Lauren
collected sap from the ash tree in one of her many empty vials and
sealed the small glass container to stow it in her bag. Strea was
rubbing her stomach. Rita was sitting cross-legged on Strea’s left.
Valentina was tuning her guitar. Lauren took her flint and steel out
of her bag, piled the fallen twigs and leaves from the tree at its
base and set the pile on fire. The fire spread to the tree. The
others quickly took notice of Lauren’s fire-starting.
“Aw,
why’d you do that?”
Va

For
an hour, Lauren had fun reading through the statements, instructions,
stories, blessings, curses and warnings the early inhabitants of the
Core Realm had received from her and her siblings, compiled and
stored away for safekeeping to protect their “truths,” but her
conscience eventually got the better of her. Lauren made the Texts as
they were and left the room of importance. As soon as she was in the
hall, Lauren coughed up Nadalia first and Strea second. She rubbed
her smooth stomach a

Nadalia
carried the shrunken travelers along the Throatway, bothered by no
more obstacles. The outer, southern farms of Grecinma developed in
number as Nadalia got closer to the city. Nadalia waved at a
wolf-like Pawkin sheepherder herding her flock around the pasture
close to the fence between them and the road. The Pawkin’s eyes
were full of wary as she stared at Nadalia and her masked face, but
the shepherd gave a tilt of her straw hat with her crook. Soon, into
the afternoon, the walls of

Luva
Sterro staggered through the frozen creek. The howl of wolves eager
to avenge their pack mates whose blood dripped from Luva’s sword
hastened Luva’s faulting step. Four years since her grandmother had
given Luva her mission, Luva’s clothes were in tatters, her shoes
were worn thin, and her body was riddled with injuries that never
seemed to heal. Only her two blades, gifted to her by her
grandmother, remained in top condition while the rest of her body
decreased. Luva had not yet reve

After
an hour of sitting in Rita’s breast, Lauren’s skin began to
tingle, so she bade Rita’s breast to stop melting her. Once she was
safe from creaming, Lauren began closing her eyes for a nap. Lauren’s
eyes shot open when she remembered that Rita was intent on stuffing
her breast with Valentina as well. She made it so that Rita’s other
breast would not melt Valentina. Then, she drifted off to sleep.
An
indeterminable amount of time later, Lauren woke up with a yawn. She
was still in

A-thump,
a-thump,
a-thump.
Your broken leg rings for me, colliding with each step before you
drag it onto the next in pain.
Thump-thump,
thump-thump,
thump-thump.
Your heartbeat sings to me, pumping life-preserving ichor at faster
and faster rates.
Thump-a,
thump-a,
thump-a.
Your clammy hand calls for me, slapping against the bannister to
support that broken leg you drag along.
I
am coming, dear, and every impression of your night beckons me.
The
wolf in the garden busted your leg, but your