She was falling.

Constantly falling, yet she didn't get used to the sensation. She wasn't herself, and there was a long way down.

'Ah, here you are.'

She felt a presence. It was familiar and yet strange at the same time. One that she both loved and hated. The presence would try to tell her things, but her platitudes were meaningless. "There's nothing left to say." She replied.

Actually, that wasn't true. Kind words were the only thing she had in the dark.

'You're not supposed to be this way.'

She was surprised at the statement, yet she couldn't refute it. She remembered a time when she wasn't falling through the eternal darkness. A time when...

When... something...

The presence wrapped around her in a comforting embrace... yet she was still falling. A discarded thing. She remembered that much. Even before the darkness she remembered she'd been cast aside for some reason.

'Did they push you out?'

She nodded. It was as if the presence could read her mind. That was exactly what had happened. She'd been pushed out. Discarded. Framed.

'Did they throw you away?'

Yes. That was one way to phrase it. That was what had led to her falling in more ways than one. She could almost remember, but it was too painful. As horrible as falling was, it was still better than recalling what she'd once been.

"Touch me now and..." She paused. "I don't care." She tried to reply angrily - to push the presence away. To drive it off. "When you take me..." That was right. The presence. That was why she was falling instead of something... worse. It had taken a part of her? But it had left her here to... what? "...I'm not there." She felt her thoughts coming together. "Almost living... but I'll never be the same."

There. That was the truth.

She didn't know what the presence wanted, but she felt that it was benevolent. That it cared for her. It didn't matter. She wouldn't remember the past. She wouldn't think about it.

She'd rather fall. It was a long way down.

Laila sighed.

Zehia... just wouldn't respond to her.

She didn't know what she thought about her former owner. At the time, she'd hated her. She remembered the fear of having her skin replaced on her head. It was one thing for a Stitchfolk to remove an arm or a leg. That didn't faze her anymore than it did any other person made of cloth.

Her head?

That was different. That had been what made her unique. It also kept anyone else from understanding the pain and the dread that came with it.

So... should she blame Zehia? In all other ways, she'd been the nicest owner Laila had ever had.

Her... duties hadn't been unpleasant. She had even allowed herself to pretend that Zehia loved her.

She knew that was a lie. She knew that Zehia had come after Riqre because of her own need for revenge. It had nothing to do about Laila.

Despite all of that, she felt responsible.

Her [Stitch Selphid] class was leveling, and her new skill let her communicate with Zehia despite not having any vocal cords, but the other woman wouldn't say much. She refused to come back to the surface.

...But that might be for the best.

There was something else inside the body with them. She didn't know if it was part of Zehia or not. It was clearly a result of whatever blood class she'd gained when she'd been tortured.

Laila reached out with [Touch Telepathy]...

RAGE. PAIN. HATRED. HUNGER.

...And jerked back.

It was the inner part of Zehia that matched her new body. A cannibalistic monster that knew nothing but violence.

Anger that never dulled. Rage that was never quenched. Hunger that was never sated.

A promise of power if she just surrendered to it.

But it was Zehia's class, not hers. All she had to do was pull back and that was it. Zehia, on the other hand, couldn't escape it except by withdrawing in on herself.

Laila sighed and opened her eyes. They had come to the edge of Tiqr. The changes in the terrain were pronounced. The soil was dryer. The grass and trees less frequent until they were all gone.

It wasn't until she saw the first tall plateau of orange-red rock that she'd realized how different Pomle was. That was what the landscape was like. Instead of the wide open savannas of Tiqr, it was made of canyons and plateaus. A few palm trees could be seen in the distance, but those were the only signs of life.

"There." Sibby pointed to the ground. "That's the border."

Laila looked. There was a line of colored rocks and pebbles that ran along the ground as far as the eye could see.

"What is it?"

"The people of Pomle made that border thirty years ago." Sibby nodded sagely. "Within, it is neutral territory."

"Oh." Laila didn't know how Sibby knew that. She'd led them this far and she'd followed without wondering how Sibby knew the way. Lately, it was puzzling her how a newly-formed Djinni was aware of such things.

That was mainly due to the fantastical tales that she'd regaled her and Nsiia with. People and places that were foreign. Yet, Sibby spoke of them with such common familiarity and could go into details that no one who wasn't there could've known...

She wanted to ask her friend where she'd heard those stories. Or if she'd actually experienced the events that she described.

...But Laila didn't press. Part of it was respecting Sibby's privacy. The other part was fear of what her reply might be. It was best to just keep her head down around powerful people.

She wasn't a [Slave] any longer, and Sibby was her friend and not someone that would hurt her - but old habits died hard. Knowing wouldn't help her. It might even hurt Sibby if Laila was caught and forced to divulge everything she knew.

No. Ignorance was bliss.

...

It was a short distance to the capital city of Pomle.

Actually, that was wrong. Not about the distance, Pomle was a small country compared to the distance they'd traveled. Rather, it would be a mistake to call the watering hold a city, much less a capital one.

Laila suspected that ninety percent of all people in Pomle were close to it, as it was the only real source of water in the dry canyons, but it clearly wasn't more than a place where people gathered.

The elephants began to trumpet to announce Tiqr's arrival, and Laila turned to Sibby. "So, what do you think..."

Sibby was gone.

Laila let out a sigh and watched as the Empress' procession made its way to the center of the gathering.

Sibby was investigating. Investigating this. Investigating that.

The group of Nsiia's minions were moving too slow, so she raced ahead on her own. She bounded up the side of a rock tower and looked around.

Interesting!

She smiled, and then saw another person sharing the view.

He was one of those humanoid bird people. He looked old. His green feathers were graying and he leaned on a staff. Despite all of that... Sibby thought he'd make a good meal.

The Garuda's eyes flickered towards her. His brow furrowed and he lowered himself into a defensive stance. "Who's there?" He growled as his eyes narrowed.

Sibby smiled. This prey could sense her! Was it magic? Had he noticed the small places where she let light hit her eyes?

Cauwine was right. This place would be fun!

But she wasn't here to play or to eat. Not just yet. She could play later.

...And probably not eat anyone either.

William was against it for boring reasons. Cauwine didn't care. Laila wouldn't like it. Kevin would be disappointed.

When was he going to get here anyways?

She could feel him getting closer, but he was still far away. A lot further than she had ever been from him back on Earth Bet.

Oh well. She shrugged and let herself fall intangibly down through the rock.

She had other things to see. As interesting as the old, green bird was, she wanted to see what happened when Nsiia arrived.

Sibby sprinted ahead and arrived just in time as Nsiia embraced a tall man with dark hair and dusky skin. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but the Empress was being her joyful self. The man seemed reserved, but content.

...Even as a small, brown, reptilian female ineffectively attacked him from behind.

Sibby's eyes gleamed. He looked strong.

Some of Nsiia's minions brought a chest with those colorful rocks. The strong-looking man ignored it, while the brown woman rushed forward and claimed it.

She must be his minion.

Sibby was distracted as another group of people arrived. The humans themselves looked normal and unimpressive, but they were accompanied by a horde of robots!

She crept closer.

The robots were made of metal and stone. That was odd. There was something Cauwine had said... but it hadn't been important so Sibby hadn't bothered to remember it. The human at the head of the robot procession went to speak with the strong man and Nsiia. The robots remained in formation for a while before he barked a command.

A group broke free and moved towards the oasis. They carried chests too, but unlike Nsiia's - they had something useful inside of them: food.

The children from the oasis swarmed around the offering first as the strong man shouted something about 'Sali'. His brown minion rushed forward and examined the food as the rest of the people of Pomle converged on to it too.

Sibby wondered what she should do.

She wanted to try some of the food. It would probably be bland, but you never knew until you ate someone.

Er, something.

But how could she sample it and remain hidden?

Sibby frowned. That was a puzzle. She could always reveal herself. There was no real reason not to. In fact... she would have to if she wanted to fight anyone.

She tilted her head to the side.

Then again, why would she want to fight? It was never a fight when she was involved. Cauwine had said she could come here to fight, but she didn't want to hunt right now.

Sibby pondered her future for a moment before it started to rain.

It looked like a third group from a third country had just arrived. Did they coordinate their timing? That's what Sibby would've done.

This group looked a lot less uniform. They were all armed, and a lot of them were half-fish people. The leader was apparently the cape that had caused the rain and was proudly boasting about it.

Sibby didn't like her.

...but the rain had distracted everyone from what was left of the food. Sibby let herself interact with 'solid' matter and grabbed a bottle and something wrapped in green leaves. Her power covered them and made them as intangible as she was.

The strong man and his lizard minion glanced at the pile of food, but Sibby was already gone. She bounded up to the top of one of the rock pillars and sat down to enjoy her reward.

Bland...

She sighed and stopped drinking the liquid and eating the meat inside of the leaves. She'd go and give it to Laila. Her friend didn't normally eat the food that Sibby brought back for her. She'd tried arms, legs, hands, feet, intestines, heads... Laila hadn't eaten any of it.

She obviously preferred hunting for herself, but this food was from a king, so she might make an exception.

Sibby nodded to herself. She was so smart!

As she returned to her friend, she noticed a large army approaching on chariots. No one else seemed alarmed, so she figured they were yet another leader who'd arrived late.

...Apparently they'd messed up their timing. Amateurs. Getting your entrance down was important.

Laila ate the meat Sibby had brought her and drank the wine.

It was far richer fare than she ever could have imagined eating before. Even the lunches that Nsiia had provided for them paled in the deep and subtle flavors the food provided.

Still, for all that, she was focused on the gathering of [Rulers].

She didn't know what was going on, or why they were meeting, but Zehia's body had enhanced senses. She watched and she listened.

Soon, the purpose of why they were here came into focus. It was about the King of Destruction. She'd heard of Flos when she was a child. She knew how he'd conquered the continent and then aimed to take over the world. It was an old tale about how he'd just... stopped one day and retreated to his small home country.

He was supposed to be asleep, but apparently he'd awoken and had already subdued all his neighbors.

She wondered if the other [Slaves] back in Roshal would ever hear about it. Probably. It wasn't something they'd be told. It also wasn't something they'd be kept in the dark about. After all, Flos had conquered all of Chandrar before - including Roshal.

She didn't know the specifics, or if Roshal had changed back then. It rarely mattered who held the chain when you were a [Slave].

Well... she had used to think that. Now? It would make all the difference in the world which [Slaver] owned her - if she was still a [Slave]...

Laila shook her head to clear her thoughts.

Back to the conference of [Kings] and [Queens] - the interesting part was the King of Destruction's announcement. Apparently, any of his citizens were to be allowed to make their way back to him - or face his wraith. Otherwise... he wouldn't war with anyone?

Anyone except the Empire of Sands?

She had to be hearing things wrong. That didn't fit with the Flos from the stories.

Then again, it also explained why the [Rulers] were so animated in their discussions.

Laila couldn't make out what they were saying, but she was an expert at reading body language. It was a skill that had been literally beaten into her over the years.

There were several [Rulers], but only four mattered. The rest were deferring to them and didn't dare disagree openly.

Nsiia - [Empress of Beasts] from Tiqr.

Femithain - [Crafter-Magus] from Illivere. At least, that's what he'd been referred to as. Perhaps he didn't have a proper [Ruler] class?

Revine - [Siren] of Savere. Again, she didn't know if that was her class or title. She didn't behave very [Ruler]-like, and she was clearly a [Mage]. So she might not have a [Ruler] class either.

Yisame - [Queen] of Nerrhavia Fallen. A fellow Stitch-folk, but not Hemp, Cotton, or even Silk. Yisame was made of something better. Laila didn't know what, but she was perfection made flesh. Every move was elegant. Every action calculated.

She didn't know what Yisame was thinking, but the other three were open books.

That was probably because two of them weren't [Rulers], and Nsiia wasn't the sort of person to play politics.

Femithain was cautious. Afraid. Meek. He wasn't as deferential as the leaders of the weaker nations, but he didn't seem to be eager with his stance. Laila didn't think he bore any personal animosity against Flos, but he clearly didn't like the idea of war.

The counter-point to him was Revine. Laila saw the Siren and Yisame talking about letters that they kept hidden from the others. There was obviously plotting going on that had started before the conference. Revine was the opposite of Femithain. She clearly hated Flos and wanted to hurt him... but was afraid to challenge him directly.

Laila had seen slave owners like her. Petty little dictators who couldn't forgive or forget any slights done against them. She couldn't say how much of that was Revine's nature, and how much was her personal grudge against the King of Destruction, but it was clear she would oppose him at every turn.

Nsiia, on the other hand, was clearly in favor of doing what Flos asked. She argued openly with the other rulers and refused to back down. The problem was that she didn't seem to be swaying them with her words. If anything she was gaining a portion of their ire.

Then... she made an announcement that everyone could hear:

"I was but a girl when Flos of Reim appeared on Tiqr's borders. I opened my borders to him and joined my armies to his because I believed in the righteousness of his cause. Hadn't he done away with monsters and enriched his lands beyond belief?" Everyone turned to face her, and she continued: "He brought wealth back to Chandrar! Those who accepted him as friend prospered! It was his enemies, those who refused to join with him and made war who suffered. Did he not bring riches unimaginable back to his kingdom?"

"By looting every land he came across! Tiqr might have been spared, but Savere was not! Nor was Nerrhavia!" Revine's face twisted in anger.

Nsiia retorted. "He was willing to fight against the other continents who wanted to turn Chandrar into a plaything to be fought over by their armies. Yes, his ambitions failed and he abandoned his people. What of it? He has returned, and whatever wrongs he has committed could be aimed at any nation here, ten times over."

The words of the [Empress of Beasts] did not seem to have their desired effect. Slave owners disliked having their hypocrisy pointed out, and it looked like the same was true of [Rulers].

Nsiia wasn't done: "I do not call myself the King of Destruction's subject any longer. I am not the girl I was, nor is he the [King] I know. But I will not join with you to attack him if that is what you plot, like cowards hiding in the dunes. I came here to say that, and to dare a bit of bravery from the hearts of my fellow rulers. I see that was a lost cause. Cowards, the lot of you."

Then, the violence started.

Sibby looked down as the cloth-people group attacked Nsiia. She was about to start slaughtering them all when the strong guy stepped in.

She watched him effortlessly subdue one warrior after another. Yes, subdue was the right word. He was clearly using the 'minimum amount of force' thing that Kevin had complained about before. Sibby understood. As amazingly talented as she was, her powers were just too potent. NOT killing people was tricky.

She'd gotten a lot of practice at maiming people instead, which was what the strong guy had started doing. Only... it didn't look very satisfying. He'd grabbed a spear and was flicking it in a blur and cutting their arms off.

Normally Sibby would've approved, but he was doing it too fast. String people didn't bleed if you cut them quickly along their stitches. She'd learned that from the slavers that had tried to capture them. To get a good meal out of them, you had to chew on stuff that remained connected to them.

It was still pretty bland, and she couldn't swallow, so it wasn't worth the effort.

While Sibby was thinking profound thoughts, the melee below grew bigger. Nsiia charged on her elephant, other groups drew their weapons, and that stupid water lady tried to kill both the strong guy and Nsiia.

Sibby, on the other hand, took advantage of the situation.

She wanted to remain hidden, but she could still take out her target!

She smiled as she let gravity pull her down faster than normal. The ground became invulnerable just as she landed - making her descent unnoticeable. Her target was moving away from the fighting. Their guards surrounded them, but it was simplicity itself to move past them.

There it was. Defenseless. Unguarded. Hers for the taking.

Sibby reached out and allowed her fingertips to interact with the letter the no-name king had. She'd noticed him and other rulers comparing them in secret. If there was one thing she liked investigating, it was secrets!

Her power flowed around the parchment and it stopped interacting with light and friction. She carefully pulled it out of the not-real king's pocket. It was possible that his robes were 'magical'. If they were, then trying to move the paper through them would only result in her popping.

Sibby was smarter than that!

With the letter in her claws, she paused to consider whomever this was. She could kill him easily enough without alerting anyone about her or Laila...

They'd undoubtedly blame it on someone else, and he had been rude to Nsiia...

Her eyes narrowed.

No.

The person that would be blamed would be Nsiia - even if there was no proof. Especially if there was no proof.

Besides, what fun was there in sneaking around and killing people? Sneaking was sneaking. Killing was killing. One was done to avoid attention. The other was how she displayed her power. Killing without credit was boring.

It also looked like the fight had already died down.

How disappointing.

Laila watched as the strongest of Pomle proved his strength.

It was... amazing. She could follow him with Zehia's eyes, but she knew there was so much she was missing. Subtle details that she could discern, but couldn't appreciate. She reached out to her former owner and tried to coax her to the front.

'Long way down.' Zehia repeated over and over. 'Long way down.'

Laila sighed. She couldn't get through to her. She tried, she really did, but it was no use. She considered just... retreating herself and forcing the issue, but that seemed like a stupid idea. She felt the urges of Zehia's blood class. Even tangentially, the innate desire she had to tear and rend, to eat and devour were... potent.

She turned to watch the Strongest stop Nsiia's elephant's charge with a punch, and then intercept Revine's lance of water with another blow.

It was like something out of a bard's tale. A single high-level [Warrior] facing down impossible odds... and winning.

The gathered countries seemed to think the same thing as they literally threw down their swords and surrendered.

"Bear a weapon again and the peace of Pomle is gone for the nation who strikes. Is that clear?" The strongest glared at them while caressing his fist. It was as if he was daring them to do so. As if he relished the idea of crushing them all. "Then proceed. I'm going to have a drink of water."

The hostilities were over, and the negotiations resumed - with Nsiia being blatantly snubbed. Her people were packing and Laila wondered where Sibby was.

As if summoned by her thoughts, the Siberian emerged from the shadow of the rock pillar to her side. Her eyes glowed with mischief and she had a wicked smile on her lips.

"Sibby!" Laila brightened up as she saw her. "Did you see that?"

Sibby nodded and then held out her arm. Laila blinked and looked down. A letter? It was, indeed, a small envelope with a wax seal that had been broken. She tentatively took it and looked back at Sibby. "What now? Are we going somewhere else? Are we staying in Pomle? Should we... introduce ourselves?"

Sibby's smile grew wider. "No." She nodded at the letter. "I want to go back to Tiqr."

"What?" Laila tilted her head. They had just come from Tiqr, why go back? It was a nice country and there had been no slavers that had attacked them there. Plus, they knew the [Empress], so... it made sense.

But Sibby had been so single-minded in her destination before. What could have changed?

Laila opened the envelope and took out the letter:

To his Highness of Lamult,

Greetings your majesty. As one ruler to another, we are both glad to correspond with you and fearful of the future of Chandrar.

Fearful? Us?

Yes. We are, and we are not ashamed to admit it. For we are not afraid for our own realm. Indeed, the King of Destruction wars with us now and our armies mobilize to crush him. Our Empire will outlast his.

Doubtlessly you have heard of Flos Reimarch's bold proclamation. I say bold because of how brazenly he lies. 'Peace'? As if the King of Destruction could stand such a thing. His appetite swallowed our continent once before he choked on the world.

Would anything other than hunger rouse him from his 'slumber'?

You know the answer to that.

He will war. He will kill. He will try to build up his forces before crossing the great desert.

And what if he does? What if he conquers every one that dares to stand against him? Would that be the end?

History tells us it would not. He built his empire before, and it was not enough. He trampled all the countries on Chandrar and thirsted for more blood. What hope does a kingdom like yours have when the King of Destruction runs out of other targets?

His skills only work while he wars. This is the truth. Flos Reimarch can either let 'his' people suffer from lack of a proper leader - or he can engage in perpetual warfare.

Equally obvious is that his desire to allow 'his' subjects to return is simply him attempting to strengthen his forces without expending any in return. Anyone who cannot see this is clearly on his side. There is no 'neutrality' when it comes to the King of Destruction.

You either submit to him and let him strip your lands of all resources - leaving naught but widows and fallow fields in his wake. Or you deny him the strength he seeks.

You are against him. Or you are fodder for the King of Destruction.

I hope these words fall upon open ears, and that you do not believe Flos Reimarch's lies.

Yours in peace,

An ally

...

Laila put down the letter. "What does this mean?"

Sibby shrugged.

"Is that why you want to return to Tiqr?" She looked up at the Djinni.

Sibby stroked her chin. "Yes." She nodded. "I like Nsiia, and you should help out people you like. Everyone knows that."

"But..." Laila leaned in and whispered. "You fighting will be a war crime. It would just make things worst if one of her neighbors attacks! It might cause other countries to attack Tiqr too."

The Siberian rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it will all work out. I just need to talk to somebody."

Laila tilted her head. 'talk to somebody'? Who did Sibby ever talk to besides her and Nsiia?

"True words. And true neutrality. Such is Pomle, I see. If we meet again, Strongest of Pomle, I would like to speak longer. You were the most enjoyable person to talk with here, however briefly. But I think I shall be quite busy."

Nsiia turned and left. There was nothing more to be done here. After Orjin had singlehandedly stopped the hostilities that had broken out when she'd told the other [Rulers] off, no one had talked with her.

Spoken, yes, but not talked.

Only Femithain had said anything, but they hadn't really conversed. Instead he had come and given her a warning. She wasn't sure what the Crafter-Magus of Illivere had meant. He seemed like an intelligent person, but he was keeping his cards close to his chest.

'You see, even your form of neutrality is a side. And when all those present skew one way, neutrality of your sort appears to be something else.'

His words echoed in her mind. It wasn't a threat. Femithain had been the most reasonable of the other leaders. He was wary of the King of Destruction, but not unreasonably so. He must have known something she didn't. One of her neighbors would attack. It might be raids, or sabotage, or they even might declare war.

...As absurd as that would be. Of the gathered nations, only Nerrhavia Fallen could overpower them - and they didn't share a border.

Still...

She motioned to her [Royal Mage]. "Send a message. Tell the border patrols to double their frequency. We need to be on guard."

"At once, [Empress]." He bowed on his zebra and then moved away from Mezha. She patted her Grand Elephant's side and he reached up with his trunk.

Nsiia laughed and handed him a sweet fruit. Her companion deserved it after getting almost knocked unconscious by Orjin.

She watched Mezha eat as she fed him for a while. They would be out of Pomle soon, it was a small country. She'd feel much better once she was back in Tiqr.

...

As the crossed the border of colorful stones, Nsiia felt her aura solidify. Away from Tiqr, it was an ephemeral thing - smaller and less solid. Returning felt like waking up from a dream. She took a deep breath...

...And paused.

Huh.

Was that?

Nsiia smiled. The Siberian was still traveling with her. The high-level [Rogue] was hard to detect when she was trying to stay hidden, and she didn't stand out much even when she wasn't. At least not to her aura. Her brazen lack of an outfit caught the eyes of everyone who saw her.

Was she Named-Rank? It was hard to say about [Rogues]. There were famous ones like the Three-Color Stalker, but it was more common for people of the shadows to only be known by the people there. What was it they called themselves?

Ah, yes, 'Faces'.

Sibby was definitely a Face from somewhere. Nsiia hoped she stayed in Tiqr. She could tell that her wild spirit matched that of her country.

So, in that sense, today was a victory.

...

The next day her mood was dashed as a declaration of war was sent to them. Only, it wasn't just a single country declaring war on Tiqr. A second declaration arrived by Message moments later. Then another. And another. By noon, there was a list of her neighbors who'd banded against her.

Killale, Demimos, Xern, Relaquil, Lamult, Sarmathi, the Illivere League, Savere, and the Kingdom of Nerrhavia's Fallen. Nine countries had joined hands to attack Tiqr because she'd chosen to be neutral.

Author's note: Dialogue from the Wandering Inn was included directly in spots.

Bios:

Magus-Crafter Femithain - Was elected as the leader of the Illivere Federation, and has held the position each year for the last 11 years. He is, by all accounts, a cautious and pragmatic ruler. Illivere still voted to declare war on Tiqr despite his objections.

Revine - Leader of Savere. Her country is home to countless [Rogues], [Bandits], [Pirates], and other such ne'er-do-wells. Possesses great naval strength and ties with famous [Pirates]. Her control of water magic allows Savere to thrive both on land and sea.

Yisame - [Queen] of Nerrhavia Fallen. Surprisingly low-level for ruling such a large country. This is because Nerrhavia was a [Tyrant], and Nerrhavia Fallen set up its political structure so as to not give their [Ruler] much power. Her thoughts on the war remain secret from every other living soul.

Orjin - The Strongest of Pomle. A [Martial Artist] who cares about testing himself and dislikes killing.