Somewhere beneath the ribs, Heart sat restless. Its fingers drummed against its own cage, frantic, desperate, like it wanted to claw through bone and run. Above, perched cold and still in the skull, Brain leaned forward in the dim light, hands folded, eyes glinting like scalpels. They faced each other like old lovers turned sworn enemies.

Heart tilted its head, voice a tremor dressed up as ...

The figure made a soft, thoughtful noise. “Oh my, you’re right. Where are my manners?” And before she could even blink, the world split. Black lightning cracked through the air like the bones of the Rift itself had been shattered, sharp and merciless. Reality bent for him. One second, he was across the divide where she would never dare tread. The next, he was beside her. Echo’s breath hitched as...

The castle was choking her.

Every hallway gleamed too bright, every face expected her to smile, every stone wall pressed down like a hand around her ribs. By midday Echo couldn’t take it anymore.

She slipped out, telling no one. First the gardens, then past the hedges, then through the outer gate she wasn’t supposed to cross. Her bare feet sank into grass instead of polished goldstone, and she k...