Broken Antler Fen I hear the wicked get no rest.

NICE

She leaned into each word with fascination. There were characters that were familiar—Reiko, Uncle Vin, Mama and Papa of course. The valley rose up around them as Ibis spoke; Lilitu could almost smell the crisp mountain air again, see the clear stream rolling across the fertile vale. There had been some not so good things about the Empire, but at least it had been beautiful. No denying that.

Things seemed. . .well, a little too good to be true. For the one thing— Reiko is dead, Lilitu cut in. She remembered all too well the decaying body, of Hotaru weeping and retching over her mother's corpse. I saw her body. It was horrible.

And wasn't that bad man there, too? Wait, no. Dang it, they all looked the same.

I love you, Mama, Lilitu purred, choosing to ignore her many questions in favor of returning her mother's embrace. Maybe we'll end up finding Papa and saving his life. That would be cool.

Maybe that prospect, too, was too good to be true. But it was also too good to ignore.