Insert Wandering Kamikaze Shrubs Here

The world was... blank.

Well, not entirely. The ground was dirt, gathered in heaps and hills, here there and everywhere. Sand lined the edge of a vast ocean, and trees spouted up, some larger than others, reaching for the sky where clouds drifted towards the north (always to the north, for some arbitrary reason). A mountain range loomed nearby, and a herd of sheep let out a bleat that no one would hear.

A whirling vortex appeared next to the spawn point, and from it emerged a figure. Her white hair stood out starkly against chocolate coloured skin, and as she fluttered her lashes, silver eyes took in the surrounding area. Brushing sand off her white bodysuit, she seemed to surmise her situation, and her lips curved into a perfect smile. Striding purposefully to the nearest tree, and she slammed her hand against it. A single neat block of wood fell away and she studied it with a satisfied expression.

A sinister hissing sound appeared behind her, and she whirled gracefully around, the block in her hand, and struck the source of the noise with it hard. It flew back some paces before poofing into dust. A pile of silvery powder was left in its wake.

She smirked. If that was all this world could throw at her, then it was in for the ride of its life. Collecting the powder, she turned back to the tree, and began hacking away at the trunk again. She had a lot of work to do before she could rule a world this size...

OOO

"Isn't it beautiful?"

The purple avatar raced around the screen, stamping torches into the side of the wall with surprising vigour. Her companion was adding the finishing touches to the battlements, his iron armour glistening against the sun...

...but Tash and Michael couldn't really see this – computer screens were not great for detail, especially in a game like Minecraft where everything looked as though it were comprised of Legos. The Library was all but silent, parodying the lack of activity that had been going on lately. Most agents had been called back to real life for one reason or another, and it was shaping up to be a very lazy day, culminating in the Assistant Librarian and Chief Agent staking out the reading room as their own, and instigating a marathon round of Minecraft.

"Of course it is!" Tash said, directing her avatar backwards so that she could take a proper look at the handiwork. "It was built by nerds after all!"

Compared to some feats of engineering undertaken by Minecraft nerds with far too much free time on their hands, the castle built by the two siblings was rather humble. But it had been crafted without cheating (save for the odd teleporting cheat, since their spawn point was miles away) all the materials had been gathered by hand, and it had taken them many months to complete.

"All we need now is another flaming tower!" Michael declared, pausing in his building to reach for his bottle of friji. He flicked quickly between his cobblestone to his flint and tinder, and Tash immediately retreated her avatar to a safe distance. Michael and fire was a force to be handled carefully... that poor forest had never been the same again...

As she backed her avatar to the edge of the building, Tash turned her head around to check the surrounding area. There were a few Creepers on the ground, scurrying around like misshapen cacti and stopping occasionally to peer around for any unwary players in the area. Tash was grateful for the battlements – due to a glitch in her game, her controls had a nasty habit of sticking, often sending her marching off the nearest ledge and plummeting to her death.

Turning back to the slowly climbing tower, she began to add her own slabs of stone to it. They had a good view of the area from up here. A few cows and sheep bounced around in and out of the few trees that remained beyond the boundary wall, and beyond that lay ocean. A couple of dark shapes in the water were gliding around, in a manner which identified them as squid, and Tash wished she could go after them. She could use some more ink to start making decorations for the castle interior...

Wait a second...

One of the dark shapes burst out of the water, text glittering above her name.

"What the fuck?" Michael demanded, before recognising the flowing white hair. He quickly tapped a few keys and sent his avatar scurrying to the edge of the tower for a closer look.

"Warmest greetings dear agents!" The text appeared in the chat box in the lower left side of the screen. "A very nice castle you have here..."

It was @, the digital Mary Sue who had been plaguing the Library's computer system non stop ever since downloading herself into the wifi. She stood tall on the shoreline, her white bodysuit covered by thick diamond armour which glittered in the sun.

"How did she get on here?" Tash demanded. "This is a private server!"

No sooner had the words left her lips, when the figure vanished into the water again. Thoughts of finishing the last tower were instantly abandoned, as the agents leaned off the edge of their vantage point and strained for any sign of the digital menace.

"I don't like this," Tash decided, rummaging in her avatar's inventory for some ladder. "We have to get down and after..."

She never finished, as an echoing boom rang out through the speakers of both laptops. Flashes of light obscured parts of the screen, and from within the lower levels of the fort flames began to lick their way out from the ground.

"The fort!" Michael screamed.

Silvery hearts filled the screen.

"That'll teach you to put down wooden floorboards!"

Tinny laughter flitted between the exploding TNT, which had now reduced the lower level of the fort to a smoking crater. Up and up the explosions went, until finally both avatars were thrown from their newly constructed tower and crashed into the sandy beach below.

"Bollocks!" Tash roared.

"Least we're still alive," Michael said, pointing to the two hearts left on his life bar.

"Sssssssss..."

"Oh fu-"

BANG!

The screens faded to red, and a helpful menu asked if they would like to respawn.

"Bloody Creepers!" Tash almost flung her laptop out of the door.

"Bloody @!" Michael added. "What was she doing in our server?"

"She's infiltrated the Minecraft world," Phoenixia said, appearing in the doorway of the reading room with a stack of paperwork in her hands. "Specifically your server. She's been there for two weeks, from what I've seen, but we never picked her up because each world is eight times the size of earth. It was only when she approached you two that I got a lock on her."

"Our fort..." Tash whined. "Its ruined..."

"No, she's ruined!" Michael declared, getting to his feet. "Come on Aneki. She's a Mary Sue, and she's ruining other people's fun. This is a job for us. Time we met @ in person instead of letting her mock us from behind a screen."

OOO

"Well would you look at that?" a feminine voice smirked. "@ does have her uses... albeit inadvertently. Passion, do you think you can send someone to pay them a visit?"

A chair creaked and a male voice replied quickly. "Sure. I can load one of you into Minecraft. But who d'you want?"

"If I may..." a new voice interjected, ancient and punctuated by the steady clunk of something wooden hitting a stone floor. "I would be happy to take this assignment. It would be nice to see Michael again..."

There was a long pause, and then...

"Very well Wisdom. Enjoy your reunion...but don't play too hard with them..."

"Of course my dear...of course..."

OOO

@ watched as the last of the fort burned away. She had ventured inside to loot the treasure chests, after the Society agent's avatars had died, and she had come away with plenty of valuables – she had not caught fire of course. She was a Mary Sue. She was perfect.

Giggling to herself, she counted the redstone she had salvaged – that more than compensated for all that she had had to use to lay down the TNT switches. Only four diamonds, and a stack of gold. She had no idea why the Society were collecting gold, as it was pretty useless for making anything, but they were a strange lot, so she would fathom it out later.

Turning on her heel, she headed back for her own base, and wondered what other fun she could have while she was here.

OOO

"OW!"

"Sorry..."

The two agents brushed themselves off and looked around as the plothole sealed up behind them. Minecraft was an odd fandom, in that it wasn't really a fandom. It was a world. Fandom's had one thing that made them different from ordinary worlds, and that was a plot. There was no storyline in Minecraft – just a massive sandbox where the only goal was to survive and build cool things. They had definitely emerged at the spawn point however – the towers marking their way back to where the castle had stood were still visible from the sea.

"Dude, you look weird," Tash declared folding her pixilated arms.

"So do you," her brother returned. "Seems we aren't our avatars in this game – we're just ourselves..."

"With no weapons or resources to speak of," Tash said, patting down her pockets and finding them empty. Her usual arsenal of Sue catching tools were all gone. Her sword, usually in pendant form around her neck, was also missing. "You've got no sword?"

"I broke it last night anyway," Michael shrugged, before tapping on the side of his head. "Hey! The Darkness is gone too! Sweet peace and quiet!"

While her brother celebrated, Tash scanned the area in which they had landed. It was pretty barren, thanks to Michael and his flint and tinder. There were a few tall mountains in the distance, but beyond that was obscured by fog.

"Damn, I should have put my render on Far..." the woman muttered, rubbing her eyes.

"I can change it for you if you want..."

Both agents jumped.

"Nixie?" Michael asked. "Where are you?"

"In the Library, of course," the woman huffed. "I've got your server on the monitor screens so I can keep an eye on you. Your communicators have vanished off the radar, so I'm inserting my voice as sound bites to the game..."

"You don't wanna come in?" Tash asked, as the two Society agents struck out for the mountain range.

"I find this game a little ridiculous," Phoenixia admitted. "All you do is build stuff, and it looks really weird...I mean, what's that little red spotted thing to your right?"

Squinting through his glasses, Michael sighed as they passed the offending shrub. "That's a mushroom Nixie. You use them to make stew."

"Oh..." they could almost feel the ex hologram blushing. "And that white thing with the pink face?"

"A sheep."

"And that green thing that looks like a penis?"

Both agents froze.

"...Nixie," Tash asked. "Where exactly..."

"Ssssss..."

"Balls."

BANG!

Unlike his sister, Michael had had the common sense to run when he heard the hissing, and had dived behind a tree as the Creeper had exploded. Tash was not so lucky. The explosion sent her flying and smacked away all but two hearts of health. She landed painfully and her head throbbed.

"Aneki!" Michael was by her side instantly. "Are you okay?"

"...somewhere, Sigmund Freud is turning in his grave..." came the muttered reply.

OOO

Humming as she clambered back up from her mineshaft, @ emptied her horde onto the crafting table and began to place the diamonds in the formation required to make a block. Her home was quite grand, made entirely out of blocks of diamond and obsidian. It had taken her a while to find enough, but she was a Sue. Finding diamond and mining obsidian came naturally to her, and now her whole palace was going to be built out of it.

Satisfied with her blocks, she turned towards the door, intending to head outside to add a few towers to her already magnificent work of architecture...until her foot sunk into the floor, and an explosion ripped through the room.

Since diamond and obsidian were reknown in the game for their toughness, they were not even scratched by the TNT. @, on the other hand, found herself down to half a heart as she picked herself up from the ruins of her crafting table and the three chests that had been unfortunate enough to be within the blast radius.

"Had I not been wearing diamond armour... that might actually have killed me..." she gasped. "How could they be so cruel? All I did was blow their castle up! That's no reason to attack me!"

She staggered to her feet, and slowly crawled over to pick up the contents of her chest. "They are such... copycats! They think I'll be taken down by some TNT? Well, they're in for a big surprise!"

OOO

"I'm a dwarf and I'm digging a hole... diggy diggy hole. I'm digging a hole..."

"Michael, you are neither a dwarf nor British," his sister told him, closing the door behind her and joining him down their little mineshaft. They had been there for three days (one hour in Library time), and day one had been spent trekking to a convenient location near @'s base of operations. They had dug a hole to weather the night away and had spent the whole of the next day hunting Creepers and digging up sand in order to make TNT. Today, they were passing time while they thought of another plan – they would not rest until @'s sparkly palace of indestructible material came crashing down!

"Ooo there's some more iron down here!" Michael said gleefully, hacking away at a few blocks in the wall. "Did you find some more pork?"

"Sure, its in the furnace," the blonde shrugged. "If we could find some lava today I'd call that a positive result. We need to ration our coal and wood for smelti-EEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Her scream was drowned out by the blocks of sand which were sliding down the shaft and crashing down on her head. She flailed wildly, but there was little she could do, as she breathed in and began to choke.

"Aneki!" Michael, switching rapidly to his shovel, began to hack away at the sand, clonking Tash several times over the head in the process and causing more damage. Another landslide of sand appeared from above, blocking all light from above, but not in time to disguise the glowing nameplate at the top of the shaft.

Michael tried to curse the digital Sue, but his mouth was full of sand, and he viciously hacked at anything he could reach in the hope he would succeed in saving himself. By some miracle, his shovel hit sand and he burst free of his suffocating imprisonment and doubled over gasping for breath. He whirled at the panicked scream and began shovelling away at the mound of sand burying his sister. She appeared in a gasping filthy mess.

"My life... flashed... before my...e yes..." she muttered eventually.

"So she wants to play dirty does she?" Michael asked, flumping to the floor and tossing his shovel out of his sweaty hands. "We'll show her!"

OOO

Unlike other Mary-Sue's, @ did not dream – she was a digital program, and dreaming was a little beyond her programming. It was a constant source of pain for her, which only further enhanced her sympathy powers with any canon characters she may run into. Still she was happy to fall into a Minecraft bed after a hard day of building her palace. Creating something perfect was tiring, even for a Sue.

She smiled to herself as she closed her eyes and imprinted the image of her room on her mind. She slept in one of the towers of her palace, encased in glistening diamond with two windows in front and behind her bed. The floor was wooden, as was the staircase, and there was a chest and a bookcase under the opposite window. When dawn came and she awoke the window was perfectly positioned to see the reddish pink glow of sunrise. She could picture that glow now, so soft and gentle like a warm hand on her face...

...getting hotter and hotter until she thought she would burn. Her eyes snapped open. The glow was not soft any longer, but the fierce glare of red hot death. Lava was pouring through holes in the roof of her tower and trickling down the sides of the walls towards her bed!

Screaming, @ leaped from her bed, and yelped as the lava hit the floor and the boards beneath her feet burst into flames. She backed away from her bed, which went up instantly in flames, and she rummaged in her inventory for a bucket of water. Outside her tower she could hear the cackling of the Society agents as they made their escape down the side of the burning tower.

Seeing red, @ threw the bucket over the flames to hold them back a little longer, and began to snatch things from her chest. The Society would regret coming here! Enough was enough!

OOO

"You don't think that was a little too mean?"

"Oh please Aneki! She wouldn't hesitate to do it to us! Personally I thought her scream was very funny!"

The two agents were fleeing down one of the palace corridors. They knew @ would have their blood later, but they didn't care at that stage. They also knew that they were lost, but they didn't care too much about that either. They would find a way out eventually, and if not they could do things the Minecraft way – dig their own exit.

"I've got all the diamonds from those blocks that we hacked open in her tower roof!" Michael was saying gleefully. "I can make some armour out of this!"

"Don't get too excited," Tash muttered. "We've still got to get out of here...and bollocks!" she added, as the already non existent night time light levels dimmed considerably further. "Its raining!"

Sure enough, the heavens had opened, and seeing anything beyond the window was impossible.

"We've got no chance of finding our way back in this," Tash declared.

"Oh stop complaining!" Michael said, yanking torches off the wall as they went. "What?" he asked seeing her disapproving look. "By the time we're done here, she's not going to notice. Let's try going this way..."

"Why this way?"

"...I dunno. American instinct?"

"Yeah well my British instinct says that you need a cup of tea..."

They passed a few rooms, most of which had various things sculptured inside, or pools of water with flowers dotted around. Clearly @ had been making artistic use of her time. But Michael did not stop at any of these rooms, instead following the twisting corridor around until Tash was certain that they were going in a loop.

"Michael..." she groaned, glancing out of a window long enough to see that the moon was descending through the nights sky. "We've been at this for ages..."

"Aha!" her brother appeared not to be listening, and threw a door open triumphantly. Inside were rows and rows of chests, which the Chief Agent opened and began rooting through happily. Seeing the helpful signs above each chest, Tash rolled her eyes.

"Yup... trust an American's instinct to lead us to an armoury..."

"Shut up and take this," he threw an iron sword to her, which skidded along the floor and clattered to her feet. She picked it up and added it to the one already in her inventory.

"There's a crafting table there if you wanted to make a sword out of that diamond," she pointed. But Michael wasn't listening as he withdrew something else.

"Don't need it!" he declared, waving the diamond sword he had uncovered. The blueish weapon glittered in the torchlight. "Shiny!"

"You sure its okay to be stealing her stuff?" Tash asked, in a sudden attack of conscience. Michael lifted one eyebrow in disbelief.

"You want us to put it back?" he waved his new prize. "A diamond sword?"

"I just don't know if its right... ninjaing her walls is one thing..."

"A diamond sword, Aneki!"

"...I mean we'd hate it if someone came onto our server and took our stuff..."

"Oh so we can't steal, but her TNTing our fort is no problem at all?" Michael snarked. "Stop being such a goody goody, and help me steal this armour."

The Assistant Librarian sighed. "I'm still not sure about this..."

"There's cake in this chest if you help me."

"Ooo!"

OOO

Storming down the corridor, sword in hand, @ glanced left and right looking for any signs of her quarry. The rain had finished, and the moon was descending through the window of her castle. It would be morning soon. In the courtyard she caught sight of some movement, but it was only a few zombies wandering aimlessly around. @ made a mental note to visit the courtyard once the sun was up to collect the feathers they left behind...

There! She put on a burst of speed as she saw the name tags faintly through the walls in the next corridor. They were wandering towards the south courtyard – supposedly they had got lost. She laughed to herself. That was so typical of normal people. Sues never got lost.

As she sped past the last sculpture room and around the corner, she did not hear the door clicking open behind her, or a rhythmic clunking noise, that accompanied gentle footsteps on the diamond floor.

OOO

The courtyard was lined with redstone torches, with a huge water feature in the middle. Though the walls were made of obsidian, the floor was crafted from cobblestone, which looked remarkably patchy next to the beautiful purply blocks of the wall... it was also full of mobs, which had brought Tash and Michael to a screeching halt in the doorway.

"Told you you should have brought a bow!" Michael grumbled.

"My aim is crap!"

"Its Minecraft! Anyone can aim in Minecraft with two functioning limbs!"

"Hehem!"

They spun around and saw @ leaning against the wall in a casual fashion – her armour was blackened in places and her hair was still singed from the lava, but even as she moved towards them it seemed to vanish back to its normal shiny state – though the smell of burning did not vanish.

"My dear agents, you look ridiculous," she greeted. "Though I suppose not everyone can pull off diamond armour."

She moved as though the now glittering armour barely weighed a thing. Michael and Tash were struggling to stay upright under their heavy diamond chestplates.

"Told you we looked like Lady Gaga," Tash muttered.

"You started this @!" Michael snapped at her. "You had no right to blow up our castle! We spent weeks on that!"

The Sue tossed her swirling white hair and huffed. "That's the point of this game! You make beautiful things, and they get destroyed – by other players or Creepers!"

"That's not the point!" Tash wailed. "The point of any game is to have fun, and you ruined ours!"

"Well my idea of fun is blowing things up!" the Mary-Sue retorted. "And if that displeases you, well sooooo-rry!"

"Um guys..." Phoenixia's voice appeared in the system once more, but @ continued.

"Its like I can't win with your Society! I try to be helpful and nice in your PS3 and your iPods and you have Phoenixia delete me! I try to play with you in Minecraft and you come chasing after me-"

"Guys," Phoenixia was more urgent this time.

"- and now when you've burned down most of my floors, and stolen my favourite armour, you still say I'm the bad guy? You're so... so..."

"GUYS!"

"What?" the two agents and Sue looked skyward toward Phoenixia's voice.

A switch clicked, and an explosion ripped the courtyard apart.

Water and cobblestone flew everywhere, and there were two screams as the ground beneath their feet vanished and @ and Tash plummeted into the deep hole below.

"Aneki!" Michael, by virtue of being the furthest from the explosion at the time, had survived, clinging onto only a single block of cobblestone. He hugged the wall, his heart pounding as he leaned over and saw the damage the explosion had done. That hole had to go all the way to bedrock, with a glow of red at the bottom indicating the puddle of lava. Sweat broke out on Michael's forehead. She couldn't have fallen in that... she couldn't...

"Precise."

Swearing, Michael jumped and almost fell off his platform. Standing where the fountain used to be, was a newcomer, seeming completely unflustered by the explosion. He was hunched over, and though it was hard to tell with Minecraft pixilation, Michael thought he might be old – his robes were black and white, with the hood shadowing his face, and as he stepped closer, he leaned on a heavy looking cane, which clunked against the ground with each shuffling movement. Under one arm (oddly enough) he carried an ancient looking book.

"Who the fuck are you?" Michael managed to demand. He didn't need to ask. It was floating above his head in condemning white text.

The man inclined his head slightly. "That would depend, my young friend. I am sure you can already see my name now... as for who I am. Well, that is a slightly... deeper question."

"Oh spare me the semantics!" Michael snapped, pulling together the remnants of his courage that had not been blown away by the blast. "You just sent my sister plummeting possibly to her death. That's not a safe place to stand with me!"

"Still brimming with confidence in the face of certain defeat," Wisdom shook his head, his joints clicking slightly. "A wise man turns a problem into an opportunity. I saw the opportunity to meet with you, as you raced around the corridor stealing things from that charming young lady. If your sister was wise she will have taken a bucket of water with her to put herself out with... as for you... well, if you are wise, you will realise that you have no weapons save for the traditional ones of this fandom, no Society trinkets, no Phoenix Morpher, no Darkness, and most importantly Michael..." he paused for effect. "You have no strategy."

Unnerved, but determined not to show it, Michael interrupted. "How do you know I have no strategy, old man? You've never..." he trailed off. Had he met Wisdom before? He was having a very strong sense of déjà vu, and not just because the man had effectively listed all his usual methods and tools of fighting.

The Sovereign chuckled. "You called me old man, last time too... though I swiftly taught you a valuable lesson about underestimating your opponents..."

"...wait..." breathing was suddenly very difficult for Michael. His eyes travelled up the Sovereign. A hunched over body which could deliver punishing blows... an unassuming stance, which concealed a skilled fighter, master of every type of combat known to man. Wrinkled fingers which had plunged into the Darkness's sensitive spots and caused it to crumble away like an old cookie...

Wisdom lowered his hood, and Michael felt recognition crash like a punch to the jaw.

"Keria!"

OOO

Pain shot up Tash's legs as she crashed into something solid. She opened her eyes and found herself staring at a dangerous pool of lava, barely ten blocks below them. Perched on the edge of a block of gravel, she hastily shuffled backwards away from fiery death, and was almost knocked clean off as @ landed next to her.

"Don't move!" Tash shrieked, and the Mary-Sue fell still, as she caught sight of the molten death below. She gave a fearful squeak.

"What happened?" she asked weakly.

"I don't know," Tash was struggling to keep her voice steady – with death waiting nearby, and lacking her wings in Minecraft, she felt extremely vulnerable. She tried not to look over the edge. Seeing nothing but lava beneath them was making her feel sick.

"Wait!" @ said suddenly, as she tried to move back. This time, Tash froze, as the Mary-Sue leaned over and ran a hand down the side of their block. Tash felt a chill as @'s hand crept beneath the block, and she gave a frightened whimper.

"The block's glitched," she whispered fearfully. Tash knew what that meant – gravel and sand, unlike other blocks in Minecraft, were governed by gravity. Without something underneath it, it would plummet downward until it hit a solid surface... and all they had beneath them was the lava. If the game realised the glitch, they would fall to their deaths.

"Have you got any stone?" Tash asked. @ shook her head.

"I didn't have time to grab any..."

"I think I've got some wood," the leader said, reaching as slowly as she could for her inventory. "Just don't move, for Gods sake..."

"Don't attach it to the block, or the glitch might repair itself," @ warned, though she was sure the woman knew this already. "Can you reach the wall?"

"Almost..." Tash shuffled as close to the edge as she dared and leaned out with the block, trying to stick it to the wall of the pit. "Just a little closer..."

Stretching another couple of inches, the block finally stuck into place. Tash wobbled precariously, but @ grabbed her arm and steadied her. Swallowing at the near miss, the Leader began slapping more wood to the block.

"What is this hole?" she thought to ask.

"I don't know," @ admitted. "I didn't make it. My shaft is the other side of the building. Whoever planted that TNT must have done this..."

"Whoever they are..." Tash muttered darkly, slapping the last block into place. "Come on... let's get out of here. One of us is starting to smell sweaty..."

"I think it's you, dear..."

OOO

"How can you be here?" the Chief Agent whispered. "I haven't even finished that Society story! How can you possibly be outside of it?"

Wisdom, wrinkled face uncovered with wisps of frail silver hair stroking his forehead, gave a hint of a smile.

"Continuity is a funny thing, Michael. The Society know that better than most."

Michael swallowed thickly. As Wisdom, Keria seemed to have gained a hundred years of wrinkles and his eyes had deepened to pools of infinite knowledge. His beard, which had previously been bushy, was now white and wavy, creeping down past his waist, Dumbledore-style. Still, Michael knew by the way he stood battle ready even while leaning to a cane, that the old man was far more dangerous than he had been the last time he had seen him.

"This is bad," he thought. "He's completely right. The only weapon I have is a diamond sword, and he could probably block any attack I make without even trying. The Darkness isn't here, and I don't think Rick Rolling him is going to work a second time. All I can do is distract him until I think of something... or until he gets bored..."

"How the hell did you become a Sovereign?" he asked, his throat going dry. Wisdom's smile seemed to grow, and he nodded sagely.

"Trying to distract me until you can come up with a strategy," he stated, chuckling at the astonished look on Michael's face. "I'm an old man. And as I'm sure you know, old people have a knack for being wise, after so many years of experience...and as I'm sure you remember, I have plenty of experience in the field of battle."

He gazed far away into the sky, recalling a fond memory. "I wasn't that upset at my loss in the Dark Tournament. You surprised me, my young friend, with that little dancing move of yours. That doesn't happen very often. And whilst a loss is a loss, it did not stop me from learning something. I decided to broaden my horizons and set off once more in search of any fighting styles I had missed."

"During the course of my travels, I happened upon a young lady with remarkable battle talent. Though I fought well, I was beaten by her eventually. But she was none the less impressed, and invited me to recover under her care..."

Despite knowing that interruption was rude, Michael snorted. "Runoa? Care? Psh! And I'm Father Christmas!"

"Show some respect for your elders," the Sovereign chastised. "Runoa was as good as her word, and I told her my tale. She offered me the chance to be the best fighter there ever was – to master any strategy, any technique, and to have the knowledge to guess what my opponent would be thinking...she offered to make me one of her Sovereigns. I took the Immaculation process, and I have not regretted it at all."

"That doesn't make you wise," Michael objected. "That makes you batshit insane!"

Wisdom seemed to have had enough cheek. In the blink of an eye he was soaring through the air, and his foot collided with Michael's jaw. Bone and cartilage cracked and the blow rung back into Michael's skull and sent him reeling.

"Fuck! Why does he always go for the jaw?" was his only thought as he crashed into the nearest tree, a lone sapling landing neatly on his head.

"Hmm... that should have killed you," Wisdom appeared in front of him. The kindly old man was gone, replaced by a ruthless fighter of immeasurable skill. "Fortunately for you my powers are severely limited here in this world of blocks and cubes..."

Effortlessly he lifted Michael up by the throat, and with his free hand jabbed in the centre of the diamond chest plate. The armour cracked like a biscuit and with a heave of his arm, Wisdom tossed the Chief Agent high into the air.

Landing heavily on his head, causing his helmet to shatter, Michael rolled over and found himself facing a canopy of trees. There was an interesting shaped hole in the leaves where he had crashed.

"Ssssssss..."

"Oh for fucks sake!" He thought to himself before he was thrown through the air again by the explosion.

"Why is there always a fucking Creeper..." he muttered, barely holding back a scream. His jaw was definitely broken, and from the way the world was spinning, he definitely had concussion. As he slowly sat upright again, his chest plate crumbled away into dust beneath him.

Wisdom hobbled through the trees, his staff clunking like the footsteps of an executioner as he entered the small clearing. For a brief moment Michael wondered if running was a suitable strategy, but no sooner had he started to scrabble to his feet, when Wisdom brought the end of his walking stick down hard on his left diamond boot. It shattered effortlessly, and before Michael could even gulp, the right boot went the way of its fragmented partner.

"No strategy..." Wisdom slammed his staff hard onto Michael's foot, and the Chief Agent bit back a scream as another bone cracked beneath the force of the blow. "No thought... no success."

Michael screwed up his eyes before the second blow to his other foot could connect, but strangely, there came no pain. Carefully he peeked one eye open...

He was no longer sat beneath the trees, but in a snowy biome, up to his waist in the thick fluffy white stuff.

"...huh?" he managed to croak out through his jaw.

"Thank God!" came Phoenixia's voice, causing Michael to leap a foot into the air. "Michael quick, eat something! You're down to half a heart!"

It was the most painful thing he had ever experienced, but as Michael chewed slowly on the pork chop from his inventory, he felt his bones begin to knit themselves back together.

"Is Tash..."he began, swallowing the last mouthful and feeling his jaw click back to where it was supposed to be.

"She's fine!" Phoenixia interrupted. "She's on her way back. She's not an OP though so I can't teleport her to you. Wisdom isn't an OP but he's on his way. You need to think of something fast!"

"What did you think I was letting him beat me up for?" Michael snapped. "Fun? I can't think of anything! He's mastered every form of fighting!"

"Then drop him down a shaft! Bury him in sand! Blow him up! Push him into lava! Anything! Just do something!"

Growling in anger, Michael opened his mouth, intent on telling the bossy ex-hologram just where she could shove her ideas... but his mouth hung open and the words never left.

"Wait a second..." the wheels in his head began to turn.

"Nixie, you genius!" he declared aloud. "Teleport me to the following location..." he rattled off a stream of computer code, and smirked to himself. "Then I want you to enter this cheat code..."

OOO

"Hmm... teleport server command huh?" Passion gave a wide grin, and took a quick slurp of Red Bull. "Two can play at that game... hold on to your cane Gramps. Time to make you an OP."

OOO

"WISDOM!" Tash shrieked. Obviously, she could not hear Michael, as she was nowhere near him, but as Phoenixia's method of communication was by inserting her voice as sound bites, everyone in the game could hear her. "What the fuck is he doing here?"

"Wisdom?" @, despite having wandered into the Library before, had never got as far as the main computer system, and thus the name was a mystery to her.

"He's a Sovereign!" Tash explained, as the clambered onto the next block of wood. "He's one of Runoa's Sovereigns. We've never met him before. Why the hell is he here?"

"Don't ask me!" @ protested, as the Assistant Librarian shot her an accusing glare. "Do you think if I was working with him I'd ask him to blow up my courtyard like this?"

"Its not like you couldn't rebuild it!" Tash retorted, slapping another block of wood into place, and ascending another tiny fraction. "You built the whole bloody palace in the space of three Minecraft days."

"I'm a Mary-Sue!" @  wailed. "I can't help being... efficient! I was born this way, the same way you were born with blonde hair!"

"Yes but my blonde hair doesn't give me a routine compulsion to conquer the multiverse!"

"No, only conquer innocent fictional characters who are just trying to enjoy themselves!"

"Oh... shut up! Before I push you off this staircase."

There was a long silence, as both of them seemed to remember that they were enemies, and realise for the first time that they were precariously placed with a pool of lava at the end of the death drop below.

"Look..." @ said first. "I don't want to die here. And I'm sure you don't either – unlike me, you don't have multiple copies of yourself emailed around the multiverse to fall back on. You've got the wood to climb up, so I need you. I've got the diamond pick to dig out of here once we run out of wood, so you need me too."

"Are you proposing a truce?" the Assistant Librarian asked sceptically. The Sue nodded.

"Just until we get back to the top. I'd quite like to get my own back on that Wisdom guy for blowing up my beautiful courtyard!"

The snarky retort of "now you know what it feels like!" was hastily smothered before it could escape Tash's lips, and she sighed. "Fine. We get out of here, we deal with Wisdom, then we resume our fight."

"Deal," @ said, pulling out her pickaxe and swinging it happily. "Well hurry up! I'm sure that Sovereign doesn't wait forever!"

"Alright! Have some patience, for the love of Cthulhu!"

OOO

The act of teleporting was odd, but Wisdom bore it all with grace, as the world flashed by his eyes at the speed of light...before he found himself standing in complete darkness. He took a cautious step, and felt something solid crunch beneath his feet. Turning his head, he saw not a single speck of light anywhere. It was a strange feeling.

"I know you're here Michael!"

"I'm sure you do," the Chief Agent's voice replied casually from somewhere in the blackness.

"...no really. I know you're here. I can see your nametag above your head."

"...well fuck."

The swear was said with a slight huff, and Wisdom gathered that the boy must have repaired his jaw...not that that was difficult in this world, where health could be replenished by snacking. Still at least he knew Michael had no more armour to his name, which would make this fight all the more easier...still, he was puzzled by his carefree tone.

"I'm intrigued boy. Had I not known you better, I'd think you had a plan to stop me."

There was a chuckle from the direction of the floating name.

"Heh... ya know, even when I don't have the Darkness, I can still be sneaky when I need to be."

Surprised at the declaration, Wisdom tried to peer through the gloom, but even Sovereigns could not see in the dark. "Oh really? You have been learning since our last fight then, not to rely on the dark friend in your mind? Well if you have achieved anything, now would be the best time to demonstrate it. Else I fear your friends may find their Society short one member..."

As he spoke, he stretched out his arms, feeling the joints pop and release. Flexing his muscles, he focused, trying to pinpoint where the best spot to hit Michael would be.

"Yeah, you'd think that wouldn't you?" Michael asked. It was almost possibly to hear him smiling. "Let's face it, you beat me in fighting hands down, even in creativity. I mean, I doubt you're named Wisdom for shits and giggles. But sometimes, the main way to beat the smart one, is to outsmart them, and be very creative."

He sounded confident, which was a surprise to the Sovereign. Michael wasn't stupid...crazy, yes, but not stupid. He had just endured being thrown around and beaten worse than he had been in a long while. He had no allies nearby (that Wisdom could see at least), no superpowers, and the boy was notorious for having no plan. And yet... he sounded as though he were sitting down for tea, rather than facing a talented warrior. What was he thinking?

For the first time since entering the fandom, Wisdom was on guard.

"You don't strike me as the kind to use insanity as a form of defence from certain defeat, so you must know something I don't know, or you wouldn't sound so happy."

"Well, let's take a look at the situation?" Michael suggested, adopting a thoughtful voice, that bordered on mocking. "Why on Minecraftia would I decide to take you to a completely dark area, where I'm sure you can see me perfectly?"

"Why indeed..." Wisdom mused, deciding to go along with this for now. "You must have realised that the darkness does not faze me anymore than the parasite which shares its name. I can hear your breathing, sense your movement... even smell your fear."

The boy was approximately ten blocks away and to the right. He could strike him before he even knew what was coming. Wisdom tensed, ready to spring.

"Exactly!" the sound of Michael clapping his hands together, told Wisdom just where Michael's chest was...the perfect target. "Now why would I force you to follow me here if I didn't have a plan? Why a completely dark area... unless I know everything about it?"

Rolling his eyes, Wisdom sighed. "I'm growing older every second Michael. Out with it!"

"Very well..." the boy was most definitely shrugging. "I'm not one for spoiling the fun."

Light popped into existence a few blocks away – Michael had plonked down a block of glowstone, which illuminated the walls with its soft yellow light.

For the first time in his life, the man once known as Keria was stunned into horrified silence.

The walls, ceiling and floor were constructed entirely from TNT. Blocks and blocks of it stretched on as far as the Sovereign could see in the tiny glow of the rock, and from the way no sound penetrated, it had to be thick... very very thick...

Wisdom's heart seemed to stop, and he clutched his chest abruptly, as he registered the mad glint in Michael's eyes.

"Oh my..."

"Yep!" Michael was positively gleeful, as he set down a block of cobblestone with a line of redstone across it. "A little side project of mine for when I was bored and couldn't think of anything creative to make in this game! A bomb that reaches the height limit of the game map! A hundred blocks wide, filled to the brim with TNT – cept for this little hollow in the middle where we're standing." He paused with a wistful look on his face. "I have to admit, I'm kinda pissed off that you're making me waste this beautiful little structure..."

"You wouldn't dare!" the old man accused, the certainty in his voice wavering. "You wouldn't just kill us, boy! This amount of TNT exploding at once would crash the server! It would wipe everyone on it from the game and existence!"

Even as he spoke, Michael had plonked down another block of cobblestone, a maniacal grin on his face. He lifted his head and his eyes met Wisdom's. The Sovereign felt a shiver at the sight of such recklessness.

"Totally-" Michael slapped a switch on top of the cobblestone. "-worth it!" He punched the switch, and the TNT at the end of the redstone began to jump and flash. Wisdom's walking stick slipped from sweaty hands and clattered to the ground.

"I'd hold on if I were you," Michael suggested in a friendly tone. "This is gonna get fucking brutal!"

He had never sounded so happy in his life, and the satisfied smile was the last thing Wisdom saw as the first TNT exploded with a monumental bang.

They landed painfully, and were immediately blown off their feet again by the next explosion, then the next... loud and louder, more painful than the last, until all they could hear were bangs and crashes of stone and dirt exploding... ripping apart... falling into blackness... reality slipping away like grains of sand...

Wisdom screamed as the vertigo overtook him.

OOO

"What was that?" @ demanded, feeling the ground rumble beneath their feet. They had been digging up for what felt like forever, and both Librarian and Sue were exhausted. Rocks were crumbling... shaking... the world didn't feel stable.

Then @ screamed.

"No! The server!"

Tash gave a yelp and backed into the dirt as @'s digital body began to dissolve like leaves blowing off into the wind. The Sue was frozen... whether from horror or computer malfunction Tash didn't know, but as the last of her vanished, she threw her head back and screamed again.

"NOOOOOOOO!"

As the last of her screams disappeared with her body, Tash felt strangely weak and sluggish, and she slumped against the dirt, hoping that whatever was happening to her, Michael wasn't going through the same thing...

OOO

"Where is he?"

"Did he die?"

"What did you do Passion? Where have they all gone?"

"WOULD YOU ALL PLEASE SHUT IT?"

The gamer Sovereign raised his voice a great deal (as one might expect from his nature) but rarely did it produce instant silence. His fellow Sovereigns, and Runoa all fell silent, and he continued to tap away frantically at the keyboard. Runoa, ticked off at being told to shut up by one of her minions, took a deep breath, and repeated her question in a slightly more reasonable tone of voice.

"Where has the game gone?" she asked.

"Michael crashed the server," Passion replied. "All that TNT exploding at once was too much info for the game to take, so it crashed. All the data and characters for that particular save file have all been erased... permanently."

Life and Harmony exchanged horrified looks, and Elegance narrowed her eyes. "All of them?"

"Well not all of them, obviously!" Passion rolled his eyes, still typing away like a madman. "@ got deleted, I saw that. Can't see the agents, but Wisdom is right..." he slammed his finger on the enter key, and pointed over his shoulder. "There!"

They all turned just in time to see a plothole open, and Wisdom stumble out of it. With no stick to support him, he toppled to the ground on his unsteady feet. Purity and Resolve were by his side instantly, steadying him on either side.

"Creation!" Runoa barked to the quiet Sovereign in the corner. "Get this man a chair!"

A second later, a squashy looking armchair had materialised in the room, and Wisdom allowed himself to be parked in it. He was sweating, and his eyes were wild, like he wasn't quite with it yet, but as Creation passed over a glass of water and Purity dropped some ice cubes into it, he seemed to come back to himself.

"Thank you... thank you..."

"What happened?" Runoa asked again, pacing in front of the armchair like a caged panther. Wisdom took a few sips of water before answer in a shaky voice.

"I think... I played too hard... my apologies my dear..."

Runoa huffed. "It's alright. I don't think any of us would have expected Michael to do something that suicidal..." she turned to Passion. "Any sign of them?"

"...no deletion," Passion replied, sighing and returning to the main menu. "They must have got out... they did have that Phoenixia chick watching them, inserting her voice. Maybe she got them out before they could be wiped."

"I see," the former Librarian sighed. "No matter. We dealt them a blow today that will make them think twice about how they deal with us... we should step up these little encounters. They're proving incredibly useful for us..."

OOO

"...Nyan cat?"

"Too annoying."

"The Llama Song?"

"Too old!"

"Maybe you should try something that's not an internet meme?" Adrian suggested smartly. His girlfriend stuck her tongue out at him.

"Less you forget love, internet memes worked very well for us in the Dark Tournament!" she settled back against the pillows and poked at her egg fried rice with her chopsticks. "There has to be some weakness to the Sovereigns... like with Death and downloading Nixie into him..."

"Death was the weakest," Phoenixia reminded them. "I doubt the others will have such a glaringly obvious weakness..." she paused as the heads of all the actors on the television screen were replaced with silver hearts. "@ for Gods sake! Haven't you done enough today?"

She whacked the top of the screen, and the hearts exploded like tiny fireworks. Though @ had been wiped from the server, her multiple copies stationed in equipment around the Library had found out what had happened, and were decidedly displeased about Michael's giant ball of TNT. Consequently they had been harassing the group ever since their return.

"Shove off lady!" Michael threw a spring roll at the screen, which bounced off and lay pathetically on the carpet next to the diamond sword. The Chief Agent was quite pleased that he had managed to hang onto it, and was determined to learn how to use it – maybe it would have a better lifespan than his usual swords.

If you intend to be good enough to beat the old man, the Darkness interjected in a snide tone. You will need to get very good with that thing very fast. None of your swinging blindly and hoping you hit something rubbish. You need proper training, and I'm going to see you get it...

"I missed you too," Michael replied dryly, before yawning loudly.

"I'd rest if I were you," Valerie suggested gently. "You've lived four Minecraft days in the space of about an hour and a half. Its like the worst jet-lag ever."

"Sleepy sleepy dwarf..." Tash singsonged, causing Michael to snort. He was abruptly silenced as every piece of equipment in the Library with a speaker suddenly began to scream with obnoxiously tinkling music.

"Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan..."

And quite appropriately, skipping across the screen in place of the pop-tart cat was a single Creeper.

Up Against The Sky

It was something of a surprise to discover that he could open a plothole into the Library Arcanium. Then again, Zero supposed it shouldn't have been—if the safeguards on the portals were coded to DNA, it would have been impossible to make the distinction. Save for some minor differences in appearance, for all that computers (and, in fact, most magical energies) knew, he was the Librarian. It kind of made him wonder if he could also pull cool tricks around the Library, like opening up rooms or levitating books.

On a whim he faced a nearby shelf and lifted his hand, not sure what else to do. Predictably, nothing happened. Maybe book-levitating had more to do with being a mage than being Librarian? Zero didn't feel like digging through his memories to find out. Coming here was a bad idea to begin with, for more reasons than just the risk of getting caught, but... curiosity is a powerful thing.

He strode lightly down the deserted corridor, half exploring for the sake of exploring and half wondering where Valerie's room was. Not that he wanted to snoop, of course. Just for future reference. Hell, the entire layout of the Library would be useful if he was able to just pop in like this, although he wasn't quite willing to go that far just yet. He still had his suspicions about a lot of things, primarily Runoa's intentions. It kinda seemed preposterous that she didn't know he could do this, so why had she never mentioned it?

There was a pop sound and a small draft across his skin, and Zero turned from idly staring at book titles and thinking to notice, whaddaya know, he did have company. Fantastic.

Hovering before him was a tiny, golden dragon with the bluest of blue eyes. She hissed warningly at him, and he took half a step back.

But before he could do anything else, she lunged, and their eyes locked, and—

__________________________________________________

The first thing he sees is the face of his creator, the face of Creation itself. Herself, he realizes after a moment. He registers a veritable mountain of tumbling brown waves and curls that perfectly framed a delicate, elfin face and sparkling emerald eyes, light, ethereal clothing that sways in the breeze, and the overall demeanor of a beautiful, enviromental, fun-loving yet health-conscious genki girl (as physically fit as any Mary Sue could expect to be, but otherwise entirely reliant on the powers her sketchpad enables her; deprive her of that and knocking her out would be simple). She looked like every starving artist wannabe's irrational fantasy of what a real Bohemian was supposed to look like, what they dreamed that they could someday be if they could only get out of this damn flat and get recognized, and for a moment all he can think of is how cliche the whole scenario is.

He has just literally been drawn to life by the combined result of a pre-teen girl's fantasy and a deal with the devil, and not even an original idea at that. The knockoff creation of an unrealistic cliche, who in turn was the pawn of an even bigger cliche, if one of the tyrannical kind.

The juxtaposition of such polarizing ideas might have struck him as funny, but his strict policy of always finding things to laugh about wouldn't come until later. Much later.

Creation looks upward at Runoa for approval (clingy and dependent, and constantly seeking external verification for her work, as artists tend to do), and after a long moment of examing him up and down, Runoa nods.

"Not precisely what I had in mind, but I suppose he'll do."

Creation practically sags in relief, and he sort of wonders what it is that these women imagine he'll "do" (a weapon is fine, a puzzle piece is fine, but this is how she'll make that bastard hurt—), until his thought process is interrupted as Runoa speaks once again to her subordinate.

"You may erase the other attempts. They're of no use to me."

A shiver passes through him, but it will be a long time before he understands why.

-o-

I'm holding onto white balloons
Up against a sky of doom.
Tell me you see them.

-o-

She has been following the girl for some time now, on and off, for years. She never does anything but watch, or occasionally pull some antics to amuse. The child is only nine, but the follower knows the girl can feel her presence, even see her sometimes, though what she sees varies considerably from day to day.

As the girl grows older and her abilities begin to develop, a rudimentary form of communication becomes possible. The follower sends out emotions for the girl to pick up and interpret, and the girl sends her images and ideas in turn.

The first day the girl begins to understand actual words in her mind, the follower asks her something she had been waiting many, many years to ask.

What is my name?

The girl is puzzled. "You know what your name is. You've just never told me it."

Yes. But what is my name?

The girl thinks. Considers. Mulls it over on and off for days and days. It is a good sign, the follower thinks, that she does not immediately dismiss the question. She understands that this is not something she is supposed to guess, but to remember. She understands this without ever having been told of the true significance of remembering, without ever having been taught the true nature of the world around her and her place in it. Yes, the follower thinks, It is a very good sign.

It is almost two weeks later before the girl returns with her answer.

"I don't know your name," she says, "but would it be alright if I just called you Ari?"

Ari sends the feeling of a smile, but inwardly, in her true self beyond the stars that is not this tiny projection to a child's mind, she is celebrating.

She has finally found the one to whom she owes her life.

-o-

'Cause what's inside of me
Is invisible to most,
Even in clear view.

-o-

The first day is primarily one of confusion. There were people around, but almost none of them spoke to him unless it was a cursory greeting or an order - and orders were always spoken very slowly and clearly, as if they were just as unsure of what to do with him as he was of them (a new element in their midst; where does he fit in their pitiful little hierarchy and what threat does he pose if the social order changes?) (what they don't understand is that nothing changes; stagnancy is part of the very definition of their being).

Passion leads him to a room in one of the below-ground floors. The walls are stone, and there is no door, only a number next to the doorframe.

The Sovereign catches him staring. "Hm?" he says, still sounding bored (easily driven to mental instability when bored, combined with high creativity; approach with caution, and cater to his whims whenever possible), "Oh, the number? Yeah, you were actually the first one Creation made for your job, but then she started making a bunch of different versions and put them all in rooms with numbers. You took so long to wake up, we all thought you were broken or something." Passion laughs a little. "Turns out she got it right the first time, because those other ones were way defective. Sorta like... this!"

Passion throws a sucker punch, and he reacts instantly, simultaneously sidestepping the blow and twisting Passion's arm behind his back and digging his fingers into a nerve bundle at the shoulder. Then his eyes bulge out slightly (caution, dammit, caution!) as Passion elbows him hard in the gut, harder than one would have thought possible with his slight physique, and twists out of his grip.

"See?" the Sovereign cheers, "None of the others could pull that off even after days and days of training." Passion grins broadly at him. "Patient Zero my ass. You're no zero, man, you'll fit in great here. Maybe we could play some games together, hey?"

He blinks once, then steps into the room marked with a "0", lays down on the bed, and waits until he hears retreating footsteps before closing his eyes.

The next morning, when he asks the others to refer to him as Zero, it raises a few eyebrows (who would want to be known as nothing?), but everyone complies. Most of them assume it is simply some kind of in-joke. They are half-right.

-o-

I'm sending out a signal to
The possibility of you,
'Cause right at this moment...

-o-

It has been years and years and lifetimes since the death of a friend, a very dear friend, and Ari is no longer sure what to do with herself. The war is over, though the scars on the land and the people remain. Keeping day-to-day affairs running smoothly takes up her time, but recovery is primarily a secretarial job, easily delegated to subordinates. More often than not she finds herself wondering what will come next.

Later, new intelligence comes in: the war has not ended, it has simply moved.

Many of those who are politicians by trade rather than soldiers panic. Others argue about the proper course of action. Is this evil truly their responsibility anymore? Might they be left to recover from their battle scars in peace, or is their fight not over yet? Do they have the right to give aide to a world so deep in the spiritual dark ages, or should they put forth the effort and finish what they started?

Ari does none of these things. She simply goes where she always goes for answers: home.

Eadoin meets her there, ever-willing to help. With his band of friends and their combined talents, it isn't long before they find what they're looking for.

"Domhain Dorcha," she breaths, and it's all she can do to keep the fear out of her voice. The dark world, the world the elders always spoke about in hushed, disquieted voices. The one they actually knew so little about, that was really full of such potential and light, hidden away beneath the surface. They would be easy pickings.

Easy pickings, but also firm and numerous allies, if the right messengers could be reached.

-o-

...I know you are connected to a part of me
That I don't even know myself.

-o-

His dreams are immediate and profound—

a narrow cliff jutting out over the sea against a setting sun, and planted blade-first at the tip of cliff is hoshikuzu, adrian's pendant dangling and swaying off the crossguard in the wind while the pages of the codex of index, which is leaning against the blade, flutter back and forth 

standing in darkness and his eyes widen as the darkness lashes and twines around him, threatening to drag him deeper as he struggles vainly against it, his hand reaches out in desperation and a hand reaches down, grasping his tightly and the darkness recedes

the healer leans forwards and gently blows on the sphere in her hands and it flares with light, growing larger and the librarian mimics her actions and he watches with a surprised, happy smile on his face as the two spheres grow in size and launch into the sky, dancing and spinning around one another as their combined light drives the darkness away

—and he has no idea what to make of them. So he simply watches, and takes every new piece of information like a puzzle piece and coolly analyzes them with a mind programmed to do exactly that. Zero rebuilds the idea of the person he was based on and wonders if being like him should be a goal of his.

Even after months of consideration—

a bubbling laugh that is both horrifying and joyful in all the worst ways, there has been so much, too much for memory to hold, and when he breaks, as all know he will someday, the explosion will be a truly spectacular sight to behold for as long as he lets you live to see it

—he is still not certain. And the more he sees, the less certain he is.

Then again, you could never have said Zero to be sure of anything that wasn't a total impulse. If he wants to do something, he does it, and if Runoa or Creation or practically anyone else wants him to do something, he does that too. And that strikes Zero as being altogether too similar to how Adrian functions in relation to the Powers That Be, and look where that got him. Did he never once just do something he wanted to do? (or worse, was everything exactly what he wanted, death and all?)

Zero doesn't know what he wants, but there is a curious freedom in ambivalence that he decides he likes.

-o-

The changes in me
Are likely to be like the weather:
Stormy and clear,
Strength into fear, bound together.

-o-

It is the No-thing that holds the Every-thing, the dragon teaches her. The All and the Parts, the Beginning and End, all wrapped together in a pure, shining singularity. That is the nature of the Soul.

Ari's wanderings go on for years, sometimes in the dragon's company, but most often not. Like the elders of Ari's homeland, the dragon is very set in his ways in addition to being very, very old, and he prefers not to travel very far from his cliffside cavern home. Ari is always saddened to have to part with her new friend and mentor, but each time they meet again is a new joy. (This too, is one of his lessons, as she will realize in the years to come.)

"To travel a circle is to traverse the same ground over and over," Ari intones softly, almost as though thinking aloud the experiences that led her to finally understand this lesson, like so many lessons before it (and her elders would be proud, for what else is an adolescent journey for?). "To travel a circle wisely is to traverse the same ground for the first time."

And when you realize at last that you have circled back to the starting point, the dragon prompts her, you understand...

In only a few short years, Ari has circled the globe. She has come to love this world, with all its expanses, all its variety, and always more to learn or explore or understand. Even with the chosen ones missing and a war brewing, she cannot help but feel a sense of childlike giddiness and wonder, in such contrast to the solemnity of her youth. But she is still a youth yet, she knows, and though introspection and exploration were two very different paths to wisdom, both were paths indeed. If she had wanted to, she could have learned everything she needed to without moving at all. The power, the memory, the experience was always with her. It merely needed to be brought to the surface, just as the elders always said.

Ari's eyes light up. "You understand that your only destination is where you have already been!"

The dragon smiles at her. And always were.

-o-

But I'll break my silence
If I believe that you and me
Could ever be more than just
What's been behind us.

-o-

He meets Death only once. It is a very short meeting (if bone and sinew grow continually from nothing, then nothing is what he shall be, and zero told him so), punctuated by harsh words, sucker punches, and one brief, hastily bitten off scream in the voice of the man they were both imitating. Acknowledgement, Zero thinks angrily, is what marks the difference between them. Acknowledgement of truth and lies, of grounded fact and baseless desire, and the strength of character to understand what your place in the world is. This will shape Zero's personality and outlook far more than either of them initially realize.

He meets the legendary Willowe Foxblade only twice, and the second time is because she asks to see him personally. She tells him what she knows of the man she killed (as his killer, she likely knows him better than anyone, better than even his lover), and he tells her of his dreams, a little. Before she leaves for the Real World, she warns him of the dangers of complacency, warns him with a kind of desperation in her soul (he looks like him, acts like him, and maybe it would all be worth it if she could save just one more), so he nods, and she smiles her very last smile.

A misused comment at Order quickly earns him an enemy, and Zero learns to keep interactions with Sovereigns to a minimum after that. Passion and Harmony are kind, Wisdom and Elegance seem to find him entertaining, and Creation looks upon him with a kind of prideful ownership, similarly to how a craftsman may look upon a fine table she has made. When Zero thinks about it, he understands, and does not hold it against her, but it does grind against him sometimes.

Runoa visits Zero daily, to ask him questions or for demonstrations of what he's learned that day. Eventually he points out that he has not technically "learned" a single thing since he got here; everything he knows is merely something he has remembered. Remembered from Adrian? she asks. Remembered from me, he replies, not sure why she hasn't yet picked up on something so obvious. She asks him if there is yet more to remember. He says he doesn't know, but that he would be disappointed if there wasn't.

(it is interesting, he thinks, to watch the expressions that trail across her face as they converse: surprise, disagreement, the barest flicker of tightly-controlled malice, finally smoothing over into smugness and pride—

"Excellent work, Zero. You may just be exactly what I've been looking for."

—but it is not him that she has pride in.)

-o-

I tried and left.
I came and went.
I got rejected out again.
No one believes me.

-o-

Exploration is encouraged in all Eiran children. A boy called Eadoin is her most loyal partner in these endeavors - he is curious, like her, though not so bold as to directly defy the elders' edicts. (Not by himself, anyway.)

They are at their most dangerous during those precious few moments at the waterfall, as far down the chute as they could go before they risked falling into the ocean miles and miles below. It is freezing, nothing like the ensorcelled warmth of the valleys above them, but they reach as close as they dare to touch the rushing icy water. They have both been taught that this waterfall, which plummets from the bottommost tip of the Eire into Gaeya's northern ocean, is the endless fount of wisdom for those who choose to live below, giving life to the land and giving love and wonder to the people. But the water is hard and bitingly cold, and Ari can't help but wonder what would happen to a poor soul caught directly beneath the force of all of this "wisdom".

Not long afterward, she requests to go on her adolescent journey. The elders comply to her request as is custom, and outfit her with everything she will need, that she might return home safely.

Her adventure begins, as many do, on the night of a storm.

Many days later, when she is huddled in the cave that is the home of the dragon who rescued her and listening to his story, Ari will realize with all the subtlety of a roar that nothing will ever be the same.

-o-

I've worn a hundred faces
Of the character replacements and now
Nobody sees me.

-o-

He is hiding in one of the castle's service corridors, grinning at the fact that the heretofore unmentioned service corridors actually existed and became accessible as soon as he had need of them, almost as though they had been conjured into being just for him. Being a Stu, dangerous though it is, is actually quite fun, but only as long as there is some way to give his abilities direction; he wants none of the stagnant complacency that plagues all but the most insane in Runoa's castle (runoa herself knows this to be true).

He discovers a highly convenient hole in the wall that is camouflaged by a highly convenient portrait on the other side. It is difficult to see through it, but Zero can make out Creation scribbling furiously on her sketchpad, frequently crossing things out or even tearing out entire pages. He cannot see Runoa from this position, but it's not difficult to deduce who Creation is talking to.

"Why can't I find him?!" she finally shouts, moving over to the area of the room that Zero cannot clearly see. He hears a loud thwap sound and thinks that Creation has probably thrown her sketchbook to the ground, or against a wall. "He is my drawing!" the Sovereign screams (desperate and raving, beyond even her need for approval now, because runoa cannot give her what is already gone), "My creation! I should be able to find him anywhere and do whatever I like with him! Even erase him from existence if I want! So why can't I? What's blocking me?!?"

The loud smack of a slap to the face can be clearly heard, followed by pregnant silence.

"Because he is a Gary-Stu, you nitwit," Runoa finally says. "Of course he isn't going to react normally." (runoa herself knows this to be true, programmed the urge into him—)

Creation cannot keep a small whine out of her voice. "But he's mine," she says softly, almost accusingly (but never rebelliously). "He was made with my power, and I'm supposed to be able to unmake anything that's mine if I want to. You said—"

"I gave you your powers and I know their full extent," Runoa interrupts sharply. "Believe me when I say, Sovereign, that Zero is acting exactly the way I programmed him to."

(runoa herself knows this to be true, programmed the urge into him, understands him, and knows exactly what zero is seeking when zero himself does not, and yet does not tell creation this because—)

"...Yes, Lieutenant."

Zero backs away, turns, and starts running. As far away as he can.

-o-

The changes in me
Are likely to be like the weather:
...Cloudy at best.

-o-

It is after the third time they caught her peering through keyholes and sneaking into council meetings that they bestowed upon her a name: Ari.

The word itself has no meaning, but there is a similar name, Aari, that is supposedly the name of one of the Goddess' feline companions, one rumored to have an abnormally keen interest in the affairs of mortals.

Many, many years later, when she meets her namesake for the first time, Ari will be proud of the legacy she inherited. She will understand that the elders meant it as a symbol of elevation, of acknowledgement that she was destined for greater things than they, though her true destiny would turn out to be much smaller than they imagined - a critical but nonetheless minor role in the proceedings, and perhaps that's appropriate, for what curious cat draws attention to herself as she hunts for new places to explore?

Now, though, right at this moment, to Ari's wise but nevertheless childish mind, the name feels like a gesture of rejection. You are not one of us. You are otherworldly. Take your difficult questions elsewhere, child, for we refuse to answer them.

That night, when she returns to her dwelling, Ari chooses to sleep on the roof rather than in her bed. Under the stars, she dreams of cat whiskers and dragon wings, and worlds far beyond her own.

-o-

Angels lift me.
Are you with me?
I'm holding onto you
Like I'm holding onto white balloons...

-o-

He had not thought before he left that dodging Silri would be an issue - she never once paid him any mind at the castle, and he saw no reason for that to change - but apparently it is (insanity is not a good look for her, and he does not even agree with her quest or the one who assigned it anymore—), and it is more difficult than he originally thought. Calming her down is even moreso (—but he can't help but empathize in a way nonetheless), but worth it, even if the alliance is temporary by its very definition.

Neither of them has a side to be fully loyal to, so why not?

After their little rescue operation, they part ways. She attacks him twice more in subsequent weeks. Both times Zero has to remind her that he is not, in fact, Adrian, and both times it takes him pinning her to the ground before she would open her eyes and look at the clear difference in his. The second time, she slashes at his side anyway, and as she leaps away once again, Zero decides that he'll keep the scar.

He is therefore surprised when he does not hear from Silri at all after Adrian's return. In a way, he is surprised that he is surprised, because there is no confusion now. She was the only one who couldn't tell the difference, and perhaps it's for the best—

But then another portal opens, and another familiar girl steps into view (long brunette hair billowing in the breeze, and he can see why adrian felt attraction to her once, but she never made a move, never reciprocated in that way, and adrian moved on to other things), and Zero can't help the broad grin that appears on his face.

-o-

Carry me away!
I hope that you don't break.

-o-

The first thing she sees is the people of her homeland, this misty paradise in the sky. The other children of the Rite - actually a large group this year, all born of the largest and most diversely populated Beltanne festival to date, and all therefore special in ways not yet determined - play in the green meadows dotted here and there with stone fences and wildflowers, but she sits in a treetop by herself. She can hear a few adults below her, watching her, wondering to themselves why she is so introspective at such a young age (not even twenty, barely finished being a toddler). They whisper of strange events foretold in their Telling Pools, of dark times ahead in both the Land Below and in the opposite world. The Domhain Dorcha, they called it. She listens to them, and they continue to speak as though she is not there, and she wonders how to describe the feeling of frustration that wells in her heart.

Later, she will find a good word for it: hypocrisy.

The Eire is stagnant, lifeless, frozen in time as its people become more and more convinced that they have cultivated the perfect lifestyle. The wars and petty arguments of the different nations in the land below do not interest them; they are emissaries to the gods, come straight down from the Palace of Stars itself. They are not privy to the farcical yoke that binds surface-dwellers of Gaeya and those ridiculously short-lived, short-sighted excuses for humans of Domhain Dorcha alike. They are above. They are different. They are better.

Do something! she will cry one day, tears in her eyes as she cradles an egg that will never hatch. Our ancestors came down from the stars because they wanted to live in this world, within the bounds of time, where each moment can be experienced and cherished! What is there to experience if everything is beneath you? What is there to learn if you already know all?

(Three times she will make this plea. The first time, they will give her a name. The second time, they will give her a quest. The third time, they will listen, but by then, it is almost too late.)

She will throw the egg she holds at her elders, frustrated and heartbroken, in a display of impulsivity completely unknown to the peace of the Eire. But the shell is hollow, empty inside, and will shatter in the first hand that catches it.

Now, though, right at this moment, she sits in her treetop while a particularly strong wind blows, and is grateful for the sturdiness of her perch.

-o-

I hope that you don't break...
Don't break...

-o-

Nothing changes, while Everything stays the same. It is a dichotomy that is invisible to most; only one soul in a thousand could ever understand Nothing to be a proper noun on the same level as its opposite partner. Nothing exists. Nothing has form. Nothing is exactly what it needs to be in order for Everything to continue in the way it always has.

Yes, Valerie, I know who you are.

I remember you quite well, actually, although you don't remember me. 

And maybe that's for the best.

Though I've no doubt you could remember me if you tried.

I've always followed orders, but now I'm kind of at a loss.

I spent my life wandering, but with you I found purpose.

I'm not afraid of what the future holds, because

I can handle myself, don't worry,

but what about you? What will you do in the times to come?

but Runoa is more dangerous than any of you realize. No matter how much you prepare, you're not ready.

Runoa is practice compared to what's next. I've watched you prepare, but still I fear for the future.

Runoa's promise

Monika's visions

will happen, and there's nothing any of us can do to stop it.

So no matter what happens, 

I think

I know that

I want to help you.

I don't know why, but

Our previous connection makes it so that

we understand each other.

And that's all anyone ever needs.

__________________________________________________

The connection broke. Snapped, really, and the little dragon reeled back before regaining herself and regarding Zero with a glare and a soft hiss. Zero, for his part, almost wanted to apologize. The more he thought about it, the more he realized Ari's little intrusion was probably a test of some sort, and reacting instinctively when you have such highly exaggerated abilities and resilience is almost never what you'd call safe.

He noticed her trembling slightly, as though having difficulty concentrating, and his eyes widened. "Oh shit, I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. He hoped he hadn't done any permanent damage; that would not be good for his standing with Valerie. "I've never spent much time around people who weren't, like, level 8 or better, and they all shrug off whatever anyone does like it's nothing, accidental or otherwise. Shit, are you alright?"

Ari stretched and shook herself as a dog might - for a brief moment she was a dog, actually, before returning to her preferred fire-lizard form - and regarded the Stu with a critical eye.

Zero didn't move.

It would be difficult to explain what transpired between the two on that morning, in that place where "morning" has no more meaning than the one you give it. One who was the hero of another story, the other who didn't really expect his story to go much further than it had. Neither of them were active participants in the battle against perfection, though both had rejected it in their own way. Both understood the dangers of complacency better than most. And both had found themselves, either suddenly or over a period of years and years and lifetimes, in full and unwavering support of the one girl who understood that, in order to achieve true perfection, you didn't have to change a thing.

Ari moved faster than the eye could blink, gliding past Zero's ear before vanishing. But it was not with the pop of displaced air that accompanied travel between. It was a relatively slow fade-out, visible and almost frightening if you didn't know she was vanishing from this world on purpose. The fire-lizard form, for all its versatility and astonishing parallels with her own abilities, was still nothing more than a guise, after all. Ari had places to be, things to prepare before time was up.

Zero gasped as she passed, eyes widening in astonishment as two words entered his mind, words laced with feelings of approval, understanding, and perhaps the beginnings of trust.

-o-

Don't break.

Insert Fixed and Pointless Talent Show Here (part 5 of 5)

“This is so bad...” Valerie was muttering as she tapped hastily at the computers. Still the screen remained blank. She turned hopefully to the head chef. “Anything?”

“Not a thing,” Rhia was hanging up and trying another number. “Come on guys, where are you?!”

“Something wrong?” Ben appeared, hovering in the doorway in curiosity. He frowned as he registered the fuzzy camera on the monitor screen. “Which fandom is that?”

“The Talent Show fandom,” Valerie reported, still tapping away at the keyboard. “The fandom has been blocked from our system.”

“How?” Ben asked, pushing his way into the room to get a better view of the screen.

“From the inside,” Valerie said. “Some kind of spell...”

“Shh!” Rhia waved a hand at them both as she listened to the automated voice. “It has not been possible to connect your call...our phones are blocked too...”

“We have to get in there,” Ben declared firmly. “They may need help.”

Despite his words, he still looked at Valerie – with all three Society leaders inside the fandom, she was the most senior member around. She glanced at the blank screen again, before nodding.

“Do it. Take Bahamut, and be careful.”

As Ben turned to leave, Rhia had a sudden thought. “Ben! Is everything okay downstairs?”

“Yeah, I left Shirley and Willie in charge.”

Rhia’s phone slid from her grasp.

“You left Willie in charge downstairs with the Sues? Are you high?!”

She bolted from the room, with Valerie right behind her, and both of them stumbled down to the basement. It was deathly silent in the room below.

Shirley stood quietly in the corner, still filing her claws, and testing them against the wall. Willie was nowhere to be seen, but the reason for the silence was quickly understandable. Aster was hovering above the Sue’s heads, and appeared to be lecturing them on the brilliance of Lucky Star. When one of them appeared to be nodding off, she would pull out her staff and bonk them painfully on the head with it.

“Where Willie?” Valerie demanded, her hands on her hips. Dave, who alone appeared unperturbed by Aster’s lecture, reached into the huddle of fearful looking Sues, and plucked an unconscious Willie up by the scruff of his neck. “He objected to the impromptu class.” He explained.

“Well... alright then,” Rhia shrugged, ducking as Aster jabbed her staff in her direction. “Aster, Sue Factor is about to start again, so save your lesson for later.”

Huffing, the fae resumed her hovering position above the Sue’s heads, as they all scrambled eagerly for their seats once more.

“We need to keep quiet about this,” Rhia muttered to Valerie, as Cristoph and Dave slid to their sides. “If the Sues know something is wrong, we could have a prison riot on our hands.”

“I wish Emily or Adrian was here,” Valerie admitted. “They might know why we can’t see the fandom...”

“Which fandom is this?” Cristoph asked curiously. Before anyone could answer, Ben clattered noisily down the stairs and hurried over to them, Bahamut strapped to his back.

“I can’t get through,” he reported, dropping his voice so as not to raise alarm. “Whatever that thing is blocking our plotholes from the Talent Show fandom.”

“Is that possible?” Rhia asked, not bothering to disguise the worry on her face.

“Not normally,” Valerie explained. “But the Talent Show fandom isn’t a fandom like the others. Other fandoms have plotholes left in them by their authors, which anyone can exploit. Talent Shows aren’t stories though, so its easy to seal them off entirely from the outside world.”

“So what you are saying,” Cristoph summarised the situation quickly. “Is that they’re stuck in the fandom, and cannot get out?”

Nodding grimly, Valerie glanced in the direction of the television screen, where the news was winding up. “At this point, they’re on their own...”

OOO

“Still nothing?” Michael asked hopefully. Phoenixia shook her head, as she and Tash slid back into their seats.

“We waited until there was no one around,” Phoenixia said. “Then we tried our plothole generators and Tash’s doors. Nothing works. We’re still stuck.”

They had reluctantly agreed to return to their seats. No one was that bothered about the contest any longer, since their leaders had almost died and Phoenixia had been forced to confront the man of her nightmares. Back in kitty form, Adrian was staying low in his seat, ears flat against his head, less Runoa appear and resume their fight. Everyone was twice as paranoid, just waiting for their cover to be blown, despite the fact that the SEP fields protected them from any wandering gazes.

“We’ll just have to wait until the contest is over,” Harriet declared firmly, much to everyone’s dismay. “They have to open the fandom to let people leave. We’ll just leave with the rest of the audience.”

“But we want to leave now...” Emily said, fingering her handbag nervously, her supersoaker and Incandescent Silverreign safely stowed once more.

“I know!” Harriet huffed irritably. “But that’s the way this is going. So we’re just going to have to deal.”

“You’re just grumpy because you haven’t shaved, and we can all see your thighs,” Jess commented.

“Oh shut up!” the leader wished she had something to throw, but given that her handbag and clothing were still in Ardelisa’s room, drying over the radiator, she lacked anything to hand.

The cause of Jess’s comment was the short dress she had been forced to wear in lieu of spending the last fifteen minutes of show time in damp clothing. Still she reckoned she was better off than Tash, who was wearing one of Ardelisa’s full length black dresses from one of the previous weeks performances. Unfortunately for both girls, Ardelisa was only five foot two, and thus the black dress was swinging gaily about Tash’s shins instead of the floor, and Harriet’s mini dress was leaving very little of the leaders legs to the imagination.

“I can’t wait to get out of this thing,” Tash commented, apparently on the same line of thought as her friend. “She’s got bigger boobs than me.”

“Everyone has bigger boobs than you Tash,” Emily muttered, and Harriet gave her a poke for being so rude.

“We’ll go get our stuff from Ardelisa after the show...”

“Providing she doesn’t win,” Michael pointed out. “If she’s won she’ll be swamped with fans and people trying to congratulate her.”

“...dodging the fanbase...” Harriet added. “Get our stuff, and go.”

“LIVE IN FIVE, FOUR, THREE...” Magdalena was shouting once more, and as the countdown finished, the credits began to roll and the audience cheered. No one in the back row joined in.

“Welcome back to Sue Factor 2010!” Sparrow had reappeared, and looked overly excited to be live once more. “Our final two acts have both sung one final time. You have voted in your thousands, and I can declare that the phone lines are now...closed!”

The audience gave an ‘ooo!’ of anticipation, and Sparrow continued to speak.

“That’s it! You can’t change the outcome any longer. Please don’t call now, your vote will not count and you may still be charged!”

She twirled to face another camera, this time meandering her way off the main stage, and onto the section where the judges table sat.

“While the votes are being counted, we have a very special tribute tonight. Two years ago, we met a woman on this competition who was one of the most talented individuals we have ever seen. In January of this year, she passed away in her struggle to make the multiverse a better place for Mary-Sues.”

Any hint of a smile on Harriet’s face immediately slid off.

“Tonight we remember her, and her victory from Sue Factor 2008. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Willowe.”

“...what?!” Jess, Michael and Claire all exclaimed in unison, but they were drowned out by the audience, who cheered as Willowe’s name flashed on the screen, and the video clips began to roll. In the middle of the row, Emily had frozen to her seat.

“You never told us Willowe went on Sue Factor!” Phoenixia turned accusingly to Harriet.

“I didn’t know!” the leader protested, as a bright eyed, rosy cheeked Willowe appeared on stage, before an unfamiliar panel of judges.

“What’s your name?” Surprisingly, the figure in the head judges seat, was Cassie Anora.

“Willowe Diamond Honeysuckle Allisonette Frankincense Ravenne Hyacinth Aurelia Sakurelle Dewdrop Arwennia Heliotrope Appleflower Kristellia Sandriline Delilah Aphrodite Emyntrude Bob Yuffiana Swainsona Vipertooth Foxblade the Third,” the Sue replied with a winning smile.

“Bloody hell...” one of the male judges snickered.

The screen wiped to Willowe singing beautifully to an enraptured audience. It was as though a choir of angels had descended from heaven. Her voice spoke of pain, suffering and inner strength.

“Maybe tonight, we’ll fly so far away... we’ll be lost before the dawn...”

“Bloody hell!” the male judge from before repeated, only this time his voice was faint and awe inspired. Everyone had to laugh at him, as Willowe smiled prettily to her supportive audience.

“The biggest yes I have ever given anyone!” Cassie declared, beaming at her. Willowe’s thanks were drowned out by the audience, and as she got backstage, her face broke into the widest grin anyone had ever seen.

“I can’t believe they liked me!” she was saying, trying to be modest despite how much joy she showed. “But they did! That was the best feeling ever!”

The image faded away to the live performances, with Willowe up on stage under dim lights, a background of rippling white and silver across the screens behind her.

“There will be no white flag above my door... I’m in love and always will be...”

Everyone was silent as she sang, and the judges seemed barely able to string their responses together.

“You really are something special,” the judge beside Cassie was saying. “And I really want to see you make it to the final.”

The screen wiped, but it was not focused on the stage this time. It was taken backstage. Tucked just behind a sliding screen was Willowe, dressed in casual clothes, curled up with her knees under her chin. Her fingers were gripping her wildly tangled auburn hair, and even from a distance the tears on her cheeks were clearly visible.

“We’ve just heard,” the screen cut to a shot of the male judge who was speaking directly to the camera, “that one of Willowe’s sisters has been captured by the Anti-Cliche and Mary-Sue Elimination Society.”

Everyone in the back row felt a nasty chill go down their spines, as the screen cut back to Willowe, still sitting on the floor backstage, but with her head resting on Cassie’s shoulder, as the Lieutenant knelt to comfort her.

“She’s refusing to practise,” now it was Cassie, standing to address the camera outside the dressing rooms. “She won’t sing. She won’t even move. She’s devastated.”

In her seat, Emily was fighting back her own tears. She knew that this must have been when Holly was captured. She had not cared much at the time. She had been sad for her, but was bitter too. All she had seen was Holly and Juniper abandoning them to go and find Willowe... their wonderful and perfect sister who was fighting back against the Society and going to make the world better for Sues. Now she knew better about Willowe, and she felt horrible for all the times she had ever believed that her sister had not cared.

Cutting back to the image of Willowe, still being embraced by Cassie, the woman who would one day attempt to take over real life, spoke in a choked whisper. It was impossible to hear, but the image was subtitled, and still managed to cut like a knife into the hearts of everyone watching.

“I can’t do it... I can’t...”

“Yes you can,” Cassie said gently, pulling back and wiping tears from her cheeks. “You can do it for them...”

Apparently she could, for the next shot was Willowe back on stage, dark blue and green lights sweeping back and forth across the stage as she sang.

“There’s no other way when it comes to the truth, so keep holding on... cause you know we’ll make it through, we’ll make it through...”

Something in her voice was different. Instead of the strength she had shown in the previous weeks, she sounded as though she might break. But the pain only seemed to give her voice more depth, and several of the judges joined the audience in floods of tears.

“I know this song was for your sister,” the second male judge was saying. “And you’ve done her and your whole family proud tonight. You’ve come up to the stage, and gone on, even though you’re hurting. You’re so brave to do that.”

From the scream of the audience, it was clear that they all agreed. There was not a single person in the studio who was against Willowe that night.

The next image was Willowe in her dressing room, casually dressed once more, but still managing to look gorgeous. She wore a face of powerful determination, and Tash could not help but shiver. The last time she had seen that expression was when she had fought the Sue herself in the Sahara.

“I’ve made it to the final,” Willowe was saying. “I have to win now. I have to do this for my fans. For myself. But most of all, I want to do this for my sisters.”

Images of Willowe rehearsing to an empty studio were flashing up as she continued to speak.

“The power can go out. The world can end tonight. My own author can show up and try to interfere. But none of that is going to stop me from winning.”

The screen wiped once more, back to the stage, which was dark, shrouded in smoke, and had stars swirling across the screens at the back.

“Touch me! Its so easy to leave me... all alone with my memory... of my days in the sun...”

“You are an incredible singer,” Cassie was saying. “But tonight you went to a whole new level. That was perfect, in every sense.”

Now the stage was bright, with all the colours of the rainbow weaving their way across the screens, as Willowe sang her final song, and her last hope for her victory, her voice reaching every corner of the studio. The audience were on their feet screaming, but Willowe did not seem to notice. She was smiling, her heart and soul in every single word that passed her lips.

“Somewhere over the rainbow... bluebirds fly...”

As the music continued on, the screen shifted to a dark stage, with Willowe and another Sue, both stood in spotlights with their judges on their arms, looking ready to snap from the tension.

“Willowe!”

The audience were beside themselves, but it was nothing to the shock on Willowe’s face, or the delight that quickly replaced it as her judge hugged her tightly.

The sounds of the former audience died off as the screen faded into the stage once more. Everyone else had cleared off stage, leaving just the winner, who was still wiping tears of happiness from her cheeks as the music began to play. She drew a deep breath, and raised her head to look at the audience, her smile radiant.

In the present day audience, several people began to applaud softly as they realised they were being treated to the Sue’s best performance that evening.

“Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high...”

There was no nervousness in her voice. Only pure joy for her victory and surety of her own skill. The audiences, past and present, fell willingly under her spell.

“There’s a land that I’ve heard of, once in a lullaby...”

She hit every note perfectly. Harriet found herself torn. However much she wanted to punch her satanic offspring for everything she had put her through, she had to admit Willowe was good. And she was still completely stunned. Just how many more times was Willowe going to continue to surprise her, even after death?

“Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue... and the dreams that you dare to dream, really do come true...”

The Sue brushed another tear from her porcelain cheek, and Emily felt herself hiccup as the lump in her throat seemed to swell. She touched the hairclip in her fringe, and felt tears trickle from her eyes.

“Someday I’ll wish upon a star, and wake up where the clouds are far behind me...”

She had wanted that for all of them, Emily recalled the letter her sister had given her during the Battle of the Library. She had wanted a perfect world, so that she could look back and all of her problems would be a distant memory.

“Where trouble melts like lemon drops, way up above the chimney tops, that’s where you’ll find me!”

The dramatic volume of her voice did not diminish the quality, and the studio lights spun across the stage like dancers, red, yellow, green, blue shimmering past the singer. Willowe herself was giving the finale of the song, and indeed, the finale of the show, her all, as confetti began to rain down from the ceiling onto the winner of Sue Factor.

“Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly... birds fly over the rainbow. Why, then oh why can’t I?”

Never had Emily missed her sister so much. There was so much she had never asked her, and so much she wanted to know about her now. How had she felt when she had stood on that stage and been pronounced the winner? Had she really been thinking of her sisters?

“If happy little blue birds fly... beyond the rainbow, why, oh why can’t I...?”

Looking at her face, joyous and yet entirely peaceful at the same time, Emily decided yes. She had been thinking of them.

The cheers from the audience of the past were picked up by the present day people in the studio, who got to their feet applauding. Emily found herself joining them, to the surprise of the rest of the Society. Harriet’s eyebrows arched into her hairline, and Tash’s scowl redoubled. Emily supposed she could not blame her – Willowe would always be Harriet’s biggest shame, and Tash would always remember her as the Sue who had killed her boyfriend and almost taken over Real Life.

Sparrow came back onto the stage with no bounce, wiping tears from her eyes as she went.

“A beautiful performance that we will always remember,” she declared. “But now, its time. You’ve voted in your thousands. And now the waiting is over. I give you the Sue Factor 2010 top two finalists!”

She stepped backwards as the centre screen rolled up once more. Dramatic music blasted into the studio, creating an effective contrast from the gentle recording of Willowe’s voice. Stepping out onto the left side of the stage were Bella and Ardelisa. The protagonist of Twilight had her arm around Ardelisa’s shoulders and was hugging her as though afraid she might pass out from nerves. Ardelisa showed no hint of what had transpired during the intermission, and her hair and clothes were as immaculate as ever. There was not even a drop of water that betrayed that she had had to save the Society leaders from drowning earlier.

As they moved to a stop, Harriet saw Ardelisa straighten suddenly in her judges hug, and her eyes gave the tiniest hint of a scowl. From the way her face was angled, the Society leader could tell she was glaring at Runoa, who sat with Merle at the judges desk. Remembering the events from not half an hour ago, Harriet wondered if Runoa knew yet that she and Tash had escaped her little trap.

On the right side of the stage, Edward Cullen had his arm around Harmony, who looked calm and unflustered by the impending results. She looked at the audience with a smile, and the volume of the screaming fans seemed to double.

Finally they fell quiet enough for Sparrow to speak. The stage lights dimmed to black, leaving both Sues and their judges in brightly lit spotlights. Sparrow could no longer be seen, but her voice carried to the whole room.

“Ardelisa. The judges called you absolutely stunning, and said that all bets were off tonight after your performance.”

The centuries old Sue blushed magnificently, and looked at her shoes, as though trying to deflect the admiring words.

“Harmony,” Sparrow continued. “Tonight the judges said that your voice was unbelievable, and that there were no words to describe your performance.”

Beaming, Harmony embraced the comments, leaning slightly into her judge, and clasping both hands neatly in front of her.

“But there can be only one winner here tonight,” Sparrow declared. “I can tell you that we have had a record breaking number of votes from across the multiverse tonight, and not a single member of the studio audience failed to raise their keypad tonight.”

She paused, and the audience seemed to pick up their cheering again.

“The winner of Sue Factor 2010 is...”

She could barely be heard over the noise. The audience were on their feet, cheering and yelling for their favourite act, as though they could change the result with their enthusiasm. The Society got up too to see over the heads of the fans. Harmony stood perfectly still like a statue, and Ardelisa’s hands had crept under her chin in prayer. The stillness on stage was completely at odds with the audience, who were beside themselves.

“...Harmony!”

The noise from the fans was deafening. On stage Harmony’s overjoyed face was hidden from view as Edward swept her up into a hug that lifted her off her feet. Ardelisa looked crushed, but was slowly pulled into an embrace by Bella, who tucked a strand of her contestant’s hair back and smiled at her encouragingly. Ardelisa nodded in response to whatever was said, and quickly hurried over to the other side of the stage to hug Harmony. The winner could not stop smiling.

OOO

In the basement of the Library, a smaller, but no less forceful cheer had erupted from the Sues, who had sat on the edge of their seats throughout the entire results. Temporarily deafened, and disappointed by the outcome, the Society agents just sighed and shrugged, as around them, Harmony’s fans hugged each other in happiness. The ones that had supported Ardelisa, slumped in their seats and began to pick at the remaining tortilla chips and popcorn with little enthusiasm.

“Ah well, that’s that,” Ben shrugged.

“Mmm...” Rhia was nodding vaguely. “Now we’ve just got to get everyone home...”

OOO

“Ardelisa,” Sparrow was trying to extract the runner up from the hug that was now in danger of squashing Harmony to death. “Ardelisa... commiserations...”

She pulled the Sue from the hug, and patted her comfortingly on the shoulder. Ardelisa was clearly disappointed, but it was the gracious disappointment of someone who understood that the better contestant had won.

“You must be devastated,” Sparrow declared, and Ardelisa shook her head prettily.

“No. It a shame not to have won, but Harmony really deserves it. I’m really glad for her.”

There was a round of approving applause at this statement. In the back row, Harriet was pouting at the outcome.

“Fix...” Tash muttered. “I’ll bet you anything Runoa pulled some strings.”

She was glaring down at the judges panel, where Merle and Runoa were on their feet applauding. Merle’s clapping was unenthusiastic, but Runoa looked more alert than she had at any point that evening, and she could not stop the pride radiating from her face.

“I don’t think so,” Alice shook her head. “Runoa might be the most powerful Sue here, but the Sues are too damn perfect and honourable to want to fix the competition. And look at her face? She wouldn’t be that proud of her Sovereign if she had needed to fix the results.”

“Let’s give it up for our runner up, Ardelisa!” Sparrow was applauding, and the rest of the audience cheered for the contestant. Smiling sadly, Ardelisa backed away so that Sparrow could get to Harmony.

"Harmony! Congratulations! How do you feel?"

The Sovereign was smiling widely, more emotion on her face than there had been all evening.

"Brilliant. I'm so happy."

"You look it," Sparrow said earnestly, before turning to the judge. "Edward, what do you have to say to your winner?"

The Twilight protagonist looked as though Christmas and his birthday had come at once. He gave Harmony another one armed hug as he replied.

"She's such a wonderful person, and it has been a real privilege to be her judge."

"Highlight of the competition?" Sparrow leaned back towards the winner.

"Too many things," Harmony said. "Its all been wonderful. I'd just like to thank everyone who voted. I couldn't have done it without their support."

Harriet was sure that everyone's hands must have been numb by that point, but they clapped and screamed anyway. Now that it was over, she was fidgety and very eager to be out of her seat and back in the Library... maybe with that Chinese food that she had suggested earlier.

"Now the most important question," Sparrow said. "Can you perform for us once more?"

"Yeah, I think so," Harmony nodded eagerly, as the stage hands appeared and began guiding everyone off stage and back to their allocated seats or backstage area.

"Good. Get yourself ready," Sparrow waved a hand at the Sue, before drifting quickly off towards the cameras again.

"Well there you have it. Our winner for Sue Factor 2010. Don't forget, you can order the official album from our website, as well as download all the performances from tonight. Thank you so much for watching. One more time now, its your Sue Factor champion, Harmony!"

The roar of the audience did not cease, even as the music began to play, and Harmony was left alone on the stage with her microphone.

"We'll do it all... everything. On our own..."

“Right...” Harriet whispered down the row. “Now that’s over with, let’s go find a way out of this fandom...”

“Can’t we just stay and listen?” Emily begged, already swaying to the Sue’s hypnotic voice. She was not the only one. Claire’s head was resting on Michael’s shoulder, and Jess was swaying in a manner which made her look not entirely sober.

“No,” was Harriet’s firm answer. “Or we might not get out at all. Now stop swaying and follow me!”

OOO

Wondering who on Earth was knocking at her door this time, Ardelisa pulled it open and smiled sadly.

“You have to stop doing that,” she said, as Harriet and Tash appeared in the doorway. Harriet gave the Sue a quick hug.

“Sorry you lost, Lisa,” she said sympathetically, while Tash strode straight for the clothes on the radiator and felt them. They were still damp, but they would have to do, so she stripped off the dress and began to pull them on.

“Its okay,” Ardelisa shook her head sadly. “I was not fated to win. I will retire to my home fandom, happy that I have come this far.”

The rest of the Society peered in cautiously, some covering their eyes as Harriet stripped her own short dress off.

“Thanks for the loan by the way,” she passed it back to the Sue. “But I think it looked better on you.”

As Ardelisa blushed fairly, Michael had a sudden thought.

“You wouldn’t know a way we can get out without being spotted?” he asked hopefully.

“No, I’m afraid not...” Ardelisa shrugged. “The staff entrance around the back requires a security key to get in through, so that only leaves the front entrance, where all the guests will be heading.”

Even as she spoke, there was a thunderous rumble from above their heads, as thousands of people got to their feet and began to exit the stadium.

“All of the staff are going to the after party too,” Ardelisa added.

“We won’t get to any of them without causing a scene,” Harriet summarised. “We’ll have to go through the front door.”

“How is it guarded?” Michael asked, sitting on the sofa. Ardelisa began to pace as she thought.

“There are usually three men manning the door,” she admitted. “But since Runoa announced to us earlier that you’re here, it might have been beefed up.”

“We’ll never get through it,” Phoenixia sighed. “They’ll know to look out for us now.”

She sank into the sofa heavily, and Emily reached deep into her handbag and pulled out a bottle of water for her friend.

“If there’s only three men,” Alice was thinking hard. “We could fight our way past them?”

“Mrow!” on Emily’s shoulder Adrian was shaking his fluffy head hard so hard that he overbalanced and fell into Emily’s open handbag. She reached in to fish him out.

“Adrian is right,” Tash admitted. “Even if there’s only three guards, there are thousands of Sues trying to leave the same way right now. They aren’t going to just let us go.”

She shivered from her clammy clothes, and bounced from foot to foot trying to get warm.

“I have an idea...” Emily said suddenly. Everyone turned to look at her. She had frozen in the act of pulling Adrian out of her bag by the scruff of his neck, and he was wriggling to get free. For an explanation, she dropped him straight back in, where the sounds of his meowing were lost in the cavernous depths.

Harriet got it first.

“No way.”

OOO

“I can’t believe I agreed to this...”

“Louise, I’ve asked you three times. Get your butt out of my face.”

“I can’t! Jess is sitting on my hand!”

“Well pinch her then!”

“I think I just knocked something over...”

“MROW!”

“Meep! Sorry Adrian! I’m sorry!”

“Would all of you just shut up?!” Emily hissed through the tiny opening she had left at the top of her handbag. Instantly everyone inside fell silent. She clutched it tight against her body, and was rejoining the throng of people heading for the main exit. Her eyes flicked anxiously back and forth. Ardelisa had escorted her out of the backstage areas and had wished them all a safe trip back. Somehow, this did not make Emily any more confident.

“Okay, here we go,” she whispered as she headed into the crowd of Sues, who were gently pushing their way toward the exit. Her finger tips were cold, gripping the strap of her bag tightly, and she took a few deep breaths and tried not to look nervous.

“Well the others can say what they like,” came a voice from within the bag. “I think you’re a genius Emily.”

“Thanks Nixie,” Emily muttered, knowing full well that Phoenixia was only glad of an opportunity to feel everyone up inside the dark pocket dimension of the handbag.

“I can’t believe I’m in a girl’s handbag...” Michael muttered. “This is dangerous territory for a man...”

Although Emily couldn’t see, she just knew that Adrian was nodding his fluffy head in agreement with that statement.

“Do you want to get out and walk?” she asked testily.

“No ma’am.”

“Good.”

As the crowd rounded the corner, Emily saw the three glass doors that were the exit to the building. Sure enough, there was a security guard on each one. To her horror however, they were not alone. Beside each guard was a Sue Factor judge.

She cursed under her breath.

“Emily Smith!” Harriet’s offended voice appeared from inside her handbag.

“Shut up!” Emily hissed back, slowing her pace as much as she could against the tide of people. “The judges are here!”

“Stay calm,” Phoenixia soothed from inside. “Take deep breaths and try not to look worried or anxious.”

“Easy for you to say!” Emily could feel the crowd pushing against her, closer and closer to the exit...and the dangerous figures.

“Go for one of the Cullens!” Tash suggested.

“But they’re both guarding the same door!” Emily said, privately terrified that they would both recognise her - her sister had lived in Twilight for a long time after all, and it was entirely probable that they would realise who she was.

“Go for Merle,” Phoenixia urged. “She’s never seen you or your sister before. She won’t know who you are.”

“No!” Louise sounded terrified. “Don’t go near her! She’s dangerous!”

“Oh, so do you want her to go to Runoa instead?” Jess asked sarcastically. “Because that’s going to go so well...”

Emily elbowed her bag to shut everyone up, but it was too late to change her path. She was swept with the rest of the audience toward the centre door, where Runoa and a ginger haired security guard stood like soldiers in sentry boxes. Runoa’s eyes were passing over every face that left the building, and Emily felt her body break out into a fearful sweat, and she wrenched her gaze away from the Lieutenant and focused on the door and the freedom that lay beyond it. She kept her head straight and walked with the throng of people out of the door...

A beefy hand fell on her shoulder and wrenched her back into the warm entrance.

“Excuse me young lady,” the ginger haired security guard was frowning at her (though it was difficult to tell from behind his sunglasses). “Are you here on your own? Where are your parents?”

Her elation was gone, and Emily’s eyes flicked nervously to Runoa, who had only just appeared to have noticed her presence. As her emerald eyes fell on Emily’s face, they narrowed into a puzzled expression, and Emily knew she did not have long before the Sue recognised the resemblance.

“Think!” she thought urgently. “What would Willowe do...?”

The answer was simple. Willowe would never have got into this situation in the first place. She wouldn’t have helped the Society if her life had depended on it. Still...Emily put her best impatient expression on her face, and lifted her chin defiantly as she wriggled free of the man’s hand.

“I’m a Mary-Sue,” she declared in her haughtiest tone. “I don’t have parents, you idiot.”

She realised almost immediately that she should not have insulted him. The crowd seemed to sense that something was going on, and they had started deterring to the other exits instead, giving the confrontation a wide berth. Runoa stepped forward, and Emily felt her heart threaten to beat itself right out of her chest. She had never seen the Lieutenant up close before, and she understood immediately why the woman had once been Librarian. She had the same kind of presence that Adrian and the rest of the Counter Guardians had.

“A young Sue travelling without parents or her guardians...” Runoa’s voice was laced with suspicion. She did not seem to recognise Emily yet, but there was something calculating in her gaze that the girl did not like.

“She looks suspicious,” the guard agreed, taking a hold of Emily again and pushing her towards the judge and away from the glass doors. Emily could feel her escape slipping like water out of her hands. This was not like being caught messing with the school computer system. This was dangerous, and she did not think she could bluff her way out of this one...

That still did not mean she could not try though. She straightened her back and tried to remember how Willowe had always done it...looking untouchable and in control of the situation. She felt urgent shuffling in her handbag, and she subtly elbowed it again.

“Do you have a problem with the way I look?” she demanded of the security guard. She did not dare look at Runoa, and it would probably be easier to fool the man – he did not look too bright.

“Yes,” the guard objected. “You were walking quickly and looking all shifty.”

Allowing her impatience to shine through, Emily folded her arms and gave the man her most condescending glare. “Well while we’re exchanging insults, you could stand to lose a little weight, Tubby.”

Angry red patches appearing in his cheeks, the man made a swipe for her cheek. Emily ducked, and managed to turn the movement into a swift stride back towards the glass doors. Two more steps and she would have evaded the security and be through, and free to find a safe place to let the others out to plothole them back to the Library...

“YOU!”

Emily barely had time to turn around, before she was seized and thrown like a rag doll backwards into the wall. Pain ripped down her body, and she felt the breath burst from her lungs. She crumpled to the floor, vaguely aware that the other Sues were screaming and clearing the area. She lifted her head slowly, feeling her vision swim hazily.

Edward Casanova stood before her, his sword in hand, a murderous look on his features as he advanced. The audience and judges seemed to have frozen in their spots at this unexpected outburst.

“Where is she?!” the Stu demanded, as Emily struggled to push herself up right. She did not know how she had managed to hold onto her bag, but it was wriggling against her side, as the agents struggled to get out and see what was happening.

“Who?” she croaked out defiantly, knowing that she would probably pay later for this attitude.

“Phoenixia! Where is she?!” Edward roared. The Sues and Stus who were still standing, paralyzed in shock, started to whisper back and forth, and beyond Edward, Emily could see the pieces finally falling into place in Runoa’s mind.

“Staying away from the likes of you!” she snarled, getting back to her feet. The Stu gave a primal scream and threw himself toward her, sword raised, even as Runoa’s whip leaped into her hand, and was pulled back to lash at her...

The entrance went black, as with a crack, the lights went out.

Emily did not stop to feel the pain from her injuries, or to find out what had happened. She ran blindly, as hard as she could, pushing people aside as she went. A soft hand slipped into hers and pulled her away from the panicking people, and she let herself be dragged out of the entrance and towards the backstage area.

“You are a lucky girl!” Ardelisa’s voice congratulated, and Emily felt relieved that she was not being tugged around by a stranger, even as the chaos of the entrance hall faded away behind them. She heard the frantic sounds of the Society in her bag, as they struggled to stay upright as she ran.

“Tashy, you have wings! Get out and help her!”

“I’d love to, but Phoenixia’s tits are in my face!”

“What else is new?”

Harriet’s voice broke through the chaos.

“Emily! Are you okay?!”

“I’m alright,” Emily was well aware that her shaking voice betrayed the lie. Her back, neck, shoulders and head ached from impacting with the wall, and she was trembling all over. Only Ardelisa’s hand was keeping her from falling over.

“Let us out! We’ll have to fight our way free!”

“No!” Emily snapped, angry all of a sudden. She was tired of everyone wanting to fight – the Society and the Sues. “We’ll find another way out! You all stay in there! Ardelisa will get me out!”

She muffled their protests by stuffing her scarf in her bag.

“We have to hide!” Ardelisa was saying. “They can flash step. They’ll have caught up with us soon.”

Emily skidded to a sudden halt, yanking her hand free of Ardelisa’s. Her eyes were fixed on a ventilation shaft in the wall.

“Lisa,” she said, taking out the scarf and fishing around in her bag, this time for her supersoaker. “Get back to your dressing room.”

“Excuse me?!” the Sue was incredulous. “I’m not leaving you here!”

“If they know you helped me, they’ll kill you,” Emily said. “Besides, you can’t follow me where I’m going.”

The Sue followed her gaze to the vent, and understanding dawned.

“Even so,” she objected. “How will you get out?”

“I’ve got a plan!” Emily assured her. “Just go! And thank you for your help!”

She was already extracting a screwdriver from her bag and getting to work on the bolts on the vent cover. There was an angry explosion from down the corridor, and Ardelisa jumped at the noise, before picking her dress up.

“...good luck Emily...” she said, before running as fast as her legs would carry her. Emily tossed the last bolt away and yanked the cover off, as Runoa, Merle and Edward appeared around the corner.

“Good luck fitting down here with those tits,” she dared, before throwing herself headfirst into the vent and sliding away from the whip that lashed out at the spot she had been standing.

“Emily, we must discuss your manners!” Harriet huffed from inside the bag, as the girl scrambled to the end of the shaft and pulled herself up to the next level, before her pursuers could drag her back out. The vent was barely big enough for her to kneel in, and her back bumped painfully against the roof as she crawled frantically, ignoring the dust that was building up on her palms.

OOO

“She’s a resourceful little brat,” Merle muttered, peering down the vent shaft. Runoa was tracing the wall with contemplating eyes.

“She is Willowe’s sister,” she muttered. “I did not think she had survived the invasion...”

“I will tear my way through that vent to get her!” Edward was hissing, peering in though the shaft as far as his muscular body would allow.

“And how will you do that with shoulders that size?” Merle asked cynically.

“The roof,” Runoa declared. “She’s heading upwards. You two get up there. I’ll try from this end.”

“You’re not the boss of us!” Merle objected.

“DO AS I SAY!” Runoa shouted, and both Sue and Stu jumped, rattled to their core. Runoa’s power had exploded violently from her with her outburst, and even as she regained control of her temper, they could not help but shiver as they were reminded just how much more powerful she was. Quickly, but still glaring at the Lieutenant, they ran for the nearest stairwell.

Peering critically at the vent, Runoa fingered Hellbinder.

“Evade this, little Palm Tree...”

OOO

“Ow!” Emily yelped as she banged her head against the roof again. She had clambered up three levels, and appeared to have joined the main vent shaft out of the building. She was not as cramped as she had been on the lower level, but it was still a tight fit. Her limbs were aching. It was worse than the two hour work out session that Ms Farmer had put her and Miki through as detention when she had caught them skipping PE.

“Mind your head,” Jess supplied helpfully.

Emily ignored this and carried on with her marathon shuffle, pausing when she heard something below her...it was a slithery sort of sound like a snake on the metal...

Abruptly cold, she turned her head and saw the serrated edged Hellbinder rising up from the vent behind her like an entranced cobra from a basket.

Emily screamed and scrambled as fast as she could away from the whip as it lunged for her. She threw herself to the side, banging her head against the wall as it coiled where her ankle had been. Struggling to keep moving, the girl pulled herself along the vent, screeching as the whip made another lash towards her. She collapsed backwards, missing the strike by a millimetre. Pushing herself backwards, away from the weapon, she saw more of the black whip rise from the shaft and snake its way towards her.

She kicked out, and the whip flew back like an angry serpent recoiling from the blow. She gained a few precious feet, feeling cold air buffet her from behind. Turning her head, she saw the exit to the air vent, and the star filled night’s sky beyond it. She was almost there...

She shrieked as the whip lashed around her ankle and the serrated edges dug into her skin, drawing blood and another scream. The pain was unbearable, and she felt her foot go numb. Lashing out desperately she kicked at the whip, but as her good foot caught it, it just dug the weapon into her flesh deeper. She felt tears trickling down the side of her face, and screamed again as the black length began to pull her slowly back the way she had come. Behind her head, the vent exit slid away from her head.

Desperate, she plunged her hand back into her handbag, and felt for something, anything that would help... supersoaker... water bottle... Incandescent Silverreign... Michael’s sword...

She grasped tightly and pulled. The blade appeared in her hand and she swung as best she could in her confined space as the whip. It severed neatly, and the remainder slithered back down the vent shaft and out of sight.

Not wasting a second, Emily scrambled for the end of the vent and threw her weight at the rusted cover. It snapped open and she tumbled ungracefully onto the tarpaper.

The freezing air stung at her skin, but she barely felt it. She was shaking, and bile rose in her throat as she replaced Michael’s sword in her bag, and looked down at her ankle. Wincing, she peeled the end of the whip off her leg. It did not hurt any more, it just burned, and she knew she was probably going into shock, but she didn’t care. She tossed the whip away as hard as she could and wiped the tears out of her eyes.

“Emily? What happened?!” Harriet sounded frantic.

“Hellbinder...” she could hear her voice shaking. “My ankle...”

“Listen to me Emily,” her guardian’s voice was suddenly calm and rational, but Emily could feel something in the bag trembling...or maybe that was just her. “Take deep breaths...”

Deep breathing made Emily want to throw up, especially as she continued to look at her injury. But she did as she was told.

“Take your scarf out of your bag,” Harriet was saying slowly and clearly. “And wrap it around your ankle. Tie it firmly, but not too tight. Do you understand me?”

“Yes...” the girl nodded, and dipped her shaking hands into the bag. Her scarf, blue cashmere and soft to the touch was like a gentle friend as she pulled it out. She wrapped it around her limb twice and tied as tightly as she dared. It made her look like she was wearing a peculiar looking leg warmer as she got to her feet, still shaking.

The roof was deserted, though cluttered with air conditioners and huge hulking extractor fans for the whole building. In the street below, she could hear the anxious audience still leaving. She limped as quickly as she dared to the edge of the roof, seeing plotholes along the pathway blinking into life and out again, as the Sues and Stus vanished back to the places they called home. Emily guessed that the spell only extended around the perimeter of the building...the question was, how far away from the edge of the building was the perimeter?

The door behind her exploded outwards, and she barely had enough time to throw herself to the side to dodge Merle’s strike. Edward advanced, sword raised, and Emily shakily got back to her feet. She was crouched on the edge of the roof. One good push would send her over the edge, and plummeting four stories down to her death.

“I’ll ask you again girl,” Edward picked her up by the scruff of her neck and pulled her face close to his. “Where. Is. Phoenixia?!”

His sword was pressed into her throat, and Emily felt her teeth chatter.

“Don’t kill her, you idiot!” Merle barked angrily. “If she’s dead, she can’t tell us where the Society are!”

Edward’s momentary pause was all Emily needed. Just as she had done earlier that night, she brought her good foot up as hard as she could, and slammed it into his crotch. She was weak from shock, but Edward was still bruised, and roared in agony, dropping her to clutch at his injury. Emily fell and almost overbalanced off the edge of the roof.

As the door burst open again, and Runoa appeared with a broken Hellbinder in her hand, Emily got shakily to her feet again. The air buffeted her bruised back as though to welcome her.

If she was honest, she had guessed that it might come to this...that did not make the task any less daunting. But if this did not work, nothing would...

“What would Willowe do?”

Smirking through the pain, she blew the Sues and Stu a kiss, before throwing herself off the roof.

She heard Hellbinder strike again, but it could not touch her now. Wind was whistling in her ears, accompanied by the petrified screams of the Sues on the ground below as they saw the tiny figure plummeting towards them like a stone. As the power that she ruthlessly denied surged through her, she wondered if this was what it was like to fly...

The rainbow swirling portal ripped into existence below her, and she fell into its embrace.

OOO

The bed was nice and fluffy... she didn’t want to move...

“Come on Em. You can’t feign unconsciousness forever.”

“Can so,” she retorted, wrapping her arms tightly around her pillow and burying her head into it. It smelt of rose water beneath the sharp tang of disinfectant.

“You are a very lucky girl,” Valerie was telling her sternly, and Emily smiled as she remembered that was exactly what Ardelisa had said to her. “That whip went deep, but it didn’t break anything. I’ve bandaged you up. You’ll have a nasty bruise on your back, but otherwise you’re alright.”

“Tired...” Emily moaned.

“Shock and blood loss,” Valerie explained. “You’ll be fine in a little while.”

“What exactly did you do?” Harriet’s voice was asking, not quite rid of the worry that she had been feeling ever since her adopted daughter had been brought to the hospital wing, dazed and bleeding from her misadventures.

“Got to the roof...” Emily mumbled into the pillow, and she felt both women lean closer to listen properly. “Jumped... plotholed mid fall... must have come back to the Library...”

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she hoped that they would forget that she had not pulled out her generator to summon the plothole...she was not quite ready to share her talent for them yet...

“You jumped off a four story building?!” Harriet sounded livid. “What were you thinking?!”

“...was thinking ‘what would big sis do?’.” Emily muttered truthfully in response. “...so I blew 'em all a kiss before I jumped...”

Valerie snorted. “You blew Runoa a kiss?!”

The girl shrugged. “She seemed to appreciate it...”

She could hear the healer chuckling, and Harriet huffed in an unamused manner. Nevertheless the leader ruffled her charge’s hair. Emily moaned again and wriggled further into the pillow.

“Come on,” Valerie urged. “Sit up and you can have some hot tea.”

Hot tea did sound appealing... but so did staying in the bed.

“We’re having our own after party when you get up,” Harriet’s informed her. As if on cue, Emily’s eyes snapped open and she raised her head to look at her guardian.

“...really? Cheesy club music and oddly coloured drinks?”

“We even managed to rig up some disco lights,” Harriet smiled. “Though I would take it easy on the dancing with your ankle. Everyone is there already...even the Sues and Stus from the basement are coming.”

Energised, the girl threw back the covers and swept up the cup of tea.

“Wait!” Harriet yelled, as her charge downed the tea and shot towards the door as fast as she could on a busted ankle. “We still have to discuss your manners, young lady! Where did you learn that swear word?!”

OOO

Suebook News Feed:

The ACMSES: Had a lovely time at Sue Factor tonight, and thought all the acts were wonderful. Now for our own after party – photographs will be up soon! Merry Christmas everyone!

23:05pm.