Sonya felt euphoric. It was unlike anything she’d ever experienced before. Tiny motes of power burning in her body like little stars. She raised her hand up and examined her fingers, flexing them experimentally as a wave of giddiness washed over her. There’s a bright one in my wrist. It’s pretty. Her lips twitched up in a smile even as her mind recoiled slightly. “S-so this the aftermath of Visage of Titania,” she ughed, her words and thoughts felt misaligned, off kilter. It’s subjeg me to mania, she thought, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised given what the ability do. There had to be a serious drawback.

  She took a deep breath and tried to rex her heartbeat, pushing her amusing new surroundings out of her mind for a moment. How long will the effects st? She wondered, fighting down another wave of giggles. She held her hand up over her mouth and stumbled, pg her hand against a nearby tree. She heaved out a breath and ughed again, turning her eyes towards the sight she’d seen through the portal in the Bas. A massive pound spread like a slovenly beast in the humid woodnd. Paved paths eg over a hundred buildings that surrounded a single massive structure.

  She tilted her head aed her hand on her cheek, admiring the sight, “Wow,” she crowed, “Looks like Liberty really knows how to live it up.”

  Are you alright?

  Sonya tehat disect flickering in her mind again before she righted it and identified the source of the voice. She raised a hand to her heart a out a breath, “Ishtar, right, you’re here with me.”

  You didn’t reize me?

  Sonya huffed, “They say the old queen of the fae was mad,” she said hesitantly, “Every ability has rules or a price.”

  I seem to be doing nothing but bringing you harm every time I make a suggestion, Ishtar said morosely.

  Sonya shrugged, “I’m just gd to hear your voice, you’ve been quiet,” she pressed her lips together and looked down at her feet. The euphoria fading even more into the background, “Thank you, for helping me earlier. If it wasn’t for you I’d be still trapped in there.”

  Then take advantage of the recimed time, your people hold their own but they ever be without too much help. A proper vilin does not abandon their subordinates, Ishtar instructed.

  She smirked, “You don’t o tell me that!” she ughed aured to the remarkable view beyond, “Besides, It looks like I’m going to get to have a little fun as well!” she decred before leaning up against the tree she had steadied herself on earlier. She crossed her arms and closed her eyes, sending her senses out and activating Astral Eye. She had spent more than enough time in the camp to be able to form ohin its viity at any distance. She allowed her sense of sight to travel to that pd looked down on it from a distance, a tiny pink twinkle in the nights sky.

  There, far below, she saw the on building almost entirely encased in stone. Bodies were strewn everywhere amidst the courtyard. The turrets Amos had installed were sweeping viciously left and right while Bck Lotus danced between two men whose bodies were glowing with a coppery light. They must be members of her inner circle, she panned her view, there’s a third ohere. She’s dressed a bit like hua, a cultivator-type ability? She doesn’t seem ied in participating in the fight. Maybe she’s waiting for hua to get worn down. Now that won’t do at all.

  <“Amos?”> she called out through her teopathy, sending the signal through her phone.

  <”Sonya?! Where the hell have you been?”> he demanded, <”Shit’s bad over here!”>

  <”I see that, I was stu the Bas. Something interfered with my portal and it broke down as I was returning,”> she expined, <”What’s the situation?”>

  <”Some kind of ability is blog any sort of teleportation ability within a huge area around the camp. The Pandora ittee is trying to get people there but every time a ps close it gets torn to shreds. That do-it-yourself hero of yours and her friends are in the dungeon with Otis and…”> he trailed off, <”We’ve already lost a feirants, Sonya. I’m sorry.”>

  She set her jaw tightly, <”I see,”>

  She looked down at her feet ahe euphoria from her power wane even more. The mood swings were being intense. She reached up and rubbed at her temples before she started to pace. Sadness and Rage peted with the lingering amusement making her feel nauseous. She wao ask how many young people had already lost their lives, how many had been unlucky enough to be too far away from the on building when the chaos started. She groueeth and forced herself to focus, pushing the delightful tingle of those stars in her body out of her mind.

  She turned her sight ba hua’s battle. The hero snapped out a kick, driving it into the abdomen of a thin looking man who vanished and turned into a blur, afterimages left behind as he surrounded her. They all cpped at ond hua spun into a tornado of motion that sent the afterimages scattering only for spears of red light to appear above her, falling down like the sword of damocles. hua stopped her spin and swung upwards, destroying the spears with a ribbon of white-pink light. Sonya focused on the woman’s face, She’s bleeding.

  <”Why is she holding back? Those two ’t be more than heroic-tier,” Sonya growled.

  <”You know her, she isn’t going to go all out without permission, she’s already doing this expeg to get expelled from the ittee, though, so I don’t really get it either,”> Amos said.

  Sonya rubbed her , <”The dungeon, she’s afraid her fight will influehe dungeon while the aspirants are inside,”> Sonya said, <”Stupid! It’s not that high level of a dungeon, if it’s Lillian’s group they ha.”> she scowled, <”Any word from the Chairman?”>

  <”ht, fot to mention, Liberty had him blown up. His house is basically rubble by now,”> Amos said awkwardly.

  Her expressio deadpan, <”Great, just fabulous,”> she muttered, <”Seems I really have uimated that brute of a woman,”> she said before turning to look towards the pound. I know she’s down there, she’s got to be, I could try to fight her but I still don’t know the full limits of her ability. I know the basics but, it’s too risky to face her now and I promised Cass a ce. I ’t go bay word. She sighed, At least I try to sneak in and cause a bit of trouble.

  <”So what’s the pn?”> Amos asked, <”Your pretty knight is putting in the legwork.”>

  <”The other heroes?”> Sonya asked.

  <”The instructors are with the students and Marta who’s still wearing your face. Axel is iy bad shape, Da-Som is w on him right now. Madame Rouge is being herself, she won’t move unless its absolutely necessary. Since Bck Lotus is out there, she probably doesn’t see any real o intervene,”> Amos said, <”God she annoys me.”>

  Sonya shrugged, <”She’s just etric, she’ll take a if it es to it, like you said,”> she said before rubbing her , she turned her gaze back towards hua and watched her fight for a few more heartbeats, <”If she’s not going to kick it up without orders, the’s give her orders. I’m calling in those favors, ect me with Car.”>

  Amos hesitated, <”Didn’t you want to wait for that move?”>

  She snorted, <”What better time for a leader to step up than during a crisis?”> she said, <”Now that the Chairman’s dead, my hand has been forced. I’ll just have to pay Liberty back ter for activating my little tingency.”>

  <”My dolls are ready too, I send them out if-”>

  <”No.”>

  <”No? But what about Bck Lotus? She could use the backup until things got settled with Car,”> he protested, <”A vote like that won’t be quick.”>

  <”Yes it will,”> Sonya said, <”Don’t take away from her achievement here. It’ll add to her fame.”>

  <”Even if that woman with the sword joins in?”> Amos pressed.

  <”She won’t, I have a feeling she’s waiting for a one on one,”> Sonya said, <”Now get me Car.”>

  <”On it, boss,”> he said.

  The sound in her head popped ond a new voice joiheir versation almost immediately, <”Sonya? Sonya are you okay?”>

  <”I’m fine, love,”> she said with a ugh, <”No worries, just had a bit of an ued interdimensional detour. It happens.”>

  <”Interdimen- WHAT?”>

  Sonya snickered, <”Calm down, it’s fine, I’m back. I need you to call a remote emergency session of the ittee.”>

  <”It’s already about to start,”> Car said grimly, <”Sounds like you heard about what happened…”> she trailed off, <”...wait don’t tell me.”>

  <”Yup!”>

  <”B-but I’m not- Sonya, I don’t think I’m ready, you’re not serious are you?”>

  <”Yup!”>

  <”I’m not gonna win this argument, am I?”> Car sighed.

  <”Nope!”>

  <”...Sonya, are you sure you’re okay?”> Car asked.

  Sonya’s expression fell, her eyes turning back towards the pound. All of her good humor evaporated as she thought about the two shapes she’d seen ying on the grouo the front door of the main building. No one could safely go out arieve them. Left there to wait. How many more were ying irees? How many more hadn’t made it back? Did any of the scouts lose their lives while trying to get out of a duhat she knew was swarming with monsters as the ambient mana levels spiked in the area. The harder hua fought, the harder things were going to be in there.

  I ied a lot into you, Lillian, you better not die young dy, she growled as her nails dug into her palms, <”Car,”> she said soberly, <”I’m going to repay Liberty for this. You just focus on that vote while Amos and hua hahings. Uood?”> she said as she weaved an illusion around herself, masking her appearand darting through the trees. She knew she was letting her anger get the better of her, a measured response would be better, more in-lih Ishtar. She khat. Maybe it was the lingering effects of Visage, or maybe she just wao feel like she did back when she’d first e back. Powerful. Untouchable. A lesson o be taught.

  <”Where are you?”> Car asked after another brief pause.

  Sonya dove beh a tree limb, spotting a guard tower through the foliage. Her eyes lit up as she pulled Amethyst Sorceress from her warehouse, fshing the minds of those present long enough to leap over a tall metal gate and nd oher side in an alley betweeer wall of the pound and what looked like a ste building. She took a g into the paved road and spotted a few of the cultists darting about in a flurry of activity, eyeing their clothing for a moment before retreating again. She adjusted her illusion accly before nodding to herself.

  <”Sonya?”>

  <”About sixty miles north of the gulf coast,”> she said.

  <”Oh my god,”> Car breathed, <”S-”>

  Sonya ehe call as she stepped out onto the road, walking past a small group of cultists who her iing. She smiled back at them, Stop fretting, Car, do what you o do. I’ve got it from here. She thought as she dialed a new number.

  <”Miss ovna?”> a man answered.

  <”Representative Harman!”> she crowed merrily as she stalked past another cluster of cultists, many of them speaking in low tones or even sitting in prayer. Their versations were varied and rgely mundane so she filtered them out, fog oing dowh as quickly as possible aing as o that main building as she could. <”I hear you’re in a meeting.”>

  The US Representative to the Pandora ittee cleared his throat, <”This isn’t a good time, Miss ovna,”> he said soberly, <”The Chairman-”>

  <”Is dead, I know,”> she said as two cultists approached her. One of them wore some sort of odd mini-cape around his shoulders. He looked at Sonya's disguised form; she'd picked her old look from the previous timeline, bck hair and blue eyes.

  He nodded brusquely befesturing towards the main building, “You don’t look busy. We’re short staffed at the Main Building, e with me,” he growled, “No questions.”

  She ined her head, “Yes sir,” she said demurely. <”I want you to support Car Mint’s proposal.”>

  <”Mint? She’s a regional administrator, she ’t just make a proposal to the ittee like that,”> the representative said.

  Her lip twitched as she sent out simir messages to others who she’d made tact with, mostly those in Europe. It was a lot of political capital spent but she could recover it when it became necessary through the club. They would fall in line, but this guy… <”Representative I don’t have the time tue with you. The situation is bad at the East Coast Camp and the ittee o restore its leadership. I will return the favor, just do the right thing here and support the measure,”> she clipped as the two men escorted her to a small set of doors set into the side of the main building. She gnced over at a pair of huge doors that loomed over the paved road, Must be the mairahis one is for work staff.

  <”ovna…”> he trailed off, <”I think I know what you’re pnning. Yoing to get a lot of fck if that’s the case, but it’s not my problem. You owe me.”>

  <”Yes yes,”> she said dismissively as the two men opehe door and she was ushered inside. <”Just make sure that measure passes.”>

  <”Uood.”>

  The call ended as the din of people w in peared to be somethiween a warehouse and a supersized kit nearly bowled her over. A thick set woman in a white button up shirt hurried over. She looked Sonya over once before nodding, “She’ll do. Sir Phillip is getting more and more particur these days,” she poi Sonya, “You, girl, hurry up and take that cart up. Security will escort you.”

  Oho? She restrained a smile, I wonder who this Sir Philip guy is.

  She nodded sharply, trying to look more obedient thaed. The woman scowled at her, “Wipe that smirk off your face, he doesn’t like women who seem too eager. Just bring the food up, pay your respects, a back down here. Got it?” she barked before rounding owo men that had led her in, “You two, lead her up, I don’t have any security to spare right now with half ood men on the mission.”

  Sonya let herself get pulled away in the rush, hurrying over to a hand cart den with food and drinks. All the while, her mio work on what would e .

  TICK … TICK … TICK