The shards dissolved into golden dust. Time roared back like a tidal wave. The giant fell to his knees, gasping—then weeping—then laughing a real, messy, human laugh. The bubbles burst, and the trapped souls tumbled out, rubbing their sides, blinking in the sudden light.
"Ah! A mover," Kikkuri chirped. His fingers were long and impossibly soft. "You must be immune. Pity. Want to see my collection?"
Among the cursed was Elara, a knight-errant of the Laughing Blade. She had been frozen mid-stride for what felt like centuries—until the day she sneezed.
She grabbed the spectral fingers—and squeezed. They popped like soap bubbles. Then she lunged, seized the Chrono-Feather, and snapped it over her knee.
HMI Medical Centre (Amara) Level 14
HMI Medical Centre (Farrer Park)