His skin tingled as chills rain up and down his tiny spine. The little one was surrounded with cloth, unable to move since he came into existence here in this world. He had no idea what was going on, no context as to his surroundings - All he knew was darkness right now, and the familiar smell of sweat that permeated his tiny form. He had been in this situation plenty of times, he knew where he was - A sock, but he was powerless to move.

Like always, the tiny human was paralyzed.

There wasn't enough time for him to recover and truly escape his confines as the sound of people nearby filled his tiny ears. Metal slid against metal as whoever was within the room moved about. She seemed to be in a rush, her breath could be heard from where Mathew was and her footsteps filled his little ears. There was no time to search for a new pair of socks for her though - The ones she had previously worn into battle would have to suffice...

She was far too interested in the protection of her people that she didn't pay any mind to the little bit of debris she assumed Mathew to be. One moment the tiny creature was tossed around helplessly within the confines of her sock, the next moment she had already donned the stale fabric. Her toes slid over his little body easily, and while they were clean - they still held a slight musk. He was small enough for her to notice, but not care about... The fight was urgent, and she was needed on the battlefield. There was no time for small comforts here.

All Mat could do was whimper as he was quickly surrounded by darkness, her toes gripping at his helpless form as she donned her footwear. She and Damien had already applied their war paint earlier that day... The paint had multiple purposes in the desert - To protect the skin from insects and the sun, and to show allegiances toward their tribes and loved ones... Not that Mathew could see anything from his position beneath her toes.

With the last bit of her armor strapped into place, Serapeum donned her sword and ran toward the door. Mathew had a hard time keeping himself from slipping beneath her footfalls within her sock as she ran, each step a booming shock to his little body. It was nothing compared to what he would have to endure during her fight, however.

*Later*

The leather and her toes did nothing to block out the screams of battle as Serapeum set her foot upon the chest of a fallen enemy, only to plunge her dark sword deep into his throat. Mathew had survived up until this point, his body coated in her sweat as his own muscles had weakened from the stress of keeping himself in place. He felt as though he was slowly roasting within her boot as she fought in the sand. Grains of dirt and dust from her environment made the unwitting torture worse... He could hear her fight, he could hear the cries of her enemies as they fell beneath her sword.

Even if Mat tried, she would never notice him. Not during a fight...

He felt the force of her kick lift from the ground. It was the last straw in Mathew's grip strength... His weakened grip faltered as her foot collided with an enemy soldier. The motion itself didn't completely jar him loose, it merely sparked the series of events that would lead to the inevitable.

Serapeum's sword slid right into the enemy's back, piercing up through their spine and into their chest cavity as blood drained down over her hand. The kick was merely to get the enemy's body off of her sword so that she may move to the next one. She swung her sword out of his body, and with an amazing stroke of luck, the sword collided with the tip of an arrow causing it to deflect away from her body toward the ground. Before the archer could ready another shot, she had easily closed the gap between herself and him - completely unaware of the little body that had slid beneath her sole in her charge.

Mat gasped as he slid down beneath her foot as it lifted from the ground in the dirt. He could feel the grimy skin on his front as he fell within her sock. Her first step was far from enough to kill him though - the sand was good at spreading her weight as her foot sunk into the dune. It forced the air from Mat's tiny lungs as his frail little body clung to her skin. He could feel his bones struggle to keep from snapping as she pushed off of the ground, reaching to force her sword into the archer who used his bow to deflect her attack.

It was successful. He went to slam the bow down onto her back in order to escape the confrontation long enough for him to draw a sword of his own. She came up in her swing though, unexpectedly jamming her sword into his kidney and lifting him from the ground in a mighty throw.

The sand did not save Mathew this time, not with the combined weight of both Serapeum and her victim. He felt her soft skin become rock solid as it mercilessly bore down on him. As she held her enemy up with her sword, Mathew's tiny body strained only to give way beneath their combined weight. The little one popped, his body collapsing like an insect beneath her foot to mix with the sweat and dirt from the desert battle.... This, however, was not his end... His spirit clung to his body, which was still barely functional...

*That Night*

Sore from the battle, Serapeum made her way into a large darkened chamber. Mathew had been pummeled down with her footfalls, but he was still alive... He could smell every smell, feel every step as she made her way across the floor. Mathew couldn't hear what she was speaking about with the other individual in the room though, not over the sound of his own torment.

Serapum casually pulled off her boots, finally allowing free air to pass over Mathew's pained little body. She had every intention of quickly cleaning up after the battle. Her kingdom was built upon a river, one that they had harnessed in order to provide clean water to her people. However, there was much to discuss. She was far too wrapped up with her companion, who always managed to keep all of her attention. Damien was her entire world when they were together alone, a world that only a war could take her out of.

The red wine filled her golden chalice as they spoke to each other. Mathew could catch a word or two muffled from the pressure beneath her footfalls, since he no longer had the thick leather walls of her boots to worry about it was easier to hear....

With her wine in hand, she sat down before a series of maps that held enemy movements and displays of their own. It was late, and she had no intention of doing anything else with her night that would require her to be fully clothed. Casually, Serapeum pulled her feet free from her well used socks and set them aside to be cleaned later. She did not notice Mathew's tiny body stuck to her skin, surrounded in a mess of his own blood mixed with the sands of the desert. As she kicked her feet up onto the table, she leaned back in her chair and began to drink from her goblet of gold.

"Are you bleeding?" Damien asked curiously, sitting across from Serapeum.

"Probably." She replied.

Damien carefully pulled a small white cloth from her pocket. She slid her chair a bit closer to Serapeum's foot, taking note of the strange splatter of blood that adorned her sole. Mathew's hair was still in tact, which immediately made her think of a beetle or some other kind of insect.

"Hold still." She said with a caring tone as Serapeum took another drink from her goblet.

Carefully, she slid the cloth over Mathew's remains. He had been crushed to the point where he was unrecognizable as a human being, so it didn't even register that it could have been a tiny person. Such strange things in this world didn't exist... She was gentle, though when she noticed that Serapeum was completely alright, she simply wiped her foot clean.

Mathew's little body screamed in agony as Damien unwittingly crumbled his corpse into her cloth to be cleaned later. He was unable to hold himself to that world any longer, and that marked the end of his journey in that life. His spirit left his tiny body, on to the next world for him to explore.

"What a strange insect." Damien said, showing off the bloodied rag to Serapeum who simply chuckled.

Neither knew what had happened...