“Not only should you feel accomplished, within reason, but you should appreciate the precious lessons you learned from that. I can’t allow you to think of that amazing memory as a thing to regret. Kammy, you’re the strongest of all of us. Even when you and Elfer are about equal, you’re still smarter than he is, so you’ve got the advantage. You’ve got a sweet boyfriend, and you’ve grown into the kind of young woman that Faye and I look up to, and the kind of niece Owan prides himself over. I’m not going to add air to that head of yours, he he, but before you go lying to yourself about how useless and worthless you are, try telling yourself that you keep seeing unfortunate signs that you’re still human and that you still make mistakes. From there, give God all of you, both your best and your goofy quirks, and appreciate the ways in which you have grown. And then, after all that, you better give me a hug or something because I need to know my best buddy is okay, and that she remembers she brightens my day.”
Kammy humbly sighs and says, “Thanks for saying that, Gi,” as she gives her pal a nano-chat hug. Back outside of nano-world, the two girls see the next set of guests arriving. One of the two new people looks very familiar while the other not so much. Once they have approached us, they introduce themselves as Jovo Sutle and Detrina. It’s clarified that the woman they met earlier was an imposter based on Tonya Sutle from the storyboard where all the brothers and sisters had swapped places. This girl here is the original, the lovable Jo Sutle from XI. In both cases, there is a sibling pair of Tommy and Jovo Bear or Jo and Tonya Bear, and in both cases, the sister marries to gain the last name Sutle. I’ll remind you again that in the “sibling swap” dimension, no genders are changed, just the names and directions in life.
As the kids are talking to her, Jo points out, “I know Ant and Keb were nano-chatting before she was even born thanks to all the craziness surrounding her mom and Arion Jekel, but in the physical presence sense, I was AB’s little sister before Keb showed up. We just lost contact for a while because my parents were System Guards and were assigned somewhere else. The next time I saw my ‘Big Bruva,’ I had grown from a tiny little kid who couldn’t talk correctly to the ‘wise and sagacious’ woman I am now, ha ha, and AB had grown into quite the looker. Of course, he was still my big bro, and he had Missy, so don’t go crazy over my joking. And I’ll be honest I’m still figuring out that wise and sagacious part.”
“So, AB must have a lot more siblings than we know about,” Kammy asserts. “I know you mean he was your brother in the sentimental sense as opposed to genetically or legally like the Asteroid Girls. I think I remember hearing that your brother Tommy filled in as SG leader a time or two, correct?”
Nodding, Jo says, “Yes, he did. I think it’s funny because most of our time together with Ant as kids, was Tommy a sarcastic meanie head, picking on me all the time with Ant being the referee. He’d be my sweet and kind best friend while being bros with Tommy. Even though Tom could be annoying, I still loved hanging out with the two of them. Of course, once we moved and grew older, it was me and my bestie Susie Sutle hanging out with Tommy and Susie’s brother Mike Jr. You can probably see how my last name changed, he he.”
Mercy turns to the other girl present. “And what’s your story, hon?”
Detrina gives a tiny smile and answers, “I joined AB’s team right before the Scar Twins attacked. I died in the fight with them and wasn’t revived until Ultimax returned, so I had lots of time to enjoy my early retirement.”
Mercy is saddened by this answer. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Were you ever disappointed to learn that everyone else had been revived but you had to wait for a villain to bring you back?
“I did find that odd,” Detrina says, “but that wasn’t what bothered me so much. In fact, I think this is a good time to go into the stories we came to tell. When I was revived, I was bothered because I understood that the System Director is careful in whom he chooses to revive, so to have the villain bring me back left me feeling like my new life was a violation. I shouldn’t be alive, and just breathing was me breaking the rules. Of course, I never voiced this, and I know the System Director would say otherwise, especially since he gave us the option to stay alive as compensation for Ultimax’s mind games.
Inner Man Theatre 