Template:Featured Articles/8-2016

Moment of Awesome - Meggan Szardos: Trapped in a nightmarish version of her own mind, Meggan fights to protect Haller from the psychic parasite threatening to consume him. Meggan had been able to disperse portions of the molasses river earlier. Filter out the infected bits. She reasoned that perhaps she could help Haller, in a similar way and dove to kneel at his side. She moved to wrap her arms around him, to help him fend off the parasite as best as she was able to. She couldn't tell at her angle, but was it smaller now than when she’d started? Somewhere through the choking emptiness Haller registered arms around him -- her embrace was like a psychic windbreak. The warmth shocked him into something approaching sensibility. He found the presence of mind to reach back and grab at the thing on his back, but he was weak, and when he pulled at it he felt the tug of barbs in his skin. The parasite squirmed and sucked at his fingers, but Meggan's influence prevented it from attaching. It couldn't seem to gain further purchase. Meggan briefly wondered if she needed to wrap her legs around Haller, too, or if arms were good enough. They had to be good enough, because she could feel him reaching back now. She was hesitant to even attempt to tear the thing off, for fear she would do more damage to Haller. It might cling harder to him, and become twice as painful. Or it might even split off. But what if they worked before when it purged things, even temporarily? “Quentin! Aim right here, at this one spot like before,” she shouted over to him. Her arms were busy, wrapped around Haller as they were, but she could still nod her head in the general direction she meant. “You might want to stay very, very still, if you’re able to, Sir,” was the quiet advice Meggan whispered in Haller’s ear.