“Vengeance, retaliation, retribution, revenge are deceitful brothers—vile, beguiling demons promising justifiable compensation to a pained soul for his losses. Yet in truth they craftily fester away all else of worth remaining.”
― Richelle E. Goodrich, The Tarishe Curse

Hearing the dark tone that Adrasteia used as she spoke of “asking” Kadrapraba she could feel the violence and rage that surged in her lover. Even though she could feel echoes of that savage anticipation in herself, Carol shivered. “You and I know Kadrapraba is likely the cause of these attacks but don’t rush to judgement! You have to be certain.”

Adra nodded irritably, “Yes, yes, we’ll be sure she’s the cause.” Adra’s mind made another connection. “You know, I’ll bet you she was involved with the attack on the river as well! David told us they could find no evidence of conspiracy inside the military or government. She engineered the attack where you were almost killed before!”

Carol flinched from the almost painful surge she felt leaking from Adra. Around her she could see the males quail from the heat of the anger. “Jill!”, she barked gesturing with her head to the Tarneeran males still kneeling, “Calm down! You’re terrifying the men.”

Adrasteia took notice and with visible effort reigned her rage in more tightly. She then saw the Tarneeran guards begin to visibly relax. She gazed again around the clearing and then in a much more gentle tone instructed the males to see to the injured humans and ensure that any wounds were attended to. With quick declarations of, “Amin inya aute!” they leapt to the task. As she watched the men moving about she noticed that David was standing open mouthed at what had happened while he and Adrasteia had been speaking. Switching back into English she looked to him and spoke, “Are you alright David? All save one of your men are not seriously injured, they’ve just been subdued because they were becoming violent. My guards are seeing to their safety now. That one,” she said nodding to the eviscerated body, “he was the one who shot me. My mate dealt with him before she could control herself...” Carol snuggled against Adrasteia and bared her razor-like teeth in a smile that held no laughter.

“It seems that you and your people have been unknowing victims of Tarneeran politics, David. I believe that one faction who opposes open relations with humanity has been working to make it seem like you are too violent and dangerous to open arms to.” She chuckled ironically, “In some ways I’m coming to agree with that argument,” Adrasteia hastened to continue as she felt David’s concern and fear rise, “not because humans are too violent, but because humans may be too vulnerable to Tarneerans!”

Focusing on what Adrasteia said David responded, “How did they do this? These are hardened soldiers. They don’t easily break!”

Adrasteia nodded, “You know that Tarneeran males are telekinetic right? And you are aware that the females are also empathic? You are probably not aware, however, of the extent of projective empathy and general mental powers women of Tarneera have. To put it bluntly, the Tarneeran race has a whole host of psychic abilities that they evolved with! Their fundamental science has grown around this. Because of this, one on one humans are not yet equipped to oppose them. When they have time for planning and subtlety they can manipulate humans almost like puppets. And these personal powers can be enhanced and fine tuned with physical technology!” She gestured to the gem embedded in her forehead.

David was pale at the enormity of what he’d just been told. “I warned the president that attempting to wage war with your people would be an exercise in ‘pyrrich’ warfare, but what you tell me terrifies me. If the president were to discover that you can psychically manipulate people, even enslave them, he’d be pressured to carry out genocidal nuclear attacks as the only way to ensure autonomy!

Adrasteia regarded him gravely, knowing that due to the situation he clearly considered her Tarneeran. For all her attempts back home to convince him she was human (in spirit at least), he assumed she was not of them. Considering their situation, she couldn’t blame him. She only could hope he believed she was not an enemy.

“I’ve considered that as well. Any act of that sort could have catastrophic consequences! If such an attack was anything less than a complete success; if any remnant survived, their retaliation would be apocalyptic! Just imagine survivors living just for revenge gaining access to a missile sub! No, the only solution will be for the Tarneerans to enforce some sort of mechanism of restraint with regards to humanity. I know that they have that ability. They will need to enforce it with any who deal with humans.” She then clenched her jaw and gritted out, “Before that can be settled, however, I have to deal with someone who has tried to kill me and mine; twice!” Adrasteia’s face took on a dark and crafty cast, “To do that, however, I think I need to set the stage properly.”.

David saw the look and shuddered...

The three Mothers all rested in the great council chamber as they waited on word from Adrasteia’s first meeting with the humans. The mood seemed tense but hopeful. “Oh why hasn’t Adrasteia sent a runner back yet? Surely they’ve begun the meeting and she could have sent back her first thoughts!”, Darsaltheer muttered.

Anarra chuckled and responded, “I should think you’d learned as I have, that The young Adrasteia rarely acts as you would normally expect. I suspect she wishes to form a more complete opinion before she sends word.”

“I wish I had your optimism, Anarra.” Kadrapraba said, “I’ve said before that I fear these humans. Their history of violence, fear and volatility is too great. This concern is exactly why I agreed to your suggestion to send her in our stead! I know she claims to be of them, but these animals that walk like people can’t see the nature of an individual. All they’ll see is an alien. One who they’ve already tried to capture or kill twice before. Human fear of the other, especially one who is powerful and threatening is too much a danger. It is better we place at risk one who claims to not be of the people than risk our own to this folly of negotiating!”

Anarra’s eyes clouded again with the argument they’d been endlessly engaged in but before she could respond, there was a knock on the chamber doors. At an acknowledgment, the door opened and Charu entered and moved urgently to her mother’s side. She whispered and Kadrapraba’s eyes widened with shock and a mixture of validation and regret. She touched her daughter’s shoulder gently and turned to the others. “My daughter tells me we now have a report. As you likely suspected, I always prefer to know things of importance from trusted aides. There for I sent an observer of my own to tag along with our party at a distance. Just to be certain we weren’t surprised. It appears it is a good thing I did. When she approached the meeting place she was able to see the humans pull their weapons and begin attacking! It seems that Adrasteia refused to use any of the males as shields and the humans apparently used their weapons to strike her down! My observer immediately turned and fled before seeing the finish of the combat but she clearly watched great gouts of blood splashing down Adrasteia’s side as she crumpled to the ground. My observer fled for her life to the sound of human weapons and the animalistic howling of Adrasteia’s mate.”

The other two Mothers rose in great alarm and immediately began to call for troops to investigate the site and if true deal with the humans. They assumed that most of the males had survived to avenge Adrasteia’s death, but absolute control needed to be established. In minutes a phalanx of 200 men, all armed for combat, were fast marching to the meeting site. Along with them, were Nebira and Charu.

The force arrived less than 20 minutes later to an empty clearing! After confirming no one nearby, the males moved forward to investigate. In the clearing they did indeed find evidence of a combat. In the center was considerable blood evidence of at least two who’d suffered major trauma. Elsewhere around the clearing were strange hollow metal cylinders that Nabira identified as evidence that human weapons had been used. There were, however, no bodies, alive or dead at all! No footprints leading away; no disturbed vegetation, nothing. It was as if all at the meeting had simply vanished.

Baffled, the women ordered all save 40 males to return. Thirty were to stay in hiding to watch for further developments. The remaining 10 males were split evenly by Nabira and sent to gage the states of readiness of the two human camps and then report back.

“By the goddess!” Kadrapraba snarled, “How is it possible that the humans bested our men?! I can’t believe that our males would have triumphed and not reported the events!” Nabira and Charu both simply shook their heads at the collected Mothers.

“We don’t know mother,” Charu responded, “as we said, there was a battle but no bodies to be found. The humans must have collected all the bodies after the events. They did the same thing after their attack on the river! We have no explanation for their escape, however. There were no reports of the humans using their flying machines.”

The other Mothers who had also listened to the news were convinced that for now at least, Kadrapraba’s cautions were in fact wise and agreed that they again needed to cut off communication with the humans until they could determined what had happened. Indeed, Darsaltheer showed signs of shifting her alliance! While blind to n’dmi me’a they had obviously developed other ways to threaten and even best the people. The people could not let this remained unchallenged.

Their next command was to dramatically strengthen the protective barrier. It would be their hope that they might be able to resist the potentially nightmarish sun-based weapons that they’d read about.
No matter how frightening events had potentially become, the mind can only focus alertly for so long; then fatigue and mistakes would set in. As a result, After only a couple more hours the Mothers began finally gave into their worry and fatigue and decided to prepare to retire for a time, until they returned for meals.

Once Kadrapraba and Charu had retired to their suite and had activated the privacy stones the Beleyaavan High Mother allowed herself a satisfied smile. “At last! They are beginning to see things the way we want. As Darsaltheer shifts to my camp the obstacles to our people’s safety and my leadership are crumbling, Adrasteia’s death is regrettable but her wild power is no longer in our way.”

Charu could see that her mother’s efforts were truly bearing fruit but but found the taste of it bitter. Her mother had forced her to see and understand the dangers humans represented, but the actions they’d done in response darkened their spirits! She’d begun to see in her mother’s callous lack of guilt at Adrasteia’s death that they were descending into darker realms. She prayed that they were finally done.

Yes, things were moving the way her mother and worked for but there were also strange inconsistencies in recent events so Charu again cautioned that they didn’t really understand what exactly had happened at the diplomatic meeting. She expressed her great uneasiness at the mysterious disappearances. Had the humans actually defeated them? If so, how?!? The High Mother, for her part, acknowledged the fear but seized on it as further validation of her goal and would not let it dampen her pleasure...

Adrasteia’s eyes slowly opened and she looked up into the soft cleavage her head was once again nestled in. Sensing the movement Carol looked down at her love, “You know, it’s still disconcerting when you go off like that. Where were you this time?”

Adra’s eyes grew stormy and she responded, “I followed the discussions of the High Mothers. Then I followed Charu and her mother to their quarters. Once alone I watched them talking. It seems we are correct in our suspicions. Kadrapraba has indeed been working against communicating with humanity.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“Kadrapraba needs to be exposed. Her ambition is a cancer that must be stopped.” Adra paused and then continued, “What do yo think of a surprise at dinner?”

The Mothers and all their lieutenants were just finishing a somber meal. Most had picked at their food as the loss of the entire diplomatic team had left them all shaken.

“So it is decided?”, Kadrapraba asked, “In the morning we will inform the humans that we will not welcome further attempts at contact and further will demand their withdrawal from any land in a distance of three day’s march?” At the other Mothers’ nods, she nodded herself. “I’m glad we’ve come to a consensus. This buffer will give us time and ultimately land to grow into.”

It was then that a voice, supposedly from the dead, was heard from near the entrance to the room, “You know, perhaps cutting yourselves off isn’t a bad idea after all.”

The women in the chamber all jumped and several leapt to their feet crying out in surprise. Everyone in the room looked at the great doors but didn’t see Adrasteia. “I’ve come to the opinion that you need to be separate because you aren’t safe! Isn’t that right Kadrapraba?”

The named Mother stood as she and the others began to feel rage coming at them in waves. All eyes again looked to the entrance and this time an image slowly faded into existence. Adrasteia floated perhaps a foot off the floor. She was clothed in her full regalia: crimson gown, breastplate, bracers and greaves. On her head rested an iridescent tiara with a number of rubies that almost made it look as if she bled! Around her danced a dozen or more diamond shaped plates. This image, bathed as it was in terrible rage, made her look as if she were a goddess of War; and many of the women in the room quailed in terror.

“You - You are alive!?! We have reports you were grievously wounded or killed by humans! How did you come to be here? Where are your wounds?”, Kadrapraba asked in a quavering voice.

Adrasteia, smiled darkly at the pale woman. “Oh they were minor. The thing is, I could feel the damage that was wrought on the humans at the meeting. I stopped them from from turning into the monsters you tried to make them into!” She cocked her head and in a curious tone that didn’t detract from the maelstrom of rage that flowed from her asked, “How long have you been pressing the humans? Was it just the team or are there more?”

Ice flowed down Kadrapraba’s back as Anarra and Darsaltheer followed Adrasteia’s gaze and she realized that her actions might be coming to light. She tried desperately to suppress her fear of discovery and focused on her own anger that this might undo her work. “You dare accuse me?!? How dare you throw ill considered accusations about. You are nothing but an ignorant child, unable to control her emotions. I did not press the humans. You look for any explanation to shield the humans from their guilt. Your powers should have been suppressed until you became a stable adult!” From the corner of her eyes she could see the doubt that Adrasteia was attempting to sow starting to take root in other hearts. Her own anger at her plans dying only grew.

“Really? So you are innocent of attacking me, twice?!? You did not engineer either the attack today or the attack on the river? I am too unstable and dangerous?” The flowing of emotions suddenly cut off as the form of Adrasteia that they looked at faded. Then Adrasteia’s voice continued from the opposite side of the room, “Prove it! Open yourself to me and I’ll do the same to you. Let’s find out exactly who the dangerous one is!.”

Kadrapraba’s eyes widened at this challenge even as she and the others all spun to see another, more physical Adrasteia standing next to her lover. ‘How?!?’, she gasped to herself. How had she done that? Now looking at the figure standing before them she realized that some sense of physicality had been missing in the other figure. Was the child’s mental power so great she could make them see what wasn’t there?!? A significant element with in Kadrapraba quailed at this. If this girl was this powerful already, what would she become when truly mature? The greater part of her spirit refused to be cowed however. Yes, she was terrifyingly powerful but this child was too young to do other than wield her strength like a club! Kadrapraba, on the other hand, was a full adult, grown full in her power and fully aware of its breath. Just as in martial combats a man with a club is dangerous, but when facing a martial master is found easily overcome, so the inexperience of a child should be overcome by the skills and wisdom of maturity. And this child called out challenge? Surely the child didn’t know what she said!

Kadrapraba acknowledged to herself that the contest could not be one of raw strength. She would have to flow away from direct confrontation. “Very well little mother, if you truly wish to understand my actions let us join.” Saying that, she stepped forwards to approach Adrasteia and away from the other women.

Adrasteia also began to move but felt a tug on her arm and glanced back to Carol who had a strange otherworldly look on her face. With eyes not focusing Carol intoned in a breathy voice, “You are on the cusp. You will have choices that will forever affect your path...”. Then her eyes cleared and with a fierce look she felt a burst of support and love.

Adrasteia’s eyes clouded as she looked at her love. That hadn’t sounded or felt like Carol; it was almost as if she’d been taken briefly by a foreign spirit! ‘What the heck was that?’ she wondered to herself; the shook herself mentally. ‘Later! No distractions!’ She turned and moved to face Kadrapraba.

As the High Mothers and their people watched Kadrapraba and Adrasteia walked up to each other and and looked deeply into each other’s eyes. The High Mother spoke quietly, “Let me show you my truth...”. She reach out with her mind to touch Adrasteia and as she’d expected came up against a barrier of unbelievable resolve and restraint. In Kadrapraba’s mind it felt like a stone wall holding back terrifying forces of rage, betrayal and other things she couldn’t identify. Truly, the well of power she felt, even behind these barriers were almost beyond her comprehension! She knew immediately, as her first attempt at bringing the girl to heel when they initially met, Brute force would not work.

‘Little mother, I am in awe of your strength! You will accomplish so much as you mature! With my and the other Mothers’ tutelage you will someday surpass us all to lead the people to heights even our empire has never seen!’

Adrasteia heard these thoughts and felt their honesty. Surprised, she could sense that Kadrapraba wasn’t the cartoon megalomaniacal villain she’d expected who simply wanted to rule at any cost. She was more than that! ‘You surprise me as well Mother. I don’t sense the overwhelming hunger for power and violence I expected! Why then? Why did you attack me and mine?’

‘Attack? Save perhaps when we first met I’ve never attacked you. Even then it wasn’t an attack of malice, simply to assess and put in place what I thought was simply a child.’ Kadrapraba could feel the surprise that her “carefully true” statements caused.

’What of the attacks on the river and the one today?’ Adrasteia shot back.

‘What of them? Who actually attacked? It was the humans I think. Humans and their fear of others. More importantly others they can’t control and can’t, due to their lesser nature, hope to understand? Throughout their history, how have humans treated those they see as “others”? How have they dealt with you?!? Even when they thought you human, but changed?’

Adrasteia heard these questions and felt the sincerity of the assessment. It pulled at her to look honestly at what was asked. How had she been treated? When she became known, the government had indeed acted fearfully and elements had tried to imprison her. Months of cat and mouse had ensued. It was only when it was realized that they might make an enemy of someone whey couldn’t control and could hurt them that they backed off. Then when she’d been injured at the memorial ceremony and it could be said some elements tried again!

‘Not all humans always fear others.’ Adrasteia pushed back, ‘I had many who supported me! My friends and co-workers! Carol!’

Kadrapraba glanced between Adrasteia and her mate. She let skepticism leak out, ‘Really? Why is that I wonder? I look between you and your lover and I see a spirit bond. I’ll bet those you call friends also had a bond.’ The Mother could feel the shock as Adrasteia again considered the implications of the bonds she herself had seen and worried about. She could feel the again rising fear that her “friends” might not be truly independent.

Seeing the crack in the “armor” Kadrapraba ever so gently pressed as she continued, ‘What of those not bonded? How did they look at you? Did they really see you as a friend? I suspect it would be more likely they saw you as something else. They saw you as Other. Not hostile perhaps, but not one of them. And all history shows how the Other is ultimately looked at!’

Feeling the insecurities she pressed harder, as she felt herself slip past the wall, ‘Can you honestly blame them? You say that you are human? You don’t look like them. You have powers like mine. You told us you even feed like us! Your memories might be from a human, but you aren’t human. Even your Carol isn’t human anymore! Could you live normal ‘human’ lives as you are?’

Knowing that Carol would never be able to live as a normal human as she looked even less like one with her pale green skin and her terrifying teeth and claws Adrasteia was forced to answer, ‘No.’ With that admission she truly began to feel the separation between herself and humanity, and it tore at her.

Kadrapraba felt the revelation flow through Adrasteia and felt a sense of triumph. Now that Adrasteia truly understood she should be able to shift loyalties and encourage the girl to realize she was more than merely human. In fact, she should see humans were a lesser species. Animals. Just as we might care for animals they weren’t equals and with that it wouldn’t matter if the humans were controlled.

Offering comfort and sympathy for Adrasteia’s sense of loss and increasing isolation she pressed yet harder, ‘I again marvel at your growing power. It is as if you were in a chrysalis breaking free. It is painful is it not, but liberating to understand the animals you grew up knowing are just that. You truly are one of us!’

The concepts rang though Adrasteia’s mind, but this time they didn’t feel quite right. No she wasn’t human and couldn’t pretend anymore, but one of them? Was she? In growing despair she withdrew into herself while she looked at the Mother. Yes physically she resembled her species. Yes she displayed empathic powers and even telekinesis. But the scale of the abilities were vastly different. She retreated deeper within herself and closing her eyes really looked. All around her she could feel n’dmi me’a, flowing around her and into her. She knew that for a long time she’d had to restrain the visible flow of it as it had hurt Tarneeran perceptions when not controlled. Visions of the women surrounding her when she’d first returned from Outside shielding themselves as if from an unbearable light came to mind.

Another question? Did she really feed and rely on the light as a Tarneeran did? As she considered it, she saw that initially she’d done exactly that, her vitality and accelerated healing had started coming from it. But her time Outside had changed that. Now the flow was almost like candy, tasty and giving a rush, but not what sustained her now. No, as she looked she finally understood that it was the limitless potential she felt from the Chaos Outside that truly was her sustaining force. And the power it provided?

She thought back to her conversations with Aditi when the talked of how the gems of Tarneeran tech were used to shape and focus mind’s light to specific purposes. Indeed, she’d even somehow created just such a stone to allow the n’dmi me'a she collected to be changed to Tarneeran from human. Like an unfolding flower, she came to the understanding that her initial abilities were very much like the stones themselves! Her physical bodies initial template had been the initial “stones”, as it were, that provided an unthinking and easy way to manifest power. As she examined she realized she’d been slowly but surely moving outside those initial powers and limitations. Her ability to bi-locate and affect physically removed places and things, for example. She now could move her mind to the Outside as well. Most recently the, with but a thought, healing of what should have been grievous gunshot wounds. She could see that the limitations imposed by “reality” had become increasingly like her very own “Olympus”. Plastic and shapable. No, she was not a Tarneeran either.

Her pain at being separate and alone grew and began to leak from the deep place from where she’d withdrawn and became perceptible to Kadrapraba and even the others in the room. The Mother felt a sense triumph as she interpreted the distress as Adrasteia’s acceptance that her emotional bonds with humanity were wrong so she made another push, ‘Now do you see? These humans are clever and dangerous yes, but they are flawed metal. I needed only to apply a little pressure on them to show their weak nature.’

‘So pressing them was simply to show they shouldn’t be trusted?’, sounded a distant question

Adrasteia felt the Mothers affirmation but also felt Carol responding to the despair she felt flooding from her lover’s heart. Carol’s response wasn’t reasoned. It was simply a primal outpouring of love and a desire to simply touch and heal the pain. It was that simple understanding of need that finally gave Adrasteia something to grab to. Carol cared. She wasn’t worried that Jill wasn’t a human, or a Tarneeran. She was simply someone/something she loved! It was a bond Carol desired irregardless of what “club” Adra belonged to! And Adra once again understood that while there was a bond she was certain it wasn’t controlling! Even while other, she didn’t have to be alone. It was “her” choice with who she made connections. Several she’d already made; and one especially that Kadrapraba’s repeated “testing” of humans had almost destroyed.

For the first time in the contest of wills that the two engaged in Adrasteia spoke, “You know, you are right Mother. You’ve convinced me that I’m no longer human, in spite of my memories.” Her head dropped to look at her hands and Adrasteia opened eyes that had shut when they had engaged.

Kadrapraba heard the words but froze as all emotions coming from the girl suddenly shifted save for a blazing bond linking the girl to her mate, who’s eyes rolled back as she made a squeak and she began to twitch in the ecstasy of the energy pouring into her.

A very dark smile then grew on Adrasteia, “But you know something? I don’t think I’m of the people either. Would you like to see what I really am?”

Adrasteia raised a cupped hand and growing from the palm was a softball sized tremulous sphere that shimmered very much like the soap bubbles floating in the sky.

Kadrapraba stared with rising panic as the young woman looked up and into her eyes with ones that shown like tiny stars. In a voice that, even low, echoed in the room she said, “Let me show you home, sweet Mother...” The bubble then suddenly and silently swelled to encompass both woman. A second later and the encompassing sphere was gone, along with the women. A smooth concave depression in the stone floor was all that remained where they’d stood.

Kadrapraba tried to scream in absolute terror, but she had no mouth. No lungs. No body! All she could perceive was a maelstrom something that defied comprehension. It wasn’t light or sound. It wasn’t textural or anything that could be classified by any of the senses she understood. All she could perceive was a horrible wrenching and abrading at the edges of her mind. It was so utterly alien to anything she could conceive that her she could feel her mind, her core buckling under its wrongness! Then into this she felt an element of Adrasteia’s mind, ‘That was so cool! I’ve never done that before physically!’

Kadrapraba wailed mentally and tried to grab onto what she thought was Adrasteia but there was nothing to grab. She was everywhere and nowhere all at once. Despair filled the Mother and to stop the unbearable nature what she (existed?) in, she stopped resisting the force and felt herself begin to truly erode into the Chaos. Before the calling dissolution could proceed much, however, the alien presence was felt again, ‘Oh no! Don’t be a pussy and give up.’ Suddenly the maelstrom stopped pulling and she felt her body once again. Something had given her a sense of corporeality once again and held the mind destroying Chaos at bay. Instead she seemingly floated (there was still no reliable sense of direction) aimlessly in an incomprehensible torrent of light and not light, sounds that somehow weren’t. The only thing that did make any kind of sense were two points of light that slowly resolved into the eyes of a very vague flowing impression of a face.

She had a feeling that this being was looking into the deepest parts of her soul and it spoke once more, ‘Why should I let you continue? You strived to teach me I’ve no moral obligation other than to treat lessers as animals of convenience. I have a right to do what I want and then cast them away like a child’s toy, right?’

‘No please! I’m not an animal!’, Kadrapraba cried out with all her spirit as she understood now just who the lesser being was.

‘Oh I’m sure the humans would have said the same thing if they’d been able to understand what you were doing..’

Hearing her own views turned on her caused her hopelessness to grow again and she cried out anew. The being/Adrasteia made an irritable (sound?). Kadrapraba then felt a pressure that was not pressure and she was suddenly laying naked in a strange and lush forest.

‘Let her stew for a while.’ Adrasteia thought as she looked at the broken mother sobbing convulsively in a glade of her little Olympus.

A while after the deposition, Adrasteia began to feel another presence. She became more alert and an entity evincing great pride and affection that was at once familiar but new coalesced into a great darkness that seemed filled with stars. ‘I am so very proud of you, my daughter. You are only the third to ever grow to fullness!’

Daughter?!? ‘I’m your daughter?! Who, what are you?!?’

Ignoring the questions the being continued, ‘Another decision remains now. Are you done with that reality or do you choose to return? Your actions with the little mother are having consequences...'

‘OH FOR GODDESS’ SAKE!! Can’t I take a breath?!?’ To this the Dark presence offered only laughter.