Chimper #2083
Every morning, Fukika the Strong walks the stone stairs of Waterfall City, leaning on a carved cane. The fishers at the bottom nod, seeing the scars that map their face and assuming the epithet comes from battles won long ago. They are not entirely wrong. But the deepest wounds are unseen. The headpiece they wear is not for show; it’s a filter, a dam against the psychic torrent they share with Itame—visions of bubbling concoctions and impossible colors from another realm. The cane is not for a limp. It is an anchor, something to grip when the world dissolves into a potion-maker's dream. People call them strong for what their body has endured. Fukika knows the truth: strength is simply taking the next step up.
