. My Mets are great, but they're taking too long."

Dev's legs gave out as he sunk to the ground. Bit might be a little... off, but he was really, REALLY glad she was on his side.

...

"Open."

Dev obediently opened his mouth. Bit was apparently done with whatever she'd been working on to save/immunize him. She held up a syringe, and squirted something into his mouth.

"Ugh!" Dev coughed. "That's nasty!" Saliva pooled inside of his mouth, but he resisted the urge to spit it out. Instead he swallowed to make sure that all of the medicine went down. He panted for a moment before asking. "Now what?"

"You're good!"

"Huh? Is that it?"

"You're good!" Bit repeated herself. She then walked over to Chewie. "C'mon big guy, bend down and open wide." She smiled up at the Jungleclad gorilla who could literally snap her in two.

Dev knew that the Jungleclads were civilized, and that Chewbacca could understand them. He also knew that Chewie understood what Bit was doing.

Still... Dev wouldn't have been so brazen in squirting liquid death into the ape's mouth.

"Hrk!" Chewie gagged on the concoction, and fell to the ground. It sounded like he was dying, but it passed quickly enough. He stood up, and looked ashamed.

"Geez." Bit rolled her eyes. "I know I didn't add any flavoring to it or anything, but c'mon. You guys don't know what 'nasty' is!" She turned around and smiled at Pinky. "Your turn!"

"Oh!" Pinky jumped up and down with excitement. "Yay! An experiment!" She opened her mouth wide. "I'm ready, Bit!"

Dev was flabbergasted. Was Pinky suicidal? Seriously? Who would look forward to taking Bit's medicine after seeing how he and Chewbacca had reacted?

"Okay." Bit aimed the syringe. "Only a milliliter for you... and done!"

"Ack!" Pinky's body froze and she toppled backwards.

"Alright, Badgy should be fine, but time to immunize the Monkey-bots." Bit smiled as if she hadn't just caused her best friend to faint. "Let's go!"

...

After the preventative medicine had been administered, Bit had started working on 'something really nasty'.

Dev and Chewie both stood far away from the mad scientist as she mixed parts of the jungle, the redno, the quill-cats, and some chemicals from her backpack together. In the end, she had two vials.

"Okay, first things first!" Bit nodded to herself as she took one of the vials and poured a drop on the redno's corpse. "There we go!" She smiled. "Perfect! That's a good proof of concept!" She then reared back before throwing the vial a lot higher and further than Dev thought she should've been able to.

"And... that's it?" Dev asked.

"Yep!" Bit nodded at him. "My little plague will break down the fungus and make more of itself. It's not that robust, so I imagine that the animal's immune systems will wipe it out quickly enough, but that's fine. I made it super virulent."

"Uhm..." Dev didn't want to criticize, but... "Was that a good idea? I mean, a plague?"

Bit shrugged her shoulders. "You have to fight fire with fire. Nothing but a plague will be able to wipe out that fungus before it becomes a real threat. Don't worry."

"But," Dev was still skeptical. "What if it, I don't know, mutates into something worse?"

"Worse than a mind-control fungus?" Bit tilted her head.

"Okay, not worse than that, but something that could kill a lot of animals or jump species or something?" Dev asked.

Bit scoffed. "What do I look like? An amateur? Please."

Dev held back his retort that she looked like a little girl in a frilly dress. Come to think of it, how was her dress so clean anyways?

Bit pulled another syringe out of her backpack, and filled it with the liquid in the second vial.

"What does that do?" Dev was curious. "Haven't the fungi been dealt with?"

"This?" Bit shook her head. "No, this is much, much nastier." She put the needle in her mouth, and then pulled the plunger back slightly. The tip was smoking when it emerged. "We need to do some defoliating. I can keep the trees asleep, but my Mets aren't really designed for lumber jacking. This will speed things up nicely."

"Uhm..."

Bit squirted some of the smoking liquid onto a tree... and it melted.

Dev was speechless. Bit had clearly made some sort of acid... but... acid didn't work like that! How could it spread across an entire tree! How could a tree melt?

The puddle spread, and more trees melted.

It stopped after about three meters.

Dev stayed far away from Bit as she started clearing the path towards their goal personally.

Pinky couldn't stand it.

It was sooooo close! Right there! Right behind those trees!

It was redder here. Not in a way that she could see with her eyes, but something deep inside of her. Her [Class]. Not [Rouge Fool], but her original one.

The one that she couldn't live with, but that she also couldn't stand to part with.

She'd... done so much. She'd hidden it from her mom. She'd hidden it from her friends, or at least her acquaintances. Her real friend...

Pinky shook her head.

No!

It was a fine line. She needed her [Class], but she couldn't let it overwhelm her. She could sink within it, but she could also float.

It hadn't been this hard to maintain that balance for a long time. She needed to do something silly. Something that a [Fool] would do. Something to help her tread water.

[Foolish Thoughts]

She could run and dive into one of the red puddles that used to be a tree!

Pinky smiled and lowered her center of gravity in preparation...

Wait.

No! That was the absolute wrong sort of thought. That wasn't [Foolish]. It was what her old [Skill] would've prodded. It was the curse that tried to finish what she'd started back when Lars...

Pinky slapped her cheeks. "C'mon, Took Narffion!" She whispered to herself. "You can do this. You know that you're balanced on the edge of a knife here. You have to fall off on the right side!"

Right.

This was all the negative parts of her [Class]. She needed to enforce the positive ones.

The singular positive one.

'Hey, Runt.' The ghost of Lars bent down to look her in the eyes. 'Still all worked up?'

"Lars." Pinky smiled. "How's it going?"

'You know.' He shrugged. 'Everything is lame.' He rolled his eyes. 'I can't believe you actually came out into the Dyed Lands. Your mother would flip if she found out.'

"She has to know by now." Pinky whispered. "See? I told you she didn't care."

'Pft.' Lars shook his head. 'And what was she supposed to do? Huh? You vanished without a trace. You didn't leave any hints about where you went. I'm sure she searched for you, but not in the Death Zone. Who'd be stupid enough to go there?"

"Mom looked for me?" Pinky looked up at his eyes that were partially covered by his poofy, pink hair - it was so different than it had been when he'd been alive.

'How am I supposed to know?' Lars smiled at her. 'I'm not real. But, if I said it, then a part of you must think it's true.' He patted her on the shoulder. 'Listen to that part.'

"Thanks, Lars." Pinky wiped away a tear. "I will."

No one had heard her, because Lars hadn't really been there and her Tallfolk friends were too far away. Still, Pinky felt better. She squared her shoulders and faced her destiny.

Besides, she knew Lars was lying. He had to be real. That was why she couldn't let him go.

...

It was getting dark by the time they uncovered the tower.

Bit had melted a wide swath of trees, and their progress had been pretty quick. However, the ones around their target were bigger and thicker. They reached far into the sky - farther than anything Pinky had ever seen. They were even taller than the strange pillar back in the Jungleclad's village.

She could feel it.

She could feel the Red within them.

She was so close!

But... she couldn't just rush in. In fact, she had to retreat as the puddle bubbled and smoked. The gargantuan trees were bending, bending...

A final ear-shattering creak reverberated through the jungle as the mass tipped over and crashed to the ground!

"Whew!" Pinky wiped her forehead. "Good thing that didn't fall on us!"

Bit raised an eyebrow. "That's why I circled around and sprayed the side of them." She shrugged. "I wasn't sure if that would mean them falling towards, or away from the acid, but either way, they wouldn't fall towards us."

"So, uhm." Dev approached them. He'd been hanging away from the front line of the tree-melting. "How's that needle doing? You're not going to spill any of it on you, right?"

Bit looked down at the syringe in her hand. It had clearly seen better days, but it was withstanding the green liquid far better than the trees had. "It's fine. I just need to spray around the rest of the base, and then I'll throw it away."

"Will the acid eat through the tower..." Dev looked up at where the tree used to be. "Or the building that we're looking for?"

"Maybe." Bit emptied out the needle's contents before chucking it into the forest. "A little. But whatever's inside there has lasted how long? Like, hundreds of years, right? If it survived a giant tree pressing in on it from all sides, I bet it's not going to be destroyed by a little acid." She smiled. "Besides, it's non-organic. The mixture doesn't work nearly as well against stuff like that. Plus, it won't replicate itself, which, y'know, is the major danger."

"That's good to know." Dev paused. "I guess. Just... don't make any more, okay? I know I'm strange for standing up for the jungle that was literally trying to kill us earlier today, but... well... you know."

Pinky stopped paying attention. The Red was... spilling out. It felt like the sun coming out from behind some clouds. Or like dawn. Or... she couldn't think of a third example of the sun appearing. Or any other appropriate expressions.

She walked closer.

Ugh. The tree-puddles smelled terrible!

Pinky coughed... and then retreated.

Approaching now wouldn't be [Foolish]. It would be [Suicidal].

...

Finally!

Bit gave the all-clear, and Pinky approached the building that had been revealed. Despite the Red emanating from it, the structure itself was a dark gray. Its walls were smooth, but she didn't know if that was how it originally was, or if the trees or acid had worn them down over time.

She circled the building. There were no openings.

Wait! She'd forgotten something really, REALLY important!

Pinky ran back to Bit, climbed up and onto her shoulder... and hugged her.

"Thank you, Bit." She whispered in the insane human's ear. "I know I'm a handful, and that I never would've made it this far without your help, so... just... Thank you." She blinked away a tear. "Friends like you make life worth living."

Bit turned her head - which almost knocked Pinky over - and smiled. "It's okay, Pinky." She whispered back. "I'm glad to help instead of... I'm glad to help."

Pinky nodded, and then leapt off of her friend and onto the ground. Next, she approached the dark gray structure and took a deep breath.

She then climbed the walls... with some difficulty, but she eventually made it to the building's rounded top.

Whoa!

It was smooth up here too. Still, she had [Advanced Balance]. She could do this!

There! At the top! A Red glow that stood out against the dark gray! Pinky slowly edged forward. It wasn't [Foolish], but that was a good thing right now.

A crystal.

It was smaller than the one in the Jungleclad's village, but it also was probably only the tip of it. Pinky reached out... And a piece snapped off in her hand.

It was a tiny piece, even for a Fraerling, but she felt the pure Red in it! At the same time, the Red from the crystal faded. It didn't vanish, but it had diminished a lot. There was a faint noise - almost imperceptible. The crystal... was moving.

The edges of the cracked off bit were slowly... slowly growing. The crystal was healing itself!

Pinky smiled as she felt it start to draw Red in to repair itself. The jungle that had fed off of it would now heal it. It made her feel better about taking her prize.

She hopped down. "Okay! We can go!"

Dev and Bit both looked at her strangely. "Really?" "That's it?"

"Yep!" Pinky smiled at them. "I think I got what I needed. We'll know tonight! I'm sure I'm going to level!"

...

Pinky couldn't sleep, despite her skill.

[Calm Self]

It wasn't just the excitement from the day either.

[Calm Self]

She had a piece of Red next to her.

[Calm Self]

What, exactly, it was - she had no idea. She knew it wasn't the same as the red of blood [Classes], but at the same time, there was a connection.

[Calm Self]

That was the nature of Color Magic... as she understood it...

[Calm Self]

Pinky yawned. She... wasn't a [Scholar]... but... she'd done her research. She'd have to explain... libraries... to Bit and Dev later...

[Calm Self]

They'd be... so... impressed...

[Rouge Fool Level 32!]

[Conditions Met: Rouge Fool → Rou-

Something woke her up.

Pinky jolted awake. She mentally cursed. Interrupting a level up could have unexpected effects. It could even stop it altogether.

But... A part of her mind was screaming. There was something outside. Something in the clearing of trees.

Something... that wasn't Red.

She didn't know of any other way to describe it. No... wait... she did. It was Black. A deep, gaping hole in the Color Magic of the Dyed Lands.

[Advanced Stealth]

She crept out of her portable house. Not out the front door, but out of a window on the far side from where the... Blackness was.

Pinky's eyes went wide.

There was nothing there, except for Dev's tent and Bit. However, Dev's flap was open, and her friend was looking at... something.

Pinky glanced around. Badgy and some monkeys lay unmoving next to the... something? Nothing? Darkness?

Pinky swallowed. She was afraid. Whatever that was... was dangerous in a way that she couldn't articulate in her thoughts. She was frozen. She couldn't comprehend what it was, and doubted that being able to see it would change that.

However, one thought came to her mind: 'Attack it with the Red.'

It... it wasn't a [Foolish Thought]. It was worse than that. It was her Blood Skill activating again.

[Suicidal Thoughts].

Pinky instinctively tried to repress it, but... it was different this time.

If she attacked, she would die. She was 100% certain of that.

But...

She'd be doing something good.

She'd be saving a friend.

She had never had many friends. Really, only the one. Lars dying had broken her. She couldn't let Bit die too!

Her arm seemed to move in slow motion. It was like when she'd attacked the Bloodrage Badger when it had pinned Bit. That had been both [Foolish] and [Suicidal]... but, somehow, in a good way.

A tear ran down Pinky's cheek.

She wasn't afraid of dying. She hadn't been ever since getting her Blood Class. Instead, she was afraid of losing another friend.

At least she'd see Lars again. Maybe.

[Sneak Attack]. [Giantkiller Strike]. [Scarlet Beam].

A ray of pure Red shot out of the crystal she held in her palm. It wasn't just her attack. The beam also contained the strength of the Dyed Lands that she'd stolen.

It struck something.

The moment the connection was made, Blackness flowed back along the path.

Pinky's lifeless body fell from the top of her house.

A little while earlier...

"Back! Stay back!" The yell had woken Riley up.

Everything was dark... and... uhm...

A sharp smell of cookies assaulted her. The diverted brain signal instantly woke her up and put her on guard. There was a Stranger nearby!

The jungle was nearly pitch black at night, but in the clearing she'd made there was enough light from the stars and the two full moons. The reflected yellow and blue light combined together to make white - and showed an old woman standing outside of Dev's tent.

Riley winced. The smell spiked when she looked at the hunched. Whatever it was, it wasn't what she was seeing. There was little possibility of this being a peaceful encounter.

Riley ► Everyone, attack the creature ten feet in front of me.

Badgy and her monkeys acknowledged her command. Kraby did as well... but he wouldn't be of any help. Her Mets were strangely silent.

"Greetings." The... old woman? turned and spoke to her. "I am weary, and would like to share your camp. May I partake in your hospi-"

Badgy roared and charged the creature. Invisible monkeys seemingly popped out of mid-air to grab her. Or it. Riley couldn't trust what she was seeing.

Badgy's large paw swiped through the intruder as if it wasn't there. The Bloodrage Badger froze for a second, before he collapsed in a boneless pile. Her Monkey-Bots suffered a similar fate. They tried to grab what wasn't there before dying instantly.

A potent Stranger with an even more potent Striker effect.

Riley began to leak gas. Hopefully her minions had failed to do any damage due to the Stranger effect, and not because of... something else.

The woman grimaced. "You dare attack me when I only asked for shelter!" The light around her seemed to fade more. "I will offer-"

A red line shot through the dark, and pierced the creature. It stumbled back half a step before shouting. "Fie on you! Fie on those who spur my offer! Death will seek you out! You will face oblivion!"

REJECTION.

The thought burst through Riley's brain.

"What?" The crone jerked her head and looked left and right.

NEGATION.

ENTROPY. ENEMY. FOE.

PURGE.

OVERCOME.

What was going on? Was that... Surgery?

ELIMINATE.

EXTERMINATE!

ERADICATE!

Met A ► ERADICATE!
Met B ► ERADICATE!
Met C ► ERADICATE!
Met D ► ERADICATE!
Met E ► ERADICATE!
Met F ► ERADICATE!
Met G ► ERADICATE!
Met H ► ERADICATE!
Met I ► ERADICATE!
Met J ► ERADICATE!
Met K ► ERADICATE!
Met L ► ERADICATE!
Met M ► ERADICATE!
Met N ► ERADICATE!
Met O ► ERADICATE!
Met P ► ERADICATE!
Met Q ► ERADICATE!
Met R ► ERADICATE!
Met S ► ERADICATE!
Met T ► ERADICATE!

What was going on? Riley's eyes grew wide as her Mets turned in unison from the edges of the jungle. They converged on the Stranger slowly before extending their arms and attacking faster than even her eyes could track.

The crone might have been wounded. Or it might have fled. She couldn't tell, and she also couldn't trust her senses right now.

The fight was over in an instant as the darkness faded along with the smell of cookies.

Except... Her Mets didn't stop. Instead, some turned and began to attack their campsite. Others charged the forest and continued their sudden assault on the trees!

Riley ► Stop!
Riley ► Cease activity!
Riley ► Freeze all motion!

They didn't listen to her. Worse, they seemed to have gone into a berserker rage. Their arms flailed wildly as they searched for a target.

Then, they found one.

A Met pierced the tent that Dev had given the Jungleclad gorilla that had escorted them. A pain-filled roar emanated from it, but was quickly changed to a wet gurgle as more Mets converged and attacked!

Riley stared with wide eyes. What was going on? She wasn't surprised that Surgery COULD do such a thing, her Mets were summoned creatures. It would be a simple thing for a Shard to control them - after all, that was where all their actions ultimately came from.

But, the Mets were from a different Shard. Had Surgery taken control? Told the other Shard to attack?

She could think about it later, right now she had to-

A Met slashed at her, but retracted its arm to avoid striking her.

Riley blinked. She looked over to where Dev was awake and still screaming. She hadn't noticed that until the Stranger had left along with its aura.

Mets had sliced up Dev's tent, but they'd avoided striking the Earther.

Dragon!

Dragon had been given the restriction to protect humans! It, she, must have passed that along to the Shard Network. She and Dev were safe...

Pinky!

Both her and the Jungleclad gorilla weren't 'human'! The Mets wouldn't avoid them! Worse, they seemed to be targeting them!

Riley froze. Pinky or the Ape? The Jungleclad was being attacked right now, but she could drive the Mets off. She could stitch him back together. But Pinky? She was obviously the one who'd shot the beam at the intruder!

Riley took off in a sprint.

There was no real choice in her target.

Pinky was in more danger. Even if she wasn't hurt, a single strike could bisect her!

Besides, Pinky was her friend. If Riley could get to her, then she could shield her - and then she could try to save their guide.

There! The twin moons provided enough light to see the Fraerling's small body. Pinky lay in a heap next to her house. Riley's sight was excellent. She could've made her out with a faintest amount of light. She could even see her heat.

Pinky's body was rapidly cooling.

Riley skidded to her knees and picked Pinky up. She cradled her friend to make sure that the rampaging Mets didn't attack her.

Time seemed to slow down as Riley made her diagnosis. In the back of her mind, she could feel her connection with Surgery providing details. A part of her wanted to reject her Passenger... but Surgery hadn't hurt Pinky. Her Shard was trying to help - even if it had driven her Mets insane.

If only she was like Kevin and could talk to Surgery more directly.

Riley shook her head, and focused on Pinky. She was dead. There were no signs of life, but there were also no obvious wounds.

All electrical impulses within her body had ceased. It had been an instant, cell-wide death.

But, it had also only been a few moments since then. Not even a minute.

Riley could revive her. She was sure of it!

If Pinky's body was fine, she just needed a jump-start. Not something as simple as a defibrillator. She didn't need her heartbeat regulated, she needed it restarted along with everything else!

Like Frankenstein.

Riley pulled a bow out of her hair. She then took some individual strands, and wrapped them quickly around the right parts of the Fraerling before electrifying them.

It wasn't much of a shock. Without one of her energizing mixtures, she only had the same voltage that a super-amped electric eel would. However, Pinky was small. She didn't need close to the maximum power that Riley's body was capable of outputting.

One!

Two!

Three!

Pinky's body jolted to life... for a split second before the energy faded again.

Riley narrowed her eyes. Whatever had killed her was still interfering. That was fine. No problem. Riley had plenty of electricity. More importantly, she had successfully shocked Pinky's brain. That was the most important thing. She coiled more of her hair around Pinky's head. That would keep her alive until the electricity won.

Riley glanced at the remains of their Jungleclad guide and swore under her breath. She wouldn't have time to save both him and Pinky.

Pinky opened her eyes. She'd just been talking to... Lars?

[Levels removed.]

[Skills removed.]

[Rouge Fool Level 23!]

[Skill Change – Red Strike → Scarlet Beam!]

[Skill – Scarlet Beam obtained!]

[Conditions Met: Suicide Survivor → Soul Survivor Class!]

[Condition – Suicidal Thoughts Removed!]

Bit was staring down at her.

Pinky smiled.