rogue_4

With the furnace repairs complete, Nymph's Furnace Syndrome has eased. Now, she rarely sees ladders tossed from the sky or sheetmetal houses transforming into white marble halls. As Kazdel's development progresses steadily, the mundane tasks that come with it have replaced the fantasies once spun by the revenants for the Storytellers, stories that have stayed in the furnace.

Strange dreams still trouble her from time to time, though. She sees many familiar faces—Diαblo, Lich, the Wendigo knight, the twin kings that exist only in dreams—but they no longer take her on a never-ending journey through 'Kazdel'. Instead, they stand silently with their heads bowed, covered in Originium dust. There are other even stranger Sarkaz that Nymph has never seen, some with wings with no membranes, some with horns that reach into the sky. They gather at the ruins of a tall building, on what appears to be a snowy day. There seems to be fire burning in the ruins. They mutter an ancient Sarkaz language long forgotten, their raspy voices growing louder, the echoes beckoning by her ear. Nymph does not know the words, but she understands the meaning of the call: all stories will end, and the final conclusion shall arrive. At the end, a lone figure, clad in white and with a black crown over her head, appears amidst the dusty Sarkaz. They reach out to her longingly with their arms and claws, but stop in mid-air.

The call of the Sarkaz ceases. The figure utters, 'melting millions of lives, into nothing but memories.'

This is when Nymph always wakes up with a start. It is the middle of the night, and Kazdel slumbers. Amnannam smolders quietly in the Great Furnace, with only the occasional flash emanating from the nodes.

Nymph wonders if it is a symptom of Furnace Syndrome, and suspects that the embers of the revenants continue to burn in her heart. She even fears that she had told them so many stories that they have been able to take root in her mind.

'Will I ever get better?' Nymph asks in tears.

'Don't be ridiculous. If your brain could really house the revenants, that would only go to show how empty it was in the first place!—Or so says my master.' Fremont was busy and had Ermengarde deliver the reply on his behalf.

It is only when Rhodes Island once again stops at Kazdel that Nymph has the chance to seek treatment at the Medical Department, but even their doctors say, 'You're probably just tired. Have you thought about taking a trip somewhere to clear your mind?'

Nymph walks out of Medical, but cannot shake the prophetic dream from her mind. Her imagination wanders. Must all stories come to an end? What did the figure mean by 'melting millions of lives, into nothing but memories'? And the figure itself seems familiar to her, yet she cannot put a name to it. She closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and the name seems to come upon her lips—

'Nymph?' She hears someone calls her from behind.

'Are you okay?' Nymph turns around and finds the Cautus standing behind her, with the Doctor by her side.

'A-Amiya! Doctor! You're back?' Nymph is excited to see Amiya in Kazdel again.

'Yes, we were discussing further cooperation with Babel.' It is the Doctor who answers her, serious as always. 'Demand for construction materials continues to increase. The number of Sarkaz who have chosen to move to Kazdel far exceeds expectations, and medicine supply is—'

'More and more people are moving to Kazdel!' Amiya pulls the Doctor's sleeve. 'The plates that were so barebones the last time we were here have been built up so much that even you couldn't recognize them, Doctor.'

The Doctor does not argue, instead simply reaching up for an awkward head scratch over the hood.

'...It's easy to get lost in Kazdel these days.'

The Djall notices Amiya's grip on the Doctor's clothes tighten for a moment, but she soon relaxes.

'Well, make sure you stick close to me next time.'

Amiya says this with a smile. There is no hint of concern in her voice, only excitement.

Nymph drifts off again. The dreams that have troubled her once again float to the surface, but those silent revenants, those chilling calls, have both become distant. Nymph seems to see Amiya become a wandering cleric, a black-robed apprentice following behind her; she sees cerulean flames devouring ships amongst the stars, illuminating their opposing faces; she sees the two walking through halls of white marble, their debate echoing in the clouds; she sees the two building a bridge between the stars. Amiya raises her hand, and the darkness between the stars is illuminated by the lens in her hand...

In all of those moments, Amiya's figure is no longer alone.

The embers of the revenants are finally extinguished. Their murmurs become lost to the wind, and the only things echoing in her ears are the humming of Rhodes Island's machinery, and the sound of Amiya calling to her.

'...Nymph?'

'Are you really okay?'

Nymph comes back to her senses to see Amiya still standing before her, the Doctor still standing by her side.

'Furnace Syndrome again? I could help you deal with the memories, if you want.'

'No need for that, Amiya. Just getting lost in my fantasies, some wild delusions.'

The nightmares never troubled Nymph again.