Levi, though not as outwardly impressed as Victor, truly was awed by the sights of the legendary Compass Island. Her stomach, however, couldn’t subsist on pure adventure and was directing her away from sightseeing and towards a stall promising fish skewers.

“What can I do for you?”, said a cheerful young woman at the counter.

“I would like whatever is on display. As much as possible, please.”, Levi said desperately.

“Sure thing, lady.” she replied. “By the way, if you buy in bulk, I can offer you my new romance novel. Advertising and whatnot.”, she said while handing Levi a truly awe-inspiring box of fish skewers neatly stacked on one another, small amounts of steam wisping out of the weaved wooden cube.

“Ooh. Silk might want one. Thanks, fish skewer lady!”, she said cheerfully while taking one out and munching it with a smile, one of her fangs poking out as she chewed away. She clutched the book with her free hand as she walked back to the shipyard to eat at the customary dining area, her stomach’s demand for a sacrifice to appease it finally being fulfilled.

“Please. My name is June. Besides, this is just to make some extra money after I made some food. I’m just a traveling merchant carrying spices. See you around!”

Carefully laying the book down and writing a note saying For Silk, she just realized that for the first time in her life, someone had accurately guessed her gender without having to ask first. She shrugged and resolved to talk to her again, and happily dug into her snack. The fish skewers were a crispy golden-brown with generous handfuls of spice, presumably from leftovers from whatever June was trading at the time. Digging in, she noticed that each and every one of the fish skewers had their distinct blend of spices. Getting some water from the tap that collected the moisture from the sea of clouds, she drank from it and continued to revel in the street food impromptu lunch she had, which was packed with flavor.

After she finished eating, she went out to the open gleaming square, filled with people gathering around some folk music and various locals dancing to some sort of music. She was surprised that she recognized this song, often having heard it ringing outside the local church in the slums while those attending forgot their squalid surroundings while they danced. The musicians were particularly good, with the accompaniment of an accordion and violin alongside the clapping bystanders adding a distinct and wistful charm to the melody.

♪ A king asked a beggar for the value of his earned renown ♪

A young lady, dressed in middle-class garb indicating she worked in a shop somewhere, did a twirl with her arms above her as a young man arched his arms so that the tips of his fingers touched where her hands connected, giving the impression that she was spinning on an axel supported by him.

♪The beggar responded, saying that “all are equal in death, no matter how gilded the crown”♪

The young man and what looked to be his sweetheart switched places, the woman’s hair flipping like gold as she supported him while he awkwardly attempted to pirrouette, with him apparently unfamiliar with this part of the danse. She giggled and supported him while Levi drew a picture of the scene, somewhat familiar with the historical context of the song but significantly less so than Silk was.

♪Beware the traitor’s trusting embrace, a sweet and poisonous love♪

From what she heard from half-remembered sermons at the Church of the Radiant King that she attended for the free food, this was roughly a century after he left and referenced a plague that struck, long before the Omnic Empire was even able to reach the skies. Transmitted via physical touch, it rapidly caused some cells to divide and speed up their metabolism, either causing unusual localised growths that killed those who failed to remove them or causing parts of them to age rapidly, shortening the lifespans of any organs it touched. Use of assassins infected with it on other countries made it associated with traitors, hence the “trusting embrace” referenced. The music became slightly louder and more resonant, the minstrel’s baritone voice taking on a grander quality as he entered the main phase of the song.

♪The abyss’s grand gift, the scourge of the Shining Monarch Above♪

This is where the ancient origins of the song became most apparent, an age where feudal Knights were common and sailors were more often than not traders as opposed to explorers. The “Radiant King” was said to be the creator of all that is and was, and used to rule humanity and guide it to a grand civilization that was the spiritual predecessor to the Omnic Empire. Levi watched as more of the bystanders melded into the dance, with this apparently being some after-church gathering where people celebrated the Radiant King’s gift of life.

♪The end of all things, of the present and things to come♪

Levi barely remembered this, with only Silk’s lectures on how religion and folktales provided meaningful glimpses into the past and various locations being her saving grace. Apparently, this referenced the beginning of the Radiant King’s reign, where he warned that civilization would give those who took it strength at the cost of that strength having an end, with kingdoms always being at risk of ending should it’s people be unable to maintain it. This probably arose from when their followers, after their King’s departure and their kingdom crumbling, suffered persecution from the other smaller countries that resented the blessings of their god-ruler. Thus, the followers known as the Lightseekers used this particular speech in their scripture to hearten themselves that one day, the kingdoms that persecuted them would also end, along with the discrimination that they suffered.

♪what once was an empire of light, has fallen to a dark plight♪

Again, this referenced the old kingdom of Lux, long considered to be the Omnic Empire’s ancient predecessor before it’s fall and the aforementioned empire being it’s revival and spiritual successor. This song referenced much of their religion and culture, and was considered the oldest song to ever exist. Somewhere between a lullaby, a ballad and a sonnet, it was known to pretty much everyone, even those who didn’t go to the Church regularly.

♪Entropy given form, it’s hunger insat-ia-ble♪

The song got slower from here, and as it went through several more verses, each one naming a various person talking to another about death and it’s various impacts, the final line popped up, with a repeat of the “entropy given form” refrain. The people dancing slowed down and finally bowed to one another with one of their legs stretching back, one of their arms on the side opposite to the leg being raised behind them somewhat in an odd bow. The last line of the song seemed to be a veiled remark on death and the eventual end of all things that would happen to those who rejected the Radiant King’s gifts, with some metaphorical and long-forgotten “end-bringer” coming in to devour them.

♪No matter how much it may consume, it’s maw shalll never be fuuullllll♪♪♪♪

The audience clapped and hooted, and the next song began as people started socializing and going towards a kiosk that offered free refreshments to those who wished for it, courtesy of the church. Levi, satisified with the day’s events, walked under the hot noon sun towards the town hall, where she originally intended on going so that she might witness Compass Island’s legendary system of government. It was said to be a veritable promised land for spies, and Levi’s training hadn’t been for nothing. In the back of her mind, though, her heart shivered at what the last line of the song implied. Something about it just seemed wrong somehow, though she wasn’t sure what it was.

Walking through the twisting pipes and walkways that smelled of copper, she noticed that the closer she got to the government district, the roads and machinery were better maintained, not a speck of the typical green rust-like residue that typically formed on old copper to be seen anywhere. Moreover, even the gears and the typical clanking wasn’t heard, the gears being extremely well oiled and not making the omnipresent screeching that most of the island’s steam-based mechanisms created. Skeptically, she internally recognized that this meant kickbacks and budget cuts were more common around areas with less political power, while those who made the various decisions benefited from them while maintaining their power via lying to the masses. Her suspicions were soon proven correct as she rounded a corner towards the residential district adjacent to the town hall, with workers scrubbing off graffiti with various slogans. Such works of vandalism included STOP LOBBYING, BUSINESS IS NOT GOVERNMENT, and even KICKBACKS ARE THEFT FROM THOSE WHO FUND THE PROJECTS. To her surprise, even the palatial town hall had graffiti on it, with a veritable army of laborers attempting to scrub it off. Steeped in dark black ink, the only untouched parts of the greasy-looking onyx building were the letters that comprised the slogan, brilliant steel that normally would have contrasted excellently with the rest of the city’s brass and copper. Unlike the others, this one was meticulously done and had no hints of sloppiness, with the words chillingly echoing from the scarier parts of Radiant King scripture Levi had heard from her aunt’s windowsill outside the Radiant church late at night while she helped her aunt with butchering. More specifically, the most-likely figurative representation of death that had no name aside from a moniker that just seemed to fit. The message, in a shocking display of audacity, was one that didn’t seem to address the recent corruption at all. It simply read:

SOULS ARE DISPOSABLE

ENTROPY GIVEN FORM

BECOME ONE WITH THE VOID

UNITY IN CONSUMPTION

ALL IS IN THE HUSH

All throughout this, frozen in shock at the audacity of what appeared to be a cult, words unbidden from the song and dance she just heard crept up from her mind, resonating.

“Entropy given form, it’s hunger insatiable. No matter how much it consumes, it’s maw shall never be full”. A cold sweat broke out on the back of her neck. Whatever this was, it was bad. Her aunt’s training came back to her as her fight-or flight instincts triggered when she saw that the other side of the building featured a horrifying caricature of a melting skull, with the liquified bone showing distinct screaming faces begging to be freed, with ones closer to the eyes and mouth becoming smoother and more horrified until they were gone altogether. The deep, glowing rings of some unknown substance were featured in the eyeholes of the image, pulsing regularly in a manner that made her feel sick. Once again, her aunt’s sayings came to the forefront of her mind, giving her purpose among the roiling emotions such a crime had caused:

“When there is chaos among rulers, use it. A rock that has been flipped over provides opportunity to see what the bugs have, be it information or blackmail. Don’t let the opportunity go to waste.”