Taiko shook her head. It was so silly and childish, wasn't it? Tomiko was older than her at the time, but she hadn't seemed to age while in her world while Taiko and her friends had grown up.
"This is it," she said. "This is what's tying our worlds together."
"I remember that thing now," said Tomiko. "It was sweet. I think it made me laugh, but it was sweet. I guess I took it with me, somehow."
"We have to destroy it," said Taiko. "That's the only way we can stop the worlds from fusing."
Tomiko looked down, hurt. It really did mean something to her, didn't it?
"Don't be sad," she said. "You can come with us to our world. There's a lot to smile about there, and you won't need this silly thing anymore."
"But I'll be Queen Tomiko again. And after what I did to you, I-"
"No. Queen Tomiko was a creature that world created. The saddest part of you twisted something in that reality, and it twisted you back. You'll be a different person in our world. You can be like I was- the person that I really wanted to be. So can you, Akio."
"No," he said. "I can't. If we both leave, that bubble will collapse. And it will take everyone living there with it. Those people might have been created with our world, but they're still real people, right?"
Taiko looked down, realizing that she'd gotten ahead of herself. He was right. It was an awful place, but what about the Punnydins? Or Swune and his people?
"I'll stay," he said. "Tomiko needs you."
He stood up and nervously faced her.
"Tomiko, this mess is my fault too. I was infatuated with you. I wanted you. But seeing what we created- I don't think we were good for each other. I think I need to move on. I think I can make that world a little more humane if I let you go."
Tomiko looked back at him, her eyes threatening to water up.
"I don't think I ever really noticed you. I was too busy thinking about myself all the time to notice anyone. Maybe I should have."
"Yeah, you should have noticed someone. But I don't think it was ever going to be me."
Akio took the photo album back from Taiko and brought it to the disposal bay. He placed it inside, tenderly, and pushed a button. The album disintegrated, torn apart molecule by molecule.
Taiko shook her head, trying to make sense of things. They were in the library. Tomiko was there, next to her, looking just as confused. Taiko couldn't remember what they'd said, or what they'd done. Just that they'd done something. The worlds were going to separate again.
"What have you done?" asked Tomiko, raising her arms and channeling her magic.
"Wait," said Taiko, "I think-"
Tomiko grunted and collapsed, plopping unconscious onto the floor.
"I know we're not supposed to be giving her to Akio," said Yumi, standing behind her with a candlestick, "But damn if I wouldn't like to right now."
"No!" said Taiko, kneeling down to make sure she wasn't hurt too badly.
"Help me pick her up. The worlds are about to come apart again. And I think we agreed to take her to ours."
"What? Why? I thought the entire point of separating the worlds was to get rid of these two."
"I'll help you," said Miyoshi, lifting one of Tomiko's arms. "You can explain everything later. If the worlds are going to come apart, we need to hurry to get back to ours, right?"
"What about him?" asked Chiyo.
"Take her and go," he said. "I'm done with her."
"Come on," said Taiko.
"But-" said Yumi.
"We don't have a choice. Miyoshi's right. I can explain later."
Taiko and Miyoshi lifted Tomiko between them and carried her out of the library as fast as they could. Now they just needed a plan to get her out of the palace, past all of her soldiers, and over the mountains before the worlds broke apart.
Ikumi stroked her new friend's scales.
She was in the courtyard, catching her breath. Queen Tomiko's men were all around, but they were too busy scattering in confusion. Whatever had happened in there seemed to make everyone go crazy, as if some enchantment had been broken.
Ikumi heard a familiar shout, and saw three of Akio's men and two of Tomiko's fly out of the palace, thrown by a powerful blast of magic. A few seconds later Yumi emerged from the gates of Frostspire, dressed like one of Akio's soldiers and holding a spear. Chiyo was behind her, and Miyoshi and Taiko were right after, carrying Queen Tomiko with them. Chiyo and Miyoshi were, oddly enough, dressed like Tomiko's soldiers. Taiko was wearing some kind of hide coat.
"Ikumi!" shouted Miyoshi. "You did it! How- wait, that dragon isn't yours, is it? I never knew you could summon something like that!"
"This is Hyōga," said Ikumi. "He was under Tomiko's control, but a few minutes ago something happened and I was able to charm him. I guess I can see what that was now. What are we going to do with her?"
"Take her with us," said Taiko. "Way too complicated to explain right now, just help us get her on the dragon."
Ikumi resigned herself to trusting Taiko and gave her a hand, draping the unconscious queen across Hyōga's back.
"Wait," said Taiko, looking around. "Where's Jammlo?"
"Jammlo?" asked Miyoshi. "She's from the Dunnie's village, isn't she?"
"Yeah, she was in the dungeon. Didn't the other girl free all of the prisoners?"
"I guess so," said Miyoshi. "We were going back to the library while they were escaping."
"They must have missed her. I have to go back, or she'll be stuck in the wrong world. Just wait here. Leave right away if the worlds start to split."
"But Taiko-"
"Our world still needs its heroes. And Tomiko and this world need to be rid of each other. We can't all get stuck behind."
Taiko took off running before anyone could stop her.
Ikumi had just finished helping Yumi onto the dragon when she notice that Miyoshi was gone too.
Entering the dungeon again wasn't easy. Taiko knew that the monster was dead, and she'd healed herself of the physical damage she'd suffered, but her loins still throbbed in phantom pain when she approached the door. There wasn't any time to hesitate. She shut her eyes and walked through.
Taiko moved from room to room as fast as she could, only finding empty cells. Taiko tried to think. Maybe she had been freed. Maybe she had tried to make it back home on foot. It was quiet in the dungeon. Quiet enough for Taiko to hear a faint rattling. She rushed toward it, but only saw another empty room. She listened again, and heard it coming from the floor. She'd missed it in the darkness- a hatch. It was half the size of a regular door, set into the stone. Taiko unlocked it and threw it open.
Jammlo was floating face-up in a trough that was just large enough to fit her. She was hogtied, with a collar around her neck that held her to the bottom. The trough had been carefully filled to submerge most of her face, leaving her just barely able to breath. At least as long as she didn't try to struggle.
She was also freezing. Not just cold- freezing. The water was filled with chunks of ice, and the surface was beginning to harden. Taiko remembered Tomiko's words about Frostspire. It hadn't been an exaggeration, apparently.
"Jammlo! It's me, Taiko! Just try to stay still!"
She dunked her hands into the water to undo the lock holding the collar around Jammlo's neck. They went numb almost instantly, but Taiko wasn't new to the feeling anymore. She got the lock open before her fingers lost their motor functions and hauled Jammlo awkwardly out of the trough.
She untied her as fast as she could, wishing she had something to dry her off with. Jammlo was almost blue, and Taiko worried that she wouldn't have enough time to revive her. She was relieved to see her open her eyes and look up.
"T-Taiko? From Umai?"
"Yes, it's me! We don't have long. You need to get up. I know you're cold, but you have to hurry."
Taiko did her best to heal her, but her magic wouldn't warm her up, and only a lot of rest would restore her strength. Jammlo was able to get on her feet at least, even
if she needed Taiko's help. That wasn't going to get her out of the palace, though.
"Frostfur's endurance!"
The spell was hard to push out- Taiko was exhausted, after all, but the magic infused Jammlo and gave her the resilience she would need to escape.
"Hurry up and get outside. It's chaos out there, but you can make it. I'm going to take one last look around."
Jammlo nodded and shuffled out. Taiko doubted herself, wondering if she even had the time to spare, but after seeing how Jammlo had been left, she couldn't take the chance that some other poor girl was still down there. She worked fast, checking each room once more and calling out to see if anyone would respond.
She wasn't satisfied, but she had to leave. This world would be in somebody else's hands now. She rushed down the palace corridors as fast as her aching legs would take her. It would all be over as soon as she reached the dragon again.
Taiko rounded a corner and slammed into someone's chest. She let herself bounce back, and tensed when she saw who it was.
"Convenient," said Akio. "I might be done with Tomiko, but I think I've taken a liking to you and your friends. Having one of you as the jewel in my collection will be a nice way to cap off my victory."
Taiko tried to put distance between them so that she could cast a spell, but he closed it even faster. He grabbed her arm and spun her, and before she could reorient herself her body slammed into the wall, her face pressed against the ice. Akio twisted her arm, pinning her there.
"It looks like I'll have my taste of all four of you after all."
"Akio, you don't want to do this. Not anymore."
"That's not what my cock is telling me."
Akio crossed her wrists and held them there by wrapping one hand around both of her pinkies. When she tried to pull them out of his grip he lifted her hands toward her shoulders. She shrieked and stopped struggling, her fingers feeling like they were going to come off.
"Keep quiet, the only people left in this castle are my men. They won't be helping you."
Taiko felt rope surrounding her wrists. Of course he had rope. It was getting snug fast. She couldn't let him tie her up. She had to get out before the split. She had to see her friends again. She had to see Miyoshi again. She tried to yank free, but he had complete control of her hands.
She felt the tug of the knots being fixed. It was too late. He let go of her pinkies, but all that did was let her pull hopelessly against well-tied rope.
"Please, Akio, let me go. Fuck me if you have to, but let me go after. Don't you owe me that much?"
"No."
Akio ran a length of rope, doubled up, across the back of her neck and down under her armpits. He tied a knot against her back, then pulled her hands up toward it. She squirmed against the wall, trying to slip out before he tie her arms in such an immobile and painful pose, but it didn't take him long to overpower her and fix the rope in place.
Taiko was a slave again, and the only people who would bother to help her were about to be gone forever.
"Unfortunately, I will have to make this quick. The current proceedings require my attention, after all."
Akio hiked up her coat. Miyoshi hadn't had time to find her anything else to wear and she was still naked underneath. He pulled her ass toward him and held her hips out while his cock pressed into her, searched for her pussy.
Taiko braced herself, and a moment later she grunted as she was penetrated. He kept one hand gripped tightly against the back of her neck, holding her head against the wall while his other arm wrapped around her stomach, keeping her body against his. Akio started pumping into her, vigorously working to get himself off. Taiko wriggled against the wall, her fingers vainly searching for a knot they could loosen and her hips trying to get out of his grip. Nothing helped. Akio kept her pinned in place while fucking her.
She tried to tell herself that it would end soon. He wasn't like the creature. But did it matter? Even after he came and took his cock out she'd only be waiting, tied up or in chains, for the next dick to be jammed into her.
Akio pulled out and turned her around. She was too surprised to take advantage of the opportunity, and it was lost when he lifted her up by the ass and pressed her back against the wall. His dick, still rock hard, forced into her a second time. Now she could see Akio's face and smell his breath as he dug his fingers into her ass and worked his hips into her.
Taiko closed her eyes and moaned. Akio was strong. Not as strong as the Oni, but strong enough to do whatever he pleased with her. He was also human. Taiko shocked herself by finding something comforting in such a pitiable qualification, but after serving Yokubō and being thrown to the creature Akio's greedy use of her body seemed downright normal. She was wet. She was wet for him, and his cock grinding against the right parts of her to bring an orgasm if he didn't stop soon.
She did everything she could to hold herself back, but her body had been trained to be used this way. It didn't have the intensity of her night with Kuzuno or her revival at Miyoshi's hands, but couldn't hide the way her body spasmed for him or the wetness of her cunt. By the time Akio emptied his load into her she was a conquered woman. She took his cum silently, keeping her eyes cast down for fear of meeting his.
"I'll have my men throw you back in the dungeon for now," he said, pulling his pants back up. "After the battle is over I'll see about enjoying you more thoroughly."
Taiko wondered if it had already happened. If the worlds were already separate. Would she even know? Taiko shivered. The cold was getting to her again.
Akio pulled her from the wall and pushed her forward. Her legs were like jelly, but she managed not to fall. They were about to round the same corner that had given her to him when Tomiko beat them to it, a half dozen soldiers at her side.
"Kill him!" she said, "And don't let the girl escape."
Akio threw Taiko aside, drawing his sword to face the men. He was on the defensive, retreating to keep them from surrounding him, but he struck out furiously, slowing their advance and nearly wounding one.
Taiko was confused. Why was Tomiko here again? What had gone wrong? She would have to find out later- she wasn't going to wait to see how the battle played out. She awkwardly got her feet under her, standing up despite her arms being bound, and took off down the hallway.
"I said not to let her escape!" screamed Tomiko, sending a bolt of ice her way.
Taiko had to fall to dodge it, but she standing again before Tomiko could get another clear shot.
She got to the stairs, out of Tomiko's line of sight, but one of the soldiers broke away from Akio and quickly gained on her. Without her arms for balance she stumbled halfway up, and by the time she was at the top he was on her.
He threw his arm around her neck and spun her around, facing her back toward the stairs.
"Let me go!" said Taiko, tears in her eyes, "I don't belong here! I need to get out or I'll never see my home or my friends again!"
"Sorry," he said, "But you don't disobey Her Majesty's orders."
There was a loud crash behind her, and pieces of a broken vase fell to the ground. The man yelled in surprise and pain, loosening his grip. Taiko dropped down, out of his hold, and saw Miyoshi give him a shove that sent him tumbling down the stairs.
"Sorry," she said, "But we don't take orders from anyone."
Taiko opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word out Miyoshi yanked her up. She desperately tried not to fall again while she was pulled down the hallway, Miyoshi's hand around her arm.
"Sorry," she said again, "I got caught in a little trouble of my own trying to follow you."
Taiko couldn't say anything. She wanted to pour her soul out to Miyoshi, but they needed to move, and any word she said might open the floodgates.
They emerged into daylight, with Ikumi and her new dragon waiting for them. Jammlo was just getting on, helped by Yumi. She'd found someone's robes on the way out. She hoped they would be enough. Taiko was underdressed herself, but there was no time to
mess around.
"How did you get yourself tied up again?" asked Yumi in annoyance.
"Just get me untied!" said Taiko, sure that the worlds were going to split at any moment.
"No time," said Ikumi. "Just throw her up like you did Tomiko."
Yumi and Miyoshi pick up Taiko and tossed her onto the dragon's back, jumping up themselves after, using the ridges along his spine to hold onto. Taiko saw Tomiko there, still unconscious and draped over Hyōga. Miyoshi wrapped her arms around Taiko and squeezed.
"Go!" she shouted, and a second later Hyōga jumped to life. The courtyard shrank away, and Frostspire diminished into the distance as they flew toward the mountains.
"Tomiko-" said Taiko, "Has she been here the whole time?"
"Of course," said Yumi. "She's still out, isn't she?"
"But I saw her, back in the palace."
"That's impossible," said Ikumi.
"It was definitely her."
"Maybe it was a trick," said Miyoshi. "Like the kitsune could do."
"But who was it, then?" asked Taiko.
"Maybe Minoru could tell us," said Chiyo.
"Not right now," said Miyoshi. "I'll take his crystal out when we land."
Taiko tried to flex her wrists, but the ropes were punishingly tight. She let it go. She was in Miyoshi's arms now. A little pain was nothing anymore.
Akio rushed out of the palace. Battle lines were just starting to reform as his men took advantage of the disarray wrought when Taiko had taken Queen Tomiko. They would have to retreat; Frostspire was no longer defensible.
He was still guessing as to how Tomiko had gotten away to resume command, but he'd escaped just in time to avoid being taken by the soldiers that were securing the palace in her name again.
He saw Taiko being put on the dragon. He squinted, unsure, but it looked like Tomiko was still there as well. He started after them, but it was too late. The beast lurched into the air and started rising above the battlefield.
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