there is no pain you are receding

I stopped by the sukkah to grab a snack. The building party last night was a wonderful little affair. Nix Sands graciously offered his property. The Baron and Frau Lowey provided the wood and a veritable banquet...I brought popcorn, banana bread, watermelon slices and tea. It was my chance to introduce my new apprentice Oahu to polite society.

[He won't wear shoes? Fine. But he does need to sew up those pants...]


[Dear Dad, I'm not wasting another life hunting down ancestors. I'm not Vortex anymore. Just plain old Koen. I hope your new apprentice knows what he's getting into. Let me know when you fix Gem. Have a nice life.]

I visited young nichus Bermann in Steelhead, a gifted child who had finished building my new traveling cart, fully stocked with pharmaceuticals.


...and complete with interior Ethereal Time Cabinet.


As Tensai took the podium for her spiel on the latest advances in particle science, the medication for my shoulder wound kicked in.

[Jobias cheated. He had a HUD. But Tensai wasn't wounded. I risked my life for...]

At the edge of my senses I felt Qlippothic nudging me. "Father? Are you alright?"

[I didn't even have a syringe on me! Had he been a few inches closer...]

Annechen's mindtouch, felt but unresponsive.

[I meant to tell Qli. I meant to tell Ash. I meant to tell the Regent. But I just can't bring myself...]

My Spark within danced to its own joyous memories.

[Electricity is the force of Life itself! With the right conditions there is no organism that cannot be regenerated! Such is the Triumph of Science over Death and Nature that...]

["Bring us back to life, Doctor!" They always beg and plead. "Is it that time of year again already? I told you I can't bring you all back! You don't even have bodies left to..."]

I woke up to the clucking of chickens and the smell of feathers. I smiled to myself. Some things never change.