Chapter Text
“This way!”
Nymph pulled at the Doctor’s sleeve as she guided him along. She’d finally gotten the chance to be alone with him, and that was a feat unlike any other. Sure, she probably could’ve asked him to make some time for her, ol’ Nymphy had at least that much faith in her charms. But this was careful business, and no one could know.
And so, it took an ambush and a skillfully concocted lie in between his busy work schedule and a short break for her scheme to work. Skillfully concocted, as in, she told him she needed help with a small errand. Sometimes, only the simplest lies could fool the greatest opponents such as the Ghost of Babel.
Speaking of, it seemed like he’d figured it out already. Stopping abruptly near the edge of the structure, he refused to let her tug him any further. “Why are we at the Soul Furnace at this hour of the night?” he asked suspiciously as he looked around at the empty platform. “We’re not supposed to be here, are we?”
“Well…” Her voice couldn’t have sounded guiltier if she’d tried.
“Nymph,” he said calmly as he turned around from the furnace, wisps of smoke billowing past him. “If there’s something you are not telling me, now’s the time to do it.”
“You’ll still go with me, if I tell you?”
The face she made didn’t seem to move him, not even when she was using her signature move, a pleading look that would melt a stone’s heart. “Nymph.” He repeated her name, sternly this time.
The hood covered too much to see inside, but Djaj, like her, possessed the ability to sense the psyche of a person. It wasn’t anything penetrative like Lord of Fiends’ powers, but enough that she could feel his slight displeasure at being deceived. “A-alright! Sheesh, you’re kinda scary when you want to be.” She took a deep breath, figuring it was time to come clean. “I’ve been trying to finish a story for the Revenants, but Mr. Fremont kicked me out before I could.”
“And that’s why you’re sneaking in,” he deduced quickly. “Why would you need me though?”
Nymph bit the bottom of her lip, wondering how much she could say without dissuading him. “The story is missing something,” she explained. “Every time I try, I get closer and closer, but the key always dissipates before the last chapter.” She paused, looking directly at him. “That final thing is you, Doctor. I-I don’t know how, but I just know!”
Now that was another lie. There was something in the shadow, what the Revenants called a ‘Prophetic Image.’ For some reason, no one else could see it, none of her travel companions had an inkling of what she was talking about.
That figure never spoke, and would fight her the deeper she delved. If she lost, the story would end, and everyone other than her would have no memory of what had happened. But if she won, she alone would receive the components to a key. A key that would refuse to be forged. A key that would dissipate and leave her with nothing, save for an urging to find someone.
That person was always the Doctor.
The silence was deafening after her lie, and the fact that he didn’t respond made her wonder if he could somehow read her. “Don’t worry! It won’t be real, it’s just a story,” she continued, trying to reassure him. “Besides, you want to know too, don’t you? The knowledge we could find, the secrets we could unravel!”
Appealing to his erudition worked, and his shuffle indicated to her that he took an interest in her words. “Very well,” he said as she beamed at him. “But I was under the impression that only Sarkaz could enter into the Revenant’s stories.”
“Nope!” She promptly grabbed his sleeve again, making sure they were moving before he could change his mind. “When Ermi and Tin Man are busy, I bring plenty of outsiders along! Last time, Wiš’adel and I brought Gummy and Click to help.”
She continued to yap as they snuck around, explaining details of how her powers worked, the stories she had already created, and their endings. A small ladder hidden in the floor of the platform revealed a scaffolding that allowed them to descend into the Furnace itself, all while avoiding anyone else.
“So this is the Furnace’s core…” He trailed off, taking in the scenery. A large fire roared in the center of the chamber, fueled by the remaining Revenants that weren’t freed yet. Metal and spirits were melded in an echo of who they once were, burning brightly for them to see.
“Doctor?” she questioned as he stared.
“I’m ready. Let’s go.”
She blinked and raised her eyebrow. The Doctor’s voice was full of certainty, surprising her with his sudden bout of enthusiasm.
That wasn’t to say she minded. Nymph stepped forward alongside him, preparing the first verse. The Revenants were already calling, the pen was already in her hand, the only thing left was the story that was yet unwritten.