A secret trip down the Xenean River led to a just-as-stealthy departure from Safar, for two travellers and their strange cargo. Their destination: the Himaat. In particular, the goal is to reach some location within the heart of a Forbidden Zone … but, of course, airships don't go there. Some details may have to be worked out on the fly. For now, the airship glides high over the rolling dunes of the Sea of Sand, which looks like it might well be a true sea, for it stretches out to the horizon under the night sky, painted by the light of the Procession of silvery hues.

A black Khatta leans on one of the rails overlooking the world below, as has become his custom on these long trips. His mind wanders, trying to plan the next move that he and his Eeee companion should take.

Far below, a lone sand trireme skims across the silvery dunes, a cloud of sand blowing before it, its sails filled with a strong wind from the west.

The Eeee in question is lightly-perched on the rail itself, wings furled in neat crescents behind her. In appearance at least, she looks little like she once did in Rephidim: Her long, curly hair has been straightened slightly and bound into a dozen narrow braids. Her fur is almost black, against which her teeth stand out brightly when she smiles. Her attire, cobbled together from what she could find in the City of Hands before she left, manages to preserve her modesty if little else.

Brishen glances at the black Khatta, then down as the chitin sword at her side thumps against the rail in its sturdy scabbard. She still hasn't quite gotten used to wearing the thing as a matter of course.

A chill wind blows across the deck, quite unlike the hot blasts that are to dominate the desert during the daylight.

Brishen squints a little, an ear canting ever-so-slightly as she looks down towards the distant trireme, then back behind her. After a moment she shrugs. "Hmf."

Jynx doesn't wear much of a disguise himself, just a simple change of clothes of the more common variety, leaving his Khattan finery back in the City of Hands. His dual daggers are at his side, hidden by a simple cloak. His pursuers hopefully will be looking for a well dressed cat, not one dressed in the clothes of a common cheetah. He looks over to Brishen, noticing her commotion. "So, what do you think?"

Brishen shrugs absently. "I didn't think it would get this cold in the desert." She furrows her brow, then a little more quietly adds, "I was sure I'd heard something, a few seconds ago."

"Well, it's a noisy ship," replies the feline. "Might have been a thousand things. As for the cold, maybe you should put something, er, a little more covering on." He chuckles.

Brishen ducks her head a little as her eyes get very wide. Her hand, near the scabbard of her sword, signs, "It's the artifact! Wires!"

One of Jynx's paws shoots to a dagger, and he stares at the bat puzzledly, "What do you mean? How can you tell?"

Brishen moves a little closer to the Khatta, smirking merrily as she draws a wing around the hapless feline. "I'm sure we can find some way to keep warm." Thus concealed, hopefully, she signs a little more frantically, "Because it's talking in my head! It's saying I'm the chosen one."

For a moment, some of the lights in the Procession seem to ripple. Perhaps it's a Waashu drifting by, far above. (The further above, the better, of course.)

The Khatta's free paw remains near his dagger, and he stares hard at the bat. "You have to fight it, keep it pressed back! he signs. "Don't let it consume your mind, and don't give in to it!" The cat knows all too well what Brishen is dealing with, which is why his paw never strays from the dagger. He then looks up distractedly at the sky; did he just see that?

Something just barely catches the corner of Jynx's eye, making his fur stand on end as though it were about to jump off his skin! He dives and rolls away from the bat, drawing his daggers and staring at the sky, "A giant lizard! A Dragon!"

Brishen frowns. Were her ears able to splay out, they would. She scrunches her eyes closed – then opens them. "What?" She looks up at the sky as she scrambles away from the ship's railing. "Where is it?"

"Up there," points the cat, "in the light of the Procession! Don't tell me you didn't see it!" He keeps crouched down defensively, daggers drawn and eyes pointed to the sky.

A couple of Savanite crewmen on the deck crane their necks, looking up for the dragon, but they don't seem to spot any such monster.

Brishen crouches down on the deck, shutting her eyes tightly. ( I've seen what your kind of power can do. I don't want it. ) Her teeth grind faintly.

Brishen seems too busy, for the time being, to let the Khatta know that she hasn't seen a dragon at all.

"I'm telling you what I saw!" signs Jynx to the crewmen, "Be on the ready!" He looks back up to the sky, seeing if he can spot the giant lizard again.

A couple of Skreeks come abovedeck, holding crossbows. Whether or not anyone else has seen a dragon, it would seem that the crew isn't inclined to just ignore the warning. Other crewmembers come abovedeck as well, as the "day shift" is roused.

Jynx jumps back against one of the cabins, pointing at the sky with his dagger, "There it was again! It's circling the ship!" He runs to the railing, readying his lesser dagger for a throw against the scaley beast.

The lights of the Procession ripple again, as a silhouette of a great winged lizard appears, bearing down upon the airship, gliding upon massive, leathery wings. Its eyes glow a baleful hue of yellow-green, and as its mouth opens, a reddish glow hints at fires burning deep within its maw. The Skreeks let off panicked shots with their crossbows as they squeak in dismay, but the bolts fly off of the deck, doing no good other than to make some of the crew sweat beads as the bolts pass uncomfortably close to the envelope suspending the craft.

Brishen growls quietly, curling into a ball. ( You don't understand, do you? I don't want your power, you knotted stick! I've spent too much of my life looking into the dark hole you'd take me into! I'm – not – interested! )

Almost unnoticed goes a crackle of red lightning some distance ahead of the airship. A storm materializes out of thin air above the desert. A Kavi crewman at the helm hisses, "The Forbidden Zone!"

As the abominable creature comes fully into view, the black Khatta is momentarily frozen in place with fright! Readying his dagger, he notices a little lump out of the corner of his eye. As he turns his head, he realizes it to be Brishen. "Get up! You have to move, or the dragon will get you!" The Kavi's words barely register in the confusion, and Jynx turns his attention back to the beast.

Brishen opens her eyes and whispers, staring into the dragon's eyes, "It's not really there. It's just the sum of your fears."

The great dragon lets out a noise that sounds like a cross between a screech and a roar. A plume of flame shoots out from its gullet, reaching for the airship, but it falls short of its mark, raining glowing particles down upon the sand far below.

Jynx risks a quick confused glance at the disguised bat, then turns back to the dragon for one last aim. He lobs the lesser dagger as hard as he can at the giant creature, then quickly sprints over to Brishen, trying to lift her out of the way. "You have to move!"

Brishen stands, swiftly, pushing at the Khatta before darting out to perch precariously on the rail of the airship. Her wings spread, holding her in place as she screeches back. "Not even! Veer off, wire-bait!"

The reptilian collosus dives downward, and disappears underneath the undercarriage, ignoring a rain of projectiles that are sent hurtling after it. A fraction of a moment later, the deck rocks with the impact of something very large scraping past underneath.

A Skreek in the rigging lets out a shriek of alarm, as he plummets over the side, his crossbow flying from his claws, and his pouch of bolts emptying itself uselessly in the fall.

Brishen blinks, once, and falls off the side of the ship, arcing down with her wings held close to her sides. If she's lucky, she'll catch that Skreek, though how long she'll be able to keep herself in the air afterwards is debatable.

The black cat is jolted back by Brishen's shove, and as the deck rocks, he fights to keep his footing. "What are you talking about you crazy bug eater! Get down from there!" Another sharp movement of the deck knocks the Khatta flat, and he hits the deck hard.

The dragon roars, arcing upward in its flight beyond the airship. As the Procession-light reflects off of its glittering scales, it is a vision that might be considered beautiful … if it weren't for the fact that this monster was posing such an immediate threat to life and limb.

Meanwhile, the Skreek hurtles downward, but his billowy garb must be providing at least some small resistance … enough for the more efficiently dressed Eeee to overtake him.

The yellow-green eyes of the dragon seem for a moment to focus onto the black Khatta on the deck. Or perhaps that could just be imagination. It could be staring at anybody, after all.

Brishen flap-flap-flaps, darting down alongside the Skreek. "Grab my hands! Quick!"

As Jynx slowly raises himself off the deck, giving his head a shake to clear the mists, he looks upwards and stares right into the dragon's eyes. The feline becomes frozen in place, his mind and body seeming to come the complete halt as the dragon holds him it its gaze.

The Skreek flails about, and whether or not he hears Brishen's call, he quickly grabs at the first thing available – which would happen to be one of Brishen's hands, and then the other. Fortunately, Skreeks are small, but this one's typically heavy-set. The best hope is for a soft landing. Getting back up to the airship without help would be a heroic feat, to say the least.

Brishen wraps her arms around the Skreek, then cups her wings slightly. "Close your eyes! Close your eyes! Ow! Don't bite me!" She thinks about the seeds of a tree she saw somewhere as she sets herself into what will hopefully be a slow spiral.

A Kavi crewman shrieks, "HEY! WHO'S IN CONTROL OF THIS SHIP? WE'RE HEADING RIGHT INTO THE ZONE!" Red lightning flashes again as a reminder, and the ship is buffeted by a strong gust of wind. The dragon continues circling, then flying back and forth, its gaze not departing the deck.

An old memory seems to cross the Khatta's mind, or is it his? "Why are you trying to kill me? I am Shikouju, I have no business with you!" Reality battles with the memory, and Jynx clutches his paws to his head in pain as it fades. When he re-opens his eyes, all that is left is the dragon… staring.

The dragon's eyes light up with an intense yellow fire, and it lets out another roar! It beats its wings, and darts toward the ship, its jaws opening wide … bearing straight for Jynx! Some of the crewmembers instinctively run to each side, though the dragon is large enough that if it reaches its prey, the gondola is surely just as doomed.

Brishen and the Skreek pirhouette downward, the silvery sands drawing closer. It's slow enough to land without breaking anything … or, well, maybe not TOO many bones.

The Skreek wails at the sight of the approaching sands. Evidently, he failed to take Brishen's advice.

Jynx stares at the dragon for just a few moments more while it starts its attack, but finally snaps out of it as the enormity of what is about to accur hits home. Fur like a bottlebrush, he leaps as far as he can to the side, readying his prescious obsidian dagger.

The dragon veers slightly to the side as well, bearing upon the black Khatta. Its mass rips through rigging, and the crewmen cry out in alarm as they try to find something to get a secure hold onto as the deck tilts at a dangerous angle. The black Khatta's vision is filled with the hateful gaze of a great dragon in the fleeting moment before it will impact…

Brishen flapflapflapflaps, straining upwards as the sand draws close, aiming the Skreek and herself towards, well, something that won't suck the Skreek under when he lands. "Ow, ow, hey! Let go! Let go!" Then, a few feet above the sandy sea, "LET GO NOW AND ROLL!"

Brishen cups her wings, hard, then flaps vigorously. Bones and wings are not something she wants to break.

The Skreek's hold loosens, and he falls the remaining feet, sending a spray of fine sand into the air as he hits with a shriek, rolling down the dune-wave of sand.

The black Khatta is at a loss. He can't dodge the beast, and it's all he can do to keep his footing on the swaying, tilted deck (not to mention keep from having a heart attack). "What do you want?!", he screams at the lizard, dropping down in a defensive crouch. "I'm not Shikouju!"

Brishen arcs out low over the sand, close enough to grab a handful if she wishes. It's a tempting thought as she loops back to see if the Skreek made it to the sand in one piece.

Alas, the lizard is moving too swiftly to even hope for a chance of a reply before the dragon smashes into the black Khatta and through the rigging on the other side of the deck. The airship lurches dangerously, but the crewmen are better prepared than their Skreek comrade, most of them tangling themselves up in the surviving rigging and bracing for impact.

The aforementioned Skreek, meanwhile, is lying spread-eagle on the desert sands, adopting the best method for someone without sandshoes for staying afloat for as long as possible. His voluminous flesh spreads out fairly effectively to do the task, and he shows no signs of going under just yet.

Brishen shouts down to the Skreek. "I'll be right back!" Then she flaps up towards the ship and the dragon, or what may remain of each.

When the black Khatta comes to an instant later, he is on the crown of a seething dragon, precariously tangled across the flying lizard's crooked horns.

Aching all over, the feline is groggy at first, but quickly is snapped awake as his present situation hits home. He digs his claws deep into the horns (or tries to anyway), and clings as tight as he can, fear making his heart beat faster than a vermite caught in a trap.

The dragon lashes back and forth, oblivious to the flying bat. It roars and bellows as it zig-zags across the sky, flying lower and lower. The undercarriage of the airship hangs at a lopsided angle to the envelope of the craft, and somehow the crew manage to change its course to veer it away from the brewing storm of red lightning that has materialized just ahead, and which threatens to swallow up the dragon with each pass that brings it closer in its anger.

Gathering what nerve he has left, Jynx frees a paw from the horn, draws his obsidian dagger, and tries to communicate with the beast one last time. "What do you want with me?!" he screams. "I told you I am not Shikouju! I am nothing!"

The dragon only roars angrily in reply.

Brishen spirals up and under the dragon, looping around so, for a moment it appears to her as if she's flying over a strange expanse of skin and scales. Then, her sword darts out to find its mark. The bat, however, does not remain close to the serpent for long, dropping down before she cups her wings to slow her flight. She could have sworn she heard a Khatta screaming.

The reply is not what Jynx wants to hear, and the roar sends his fur painfully on end once more. Readying his dagger, he stabs down at the lizard's eye as hard as he can, disregarding the fact that he is rather high above the ground.

The Khatta's dagger WOULD have found its mark in the dragon's eye, except for the blade that has just imbedded itself in the reptile's belly. The dragon lurches about, and the Khatta's grip slips. He spins through the air, his ears filled with thunder.

Brishen gasps, nearly scrambling through the air as she loops and darts about, like a leaf amidst the thunder. She shakes her head a few times, her ears perked to catch the sound of a flying Khatta. "Hold on! Well – Uh. Wires! I'm coming!"

Jynx goes over the side of the dragon's head, and hurtles down towards the ground. His paw grasps his obsidian dagger tightly, as though it could stop his descent. Brishen's words are unheard, thanks to the thunder and the sound of air zooming past, and tears start to trickle forth from his eyes as the ground starts to come up fast.

The dragon lurches away, roaring as it beats the air with its wings. The airship sails further away, the undercarriage torn open by its encounter with the dragon. Any cargo carried must be down there in the Sea of Sand somewhere…

Brishen shouts, screeching. "Feli! FEL – Oh! Grab my hands!" Her wings almost brush the Khatta as she darts close, holding her hands out. "There's not much time!"

Just barely catching a glimpse of the bat in the nick of time, and barely hearing her words, Jynx reflexively darts a paw out, grasping with claws out instinctively at Brishen's hands.

Brishen cries out as the claws touch her arms, desperately pulling herself closer. "Not with your claws!" She stifles a scream, poorly, as she tries to hold on.

Down. Down. Down … Haven't we been here before? A silvery dune rushes up to greet the flier and the non-flier.

Jynx grabs the bat with his other paw, trying to pull himself up without thinking. His claws still stick halfway out of his paws, being unable to fully retract in his present moment of fear. One would think he was used to this by now, but it never gets any easier.

Brishen sobs wildly, closing her eyes for a moment as she tries to remember what she needs to do: Wings out, cupped slightly, dip the left down, lean into it, like the spinning tree-seeds. It's almost a mantra, and at the end – near the sand – she shouts, "LET GO! LETGONOW!"

The Khatta, however, is too full of terror to comprehend the bat's words. He holds on tight, not realizing that the ground below him is near enough to be a safe drop, and pulls on Brishen, trying to scramble upwards.

Brishen's eyes grow very wide as she stares at the Khatta and bares her teeth. Near the end, near where her wings could snap, she sets her teeth in the Khatta's arm. "I. SAID. LET. GO. OF. ME."

As the sharp teeth sink into the feline's arm, he lets out a loud, primitive, hissing yowl. He lets go of the bat, and drops the rest of the way down, limbs flailing wildly.

Just then, a blast of wind, sand and grit assaults the bat and the cat, sending them hurtling without any clear indication of up or down. When it clears … the bat just manages to make a skidding landing without breaking anything … and the cat is about half-buried in the sand. The airship is nowhere to be seen … and the dragon is gone as well. A trireme glides closer, approaching some broken planks and sinking crates. It slides to a stop … and several of the crewmembers – most of them half Jynx's size – disembark, dashing across the dunes in wide sand-shoes, eagerly snaring what they can of the flotsam before it sinks beneath the surface.

Jynx coughs and sputters, sand seeming to be in every inch of his body. He rubs the silt from his eyes, and slowly his mind starts to come back to. As he looks about, he notices the trireme, and a single thought pops to mind: The Artifact!! "Quick," he screams to Brishen, as he begins to dig his way out, "Get to the crates! We have to get the Artifact!"

Brishen coughs, wobbling in the shifting sand as she stands up. A thousand pinpricks, from claws or the sand around her make her regret doing so immediately. And so, she falls gracelessly to her knees.

Only briefly glancing to the bat, Jynx attempts to make his way to the raiders. His arm sears with pain, but he does his best to ignore it. "Leave that cargo alone!" he screams.

The slender Eeee shakes her head a few times, re-orienting herself as she wraps herself up in her tattered arms. She sobs again, faintly, and grits her teeth. The she flaps her wings – once, twice – And skips along the sand towards the sinking crates and the short crewmen of the trireme.

Jynx's attempts to extract himself are only partially successful, as he manages to dig himself out, then sinks back in again. As he sinks down, though, for a moment he can feel something giving him a solid foundation, far enough down that he shouldn't sink further down than to his neck. Not that this is a great consolation at this time.

Brishen skids to a halt as she spies a familiar satchel, snatching at it before the faded, wind-worn leather dips below the sand.

The Khatta's heart sinks lower than the rest of his body, and he struggles wildly to make it to the surface, spitting out sand that finds its way into his mouth. It seems the gesture is useless, and he watches helplessly.

Brishen looks from the Khatta to the crates and back again. She screeches at the short denizens of the trireme. "Get away from those crates!"

Then, Creen's Nightsong shouts to the Khatta. "Don't stand up like that! You'll – Well, you are sinking! Pretend like you're swimming! Float on the sand!"

The Nohbakim nomads don't pay the least bit of attention to Brishen. With startling efficiency, they scoop up every last bit of cargo … and either the crate holding the Artifact is amongst that cargo, or already under the sands. A glint of light catches Brishen's eyes, from within the heart of a partially broken crate hauled by a foursome of hunchbacked cloth-wrapped mutants.

"Float on the sand," replies Unlucky One, "are you nuts?" He tears his gaze away from the raiders and looks at the bat, seeing the claw marks up and down her arms, and the tears in her eyes. The guilt that sets in causes the Khatta to calm, and he lets himself go in a floating, swimming type gesture. Or at least what he thinks it would be, since he's not much of a swimmer.

Brishen grits her teeth. "Can you at least give us passage to the next city? I have shekels."

The gesture on Jynx's part seems to be working … almost … but he apparently doesn't quite have whatever it takes, and he's still having a bit of trouble staying afloat. As for Brishen, she's having trouble with the locals, as they still determinedly ignore her … except to pick up their already frantic pace, abandoning a few casks in their haste to leave, and get back on board the sand-craft.

Jynx tries his best to swim as fast as he can towards the raiders, although it feels like he's moving in slow motion. "You nasty little patchworks, leave that cargo alone, or so help me Dagh, I'll run you through!"

Brishen skips along the sand towards one of the – well, whatever they are. She tilts her head, then starts waving her arms. In one hand, a golden shekel gleams. "Hey! Over here!" Then she tries again, in Eeee. "I said, over here!"

A few of the scavengers pause, turning eyes (some having three, some having one, but most having two) toward the shekel. Even in the poor light, a hungry gleam can be seen (or safely assumed) in their gaze.

The black Khatta stops with a small jolt and freezes in place, eyes wide. He looks down at the sand surrounding him, wondering what it was that he just felt. "Umm, Creen's Night Song?" he calls out.

Brishen smirks, tucking the shekel into her clothes. "Alright." She points to herself, then the Khatta, the remnants of the ship's cargo – or, at least what looks like it may contain the Artifact. Then, finally, she points to the ship. "What are you feeling, dear?"

"I-… I wish I knew… " He stares back down at the sand, and his fur stands straight out once again as an alien sight catches his eye. "Creen's-Song, move! Fly! Get out of the way!!" He starts to tread sand wildly.

Brishen blinks, once, then throws herself into the air.

Just as Brishen leaps into the air, the sand beneath the spot where she last stood sprays outward, as a bony head bursts into the air, then splits into three jaws. The bony, serpentine monster, some horrible version of a Gooshurm, rises upward, revealing more of its bony, three-finned segments, before it crashes back down into the Sea of Sand. The Nohbakim shriek in alarm as it crashes into one of the struts of their craft, knocking it sideways, and sending several of their recent acquisitions sailing off of the deck.

Brishen scrambles farther into the air. "Ohwiresohwiresohwires! It's a Shriken! Run!"

If Jynx could sweat, he'd be soaked at the moment. He treads sand as best he can away from the beast, not making much progress. "Help!" he screams, not knowing much else to do. What's the deal with giant monsters today anyway?

The Nohbakim scavengers set their sails out to catch the wind, putting as much space between themselves and the Shriken as possible. It seems intent upon chasing them for the time being. For now, anyway. With any LUCK, it just might ignore Jynx entirely.

The black Khatta relaxes, albiet warily, as the Shriken chases after the sand craft. His heart soon sinks again however, when he realizes that they have lost the artifact, and he is still neck deep in sand with no solid ground in sight.

Brishen, not quite aware of the hasty departure of the Nohbakim, continues scrambling up, up, up. It isn't long before she stops though and looks back down towards the Unlucky One. "Ohwiresohwi – Oh." She floats back down towards the Khatta. "I'll try to make a raft – or. How do you make a raft?"

There are several planks of broken wood and sinking crates and casks. One of the partially broken crates emits a light from within, though the light dims as the Sea of Sand slowly consumes its prey.

Brishen swoops down towards the mysterious glowing crate. "No you don't!"

Jynx lets out a long sigh, watching the Nohbakim sail off in the distance. He slowly turns around in the sand to face Creen's Night Song, "Beats me. I guess we need-" he breaks off as the bat darts at the crate, unable to see its contents. "What is it? Is that the artifact?!"

Brishen squeaks. "I have no idea!" Her wings cast dust into the air as she hovers over the sand. "Try to find something we can use as shoes!"

From within the broken crate, Brishen can see a lump of what looks like molten glass with veins of dark rock wrapped around it. It glows with an inner light that pulsates, giving the glass a liquid appearance as the reflections play throughout it.

Brishen blinks a few times, then looks away. Her hands scramble about as she tries to right the crate to where, hopefully, it won't sink.

Brishen squeaks, looking back towards the Unlucky One. "It doesn't look like a big lump of glass, does it?"

Unfortunately, looking for a piece of wood to use is a bit out of the Khatta's ability at the moment, and he starts to slowly swim towards the crate. "Yes! That's exactly what – " He freezes. "Uh oh… there's another one… "

Brishen closes her eyes. "I found it then." Her ears twitch as she squeaks, quietly, "Another one?"

Along the way, Jynx bumps into a few planks that hold together enough to form a poor excuse for a raft that hasn't sunk just yet. Grabbing onto it helps Jynx's buoyancy significantly, though it doesn't help his progress toward the crate holding the Artifact.

Jynx grabs onto the wood, and hefts himself up on to it as quickly as he can, staring down at the sand nervously. "Another tremor, not as big this time, but still… " He shivers, then looks back to Brishen. "Maybe we can use these to make a raft, but we'll have to be quick! Bring the artifact over here!"

Brishen starts to push at the crate, then stops and holds an ear close to the ground. A hand darts up. "Don't make a sound!"

A bony fin sticks up out of the sand, some distance away from the bat and cat, followed by three more, and then they disappear into the Sea of Sand again.

Jynx freezes, balancing himself of the plank as the bat listens. "We can use this debris to make a raft… " His hands trail off at the sight of the fins, and his heart begins to beat wildly.

Brishen shivers faintly. A wing flutters. She looks over at the Khatta, her eyes wide and desperate. "Don't move – Stay where you are. You can't outrun something like that, and I'm not leaving you here!"

The Khatta's ears set back, and his shivers visibly. He nods in confirmation to Brishen, the looks down at the sands wide-eyed.

A soft "shuss" can be heard, as another bony fin slices through the sand, this time less than a stone's throw away from the raft. It disappears quickly again, but the raft vibrates faintly at the passing of the monster.

Jynx swallows hard as the beast passes underneath, and he remains rock still. "H-help!" he signs to the Eeee, eyes as wide as a kitten's.

Brishen bites her lower lip to keep her teeth from chattering as she looks from the sand to the Khatta and back, an ear canted intently towards the sand. "Holdstillholdstillpleasedon'tmove." Her hands flutter, blurring her words together.

Several tense moments pass, with no further sign of the creature. For now.

The black Khatta slowly looks back down to the sand, still waiting for the creature. "I-is it gone?" he signs.

Brishen shakes her head. "I don't know. I can't hear anything." She looks up, towards the cargo that was unceremoniously ejected from the trireme. Amongst that, assuming any of it remains above the sand, there might be something useful.

Jynx nods, his fur starting to settle back down. "We'd better start on building our transportation then. We have quite a ways to go." Slowly, he starts to paddle over to the wreckage and crates, using the plank like a bodyboard.

Brishen hisses. "Stop!"

The black Khatta grinds his paddling to a halt, "What? Is it back?!"

Brishen shakes her head, vigorously. "I don't know! Stay there!" She crouches down, slowly, and listens to the sand.

There's another tremor. A short flight away, the Shriken's head comes up out of the sand again … but more slowly than before, by far. It rises, lifting its gaping maw into the open air … and then just hangs there. If it weren't for the fact that it has no discernable eyes, it might seem that it was mesmerized by something.

Red lightning flashes, as a reminder of the storm that is still swirling … but the clouds remain at a fixed position just beyond the sinking flotsam.

Brishen's eyes grow very, very large. "Wires." She looks towards the artifact, then back at the Shriken.

Jynx stays put as per the bat's instruction, and likewise strains an ear towards the sand. His fur, like so many times today, poofs out as he sees the Shriken rise above the sands… but strangely, it settles back down. "I… feel something… the artifact… "

Brishen winces. "Quiet! What is it doing?"

The Shriken's head slowly swivels, until it turns to face the sinking Artifact, the light of which is slowly going out as it continues to sink beneath the fine sand. In but an instant, the Artifact is sure to be gone … where surely no one could dig it up.

Shaking his head, the cat gets a look of determination on his face. Ignoring the giant beast, he starts to paddle to where the artifact rests, sinking, as fast as he can. "I must get it!"

Brishen stares at the Khatta, "Stop it! Give me your shirt!"

Jynx comes to a halt, and grasps at his head seemingly in pain. His face seems to clear for an instant, and he takes off his shirt, throwing it to the bat. "Quick," he says aloud, "take it to where I was when I landed! We have to make it to the storm!"

Brishen reaches into the crate, wrapping the shirt as carefully – and quickly – as she can around the artifact. "I'll try to distract the Shriken," she whispers.

"No!" yells the cat, "Head for the storm! I'll meet you there!" The feline does an about face on his board, and starts to paddle back to where he initially landed. "Trust me!"

Brishen gasps, too quietly for the Khatta to hear. Then, she stuffs the artifact into her satchel and darts off for the storm, to where the Khatta first touched the Sea of Sand.

The Shriken breaks out of its reverie … and dives into the sand. Its fins cut through the sand, heading after Brishen!

Brishen flapflapflaps – up – up! As fast and high as she can.

Jynx, meanwhile, paddles … until he starts scraping against something solid underneath the sand. Well, RELATIVELY solid. The Sea of Sand must have an edge!

Jynx watches in horror as the giant beast makes a break for the bat. "Higher!" he screams, "Don't let it get to you! You have to make it to the storm – oof!" Jynx is cut short as solid land meets his board, and he attempts to stand on the firm ground, running after the bat.

The Shriken bursts out of the sand, its momentum launching it upward. It snaps at empty air … and lets out a shriek as it manages to propel itself with enough force to fly out of the sand entirely! Seemingly in slow motion, the gargantuan sand-monster falls back down in an arc … and then it lands roughly on the Sea of Sand again, sending up a great cloud of grit.

Brishen needs no encouragement, flapping desperately as she claws at the air. ( Higherhigherhigherhigher! )

Thunder crashes … and the storm swallows up the bat and cat.

The black Khatta pants as he runs as fast as his legs will carry him, trying to get to the storm at the same time as Brishen, and also trying to avoid the monster. As the storm envelops him, the cat screeches to a halt as all seems to go dim.

High above, Brishen spins about as she's caught and pushed by the storm around her. Wings flutter, then draw close as, in fits and starts – she tries to find the ground.

The morning sun shines down on a couple of sprawled bodies in the sand, and a faintly-glowing artifact half-covered with a torn shirt.

One of the bodies slowly opens a large, brown eye. Then, with nearly glacial speed, a hand reaches up and brushes a few braids away from a face. A bat. She coughs, groaning quietly.

All is hazy as the feline of the pair groggily opens his eyes, and the mists dissipate agonizingly slowly. He quickly shuts them again as he pulls himself achingly up, cuts and bruises all over. A small groan escapes his lips, "Where… where are we? Are we dead?" He opens his eyes again, squinting at his surroundings due to the bright sunlight.

The coughing grows somewhat raspy as Creen's Nightsong spits a mouthful of damp sand out. "There is sand, everywhere," she explains. "It's in my ears. It's between my toes. It's – "

A shadow is cast over the bat and cat. It's a shadow of a large, broken tower that juts up from the sands. The tower stands in the center of a clearing of sorts – a clearing that is defined by a wall of black – a wall of swirling clouds and flashing red lightning – an unnatural wall where the storm has simply … had a hole sliced out of its center.

Unlucky One gives a seeming sympathy cough, sending sand flying from his mouth. As his eyes adjust to the light, he stares up in amazement at the tower, not to mention his surroundings. "I-… I guess we made it… "

Brishen sheds sand from her wings like water as she tries to sit up. For a moment everything spins around her, wildly, and her ears grow faintly pale. "There's sand in my – " She blinks a few times, then slowly crawls over to the artifact. Carefully, deliberately, she wraps it in Feli's shirt, then stuffs it back into her satchel. Buckling the mail bag apparently requires more effort than it usually would.

Brishen glances towards the Unlucky One. "I think we're still alive."

Jynx wobblingly gets to his feet, nodding to Brishen, "It would seem so." He chuckles, half in joy, and half at the sand comment. He than looks back up at the tower, tail thrashing back and forth in thought. "I guess we have to find a way inside here."

Brishen remains on the ground, resolutely buckling her satchel. A wing twitches.

The wall crackles with lightning, but it's a clear, blue sky immediately above. In fact, the sunlight reflects off of some glittering bits of the broken tower, and the rubble at its base. Closer inspection reveals some of the fragments to be pieces of crystal. At the base of the tower, almost obscured by a piled dune of sand, there is a glass window.

Brishen shoulders the satchel, then holds her hands out, wincing faintly at the scratches that trail along her arms. "Feli, help me up."

The black Khatta slowly makes his way over to the bat, wincing in pain at each step. He holds a paw out to her, "Uh, sorry about the claws back there. I overreacted a bit." He gives a small smile.

Brishen's ears get a little pale again as she stands, then remains very still for a few moments before leaning against the Khatta. "I'm sorry about your arm."

Jynx puts an arms around Creen's Night Song to help support her. "No big deal, I'll heal. Can you walk if I help you?" He looks down at her.

Brishen nods slowly. "I'll be fine once everything stops whirling around me." She takes a few hesitant steps towards the tower.

The ebon feline nods, and still supporting Brishen, starts to make his way towards the window at the base of the tower. "This looks like the only way in to me, that is, if we're supposed to go in… "

The window at the base of the tower shows an interior that has a light source of its own. Several light sources, in fact. The tower is hollow, with a single central chamber, and hovering in the center is a glowing golden orb. Orbiting this orb are several smaller points of light. They float with no visible means of support.

Brishen blinks a few times. "I guess it beats staying out here. I've never seen anything like it before."

"Neither have I, except for the Artifact… " Taking his arm from around the bat, he helps her prop herself against a piece of debris. He begins to fiddle with the window. "Let me see if I can find a way to open this. That is, of course," he looks to Brishen, "if you're sure you want to go in. Third-Vision said a friend of hers came here, and never returned."

Brishen rests her head on her arm and closes her eyes. "I'm not leaving you. I said I wouldn't. I just – " She glances down at the satchel, then decides to refrain from saying a certain word for the time being. "I never thought I'd stop spinning."

Jynx nods, giving a small wordless smile, then turns his attention back to the window. "This looks like the only way in, so there has to be a way to open it… "

Brishen takes a few, careful steps towards the window and peers inside. "Are you sure there's not another way in?"

As Jynx touches the window, there's a sound like chimes … and breaking glass. Cracks in the glass radiate outward from the Khatta's touch, to the frame of the window!

Brishen squeaks, scrambling as she starts to back up. "Look out!"

The black Khatta springs back as fast as he can on impulse at the bat's warning.

The shards of broken glass start moving … as they retract into the frame of the window … which has now become an open archway. No shards remain to be seen.

Brishen wobbles, staring at the archway. She looks at Feli. "After you?"

Jynx blinks, not sure he really saw that. He shrugs, "Can you walk on your own?"

Brishen shakes her head. "Together, then."

The cat nods, and helps support the disquised Eeee. With a deep breath, and a quick mental prayer to the Star, they make their way into the archway.

Shortly after the bat and cat step inside, there's another sound like chimes … and the shards of the window emerge from the frame of the archway, sliding neatly into place, then fusing to make a solid pane once more.

The chamber at the base of the tower is circular, with eleven more archways just like the one that the visitors came through … except that each of these archways is filled not with a glass window, but solid, dull stone.

The rest of the interior is far from dull, however, but rather composed of multi-facted crystals that glow with lights of their own, forming intricate and strange patterns that lead the eye upward to what must have once been the ceiling … though the blue sky is now visible above.

Jynx's fur stands on end at the eerieness of the place, and he gives a wide eyed, amazed look around. "So, where to?"

Brishen looks around, casting a few involuntary squeaks along the walls of the tower. "Wires." She takes a step away from the Khatta, holding onto his shoulder as she tries her balance. Then, she lets go, closing her eyes. She wobbles faintly, but for the most part seems able to stand. "I don't know. Did Third-Vision have anything to say about this place?"

Although the crystals of the walls emit light of their own, the primary light is from the golden light hovering in the center of the chamber, and – to a lesser degree – by the eleven smaller lights orbiting it. Right now, the Khatta and Eeee stand just inside the window that provides a view of the golden sands outside, the black stormy wall, and the wide expanse of the blue sky, marked only by the band of the Procession.

The Khatta shakes his head, "Not that I remember. I don't think anyone's ever gotten this far, and returned at least." He walks over to one of the archways, studying it. "Somehow, that Vartan got as far as Abaddon from here."

Brishen opens her eyes, slowly, her steps light and careful as she follows the Khatta. Then, her brow furrows faintly as she pauses to brush sand from her arms. "You don't know how much I want a bath."

Jynx nods, "Believe me, yes I do." He makes his way counter-clockwise in the chamber, towards one of the arches next to the glass window.

As the Khatta walks up to the archway just to his right inside the entrance, heading counter-clockwise around the chamber wall, the window to the desert darkens … and solidifies into dull stone. Before anyone has a chance to react to this, though, the stone surface in the archway the Khatta walks up to brightens … and transforms into another window! Through it, an ocean can be seen, green foam spraying on the glass on the other side. A storm brews in the distance, and a water-cyclone wanders across the surface of the endless water, breaking up into two funnels and then three, before dissipating entirely.

The lights in the middle of the room shift subtly, out of the corner of the eye … but it's impossible to tell just what happened now.

Brishen leans against the Khatta again as her knees grow weak. "What did you just do?"

The black feline does a double take, his own knees wobbling a little, "I-… I have no idea!" He glances out the window, his ears setting back at all that… water. "I don't think we want to go there… " Experimenting, the Khatta walks further in the counter clockwise direction, over to the next archway.

Brishen shakes her head, looking back towards the ocean as she follows the Khatta. "I can't fly forever."

The ocean window darkens and solidifies into rock again. The next archway, at the "2 o' clock" position, brightens as Jynx approaches. Through this one, a gray landscape can be seen somewhat hazily, with a dark, starry night sky. A light mist clings to the ground … and stone structures can be seen here and there in the distance. Oddly, some of them float in the air, without visible support, much as the glowing orbs in the center of the room do. Nearby, a rock column hovers just beyond the window – or, that is, a broken section of one. There are several others as well, seemingly fragments of a larger structure, with bits and pieces removed, and no consideration for the effect of gravity upon the remnant.

It looks real enough … yet quite unreal, all the same.

Brishen glances at the Unlucky One. "That might work for me, but not for you."

The Khatta nods, "It'd be kinda hard for me to get around." He looks around the chamber, and shrugs, "Guess we better check them all." He makes his way to the 1'oclock position, waiting for the arch to open.

Brishen nods, finding sturdier footing as she follows the Khatta about. It isn't long before she isn't leaning on him anymore. In fact, she's fascinated, examining what each window shows intently.

The process repeats itself. This time, the "1 o' clock" position reveals another misty landscape, though this one is more milky white than gray. The sky is also dark, filled with stars, although it is at the same time dominated by a gigantic sun. The surface seems misty and undefined, though it appears that there is some sort of solid surface beneath those mists somewhere.

At the "12 o' clock" position, things are a bit different. As the window begins to brighten … it doesn't stop brightening! The light gets more and more intense, filling the room to the point where it hurts the eyes even with the lids closed! Perhaps it's only imagination … but it feels as if the room is getting hotter as well!

Brishen squints, then covers her eyes with her hands. "No. Not that one."

Jynx grimaces at the 1'oclock. And shields his eyes at 12'oclock, quickly jumping to 11 o'clock. "DEFINATELY not that one!"

Brishen squeaks, nodding as she follows the Khatta. She keeps her eyes closed.

The room is considerably more comfortable once that window darkens. At first, it seems that the eleven o' clock position doesn't do anything at all. But it just takes time for the eyes to adjust. Another dark world is revealed beyond, full of swirling mists. They seem to have a faintly purple tinge to them, and as they dance about, they form strange shadows that – with the help of the imagination – seem to form humanoid figures or faces or images out of half-remembered dreams. It's an eerie and unsettling effect.

The 10 o' clock position reveals nothing but a field of stars … though the stars at the bottom of the field of vision seem to ripple ever so slightly every once in a while.

Brishen opens her eyes. Then, she closes them again. "No. Not that one either. Or that one!"

Jynx nods, "Let's try them all first."

The 9 o' clock position reveals what looks like an endless expanse of stone walkways criss-crossing over deep orange mists far below. The covered walkways look as if they are formed of the same materials as this tower – a combination of crystal and dull stone, with a modicum of a ridge on either side of each walkway to prevent a tumble into the gases so far below. Like so many of the places shown, this one, too, is under a starry night sky, although the crystal-stone walkways provide a dim light closer to the window.

The 8 o' clock position reveals what looks like a totally un-solid domain below … a deep brown sea of gases, and a starry night sky above. The gases swirl about in ways that seem to hint at some sort of unfathomable purpose, perhaps something like the purple mists in the eleven o' clock window.

"The eleven looks familiar… but I don't think we want to go there." The Khatta shivers. He peers at the 9 o'clock. "I wonder what this one is all about… "

Brishen glances down at her satchel, wings furled as she walks along behind the Khatta. Then, she looks back towards the bright-lit window. After an instant's thought, she shakes her head. "I have no idea. It looks like another place where I'd fare better than you would."

Jynx nods, "Most of these places seem unfriendly in general." The Khatta grimaces, and continues his way around the circle.

The 7 o' clock position is … different. The window brightens, suggesting a place where it is daylight, rather than nighttime like so many of the others. However, the sky is far from familiar, filled with bands of all the colors of the rainbow. The window opens out onto a bizarre forest – or some sort of wilderness – that can only be described as alien. Everything is brightly colored, and it's hard to tell what might be plant, or what might be creature. As a slight deviation from the display of colors, there is a bizarre-looking creature that looks as if he might be fashioned of a bone-like material, staring right back into the window.

Brishen smiles, nudging the Khatta. "I liked the floating stones. It was familiar, at least."

Brishen blinks. "Eep!"

The creature's body is fashioned of mostly spherical-looking components, and it stands on two wobbly-looking legs. Its face is dominated by two concave cavities that suggest eyes (or eye sockets), and it has a short snout that ends in an opening that looks like a bottle neck. It leans to one side, then the other, peering back through the window.

Brishen tugs at Feli. "I don't like this one either. And that thing's looking at us!"

The Khatta grins at Brishen, "You would like that one." As they reach 7 o'clock, his tail bristles, "Yeah, let's go on… " Staring at the creature, he makes his way to 6 o' clock.

At 6 o' clock, the scene might match 7 o' clock in terms of being all-around bizarre. A glowing landscape shifts colors in seemingly random fashion … along with an equally luminescent and color-changing sky. Pulsating lights zip this way and that across the landscape, or just spin around in circles and wild patterns for no discernable reason.

Brishen sighs quietly. "This is getting stranger."

Jynx nods in agreement, "This one doesn't seem any more suitable." He then starts for five. "Almost done."

Brishen flutters her wings, shivering. "I don't even want to know what some of these places are."

At 5 o' clock, the scene shifts to something far more normal-looking. It's the desert again. No, wait, it's different. For one thing, the sand is red. For another, there are pools of bubbling water, and cracked rocky structures, from which plumes of steam emit. It looks as if the sky is either early morning or sunset, as indicated by a glow on the horizon, past the jagged mountains.

"That one looks downright mean… but… " The cat peers at it. "Abaddon is red, isn't it?"

Brishen crosses her arms and squints at the window. "There is some sort of flat surface to walk on, at least." She winces a little as she tucks her hands against a few of her deeper scratches. "Hst. I guess." She looks widdershins along the tower. "Are there any other windows?"

In the sky, a great orb can be seen, as red as the sands, floating some unfathomable distance away.

Back to the 4 o' clock position, and the view outside is that of the "clearing" in the Forbidden Zone again – as normal as it gets. No more archways remain.

Brishen walks back to stand before the fifth window. "Well, this is certainly red. But I don't like the looks of it at all."

Each time the two visitors go to a new archway, something seems to change about the lights hovering in the center of the room.

Brishen glances at Feli, then tugs him along as she walks to stand in front of the second window. She stares at the orb at the center of the tower.

Jynx looks around, "I think this is it, all of them. I think… I think I have it figured out." He looks at all the different aches, quickly cut off by the bat as she pulls him along. "I think- ack!"

As the two move about the room, examining the activity of the orbs in the center of the room, a pattern emerges. In front of the 4 o' clock window, a blue orb that orbits the golden light in the center of the room seems to glow more brightly than the other small orbs. The blue orb appears to orbit the golden orb about four orbits out. Plus, it appears to have cloudy shapes swirling on its surface … and a faint hint of a ring around it.

Brishen grins. "You think you have – Look! It's Sinai!"

Standing in front of the ocean window, the blue sphere glows less, to be replaced by the green orb … which is at the third orbit out from the golden orb in the center of the room. A thin thread of light bridges between the blue and the green orb.

Brishen drags the hapless Khatta back towards the fifth window, keeping her eyes on the orbs.

Jynx nods vigorously, "Yes, that's what I was getting to! Each of these archways leads to a different world!" He motions to all the different archways. "Except the twelfth window, which is the sun- ack!" As he is dragged along, he continues, "But I don't get it, only Sinai's supposed to have life, and there aren't eleven planets… "

Brishen shrugs. "Have you ever been anywhere else?" She grins brightly. "I didn't even know there were less than eleven to begin with."

Being in front of the fifth window causes the red sphere – the fifth orbit out, coincidentally – to glow more brightly, and a thread of light connects it to the blue sphere. The red glowing orb appears to be a bit whitish near the top and bottom … and might those be some cloudy shapes on its surface as well? A teeny, tiny little red smaller sphere orbits the larger red one. The smaller sphere shows no signs of any "clouds".

Brishen takes a few careful steps towards the red sphere, leaning forward a little as she squints at it. "So – Is this Abaddon?"

"Well, no," replies the cat, "I only know what I learned back in Rephidim." He sighs as he looks up at the orbs, "I guess so. Now, here's the tricky part… " He looks at Brishen, "Where do we want to go?"

The red sphere has some more details on it. It seems as if it has thin cracks running across its surface. Canals, perhaps? There's also a tiny little fleck of green near the equator.

Brishen takes another step, squinting at the green spot. "That looks promising." She looks over her shoulder at the window. "And not at all like that."

Jynx nods, "Yeah, but how do we get there?" He grimaces, "I mean, remember what it looks like through the window. Even the floating palace place looked more inviting than that."

Brishen crosses her arms, wincing. "I haven't the faintest idea." She leans this way and that, looking at the red sphere from different angles.

Alas, not much more can be told about the red sphere. Except that, by accident, Brishen discovers that it's not as solid as it appears to be, as some of her hairs pass right through it. No harm done, though.

"At least we know Zoltan is there," he sighs, and looks around the circle. "That's more than we have going for us in the other places. But I don't know if I can deal with much more desert."

Brishen squeaks quietly, then follows the thread that links Sinai to Abaddo – She turns to stare at Jynx. "Zol – Zoltan Cambio?"

Through the window that reveals the red desert, it looks like there's some activity! Some humanoid forms make their way through the smoke, heading closer toward the window. Behind them … there's some sort of carriage. It's very shiny … as if it's made from metal!

Jynx stares at Brishen curiously, "You know him? How-" he breaks off at the sight through the window, and inches forward. "Shhh, let's see what this is… "

Brishen flutters her wings. "Um. They might be able to see us."

"A… Titan? Wait, that's not a Titan!" Jynx peers, and shivers, "It definately looks mean though, some sort of war machine… "

The metal carriage rolls forward, borne on treads. It has a big cylinder coming out of the front, which looks something like an oversized cannon of some sort. Some humanoid figures with flintlocks – or weapons looking a lot like them – march along, flanking the metal machine. Another metal machine comes through the smoke as well.

Brishen blinks. "Feli – Maybe we should close this window."

Flags fly from the back of the metal machines. It's hard to tell the insignia from this distance, but it looks like it's some sort of black symbol on a white circle on a red field.

Jynx stares in horrid wonderment at the machines, but snaps back to reality at Brishen's words. He jumps back to the four o'clock position, deciding that he doesn't want to deal with this planet just yet.

The window's image fades … and the familiar Forbidden Zone scene emerges. The metal carriages are gone, for the moment.

Brishen follows, quickly. "If that's Abaddon, they don't look at all hospitable."

The Khatta sighs, and turns to the Eeee, "Well, we have to make up our minds." He frowns, looking around, "and we can't go back to Sinai, that's for sure." He looks back to the Bat, "Well, what's your pleasure?"

Brishen sighs quietly, then sits down on the floor. "Do we have a choice? I like the second window, but what I like isn't really all that important right now. If we need to go to Abaddon, then that's where we go."

Jynx slowly sits as well, his muscles still aching. "Third-Vision didn't say we had to go to Abaddon, it's just that that's where Zoltan is, which means we might have some help. But it does look rather… violent." He looks the bat in the eyes, "We can always try the second window, and maybe make our way back, if we're able to."

Brishen giggles quietly, shaking her head. "I met Zoltan during a Guy Fox Day, under strange circumstances. I don't know if he'd even recognize me."

Brishen flicks one of her braids away from her muzzle. "Especially like this."

Unlucky One grins, "I doubt anyone would recognize you like that. I've had several run ins with Zoltan, and he's always been dependable. And Third-Vision trusts him, so that means I do too." He sighs. "We have to make a choice."

Suddenly, the lights flicker in the center of the room. The red planet starts glowing faintly, as a thread of light starts to form between it and the blue one. The red window seems to be slowly lightening again, of its own accord…

Brishen squeaks. "Wires! Those things – They're – !" Her wings flutter.

"Either way," Jynx adds, "we more than likely won't be comming back to Sinai. I don't know if I want to be trapped on Abaddon for the rest of my lif-" He bolts up as the lights flicker, watching the five o'clock arch. "Someone's comming in!"

The five o' clock arch begins to glow, as lights pulsate amidst the crystals … in a fashion that seems disturbingly like the activity of the Artifact of Calderas, for a moment. The stone slowly becomes more translucent, though it's taking longer than when the Khatta or Eeee have walked in front of an archway on their own.

Brishen looks around, frantically. "Uhm – "

A shadowy form can be seen through the stone window, accompanied by several others, all armed with those weapons. Their faces are hidden in masked helmets that resemble stylized skulls, and wicked spikes stick up from the top of their helmets.

"Quick," Jynx yells, "To the other side!" He sprints over to the two o'clock archway, turning to watch the five o'clock.

"By Dagh!" exclaims the Khatta. That two o'clock looks more inviting all the time.

The five o' clock archway is still glowing … but the two o' clock archway lights up as well. The misty, dreamy, gray world can be seen beyond, and it seems as if there's a battle going on between the threads of light that stretch from the blue orb out to the gray one and the red one.

Brishen scrambles after the Khatta, meeting him near the two o'clock archway. "How do we get through? Hold on!" She reaches for Feli, trying not to grab where she'd bitten his arm.

Jynx hesitates, looking through the two o'clock window, then back at the five o'clock. Finally, heart pounding wildly, he attempts to pick up Brishen, and spring through the two o'clock window.

Brishen wriggles, flapping her wings. "What are you doing?! I need to hold you!"

As Jynx touches the window, it's not solid like he might expect, and no glass shatters outward … Instead, there is a brief sensation of coldness … and the window's surface ripples outward like the surface of a pool disturbed by a pebble dropped in its center. Jynx simply goes INTO the window … and through it … with Brishen clinging on for dear life.

Brishen squeaks. "Wiiiiiiiireees!"

"No time!" yells the cat as he leaps through the open window, amazed as he passes through without injury. Another injury seems to come forth, however, and Jynx feels like he's slammed in the chest. "Ack, the… the Artifact! It's… angry!" The words trail off as he goes sailing through the portal.

Through the window, there is not the gray world … but a stretching of reality as it seems that the bat and cat are thrust outward, away from Sinai, soaring past the Procession … and a curious stone building floating in space that they narrowly miss … and then their beings stretch out, spanning the distance to a world closer to the sun, Primus … a gray world that appears in the night sky always as a crescent, for it orbits the sun at a pace that keeps it in the same position relative to Sinai and the sun, throughout its year.

Brishen holds onto Feli as tightly as she can, ready to flap her wings when she must.

Tears spring to Jynx's eyes as the force pulls at him, this isn't what he expected.

Onward they go, and space twists and twirls about them … until suddenly they are bowled out into the real world again. Or … that is … a different real world. They see it through crystal windows in a chamber that must have been built by the same architects as those who made the Tower. Through the crystal windows can be seen the expanse of this gray, strange reality. And behind them is a window showing the interior of the crystal tower … though the image is slowly fading … as are the lights of the archway.

They've made it. Wherever this is.

Jynx slams to the ground, holding onto the bat tightly as their strange journey ends. "Oof!"

Brishen gasps as the wind is knocked from her. Her wings flap, once, as she tumbles to the ground and is still.

Outside, the mists swirl about, tousled by a wind that does not penetrate into this crystal chamber.

The Khatta lies on the ground for a bit, then slowly rises to his feet. "Ouch… bleah… " He looks around, noticing the strange windows. He goes slowly and painfully up to it, and stares outside. "I guess we're here. And from the looks of it, 'here' is Morpheus, planet of dreams." He stares out into the mists.

Brishen squeaks as she begins to cough, wincing as she forces air back into her lungs. Some time passes before she can look towards the Khatta. "I didn't know dreams had floating castles."

Jynx raises a paw to touch the window, gazing outwards. He grins at Brishen, "Some do. Eve's had those in her dreams. Come look at this… "

Brishen squints. "You're going to have to help me up again."

At Jynx's touch, the window shatters … and the shards slide outward, opening up to form a doorway. As they do, there is an inward rush of air – yes, breathable air – and some of the mists start to collect on the floor, though they quickly settle down, making a dusty film.

A sound like tinkling chimes can be heard outside, and a wind blowing across the landscape, breaking the silence that dominated this crystal observation chamber. The archway showing the way back to Sinai, meanwhile, has darkened and solidified entirely.

The Khatta nods, and begins to make his way towards the bat, only to be blown inward by the sudden rush. He stares amazedly at the window, then helps the bat up, putting an arm around her. "I guess that's our way out."

Brishen leans against the Khatta as she stands on shaky knees. Her eyes grow wide again as she looks out towards the open window. "Help me over there." She grins at a thought. "We'll need to find some wings for you, Feli."

Beyond the crystal doorway lies an expanse of mist-covered rolling hills, devoid of any vegetation, but not exactly "lifeless". Broken columns, unsupported platforms and other archetectural structures float in open space. A palace floats in the distance, and shimmering points of reflected light hint at cascading waterfalls leaping from terrace to floating terrace, with no discernable source … or destination. The stars shine more brightly than they ever did on Sinai, undiminished by competition from the Procession. So real … yet unreal.

Jynx chuckles, and nods to the bat. "Wings indeed." He gives a deep sigh, staring out at the expanse, "I guess we'd better be on our way. If you'll come with me, madame… " With that, the Khatta and the Eeee take their first steps into this new, unknown world…