I raised an eyebrow at the Gygr's dire prophetic declarations. "Void-Storms, huh? That sounds pretty dramatic. Care to elaborate?”

"The Void-Storms," the Gygr’s head rasped, "are the result of reality itself breaking down. As Endalaus draws closer, its immense... magical radiance warps the fabric of our world. Only the collective will of humanity - true, individual human minds and human souls - can hold it at bay!"

I nodded, encouraging her to continue. "And the Arcanicx don't count because...?"

"They are not truly individuals," the Gygr snarled. "Their souls are full of holes and their minds are bound to their Divine Beasts, their wills subsumed more and more with each generation. Endalaus does not see them as human!”

"Interesting theory," I mused. "And... Endalaus is what? A supermassive planet-sized artifact that recognizes true human nature?”

“Yes,” the Gygr intoned. “It is a mindless, truly vast, self-replicating device set in motion one hundred million years ago by humanity, created to grant everyone’s wishes everywhere at the same time.”

“Riiiight,” I said. “Surely there must be a less... genocidal way to preserve humanity, Christi?"

"You think I haven't tried?” The Gygr's laugh was a harsh and bitter. "Six hundred years of planning, all undone by a child playing at being a witch. You have no idea of the forces you're meddling with, boy! You have no idea of the value of the Forgestone you have taken!”

She didn’t seem to notice Mooni’s talons tapping rapidly at her head, didn’t pay attention to the silver-blue threads extending from Cali’s fingers across the emaciated, bloody stick-figure.

“What is its value then?” I asked. “Do educate me. Maybe I’ll bring it back to your lovely swamp, if you explain what you were using it for. I’m a reasonable man.”

"The Forgestone is a relic of the Builders of Endalaus," the Gygr said, twitching as the tapping of the Corvix on her skull intensified. "It allows one to fold humanity itself, to preserve and protect. I used it to create a sanctuary, a place where the chosen could live on… in paradise. I used it to create... Zal-Slavi, making Nordstaii heaven real!"

I nodded. "And how exactly did you plan to bring everyone back once the danger passed?"

The Gygr's face twisted into a grimace. "That... that part was still in progress. But it would have worked! What was folded once can be unfolded again. The Forgestone is an Artifact of great power. Given enough time, I could have…”

“How many humans must remain on Thornwild for reality not to decay away?” I asked.

“A minimum of one hundred thousand humans,” the Gygr said. “I already preserved twice as much in ZalSlavi!”

“What?” I blinked.

“Some came willingly, others were taken by Jotuns-mine, thrown into the fold,” the Gygr confessed her human extermination campaign with a lopsided grin.

“What the hell did you even anchor them to?” I demanded.

“Anchor them?” The Gygr blinked. “I did not anchor them. Their souls naturally flow to where they wish to go, to the hall of Champions… to the palace amidst the Astral currents I have built for them over six hundred years. Those that believe in Zal-Slavi end there. It is as simple as that!”

“Then what was the point of shoving people by force into the spiral?” I asked.

“Far too many get lost in transit otherwise,” the head of Chernobog explained.

“Where did you find the Forgestone?” I asked.

“She… told me about it…” The Gygr grimaced, clearly trying to fight off whatever Mooni and Cali were doing.

“She?” I pressed.

"The Voice of the Abyssal Void. She called herself Nox… and many other names… the Administrator of Infinity. She showed me how to build a compass, one that led me and my first hero to the Forgestone buried in glacier ice. She spoke to me in my dreams, when I Astral Projected myself all the way down through the Astral Ocean to the surface of… Endalaus.”

"And you just... trusted this Administrator of Infinity? Didn't question its motives?" I asked.

“Her. She is a girl of dark hair and violet eyes.” The Gygr snarled. "Question? Boy, when you stand before the infinite, when you glimpse the true nature of reality... such questions become meaningless. I saw the inevitable future, all possible futures. I saw, knew what needed to be done. I…”

She stared at me and choked as her single eye turned white.

“I don’t see you,” she said. “I don’t see you in the future…”

“Oh, really?” I asked.

“I don’t see you at all,” the Gygr croaked. “I know that you are there and yet… It’s… as if you don’t exist. It’s as if some otherness is skewering reality, not letting me define what you are… No matter, no matter, I will unmake you in time… I will unravel the threads of Sorcery my sister forged you with... and I will..."

I thought of the supermassive fractal that Mooni and I made in the Astral Abyss.

Was it still there, still screwing with time, still sending me my own knowledge from the future? I would have to test this more with Stormy.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

"You think you've won, boy? This is just the beginning," Christi snarled. "I'll peel that mangy familiar of yours like an onion. I'll make you watch as mine-blood-hands unmake her, layer by layer. I'll send leviathan beasts to unmake you!"

Stormy growled at the Gygr's head from my shoulder.

When did she even get there? Hrm. Sneaky kitten is sneaky.

"You have no idea of the forces you're dealing with. My army of Jotuns will find you, no matter where you hide. You might be invisible to mine Astral gaze but your familiar is not. My seven Champions will…” The Gygr threatened.

"Might want to check your math there." I glanced at the remnants of Bobliss.

The Gygr's head contorted with rage. "Mock me all you want, Stillwalker. But know this - I am eternal. I am the Song of the Void itself. You cannot destroy me. I will find you, and when I do, I'll make you beg for the sweet release of oblivion!”

"You know, for someone who claims to be trying to save humanity, you sure do talk a lot about torture."

"You understand nothing!" she spat. "Everything I've done, I've done for the greater good. For the survival of our species, for the preservation of the Nordstaii way!"

"Riiiight," I nodded sarcastically.

"Because nothing says 'saving humanity' like turning people into monsters and shoving souls into a cosmic wood chipper,” I thought darkly.

"Mark my words, boy. This isn't over. I'll-"

But whatever threat she was about to make was cut off as Calemea's four hands tightened around the remnants of Bobliss, bringing him closer to the spiral held by two hands.

The crystalline construct's six eyes glowed with an eerie inner light as myriads of dark, pulsating void threads began to seep out of the chest and head of the fallen champion.

"Void-threat detected," Calemea intoned in her trio-chorus. "Initiating containment protocols."

Four of the Geolith’s hands shoved the Gygr’s head into the shield.

I watched as the Gygr's form began to dissolve, her essence being drawn into Calemea's spiral shield. Her eyes widened in fear and then she was gone, vanished, disconnected from her Champion.

Only Bobliss remained behind, his melting body covered in what looked like a million wriggling, alien void-worms. He screamed and gnashed his teeth as he dissolved into oblivion. The Abyssal-void-creature or whatever thankfully vanished along with him, folding away into the void from which it had come.

As the last drop of blood belonging to Bobliss vanished in the spiral, I finally relaxed.

“Mission completed,” the Geolith reported. “Threat is... stopped.”

Six hands folded into each other.

She fell silent then, not breathing, not doing anything at all, and simply standing there like a shiny statue, six eyes staring at nothing at all.

I looked up at her imposing figure. She was quite handy and powerful, a magic sword and gun and shield against the Gygr, but she wasn’t the friends I had made on Thornwild… the girls I had lost.

Did I lose them though?

I noticed that the remotes were still hanging on my body beneath the armor, drawing their power from me to animate Calemea into existence.

I flipped two of the switches off, leaving only one of them running. The one that I really wanted to talk to, the only person in the world that made Thornwild a bit less alien.

The crystalline form of Calemea slowly shimmered and shifted, crystals folding into themselves, rotating, reforming like a massive 3D printed statue, converging into the human figure of Galateya - a young woman in her early twenties.

Two brown eyes with a touch of violet in them blinked. Her hair was brown and wavy.

Galateya looked down at herself, seemingly surprised by her newfound humanity. I tried not to stare at her body, quickly grabbing a Nordstaii sweater from the sleigh and tossing it to her.

"Here," I said. "You might want to put this on."

She caught the large, fluffy sweater with blue patterns on it and slipped it over her head. When I glanced back, she was examining her hands, flexing her fingers as if testing out a new body.

"Ioan?" she said, her voice uncertain. "What... What happened? I remember the cavern collapsing, and then... everything was a strange... dream, like I was myself and also someone else? Two others... I think?"

I ran a hand through my hair, unsure how to explain the bizarre series of events that had lead me to the creation of the Geolith. "It's... complicated. I'll tell you everything later. How do you feel?"

Galateya took a deep breath, her brow furrowing. "Strange. Like I'm whole again, but... different. I can feel the Chronacist crystals in the sea, but it's not just that anymore. And I can... breathe." She looked at me, her eyes wide with wonder. "Ioan, I'm breathing! I'm... I'm hungry and thirsty!"

I couldn't help but smile at her excitement over such mundane needs. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Teya."

She took a wobbly step towards me, then hesitated looking left and right. "The others... Cali and Moonalia. Are they...?"

I shook my head. "They're... part of you now, in a way. It's hard to explain. But they're not gone, not entirely."

Galateya nodded slowly, thinking over my words. She looked around the cavern, taking in the destruction. "And... Bobliss?"

"Gone," I said firmly. "For now. Maybe forever. Don't know. He... might come back, but we are getting better at kicking his ass, so there's that."

She let out a relieved sigh. "Good. That's... good." Then she looked at me, her expression softening. "Thank you, Ioan. For everything."

I felt a lump form in my throat. "I'm just glad you're okay, Teya. I honestly couldn't bear the thought of losing you. Talking to you through Stormy was a bit of a pain, but you’re the only person on this damn planet who understands me.”

"Mrrrr," Stormy said from my shoulder.

She stepped closer, reaching out to take my hand. Her touch was warm. "You didn't lose me. You saved me. You gave me back my humanity. Hell, you gave me freaking legs! Legs! Thank you! Thank you Ioan! Thank you, Stormy!"

“And how does it feel to have legs again after one hundred thousand years?” I asked as she grabbed the kitten from my shoulder, squeezing her.

Galateya giggled at the bothered noises Stormy was making in her hands, a sound that sent warmth spreading through my chest. "Honestly? A bit wobbly. I… might need some practice walking on land again."

I grinned. "Well, we've got time. George knows that we’re here though, so we should get started on relocating. Can you move the sleigh from here into the lake and out into the ocean?”

“Where are we going?” Teya asked as I helped her walk into the sleigh.

“A little magpie told me that there's a sunny island somewhere to the south that might be perfect,” I said.

Her brown-violet eyes lit up. "An island? With actual sunshine?"

I nodded, thinking of Stormy and her relentless pursuit of the perfect sunbeam. "Yeah. I think it's time we all got out of the cold for a while. How does that sound?”

“I’d like that very much,” Teya nodded, a smile crossing her lips. "It's just so... nice to actually see what you look like, to speak with you in person!"

"And?"

"I... thought you'd be taller," she admitted.

"Yeah," I shrugged with a smile. "Being taller would be nice. I think I was taller in my previous life."