Interconnected: Spliced Souls

Arcton was to the north. On foot, it took a week. The journey lasted three days with a horse. Sure, that was an option. We only had to ask Srassa or her father, and I was sure they would lend us a carriage.  

But Momo didn’t want to do that. And I didn’t either.   

We left before noon with a bag and ring full of supplies, and we happily traveled for about six hours before stopping for a bite to eat. The scenery was much the same as the trip to Waveret. You had trees, some grass, and farms. And that was it.      

And that was fine. The air was fresh and pure, and Momo and I enjoyed our time together. We held hands and skipped as the autumn leaves danced on roads built by hefty breezes.  

When the moon emerged to play amongst the starry skies, we camped below a tall tree in the middle of a nearby grassy plain. Rocks and pebbles littered the place, and Momo heard deer from further away.    

We prepared meat and potatoes over an iron cooking pan, and Albert emerged, adding an expert’s amount of delicate, savory spices from the bottle he had given me when he was alive.     

“So… What’s up?” Momo suddenly asked, her half-eaten meat hanging off the fork. Her armor and sword were nearby, leaning against her bag.    

“What’s up with you?”   

“The sky. But… Are you okay, Servy? Are you hurt?”   

“It’s nothing like that. I…have something I want to say. And I want you two to be there when I say it.”   

“Is it about your memories?”   

"Kinda."  

“Okay. I won’t press the issue and annoy you. But if you say I don’t need to be worried, then I won’t be worried.” Momo smiled. I extended my hand and rubbed her between the ears, causing a cute meow to escape those delicious lips.    

We were close. Casual touching and hand holding was… It just felt right.    

After finishing our meal, I leaned against the tree and stretched. Albert wished us farewell and returned to the ring, and Momo…   

She raised her arms and yawned, then… “Whoops! It appears I somehow found a super comfy pillow.” She rested her head in my lap and gave me a bright expression. “I better test it out.”    

“Whoops! I just found a super cute girl. Better make sure she’s okay.” We giggled and spent a few minutes gazing into each other’s eyes.    

It felt…so serene. And so right. And… I was happy. Yeah, it’d be better if Srassa was here. If Momo was the butter, and I was the fly, then Srassa was the rumble. You couldn't have Butterfly Rumble without the three core members.    

"I know I’m a cat girl, so I’m kinda part cat, I guess, but…you’re rubbing my tummy an awful lot, Servy.”   

“Eh?” I looked at her waist and saw my palm making little circles.    

“Oh, you…don’t have to stop, you know… I…kinda like it…” She turned to her side, facing me, and I kept rubbing.  

“You’re beautiful. You’re the cutest singi I’ve ever met. And you’re…close to me. You’re a friend, captain. More than that, really.”   

“You’re not a bad looker yourself, Servy. But I guess we are more than friends…but how do we make it official? I’ve never really...been this close with anyone before, so what more...do we have to do? Geez, it feels like I’m talking in a circle.” Momo lightly squirmed when I applied a tad more pressure.    

“I guess…have sex? I’ve thought about it.”   

“Me too. With you and Srassa. We’re like a bunch of peas in a pod. And if I’m going to lose my virginity, I wanna do it with her there. It's gotta be the three of us, or else it won’t feel right.”   

“You’ve never done it?” Momo shook her head and said she had experimented with toys. And the most she had done was what we did with Srassa. She turned the question to me, and I told her my fun with Nimyra. I didn't want to keep that secret.  

“Look at you, you sly dog.” Momo grinned like a naughty cat.    

“I’d thought you be mad.”   

“Honestly, I’ve fantasized about her since we saw her boobs. And it’s not just her. I’ve dreamed of Dineria and Claire. And you and Srassa, of course. An estrus cycle for a singi can get intense. If I let my mind wander, I...”  

“You turn into a naughty cat?”   

“Guilty as charged, Servy. Don’t tell me you don’t like bad girls?”   

“I guess I can when they’re you, captain.” I moved my hand from her stomach to her chin and lightly scratched it as if she were an actual cat. Momo lightly purred-- her tail as happy as it could be.   

I just loved her bright, beautiful smile.     

Of course, I told her how Nimyra and Dineria knew what we had done, and Momo said she figured that’d happened. “Those two are sharp. I know we can trust them. Servy?”  

“Yeah?”  

“Is it okay if I sleep like this? You’re warm...”  

“And here I thought you’d never ask. You did call me a pillow earlier, so I thought you were lying about that.”  

“Well, you are super soft, and you said it, not me. So... Pardon me!” Momo wrapped her arms around my stomach and nuzzled her face close. Butterflies danced around my stomach as I rubbed her head.  

It didn’t take long before she was out like a light, although I knew she probably didn’t want to fall asleep as quickly as she did.   

Well, that was another thing to tease her about.  

I delved into my soul world and saw Itarr near the fountain, her face full of smiles as she ate her dinner. 

"Servi, it’s so good!!! Albert, this is amazing!!!” she said, her cute cheeks filled. "Hey, eat with me, okay? It’s more fun when you have someone else, right?” She manifested another plate, and potatoes and steak plopped onto it, followed by a fork and knife.   

I don’t have to worry about getting fat, so… What the hell?  

“Albert? You want in?”  

“I’m afraid I don’t have the time. You can cook steak in multiple different ways, you know. And for potatoes, you can boil them, mash them, bake them, stick them in a stew, or roast them in the oven.”  

“I wanna try them all! Servi, it’s okay, right?”  

“Hahaha! Of course, it is. I guess this means we need to stock up in Arcton. It’ll be expensive, but what the hell? We have the money. I bet I can pawn a ring or something to a noble.”  

The money issue didn’t bother me. I mean, I could always steal, but I didn’t want to resort to that when the option wasn’t needed. And I didn’t want to spend any time thinking about further crimes I might have to commit. It just wasn’t the right situation, so I spent the night with my goddess and revenant, watching her gush over Albert’s incredible, delicious delicacies.    

---

“Sorry again for…umm…you—you know…”   

“What? Purring? Falling asleep super early? Drooling on me? Not waking up until it was almost noon? Biting my hand after thinking it was a chunk of meat when your stomach screamed loud enough to wake the dead?”  

“Geh!" Momo crouched and covered her embarrassed face. “I mean, we walked all day, and then you were so soft, and then you were so warm, and then I suddenly felt so tired, and the food was just so good, and—”  

Momo’s stomach growled again, interrupting her.   

“I-- I’m still a growing girl, okay?!” she exclaimed. “Geez, tummy, you’re supposed to be on my side...”  

I approached the singi and extended a hand, which she took. I pulled her into a hug. “Let’s get something to eat, okay?” That cheered her up, so we packed up camp and resumed our journey after retrieving a quick meal Albert had prepared last night.   

We held hands for a few hours and chatted about last night. It seemed wrong to be anything other than lovers, but… Neither she nor I had said that powerful sentence. Three words carried so much emotion, and maybe I did feel that way about her. I couldn’t imagine a life without Momo, Itarr, or Srassa because they were all I had ever known.   

Momo and I discussed Marissa. She had lost everything because she loved Fisher. And yeah, it worked out for her in the long run. Marissa's husband was utterly devoted, and she was a good mother. Their children were kind and respectful, so they were taught the correct values.    

But her family seriously kicked her out for wanting to follow her heart. The Fairholds were jackasses. I hated them, and I didn’t even know them.    

If… Fisher's and Marissa’s relationship never worked out... What would she have done? Crawl back and beg for forgiveness from the ones who had tossed her away and called her a whore?   

It made me mad thinking about it, and…if it happened to Srassa?   

The girl was kinder than a fault. She was sweet and caring, like a summer breeze that never once became powerful enough to snatch a ladybug from her flower. She had a good heart. And Srassa was a pleasant joy who accepted me right away. I loved being around her—I loved how she had grown from a skittish, frightened girl who was almost afraid of her shadow. Breaking out of her comfort zone wasn’t easy, yet she pushed through it.  

If Harold ever threw her away like garbage…I was afraid of what I’d do to him. But surely Jony would…follow her. They were close.  

I wonder if he loves her? Not as a butler and mistress, but as a man and a woman?   

It didn’t feel right to hypothesize, so I let it go.    

I never once let go of Momo’s hands as we continued to burn daylight. It felt like her palm was meant to be in mine.   

But as the sun gave way to the moon, we found a nice clearing in a forest and set up camp. It was secluded and private, with us being surrounded by thick trees with thicker branches and fat leaves. The grass was two feet tall, so we had to flatten an area.   

“I’ve got something for you two to try,” said Albert as he emerged from my ring. He held bags of ingredients, which he placed on a table Itarr retrieved from our soul world. “They’re called stuffed shells.”  

“What’s inside?” Momo sat on her knees. Her tail curiously dashed from left to right as she watched Albert knead the dough he had made.  

“Whatever you want, Momo. It’s a versatile dish, so you can stuff it with fish, meat, or vegetables, but the recipe I have in mind calls for cheese.”  

“Hmm…”  

“Servy?” Momo looked up.   

“That sounds familiar… I dunno... Maybe I've had them before? What about you?" 

“Nope. It was rare, but the baker in my village sometimes had extra dough in the summer. He’d sell them to Grampy for cheap, but he never made anything like this.”  

“It’s similar,” replied Albert. “But you aren’t required to make shells. You can form the dough into whatever shape you want, like bowties or hearts.”  

“Or cats?” Momo asked  

Albert nodded. “You’d need a cutter in the shape of one, but yes. That’s possible.” Albert slapped the dough and placed it in a bowl to rest while he whipped up the filling. He had Momo make the tomato sauce, and I readied the garlic and herbs. “The versatility of wheatwhirls surpasses all others—even the mighty potato. Merely changing the shape will alter the texture and flavor impact, which can drastically change a meal’s mood.”  

 “I’ve never heard anyone call it that.”  

“Call it what?”  

“Wheatwhirls,” I casually replied.   

“Is it that funny? That’s what Grampy called it. I thought that was the name for it.”  

“Isn’t it called…pasta?”  

“Pa…sta? Albert?” Momo looked at the butler.   

He shook his head. “That term is a first for me.”  

“Think that might be related to your memories?”  

“Maybe?” I shrugged. A small thump radiated from my head, but it wasn’t painful. I didn’t know if I was about to remember something or not, but the feeling quickly faded.  

“Paaaastaaaa… It’s a funny name, but it’s cute.”  

We continued chatting while preparing dinner. The dough needed to rest once more before Albert gently rolled it out. His technique was flawless as he used a knife to masterfully shape the pasta into its desired form.   

It was time to stuff them after boiling them in salted water. Momo watched closely. Her eyes fluttered as three types of cheese, tomato sauce, garlic, and herbs flooded the shells. He laid them on a bed of sauce, then placed the pan over the campfire’s tripod to heat everything up until it was sizzling.  

Once it was about done, he drizzled extra cheese on top and covered the lid until it was gooey and melted.   

Itarr told me Albert wanted to cook them in an oven, but we hadn’t discovered a way to make one with blood crystals. Getting the design right was going to be an issue. Momo couldn’t stop gushing about how yummy it tasted.   

She eventually ate twelve…and they were so big that our 14-inch pan could only fit six.    

…  

“Don’t look at me like that! They say cats are always growing, so you know…”  

“Yes,” I chuckled. “You’re still a growing girl, captain. Your appetite is seriously impressive.”  

“I think I’ll just take that as a compliment. Thanks again, Albert. It really was delicious.”  

“You’re most welcome, my dear. It does bring me joy to cook.”  

“So… You…used to be a person, right? Umm, I mean, before you were a kid? Err, I mean a skeletal bicorn spirit?”  

“I was.”  

“And did you love cooking just as much?”  

“That’s right. It was the one constant in my life. I could always turn to the kitchen when reality became tumultuous. It’s therapeutic. It’s almost like… meditation, I suppose.”  

“Did you used to be a chef?”  

“Yes and no. It depends on how you define the term. I cooked for others and taught classes, but I never held that rank.”  

“Did you want to?” I asked.   

Albert thought for a moment and nodded. “Perhaps…it was once a dream,” he finally said. “But I never wanted to do it for the money. I cook because it’s something I enjoy doing.”  

Our discussion continued for a few more minutes before Momo yawned. Albert wished us a good evening and pleasant sleep and returned to my ring. Momo rolled over, her head landing in my lap as she turned to her back.    

“Choosing me to be your pillow again? I take it as an honor.”  

“Well, cats are picky about who they choose to hang around, so that should tell you something about me.”  

“Are you going to use me like a scratching post?”  

Momo made a paw pose and flashed a cute grin, those fluffy ears twitching so adorably. “This kitty’s claws are awfully sharp. Merow!”   

I equipped a cat-eared headband via my ring.   

“They’re cute—don't get me wrong. But can they really compare to the real thing?” Her ears twitched as she said that. “Like, really compare to the real thing?”  

“I guess I need to confirm that for myself.”  

“It's okay if it takes all night. I can’t bring myself to leave this comfy pillow.”  

Momo yawned as I rubbed her head. She purred when I showed her ears affection, and she soon fell asleep in record time.     

My heart hurt, though. It really did. I wasn’t an idiot—I knew the feeling I felt was love. It bloomed in my chest, but could it erupt so passionately in the short time we had known each other?  

Love at first fight... Was such a thing possible?  

Perhaps my cynicism wanted to make me believe it couldn’t.   

Would I feel better after...I had told them my secret?  

I didn’t want to accept it, but I needed to prepare myself for a period of loneliness—for the worst-case scenario.   

The chances...weren’t zero.   

And that scares me the most...  

I didn't want to be alone with my thoughts, so I slipped into my soul world and watched Itarr’s cute face as she stuffed herself with leftovers.   

Even if she wasn’t an immortal goddess, I was sure her appetite could challenge Momo's.    

---

After refilling our canteens in the morning, we hit the road.   

There were other travelers, but not as many as when we went to Waveret. We saw a covered wagon being pulled by a horse, though. A girl wearing a witch’s hat waved and smiled. The guy with the rhino horn and jagged spear threw up a hand. But the youthful ogre with a sandy-colored robe that matched his hair and eyes gave us the cold shoulder. He met my gaze and almost turned his nose up at me.    

I didn’t think much of it as Albert emerged from my ring. He brought up the ball and explained what we needed to do to not embarrass Srassa and her family.    

And there was a lot. From how you held your posture to how you rested your arms on the table, there were a hundred things to keep track of. Albert had predicted we’d ask about this, so he asked Itarr if he could prepare a bunch of practice silverware to teach us how to behave at a noble dinner.    

Albert was strict and patient. He always identified our mistakes, yet he never became overly harsh in his criticism. No wonder he was the most popular butler in Keywater before being enslaved with [Geas].    

And that was before lunch. After we ate, Albert lectured us on the different ranks of nobility and how to speak. Most nobles held an air of refinement around their tone. Marissa was regarded as a tomboy because she used to speak frankly and without this noble-like filter.    

Now that I thought about it, Harold and Jony spoke…somewhat differently. It was the same with Srassa. Even if she was covered in dirt and tattered robes, her voice and way of speaking were a dead giveaway at her formal upbringing.    

“And that brings us to our attire,” said Albert after we stopped for the night. We found a lake about twenty minutes from the main road.    

“I’ve never worn a dress before. It’s always been pants and skirts,” Momo said, helping herself to her fourth plate of stuffed shells. This time, it was accompanied by a savory white sauce made with butter, cream, egg yolk, nutmeg, salt, and two types of cheeses. “And regular shoes. I’ve seen heels before, but I’ve always been a boot type of girl.”      

“Women of the court must adhere to a strict dress code. Formality has an ancestor stamped in tradition.”   

“I kinda think Servy would look handsome in a suit.”   

“Really?” I tried to imagine it.    

“Definitely.”   

“It won’t cause irreparable harm, but I cannot recommend asking for special permission.”   

“That’s fine. I can always get a suit and wear it some other time. I bet Ni-Ni would have fun helping us shop for one.”    

The night continued for another few hours, and we learned so much. I had Itarr’s help to make it easier to understand, but Momo didn’t have any of that. She went through two dozen pages of her journal before whining about how tired her mind was.    

She drifted off to sleep quickly and woke to a beautiful autumn dawn. 

 

---

“What do I think about…forbidden skills?” asked Momo, who finished stuffing her supplies in her bag.    

It was the following morning, and after talking with Albert and Itarr, I decided to slowly ease my way into cautiously revealing my secret.   

One step at a time. 

“That’s right.” I held my hand out. Momo happily took it and used my assistance to stand up. We were still about three or four days away from Arcton, so we quickly resumed our journey—hand in hand.   

“If there are forbidden skills out there, what do you think they’re like?”  

“Umm… You threw me a fast one, didn’t ya?”   

“Sorry.”  

“Don’t be. But… I don’t really know what would be forbidden. You’d think that wouldn’t be allowed, right?”  

I nodded.   

“So they wouldn’t exist, right?”  

I nodded again.   

“If there are forbidden skills out there categorized like that, their existence alone means they’re to be used. So why call it forbidden if you aren't supposed to use them? Why wouldn’t the gods and goddesses just…I dunno…get rid of them if they’re so dangerous they carry the moniker of forbidden? Grampy once told me about a few legendary Skill Paths. So, for example, there’s a spell that can summon a fiery lightning storm. The flames spread like a disease, and you usually have to wait for the caster to run out of skill energy. Albert, are you there?”  

The undead child butler emerged from my ring.   

“Don’t you know of any powerful skills that probably should be forbidden but aren’t?”  

“Hmm… Perhaps… Voidforge Dominion? It’s a Skill Path only reachable by Dragons.” I was confused, but Momo reminded me of the guild's nicknames. Dragons were the highest tier. 

Too confusing… It really is…  

“[Eclipse Cascade] envelops your enemies into a quicksand pit of heavy darkness. [Singularity Grasp] is a spell that pulls your foes into a gravity vortex. It can even uproot castles if the caster is strong enough.”  

“How many Dragons are still working? Do you know?”  

How powerful would [Singularity Grasp] be if I could stack it? I’m suddenly missing that ability.  

“Less than a handful, I’m sure. The most famous one still in active service would…be Vexor Blackscale.”  

“A koena?”  

“Oh! I heard of him. Servy, that’s a kobold.”  

Albert nodded and said Vexor was who the guild turned to when they had no other option. I’d certainly never heard of him, though.   

“The guild’s a global organization, so he could be anywhere. Haha, I guess you could call him Mr. Worldwide,” laughed Momo. “He’s probably really busy with something.”  

“But back to the forbidden skills. The power of time, for example. Would you consider that one? Are there any Skill Paths with spells like that?”  

“Not that I know of,” said Albert.  

“Do you mean time manipulation, Servy?”  

“Yeah. Things like going back in time. Or maybe jumping ahead to the future. Or freezing someone in place.”  

“Wouldn’t that…cause a bunch of problems? If someone goes back in time and does something small, wouldn’t that change the future? Grampy once said everything is a result of something else happening.”  

“I know. So it’d be forbidden.”  

“Okay, I see what you mean. Hmm…” Momo’s fluffy tail wrapped around her waist. She looked at the clouds and said weather manipulation. There were spells to summon rain or cause droughts, but those required multiple people to chant for days. And they were on a strict time limit. Screwing up meant the amassed skill energy would explode. 

“But I guess a spell that anyone could use that would change the weather would be forbidden. Lando doesn’t get that cold in the winter. It gets snow, but just an inch or two. It’s usually gone the next day, but someone could make it snow for a year or so. They say Keywater is chilly, but someone could melt the glaciers to the far north and cause widespread flooding. The environments would be screwed, and the sudden change would kill all the plants and animals because they haven’t adapted to those conditions.”   

Weather manipulation, huh? I guess that’s possible with [Reality Control] if it works like I think. Maybe [Elemental Manipulation]? Well, that’s enough talking about that. I don’t want her to get too suspicious.   

Albert bid us farewell for the time being. Earlier, I had told him about pizza, so he wanted to try his hand at it since he found the idea intriguing. The undead revenant was also inspired to test the limits of our blood crystal by making a pizza oven. And he wondered if he could make pots, pans, and other cookware so he'd be busy for a while. 

Itarr was more than willing to crank them out if it meant tasting more succulent, delicious food. 

I changed the topic to Srassa and talked about her. Had she already returned? Teleportation was instant, right? Logic dictated she'd take the same method. 

The king wouldn’t call for her unless he was ready to meet her, and the meeting probably wouldn’t take that long because someone like him would be busy.   

So, she was probably at her mansion.   

“You think she’ll try going solo?” I asked. “Until we return?”  

“That kind of work is dangerous. It’s always recommended to adventure with a party. Srassa might try to catch up with us. It seems like something she would do.”  

“Maybe. She doesn’t have the quest accepted anymore. You don’t have to have it to help, right?”  

“Yep!” Momo bounced on her feet. “Greedy leeches often pay someone stronger to do the quest for them. That’s looked down upon. It’s even illegal, but it’s ‘allowed’ because money makes the world go round. But you can look at it differently. Let’s say we enter a cave to take some glowing mushrooms.”  

“Okay.”  

“And we come across a team having a rough time. The right thing to do would be to help, right?”  

I nodded.   

“But that would mean they wouldn’t complete the quest of their own power. In a way, someone could argue that the party we helped would be leeches. But the only other option would be to let them suffer. At worst, they’d die. At best? Maybe they get out, but they wouldn’t be okay. Or maybe one or two dies. You’d find a thousand people calling us heroes for helping—with one or two blaming the victims. But then you’d get a thousand calling us monsters for leaving them to die, but like one or two for saying we did the right thing—that everyone needs to be held accountable for their own fate.”  

“I’d help in a heartbeat. That’s the right choice.”  

“Yep. Yep.” Momo nodded. “It’s all about perspective, I guess. It’s one thing to help someone in need, but it’s something else to pay someone a few thousand dupla to do your quests for you while you sit back and relax.” 

The day slowly started to turn to dusk, but we had about an hour’s worth of daylight left before we needed to find camp. And after exhausting a lot of options, we talked about traveling.    

“It would be cool to go to the Eastern Continent. Has your grampy told you any stories about there?”  

“Yep. A lot. Elviria is supposed to be full of towering, thick jungles. Grampy even said it has more forests than the rest of the world. There’s also the Divine Principality of Tobris. It’s supposedly the largest country on Valerium, I think. It’s also where the church’s headquarters is at.”  

“The church?” 

Albert told me about the Tobristic Order, a religion dedicated to worshipping the gods and goddesses who blessed the world’s inhabitants with skills and spells. It acted as the dominant religion. The top brass at Warden were Tobrians, but it wasn’t that widespread in Inith.   

Canary used to harbor a church before Viridian was given the duchy. Albert’s voice echoed in my head. He tore it down since they didn’t want to pay the rent and tax. It differs from those who follow the Great Scaled Serpent.   

That was a new one. A few questions later, I learned the Great Scaled Serpent was associated with koena and kobolds. They believed in a giant serpent with wings and scales that circumnavigated the world. It would grant the most famous, most prestigious warriors a trip to the heavens should they impress it.  

“Is that why kobolds are battle-hungry?”  

“Right on the dupla, Servy. They have shorter lifespans than humans or singi, so maybe they push themselves hard in war and battle to make themselves look good in the serpent’s eyes. It sounds weird since gods and goddesses exist via their blessings, but… I dunno. Maybe I’m sounding weird, but I don’t think something like that exists. I mean, it probably does, but… I dunno.”   

“Keep it up, and I’ll call you Captain Indecisive.”  

“Well, if you do that, then—” Momo stopped speaking and pointed. A forest bordered us on both sides, and I followed her finger to a large hole. It was like some monster had clawed out of the ground on the right, dragged itself across the road, and ventured into the left-most forest, leaving behind fallen trees and destroyed vegetation.  

Momo’s ears twitched.   

“Hear something?”  

Momo dashed down the empty road, and I followed. She reached the tree line and put her ear to the soft soil after brushing a pile of orphaned leaves.    

She pointed deep into the forest. “It sounds like three people. Maybe four? Look, there’s a wheel over there. It must’ve broken off.”   

“You think it might be the wagon we saw yesterday? I’ll stash it just in case.”  

“Maybe. We need to check it—”  

 RRROOOOAAARRRRRR!!!!  

The ground shook as Momo lost her balance. She tried to stand, but the dirt beneath her boots split when another powerful tremor came.  

“Captain!” I called as a third rumble vibrated the ground. It was more violent. The nearby trees couldn’t endure and tumbled like dominos towards Momo.  

I didn’t even think about it.   

I rushed forward, threw my body on top of hers, and trusted my partner to handle the situation.  

Momo screamed my name and closed her eyes. 

“You’re not…a Servy-sized pancake? But how?” she whispered, softly opening her eyes. 

“You can thank my ring for that.” I got up and extended my hand. Momo took it, stood up, and softly brushed her slender fingers across the polished surface. “The trees are inside.”   

“Well, thank you so much, ring. Suppose our firewood is handled for the next couple of weeks. But that was scary.”  

You’re welcome!  

“My ring says you’re welcome.”  

“Eh? Are you a ring whisperer? Can you really speak with jewelry?" 

Another loud, deep roar cut me off before I could say anything.   

“That can come later. Come on, we need to go check it out. Albert?”   

I’m ready!  

Momo and I followed the destruction, unaware of what we would find.