CW: Self harm, Suicidal ideation

 

It’s so…cold…Everywhere I go, life seems to enrapture me in a mechanical chill that stalks me wherever I go. Whether it is in the manor, where the heat is never allowed to rise, on its roof, where the natural coolness fights with the rising chill emanating from below, even beyond its property, that frigid shadow looms over me like a giant deciding which tool they will grab next. Such is the case at this…was it a bank? Or some other legal facility? I do not remember my parents ever telling me, or perhaps it simply slid in one ear and out the other, as they seem to be so constantly frustrated by. Regardless, I stand here with them, still as a statue, though they would laugh at the notion that I am being shown off, I am sure. Rather, I stand here solely out of what they could not bear: a moment of my life being unsupervised or controlled by them.

This resentment of theirs…I drag my feet like it is a chain tying my leg to a weight. Walking back to the manor, they almost seem to want to hide me from sight, glaring at passersby before returning their pointed icicle stares back at me. At least once we are back, I may perhaps return to my room and flee this chilling gaze of theirs, though, it is not as though I have much to comfort me once I am free. All I have are dusty tomes to keep me company, my studies weighed atop me from my parents, pressing me down into a compact tool for them to use, a fate I cannot even escape knowing they await me just outside this chamber…

…At least I have Penny. Though I cannot speak to her, the lady telling me not to arouse suspicion, lest my parents learn of her existence. She keeps me company while we are alone. She is not always around, she says she grows tired quickly in her old age, I do sometimes write notes for her so that she may read them perhaps while I am sleeping. I do constantly fear my parents finding such letters, but with so little else to do, it is a risk I deem worthy of taking, and should they walk in on me, I can always pass it off as notes for studying.

Then comes night. Would I be able to say it was my own time…no, they always made sure to lock my door upon curfew’s beginning. I have but one respite: the attic door above my room. With Penny’s help on those nights she was around, I could reach it and find my way to the roof through the dark corridors, and once out, I at least had a moment to breathe. In this respite, I had to be sure I did not fall aslumber, lest my parents wake to an empty room and punish me further upon finding me…but the sun always did seem to wake me before such a possibility.

It was worth it, I think. Though I felt alone, it was the only time I truly felt alone. Even Penny respected this, though…I do not think she would approve of this privacy with what it led to eventually.

I found icicles draped over the rails of the roof in the winter. I was fascinated by them, but never had any gloves to protect myself from their sheer cold. Still…I would grab them. Pull from their perch and examine the wonder of these natural formations, they comforted me. They were the one thing I could learn about of my own will. They were the only pain I could feel that was not inflicted to my heart, caused by my parents. I have control here. It hurts. I deserve it. It’s mine. It’s so…cold…

 

Looking back at all of it, understanding my parent’s actions through this future lens, I suppose I asked for this, did I not? I wished to learn of “snow”...and now this frigid throne is all I will ever know from here until the dead die once more. Chained by the very steel I’d bound these pitiful souls with. Then again…is there any soul more pitiful than mine within this putrid coffin that is my own body? Trapped within my own mind and finding it a prison that had been waiting for me to step inside. I find myself stranded above the clouds, a melancholic sky of twilight purples and midnight blues encasing the only world I know here, not a sun nor moon shining down upon this city with no streets, a tower of only towers rising and reaching high, as if gasping for air. And this throne I sit upon, pale as sleet, stiff as an unbeaten heart, rests upon the tallest snowladen building, left alone by all those who would resent my very being.

Those ghosts swarm through the empty office buildings, festering like helpless bugs over the roofs, thinning out the closer each comes to my resting place. Are they searching for a way out? Are they plotting? I have no way of knowing, even within my own mind…even in here, I have no power. At least I can walk some ways away from this seat, its chains allowing me some sort of give so that I may ruminate properly.

Where did this all begin…? At what point was Ied down this path of solitude…? My memories are fuzzy, but…I can see myself as a child, woefully ignorant of my family’s ways, of the plights of the world, sheltered from it all so that I may be incubated within a swath of blind obedience to their unseen cause. Yes, that simple time of excitement…to learn that magic is in fact real, and that I would be learning to practice the art! And how quickly that enthusiasm was drained in learning that everything I was being taught was all towards the purpose of hiding these wonders from the world.

I would ask about every item they had pilfered from the Radiant World in one way or another, so curious and bright eyed, yet they never spoke a word, only that I was not to touch them until I was old enough to understand. Unsatisfied, I sought tomes and troves of knowledge, sneaking about like a…like…a Fox…

My eyes feel sore. Whether it is from the chill of the wind, or the tears that never seem to cease, I know not, but I am in ever growing pain. With time, I am certain I shall become numb to it…I must. I will never allow these ghosts to threaten the ones I love ever again…! This determination…is it admirable? Or founded in stubborn stupidity?

With my legs hanging over the edge of the building, I return to my innermost thoughts, watching the fog below stir and churn so that none may see where these buildings even come from. Where they came from…where I came from…

The Inkton family. I was born 23 years ago to this family of mages, the “daughter” of a magician and a politician who were keen on using the power of the Inkton legacy to propel themselves to greater and greater heights…

…Perhaps I should withdraw to my throne, lest they as well manifest within the ghastly conglomerate and spot me upon the building’s ledge. I was always fearful of being seen by them…part of me worried they had some kind of spell to read my thoughts or track me however they pleased, but…it would seem they simply planned to take control of my life by other, simpler means.

Fear…

Should I have ever stepped out of line, they would take from me what I cherished most dearly. Struggled with my studies? It would begin with being unable to attain any more plush dolls, then I would slowly find each disappearing from my bed, until the very last…looked up at me…and walked out…They puppeteered a doll with magic to guilt me…!

Distracting myself from my work? I soon found my one escape closed off, the screen of my television displaying only static. Eventually, they became frustrated that I would sit next to it despite this, and simply took it away entirely.

And then there was their own marriage…a crumbling facade meant only to bolster the other’s power, it was never meant to last, and yet, they expected their only child to console them, or outright blame me for their own failures…! It was never their fault…I was the one who tore them apart…

What am I doing…? Thinking about such horrid things…it frustrates me so, realizing not just how poorly they had treated me, but how long I believed all of it. In fact…even now…I continue to perpetuate this, don’t I? I can think this all I’d like, but it will not change that I am here due to my own shortcomings…I deserve this. At the very least, I can spare my friends a fate of hate.

Is this the rest of my life? Can this even be referred to as a life? A life no longer lived, perhaps…simply…endured…

Did it have to be this way? I cannot even tell how the time passes within this realm, or if that even matters should I remain here for all eternity, but the memories from before I trapped myself here…

I fought, with all of my heart, singing a song of rebellion, surrounded by my friends, nothing could stop us in that moment…! And yet…it all fell apart. The moment we stepped foot inside of that train, those bonds which tied our fates together meant nothing, not for any lack of strength, but the distance put between Zee and I. I pulled that string far too thin…I suppose this was always the goal of my family. To divide us. Even their own child, they separated me from themselves, and from anyone who could have helped me.

 

The sound of churning metal and bile catches my attention, watching a pack of three ghosts climb over the edge of this building, seemingly just wandering, but they turn with their metal skull’d faces and hollow eyes to stare at me.

How many years you’ve wasted

Centuries

Millennia

Everything I did for this family

You took it all from every single one of us

I should smite you where you sit

Feast on your very soul

“GO AWAY!!” I shout, only to feel the chains of my throne coil and twist around me, constricting every part of me painful while the specters shake their heads disdainfully and wander off. 

So I once again find myself completely bound to this throne, no longer allotted even a step of freedom as I’d had a moment ago, all for…talking back to these spirits…

These spirits…I can only wonder where my spirit is…both that which propelled me through each battle woven about that week of snow…and the spirit which had watched over me since birth…I’ve never seen her in my head, nor Yombroila after her confinement, but…it is odd to be this completely lonely…

…Yombroila…was she able to free herself? Or perhaps she awaits my demise, as I do myself…

N-no, I cannot think such things…what would Cat think…? After she fought so hard to see me live on, how could I tarnish her efforts so?

…Ah…tears…from this broken screen, liquid static flows, like a painful wound bleeding out, each drop cold by the time they fall from my face. By the Gods, I can only hope to grow numb to these struggles, lest I be brought to madness as these Sisyphean spirits would desire to see me become. Perhaps if I allow such a thing, my friends could dispose of the fragile body they then inhabit, and peace may be brought to the land.

No, no…if I could not bring myself to harm any of them, I should not seek for them to do the same to me. Though I cannot prevent the loss of my future with them, I can prevent the loss of their friend entirely. At least, this way, I might attone. Alone. Forever distant from those I love…

My mind wanders. My will wavers. My gaze drifts towards the icicles hanging from the lip of each rooftop, and I wonder if perhaps I could at least take my pain into my own control again. Shambling up from my throne once more, I step slowly and drearily towards the edge and sit once more, repeating this monotonous cycle, hoping to perhaps break it as I snap an icicle off from the ledge I find myself resting upon.

Its tip is pointed and sharp. It’s freezing in my claw. Would it even pierce my scales? What of my fur…? My hands tremble as my thoughts draw closer to the resolution of themselves. I press the point of the spear to my palm and wince at its prick. This is a better fate than what they do to me. This is better. I wince, only now realizing I had begun to cry again, my shaking making it all but impossible to center the icicle in my palm.

Throw yourself off

It will be faster and easier

You’ve already hurt yourself this much

Look at yourself

Monstrous

Disgusting

Always hurting yourself

It’s your own fault after aAAHHHGGG…!!

The bloody gash across my arm burns, though briefly before being consumed by the cold once more, the only source of warmth in this frozen hellscape. My body woefully regenerates, and I find myself back where I was before, at least with the voices of the thousand having quieted down…

…It means little, though…for how long can I endure my own pain before the suffering they permeate returns to hollow me out…? There is no escape this time. No Penny. No attic. This is the roof. And there is no place I can possibly feel alone, and at the same time, no one to soothe this deathly loneliness. Perhaps I should end it. I know I cannot endure this forever…no one could, let alone one as pathetic as myself. As my mind drifts closer and closer towards the edge, so too does my body…

Vrrr– Vrrrr–

 

…What?

A buzzing…one that almost feels like it is inside and out of me…I feel my claw move on its own, reaching into my pocket and…

…Zee’s…phone…!

Click!

“H-hello…?!”

“COYOTL!!” Zee’s robot voice booms from the speaker, almost sending me backwards before I get up and retreat back to the throne, a little more out of sight than before. “Oh my Yom, it’s so nice to hear your voice again…!”

…Could this be…hope…? Or is this a manifestation of the dream? Either way, through all of the pain and sorrow, my heart feels…warm, at least for this moment.

“Zee…! B-but…but how?!” I ask, trying to keep my jubilation restrained, both as to not draw any unwanted attention, and in case, in the worst case scenario, this reveals itself to be a ruse.

“Heh, you can thank Cat for the idea, we’ve still got the gate stone!” they exclaim, and I can practically hear their smile on the other end. “That’s not important right now, though you’re lucky you did explain how that thing works to her. Where are you right now?”

I perk up, looking from side to side over the skyscape and seeing naught out of the horrible ordinary yet, even peeking behind the throne as well.

“I-I believe I am in the centermost tower, atop a cold, steel throne…”

“Sheesh, really laying it on thick, huh,” they mumble. “Alright, I’ll beep the others. Seems getting thrown into someone’s headspace isn’t as smooth as hopping between worlds, but we’ll reconvene soon enough!”

“W-wait!” I call out, fear leaping out of my chest at the possibility of Zee hanging up and being left alone again. “Who exactly should I look out for? A-and should I do anything while I wait?”

An electric hum buzzes through the phone’s speaker, the robot thinking for a moment while, from the sounds of it, they seem to be maneuvering and ascending through one of the buildings.

“Honestly? Just stay safe. It’s just me, Fox, and Cat in here, so we’re all pretty fast moving!”

“...Just you three? Should Violet and Sue not be here as well?

“Funny story, you see oh SHIT–!!”

‘ZEE?!”

A ghastly wailing shudders the connection between our devices, something throwing itself at and past the robot as he presumably dodges out of the way, as its screams zip by before crashing into a wall, followed by mechanical revving, and the sound of incredibly powerful movements, punching and kicking perhaps?

“UHH, YEAH, SO GOING INTO A HEADSPACE WHILE CONSCIOUS IS KINDA HARD– HAH, FUCK YOU!! UHM, SO WE MANAGED TO FIT IN VIA OUR UNCONSCIOUS HEADMATES–HRG– HAH– YAH!! BUT UHH, YEAH, VIOLET AND SUE ARE HOLDING THE FORT OUTSIDE– AAAHHHH!!!”

…Goddess above. From what I can tell, Zee’s mechanical body is taking the brunt of quite a few attacks before retaliating in kind, fists flying like bullets, and what sounds to be…saw blades and chainsaws? It sounds like he’s faring well enough for fighting an amalgamation solo.

“P-perhaps you should wait to explain after…whatever is happening over there happens…?”

“NAH NAH I’M GOOD!! ANY MORE– HHNNGGGRRAAHH!! QUESTIONS?”

Zee’s microphone sounds to be spinning, which checks out as he lets out one last shout, and in the distance, I hear glass shattering, and a ghost whose wails seem to dim as they descend…

“...Ah, erm, yes. How is Cat in here then?”

“...Oh, that’s a funny story,” they chuckle, their hands clacking together as they clean up after the scuffle. “You know Cat’s head rat?”

“...You cannot be serious.”

“Yuh huh. Totes serious.”

I’m flabbergasted, feeling I may drive myself to madness just trying to wrap my head around how that would work, and yet…I’m relieved. Relieved to know the lengths my friends would go to retrieve me, even if I do not exactly feel I deserve it at the moment, but as well, relieved to be able to think about this instead of anything else I’d had on my mind for the past…however long it’s been. Actually…

“‘Kay, I’ve gotta poke the girls real quick, but–”

“Ah, one last thing!” I interrupt, feeling rude but desperate as well. “How…how long has it been since we last spoke…?”

The robot remains quiet for a moment, whether in thought or hesitating I know not.

“It’s been a week. A full week exactly.”

…By the Goddess…To think I’ve been trapped in here for an entire week and I’ve not even known.

“I see…thank you, Zee.”

“No problem! I–”

“Th-thank you…so much…”

I hear what I think is the sigh of a soft smile as my voice grows shaky from the tears, grasping at my chains painfully tight, hearing them shake, clinging to this small hope as dearly as I can.

“Look, I won’t be long, alright? Just gonna poke your girlfriend and your soul sister–”

“G-girlfriend?!”

“–and I’ll be right back. I promise, I won’t leave you again.”

“...We shall meet at the present…”

“You betcha, bro. Stay safe.”

Beep.

…I slouch back in my throne once more, and sigh as if I’d held the whole sky in my chest. Stay safe…That is all I need to do until they arrive.

I only hope they do the same…

Fox

 

No rest for the wicked, eh? Just moments after Zee pitches us the details on Coyotl’s situation, I’m hounded by unruly spirits dragging their sludge through the empty halls of cubicles, finding myself flanked by one that looks more puddle than person, and another that is quite literally hounding me, a dog shaped gunk pile with a few human heads grunting painfully with each movement.

“Sorry, folks, I’m on a bit of a tight schedule!” I quip, leaping high and digging my claws into the ceiling as the ghosts lunge for me, crashing into one another and making a real mess of themselves, making them an easy target for me. 

I drop down with a whistle and slam down to the sound of an anvil crashing into the ground, the specters splattering over the cubicle walls and dripping down the new hole I’ve accidentally made in the ground. Sheesh, I must’ve gotten a lot stronger since I’ve done a drop attack like that, oops…

The fiends are relentless, however, their dismembered puddles reaching for me with sharp metal fingers and oily tendrils from all around, prompting me to start spinning and summon the sound of a raging tornado, whipping up the goo into my storm and releasing the tornado to spin them elsewhere. With all that malicious slime wrapped up in the wind, it makes for perfect target practice, summoning my guns and blasting away, not letting a single shot of mana go to waste as I blow it to smithereens.

“You see that, Vi~?” I tease, only to realize that…I’m alone for the first time in a long while…It’s hard not to frown at the wolf shaped hole in my heart, but the faster we get through this, the sooner we’re reunited.

“Fox?!”

Oh shit! Lucky me as usual, it turns out Cat must have been sent to the same building as me, my partner rushing in with spear drawn only to find, well just me!

“CAT!!” I yip happily, zipping over and tackle hugging the big yellow girl, feeling her smile and warmth even in this dream realm.

“Jeez, save the celebrations ‘til we’ve actually won, won’tcha?”

“I’m winning every time I see you~”

Cat groans as I wag my tail, the kitten pulling me up and kissing me before putting me back down on my paws.

“Gay. Now c’mon, we’ve got to find Zee.”

I nod, each of us leaping up through the hole I left in the ceiling and getting to work in the shadows of these office spaces.

“Despite all the misfortune,” I reminisce wistfully, dashing from shadow to shadow with Cat in tow, “I’m glad each of our adventures get to end in a nostalgic sneak romp.”

Cat giggles and squeezes my claw in her paw, our tails intertwining for a moment.

“Gay! Mind on the mission, fox wife!” she playfully hisses, stopping us to quickly and quietly unlock the door to the next floor, not a single ghost spotting us thanks to her expertise. “Not that I disagree, of course.”

“Oh what, you gonna marry me in Coyotl’s headspace~?”

“I’m gonna defenestrate you in Coyotl’s headspace if you don’t keep that kissable snout of yours shut.”

We snicker at one another, unfortunately finding our romp interrupted on the next floor, arriving at a singular hallway lined with doors, a monstrous ghost in the shape of a giant eye made up of human heads turning the corner they barely fit through. We act fast, sliding over to a door each and opening them to take shelter behind, of course drawing the attention of the shambling eye who squelches over and extends a head through each entrance at once, the disgusting sound of the extending vertebrae stretching making the both of us cringe.

SLAM!

The both of us shut our doors and snap the heads loose, staggering the mass of heads long enough for us to get a preemptive strike, Cat skewering the eye while I dash behind and drop kick it to the sound of a shotgun blast, pushing it further onto my partner’s spear. Her weapon burns up, melting an even bigger hole through the eye before Cat draws her weapon out of the monster and makes a quick doodle of fire overhead.

“Look away, hun!”

I do as told, noticing the moment before turning that she appears to be summoning the head of Medusa, holding it high for me to hear the entire mass of heads screaming and melting away into nothing.

“Okay, you’re good.”

“I’m always good!” I smirk, turning back around to find Cat rolling her eyes. “Better than good most of the time~”

My partner groans as I spin my tail to fan away the melted monster, the cat walking over and patting me on the head.

“Insufferable as you are…I’m glad you’re back to your usual self.”

My grin only widens as I purr at the head patting, leaning into her paw contently.

“Can’t be a little fox forever, I’ve got to go back to girlfriend fox at some point.”

“Oh, no, not like that,” she says, shaking her head and ushering me forward. “I mean back to how you used to be when we were younger. Spry, witty, full of life and love. Devoted as I always have been to being by your side no matter what, I was worried for the longest time that you’d never find your way back.”

I look up at the cat with wet eyes, sniffling and hugging her arm.

“C-come on, you have to be that sappy while we’re on a mission?”

“Yes, I can’t stand to watch you try and be cool the entire time.”

“Hey!”

She laughs cattily, jogging ahead and beckoning me to join her.

“Well? You gonna let me get the better of you again~?”

“I’ll make you eat those words!”

We snicker at one another once more, finding our way to the next staircase, but I end up staring out the windowed wall of the building for a moment and sighing.

“Actually…could you go find Zee?”

Cat stops and looks back at me with a tilt of her head.

“Nya? What’s up with this?”

I close my eyes, shutting out this dream world for a moment and looking inwards. Worried that I’d never find my way back, she said…and looking out there, I see a cage of expectations built just for Coyo, but for me, it forms a path I can see so clearly now.

“I couldn’t bear to leave Coyotl alone any longer, and you know I can get there fastest. You’re fast too, but Zee would really benefit from your help. I’m sorry if this is selfish, I just–”

SMASH.

Opening my eyes, the cage has been broken open, if only slightly, Cat having smashed open a window with her fist.

“Go on, hun. Even if it’s a little selfish, you deserve to do something for yourself. And…”She takes a deep breath, eyes closed, then open as she breathes out. “And I should do something for everyone else. As much of a ‘greater good’ as I’ve been working for, I’ve basically been doing all of this for me and my partners.”

My partner looks at me and smiles.

“Let’s work on ourselves, nya.”

Pfft– Goddess, she’s adorable, and doesn’t at all appreciate my laughter at her verbal tic.

“Alright, now I’m really gonna throw you out a window if you don’t get out right this instant.”

Nodding and jumping up to kiss her cheek, I wave goodbye as I bend my knees and leap from the window with the wind carrying my soul.

 

It’s incredible, the ease with which I soar. At last trusting the wind, trusting myself, I allow the air to guide me, and I help to guide it, helping me to reach the building facing the one I just left. I used to be so scared of scaling buildings like this, and yet here I am now, rocketing from building to building all on my own, rising higher and higher, my speed only growing with each bounce and jump until I soar over the rooftops and land with flourish.

This grace is not at all recognized by the ghosts in my midst, these ones not yet amalgamated, meaning I take care of them with ease, spinning my pistols and myself, blasting holes in each of their heads even as I leap up and over, maneuvering to the next building in the process. Zee said Coyo’s on the centermost building, which iiiis…yeesh, pretty far, it seems like we found ourselves near the perimeter of the complex, but this shouldn’t make things any more difficult than they otherwise would have been for me.

Bounding from rooftop to rooftop, I swiftly dispose of any ghosts on the oncoming landing points before I’ve even made the jump, sniping them midair before leaping again to do the same to the next. Just as I’d said, it’s easy work for me, and not long before I’m nearing the center, the headspace throne just out of reach, and–

“COYO!!”

My heart leaps out of my chest, blasting away the last of my foes before jumping straight for the chimera, quickly making my way into their arms.

“F-FOX…!!”

“COYO COYO COYO YOU’RE OKAY…!” I exclaim, my tail wagging up a storm as Coyotl clings to me weakly, yet their desperation to keep hold is clear. “I-I was so worried I’d never see you again…! The last week felt like an eternity…!”

“I…I’m sorry…”

I shake my head and look up to find their screen shattered, only darkness beyond the broken edges of glass that remain.

“No no, you poor thing…remember what I told you…?”

Putting on the best smile I have for them, I bring my claws down and over their arms to find their hands, locking fingers with him.

“I-I know, but…this really is all my fault…”

“Oh, shush, you…” I say, resting my chin between their head and shoulder. “Thank you for surviving. Thank you for putting everything on the line, even if it was stupid and it made my fur go grey worrying about you, thank you…”

The chimera trembles, static tears beginning to drip out of his broken screen.

“F…Fox…”

Coyotl sniffles and pulls me right back into a hug, and I bring my tail around to tighten our embrace.

“Wh…where is everybody else, though…?”

“Ah!” I ah, pulling back and sitting down, Coyo joining me. “I found Cat, but she’s going to go find Zee. I came here as fast as I could…I couldn’t bear the thought of you being alone any longer.”

“He wasn’t entirely alone, at least!” I hear a digital voice buzz from Coyotl’s claw, the chimera holding their palm open to reveal a small cellphone. “I can give you two some space if you’d like, though.”

“Ah,” both Coyotl and I blink, looking at one another.

“I mean, you don’t have to…” I mumble.

“I-I very much enjoy your company!” Coyo assures Zee, who simply laughs.

“Aaaalright you lovebirds, I’ll leave you be. Mind telling me where Cat is before I go?”

“Oh!” I jump, looking back the way I came, then at the throne to our side, reaching into my toolbelt to pull out a compass which surprisingly seems to work? “Cat and I found each other to the south, she should be making her way towards the center to find you.”

“Sweet! I don’t think I’m too far from center, your earpiece tracker moves a ton where I am. I’ll catch y’all on the flipside then!”

Hearing a crash from down below, Coyo and I peek over the edge of the building to see Cat charging through windows and smashing into adjacent buildings, having just entered the very building we sit atop.

“Yeah, shouldn’t be long.”

With the phone beeping quiet, Coyo and I look back at one another, and even without a face, I can feel the chimera smiling sheepishly.

“A whole week, huh…?”

“Yup. Most of it was spent making our way up Alexander to find you.”

“A-Alexander?! The Great Tower?!”

I can’t help but chuckle at how keenly she’s aware of each and every radiant we seem to come across. Then again, that’d make sense considering she summoned her, whether of her own will or not.

“The one and only. I presume. It’s kind of sad, it would have been the perfect dungeon to have your radiant expertise.”

“Ah…if only I could have been more help in finding me…” they slouch with a sigh, to which I give them a nudge and lean against their shoulder.

“We’ll just have to find another like that once this whole thing is over, yeah?”

She perks up and looks at me, then seems embarrassed by their lack of expression and turns back.

“You would continue to explore dungeons with me after this…?”

A chuckle escapes me, and I take them by the chin to pull their gaze back towards me.

“I’ll do just about anything with you. Promise.”

Their sobbing only seems to intensify along with the tightness of their claw around mine.

“What did I do to deserve such kindness…”

“A whole lot,” I answer, bringing both my claws around their hand. “You’ve come to our aid time and time again. You’ve been a joyous friend to know. You’ve changed so willingly and actively from what you were forced to become. You’re worth a whole lot more than the kindness I can show you.”

Before he can cry any harder, we both turn at the sound of an ‘up ya go!’, finding Zee hopping up onto the roof from over its edge and Cat not far behind, the both of them smiling seeing Coyo again.

“There you are,” Cat sighs. “You couldn’t have made saving you easy, could you?”

“Coyotl…!” Zee breathes like a sigh of relief. “Thank Yom we found you…!”

Me and the chimera stand up, our robot friend dashing in for a hug while Cat saunters over, pulling us all in for a squeeze.
“Grk–! P-please, you all…!”

The poor chimera grunts and sighs, giving up and allowing himself to be embraced, eventually being released as Cat steps back and sighs.

“Took us long enough, I’ll tell ya what.”

Coyo composes himself and looks up at Cat, tilting his head.

“What exactly did you all have to go through to get here…?”

“Well…”