“I was wondering when you’d come” A voice called out. Sophie looked up to see Professor Rivers standing in front of her in the dark as the door shut behind her. Professor Rivers smiled at her, which made Sophie feel unsettled.

  “Of course. I still needed to report back.” Sophie expined. Professor Rivers let out a chuckle.

  “About how you were a complete failure of a student?” They asked.

  “No. About how I refuse to hurt someone who is innocent. It doesn’t make sense to me.” Sophie expined. Professor Rivers rolled their eyes.

  “Oh of course. It makes no sense to you. Because you have no sense.” They retorted. Sophie shrugged.

  “Perhaps. But it’s a lot better than the sort of sense you seem to have. And people seem to like me much more than you.” She snapped back. Professor Rivers looked stunned for a moment then let out uproarious ughter. It caught Sophie off guard as it ricocheted through the empty room, allowing Sophie to truly feel how alone the two of them were together. But it was just a room.

  “Do you think those girls like you? After what you did to them?” they asked, once they had settled, “Face it. You’re a monster too. The only problem is you don’t know what kind.”

  Sophie stared at him quietly.

  “So, you admit that you’re a monster. And monsters have no right to decide the fate of others like this. What gives you the right to act upon the needs of the ‘greater good’?” She asked. Professor Rivers smirked before letting out a sigh.

  “Well. The ‘greater good’ is stupid. It’s an unfortunate fact. People will live every day as they are told until they die. Which is why the LDPD and PL industries were able to manipute them so easily. So, we have to grab their heads and point them at the problem to ensure they see us. And now they do. It’s up to them what path they choose now, and whether they choose correctly is their choice” Professor Rivers said. Sophie frowned.

  “And if they choose neither?” She asked. Professor Rivers shrugged.

  “Most likely… they’ll be torn up and eaten by both sides. In war, only one side can be victorious. There is no grey area. It’s just bck or white. And one side is the right one” They expined. Sophie thought for a moment, then shook her head.

  “No, I don’t agree with that. I think that’s… well it’s bullshit, to be quite frank. You need all sorts of different people in order for the world to go around. And no one is just simply ‘good’ or ‘evil’. Everyone is sort of a mix, I think. That’s what makes the world so exciting.” Sophie said. Professor Rivers rolled their eyes.

  “Oh, would you just shut up! It’s not like you’d ever even know, would you? You don’t even remember who you are. If you did, you’d probably be singing a different tune. It’s different when you’re the one receiving the privilege that we all long for. You could never understand what it’s like for us who have been oppressed and herded up like cattle for years!” they screamed. Sophie caught their eyes glowing purple for a moment before she found herself in complete darkness again. She could tell Professor Rivers was in her mind now. She struggled to push them back out, but it was hard when she actually had a mind and wasn’t just purely hollow anymore. Her mind now ran rampant with thoughts that seemed so scattered and broken. Thoughts that were not her own, thoughts that were. There were mere fragments of the ones that were not her own and they burned and seared her mind as Professor rivers tried to pull them forward. Tears stung her eyes as she heard a voice calling out to her. She turned to see herself sitting on a bed, talking to a shadowed figure.

  “I can’t believe he finally asked me out! I’ve been waiting for this for forever” the shadowed figure said, its voice sounding so distorted and yet strangely familiar. She watched herself smile.

  “I’m gd. Maybe this means my dad’s will won’t matter anymore if you marry him” She joked. The shadowed figure ughed as Sophie gnced down at her phone. They paused for a moment.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to come?” The figure asked. Sophie looked up at her, smirking.

  “Isn’t this a date? What would be the point if I came with you? You go on our own. Tell me all about it when you get home.” She teased. The figure giggled before suddenly vanishing away. Sophie could feel tears falling from her cheeks as she looked up to see Professor Rivers standing before her, a knife in their hand.

  “I will end this scourge on our world now, with my own hands.” They snarled as they stepped forward. Sophie looked up at him.

  “Who was that?” She asked. Professor Rivers said nothing before lunging forward, knife coming towards Sophie. She closed her eyes. She supposed that she may never remember herself, and that this would be it. Just as she was expecting to feel the knife plunge into her chest, she heard a sort of wet, squishing sound and a grunt. She looked up to see the strange cat girl standing in front of her, one arm holding Professor Rivers by the throat and the other holding their hand holding the knife that had been plunged into her. Professor Rivers was struggling to pull back as the girl’s eyes almost seemed to glow a vibrant green as rage seethed through her.

  “Not so cute now without your toy, are you?” the girl growled. Professor Rivers jumped back as their eyes began to glow purple, but the cat girl just pulled the knife out, gripping it for a moment before it vanished into a pink sort of smoke. Her tail swung back and forth as she stalked towards them.

  “How dare you use your ability this way. The Dream goddess is very disappointed.” She said, her voice low. Professor Rivers frowned, their eyes returning to normal.

  “Why doesn’t it work?” they cried out, turning and trying to run from the cat girl. The cat girl grinned, barring her teeth.

  “Your abilities don’t work on Dream Faye.” She stated, then looked back at Sophie.

  “Don’t be weighed down by the past. It’s the only way we move forward.” She said softly, then vanished. Sophie looked over at Professor Rivers then nodded, her eyes beginning to glow purple. Their eyes began to grow purple as well, but Sophie found her already reaching their mind before she could feel them try to get into hers. She pushed more force as she felt Professor Rivers try to regain hold on her mind, but she pushed back. She fought through the memories, the horrible, destructive memories. She watched as Professor River’s family was sughtered as the LDPD attempted to take them away, and all the running and hiding they had to endure over the years. Finally, she reached and grabbed it. A moment of peace. Where they met someone and fell in love. An LDPD enforcer. She watched as they went on secretive dates. She looked down to see Professor Rivers had fallen to their knees and was sobbing as they watched. Sophie watched as the enforcer was taken away and Professor Rivers watched them be publicly executed. She could feel the hair rise on her arms as she watched them being shot in front of a crowd by Leo as a shadowed figure watched from the side. She felt bile rising in her throat. She looked over at Professor Rivers as they sat with their head hung, sobbing. Sophie released her hold as she knelt down and held their hand.

  “I don’t… remember my past. I don’t know who I am. But you have memories.” She said. Professor Rivers gred at her through tears.

  “Horrible memories. What I wouldn’t give to forget them” Professor Rivers said bitterly. Sophie paused.

  “But… would you give up the love for that? The nice moments?” She asked. Professor Rivers paused, looking into her eyes.

  “I… don’t know. It just… hurts.” Professor Rivers said. Sophie frowned and nodded.

  “Yeah… it does. I’m sorry you had to deal with that. But if there was no LDPD, if you had killed them all… then you would have killed them too, right?” She asked. Professor Rivers froze.

  “But… no- I-“ they stammered. Sophie shook her head.

  “Isn’t that what you said to me? That anyone in the LDPD deserves to die? Even the children that were taken from their homes and raised without a choice? Even the people who could be shown a different world?” Sophie asked. Professor Rivers gritted their teeth.

  “That’s not right.” They muttered, “I wouldn’t kill him. I-”

  “According to Insomnia’s logic, they would die. Personal feelings don’t matter, right?” She asked. Professor Rivers frowned as they averted their gaze.

  “… Right.” They said quietly. Sophie sighed; her eyes began to glow purple as she reached into Professor River’s head again.

  “So. These pns to hurt more innocent people...” She said. She gasped as she caught just a glimpse of people cheering at some sort of event, then an explosion and screaming... her eyes shot open, looking down at Professor Rivers as tears streamed down their face.

  “You don’t understand. You could never understand.” They growled. Sophie frowned.

  “I understand that you’re looking to kill thousands of innocent people just to eliminate one threat to you...” She retorted. Professor Rivers looked up at her, scowling, but saying nothing.

  “So… you’re no better than the LDPD in that sense.” She stated cooly. Professor Rivers suddenly jumped up, lunging at Sophie and knocking her to the ground, pinning her as their hands wrapped around her throat. Sophie struggled for a moment, before maneuvering and knocking them off, kicking them off of her in a swift movement. Her kick knocked the wind out of them.

  “Consider who it is you’re helping. Is this really for the greater good, or someone else’s good.” She growled, then punched them in the face. They stumbled back, shocked. Sophie frowned.

  “Sorry. That was personal. I apologize.” She said, then headed towards the door. This time, Professor Rivers stayed down, and stayed silent, watching her leave. Sophie reappeared back in the dream world, Cheshire appearing as he returned from the scarf into his regur state. He frowned.

  “Well, that was rather brutal, don’t you think?” He asked. Sophie shrugged.

  “I’ve had months of torture. You don’t think I earned that one?” She asked. Cheshire let out a sort of ugh.

  “Apologies. Yes, you certainly did earn that one.” He said. Sophie smiled a bit, before turning back to the doors passing by her.

  “Alright, Cheshire. Any tips on how we get back?” She asked. Cheshire gnced before pointing a paw at a door up ahead.

  “They should be just through that door. Do you think you can get over there?” He asked. Sophie shrugged.

  “Any tips to get over there?” She asked. Cheshire smiled.

  “Well, you could walk. But you may need to channel some energy for that, and it could take you some time to master-“ He began, but Sophie suddenly reached a foot out, stopping abruptly in the hall. He stared at her quizzically.

  “How did you figure that out?” He asked. Sophie shrugged back.

  “You said I could walk. I figured the first thing was gaining my footing.” Sophie replied calmly. Cheshire’s tail flicked but he remained silent. He turned to look back at the doors.

  “Okay then. Well, you’ll want to head over to that one there. Past the rows in front of us. Can you see it? It’s hard to see in the dark.” He expined. Sophie squinted her eyes, making out the silhouette of doors beyond the ones she could see in the light.

  “I think so. They’re faint but there’s something over there.” Sophie said. Cheshire nodded.

  “It’s easier for me, you know, the cat-like vision in the dark. I suppose it was something our creator added in for situations like this.” He expined. Sophie nodded as she headed further into the darkness, rather blindly. Cheshire and Sophie walked in silence for a moment before her hand touched the doorknob of the door she could barely see. She felt the cool metal in her hand as she twisted it and pushed it open, leading her into an alley way. She looked around, trying to figure out where she was. But she supposed it didn’t really matter as she probably wouldn’t recall, even if she had been here in her previous life. It certainly wasn’t any part of Lucidia she had been to, not that she was certain it was even Lucidia. Just as she was about to give up (it was hard to determine the direction she should go in, now that Cheshire was a lifeless pink scarf around her shoulders again), she heard someone calling her name.

  “Sophie!”

  Sophie turned around to see Nathan running towards her. Tears began to swell in her eyes as Nathan opened his arms and gripped her tightly. Sophie hugged him back as Bir and Reggie dashed over as fast as their legs could take them (or in Reggie’s case, as fast as his wheels could take him) and joined the group. Bir was about to wrap her arms around the two when she caught herself and did a sort of awkward arm pat as she cleared her throat.

  “It’s been a while. Gd you were able to catch up.” Bir said. Sophie and Nathan released their hug a little awkwardly when they realized they had been hugging for a bit longer than usual and stepped backwards from each other. Nathan quickly jammed his hands into his pockets as he turned to face away from her.

  “Yeah, we were really worried, Soph. I’m gd you’re okay.” Nathan said softly. Sophie smiled at him and nodded.

  “Yeah… sorry it took a bit.” She replied. Bir smirked.

  “Alright, well, where to next?” She asked. Sophie nodded.

  “Well, there’s something pnned. I think we need to go to the LDPD and look for some help.” Sophie said. Bir frowned for a moment, before abruptly turning away and heading back down the alleyway.

  “Alright, well it’s been a real slice. I’ll catch you ter.” She said cooly. Sophie sighed.

  “Bir. I get it. But I think this might be beyond any of us now. Insomnia or the LDPD. I think this could affect everyone.” Sophie replied. Bir rolled her eyes as she spun around.

  “Look Sophie, you don’t get it. I was one of their soldiers for years. They tortured and experimented on us. It was hell. They are hell. You can’t just ask me to just pop back in there after all the effort it took me to get out. People died, Sophie.” Bir snapped. Sophie let out a sigh.

  “Fine. Do whatever you want. You’ve made your choice. And when destiny comes to you, face it head on. And be proud of that choice you made.” Sophie snapped back. They stared at each other for a moment in silence. Nathan raised his hand.

  “I… uh… don’t really want to go to the LDPD either because of… you know… my warrant?” He said. Sophie and Bir both looked at him and he quickly shoved his hands back in his pockets. Suddenly Reggie spoke up.

  “We may not have a choice soon. I sense the LDPD tracking us, and they will be here in about 83 seconds.” He stated. The group exchanged gnces as they clued into the faint sound of sirens in the background and Nathan quickly grabbed a door handle.

  “We can talk about this once we’re safe. Let’s go.” He ordered, opening the door to the rabbit hole. Bir grumbled as she grabbed Reggie and headed in.

  “Not that there’s much to discuss but…” She growled as she jumped. Sophie frowned and shot a gnce at Nathan as she jumped in. Nathan felt a chill run down his spine as he quickly entered the door just as fshing lights became visible. Sophie said nothing to the group as they descended into the Rabbit hole. Suddenly Cheshire popped up.

  “Well, that was a short trip. Welcome back.” He greeted, looking around at the group.

  "Cool, a talking cat." Bir said. Cheshire's fur stood on end.

  "Talking cat? Young woman, you of all people shou- oh never mind. Either way I'm gd you all made it here safe and sound. In fact, I've been notified that you've been summoned." Cheshire said. The group of four exchanged gnces.

  "Summoned by who?" Nathan asked slowly. Cheshire flicked his tail.

  "Who else would have the authority to do so? The Goddess." Cheshire stated. Bir and Nathan gasped, but Sophie just stood there dumbfounded.

  "The Goddess?" She asked quietly. Bir cocked an eyebrow and looked at Sophie.

  "What else? The Goddess of Dreams." She said.

  Sophie frowned, remembering her dream back at Insomnia. Was this the same person who she had seen in that dream, and who had told her she couldn’t tell her who she was? She barely remembered that dream... though it had been weeks ago that she had it... or at least it felt like weeks... how long had it actually been? And how much sleep had she gotten? it didn’t feel like much. But these weren't relevant questions at the moment. She looked over at Bir and Nathan who looked excited. Reggie had his usual smile screen dispyed on his face, but his expression didn't seem to change. at least there was someone else she could sort of rete to, even if he was just a robot.

  "Small feline-like creature. Could you please describe this Dream Goddess? I have no knowledge of her in my records." Reggie requested. Cheshire flicked his tail in irritancy again.

  "Well, I thought a superb robot such as yourself would know but I suppose I must teach you these things." Cheshire scoffed, "The Dream Goddess is the one who watches over the Dream world and ensures that all inhabitants are safe. She is a wonderful creature and to be summoned by her is a great privilege."

  "If she is supposed to protect the inhabitants of the Dream World, then why are there people falling comatose?" Reggie replied. It wasn't meant as a nasty comment, just genuine curiosity. and to be fair, Sophie thought it was a good question, though she wouldn’t dare say it out loud. Bir and Nathan also seemed to think so, though they too would not say it out loud. Cheshire hissed as his back arched and his fur stood on end.

  "If you understood what we're up against, then you too would understand why she can't do this alone." Cheshire spat.

  "So... she needs our help then?" Nathan asked. Cheshire sighed sadly and nodded.

  "That's what I've been trying to say. Currently you three have no loyalty to either of the two groups. Originally before I knew where you were on the scale, Bir, it was just for Nathan and Sophie. But now I know that you have no current allegiance to Insomnia." Cheshire said.

  "So, then the Goddess doesn't agree with Insomnia's methods? But what about the LDPD?" Bir asked. Cheshire shot her a gnce.

  "You don't see your friends here, do you?" Cheshire replied coolly. Sophie frowned.

  "But if neither of them is right... then what are we supposed to do about it?" Sophie asked. Cheshire shrugged.

  "That's for you to figure out. There isn’t just one way or the other. You have more power than you think you do. You have been blessed by the Goddess with amazing abilities which can only get stronger from this point on. You hold the universe within you. It just depends on how you decide to use it." Cheshire stated. The three exchanged gnces and nodded.

  "It will be a challenge, but I'd be happy to hear her out." Nathan said.

  "Exactly. It's not like we're the only ones out there who don't agree with Insomnia or the LDPD." Bir said, pcing a hand on her hip. Sophie bit her lip silently. She recalled Cheshire's words before, about how no one would believe her if she tried to tell anyone of the nightmare world. But perhaps this is what he thought should happen. If there were more people behind her to help and support what she thought was right, then perhaps they could help their world. She sighed and nodded again.

  "We don't have much of a choice right now... but how do we even get up there? I'm sure Cole is searching for us now." Sophie said sullenly. Bir grinned, patting Reggie's head.

  "That's where I come in. Reggie is able to look through doors and warn us if any LDPD cop is near, whether they're currently in a dream or even in a dream connected to the one we're about to enter. Almost all of them have gloves that allow them to dream walk, so I just took some of the chemicals those were made from and pced it in a tracking system that's inside Reggie." Bir expined. Sophie frowned.

  "If that's the case, then why didn't you know when we were coming?" Sophie asked. Bir raised an eyebrow.

  "I did know." She replied. Nathan looked puzzled.

  "But then why didn't you run?" He asked. Bir narrowed her eyes.

  "Well, if you were smarter, you'd realize there was nowhere to run. I'm not a dream walker so I can't just open and close doors at will, and even if I used Reggie, there wasn't much time to get a head start. That and the door I had in the basement was a direct link to Insomnia. The LDPD would’ve found them and then they would’ve all been under attack. I couldn’t do that to them, even if it wouldn’t have done much to Insomnia overall. Besides, Reggie can detect them within a 5-meter radius but if he's in the dream world... there isn't really a sense to distance which is how he can sense through dreams, but only two doors at the most... Look, I'm good, but I don't think anyone's that good." She said, taking Reggie's hand and leading him along.

  "Madam is too modest. All of the inventions you've created over the years is the only reason Insomnia stood a chance against the Lucidia Dream Police Department, Miss Bir!" Reggie decred. Bir bit her lip and lowered her head.

  "And maybe that means I'm to bme for the current state of the world." Bir muttered underneath her breath. It was so low that Sophie could barely make it out, so she didn't dare comment on it. Suddenly Bir cleared her throat.

  "Alright Reggie, which door should we take?" Bir asked, lifting her head. Reggie paused for a moment, looking around.

  "Well, it seems as though you've really angered the enforcers and Insomnia agents... I sense danger in most paths... the only clear one seems to be this door over here." Reggie said, pointing at a door hanging in midair a few feet above the ocean. Nathan frowned.

  "How the hell are we supposed to get over there?" He spat. Bir gnced over at him, narrowing her eyes.

  "Once again, think before you speak." Bir growled. She cpped her hands together as red sparks began to fly from her hands. Her eyes lit up as she grinned, her teeth gritting together as she seemed to brace herself. Her hands began to pull apart as more sparks began to fly from her hands. She pushed them out in front of herself as a breeze began to blow. Suddenly grand marble staircase complete with pilrs and extravagant carvings began to erupt rapidly from the ground and stretch all the way to the door. Bir cracked her neck side to side, and then her knuckles.

  "Sorry, I'm a little rusty. I haven't had to make something this big in a while." She said, stepping onto the steps. Reggie whirred up to the steps, clearing his throat which obviously did not need clearing. Bir spun around.

  "Right. I'll have to build you some legs soon." Bir said as she picked him up in one fell swoop. She lifted him above her head as she continued to ascend the staircase. The others followed behind her. Sophie wondered for a moment if Bir knew about being able to walk in the dream world but figured as she wasn’t a dream walker it would be more difficult for her. Plus, she didn’t want to ruin the moment of the lovely staircase.

  "Alright, cat, how do we get to this Goddess?" She called back. Cheshire sprung forward, clearly bothered by the comment but said nothing about it.

  "Well, we will have to get to the top of the Rabbit Hole. But in order to do that, we have to start at the bottom." Cheshire said, quickly turning Sophie "Not that far Sophie. Just before that point."

  Cheshire could clearly tell that Sophie was thinking about the Nightmare world. Her mind had, in fact, been wandering back to that dark and bleak pce. She felt a chill run down her spine and shook the thought from her head.

  "What pce?" Bir asked. Cheshire flicked his tail and spoke before Sophie could say anything.

  "A pce we accidentally ended up in before we went to the LDPD. Anyways, we’ll need to get back to another point in the Rabbit Hole so we can avoid detection..." Cheshire said, his voice trailing off.

  "I'll whip up some objects to hide ourselves. Random things seem to end up in there, so it won't be so odd." Bir offered. Cheshire nodded.

  "That sounds good. Just remember, when we reach the bottom of the Rabbit Hole, do not open any doors." Cheshire ordered. Nathan frowned.

  "There are doors at the bottom of the Rabbit Hole? Where do they lead to?" Nathan asked. Cheshire's eyes shone as he looked back at Nathan, a wide grin.

  "Only the most powerful dreamscapes known to man. Doors that can lead to bnk canvases where you can create your own world. But also, some of the most dangerous creatures thought up by your species. Most of those doors are locked up but don't even attempt to open any of them." Cheshire ordered, "Or else it could mean the end of your world as you know it."

  Nathan and Sophie exchanged gnces. Nathan gently touched Sophie's shoulder.

  "It'll be okay Sophie... we just have to avoid opening any doors, it shouldn't be a problem." Nathan said. Sophie nodded quietly, but something still worried her about going back there... back there... why did she feel as though she had been there before? Her mind began whirling. She didn't remember ever going there, and yet something made her feel as though she had been there once. Was she... remembering? A voice? Calling to her?

  "Sophie! Are you okay?"

  Sophie snapped her head up to see she was face first against the door. She turned around to see the others staring back at her. She waved weakly, embarrassed by what had just happened.

  "Sorry, there was a bit on my mind just now... I'll try to control my thoughts!" Sophie promised. Nathan looked at her wearily before nodding.

  "We won't pry... just if there's anything you need to tell us, please do." Nathan said gently. Sophie smiled and nodded quickly, opening the door into the next dream. Sophie began to step out but was stopped by Bir suddenly reaching out and grabbing her dress, pulling her back to safety. Sophie looked out and realized she was just about to step into mid-air. Around her were clouds and blue sky. She could make out a small forest on an isnd beneath her with a small castle in the center. Bir suddenly pushed Sophie behind her, csping her hands together again. As she pulled them apart suddenly a rge ornate airship began to descend towards the door. A rope dder suddenly tumbled over its dark wood side and Bir gripped it in her hand.

  “Alright, here’s our way down. Get on.” She ordered. Nathan frowned.

  “How stable is this thing exactly, if there’s one thing, I know about dream takers it’s that they can’t maintain the projections for a long time, and you’ve already made one today.” Nathan stated. Bir rolled her eyes.

  “If the LDPD has reason to come after me, I can assure you it’s because I’m good at what I do.” Bir grumbled, climbing ahead. Sophie shot Nathan a look, who responded with his own look of confusion. Sophie sighed as Cheshire leaped onto her shoulders, grabbed the dder once Bir had cleared it and began to climb. This was much more difficult than it looked. She found herself wishing that Bir had thought up another type of dder but didn’t dare say anything. Soon, Sophie’s feet nded safely on the deck of the ship, Nathan following quickly behind her. They didn’t seem to be alone. There were many figures staffing the ship but upon Sophie’s further inspection, none of these figures had features on their faces… or defined lines. Nathan gripped Sophie’s shoulder.

  “How is she maintaining all of this? There’s no way this is stable!” he hissed. Sophie cast him a look.

  “Nathan, we need to have some more trust in Bir.” Sophie grumbled. Nathan opened his mouth to say something but quickly shut it again and resigned himself to saying nothing. Sophie peered over the edge at the world around them. They were nearing an isnd with a forest and a... Sophie squinted to get a better look. There appeared to be a fortress far off in the distance. They began to descend towards it, aiming for the shore of the isnd. They were nearing it rather quickly, which meant they would be there in no time. Sophie sighed and continued staring at the scenery around her. Birds were flying gracefully around them. There were no mountains in sight, just the isnd forest and the fortress in the middle. Just as Sophie found herself looking at the forest, she noticed a strange fiery light coming up from it. She took a moment to register what she was seeing before her blood ran cold.

  "Bir! Straight ahead!" Sophie yelled. Bir snapped to look at Sophie then spun back around to see the fiery ball headed straight towards them.

  "Brace yourselves!" Bir yelped, looking at Sophie, then Nathan, before turning to the rest of the crew "You all there, start turning the ship, we want to avoid as much as this as possible!"

  Suddenly Bir flung forward as the ship was struck, debris flying about. Bir grimaced as she pushed herself back up off of the floor, turning around as she did so. The ship was now on fire. She turned back to look at the workers of the ship, still silently doing what they were told to do without even flinching at what had just happened.

  "Aim for the mainnd! We need to get out of view as soon as possible. Whoever this person having this dream is, we're not welcome!" Bir roared at her crew. Reggie was gripping to the post in the centre of the ship for dear life. Bir quickly ran over to him and grabbed his arm, running over to Sophie and motioning for Nathan.

  "We're going to have to nd retively quickly, so we're going to have to jump. I'll make a soft nding, but we've got to go now." Bir shouted. Nathan began to run towards them as Bir leaped from the edge of the ship. Sophie turned to jump but felt her blood run cold again. Falling was one thing but jumping was a whole other issue entirely. Suddenly she felt something pulling her.

  "No time to sit and think!" Nathan shouted as he leaped past her, pulling her with him. Sophie let out a shriek as she felt her body flip over the railing and begin to plummet towards the water below them. She could feel Cheshire’s cws dig into her shoulder to maintain his grip and avoid flying off. Bir was falling a few feet before them, and they were descending quickly. Suddenly, Bir's hands shot out and a rge rubber duck appeared beneath them.

  "A duck?" Sophie found herself shrieking after her.

  "I'm tired, excuse you!" Bir snapped back. Suddenly the group's bodies hit the duck, bouncing a bit before nding safely on the back of this giant rubber duck. They took a moment to look up as the ship took another hit, beginning to plummet towards the sea. Bir nodded, pcing her hands on either side of the duck. Letting out a loud 'quack' it suddenly shot off towards the shore. Sophie looked behind her, noticing the ship had begun to disintegrate before it could even reach the water. Nathan frowned.

  "Why did it have to quack?" He asked. Bir shot him a gnce.

  "Why shouldn't it? It's a duck." Bir retorted. Nathan raised an eyebrow.

  "I didn't pick you as someone who would make a giant rubber duck quack." Nathan replied, turning away to look at the scenery. Bir narrowed her eyes.

  "It's a duck. It should quack. Duck's quack. Be happy I didn't let you quack." She growled. Nathan shrugged.

  "I suppose." He said. There was a moment of silence.

  "You seem oddly touchy about the duck quacking" Nathan said nonchantly, "Would you say I ruffled your feathers?"

  Bir didn't move, but suddenly the rubber around Nathan shot him up into the air a few feet. He nded again with a slight bounce, his eyes wide. No one spoke a word until they came to the shore. The duck suddenly came to a grinding halt and the group disembarked. As soon as Sophie’s feet touched the ground, the duck vanished.

  “She must be exhausted. Hopefully, we reach the bottom soon…” Cheshire murmured. Sophie nodded. Bir was standing on the sand about a meter ahead of Sophie with Reggie next to her, and Nathan was standing in between them. Before them stood a rge, tropical forest. Bir seemed to be discussing something with Reggie as she examined the span of the forest.

  “This dream is certainly something…” Cheshire remarked, “there’s a lot of complexity to it… I wonder if it’s a- Sophie. Look over there.”

  Sophie’s attention was drawn to the direction Cheshire’s paw was pointed at. Peeking out of the forest was a small intricately painted wooden mask, looking at Bir. Suddenly Bir turned to it and began speaking to it. Nathan and Sophie both walked closer to hear what they were talking about.

  “We’re terribly sorry about crash nding on your isnd, but we’re just trying to find a door out, do you happen to know where one is?” Bir asked. The wooden mask moved closer, stepping out of the bushes. Its body appeared to be a small furry one, with small hands and feet that looked more like paws… like a teddy bear. Suddenly it was joined by more wooden masks that also appeared to be worn by various other toys.

  “We might know the way…” a voice spoke out. Sophie couldn’t tell which one had spoken as none of their mouths moved. Suddenly one of the dolls turned towards Sophie.

  “You shouldn’t be here…” it hissed. Suddenly the rest of the group turned towards her.

  “You shouldn’t be here!” they all whined “you’re not supposed to be here!”

  Sophie took a step back as they all began to step towards her, wailing. Nathan suddenly grabbed her arm, and the group began to run into the forest. The small dolls shrieked and followed them, crying out to them.

  “You need to leave!” they cried, “you can’t be here!”

  Bir gnced down at Reggie who scanned the area, his body jostling from the twigs. Suddenly he pointed to the right.

  “Over there!” he cried, and the group opened the door and jumped through. They were back in the rabbit hole, drifting down into the bck abyss. Bir turned to Sophie; eyes narrowed.

  “What the fuck. Was that?” Bir snarled. Sophie shook her head.

  “I honestly have no idea. I’ve never been there before in my life!” Sophie pleaded. Nathan raised an eyebrow.

  “That you can remember maybe…” he said. Sophie frowned and looked at her feet, saying nothing.

  “That you can remember indeed!” a voice suddenly cried out. The group turned to see the colourful cat girl floating alongside them. She grinned as she looked around the group.

  “What? Am I a… Wait. How many of you are there? 5 now? What happened to the other two you had?” she asked.

  “Other two?” Nathan asked. The cat girl’s hands suddenly csped over her mouth.

  “Oh dear! I might be a bit ahead of myself” she said before cackling away. Bir raised an eyebrow.

  “Pardon my asking, but who the fuck is this?” Bir asked. The cat girl waved her hand towards Bir.

  “No pardon needed, my dear. I go by Ophelia.” The cat girl, now known as Ophelia, stated. Sophie frowned.

  “She’s been stalking me since I met Nathan.” She expined. Ophelia grinned.

  “Oh, for longer than that. But Nathan was the one who snapped you out of that mundane pce you were stuck in. But if you hadn’t been so rash and just listened to me to begin with, we wouldn’t be here” Ophelia taunted. Sophie looked at Ophelia quizzically.

  “What are you talking about?” Sophie asked. Ophelia shrugged.

  “Oh nothing, you’ll know soon enough.” Ophelia said, her voice trailing off. Suddenly she perked up again.

  “Oh goodness! Looks like we have company at the bottom… but just one! Oh! Sounds like some long-lost lovers might be reunited again!” Ophelia cooed. Sophie and Nathan exchanged gnces.

  “Once again, you’ve lost us.” Nathan said. Ophelia’s grin grew.

  “I might have lost you, but I still have her attention…” she said, her voice sounding oddly dark for her usual personality. Her arm raised as she pointed one cwed finger to Bir, who was staring at Ophelia, shaking. Her face was bright red as her hands began to spark. One of her hands shot out to her pocket, pulling out a wrench. The red sparks spread to the red wrench, and it suddenly grew until it was bigger than Bir. Ophelia grinned.

  "Whoopsie! I've got to go! Ciao!" She chirped, suddenly vanishing into thin air as Bir swung towards her. The momentum caused Bir to flip onto her back as the gravity suddenly changed. They suddenly began to fall slower, simir to the pace of A feather. They stood there on the ground before Bir was suddenly grabbed from behind and restrained.

  “Gd I could catch up.” Cole growled.