Stardrop shuddered softly as the aching in her chest began to subside, as Lapsus' memories and her own began to fade and were replaced by a now-familiar tugging at her being. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself for whatever the next vision might be. This time, however, what met her was a deep, permeating silence, the kind that made her acutely aware of her own heartbeat. The snowgrem opened her eyes to darkness, unable to help but blink around her in confusion. Silence, and... solitude, it seemed. She bit her lip as her luminescent spots have what bit of light they could. Lapsus hadn't imprisoned her too... right? She began to walk forward, ears and eyes alert for any sign of life as she navigated the monochrome landscape she found herself in. Dark, decayed roots showed that life had once been here, but now they tangled their way around her until her pitiful glow was the only light she could attempt to navigate by. She rubbed her arms, cradling herself best she could to comfort herself. Where was Carver? Where am I? In the distance, something faintly glowing caught her eye. She pushed toward it, snagging on roots a bit as she did. She huffed, shifting to her cat form once again, and had much better luck weaving her way through the overgrowth as she made her way to the light, the pillar, that she saw. Her approach to the pillar- no, the gnarled root of a nerve- was swift and nearly uneventful. However, as soon as she shifted back to her grem form to get a better look, the silence around her seemed to come alive. Shadows shifting, a large creature emerging from above and then several shadowbeasts peeling out of the darkness surrounding her. Stardrop's breath caught in her throat, eyes darting around as she quickly tried to evaluate the situation she was in. If they attacked, she would have to try to fight, wouldn't she? Her pulse quickened, adrenaline rushing through her veins, panic pushing forward. She was no fighter, not here. Not alone. But... If they wanted to hurt her, why were they waiting? She turned her attention to the largest figure, swallowing down her nerves. Lapsus had consumed two others to become the beast they'd seen in the Starfix. The creature here looked nothing like she'd ever heard of Mare, but perhaps... "You... You're Echo, a-aren't you?" She ventured, her voice weaker than she would have liked. "I want to help." She raised her hands to the god, trying to show her intent, and held them in her gaze. The snarls of the shadowbeasts faded from her senses, and she saw as the coils that protected the pillar of light relaxed slightly. Stardrop felt herself relax some as well, crisis averted. "Is it okay if I approach?" She asked, waiting for the god to give the slightest of nods and move to allow her access before she stepped nearer their core. If this was going to be anything like Lapsus' memories.... She braced herself, then placed her palms to the nerve. If none else could know their pain, then she would take the burden on herself for their sake.
----------------- The sixth and final entry for a prompt for the Eclipse event that went on with Grems back last month. This one and the previous one basically are meant to be seen as having occurred simultaneously, with Carver and Stardrop having been split up amongst the remaining gods after helping Lapsus. Hopefully that's obvious enough, haha. Fun fact: Stardrop had to be the one to meet Echo if I was going to stay pacifist this whole time because Carver absolutely would have gone on the offensive if the Shadowbeasts surrounded him lmao
