Book Three – Interlude – Part Three – A Dreaded Lie & Hours Before Execution

The scenery surrounding the sleeping Singi should have reminded her of a happier time when she didn’t have to worry about the impending fear of death. The grass, soft and green, acted like Mother Earth’s natural mattress while the brightly colored leaves warmed up the fragile Singi. Tears dripped down the corner of her eyes, becoming beautiful flowers when they touched the ground. Standing above her was a girl that was Momo’s twin in every way but two.

Her ears were larger and fluffier, and her tail was thicker and bushier. They shared the same adorable cheeks, a similar cute nose, the delightful blue eyes, and a desire for survival. A sudden breeze flew by, sending strands of pink hair across her eyes as she crouched down. The white sundress she wore lightly tickled the tips of her bare feet while a timid hand reached out to her sleeping twin.

“Momo,” she whispered. “It’s time to wake up. You’re safe now.”

“Nnrrrhhhg…” responded the sleeping Singi. Her tail whipped away the hand that dared to disturb its master’s slumber.

The Momo lookalike frowned, puffing out her cheeks like a chipmunk storing food for the winter. Then she laughed. Each joyous noise created a cloud, filling the sky with fluffy, white shapes.

Once again, the Momo lookalike bent down and poked at her twin’s sleeping face. “Momo, sweetie, it’s time to wake up.”

That didn’t work either, so the lookalike took drastic measures. The girl clapped once, creating grassy tendrils that lifted Momo by the arms until she stood up like a puppet on a string. As she was still asleep, the lookalike caught her when the tendrils returned to their grassy form, embracing her in a hug.

“It’s okay, Momo. You don’t need to be afraid anymore. You don’t need to pretend to be asleep.” Heartfelt sobs came from the Singi. They started small and weak, then grew into something large and obnoxious, yet the lookalike never once removed her arms. Slowly, Momo’s stained armor disappeared, leaving her naked as a sudden, gentle spring of water drenched them. The smell of decaying flesh washed away down her body as a sudden breeze dried the two off. Like her lookalike, Momo’s slender body became covered by a white sundress.

Only once she had been cleaned and doused by the love of her lookalike did she slow her sobbing. Eventually, words came from her mouth, but they did so in the form of apologies.

“Servy, I’m sorry!!! Servy!!!” She cried the name of her best friend into the chest of the girl who looked like her. She leaned back, falling to the ground while embracing Momo. Instead of hitting the ground, the two landed on the white petals of a Lily flower.

Did they shrink? Did the flower grow? The answer didn’t matter.

It acted as a mattress, which allowed the Momo lookalike to further comfort her beloved outer-self. After a few long minutes of sobbing, Momo finally fought back the tears and asked a long-overdue question as she stared at her counterpart in the eyes.

“Where am I?”

“I brought you here to protect you. It was the only way to save your mind,” the lookalike responded. Her fluffy tail slowly swayed underneath her.

“But why? I’m gonna die. Am I dead? Wait, where’s Servy’s head?! I need her head!!! I NEED IT!! How will I meet her in the afterlife if I don’t have it?!  Hey, where—" Momo fought and squirmed to escape her doppelgänger’s grip, yet she squeezed even tighter.

“You’re not dead. And that wasn’t Servi. She’s still alive,” she whispered in Momo’s ears.

“But how can you tell?! I saw her head!!! I saw it!! I held it!! I—”

“What you saw and felt was a real head, yet it did not belong to Servy. I know that because she’s still alive.”

“But—”

“Momo, is she your best friend?!”

Her lookalike had never raised her voice before in the few times they had met. Tears welled up in Momo’s eyes as she weakly nodded.

“Then say it. Say Servi is your best friend!” she ordered.

“She’s my….”

“Louder!

“…best friend.”

The doppelgänger shouted. “SAY IT LOUDER! SAY IT LIKE YOU MEAN IT!”

“She’s my best friend… She’s my best friend. She’s my best friend! Servy’s my best friend!!! SERVY IS MY BEST FRIEND!!! I want to believe she’s still alive!!!! SERVY, I WANT TO BELIEVE YOU’RE STILL ALIVE!!!!!”

Momo buried herself into her lookalike’s chest and screamed the words. She shouted in a bout of passion, expelling thick strands of spit as they repeated that simple sentence over and over again.

“Good! Don’t ever forget it! She’s coming to save you. Do you believe that? Even at the very end, you shouldn't give up hope."

Momo looked up from her lookalike’s chest. Her nose had snot running down it, her eyes were red from crying, but her pretty smile said it all. “I do! I believe in Servy. Servy’s my best friend!!! I believe in her, so I’m—"

“Not scared anymore?” The lookalike finished Momo’s sentence as the flower petals they laid on disappeared. But instead of succumbing to gravity and becoming a crater, the two fell like a feather, gently swaying from left to right in a loving embrace only the two of them could have. When they felt the warm grass between their toes, Momo unhooked her arms around her lookalike and stepped back with her own power.

She made a fist and nodded, reigniting the fighting spirit locked behind her blue eyes. Her pink tail puffed out and sharply swooshed from side to side. “I’m not scared! Not anymore! I know she’s gonna save me. And when she does, I’ll tell her how sorry I was. I don’t know if she’ll take me back, but she’ll always be my best bestest best friend in the whole wide world!”

“Good!” The lookalike copied Momo’s movements, and they both giggled.

That was when their ears picked up on some kind of noise coming from the horizon. From across the sprawling waves of green grass and colorful flowers, a crack in the sky formed. It spread, slowly and evenly, until it cordoned off a rectangular area that reminded Momo of a window. Then the blue sky within that area shattered, revealing an image of a girl standing high in the sky.

It was a girl with red eyes.

It was a girl with black hair.

A girl with both of those physical traits was visible.

But then the image moved. Servi descended down the empty air, and it was like invisible platforms were being created under her very feet.

What they saw wasn't just a fabrication of Momo's mind. It was what Momo actually saw through her blue eyes.

“You see? She’s still alive. She’s coming for you. You want to meet her, right?” The lookalike turned to Momo, who started to cry tears of happiness. Her body shook with such excitement that it felt like her heart was about to jump out of her chest.

She turned to her other self with a bright smile and wiped her wet eyes on the back of her hand. Then she sniffled a bit to clear her runny nose. “I do! I wanna meet her! But what about—”

Her lookalike’s fuzzy ears twitched as she held out a hand. Momo reached out, but when her fingers glanced against the lookalike’s open palm, she shattered in a million tiny pink petals like the remains of a stiff breeze plowing through a field of flowering cherry blossoms.

They swarmed Momo like a tornado, gently landing on her body and engulfing her in a warming warmth.

Don’t worry about me. As long as you are safe, I’m going to be okay. Remember, I’m always within your soul. Now run! You mustn’t keep your best friend waiting! As her voice faded away, so to did the swirling blossoms.

“Right! Servy! I’m coming!” Momo turned towards the missing section of the sky on the horizon, shouted her convictions, and ran towards it. Her pink hair trailed behind her, and her tail curled inward, wrapping around its master’s waist as Momo ran even faster.

It seemed like an impossible task, but the distance between the moving image of her best friend and Momo dwindled. Her feet should’ve obliterated everything she stepped on, but it wasn’t crushed grass she left behind. It was fields of white lilies.

She ran, and she ran, and she ran evermore to close the distance between her and her objective. But once she reached a certain point, it was as if she stopped making any progress. But that couldn’t be so! The sweat streaming down her cheeks and the furious pumping of her heart suggested anything but the opposite. Even with all of that, Momo never once gave up hope. The thought didn’t cross her mind for even a moment.

Suddenly, the Servi in the moving rectangular window in the sky began to emit noise—No, it wasn’t just simple noise. It was something much more.

Mr. Sun, so high in the sky.

Makes me want to fly.

That’s why I’m singing this tune.

May I touch you soon?

Music was the correct term. More accurately, it was a song from her childhood. Momo had only sung it once for Servi, so it shouldn’t have held much importance for her. Yet the emotions flooding the young Singi’s heart couldn’t be described with mere words.  She felt like that song was an invaluable piece of their friendship.

Out of nowhere, Momo began singing the same lyrics. In a flash, the sun exploded into pink fragments, which rained down on the running Singi. It filled her with strength, and the distance between the two started to shrink. When the Servi in the moving image walked ever closer and started on the second verse, hers and Momo’s voice harmonized in perfect unity.

Mr. Sky, so pretty and blue.

When I look at you, I know that’s true.

And that fills me with such a boon.

May I touch you soon?

When that verse came to a close, Momo jumped from the ground. The sky above shattered into a trillion little pieces. It materialized into a pink swirling mass of energy that enveloped Momo like a warm cloak. When it poured into her body, it left behind two pink wings that she used to fly ever higher into the sky. Her goal was Servi, and come hell or hot water, the Singi was determined to make it there.

As she soared through the air, the scenery changed. The ground below her cracked and faded, dissolving like sugar in water as an unfathomable void appeared in its place. However, Momo wasn’t scared. She felt no hostility coming from the fear-inducing pit since she knew her lookalike would prevent any harm from coming to her. With nothing to worry about, Momo redoubled her efforts and flew towards the image of her friend. The wind pelted her hair, sending it flying in every direction as the night sky and stars came out to play. The moon showed up a bit later, looking as lovely and lustrous as ever.

The Servi in the moving picture continued to walk across the empty air as she moved onto the third verse.

Mr. Star, bright, bright, bright.

At night, you’re always in my sight.

Even though it’s past June.

May I touch you soon?

As the second to last verse came to a close, the pink wings created from the sky faded away. Like falling meteorites, the near-infinite number of stars in the sky fell down to the abyss below, yet they dropped in an unnatural pattern. Momo yelled out Servi’s name, and the stars changed directions mid-fall and came to her aid. They exploded, sending pink dust scattering throughout the entire cosmos that was her inner mind. The dust then quickly assumed the shape of a staircase that started under Momo. She fell with all the grace of a cat, rolling to lessen the impact. Then she started the long journey to the moving picture via up the stairs.

Every step brought her closer to the image of her friend, who continued to walk across the sky. Her gentle face with red eyes that rivaled the sun’s intensity never looked away for a moment. Even the thousands of angry warriors with the weapons raised high to the sky didn’t intimidate her. Momo didn’t know what was happening on the outside, but she knew her body was fine.

After all, if there was a chance she was in danger of dying, she knew her best friend in the whole wide world would jump in and save her. Still, that didn’t mean Momo could take her sweet time. She wanted to smell her friend’s unique scent. She yearned to hear Servi’s kind voice. She wanted to feel the touch of her hands as they embraced each other in a passionate hug.

She wanted to touch her.

Tears streamed from her eyes, her shivering lips trembled, her hands and body and feet shook, yet the courage to keep going fueled her body. With Momo closer to her friend than ever before, the two started to sing the last verse.

Mr. Moon, last but not least.

Why don’t you come join us for a feast?

We can use forks, knives, or spoons.

May I touch you soon?

The moon exploded, giving its energy to Momo and enveloping her in pink mist. With it gone and out of the picture, there was nothing left in Momo's inner mind but her, the staircase created from the stars, and the rectangular moving image. As she reached the final step, she jumped, shattering the thousands of stairs into pink dust that fell to the void below.

The Servi of the image reached out her hand, and Momo did the same while singing her song’s only repeating line.

“MAY I TOUCH YOU SOOOOOOOON?”

She crashed into the image, shattering it into a million pieces, but she didn’t come to a halt. She continued accelerating forward until she slammed into the outer edges of the recesses of her mind. It was the last obstacle preventing her from waking up. As if the universe itself wanted to lend a hand to the Singi, each of the cosmic objects she sang about in her song appeared. They all gave their power to Momo, giving her the power of her own universe and the strength to bring her consciousness back from the brink of death.

She destroyed the final barrier, and everything went black as she shouted her friend’s name one last time.

“SERVY!!!!!”

Then there she was. Awake. With her hand stretching towards the one she longed to see the most.

The sun shined down upon them, covering the two best friends in a warm embrace not unlike one they’ve ever experienced before. The blue sky was above them, and everything seemed to be just perfect. Servi was there-- finally there after being separated for so long. Her face, so soft and gentle and caring. Her touch, clasping Momo’s outstretched hand in between both of hers as if it was a priceless jewel. Her lips, speaking one final sentence and filling the Singi’s ears with the voice she most desperately wanted to hear.

“May I touch you soon?”

Her precious friend felt an infinite amount of emotions at once. Momo’s face scrunched up, sending a cascade of tears down her face. Words attempted to be spoken, but it only came out as a garbled mess. Her legs endeavored to stay standing, yet the relief of seeing Servi drained their strength.

But Servi understood that. She pulled Momo in for a hug and allowed the frightened girl a chance to cry and scream to her heart's content.

In a quiet voice, Servi whispered, “Mosie, I need you to rest for a little bit, okay? We’ll go home soon. I have to take care of some business... Itarr, I want you to use Kaasuvuoto to put her to sleep. Then use every single goddamn stack of Protection we have. After that, use seven hundred stacks of Telekinesis to send her up into the sky. Then protect her with whatever defensive skills we have. I don't want to see a goddamn scratch on her.”

Servi didn’t wait for a response. She didn’t have to. When Momo’s tensed body went limp, Servi gently raised it up. Itarr took over the rest as it steadily flew high in the sky. Before Momo was out of range, Itarr took the liberty to push Absorption to its limits. She noticed there was a foul stench around her friend. It came from the gooey remains of whatever was pressed against the Singi’s arms and chest. It was nasty and smelly, but for the Goddess, it didn’t take long to do a little bit of tidying. Within moments, the sleeping girl was as clean as if she had taken a bath.

“Mosie, I promise it won’t take that long. By the time you wake up, this dark chapter of our history will be behind us.” Servi cracked her knuckles and turned around.

She was face to face with the Mafia's boss, who stood opposite of her on a wooden stage hastily built in two hours. Their audience consisted of over 15,000 warriors, who made up the boss’s personal army. Those belonging to Deset and the Suits of the 1st and 2nd base were also present, but their battle power didn’t compare to Sakdu’s private force.

It was sure to be her greatest battle so far. But before the blood had a chance to tarnish such an enjoyable chunk of nature, Servi pulled out two chairs. She tossed one to the boss, who swiftly caught it. After Servi sat down, noticing her foe didn't look alarmed at all after seeing a pair of chairs appear from nowhere. Sakdu plopped the chair down with a noisy sound, then he sat down.

“It’s over,” Servi said, crossing her legs. “I’ve won your little game. As for my prize? I want your goddamn head, and I want to mount it on my fucking wall.”

The nadrium-cladded Kobold started to walk towards her with his three axes spinning wildly above his head, but a hand from Sakdu put a stop to it.

“You can kill her once we are finished. Servi? I do assume you are her friend, yes? You have black hair. I can see such fire burn within your red eyes. You said you want my head, yes? I will give you a chance to take it, but first, I wish to talk.”