Quoted By:
>I-I guess so
"Um," you say. "I— yes, sort of, but it's not like I just went and— he was trying to kill somebody! He had a gun, and <span class="mu-i">three</span> arms, and—"
"Four, actually. But we can discuss the specifics later." Henry raises a placating hand. "I've already heard the whole story from your other friend, the local."
Huh? Oh. "Felicia?"
"That would be it. I hope you'll be excited to learn that she was little the worse for wear, last I saw her, but she didn't seem inclined to stick around with us. Much the opposite, really— she was off like a shot. But back to the point, I'm not casting any blame or judgement, Charlotte. I just wanted to confirm my assumption."
"I confirmed it," you mutter.
"So you did, thank you. Has this been happening often?"
Henry's tone is blandly inquisitive, sort of doctorlike. You jab your thumbs into your pockets. "Define often?"
"I think it's best you define it for yourself, though I'm gauging that it's been more than once?"
"I haven't been going around killing people," you mutter. (Goo people don't count.) "And it's only been a couple days since—"
"Since?"
You don't say anything.
"Since the ritual was conducted?"
"When do <span class="mu-i">I</span> get to ask my questions?" you snap. "You're all 'ohhh, I'll tell you all my stupid cult secrets straight up, no GS,' but then you just start talking about dumb, irrelevant stuff! How is that fair!"
Henry hesitates. "It's far from irrelevant. I'm just trying to gather all the facts before I go out on any limbs, Charlotte. But please, if you—"
Finally! "What was <span class="mu-i">with</span> the stupid big eye? You promised to tell me earlier, but then you yanked me around for forever, then you stopped telling me anything, so basically you lied to my face— does it even mean anything? The eyeball? Or is it some stupid cult <span class="mu-i">prank,</span> like, ha-ha, made you think you saw an eye, but actually—"
"Did it feel like a prank?"
"No, but—" You brandish a threatening finger. "Is <span class="mu-i">this</span> what telling me straight means? Stupid leading questions? Because I can just leave, you know, and go back to my amazing life, and never ever—"
"You have my..." Henry recalibrates. "...I'm sorry. It's a bad habit. That was God's eye."
Maybe he means something else. "What?"
"That's about as straight as I can get it, kiddo. God's eye. I told you the seal was to plug a hole in the world, and you know what's holding the whole thing up, right? Surely."
According to Richard... "The Wyrm. I guess."
"No guessing necessary. That's not a metaphorical or metaphysical holding— that's literal physical fact. Maybe the most literal fact anything could be. I mean that God is way down there, under the rock and dirt, and if you dug with a shovel for a hundred years you could go and touch It. Same as if you flung yourself off the Edge, though I'd hardly recommend that."
A headache appears to be coming on.
>[-2 ID: 12/14]
"Um," you say. "But I didn't dig, or—"
(1/3)
