***

“My name is Gale… I’m here. I can do this. I can save the world…”

Gale squirmed in her seat, her legs as her knees nestled into the ground. The nails dug into her clasped hands… Gale couldn’t close her eyes, a part of the ritual to make this prayer work for sure.

She had to keep her eyes open, for she was before this massive wall, made from flesh and bone and tooth and claw. She watched as the mass writhed with such intensity… How these shadow people, chanting with power and anger behind their voices.

It made Gale wonder… Like. How does this happen…? How can a person stay angry, let alone an entire group of people maintaining all that? How can you hold onto something like that when you’d get hurt immediately once you hold it tight? It has to be exhausting, right…?

Maybe this is just… Another example of how dumb she could be. But she felt terrible for these guys. To be literally made of hate and nothing else. Even if they win this… What are they going to do, afterward? They don’t have parties… She thinks--? Regardless if there’s such thing as Subsumed Slumber Parties… They’re not capable of joy. And even if they manage to muster it… It’s twisted. It’s based on nothing but spite and nothingness…

Gale had to slap at her cheeks, shaking her head furiously.

She had to center herself, for this… She had to be the center.

“My name is Gale… And I’m here. And I can do this. I. Will. Save the world…”

As much as it pained her, seeing what was happening in the tower above. The screaming, the shattering that somehow rose above the screaming from the building… Gale had to wait for the signal, to know that Calypso was alright.

Gale struggling to keep her hands clasped, and the gemstone that was brimming with the warmest light from the inside. She had to wait. She had to be the center.

She had to prove that hope still exists, here.

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***

Natalie wanted to be a fly-on-the-wall, watching the wannabe oligarchs dine and admit how horrible they all are.

But as she crawled against the blood-stained halls, watching the once-people sludge steam on the once-pristine floors… Not even living sacks-of-shit deserves to be rendered into such messes.

The Better People that hid and managed to put down the Subsumed that caused this rampage, gave Natalie the signal that she needed. No quips, no anything. Just—staring up at her. And she was a college student that was crawling on the walls.

Whatever—she helped them with the important cargo. Hopefully with Calypso dealing with things above, Natalie only has one more job left.

And what a hard one it’ll be.

Carefully, she edged downward, with a Better Person that was covered in the least amount of blood followed, angling himself under Natalie. The bug girl retracted her claws, falling from the wall right into the arms of the grunt.

“Remember what you have to do,” the grunt said stoically. “It all falls on you.”

“Please,” Natalie tried to hide how crushing that felt, nevertheless sported a cocksure grin. “Bullshitting people is my game. I don’t need magic for any of that.”

***

Screaming. Accusations. And guns are being added to the mix of it all.

Richard bore witness to hard social problems before… But this. This was ridiculous.

“So who is it?!” one of the officers was getting twitchy. Practically peering down the barrel of his weapon, as the crowd was nothing but cattle to him. Trying to figure out who was diseased with rabies. “You people better not lie to me—if you know what’s good for you!”

The officers “managed” to mow down the crowd of monsters before them. And now, all of them are in formation, a circle that was armed to the teeth at the cattle they once projected moments now.

Trying to find the mad cows. As it were.

“We’re just as scared as you are!” a shrill voice answered back.

“How come you’re the one dictating things?!” a trembling voice swooped in. “W-we can’t trust you either! How do we know what you’re not with them--?!”

“WELL I KNOW I’M NOT, SO SHUT YOUR TRAP!” The officer immediately trained his gun in that general direction, causing everyone that’s not even in the area to scream out in fear.

“GILLIAN! STAND DOWN!”

The roar of the woman in the “center” of this firing squad made itself loud and clear. Richard noticed this “Gillian” instant grimace once his superior officer got on him—she had to be over him.

“No one is accusing anyone of anything!” the leader continued. “Keep a cool head, or we’re all going to die here.”

The shouting resumed. Richard was forced to look about at every twisted expression and façade crumbling.

He didn’t have his gloves, so him rustling his hands together felt… Rough. Unbearable.

He was responsible for this mess. He had to live with his mistake. And yet he has to wait. Wait for the time to clean all of this up.