Somehow, the first thing I notice are the tears streaming down Jumble's face. Her breath comes in sobs. Every step seems to wound her soul, yet her muscles tense with a singular desperation. A hope that she's wrong. A hope that I can do something.

My worst fears come to life drenched in blood that stains Jumble's fur and clothes a deep ruby red. Their hood is pulled up high, covering an obvious gash on their head. But their neck–which was normally covered by fabric–was open to the air. Very, very open. Yet no blood trickled from the wound.

It was too late.

I know that Jumble knows. She knows that I know. But that one twinkle of hope in her eyes… the one that I know hurts more than any of the despair… it just refuses to go out. She holds out Euro's body like a child asking why their pet cat isn't moving any more. My words fail me, just like any parent who knows the discussion that's to come afterwards.

"They're dead." She whispers. "I… I should've been there."

No more tears trail down Jumble's cheeks. Acceptance stills her emotions. Rage bubbles forth new ones that roil and tear through her normally kind face with the intensity of a tsunami.

"I should've been there." She reiterates far more intensely. "If for nothing else, to get revenge."

My words finally come back to me, but they stick for a whole different reason. Because I have a damn good idea who's to blame here. And he's got another one of our allies essentially at gunpoint.

Jumble looks up at me. Understanding tints her expression. Guess I'm not good at hiding it. I breathe through my nose, try to steady my voice, and gently put my arms under Euro's body too. They didn't deserve this. Hell, there wasn't a single damn reason for this to happen. Dani should've been powerful enough to get away without seriously hurting anyone.

But he didn't.

So he pays for it.

Mostly dried blood soaks into my jacket through Euro's utterly drenched clothes. It feels just like anyone else's blood. And… it hurts just as much as any other death would. Euro being a construct doesn't change anything. I won't let it change anything.

"Where's Rina?" I ask quietly. "Did Dani hurt her, too?"

Jumble's face twists into a deep snarl, bearing her teeth for the world to see. "Rina's gone. But she's not dead."

I nearly recoil in disgust. "You… think she…"

"I don't have to think." Jumble leans down over Euro and presses her forehead against theirs. "These wounds are from Rina. Even if Dani gave the order, she's the one that swung the axe. I just… I can't…"

A shaky, emotional breath interrupts her train of thought. She clenches her teeth in a show of betrayed rage, then slowly looks up at me with blood dripping down her face.

"Why'd they do it, Shelby?"

Words fail me yet again. My assumptions bubble to the forefront, but they're all about Dani. I just can't see Rina betraying us for no reason like this. Sure, her weapon might've dealt the final blow, but that doesn't mean she was the one holding it. Yet… as I look down at Euro's bloodied corpse, their eyes screwed shut in a final act of trying not to watch, I can't bring myself to say Rina is innocent.

She very well could be another hostage.

Or she could've been on Dani's side since the very start.

Finally I settle on just shaking my head. "I just don't know, Jumble. But we… we can't just leave Euro like this. Do you know how they'd want to be… well… buried?"

Jumble's fingers dig into Euro's clothes. She swallows hard, and the tears I thought had run dry well at the corners of her eyes once more. I can't find it in me to do the same. And I feel absolutely horrible for it.

"I get it if you're not ready to think about it." I say slowly. "But… Euro's the one who died. They deserve a proper ceremony. If not now, then eventually–even if it means you have to… carry them with you until we get out of here."

"T-they… they…" Jumble struggles as the tears break free. "They never wanted to die. We never talked about anything like this. I… we… I was supposed to protect all of them. But how can I protect them from each other? We're supposed to trust each other. Work together. That's… that's how I…"

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Her ears perk up before she finishes her sentence. Moments later, the sound of footfalls hits my ears as well. They're the heavyset yet quick thuds of Sawyer's boots. Jumble looks down at Euro, swallows hard, and plasters on an unsettlingly convincing visage of righteous anger. Like a general furious at the loss of their troops–not a mother at the loss of her adult child. Which… this is actually frighteningly close to.

"Blood, ma'am!" Sawyer yells as he rounds the corner and notices us. "I found a bloodstain in the lighthouse where… they… were…"

He trails off and slows to a halt as he notices Euro in our arms. An utterly aghast expression overtakes him, then wipes away to military stillness accompanied by a chest-pounding salute. Something he's obviously practiced before.

"Permission to speak, ma'am?" He asks, then looks over at Jumble and Euro. "On the… topic at hand."

I glance over at Jumble, who nods in confirmation. A nod that I turn and give to Sawyer. "Speak freely."

Sawyer lowers his arms to his sides. "Yes, ma'am. I don't want to make any assumptions, so I won't speak on things I obviously don't understand. Should I go and prepare the others for a… foreign entity's incursion?"

For someone not warning to make an assumption, that emphasis on 'foreign' is raising one very loaded question. Jumble keeps a straight face through it all, but I can feel her muscles tensing. Not because she's angry at Sawyer, but because it's obvious enough to him what could've possibly happened.

"Just in case… yes." I set my jaw and nod towards the library. "Just in case."

Sawyer nods knowingly. "Just in case."

"Just in case." Jumble echoes quietly. "We all know there's no point to that."

Discomfort instantly colours Sawyer's face. He stammers out some kind of an excuse, but I wave him off before he can say anything meaningful. No relief comes to him as he turns and hurries away.

I gently reach up and run my fingers down Euro's forehead. Jumble's breathing hitches with sadness, and before Clutter or Llaliu or someone else can interrupt us, she sends Euro's body to her inventory. There's still enough blood on her to make it obvious what happened.

"Let's just… go see them." Jumble turns away as her fingers flex against the empty air. "I don't want to be anywhere close to alone right now. And… and I have to make sure Ward is okay. He's… apparently he's the only one of them I actually have left."

She steps away, a confidence in her stride that I can't believe she can keep up. It feels like this isn't close to the first tragedy she's lived through. Bringing that up would be insanely insensitive, though, so I just silently follow her through the halls and up to the library. Once we reach the door I send out a message to everyone–save the three that're missing–of the tragedy.

Messages roll in, but I completely ignore them. I look up from my car as I send it away, then notice Jumble staring at me from a still-closed door. There's need in her eyes. Need for answers, need for justice, and need for closeness. That last one is by far the smallest need, but it's the only one I can give right now. I hold open my arms for a hug.

She nearly crashes into me, wrapping her arms tight as she buries her face in my neck. The unscratched side. Her body trembles, rage and indignance and betrayal mixing to form something that Dani is going to regret. If I had the choice, he wouldn't get out of this alive. Though I have a feeling Jumble could do something far crueler to him than simple death.

I wrap my arms around her tight. She smells like blood, and nothing else. "What can I do to help?"

Jumble's claws dig into my jacket. "Just… just be here. Don't leave me. Please."

"You don't have to worry about that." I assure her. "We're all getting out of here alive. Then it's up to you what happens next–and if you want to stay with Clutter, Pearl, me, and everyone else–then you're more than welcome to."

She squeezes me tighter. "But we have to finish things here first."

I nod. "I can't relocate us out of here. So we have to finish things–even if the system does everything it can to stop us."

"For Euro." Jumble mumbles.

"For Euro."

She takes a deep breath right against my neck, then pulls away. "Okay. I'm not ready for this. But we're doing it anyway."

"That we are." I agree. "How do you want to… I… kind of already sent the message out. Sorry."

"No, that's fine. I… didn't want to tell everyone." Jumble laughs bitterly. "Euro wasn't just part of my world anymore. They were a part of everyone's. They'd… they'd want us to get out of here. More than anything they'd want to be alive, but… I… can't…"

She looks over her shoulder as my awareness notices Clutter. He steps out of the shadows with a sullen expression, his eyes taking in the blood on Jumble–and me, now–with grim understanding.

"Rina, Dani, and Gnash are missing." He states. "Are we trying to rescue one person, two, or three?"

"One." Jumble answers instantly. "Potentially two, but not as cleanly as Gnash. I'll… it's my responsibility to make sure he gets out of this unharmed. Let me rescue him while all of you focus on finding more uplifting trials to clear."

"As long as everyone's alright with that, I see no problem. But you can't go off alone." I glance over at Clutter knowingly. "Pick someone else to go with you–someone you trust to have your back. Unfortunately, it can't be me. No matter how much I want to help."

Jumble follows my gaze to Clutter, who shakes his head. "I'm going to try to make physical contact with Gil. I've gotten a lot faster over the months, so I should be able to do it–maybe even before the horizonguard makes main quest progress."

"Then that leaves everyone else. Everyone but Ward." Jumble chuckles. "I guess I'll just have to choose. After… after we all have a long talk."

We all nod in agreement–including Pearl from inside her shell–and Jumble reaches to open the door. None of us want to do this, but we have to say goodbye to Euro. Even if we can't give them the proper rites until we're done with this damn place.

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