It had been a few days since I left that city behind me. I had thought about staying with Aminia, but my quest required me to continue on my own, and she wished to stay to search for more treasure. I had stayed for a little while, looking around the library that I found after a bit of searching, but most of the books inside were in a language I did not speak. I found only one book that was in my language, and it was about the fall of the Mets, nothing more. I had to find out what had happened to me, who I was, and what my past entailed. So it was that I trudged across the sands towards the horizon, hoping to find something there. Something that would give me answers, instead of questions.

I glanced down at the new weapons adorning my belt, “The Gluttonous Tooth,” as Aminia had called it fondly. I’m still surprised she gave it to me, considering her yearning for treasure, but she had said that she had already found enough with the scales that the lamia had. I took the small dagger out of the loop on my belt, examining it once more. It still dripped poison like a fountain, but the more remarkable thing was that it was a golden fang. I honestly was curious how it would hold up in a battle.

I placed it back in it’s place and continued my trek. Step after step, until my boot hit something in the sand. Curious, I glanced down and found a strange bottle, almost like that of a newborn babe’s. I reached down and picked it up, and immediately the sound of static entered my mind. I looked down at it and saw a note saying ‘RUB THE LAMP!’ Interesting…

Intrigued, I did as it said, and rubbed it. Soon, a black smoke cloud billowed out of the lamp and hung in the sky for a few moments before someone fell out of it.

It appeared to be a woman with medium length white hair and tanned skin, and she wore a sports bra and some shorts which were a black and white coloured pattern.

“OW! Who put the ground there!?” she yelled. I walked over and offered her my hand to help her up, remembering my manners. She looked at my hand and then at me, staring with golden eyes. “Who the hell are you?”

“Octavius. Knight-Scholar of the Royal Pony Sisters,” I answered. She slowly blinked at me.

“Right… Nice to meet you Oct,” She greeted before taking my hand so I could pull her up. I hoisted her up to her feet, and quickly released her hand so as not to seem overly friendly.

“Might I ask your name, miss…?” I ventured.

“Ita, names Ita,” she said, crossing her arms.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Ita,” I returned. “Might I ask how you came to be here? I understand it was through this bottle, but not how it works. I am quite curious.”

“Bottle?” She said before looking down at the bottle in my hands. “Oh! My token! Didn’t know it still works!”

“‘Token?’” I queried, confused.

“Yeah… wait, were you sent to a different world by some guy at a con and you dressed up like what you are?” she asked.

“Pardon? What is a ‘con’?” I wondered, growing more confused.

“Uhh, right, so the short version of this is that there are others in different versions of Equestria with different powers and stuff,” she explained.

“You know of Equestria?! Can you tell me more of it? My memory is not… well, it’s not what it used to be, suffice to say,” I queried, hoping for answers.

“Uhh, sure…” she said, sounding confused at this.

“Do you know what happened to it’s king? The Princesses? Or maybe of my Order?” I asked, excited.

“Nope,” she said, popping the ‘p’. My hope deflated.

“Oh… I see,” I hung my head. So not even this person knew of what happened. I raised my head again. “Then… Might I ask why you look like me? I don’t recall seeing another human in a very, very long time. Or at all, really.”

“Did you miss the thing about other versions of Equestria? I came from a different version that’s different from yours,” she said, frowning.

“Oh. My apologies, I sort of jumped more at the idea of you knowing about Equestria, and forgot about there being different realms,” I rubbed my neck nervously.

“Right,” she said before looking around. “Where are we by the way?”

“The deserts of Zebran, I imagine, if this map is anything to go by. Although it does not show anything beyond the desert,” I answered.

“Okay, so… you’re just walking around?” she asked.

“Sort of. I do not have any real direction, truth be told. Though my course is set for Equestria, I have no idea where it is,” I replied. “Hmmm, maybe I should have asked Aminia for a bigger map…” I mused to myself.

“Maybe you should've,” she said with a snort. She looked around us. “Did you find a town or village to ask for directions?”

“There is a city just a few miles behind us, though I would not advise returning there. And there is little chance of any town being… well, anything more than completely unforgiving and lifeless,” I explained, gesturing with a thumb to the city in the distance.

“Right, so now what?” she asked.

“Well, would you be averse to being a companion along this road of mine?” I queried. She let out a sigh.

“Guess I can do that,” she said as she shook her legs. “Was out for a run anyway.”

“Thank you. Now, shall we be off?” I said, gesturing to the vast desert laid out before us.

“Lead on, I guess,” she said. I nodded and she fell into step behind me as I walked. My armor made quite a clamor as I trekked, though it was somewhat drowned out by the wind. “Oi, what’s up with the sun?”

“Hm?” I looked up at the eclipsed yet still burning sun. “Ah, that. To be honest, I do not know for certain, only that it is part of the Curse this world bears on it’s shoulders.”

“Curse?” she asked, looking over at me. I nodded.

“The Darksign. I would show you, but… Well, tis not a pretty sight in the least,” I told her as we continued to walk through the dunes.

“Right…” she said before staying quiet as we walked. We walked and walked and walked, and all the while I simply enjoyed the quiet and the little warmth the sun gave off. Ita simply looked around, staying silent as she looked around at the desert.

Then, after what felt like an hour, another object impacted my boot, and I glanced down. Half buried in the sand was what looked like a golden disk. Intrigued, I picked it up. Ita looked over at me and saw the golden disk with, now that I can look at it closely, a dragon's head on it.

“That’s may be a token, or some random junk someone dropped,” she explained. I hummed in thought, and after a moment a draconic roar echoed in my mind. Then, a bright light heralded the arrival of another female.

She appeared to be in her teens, with red, wild hair, a red tail that was on fire at the tip, red jeans that were torn in some places, a black belt with two silver rings on it, a red crop-top with two small straps instead of sleeves, a black choker, and a necklace with an amber on it. “Where the hell am I?” The stranger asked as she got to her feet.

“Miss Ita?” I urged, gesturing for her to explain. She rolled her eyes and explained to the newcomer what’s going on and who she is.

“I know that crap, meant where is here,” The girl replied, huffing. Ita frowned at her, looking over at me.

“You’re up,” she said before walking off.

“The deserts of Zebran, or rather, what’s left of Zebran, anyway,” I explained.

“The hells up with the sun?” The teen asked, looking up.

“That would the Curse that has been on this world for… well, since the dawn of time,” I answered uneasily.

“That’s splendid,” The teen said dryly.

“Might I ask your name, young miss?” I asked politely.

“Mia,” The now named Mia said, crossing her arms and looking around.

“Well, Miss Mia, I would offer to bring you back home, but I’m afraid I do not know how. So maybe you could travel with me and we can see what we find?” I offered.

“Sure, whatever…” Mia mumbled. “Any of you thirsty?”

“I do not thirst… Ever. I’m… Well, Undead. Unkindled, to be precise,” I answered uneasily.

“Need some fire then?” Mia asked with a snicker.

“Unless you’d be willing to give your soul to make a Bonfire, no,” I answered, now a little wary.

“That sounds unpleasant,” Mia said with a frown, shaking her head.

“You two done chatting?” Ita asked the two of us. I nodded, a little glad to not be on the subject of stealing souls.

“Yes, for now. Let us be on our way,” I told her as I began walking again, the two following in step behind me.

“Where are we going?” Mia asked.

“Anywhere with answers,” I told her.

“So wandering aimlessly?” Mia asked.

“...Yes,” I admitted after a short bit of walking.

“Sounds boring,” Ita said.

“Well, unless you two want to go back to Zebril and fight unending hordes of Undead, then this is the only option available,” I told them.

“Sounds fun,” Mia said with a smirk, flame on her tail burning a little brighter.

“Did I mention Undead have the natural ability to absorb the souls of all they kill?” I told her.

“Still sounds like fun,” Ita commented. Mia held her fist up to fist bump her. To which she did. I sighed deeply. These women were just as spirited as Aminia. I could not hold them back if they wanted to do something such as kill for fun, even if I did not like it. No. I would have to live with being alone on this journey once more.

“...Then go. I will not keep you. My quest must continue with or without you,” I answered, tone somber and hollow.

“Nah, not gonna just abandon ya… that’d be a dick move,” Mia said with a shrug. Ita didn’t say anything.

“You can go if you so wish, Miss Ita. The same goes for you, Miss Mia. I won’t hold you back from your own ventures,” I continued. Ita hummed for a minute before looking up.

“Going to see if there’s anything around us,” she said, rolling her shoulders and muttering something to herself. I nodded, simply grateful they had not left me for good. The next thing I saw was black shadowy wings appearing on her back as she shot herself into the sky at top speeds.

“Neat,” Mia commented, looking up at the display.

“Such speed… That’s unheard of!” I cried, amazed.

“Seemed kinda slow to me,” Mia remarked, shrugging.

“Slow?! That kind of speed is nothing to scoff at in the least!” I responded, surprised that anyone could call that slow. Looking back up I saw black flashes as Ita was flying around.

Right until I saw her come down and slam into a dune of sand some ways away from us, making it go up into the air in a plume of dust and sand particles. A strong gust of wind went through the air, dispersing the dust and sand.

“Simply amazing…” I said in awe.

“More like annoying,” Mia said, irritated. I walked over to where Miss Ita had landed to speak to her about what she found and how she could move so fast. When I got there she was now standing, brushing the sand off of herself.

“Need to work on that,” she muttered to herself.

“Miss Ita, that was simply amazing! How did you do that?” I asked, curious.

“Reasons,” she answered.

“That doesn’t answer her question,” Mia commented.

“Her? Who’s her?” Ita asked.

“Meant to say the, slip of the tongue,” Mia said with a shrug. Ita looked at Mia, blinked, then looked at me.

“I have my ways, still working on them but still, my ways,” Ita said.

“What did you find, anyway?” I asked. Ita thought for a moment.

“There’s some sort of nest up ahead, weird worms things going around in the sand. I saw about five of them when I went past,” she explained.

“Worms? That can’t bode well…” I said.

“I don’t know, their worms,” Ita said, looking away. I shook my head as I turned around. What I saw was surprising.

Instead of a teenager there was an older woman wearing tight pants and a top that was also tight on her breasts, straining to keep them in. Her red hair was medium length, like Ita’s. I shook my head of such base thoughts. I’m a knight and a gentlemen, I must not stare.

“Miss Mia? Is that you?” I asked.

“Yeah,” She said with a smirk. “Like it?”

“If I were a lesser man, I would be staring. But I am not. But I will admit tis… appealing,” I admitted.

“Feel free to stare, I don’t care,” She said with a shrug, breasts bouncing.

“I am a Knight, Miss Mia. It would be unbecoming of me,” I said firmly, resisting the urge. I coughed into my fist. “Anyway, we should tread carefully, these are no normal worms. They are Sandworms, and from what little I could gain from some books in the library at Zebril, I can recall that they once felled the old empire of Mets.”

“They’re worms,” Ita said. “I don’t see the big deal.” I sighed.

“Just… Be careful. I may come back from death, but I imagine you won’t,” I said before marching off. I heard Ita sighed before following me.

“We’ll be fine,” Mia said confidently.

“I hope so, Miss Mia. I hope so…” I mused as we drew nearer to the nest. I could hear the rumbling of the ground as the worms tunneled through the earth and sand.

“Worms?” Ita asked. Mia got spears of ice above her head, ready to impale anything that came out. I nodded.

“Be wary, their skin is lined with nigh impenetrable bone, and they are very fast for their size,” I warned them as I drew my straight sword and readied my shield.

“Five worms, what could go-” before she finished, a sandworm shot up right where Ita was, swallowing her whole. Lightning spurted from it’s mouth as she was ejected high up into the sky.

“Miss Ita!” I cried. Mia reacted, spinning the ice with incredible speed, the tips seeming to glow and shooting the ice at the exposed worm. The worm screeched as the ice hit the exposed parts of it’s skin, drawing some blood, but doing very very little otherwise. In response, it tunneled back into the sands. As this happened, four more worms surfaced and looked towards me and Mia.

Mia tore large boulders from the ground, throwing them at the worms. The worms batted them aside with their even larger tails, before the fifth worm resurfaced, and they all opened their maws and lightning began to brew inside them.

“Miss Mia, to me, quickly!” I cried, taking out my bundle of white silk.

Mia obliged, coming over to me. I clenched the bundle of silk, before kneeling down and muttering a prayer. A small golden glow enveloped the earth beneath us, before quickly rushing up my body and hers and covering us in a white aura. Just as I finished casting the miracle, the wave of lightning crashed into us, and I braced my shield against the literal storm. I grit my teeth as the lightning went through my body, but it was not as bad as it could have been, and we survived. We were smoking, but we survived.

Mia brushed the smoke off of her, frowning. “Cure” She mumbled, a green glow overtaking us and healing the two of us. Turning to the worms, she frowned. “Recommended attack?” She questioned. I marveled at the magic she possessed, but quickly returned to the fight at hand.

“Magic, or darkness. Lightning, fire, and frost have very little effect,” I told her. As I said that the fifth sandworm started thrashing around. It let out a roar before a large hole burst out of it’s body. I saw Ita walking out of it covered in blood, as if this were a normal thing to do.

“Hello~!” she yelled, waving.

“Darkness?” Mia questioned, smirking. She made two claw shapes with her hands, shadowy claws growing out of them as she shot towards the worms. The claws tore through one of the worms, making it bleed heavily before Ita looked around. I noticed her weapon, a long curved sword that seemed to give off a dark power.

I was amazed at the power these two possessed, but had little time to consider it as a worm barreled straight for me, leaving me no time to dodge. It opened it’s maw and made to close it, but I pushed against it.

I grunted as it’s mouth pushed harder in opposition, before I gained an idea and let go, slipping inside it’s maw. As I slid down it’s throat, I raised my blade and cut into it’s skin, making it thrash around erratically, tossing me about, but I held firm and kept my blade in it’s flesh. After making it further down, I found what I deduced to be it’s heart, and jumped to it, stabbing my blade into it and ending this worm’s life.

It finally went still, and I took my blade out of it’s heart and began marching out of it, coming out of it’s maw covered in blood and gore as well as no small amount of slime. What I saw was one of the worms getting blown up by something and another fighting Ita, and losing since she was moving at high speeds before she cut it’s head off.

With the worms now dead, I approached my companions. Ita was cleaning her sword, covered in blood as well, before looking at me. “Dude, you need a bath.”

As if called, a torrent of water dropped on me and her. Ita blinked at this before looking at Mia.

“Thanks,” she said, shaking her head.

“Well… Thank you,” I said lamely, before turning to the nest that now lay before us. “I believe it would be in our interests to go down there. There is likely to be something worthwhile below.”

“Well then, lead on,” Ita said, shouldering her sword.

“On it,” Mia said, doing a little hop, before going face first towards the ground, a hole appearing in front of her as she dug down. Ita laughed before following her by jumping into the hole. I shook my head at their antics and jumped in as well. When we made it down there, I gazed in awe the sheer amount of items now before us.

Glittering gemstones, gold, silver, copper, and even platinum coins and bars as well as many other baubles were separated in five piles. There was even a hefty amount of armaments too. But what really drew my attention were the five grubs mewling in the earth just in the center pile.

“Ah hell… there’s little babies,” Ita said, frowning. Mia frowned, looking away. I frowned as well. We had taken their parents from them. How cruel could we be?

“Ugh… what are we gonna do?” Mia groaned.

I looked down at the poor, orphaned children that we had before us now. We could take them, but it’d be much too dangerous, and I don’t have the slightest clue how to care for them. I imagine my companions don’t either. It was as I was thinking of this that one crawled over to me, looking up at me. The sight brought to mind a memory I had long forgotten.

I watched on with sad eyes as the ponies carried the casket of the Queen to it’s resting place. I was standing with little Luna and Celestia, who were standing by their father, looking confused in place of sad. The King, however, looked more heartbroken than I had ever seen him.

The casket was gently and lovingly placed in the hole that had been dug, a large grave, fit to be a monument, sitting behind it. It was a large, marble stone with engravings of gold and a platinum plaque, with her name on it. I could scarcely bear to watch as they began to bury the casket.

“Father, why art they burying mother?” Luna asked.

“Father, what art they doing?” Celestia queried.

“She’s…” The King faltered in his speech, the words dying in his throat as he choked back a sob, trying to look strong. “She’s…”

“Prithee, stop! That is our mother, what art thou doing to her!” Celestia cried, moving to stop the ponies burying the casket. The King held her back.

“Father, stop them! Don’t let them take mother! Please!” Luna urged, pulling on her father’s robe. The king couldn’t help the tears that fell from his usually stoic face.

I simply watched on, trying to fight back my own tears. Eventually, they finished burying the casket, but the king had to take his children away, lest they interrupt the funeral. When all was finished, I was the only one left standing at her grave, the rain pouring down reminding me of my sorrow even more.

“You silly old mare…” I said bitterly, gazing at the plaque.

I shook my head as my mind returned. I saw Ita and Mia looking at the little worms, not knowing what to do.

“Hmmm, well are you three in a pickle,” a voice said out of nowhere. Mia looked around, tail flame ablaze. I turned to the sound of the voice, but found nothing. I began to look around the room and saw someone laying on one of the piles of riches, holding a golden chalice in his hand. “Quite a pickle.”

“Who are you?” I asked calmly. The being turned his head before standing up and walking towards us. I saw that he was taller than all of us, about nine feet tall.

“I have many names, but you can call me Chron,” the man said, leaning on the cane that he was carrying.

“Sup, tron,” Mia said, saying it wrong on purpose if the way she grinned was any indication. The man looked at her for a moment before looking back at me, seeing what I would say.

“What need have you of us?” I asked next, wary of this new person.

“Oh, nothing really, just sensed three displacements near me and wanted to see what you three are doing,” he said simply. “Got to say, slaying five worms is… kinda boring really.”

Mia nodded. Most likely since she only got one.

“Well, I’m sorry my adventures aren’t enough for you all,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Anyway, is there anything you want besides to watch us?”

“Don’t know really, you don’t have a token do you?” he asked.

“No. I see no need to. My quest is here. But I am curious about the importance of these tokens, as it was never fully explained to me. Care to indulge an old man’s curiosity?” I asked. This made the man laugh.

“Old? Old! Ha! You think you’re old, boy, you’re still in your diapers compared to me!” he said, roaring with laughter.

Mia simply snickered. I sighed.

“Yes, well, could you still indulge me anyway?” I asked, growing a little irritated. Chron stopped laughing and tilted his head.

“Let's say you do have a token, it will allow others to call upon you for aid, and in return they can come and help you with your quest,” he gestured to Mia and Ita. “Like these two when you summoned them.”

“I see…” I hummed in thought. “Is there a way to keep myself from being summoned? Much as I may wish to help others, I hold my quest in high regard. Can I make my token so that I am only summoned if I so wish?”

“Sure, I don't see the issue in that,” the man said, shrugging.

“That might help,” Mia commented. Ita nodded.

“Good, good. In that case, does anyone have a scrap of parchment, some ink and paints as well as a brush?” I asked. Everyone simply stared at me.

“Why do you need all that?” Ita asked.

“To make the symbol of my Order, of course,” I said, as it seemed obvious. I heard a sigh from Chron.

“What does this symbol look like?” he asked.

“A symbol,” Mia commented sarcastically. Chron looked at her for a moment.

“Shouldn't you be in bed kid?” he asked.

“Fuck no,” She said simply.

“You sure about that?” he said, snapping his fingers. I looked back and saw Mia shrink down until she looked like a six year old with some pajamas and a fuzzy teddy bear under her arm. Her hair was more a light orange now, the same with her tail.

“Awww, you look so cute!” Ita cooed. I simply looked at her with a tinge of sorrow, remembering my old charges, before turning back to Chron.

The smaller Mia blinked, before shrugging. “Oh well,” She said in a adorable little girl voice, hugging the teddy and laying down. Chron shook his head and looked at me.

“Now, symbol, what is it?” he asked.

“An eye surrounded by green thorns,” I answered. Chron nodded before flicking his wrist. Some pieces floated over to him from the treasure piles and floated in front of him. He waved his hand and I watched as the items melted and formed into a golden ball. It soon turned into a gray colour as it flattened out to a disk. He then took the disk and started to carve into it.

While this was happening, the baby worms had crawled over and were now snuggling with Mia. I smiled under my helmet as I watched.

Soon Chron was finished and tossed me the disk. I caught it and looked at it, seeing the symbol of my order. “There, no paper needed for it.” He said. I nodded.

“Thank you, Chron. Now, is there anything else I must do?” I questioned.

“Say a message, give it back and I'll do the rest,” he answered. I nodded.

”I am the Knight-Scholar Octavius, Head of the Order of The Thornclad Eyes, and Unkindled Seeker. Speak my name but once, and I shall come to reap and devour the souls of your enemies,” I spoke, my voice echoing strangely. I gazed at the disc for a few seconds, still a little unused to all this, before I then gave the disc back to Chron.

He looked at it for a moment and I saw the disk glow for a spell. He then tossed it behind him and it disappeared. “Done.”

“Well, with that done, what shall we do with these little ones…?” I wondered, humming in thought. At this point the worms were all over Mia, laying on her as she hugged her new teddy. Then, all of a sudden, I felt this searing pain in my head, and the sound of some archaic scream echoed around me. I grasped my head in pain, gasping for air.

“You okay there, pal?” Chron asked. I nearly collapsed from the pain, but managed to shakily regain my composure, and I drew my blade in an instant.

“Miss Ita, wake Miss Mia and get her to safety, Chron, take care of them. I have a foe to engage,” I said, glancing around for my enemy.

Chron tilted his head for a moment before disappearing. I turned and saw Ita and Mia, and the worms on her, were gone as well. I thanked him under my breath, before continuing my search for my enemy. A bomb flying at me told me where they were well enough, and I swatted it aside, the instrument of destruction exploding a smaller pile of valuables.

Upon the largest pile was a red phantom, an invader of this world. They bore armor made of what looked to be bone as well as thorns, and a massive greatsword rested on their shoulder, shaped like a piece of freshly made slate and ablaze with unholy black flame. On their hip rested a crossbow, simple and sturdy. The helm had a plume of feathers, and a single slit served as their way of viewing the world.

“Come, let us not tarry this battle any longer!” I cried, motioning for him to come at me. He did so, sliding down the pile and jumping off at the end, making to slam his larger blade upon me and split me in half in one go. I rolled out of the way just in time, and came out of my roll with an upwards slash, but it simply got caught in his armor. It drew blood, but he made no reaction to it.

I glared at him, and he simply retaliated by raising his free hand, a black flame blazing in it’s palm, and gripped my sword arm, lighting it with the flame. I screamed as it burned me, and pulled out my blade with all my strength, backing away. I heard him laugh, and he gestured for me to come at him instead.

I growled, taking a swig of my Estus and charging in, shield in front of me. He stepped to the side, but I had expected him to, and I bashed him with my shield, stunning him. I then thrusted my blade towards his heart, but he quickly recovered and parried the blow. I backed away once more, needing some distance.

We circled each other, watching one another for any openings or weaknesses. This was going to be a long, arduous battle.

Explosions of black flame and cries of battle echoed from the cavern of which Octavius fought in, worrying Ita and Mia.

“What’s going on?” Mia asked, yawning. She had just woken up.

“Octa is fighting,” Ita said.

“Oh, okay,” Mia said with a yawn, petting one of the worms. Ita looked over at Mia before looking at Chron, who was standing in front of the caverns entrance.

“Why won't you let me help?” she asked him.

“It's not your fight,” he said simply. Ita frowned as she crossed her arms, rubbing her cheek from the fact she had tried to get into the cavern, only to have Chron smack her back, telling her not to enter. Mia was snoring again, laying back down. Another burst of black flame spouted from the cavern, and another pained scream of torment responded in kind.

Mia seemed to be getting a little cranky at this point. She got up, moving towards the hole. As she got close a large blade embedded itself into the ground in front of her.

“Not your fight,” Chron said.

“Imma watch,” She said simply, going around. Chron watched her walk around his blade before she headed to the cavern.

“You're going to allow her to walk in there?!?” Ita yelled at him.

“What? She wanted to watch,” Chron said simply. Ita stared at him before running after Mia to bring her back out. He was standing there alone now. “Hmmm, should have brought a book to read.”

This was not going well. My shield arm was dislocated, the shield itself across the room behind my foe. My flask was nearly empty, and while he was no less worse for wear than I, I still did not like my chances. Furthermore, my leg was badly burnt, the armor singed and my cape ashes upon the floor.

Then, I heard multiple footsteps from the entrance and turned to see Miss Mia and Miss Ita approaching, my eyes widening at the sight.

“You fools! Leave before he comes for you instead!” at this, he turned as I feared, and readied a fireball of the unholy flames of Humanity. In desperation, I raced over to my companions, and when he lobbed the ball of black flame, I closed my eyes in acceptance as I took the hit instead of them. It impacted me at full force, and I screamed in pain, but kept standing.

“Go!” I cried. “Leave now!” They ignored me and moved to help.

“Cure,” Miss Mia’s voice came, a green light surrounding me. Miraculously, my wounds healed, but I had little time to think about that, as instead of flames, his great sword impaled my stomach. I gasped and spat up blood, looking down in surprise, before he slowly lifted me up, and I felt myself splitting in two. I spared a glance at the now horrified Ita and Mia, and, with no small amount of willpower, closed my eyes, awaiting my first death. Then, searing pain filled my body, and then nothing but blackness greeted me.

Ita and Mia watched on in horror as Octavius was brutally cut in half, and then dissolved into ashes. Snarling, Mia held her hand out, fury on her face. “Thundaga!” She snarled, a large bolt of lightning shooting out of her palm towards the invader. But it simply passed through, and he waved at them as if all was well, before dissipating.

Mia was still standing there, hand out, too surprised and shocked to move. Ita was in shock as this happened, not moving at what she saw either. They watched as the ashes of Octavius simply drifted away, like he had never existed in the first place.

They stood still for a solid minute, unable to comprehend such a sudden and brutal kill. Right in front of their eyes, no less.

“I… I have to… I have to go…” Ita said, turning and leaving the cavern. Mia followed swiftly, clutching the teddy tightly. Mia soon made it outside and saw Ita sitting on the ground outside of the cavern, Chron nowhere to be seen.

“Hey, Ita?” Mia called. Ita made a sound of acknowledgement to her that sounded like a grunt. “I… remember a bit of… the game this universe is based on… if we go back to where he said he was, I think he’ll still be alive.”

Ita didn't say anything as she stood up, walked over to Mia, grabbed her, and rocketed up into the sky towards the city in the distance, no other thought than to confirm Mia’s theory in her mind. “W-wait, the worms!” Mia shouted.

“Chron,” Ita said simply, still flying. Mia seemed a little uncertain, but nodded anyway, curling into Ita, simply waiting out the ride now, making sure her tail wouldn’t go out.

They quickly spotted the deserted town of Zebril, and Ita circled around it, trying to find the man they had so quickly lost.

She noted a small black dot just a ways from the front gates, sitting at a Bonfire. Ita saw this before angling herself so she sped down towards the bonfire.

Mia was snoring, having fallen asleep during the flight. Ita landed just a few feet from the familiar black armored figure, who seemed surprised to see the two of them.

“Hey,” Ita greeted.

“I’m… rather surprised you’re not lashing out at me or tackling me,” Octavius said. Ita raised an eyebrow.

“You want me to hit you like I hit those worms?” she asked, holding Mia.

“No, just... Well, I assumed from how horrified you were at my death that you would be, well, surprised or something,” Octavius said uneasily. Ita didn’t say anything, simply looking away. Octavius sighed. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry you had to see that. I should have mentioned that my kind are reborn each time we die.”

“You think?” Ita said with a frown.

“I remembered,” Kid-Mia said smugly, having woken up.

“You remembered when I had not even told you?” he asked, confused.

“There… was a game I used to play that was a lot like what your universe is going through,” Mia said, blushing a little. Ita looked at her and simply stayed quiet.

“I… See. Well, regardless, I managed to remember a bit of my past before my… demise,” Octavius began.

“What’d you remember?” Mia asked with a tilted head.

“I remembered… The Queen’s funeral,” Octavius replied.

“Oh…” Mia said, looking away. Ita shifted a bit, looking away from the two of them talking.

“Yes, it wasn’t pretty. But at least I’ve learned something,” Octavius noted.

“That’s… good?” Mia said, sounding unsure.

“Any memory is more welcome than none,” Octavius affirmed. “Now, we should return to that nest. I must retrieve my souls, lest you two wish for me to be a raving Hollow in the near future.”

“Right… Hang on!” Ita said, grabbing Octavius and Mia. The three of them then rocketed into the sky and headed towards the nest. Octavius was, understandably, surprised at this turn of events. He made his displeasure known by squirming a fair bit, but quickly calmed when he noted he wasn’t falling to his death.

“Amazing…” He breathed gazing at the land below as it passed them by.

They arrived at the entrance in good time, and after a Octavius finished getting used to be being on solid ground again, jumped down the hole, where they found a rather sizeable bloodstain on the ground near one of the piles of gems and coins.

Octavius walked over to it and touched it, sighing in content and relief as the souls flowed back into him.

“Ahh… Much better,” he breathed as he stood back up.

He then noted two objects on the pile in front of him, and gained an idea. Grabbing them, he stashed them behind his back and into his satchel and approached the two.

“Alright, now what?” Ita asked.

“Well, that’s about it, really. But I imagine if we look through these piles, we could find a larger and more detailed map. After that, you two are free to leave, if you so wish,” I said.

Mia shrugged, getting down and scurrying to look for a map. Ita watched her do that and looked back at Octavius.

“As much as I want to look for a map, I have to be going,” she said. He nodded.

“Very well, in that case, I have something for you to remember me by,” he pulled out a small, well crafted dagger fitted with aquamarine crystals, and handed it to Ita. She took it and gave it a once over.

“Thanks,” she said, putting it in her pocket.

“Try flipping it in your hand and channeling your magic through it,” he instructed her. “You’ll want to see the result, trust me.”

Ita stared at him before shrugging, taking the dagger and doing just that. Immediately, the blade extended by use of magic crystals, the new blade aglow with blue aura. “Neat,” Ita said, giving the blade a few test swings.

“That is one of the rare Crystal Daggers. The one who created them has been lost to time, but they have remained. I’m honestly surprised it was even out here,” Octavius told her. “But I’m glad you like the blade.”

“Yeah, anyway later,” Ita said before turning and heading out. Mia came back when she was gone, holding a map up to Octavius.

“Ah, splendid work, Miss Mia!” Octavius cried. “Now I finally have some bearing on where to go next! I am in debt to you.”

Mia simply giggled, smiling.

“Well, I assume you must be heading off now as well, yes?” he asked.

“Not really, I have time,” Mia said with a shrug.

“I see. Then would you care to continue accompanying me, or is there something else you wish for?” Octavius questioned.

“I’ll just come with you for now!” Mia said happily. Octavius chuckled.

“Well, I hope you are ready for a long journey, then!”

With that, the two exited the cavern and resumed Octavius’ travels of self-discovery.

Again, this isn't my proudest work, but a lot of the things that happened in this chapter were, admittedly, needed. Like the flashbacks. So, with that said, this is staying. Changes will likely be made over time, but for now, it shall remain. Thank you all for reading.

-Timeless Celestial