High Noon. Cassandra is laying face down against some sort of raspy, gravelly texture. She squints against the blinding light that engulfs the sky, only to find her eyes misplaced as if rearranged by unseen hands. The grating surface under her belongs to desert sand. She is unsure of why she's so certain of it, but it's the kind of dogmatic certainty that frames her existence.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6OVzVIzgrt
Me, sun, desert.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBOUodL9As
The scorching air envelops her, aided by a gentle wind. It's the only push she needs to start walking but in this position her instinct is to crawl. Crouched, flat, against the sea of scratchy dots she's sitting on. Her left hand reaches out, and instinctively her right leg bends with it. That's when she notices the two extra sets of legs sticking out from her sides. It simultaneously feels unusual and commonplace.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnGOQcu4xP
I have 8 legs? Of course I have 8 legs. Keep crawling.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWnVac3Co1z
Silent and unceasing she traverses the desert, the searing heat swaddling her like a weighted blanket. The ocean of sand cradles her. It erases all directions and reference points but the path is set, camouflaged and yet so obvious nobody could miss it. Without knowing where this journey leads, she knows it's long and arduous, but worth it.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjrZVlLb31v
The heat dies abruptly and with it the light. It's dark, it's cold. Her eyes and what feel like antennae are now jutting around, looking for some meaning in the sudden blackout. She feels pressure on her sides, and the familiar rough blanket under her disappears. She's moving upwards, her eight-legged body writhing, seeking solid ground.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xGYm7NT3Y
no no wait I like the heat and the sand and the crawling129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1WBJp4SIt
A feminine voice emerges, singing what appears to be gibberish at first, its strange cadence enveloping Cassandra in a comforting embrace that her beloved sweltering sun could never match.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnT9DCcWDsH
"Sema'at'ka! Ankh'em'ankh'a, setju em'ha nefert! Embrace the essence of life, where chaos dances within beauty!"129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT3QkeDDmHZ
All she can think about is the soft and alluring voice, like luscious satin sheets, swallowing her so she can sleep in it, possibly forever.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7hsMSveE0
Cassandra instinctively tries to answer the call, except she doesn't have a mouth for it. There is ground again, now soft and smooth and welcoming. She stops wriggling. She struggles to focus her newly positioned eyes against the voice. There are no shapes, only energy, wisdom, radiance.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMxBdmAgn4B
"Sesen'ha senet'tefnu, sah'sekhem ren'neferu! Feel the ancient pulse, where shadows whisper of forbidden rebirth!"129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhY5Drfdcep
The air crackles with breathing energy, and her little eyes can now see a slender, long haired man surrounded by shadowy figures and veiled intentions. Her heart wrenches with a mix of fear and protectiveness for this stranger. She doesn't want to see him hurt. Above it all a spirit, shrouded in ethereal luminescence. Its glowing eyes hold the secrets of ages and are framed by shape-shifting glyphs.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUipRjVLasE
"Seneh'ra sesh'ankh, sah'kh'a kheperu nutjertu! Invoke the ancient magic, where the hidden hand weaves a tapestry of timeless secrets!"129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbZrAzTVcU
Cassandra reaches out to touch the ghostly entity and the scene shifts. She is catapulted on the precipice of a world in turmoil. It's ablaze and the flames below are destroying the old while birthing the new. Cassandra can only watch. The rhythm of the earth pulses beneath her, as if every beat echoes the sacred heartbeat of the world itself. The weight of time presses upon her, unrelenting, reminding her that every breath is a precious gift, a fleeting moment that could never be recaptured.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWm4XMxsBHu
"Ptahhet sahu'kha en'seth'a! Within the forge of Ptah, your spirits shall be molded anew!"129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEbp4w3sb6k
The voice enters a feedback loop that explodes with burning intensity and Cassandra's dreams of being swallowed become reality. She steps into a dance of fire, shadow, heartbeat and time that invigorates and paralyzes her. The weight of knowledge settles upon her like an ancient burden she never asked for, leaving her teetering on the edge of both awe and terror.129Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuahoyflPN3
