Streetlights glowed beneath a star-speckled sky. Pink and mulberry clouds drifted near the Engine, which dwarfed the skyscrapers of Tyrial. The air reeked of industrial waste and sin. Shadows crawled and danced across the city landscape, twisted by neon lights and chemicals. Rachel stared up at the ENGINE, eyes wide as its endless gears turned. She recalled the mulberry eye sticker she saw on the back of a vehicle.
Her mind raced with a million incoherent thoughts as she sighed. The unease in her bones curdled into anxiety as she tried to articulate her experience to the group, but no words came out of her mouth. Rachel looked behind her, eyes narrowed as she bit her fingernails. She couldn't shake the feeling that something or someone was following her. Her shadow mimicked her movements, dancing and stretching amongst the other shadows cast by Tyrial streetlights and neon-lit billboards.
"What's up?" Emily asked as she walked beside Rachel.
Rachel shrugged, then opened a pack of cigarettes she had purchased with Elijah. "Just thinking about stuff," she replied as she lit a cigarette.
"About what?"
"The universe."
"Pondering the cosmos at a time like this?" Elijah said, looking at Rachel.
Rachel breathed deeply as she smoked. "Having a little existential crisis at the moment."
Amos raised an eyebrow, then glanced at Emily. "We all are, Rachel; just don't spiral."
"I'm not," Alice replied.
"That's because of your profession. Not everyone is numb to the thought of death as you are," Arthur implied.
"I think I just need some sleep; my nerves are shot," she laughed.
"Probably what we all need to do. We got a bit of traveling to do," Arthur said as he walked next to Amos and Elijah.
"Reunion Day," Amos said flatly.
"What exactly is Reunion Day, anyway?" Alice asked as she walked behind Emily and Rachel.
"For most people, it's a day of remembrance," Amos explained as they turned a corner. "A day to honor the dead and the previous cycles and Primes."
"That's cute... honoring the dead while the living are marching to their graves," Emily grumbled as she put her hands in her hoodie pockets.
"You have a point, but for the non-chosen, it's a day for them to grieve those the cycle has taken," Amos replied as they walked. "For chosen, though, it's when we get our powers."
"Powers?" Emily asked with a raised eyebrow. "Like superpowers in the comic books?"
"Something like that, yeah," Amos replied. "It's mask-related, though, which powers each mask gets... I can't say. The ENGINE alone knows which mask receives which powers, and these powers are never the same in any cycle.
"So you're saying I can be like the chick from the comics and spit out fire?" Emily asked.
"More or less... yeah," Amos replied.
"Let's hope that you get something less destructive than fire, kid," Elijah jested as he smoked.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that we all know you will try to shoot a fireball at Sarah the first chance you get, Emily," Rachel jested.
Emily shrugged. "She would do the same."
Rachel flicked her cigarette onto the sidewalk as they entered the skyscraper leading to Sarah's penthouse. She tuned out everyone's chatter as they stepped into the elevator, mind racing with memories of Corwood. The pack of cigarettes in her pocket was running low as she reached for another one to muffle her spiraling mind.
"You're back... good," Shiyu greeted as they walked through the front door of Sarah's penthouse.
"Brought back some barbecue," Alice said as she placed the shopping bags on the kitchen counter.
Emily knelt and petted Pepper before he climbed up on her shoulder. "You're about to eat like a king. Just don't eat all of it," she explained as she walked over towards the kitchen counter and fed a rib to her raccoon.
Elijah glanced around, then looked at Shiyu. "Where's Sarah?"
"She is in her studio. Think she's recording some music," Shiyu explained as she gestured down the hallway.
"I am going to sit down for a bit," Rachel said as she walked towards the balcony. "Fuck me," she grumbled to herself as she stepped onto the patio, gazing out into Tyrial's skyline.
"They will never believe me," she whispered to herself as she leaned on the window while smoking. She then slumped to the ground and exhaled. "How do I even talk about this?"
"Hey, are you okay?" Emily asked as she stepped out onto the patio with Pepper on her shoulder. "You seem like you've got a lot on your mind."
Rachel chuckled. "That obvious?" She asked as she smoked.
Emily nodded. " You're pondering space shit."
"It's not space shit … it's like thinking about the nature of existence," Rachel explained and looked at her cigarette. "The more I learn about the ENGINE, and the pilgrimage, the more nothing makes sense."
"What do you mean?" Emily asked as she sat down next to Rachel.
Rachel sighed, then smoked. "Have you ever wondered where the ENGINE came from or who or what made it?"
Emily shook her head. "Nope, too busy trying not to starve to worry about whatever the fuck it is."
Pepper jumped down from Emily's shoulder and then scratched at the window. Rachel watched as Emily got up and let her pet back into the penthouse. Emily then leaned against the patio barrier and sat down. She rubbed her hands through her black hair, then smiled at Rachel.
"What if the ENGINE isn't what we think it is, or more than what we think it is?" Rachel asked.
Emily raised an eyebrow, then shrugged. "I couldn't care less, Rache; I just don't want to be a part of its twisted ass game to find its stupid ass PRIME."
"I know, but what if there's no way around it?"
"You're letting anxiety get the better of you, Rache," Emily replied. "We will find a way...I promise you."
Rachel smiled, then flicked her cigarette over the balcony. "I hope so," she said before leaving the balcony. "I really hope so."
Rachel walked down the penthouse corridor, fixating on the shadows on the walls. She stopped as she heard baroque music as Elijah exited Sarah's music studio further down the hallway. Sarah stepped out a moment later, glancing at Rachel before closing the door.
"Rachel, where is your disaster of a girlfriend?" Sarah asked, then crossed her arms.
Rachel rolled her eyes. "Why are you such an asshole, Sarah?"
"I don't know what you mean? I am just stating facts, my dear," she replied as she fluttered her fan and cackled. "It's not my fault you have a taste for disaster."
"And it's not my fault you're a toxic, insecure excuse for a woman," Emily mocked as she walked down the corridor.
Elijah shook his head and rubbed his nose. "Can y'all not?"
"Agreed," Rachel groaned.
Emily shrugged. "What? She keeps talking shit, so I talk shit back."
Sarah rolled her eyes. "Talk shit? Oh no, sweetheart, you project your little insecurities," she said as her eyebrows furrowed. "If it weren't for your tragic backstory, everybody would see right through it."
Emily gripped her hair and laughed. "I really hope I get fire powers."
"The only power you have is convincing people you're just some ordinary orphan," Sarah replied as she leaned on the wall. "You are a talented musician, but nobody gets as good as you by natural skill."
"Is this what this is about? You still bitching about me beating you!?"
"It's not about that; it's about you being a fucking liar!" Sarah shouted. "Natural talent only goes so far. Nature also gifted me. Nobody gets as good as us without training or a mentor. You hide whoever you studied under because you can't keep your tragic backstory as an excuse for living on the streets."
"Okay, enough," Rachel interjected. "Rather, Emily had training or not, it does not matter. You don't get to set what someone is capable of based on your own training."
"Nah, fuck this. She wants to call me a liar, then I am going to fucking ruin her," Emily growled. "You wanna go again, bitch? Because I will duel you anytime, anywhere."
"I have a music studio right here," Sarah replied as she opened the door.
"Emily, you don't have to prove anything to her," Rachel said, then touched her shoulder. "Fuck," she grumbled as she got shocked by static electricity.
"I know I don't, but I want to prove a point," Emily replied as she walked towards Sarah. "Y'all wanna watch the funeral for Sarah's fragile ego?" She asked as she looked at Elijah and Rachel.
"Don't get cocky; I won't be underestimating you this time," Sarah replied, then rolled her eyes.
"I know you won't... which is why when I beat you, you can't say shit!"
Rachel rubbed her hair. "Can you please let it go?"
"No!" Sarah yelled.
"No!" Emily yelled.
"Fine, I will get everyone," Elijah grumbled as he walked down the corridor.
Rachel sighed as she watched Sarah and Emily enter the music studio. She walked down the hallway and then stopped at her bedroom. The scent of perfume, sex, and wealth hit Rachel's nose as she opened the door. Her eyes fixated on the clothes, pillows, and blanket scattered on the floor and bed. The radio on the nightstand hissed with static as she walked deeper into the bedroom. She tensed up as she flipped the light switch, half expecting to see mulberry rather than the normal eggshell white from the wall lights.
She crept towards the bathroom, then flipped the light switch while keeping most of her body outside. She glanced around the bathroom for anything out of the ordinary as fluorescent white light glowed from the sink and ceiling lights. Her eyes avoided the mirror as she turned on the sink faucet, splashed her face, and then grabbed a towel. Her reflection glitched, watching her like a judgmental cat.
Rachel flicked the bathroom light off and then walked towards the front door. A gnawing sensation of being observed clawed through her back. The bottoms of her feet and the palms of her hands tingled with energy. Her eyes narrowed as she turned her head toward the bathroom. Static screeched in her eardrums as the radio hissed a corrupted baroque-inspired tune with broken and chopped vocals. The shadows on the floor remained still and moved as Rachel moved. Rachel forced a thin-lipped smile as she rubbed her neck. Reality felt normal as Rachel left the room and closed the door.
Or at least that's what she deluded herself into believing.