III.

  The sunlight was the first to greet Madoka upon waking, revealing the large waves of dramatic tree expanses and karsts shaped like a cthonic beast below her. To her mind, ever since she saw the landscape from the sky the idea of Petals was simply inaccurate. Rustaze’s forests and tangles intertwined with those massive limestone spires jutting out like spines reminded her of a giant half-buried and coiled up huge snake stretching across the entire land. Cascading vales, spiraling into unimaginable depths and shadowy, rocky mountains— all were vastly different than the hills and plains of Fiara. She sighed, the imagery of serpents in the world she’s explored was quite prevalent in recent memory. She did not fear any snakes or beasts, but that was probably because she could speak to animals now.

  All thanks to that kind god.

  She had no idea if she was dead or not; her shattered mind was still reeling from the pain that scary weapon gave her. Her mind felt like it was dreaming. Madoka snapped awake, feeling herself as she normally did when she woke up. Nothing touched, not wet, and her clothes were still on. Everything was right where she… Wait, where was she? She surprisingly felt calm, more than she had been in a long time. Perhaps, Audrey was right about taking days off. The place she was lying down on was quite soft and the wind gently brushing her felt soothing. The darkness was gone, replaced by the golden hour of Sun and Moons. Wavering grass pushed against her legs, but what was she lying down on?

  Madoka finally opened her eyes, only to see a complete stranger looking down at her with a cautious smile. Eena? To her surprise, the stranger shook her head. Madoka stared up at her unabashedly, studying the woman’s features. She seemed like a dream of golden leaves and flowing exotic scents, auburn hair with purple and blue streaks glowing like starlight. The royal purple robe covering her chest revealed a lot, yet, her skin held a magical light capturing the moment. Upon further inspection, the woman’s skin had ripples like bark on a tree, but still had the beauty of a summer night. Wherever here was is warm, Madoka did not even hesitate about her situation anymore. She blinked at the woman’s height. Even lying down, Madoka knew she was taller than her.

  “You’re a kind goddess, aren’t you?”

  Madoka expected some strange words to tumble out of the woman’s mouth, but instead of anything audible the woman smiled gently. She felt an arm move, then the view of a hand came above her face. She was holding something? Madoka looked at it puzzled and then noticed the woman making a face, opening her mouth wide. She frowned. Did this kind goddess want her to open her mouth? After the woman nodded enthusiastically, she obeyed. Then the hand fed her the object, instantly making Madoka flail for a second at the unexpected action.

  The object in her hand was a red fruit of some kind, filling her mouth with juice and a bitter flavor at first. Though she was tempted to spit it out, the thought of dirtying a kind goddess did not seem like it would bode well. The more Madoka chewed, the more sweeter the fruit tasted and eventually filled her with more warmth. Well, she resigned herself like she normally did in situations with kind gods. If they gave her something, she was probably dead anyways so she might as well obey.

  Madoka has seen death, the horrors of Nobles and their wiles, the tricks of Her Highness and heard her endearing words. She’s had many nights of whispers and invading dreams, her hands have held the light coarse wooden handle of a duster and the smooth leather wired grip of a sword’s hilt, even the hand of that very princess. As an adult at age 13, or 14, they told her cast everything away besides the kinds gods and her duty. Yet, there was nothing but loss in her heart. No shadow nor light could make Madoka feel free, no advice or eye could make her see the truth of believing in herself.

  Another glowing berry was fed to her, this time it was blue. It tasted sweeter than anything she had eaten, but fell short into bitterness. Yet, Madoka savored both moments of this kind goddess’s gift. She sat above her unwavering, carrying that face of tenderness and unfaltering gaze. She was clean and regal, while Madoka imagined herself damaged and filthy. Calm, when the maid was scared. Cheerful while Madoka stirred in loss. Were these emotions brought on by these fruits?

  Madoka could remember sweeter tales told to her younger self by someone who once cared for her. Not a parent, exactly, but she did not know what else that could have been. Even when she was seven, Madoka could not remember anything about that. They spoke of a princess, of a woman cherished beyond measure, uninhibited by anyone and backed by the wind. Her family stood tall behind her, encouraging her to follow dreams of becoming a… Madoka could not remember after that. What were her dreams? Perhaps, in time, she would remember her past.

  She looked up at the hand that fed her, only to realize the woman had nothing left. For some strange reason, the lack of the woman’s warm hand and fruits it gave her gave her a sense of loss. Her slender, woody finger pointed at the storage talisman and her smile was mischievous. This goddess was truly kind, giving her more sweet and bitter berries. Madoka began to realize that what she saw in this kind but silent goddess was belief. The truth of the bitter and sweet, the Sky and the earth, the forest of light beneath her and the shadowy tangles she was running away from— each appeared to be two halves of a whole. Madoka also noticed her wounds were gone.

  What about Eena? She realized she did not want to break the silence. The kind goddess nodded at her assuredly, her movements shadowed by the setting sun. That simple gesture made Madoka relax.

  “What is your name?” Madoka asked her. A kind goddess deserves gratitude, after all. The woman did not answer, as she suspected, but looked behind herself. The silhouettes and shadows of trees began to cast over them, replacing the golden plains. This dream, and the kind goddess within, was indeed coming to an end. For some reason, even though Madoka felt like she lost someone precious, she made an unconscious promise that she will hold the kind goddess in her heart. The hand stroked her hair and patted her shoulder as the winds picked up.

  A name carried with the air currents: Gechick, the Forest Goddess.

  Before Madoka could even utter a word, her world was instantly swept away into the tides of darkness. She knew where she was headed. The bitterness part, the ripples of shadows and whispers were coming back to haunt her. She was headed straight to the Shadow Forest once again, but an epiphany struck her. Was it always a place of shadows? Perhaps, bitter and sweetness was in that kind goddess’s nature— like those coins with two faces in her storage talisman. This place will become full of light eventually and perhaps that is the kind goddess’s plight. Maybe, Madoka thought, that it was also the God of Tomorrow’s desire as well. A better future for this corrupted and desolate place. That goal, however, simply was a dream, right?

  “Madoka?” A voice frantically called out to her, shaking her awake. Madoka opened her eyes and saw the shining face of Her Highness above her, similar to Gechick, but the room she was apparently in was dark, illuminated by stripes of white glowing light.

  “H-How,” Madoka coughed. “Did you…?”

  She realized she felt good and no longer held the immense pain from that troublesome weapon’s laser. Madoka sat up, bumping into Audrey as she felt herself over. Other than the mess and blood that coated her, she found that her wounds were no longer there. Seeing the princess’s worried face, Madoka relaxed. She was finally together with her again.

  “I didn’t heal you,” Audrey sighed. “But I got you the heck outta there, so technically I saved you from danger! I’m up one on you now.”

  “What about Eena?” Madoka nearly blurted, but instantly calmed herself down. “A-Apologies, Your Highness. I really, really cannot thank you enough.”

  Audrey frowned at the mention of Eena, but then fell back into a worried, yet confident expression. Madoka chastised herself. She should not care about others— it was her duty to remain utterly devoted to Her Highness and yet she stumbled, not even thanking her profusely for rescuing her. Upon studying the princess closer, it seemed like she had recovered sufficiently from her mishap in the Leyline. She fidgeted with a strand of her hair, but slowly let out a sigh.

  “I didn’t heal you,” she repeated herself. “Frankly, I don’t really know how you and… Eena got healed. I was about to pull out the new and improved Substance Talisman I crafted to test on— I mean— heal you, but you both started glowing in your sleep. Then wallah! You’re healed!”

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  “And those… humans and Ella?” Madoka rubbed her temples. That kind goddess truly did heal her. She must have also visited Eena in her dreams. So, Gechik put her trust in the both of them. That strange pang of guilt for having a goddess’s request placed on a Noble because she got mixed up with Madoka weighed heavily on her conscience. Why did Gechik’s name seem familiar? Audrey once again narrowed her eyes at Madoka’s question.

  “Ella?” Audrey asked. “It seems like you know a lot more than I do! Hmph!”

  Madoka looked around, trying not to let the exasperation shake her. She was indeed quite evasive right now, though it was because they were currently in the belly of the Sky Beast. How did she slip up and mention that CZA-6 woman by name to Audrey? Why did she feel guilty?

  “Ella…” Madoka lied a little. “She captured us, told us her name. In English.”

  She felt her face pale in frustration and horror at the mention of the god’s language. Once again, Audrey’s eyes grew darker and more restless. Madoka collapsed on the ground and bowed deeply to her. Not answering her in such dire circumstances so unforgivable! She heard the princess’s breath gasp, then grow more rapid.

  “Are you certain that was English?” Audrey asked.

  “Y-Yes?” Madoka answered, but curled the response into an uncertain question. How could that strange language, one that no one has ever heard of in this world, be mistaken for any other language? To her understanding, these humans were like gods to her back then. To her surpise, Madoka only noticed how short they were compared to herself. They did not seem god-like to her or the Princess. Their weapons, however, made her shudder. Audrey had her eyes close! “P-Princess?”

  “Wha— Why are you calling me princess all of a sudden?” Audrey was stunned. Genuine confusion swept over the girl’s face, making Madoka worry. She waved her hands in a surrendering motion, but finally continued. “L-Let’s just back it up a little, okay? I’m just trying to gather my thoughts on all of this for a moment before… that strange alarm goes again.”

  Madoka sat upright, waiting for Audrey to speak again. The girl was shocked over her attention, but quickly composed herself. Was it because Madoka had not attended to her in a long time? Did she not spoil Her Highness enough? Even with her furrowed brows and her tightly knitted chest, Audrey was beautiful. She was not radiant anymore, but exhibited a cold and mysteriously alluring demeanor ever since her recent “level up.” Madoka shuddered to think about all the possibilities of change the princess truly went through during her absence.

  “I forget that you’re a workaholic, even in the worst of times,” she sighed. “Do you, uh, remember the Hall of the Frost Queen dungeon we went through?”

  “Dungeon?” Madoka’s mind scanned through the horrible journey, then her memories stopped on seeing that giant creature frozen under the ice and her face went pale. “I remember that Ares monster. And your fireballs.”

  “Eek,” Audrey shrank under her scrutiny. “A-Anyways, a bit before that. We did the thing where you did the Knotting magic thing except we didn’t know it was Knotting magic— Anyways i believe we’re in a Hall of the Frost Queen situation right now. Come with me.”

  Audrey suddenly got up and turned to go deeper into the hallway that they apparently were in this whole time. Madoka’s memory was successfully jogged by her. The way she confidently marched down these narrow hallways, even unafraid of the strange lights tracing up and down lines carved into the walls, reminded her of the time she took her hand during their horrid journey in the mountain range. Was this boldness brought on from her memories of her past life? Madoka did not know.

  “I’m not sure exactly what’s going on here, but I do have my theories,” Audrey stopped at a doorway. Something caused the room within to glow with an orange light. “Those… Humans… Well, it’s kinda wierd seeing them again… Like this.”

  Audrey seemed down for some reason. Madoka had a bad impression on humans from her world, so she could not imagine what life would be like if she was one. How terribly difficult cleaning would be if one was so short like a human, she thought. The princess pressed her hand on a strange altar next to the door. It opened without resistance, much to Madoka’s surprise. Before they entered, she stopped and had to ask Her Highness something that has been on her mind since she got here.

  “Do you still miss being a human?” She asked. Audrey’s blonde hair swayed as she stopped abruptly at the question.

  “I… I don’t know anymore,” Audrey admitted. There was a rawness in her voice, a sense of loss of direction settling in that tone. Madoka regretted asking her that, even though she could not see the girl’s expression. “These humans… They’re not from the same point in time when I lived as one. It’s weird saying that. Meaning, they’re from the future of my world. After I died.”

  The revelation was heavier than her answer about her own former humanity. Madoka stepped through the door and around her, only realizing now that the girl could walk on her own. She decided not to ask if she could walk easily, since that might encourage her to ask for a piggyback ride. Audrey did not seem to mind her cautious approach, so Madoka entered fully prepared. The room, though dark, was fully illuminated by an orange glow coming from a central console.

  Madoka realized what it was, but not what it depicted.

  “A hologram,” Madoka muttered. “Is this…?”

  “Yeah,” Audrey must have seen this before reaching her and wished to show her it. “What you’re looking at is a hologram. A kind of display, that right now, is showing where the hell we are.”

  She already knew what it was. The glowing hologram was as life-like as a statue, revealing the massive body of what she presumed was the Uracksheegal itself. Madoka recognized its shape, but it was twisted somehow. This monster was an enormous dragon, seemingly dormant, floating high above even the clouds of her world stretching across the entire continent. The dragon, while retaining most of its shape, was covered by images of orange roots to her horror. She knew that those were in fact, piercing through its skin and corrupting it like loose tendrils or hairs. Those dreaded things must be the tentacles that abduct and influence people towards them. The scale of it and the hologram of the world’s surface beneath it made Madoka realize how huge this beast truly was. A red dot glowed in its belly and new information told her what it meant, making her pupils contract. That small red dot was where they were.

  “How are we supposed to slay this thing?” Madoka breathed, then coughed up bile. The shock of it all made her realize she did not breathe for awhile and choke.

  “That’s the thing, Madoka,” Audrey pointed at a different feature of the dragon. It was then Madoka noticed a massive structure, shaped like a long lance, stabbing completely through the Uracksheegal’s neck and out its belly. A huge weapon, Madoka guessed. “We don’t. That thing you see is called a human space station, which is basically like a flying castle in the sky. Somehow, it’s melded together with the erm, Uracksheegal.”

  “So… it’s dead?”

  Audrey rose her jade-like finger to her chin in contemplation. Her eyes scanned the area, making her remember Audrey can see things that others could not. Madoka remained calm around her, despite having many questions and fear of everything out there. While Audrey thought to herself, Madoka idled and motioned a hand at the edge of the large hologram. It spun, stopping at a better angle for them to see that human space station. She paused. How did she know it would do that? Her hand gripped the space station hologram’s humming needle, the light warming her fingers.

  “How did you… Whatever. I’ve seen enough weird things today that we can sort it all out later,” Audrey muttered. “The dragon isn’t dead, exactly. You… saw the black roots, right? It’s in an inactive state and it’s abducting whatever the living creatures on the surface in order to clean those things out.”

  “Eyes…” Madoka said absentmindedly as she spun the hologram around again with greater interest. Audrey was momentarily distracted, her shining eyes tracking the spinning light with amusement.

  “Yeah. Arudite and I were talking about that whole thing about goblins and eyes. As it turns out, eyeballs probably have whatever juice it needs to fix itself, so it’s busy zapping people up—“

  “Arudite and you were talking?” Madoka interrupted her coldly. Audrey, realizing her mistake of wandering off against her wishes, shrank further away under her maid’s gaze.

  “I- I can explain! I got really bored just hanging out in the inn all day and I could move my feet, so,” Audrey quickly said. Madoka sighed. Whatever she wished to do, was her own right and as a servant, Madoka did not have any ability to interfere with it. What does Arudite have that Audrey is so attracted to? “It’s not like that, okay? I swear— I even have this cool ass Substance Talisman to heal you and not totally as an experiment. Grew it from a magical tree myself. Ha!”

  She held it up proudly. To Madoka, it appeared to be more significant than the ones upon closer inspection. The strange and intricate carvings etched on its surface seemed to glow with power. Audrey’s Substance magic. Placated, she pouted instead.

  “So, how did you get here?” She could not help but cross her arms. Audrey stood up, apparently even more excited, but suddenly hesitated.

  “I’d show you, but,” Audrey sighed. “To be honest, it’s a real pain and I— Okay, I used magic. Kind of thought of it myself, inspired from quantum entanglement and such. I uh, just simply destroyed my body and put it somewhere else, teleporting—“

  “You could have just said you teleported yourself!” Madoka shrieked. She was simple, but knew what teleportation magic was. Actually, she had no idea why she knew what that was, but the worry Audrey caused her on such a frequent basis overwhelmed that consideration. “Not say you destroy yourself!”

  “I did it because I saw you disappear into the night,” Audrey quieted down. “I— If I lost you to some giant spaghetti monster angler fish thingy in the sky I would never want to live again. That’s a stupid sentence I never thought I’d say…”

  Her face was illuminated by the spinning hologram of the dead dragon Uracksheegal, and in the orange glowing light, Madoka saw true sorrow in her princess’s eyes. Whatever Audrey did to reach her seemed like too much. Madoka hugged her suddenly.

  “You saved me and that’s all that matters.”

  “Half-saved you,” Audrey muttered in her arms, but did not resist Madoka’s embrace.