Chimper #1298
Every morning, Nenemi the Seeded goes to the base of Waterfall City to press their palms against the great fish statue, letting the cold spray soak their layered clothes. Everyone assumes this is a ritual of control, an arctic chimp’s attempt to cool the scorching embers left on their back after a disastrous encounter with Inferuno. They remember the heat, the all-consuming fire that should have ended them but instead left a permanent, smoldering brand. Their training is relentless, their focus absolute as they learn to channel the flames. The other trainees admire their resilience, seeing a survivor mastering a terrible curse. They are wrong. The cold stone isn’t for suppression; it is for tempering. The fire inside is not a wound. It’s a seed, and Nenemi is simply tending to their garden.
