I thought that the training session went well, even though I went it rather hard and reckless on the holo-droid. Actually, I underestimated Samza's capability to control that robot. I guess when last year's EVO champion gets a hand on the controls, boss music plays in everyone's mind.

On the other hand, I'm proud of my little sis, Mathilde. She seemed to have handled herself well in that match-up. I guess I should learn a bit from her. She seems to take a more level-headed approach.

Before I head to bed in my room in The Labs, I check my phone. I see two notifications, one from Samza and the other from Mezos.

Samza's notification is a message she sent to her followers:

"Sorry homies! No stream tonight. Juri Hype Machine got called into work. Don't worry @LyseHowardFGC! I'm still coming for yo JP like how I crushed yo Geese in KOF with Fancy Juri, and Lyse in Dissidia with 1000-Year-Old Juri."

The Librascope-AI app in my cybernetic eye resolves the FGC, KOF, and JP abbreviations in the tweet:

👉FGC stands for Fighting Game Community, encompassing the millions of fans who enjoy fighting game series like Street Fighter, Tekken, Smash Brothers, and more.

👉JP is an antagonist character introduced in Street Fighter 6, released in the summer of 2023 — 33 years ago. This man went by many aliases, including Johan Petrovic and Jean-Philippe. His fighting style is Bartitsu, a style involving the use of a cane.

👉KOF stands for King of Fighters, a series of games produced by a formerly Japanese, now Saudi Arabian, company called SNK. SNK originally stood for Shin Nihon Kikaku, or New Japan Project.

Librascope-AI also resolves the following Juri-like descriptors:

👉With a questionable confidence rating, "Fancy Juri" is Luong from King of Fighters.

👉With a great confidence rating, "1000-year-old Juri" is Ultimecia from Dissidia: Final Fantasy.

As I would expect, this LyseHowardFGC responds with some trash talking of her own:

"@DJSamzanonymous, bitch you ain't crushin' shit! I know how the Juri Multiverse works, bunny-dawg. Shieet! I've been labbin' for days! Besides, I still beat your Predator-mouth Juri in MK and Sleepy Vampire Juri in Tekken."

Librascope-AI resolves "Predator-mouth Juri" as Mileena from Mortal Kombat, and "Sleepy Vampire Juri" as Eliza from Tekken. Both with a moderate confidence rating.

Looking at the timestamps, it seems the two have been having a homie-versus-homie posting war for about an hour. Though, I have to wonder how their personalities actually are in a real life fighting games tournament. I do recall Samza earning a pro-wrestling style championship belt after winning a recent online tournament. So my assumption is that most of the trash-talking is just the two playing kayfabe like professional wrestlers hyping each other up. That makes sense to me.

Finally, I check Mezos's notification. It's simply a reminder to put on my dream recorder before heading to bed. He also mentions a second item of interest: the Ad-Comm, or the Aetheric Dream Communicator Module. Glancing at the desk next to my bed, I notice the Ad-Comm next to the dream recorder visor. It looks like a wireless earpiece that I could pair with my phone. In the text message, Mezos says he can use that to communicate with me while I'm in a dream-state. However, he warns I should not show hints to any persons of interest in the dream of my use of the device as it could blow my cover.

I put on the Ad-Comm and activate it. "Testing, testing! Mezos, can you hear me?"

"I can hear you," he answers over the comms. "Samza and The Doc are also watching. We'll be keeping track of what's going on. Also, Cithara notified me that Mathilde spoke to someone during her meditation session."

"Who was it?" I ask.

"She spoke with another woman, who's also named Mathilde. Okay, so in the email Cithara CC'ed to me, Mathilde described her as some kind of soldier with pink hair and in a black leotard. Could be someone to keep an eye out on."

"Got it! Soldier with pink hair and a black leotard. I'm sure that's easy to point out."

"A leotard as a uniform would imply that she's probably an assassin, so I recommend taking a defensive approach if the situation goes south. Anyway, everything seems in order here. Looks like our Mathilde is already asleep and her dream recorder active. It seems she's in some war zone during a rainy day."

"Ready to engage." I put on the dream recorder and get ready to knock myself out.

—————

A moment later, I open my eyes.

Dark purple clouds paint the skies with violent storms and thunder. Rain pours and beneath me, my boots leave deep prints in the mud. Further ahead, bodies of dead soldiers and broken black armored war machines litter the field. Transport units. Armored vehicles resembling tanks. Bipedal walkers. All busted and rusted. Despite the technology, it seems they're no match against whatever was out here.

On my back is my triggerblade, holstered in its scabbard, waiting for its chance to strike whatever Nightmare comes along the way.

Librascope-AI is scanning the vicinity. It gives an error message stating it cannot connect to Remnants' database servers and is running in Local Mode. That's normal when roaming in the dream. It means the app in my cybernetic eye will continue to collect data for further analysis but cannot resolve foreign concepts.

I glance at the puddle between my feet and my reflection stares back at me. Looks like the Ad-Comm is in not in my ear. I say, "Mezos, are you there?"

"I can hear you. Looks like you're in the dream now and the weather looks like crap."

"Just making sure," I say, while tapping my ear.

"Your Ad-Comm is invisible in the dream, but assassins are very observant. If this other Mathilde spots any weird hand motions near your ear, she might think you're relaying information to an enemy faction."

"Roger."

"If I spot something odd, I'll let you know. For now, refrain from responding to me whenever you're in her presence."

I continue roaming the battlefield, hoping I'd stumble upon something interesting. Upon closer inspection of the soldiers, I notice all of them bearing the same insignia on their uniforms. It's a red emblem resembling a shield with feathered wings sprouting from the sides and two chains dangling from the wings. Librascope-AI analyzes it but does not resolve what it is.

"Gods!" Mezos says, gasping on the comms. "I know that insignia. Those were all soldiers of the Figarosa Imperial Army of Bektorias."

That last bit went over my head. Feels like someone sucked me into an alternative universe, and now I'm a stranger in a strange land. I ask, "What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"As weird as this sounds, you might actually be on Esthial, the world where we came from before arriving on Earth. The Holy Nation of Bektorias is the home of the Figarosa Imperial Army. About fifty-something years ago, a tyrant known as Empress Garnette zai Figarosa ran the show. She was an Eikon summoner, like Samza, and ran the country with an iron fist. However, when she summoned the all-powerful Eikon known as Eden, she died because Eden was too powerful for her to control."

"Who runs the show now?" I ask.

"Empress Hestalia zai Figarosa, Garnette's younger sister. She's a powerful white mage capable of casting strong healing magic. Because of her, Bektorias has not engaged in any major wars except against the Nightmares. A stark contrast to Garnette. Last I checked, she only has one kid, Caienne yos Figarosa, but our data is incredibly out-of-date. Maybe she's had more since."

I keep pressing forward. I see some road signs but I can't read it. It's in a language I don't understand. Fortunately, Librascope-AI can and it translates a nearby wooden sign. The sign looks partially decayed. Yet, the app resolves it with reasonable confidence. It's written in "Imperial Script" and it says I'm heading towards the nation of Archaeus.

"What's Archaeus?" I ask Mezos.

"The Imperial Nation of Archaeus comprises a giant floating city, and smaller floating sky-fortresses. It's the home of the Lexia Imperial Army. Last time I heard, they were at war with the Bektorians, but that was before the Nightmares showed up. Beats me if the two nations are still fighting each other."

A few minutes later, I confront a small group of swirling black and white Nightmares. A demon and an angel in this pack, too. Nothing too hard to take out by myself. I unsheathe my triggerblade, rev its engine, and prime it for battle.

The demon charges forward, its razor sharp claw winding back, ready to unleash a haymaker slash. Just moments before connection, I back-step and counter with a heavy upward slash from my triggerblade. My finger pulls the trigger and a fiery burst combusts from the blade, sending the demon back, its corpse crashing on to the smaller Nightmares behind it.

The angel dashes mid-flight, wielding a stone-colored broadsword. The creature performs a horizontal swipe but, with lightning-quick reflexes, I duck underneath it. Then I counterattack with a fierce thrust, impaling my blade to its midsection. Another trigger burst! The blazing explosion kicks the angel from my blade, launching it many meters away from me.

Librascope-AI detects someone up ahead. I glance forward and spot a peculiar female soldier fighting a horde of Nightmares. No weapons are in her hands. Instead, blitzing hand-to-hand combat techniques is her preferred method, as she twirls and spins her body like a violent cyclone. A spinning back-hand strike sends a few Nightmare grunts flying backward. Then she spikes a bat-winged Nightmare with a rising kick.

More Nightmares come, but the soldier doesn't look tired. Instead, a savage grin paints her face. She's hungry for violence. I suspect the only thing in her mind is witnessing the black and white blood of defeated Nightmares staining her pink hair and black war-torn uniform.

"That's her!" Mezos yells through the Ad-Comm. "That has to be the other Mathilde your sister told us about."

Without thinking too hard about it, I rush into the fray, focusing on the largest Nightmare in the pack. From behind, my blade lands true with a brutal jumping slash, ending its rampage as that twisted mutant bastard crumples to the ground. Then I impale the dirt below me at an angle and pull the trigger. A powerful geyser burst from the earth, launching the Nightmares up, up, up, and scattering them.

The surviving Nightmares retreat. Standing before me now is the mysterious soldier.

I say with a wide arrogant grin, "Looks like you could use some help."

"Who the hells are you?" the woman asks, her voice gasping as she drops her fighting stance.

"Just someone passing by. By the way, don't your legs get cold wearing that?" My vision gravitates to the bottom half of her black thong-leotard outfit, exposing portions of her thighs and her smooth butt.

A grimace appears on her face, which slowly transforms into an approving smirk. "You're not the first one to say that. I'll have you know this uniform suits me well. It allows for greater flexibility and mobility, especially in a mission requiring me to lurk in the shadows. If I'm venturing into a harsh environment, then I train my body for it."

I shrug and chuckle. "Whatever works, I suppose."

"By the way, you don't look like a local from around these parts. Where are you from?" The woman's eyes scan me, tilting up and down.

"Las Vegas, a fancy city full of bright neon lights."

"Never heard of it," she says, pouting, turning her head in one direction while keeping her eyes on me. "Your height and long braid suggest you're a Valkyr, but you dress nothing like them. That trench coat looks like something worn by a haggard from The Bolts."

Mezos elaborates. "The Bolts would be the homeless sector of Svyataya Reka, the capital of Bektorias."

I let out a jovial laugh. "It's not the first time someone told me to embrace the bum-life."

A heavy thud sounds from a distance along with a long, droning, moaning sound.

She turns her head and lets out a displeasing grunt. "Shit. It sounds like a tower. Time to go hunting." The soldier sprints away and towards the sound of the action.

"Mind if I come?" I ask while following her, matching her brisk pace.

"Just don't get in my way."

"Fair enough." I continue the pursuit right behind her.

We reach the scene where a stone rook-like giant appears, shrouded in a swirl of black and white smoke. At the very top, a purple light glows. This structure looks like a moving lighthouse, but I'm not about to find out what that purple light can do.

The pink-haired soldier pulls out two daggers and scales the side of the tower like a determined mountain climber.

With my heavy boot, I take the direct approach — I kick open the wooden door of this moving tower and barge in.

"What?" The soldier glances at me, her eyes open wide, shocked by my actions. "Are you fucking insane? Well, your funeral then."

Inside the tower, a spiraling set of metal stairs greets me. I glance upward, but a swirling thick layer of black and white fog obscures my vision. Librascope-AI scans the scene and detects adversaries on the way up, illuminating the targets with a bright green light. The pathway also appears in a faint pastel blue, making this maze easier to follow.

I charge upward, barging my way through the smaller Nightmares while hacking and slashing through the larger targets. An explosion from my triggerblade punches a hole through the tower's stone wall. Around the side, the soldier keeps climbing.

A flying Nightmare swoops in, trying to knock down Mathilde, but I take aim and fire a burning shot with my triggerblade. The blast collides with the creature, knocking it down, down, down.

The soldier spots me and says with an angry grimace, "I could have handled that."

"You're welcome," I say, shrugging back. Then I press onward, finally reaching the roof of the tower where a humanoid figure shrouded in black and white smoke awaits. Flanking it is an angel and a demon. Behind the three is a giant purple crystal levitating a few meters above the ground.

The imperial soldier meets me a second later, leaping into action, landing right next to me with the grace of a cat. She points at the shadowy figure.

She says, "I got the controller. You get the other two." The soldier blitzes forward, her legs winding back then propelling forward as she spins her body like a spiraling arrow aimed at the shadowy figure. The figure teleports, evading the attack, but the soldier spots the target's new location and continues the pursuit.

Meanwhile, both the angel and demon charge after me. I aim my triggerblade low toward the foot of the marching beast as it bull-rushes forward. A burning wave of energy fires from my blade. The demon trips. In quick succession, I rush forward and deliver an explosive upward slash, sending that horned bastard flying off the roof of the tower.

Then I turn to face the angel and fire a shot. Click! "Crap!" I say as the triggerblade misfires. The white heavenly freak swings its broadsword, but I parry the strike. My foot follows with a swift roundhouse and disarms the angel.

Since I like to fight with equal footing, I impale my triggerblade into the ground and ready my fists. With a sudden rush, I charge forward with my foot swinging, and deliver a swift two-part spinning back kick. Then follow it with another reversed roundhouse. Then a launching middle kick. Finally, top it off with a fierce, flaming, rising uppercut, my fist crashing on to the chin of the angelic beast. The angel falls and bursts into a puff of aether.

In that instant, the imperial soldier comes crashing down with a piercing dive kick aimed straight at the crystal. Her boot connects and the oversized gem shatters like glass. The tower shakes violently. It feels like the structure is going to tip over any minute now.

"Prepare to jump," she says as she stands near the edge of the roof of this tower.

I pick up my triggerblade and stand next to her, waiting for the right moment to take the leap.

The tower leans in one direction. It's going to crash and there's only one way out: a jump.

The soldier takes a dive, and I follow from behind. It's a long fall, but she lands on all fours with ninja-like finesse. Meanwhile, I land with a rough tumble. It stings a bit, but I'm okay. Then the tower crashes and turns into a huge pile of heavy rocks. Black and white smoke dissipates and the remaining Nightmares retreat.

"Mission complete," the soldier says as she stands up. "Are you okay, stranger? Looks like your landing needs some work."

"I'm fine," I say as I pick myself up from that tumble and face the soldier.

She raises her chin, sizing me up. The soldier appears shorter than me, about the same height as Mathilde. "So, I don't think you ever told me your name," she says with a menacing grin.

"My name is Arizona. Just a stranger looking for adventure."

The pink-hair soldier chuckles. "An adventurer, eh? Well, if your idea of adventure is hunting Nightmares, then I guess you're doing the right thing. My name is Mathilde sae Wairen. I used to be a Tribune for the Red Assassin's Cohort, a division within the VIth Legion of the Figarosa Empire. Since the Usurper killed everyone in my Legion though—" the woman stops for a moment, her head facing away from me. Her fists clench with a certain rage and a sudden growl comes from inside her.

I finish her sentence. "You're out for vengeance, right?"

"Damn right I am." She turns back around to face me with a grin on her face. "I'll admit, you surprised me out there. When you barged inside the tower, I thought you'd turn into one of them and I'd have to put you down. That leads me to believe one thing: you must be a Valkyr, because they're the only ones who could do that and not get transformed into those freaks."

"How so?" I ask.

"Beats me," she says.

"I can answer that," Mezos says over the Ad-Comm. "The Valkyr have a natural aetheric resistance, which is why you don't see any Nightmares based on members of that race. It's also the reason Gunhild the Usurper can control the Nightmares without being one herself."

I nod my head, secretly acknowledging Mezos.

Mathilde Wairen points at me, her arm straight and direct. "By the way, I can't help but notice how you finished that angel. Those snapping kicks and that flaming rising uppercut. There's a part of me that's itching to spar with you."

My mouth forms a grin. "I wouldn't mind a good sparring session."

The soldier smiles. "I'd love to do it now, but I wouldn't want to fight you when your legs are half-destroyed. There's no enjoyment in fighting a weak opponent."

She's right. My legs feel a little sore after that jump. Not too bad, though, but I'll have to get them checked.

"Unless you're part of the Lexia Army, I'd rather fight you when you are at your fullest. For now—" Mathilde pauses and turns her head away from me. "—I have to wonder when you're going to leave me. It gets lonely fighting out here by myself. I hope you don't die tomorrow because your fighting style actually excites me."

Once the sun rises and day comes to the real world, I'm going to vanish from this world. She's definitely going to miss me, but I say to her, "Don't worry. I've always told this to my sister and I suppose I can tell you: whenever you're feeling lonely, always think of me. I'll always be by your side, no matter how far away I am."

She jerks her head but still facing me, and a grimace forms on her face. "What kind of bullshit saying is that? How old is your sister, anyway? Like five or something?"

"Sixteen," I say with a simple voice, my shoulders shrugging. "We've been separated for years, but we recently reunited. It's just something wholesome to think about. Nothing to get too deep on."

"Oh." Her grimace fades and a frown replaces it. "Well, my sister died when I was very young."

"What happened to her, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Nightmares killed her when she served with the VIth Legion as a soldier. Come to think of it, she was old enough to be my mother, but we've always referred to ourselves as sisters."

"What was her name?" I ask.

The woman chuckles as a wide smile paints her lips. "What if I told you her name was also Arizona? Isn't that weird?"

I smile back. "Not really. Well, there's a place in my world with that name, but with a different pronunciation."

A chime plays on my Ad-Comm. Mezos says, "The sun's almost up. I recommend finishing up any objectives there before you wake up."

"Looks like I'll have to head out soon," I say as I part ways with Mathilde Wairen.

Mathilde turns and swiftly wraps her arms around my waist. "No! You can't leave me. You were just here. Please stay." Tears well from her eyes and drop with the soaking rain around us.

"I'll be back. Don't worry. I promise!" I pat the top of Mathilde's head. "Besides, you still want to fight me. I need to get my legs healed before we can do that."

She raises her chin, staring at me for a moment. The rain washes away the tears from her eyes, but her mouth remains open, gasping. "I guess you're right." She releases her hold around my waist and turns away, her head lowering, sulking. A moment later, she raises her head, her gaze meeting mine and her teeth grinding. "Well, just don't die on me. Got it?"

"Got it," I say with a nod.

She smiles back and then we part ways.

—————

I wake up, remove the dream recorder from my eyes, and put on my favorite pants, shirt, and coat.

In the room next door, which is the Headmaster's Office, Samza and Mezos await along with the headmaster of The Labs, Dr. May-Lynn Williams. I enter the room and spot the three observing the remaining parts of the dream sequence.

It seems our Mathilde's dream is in the point-of-view of the soldier version. That Mathilde is staring at the purple skies. Maybe she's lying down, resting at a campsite.

Samza spots my entrance and says, "Hey, what's up, homie? We're reviewing the sequence as we speak."

Dr. Williams, an older woman in her mid-50s with dark brown skin, black hair tied into a bun, and always in a lab coat, stands at her workstation. Holograms of different Nightmare beasts float above her semi-circular desk. She points at the tower-shaped Nightmare, the same one Soldier-Mathilde and I scaled to reach the top. "I've never seen a Nightmare like this one before," she says. "Though I suppose it's only a matter of time before Nightmares of such size start invading our world."

Mezos goes through holographic snapshots of Mathilde and me fighting Nightmares in our dreams. "This Mathilde has a radically different fighting style than the Mathilde we know. Now I know why our Mathilde sometimes wakes up feeling dizzy."

Samza turns to her brother and says, "Girl spins a lot, dude. She's all about that Spiral Arrow and Cannon Spike."

Mezos points at the holographic stills of the pink-haired Mathilde performing her signature attacks. "You're right, sis. Seems fitting for an assassin such as herself. Anyway, we'll have to keep track of her whereabouts."

"Speaking of which," Samza says, "have we figured out where she's going?"

Mezos loads a hologram depicting a map of a large continent drawn on parchment. "This is the map of The Imperial Lands." He motions for me to pay attention. "In the middle-northern section is The Holy Nation of Bektorias, ruled by Empress Hestalia zai Figarosa and her son, Prince Caienne yos Figarosa. The south and southwest regions belongs to The Floating Nation of Archaeus and their sky-fortresses, ruled by Queen Serahlyne Lexia II. On the eastern coast is The Golden Nation of Daigun, a trading empire ruled by Sardar Mihnwu and Satrapess Tifalia. Finally, in the northwest is The Bronzework City of Yor, a satellite settlement bridging into the Northern Tundras, home of the Valkyr Wolf and Bear clans."

I ask, "Where is The Great Tree of Esthial?"

The fae goat-boy shifts the hologram and reveals a smaller continent with an overgrown tree on it. "On an island off the coast of Daigun's capital city, Troyani. Most fae immigrants from The Great Tree will reach that city first in their adventures. The island is about one-fifth the size of the entire Imperial Lands continent."

Samza takes control and zooms into a distinct southern region within the Bektorias-Archaeus border. "Based on the landmarks we spotted in your dream, we believe you and Soldier-Mathilde were in this general area, heading towards Archaeus."

I scratch my chin. "Anything special about that region?"

Samza says, "About eight kilometers the opposite direction is Mount Tribulation. Legend has it that a lone imperial soldier went up the temple on the top of the mountain and returned as a holy knight. I'm not sure if it's true or not, but the old mystics around those parts talk about it all the time."

Mezos says while adjusting his glasses, "There's also another legend about a screaming banshee who controls the wind with her hair. Samza and I heard screams there when we traveled up that mountain about fifty years ago, but never seen it. I assume it's just the wind blowing through the weird rock formations, mimicking the sounds of a banshee."

Samza adjusts the hologram and points at a large crater west of Mount Tribulation. "This is Garnette's Final Stand, created by Empress Garnette zai Figarosa when she summoned Eden. Eden turned out to be too powerful for her to control. So, when Eden unleashed its most powerful attack, Garnette died in the blast, along with hundreds of Figarosa and Lexia soldiers. Pretty massive L for the imperial dictator."

Mezos shifts the hologram, focusing to the southern region of Archaeus' territory. He also watches Mathilde's alternate feed on another screen. "I'm not sure if I like this. Soldier-Mathilde is walking into enemy territory by herself, assuming the two nations are still at war. I think you'll have to dive again tonight and see if she needs help."

"Got it," I say.

The goat-boy says, "If she gets captured by Lexia soldiers, then we could get a rough idea of what the Lexia Army is doing in the fight against the Nightmares. Perhaps that information can come in handy when Gunhild the Usurper eventually unleashes the Nightmare Horde on Earth."

Gunhild. My deranged biological mother. I don't enjoy thinking about her now that I know she's such a corrupt individual. However, I'm sure we'll have to stop her madness, one way or another.

"Understood," I say with a nod while my stomach lets out a growl. "Anyway, I'm hungry. The kitchen is calling for me to make breakfast."

Samza raises a hand. "Yo! Can you make me something spicy? Maybe swap out the mustard with some ghost pepper sauce or some shit."

"Sure thing," I say, pointing at the rabbit-fae. I've always known Samza to enjoy spicy foods, so I make a note to prepare her breakfast with some of the hottest sauces and seasonings I can find at The Café of The Court. For now, I think I have an idea of what to serve to everyone for breakfast today.