Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lykou and Kuna continued down the swirling tunnel of water, descending further and further below the waves. Whereas they’d previously come to think of the sun as an ever more powerful, omnipresent force during the day on the bright, tropical island they’d just left, its presence was slowly fading the further they went. Soon it was no match for the thickness of water being magically held above them. The shimmering light faded into an ever more deep blue, and eventually that blue turned darker and darker. Soon Lykou got his crystal out as well, to help light their way.

The tunnel wasn’t straight, either. It twisted and turned, avoiding various larger obstacles as they went along. The landscape, already strange compared to the surface world, only became moreso the further they went. It was like another world, with the chunks of coral, temporarily exposed to the air, and the slimy seaweed laying limp in hazardous patches on the ground. And there werre bits of dead or dying sea life that had opted to stubbornly stay behind and meet its doom when the waters receded. It was strange enough when there was still enough light to make out fish, turtles, and other strange creatures they didn’t recognize swimming around outside the tunnel- some of them startlingly large. A few even seemed to look at them with what they hoped was simple curiosity, as they passed by.

The boys stopped in surprise when part of the tunnel’s ‘wall’ bulged out and one of the eldritch residents of the abyss again approached them.

“Uh… hey there,” Lykou said, somewhat anxiously. Ordinarily he was always chipper to meet new people, regardless of how different they looked, but the Abyss-folk were disturbingly freaky even for him. This one looked like a fuzzy worm with a sickly cluster of eyes for a head, a round mouth below it that was lined with sharp, thin teeth, a row of fins on its sides, and five separate wispy feelers twitching around from random spots along its body. “Can we… help you?”

<([To the contrary, I am here to welcome you to the Abyss and help guide you the rest of the way. You are on the uppermost edge now, and the path will become steeper and more… treacherous for your kind, as you go along. So I have been sent to guide you around the potentially dangerous obstacles to come.])>

“Oh, well, um… thanks!” Lykou replied, trying to stay optimistic. “We appreciate that.”

“W-what… kind of hazards?” Kuna asked, staring with wide, somewhat fearful eyes at the creature.

<([They are various, as you will see. Rest assured that I will warn you well ahead of time.])>

“Alright then,” Lykou said, giving Kuna a quick reassuring side-armed hug. “Lead the way, I guess.”

<([Of course. Please watch your step. There are many slick spots. And avoid touching those,])> the creature explained, gesturing with one of its feelers to something that looked like a colorful mass of limp, slimy worms sticking out of a fleshy bulb. Occasionally the bulb twitched or undulated, temporarily drawing the worm-like protrusions back in before they slid out again. <([They will sting if they touch your flesh. It is quite painful, and can make you very sick.])>

Kuna gulped and nodded. “N-n-noted,” he said in a small, scared voice.

“Right, watch where we step and what we touch. Got it,” Lykou agreed, eyeing a couple clusters of the things.

<([Good. Please follow.])>

They began their slow, increasingly nerve-wracking descent deeper into the dark depths. As they went along, they periodically had to work their way around sudden deep, yet narrow trenches that seemed to drop away into a pitch black void. A few creatures that’d somehow survived the lack of water occasionally shifted around or slunk away as they approached. A few of them at first appeared to be rocks before they sprouted eyes, legs, and feelers, and shuffled away.

Their guide had them pause ahead of a cluster of holes on the ground for a moment. Suddenly, massive plumes of violent steam and foul-smelling gas erupted from them, causing Kuna to yelp and hide behind Lykou out of instinct. For his part, the konuul managed to stand his ground, other than jumping slightly in surprise. Once the steam and gas subsided and dispersed, the entity bid them to hurry past before it erupted again. On the other side, Kuna shot his friend a sheepish look. Lykou just chuckled and hugged him reassuringly.

As they continued, they both ogled their surroundings with a wide-eyed mixture of fear and fascination. It was like the strangest combination of forest and cave. The coral made them think of a strange combination of stone and plant life. Beyond the veil of the shimmering water, the light from their crystals occasionally showed what it was normally like, with various creatures hiding among the twisted terrain, and larger ones lurking above them. By far, it was the tentacled things that unsettled them most. Some had eyes that almost seemed to suggest an alien intelligence watching them as they creeped around on the ocean floor or swam in a strange bursts past them. The jellyfish were like phantoms as they drifted around on unseen currents. All of it was totally bizarre to them.

Along their path, they occasionally had to step around increasingly large starfish still clinging to the terrain. At one point, an octopus that’d managed to survive passing through the water barrier creeped across their path to hide in a dark hole under some coral. It freaked them out a bit realizing that the bizarre creatures could, in fact, enter the tunnel if they so chose- most just seemed to instinctively know it would be unpleasant for them. Still, Kuna nervously pondered if some of the larger things might decide they looked tasty enough to take that chance.

That fear slightly faded once they reached a point where they couldn’t even see the shadows of things out in the inky darkness anymore. But then it came back when they occasionally saw other, new things drift in and out of sight, somehow glowing with their own eerie lights from parts of their bodies. Some creatures were partly or even mostly translucent, displaying their organs and skeleton clearly as they passed by. Others had jaws that looked like something right out of a nightmare. But the most frightening of all were the ones that looked like enormous versions of creatures they’d seen before. On more than one occasion, they huddled together when a tentacled monstrosity whose body alone was larger than Hoku and Kani’s boat passed by, pausing momentarily to eye them before moving on.

At no point did their guide seem to pay them any mind, though. Lykou ended up wondering how many of the mostly hidden, strange creatures they occasionally caught glimpses of were other intelligent residents of the depths like the thing leading them down.

Finally, the rippling tunnel opened up into a large, round chamber. In the center, sitting at a slight angle on top of a slightly sloped chunk of ground that seemed somewhat mismatched from the surrounding terrain, was the arch they sought. As they approached, they gasped and jumped back slightly when a slightly familiar set of massive, glowing eyes opened up in the darkness just past the ‘ceiling’ of the chamber. A brief pulse of eldritch communication made them clutch their heads and reel with dizziness for a moment. Thankfully, it passed quickly.

<([T’nari wishes to again thank you for your part in putting an end to the demonic pestilence that plagued the nearby islands.])>

“N-no problem, heh,” Lykou said, smiling uneasily up at the eldritch god peering down at them. Kuna just clung to him and let his eyes dart around anxiously. “We were h-happy to help.”

<([We understand that you have quite a journey both behind you, and ahead of you. Should you ever find yourself in or on the ocean and have a need to speak with us, simply speak your message into the shell. But do not use it frivolously.])>

“O-of course, and… thank you,” Lykou replied, then gave a quick, slightly uncertain bow to the god, which Kuna mimicked wordlessly.

<([And rem-])> the creature began, then paused, shifting a bit. <([Oh? ...very well then. T’nari says not to panic, but it would like to contact you directly.])>

“Uh… contact us…?” Lykou asked in confusion.

“Y-you mean like-” Kuna started to ask, but yelped as a pair of watery tendrils suddenly extended into the chamber and drifted towards them. With wide, fearful eyes, he held the increasingly anxious konuul in a deathgrip as they approached.

“Uhhh… Okayyyy…”

As soon as the tendrils touched their heads, the water suddenly surrounded them and they briefly feared that they were about to drown. Then it hit them- that disorienting, intense projection they’d experience a couple times before, but almost unbearably strong. But then everything stopped.

When they opened their vision cleared, they were drifting in a vast, wide-open expanse filled with ethereal blue light. They thought they could hear faint, incoherent chanting, or at least something that sounded like it, coming from all directions. Strange words echoed in their minds…

{... it… is all… connected...}

Slowly, blurring forms came into sight and clarified into what appeared to be islands in all directions. Suddenly, things started moving in a sped-up, rapid motion, as the islands changed over time, with blips of different animals and even people appearing, moving, growing, going about life, and dying all around them. It gradually occurred to them that they were seeing a piece of the world’s history, somehow, all happening at a breakneck speed- though they could hardly make any sense of any specific bits of it, given how fast it was going by.

{… you… are part… of it…}

Then the view dropped down into the depths, where they saw the sea creatures they’d encountered on the way down, similarly sped up and gradually changing over time along with the shape of the sea floor. As strange as it all was, it suddenly felt more… beautiful, somehow. The movement slowed down to normal, as the world panned around them and they descended back down to the deepest depths.

{… there is beauty… everywhere… including… in the unknown… and in darkness…}

There was a brief pause, as the world slowly spun around them, with strange shapes and beings drifting in and out of sight.

{… remember… this truth…}

For a brief moment, they felt a strong sensation of peace pass over them. Then it faded, and everything went dark. They opened their eyes again back in the chamber as the water receded from their heads, somehow leaving them completely dry. The god’s eyes, still staring at them, faded into the inky darkness.

“...what… just happened…” Lykou quietly wondered aloud as he watched the eldritch god fade away.

<([T’nari took a look at both of your souls completely, for curiosity’s sake. So it gave you a tiny glimpse into its own perspective in return.])>

Kuna gawked briefly. “S-so… it saw all of-”

<([Yes.])>

“And we saw…?”

<([Yes. Was it… pleasant?])>

Lykou and Kuna shared a look, then held each other as they reflected on the strange moment. “Yeah… yeah it… really was, in a weird way,” Lykou said.

“Strange, but… reassuring somehow…” Kuna added.

<([Then know that you have the appreciation of one of the most ancient beings to still roam the mortal world. You are blessed, friends of the Abyss. And now,])> the strange entity slowly drifted back towards the edge of the chamber. Suddenly, the portal opened up in the arch, seemingly on its own, casting everything in a shimmering pale blue glow. <([Your journey awaits you. Farewell.])>

The entity vanished back into the water, leaving them alone in with the gateway. But somehow, they felt like there were still countless eyes watching them from the pitch black water as they cautiously approached the magical portal.

“Well… um. Th-thanks again,” Lykou said awkwardly, glancing around at the edges of the chamber.

“L-let’s go Kou,” Kuna urged, giving his arm a gentle tug as he approached the gate.

Lykou nodded and followed the sereva into the portal. The last thing he heard before passing through, was the cacophony of water suddenly and rapidly rushing back in just before the portal closed behind them.

*****

The moment they stepped out of the other side of the portal, they felt relief. The air was cooler, and more like what they were used to. It was also nice to be back above the ocean, with some daylight. Not a lot of it, however- the sky was completely clouded over and grey. A chilly breeze made Kuna shiver slightly.

“Finally, some place more comfortable!” Lykou said, after first looking around to make sure there were no nearby signs of danger.

“I’ll say,” Kuna greed, albeit with a more uncertain expression as he looked around. He couldn’t help but notice how dormant the forest they’d found themselves in looked. There wasn’t much brush around, and the trees were half barren and dead-looking. The sparse canopy was a small blessing, however, given the overcast sky. It wasn’t particularly dark, just… grey and drab.

Other than the occasional chilly breeze, there was no noticeable motion or sound. There were no small creatures skittering around, no insects buzzing in the air. The grass in the more open patches of land looked somewhat yellowed and short, as if it was winter time. And the other plants either looked completely unfamiliar, sick, or, in some cases, like dark-colored variants of things they were familiar with.

Lykou scratched his head. “Huh. This place seems…”

“Kind of depressing?” Kuna suggested.

“...yeah.”

The sereva shrugged after a moment. “Well, at least nothing’s attacked us yet, and the air’s more comfortable. As pretty as the islands were, it’s nice to have a break from the bright sun and heat.”

“Good point,” Lykou agreed. “I’ll kind of miss the color, though.”

“Yeah, I don’t remember seeing a place so… well, grey, before.”

“It’s called Kryckwood,” said a familiar voice behind them, startling them.

“Gah!” Kuna yelped, then spun around and clutched his chest as he calmed himself. “Dammit, Zyn!”

“Do you really have to sneak up on us like that?” Lykou asked with mild exasperation as he, too, turned to face the jarzin.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Zyn replied. And this time his serious expression made it clear he was telling the truth. “But yeah, this is… The Kryckwood, apparently. According to the few spirits I could get to talk to me around here, anyway.”

“Kryckwood, huh? Odd name,” Lykou said.

“Sooo… what can you tell us about it?” Kuna asked curiously. “And were there no… people you could ask? In disguise?”

Zyn shook his head. “Nope. No living ones anyway.”

That caveat immediately sent a chill down both Lykou and Kuna’s spines. “No… living ones?” Lykou asked hesitantly.

“I saw some… remains here and there. Very old ones, mind you- mostly bone. But you should still be careful.”

Kuna shivered and clung to Lykou. The konuul wrapped an arm around him and glanced around warily. “Any idea what killed them?”

“Not for sure, but I could take some guesses,” Zyn said, then sighed and unfolded his arms, fiddling with the bangles on one wrist. “Look I hate to disappoint you, really, but the fact is I… wasn’t able to scout around as much as I’d hoped.” He glanced off to the east for a moment, thoughtfully. “Kuna, I’m sure your spell will tell you the next gate is off that way. It’s in some old ruins surrounded by a bog. About a day or two’s hike, depending on how fast or slow you take it. And frankly I suggest being slow and careful around here.”

“Oh? ...what kept you from scouting around more?” Lykou asked.

“There are some… odd quirks in the weave here. What caused them, I can’t say for sure. But the result is that, thanks to us jarzin being as… close to the spirit world as we are, there’s some kind of barriers around some things that I can’t seem to get through.”

Kuna whimpered and held Lykou tightly. The latter just sighed heavily and planted his spear in the ground, then brought his now-free hand to his face. “Please... tell me it’s not-”

“No, let me stop you there. Whatever it is, it’s not the result of a demonic pact. I can at least tell you that much,” Zyn assured him. “If it was, it’d be suppressing all the local spirits, too. But in this case it’s specifically allowing certain ones in, un-hundered. And in some cases kind of… changing them, somehow. This kind of thing does happen in certain situations, for various reasons.”

“Like… Devashan?” Lykou asked curiously.

“Kind of. But that’s a different case,” Zyn replied, rubbing his neck thoughtfully. “We generally know, or at least strongly suspect we know why jarzin can’t go there. In this case, though, I have two guesses as to what’s going on.”

“...well go ahead and tell us then,” Kuna insisted with a frown. “No need to stall.”

“Sorry, just hate to make you two worry, after everything you’ve been through,” Zyn said, then took a deep breath and re-crossed his arms. “First option is that the spirit court sometimes decides to sort of… block off part of the world to give certain special kinds of spirits a chance to clean up and fix things after something especially bad happened there.”

“Like a demon twisting peoples’ beliefs and occasionally killing people for power over multiple generations?” Kuna suggest with a flat expression.

“...sometimes. But no, it won’t happen back there because there are surviving people there.”

Lykou and Kuna were struck by the implication. “...s-so you mean…”

“Yeah, if those bastards had somehow killed everyone on the island, then the spirit court might do something like that.”

“...fucking hells,” Lykou swore, staring at him wide-eyed. “That happens?”

“Very rarely, thankfully, but sadly yes,” Zyn confirmed. “Even worse, sometimes demons don’t even need to be involved. Sometimes mortals can be pretty damn evil all on their own.”

“That’s… I just can’t… wrap my head around that,” Lykou said with a deeply saddened, disbelieving expression. But then he remembered the burned village way back on the edge of the shakonu lands. “...damn, some people...”

Kuna frowned and looked away. He didn’t like it, but unfortunately he didn’t find it entirely unbelievable.

“That said, I really don’t think that’s the case here,” Zyn pressed on. “There’s definitely signs of death around- I mean, just look at this place- but that kind of thing only tends to happen when there’s a whole lot all in a short time. There’d have to be bodies- fairly fresh ones, even- all over the place to suggest such a huge tragedy that the spirit court decides to close the place up for a bit. And then it’d only be as long as it took to fix things up. And again, take a look around you.”

Lykou and Kuna did as he said. “...seems pretty dead but…”

“No sign of any fixing up,” Kuna finished.

“Exactly. The other option is that powerful magic users used other rituals- or possibly even Sylthean magic- to… change the place. Not in the way a demon would, but other ways. Less twisting the weave and more using it in ways that’ve been long forgotten by most.”

“S-so… what should we expect?” Kuna asked nervously.

“Honestly, I wish I could tell you. But it’s as much a mystery to me as it is to you. Users of magic like that are rare and can vary a lot. They might be friendly, they might be malevolent… or anywhere in between. And that’s assuming they’re even still around. Effects on the weave like that can take a very long time to correct themselves and return to normal, well beyond the lifespan of most mortals.”

“So, for all we know, those ruins you saw might be all that’s left of whoever did it,” Lykou commented. “Right?”

“Exactly. There’s no telling.”

“Great, walking into the unknown again,” Kuna said, then sighed heavily. “So much for the advanced warning…”

“Hey, he tried,” Lykou lightly chided him, while also giving him a gentle squeeze.

The sereva’s ears folded down a bit and he shot Zyn an apologetic look. “R-right, sorry… didn’t mean to sound unappreciative.”

Zyn waved it off. “Hey, I’m just sorry I couldn’t be more help. Trust me, Kuna, if I could, I’d whisk you two straight to the gate myself.”

“So is there anything else you can tell us?” Lykou asked.

The jarzin gave him an uncomfortable look, then sighed. “Just… be very careful. There may not be any pact demons around, but there may be other unnatural monstrosities and dangers out there. Not being able to explore big chunks of the forest mean I don’t know what all is out there, but I’m sure at least some of it is dangerous. So keep your guard up.”

Lykou nodded. “Will do. Hopefully we’ll get to the gate without any trouble, but we’ll handle it if it comes.”

Zyn finally smiled a bit. “I’m sure you will. Hey, you took down an especially crafty pact demon and his mortal crony. I doubt there’s much the world could throw at you that you couldn’t handle at this point.”

“Oh I’m sure it’ll find ways to make you eat those words,” Kuna snarked, but smirked a bit. “But still, thanks Zyn.”

The jarzin chuckled. “Ever the optimist, aren’t you?”

“That’s his job,” the sereva said, playfully bumping his head against Lykou’s shoulder. The konuul grinned and squeezed him again in response.

“Right, well… you two stay safe and I’ll check in on you when I can. If nothing else, on the other end of the next gate.”

“See you then, Zyn.”

With a puff of dark mist, the jarzin vanished, leaving Lykou and Kuna alone once again.

“Well… guess we better get walking,” Lykou suggested, pulling the spear back up out of the ground.

Kuna took another look around at their surroundings and shivered slightly. The life energy in the surrounding plant life definitely felt a bit… off. And subdued, especially in the case of the trees. “Yeah…”

*****

The boys walked through the forest with increased wariness. The day crept by slowly, but steadily. The woods were mostly silent, other than the sound of leaves and twigs snapping under their feet, and the occasional creaking and groaning of the trees when a brief wind blew through. They stopped only once, so that Kuna could finally change out of the sareo and into the nice warm robe he’d gotten in Clovaria. Luckily, Lykou had already put on his armored shirt and kilt before they even left the isles, so he was able to keep watch while the sereva changed. Otherwise, they pressed on without any major pauses, and ate lightly as they walked, when they got hungry.

The lack of visible wildlife was unsettling and really put them on edge. Kuna eventually pulled out his hatchet, just in case. Despite not seeing another living creature, they occasionally got the eerie feeling they were being watched. It never lasted more than half an hour at most, but it was unsettling nonetheless.

At one point, they came across a pond in a small clearing. Lykou took a sip from his waterskin and noticed it was getting low, so he bent down to refill it. But Kuna stopped him before he could dip the container into the water. “D...don’t,” he warned.

Lykou furrowed his brow and looked at the pond, then back at his companion. “...why not? It looks clear enough.”

“Yeah, that’s… that’s the point,” Kuna said, eyeing the water warily. “Don’t you find that odd?”

“...what do you mean?”

“Usually still ponds like that get all kinds of… you know, junk growing in them,” the sereva explained. “For clear water, it usually has to be flowing steadily. And honestly the, um… energy feels a bit off, from what I can tell.”

Lykou turned back to the pond and examined it. The water was crystal clear, and shallow. There was no pond scum or plant life anywhere in or around it. While the bottom was a mixture of dirt and rocks, the edges were all stony, and the dirt beyond the perimeter was bare for a short distance, as if even the grass and other plants were avoiding it. “Now that you mention it…”

“Yeah, see? It’s weird,” Kuna said, then patted the jug hanging at his side. “Don’t worry, I still have plenty, if you get thirsty. We should wait until we find a regular stream. I… don’t trust that water at all.”

The konuul nodded and stood up again. “Yeah, glad you caught that,” the konuul said, then shot him a small grin. “It’s a good thing Hoku taught you to pick up on that stuff, even if you haven’t worked out how to manipulate it yet.”

Kuna smiled back a bit. “Same here. Shame I didn’t get to teach her life magic in return, though…”

“Hey, she’s pretty smart. I wouldn’t be surprised if she figures it out on her own some day. And you did teach her soul magic, anyway.”

“Yeah… and if not, hey, hopefully I’ll get another chance some day.”

As they continued walking, Kuna took note of some of the plants he spotted along the way. Some looked familiar, albeit different from what he was used to. There was something that looked like lavender, except it was dark grey instead of its usual color, and some dandelions with spotted blueish flowers and dark green puffballs. He was glad they’d stocked up on food before they left the islands, because he wasn’t sure he’d trust anything he was seeing to be safe to eat.

Eventually, it started getting darker, and they realized the sun must be setting. So they quickly found the nearest clearing and set their things down, then began setting up a campsite. Kuna used his magic to grow and weave whatever plant life was nearby into a basic shelter, while Lykou started setting up a firepit. The pit didn’t take long, though, so he decided to go gather wood while the sereva was finishing up.

“W-wait, don’t go alone! Let me finish so I can come w-”

“Ku, don’t worry, I won’t go far,” Lykou assured him. “And I’ll use my bracers, just to be on the safe side.”

“A-alright… just… be careful,” Kuna insisted with a worried look.

“Don’t worry, I will. I’ll try and make it fast. The way this place looks, it should be easy finding dry wood, heh.”

Kuna hurried to finish forming the shelter, hoping to join his friend after finishing, assuming he didn’t return first. He did make sure to make the roots that made up the walls extra thick and sturdy, just to be on the safe side. It was more draining than usual, but he wanted to be sure they were well protected from any monstrous dangers that might be lurking in the eerie forest. As soon as he was done, he quickly tucked their belongings away inside, then hurried to join up with the konuul.

Soon he realized he didn’t see his friend anywhere. Panic immediately started to set in- and the growing darkness wasn’t helping matters. He quickly pulled out the crystal Whironui had given him and used it to light the way as he searched for his friend. “Kou? L-Lykou?? W-where are you?” he called out, though he was nervous about being too loud, just in case something else might hear him- something unpleasant and hostile. Still, he soon started to raise his voice when he couldn’t find the canid anywhere.

Suddenly, his heart nearly leaped into his throat when a hand closed over his mouth and he was quickly pulled back. His panic quickly turned to relief, though, when he recognized the hands that’d grabbed him.

“Shh… look,” Lykou said in a hushed tone, then removed the hand from Kuna’s mouth and pointed into the distance.

Kuna squinted and peered into the dark depths of the forest, then gasped softly when he saw what the canid was pointing at. Every so often, a dim, ethereal light appeared, drifting around through the trees, then vanished again, only to reappear a yard or two away. Another one showed up a short distance away a few moments later.

“Some kind of spirit, I assume?” Lykou said, watching in fascination. “From what Zyn said, there’s probably no point in trying to talk to them, but-”

“A-absolutely not,” Kuna said, wide-eyed and trembling in his arms. “I… I recognize those.”

“Y… you do?”

The sereva nodded slowly. “I… I f-forget what their actual name is, but I remember s-stories about them that call them various things. Wisps, flames of the forlorn, phantom lights... They’re s-supposed to guide lost souls- ghosts- to the afterlife. Thing is, they… can get a bit… c-confused or overzealous, or s-something. L-lead people to their death or even t-try to pull their soul to the other s-side before their time. I have n-no idea why.”

Lykou stared wide-eyed at the glowing wisps in the distance. “...oh. Fuck.”

“W-we should be safe as long as we don’t pay too much attention to them or give them a-any reason to think we’re in need of their… ‘help’,” Kuna said, then gulped. “S-still, let’s… try and avoid them.”

“Gladly,” Lykou replied, then bent down to pick up some wood he’d been gathering before he spotted the eerie spirits. “Lets just... get back to camp…”

“R-right,” Kuna agreed, helping him gather up the branches he’d collected. “I hate to say it but… the f-fact that those things are around means there’s a good chance there are s-some ghosts out here.”

“...let’s just… hope we don’t encounter them, then,” Lykou said as they walked back to the camp. “On another note… did you happen to notice if that stream we passed near here ‘felt’ right?”

“Oh, yeah. I take it you want to go refill after we drop this off?”

“Yeah, shouldn’t take long.”

“I’m coming with you, then,” Kuna insisted, then shot the konuul a look. “Don’t even think of arguing.”

Lykou smirked and playfully bumped against the sereva as they started walking back. “Hey, works for me. You finished the shelter for the night, right?”

“Mhmm.”

“No reason to stay behind this time, then. I’d welcome your company,” the konuul remarked, then glanced around warily. “In fact now that I think about it, especially with those… spirit things around, we should probably… avoid splitting up any more than necessary here.”

“My thoughts exactly. And that goes double at night.”

It took them some time to find the camp again in the dark, to the point that they started to worry they’d lost their way. Kuna eventually used his soul magic to guide them back, using a certain blood-smudged stone in his pack back in the shelter as an anchor point for the navigation spell. After they dropped the wood off, Lykou decided to go ahead and get a small fire started before going to fill his waterskin, so they’d have an easier way finding their way back to it.

Kuna brought his water jug along to top it off as well, even though it was still about half full. They took turns, so that one could keep watch around them while the other filled their respective container, with Lykou filling his first. As Kuna was finishing filling his jug, the canid let out a small yelp. The sereva quickly spun around to see what was the matter and his eyes went wide.

One of the floating, glowing orbs was in the middle of passing straight through the konuul, who looked very disturbed and uncomfortable with the situation, to say the least. “K-Ku-n-n-na…” the canid said, shivering and staring in mild horror at the thing as it drifted out in front of him. For a moment, it continued on its way, but then it paused and drifted closer to the konuul again.

The sereva was immediately by his friend’s side and grabbed his arm with a shaky hand. “H-hey Kou, I’m good to g-go. N-n-nice night, huh?” he said with a very fake, uneasy smile as he very deliberately avoided looking at the orb that was now floating right next to them.

Lykou gave in a slightly incredulous look for a moment, then glanced back and forth between him and the orb. With a subtle, yet urgent nudge from the sereva, he realized what he was doing and quickly smiled back uncomfortably and gave a small nod. “Y-yeah, n-nice and chilly, g-g-good night to c-cuddle by a n-n-nice fire!”

The orb drifted uncomfortably close to them for a moment, then faded into thin air. A moment later, it appeared a yard or two away, slowly continuing on its meandering path through the woods. Lykou and Kuna kept up the casual facade as they started walking back to their camp as nonchalantly as possible, until finally they glanced back and saw that the orb was far away. They then quickly embraced one another, trembling. “F-fuck that was too close,” Lykou muttered, staring into the distance fearfully.

Kuna wasn’t used to his friend being so shaky, and squeezed him extra tightly in response. “Y-yeah. You alright?”

“I… I think s-so,” the canid answered after a moment, his trembling slowly fading. “That f-felt fucking weird, though. And s-so, so cold…”

“I bet… come on, l-let’s get back to the fire and warm up.”

“Sounds good to m-me,” Lykou agreed.

As soon as they returned to camp, they added some more wood to the fire, then quickly cuddled up together next to it. Each of them got out some food, though neither had very much of an appetite and spent more time holding the other than eating.

“Y… you don’t think that thing… did s-something to me, do you?” Lykou asked.

Kuna thought for a moment, then slowly shook his head. “I don’t think so. You’d know if it did.”

“G-good. Felt like a fucking winter m-morning in my chest there for a minute w-when it… you know.”

“They’re l-like ghosts that way. Seems like any kind of spirit r-related to death tends to be cold.”

“...makes sense, I guess.”

They both jumped slightly at the sound of a hooting owl in the distance. They exchanged a brief look, then Lykou tried to shrug it off with a slightly uneasy smile. “Heh, owls… a-at least that’s pretty normal.”

“Kou. We didn’t see any animals here today.”

“...well, I mean… owls are nocturnal, so… it was probably just sleeping off in some hiding spot during the day.”

“...what would it eat? W-we… didn’t see any squirrels or chipmunks or anything, either.”

Lykou looked around warily. “...m-maybe all the critters in this forest are nocturnal.”

“N-not a lot of plant stuff for anything to eat, either. N-no… berries or anything,” Kuna said, then gulped. “Though I s-suppose we just haven’t seen it yet.”

They both continued to eat slowly in silence, taking note of every little sound the forest made. The breeze picked up, however, making an occasional faint, eerie sound as it moved through the trees. The stronger gusts made the trees creak and groan. The presumed owl hooted again a few times. It didn’t seem any closer than before, so at least if it was something else, it didn’t seem to be honing in on them or anything.

“Y-you think those… spirits will bother us in our sleep?” Lykou nervously asked.

“I d-doubt it. They’re n-not likely to bother you unless you l-look lost or pay too much attention to them. Which doesn’t tend to apply to s-sleeping people.”

Eventually they finished their light dinner and just sat there, eyeing the darkness beyond the fire with suspicious wariness. The moon peeked through the clouds, casting a faint glow on the far end of the clearing for a moment before the clouds passed by again. They half expected to see some kind of monster to come creeping out of the woods towards them. Fortunately, nothing of the sort happened, and a few minutes later the moonlight was again obscured by cloudcover.

“This f-forest really creeps me out,” Kuna said quietly.

Lykou squeezed him gently. “S-same here…”

“...let’s get s-some sleep. The sooner w-we do, the sooner we can get up and t-try to get to the gate as quick as p-possible.”

“Y-yeah, alright,” Lykou agreed. He got up and banked the fire while Kuna set up their new bed mat. Once they were both were inside, the sereva used his magic to seal up the entrance good and tight, leaving just enough small gaps near the top of their shelter to ensure they’d get some fresh air. Both of them huddled close and it took a while for them to doze off. Even through the thicker-than-usual wall of roots around them, the periodic sounds of the forest were still unsettling. But they at least took comfort in one another’s closeness as they did so.

Chapter Text

The next morning, Lykou and Kuna woke up to a chilly, misty morning. Once Kuna opened the shelter, they were met with a dense fog that covered the entire forest floor. The poor visibility didn’t help their nerves. Lykou tried starting a fire, but the thick, moist air made it impossible, so they ended up eating breakfast in the dim shelter together as they waited for the fog to lift.
“So did you sleep alright?” Lykou asked quietly, trying to ease the mood with some casual small talk.
“W-well enough,” Kuna nervously replied, after taking a sip of water. “S-surprisingly no nightmares.”
“That’s good. Definitely feels like the kind of place that would inspire ‘em,” the konuul said, then took a bite of dried, salted pig meat.
“...yeah. Yeah it does.” Kuna just stared out into the fog warily, keeping his mystical senses keen for any new, moving sources of life energy since it was the only way they’d be able to detect anything approaching in the thick fog.
An hour passed, then two. Finally, the fog started to lift, though patches of it remained in various spots of the forest. When they again left their shelter, the noticed faint marks in the clearing that suggested something had visited in the night, much to their extreme discomfort. They came up to the fire, then made a path around towards the shelter, then circled it a few times before wandering off into an area that was still covered by fog. They couldn’t make out what specific kinds of prints they were, but the idea they’d had any kind of company at all without knowing it definitely unsettled them. They both looked around the surrounding area with some level of paranoia, expecting some kind of monster to suddenly leap out from around one of the trees at any minute. But nothing came, and Kuna still couldn’t sense anything out there.
Finally, they carefully and quietly packed up, taking turns keeping watch while the other gathered their things. Kuna used his magic to return their shelter back to something resembling a cluster of mundane plant life, though it still stood out slightly given it was a much bigger cluster than anywhere else nearby. Once they were ready, they quickly started making their way through the woods, hoping that nothing was following them.
After an hour of hiking, Kuna started to notice something odd further out in the forest. At first, he couldn’t tell what it was, but something seemed off. He started to slow down a little as he peered into the distance to their right. Lykou took note of his friend’s distracted state. “Everything alright, Ku?”
Kuna slowed to a stop and squinted. “I’m… not sure…”
“What are you looking at?” the konuul asked as he stood next to him and peered out in the same direction.
“...some of the shadows out there s-seem… off. Like… they’re m-moving, but I can’t figure out what they’re being cast by,” Kuna said, shivering slightly. “They’re… n-not lined up with any branches that I can tell.”
“...hey yeah, I see it now,” Lykou said, eyeing the dark patches warily.
Suddenly, one of the shadows overtly slid away across the ground between the trees and made its way close to them. They both gasped and took a step back, staring at it with wide eyes. That’s when a pair of dim, glowing eyes appeared within the shadow, staring back at them curiously.
Kuna arched a brow after a moment and clung to the canid. “Th… that k-kind of looks like...”
“One of those things Ink always has around?” Lykou finished for him. “Y-yeah, it does…”
The shadow continued watching them for a moment, then slipped back off, seemingly losing interest in them.
“...you think she sent it to watch us?” Lykou asked quietly as he followed it with his eyes, not wanting to give it a chance to sneak up on them.
“I… d-don’t know. Pretty sure shadow s-spirits are a n-normal thing technically, but I don’t know a-anything about them,” Kuna said, glancing back over to where he saw a few more shadows in the distance whose movements didn’t line up with anything. “I… don’t think they’re d-dangerous, generally…”
“Are you sure?”
“...n-no.”
“We… should probably keep our distance then. At least it doesn’t look interested in following us,” the canid commented, watching the one that’d investigated wander back off into the distance. “What were those two Ink had with her called again? Ch…. Chaiko and something?”
“Chaiko and Baniv, yeah,” Kuna confirmed, nodding slightly. “Creepy things d-definitely fit in around here, at least.”
“No kidding…” Lykou said, tightening his grip on his spear for a moment. “Well… let’s keep going. Looks like they’re mostly sticking to that one area right now.”
Kuna nodded. “G-gladly.”
They continued hiking for several more hours without incident. Despite approaching noon, things never brightened up much. The skies remained consistently covered with grey clouds, limiting the daylight to a very muted level. If it wasn’t for the sparse foliage in the trees, they might have needed to use their crystals to see their way through some areas. As it was, it just ended up making everything look drab and eerie.
And it also made a light stand out more when they saw it flickering up ahead. As they got closer, they realized that it was some kind of ethereal, white-blue flame dancing around inside a hollowed-out gourd lantern hanging from one of the many barren trees. They both approached with considerable wariness, noting no other signs of people around.
The flame bewildered them. It was clearly no ordinary fire. It had no notable source and didn’t put off any heat. Not to mention its appearance definitely reeked of some kind of magic. In fact, Kuna couldn’t help but stare in wide-eyed fascination at it as they got closer, while Lykou kept glancing around, expecting for whoever put it there to show up any moment. And he had a strange feeling they wouldn’t be friendly. “Wonder who put that thing here? Haven’t seen any sign of anyone living around here,” he commented, then turned his attention back to the odd lantern. “Never heard of fire like that before, either. Some kind of magic, I assume...”
Kuna just stood there, staring at it in silence.
Lykou noticed his odd fixation and nudged him gently. “You with me, Ku? What’s wrong?”
The sereva slowly lifted his hand and pointed to it. “That… that’s… I thought that w-wasn’t supposed to… be possible...”
“...what’s not?” Lykou asked, slightly concerned about the sereva’s reaction.
“Kou, that’s… I’m sensing pure s-soul energy there….”
“...what.” The konuul stared at the ethereal flame for a minute, then arched a brow at his friend. “You’re telling me this weird flame is… some kind of weird soul-fire or something? I thought that was the one kind that didn’t enter the mortal world?”
“S-so we’ve been told,” Kuna said, stepping slightly closer to the lantern. After a moment, he conjured up a certain pale silver-blue glow around his hand. “I wonder…”
“Careful, Ku…”
“Believe me, I will be.” Kuna closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment, just feeling it out. Then he reopened them and carefully tried to manipulate the soul-energy fire dancing around within the gourd. He found it oddly difficult to grasp, though. And the moment he did, he was suddenly snapped back by something and yelped as he dismissed the magic. Lykou immediately grabbed him and held him protectively.
But almost immediately afterward, before the konuul could ask if he was alright, a strange, whispery voice echoed from around the flame, as previously-hidden lines and runes started to glow on the gourd’s surface. “What traveler passes through this dark and cursed land?”
Lykou and Kuna shared a look, then Kuna nervously cleared his throat. “Uh… m-my name’s Kuna, and this is my friend Lykou. Wh… who, and what, are you??”
There was a brief pause, then the voice continued, seemingly ignoring the question in favor of asking another of its own, “What is your purpose in the Kryck? What is it you seek?”
“We’re just passing through, actually,” Lykou chimed in. “We’re trying to make our way home, and it so happens that our path involves an old Sylthean gateway that’s somewhere out this way.”
Again, there was another pause- longer this time. When the voice didn’t seem inclined to respond, Kuna spoke up again. “Um. Y-you didn’t mention your name. Are-”
“Find another way.”
“...s-sorry, what?”
“Turn back… for the sake of your souls.”
Before they could respond, the flame mysterious snuffed itself out. The glowing lines and symbols on the preserved gourd itself similarly vanished.
“...hello? Are you still there?” Lykou asked, just on the off-chance they could still communicate with whoever, or whatever they’d been speaking to. A few moments of silence answered him. “...guess not…”
“...w-what a shame,” Kuna commented, staring at the empty gourd with a flat expression. “We definitely need m-more ambiguously ominous advice f-from mysterious talking ghost-fires in our lives.”
As much as it amused him to see the sereva getting snarky again, the warning definitely unsettled Lykou. “For the sake of our souls… yeah, nothing ominous about that,” he said, then sighed. “We’ll definitely have to stay on our toes.”
“…let’s keep going. Sooner we get out of this place, the better,” Kuna said, looking around the woods anxiously.
“Definitely,” Lykou agreed as they continued to push onward. Again, they continued through the day, avoiding stopping as much as possible. Something about the eerie atmosphere muted their appetite anyway. Kuna considered if it might be more than just psychological, though- with the subdued life energy in all the trees and the general lack of animal life, he had to wonder if the place might be having some kind of mild effect on them that they didn’t yet understand.
Around mid-afternoon, they started down a long, mild slope. With the sparse foliage and the trees becoming slightly more spread out, they were able to see the terrain changing a bit up ahead. They were clearly approaching a bog, with stagnant, still pools of water everywhere and pockets of mist and fog lingering over some of them. And further away, in the bog, they could see hints of the ruins off in the distance.
But what was more concerning were the bones. They were scattered around and becoming more commonplace the further they went. None of them looked chewed on, oddly enough. Or, for the most part, broken. They were just… laying there, half-buried in the increasingly muddy soil. Some might’ve been animal bones, but most were clearly from people of various kinds- though it was hard to tell what their species might have been.
A bit of motion startled them as a crow- the first normal living animal they’d seen so far- flew down and perched on a low tree branch some distance ahead of them. Though initially surprised, they found it slightly reassuring to see an ordinary animal at last. At first, at least.
As they approached, the bird watched them intently. Finally, when they got close enough, it cawed a few times, catching their full attention. Then… it spoke. “Beware.”
Lykou and Kuna stopped to stare back at it for a moment. “...another talking bird?”
“L-looks like an ordinary crow to me,” Kuna said. “B-but I definitely heard it too…”
Lykou eyed the bird curiously. “...beware of what, exactly?”
The crow stared back silently, not moving save for where the breeze lightly ruffled its feathers. Finally, it spread its wings. “They do not sleep,” it said in its raspy voice, then took off again.
“Oh goody, more f-fucking vague warnings,” Kuna snapped after the bird. “How w-wonderfully helpful! The bones just w-weren’t enough, I’m s-so glad you came along!”
“Shh, Ku,” Lykou anxiously hushed him, though he couldn’t help but smirk a little bit at his friend’s sass. “We don’t know what might be out there. Don’t want to get any unwanted attention.”
Kuna sighed and let his ears droop a bit. “Right… s-sorry,” he said, then leaned over against the canid. “I’m just so tired of this shit… why couldn’t we just end up some place nice for a while?”
Lykou hugged him gently and rubbed his side a bit. “Hey, maybe the next place. As long as we stick together, we’ll be alright.”
The sereva shot him a brief smile, then looked back down into the bog warily. “...I just have a bad feeling we’re not going to be able to just walk right up to the next gate.”
Lykou nodded and frowned. “Yeah… at this rate, probably not. But whatever’s in the way, we’ll handle it. C’mon.”
They continued walking down to the ruins after collecting themselves. The air seemed slightly chillier the closer they got. Kuna was glad he’d switched over to his robe. The closer they got, the more they could tell that ruin was definitely the right word for the place- most of what they saw were chunks of broken walls, with no sign of any in-tact buildings with roofs. Of course, the exterior wall surrounding the place wasn’t exactly short, even though it had large cracks and missing chunks. The lowest crumbling fragment they could see still would have been hazardous to climb, especially given that its base was partly submerged in murky water. There was no telling how deep it was, and in any case the stone near the bottom of the wall was covered in slick algae.
There wasn’t much of a well-defined treeline to speak of- patches of trees, sickly-looking brush, and water all brushed up against chunks of the wall in various places. Navigating around the watery areas was tricky, but fortunately they found a solid, if wet and muddy section of land that meandered around the ruins. They ended up wandering for a short while in search of a way in.
Kuna froze when he spotted something in a still, clear section of water that chilled him to the bone. When Lykou noticed he’d stopped, he stepped back to see what his friend was looking at. His eyes widened as they fell on the face of a strangely well-preserved corpse staring back at him from under the perfectly still water, with vacant, dead eyes. He didn’t recognize the species, of course. They were caniform, but not like konuul. Their snout was shorter and their ears more rounded. Their fur was all brown or black, though that might’ve just been mud and silt from the surrounding earth that the rest of the body was half-buried in.
“...definitely not drinking the water here,” Lykou half-whispered, trying to bring some levity to the situation to cover up for how disturbed he really was.
“N-nope,” Kuna agreed.
“I wonder how long ago they died…”
“...or w-w-what killed them.”
Lykou eyed the corpse for another moment, then gently pulled Kuna away from the sight. “Let’s… hope we don’t have to find out.”
Much to their dismay, they found one or two more bodies laying in or around some of the waterlogged areas. They even spotted what may have been a sereva among them, with two broken protrusions on their head. But the water around it was murky enough that they couldn’t get a good look at the rest of them.
“W-where the fuck is the entrance to this place?” Kuna finally wondered aloud. “I’m t-t-tired of seeing f-fucking bodies everywhere.”
“That’s a good que- hey, wait, what’s that?” Lykou replied, pointing to something in the mud.
Kuna squinted, then cautiously took a closer look. “...footprints?”
“Shit, someone’s been here recently? Maybe they’re still here!”
“And possibly dangerous,” Kuna pointed out with a warning tone.
“Maybe. But they might also be the only friendly thing out here for all we know. Or at the very least they might know this area better than us. They might be able to show us the way in,” Lykou pointed out. “Don’t get me wrong, I know we should be careful, but let’s try and have a little optimism, yeah?”
“...if you s-say so.”
“And if not, we have our bracers.”
“Right…”
They began following the tracks carefully through the mud, with plenty of reluctance in Kuna’s case. The way the prints wandered around made it seem like their owner had also been looking for an entrance to the ruins. And occasionally they ended up backtracking and pausing in various places from time to time.
Finally, when they rounded the corner of a particularly stout tree, Lykou stopped, temporarily blocking Kuna. “Oh, hey there we-” he started to say, but then paused and tilted his head as he examined the individual reclining against the other side of the tree. The stranger hadn’t moved since Lykou announced himself, but he didn’t see any signs of injuries. “Uh… hello? You alright?”
Kuna cautiously squeezed his way around Lykou to see who he was talking to, skirting around another corpse-occupied little pond in the process. He grimaced when he saw the stranger the canid had been talking to and nudged his friend lightly. “...n-no life energy, Kou. Just a-another body.”
Lykou frowned and sized the corpse up. Even though it was completely exposed to the elements, the body looked fresh, with no obvious signs of injury. He nervously reached out with the blunt end of his spear and carefully lifted the figure’s chin, to get a look at their face. Their eyes were closed, and they almost looked peaceful. Whatever they died from was a mystery. “Eesh… he almost looks like he might wake up any moment. Wonder what got him?”
Kuna shivered. “It’s… a-almost scarier not seeing a-any obvious injuries. I… d-don’t think I want to look any further for them, though.”
“Yeah no, me either,” Lykou said, then pulled his spear back again, gently letting the head slip back down to its previous position.
“F-f-fucking shit this place is the creepiest,” Kuna muttered, rubbing his arms and looking around anxiously.
“Yeah… and I hate to scare you more, but with how fresh this one is, whatever got him probably isn’t far.”
Kuna gulped. “Y-you don’t have to r-r-remind me” he said, sticking close to the konuul. “I’m on g-guard for a-a-any moving s-signs of life energy… s-so far n-nothing nearby.”
“Good idea,” Lykou said, then furrowed his brow as a worrying thought occurred to him. “Uh… ghosts can’t… kill directly, can they?”
The sereva shot him a nervous look. “...n-not directly, no. Not that I’m a-aware of anyway. H-hungry ghosts might possess dead bodies though, w-which is a different s-story…”
Lykou’s eyes widened as he looked back at the body and took a few big steps away from it. “...l-let’s just… try not to get closer to any more then. Just… just to be on the safe side.”
“W-works for me,” Kuna agreed, watching the body anxiously as they walked away.
They continued searching the wall at the edge of the ruins, until finally they found a path inside. It was like a crumbling hallway without a roof, and it led into a circular chamber. On one side was a gate made out of some kind of metal blocking the way further in. It reminded them of whatever material that’d been used for Lykou’s cell and Kuna’s cage during that dire point in their previous adventure- a fact that made them both very uneasy, especially because they’d forgotten to ask around about it after all the demon-shit had been dealt with. And again, there was an indent in the middle of the ornate framework- circular this time.
Lykou sighed and looked around while Kuna examined the designs and symbols around the indent. “Well… there must be some kind of magic stone around here if it works like those others did,” the konuul muttered. “We need to remember to ask Zyn about that stuff next time we see him.”
“Y-yeah. N-not that I even l-like thinking about it, but it’d probably be good to know m-more about it, and these s-symbols and the magic involved.”
Lykou wandered around the circular section they found themselves in, looking for any clues or loose stones. When he got back to the path they’d entered through, he nearly leapt back in surprise when he saw someone standing just a yard or two back, looking straight at him. “Oh, fuck!” he blurted out in surprise, then quickly put on a friendly smile as he quickly re-composed himself. “Shit, you startled me. I thought we were the only people alive around here, heh.”
Kuna looked over with alarm and nervously came to see who he the hell he was talking to. When he got there, his blood ran cold.
“You wouldn’t happen to be familiar with this place would you? My name’s Lykou by the way, my friend Kuna and I are-” Lykou continued, then paused when Kuna practically crushed his arm with a death-grip trying to pull him away and get his attention. “Huh? What is it?”
“N-n-no… l-life e-e-energy…” Kuna stammered out in a terrified whisper, staring in horror at the figure standing between them and the exit.
Lykou slowly turned back to the stranger and looked at her for a moment. It was surreal- she looked in decent shape, at least at a first glance. Again, he didn’t recognize her species. He didn’t notice any big wounds anywhere. But after a moment, he realized he couldn’t see her breathing, either. And though her eyes were open, there was a decidedly dead, absent look in them. Her clothes looked extremely worn and deteriorated, like they could fall apart any minute- and she was soaking wet. The more he looked, the more little things seemed off.
Slowly, he backed up with Kuna by his side, his heart racing. The stranger took a few steps forward to match their retreat, albeit slowly. That was when the wound was revealed- as she moved, a large slash across her belly occasionally showed itself ever so slightly. Somehow, there were no signs of blood.
“F-f-fuck,” the konuul swore, his shivering now matching Kuna’s. Living things he could deal with. They’d even beaten a demon at that point. But what could he hope to do to something that was already technically dead? “H-hungry g-g-ghost?”
“I… I d-don’t know,” Kuna responded, clinging to him fearfully. “N-normally I’d s-s-say it’d have t-to be, b-but she’s n-not acting like one.”
“...hey, y-yeah… isn’t she s-supposed to be overwhelmed w-with insatiable hunger if th-that’s the case?”
“D-don’t jinx it,” Kuna retorted. “B-but yeah…”
They both stood there for a moment, watching the undead entity with a mixture of horror and confusion. But she didn’t come any closer. Every time they moved, she moved to match them, but otherwise made no further approach.
“W-why is she just…. S-standing there?”
“Gee, l-let’s just ask her,” Kuna snarked, again retreating into his old defense mechanisms.
“Wait…” Lykou looked her over, then straightened up a bit and suddenly took a few steps forward. Kuna reached to stop him, but they were both surprised when the stranger took a few steps back to match the canid.
“W-what the…”
“I… I d-don’t think it’s a h-hungry ghost,” Lykou commented hesitantly. “I d-don’t know what the fuck’s going on b-but… I think this is s-s-something else…”
“...m-maybe…”
“...let’s… get out of here,” the konuul suggested, then reached down and activated his bracers. “Carefully…”
Kuna nodded and activated his as well. “B-best idea you’ve e-ever had.”
Slowly, they advanced back the way they came, keeping their guard up. The walking corpse steadily kept backing away as they did so, never taking her glassy eyes off them. The way she moved was bizarre to see. It was jerky and unnatural, like she was being manipulated on strings. And she didn’t have to watch where she was going, she just naturally avoided any obstacles without looking.
They were in for a surprise when they came back out through the exit, freezing on the spot when they saw all the other bodies. There were at least a dozen of them clustered near the exit- mostly in surprisingly good shape. Kuna recognized a couple from the ponds. Further back, more decayed-looking bodies could be seen rising and slowly approaching from other corners of the bog. They even spotted some completely barren skeletons slowly and somewhat shakily walking towards them.
Kuna was on the verge of a mental breakdown, and only managed to avoid it thanks to the mutual death-grip he and Lykou had on each other, reassuring one another of their presence. Fortunately, despite all the bodies clustering around them, none of them came within three or four yards of them. After collecting themselves a bit, the two continued to press forward, eyeing the undead anxiously as they parted around them.
Suddenly, they froze again when a sound caught their attention. Some commotion in the trees caused a twig to snap and fall. They looked up to see a squirrel- something reassuringly normal for once- skittering along a lower branch on one of the trees that brushed up against the ruins. It looked very lean- probably had a hard time finding decent, filling food in those woods.
All of the sudden, Lykou and Kuna weren’t the only ones staring at the squirrel. When it got near the wall, all the corpses’ head suddenly snapped to the side to watch it with intense focus. With the boys no longer the closest living thing to the ruins, they began shuffling closer to the squirrel, which had paused on the branch as it noticed its grim audience approach. A few absently bumped Lykou and Kuna as they passed, nearly scaring the piss out of them in the process.
The squirrel, sensing growing danger, bolted to the wall and hopped onto it. The moment it crossed over to the other side, all hell broke loose. The undead suddenly became very lively and aggressive, enthusiastically bolting with intense speed towards the wall. It was a sight neither Lykou or Kuna would ever be able to scrub from their memories, and they stood there, frozen with terror as the bodies began piling up against the wall, some getting submerged into the water at its base, as they all scrabbled and clawed at each other in an attempt to scale it and get into the ruins. Gradually, a number of them managed to make it over.
The commotion continued for a few minutes, until they all suddenly became calm again. Several minutes later, one of the ones that’d made it over the wall came calmly walking back with a terrified and panicking squirrel thrashing around madly in the tight grip of its hand. With an eerie serenity, it calmly walked right over the edge of the wall and down the pile of bodies that were still jumbled up against it. It descended down into one of the watery pits, taking the increasingly alarmed squirrel with it. Its pathetic sounds soon turned to muted bubbling sounds as it was taken into the water. Eventually, the bubbles stopped.
Several tense minutes passed in unsettling silence and stillness. Then, the body- along with a fresh squirrel corpse- crawled back out and joined the rest, watching Lykou and Kuna in eerie silence. The heads of all the other corpses had turned back to face them as well. They both instinctively took several large, shaky steps back in response. Fortunately, there was plenty of open ground behind them, with no trees or water in the way.
At that point, the rest of the dead began slowly, calmly walking back to wherever they’d previously been ‘resting’, with a few shooting vacant looks at the two very scarred boys as they passed. Lykou and Kuna were totally at a loss for words, their jaws hanging open in horror at what they’d just witnessed- and the implications involved. One thing was abundantly clear- the barrier keeping them out of the ruins likely just saved them from an utterly nightmarish fate on par with even Kuna’s worst nightmares.
When they were finally able to move again, Lykou and Kuna shakily turned to face each other, trembling more than they ever had before. After a brief understanding non-verbally passed between them, they immediately turned and broke into a mad, terrified dash back the way they’d come. They didn’t give a flying fuck about being stealthy or avoiding anything’s notice. They just wanted to put as much distance between themselves and that waking nightmare as they could, as quickly as they could.
*****
Only when their lungs were burning and their legs were about to give out from under them did the boys finally slow to a stop and collapse against the far side of a thick tree trunk together, leaning against one another. They didn’t speak for a solid ten minutes at least, just panting and whimpering slightly as they tried to wrap their head around what they’d just witnessed. When they finally collected themselves enough to return to their senses somewhat, Kuna climbed into Lykou’s lap, and they just clung to each other and shivered uncontrollably, letting some tears of fright trickle away as they sought mutual comfort in the other’s embrace.
“W-w-what the fuck w-was that?” Lykou murmured finally.
Kuna just shook his head slightly and stared off into the distance. “I… I d-d-don’t have a f-fucking clue. All I know is I’m n-n-not s-sleeping tonight.”
“M-me either at this r-r-rate,” the konuul replied.
For a while, they just sat there, holding onto one another as the only thing anchoring them, each resting their chin on the other’s shoulder. Other than their own jittery breathing, sniffling, and trembling, the only sounds and movements came from the occasional gust of wind moving through the eerie forest. Every little creak and snap somewhere out in the woods made them jump slightly, until finally they were out of energy to do so.
“W-what are we gonna do, Kou?”
“...I have no idea,” Lykou replied after a moment. “We sure as fuck can’t fight our way through all that, though.”
“You were warned…” a whispery voice spoke from nearby, making them both nearly jump out of their skin and tumble over in a tangled mess of limbs. They looked up to see that they’d apparently collapsed back at the tree with the hanging gourd on one side. The ethereal flame had returned.
“Who the f-f-fuck are you? What are you??” Kuna demanded, managing to glare at the thing despite still trembling. “What is this damned place?!”
“Please, don’t just leave us without answers again!” Lykou interjected, starting to become a bit unraveled again. “Whoever you are, please just… we don’t know anything about this place, we’re just trying to get home!”
There was an uncomfortably long pause, but the flame remained. “...ssseeek the aberrant garden... to the south. She... may help you. But be wary…”
“G… garden?” Kuna nervously asked. Ordinarily, he’d feel more optimistic about that word- he did like the idea of finally seeing lush, vibrant plant life again. But somehow he doubted it’d be so welcoming, given what they’d seen so far. After all, it’d snuck that ‘aberrant’ qualifier in there…
“Who? Who might help us?” Lykou asked. “Can’t you be more specific?”
“...the rot of life in a land of death…”
Before they could ask anything else, the flame again went out. Without even asking, they knew the voice was gone yet again.
“...should we cut that thing down and carry it with us, I wonder?” the konuul wondered aloud. “In case it comes back?”
“No. Because then I’d be t-tempted to chuck it into the n-next pond we come across,” Kuna grumbled, then resumed shivering. This time it was genuinely at least partly because another chilly gust of wind briefly kicked up.
Lykou hugged him tightly again and sighed. “I… guess we better find this ‘aberrant garden’ and whoever ‘she’ is.”
“...assuming w-we can trust that s-stupid whispering-flame thing,” Kuna muttered.
“Well, we have nothing else to work off of,” Lykou pointed out. “And it’d be nice if we could find some place with more… life in it to camp near, at least.”
“I… guess. R-right now I… I just…” Suddenly Kuna collapsed into Lykou’s arms again and whimpered slightly.
Lykou blinked a bit, then smiled faintly and squeezed him some more. “Yeah. Me too, Ku. Me too.”

Chapter Text

“Don’t worry, just… just another crow,” Lykou assured Kuna, who was clinging to him and trembling after having just nearly jumped out of his skin. Truth be told, the konuul had panicked a bit when the bird flew past as well. He could hardly remember the last time he was so anxious about his surroundings. Even back in the Crimson Isles, he was at least as angry and defensive as he was wary. But now he was genuinely jumping at shadows as much as his skittish friend.

“R-right,” Kuna said, then loosened his grip on his friend with a slightly sheepish expression. “S-sorry…”

Lykou just shot him a brief, sympathetic smile before his own eyes started darting around again. “N-nothing to be sorry for. This place is… f-fucking terrifying.”

“I’ll t-take the dead-looking trees over… w-what we saw earlier,” Kuna said, then shuddered. They’d been walking for an hour already, jumping and panicking at every little noise or motion they encountered along the way. It was getting exhausting.

“Can’t argue with that,” the konuul agreed as he constantly searched the woods ahead for any sign of trouble. “At least things l-look a bit more… alive, up ahead.”

Kuna eyed the growing greenery in the distance with a mixture of relief and trepidation. “...yeah… l-let’s just hope that’s a good thing.”

As they walked, the trees gradually seemed to have more leaves on their branches, though they were also spaced slightly further apart. Large bushes became more common, as well as boulders covered in moss and algae. There were a lot of exotic-looking mushrooms around the further they went, as well. And then, eventually, things started getting a bit… exotic. Flowers with unusually long and curly petals, shrubs with strangely-shaped leaves, vines with what looked like violet feathers on them, short trees with extremely angular roots that protruded well above the ground, and so on. There were more critters around as well, but they also looked strange- pitch black squirrels with unusually large emerald-colored eyes, dragonflies with extra long double-tails, ladybugs the size of their hands with eye-shaped markings on their backs, and so on.

And eventually they spotted something familiar that made them both stop dead in their tracks. They hadn’t seen it in over a month, but they’d never forget the animate carnivorous flowers that’d snapped at them in those Sylthean ruins. And now they were staring right at a somewhat larger variant that, despite its lack of actual eyes, clearly felt like it was watching them intently.

“Is… is that…?” Lykou asked, somewhat incredulously.

Kuna slowly nodded. “Y… yeah I think so,” he replied, then gulped. “A… bit bigger than the ones w-we saw, too.”

“Oh fuck, I h-hope there aren’t more. Or any of those other things.”

“S-same,” Kuna agreed, then sighed and shot the plant an irritated look. “Just what we needed. M-more plant monsters.”

“...I’ll still take them over those… not-quite hungry ghosts or whatever.”

“...yeahokayfair.”

“Still… don’t even think about trying any funny business, you,” Lykou said, narrowing his eyes and pointing his spear at the drooling plant threateningly.

“Y-yeah,” Kuna agreed, narrowing his eyes at the thing as the two of them walked around past it, carefully keeping their distance. “Don’t make us prune your thorny ass.”

As they continued deeper into the comparatively healthy patch of forest, they started encountering what looked like natural stone walls overgrown with moss and vines. Within them were patches of dirt with neatly-organized rows of plants and mushrooms. Some of them looked at least partly familiar, but others didn’t look like anything either of them recognized.

They rounded one corner only to immediately jump back when another one of the biting flowers snapped at them. There was a whole patch of them in the next ‘section’ of the increasingly maze-like garden they’d apparently stumbled into. Luckily, they could walk past without any of the things getting close. Nevertheless, it was still unnerving walking by with the things clearly intently focused on them, and occasionally snapping out towards them.

“Who would intentionally grow these things?” Lykou wondered, giving them a wary look. Then he furrowed his brows and glanced over at his companion. “You don’t think…?”

Kuna gulped. “N-no telling. Only place we’ve s-seen those before was… you know.”

“…I hope w-we’re not making a big mistake.”

“Me either,” the sereva agreed, then paused to marvel at a few rows of flowers in the next section with shiny silver petals. “Wow… look at those.”

“Yeah… I bet those are extra pretty in the sunrise.”

“I prefer sunset. They’re pretty lil’ things, aren’t they?” a raspy, old voice said from behind them, startling them. It sounded vaguely feminine. A pair of eyes had opened in the mossy ‘wall’ behind them.

Lykou and Kuna gawked at the bizarre, and frankly disturbing sight of what appeared to be a chunk of the various green stuff growing on the rock wall that began separating and taking a vaguely anthropomorphic shape. They got the impression there was a body under it all, but the moss, ivy, and various other plant life covering it- and possibly, they realized with some horror, growing on it- completely hid it from view, other than the eyes, and, when she spoke, mouth.

“Single petal will freeze yer jigglies right off unless its treated though, so I wouldn’t go tasting ‘em raw,” she said, then squinted and poked the shaky sereva with a long, gnarled finger, making him yelp and shrink back. Her mouth was obscured when it wasn’t open, but there was a hint of a grin there. “I’m lookin’ at you, leaf-nibbler.”

“...h-hey, watch it!” Lykou retorted, his wariness and bewilderment briefly turning into protectiveness as he stepped over and shielded Kuna partly with his body. “Don’t-”

“Or what, bone-chewer, gonna take a bite outta me?” the stranger snapped, eyeing him intensely and placing her hands on her hips. “I’d like to see you try.”

Lykou frowned and tightened his grip on his spear. Kuna’s anxious grip on his shoulder told him he’d rather avoid a conflict, though. In any case, before he could respond, the stranger just started laughing and waved them off as she shuffled over and bent down, then started examining the silvery flowers, occasionally plucking a leaf off one and stuffing it into some hidden pocket among the flora hanging from her body. “Ah relax, I’m just messing with ya both. Been a while since I had visitors out ‘ere,” she said, then paused and rubbed what was probably her chin. “...ones that weren’t crazy or dead, anwyay.” She shrugged. “Or both.”

Kuna gawked at her. “...d...dead?”

She gave him a look as she continued down the row of flowers. “Well ya came through th’ Kryck to get here, didncha? Place is infested with spooks ‘n’ restless corpses. Guessin’ the fact yer still breathin’ means ya didn’t find any of th’ real bad’ns, but surely ya ‘least know the place’s reputation, doncha?”

Lykou gulped and shivered. “W-well no, we’re… not from anywhere near here- long story- but we did m-meet… uh… s-some… well…”

“F-fucking walking corpses,” Kuna finished for him with a shudder. “N-not like what I expected from hungry ghosts, though… thank fuck.”

“Y-yeah, considering how many there were,” Lykou agreed, still clearly a bit shaken as well from the encounter.

The stranger stood up and crossed her arms thoughtfully. “Hmm… whole bunch of ‘em, eh? Guessin’ ya mean down in th’ bog?”

Lykou nodded. “Y-yeah… you know anything about it?”

She gave him a critical look for a moment. “I know it’s odd fer a pair’a strangers that claim to know nothing about Kryckwood t’be pokin’ around them ruins. What, just out fer a casual stroll and ya stumbled into the place by chance?”

“W-well… not entirely,” Kuna hazarded. “We’re just l-looking for an old m-magic gate that’s apparently in there.”

She blinked a few times and stared at the sereva in silence. “...ya… traipsed inta th’ baleful bog fer… the old gate? And… nothing else?”

“Er, yeah. Like I said it’s… kind of a long story, but basically we were magically sent way away from home, and we’ve been using these magical ancient gate things to make our way back for a while now,” Lykou explained. “Uh… I’m Lykou by the way, and this is Kuna.”

For a moment, the strange individual just eyed them with what appeared to be suspicion. Suddenly, in a startling flash of movement, she was uncomfortably close to Kuna and leaned in, looking him in the eye. Before either could react, she bolted over by Lykou’s opposite side, doing similar with him. It wasn’t like Zynshal’s teleporting- there was actual movement there. But they barely saw it. If she was as old as her voice, gnarled hands, and bent posture suggested, it certainly didn’t inhibit her movement at all.

“Right. If yer usin’ one of them things, that just raises further questions. Like how yer usin’ ‘em fer one thing,” she said, then stepped back and glanced back and forth between them, pointing her finger at them each in turn. “Stone… or sparkle?”

Lykou and Kuna shared a bewildered look. “Uh… what?” the sereva asked in confusion, then folded his ears somewhat anxiously. “I just… use m-my magic…?”

“Ah, sparkle it is then,” she replied with a nod, then sized him up. “...so ya got the knack fer the mystical arts, eh kid? Show me.”

Kuna shot Lykou a nervous look. The konuul just shrugged and wrapped his arm around him supportively. He sighed and turned back to the stranger before manifesting the glow around his hand.

“Well now, that’s intrestin’... So yer really just tryin’ ta reach the ol’ gate, eh?”

Kuna nodded, dismissing the magic.

She stared at them for a long, uncomfortable moment, then laughed once. Then twice. Then broke into a fit of hysterical laughter that made them more uncomfortable than the silent stare. They both took a few large steps back, but soon realized they didn’t have any further to go. The stone wall, now sporting a large gap in the moss and plantlife that’d been covering it, was right behind them.

Fortunately, the odd individual’s laughter subsided and she wiped a tear away from her eye. “Oh my, my, my…”

“Uhhh… what’s so funny?” Lykou nervously asked.

“Oh nothin’. Everythin’. Who cares?” the strange gardener replied with an exaggerated shrug. “You two must be the first visitors that weren’t lookin’ fer the revenant’s treasures, though.”

Lykou furrowed his brow. “Treasures? What treasures?”

“Revenant?” Kuna asked, similarly confused.

She cackled again, albeit thankfully more briefly this time. “That’s great. Damn near got yer carcasses added to his little collection ‘n’ ya didn’t even know what most of the others in there were after.”

“W-who’s this ‘revenant’ guy?”

“You really don’t know a damn thing about this place, do ya?” she asked in an amused tone. “Ehehehe… tell ya what, come join me fer tea. You answer some’a my questions, and I’ll answer some’a yers.” She turned to walk down the rough path between walls, waving for them to follow. She then paused and smirked back at them. “I’ll even throw in a freebie. Name’s Algrytha.”

Kuna and Lykou shared an uneasy look, and the sereva shook his head when Algrytha wasn’t looking. Lykou just nudged him on with a sigh. “What choice have we got?” he whispered. “C’mon, we’ll just be careful and stick together...”

*****

After a short, meandering walk through the strange garden, they arrived at a somewhat large building that was almost completely buried in various vegetation, much like its owner. The only pieces that weren’t overgrown were a few rounded wooden windows and a large, round stone chimney in the middle. Rather than a traditional door, there was a heavy curtain growing from the surrounding vegetation that covered the door frame.

The inside was lit not just by what little light came in through the windows, but also by dimly-glowing flora and mushrooms that gave the entire space a strange, somewhat alien feeling. The entire building- save for a small attached room off to the side that seemed to house a bed and little else- looked like a giant kitchen combined with some kind of workshop. The outer edges had wooden tables and shelves piled with all sorts of presumed ingredients, either laying loose or in various clay jars or baskets. One section had rolled up bundles of some kind of thin material neither of them recognized, a clay bowl full of some kind of dark liquid, and a small collection of what appeared to be long bird feathers.

But the most striking feature was in the middle- there was an enormous firepit with various pots of various sizes and shapes stacked around it. There was a particularly large one sitting directly in the middle the old coals and some half-burned wood. A small teapot was also sitting on some of the other coals to the side. Lykou recognized it, even if it looked different from the ones he was more used to. Kuna, on the other hand, hadn’t seen such a thing, and eyed it curiously while his friend tried to start up a friendly conversaiton.

“So you must… do a lot of cooking, huh?” Lykou asked. “Looks like you could feed a lot of people with all this… stuff.”

“Is… is your tribe near here?” Kuna asked nervously.

Algrytha cackled as she walked over to one of the tables and scooped something out of two jars with her hands. One of them was some kind of paste that she quickly rolled in the powder from the other. “Tribe? Village?” she said, then chucked the combined substance down onto the coals- which immediately reignited the coals, especially near the point of impact, by the teapot. “Nah. Other’n the occasional visit from fools with more guts than brains, I just have my garden fer company.”

Kuna eyed the large pot with increasing wariness and huddled close to Lykou. The konuul was a bit bewildered as well, but he pressed on with as much friendliness as he could. “Sooo… big appetite, then?”

“Not particularly,” Algrytha responded as she checked the pot to make sure it had plenty of water. She then walked over to another table and set out three cups and filled them with some scoops of something from another clay jar. “Don’t get me wrong, I can certainly make a mean stew, but most’a this is fer my brews.”

“Brews?” Kuna asked dubiously.

“Oh! Like the fun kind of drink?” Lykou added and nudged his companion with a playful grin, hoping to lighten the mood a little. “Sounds appealing right now, don’t you think, Ku?”

Kuna folded his ears down with an unamused expression. “Going to take a lot more than ‘liquid courage’ to get through that place, or even just erase the nightmares I’m going to have tonight.”

Lykou frowned and gave him a gentle squeeze. “Fair point...”

“Fun drinks, huh?” Algrytha cackled. “I suppose some might see it that way, just depending on which one they take. I certainly have some… ‘fun’ recipes,” she replied, then sighed and rolled her eyes as she pulled out some stools for them to sit on. “Most folk I see just want predictable shit though, seein’ as how they’re always goin’ to them damn ruins. Dram of strength, salve of speed, wood-body elixir, and so on. Most of ‘em think all they need to beat the hoard’a their predecessors is a potion that makes ‘em tougher or faster. Never occurs to ‘em to think of somethin’ ‘sides fightin’, ‘n’ they end up joining the rest.”

Kuna arched a brow. “Wait, what?”

“Salve of speed, dram of strength…? What are you talking about?” Lykou asked.

“Yeah, y’know… potions?” Algrytha said, then eyed their perplexed expressions for a moment. “...you two tellin’ me yer payin’ ol’ Algrytha a visit after hikin’ through the forest’a the dead, ‘n’ you don’t even know about alchemy?”

They both shook their heads. “What’s ‘alchemy’?”

Algrytha burst out laughing. “Oh you two are somethin’ else!” she said, smacking her knee as she sat down- or at least, what was presumably her knee. It was hard to tell under the curtain of flora hanging all over her. “C’mon, have a seat, ‘n’ I’ll tell ya ‘bout potions.”

After a nervous moment of hesitation, the boys sat down, making sure to situate their stools right next to one another as they did so. “What are… ‘potions’?” Lykou asked.

“Well, magic, basic’ly,” she explained. “’cept instead’a usin’ all that flowy energy stuff directly, ya just find ways to squeeze it out of stuff here in the mortal world in all sorts of interesting ways. With a bit’a incantation for a little boost, in my case.”

“Wait, you can do magic with drinks??” the konuul asked incredulously.

“Like… how?” Kuna chimed in.

“Like I said, ya just take the mystical properties things have hidden under the surface and find ways’a squeezin’ ‘em out. Takes years’a practice ‘n’ experimentin’ ta figure things out, o’course,” Algrytha explained. “And ya won’t get the immediate results of your kinda magic, but when they kick in… hoo, boy, watch out!”

“Sorry, I’m just… trying to wrap my head around how that even works,” Kuna said, scratching his head. “You drink something and then just… you can suddenly do magic?”

“Nah, not like that. Specific brews for specific effects, y’see? Make ya strong enough to punch through stone, turn your fur into fire, make it so ya can see in pitch black dark, ‘n’ so on. And much more interesting things, too.”

“That… sounds amazing,” Lykou said. “And anyone can do it?”

“Well, theoretically. But you really gotta know what yer doin’ or ya might blow yerself up and decorate the place with your insides!” Algrytha replied with an exaggerated gesture. “Or turn your bones to goo, or freeze your blood and so on.”

“Fucking hell,” Kuna responded, his eye twitching. “Drinking something can do all that??”

“If ya mess it up bad enough. Though you really have to be trying for something big to mess up that bad. More likely you’ll just make yourself puke ‘n’ shit yerself silly for a while with weaker stuff.”

Kuna made a face. “Lovely…”

“Sounds risky either way,” Lykou agreed.

“Can be, can be,” Algrytha said, nodding a bit. “The real tricky bit is finding the ingredients. The impressive shit requires things that can be harder to get yer hands on.”

The teapot started to whistle, startling Kuna into practically jumping into Lykou’s lap. The strange witch just smirked and grabbed a pair of gloves, then took the pot off the fire and carried it over to one of the tables, where she poured some into each of the prepared cups. “Jumpy feller, arencha?”

Kuna blushed and looked away. “S-sorry, just… not used to, uh… that.”

Lykou gave him a gentle squeeze. “His… former tribe was apparently, well…”

“Ass-backwards,” Kuna finished for him flatly. “Barely used fire except to keep warm. Been learning a lot of things on this trip.”

“Intrestin’, intrestin’!” Algrytha responded, bringing them each a cup. “Former tribe, eh? Sounds like you’ve got quite a story.”

Kuna reluctantly slid back onto his own stool and took the cup, allowing Lykou to take his as well. “Yeah it’s… a long one.”

“Thanks for the tea,” Lykou said gratefully, then smelled it and blinked a few times. “What’s in it?”

“Nothing special. Mostly speckled darkleaf, with a little mallow and licorice root,” the witch said, sitting down to sip some for herself.

“I thought it smelled nice,” Kuna said, perking up a little bit, then took a small sip. “Always liked licorice root. Where would you find it around here though? Doesn’t seem like a good place to grow it.”

“Ordinarily no, but you’ve seen my garden,” Algrytha said with a wink. “I can get just about anythin’ ta grow here.” She rubbed her chin for a moment. “Well, anything that mundane, anyway. Some things even I can’t get to grow here. Lucky fer me, the Kryck is great fer some otherwise hard ta find stuff.”

“Like what?”

“Death’s breath, retchpuff, etherspore, ‘n’ so on.”

“I’ve… never heard of any of that,” Kuna commented. “Though we did see some strange plants out there, now that I think of it…”

“I don’t recommend tryin’ ta eat any of it,” Algrytha warned. “Kind of in th’ name. With the right know-how, they’re mighty useful, but otherwise they kin straight-out kill ya. Or worse.”

Lykou blanched slightly. “Worse than killing you??”

“I don’t think I want to know,” Kuna said, shuddering, then took another sip of his tea.

“You really don’t,” Algrytha said, then chuckled. “So what made the two’a ya traipse down into my garden after yer little visit to the bog?”

“There was this weird hanging… gourd-lantern thing,” Lykou explained. “With some kind of… uh.”

“Ghost-fire?” Kuna suggested.

“Yeah. And when we got close it kind of… spoke to us? And suggested we come find you.”

“Oh that ol’ thing again, hmm? Shoulda known,” Algrytha said with a small eye-roll, then sipped from her own cup. “Always sendin’ folk here. Guess they’re hopin’ someone’ll come along that kin finally break the curse with my help.”

The sereva’s eyes widened slightly. “C-curse?”

“What curse…?” Lykou asked anxiously.

“The one that gives these woods so many spooks ‘n’ shades. Kryckwood’s a bit odd, see. Th’ border between the mortal world ‘n’ the spirit world’s a bit blurry here, ‘n’ it tends ta… well, make it hard fer the dead ta move on, y’see,” she explained, then eyed the two. “Place is lousy with ghosts of all sorts.”

“There are… different ‘sorts’?” Lykou asked.

“You mean besides just ghosts and echoes?”

“Oh there’s no echoes here,” Algrytha replied with a dark chuckle. “And yeah, ghosts kin vary, dependin’ on how long they been around, ‘n’ how they died.”

Kuna gulped. “R-right, I know hungry ghosts are a thing…”

“Hungry, angry, confused, deranged… if they find a spare body that’s no longer in use, ‘n’ they get used to it enough, they can become a ghoul,” she explained. “Which is nasty business, but far from th’ worst. One sticks around long enough and really gets used to their… unlife, as it were, they might become a wraith. ‘n’ the worst of ‘em become terrifyin’ nasty fuckers like the one up north. Which I’m guessin’ ya haven’t seen, sein’ as yer still breathin’ ‘n’ able to speak full sentences.” She cackled at the end as if it was some funny little joke.

“F-fuck. I’m glad we didn’t wander that way,” Lykou said, wide-eyed.

“N-no shit,” Kuna agreed.

“W-what was that ‘revenant’ thing you mentioned before? And what’s with the ones in the bog?”

“Ah, revenants are somethin’ else. When someone dies unexpectedly and their soul lingers, ya get a ghost. If they die but they’re really ‘enlightened’ or whatever, they become echoes. But there’s a third way folks kin stick around past their time, usin’ powerful magic rituals.”

“R-rituals huh?” Lykou asked, sharing a wary look with Kuna. “L-like… demonic shit?”

“Naw. Demons ain’t int’rested in folk that’re already dead, gen’rally,” Algrytha replied, waving the idea off. “No, some rituals turn people inta somethin’ like a ghost with a few extra perks, usually to watch over something after death. ‘n’ that’s a revenant. They keep their wits fer the most part, but they’re bound to a place or thing until a certain requirement is met to free them ‘n’ let ‘em pass on.”

“S-so… is that what all those ones in the bog are?”

“Oh spirits no, all them bodies are moved around by the weave itself, thanks to some powerful magic. The revenant probably cast a spell on the place at some point, but he doesn’t control the ones outside the ruins directly.”

“Eesh. What’s in the ruins that needs so much protection?” Lykou wondered aloud.

“Oh there are all sorts of rumors about what the revenant’s guarding. Ancient treasures from the ones that built the ruins in the first place ‘n’ so on,” Algrytha said, then shrugged. “Plenty’a idjits have joined the dead lookin’ fer it.”

“Is… is there any way to get past them?” Kuna hazarded. “We just want to get to the gate. We’re not interested in any treasures.”

“Well… as it so happens, I do have a recipe fer something that’ll help ya get past the grisly mob on the outside. But you’ll also need the keystone for the entrance. And after that you’ll have to deal with the revenant himself.”

“If he’s still as coherent as he was in life, maybe we can just talk to him,” Lykou said hopefully. “Do you know what his actual name is?”

Algrytha rubbed her chin thoughtfully for a moment. “...Elzhan, or somethin’ like that, I think. I wouldn’t put too much hope in it, though. I’m sure a few other bodies around the place had owners that thought they could just chat him up, too.”

Kuna gulped. “Great…”

“We have to at least try,” Lykou said, frowning. “Maybe if we make it clear we’re only interested in the gate, he’ll let us through.” He turned back to the witch and fidgeted with his cup a bit. “Would you be willing to help us get past the, uh… bodies on the outside?”

“Sure, sure. Yer gonna have to fetch some ingredients fer me from th’ Kryck, though,” Algrytha said, hopping up and shuffling over to the table with the rolls of thin material, feathers, and dark liquid. She set aside her cup of tea and browsed through the material for a moment, then plucked one of the rolls out and unrolled it, revealing a bunch of strange symbols on the inside. “Ah, here we are. Draught of the Dead. Hmm, got that, got that… need some’a that…”

Lykou and Kuna shared a confused look. Then Lykou perked up and leaned over to whisper to his companion. “Looks like that ‘writing’ stuff.”

“…yeah, now that you mention it,” Kuna agreed, watching the witch examine the sheet. “Must’ve made it with that dark stuff. Guess the feathertips might help with that, given how small they look.”

“Makes sense to me. Wonder what the thin stuff it’s put on is though.”

“Good question…”

Algrytha shuffled back over, holding the scroll in her hands. “Right. I’ll need… four sprigs of death’s breath, a jug of the water that thirsts, and a scoop of the essence of death denied.”

Kuna’s eye twitched. “...what the heck are any of those things?”

“Yeah… ‘water that thirsts’?? What does that mean?” Lykou agreed. “Water makes thirst go away…”

Algrytha rolled the scroll back up and snickered. “Well, easy one is death’s breath. Think lavender that’s been rolled around in ashes.”

“Oh yeah, I remember seeing a bunch of that. Okay,” Kuna said, perking up a little. “Easy enough.”

“Still confused about the water though. Unless… wait!” Lykou turned to the sereva. “Remember that weird pond we saw?”

“The one you almost drank from but I stopped you?” Kuna replied. “Yeah. Water that thirsts… nothing was living around it. Sounds like it’d fit.”

“It sounds like ya stopped him from addin’ another specter ta these woods,” Algrytha chimed in. “Good instincts, kid.”

Kuna blushed and smiled faintly. Lykou smiled as well and gave him a small squeeze, then turned back to their host. “So what about the last one? The… ‘essence of death denied’?”

“Ah, that’ll be the tricky one,” Algrytha admitted. “How much experience you two got with ghosts?”

“Uhhh… we helped one move on once,” Lykou said with a sheepish smile. “Other than that? Not much.”

“I know… or thought I knew, a fair bit about them. But apparently there’s a lot I don’t know,” Kuna admitted. “Why?”

“You’ll need somethin’ from one of ‘em.”

“What… what can a ghost give us?” Lykou asked, perplexed. “They’re all… you know, ghostly.”

“Technically I was able to touch one,” Kuna pointed out. “Not sure how that helps though…”

“That’s good. And makes sense, seein’ as how yer the one makin’ them portals work,” Algrytha pointed out. “Soul magic’ll let ya touch ‘em. Which is how you’ll have to scoop up some’a the ethereal goo they leave around sometimes.”

Kuna frowned and shivered. “Great, s-so we actually have t-to approach a ghost that we can’t help…”

“Can’t we?” Lykou said. “Seems like we should at least try, if we’re going to ask something from them.”

“She s-said the ghosts here h-have a hard time moving on. I’m guessing that m-means magic is keeping them here,” Kuna replied, then turned back to the witch. “Right?”

“Yep. All the more reason to avoid joinin’ ‘em,” Algrytha said. “At least until the curse is lifted some day, anyway.”

“Oh yeah, what is the curse anyway? More to do with that revenant guy?” Lykou asked.

“No, his magic is all around the bog, but no further. The mess plaguing the rest of the Kryck is probably more connected to the Great Wraith I mentioned earlier.”

“Oh. Damn… and I guess he’s beyond helping in any easy way?”

Algrytha burst out in a fit of laughter. “Oh that’s a good one. Help the Great Wraith… that bastard’s well beyond help, kiddo. Whatever their original life was, they’re something completely different now. Once a soul goes ‘n’ becomes a wraith, everything they were is gone, ‘n’ something else has taken their place. Somethin’ even the spirit world struggles to handle, a real spirit of chaos ‘n’ death itself. There’s no reasonin’ with ‘em at all.”

“Oh… damn,” Lykou said, frowning. Kuna shot him a sympathetic look and hugged him.

“If it makes ya feel better, rumor is it the Great Wraith wasn’t exactly a pleasant fella in life, either. In fact, legends say he’s the reason the revenant guards the ruins. Sacrificed himself to keep whoever the Wraith was away from whatever he guards.”

“Eesh…”

“Mhmm. It’s a twisted tale,” Algrytha said, then sipped her tea. “Fetch me those ingredients and I’ll tell ya when ya get back.”

Lykou looked over at Kuna. “Well… guess we better get to it, then.”

Kuna looked back at him nervously, then sighed and drained the rest of his cup. Finally, he took a deep breath, steeling himself. “I guess s-so.”

“Here, takes these,” Algrytha said, then grabbed a small jug, and two small dark grey bags. “Put the water in the jug, ‘n’ the other bits, separately, in the bags. Careful with the water- try not to touch it directly.”

Kuna took the bags while Lykou accepted the jug after finishing his own tea. “Thanks… so what will this stuff do when you, uh… cook it up?” the konuul asked as he and the sereva got up and ready to leave.

Algrytha cackled again. “You’ll see,” she said ominously, then sipped her tea slowly.

*****

“I don’t know if w-we should be trusting her, or this plan,” Kuna said anxiously as he and Lykou made their way through the creepy woods. He’d already found and harvested the death’s breath, and they were on the way back to find the clear pond they’d seen earlier. “We’re t-taking a big risk here.”

“I know, Ku, believe me,” the konuul replied. “But I don’t have any other ideas. Do you?”

“...no,” the sereva reluctantly admitted. “Just… what if she’s t-trying to poison us?”

“Why would she?”

“I can probably think of a dozen reasons,” Kuna replied flatly.

“Well, like I said, we don’t have much choice. Besides, as weird as she is, she’s probably the friendliest thing we’ve seen here. Other than maybe that weird fire-ghost thing.”

“That’s not s-saying much,” Kuna retorted, eyeing the shadows in the woods nervously. “B-but point taken. I guess if she’d w-wanted us dead, she’d have o-other easier, m-more direct ways to kill us. Or just… l-let the forest do it for her.”

“… you’re a real ray of sunshine, Ku,” Lykou retorted, half-teasing.

“S-sorry,” the sereva replied with a slightly sheepish look. “Guess I n-need to work on my attempts at optimism, heh.”

The konuul chuckled a bit and hugged him with one arm. “C’mon, I think I see the pond up ahead.”

They approached the eerily clear, still water, keeping an eye out for any signs of danger. When they reached the edge, Lykou took out the small jug and knelt down to fill it. “I wonder what the deal is with this water, anyway.”

“I don’t know, but its energy definitely feels… I dunno, off somehow,” Kuna said, eyeing it warily. “Be careful.”

“Will d-GYAHH!” Lykou yelped as he pulled the jug up and accidentally splashed a little on his arm.

“Kou!” Kuna blurted out, quickly rushing over to his side.

Almost immediately, the fur the water had touched darkened and fell off, turning to dust before it even hit the ground. Luckily, it was just a few drops, so he only lost a couple tiny, inconspicuous bits of fur in the process. Lykou quickly corked the top and the sereva looked him over after pulling him back away from the pond.

“Fuck, that stuff is serious!” Lykou said, warily inspecting the jug to make sure it was well sealed.

“Here,” Kuna said, producing a scrap of cloth he’d collected back on their little island adventure. “Wipe it down just to be safe.”

“Good thinking,” Lykou said, carefully drying off the side that’d been dipped into the water. It’d already mostly dried on its own, far faster than he’d expect normally, but he wanted to be sure before risking touching it. He then tossed the rag off to the side, just in case. “Eesh… I’d hate to think what would’ve happened if I’d drank any.”

“N-no fucking kidding,” Kuna said, embracing him tightly. “F-fuck this place. Let’s hurry and get out of here.”

“No argument here,” the konuul agreed, then got up and joined the sereva in putting distance between them and the death-pond. He held the jug up at arm’s length, eyeing it nervously. “I hope the jug can hold up to it safely.”

Kuna looked it over and arched a brow. “S-seems to be so far. M-maybe it only effects living things?”

“Maybe...” Lykou said. “Heh, you know, if something attacks us, I guess I could always splash some of this on them to protect us.”

“...would certainly be an effective w-weapon, but dangerous to use.”

“Good point. Let’s just hope it doesn’t come up,” the konuul said, then sighed and looked around the woods. “Well… time to find a ghost, I guess.”

Kuna shivered and folded his ears down. “Great…”

They searched the woods for a few hours, occasionally circling cautiously around areas filled with either shadow spirits or wisps. The only animals they saw were the occasional crow and one or two emaciated-looking squirrels that watched them a little too intently. The sky continued to remain cloudy, sometimes even darker than before. Fortunately, no rain fell.

Finally they found a particularly quiet and dim part of the woods that felt a bit… off. A brief chill filled the air and they noticed a few leaves on the ground idly dancing around despite the lack of any breeze at all. Lykou cautiously poked a pile of leaves stacked nearby and noticed a heavily-decayed body underneath them. Kuna blanched and turned away, trying to scrub the image from his mind. A few moments after Lykou nudged the body, the leaves whipped up into a frenzy for a moment and the air grew chillier. They both shared a look. “...w-well, guess we found one,” Lykou pointed out quietly.

“Yeah,” Kuna agreed, then gulped and took a deep breath before addressing the leaves swirling around them. “Um, h-hello? Whoever you are- or w-were, c-can you please show yourself?”

After a few moments, the leaves settled to the ground and an apparition slowly started to appear in front of them. It wasn’t a species they recognized. Her ears were smaller and more rounded than either of theirs, and she had banded markings on her long, puffy tail. Due to her ethereal appearance, any coloration was all but impossible to make out clearly. Her ghostly body looked mostly in-tact, but a pair of very noticeable gashes were visible in her neck. She looked more solidly-formed than the shakonu ghost they’d met back in the early part of their journey, and her expression was a bit more coherent. In fact, she was glaring at them- she looked annoyed, or even angry, but also gave off the impression that she wasn’t sure why, or who or what she should be angry at.

Lykou tried to put on a brave smile and gave a little wave. “Uh, h-hi there. Can… can you talk?”

The spirit raised a brow and looked a bit surprised. After a moment, her mouth started moving, but it took a moment for any sound to manifest. When it did, her voice was faint, whisper-like, and had a strange echoing quality. “Who… where… why…??”

“I’m Lykou, a-and this is Kuna,” the konuul said, wrapping an arm around the shaky sereva again. “W-we’re just passing through a-and-”

“No…!” the spirit interjected, getting agitated as she looked around. “Where… who….?”

Kuna nudged the konuul lightly. “R-remember, she’s probably confused a-about… you know…”

Lykou thought for a moment, then widened his eyes. “Oh… r-right. Um… should we sh-show her… y’know?” he replied quietly while the specter was distracted.

“I d-don’t have anything to c-calm her if she loses it when she s-sees it,” the sereva pointed out anxioiusly.

“R-right,” Lykou said, watching the ghost irritably search around. “I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere this way though…”

“I can… hear you two... you know,” the spirit suddenly said, shooting them an annoyed look as she gave them a strange, cross-eyed look. She clenched her eyes shut and rubbed her face, seemingly struggling with something for a moment. “Ugh…”

Lykou and Kuna shared a nervous look. They hadn’t expected her to say suddenly something so… coherent, all of the sudden. “Uh… are you… okay?”

She opened her eyes again and crossed her arms, shooting the konuul a withering look. “I’m literally fucking dead.”

Kuna stared at her with wide-eyes.

“Oh, uh… y-yeah,” Lykou said with a nervous smile. “We uh… w-weren’t sure-”

“That I was aware?” she said, then rolled her eyes. Her voice was coming more immediately and coherently, albeit still with that faint, ethereal sound to it. “Yeah. Kinda figured that out a bit ago. Someimes take a moment to remember things.” She grumbled and looked around. “Like right now I still don’t remember where my damn body is or… what got me, for that matter.”

“Was… k-kinda worried you’d freak out if y-you saw it,” Kuna nervously said.

The ghost perked up slightly. “No, but did you see it? I… felt like someone poked it. Was it you?”

“Uhh…” Lykou said, looking around nervously.

She sighed. “Look, I’m not going to freak out, alright? I just… want to know.”

Lykou and Kuna shared another look, then Kuna shrugged. The konuul nervously poked the body with the blunt end of his spear and rolled it over out of the leaves. The ghost immediately winced when he touched it. For a moment, much to their mild panic, she started to flicker and twitch, gaining a brief frantic look as she rushed over to the body. But then she clutched her head and took a moment to calm herself. “R-right… now it’s coming back. Fucking ghoul got me…”

Lykou gulped. “Ghoul huh…?”

“Mhmm. One of the others that’s been here long enough to lose what’s left of their mind. Found a dead body that was still fairly intact, decided it deserved my blood more than mine did, then ambushed me and… here I am,” the ghost explained, looking over her body with an unreadable expression. “...good to know what I have to look forward to eventually.”

“...y-you seem pretty, uh…”

“Sane?” the ghost interrupted, giving him a look. “Yeah. Guess you got lucky. Been here long enough to get past the initial freak-out confusion, but not long enough to become… well, one of them. Yet, anyway.”

“I… didn’t know th-there was an in-between s-stage,” Kuna commented.

“Outside this damn place, probably isn’t. Yay curses,” the ghost said sarcastically with two thumbs up and a brief and very insincere, exaggerated smile. “Kinda weird that it does that, but hey, at least it gives me a little time before I become a mindless blood-thirsty idiot. For… whatever good it is.”

“W-well maybe you won’t,” Lykou suggested. “M-maybe if we uh… give your body last rites or something, y-you can, y’know… move on?”

The ghost let out a brief, humorless laugh. “Sweet. But no. Curse won’t let it happen. Ironically I was never very spiritual anyway. Plenty of us weren’t. I’m here because of the curse, not because I’m hung up on my body being disrespected,” she said, then shot the konuul a wary look. “...don’t go doing anything… weird with it, though.”

Lykou arched a brow. “...’weird’? Like what?”

She eyed him some more, then shrugged. “Nevermind. Lot of freaks around. Just making sure,” she said, then glanced between them. “So you two here for the revenant’s treasure, or trying to break the curse? Don’t think I’ve seen either of your kind before, so you must be from a long way off.”

“Yeahhh that’s a long story. We’re actually just trying to get to an old magic gateway in the ruins as part of our journey trying to make our way home.”

“Gateway?” the ghost asked dubiously. “Huh. That’s a new one. Haven’t heard of anything like that there.”

“Yeah, like I said, long story,” the konuul said. “By the way, my name’s Lykou, and this is Kuna.”

Kuna gave a nervous little wave, but otherwise remained quiet.

“Mm. I’m Marja. Or… was, I suppose.”

“And uh… w-what were you doing out here?” Lykou asked.

“What else? Trying to find a way to get at the revenant’s treasure,” Marja replied with a shrug.

“What is the t-treasure anyway?” Kuna asked. “W-what could be w-worth risking… w-well, this,” he added, gesturing to her, then her body.

“Supposedly a mystical magic weapon or something, among other things. As for me, my life sucked as it was, so I figured I had nothing to lose. Figured I’d at least make it to the ruins before getting got, though,” she explained with a frown. “At least then my soul could’ve moved on, even if my body became another member of the grim guard.”

Lykou and Kuna both shuddered. “W-would be a nasty way to go though, f-from what we saw.”

She shot them a look. “Already been there once, huh? And managed to get away?”

“W-we didn’t make it inside, but we saw a squirrel that t-tried to get over the wall,” Lykou responded.

“I may n-never sleep right again,” Kuna said quietly with a haunted, far-away look in his eyes.

“Ah. Yeah, good luck with that,” Marja said with mild amusement. “So what are you doing now?”

“Wellll,” Lykou began, rubbing his neck with a sheepish expression. “It’s funny you say that. We uh… f-found this strange… lady… that says she can make something that can get us past the mob outside.”

The ghost’s eyes widened. “Oh. You found her, huh?”

“Y-yeah. You’re familiar with her?”

“Oh yeah. The moss witch of the aberrant garden. Kind of another legend in her own right. Considered looking for her myself, but decided it wasn’t worth the risk of annoying her.”

“...r-risk?” Kuna asked nervously.

“Yeah. She’s helpful when she wants to be, but you don’t want to get on her bad side. And she tends to get annoyed with people asking for help getting the revenant’s treasure.”

“W-well, luckily she seems happy to help us since we explained our situation to her,” Lykou said hopefully.

“Obviously, seeing as how you’re not a grasshopper or a pile of goo right now.”

Kuna and Lykou blanched. “Sh-she’d do that??”

“Among other things, yeah. But like I said, you’ve obviously not annoyed her, so congrats I guess.”

“Th-that’s good t-t-to know,” Kuna nervously replied, clinging to Lykou.

“S-so yeah, on that note, she… sent us to gather ingredients for something to help us.”

“Won’t help you fight that mob, but good luck anyway.”

“Oh we’re not planning on fighting them. She said it’ll make it so they ignore us.”

The ghost stared at the konuul for a moment, then facepalmed. “I… never even considered that…”

“Y-yeah. And one of the ingredients is apparently… uh… s-something to do with ghosts?”

Marja arched a brow. “...huh?”

“S-something about ‘essence of death denied’?” Kuna chimed in. “S-some kind of ‘goo’ you leave around?”

The ghost gave him a mildly bemused look, then glanced around at the faint ethereal footprints she’d left on the ground, half of which had already started to fade away. “Really? That stuff? To be honest I don’t even know what it is. Just pops up sometimes when I try to touch things. Doubt you can actually touch it though, so… good luck with that.”

“Ku can touch ghost stuff, actually,” the konuul pointed out, giving his friend a small grin. “Go on, show her.”

Kuna shot a nervous look back at him, then gulped. “Uh… w-well…”

“You’ve got me curious now. Come on, I wanna see this.”

The sereva nervously stepped forward and reached out a hand. After a few anxious moments, he came within reach and gently touched her arm. In response, her expression quickly shifted from amused, to surprised, to… a strange bittersweet look.

“Wow. I… I can actually… feel you,” she said, her tone a bit melancholy. “I… forgot what that’s like…”

After a moment, Kuna’s nerves subsided and his own expression shifted to a faint, sympathetic smile. “I… wish w-we could help you,” he said. “Are you sure there’s n-nothing we can do for you?”

Marja eyed him for a moment, then looked away and rubbed her arm thoughtfully. “… unless you can banish the wraith and lift the curse, no. Other than… m-maybe… eh, nevermind.”

Kuna stared at her for a moment, then suddenly leaned in and embraced her, his nerves temporarily forgotten in place of sadness and empathy.

The spirit let out a startled noise, but then quickly returned the hug and let out a faint, ethereal sniff. “...thanks…”

Lykou smiled and walked over to rub the sereva’s back encouragingly. “He’s a good guy like that.”

After a moment, the spirit pulled back and rubbed her eye. “Y-yeah. You two better hurry and get out of here. Good-natured guys like you don’t belong in a place this fucked up,” she said with a faint, slightly sad smirk. “Besides, keep this up and I’ll become addicted to contact and might go ghoul quicker.”

Kuna yelped slightly and shrunk back with a nervous smile. “W-wouldn’t want that, heh. Still wish there was more we could do for you…”

“Eh… I knew the risks when I came here,” she said, waving it off. “Some day someone’ll find a way to lift the curse and we’ll all be free.”

“Guess we should collect that, uh, ‘goo’ and get going, then,” Lykou suggested.

Kuna nodded. “Yeah, I guess so,” he said, then turned back to the ghost. “You sure you don’t want us to at least bury your body or something?”

“Nah. Leave it out here so I can find it easily. Maybe it’ll be all bone by the time I start to lose my mind, so I’ll at least be a less gross-looking ghoul,” she commented with a sardonic chuckle. “Here, I think if I just…” She bent down and concentrated for a moment as she wrapped her hand around a small rock on the ground. When she pulled it away, there was a thick patch of the faint, glowy incorporeal substance covering the rock. “Think that’ll be enough?”

“Probably,” Kuna said, then bent down and picked the rock up. After a moment of looking it over and feeling the strange, half-there substance, he slipped the rock into the remaining bag Algrytha had given him. “Thank you, Marja. If we find any way to lift the curse, we will,” he promised.

“Don’t get my hopes up,” she responded, then rubbed his head a little. “Just do me a favor and survive, alright? Like I said, someone as nice as you shouldn’t join us creepy losers out here.”

“He’s right though,” Lykou chimed in. “I can’t promise anything, but if we do happen across anything, believe me, we won’t just ignore it.”

“Appreciate it,” the specter replied with a faint smile, then sighed. “Now if you’ll excuse me… being all,” she added, gesturing to herself broadly. “Visible like this is starting to make me feel a bit weird and… kind of tired, oddly enough. Didn’t think that’d be a thing since I don’t sleep anymore, but yeah.”

“Goodbye then,” Lykou said. “Was nice meeting you, Marja.”

“Aside from the circumstances,” Kuna added. “Hope you… uh… well…”

“What, ‘get better’?” Marja snickered a bit. “S’alright. I appreciate the sentiment. Bye you two.” After that, she faded away. Given the way the leaves rustled around in random spots, gradually moving farther away, it was obvious she was still around. But whatever made it possible for her to appear before them and talk to them clearly had a time limit before she had to recover.

“Man, never expected a ghost encounter to go like that,” Lykou said thoughtfully.

“Me either. Definitely not complaining though,” Kuna agreed. “Shame we can’t do more for her.”

“Yeah…” Lykou sighed. “Well… I guess we better get back to Algrytha now.”

Kuna nodded and they headed out, glancing around warily. “Especially if that… ‘ghoul’ that got her is still lurking around here somewhere.”

Chapter Text

The walk back to Algrytha’s strange garden was uneventful enough, albeit as unsettling and creepy as they’d come to expect in the Kryck. However, they soon found themselves getting lost and confused within the garden itself. Things seemed to be in different places than they remembered them. At first, they assumed they had simply approached from a different direction than the last time. But eventually they started to suspect there was more going on.

“Wait, didn’t we already pass those bushes?”

Lykou scratched his head. “Now that you mention it, yeah…”

“Great, we’re going in circles,” Kuna grumbled.

“But we haven’t turned recently… have we?”

The sereva looked around anxiously, then shook his head. “I don’t think so. Let’s… try retracing our steps.”

“Sounds good t-” the konuul started to reply, then stopped after turning around. His eyes widened slightly. “Wait. We just came from this way, right?”

“Yeah w-” Kuna started, then paused when he saw the problem. Instead of a gap between the walls being right behind them, they were faced with a solid wall, and there was a gap they didn’t see before off to the side. “...okay I KNOW we came from that way, but we did not walk through a solid wall.”

Lykou experimentally prodded the moss-covered wall with the blunt end of his spear. “...feels solid.”

Kuna walked over and felt around through the plant matter. “Yeah… there’s solid rock under there.”

“Walls don’t just… move around though.”

They both looked around warily, their unease growing. Kuna sighed. “...are we finally going insane?”

“Well, if we are, at least we’re doing it together,” Lykou said with a slight smirk, then wrapped an arm around the sereva, hoping to ease both their nerves a little.

Kuna smirked back faintly. “I guess madness is better with a friend, at least,” he replied, reciprocating the hug. “Still, might as well keep looking.”

“You know, as big as her house is, you’d think we’d at least see the roof poking over the walls at some point,” Lykou commented as they continued wandering.

“Probably blends in too much.”

“The chimney sticks out.”

“...is that what you call the thing that lets smoke out?”

Lykou nodded. “Mhmm. Kind of important.”

“I’d imagine so.”

“Guessing your… ex-tribe never had fires inside?”

“Not really. Everything was way too easy to burn. Didn’t want a fire getting out of control. Mostly just bundled up real snug during the winter. And… I guess the others huddled together sometimes, too.”

Lykou frowned and gave him a gentle squeeze. “At least you can make up for lost time now.”

Kuna shot him a small smile and leaned into the embrace a little. “Yeah…”

They came to an intersection between two paths meandering between the garden sections and paused to look off to either side. Seeing no familiar or distinctive landmark to work off of, they decided to just pick a random direction and continue. “...you know, I think it’s getting harder to deny at this point, so I’ll just say it. She’s probably some kind of Sylthean.”

“I was thinking the s-same thing,” Kuna agreed, his nerves returning a bit. “N-not that we have a lot of first-hand experience w-with them. Aside from Aelana and Daisy.”

“What did Ink say the ones that built those ruins were called? El… something?”

“Elnyr, yeah.”

“I wonder if she’s one of them?”

“Hard to say,” Kuna said, his eyes darting around warily, half expecting her to pop out of one of the walls again any moment. “Kind of wish w-we’d asked more about them now, though.”

“Hey, maybe tonight if we can find a safe enough place to sleep I can visit them.”

“Good idea, but that’s a p-pretty big ‘if’ right now. Much a-as I hate the idea, it’s pretty obvious w-we’re not going to get to the gate before n-nightfall at this rate.”

“Fair point. I wonder if Algrytha will mind letting us set up camp somewhere in her garden for the night,” Lykou mused.

“Yeah no. That s-seems like a bad idea,” Kuna said, eyeing some of the strange plants- particularly another one of the bitey-ones in the corner of one section.

“Worse than out in the forest?” Lykou retorted. “With all the undead things?”

Kuna shied away from one patch of shrubs bristling with sharp thorns. When he wasn’t looking directly at them, he could swear he saw them move out of the corner of his eye. “...kind of a t-toss up at the moment.”

“Hey, at least if anything in here gives us trouble, we can probably fight back. Out there, not so much,” the konuul pointed out. “Our weapons won’t do much good against things that are technically already dead.”

The sereva shivered. “T-true... Still n-not great options though.”

“No ideal, no. But I’d rather camp somewhere in here than out there.”

They walked in silence for a few minutes, before being startled by what sounded like an eruption of high-pitched laughter when Kuna brushed against some leaves they were passing. They spun around to see a cluster of mostly-normal looking yellow flowers that he’d apparently disturbed. What made them strange is that they were bobbing around, and the laughter-like sound was apparently coming from the flowers themselves.

“W-what the…?” Kuna said as he backed away.

“...well, I’ll take noisy over bitey, at least,” Lykou commented, then winced. “Though that’d get annoying after a while.”

“Like ‘em?” a familiar voice said from behind them, startling them again.

“Do you HAVE to s-sneak up on us??” Kuna snapped, clutching his chest as he tried to calm himself down. “We’ve had enough s-scares lately as it is!”

Algrytha cackled and patted his shoulder as she walked past them with an oddly-shaped jug, then sprinkled some water over the flowers, calming them. “Not my fault you were too distracted ta notice me walking over.”

“What kinds of flowers are those?” Lykou asked. “And… do they have some kind of use?”

“Some, but mostly they just make the place feel a little more cheery,” Algrytha explained. “And they’re laughodils, of course.”

Immediately, Kuna fixed her with a flat stare. “...what.”

Lykou couldn’t help but snort in amusement, both at the name, and at his companion’s expression.

The sereva’s eye twitched. “Please tell me you’re joking,”

“Not at all. Why?” Algrytha responded with an innocent expression. “Seems like a fitting name to me.”

Kuna slowly turned to Lykou. “...I don’t like gardens anymore.”

The konuul burst into a small fit of giggles. “Oh come on, it’s not that bad.”

“Wouldja like a tour of the garden? I’ve got some lovely eyelacs and twolips.”

“If they stare back at me or start talking, I’m taking my chances with the undead.”

Lykou snickered some more, then patted his friend’s back. “Alright alright, take it easy Ku,” he said, then turned back to the witch. “We got those ingredients you told us about.”

“Didja now?” Algrytha said with a grin. “Even the spook’s slime? That musta been fun.”

“We got lucky actually. Found a fairly nice ghost. She wasn’t a crazy hungry ghost yet, but she’d been around long enough to hold a conversation,” Lykou said, then frowned. “Feel bad for her honestly.”

The witch waved the comment off. “Wouldn’t suggest gettin’ too attached. She’ll be another mindless hungry corpse-dragger eventually. Probably knew the risks when she came, too. ‘n’ still went ‘n’ threw her life away for some treasure, no doubt.”

“I don’t know, from the way she put it, she kind of did it out of desperation and kind of expected to die anyway, at the ruins.”

“Place is littered with folk like that, I’m afraid,” Algrytha added with a shrug. “Some more sympathetic than others, but all walkin’ dead in some form or other regardless.”

“I wish we could help them move on,” Kuna chimed in sadly. “Even everyday assholes don’t deserve that.”

“Deserve it or not, s’what they got,” the witch said dismissively, then walked towards a gap in the wall, gesturing for them to follow. “Anyway, since ya got them ingredients, let’s head back to the house ‘n’ get started.”

Lykou wrapped his arm around Kuna again and gave him a gentle squeeze. The sereva sighed, and they both followed along behind the garden’s odd owner.

*****

Inside the dimly-lit witch’s home, Lykou and Kuna sat quietly, watching Algrytha busy herself with setting out the tools and ingredients for the potion, muttering to herself as she did so. There were apparently several things she’d already had on hand that also went into the concoction, which she made sure to measure out ahead of time. Finally, when everything was laid out on one table, she reignited the fire and poured a small bit of normal water into one of the mid-sized pots. It didn’t take long for the small amount of liquid to start boiling off.

And that’s when things got interesting. Kuna’s eyes widened as he was the first to feel a certain charge in the air- it wasn’t like any of the energies he was familiar with, but he definitely felt some kind of magic at play the moment she waved her hand through the steam. After a moment, even Lykou could feel it- a certain faint charge in the air. She then brought the jug of the more dangerous water over to the pot and began speaking in a strange tone- not to mention rhyming.

“To start the brew that’ll see you through,
Waters that thirst will sting the worst.
With a pinch of salt, boil it well,
‘lest you wish for a taste of hell.”

She uncapped and carefully decanted the dangerous fluid into the pot as she spoke, then sprinkled some salt from a small clay bowl in after it. A few moments passed in awkward silence as she stood by, her unusually large eyes wide open and focused, watching the water slowly come to a boil. Neither Lykou nor Kuna could bring themselves to say anything- she hadn’t said as much, but they had a strange feeling that interrupting would be a bad idea. Finally, when the water began to churn, she continued, reaching for a large wooden spoon and another small wooden bowl filled with what looked like some seeds.

“Stir the pot and tip the fennel seed,
Then golden sprout to mute its greed.”

She stirred in the seeds, then sprinkled in a few unfamiliar yellow things neither of the boys recognized. The water’s boiling started to calm, then it transitioned to sizzling and hissing instead. The steam faded, leaving a strangley fizzy liquid visibly and angrily seething inside the pot. Kuna shifted and eyed the mixture uncomfortably. Lykou held him and continued watching with a mixture of bewilderment and fascination. It was clear this was unlike any cooking he’d seen before.

Around five minutes passed, then she continued again. She picked up the sprigs of death’s breath they’d gathered and began stripping the stems bare, setting the rest aside in another little bowl. Her eyes were fixed on the pot, and never seemed to blink. Combined with her neutral, yet intense expression and her smooth, yet extremely precise movements, she was starting to look especially… uncanny.

“Strip the ashen stalks all smooth and bare,
then add its flesh when steam fills the air.”

They waited in uncomfortable silence again. Suddenly, a plume of steam suddenly burst up from the pot, and she immediately dropped the stalks in and stirred it exactly twice with the spoon.

“Let it once more bubble and churn and hiss,
then sprinkle bitterleaf in for a chilly mist.”

After a moment, the mixture began boiling harder than ever, and the hissing grew louder. She grabbed another small bowl and tipped some spotted, dried up leaves into the pot. Almost immediately, it settled again- in fact it wasn’t fizzing or anything. Despite still being over the hot flames, the liquid inside became completely still. A few moments later, a chilly mist began to slowly rise from within.

Finally, she pulled the bag containing the rock coated in ectoplasm off the table and carried it over. She pulled the rock out and examined it for a moment. Fortunately, the ghostly slime hadn’t faded. After a moment, she slowly pulled the slime off, weaving it around her long, gnarled fingers, and held it over the pot. Lykou and Kuna shared a look. Clearly she had the same knack for interacting with the stuff that Kuna did. Her voice lowered to just a little above a whisper as she continued,

“When all is quiet and still as the final breath,
Stir in the essence of those that deny their death.”

Slowly, the ethereal slime dripped down and entered the pot, until it’d all left her hand and disappeared into the mixture. After a moment, she slowly stirred it. A chilly mist began to rise, then the fluid started glowing faintly with an eerie pale green light. Finally, she grinned and brought over an armful of small, clear containers. They were slim and round, and after she filled each one, she plugged the top with a cork and set it aside. When the entirety of the brew had been corked up, she brought three of the glowing containers to each of them. Somehow, they were cold to the touch- almost uncomfortably so.

“And there ya have it, boys. Draught of the dead. Drink one each when you approach the ruins. The others’re extra, just in case.”

“Th-thanks,” Kuna said, nervously taking and examining the three he’d been handed. “...i-it is safe… right?”

“As safe as anything can be, especially ‘round here,” the witch replied, then chuckled. “Might feel a smidge weird at first, but that’s about it. Not much flavor either, which, considerin’ how some brews taste, is a mighty blessin’, let me tell ya.”

“G-good to know…”

“What exactly is this made of?” Lykou asked, tapping one of the containers lightly.

“Weren’t ya payin’ attention? I mentioned all the ingredients while I worked,” she retorted.

“No, I mean… the container. Haven’t seen anything like it before.”

“Yeah, I’m n-not used to being able to see through solid things,” Kuna added.

Algrytha eyed them for a moment, then snickered. “Guessin’ your folk haven’t worked out glass yet, eh?”

“Oh!” Lykou said, perking up. “Glass! We just heard of that for the first time recently, actually. Never saw it until now though. Er, not like this anyway.”

“Not too surprisin’. Lot of folk don’t have it, apparently. Kind of rare I s’pose, but I’ve an old collection I keep around for this very thing,” she explained. “Careful, it’s kinda fragile, ‘n’ if it breaks, it makes a nasty, sharp mess that’ll cut ya good. Best bundle it up in something soft until ya need ta use it.”

“Why use it if it’s s-so easy to break?” Kuna asked.

“Lotta magic brews can get sorta… messed up a little if their in other kinds of containers. Or mess the containers up. Don’t tend ta have to worry about that with glass, fer whatever reason,” Algrytha said, then shrugged. “Some other brews do fine with reg’lar jugs ‘n’ such, but when yer dealin’ with somethin’ usin’ that water that thirsts, s’best ta play it safe.”

“And… you’re sure it’s safe to drink?” Lykou asked warily.

“Yes, yes, don’t worry about it. The cookin’ took out the dangerous qualities.”

“So we just… d-drink this when we get n-near the ruins and… the dead won’t attack us?”

“Exactly,” Algrytha assured him. “On that note though, don’t forget there’s one more thing you need.”

Lykou furrowed his brow. “Oh?”

Kuna facepalmed. “Oh, right. That… key stone thing,” he grumbled, then looked back up at the witch anxiously. “W-why do I get the feeling it won’t be easy to find?”

“Finding ain’t the hard part, kiddo,” the witch said as she started cleaning things up a bit. “Gettin’ it is. It’s deep in the Great Wraith’s territ’ry, y’see.”

Kuna gawked at her. “… seriously??”

“Oh great,” Lykou said, rubbing his face in exasperation. “Didn’t you say that thing’s super dangerous?”

“Lots’a things around here are,” Algrytha said with a dark chuckle. “But yeah, he’s probably the worst.”

“Oh good,” Kuna snarked. “Wonderful. Fan-fucking-tastic.”

Lykou arched a brow. “Why would that thing have the keystone to the ruins?”

“Because they’re connected, in a way,” Algrytha got out a knife and began cutting some kind of root vegetable up. “Why don’t you two join me for a late lunch and I’ll tell you a little story about the ruins, the revenant, and the Great Wraith, and how they’re all related.”

“Er,” Kuna said, visibly uncomfortable with the idea.

Lykou was a little uneasy as well, but didn’t want to seem rude. “Well, um…”

“Oh don’t worry, I make a mean stew that’ll suit both’a ya fine,” she assured them, then briefly waved the knife nonchalantly at Kuna with a smirk. “No meat or anything, promise.” She turned to Lykou. “But I guarantee you’ll still enjoy it.”

“Well, I mean, sure,” Lykou said with a shrug. “I’ve enjoyed plant-only stuff before,” he said, then glanced over at Kuna for a moment before continuing. “...I guess that sounds good, thanks for the hospitality.”

Kuna sighed and leaned against him lightly, resigning himself to the situation. “Yeah, thanks…”

Algrytha chuckled and poured some regular water from a large container into a pot, then dumped the chopped-up rooty things in after it. She then reached over and tussled Kuna’s hair lightly. “Don’t worry, I know what yer thinkin’,” she said with a smirk. “If I meant ya ill, ya’d already be ill. But ya’ve been lovely guests, so I’ve no reason to want such a thing.” She shrugged. “’sides, when I have ta deal with livin’ pests, I’m more inclined to let the forest deal with ‘em than waste ingredients on shit like poisons.”

“That’s… reassuring…?” Kuna replied with a small eye-twitch.

“Er, yeah…” Lykou hesitantly agreed. “Um. So. What’s the deal with this Great Wraith thing? I got the impression you didn’t really know much about it last time we talked.”

“Not all the specifics,” Algrytha admitted as she started slicing up some onions. “No idea what his name was and whatnot. Only name I got is the revenant, Elzhan. I just know the legend. Plenty’a folk do, but seein’ as how yer not from around here, it’d be my pleasure ta tell it to ya.”

“I do enjoy a good story,” Lykou said, then noted Kuna continuing unease. “First, though… mind if we get a little more comfortable?”

The sereva shot him a curious look. Algrytha chuckled. “Of course, of course, by all means. Whatever works, just don’t knock anything over and make a mess.”

The konuul grinned and looked around for a moment, then suddenly grabbed Kuna and pulled them both down to the floor. Pulling the startled seereva with him, he slid over to lean back against one of the few open patches of wall, cuddling his buddy in his arms. “There. Better?”

Kuna folded his ears down and blushed. Part of him wanted to be a bit indignant at being tugged around like that, and he wasn’t sure how he felt being so… cuddly in front of the strange witch. But after a few moments, he couldn’t resist the urge to grin a little and settle into it. He could never resist their little cuddle position. “...how many times do I have to tell you, you can just use words?”

“Pfft. More fun this way.”

Kuna smirked and settled into the konuul’s arms. “Yeah, yeah…”

Algrytha eyed them for a moment, then chuckled. “Well don’t you two look cozy. You really are quite different from the usual folk that come through these parts, I must say.”

“Best cure for this guy’s nerves, I think,” Lykou said, giving the sereva a gentle squeeze.

Kuna blushed some more and rolled his eyes a little. “Yeah yeah, I’m panicky, uptight cuddleslut. No need to rub it in. Let’s just get to the story.”

“Works for me. Lessee...” Algrytha said as she stirred the pot. Steam started to rise from it soon after. She tossed in a bowl of herbs, then waved her hands over the steam. It might’ve been their imagination, but Lykou and Kuna thought for a moment the light in the room dimmed a little more, and they could just barely make out shapes in the rising cloud. “Centuries ago, where there’s naught but ruins now, there was a fortified village- a town, some might call it, surrounded by a bog. Its people were rugged and wary, but fiercely loyal to one another. The land was extra wild back in them days, you see. Extra harsh and full of danger.”

“But they worked together to build up the stone walls you see now, to protect ‘em from the monsters that lurked in the ol’ Kryck. They’d go out during the day and toil hard to find enough food fer everyone, and even kept small gardens out in the bog, under the watch of the vigilant warriors standing on the walls. And at night they’d huddle together around warm fires, eat their meals, and sing songs to keep their souls as warm as their bodies… and keep the nightmares at bay.”

Algrytha lowered her voice and peered through the steam at them, as she sliced some carrots into the stew. With only her narrowed eyes peering through the cloud for a moment, it almost gave her a menacing look. “Even back then, you see, while the Kryck wasn’t as dead as it is now, the place still had a thin border between worlds, especially at night. Even without the curse, people tended to go missing, or die in mysterious or dreadful ways out in these woods… and that means ghosts have always been a common thing here.”

She paused and thought for a moment. “You know… it occurs to me that I never finished tellin’ ya about the different kinds of ghosts ‘n’ such last time we spoke.” She slowly moved her hand through the steam again, causing more shapes to form. “Souls are strange things… separatin’ ‘em from their body without letting ‘em pass on can lead to all sorts of… oddities. Not all become hungry ghouls. Some never develop the knack fer taking empty bodies, ‘n’ become banshees. Horrible, noisy things that feed on fear. Or ‘geists, unable to remember what shape they were, so they just throw invisible tantrums. And others besides.”

There was another brief silence as she scooped the insides out of some kind of hard-shelled fruit they didn’t recognize. “And then on the other side’a things, you have the strangest of all,” she said, then held up the empty shell. “...husks.”

“H-husks?” Kuna asked, huddling up in the canid’s arms. “I-I don’t get it…”

“There are ways, albeit very rare and usually involvin’ terrible, dark magic, that a soul can be separated from its body, without the body dyin’,” the witch continued as she set the shell aside, then stirred the pot. “What ya get then… is a husk. Body’s alive, does everything it always did… but no soul inside. Depending on the magic involved, even other ghosts can’t take it. It just carries on, acting on its own.”

Kuna stared wide-eyed at her, shivering a little. Even Lykou was notably unsettled at the thought. “H… how?” the canid asked. “What controls it?”

“Nobody knows fer sure. Something to do with the way the world was built, or somethin’. But I tell ya, it’s the most eerie, unnatural thing ta see,” she said, then narrowed her eyes again and grinned at them faintly. “And it just so happens… there’s one living several hours’ hike southeast’a my garden, at the edge of the Kryck.”

Lykou and Kuna stared wide-eyed at her. “R-really?”

“Yes indeed. Has himself a little hut and everything. Right at the boundary between Kryckwood and a more healthy-lookin’ forest, where he goes huntin’ ‘n’ fishin’ at regular, very predictable times,” she said, then leaned over the pot, allowed the steam to flow around her. “And it so happens to be related to this story, y’see.”

Lykou gulped. “H… how?”

She leaned back and stirred the pot some more. “Back to that little village. Like I said, its people were very familiar with the terrors lurking all around ‘em. But they were brave and close to one another. A few even knew a thing or two about magic. In partic’lar, they had a certain magical axe… they didn’t make it. They just found it when they built the village.”

“See, when they first settled into the area, there was already some old ruins there, left by someone even longer ago than anyone can remember. Not much was left… mostly just a big stone floor ‘n’ a few crumblin’ walls. And… a stone box, covered in strange symbols nobody could make any sense of fer the longest time.”

“...and the gate?” Lykou hazarded.

“Oh, yeah. That too, though they probably just figured it wasn’t important. Not many folk these days know how them things work, so they tend to just be brushed off as some old funny decorative arches,” the witch said, then pointed her finger at Kuna. “Which makes you two extra special ‘n’ interestin’, frankly. Remind me ta get yer own story from ya sometime.”

“Heh… sure. Getting kind of used to telling it anymore,” Lykou said with a faint smirk.

“Guess it helps to remember the details if you have to keep telling it,” Kuna pointed out.

“Good point.”

“Well anyway, the box refused to open through any mundane means. The village’s mystical and spiritual experts puzzled over it fer a while, until eventually they worked out how to channel the mystical energies into the signs inscribed on its sides in the right order. Inside… was a magical axe. They looked over it ‘n’ looked over it fer a long time, tryin’ to figure out its secrets. But unlike the box, they weren’t makin’ any progress. The symbols on its sides were completely different from the ones that’d been cut into the box. But even without knowin’ how, they knew it had magic in it.”

“Eventually they gave up trying to figure it out though, and left it to their most respected warrior. She trained with it, and ended up fighting off all kinds of monsters with it. After wieldin’ it fer so long, ‘n’ killin’ off a fair share of monsters that threatened her friends and family, she somehow unlocked its magical abilities, making her the most impressive guardian the village had ever had. It guided her arm, revealed hidden dangers, and cut things from far away. It was even be able to cut spirits and send them forcefully to the afterlife- or the hells, in certain cases, like with demons.”

“Woah,” Lykou said, wide-eyed. “Sounds pretty amazing…”

“No wonder s-so many people go l-looking for it,” Kuna commented.

“Indeed. And it became a closely-guarded relic for the village. When the mighty warrior grew old, she passed it onto the most promising up-and-coming warrior in the next generation, who she personally trained to use its magical powers. And they passed it to the next, who passed it to the next, and so on.” She scooped out some kind of powder from a clay jar and tossed it into the pot, causing a puff of red-tinted steam to rise. “Trouble is… power can sometimes breed jealousy. And greed.”

“Some of the mystical sorts resented that the magical artifact that their predecessors had granted the village access to had been given to the warriors, who tended to be, in their minds, less enlightened than themselves, and thus unworthy to wield its power. But they weren’t foolish enough to try and take it outright. No, they started to… stir up trouble. Little by little, they quietly spread false rumors about the bearer, about how they were terrible ‘n’ dishonorable in private. Finally, it came to a head when another warrior challenged his claim to the axe. Some sided with the challenger, while others sided with the bearer. Arguments turned to fights, and fights into big ol’ brawls. Among the chaos, the mystics stepped forward, claiming the chaos as proof that the axe belonged in the hands of more thoughtful, level-headed individuals, and took it for… ‘safe keeping’, until they could determine who the most worthy bearer really was.”

“That was the story they told everyone, anyway. Secretly, they examined it ‘n’ tried to figure out how it worked. Eventually, one of ‘em became obsessive. Nobody remembers his name, only that he slipped off into the woods with the axe late one night, ‘n’ vanished into the shadows. The village panicked fer a while, ‘n’ even sent some of their bravest warriors to look fer ‘im. But eventually they all decided it wasn’t meant to be- the remaining mystics figured that it was a sign from the spirits that their pettiness ‘n’ quarreling proved they were no longer worthy of the axe.”

“Things went back to the old ways fer a while. They expected the Kryck to go back to bein’ a terrifying place again. And it did- just not in the way they expected. The old monsters never came back, but ghosts were on the rise again. Hunters and warriors went missing out in the wilderness, or turned up dead without any sign of what killed ‘em. Finally, one day, some years later, the thief returned. He’d changed- he was a hardened warrior in ’is own right. He said he’d mastered the axe’s secrets ‘n’ spouted off about how only those with the strongest will could truly possess its full potential. And with that in mind, he proclaimed himself the new ruler of the village, ‘n’ dared anyone to oppose him.”

Alrytha stirred the pot again, bringing up a fresh plume of steam, with new, faint visions dancing around in its shadows. “Nobody liked that idea. The warriors surrounded him ‘n’ demanded he surrender the axe. Unfortunately, it turned out he was right about his mast’ry. Blood painted the walls of the village that day. He was merciless,” Algrytha paused to check the stew, then sprinkled some more herbs into it and set a lid over the pot for a bit. “You see, weapons like that… they take after the one that’s bonded with it.”

“B-bonded…?” Kuna asked, perplexed.

“Mhmm. When it comes to certain magical items, particularly weapons, you don’t just pick ‘em up and expect to be able to wield their powers straight away. You have to get to know it. And in the process, they sorta… get to know you, too. There’s a trick to it that many folks can never figure out. But those that do, form a sorta bond with it, tyin’ their soul to it in a way. And that imparts a bit of their own personality into its magic.”

“A person who’s pure’a heart ‘n’ good-natured will become a great defender of the weak ‘n’ defenseless with its help. Able to cut down threats ‘n’ guide people away from danger. But a wicked soul… someone who’s obsessed with power ‘n’ so on… well, I’m sure you can imagine.”

Lykou gulped and nodded while Kuna shivered in his arms. “Y-yeah. We uh… know the t-type.”

“Well this fella was definitely the latter. He’d been a bit power-hungry even afore he snuck off with the axe- when he came back, he was more deranged than when he’d left, havin’ gone a bit mad out in the wilderness on ‘is own, with only his obsession over the axe fer company. So when he returned, the axe pulsed with dark, twisted magic. He didn’t just kill people- he found out he could sever their souls with it and leave behind mindless, obedient little husks that he could rule over without question. And he didn’t just stop with the warriors- he started attacking everyone. He was so crazed that he didn’t even consider the ghosts he was creating in the process.”

“Eventually, the bravest warriors and the disgraced mystics banded together to take him down. Even with his magically-enhanced fighting abilities, he realized he was losing, and he’d been injured badly over the course of the fight. So he fled back into the woods, determined to find a way to overcome his mortal weaknesses.”

“By the time he left, more than half the villagers were dead or separated from their bodies. Torn by grief and horror, the survivors decided to abandon the village ‘n’ seek fresh starts elsewhere. Some stuck together, but some, who’d seen their entire families taken from them, went to finish their days in solitude out in the wilderness, never to be seen again- not alive, anyway.”

Kuna sniffed and shivered a bit, then squeezed Lykou’s hand absent-mindedly. The konuul just squeezed him in return and folded his ears down. “Damn, that’s… that’s just awful…”

“Tragic indeed. But not the end of the tale,” the witch said, then took out some bowls and spoons and set them out for when the stew was ready. “The survivors decided they should leave Kryckwood altogether. But they didn’t like the idea of leaving that menace out there with the axe before they left. So while the others began preparing for travel, the warriors and mystics decided to track the bastard down while he was weak. It took a while, but three of the warriors found him- or what was left of him.”

“Apparently, the bastard had set up a small hut fer ‘imself out in the woods that he’d been livin’ out of the whole time. When they found him, they immediately realized somethin’ was wrong. The axe was laying carelessly discarded in the dirt a short way from his hut. And the man himself was calmly sitting and tending a small fire. When they confronted him, he did not respond. And that’s when they saw the emptiness in his eyes. The madman thought that if he severed his own soul, he could wield the axe as a spirit and become invincible. Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for everyone else, it didn’t work out that way.”

“Fucking hell,” Lykou blurted out, staring at her aghast. “He did that to himself??”

“W-what some people will do f-for power,” Kuna murmured in shock.

“Madness can be its own undoin’, sometimes,” Algrytha continued. “They considered killing the body. But when they tried, they were startled to find that it was more than willing to defend itself. And as a husk, it was uninhibited by emotion or pain- a perfect killer, even without the axe. After one of them was struck down, the other two took the axe and fled. With no motivation to pursue them, the empty husk went right back to life as usual.”

“The village survivors eventually settled in another forest a long way from here. The axe was carefully guarded, ‘n’ they tried to figure out what was to be done with it. It was finally decided that one of their number- a warrior who’d become more spiritual since the tragedy, after he lost his entire family to the bloodshed- was truly of good enough nature to be trusted to wield it. He declined initially, but he was reminded of the restless spirits of his kin that’d been separated from their bodies on that fateful day, and how there was only one way to grant them peace. So he agreed, and trained with it until he could wield its powers. But he had a further plan he didn’t tell them about.”

“You see, after leaving the Kryck, they’d encountered other people from other nearby villages. There were occasionally tensions, but eventually they got along fine by sticking to their own small corner of the new forest they found themselves in. But after he was chosen to bear the axe, the chosen warrior told the others to wait while he visited one of the other villages, who had a wise old sage that was incredibly adept in all sorts’a magic. In a private conversation, she revealed to him a ritual that he kept secret for the time bein’.”

“When he returned, he rallied a few other brave warriors and a few of the mystics to return to the old village, to put the lost souls there to rest once and for all. When they arrived, several of ‘em had already become hungry ghosts, and even turned into ghouls. With the others’ help, he bravely fought them and slew them. Once the more unruly ghosts were dealt with, the rest were sent to the afterlife while the others slew their lingering husks and laid the bodies to rest. With the grim work over with, the others prepared to leave- but the axe-bearer said that he would not be joining them. He revealed his plan to stay behind- indefinitely- and ensure that the axe never again fell into the hands of an honorless, wicked soul. That man’s name… was Elzahn.”

“The revenant…” Kuna murmured, wide-eyed.

“Precisely. The ritual he’d learned from the wise old sage would turn him into an undead guardian to watch over the ruins ‘n’ guard the axe. The others initially tried to talk him out of it, but he was steadfast. They eventually relented after he reminded them that his family was gone, so he may as well watch over their final resting place. They aided him in the ritual after placing the axe back in the box it was originally sealed away in. His life was taken, and his body interred before the axe’s box. A magical gate was constructed to seal the ruins up, ‘n’ a keystone matched to it was given to his fellows. Once his spirit was settled into its long duty, the others left to return to their budding new village to spread the legend as a warning to others- it was meant to warn people of the dangerous of lusting for power, and to deter people from visiting the mournful site.”

Algrytha sighed. “Unfortunately, people will be people. Cautionary tales became a lure for greedy, thick-headed treasure-hunters, ‘n’ the bodies gradually built up. For years, a group of mystics and warriors made an annual pilgrimage to the ruins to check on Elzahn and pay their respects, and tried to shoo away the treasure-hunters. As years went past, they started to lie about the location of the ruins, to deter people. Unfortunately, that just meant folk wandered around the Kryck in search of ‘em, getting’ themselves killed by its various dangers in the process.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Including the most insane spook of all, who gradually grew more powerful as he continued to linger and get saturated in the strange energies given off by all that death.”

“W-wait, so,” Kuna chimed in. “Y-you mean the Great Wraith is… the thief guy?”

“Mhmm. Initially, his soul fled his body in disgust and confusion. He became a hungry ghost, then a ghoul… but he was more persistent ‘n’ ravenous than most. He continued to linger ‘n’ became the most dangerous thing in the woods… until finally, all that remained of his former self was a hatred for those he once sought to rule over, and a desire for something he couldn’t recall, ‘cept for the fact that the revenant had it. So one day, he somehow convinced a pack of other ghouls to follow along and ambush the visiting mystics during their pilgrimage. The ghouls devoured them, and the Wraith made off with the keystone.”

“Elzhan eventually realized what had happened, ‘n’ decided to just keep all mortals out of the ruins. In his long stay as a revenant, he eventually worked out more magic he could use from beyond the grave, and cast the spell that turned the bodies in the bog into a secondary group’a guardians. Ever since then, the three have lingered. The revenant, keeping an unwavering watch over the blood-soaked ruins of his kindred; the Wraith, lost in his deranged, chaotic madness with a keystone that he doesn’t understand his desire for; and the husk, toiling away its empty life, the last living, eerie reminder of a tragic and violent past.”

“W-wait, shouldn’t the husk be dead by now?” Lykou asked. “From old age if nothing else. I thought this all happened a long time ago.”

Algrytha chuckled. “It did. Funny thing about husks… for some reason, they just stop aging when they’re separated from their soul.”

“F-fuck that’s creepy,” Kuna said, shivering.

“Fitting, for the Kryck. Certainly gives me some very… interesting neighbors.”

“W-what about the curse?” Lykou asked. “When did that happen?”

Algrytha shrugged. “Pretty straight-forward. Over the years, the Great Wraith got more and more deranged, but at the same time he figured out more strange, twisted magic of ‘is own, ‘n’ eventually cursed the place. Maybe deep down, he figures if he can’t leave, nobody should be able to. Though like I said, place tended to get more ghosts than usual even before that. He just took whatever was there and made it worse, really.”

“S-so we have to find the Wraith and… d-defeat it so we can take the stone?” Kuna asked.

The witch burst into a loud fit of laughter for a solid minute. “Defeat him? My, yer a bold one,” she said as she finally calmed down. “No, no, don’t even try such nonsense. Ya just need to sneak in and find the stone, then get away before he, or his ghoul friends, getcha. Head back this way when they start chasin’ ya, if ya like. They know better’n ta tresspass in my garden,” she explained, then winked. “Place has protections that spooks can’t cross, y’see.”

“Th-that’s good to know,” Kuna replied.

“Y-yeah. Um, on that note,” Lykou said, shooting a look at the sereva briefly. “We were wondering…”

Kuna frowned and sighed, but didn’t object.

“...would it be alright if we set up camp somewhere in your garden tonight?”

“Well sure, if ya like,” Algrytha said as she began serving up some stew. “Can even sleep in here, if ya like. Keep the chill of ya.”

“W-we’re fine wi-” Kuna started to reply, but Lykou interrupted him with a light squeeze.

“That’d be nice, if you’re sure you’re alright with it,” the konuul said. “We really appreciate the kindness.”

Kuna frowned and fidgeted a bit. “...garden works too…” he mumbled.

“It’s my pleasure, really,” Algrytha said, then handed them each a bowl of stew. After Kuna took his, she pinched his nose playfully. “Ease up, kiddo. I promise I’m not about ta do somethin’ to ya in yer sleep. If it makes ya feel better, you can even use yer magic ta seal yerself up snug inside. Walls got plenty’a shit growin’ on ‘em, as you can see.”

The sereva gawked at her slightly. “W-wait, how-??”

“I been around a while, kid. Yer a magic user, ‘n’ you’ve been travelin’. Without any kinda tent from what I can tell. If ya didn’t use it to shelter, you’d be an idiot,” she said, grinning. “But yer no idiot. Nah, I bet my left foot yer a clever lil’ shit. So like I said, feel free ta spend the night ‘n’ do whatever makes ya feel safe here.”

Lykou grinned and squeezed Kuna again with one arm, while his other hand held the bowl of stew. “You’re right about that one. He’s a smart guy.”

Kuna blushed and smiled bashfully. “...th-thanks…” he said, then, after a moment’s hesitation, stuck a spoonful of the stew in his mouth. Almost immediately, he perked up. “W-wow,” he said, after swallowing. “This is… r-really good.”

“Damn, no kidding!” Lykou agreed after trying some for himself. “I didn’t know food without meat could taste this good! I’d… ask you how you made it, but it looked complicated.”

Algrytha chuckled. “S’why it helps to write things down, ‘least till ya get so used ta makin’ it that you got it memorized.”

“We… don’t know anything about that ‘writing’ stuff, unfortunately,” Lykou said with a sheepish grin. “Kinda new to the whole concept, frankly.”

“Mm. Just like glass, eh? Hope ya fix that. Writin’s pretty damn useful. I’d offer ta teach ya, but I don’t ‘spect you’ll want to stick ‘round these parts long enough to really get the hang of it.”

“Well, I think one or two people back home were starting to experiment with something like that anyway, so… who knows?”

“Ah, good, good,” the witch said as she made herself comfortable on one of the stools, then started eating some stew herself. “Well, in the meantime, I told you a story. How about ya tell me one back? Mighty curious about you two.”

Kuna smirked and swallowed another bite, then looked up at the konuul behind him. “If we ever do learn how to use that writing stuff, I imagine it’ll be useful so we don’t have to keep repeating things.”

Lykou chuckled. “Probably. But I don’t mind,” he said, then turned back to Algrytha. “Well, it all started around two months ago now…”

Chapter Text

“So… what should we expect in this thing’s territory?” Lykou warily asked as Algrytha walked them back through her garden. She’d managed to persuade them to stay the night when they got back, so they left most of their things in her home so they could travel more lightly and quickly.

“Y-yeah, what else am I gonna h-have nightmares about t-tonight?” Kuna added. He’d stalled a bit by eating slowly, but once they were both done, he knew there was no getting out of their little trek into the Wraith’s turf.

“Dark. Lots’a dark. Sun don’t penetrate the heart of the Great Wraith’s domain, even on the rare days when the Kryck gets some gaps in the clouds. ‘cept you’ll still kinda be able to see, fer some reason. Just the strange nature’a his curse. ‘n’ it’ll be chilly. Best bundle up,” Algrytha explained. “Plenty’a bones, too. Careful ya don’t trip on ‘em or get too close- some hungry ghost might make use of ‘em in a pinch. They prefer something with more meat left, but any bit of a former person’ll work when they’re crazed enough.”

Kuna blanched at the description, then shuddered. “Fuck...”

“That’s… g-good to know,” Lykou said. He was trying to put on a brave face, but even he was growing more anxious about their situation. “I’m guessing there’s no potions you could make to help?”

“None that’d be terribly useful ‘n’ wouldn’t require a bunch of ingredients that don’t grow around here. ‘n’ even if they did, that’d just take more time. The Kryck is bad enough durin’ the day, ya really don’t want to be headin’ out there at night.”

“How many, uh… ghouls are out there? Do you know?”

“Plenty. Just depends on how many in-tact bodies the ghosts can find. Bunch of ‘em will prolly be in weak shape after all the years’a decay, but watch out. A few of ‘em have been ‘round long enough to have some twisted magic that warps the bodies they inhabit. Turns ‘em inta real vicious, nasty shits.”

“Oh g-great. W-walking dead things just w-weren’t bad enough, I g-guess,” Kuna interjected, holding himself and tightening the grip on the hatchet in his one hand.

Lykou rubbed his shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry. Tough or not, I’m sure we can handle any that come for us.”

“Try to avoid fighting anything,” Algrytha warned. “Best you can expect is ta temporarily inconvenience ‘em.”

The konuul frowned and nodded. “R-right...”

“Just keep your guard up and try to be quick ‘n’ quiet. Avoid notice if ya can,” the witch advised, then gently prodded Kuna, making him let out a small, startled ‘eep’. “Watch it with the magic, too. Tossin’ around a bunch of life ‘n’ soul energy is a good way ta draw attention in there. They’re always lookin’ fer the stuff.”

“N-noted,” Kuna nervously replied.

“’n’ any kind’a woody armor won’t do ya much good against some’a their fangs,” Algrytha suddenly added. “So don’t bother with the bracers either. It’ll just catch their attention.”

The comment caught Lykou and Kuna off guard. But when they turned to ask her how she knew, she’d vanished, and they realized they were just outside the edge of her garden. They thought they could hear faint cackling in the distance for a moment, before it faded away.

“...oh she’s d-definitely Sylthean,” Kuna commented, wide-eyed.

“Yeah, I don’t think there’s any denying it now,” Lykou agreed, slowly nodding. “...think we should bring it up when we get back?”

The sereva just stared back into the garden for a minute, as eerie feelings washed over him. “I… d-don’t know. Maybe?” he finally responded.

Lykou stared into the garden briefly himself, then took a deep breath and turned back the direction they were headed. “Well… we’ll worry about that later. Let’s… get this over with.”

Kuna gulped and started walking with him, sticking as close to the konuul as he could without actively getting in the way. “F-fuck I hope this goes quickly and s-smoothly.”

“You and me both, Ku,” Lykou said as they made their way through the ominous woods. “You and me both…”

*****

For a while, the boys trekked through the kind of forest they’d come to expect from the Kryck. Half-dead trees, strange flora, and hardly any animal life aside from the odd crow or half-starved squirrel. Occasionally they saw some wisps or shadow spirits in the distance, but fortunately they were never very close or along their path. Eventually, they passed a certain familiar looking gourd lantern hanging from a tree. The flame was out at the moment, however.

A short while later, things finally started to change. What little life they’d seen up until that point became increasingly rare. The trees were completely barren, and starting to look more twisted and deformed. Things around them were getting darker and grayer. The sickly grass gradually gave way to dry, dusty earth. Things got chillier despite the complete lack of any breeze.

Everything was still and quiet, leaving only the sounds of their breathing and soft footsteps to reverberate very faintly against the nearest trees. It was all Kuna could do to keep from panicking at any given moment and running back. Whenever possible, Lykou reached over and gave him a side-embrace to reassure him, despite feeling his own dread growing. He tried to keep up his composure for the sereva’s sake, but the darkening forest was challenging his resolve. It felt like they were walking into a waking nightmare of some kind.

Eventually, they noticed ash, of all things, starting to coat the ground. There was no smell of smoke or any signs of a fire, but it mingled heavily with the dust that also coated the ground, eventually leading to a thin layer that was almost like grey, extra-fine snow. Random bones and bone fragments were becoming increasingly common, protruding from the ash and dust mixture. Most were at least partially buried in the ground, but some were more or laying out on the surface, only lightly coated in the ash. Some had what looked like chew marks on them- including a skull, which had a sizable chunk of its top broken away and missing.

They started to notice thin veils of something hanging from some of the tree limbs around them as well. The more they progressed, the more of it they seemed to encounter. They paused and shared a look when they came across a large curtain of it spanning between several trees. The konuul tried carefully prodding it with his spear, but it passed straight through as if it never even made contact. Upon inspection, they realized it was the strange ghost-slime they’d previously collected for the potion- a damn lot of it. The faint, ethereal glow it gave off was quite dim on a lot of it, which they interpreted as meaning it’d been there a long time.

Kuna shuddered, and they both embraced fully for a moment to try and calm one another’s nerves. After pausing for a few minutes to collect themselves and drink some water from their respective containers, they pressed on.

The only areas of ground devoid of ash were occasional small pools of the water they’d learned to avoid touching, let alone drinking. Somehow, they did see a few bones laying in them- especially clean, smooth looking ones, though they had an odd discoloration to them. Kuna suddenly let out a gasp after letting his eyes drift up to the sky. Lykou similarly gawked in disbelief and unease when he looked up to see what the sereva was looking at.

The sky had not only further darkened, but turned a deep crimson color in all directions. The mixture of black, grey, and dark red made the clouds vaguely resemble some kind of sickly flesh. After staring at it for a minute, they both nervously pushed onward.

“...I f-feel like we’re being w-watched,” Lykou eventually whispered.

“A-as many ghosts as there p-probably are here, I’m n-not s-s-surprised,” Kuna replied.

“C-can you sense anything?”

Kuna gulped and looked around anxiously. “O-obviously no life energy.”

“W-what about… you know, s-soul energy?”

The sereva blinked and looked thoughtful for a moment. “I… haven’t really tried s-sensing it outside myself, n-now that you mention it.”

“Now m-might be a good time to try,” Lykou suggested.

Kuna hugged himself again and looked around fearfully. “...I-I’m k-kind of afraid to t-t-try.”

“M-maybe just a peek?” the konuul urged him. “W-would be better to know, just to be on the s-safe side.”

“...f-fine I’ll try. L-like I said though, c-can’t promise anything,” Kuna replied, then took a few deep breaths and closed his eyes. He furrowed his brow and focused for a minute. When he eventually opened them again, he gulped and looked around nervously. “I… c-can’t be sure. F-feels like m-maybe they’re everywhere?”

“W-would kind of make sense. But… you’re n-not sure though?”

Kuna gave a small shrug. “L-like I said, n-not used to f-feeling around for it outside m-myself.”

“W-well hopefully they’re m-more normal, non-hungry ghosts…”

“M-might just not have f-found a decent body to b-become a ghoul w-with yet.”

Lykou looked around at the scattered, broken bones all around them. “...y-yeah. M-maybe.”

They continued deeper into the eerie, sinister-looking forest. Kuna struggled to keep from having a panic attack on several occasions, half convinced he was walking into one of his awful nightmares again. He almost expected to turn and see something horrible had happened to Lykou and find himself plunged into blurry, warped memories of his youth.

Suddenly, Lykou paused and stopped Kuna as he squinted at the ground up ahead.

“W-what is it?” Kuna asked anxiously, keeping his voice as quiet as possible.

“That,” the konuul whispered back, pointing at a small, shiny object barely sticking out of the ash. “You see it too, right?’

Kuna looked where the canid was pointing and squinted for a moment. “Oh… y-yeah, now I do. Y-you think it’s the stone?”

Lykou looked around warily. “Y-yeah… maybe. Lets get a closer look, but s-stay on your guard.”

“R-right…”

They cautiously approached the object, half expecting some terrifying monster to burst out of the shadows at them at any moment. Lykou carefully nudged it all the way out of the ash with his spear. When nothing happened, he bent down and picked it up to examine it. The object was definitely a polished stone of some kind. It was solid red, round, and shiny. There were numerous tiny, gold-colored symbols and swirling lines etched into it. “This has t-to be it.”

“Don’t know w-what else it could be,” Kuna agreed, eyeing the object curiously. “I w-wonder what all the s-symbols are.”

“S-spirit signs, Sylthean things, who knows?” Lykou mused. “Seems like there’s n-no end to the number of strange symbols involved w-with magic.”

“Well l-let’s hurry and get out of here…”

“N-no arguments here,” Lykou said, pocketing the stone before turning to head back the way they’d come from. Or at least trying. Suddenly, he realized every direction looked the same, and he started to question his direction. “Uh… this is the w-way we came from, right?”

“I… think so?” Kuna looked around and pressed close to the konuul as they nervously made their way back the way they hoped they’d come from. “F-fuck I hate this place… d-did it… change behind us or s-something?”

“I d-don’t know,” Lykou admitted. “I was s-so busy watching out for ghouls I didn’t think to keep t-track of landmarks. N-nothing really stands out anyway though.”

After a few minutes, Kuna stopped. “H-hang on, I’ll just use m-my magic to guide us back the w-way we came. M-maybe link… back… to…”

The sereva trailed off and his eyes widened as he noticed the air rapidly cooling even more around them. Things seemed to get darker as well. Soon they could see their breath in the air in front of them.

“O-on second thought…”

“Y-yeah let’s just keep w-walking straight,” Lykou said, urging him along. “One w-way or another we’ll f-find our way out of here. W-where we end up isn’t important r-right now.”

They picked up the pace, feeling a constant presence in the air around them. Maybe multiple presences. There was no doubt they weren’t alone. Occasionally faint apparitions faded in and out of sight nearby. They were mostly fragments and hard to make out. Once in a while a face would appear briefly. At first, most looked confused or lost, but a few looked more wild and menacing.

Even as they sped up, frost started forming on everything, slowly overtaking them. They eventually broke into a sprint when it was obvious that something was chasing them. Kuna started subconsciously fiddling with one of his bracers, but Lykou took his hand and shook his head. “D-don’t, remember?”

Kuna gulped and hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “R-right…”

Suddenly, they stopped in their tracks. It was as if a solid wall of darkness had manifested in front of them, hiding half the forest. It’d already been dim and dark, but like Algrytha had told them, they’d still been able to see their surroundings in shades of grey the whole time up until that point. But now they were faced with pitch black void up ahead.

And then… the face appeared. Large eyes seemingly made from dim glowing orange light, and a matching toothy grin, easily larger than both of them combined, appeared in the inky patch of darkness ahead of them. The shadows started to take on a three dimensional shape somehow, with a set of massive, clawed hands resting on the ground on either side of the face.

“Leaving so soooon?” the entity spoke in a deep, yet ethereal sounding voice. The words seemed to suck the warmth right out of the boys as they passed through their ears, sending primal chills down their spines as they stared in terror at the frightful being. “You just got here, what’s the rush?”

“W-w-we w-were just p-p-passing through,” Lykou managed to reply shakily, hoping that putting on a friendly smile, however forced, might at least buy them time to think of a way out of the situation. “S-sorry if w-we intruded on y-your t-t-territory or s-something...”

Kuna, meanwhile, just trembled and stared, wide-eyed and hyperventilating at the eldritch nightmare in front of them.

“Nonsense, nonsense!” the entity replied. “We love having guests! It’s such a rare delight to have visitors with a… pulse.”

“Uh… ‘we’?” Lykou anxiously asked, only to have his question answered a moment later when faint pinpricks of glowing red and orange light began appearing in the darkness and coming closer. They turned out to be eyes- set inside a number of corpses with varying levels of decay. Some were particularly twisted looking, with long claws and fangs and tight, bulging muscles underneath torn skin and whatever bits of fur they might have left.

“My friends and I, of course!” the Wraith said. “Won’t you join us for… dinner?”

Lykou nudged the fear-frozen sereva at his side, eventually snapping him out of his terror-paralysis enough to begin backing away. “S-sorry, w-we really n-need to be going…”

“Oh come now…” the dark and massive specter purred menacingly. Suddenly, Kuna yelped and started frantically tugging at his leg as a skeletal hand burst from the ground and grabbed his ankle. “...we insist!”

Lykou swiftly kicked the arm attached to the hand, shattering the bone and freeing the sereva- though the hand itself still managed to hang on temporarily. He then surprised the approaching ghouls and Wraith by kicking up a cloud of ash in their faces. He and Kuna then immediately bolted. They didn’t know which way to run, they just knew to keep running. They could hear the ghouls scrabbling through the forest not far behind them, though fortunately the dead, awkward bodies were quickly losing ground.

That did little to assure them, though. There was a deep, echoing laughter that seemed to come from all directions at once. Every curtain of ectoplasm they passed through sent a chill down their spines- especially Kuna, who could actually touch it and had to keep flicking remnants off as some of it ended up sticking to him. The apparitions appeared more frequently around them, looking increasingly menacing, even clawing at them occasionally. Fortunately, their ghostly forms passed through them harmlessly- though it certainly felt uncomfortable and chilling every time it happened.

Soon, the claws weren’t so intangible, though. A set of ghouls burst out of the ground and charged at them up ahead. With no time to veer away, Lykou raised his spear and stabbed it into one of their chests, while Kuna frantically swung his hatchet around to keep the other at bay. The one Lykou stabbed hissed and snarled incoherently, then pulled away, the stab wound glowing slightly with faint embers.

Lykou perked up slightly and stabbed it again, driving it back. “The tooth! They d-don’t like fire!”

“Great!” Kuna replied in a strained tone, as he struggled to wrestle the other ghoul off of him. Several times, it came dangerously close to sinking its half-rotten teeth into his shoulder or arms. He tried using his magic despite Algrytha’s warning, but he couldn’t sense any living plant anywhere nearby to use. He yelped and grunted as the ghoul’s claws managed to leave some nasty cuts and scratches in their little wrestling match.

After taking several more burning stabs at the one ghoul, Lykou whirled around and jabbed the one attacking Kuna in the ribs, causing it to hiss and back off slightly. With his hands free, Kuna immediately scrabbled for his bracers. “Ku, wait-!”

“F-fuck it!” Kuna said as he activated the woody armor. “I n-need s-s-something!”

Before Lykou could say anything else, the other ghoul was back on him again. He managed to kick it away and stabbed it in the one eye it had in tact, causing it to let out a twisted, loud wail of frustration and anger as it stumbled backwards, clawing at its face. At the same time, Kuna managed to land a solid hit with the hatchet in the other ghoul’s arm, severing its weak flesh. But the swing left him vulnerable, and the undead wretch managed to rake its claws across his now-woody body, leaving sickly, deep red gashes across his neck.

Lykou quickly intervened and stabbed out the ghoul’s eyes one after the other, while Kuna was reeling back in pain. With both ghouls blinded and scrabbling around aimlessly, he quickly pulled the sereva aside to check his wounds. “Y-you okay? D-doesn’t look like it’s h-healing like it n-normally would…”

“H-hurts like shit, too,” the sereva said, fighting back tears. “C’mon, l-let’s just-”

A burst of all-too-close laughter startled them and they turned to see a growing mass of darkness surging towards them through the woods. Without another word, they bolted past the blinded, angry ghouls and continued fleeing the approaching Wraith. They couldn’t help but feel like they were being toyed with.

They ran and ran as fast and as long as they could. They were getting winded and Kuna was in pain, but they didn’t dare stop. Soon, they spotted some familiar, faintly-glowing spirits in the distance. Lykou went to try and veer off to the side, but Kuna grabbed his free hand and urged him to continue forward. “Th-they m-might be helpful n-now!”

“Oh… r-right!” Lykou agreed. “D-don’t let them get too close though!”

They ran towards the wisps, which soon took a distinct interest in them. A few got uncomfortably close to touching them as they ran past, and even started following them. But soon they slowed to a stop. Lykou and Kuna stopped a few dozen yards past them to catch their breath and looked back to see them seemingly latching onto a trio of ghouls that’d wandered out of the darkness. The ghouls flailed around briefly, then went limp after a moment as something seemed to be sucked out of them. It was an eerie, disturbing sight, but at least it was in their favor this time.

At least, it was at first. But suddenly, the wisps started backing away as a familiar massive shadow started approaching again, cloaking the rest of the forest behind it. The wisps scattered as soon as it got close.

“A… are they... r-running... away?” Lykou said, breathless and dumbfounded.

Kuna slowly nodded with a terrified expression. “W-we sh-”

Before he could finish the sentence, a shadowy claw lashed out of the darkness and snatched up one of the wisps that’d lingered a little to long. It flickered rapidly and twisted around in the massive specter’s grasp. The Wraith, for his part, just laughed and slowly lifted the thing up. Then, he popped the spirit into his glowing vortex of a mouth, where it disappeared without a trace.

“...d-did he just…?!”

“RUN!” Kuna blurted out as he darted off, terrified out of his wits, with Lykou quickly darting along beside him. The booming laughter all around them certainly didn’t help their nerves any. “Shitshitfuckfuckfuckfuck what the fuck what the fuck…”

Every so often, enormous claws of shadow, barely lit by a dim orange edge, lashed out at them, narrowly missing and making them change course. There was little doubt left that they were being toyed with. Frost was everywhere, and they felt chilled to the bone, both figuratively and literally. Increasingly terrifying-looking ghosts continued to surge out of the darkness at them. Loud howling and wailing accompanied some of them and echoed through the woods. The stench of death was growing increasingly prevalent.

Finally, they spotted a familiar faint glow hanging under a tree in the distance, suggesting they must be near the edge of the Wraith’s territory. But just as they thought they were within reach of the end of their waking nightmare, a terrifyingly twisted ghoul charged out of the woods at them and knocked Lykou to the ground. Kuna rushed over to help him, only for the ghoul to snap around towards him, its upper half twisting almost a perfect 180 degrees to grab him and lift him up with shocking strength.

The ghoul’s body looked surprisingly in-tact, albeit definitely twisted and distorted by some kind of dark magic. Its head had a long snout full of sharp teeth and its bulging eyes were completely alight with sinister orange light. Its claws dug into the sereva’s arms as it held him up. As he thrashed around and grunted in terrified desperation, the ghoul pulled him in and sank its teeth down into his shoulder, causing him to stiffen and cry out in pain.

Then the world spun as the ghoul’s legs were kicked out from under it. His terror temporarily replaced with anger and protective instinct, Lykou started savagely attacking the undead monster. He stabbed it in the eyes, then its ribs repeatedly until it released the whimpering sereva. The two become locked into a wrestling match of their own for a moment, but eventually Lykou managed to trip the ghoul again and start angrily stabbing and slicing at its limbs until it was a writhing, dismember mess on the ground.

With the ghoul at least temporarily disabled, he hurried back over to Kuna to check on his injuries. Despite the sereva’s woody armor, he had a deep bite mark in his shoulder, which was fizzing with an angry substance of some kind. “Ku! S-stay with me Ku!” he desperately pleaded, helping the wincing, slightly delerious sereva to his feet. “Come on, w-we have to get out of here!”

But then the world got darker all around them. The Wraith’s twisted face manifested in front of them and is claws hovered nearby in the air. “It’s been a nice chase, but you’ve gone far enough. Don’t worry, you’ll grow to like unlife in a few decades, I promise!”

Lykou dragged Kuna back and waved his spear shakily at the face. “S-stay back!”

The Wraith burst into laughter. “Whatcha gonna stab, fleshy boy? Go on, give it a try,” he said, then suddenly surged closer, his face hovering in a void just a few feet from the two. “I dare you.”

The konuul desperately stabbed out with the spear. Unfortunately, as he somewhat expected, it passed right through the void, failing to make contact with anything. In fact, the faint glow of the pelenock tooth vanished completely the short time it was past the face. The Wraith laughed some more.

But then, after a few moments of shakily fumbling around, Kuna managed to pull something out of one of his pockets. He struggled to focus, then a brilliant light shined in his hand, illuminating their surroundings brightly and causing the Wraith to hiss and recoil. “What?! That’s… how?!”

Lykou looked down to see the shaking sereva tightly gripping the crystal Whironui had given him. The crystal had been an impulse- Kuna didn’t know what would happen, if anything. Fortunately, the impulse appeared to be paying off. “G… g-get us out of here Lykou…” he managed to murmur, clearly struggling to stay focused.“H-hurry…”

The konuul nodded and lifted the sereva up, abandoning the spear on the ground next to the dropped hatchet in order to carry him away through the darkness. Kuna held the crystal up as best he could, lighting their path and keeping the Wraith at bay as they fled. With what little energy he could muster, he disabled his bracers, since all they seemed to be doing is weighing them down at the moment. Every time the Wraith got close, he seemed to recoil and struggle to close in, seemingly pained by the bright, sunny-yellow light. Even the other ghouls and apparitions that popped out of the dark woods around them flinched and shrank back when they came within a few yards of the bright object.

But it was clear they didn’t have much time. The light started to flicker and Kuna’s hand wavered as he clearly struggled to avoid fainting. Lykou tried talking to him as he quickly carried him through the woods, hoping that it’d help him stay conscious. But clearly whatever was in that bite was having a nasty effect on the poor, increasingly delerious sereva.

Eventually, Lykou started seeing more signs of life, and the sounds of the monsters chasing them faded away, though there were at least a few stubborn ghouls that continued following them well outside of what seemed to be the Wraith’s territory. Suddenly, Kuna’s hand released the crystal, causing it to land with a faint thump on the ground and go dark. Lykou frantically tried to shake the sereva awake, then turned just as a pair of ghouls charged at him. But when he was getting ready to face off against them, he was surprised to see them suddenly halt a few feet away, as if they’d slammed into an invisible wall. They snarled and glared at him, menacing at him from a distance. But there was clearly some kind of unseen barrier they didn’t dare cross.

With a quick glance around, Lykou realized they’d ended up in the outskirts of the aberrant garden. He just hadn’t noticed because everything was still fairly dark- apparently the sun had finally set for real. Fortunately, for once there were some gaps in the clouds, allowing a small amount of moonlight and starlight to shine on them. After shooting the ghouls a quick glare, he turned back to help Kuna up again. He tried to wake his friend, to no success. With tears leaking out of his eyes, he tried to pull him further into the garden. “ALGRYTHA!” he cried out, hoping the witch would show up. He didn’t have time to go hunting around her strange garden, trying to find her or her house. He turned his attention back to his ailing, unconscious friend and let out a small whimper of his own. “Come on Ku, s-stay with me…”

*****

“Ghoul bites are nasty bus’ness, especially when they have this fizzy shit,” Algrytha explained, carefully tending to Kuna’s wounds as best she could with a cloth coated in some kind of concoction she whipped up quickly. “Good thing you got back when you did.”

“Please tell me he’ll be alright,” Lykou pleaded, holding the unconscious sereva’s hand. His friend had remained unconscious since they got to her house, occasionally mumbling and twitching in his sleep. Lykou hated to see him in such a state, especially given his pained expression.

“Well… I can keep him steady, but the elixir we gave him doesn’t seem to be working as well as I’d expect,” the witch commented thoughtfully.

“W-why not??”

“Hmm… I have a hunch, but I’m not sure,” Algrytha said, then turned to him with a quizzical expression. “I know your friend here is adept with the mystical arts. What do you know about them?”

“W-well, I know it involves all these mystical energies that apparently flow through things and from the spirit world… like life energy and soul energy and so on. And apparently some people can sense them and learn to grab them with their mind and do stuff with them.”

“And did he ever mention… essence?”

“Oh, yeah, yeah he did! In fact, just recently he gave me some of his t-” Lykou started to reply, then his expression fell. “Oh… oh shit, that’s it, isn’t it?? He must be low!”

“Mm, yes, that’d explain it,” Algrytha said as she turned her attention back to the sereva. “If he hasn’t had enough time to replenish what he transferred to you, then it’s no wonder he’s struggling more than usual even with my help.”

“Is there some way I can give s-some back? I obviously don’t need it right now…”

“You’re not trained in the arts yourself, are you?”

“Well, no,” Lykou said, frowning. “...wait, w-what about you? I know it’s a lot to ask, but-”

“Sorry kiddo. Can’t transfer it between two other people, just yerself and someone else,” Algrytha explained. “And let’s just say he and I… wouldn’t be compatible.”

Lykou stared at her for a moment in uncomfortable silence. “...because y-you’re a… a Sylthean, aren’t you?” he quietly said after some hesitation.

“Sylthean? What might that be?” the witch inquired in somewhat insincere-sounding innocent tone. She then waved it off. “Nevermind, no time fer babbling nonsense. There is another potion I could make that’ll help fix yer friend up.”

The konuul perked up. “Really?” he asked, then frowned again. “Let me guess, you need more ingredients from out in the forest?”

“Just one. Everythin’ else is within reach here.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“Guarded Agaric.”

“...what?”

“A special mushroom that only grows in certain places… protected by the only ones that grow ‘em. Y’see, I’m not the only gardener around here,” the witch explained. “There’s others livin’ out south of the ruins with their own little odd patch. Pretty small, especially compared to what I’ve got, but full’a all kinds of mushrooms. Including the one ya need.”

“...sooo…I just need to talk to the gardener and ask for one of the mushrooms?”

Algrytha laughed aloud and shook her head. “Yer too good-natured, ya know that? Ya can’t bargain with them imps. They don’t like anyone but themselves and they have a violent streak. They may be small, but they’ll bite, scratch, and kick wherever they can reach, just fer lookin’ at ‘em wrong. Lot’a their garden is fed with blood, ‘n’ whatever corpses aren’t being… used.”

“Well fuck… how do I get one then?”

“Seems obvious ta me. Steal it, one way or another.”

Lykou frowned. “Is there really no other way…? You sure there’s not something I could do or say to convince them to just hand one over?”

Algrytha chuckled some more. “Like I said. Yer too sweet, kid. Ya can’t reason with everyone,” she said, then paused and thought for a moment. “...I suppose you could try’n trick ‘em, somehow. Or scare ‘em. They’re feisty, but a bit superstitious. Show off a bit’a magic ‘n’ ya just might be able to intimidate ‘em into cooperatin’.”

“I can’t do magic, though,” Lykou said, throwing his hands up in frustration, then rubbed his head. “I have my bracers, but… I dunno, would that spook them?”

“Probably not on its own, no. Too obviously defensive. Need somethin’ flashy.” The witch focused on cleaning Kuna’s wounds again, then turned and gave Lykou a quizzical look. “Given what you said you two went through out there, I’m surprised you even made it back alive. What’d ya use to get away?”

“Oh, Kuna used one of these magical crystal things we got on our last adventure,” Lykou replied, pulling the sereva’s crystal back out to show her. “I don’t know why or how, but it somehow it scared them off, even the Wraith himself.”

“That’s mighty impressive. Not many things around that’ll spook a spooky that nasty. What is it exactly?”

“A gift from an actual god, believe it or not. We each have one, but mine’s in my pack. Guess we’re pretty lucky he kept his in his robe pocket,” the konuul explained. “If you think about the sunrise while holding it, it makes it glow real bright, like the sun.”

“Ahhh, that’d do it alright. Nothing like divine light to sting a creature’a pure darkness ‘n’ chaos like that,” Algrytha replied, then rubbed her chin. “Y’know, that almost might spook the little bastards, if ya present it right. Can it do anything else?”

“Well… it can make a breeze that surrounds you. And… something about color that we haven’t really tried, now that I think about it.”

“Well I think that’s your best bet, if you can think up a decent ruse to make ‘em think yer a powerful warlock or somethin’.”

“Warlock…?” Lykou asked with a confused expression.

Algrytha waved him off with a chuckle. “Just one’a many words for different kinds’a magic users. You get the idea. Just make ‘em think it’s more dangerous crossin’ ya than it’s worth, ‘n’ ya might be able to get ‘em to cough up a guarded agaric. Gotta be intimidatin’ though. No tryin’ ta bargain. They’ll see that as a sign’a weakness.”

The konuul sighed. “Of course they will,” he replied with a frown. “Why can’t people just be friendly…”

“Just the nature’a the world, Lykou.”

“Right, well… guess I better get to it,” Lykou got up and went over to where he and Kuna had set their bags, then dug through his pack.

“Goin’ out there at night, hmm? You know, he should be stable for the night,” the witch pointed out. “Would be safer to wait until morning.”

“I’m not going to let him suffer any longer than necessary,” the konuul stubbornly insisted as he pocketed his own crystal. As he was about to get up, he noticed something else laying in his bag- a certain smudged stone they’d both alternated holding onto for whatever reason throughout their journey. He looked at it thoughtfully for a moment, then plucked it out and carried it over to the table where the witch had set up a makeshift bed for Kuna. He took the sereva’s hand in his, with the rock held between them, then leaned in and whispered in the sereva’s ear, “Stay strong and hang on for me, Ku. I promise I’ll be back with that mushroom, and we’re going to get you better. And if there’s any damn nightmares in there giving you trouble… just remember a part of me is right here with you. And I’ll be there to kick their asses.”

The konuul embraced Kuna for a moment, then tucked the stone into one of the inside pocket’s of the sereva’s robe, which he was still wearing, albeit with the top pulled down so that his shoulder could be tended to. Though he couldn’t be sure, he thought he saw the briefest hint of a smile cross the sereva’s face afterwards.

Algrytha smirked and watched the scene with some interest. “What was that ya just put in there?”

“It’s… just a stone,” Lykou said with a faint, sheepish smile. “Kind of a sentimental thing for us I guess. That’s all.”

“…if ya say so. Headin’ out then?”

Lykou stood up and took a deep breath, then nodded as he checked to make sure his knife was still sheathed at his side. He wished he still had the spear, but at least he wasn’t completely unarmed. “Yeah… I’ll try and be fast,” the konuul said, heading for the door. “You said they’re south of the ruins?”

“Mhmm. Can ya tell yer directions right now though? No sun out, after all.”

Lykou looked out the window and frowned. “Er…”

“I’m guessin’ he was the one that helped you two navigate when ya didn’t have the sun ta go by, hmm?”

The konuul nodded. “...yeah, unfortunately. Um…”

“Just head out the door, turn halfway to your left, then keep walkin’ straight. Eventually you’ll find a stream at the edge’a my garden. Reg’lar water, not ta worry- wouldn’t recommend drinkin’ from it though unless yer des’prate. Follow the stream ‘till ya come to the bog, then follow around the edge’a the muck ‘till ya find ‘em. Can’t miss ‘em, they have some that glow at night, just like their beady little red eyes.”

“R-right… thanks, I’ll… be back as soon as I can.”

“Worked out how yer gonna trick ‘em?”

“I… have some ideas. I’ll work out the details on the way.”

“If ya say so. Good luck, Lykou. Careful out there.”

“Thanks…”

Algrytha walked over to the window as he left and watched through it as he made his way through her garden. When he was out of sight, she walked back over to Kuna and carefully took a peek at the stone the konuul had been talking about. She squinted at it for a moment, before smirking and putting it back. She patted her unconscious guest lightly, then turned and walked back to her stool, where she sat down and chuckled quietly. “Dunno magic, hmm?” she muttered quietly to herself as she got comfortable. “Yer either a liar or don’t know what you know.”

Chapter Text

Lykou had never been terribly afraid of the dark. Whatever fear he may have initially had was quickly defeated by all the time he spent in his youth sneaking out at night with his friends. And once he was an adult and took up one of the few jobs that would let him wander far out into the woods, he’d gotten used to spending nights alone in the wilderness on occasion. So ordinarily, stalking through the woods at night would have perhaps been exciting, but not terribly frightening. His senses and reflexes were keen, and he knew he could handle all kinds of mundane monsters that might lurk out in the wilds, especially after all his wild experiences so far on his journey with Kuna.

But the journey had also introduced him to dangers far beyond his wildest dreams. Granted, they had managed to defeat or escape them, but it still left an impact. And the wilderness of Kryckwood was a far cry from the familiar forests of his home. With their recent run-in with the undead, especially the Great Wraith, Lykou’s heart was pounding in his chest as he carefully followed the stream away from the edge of Algrytha’s garden.

He considered using his crystal to light his way, but ultimately decided to hold off. The gaps in the clouds provided just enough moonlight through the sparse foliage for him to navigate around things, and he didn’t want to risk drawing unwanted attention to himself. Besides, he didn’t want to ruin his night vision for when he got where he was going. Still, having to rely more heavily on his other senses didn’t help his nerves any. The sound of the stream he was following wasn’t loud, but could potentially mask an approaching stealthy threat.

Thoughts of the horrors that might be lurking beyond his senses haunted his mind. They’d seen ghouls, ghosts, wisps, shadow spirits, and the Wraith- who knew what else might lurk out there? Whatever tracks they’d seen after their first night camping in the Kryck didn’t look like a person, so whatever left them might still be stalking the darkness. And given the general lack of large animals to serve as prey, whatever it was likely wasn’t picky about hunting.

He couldn’t remember the last time he felt so on edge and genuinely afraid. Anxious, yes- often for others at least as much as himself. Especially Kuna. He was usually pretty confident about being able to fend for himself, at the very least. But wandering that cursed forest brought back that long-forgotten icy-cold terror that he thought he’d outgrown before he even reached puberty. Still, he pressed on, driven by his desire to help Kuna.

His heart lept into his throat momentarily when a hooting owl startled him nearby. He looked up to see it watching him with eyes that almost seemed to faintly glow in the dark. It was different from any owl he’d seen before. Besides the glowing eyes, it was also larger, with what looked like slightly curled horns on its head. On the one hand, he was initially relieved to see that the hooting he and Kuna had previously heard was legitimately from an owl and not something even more bizarre. On the other, he couldn’t completely rule it out as a potential threat. Even if it was still smaller than him, it was one of the largest birds he’d seen, and it was clearly watching him closely.

He narrowed his eyes and let his hand hover over his knife, just to be on the safe side. He wished he still had his spear, but he’d had no choice but to leave it behind in order to carry Kuna back to safety. He knew he could probably fend the creature off if it attacked, but he also definitely didn’t want to find out just how big and sharp its talons were.

Luckily, after a few intense minutes of staring one another down, the owl turned and flew off, seemingly losing interest. As he looked up and watched it fly away, he noticed a small cluster of bats swoop across the night sky. A large, indistinct mass of some kind slowly floated through the air after them. For a moment he thought it was a small cloud further up in the sky, but then he noted that chunks of it twitched and stretched like tendrils as it lazily drifted through the air. With wide, fearful eyes, he slowly slipped further into the woods, eager to avoid catching the thing’s notice, whatever it was.

Fortunately, he reached the bog shortly after that. Recalling Algrytha’s directions, he slowly stalked around the edge of the muck and water, until eventually he noticed small dots of dim light in the distance. As he got closer, a growing number of smaller ones became visible, and some of the larger ones illuminated huge clusters of strange-looking flora near them. The whole place was dimly lit by a mixture of glowing fungi and pale beams of moonlight. Some of the glowing bits moved, and he realized they were eyes, belonging to one of the creatures the witch had warned him about.

He ducked behind a tree and peered out into the grey wilderness that defined where the bog met the Kryck, observing the creatures lurking among the strange fungal garden. They were short humanoids, and he couldn’t really make out their features, other than their glowing reddish eyes. There were two that he could see, shuffling around and doing… something. Probably tending to the garden, or perhaps keeping watch. It was hard to tell exactl, but one was definitely prodding around some of the fungi at the base of a tree.

A slight movement on the ground among a cluster of large mushrooms drew his attention. After focusing for a moment, he realized there was a third creature sleeping on the ground. He managed to sneak a little closer so that he could get a better look at them. Their faces were somewhat flat, and other than a few patches on their bare feet and on their heads, they looked like they were bald and covered in very rough, reddish-orange skin. Their clothes were an odd contradiction- they looked sophisticated and well-crafted, yet filthy and heavily worn. In addition to grey shirts with oddly frilled short sleeves, they were wearing pants, with numerous pockets, that connected to straps that looped up over their shoulders. The imp-like creatures also seemed to all be wearing gloves- including the sleeping one- but sharp claws protruded through the fingertips. Each of them was also wearing a slightly flat, blotchy red hat.

The red splotches were visible on the rest of their clothing as well, but the hats seemed to be especially saturated with mismatched crimson patches. One of them even seemed a bit damp and caked with something. It had a long knife clutched in its hand as well. Needless to say, they did not look the slightest bit friendly.

He ducked back behind the thick tree he’d been peering around and took a few calming breaths as he tried to work out how to approach them. With his bracers, he thought he might be able to take them on if a fight happened- but he didn’t really want to deal with any more violence if he could help it, and for all he knew, there might be more lurking out of sight. They were clearly people of some kind, albeit strange ones that gave off a strong air of hostility. He wanted to think he could reason with them, but he was sure Algrytha wouldn’t have warned against it for no reason.

So that just left trickery, as they’d discussed. Apparently, they were intimidated by powerful magic users. Trouble was, without actually being one, how could he pose as one? Various ideas ran through his head. He pulled the crystal out and gripped it tightly in his hand as he mentally rehearsed various lines in his head, trying to decide on the best approach, before ultimately deciding to just wing it. After taking a moment to psych himself up, he straightened up and stepped out of his hiding spot, boldly approaching the strangers with what he hoped came across as a confident, imposing posture.

It didn’t take long for them to take notice. One of them spotted him and nudged the other, then they chattered something incoherent to one another briefly. After that, the first one stalked over to meet the konuul while the second went to wake the third. Its scowl immediately made it clear he wasn’t welcome there.

“You! Big fuck! Away from our garden or you feed it!” the creature spat out at him in a slightly high-pitched, yet raspy voice.

Lykou slowed to a stop and crossed his arms, then took a deep breath and frowned at them with what he hoped was an intimidating glare. “I’ll leave when I get what I came for, and no sooner,” he said in his best attempt at an imperious, intimidating tone. “And I would appreciate your cooperation.”

“Or what, you twig-dicked corpse-in-waiting?”

“You leave now. Last warning,” the second said as it approached, with the third mumbling grumpily behind it.

“You don’t leave, we’ll rip your belly and feed the soil with your guts,” the third snarled.

“No, I am warning you,” Lykou retorted, discretely activating his bracers as he spoke. “I have powerful magic and I will not hesitate to use it.”

The first imp-thing opened its toothy mouth to retort, but paused when it saw his flesh turning to wood. The other two shared a look. “...liar. One dumb trick. Not a big deal.”

“Wood rots good, too. Not scary,” the second declared, narrowing its eyes at him and waving its knife threateningly.

Lykou narrowed his own eyes and thought about the breezes on the island. He especially focused on the way it seemed stronger when they were out on the water, with how it managed to carry their boat quickly across the waves, far faster than mere paddles alone could hope for. On queue, the crystal manifested a breeze around him that buffeted his hair and clothes, and disturbed some debris on the ground underneath him. It was hard to maintain his stern, intimidating expression, but he managed. “Do not test me.”

The creatures muttered quietly among one another before the knife-wielder stepped forward and pointed it at him again. “What, you fart? I’ll make another hole so it all comes out easier.”

Suddenly, Lykou pulled his arms apart and clasped his hands together, carefully positioning the crystal between them as he did so. “I am tired of your pathetic threats,” he said, then focused on the bright sunlight piercing across the horizon at dawn. “Bring me…” he continued, then paused as he tried to remember the name. Fortunately it came to him after a moment, making his hesitation look more like a dramatic pause. “...a guarded agaric. Or I will burn you and your garden to the ground!”

Before one of them could retort, he slowly and carefully opened up his hands slightly, revealing a bright light shining from within. Using the best of his acting abilities, he made sure to shake his hands and arms slightly, as if holding onto immense, barely contained power.

That clearly unsettled them. The armed one lowered its knife and stared warily at the konuul’s hands.

“Don’t make me repeat myself!” Lykou warned, eyeing them. When they still seemed uncertain, he decided to go for broke. “Or do you want to face the fury of…” Again, he hesitated. He couldn’t just say his name, he needed something impressive to go along with it. Inwardly, he groaned as a thought occurred to him, but he realized he had a single point of inspiration for lengthy titles. “...Lykou the Magnificent, Master Warlock of the… R-Resplendant Order of the Supreme High Drunas of Lakefire!”

In order to drive the point home, he tried thinking of a sunset, causing the light to start shifting between different vibrant hues of red, pink, orange, and yellow as he increased the trembling in his hands. Somehow, it even seemed to pick up on his idea and the colors started shifting and flickering even faster after a moment. Huh, so that’s what the sunset one does, he thought to himself. He tried to keep both the sunset and the breeze in his mind for good effect, but it was tricky to do both at once, let alone while keeping up an intimidating appearance and carefully choosing his words. It was by far the most mental gymnastics he could ever remember doing, and he was afraid his guise would crack any moment.

Fortunately, it worked before that happened. The creatures’ skeptical and aggressive expressions gradually shifted to fear until finally one of them panicked and ran off, screaming. The armed individual dropped its knife on the ground and took several steps back, holding its hands up in placation. “Mercy! Mercy, please!”

“W-whatever you want, mighty warlock!” the other remaining individual assured him. “One guarded agaric, yes?”

“Make it two,” Lykou said, and almost immediately regretted it. He’d gotten cocky and caught up in the moment, when he really only needed one. But again, fortune was on his side. The imps didn’t question it.

“R-right away!” the formerly armed creature said, then ran off, with the third quickly following behind.

While they were away fetching the mushrooms, Lykou let the effects fade and let out a sigh of relief. After quickly putting the crystal away, he took a moment to collect himself while he waited, relieved to finally give his mind a moment’s respite. Soon, one of the imps nervously shuffled back out of their garden, with the other two nervously peeking out from behind a pair of trees at its edge.

Lykou straightened up and crossed his arms again while he waited for the imp to make its way over to him. Once it was within arm’s reach, he extended a hand without a word.

The imp quickly handed over a pair of slimy, somewhat disgusting-looking mushrooms with glowing purple nodules on them. “G-guarded agaric! For you! P-please take and…. G-go?”

Lykou stared at the creature just long enough to make it uncomfortable, then slowly tucked the mushrooms away in his bag, trying not to wince at the disgusting texture in his hand. “Very well. I will go now. Do not even think about following me, or I will set you on fire with my magic. Understood?”

“Yesyes, no following!” the imp assured him, anxiously backing away.

“Good. Farewell,” the konuul replied sharply, then turned and began walking away at a casual pace, doing his best to exude an air of superiority and confidence as he stalked off into the darkness. He was wary of turning his back on them, but they seemed suitably intimidated. And he knew the real dangers he now had to worry about were once again lurking out in the Kryck.

Once he’d started to disappear into the shadows, the imp ran back to its brethren. Lykou kept up his slow, casual stroll as long as he could, until the sounds of their anxious chattering was long gone. He stepped around past a thick enough tree to hide behind, then peered back to make sure they hadn’t followed him. With another, bigger sigh of relief, he disabled his bracers and slumped back against the tree for a moment to catch his breath. …Zyn can never find out about that.

*****

Back in Algrytha’s hut, a feverish sereva began to stir and murmur in his sleep. After a few minutes, his eyes blinked open. He rolled over and began to raise his arm to rub his eyes, only for intense, sharp pains in his shoulder to immediately make him aware of his condition. He yelped and whimpered faintly, then used his other hand instead. Once his vision had cleared a bit, he struggled to try and remember things. He could barely recall what’d happened. He remembered being in a dark forest, seeing a bunch of increasingly hostile ghosts, him and Lykou running away from something, and then something attacking him… the details were all a blur.

His robe was pulled down to expose his shoulders, with some kind of makeshift bandage covering his wounds on the one side. He debated about trying to see how bad the injury was, but ultimately decided to hold off for the time being. For one thing, he didn’t want to risk inflicting more pain on himself by jostling it too much.

“Kou…?” he mumbled quietly as he carefully looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings. His concern gradually grew more intense as he noticed his friend’s absence. “Lykou?? W-where-”

His voice caught in his throat as he noticed something. He’d started to recognize the place he’d woke up in as Algrytha’s home, but everything was starting to look a bit… off. The furniture was stretching and distorting slightly, and his vision was swimming a little. And then the really freaky shit started. Slowly, various distorted faces started appearing on the walls. They looked like they were talking- either to him or to one another, but he couldn’t make sense of it.

Disturbed, he oh-so-carefully sat up and tried to swing his legs over the edge of the table that’d been turned into a makeshift bed for him. It was difficult to move around like that with his injury, given how sensitive it was. When he did, though, more oddities began forming. The containers on the tables, including those near him, seemingly sprouted dozens of eyes and strange little legs that began flailing around. Down below, he saw the floor starting to undulate as dozens of tiny tendrils started poking up from it. Some of them had eyes on them. “L-Lykou?? S-s-someone...?!” he cried out fearfully as he instinctively tried to push himself away from the nearest aberrations.

Flames spurted up from the firepit in the middle of the room, and hazy figures erupted from within the pots sitting over it. Some reached out towards him with distorted, undulating limbs. He pushed further back, his fear fighting against the pain as he whimpered and pulled his legs back up, trying to curl into a protective ball on the table. “W-what’s… who… what do you…. I….”

Algrytha suddenly entered through the front door and set a small basket full of freshly-harvested herbs of some kind on one of the tables, seemingly oblivious to the animate oddities surrounding her. When she looked back over, she saw the terrified, clearly delirious sereva wavering on the table across the room. “Oh dear… I’d hoped you’d sleep through more of it, ‘least till yer friend came back.”

“W… w-wha-… who are… d-don’t-!” Kuna stammered, still weakly trying to scramble backwards despite having nowhere else to go now that he was pushing up against the wall on the other side of the table-bed.

The witch sighed and started walking over, causing a fresh wave of desperate panic from the sereva. She paused for a moment and held her hands up. “Hey now, take it easy kiddo. It’s me, Algrytha. Remember?”

“Al… gryth….a?” Kuna murmured, furrowing his brows as he tried to think straight. The name kept fading in and out of his memory. “...Al… Algrytha… oh… y-yeah…”

“Try ‘n’ calm down, alright?” she said as she slowly started to approach him again. “Yer in my house. Took a nasty ghoul bite, ya did. But yer safe here.”

Kuna looked around warily, then started panicking again. He glanced down and his eyes widened as he saw a pair of eyes looking back up at him from his robe. He started to hyperventilate as he weakly and ineffectively tried to scrabble out of the garment with a small whimper.

Algrytha hurried over and gently, but firmly took his hands. “Easy, easy kid! Whatever yer seein’, it ain’t real. Alright? Yer just seein’ stuff that’s not there.”

The sereva initially struggled, but the lack of energy and the pain in his shoulder quickly made him stop. He was shaking, and sweat dripped into his teary eyes, so she released his hands so he could wipe it away with the one not connected to his wounded shoulder. “N… n-not real?”

“That’s right. Yer feverish from the bite. That mixed with the medicine I gave ya means yer not exactly thinkin’ straight,” she said, then walked over to a jug on another table. “Hang tight, lemme give ya some water.”

Kuna tried to take some calming breaths with his eyes clenched shut, then carefully opened them and shivered at the strange things he was seeing. As much as he tried to convince himself the visions weren’t real, it was hard to ignore them. The eyes on his robe in particular made him uncomfortable.

“Here, drink this,” Algrytha said as she walked back over and handed him a cup of water. “Ignore anything strange ya see in it. Like I said, nothing weird ‘n’ scary in here,” she said, then paused and grinned. “’cept me a’course,” she added with a small snicker.

Holding the cup in shaky hands, Kuna took a long, slow sip of water after closing his eyes again. He took a moment to compose himself, then hazarded another peek. The visions were still there, but they did seem slightly less intimidating than before. “…s’all fever ‘n’ stuff?”

“That’s right. Ya remember anythin’?”

Kuna slowly shook his head and rubbed his head, wincing. “Only… bits ‘n’ pieces…”

“Well, ya got bit by a ghoul. Some’a them have kind of a… venom, type thing, y’see. Nasty shit. Luckily I’ve got some stuff that’ll flat kick the crap outta most poisons ‘n’ such. Unfortunately, from what yer friend told me, yer low on life essence, so yer body’s strugglin’ even with that help,” the witch explained. “Which is why he’s out fetchin’ an ingredient for another thing that’ll help ya fix that problem.”

Kuna shot a wide-eyed, worried look over at the dark window near the door. He immediately set the cup down and started trying to shuffle off the table. “H-he’s out there?? I’ve gotta-”

“Woah now bucko,” Algrytha said, quickly stopping him. “Yer not goin’ anywhere.”

“But-”

“No buts. Just calm down,” she said, pushing the cup back into his shaky hand. “Wouldn’t do anybody any good fer you ta go wanderin’ back out there. Yer hurt, weak, ‘n’ sick, ‘n’ yer seein’ things that aren’t there. Just how far ya think you’d even get?”

Kuna whimpered as he stared worriedly out into the darkness through the window. “...Kou…”

She gently patted his leg. “I’m sure he’s fine. I’m good at readin’ folk, ‘n’ he’s a strong, brave boy. He’ll be back before ya know it. In the meantime, just finish yer water ‘n’ try ta get s’more rest.”

The sereva stared out the window for a few more moments, then sighed and drained the cup. “...thanks…” he carefully and slowly shifted his legs fully back up onto the table and tried to lay back. “...not gonna be able to sleep ‘till he’s back though…”

“Well, just close yer eyes at least. Keep the visions at bay,” she suggested. “Need s’more water?”

Kuna stared down at the cup for a moment, then nodded slightly. “S-sure. Guess I was pretty thirsty. Thanks again…”

“Yer welcome,” she replied as she refilled the cup. “Not surprisin’, given the fever.” After handing him the cup again, she helped add some extra cushioning behind him so he could sit in a reclined position rather than lay flat.

“Thanks… How long are these s-stupid visions gonna last?” he asked tiredly.

“At least ‘till the fever breaks. When Lykou comes back, I can start the other potion fer ya. Until then, yer gonna have ta get used to ‘em.”

“W-what’s it do, anyway?”

“It’ll let you ‘n’ him share life essence while yer on the mend. ‘n’ let ya both recover it faster than usual, too,” Algrytha explained.

“Essence huh?” Kuna said, rubbing his head again. “Fuck. I… f-forgot I was low on that. Would’ve thought I’d have recovered m-more by now, anyway…”

“Well, the ghoul venom drains a bit too. So even if ya had some before that, it’d be gone by time ya got here. The worst of it’s been dealt with, but yer body’s still struggling ta recover from the damage without the essence ta help.”

“This potion isn’t… gonna h-hurt Lykou, is it?”

“Nah, not at all,” Algrytha replied dismissively. “What’d be the point’a that? Don’t worry, it’s safe.”

“Just m-making sure… hate being a burden,” Kuna said with a sigh.

“Now don’t go thinkin’a yerself like that. Ya got bit by a damn ghoul runnin’ from the Great Wraith himself, yer lucky ta even be breathin’,” the witch pointed out, then smirked. “Speakin’a which though, clever use’a that lil’ divine trinket ya got. Gift from some god, I understand?”

Kuna blinked a few times as he struggled to remember. “Trink… oh, yeah. Whironui’s crystal,” he said after a moment, then yawned. “Was just lucky, I guess… was all dark, I remember it m-made light, so I tried to brighten things up. Had n-no idea it’d have that kind of e-effect on them.”

“Lotta ghosts, especially ones like that, hate sunlight, fer complicated reasons. Particularly the Wraith. S’why he cursed the place ta get so little of it.”

“Huh…” Kuna pondered that for a moment, then drained his cup again. He looked back out the window, unable to escape his worries.

“Hey, relax kiddo. He’ll be fine. Ya both got away from the nastiest monsters in the Kryck, ‘n’ now he’s off wanderin’ more or less the opposite direction.”

“Just wish he’d at least waited until morning,” Kuna said, frowning.

“I suggested that to ‘im, but he insisted he didn’t wanna wait. Guess you two must be pretty close, eh?”

The sereva nodded slightly. “Very… what exactly did he go out to f-find?”

“Special mushroom that only grows in certain places,” she told him. “There’s one down on the south side’a the bog. So a good hike from here, but there’s a stream I told ‘im to follow. So don’t worry.”

“Can’t help it,” Kuna said, then sighed and rubbed his head. “I just hope he gets back soon…”

“He probably will. Already been a while, so I imagine he’s on his way back by now,” Algrytha assured him. “Tell ya what, if yer gonna insist on stayin’ awake, how about I make us some tea?”

Kuna thought for a moment, then shrugged- and immediately winced from the pain it brought. After sucking air in through his teeth and letting the pain pass, he nodded slightly. “Tea would be nice. Thanks…”

“Aaand I’ll put a little something for the pain in yours,” she said with a slight chuckle. “Just don’t be surprised if the visions get a little more vivid at times.”

“Great...”

*****

Fortunately for Lykou, the hike back to Algrytha’s garden was slightly less frightful than the hike out had been, if only because the ordeal with the imps was behind him. But ultimately, it was still a dark trek through an especially unsettling forest in the middle of the night. Whatever creatures did live in the Kryck were clearly nocturnal, because he was seeing, or at least hearing, far more of them than he had during the day. There were owls, bats, strange and unusually large bugs, and plenty of things he only ever caught brief glimpses of or heard in the distance. Every time the trees creaked, it made him jump slightly. Still, he preferred that to the eerie silence and stillness of the Wraith’s territory.

It was a relief when he finally reached the familiar sight of some of the mossy walls. That, of course, meant that he was stuck navigating the strange place, where things never seemed to stay in the same spot. He tried his best to navigate back to the cottage that was presumably in the middle, but ended up getting lost again, as usual. At least the hostile toothed ones seemed dormant for the night, as if they were sleeping.

After wandering for a bit, he spotted a faint puff of smoke in the air when it passed in front of the moon. Using that as a guide, he stubbornly pushed forward in that direction, occasionally climbing directly over walls if he had to. Finding reliable handholds was tricky, and a few patches had thorny vines on them which made the task painful. Still, he pushed through the pain and frustration, determined to take the most direct path back that he could. On one occasion, he accidentally woke one of the biting flowers and had to slice off its “head” when it lashed out at him. That woke a couple more that he ended up having to fight through. He didn’t care if it pissed off Algrytha. He was tired of dealing with the garden’s nonsense and just wanted to get back to Kuna. If the witch wanted her garden left completely intact, she should see to it that it didn’t impede his progress.

Finally, he crested another wall and saw the house sitting in front of him. As luck had it, he was right in front of the main door. He hurried inside and immediately perked up when he saw Kuna laying propped up in the makeshift bed. The sereva blinked his eyes open and turned towards the sound of the canid entering.

But much to Lykou’s surprise, Kuna reacted with panic, rather than relief when he started to rush over to his side. The sereva yelped and scrabbled weakly backward with a fearful expression, making him stop halfway there. “Ahh! A-algrytha there’s-” he blurted out, then paused and furrowed his brows, struggling to focus on the bewildered konuul. “W-wait… Kou is that you?”

The bewildered konuul just stood halfway to the bed with a confused expression, uncertain how to proceed. “Uh… yeahhhh…?”

Kuna blinked a few times, then rubbed his eyes as he visibly relaxed a bit. “S-sorry, I uh… this is gonna sound strange, but how many eyes do you have?”

“Just... the usual two…?”

“His eyes are playin’ tricks on ‘im cus of the fever ‘n’ medicine,” Alrgytha explained, approaching the konuul from behind.

Lykou jumped slightly in surprise at her sudden appearance. “Oh… really?”

Kuna grinned sheepishly and tiredly at him. “Yeahh… I’m guessing the knives on your fingers aren’t real either, right?”

The konuul glanced down at his hands with a mildly amused expression. “...I sure hope so, because that’d make things pretty damn awkward and risky.”

“...then get over here and give me a hug, dammit.”

Lykou grinned and hurried over to embrace him, being careful around his injured shoulder. “Don’t have to tell me twice.”

“I was so f-fucking worried when Algrytha said you went back out there on your own,” Kuna said, giving him as much of a squeeze as he could.

“Hey, I’m not the one with the ghoul bite. I was really worried about you.”

“I tried ta get him to go back ta sleep, but he insisted he couldn’t till he knew you were back safe ‘n’ sound from yer little errand,” Algrytha said with a light chuckle as she walked over to join them. She then extended a hand towards Lykou and cleared her throat. “Speakin’a which…”

“Oh, right!” Lykou quickly dug the mushrooms out of his pocket and handed them over, cringing at their slimy, disgusting texture.

“Two huh?” the witch commented in amusement. “Only needed the one.”

“I… got extra,” Lykou commented, while avoiding meeting her eye. “You know, just i-in case.”

She narrowed her eyes at him for a moment, then smirked and tweaked his nose. “Sly little devil in disguise arencha?” she said, then chuckled and walked over to her work table to start prepping the potion. “Anyway, make yerself comfy. I’ll help ya set up another bed after I finish the potion.”

“Uh… I don’t suppose this table is strong enough for us both?” Kuna chimed in.

Algrytha glanced back at him with a quizzical look. “Well, sure, they’ll hold way more in fact. But I don’t mind makin’ another sleepin’ spot fer ya.”

“We… uh-”

“He doesn’t like sleeping alone these days,” Lykou explained with a smirk, holding the sereva’s hand. “And I like keeping him company.”

Kuna blushed and grinned. “Yeah…”

Algrytha chuckled again. “Well, as long as ya don’t mind it bein’ a bit cramped up there, have at it. Just be careful not to jostle that shoulder’a his. Might want ta wait till after you’ve had a very late dinner and the potion, though.”

“Wait, both of us?” Lykou asked curiously. “I thought the potion was just for him?”

“Won’t work properly unless both of ya drink it.”

“Apparently it’ll let us share life essence and recover it faster,” Kuna explained, rubbing his eyes again. “But you don’t have to if y-”

“Hush, you know better,” Lykou lightly chided, then gave his hand a small squeeze. “I’ll do whatever it takes to help you get better. How are you feeling?”

Kuna folded his ears down and took a deep breath. “Besides seeing things that make everything feel like a twisted dream?” He paused and reached for his shoulder, then winced. “Like I envy the dead. Hurts like fuck, I’m weaker than ever, and my body can’t decide if its freezing cold or burning up.”

“I’m so sorry, Ku… wish there was more I could do for you.”

“Hey, I’m just glad you’re back and safe,” the sereva replied with a weak smile, rubbing the konuul’s hand lightly with his thumb. “That’s enough for me.”

Lykou grinned. “Sappy.”

They both giggled a bit.

“Still though, I can’t believe you went out there alone, let alone in the middle of the night,” the sereva continued. “Hope you didn’t have to go far.”

“Was a bit of a hike, but at least it was the opposite direction from the Wraith’s turf. South side of the bog.”

Kuna shuddered a bit. “That far?”

“Yeah, but it was worth it,” Lykou said, then booped the sereva’s nose before he could argue. “And no arguments.”

“Still… nothing attacked you at least, right?”

“Not really. Saw some freaky things out there but didn’t have any real fights or anything. Mostly just had to deal with these weird… imp things, to get the mushrooms.”

Kuna arched a brow. “Imp things?”

“Yeah. Short, weird lookin' guys that have a strange little garden of their own, only its all different kinds of mushrooms. They're mean and nasty, but not too bright. And scared of powerful magic users.”

The sereva blinked a few times. “...magic users…?”

Lykou looked away and rubbed his neck. “It’s… a good thing we’ve kind of started collecting a few magical things on our adventures. The bracers and Whironui’s crystal really came in handy.”

Kuna grinned. “Oh really? This sounds like a fun story. What’d you do?”

“...if I tell you, Zyn can never hear about it,” Lykou said with a flat look. “Kay?”

“Oh yeah?” the sereva asked, already amused. “Alright, and why not?”

“I maaay or may not have had to take some inspiration from him to create an intimidating persona to trick them with,” the konuul explained with a sheepish grin. “Lykou the Magnificent, Warlock of the.... something order somethingsomething I forget the rest.”

Kuna snorted and giggled in amusement. “Oh man, I wish I’d seen that.”

"Felt kinda wrong, but to be fair they were little jerks." Suddenly, the canid yelped as Algrytha walked over and plucked a hair off his head. “Hey, what the-?”

“Sorry, gotta have a hair from each’a ya fer this one, ‘n’ I didn’t want ta interrupt,” the witch explained, then reached over and plucked one from Kuna as well, making him wince slightly.

“You’re cooking something with… our hair in it?” Lykou asked dubiously.

Algrytha chuckled. “Yep. Don’t worry, it’ll break up as it cooks, ya won’t even know it’s there.”

Kuna shot her a look. “Are you sure this stuff is safe to drink?”

“Yep. Might eventually be some side-effects, mind ya. But they’ll be temporary ‘n’ manageable.”

“Side-effects?” Lykou asked warily. “Like what?”

“Oh nothin’ ta worry about,” the witch said dismissively as she got back to work at the other table. “Just some… perspective, I suppose, hehe.”

“...that’s not a reassuring answer,” Lykou pointed out.

Kuna sighed and rolled his eyes. “Something tells me it’s the only one we’re getting, though.”

Algrytha glanced back and winked at them. “Like I said, don’t worry about it. Nothin’ harmful, all temporary. Likely won’t come up till after the third dose anyway.”

“Third dose?”

“Mhmm. I’ll be givin’ ya three containers’a the stuff. Don’t worry, these ones won’t be glass,” she explained. “Each of ya will drink half of one before bed each night for three days, startin’ tonight. Lykou, you’ll take the first half, then Kuna takes the second. S’the only way the magic’ll work properly.”

“...this potion stuff sure is weird,” Lykou commented.

“That’s magic in general fer ya,” Algrytha replied. “Incantations, potions, rituals, glyphs- it’s all got odd quirks. Even the raw energy-twistin’ stuff ya do with yer mind has weird rules fer certain things. Just the nature’a the world.”

Kuna sighed and rubbed his eyes some more. “I just can’t wait to see clearly again,” he said, then shot Lykou a half-amused look. “At least you look a little more normal up close. When you’ve only got the one head, anyway.”

Lykou gave him a sympathetic smirk and rubbed his hand some more. “Want me to get you some water or something?”

“Mm… that sounds good actually. Damn fever’s keeping me pretty thirsty. Don’t forget to get yourself something to eat, though.”

“I will, but I’m surprisingly not very hungry,” the konuul said as he fetched some water for the sereva. “Mostly just exhausted.”

“I bet. It’s been a damn long day.”

“No kidding. I’ll be so glad to get to that arch and away from this place,” Lykou commented, then shot a brief glance at their host. “Uh, no offense-”

“Hah! None taken,” Algrytha replied in amusement. “The Kryck’s nobody’s idea of a good time. I’m just weird fer settin’ up my garden out here. Fact ya don’t wanna be here shows ya got some sense. That’s sadly lackin’ in a lotta folk that come through here anymore.”

“You, uh… mind if we sleep in tomorrow, though?” Kuna asked.

“I’d be surprised if ya didn’t. I insist ya do, in fact,” the witch replied. “Ya both need ta rest up, especially you. Once ya got this potion in ya, the fever should break pretty quick, but you’ll still be a bit weak fer a day or two.”

“Ugh, great…”

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Lykou assured him. “Whatever it takes to get you better. Leave any heavy lifting to me.”

Kuna frowned. “You know I hate leaving everything to you.”

“Yeah well I don’t mind. All I need is your company,” the konuul reminded him, giving him another hug, careful not to knock over his cup of water or put pressure on his shoulder.

“You’re such a sweetheart, Kou,” the sereva said, blushing and smirking again. “Ya big fluffy sap.”

“Alright you two, need a little quiet so’s I can focus,” Algrytha said as she stirred up the fire and filled a pot with some water. She then started the incantation after a moment.

Lykou arched a brow up at Kuna after pulling back from the embrace, while the witch recited an incantation behind him. “Better keep drinking that water. I think your fever’s gotten worse,” he whispered, then leaned in for another gentle embrace. “Seems like it’s got your heart rate up a bit, too.”

The flush-faced sereva glanced away with a small, bashful grin. “Y-yeah, fever…” he replied quietly. Before Lykou had returned, he’d been thinking over a certain conversation with Hoku to pass the time, so certain things were freshly stirred up in his mind. Definitely the fever, not cus you’re close again… hurry and get up here with me, dammit.

Chapter Text

“So after Sulyr helped us down into the valley, we went to the ruins hoping to find… well, anything that’d help us in one way or another. Keep in mind, this was before we knew about the arches,” Lykou explained, then took another bite of his breakfast. When Algrytha made them a nice breakfast, he was more than happy to tell their story- minus a few more private bits while they ate.

“Or before I knew the right kind of magic to make them work, for that matter,” Kuna quietly chimed in. He was still a bit groggy despite having slept even more than Lykou. After all, he had more to recover from.

After the witch had finished the potion the night before, the boys quickly took it and went to sleep. They may have had their reservations, but they didn’t want to look unappreciative, plus their fatigue easily outweighed their paranoia. Fortunately, it’d worked wonders. Although tired and weak, the sereva was clearly doing better. The fever was gone, the bite had mostly healed, and the pain was much more subdued. For Lykou’s part, there didn’t seem to be any real noticeable effect.

“I’d chide ya fer takin’ silly risks, but it sounds like you were in a desperate situation,” Algrytha commented. “So I can’t hardly blame ya.”

“We were, and it ultimately worked out for us,” the konuul continued after taking a sip from a cup sitting next to him. He then gestured to the bracer on one arm. “It’s where we got these. They’re-”

“Sylthean Enchanted Heartwood Bracers. I was wonderin’ where ya got ‘em. Mighty fine craftsmanship. Don’t see too many these days, fer obvious reasons,” Algrytha interrupted, then chuckled. “Looks like yer little risk paid off, then.”

“Er, yeah,” Lykou said, then exchanged a brief look with Kuna. He then narrowed his eyes at the witch. “...you really are a Sylthean, aren’t you? I know I mentioned it before, but-”

“Maybe, maybe not, what’s it matter? Been around a long time ‘n’ seen all kinds’a shit,” the witch retorted, then took a loud sip of her tea. “I’m Algrytha, moss witch of the Aberrant Garden, the only fool crazy enough to take up residence in the cursed forest of Kryckwood. Other than that, I’ve no partic’lar ties to anyone or anythin’ else these days. I’d be just as much an oddball in one world as another, ‘n’ that suits me fine. I’m me, and that’s that.” She punctuated the end with a nod of conviction. “Ferget what y’are, it’s who y’are that matters.”

“Well, I can’t argue with that,” Lykou agreed with a small smile.

“Nope. I’m impressed ya know ‘bout Syltheans though. Not many folk do anymore. Where’d ya learn about ‘em?”

“Welllll, that’s another thing I was… getting to,” Lykou said, his expression souring into a withering look at the thought. “Remember how I said Kuna was being secretly taught magic by a ‘spirit’ up until that point?”

The konuul continued telling the story well into the morning, long after they’d all finished eating breakfast. He decided to skip the rest of the bit about the Arbassla and glossed over a few other areas, but otherwise he caught her all the way up to their arrival in the Kryck, with occasional help from Kuna. Oddly, Algrytha only drank her tea, but seemed satisfied with that.

Once the storytelling was over and they’d taken the time to make sure they were as awake as they were going to be, they decided to pack up and head out. Kuna struggled slightly with his things in his weakened state, but Algrytha surprised him with a nice walking stick. It wasn’t carved in any particular way, yet it look like it’d been grown specifically for the job, and it was good and strong. He suspected it’d been a product of magic, but he didn’t pry. He’d suspected the potions weren’t her only method of performing magical feats anyway, judging from her impressive, strange garden.

After they both thanked her, she waved it off and tussled Kuna’s hair. “Just make sure to keep away from any more bitey fuckers. Sweet boys like you are extra appetizing ta them ghouls, y’know.”

Kuna blushed and rolled his eyes with a small smirk. “Believe me, I’ll be happy to never see one of those things ever again,” he replied, then shivered. “I’m surprised I didn’t have any nightmares last night…”

“After yesterday, I’m surprised I didn’t either,” Lykou added.

“Well don’t go jynxin’ yerself now,” the witch said as she started walking them out to the edge of her garden. “Yer not outta the Kryck yet.”

Kuna sighed. “Yeah, we still have that… revenant guy to deal with.”

“Yeah,” Lykou said, wincing at the realization. “I really hope we can just talk things out with him. Anything else you can tell us about him that might help?”

“Not fer sure. Nobody’s even reached him in a very long time- the creeps outside usually get ‘em, y’know,” Algrytha replied with a slight shrug. “He was an honorable fella in life, but his patience fer mortals wore out a long time ago. So if yer gonna try’n reason with him, best get ta the point quick.”

Lykou nodded. “Right…”

“And don’t let yer pride get in the way’a savin’ yer hide. If things look too bad, there’s no shame in runnin’ away. Yer welcome to come pay me another visit if things go sideways out there, assumin’ ya survive.”

Kuna folded his ears down and gulped nervously. The fact that they were preparing to walk right back into another potentially very dangerous situation was finally settling on his mind, and he was not looking forward to it at all. “I r-really, really hope he’ll be r-reasonable…”

“Just remember to drink the draught before ya head into the ruins, or his disposition won’t matter anyway,” the witch reminded them. “Prob’ly about halfway through the bog or so.”

“What can we expect from that stuff?” Lykou asked. “How does it work exactly?”

Algrytha chuckled. “Ah, can’t spoil the surprise now can I? All I’ll say is don’t let it spook ya. It’ll make ya feel and look a little different fer a bit, but nothin’ harmful.”

Kuna frowned. “If you say so…”

“And speakin’ of potions, don’t forget ta take yer second dose’a the other tonight before bed! Ya may have kicked the fever, but if ya want to be back ta normal in a reasonable time, ya gotta make sure ya take all three doses,” the witch reminded them. “Given the nature’a yer journey, I’m sure ya want to be back ta full strength as soon as possible.”

“You’re definitely not wrong there,” the sereva replied. “I hate being a bur-”

“Don’t say, it, Ku. You know better,” the konuul playfully chastised, wrapping an arm around him.

Kuna smiled bashfully at him. “’kay.”

“Say, weren’t you carryin’ a spear before?” Algrytha pointed out. “Looked like a nice one, too.”

Lykou frowned. “Yeah… ended up having to drop it back in the Wraith’s territory, though.”

“And we are NOT going back for it,” Kuna pointed out adamantly.

“No fucking argument there!” Lykou agreed with a shudder. “Sucks to lose it, but I’ll make do with my knife until I can make another.”

“Doubt it’d do ya much good around here anyway,” the witch said. “Nothin’ here worth huntin’, ‘n’ the dead don’t care if they get stabbed.”

“Wellll… admittedly this one had a special tip that burned things, which really seemed to mess with them. Luckily I think I have one more of those pelenock teeth in my bag though, so I can always try to make another, even if it won’t be as good.”

“Oh yeah, from one’a them bitey fire ‘n’ rock spirits ya mentioned,” Algrytha said with an intrigued grin. “I’d love ta see one’a them. They sound… fun, hehe.”

Lykou chuckled. “Yeah, as long as you steer them away from anything made of stone that you don’t want destroyed.”

“The one we met was kinda… weirdly cute, in a derpy kind of way,” Kuna commented with a faint smile. “A bit intimidating up close, but friendly.”

Eventually, they reached the edge of the garden. Algrytha patted them both on the shoulder, one after the other- being careful to aim for Kuna’s good one. “Well, you two be careful out there. Would rather ya not end up another pair’a ghosts fer the Kryck, but I s’pose yer nice enough I might visit ya if ya do. ‘least till ya lose yer minds, anyway.”

Kuna shuddered and Lykou frowned slightly at the thought. “Yeahhh we’re going to try very hard to avoid that, thanks. But uh… appreciate the thought I guess?” the konuul replied.

“Ah, yer smart boys, I’m sure you’ll be fine. Like I said, stay alert ‘n’ don’t be afraid ta turn tail and run like hell if ya have to. Good luck!”

“Thanks, Algrytha,” Kuna said. “For-”

But when he turned to finish thanking her, the witch had vanished into the garden again.

“...what is with certain people and being all mysterious?”

“Must just come with power, I guess,” Lykou replied with a shrug. He then smirked and gently nudged Kuna in the side. “I hope you don’t start doing that some day when you’re all wise and powerful. Might just have to tie a rope around your leg to keep track of ya.”

Kuna snickered slightly as they began making their way out into the Kryck. “Like I’ll ever be anywhere near that level.”

“Hey, you never know!”

“What about you, huh?” the sereva retorted with an impish grin. “Mister great and powerful warlock~”

Lykou shot him a look. “Hey-”

“What? Nobody else around. Please don’t set me on fire, almighty Lykou!”

“I’ll show you great and powerful,” the konuul replied with a grin, then playfully tickled the sereva’s sides, eliciting a giggling fit, followed by a yelp and a slight whimper of pain.

“Oof, maaaybe we should dial it down a little,” Kuna said, rubbing his shoulder and wincing. “Need to stay alert out here anyway.”

Lykou sighed and nodded. “Good point. Man, I hope the next place gives us a chance to relax a bit.”

“Yeah,” the sereva agreed, then sighed as well, pouting slightly as his tired mind wandered a little. With lots of one-on-one time… and cuddling. Lots of cuddling.

*****

The hike was mostly uneventful. The Kryck was still plenty unsettling, but it was much easier to manage compared to the absolute nightmare that was the Wraith’s territory. And Lykou was relieved to have some daylight, even if it was masked by the clouds that were once again covering the sky.

“S-still can’t believe you were w-walking around out here at night,” Kuna commented quietly. “You s-said you came all the w-way out to the bog?”

“Well, the edge of it, yeah. Stuck to where it meets the forest, mainly.”

“Good thing, too. Wouldn’t w-want to trip on one of those bodies in the dark.”

“No kidding. Still ended up seeing plenty of… things, though.”

“What, besides those imp-guys you mentioned?”

“Yeah. Turns out there are animals and such out here, they just only come out at night, apparently.”

“Oh r-really?” Kuna asked, glancing around warily. “L-like what?”

“Bats, owls, big bugs… and a bunch of things I only caught quick glimpses of, and probably wouldn’t want to get close to.”

“Damn, Kou,” the sereva replied, putting a hand on his companion’s shoulder. “You n-never cease to amaze me. That m-must’ve been terrifying…”

“Definitely the scariest hike I’ve been on, heh,” the konuul conceded. “Worth it, though.”

Kuna folded his ears down and had to bite his tongue to stop himself from letting old, bad habits flare up. “Thank you…”

Lykou smiled and wrapped his arm around the sereva- carefully, though, so as not to hurt his shoulder. “You know I’d do anything for you, Ku,” he said, then gave him a gentle, light squeeze.

The sereva felt a mild case of butterflies in his tummy as he blushed and leaned into the embrace a little. “S-so… owls and bats huh? A-at least those are pretty n-normal.”

“Well, sort of. The one owl I saw was definitely… different,” Lykou replied, glancing up into the trees thoughtfully. “It was bigger than any I’ve seen before. And it had horns… and I swear its eyes were glowing slightly. Was afraid I’d have to fight it off, too. Kept staring me down for a few minutes. Luckily it flew off eventually, though.”

Kuna frowned and shivered a little. “Eesh… this place can’t be e-even a little normal, can it?”

“Apparently not, heh. I’m just glad those things only come out at night.”

“M-me too,” Kuna replied, then eyed a partial skeleton laying at the base of a tree they were passing. They’d been going down a steady slope for a while, and gradually entering the bog. Their conversation lulled for a bit as they started navigating their way around the still pools of water scattered everywhere. The bodies unnerved them even more now that they knew their stillness was only a temporary thing, contingent on their proximity to the ruins. Kuna swore a few of them even followed him with their eyes when they passed by.

“Sh-should we take that potion thing n-now?” the sereva eventually whispered to the canid.

“Hmm… I was thinking maybe we should wait until we get to the entrance,” Lykou replied, warily looking back behind them. His eyes widened slightly and he frowned. “But… then again…”

Kuna caught his expression and gulped, then slowly turned to look behind him. Sure enough, a dozen yards away, he could see where one of the bodies had already gotten up and started slowly following them. While they were looking, another one in one of the pools of water slowly got to its feet, so smoothly and slowly that it barely made a splash in the water. “….f-fuck that’s so freakishly unnatural…”

“At least they’re just w-watching us right now,” Lykou pointed out, then started fumbling around in his bag without taking his eye off the undead. “S-still, maybe we should…”

“Yeah. W-we’re way more than halfway to the ruins a-at this point,” Kuna agreed, getting out one of his own vials.

Once they both had their respective potions out, they examined them, then shared a look. Neither was particularly excited to try the thing out- especially after the essence-sharing potion ended up tasting rather nasty. They both glanced back and forth between the dead and the small containers in their hands.

“...I doubt she’d go through so much trouble just to poison or trick us,” Lykou said, though he was still clearly a bit anxious himself. “And she said the effects would feel weird, but be harmless…”

“Y-yeah… s-still, though,” Kuna replied, stalling. “I w-wonder what it’ll taste like. H-hope it’s better than the other one.”

Lykou made a face. “Yech. Me too,” he agreed, then sighed. “Well, only one way to find out. Bottoms up.” He unceremoniously uncorked the small glass container and tipped its contents in his mouth, practically tossing it to the back of his mouth like he sometimes tried to do with certain bitter-tasting, yet fun beverages.

Kuna followed suit a moment later. They both waited for a moment, then he arched a brow. “Doesn’t… r-really taste of anything.”

“Really doesn’t. Guess that’s… good?” Lykou replied, sniffing the empty container experimentally. “Well, I g-” He suddenly paused and a weird look crossed his face. A chill ran through his body and his eye twitched a bit.

“Kou, are you alr-??” Kuna began to ask with concern, but then paused as he felt the effects start as well. It started with a cold, tingling sensation that ran through their bodies. The color in their fur faded. Their flesh sank in slightly, giving them more gaunt appearances. Their eyes gained a slightly glassy, faded look as well. Once the tingling faded, they found themselves feeling somewhat… mellow. Not bad, per se, but everything felt more muted and neutral, somehow. “...uh.”

“Yeah. This is… different,” Lykou commented, looking down at his now much more gray-looking hands. He then glanced up at Kuna and quirked a brow. “You… alright?”

The sereva slowly nodded after a moment. “I… think so? Everything just feels kind of… I dunno…”

“Kinda hard to describe, yeah,” the konuul agreed. “Just sort of…”

“Thin? Faded?”

“Something like that…”

A moment later they heard a small splash, which reminded them of their company- or former company, anyway. They looked back and saw that the one zombie had dropped back down into the water, and the other had turned and started walking away, presumably back to wherever its ‘resting’ spot was.

“Well… looks like it works, at least,” Lykou pointed out.

Kuna sighed with some relief. “Thank goodness f-for that, at least.”

“C’mon, let’s keep moving. I know she said it’ll last a while, but I don’t want to take any chances on it wearing off too soon.”

Kuna nodded and they continued towards the ruins. Luckily, they managed to find the entrance a lot easier and faster than their first time, since they’d already been there once. When they arrived, Lykou pulled out the keystone and approached the gate. Kuna gulped and looked around anxiously.

“Alright… here goes,” Lykou said as he held the stone up to the gate. But he paused briefly near the inset that the stone presumably fit into. “Brace yourself. Be ready to run like hell, just in case.” He eyed Kuna’s walking stick for a moment. “Let me know if you need help, too. Don’t be afraid to drop things if you have to. Our lives are more important than anything we’re carrying.”

“S-same to you,” Kuna said, hovering close by.

“Ready?”

Kuna took a deep breath, then nodded slightly. “As I’ll ever be.”

Lykou slowly slipped the stone into its spot and stepped back. After a moment, glowing red and gold light flowed out from the stone and into the lines and symbols criss-crossing the gate. When they were all lit up, the gate melted away, forming a pair of bars on either side of the entrance. They shared a look, then Lykou cautiously stepped through after a brief hesitation.

A tense moment passed as they stood and waited. Fortunately, there were no sudden sounds of scrambling bodies at the outside walls. When it was clear that nothing was coming, Kuna followed Lykou and they began making their way into the old, abandoned village. While they were relieved to not be pursued by a mob of hostile undead monsters, they were still wary.

The place felt eerie and unsettling in a different way from the forest or the bog. Most of the structures were still well in tact- even the wooden bits, which they would have expected to rot away. Despite that, the whole place advertised its horrible, tragic past. Tools and furniture laid abandoned haphazardly, both in the rough dirt streets between buildings, and inside the homes themselves. Some were broken, yet not decayed, as if the whole place was in some kind of time bubble. They could still see footprints in the dirt, as if they’d been made recently. But a fine layer of dust coated everything. That, and some cobwebs, gave away how long the place had been abandoned.

A sense of sorrow hung in the air. The way so many things were left behind, it was obvious that their owners either couldn’t bare to come retrieve them, or perhaps hadn’t survived to do so. The way the light shined into some windows let them see tables still set with old wooden bowls. Some simple clothing was draped across a short wall outside one home- some of it was a bit on the small side.

Finally, they came to what was apparently the old, original entrance to the village. Kuna’s breath caught in his throat as they rounded a corner. He covered his mouth when he saw the numerous large, dark stains splattered over nearly everything, including the walls. The only pieces of the ruins not stained were the crude bricks and logs that’d been used to wall off the actual old entrance after the tragedy. Some handprints on a wall near the entrance to a building indicated someone’s desperate- and likely failed- attempt to escape the carnage. The prints weren’t very big at all.

Lykou gently held Kuna as the sereva’s eyes started to tear up a bit. Scuffed footprints and dents covered the ground. There were still broken arrows and pieces of weapons scattered around. A few deep, yet thin gashes were cut into the walls. The konuul could only guess that they were an example of the potential power of the infamous axe.

The lack of bodies was a small blessing, at least. Obviously the survivors at least made sure to give their dead a proper send-off. Lykou and Kuna can only imagine how heart-wrenching that duty must have been, though.

“...that bastard deserves a place in the hells right next to Kairangi,” Lykou finally murmured quietly, looking around with sad eyes.

“N-no shit,” Kuna said, sniffling a bit as he rubbed a few tears away. “W-what a monster…”

After taking a moment to compose themselves, they continued onward, eager to get away from the center of the ancient scene of carnage. “It’s strange,” Lykou commented after a few minutes. “It all looks almost… recent.”

“M-must be part of the s-strange magic around here,” Kuna commented. “I’m assuming it’s w-weave related or something though. N-not much… energy around, that I can sense.”

Lykou nodded. “I wonder where the survivors’ descendants are now,” he pondered aloud. “Heh, as silly as it sounds I kind of just… want to give them a big hug.”

Kuna smiled faintly at him. “You would, wouldn’t you?” he quipped playfully, temporarily distracted from his anxiety by the comment. “That’s something I really l-… l-like about you, ya big sweet fluffball.”

The konuul smirked faintly and shrugged. “What can I say? I like comforting folks,” he said, then his expression fell again. “And I’m sure those people could’ve used a hell of a lot of comforting…” After a moment he shook himself out of his thoughts and turned back to the sereva. “Mind checking the spell? The sooner we get to the arch, the sooner we can get out of this depressing place. If we’re lucky, we might not even need to meet that… revenant guy.”

Kuna closed his eyes and took a deep breath, focusing for a moment. When he reopened them, he gestured deeper into the village, near what was likely the center. As they continued meandering their way towards it, they realized there was a second wall surrounding the core of the village. They followed it around for a bit, then eventually arrived at what was apparently the only entrance to what turned out to be a large courtyard.

Unfortunately, it became very clear that Lykou’s hope for avoiding the revenant was highly unlikely. There was no mistaking what the courtyard was for. Beyond the ornate archway marking its entrance, in the center of a large, open space, was a stone box, covered in strange symbols and lines. Another, larger stone object laid just beyond it, covered with very different symbols, and more rigid lines. And at the very back, they could see what looked like the Sylthean arch-gate. Unfortunately, it appeared to be blocked by another magically-enchanted physical gate.

“Well, fuck,” Lykou blurted out as he looked at the courtyard ahead of them. “Something tells me he’ll show up the moment we walk in there.”

Kuna gulped and nodded. “Great…”

“I just hope he’s willing to hear us out and let us pass.”

“S-same. Last thing w-we need is another thing to r-run from.”

They both stared into the open space apprehensively. Finally, Lykou took a deep breath and stepped forward. Kuna followed after him, his eyes still darting around, expecting to see some monster pop up out of nowhere at any moment. But for the moment, things remained quiet. They slowly made their way into the courtyard, until Kuna paused and tugged on Lykou’s arm, pointing off to the side, where there was a small alcove with another large, rectangular stone box of some kind. In fact, there were three others around the edges of the courtyard in their own alcoves. They had some symbols in a similar style to the one behind the older box presumably containing the axe, but only a few of them. “W-what do you think’s in those?”

Lykou walked over to the nearest one and examined it carefully, while still staying just out of arm’s reach. “...good question.”

“I a-assume the other one over there is where the r-revenant’s, um… body is kept,” Kuna commented, eyeing the others anxiously. “But Algrytha didn’t m-mention that he had company.”

“No she didn’t… then again, I get the impression she never visited here herself. Who knows what she isn’t aware of?”

“M-maybe we should just… give them all plenty of s-space. Walk around the middle instead of through it, you know? Without getting too c-close to anything,” Kuna suggested, looking back at the central boxes nervously. “M-might help make it clear w-we’re not interested in the axe…”

“Sure, makes sense to me,” the konuul agreed.

They slowly made their way around the edge of the courtyard, making sure to give all of the boxes plenty of space. Eventually, they reached the back side of the courtyard and started making their way to the gate. But when they were halfway to it, a cold wind whipped up and a faint charge filled the air. Kuna sensed a buildup of some kind of energy and stopped in his tracks, turning to watch the boxes fearfully as dirt and debris spun around in the air above them. Even Lykou could feel the energy in the air, as he stopped with the sereva and stepped in front of him protectively, despite his own nervousness.

The lines on the longer box lit up for a moment, then a bright flash caused the top to vanish. When the blinding light faded and they could see again, an imposing, clearly undead figure was stepping out of it. Only this one looked quite different from any others they’d seen. The body was mostly intact, and fairly well preserved, but still very clearly a corpse. Some kind of fabric was wrapped around most of its gaunt body, with some kind of padded armor overlaid on top of it. A scarf-like garment was wrapped around most of the face, except its eyes. And rather than its original eyes, a pair of small, ethereal soulfire flames danced in its dark sockets. It was impossible to tell what species the body once was, due to being so covered up. Aside from its eyes, the only part of the body not wrapped up was the tail, which still somehow had most of its fur in tact, albeit extremely dusty and entirely gray. The tail and the slightly more pronounced muzzle under the scarf suggested perhaps some kind of canine, but probably not a konuul. The ears were hidden under a hood attached to the armor, which also cast an intimidating shadow over the corpse’s face.

Though the entity’s face was mostly obscured, it was clear from its eyes that it was not happy to see them. But to their marginal relief, it did not appear to be armed, at least for the moment.

The figure lifted a hand and pointed at them. “I do not know how you got in here alive, but you are tresspassing on hallowed grounds,” the revenant said in a reverberating, slightly ethereal-sounding voice. “Leave now, or prepare to face your doom.”

“W-wait, please hear us out!” Lykou said, raising his hands in a sign of peace. “We don’t want any trouble!”

“Trouble is all you will find here,” the revenant warned, then held its hand out to the side. A spear, previously unnoticed, rose up from a fine layer of dust and dirt near the edge of the courtyard, then flew over and into his grasp. “The treasure you seek will not fall into unworthy hands. Now-”

“We’re not here for the axe!”

The revenant narrowed his eyes at Lykou for a moment. Then he arched a brow. “...that is… unexpected. But you are still trespassing. Why?”

“W-we just want to get to the old m-magic arch back there!” Kuna interjected nervously, staring at him with wide, fearful eyes. “Th-that’s all!”

Elzhan glanced back at the arch briefly, then turned back to them. “You are familiar with that thing?”

“Y-yeah, that’s all we’re interested in,” Lykou explained. “It creates a portal to another arch like it far away. There’s a bunch of them scattered around the world, and we’ve been using them to try and find our way home after we were, uh… kind of magically thrown way across the world by a very powerful magic user.”

“Interesting… I always wondered what its significance was,” the revenant said, then crossed his arms. “Unfortunately, that is irrelevant.” His eyes flared up for a moment, making them both jump back slightly. A moment later, they returned to normal. “I can sense that you’re telling the truth, and you have good hearts. All the more unfortunate that I cannot allow you access to the thing, however benign your intentions.”

“What??” Lykou blurted out, his ears folding down in frustration. “Why the fuck not?!”

“It is the nature of my bond to this place. It was meant to keep the axe out of the hands of the unworthy,” the revenant explainedx. “However, in an oversight, it seems that the arch you seek is included in my duty. As such, the same rules apply to it as to the axe.”

Kuna frowned and gently placed a hand on Lykou, who was clearly becoming more distraught.

“Oh come on!” the konuul blurted out, clutching his head and tearing at his hair slightly, his eyes tearing up slightly in frustration. “There’s got to be some way we can work something out! Please! All we want to do is go home…”

“There is… one way,” Elzhan eventually said. “In theory, anyway.”

“Oh? What is it??”

“The challenge.”

“What challenge?”

“I am bound here to keep people out until one worthy of wielding the axe can take it. Worthiness has two parts. I have seen your souls, and you already satisfy one requirement with your good nature,” the revenant explained. “A… welcome change from many that have come before, I will admit. But the second requirement is where all others have failed. In order to claim the axe- and consequently have access to that… arch… you, and I mean only one of you, must defeat me in single combat.”

“What?!” Kuna blurted out. “That’s… that’s impossible!”

Lykou sized the revenant up. “He has a point. You’re already, y’know… dead. How would that even be possible?”

“I never said it’d be easy. I never said it'd be easy. The challenge ends when either of us yields, or is no longer able to fight, one way or another. I'll warn you- these ruins are filled with the corpses of those that thought they could beat me and were too proud to yield in time to save their lives. I cannot and will not hold back.”

Lykou furrowed his brow and stared at the ground thoughtfully. Kuna caught sight of his expression and immediately became alarmed. He stepped forward and grabbed the konuul’s arm, shaking his head. “Kou, no! Don’t even think about it! W-we can find another arch or s-something!”

“There’s no telling how much that could set us back,” Lykou said quietly, placing a hand on one of the sereva’s. “That’s assuming we even find another one. Your spell only points out the nearest one, right?”

The sereva folded his ears down and clung to the canid. “Please don’t-”

“I have to try, Ku. I don’t see any other way.”

“For what it is worth, I will fight as honorably as you do. This is not a mindless brawl we are talking about here. There will be rules,” the revenant assured them. “And if you yield before the fatal blow, I swear on my honor that you will live to see another day- provided you leave this place immediately afterwards.”

Lykou looked over at Kuna, then pulled him into a tight hug. “Hey, I have to at least give it my best try. Don’t worry, if I can’t figure out a way to win, I’ll yield before… well, I’ll yield. Alright? I won’t let it go too far.”

Kuna shivered and held onto him tightly. He could tell there was no convincing the canid, but the idea terrified him, even with the specter’s assurances. “Dammit, Kou…”

Lykou rubbed the sereva’s side softly, then turned back to the revenant. “What are the rules?”

“It is simple. Choose your weapon- if you don't have one, there are a few laying around the edges of this courtyard that you may choose from. I will manifest a matching one. When you are ready, take your place on the opposite side of the courtyard from me and declare your intention. Then, the fight will begin. You may use whatever abilities or equipment you have, but only yours-" Elzhan paused and shot Kuna a look. “-that means no assisting him in any way, sereva. You may observe from the side, beyond the battleground. If you can climb to the top of the wall, you may watch from there. Any attempt to intervene will be considered a forfeit on Lykou's part.”

Kuna hung his ears and folded his ears down. Lykou gave him a gentle squeeze. “Anything else?”

“If you leave this courtyard, that will also be considered a forfeit. If you yield or forfeit, you must leave this place. You may return again the next day to attempt the challenge again, if you so choose. But no sooner.”

Lykou nodded. “Sounds reasonable…” He took a deep breath and straightened up. “Alright. I’ll take the challenge.” He turned to Ku. “Here, let me help you up onto the wall.”

The sereva was extremely reluctant to leave his friend’s side, and his fear was evident in his eyes. Still, he let the konuul help him up onto one of the walls, where he found a relatively stable spot to sit and cling to one of the large, decorative posts that poked up from parts of it. “Please be careful, Ku…”

“I will,” the konuul assured him, then turned to face the revenant again. “So…”

“Choose your weapon and take your position,” Elzhan said.

“Right…” Lykou walked over to the edge of the courtyard and began searching.

“You’ll find most of them near the other caskets.”

Lykou blinked a few times and looked around. “The other…?”

“The stone boxes on the sides.”

“R-right. Uh. We were actually wondering about those. Are-”

“They are for special burials. Those that assisted me in becoming what I am now chose to be entombed here when they passed.”

“Oh,” Lykou said, eyeing the caskets warily. “I… was wondering if it was something like that.” He walked over to one of them and searched behind the casket. He spotted a long, metallic blade laying in the dirt. Shockingly, despite its apparent age, it was devoid of rust and the edge was as sharp as ever. He picked it up and looked it over, testing its weight. It was much longer than his knife, in a style he wasn’t terribly familiar with. He’d seen a variety of weapons in his life, but swords, even smaller ones, were almost unheard of back in Lakefire. The only place he’d encountered many of them before were some short ones used by the lepne in Clovaria.

Back in Lakefire, if the hunter-warriors had to fight off Ursarans, they usually used nets, bolas, bows, and polearms, with knives as a backup. Maybe hatchets or axes, in a pinch. But usually the larger chunks of sunstone were reserved for bucklers or non-weapon tools. Still, he found the weight felt good in his hand, and he assumed it’d be similar enough to his knife that he could wield it effectively. He considered looking for a spear, but it might be more likely to break in the middle of fighting. Tightening his grip on the handle, he walked back towards the center, on the other side of the axe-box from Elzahn. “Alright, I’ll use this.”

“Very well,” the revenant said, then dropped the spear and conjured up a blade matching the one in Lykou’s hand. “When you are ready, state your purpose here, and we will begin.”

Over on the wall, Kuna trembled and watched the scene unfold. He wanted so badly to intervene and try to talk sense into his friend. Or, failing that, he wanted to at least help him in the fight, rules be damned. But he was in no condition for such things. Even if he wasn’t already weak and still recovering from the ghoul bite, it didn’t feel like there was anything to latch onto with his magic- there wasn’t much plant life within the ruins. Maybe a stray blade of grass here and there, but the courtyard in particular was nothing but stone and dirt.

Lykou took a moment to collect himself, then raised his weapon and pointed it at the revenant. “I am here to challenge and defeat you, Elzhan, so that Kuna and I can get to and use the magical gateway behind you.”

Elzhan raised his own blade in a mirrored gesture to the canid. “And so the challenge begins.”

Chapter Text

Mystic Heart Odyssey

Part 6: In the Shadows of Kryckwood

Chapter 8

How does one win a duel with a powerful undead warrior, anyway?

-Llox

___________________________________________________________________________________

Lykou grunted as he fell to the ground, then immediately rolled over and picked himself back up just in time to narrowly avoid being stabbed in the shoulder. He frantically scrambled away as the revenant unleashed a chaotic flurry of attacks that he immediately had to try to block and parry as he anxiously backed away. He just barely managed to activate his bracers in time for one of the attacks to slip through and make a modest cut in his arm. Luckily, the wound quickly began healing once his fur had gone woody.

Still, before he had a chance to recover, he was being quickly backed towards a wall and had to bolt off to the side to avoid being pinned. He nearly tripped on an old club laying near the edge of the courtyard, but managed to catch himself in time to keep from falling. Still, he couldn’t even hope to counter-attack due to the revenant’s vicious, continuous assault. Ever since the fight began, he’d been struggling just to defend himself.

Most of the ghouls the previous day had been tough, resilient, and strong, but a bit clumsy and occasionally even sluggish at times. Elzhan did not have those drawbacks. He was fighting with all the ferocity of a highly trained warrior without any of the limitations of a living being. He didn’t need to breath, he easily recovered from each attack, he didn’t feel pain, and his strength relied on will and focus, rather than muscle power. He was a terrifyingly effective fighter- more than any other Lykou had faced by far.

But the konuul was determined not to give up. He quickly dashed away from the undead menace and hurried across the courtyard, then jumped across the box containing the axe. Elzhan was hot on his trail- just as he’d hoped. So when the animated corpse jumped after him, he quickly spun around with a sweeping kick to knock him aside. His foot landed with a satisfying crunch and sent the comparatively very light-weight body flying off course by several feet.

Unfortunately, the revenant recovered almost immediately, and managed to land a glancing hit on the konuul’s leg before his foot even came back down from the kick. Lykou yelped and winced as he backpedaled away from his opponent. Again, he found himself having to deflect and block a series of stabs and swings that came dangerously close to landing in various vital areas. His mind was racing as he tried to think of some way to disable him, but it was very difficult to do so while so much of his attention was on trying to defend himself.

Again, he pushed away as quickly as he could, barely keeping out of the revenant’s reach as he made his way over to one of the other stone caskets. He jumped over it and immediately spotted something he was glad to see- a net. He wasn’t about to question how it was in such good condition after all those years, and quickly grabbed it up. It probably had something to do with the strange magic that kept the rest of the ruins in decent shape anyway.

He knew better than to try and use it immediately. Instead, he quickly raised his sword to block and parry yet another series of attacks from his assailant, who’d just landed on top of the other casket, nearly pinning him into the alcove that contained it. Ducking and blocking as he went, he managed to squeeze past the revenant, though he ended up taking a few more cuts in his arm and shoulder along the way. When he’d made it back around to the other side of the casket, where he had the opportunity to bolt away again, he feinted to do so, only to immediately hurl the net at Elzhan when the undead warrior predictably lunged to chase after him. Knowing he’d quickly recover, Lykou focused on tangling up the revenant’s arm, then danced around the struggling corpse to pin it, and the sword it held, to his chest. They both struggled and strained against one another, slowly making their way back out into the courtyard. Despite Elzhan’s struggling, the konuul managed to keep him bound up tightly.

“Gotcha!” the canid declared with a grin. “I can hold you as long as I need to, so why don’t you just-”

“KOU, LOOK OUT!” Kuna cried out from the wall as he watched the fight anxiously.

Lykou turned just in time to see a second assailant lunge at him with a sword of its own. He quickly ducked out of the way, letting the blade hit his captive instead- not that it did any good. Under another avalanche of attacks, he began backing away and shoved the netted-up corpse at the new attacker. That gave him a brief moment to see what was going on. The casket they’d been previously battling around was open, and its occupant- now entirely skeletal in nature- had a pair of familiar soulfire flames dancing in its eyes, while the revenant’s own body had gone limp, its own eyes now dark, empty voids.

“Oh come on!” Lykou cried out as he continued backing away. The new skeletal attacker was quickly advancing on him after shoving the previous body aside. “That’s cheating!”

“I said we could both use whatever abilities or equipment we had,” Elzhan reminded him, before launching another series of attacks. “I warned you it wouldn’t be easy.”

Lykou gritted his teeth and scrambled backwards as he deflected several more swings. He nearly tripped on the spear the revenant had previously dropped before they started the fight. Out of desperation he quickly bent down and grabbed it with his other hand, then swung it around to try and trip the skeletal attacker. At first, Elzhan nimbly jumped over it. But after a couple more attempts and a few more cuts in the konuul’s arm and side, the spear finally managed to solidly connect with one of the skeleton’s legs and knock him off balance. The konuul quickly took advantage of the moment and dropped the spear, then pounced, pinning the armed hand down with one foot and repeatedly slamming the skull against the ground until it started to crack. The other skeletal hand frantically clawed at him even once the skull started to break apart under the repeated blows.

Eventually, the skeleton went limp and the ghostly flames left its fractured eye sockets. Lykou took a moment to catch his breath, but then quickly remembered he was far from safe. His instincts saved him as he narrowly ducked in time to avoid an arrow hitting the back of his head. Unsure what else to do, he fled back to the alcove that the first skeleton had come from, barely dodging another arrow aimed at him by the new skeletal attacker advancing from the far corner, armed with a bow. Momentarily shielded by the wall, he frantically searched around for something he could use as a shield. All he could come up with was the stone casket’s lid, but it was far too heavy and unwieldy to carry around as such. In fact, he struggled to even try to lift it, so he quickly discarded that idea.

Soon another arrow zipped past his face, making it clear that he was out of time. He decided to make a run for it to one of the other alcoves. A couple more shots barely missed him, and one managed to land in his back, making him yelp and wince in pain. At least the wood armor minimized the damage. He couldn’t remove the arrow just yet to let it heal, though. Finally, he ducked into another alcove and as luck had it, he found a shield. It was a small wooden one, but at least it’d let him close in on the revenant. He quickly pulled the arrow out of his back, then picked the shield up and turned to prepare himself to be exposed to the arrows again.

Still, he had to think tactically. He didn’t just charge out immediately. Instead, he waited for the undead archer to creep around and start firing on him again. Once he saw the skeleton come within his field of sight, he raised the shield just in time to catch an arrow aimed at his face, then charged as fast as he could, hoping to catch the skeletal archer while it was preparing another shot. Elzhan began to quickly back away, but the fast canid eventually slammed into him, scattered the bones of his current body all around.

Lykou quickly grabbed the skull and slammed it into the ground, then stomped on it repeatedly until it began breaking apart. A pair of disconnected hands clawed at his other leg as he did so, but he ignored them. Before he could finish shattering the skull, though, he instinctively jumped to the side just as a heavy club slammed into the ground next to him. He looked up in time to see another bony warrior body bringing the club around at his head again. He instinctively raised his shield, saving himself from being seriously injured by another strong blow. The impact still hurt, though, and the shield cracked on impact. He knew it wouldn’t be much more use, so he tossed it at the skeleton and sprinted away again.

Given the new body’s slower, heavier weapon, he decided to move back to one of the vacant alcoves in hopes of using the tight space to his advantage. Once he ducked around the corner, he hunkered down and gripped his sword tightly in his hand, waiting for the revenant to come around the corner and trying to come up with a plan. He wasn’t sure what he could do to stop him, but he was determined to figure it out. After some thought, he moved further back and examined the open casket. There wasn’t anything to speak of inside it, but it gave him an idea.

As soon as Elzhan’s latest body rounded the corner, it slammed the massive club into the wall Lykou had been hiding by just moments before. The konuul stood over the casket and braced himself, holding up his sword as if to prepare to block another heavy swing. When the skeleton brought the club around again, he jumped over the side-swipe. As he predicted, the revenant followed it with a heavy overhead swing. He jumped back out of the way, narrowly avoiding the swing, then quickly shoved the lid over to temporarily pin the skeletons club-arm inside the casket. He then stomped down on the upper arm, snapping it out of place and leaving it dangling out the side of the casket.

He then started viciously attacking the rest of the now disarmed skeleton, trying to get a hold of its skull. He figured that was the key to winning- he had to crush the skull of each body so those little soulfire eyes would have no sockets left to return to. After some wrestling around, he hacked off the other arm and managed to grab onto the skull, then yanked it down and jumped so as to bring the entire weight of his wooden body down on the skull, knee first. The bony structure immediately shattered when they landed. He was glad his bracers were activated- he could only imagine how it would’ve hurt his knee otherwise.

Lykou quickly got back to his feet and looked around, expecting to see the fourth skeleton advancing on him. Much to his surprise, there was no sign of it. Instead, he saw the revenant’s original body finally clawing its way out of the net it’d been bound up in. He frowned and charged over to try and take advantage of its predicament before it got all the way free. Elzhan managed to grab his wrist with his free hand just as the canid was reaching for his head. They wrestled around for a moment before another cry from Kuna caught his attention.

He ducked to the side just in time for a spear to miss both him and the revenant’s body. Retreating from the now mostly-free corpse, he turned to see the fourth skeleton attacking with not one, but two bladed polearms, one in each hand. And somehow the original body was also still animate. His spirits sank when he realized both of them had spirit flames in their eyes. Apparently, the revenant could use multiple bodies at once. Has he been holding back this whole time?! he wondered.

The fourth skeleton charged at him with its twin halberds in hand, while Elzhan’s true body decided to stay back. Lykou grunted as he dodged away from the weapons and tried to close in on the newest attacker. With a normal warrior, the two polearms would have been a terrible, awkward way of fighting, but the undead fighter managed to use their extended reach to its advantage and rapidly adjust its grip after each swing, making it hard for the canid to close in. When he finally did, he slammed his fist into its skull, then hooked his arm around one of the skeleton’s and swept his leg under its legs to knock it to the ground.

A chaotic, confusing blur of limbs and weapons made it hard to see who was winning for a few moments, but eventually Lykou managed to knock the halberds away and begin shattering some bones with repeated heavy stomps and slams on the ground. When the skeleton went limp, he turned his attention back to the original body, panting heavily. Elzhan seemed unphased, watching him advance with his arms crossed. “You are a brave and resilient fighter, Lykou,” the revenant said. “But you are still mortal. You cannot win. Yield now and go, knowing you have my respect.”

“The only… way… I’m leaving… is through… that arch,” Lykou responded as he stalked towards him. “Why don’t... you yield? You’ve got… one head… left…”

“Is that what you think?” Elzhan replied ominously. “Your determination is impressive, but your hope has blinded you.”

Suddenly, just as Lykou lunged at him, he was stopped by two pairs of skeletal hands grabbing hold of him from behind. He turned to see two of the previously ‘defeated’ skeletons had returned and grabbed his arms. He tugged against them but found himself struggling to get free from their grasp. As he was doing so, their skulls re-assembled themselves right before his eyes. The third hurried up behind him as he thrashed around, grabbing him in a full-nelson. The one holding his left arm managed to get a grip on his wrist and deactivate his bracers, somehow. He tried kicking around, but the fourth crawled over and grabbed his legs as its own were tumbling over the ground to rejoin it.

Elzhan’s original body unfolded its arms and walked over to the only box that was still sealed… and opened it. Then it pulled out the axe. It was truly unique. It was made of a single solid material, though it was hard to tell from a distance if it was bone or some kind of stone. Either way, it was polished smooth and heavily decorated with runes. Several gemstones were embedded in the handle, and a black strap was connected to the hilt. The air around the edge of the blade had a faint blur to it as it was lifted up.

On the wall, Kuna gawked in horror, then started scrambling to get down off the wall. As soon as he did, though, some kind of invisible barrier blocked him. He cried out to Lykou, his eyes tearing up as he tried to push through it and reach his friend. Whatever he was saying didn’t register with the konuul’s mind, due to being so caught up in the heat of the moment and desperately trying to break free. He snarled and put all his strength into trying to pull out of the skeletal grasp holding him in place. Tears peeked out of the corners of his eyes as he thought of home, and his friends and family waiting for him there. He suddenly felt the hope of seeing them again slipping out of his grasp.

Try as he might, he couldn’t break out of the hold his enemy had on him. He saw Elzhan approaching with the axe in his undead hand in what seemed like slow motion. His desperation grew as the revenant lifted the axe and stalked closer. Elzhan drew his arm back and prepared to decapitate the konuul.

At the last moment, Lykou again saw the horrified look on Kuna’s face and reality dawned on him, he clenched his eyes shut, causing some tears to leak down his face. “I yield,” he said weakly at the last moment, as the axe swung at him. The world seemed to stand still for a moment. When he opened his eyes again, he realized the axe was hovering just an inch from his exposed neck. He could feel a strange, tingling sensation from the blurry area along its edge.

Elzhan slowly withdrew the axe. The other bodies released the canid and returned to their caskets. The sudden release, paired with his exhaustion, caused Lykou to stumble and fall to the ground. When the barrier dissipated, Kuna suddenly rushed to his side, cradling him in his arms and letting tears rain down on him, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. “Lykou! Speak to me!”

“I’m… fine…” Lykou lied quietly, hanging his head. He may not have been seriously injured, but his pride was another story. Not to mention his hope had been shattered, now that he realized they wouldn’t be able to reach the arch.

“Oh thank fuck!” Kuna continued to hold him in his arms, not wanting to let go. “I was s-so afraid I was gonna lose you!”

After they both took a moment to collect themselves, a gnarled hand, wrapped in thin fabric, reached down towards them. Lykou looked up and realized Elzhan, in his original body, was offering to help him up. With some reluctance, he took the offer and slowly got back to his feet, with Kuna still hovering next to him and looking him over for lingering injuries, between shooting hateful glares at the revenant.

“You fought exceptionally well, all considered. And you had the wisdom to yield before it was too late, albeit barely,” Elzhan commented. “I commend you for both. But it is time for you to leave.” He glanced at Kuna. “Unless of course you wish to make an attempt as well.”

Kuna’s glare shifted to a startled, mildly fearful look as he quickly shook his head. “I-I’m no warrior,” he said, then turned back to Lykou. “Come on, Kou, we’ll f-figure something else out.”

The konuul just faintly nodded and turned to leave, his eyes cast downward. Kuna helped gather up their things again, having set them aside outside the courtyard before the start of the fight. Finally, when they had everything gathered again, they set out, with Kuna shooting one last glare back at the revenant before they rounded the corner and left.

Behind them, Elzhan stood silently and watched them go. Once they were out of sight, the corpse walked back to its casket and laid back down inside. A magical force sealed the lid back over it, and everything was quiet and still once more.

*****

Kuna made multiple attempts to talk to Lykou once they’d left the ruins, but he didn’t seem inclined to chat. In fact, all the way through the bog and back into the Kryck, the canid remained somber and seemed completely lost in his own thoughts. That left it up to the sereva to remain vigilant against potential threats.

Fortunately, it was still early in the day, so at least they had plenty of daylight, or at least however much came through the grey cloud cover. While initially relieved by his friend’s safety and lack of serious injuries, Kuna was growing increasingly worried about the konuul’s disposition. After a while, the draught of the dead seemed to wear off, but even if their appearances returned to normal, Lykou still acted like he was half dead. His eyes were distant and he nearly tripped on several occasions, due to not watching where he was going. Kuna had to guide him around several obstacles.

Eventually they reached the tree with the gourd lantern hanging from it. The flame was out at the moment. They decided to stop and rest. Lykou dropped his things onto the ground, then walked over and slumped down against the tree, with Kuna following suit next to him. After sitting in awkward silence for a bit, Lykou started halfheartedly trying to talk through various possibilities for how to continue.

“We should… try an’ find the other villages Algrytha mentioned,” he mumbled, idly fiddling with a twig in one hand.

“Which- oh, where the others fled to after the...? Yeah, that… that’s an idea,” Kuna agreed, eyeing his friend with concern. “At least it’d get us out of this damn place, anyway...”

“Mm. Could… see if they still have some kind of sage or… somethin’,” the canid continued. Kuna caught a look at his eyes and noticed the tears he was straining to hold back. “Could… maybe a-ask about where… if they know where a-another arch is or… something.”

Kuna nodded slightly. “Maybe…”

“Or… or just get far... far enough away that... maybe Zyn’ll show back up and-” he stopped when Kuna set a hand on his shoulder.

“Kou.”

“Hmm?” Lykou replied absently as he avoided looking at the sereva. “Just trying t-”

“I know. Stop,” Kuna said firmly. Then, with what little strength he could muster, he grabbed the canid and pulled him over into his arms, wincing at the pain in his shoulder. “Just let it out.”

Lykou shot an uncertain look up at him for a moment, then clenched his eyes shut in an effort to fight back the tears. “I… I just…”

“You don’t have to think right now. Just stop fighting it and let it out,” Kuna insisted, giving him a gentle squeeze. “All of it. Trust me, you’ll feel better.”

Finally, Lykou gave in and let the tears flow as he clung to the sereva and buried his face in his chest. Kuna held him close and stroked his head softly. It was mostly quiet, other than the occasional sob and the breeze periodically making the trees creak a little above them.

A few tears leaked from Kuna’s eyes as well. He hated seeing his friend so distraught, and badly wanted to help him feel better. But he knew all too well that this was exactly what he needed in that moment.

“I just want to be home, dammit,” Lykou eventually said after turning his head and sniffling a bit. “I want to see Naira, and mom and dad, and Nezha, and Oren, and everyone else. I want to hear chief Ryvis telling everyone good morning at breakfast, I want to bicker with Leis, I want to help the gatherers collect firewood. I want to go swimming and play pranks with Naira and Oren, and listen to Derrish and Kitza rave and ramble about things I can’t even understand. I want to see the sun come up and shine off the ridge and make the lake shimmer. I want to be home already!” He paused and rubbed his eyes, then sighed. “I’m… so tired, Ku. I’m exhausted. In every way. I’m so fed up with the constant death, and danger, and fear. Of never knowing where we’ll be next or what we’ll encounter.”

“I know, Kou. I know,” Kuna replied, stroking his head some more as a few more of his own tears trickled down. “Me too.”

Lykou sniffed again. “...we’re never going to get there, are we?”

Kuna blinked a few times, then stared down at him. “Wh-?”

“We’re just going to keep doing this. Wandering around forever, never getting any closer to home,” Lykou muttered bitterly, fresh tears pouring from his eyes. “It’s all some… fucking sick game. Inkari’s never letting us go home. We’re just going t-”

“Stop that.”

Lykou folded his ears down and looked away again. “...sorry…”

“Don’t be,” Kuna said, squeezing him again tightly. “But don’t talk like that, either.” He gently grabbed the konuu’s muzzle and lifted it to look him in the eye. “Listen to me. We’re getting back to Lakefire one way or another. And you’ll be reunited with all of them. This is a set-back, but we’re going to push through it. Absolutely nothing is going to stop us. We WILL get there, whatever it takes.”

Lykou averted his eyes and sighed. “How?”

“I don’t know, but we’re going to. That’s all there is to it,” Kuna insisted, then pulled the canid into another tight embrace. “I’m not letting you give up. You taught me to hold onto hope, so now I’m going to make sure you do, too.”

Lykou just took a deep breath and remained quiet for a few minutes, closing his eyes stubbornly. They both sat in silence for a bit, with the sereva cradling the konuul in his arms and gently stroking his head and back.

Then, suddenly, Lykou felt something prodding and poking his side. It was annoying at first, then it started to really tickle him. More of the sensations joined at his feet, making him squirm. He started to giggle and grin a little in spite of himself. When he opened his eyes, he saw a faint green glow around the sereva’s hand, then looked down to see a few vines prodding at and tickling him in various spots. The sereva had managed to conjur them up from what little plant life he could find nearby. But when he saw the canid had opened his eyes, he quickly dismissed the magic.

“Hey, if you can fight my demons, I can fight yours too,” Kuna said, grinning at the canid as he withdrew the vines.

Lykou smiled faintly up at him, then buried his face in the sereva’s chest again and gave him a small squeeze. “Thanks, Ku,” he said, then sniffled again. “If it wasn’t for you-”

“Shh. ‘nuff said,” Kuna said, laying his head on the canid’s and hugging him close.

Lykou smiled some more and leaned into the embrace. As much as he missed home, at least he knew he wasn’t alone. After taking a moment to compose himself, he slowly sat up and rubbed his face. “I… guess we should head out to find one of those other villages. Maybe if we’re lucky we can get out of the Kryck before we have to make camp for the night.”

“Mmm, not just yet,” Kuna said, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

“Huh? Why not?”

“Algrytha did invite us to stop back by. I say we give her another visit.”

“...yeah, I guess it wouldn’t hurt. She probably has a better idea where those villages are anyway.”

“Sure. But we can also tell her more about the revenant now,” Kuna suggested. “Maybe she’ll be able to help us figure out a way we can beat him once she knows a bit more.”

Lykou furrowed his brow. “How? I don’t think being stronger or faster or anything would help in this case. As bad as things were back there, I still get the impression he was kind of holding back. And I don’t know what we could tell her that’d be particularly helpful,” he said, then sighed and rubbed his head. “That guy’s just… too powerful. Nothing seems to stop him or even slow him down.”

“Well, we know what rules he’s apparently subject to now. He has to protect all the magical stuff in there, including the arch. And we know the rules of his challenge thing,” Kuna explained. “And… if Algrytha is Sylthean, she might know how to work around that kind of thing.”

Lykou perked up a little. “...that’s true. Hey, maybe tonight I could talk to Aelana and Daisy, too. Maybe they could offer some advice.”

“Not a bad idea,” Kuna agreed, then booped the canid’s nose softly. “C’mon, let’s head back to that crazy garden.”

The konuul squeezed him around the middle again. “Sure… in a minute. Hey Ku?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for... not letting me give up.”

Kuna smiled and squeezed him back. “Of course. I learned from the best, after all.”

*****

The two of them made their way back to the witch’s garden. It was still a somber, subdued hike, but at least Lykou was paying more attention than when they’d left the ruins. Kuna made sure to stay close, and ended up holding his hand in an effort to reassure him and keep his spirits up, which the konuul greatly appreciated.

Once they finally reached the garden, they relaxed a little and took things a bit more casually. They figured they’d have to wait for her to sneak up on them again anyway, so they just took the time to appreciate the odd plants in the garden- though of course they kept a wary distance from the flowers with teeth. When they came across a particularly large cluster of the bitey flora, they hugged the far wall. But then Kuna paused, causing Lykou to stop as well.

“What is it?” the canid asked.

“You know… I never thought about it much, but they are plants, technically,” he said, eyeing the violent flora with narrowed eyes. “Or at least they seem to be. I wonder…” he trailed off, then summoned up his magic and focused.

“Oh… oh hey, yeah,” Lykou said, smirking faintly. “This should be interesting.”

Kuna furrowed his brow as he tried to manipulate the energy in the nearest hostile flower. In as far as any kind of ‘expression’ could be read on the plant’s ‘face’, it suddenly seemed confused and slightly bewildered. Then it began squirming and nipping at the air around it as its leaves and stem started to slowly distort and change shape.

After a few minutes of noticeable effort, Kuna released the magic and took a few deep breaths. “Huh… well, it’s actually not as easy as I thought,” he commented. “Still easier than people or most animals, but definitely more resistance there… although it probably doesn’t help that I’m still weak, too, heh.”

“Interesting,” Lykou responded. “So they’re kind of… what, neither? Both?”

“Something like that,” Kuna said with a small nod. “Damn. Must have some kind of… mind, or something in there after all.”

“It’s all orneriness, really,” a familiar voice said behind them. It startled them, but this time they managed to avoid jumping in surprise, and instead just turned to face the approaching witch. “They’re nippy little shits, but useful fer keepin’ pests outta the garden.” She chuckled as she walked up to them. “Seein’ as yer back, I take it things didn’t go as planned in the ol’ village?”

Lykou frowned and hung his head. “Er, yeah…”

Kuna gently placed a hand on his shoulder, then turned back to Algrytha and shook his head. “We tried talking to the revenant, but there was no reasoning with him.”

“Well, to be fair he didn’t exactly have a choice,” Lykou pointed out. “Apparently, the magic binding him there requires that he guard everything magical there, not just the axe. The arch got caught up in that by mistake.”

“That’s a shame. I’m glad ya got out with yer all yer bits still together, though,” Algrytha said, taking his hand and patting it softly. “Come have some tea and tell me about it. Nobody’s seen ‘im directly in a long, long time, so I’m interested ta hear about it.”

“Thanks, Algrytha,” Kuna said, then gently pulled Lykou along. He smiled faintly at the canid and pulled him into a side-arm embrace as they walked. “Tea sounds fantastic right now.”

“Yeah… yeah it does,” Lykou conceded with a sigh.

Chapter Text

When the trio arrived at her house, Algrytha immediately set up the kettle and started preparing the tea while the boys got comfortable. Initially, Lykou walked over to one of the stools, but before he could sit down, Kuna tugged on his arm lightly. The canid gave him a questioning look.

“C’mere,” Kuna said, trying to pull him over to the clear spot near the wall. He sat down, leaning against the wall, then patted his lap. “Your turn.”

Lykou blushed and folded his ears down, then grinned bashfully. “You’re the one that’s still recovering, you know,” he said as he got down onto the floor, then reclined back into the sereva’s waiting arms.

“Physically, maybe,” Kuna said, cuddling the konuul close. “But I’m never too weak for this.”

“This… isn’t hurting your shoulder is it?”

“Nah. As long as you don’t lean on that side too much, I’m fine,” the sereva assured him. “Besides, the pain’s starting to fade anyway.”

“Well that’s good…” The canid’s tail flicked around a bit- as much as it could with a large chunk of it pinned underneath him, anyway. “...thanks, Ku.”

Kuna rested his head on the konuul’s and smiled. They lounged there while Algrytha worked, enjoying the relative peace and quiet for a bit. Eventually, the kettle started whistling, startling them both- especially Kuna, for whom the concept was still pretty alien. The witch brought them each a cup of tea a few moments later, then sat down on a stool near one of the tables with a cup of her own.

“Thank you again, Algrytha,” Kuna said as he sniffed at the cup, then let out a content sigh.

Lykou just held his in his hands, enjoying the warmth for the moment. “Yeah, thanks. We really appreciate the hospitality.”

“Of course, of course,” Algrytha replied. “So... tell me about how it went with the ruins.”

“Well, on the bright side, the potion worked,” Lykou began. “So thanks for that.”

“A lot better tasting than the other one, too,” Kuna added.

“Didn’t really have much taste.”

“Exactly,” the sereva quipped, then took a careful sip of his tea.

“Heh. Anyway, we made our way through the ruins and ended up at this big open space inside another set of walls in the middle. Apparently, it’s where the revenant’s body and the axe are kept- plus the bodies of four other people that helped him do the ritual thing.”

“Really now?” Algrytha commented. “That’s interestin’. Somehow never heard about that bit.”

“Yeah. And, uh… he can… well, use them, too,” Lykou commented, frowning and staring down into his cup. “We did manage to talk to him a bit, at least. Told him why we were there right away, like you suggested, so he didn’t attack us immediately.”

“But that’s how we found out he couldn’t just let us get to the arch,” Kuna groused. “He said the only way to use the arch or get the axe was to defeat him in this special… challenge thing.”

“A challenge, eh?”

“Mhmm. Have to beat him in one-on-one combat. Goes until one of us yields or can no longer fight,” Lykou said, then folded his ears down and looked away with a sad, embarrassed look. “I… tried to beat him. Thought I might even have figured out how to do it, by destroying all the skulls. Turns out that didn’t work.”

“For a typical ghoul or the like, you’d be onta somethin’ with that, so yer instincts were good at least,” Algrytha said, nodding. “Revenants are another story though. Especially ones like him.”

“We were wondering if you might have any insight about that,” Kuna said. “Maybe some loophole in the rules he has to work with or something?”

“Hmm… so let me get this straight,” Algrytha said, tapping her fingers on her cup thoughtfully. “To get the axe- and get to the magic arch, apparently- ya gotta beat him in a duel type thing, right?”

Lykou nodded. “Something about making sure only an ‘honorable, worthy warrior’ gets the axe and releases him from his duty,” he said, then shrugged. “He said I had the first part, which I guess is nice.”

“Hey, you’re a damn good fighter, Ku,” Kuna assured him with a gentle squeeze. “Especially considering that wasn’t your usual job back at Lakefire. If he wasn’t an undead freak, you’d have won that fight handily. Not your fault he cheated and used five bodies at once and refused to admit defeat.”

“Heh, thanks Ku,” the canid said with a faint, brief smile. “Either way though, I still lost and can’t set foot there again today.”

“Today?” Algrytha probed. “Why’d ya specify ‘today’?”

“Part of the rules. I could technically try the challenge again after a day has gone by if I wanted to,” Lykou said, then sighed. “Not that I see any point, though. Damn challenge seems rigged. I don’t see how anyone can possibly beat him.”

“I don’t suppose you have any suggestions?” Kuna asked. “Or… I dunno, some potion that can let you punch a ghost out of a body?”

The witch sipped her tea thoughtfully and pondered the question for a minute. “...ordinarily, that kinda thing would take a very involved and difficult potion ta make,” she said, finally. “But… humor me fer a moment. When you were tellin’ me about yer adventures this mornin’, you mentioned that… ability thing ya used ta escape the giant, then that nasty demon fucker. Can ya describe it a bit more?”

“Uh… maybe?” Lykou replied, scratching his chin a little. “It’s hard to describe. It’s like things just kind of… slow down, except not really? I can just sort of see things in a strange way and react and think a lot faster than usual, and… I dunno. There are bits that get hard to remember, unfortunately. Especially after last time, heh…”

“He gets this faint glow around him when he does it,” Kuna chimed in. “And something weird happens with his energy. I can’t figure out what, but I can kind of sense it. And when he was getting us away from the demonic duo, there was one point where he sort of… channeled something into the ground that made a bunch of rock break up and stuff.”

“Hmm…” Algrytha narrowed her eyes and stroked her chin thoughtfully, then got up and walked over to the table with scrolls piled up on it. She shuffled through them for a few minutes before finally plucking one up and opening it. After a few moments of skimming over the symbols on the inside, she turned back towards them and walked back over, still reading it. “What yer describin’ is a kinda magic I’ve only barely heard of, so I can’t really tell ya much about it. But that said, I do have a recipe that might help ya temporarily get a better grip on it. ‘n’ if it works the way I vaguely remember, that should let ya attack him directly.”

Lykou perked up. “Really?? That… that’d be amazing!” he responded, his tail tip flicking around excitedly. “I’ve been wishing I could control that ever since I first realized I could do it!” He blinked a few times, then sheepishly smiled at the witch. “Uh… not that I’d want to impose even more…”

Algrytha smiled and waved the comment off. “Nonsense. I’d be happy to give it a whirl. Had this one sittin’ at the bottom of the pile fer so long I almost fergot I even had it.”

Kuna sighed but smirked faintly. “But I’m guessing we’re going to have to go hunt down strange ingredients again, aren’t we?”

The witch chuckled. “That’s right. Lessee,” she said, skimming the scroll again for a moment. “...oh. Right. Well, first you’ll have ta fetch a fruit of the wretched wood.”

“...wretched wood?” Kuna asked dubiously. “That… sounds ominous.”

“Yeahhh… why’s it called that? And where would we find that?” Lykou added. “All the trees we’ve seen are half dead looking and don’t have any fruit that I can recall.”

“You’ll have to head a bit west from my garden. As fer why it’s called that… well, just stay on yer toes. Won’t be as crazy dangerous as the Wraith’s turf, but you’ll still want to keep yer guard up.”

“Oh great, I just love vaguely ominous warnings,” Kuna snarked.

Lykou winced and nudged him a bit. “Hey, just be glad she’s even helping us at all.”

Algrytha snickered. “Nah, he’s right, I’m bein’ a shit. But that’s just how I am. Wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise. Don’t worry, you’ll both do fine as long as ya stay alert.”

“Alright… what else do we have to get?” Lykou asked.

“I’ll tell ya when ya get back with the fruit. There’s only one other thing ya have to go fetch, ‘n’ it’ll be the other way from here.”

Kuna sighed, then sipped some more of his tea. Lykou started to set his cup aside and sit up. “Well, I guess we better-”

“Oh don’t rush,” Algrytha insisted, setting the scroll aside and picking her own cup back up. “Relax a bit and enjoy yer tea. I imagine yer little tussle with ol’ Elzhan must’ve been… stressful, ta say the least.”

The konuul frowned and nodded a little, settling back down as Kuna gently pulled him back again. “Y… yeah. Was definitely… intense.”

“That’s putting it mildly. Only worse one I can think of was with… Tuimana,” Kuna said, then shuddered a bit. “And we were mostly just trying to get away in that one.”

“Well, take the chance ta recover, then. The ingredients shouldn’t take too long ta fetch, ‘n’ ya gotta spend the night before ya challenge Elzhan again anyway. Once again, yer welcome ta stay here fer the night.”

“Thanks, Algrytha,” Kuna replied. “We can set up a bed on the floor this time though, so you can have that table back.”

“Yeah, we’ve got a mat we use anyway.”

“Whatever makes ya comfy,” the witch replied with a shrug. “I’ve got plenty’a other table space though, so it’s still open if ya want it.”

*****

After taking the time to rest up and eat a light lunch, Lykou and Kuna set out to find the so-called ‘wretched wood’ and acquire its fruit. They were both annoyed at the ambiguous nature of the directions, but Algrytha assured them they’d know it when they saw it. Initially, they were just relieved to find the section of the Kryck they were passing to be fairly mundane looking. No shambling corpses, no shadow spirits or wisps, no sightings of the forest’s more disturbing nighttime beasts, and definitely no signs of the Wraith.

Nonetheless, they were still very much in Kryckwood, and it wasn’t long before it reminded them of that fact. Along the way, they passed a few more small pools of the water they’d learned not to touch. There wasn’t much flora around. And even if they weren’t fresh or moving, there were a few scattered bones laying around here and there, especially near the pools of water.

And then eventually there was a single ghost. After they’d been hiking about an hour, the air grew chilly and they felt that eerie, unsettling sensation of a presence nearby. They both paused and tensed up, searching their surroundings for any signs of a body that might suddenly and violently surge back to some semblance of life and attack them. Fortunately, there seemed to be none forthcoming.

After a few minutes, the ghost appeared. It was somewhat vague-looking and indistinct, with only the blurriest, faintest bipedal form and a confused, absent-looking face. The boys and the specter stared one another down in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. Lykou tried talking to it, but it didn’t either didn’t understand him or had no interest in replying. When the ghost showed no signs of doing anything in particular at all, Lykou gently tugged on Kuna’s arm. Kuna nodded and they both carefully walked around the spirit to continue on their way.

At first, it slowly followed after them, making them tense up again. But after a short distance, it stopped, then turned and faded away as it returned to the spot they’d encountered it.

“Wonder what that one’s story is,” Lykou pondered out loud.

“No telling. I’m guessing it m-must’ve been here a l-long time, though,” Kuna said. “For it to have l-lost that much of its original f-form and… n-not be able to talk.”

“At least it wasn’t a hungry ghost or something. Guess Algrytha was right about them not all going that way. I wonder how many different kinds of things they can become?” Lykou wondered. “I wish there was some way we could help them all move on…”

“That’d be nice, but it probably m-means getting rid of the w-wraith,” Kuna pointed out with a small shudder. “And w-we are NOT going back there.”

Lykou sighed and nodded sadly. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“You can’t always save everyone, Kou.”

The konuul folded his ears and hung his head a bit. “I know…”

Feeling a bit bad, Kuna wrapped an arm around him and gave him a gentle squeeze. “Hey, it’s awesome that you want to, though. Even that revenant guy had to admit you have a damn good heart, after all.”

Lykou shot him a small smile and returned the hug. “Thanks,” he replied, then took a deep breath as he tried to shake off the momentary funk he’d fallen into. “Well, let’s keep going. I wonder what this ‘wretched wood’ is supposed to look like?”

“Good question,” Kuna commented as they continued walking. “Kryckwood’s already kind of, well, wretched on the whole as it is. Guess kind of more depressing than the rest, somehow? Hard to imagine, though.”

“Maybe. At least she said it’s not as bad as the Wraith’s turf.”

Kuna’s eye twitched slightly. “Thank fuck for that, at least.”

“I guess just watch for any trees with ugly fruit on them, or something.”

As they continued searching, they became more unnerved at the growing number of bones laying around, half buried in the ground. Most of them appeared to be from various animals, though there were a few decidedly anthropomorphic partial skeletons here and there. Despite many of them being cracked or broken, there were no teeth or claw marks on them, and every one was completely devoid of any fleshy bits.

Eventually, something new caught their attention- a relatively healthier-looking tree. It looked different from most of the others in the forest. For one thing, it had more leaves on its branches. And its bark was a darker shade of brown, compared to the shades of gray that covered most of the others. And, most importantly, it had a scant few odd-looking fruit hanging off of certain higher branches. In the distance, they spotted a handful of others that looked similar.

“This must be them,” Lykou said, perking up. “Still don’t get the name, but they definitely stand out from everything else. Maybe the name’s ironic or something?”

Kuna furrowed his brow. If anything, something about the discovery made him feel on edge. “They don’t r-really look particularly wretched. I’ve e-eaten uglier fruit, and the trees, if a-anything, look healthier than the others.”

“Maybe the fruit is poisonous until it’s cooked?” Lykou mused, scratching his head thoughtfully.

“Y-your guess is as good as mine,” Kuna replied with a shrug.

“Right, well,” Lykou said, starting to set his things down. “I’ll go grab a couple of those fruit. Keep an eye out for danger for me.”

“Sure,” Kuna agreed, looking around. “Just be careful.”

After the konuul finished setting his bags aside, he approached the tree and started looking for the easiest path up to the nearest fruit. Most of the branches appeared to be a little higher up than he could reach with a good jump, so he was going to have to shimmy up the trunk a bit or possibly cross from a nearby tree with lower branches to work with. While he was figuring it out, however, Kuna started feeling more and more uneasy as he eyed the bones littering the forest floor. Slowly, he started to notice a certain pattern, and then something dawned on him.

“Kou, hang on!” the sereva blurted out with a wide-eyed, slightly panicked expression.

Lykou immediately hunkered down and looked around warily. “What is it? What’d you see??” he asked in a somewhat hushed tone.

“Get away from it, quick!”

Lykou furrowed his brows in confusion. “From what?”

“The tr- DUCK!”

Luckily, the konuul had spent more than enough time with the sereva by that point not to ask something like ‘what duck?’ and instead quickly dropped to the ground- just in time for a massive, bark-covered claw to rake through the air above him.

“What the-?!” the canid blurted out as he quickly bolted away from the tree that had suddenly taken a swipe at him.

A pair of large, glowing orange-red eyes had opened on the trunk, and a jagged maw started to open up underneath them. The tree-monster glared at them and let out an angry, vicious growl as it swiped its woody claws at the two of them. Kuna quickly backed away alongside his canid friend, causing the swipes to miss them by a few feet. Once they seemed to be out of its reach, they gawked at the arboreal monster.

“Well, I guess we know why it got its name,” Lykou commented.

Kuna blanched at him. “Ya think??”

“This is definitely going to make getting the fruit a lot trickier…”

Suddenly, the ground started to tremble and shake as the tree began thrashing around with increasing ferocity. Chunks of the soil began to crack and part as its roots began poking up out of the ground. After a few moments, the tree began to rise up as more and more of its roots were freed.

“Timetorun,” Kuna blurted out in a panic, as he started to back away.

But Lykou furrowed his brows and scowled at the tree. “Nah.”

“...what?!”

“I’m not running from this overgrown, grumpy kindling,” Lykou replied stubbornly.

“Really Lykou?!” Kuna cried out in exasperation. “How do you expect to take down-”

“Relax, we can go in a moment. I’m not planning to fight it, exactly,” Lykou said, then grinned as the wretched wood began shambling towards them, with a certain glint in his eye. A faint, shimmering aura started to appear around the edges of his fur. He slipped his knife out of its sheath and flipped it in his hand nonchalantly as the tree monster approached, all fear suddenly forgotten. “You know, the day we first met, I was originally out helping Naira and some of the other gatherers. I think it’s about time I do a bit more… gathering.”

Kuna eyed him for a moment, first in disbelief, but then he noticed the subtle glow. He facepalmed, despite feeling a certain degree of relief. He simultaneously wanted to both kiss him and smack him in that moment.

Lykou took a few steps forward, so that the tree monster would focus on him rather than the sereva. The tree swung down with two limbs on one side, with what now more clearly looked like wooden claws at the ends, hidden among the leaves. The konuul deftly jumped over the first, then landed on the second limb as it came down. It brought another claw down from the other side to try and grab him, but he backflipped over it and landed on the ground.

He reached down to his arm and activated his bracers, then ducked, narrowly missing another swing from the left. He tumbled out of the way just as it brought another limb down for an overhead strike. Then a sudden second swing from the left finally hit him. Fortunately, it was exactly what he wanted. He used the impact to send him sailing over to where he’d set his bags down previously, then quickly dug around inside it. He barely had time to pull something out before a huge, woody claw snatched him off the ground and lifted him up in the air.

Kuna watched on fearfully as his friend was brought in front of the gaping maw on the front of the trunk. Until then, he figured he’d let the konuul just do his thing, given his track record with his special ability- but this was a bit too close for comfort. He knew he couldn’t do much, but he wasn’t just going to stand there and let the konuul get eaten. Under other circumstances he’d try manipulating the tree’s own limbs against it, but he suspected that’d be impossible even if he wasn’t still in a somewhat weakened state. The trees were probably like the biting flowers- enough of a mind to resist such magic being used on them directly. Plus, trees were always tougher than other plants to manipulate. Using what energy he could muster, he managed to dredge up a couple thick vines and us them to pry back against the limb holding Lykou. The wretched wood reacted with surprise and mild confusion as its limb was briefly halted. It glanced down at the ground, then looked around before settling its eyes on the sereva and glaring at him.

But then Lykou surprised Kuna. He glanced down at the vines, then back at the sereva and shook his head with a grin. Then he managed to pry one arm just free enough to pull out his knife and sever the vines. He then winked at the sereva before turning his attention back to the shambling menace holding him in its clutches. “What’s wrong, big guy? Look too much like cannibalism right now?” he taunted, then lightly stabbed the side of the claw holding him. “Maybe I just need to piss you off more?”

The tree snarled in annoyance, then brought him up to its mouth and threw him inside, much to Kuna’s horror. It even appeared to be trying to chew the canid up- but was clearly having a time of it, as Lykou fought back at its jaw. The numerous sharp pointy bits of wood that served as teeth left his own woody armor with plenty of scratches, and he was clearly straining as well, but they also gave him something to hang onto. A number of tendrils suddenly lashed around him and tried to burrow into his flesh, but they seemed to be struggling to get through the tough bark protecting him.

Kuna charged at the monster and tried to use all of his energy to magically keep the tree from closing its maw on his friend, but was getting nowhere fast, much to his tearful horror. It didn’t help that the thing was slashing at him in retribution, making it hard for him to focus as he dodged away from its terrible claws. As weak as he already was, he didn’t dare try and use his bracers.

Suddenly, the arboreal menace froze with another confused expression, followed by one of alarm as it actively gagged and spat Lykou out. Smoke followed him out as the monster turned to search for water. For his part, the konuul looked a bit roughed up, with a variety of thin red cracks appearing in his woody body. Fortunately, none looked serious and they were already starting to mend themselves slowly. For a moment, he looked slightly dizzy, but he quickly recovered as Kuna rushed over to his side and embraced him. In his hand, he’d swapped his knife for one of the other pelenock teeth he’d collected back in the Crimson Isles, with the pointy end still glowing hot.

“KOU! Thank fuck!”

Lykou patted his back and smiled. “C’mon, you know I’ve got this. Now hang tight, we’re not done yet.”

“Wh-??” Kuna started to ask, but was interrupted as Lykou grabbed him and tumbled out of the way as the angry wretched wood slammed a balled-up fist down where they’d just been a moment before. The small fire that’d started in its maw had already gone out even without water, and it was thoroughly pissed.

“Can you run?” Lykou asked him, then helped pull him out of the way of another swipe.

“K… kinda, I-I guess?”

“Alright then. Follow my lead!”

Lykou led him away with the monster following along behind them somewhat slowly. They could easily have escaped at the slow pace it was going, but that wasn’t the konuul’s plan just yet. His keen gaze flicked around until he spotted what he was looking for, and began leading Kuna and, by proxy, the wretched wood towards another similar-looking tree. He then used their momentum to grab Kuna’s arm and, as gently as possible, maneuvered him off to the side. “Go that way! I’ll catch up!”

Kuna was reluctant to part with him, but knew better than to question it. Once he’d fled a short distance away, he turned to see the shambling monstrosity arrive by Lykou’s side. It too a big swing at him with one of its lower claws- and, because he dodged, it struck the other tree, immediately waking the second dormant monster with a heavy smack on its trunk.

The second wretched wood opened its eyes and mouth with an angry roar, then turned and instinctively clawed at the first. The first was initially surprised and confused, but soon the two were having an outright brawl. Lykou used the chaos to jump onto the second one’s claw and climb up the connected limb. He then nimbly jumped between both monsters’ flailing limbs as they thrashed around, both at him and each other. It wasn’t long before the two were in tangled mess, with their less-flexible upper limbs getting locked together as they clawed and snarled at one another. Their roots even grabbed and wrestled with one another down below, causing them to occasionally start tipping over violently.

As the world danced around him, Lykou pulled his knife back out and made a few quick slashes as he passed a cluster of fruit, which he then collected in his arms as he somersaulted down behind the second tree. When he landed, he quickly bolted around them and hurried back to Kuna’s side. When he arrived, the sereva just gawked at him for a moment, then snapped back to his senses. “Y… you got the f-fruit…”

“Yep!” Lykou said cheerfully, then glanced back at the fighting trees. “Let’s go grab our things and get out of here before they decide to set their differences aside.”

“R-right…”

Once they’d gathered their bags and put the fruit away, Kuna found his walking stick again, and they started making their way back to Algrytha’s as quickly as possible, at least until they were well out of earshot of the freakish arboreal brawl. Along the way, they made sure to avoid getting too close to any other healthier-looking trees with bones scattered around them.

Eventually they did slow down and took a moment to rest as Kuna leaned against a normal tree, then gradually slumped down to the ground. He pulled out a snack and winced, rubbing his shoulder a little. He then gave Lykou a look. “...do you get off on it or s-something?”

“Huh?” Lykou asked in confusion, after finishing a sip from his waterskin and sitting down next to him. The glow had faded around his features and the effort had started getting to him. Fortunately, he’d disabled his bracers shortly after they’d gotten back to their belongings, so he was still nowhere near as wiped out as the sereva.

“W-worrying the living fuck out of me,” Kuna snarked, then quickly took a big bite out of a mango he’d pulled out of his bag. “Always putting y-your damn life in danger…”

The konuul folded his ears down and shot him a slightly sheepish smile. “Hey come on, Ku. I had it under control, obviously. And we had to get the fruit, you know.”

Kuna sighed. “Always gotta be a damn hero…”

Lykou was a bit taken aback and frowned, then rubbed his arm and looked away. “S-sorry, I uh….”

Realizing he’d come across a bit more harsh than he meant to, Kuna quickly embraced him. “No no, I mean... that came out wrong,” he assured him. “I just... w-worry about you. I can’t s-stand to think of something happening to you, but then you go a-and just… tempt death all the time.”

“I know, I know,” Lykou replied, then sighed, hugging the sereva back. “Believe me, I’d rather take a nice long break from it myself. But we keep getting stuck in these situations where I don’t have much choice.”

Kuna wanted to argue, but didn’t have the energy, so instead he just took another bite out of his fruity snack, leaning against the konuul a bit.

Lykou squeezed him gently around the middle with one arm, giving him a concerned look. “You’re still shaking a little. You alright?” he asked, then glanced around. “I think we’re pretty well out of danger, you know.”

“We’re still in the Kryck,” Kuna pointed out, then took a sip of water. “But it’s m-mostly the weakness. That… took a lot out of m-me, and I didn’t have m-much to begin with.”

“Fuck... Are you going to be alright to keep going? I can keep watch while you nap for a while if you need to.”

Kuna shook his head. “Out here? No way,” he adamantly refused, then gestured to the fruit in his hand. “Taking a small snack break should help. M-might consider the nap when we get back to Algrytha’s, though.”

“You sure? I can try and carry you if you want, though it might be tricky with all our-”

“You are too much sometimes,” Kuna said with a faint grin, then laid his head on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’ll rest plenty when we get back.” He then frowned and pulled back to look the canid in the eye. “But you are NOT going back out without me, got it?”

Lykou chuckled a bit. “What, even if the other one’s easy to get?”

“No. Not taking any chances.”

“Fiiiine,” the konuul playfully whined, then gave him another little squeeze before taking another sip out of his waterskin.

“Shame you can’t do that… thing you do at will,” Kuna commented. “It never ceases to amaze me every time you use it.”

“Thing-? Oh, right, that thing. I… wait, I just did it again back there, didn’t I?”

“Y… yes?” Kuna replied, arching a brow. “You… weren’t aware of it at all? Not even a little?”

“I mean… in hindsight yeah, now that I think about it,” Lykou said, scratching his head. “Just didn’t notice until you mentioned it.”

Kuna stared at him thoughtfully. “...it’s so strange you can do that and just not realize something’s happening until afterward.”

“What can I say? It just feels kind of… natural, in the moment,” the canid responded, then shrugged. “Not until later when I think back and realize how much slower things seemed to be moving at the time, and how much stronger, and just… different I felt.”

“It’ll be interesting to see how that potion works out,” the sereva said, then furrowed his brows and shot his friend a look. “Just… promise me you’ll still yield if things get too close.”

“I will, I will, don’t worry. If that potion works like we’re hoping though, hopefully he’ll be the one to yield.”

“Just… don’t wait until he’s literally about to chop your head off this time, alright?”

Lykou smirked briefly, but then saw the serious look on the sereva’s face and pulled him into another full embrace. “I won’t, Ku, I promise.”

“Good,” Kuna replied, then sniffed and closed his eyes, letting a couple tears leak out as he returned the hug, ignoring the dull pain in his shoulder. “That s-scared me so much…”

“I’m sorry, Ku. I… should’ve yielded sooner, I know,” Lykou said, rubbing his arm gently. “It’s just hard for me to admit defeat like that, especially under the circumstances.”

“I know,” Kuna said, then sighed again and smiled faintly as he nuzzled against the konuul’s neck softly. “Ya big brave idiot. S’one of the things I love about ya, even if you go too far with it occasionally.” A moment after the words left his eyes shot open and he blushed. Fuck! Did I just say the L-word out loud?

Lykou chuckled and rubbed his back. “I’ll try to take fewer big risks.”

At least he didn’t pick up on it or take it… that way, Kuna thought to himself, folding his ears down. He was glad the canid couldn’t see his face at the moment. He again clenched his eyes shut as he processed his own thoughts. What’s wrong with me? It can be used in other contexts. You can love things and people without being IN love, so why am I freaking out about that? ...spirits, Hoku was so right. I’ve definitely got it bad for him… fuck.

“-plenty, in case you’re getting low,” Lykou finished saying to the oblivious sereva stuck in his own head. When he got no response, he arched a brow and tried pulling back. “Ku?”

Kuna snapped out of his thoughts as they pulled apart, realizing he’d missed something. The realization kept the blush on his face. “Wha- oh! S-sorry, I guess I kinda… s-spaced out there,” he said with a sheepish smile. “What’d you say?”

“...I was saying make sure you drink some water, too, and I’ve got plenty left in case you’re getting low,” Lykou replied, giving him a concerned look. “You alright? I hope your fever isn’t coming back. You look a bit flushed.”

The sereva’s eyes darted away briefly as he took a swig from his own water jug. “R-right,” he said afterwards. “F-fever… uh, I don’t think so, but let’s keep going just in case.”

“You sure? You should finish eating first, at least…”

“N-no, I’m fine, really!” Kuna assured him as he grabbed his walking stick with his other hand and used it- with Lykou’s help- to get back to his feet, somewhat shakily. “I can eat and walk. W-wanna get back as quick as we can, you know?”

“If you’re sure,” Lykou said, handing him his bag. “Let me know if you need help with anything. You can lean on me if you need to.”

“S’what the stick is for,” Kuna reminded him with a small smile. On the one hand, he was sorely tempted, if only for the excuse for close contact with the canid. But he also didn’t want to be a burden. “But I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks, Kou.”

Chapter Text

Once they reached the edge of the garden, Lykou and Kuna were pleasantly surprised when Algrytha popped up almost immediately, saving them from having to wander around for a while first. “Welcome back, boys. How’d things go?”

“Well… we’re still alive,” Kuna replied dryly. “Despite the world’s best efforts.”

“Why didn’t you tell us the trees themselves would attack us?” Lykou asked.

“Wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise, now would I? Anyway, considerin’ what else you two’ve been through, includin’ escapin’ the Great Wraith, I figured you could handle an ornery oak.”

“I guess we should’ve expected it at this point, honestly,” Kuna said flatly. “Especially in Kryckwood.”

Algrytha snickered. “Now yer gettin’ it. Gotta stay on yer toes ‘n’ expect trouble in these parts. So did ya get the fruit?”

“Right here,” Lykou said, setting his things down for a moment so he could dig them out, then handed them to her.

“Good, good. Now, fer the next ingr-”

“Uh, actually, you mind if we rest up a bit at your place first?” Lykou interrupted. “Kuna’s pretty wiped out and I promised him I wouldn’t go back out without him.”

Algrytha looked over at the sereva and chuckled. “I thought you were leaning on that stick a bit hard. Sure, yer welcome to pop in fer a bit. Just remember not ta wait till nightfall unless ya wanna deal with the Kryck at its worst again.”

“Thanks,” Kuna said, then wrapped an arm around the konuul as they followed her back to her house. “Sorry, hope you don’t mind-”

“Of course not. I offered, after all,” Lykou said with a smile, returning the side-embrace as the sereva leaned on him while they made their way through the garden. “Feelin’ that drained, hmm?”

“Y-yeah. Obviously still dealing with the effects of that damn ghoul’s bite, heh,” Kuna said. In truth, he probably could have managed with just the stick, but now that they were safely back to the garden, he was happy to accept the offer for a bit of support, if only as an excuse for more closeness with the konuul.

“How ‘bout the pain? Still sore?”

“Very faintly. Mostly just hurts if I bump it too hard or try to stretch too far.”

Lykou booped his nose. “Then I suggest you don’t do that.”

Kuna smirked back at him. “Thanks for the sage wisdom, almighty Lykou the Magnificent,” he said quietly, so that Algrytha didn’t hear.

The canid rolled his eyes, then stuck his tongue out at him playfully. Then they both giggled a bit.

Eventually, when they made it back to the cottage, Lykou led Kuna over to their usual spot by the wall and helped him get comfortable on the floor, cuddling him in his lap. Meanwhile, Algrytha started a fresh pot of tea for the three of them.

“So… why does your garden seem to, er, rearrange itself when we’re not looking?” Lykou asked. “Always seems near impossible to find your house until you show up.”

“No idea what you mean. You must have a poor sense’a direction, or a mighty overactive imagination,” the witch said dismissively, although there was a faintly playful edge to her tone. “Anyway, this potion has me thinkin’, and I’m curious- by any chance did yer little magic ability come up at all while you were out?”

“Uh, it did actually,” Kuna chimed in. “Was that why you didn’t warn us?”

“Could be, could be, hehe.”

“Well, yeah, like Ku said, it did,” Lykou said. “Not that I noticed right away. As usual, I didn’t realize it until afterwards when he pointed it out to me.”

“Intrestin’, intrestin’…” she trailed off as she began rummaging around in some boxes and baskets under one of the tables. “Lessee, where’d I put that damn thing,” she muttered. After a few minutes, she pulled out a small wooden object. It looked like a carved wooden tube with some kind of crystal wedged into it, hanging from a leafy vine preserved in some kind of thin resin that was wrapped around its middle. Some symbols were etched into its sides. “Ah, there you are!”

“What’s that?” Lykou asked.

“A magic tool. Gotta take a quick peek at somethin’, don’t mind me. Just hold still fer a minute,” the witch said as she sauntered over to him, then leaned in uncomfortably close and began inspecting him through the little tube. “Hmm…”

“What does it do, exactly?” Kuna interjected with a mildly bewildered expression. Due to their position, she was invading his space as much as she was the canid’s- arguably even moreso. “And do you have to get so close?”

“Yep, these peepers aren’t what they used ta be. It just lets me take a look at certain things ya can’t norm’ly see,” Algrytha explained as she moved around to the other side and looked them over. Finally, she straightened up with a sigh and tucked the object away somewhere under all the moss covering her body, then walked back to her stool by the fire. “Was hopin’ there’d be some lingerin’ clues about how yer lil’ trick works, but looks like I’m too late, if there were any.”

“What exactly does it let you look at?” Lykou asked curiously.

“Mostly just yer energies. Was tryin’ ta see if anything looked unusual there, but it looked mostly normal to me.”

“Mostly?”

“Wait, that thing lets you see mystical energies??” Kuna chimed in, fascinated. “Like life, soul, that kind of thing?”

“Yep. As long as yer the one that’s attuned to it, anyway,” the witch replied as she got comfortable on the stool.

Lykou tilted his head a bit. “Attuned? What’s that mean?”

“Well, y’see, with a lot of magical doodads, ya gotta sorta… bond with ‘em, in a way. Involves a buncha meditatin’ over it ‘n’ getting’ ta know it, ‘n’ so on. The details can vary a bit from one thing to another, so ya gotta kinda figure it out as ya go,” Algrytha explained, gesturing around in the air as she spoke. “Yer basic’ly connectin’ its magic ta yer soul, see.”

“How common is that?” Lykou asked, glancing down at the bracer on his arm. “None of the magic stuff we’ve come across needed us to do anything like that, really.”

“Ah, them bracers were made special. Technically they sorta attune to ya somewhat instantly, when ya activate ‘em,” she explained. “They tie inta yer life energy instead’a yer soul, though.”

Kuna thought for a moment, then leaned over and pulled out the crystal from Whironui and the charm from Aelana and Daisy. “What about these?”

Lykou winced and averted his gaze nervously. When he’d recounted his story to her before, he’d skipped over the bit about their friendship with the secret queen-duo of Clovaria, for various reasons. Apparently, the sereva had forgotten.

Just as Algrytha was about to reply, she paused, and narrowed her eyes at the charm. “...well, powerful magic made ‘em fer each of ya specifically. One by a mighty powerful spirit, from what ya told me,” she said, then arched a brow and smirked. “’n’ the other from someone else, from what ya fergot ta mention.”

Immediately, Kuna blushed a bit and let his ears droop as he realized his mistake. “Uh, er… r-right, I um. Forgot we didn’t… mention them…”

“Yeahhhh, sorry about that,” Lykou replied with a sheepish grin. “It’s… kind of a complicated thing and they’re a little secretive about their… identities. True identities, that is.”

“Powerful Sylthean of some kind, hmm? More’n one of ‘em, even? Good thing ya got on their good side,” Algrytha said. “Dreamwalkin’ charm, right?”

“Pretty much, yeah,” Kuna replied, putting it away. “So we can stay in contact with them despite the distance.”

“Rare fer folk ta even meet Syltheans these days, let alone make friends with ‘em. Must admit ya got me mighty curious. What kind are they?”

“Technically half-Sylthean,” Lykou explained. “And, uh… wolpertinger.”

“You don’t say?” Algrytha commented, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “My, my, my… a half-wolpertinger, two of ‘em even, hoppin’ around the mortal world in this day. How do ya like that… ‘n’ here I thought they’d all off ‘n’ got themselves killt one way or another,” She furrowed her brows after a moment. “Hang on a minute, ya say that thing lets ya talk ta both of ‘em? What, at the same time? Even fer a powerful sort, that’s tricky.”

“Uh… kiiiind of a special situation in their case,” Kuna said awkwardly. “They… used to be, um. One… person…?”

Algrytha tilted her head and gave him an odd look. “Come again?”

“Yeahhh, so it’s a long story,” Lykou explained. “She tried to repress her Sylthean side due to all the responsibility she had, but the stress and loneliness kind of drove her a bit crazy until eventually somehow she… uh, split into two halves? Magically? Or something?”

“Reeeeally?” Algrytha said, clearly intrigued and amused. “Been a damn long time since I heard’a somethin’ like that happenin’. Lotta responsibility ya say? Where abouts did ya meet them?”

“This place called Clovaria. Lots of wide open land and hills and such. Really pretty.”

“Clovaria… Clov- ah! Yes, I think I’ve heard’a it actually,” the witch confirmed.

Lykou gave her a surprised and slightly bewildered look. “You… have?”

“No offense, but just how old are you?” Kuna asked warily.

Algrytha cackled a bit. “Older’n dirt, as they say.”

“Okay, there’s no denying you’re a Sylthean now,” Lykou said flatly. “I can’t imagine what else you’d be, to be around long enough to know so much.”

“Fair, I s’pose,” she said, snickering some more. “Like I said though, I’m just little ol’ me. Got no strong ties ta that other world or anyone from there these days. ‘n’ by the way, there are some reg’lar mortals that’ll live a very long time, too, just so ya know. Rare, but they exist.”

“I guess Ink found a way,” Kuna pointed out.

“Unfortunately,” Lykou bitterly added.

The sereva winced at the comment. He understood and to some extent even shared the sentiment, but he wasn’t used to such spite coming from the usually over-friendly konuul.

“So this… or these, rather, half-tingers ya met, what’re their names?”

“Aelana and Daisy.”

“Well, tell ya what, next time ya talk to ‘em, tell ‘em ol’ Dark Aggy says hi.”

“Dark Aggy?” Lykou asked, arching a brow. “Old nickname of yours, I assume?”

Kuna gave her a look. “And you think they’d have heard of you?”

Algrytha shrugged. “Can’t say fer sure, but seein’ as they’ve been bummin’ around the mortal world since the big separation all this time, it might int’rest ‘em ta know they ain’t the only ones. I did have a reputation fer bein’ a bit odd years ago, so my name mighta gotten to their ears at some point.”

“You, odd? The one that willingly lives alone in the world’s creepiest forest, with all kinds of undead monsters for neighbors?” Kuna snarked with a subtle grin. “You don’t say.”

For a moment, Lykou tensed up, worried she’d be offended by his friend’s sass. But quite the opposite, she immediately cackled at the response. “Not sure it’s the creepiest, but it’s a contender at least, I’ll admit.”

Kuna shuddered. “If there are worse ones, I hope we never visit them.”

“Suit yerself,” Algrytha replied with a nonchalant shrug. “But yeah, ya get the idea. I never shied away from bein’ a weird one. S’possible they’ve caught a rumor or two at some point. Long-lived folk tend to hear about all kindsa things from far away after a while- unless a’course yer a loner like me, hehe.”

“We’ll be sure to let them know, then,” Lykou said, then rubbed Kuna’s arm absent-mindedly. “I’m supposed to pay them a visit as soon as we’re in a comparatively safer place where I can afford to be light on sleep for a day.”

“Best save it fer after yer next meetin’ with Elzhan, then.”

“On that note,” Kuna said. “What was the other ingredient we need to get?”

“Ah, right,” Algrytha said, straightening up a bit. “Good news is if ya play it smart, it won’t necessarily be as dangerous as anythin’ else ya done around here.”

“Sounds… good?” Lykou said warily. “Smart how, though? What is it?”

“You’ll need to collect a perfect broth.”

Lykou and Kuna both shared a confused look. “Perfect… broth?”

“A perfect broth, cooked from the bones of a perfect kill, by a perfect hunter.”

“O...kay?” Lykou responded uncertainly.

Kuna gave her a dubious look. “There’s more to this, isn’t there? ‘Perfect’ is kind of a made-up, silly concept when it comes down to it.”

“Smart one, arencha?” Algrytha responded. Finally, the kettle started whistling, so she removed it from the heat and went over to pour them each a cup of the tea while she continued. “Perfect’s a nonsense word most’a the time. But there’s cases where ya can get damn close. Close enough fer this potion, in partic’lar. ‘n’ technically I already told ya about where ya can get it from.”

Lykou was even more confused. “You… did?”

“Mhmm. Think about it. How do ya get a perfect hunter?”

Lykou and Kuna both thought for a moment. Then Kuna’s eyes suddenly widened as something occurred to him. “Wait, you mean…”

“Huh?” Lykou asked.

“Even the best hunters have flaws they gotta deal with. Distractions. Pain. Thoughts. Hesitation,” Algrytha pointed out. “But there’s one partic’lar kinda case around here where those don’t apply.”

Kuna shivered a little. “Y-you mean s-some kind of undead thing, don’t you?”

“In a way, but nothin’ ta do with ghosts. They don’t have the patience or int’rest in making broth, after all. ‘n’ they’re all full’a thoughts ‘n’ distractions, anyway, even if they’re not so susceptible ta physical pain anymore.”

“Oh, good point…” Kuna said, then mulled it over some more while the canid did likewise behind him.

“The husk,” Lykou suddenly blurted out, his own eyes widening as it dawned on him. “That… that thing wouldn’t have any of that.”

“There ya go,” Algrytha confirmed as she brought them each a cup of hot tea. “Gotta pay a visit to that eerie old neighbor of mine. He usually does his huntin’ real early in the mornin’, out in the forest outside the Kryck, then starts makin’ the broth after he eats the meat fer breakfast. He goes out a couple’a times ta collect more wood fer his fire through the day while the broth simmers, so that’d prob’ly be yer best chance. Do it carefully ‘n’ he won’t even notice it’s missin’.”

“D-didn’t you say he’s basically a perfect w-warrior, too?” Kuna pointed out nervously as he held the cup in his hand, relishing the warmth.

“True. Which is why you’ll wanna be extra sneaky, especially once ya get ta his house. If he sees ya out in the woods, he won’t pay ya much mind unless ya provoke ‘im. But if he sees ya in his home uninvited, you’ll wanna run like hell. Good thing is he should give up the chase pretty quick once ya get a certain distance away.”

Lykou nodded, then gave Kuna a gentle squeeze. “I know what we said, but-”

“Don’t even think about it,” Kuna interrupted, shooting a little glare back towards him. “You’re not going alone, dammit.”

The konuul sighed. “As weak as you are, though-”

“I’ll be fine after I’ve rested up some more,” the sereva insisted. “I can do sneaking and running away. If nothing else I can help keep watch while you’re getting the broth.”

Lykou sighed. “Fine, but… only I go inside the house, alright?”

“As long as you get out of there the moment I warn you, with or without the broth,” Kuna stubbornly replied, then carefully sipped some of his tea.

The konuul gave him another soft squeeze. “Alright, deal. I’ll make sure to be fast.”

*****

Lykou and Kuna carefully made their way through the woods southeast of Algrytha’s garden. Other than a few shadow spirits that only showed passing curiosity about them, they didn’t encounter anything particularly frightening. In fact, while it was still clearly the Kryck, the section of forest they found themselves passing through looked slightly more mundane than the rest as they went along. They spotted a few more odd-looking squirrels that weren’t quite as malnourished-looking. There was slightly more plant life, although it was just as strange looking as before. Kuna didn’t dare consider seeing if any of it was edible. They passed several large bushes that they hadn’t seen in other parts of the Kryck. They also didn’t encounter any more dangerous pools of water.

In fact, shortly after passing a more mundane-looking stream, Lykou caught a certain scent in the air and slowed to a stop, halting Kuna in the process. He looked up at the sky through the tree branches, as if searching for something.

“What is it?” Kuna asked, looking around warily.

“I thought I caught a whiff of smoke for a moment,” the konuul replied. “Not sure though. Don’t see any.”

Kuna squinted into the distance. “...I don’t see anything.”

“Well, just be on your guard… we might be getting close. Remember, if you see… it, just try to act casual,” the canid reminded him. “Won’t attack us unless we give it a reason to.”

“Right,” Kuna replied. “Casual. About a s-soulless body that has no business s-still being alive.”

“Just try to pretend you don’t know about that bit,” Lykou pointed out as they resumed hiking.

“Can’t promise a-anything, but I’ll try.”

Sure enough, the smell of smoke, while still faint, soon became strong enough that Kuna picked up on it as well. Around that time, they also caught a glimpse of a few faint wispy traces of it in the air in the distance, and started heading in the direction it seemed to be coming from. When they arrived at the source, they knew they’d found their destination. It was a crude living space that’d clearly been occupied for a long time.

There was something that might pass for a very simple wood and stone wall set up around the perimeter, though it wasn’t likely to keep anything out. It was only a couple of feet tall, and the wood parts were mostly rotted away. Significant chunks of it were crumbling and had big gaps. They assumed that the owner must have built it back before he separated his soul from his body, and the husk must not have maintained it afterward.

There was a modest firepit on one side, though there was no fire in it at the moment, so it wasn’t the source of the small puffs of smoke they’d spotted. Near it was a stone that likely served as a simplistic seat. Behind the firepit was the main structure. It was a very rough wooden shack that’d seen so many repairs and had sections rebuilt so many times, seemingly with incredibly basic tools, that it was barely recognizable as some kind of building, rather than simply a strange, massive collection of miscellaneous chunks of wood. The entrance had a very crude, but thick curtain made from animal hide hanging over it. At the top of the structure, there was a gap in the roof, which the faint wisps of smoke were coming from.

And on the other side of the living space, there was a very crude wooden drying rack- with some kind of animal skin stretched out across it. Nearby, other inedible bits of the apparently recent carcass was laying on the ground, apparently not yet disposed of. Kuna saw it and immediately recoiled with a look of revulsion that caught Lykou slightly off guard. “Ku, you okay?” he asked quietly, looking around warily for any signs of the camp’s owner.

Kuna quickly turned away and held his head as he swooned slightly and fought to keep his last meal down.

Lykou arched a brow and looked over at the skin drying on the rack. By that point, he’d figured Kuna would have gotten accustomed to such things, but it slowly dawned on him that every time he’d gone hunting, the sereva still tried to avert his gaze while he was cleaning his kills. And although they’d been around more leather on the Crimson Isles, it all must’ve been produced in villages they hadn’t visited. After all, the villages they’d been to either mostly ate fish and fruit, or imported all their food.

But after their encounters with the undead, he figured his friend would have become a bit more resilient around such things. Clearly, he was mistaken.

After a moment, though, Kuna recovered a bit and rubbed his face. “S-sorry, just… w-wasn’t expecting… that,” he said, then gagged and retched again as the mental image returned.

“I would’ve thought you wouldn’t be as bothered by it at this point,” Lykou pointed out, though he gently rubbed the sereva’s back. “Not that it’s ever easy to look at, I guess, heh.”

“Knowing w-where leather comes from is one thing, s-seeing it in progress, though, plus the… rest… especially unexpectedly,” Kuna said, clenching his eyes shut as he tried to suppress the image in his mind. “S-sorry…”

Lykou gently hugged him for a moment. “Yeah… I guess it’s a good thing there are special houses for that back in Lakefire, so you shouldn’t have to worry about seeing it too much.”

“Th-thank fuck,” the sereva replied, leaning into the embrace a bit. After a moment, he nervously looked around. “W-wait, shit. We should hurry. Doesn’t look like you-know-who is here r-right now, but could come back a-any time.”

“Good point,” Lykou said, then reached into his bag and dug out the container Algrytha had given him for the job. He then paused and stared at the curtain blocking the entrance for a moment. “Unless… he’s in there. Er. It? Not sure which-”

“Not sure it m-matters,” Kuna said. “No soul. Anyway I d-don’t sense a-any person-sized chunk of life energy in there.”

“Okay, good. Didn’t want to have to wait around for hi-… it to leave.”

“Still, be careful.”

“Will do. Keep watch out here and let me know if you see it coming back,” Lykou said as he hopped over the crude little wall and made his way towards the hut’s entrance.

Kuna nervously peered out into the woods, looking for any sign of movement. “Try to be quick. N-never know when it might come back.”

Lykou nodded. Once he reached the entrance, he peeked through the curtain carefully, then signaled to the sereva that the coast was clear before slipping through. The inside of the hut was predictably very dim. There were no windows, so the only light came from the small hole in the ceiling, and the dim coals burning in a small firepit in the middle. Off to one side, there was a rough sleeping mat with the latest tattered, heavily worn pseudo-blanket laying on top of it, surrounded by the decayed debris of its countless predecessors laying around it. Scattered around the hut were fragments of past broken simple tools of various kinds. The most recent still-in-tact ones were sitting in a little collection near the door. Although very basic, it became apparent that each one and its predecessors were all made in an almost perfectly identical fashion.

On top of the coals there was a clay pot with a lid on it. He could very faintly hear something simmering inside, so he carefully reached over to remove the lid. He quickly realized it was hot to the touch, though, so he looked around, then grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around his hand for protection before grabbing at it again. Setting the lid aside released a small plume of steam and a scent that made Lykou’s mouth water slightly. It wasn’t as if there were any seasonings, but the smell of the fresh bone broth inside still made him crave a good soup again.

He took out and uncorked the container he’d brought along and looked around for a moment. With a faint sigh of annoyance, he realized there wasn’t a decent ladle or anything like it to use. And he didn’t want to just dip the container in and risk burning his hand while he tried to fill it. After searching around for a few minutes, he found a basic wooden spoon under a pile of other crude utensils and began the tedious process of using it to fill the small preserved gourd up. It took much longer than he would’ve liked, but he wanted to make sure he brought enough back that there wasn’t a chance they’d have to come back for more. When the container was finally full, he sealed it back up and paused, having an internal debate with himself.

His stomach rumbled and he licked his lips as he sniffed the air again. He hadn’t eaten much, so the broth was extra tantalizing. After a quick glance back at the curtain, he shrugged and decided to try a quick spoonful of it. It wasn’t as good as the turkey stock he relished back home, but it still tempted him to have more. But after accidentally spilling some of the second spoonful on himself, he realized he was being foolish and decided it was a bad idea to linger any longer, so he carefully replaced the lid and slipped back out, making sure to wipe any broth he’d spilled on his hands off with the blanket before leaving.

Once he was back outside, he rejoined the very antsy sereva pacing around near the wall.

“F-finally!” Kuna blurted out in a hushed tone, grabbing him in a brief embrace. “What took s-so long? I was starting to get worried.”

“Sorry, filling it was awkward. Just had a little wooden spoon to work with,” the canid explained, glancing around warily. “No sign of the husk out here, I take it?”

Kuna shook his head as they turned to leave. “Haven’t seen it yet.”

“Good. About time one of these little errands was simple and easy,” Lykou said as they trudged back through the forest.

“Don’t jinx us,” Kuna playfully quipped with a faint wince. “We’re not back yet.”

“Fair point. At least if we see it out h-”

They both froze as they rounded one of the few large patches of bushes Kryckwood had and almost ran right into the very entity they were keen on avoiding. The husk’s body was… largely unremarkable, other than being a species they didn’t recognize. It might’ve been whatever the revenant’s species was, but the latter’s body was so wrapped up and mummified they couldn’t be sure. Either way, the soulless body in front of them had canine-like features with tan fur and black markings on its tail, ears, and face. It seemed quite physically fit, but not overly large. It had a very rough leather outfit on, covering all the important bits while allowing plenty of room for movement. It was holding a collection of wood under its arms.

All in all, the husk could have, for the most part, passed as a perfectly normal looking person. Until, that is, they saw its eyes.

The word ‘soulless’ or ‘cold’ was sometimes thrown around to describe certain people or looks. Kuna distinctly remembered the cold, calculating eyes that the murderous Kerr had back in Clovaria. Lykou had seen a few steely, cold looks from certain predators he’d fought. And some of the undead definitely had a certain aloofness to them beyond anything they’d ever seen in a living being. But this was different. Now they truly knew what it was like to look at a creature’s face and know, even if they hadn’t previously been told, that there was absolutely nothing behind its gaze but an empty void. It seemed to almost never blink, either. And its breathing was perfectly even and rhythmic, with no variance at all.

It was uncanny. The husk had no expression whatever as it looked at them. Presumably, it would not have expected to bump into them on the way back to its home any more than they expected to meet it coming around the bushes. But what they were looking at had no expectations or emotion at all. It simply… existed. And its only motive was to continue to exist in the same relative state that it somehow had for centuries. It didn’t react in any notable way- it just… looked at them. It felt like a bizarre reversal of the feeling of being watched without seeing anyone around.

Still, some habits superseded logic, especially in the face of such a surreal, uncomfortable encounter.

“Uh, hhhhi there,” Lykou said with an uneasy smile and a tiny, awkward wave. “We’re just, uh… passing through. I’m Lykou and this is K-”

Kuna nudged him in the side, staring wide-eyed at the husk. “Wasting y-your breath,” he said in a hushed tone. “Pretty sure it d-doesn’t, y’know… do conversations. L-let’s just… keep going.”

Lykou eyed the husk and nodded. “R-right. Uh… b...bye,” he said instinctively, with another tiny wave, as they started awkwardly sidling away. Kuna would have facepalmed if he wasn’t busy keeping a close eye on the eerie thing.

Suddenly, it started sniffing the air, then turned its full attention to Lykou.

“...fuck. I think it smells the broth,” the konuul anxiously muttered.

“How?” Kuna asked. “Y-you sealed it up r-right?”

“Yeah. M-must just have a really good sense of smell an-”

Before he could continue, the husk dropped the wood it was carrying and retrieved a hatchet hanging from a simple belt it was wearing.

“Fuckit, run!”

Lykou and Kuna immediately bolted. The husk was hot on their trail an instant later, having no difficulty keeping up with them. In fact, despite both of them being fairly fast runners, it was slowly starting to gain on them- especially Kuna, who was still moving a bit slower than usual and already starting to get a bit winded. Lykou spotted a club-sized branch laying on the ground and quickly scooped it up, then spun around and tossed it at their pursuer. The branch smacked the husk square in the face- but it continued chasing them without showing any signs of noticing, despite the large bruise and the blood leaking from its nose. Seeing that his plan had no real effect, Lykou let himself lag behind Kuna a bit and reached for his bracers.

But the sereva wasn’t about to let him do anything dumb, and slowed just enough to grab his hand, as the husk started getting uncomfortably close. “Don’t! You promised!”

Lykou reluctantly lowered his arm and redoubled his efforts, though he made sure not to let himself get ahead of Kuna. “He’s… gonna catch up… at this rate!”

“He’ll give up s-soon!” Kuna reminded him, then hazarded a glance back behind them, only to see the husk raising its hatchet less than a half dozen yards behind them. It looked like it was about to try and throw it. “...hopefully!”

Thinking quickly, Kuna summoned up his magic as much as he could and tried to trip the husk with some vines, using his magical senses to do so while turning back to keep an eye on where he was running. It worked- sort of. The husk nimbly jumped over the first couple of attempts, but then tumbled over harshly when one vine managed to snag its ankle. However, it recovered almost immediately and continued chasing after them. He’d given them a little extra distance, but not much.

Still, just as they were both trying to figure out another way to slow the soulless hunter down, it suddenly stopped behind them. After noticing this, they both started slowing down and stopped to catch their breath when they realized it’d turned and started returning to its home. Kuna slumped to the ground and leaned on his walking stick, panting heavily as he wavered a little on the spot.

Lykou dropped down next to him and held him gently as he watched the husk stalk off. It was worrying how close it’d gotten to them, only to abruptly give up out of nowhere. Once upon a time, he wouldn’t have been one to question a stroke of luck, but paranoia had him look around to make sure there wasn’t some other, larger threat looming nearby. Fortunately, they seemed to be alone, other than a stray dark squirrel that they’d spooked into bolting off through the trees.

“F-fuck that was too close,” Kuna eventually muttered, clinging to the konuul as his vision swam a bit. The day was taking a definite toll on his still-recovering body, and he was so shaky he wasn’t sure he’d be able to stand again anytime soon.

“No kidding… although I think with my bracers I could’ve fought it off if I had to.”

Kuna grumbled a bit and rolled his eyes. “Perfect. Fighter. Remember?”

The konuul sighed. “Yeah, I know, I know… probably a lot tougher than he looked. Er, it.”

“Thank you for not trying,” Kuna said, then laid his head on the canid’s shoulder. “I s-still can’t believe it smelled the broth through the container. Did you m-maybe spill some on you?”

“A tiny bit yeah, but I made sure to wipe it off on its blanket before I left,” Lykou said, then scratched his head thoughtfully. “I wonder if it smelled my breath…”

Kuna froze for a moment, then slowly sat up and shot him a narrow-eyed look. “...why… would it matter… if it smelled… your breath?”

The konuul looked away sheepishly. “I… may have… tried a quick taste?”

“...you did WHAT.”

“Hey, it was just a tiny taste! I still had some in the spoon anyway and I was curious! How was I supposed to know he’d have such an insane sense of smell?” the konuul said, pulling back and crossing his arms defensively.

Kuna glared at him, the bottom of one eye twitching. “Y… you…”

“I know, I know... Here,” Lykou said, then smacked himself. “Better?”

The sereva continued to glare at him, clearly not amused. It was almost reminiscent of some of the looks he gave in the earlier days of their journey. Not only did he have to remind the canid not to try and fight off the supposed ‘perfect hunter’, but the whole reason they’d had to run off in the first place was quite possibly because he’d decided to sample the thing’s cooking before he left. After everything they’d been through lately, he was more than a little perturbed.

The konuul deflated under the look and rubbed his arm, looking away. “Right... Guess I just can’t stop fucking up today. Sorry…”

Slowly, Kuna’s glare melted, then he sighed and facepalmed. As annoyed as he was, he couldn’t stay mad at the guy. He supposed he couldn’t have expected it to be that big of an issue. I love you, but you are such a dumbass sometimes, he thought, then embraced the canid again. “Lykou, if I had the strength, I’d strangle you, I swear.”

“Yeah… don’t blame you,” Lykou said, then took a quick sip from his waterskin, only to realize it was just about empty. “...mm. Forgot to top this off last chance I had, too. Great.”

They both sat in silence for a few minutes, letting themselves- mostly Kuna- recover somewhat from their latest run-for-their-lives moment. Despite his more sullen shift in demeanor, Lykou kept his guard up and watched the forest around them for any signs of danger until the sereva could stand again.

“Here,” Kuna said, shoving his own water jug in Lykou’s hand after he’d finished taking a few big swigs himself. “Drink.”

Lykou folded his ears down and hesitated. “...you’re the one that really needs it.”

“I’ll be fine. Just had a bunch and there’s plenty enough for the both of us anyway.”

After a moment, the canid took it and mumbled a quiet ‘thanks’, then took a few sips. Kuna rested his head on the konuul’s shoulder and stared at him for a moment. “...hey.”

“Hmm?” Lykou asked, barely glancing at him before looking away again.

“It’s been a rough day. Rough couple days,” Kuna said, then gave him a weak squeeze around the middle. “You had a dumb moment. But we’re still alive, and that’s what’s important. ‘kay?”

Lykou looked at him for a moment, then back down at the ground with another heavy sigh. “I’ve had a lot of dumb moments lately. How long before it doesn’t work out so well?”

“...try not to think about it. Let’s… just get back to Algrytha’s, alright? Put this day behind us.”

“Yeah… yeah, sounds good,” Lykou replied, handing the water jug back. “Need help?”

Kuna tried to stand, but he got very shaky as he did so. “...yeah, I’m probably going to need to- gah!” he started to say, then stumbled a bit as he was trying to brace himself on the walking stick. He then gave the konuul a slightly sheepish smile. “-er, lean on you on the way back. Today took even m-more out of me than I thought.”

Lykou frowned and wrapped his arm around the sereva as he helped him along. “Of course. I can even try to carry you if you want.”

“N-nah, not with all our stuff. Besides, I don’t think we’re that f-far away now, after that run,” Kuna pointed out, leaning heavily on the konuul as they started hiking slowly back towards the aberrant garden. “Early dinner and s-sleep sounds good tonight, though.”

*****

Once they were back in Algrytha’s hut, Kuna wasted no time practically collapsing on their makeshift bed after setting his things down. He just laid there on his back, staring up at the ceiling with blurry vision for a few minutes, not wanting to move a muscle. A few moments later, Lykou joined him after handing over the container full of broth and speaking briefly with the witch. Seeing as how they wouldn’t be going back out anywhere until the next morning anyway, she opted to start with dinner and some tea before working on the potion. After thanking her profusely, Lykou walked over and sat down, leaning against the wall with a glum demeanor.

“How’s your shoulder doing?” he eventually asked the sereva quietly.

“Made of pain,” Kuna said, wincing briefly. “But it’s a dull pain. I’ll be alright. I’ve never felt weaker, though.”

With a guilty expression, Lykou looked away and rubbed his arm self-consciously. “H-hope you feel better soon. Anything I can do for you?”

Kuna thought for a moment, then smirked faintly. “Get your butt over here and join me. Getting chilly on this mat without you.”

Lykou frowned and looked around, then grabbed the blanket and draped it over him. “Here. Better if I stay over here right now. Wouldn’t want to accidentally bump your shoulder and make it worse.”

There was a long, awkward silence. Kuna stared at the moody konuul while he tried to avoid looking the sereva in the eyes.

Eventually, Kuna sighed and sat up. After steadying himself, he crawled over and into the konuul’s lap. Then leaned forward, pressing their heads together, and looked him in the eye, albeit at a slightly awkward angle.

Taken a bit by surprise, the canid fidgeted a little anxiously. “Uh-”

“Listen. I know that ‘I’m a fuck up, I just want to crawl into a hole and stay there forever’ look. I’m... intimately familiar with that feeling,” Kuna said, then gently lifted his still slightly-shaky hands and gently held the konuul’s muzzle in them. “So listen to me. Like I said before, it’s been a seriously fucked up couple of days. We’re both… well, way beyond stressed. The last thing I’d want you to do now is make it worse on yourself.”

“I’m going to get us killed if I don’t start using my damn brain more, Ku,” the canid replied, looking down again. “I very well could have today just because some damn broth smelled good.”

“And yet somehow you’ve not only not done that, but you’ve actively saved our lives multiple times now,” the sereva reminded him. “Sure, you take unnecessary risks sometimes. You definitely have your… less-than-brilliant moments that occasionally make me wanna smack the fuck out of you. But…” he trailed off for a moment as thoughts ran through his head, then took a deep breath. But I love you anyway, you big dummy, he thought. Part of him badly wanted to just blurt it out already, but he knew it wasn’t the time or place for such a thing- assuming he’d ever find the guts to actually vocalize such a thought anyway. He was still coming to grips with it as it was. “...I wouldn’t want to change who you are for anything in the world.”

“Hm. I dunno, you might be onto something. Maybe with a big enough stick, you might be able to smack the stupid out,” Lykou replied sardonically.

Kuna couldn’t help but snort slightly in response. “Hush. Seriously, stop beating yourself up. I know there’s a lot on your mind.”

“That’s no excuse f-”

“You had to yield to the revenant despite putting up the best fight he’s probably ever seen, you’re missing home like crazy, everything seems bleak and depressing, and you feel bad for making dumb mistakes and taking unnecessary risks. Oh, and we’re still stuck in a creepy, fucked up forest full of undead things because apparently the world likes making us suffer,” Kuna listed off, then wrapped his arms around the konuul and gave him a soft squeeze. “That’s a fucking lot to deal with. When it comes down to it, it’s no wonder you let your stomach take over your thinking for a moment back there.”

Lykou bit his lip for a moment, then returned the embrace. “I… guess…” he mumbled, then closed his eyes and sighed, resting his head on the sereva’s good shoulder. “I still feel stupid, though…”

Kuna leaned back and smirked at him. “Yeah, well, maybe you should, a bit. But stealing a taste of a soulless freak’s dinner is hardly the riskiest thing you’ve done and we’re both still here. So don’t let it overwhelm you.” He then tickled the canid’s sides a little, making him squirm and grin a little in spite of himself. “Okay?”

“...alright,” Lykou replied quietly, then laid his head on the sereva’s good shoulder and hugged him tightly. “Thanks, Ku…”

“Hey, what we both need, more than anything right now, is to just take it easy for the evening,” the sereva continued, then turned around and slid down, settling into their usual cuddle position. He then pulled the blanket over and wrapped it around the both of them, smiling back up at the canid. “Here or on the bed, your choice. But you owe m- no, you owe both of us this.”

“Thanks, but I don’t know him like that,” Algrytha interjected with a smirk as she approached the two with a couple cups of tea. “Not really my thing anyway. You can keep ‘im to yerself.”

Kuna flushed and sputtered a bit. “B- y- w-wait, I-I meant-!”

Finally, Lykou burst into a small snickering fit. “She’s just messing with you, Ku,” he said, then took the tea and thanked her.

“Iknowthat!” the sereva quickly spat out with a playfully annoyed expression as he took his own cup, then held it up to his face to mask his embarrassment a little.

Chapter Text

Lykou blinked a few times as he opened his eyes, then slowly sat up and looked around with a confused expression. He could barely remember falling asleep, and certainly didn’t remember doing so in the middle of the woods. Then again, his memory overall was hazy. The forest looked normal- familiar, even, with its tall evergreen trees, patchy underbrush, and the steep mountains that surrounded a good chunk of it. But something was off, and he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was.

After taking a few moments to try and spur his memory, he eventually gave up and got to his feet. Something was missing. He didn’t know what it was, but he felt a strong urge to begin looking for it. So he set off through the woods, uncomfortable at the fact that he seemed to be alone, with nothing but the clothes he was wearing. Despite the forest’s healthy appearance, he didn’t spot a single squirrel, bird, or chipmunk anywhere.

After walking a short way, he suddenly caught sight of a figure in the distance. They seemed to be looking around for something, just like he was, though they were facing away from him. Initially, he was tempted to call out to them; but he realized that doing so without knowing who they were could be risky. So instead he started cautiously approaching as quietly and stealthily as he could. Suddenly, the figure cupped their hands to their mouth and called out in a familiar voice that cut straight to Lykou’s core.

“Lykou!! Where are you?!”

Naira. He’d recognize that voice anywhere. And his memories were starting to trickle back. It’d been a couple months since he was involuntarily separated from her and everyone else back in Lakefire. With tears of joy and a huge grin, he burst into a run. “NAIRA!”

She turned around, startled. But when she saw Lykou, she similarly became overwhelmed with joy and started running to meet him. “KOU! You’re back!”

As they were nearing one another, she jumped up to tackle him into a tight embrace. But just as he was preparing to happily catch her, she suddenly vanished, leaving him very confused and distraught. He looked around frantically, bewildered by the turn of events. “N… Nai?!”

“I just wish we knew where he went, Ylva,” another familiar, more masculine voice said some distance behind him. “I never thought he’d just… disappear.”

“I just want to know that he’s alright,” a more feminine voice said, then sniffed.

“I’m sure he is. He’s a strong and clever boy. He’ll… he’ll make his way back somehow.”

“MOM, DAD!” Lykou called out as he turned and bolted towards them. “I’m right here!”

Again, just as he was approaching them, they vanished into thin air, leaving behind a faint, chilly breeze and no trace of their presence.

He trembled slightly as he slowed to a stop, looking around and trying to make sense of things. “What the fuck…”

“Kou?” another voice said. “Is… is that you?”

He spun around to see Oren standing a few yards away, looking both surprised and relieved- albeit, in his usual fashion, more subdued than one might normally expect.

“Oren!” Lykou said, beaming once again as he rushed over to hug him. “Don’t you disappear too, dammit!”

This time, they managed to make contact, with the other konuul happily returning the embrace. Oren was always more mellow than most, but even he couldn’t refrain from shedding a couple happy tears. “Fuck, Kou, it’s so good to see you again!”

“Likewise!” Lykou replied, practically lifting him off the ground in a tight embrace. “Where’s everyone else?”

“Probably out looking for you, I imagine,” Oren said as they loosened the embrace a bit. “You’ve been gone for ages, man! Where’ve you been?”

“It’s a long story, believe me,” Lykou said, then frowned and looked around. “And unfortunately I don’t think it’s over. Something weird is happening, people keep-” He froze when he suddenly realized there was no longer a presence next to him. He whipped his head around and realized his friend had vanished just like the others. “Oren..?? Oren!”

There was no response. Lykou clutched his head, stumbling forward as he tried to make sense of things. “W-what’s the… a-am I losing it??” Just as he was reaching to brace himself against a nearby tree, a large, muscular pair of arms wrapped around him from behind and hoisted him up into the mother-of-all bear hugs.

“KOO-KOO!” Nezha’s voice blurted out right behind him as he fought for air. “Where the FUCK have you been?!”

He’d hated the childhood nickname since before he even entered his teens, and always protested when it was used. Any other time, he’d have been indignant. But under the circumstances, it was music to his ears. When she loosened her grip slightly, he squirmed and managed to turn himself around and return the hug with tears in his eyes. “NEZHA! Please don’t disappear!”

“Not a FUCKING chance!” she cheerfully replied with a huge grin. She then narrowed her eyes. “Just tell me who I need to eviscerate for taking you from us.”

“Well-”

Suddenly a massive, shadowy claw clamped down on her head, causing her to let go and begin trying to fight it off as it dragged her backwards into the forest. Far from afraid, she immediately pulled a large, serrated knife from its sheath and began frantically stabbing at it as she shouted muffled obscenities that’d make an ursaran’s ears bleed.

“What the fuck?!” Lykou blurted out, then scowled and charged to try and help her. But before he could reach it, she and the claw both faded into thin air. “DAMMIT! Fuck off, whatever you are!”

“Poor, poor Lykou,” a strangely distorted voice booomed from all directions at once. “So close, yet so far~”

“GIVE THEM BACK!” Lykou angrily snarled as he again searched the forest around him, looking for the source of the voice. “Bring them back now!”

“You think that’s what awaits you?” the voice taunted. “A happy reunion?? Oh you little fool… stop kidding yourself.”

The woods started to darken, although there were no noticeable clouds overhead. The sun simply vanished and the sky gradually turned black, without any sign of stars. Everything started to take on shades of grey. Lykou’s anger slowly faded to fear and confusion as he started making his way through the forest again. Suddenly, he spotted another familiar-looking figure up ahead. It took a moment for his memory to catch up with him, but then his eyes widened and he started running as fast as he could. “KU! Kuna, look out! There’s-”

The sereva spun around upon hearing his voice. His eyes were wide and fearful, and slightly teary, but upon seeing the konuul, a look of relief briefly flashed over his face. “Kou! There you are!” he called out, then started running to meet the canid. “We have to get out of here!”

“I know! There’s some kind of-”

Just as they were reaching out for one another, the ground seemed to swallow the sereva up. Lykou immediately fell to his knees, tears falling from his eyes as he frantically tore at the ground after him. “NO! Ku! Come back!” he cried out angrily as he swiped the leaves and debris on the ground away, then started clawing at the dirt underneath. Eventually, he stopped and brought his hands to his face. “Give him back, dammit… give them all back… s… stop doing this… please…!”

“Of course, these are obviously too… optimistic,” the voice taunted. “How about something a bit more… realistic?”

Suddenly, a ghostly vision of his parents and sister appeared again, albeit clearly translucent. His parents were embracing each other, while Nezha lit a small funerary pyre with a torch. Some familiar clothing and a blanket were carefully laid out on top. She then stepped back and stood in place with her head bowed, unusually somber.

Their parents sobbed in one another’s arms.

“I can’t believe he’s gone,” his mother said.

“None of us can. I thought for sure he’d come back,” his father replied, then sniffed.

“I’m right here!” Lykou cried out in a mixture of frustration and misery. “I’m alive! I’m coming back! I’m trying to get home as fast as I can!”

The vision faded, and another one took its place. Two individuals, facing away from him as they sat by a small campfire. Oren had his arm wrapped around a distraught Naira.

“I just don’t understand,” Naira said sorrowfully, then sniffed.

Lykou got up and ran over to them. Unfortunately, he found them as intangible as they appeared, and went straight through them. On the bright side, the ghostly fire on the other side was similarly immaterial, so he didn’t get burned when he stumbled right into it. He turned to see a mixed look of anger and sorrow on Naira’s face, while Oren gently held and consoled her.

“It’s… definitely a bitter surprise,” Oren replied.

“I thought he was our best friend!” Naira continued. “I can’t believe he’d just… run off and abandon us!”

The words stabbed Lykou in the heart. “N… NO! I didn’t! Nai, I’d never-!”

“Neither did I,” Oren said, then sighed. “I guess the call for adventure was just stronger than we thought.”

Lykou fell to his knees again as the vision faded, sobbing. “I didn’t abandon them, dammit! Why would they think that?!”

Yet another vision appeared when he eventually looked up again, rubbing the tears from his eyes. Leisven was leaning against a tree, rubbing his chin and doing his best to look thoughtful and serious. Chief Ryvis was standing adjacent to him with his arms crossed, shaking his head sadly.

“This figures,” Leis said, lowering his hand to cross his arms as well. “He never could commit to settling down with a real job.”

“I knew he had some wanderlust, but I never figured he’d just up and abandon his life here,” Ryvis said sadly. “Always thought he was a good kid at heart.”

“Don’t blame yourself, chief. Even I thought he was just a bit immature. Nobody could have seen this coming,” Leis assured him. “Not your fault he decided to prioritize his own whims over his tribe.”

“Dammit, Leis, I’d never do that!” Lykou blurted out angrily, fresh tears streaming down his face as he glared at the apparition. “Come on-!”

“I should’ve retired that damned ‘spirit chaser’ nonsense years ago,” Ryvis continued, then sighed and started walking off. Leis straightened up and followed after him as they both faded away.

“It’s not my fault! I was taken, I’d never just run away, dammit!” Lykou angrily cried out after them, then slumped over and slammed his fist into the ground. “I don’t abandon people…”

“Maybe not, but you don’t seem to mind the idea of us being left without you,” Kuna’s voice said.

He quickly lifted his head again to see the sereva standing in front of him with his arms crossed, looking down at him. He looked a lot more real than the other recent apparitions, more like the first time he’d seen him.

“Ku!” Lykou said, gawking at him. “W-what are you-?”

“Always running into danger, taking dumb risks, daring death,” Kuna chastised. He sighed and lowered his arms, looking down at the ground. “Honestly? It’d probably be kinder if you just didn’t let people get attached to you, so it doesn’t hurt when you’re inevitably taken from us.”

“I… Ku, I’m s-sorry,” Lykou begged and reached out for his hand. “I’m promise, I-I’ll be more caref-”

“No, I’m sorry. I… I can’t deal with that. I can’t h-handle that kind of pain again,” the sereva said, pulling his hand away, as a few of his own tears fell into the dirt below them. He then turned and started walking off. “Goodbye, Kou.”

“KU!” Lykou frantically called out after him, getting up to chase after him. “Please, don’t go! PLEASE!”

Despite running as fast as he could, the distance between him and the sereva seemed to keep growing longer and longer. The world slowly grew darker and darker, and Lykou grew colder as everything started vanishing around him. He felt the hope draining away from him as Kuna faded away. He finally fell to his knees in despair- only this time he kept falling, deeper and deeper into a seemingly endless void.

*****

The next thing he knew, Lykou’s eyes were opening again. His vision was blurry, and he soon realized from the wetness on his cheeks that it was partly from tears. He reached up to rub them and noticed that he was being held in someone’s arms.

“Hey, it’s alright Kou,” Kuna’s voice assured him quietly. “It was just a bad dream. I’m right here.”

Lykou quickly rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times, then stared up at the sereva for a moment.

Kuna smiled a bit awkwardly. “How’s this for a change?”

Then Lykou suddenly grabbed him into a tight embrace as he shed fresh tears. “Ku!”

Kuna yelped slightly, then gently stroked the konuul’s back. “Guh… Kou, m-my shoulder…”

“Shit! Right,” the konuul replied, backing off a bit. “S-sorry, I uh-”

Kuna chuckled a bit and gently tussled his hair. “S’alright,” he said, then frowned. “But more importantly, are you alright? I’m not used to being on this side of a nightmare, so to speak.”

Lykou laid back and stared up at the ceiling for a moment, not really focusing on anything in particular. “...I … I think so…” he murmured, then sighed and closed his eyes and rubbed them as another tear trickled down the side of his face. “Fuck…”

“Wanna talk about it?”

The konuul peeked his eyes open again and glanced at the sereva, then looked away sheepishly. “Er… n-nah, I’ll be al-”

“Kou. C’mon. We’re a team, remember?” Kuna gently urged him, stroking his chest softly with a sympathetic smile. “We’re officially both demon fighters, both figuratively and literally. You’ve helped me with mine. Let me return the favor. Trust me, you’ll feel better.”

Lykou folded his ears down and blushed a bit as he averted his gaze. “W-well… I guess…”

“Must’ve been a bad one. And I distinctly heard my name a couple times,” the sereva gently prodded, then laid back down next to the canid and gently nuzzled his shoulder. “So what happened?”

Lykou sniffed a bit and rubbed his eyes, then told Kuna about the dream. It took some prodding from the sereva to get all the details when he hesitated at a few points, but he eventually got it all out. It did feel a bit better to let it out, but it also felt a bit embarrassing. At the very least, he did omit the embarrassing nickname dream-Nezha had used. At the end, he sighed. “I’m sorry, Ku. I’ve been so selfish.”

Kuna shot him a bewildered look. “Wh- no you haven’t!”

“I have! I've been such a dumbass. Acting on impulse, taking dumb risks, never thinking things through-”

“Hush,” the sereva cut him off, gently covering his mouth for a moment. “Stop that. Don’t let those stupid nightmare voices get to you.” He smirked sardonically. “Believe me, I know all too well what lying bullies they can be.”

Lykou looked away again, clearly not fully convinced. “They’re not entirely wrong though. If something happened to me, you’d be alone again.”

Kuna frowned and shivered slightly at the thought. “Well… true. And that’s probably the scariest thing in the world to me now,” he admitted. “So I’m definitely in favor of you being more careful. But don’t be so afraid that it makes you go to the opposite extreme.” He blushed and folded his ears down sheepishly. “Like, uh… like I’ve had issues with at times, heh.”

“Better than putting myself and maybe you and others in danger over stupid impulses,” Lykou replied.

“Not particularly. Like I said, don’t trade one extreme for the other. It’s… hard for me to deal with sometimes, but life has risks that just can’t be avoided,” Kuna reminded him, then gave him another gentle squeeze. “And hey. Let me clear one thing up for you real quick.”

Lykou arched a brow at him. “Hmm?”

“You’re never gonna chase me off. Even if you were ten times more reckless,” Kuna assured him with a small grin. “We’re in this together, all the way, wherever things take us. You go diving into any more jaws of death, I might bitch about it, but I’ll be following right behind you the whole time. You’re stuck with me, like it or not.”

Finally, a faint smile graced the canid’s face. “Well I definitely do. I just don’t want to get either of us hurt.”

“Need I remind you, yet again, that we’re still breathing not just despite, but largely because of your crazy ideas and spite for danger?” the sereva pointed out. “As much as it scares the fuck out of me at times, you can’t argue with the results. Even if I might try at the time.”

“Yeah, but how long until my stupid luck wears off?”

“Kou. It’s not just luck,” Kuna reminded him with a flat look. “You’re fast, strong, tough, and, despite what you might think, you’re downright clever sometimes too.”

“You yourself pointed out what an idiot I am.”

“Yeah, well… sometimes the line between brilliant and crazy stupid is absurdly thin, and you like to dance around it a lot,” Kuna teased. “But like I said, you make it work. Plus there’s that whole... special... power thing you’ve got.”

“I guess,” Lykou said, smiling bashfully. The he blinked a few times and looked around. He’d been so caught up in his thoughts and their conversation that he hadn’t really taken in their surroundings. The weird cottage was still fairly dark, aside from some of the dimly-glowing flora hanging from the walls. Algrytha was nowhere in sight- presumably in her own bed. “...is it still night?”

“Yeah. Probably at least an hour or two before dawn, if I had to guess,” Kuna said, then yawned a bit. “Think you’ll be able to get back to sleep?”

“I… guess. For however long we have until breakfast, anyway,” Lykou replied.

“I say we sleep in. You should be well rested before you uh… challenge the revenant again.”

Lykou frowned and thought for a moment. “...maybe I shouldn’t, Ku. Like you said before, we can try finding another-”

“Kou. Seriously. After the trouble we went through to get the ingredients for that potion? Let’s not waste them,” Kuna pointed out. “I… I trust you. I believe in you. If you’re still up for it, I say go for it. Especially now that you’ll have that to help you get more in touch with your ability. I’m curious to see how it works out.”

“Are you... sure?”

Kuna gently took the canid’s hand in his and smiled at him. “Yeah. Just promise me you won’t wait until he has a blade inches from your neck before you yield this time if things aren’t working out.”

“I promise,” the konuul said, then nuzzled up to the sereva a bit. “Thanks, Ku. And uh… s-sorry for waking you.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m honestly glad you did- you obviously needed to talk about things. I know this damn journey’s really weighing on you.”

“Yeah…” Lykou sighed heavily. “I miss people so, so much. I just wish there was some way to at least get a message home to let everyone know what happened to me, and that I’m still alive and trying to get back to them.”

“Mm… maybe we’ll find a way eventually.”

“I hope so…” Lykou yawned, then blinked a few times as the sleepiness started asserting itself again.

Kuna chuckled softly as he cuddled up to the konuul. “I’ll second that. Let’s get some sleep.”

“Mmkay. G’night Ku,” the canid said, smiling contently as he snuggled up to the sereva a little more than usual, almost afraid he’d vanish any moment.

“’night, Kou.”

*****

Fortunately, Lykou suffered no more nightmares, and both he and Kuna slept a few hours later than they ordinarily would have. When they did finally get up, Algrytha began working on the potion while they ate breakfast. Considering how exhausted the two had been the night before, especially Kuna, they all agreed it’d be better to brew it in the morning.

What came as a surprise was when the she strolled over to the groggy konuul with a knife and asked to see his hand. Still not thinking terribly clearly, he obliged without much thought. He was then immediately jolted awake with a slight yelp when she unceremoniously made a cut in his palm. Kuna immediately looked over in alarm, unsure what was happening. “Kou?!”

“Relax, potion just calls for a tiny bit of his blood,” the witch explained before either of them could ask a question. “I’ll patch him up in a moment.”

“You could’ve warned me at least!” Lykou complained, wincing from the pain as she collected the needed blood into a tiny vial.

“Seriously!” Kuna agreed, shooting her a small glare as he wrapped a comforting arm around the konuul. “Don’t you think he’s been through enough lately?”

Algrytha chuckled and shrugged. “Bet yer more awake now though, arncha?” she retorted, then corked the vial and rubbed some kind of paste on Lykou’s hand.

“I… guess. Still,” the canid whined, then furrowed his brow and looked at his wounded hand after she released it. Whatever the grey paste was, it certainly seemed potent. The pain had already faded and there was no trace of bleeding.

Kuna looked over his shoulder at the paste on his hand and arched a brow. “What is that stuff?”

“Patch-up poultice. Works great, don’t it?” Algrytha replied as she wandered back over to the table where she’d set up the other ingredients. “Alright, time ta get started. Try ta keep yer voices down while I’m concentratin’.”

Lykou yawned a bit and went back to eating. “Will do.”

“So did you sleep alright?” Kuna asked quietly. “Er, you know, the second time I mean.”

“Yeah, no particularly memorable dream this time,” the canid replied, then smiled and lightly nudged the sereva. “Thanks again, by the way.”

Kuna gave him a gentle squeeze and smiled back. “Hey, just returning the favor. And remember, don’t hold things inside so much. I’m always here to listen if you need to vent about things and such.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Lykou said, then wrapped an arm around him in return. “You know, for someone who didn’t have much experience with friendship before, you’re a damn good one.”

The sereva blushed and poked his tongue out slightly. “Hey, I had a good teacher.”

The rest of the morning progressed relatively uneventfully. They took their time with breakfast, not being eager to get back out into the Kryck. But once they finished eating and the potion was ready, they quickly packed up and prepared to head out. Luckily, Kuna was doing much better- his shoulder was almost completely pain-free, and he was almost back to full strength. At Algrytha’s insistence, he kept the walking stick, however. He had to admit he did appreciate the unique shape and sturdiness of it, so it didn’t take too much convincing.

After bidding her farewell yet again, they ventured out into the woods and began making their way to the ruins. By that point, they’d gotten fairly familiar with the route, but they didn’t let themselves get complacent. Even though it was daytime, they knew monsters lurked in Kryckwood and didn’t dare take their safety for granted. For all they knew, there was a hungry ghost stalking them, just looking for an in-tact corpse to make use of.

Fortunately, nothing attacked them and they made it to the bog in good time. The bodies there were as unsettling as always. When they reached the gate into the village, Lykou almost stepped through before Kuna quickly grabbed him in a mild panic. “Kou, wait!”

The konuul yelped in surprise as the sereva jerked him back just before his foot crossed the threshold. “Huh? What is it?”

Kuna gestured behind them with a somewhat panicked expression. “C-c-company. Remember?”

Lykou’s eyes widened when he looked back and saw a small group of undead bodies standing a few yards behind them, clustered around the entryway. “Shit! Can’t believe we forgot about that,” he said, then knelt down and dug around in his bag. “We should each still have two of those uh… ‘death potions’.”

Kuna nodded and rooted around in his own bag. But just as he found one of the potions, they both felt a new presence looming over them. They looked up to see none other than the revenant in his mummified body floating in the gateway, surrounded by an ethereal glow, with his arms crossed.

“That… won’t be necessary,” he informed them, then glanced over at the gathered zombies and waved them off. The small hoard immediately turned and began shambling off to their resting places.

“Oh, uh… thank… you?” Lykou said, watching the guardians leave with a mixture of surprise and mild confusion. “But… why?”

“You impressed me. If you are to perish here, I’d rather it be in honorable combat with me than being torn apart by those mindless things.”

“Gee, that’s… nice,” Kuna remarked flatly. “We’d rather just not perish here at all, though.”

“And yet you’ve returned,” Elzhan replied, then let out an ethereal sigh. “I somewhat expected you’d be back, even if I’d rather hoped you’d changed your mind and found an alternate means of continuing your journey.”

“Believe me, if it were that easy, we would,” Lykou commented. “But there’s just no way around it. We’ve got to get to that arch.”

“...I truly regret that oversight. Still, here we are. I assume you wish to challenge me again. What makes you think this time will be any different?”

Lykou shot Kuna a brief conspiratorial grin, then turned back to the revenant and shrugged. “Let’s just say last time I wasn’t really at my best.”

“Is that so? This should certainly be interesting then. Still, I hope you are prepared to yield before it is too late. You cut it awfully close last time as it was.”

“You can say that again,” Kuna agreed, shooting the konuul a quick narrow-eyed look. But then he grinned and faced Elzhan again. “But yeah, trust me, as impressive as he was last time, I’ve seen him be even more impressive.”

“Well, if you truly cannot be dissuaded, let us return to the courtyard so we may begin the challenge,” the revenant said, turning and waving for them to follow.

Lykou and Kuna quickly picked their bags back up and followed along behind him. They both leaned in to whisper to one another as they walked. “Maybe you should go ahead and drink it now,” Kuna suggested.

“Hmm… I don’t know how long it’ll last once it takes effect, though,” Lykou countered. “Wouldn’t want to risk it wearing off in the middle of the fight.”

“...fair point. At the same time, we also don’t know how long it’ll take to kick in.”

Lykou pondered for a moment, then shrugged. “Well, I’ll take it when we get there, and stall for time if I have to.”

“If you say so,” Kuna said, glancing back at the revenant for a moment. “What if he sees, though?”

“Well… so what?” Lykou replied. “He never mentioned any rules against it. He said ‘any equipment or skills I have’, right? I’d say it counts as equipment.”

Kuna arched a brow. “...yeah, I guess. Still, doesn’t hurt to have surprise on your side.”

“True,” Lykou said. After a moment, he cleared his throat and turned back towards Elzhan and raised his voice back to a more normal level. “So, uh… I have to admit I’m kind of curious about some things. Like those undead things out there. They don’t have ghosts in them, right?”

“No. They are moved by magic alone. A very long time ago, I grew tired of honorless would-be grave-robbers disrespecting this place, and then some of the last mortals I had any connection to were ambushed on their way to visit, so I performed a special ritual to add an extra layer of… deterrence,” Elzhan explained, then glanced back at them briefly. “I don’t mind worthy challengers, but dealing with the other vermin personally became… tiresome.”

“That bad, huh? How often do people come out here?”

“It’s hard to wrap my head around people risking the Kryck just to get some old magic axe,” Kuna chimed in, then shivered. “Let alone getting through that, then having those things to deal with.”

“You’d be surprised. Sadly, lust for power can be a potent motive for some,” Elzhan replied with a tinge of bitterness.

“To be fair,” Lykou continued, rubbing his chin. “Some are probably just desperate. We actually met a ghost out there that hadn’t completely lost her mind yet, and she said she was headed this way specifically knowing she was probably going to die and would rather do it here than… some other way.”

The revenant shrugged. “Tragic as that may be, it is still foolish, considering she didn’t even make it here. Her soul will now be trapped in the Kryck with the rest.”

“Yeah… ghoul got her before she could get here,” Kuna commented sadly. “Wish there was some way to help her move on. Hate to think of her being stuck out there forever.”

“She should have considered that before entering Kryckwood,” Elzhan said dismissively. “Jingrayl’s curse is fairly infamous these days. It is highly unlikely anyone comes here without knowing the risk.”

“Jin-” Lykou said, then paused and widened his eyes slightly. “...is that the Wraith’s name?”

Elzhan stopped moving and seemed to be lost in thought. “...yes, and no,” he finally said in a hushed tone. “That was the wicked bastard’s name in life. But that villain has long since ceased to exist, leaving that… thing in his place.”

“I guess you must be the only one around that still remembers his… er, its former name,” Lykou noted. “Even Algrytha didn’t know it.”

The mention of the witch’s name made Elzahn spin around and eye him dubiously. “...what was that name you just mentioned?”

Lykou and Kuna backed up slightly at the sudden intensity of his reaction. “Uh… Al...gryth...a?” the konuul repeated hesitantly.

The revenant stared at him for a moment in perfect stillness, then looked away and stared into the distance thoughtfully. “...so she still lives. Unless this is some descendant of hers, but I somehow doubt it.”

“...you know her?” Kuna cautiously asked.

“I would have assumed so, given she lives in the Kryck,” Lykou suggested. “But I get the feeling there’s more to it?”

“She… oh,” Elzhan responded. “Of course. Now it makes sense. I occasionally picked up on the rumors of some… mad ‘witch’ living out there. I never guessed it was her though.” He turned back to them after a moment and looked them over. “I assume she’s the one that gave you whatever magical trickery you used to get past the guardians the first time?”

Kuna arched a brow. “Er, yeah…?”

“I see… what does she look like?”

“Like… well, kind of like a walking, vaguely person-shaped pile of moss and other plant stuff, actually,” Lykou replied.

Elzhan subtly nodded. “That’s her alright. I always thought she was strange. I should have known no mere mortal sage would be as powerful and knowledgeable as her. Still, that just leaves more questions…”

“W-wait,” Kuna said, his eyes widening. “Did you say sage???”

“Like the one that-,” Lykou added, then covered his mouth for a moment as he looked over at the sereva. “...the same one from the story?”

“I’d ask who told you that part of the story, but I assume it must’ve been her,” the revenant commented. “Few know about who I learned the ritual from.”

“Yeah, but she conveniently left out that little detail,” Lykou replied, furrowing his brow in confusion. “She made it seem like she was just repeating some old story she’d heard after the fact.”

“So all this time, she’s been living out there in Kryckwood but you haven’t spoken to her?” Kuna asked incredulously.

“Ever since I performed the ritual that turned those corpses into guardians, I’ve spent most of the time in a slumber of sorts,” Elzhan explained.

“I didn’t think ghosts slept.”

“They don’t, normally. At least, nothing like you would think of as sleep. But the ritual that made me this way has given me various advantages.”

“I can imagine. Most ghosts would go insane in a lot less time than you’ve been around,” Lykou commented. “Still, seems strange she never would have visited you or something, considering she’s apparently the one that taught you that ritual in the first place.”

“She was- or is, I suppose, a strange one,” Elzahn said. “I can’t imagine why she’d have moved to settle in the Kryck at some point. Perhaps something happened to her old village.”

Kuna scratched his head. “Or why she completely neglected to mention that she was the ‘sage’ in the story she told us. And she pretended she didn’t know the Wraith’s mortal name either, but I would think she would’ve heard it if she was actually part of the story.”

“Possibly, but possibly not. At the time, I was reluctant to utter the villain’s name, so I may not have mentioned it to her when I visited her back then,” the revenant explained, then turned to continue to the courtyard. “In any case, these are musings for another time. Let us keep going and get this over with.”

Lykou hesitated for a moment and shared a look with Kuna. “You know, once this is over, one way or the other, I’m kind of tempted to go ask Algrytha a few things.”

“I’m definitely curious myself, but I say we just forget our curiosity as long as we can get to that arch,” the sereva replied. “I’m ready to be away from this place and all of its mysteries.”

“Fair enough,” Lykou said as they both started following after the revenant. After a moment, when they’d caught back up to him, the canid spoke up again as they passed near the original entrance to the village, “By the way, I know it probably sounds a bit… well, weak and hollow under the circumstances, but I’m truly sorry for what you and your people went through way back then. We’ve seen some nasty monsters in our journey, but it seems like that asshole was up there among the worst. I’m glad you all at least drove him away.”

“...thank you,” Elzhan said quietly after a moment. “The sentiment is appreciated. I only regret that nothing can be done about the thing he’s become. If I’d known his wretched soul still lingered back then, I’d have hunted it down and dealt with it while I was still alive.”

“Can you not do anything about it now?” Kuna chimed in. “Don’t you know a bunch of powerful ritual magic or something now?”

“I have learned some things over the centuries here and there when I was conscious, but nothing capable of dealing with that wretch,” the revenant replied. “The axe might very well be able to do something about it, but I am bound to this village until my duty is fulfilled, so there’s no way for me to reach him.”

“...so wait, someone would be able to defeat the Wraith with the axe and get rid of the curse?” Lykou asked, intrigued.

“Yes, in theory. Unfortunately, my duty keeps me bound to this village, and as craven as he is, he knows not to come too close,” Elzhan said, then narrowed his eyes bitterly. “Not that he hasn’t come just close enough to taunt me a few times.”

“Like when he stole the key stone?”

“Indeed. He could have ambushed those poor souls anywhere, but he specifically waited until they were within sight of these ruins so I’d have to helplessly watch them be murdered just outside my reach.”

Kuna shuddered and held himself. “I… know the f-feeling.”

Elzhan stopped and turned to shoot him a dubious look. “Do you?”

“He saw his parents killed by a demon-possessed monster when he was young,” Lykou explained, gently wrapping an arm around the sereva and giving him a small squeeze. “He’s had nightmares about it ever since.”

“I was… helpless. The physical one couldn’t reach me, but apparently the demon part sort of could. Damn thing left a tooth fragment in my soul,” Kuna muttered. “So yeah, that’s been… fun.”

For a brief moment, the revenant’s soulflame eyes flared up, then returned to normal. “...so I see. My condolences,” he said, then turned around and continued on the way. “I often wondered if Jingrayl had formed some kind of pact with a demon. Never saw any indication of it, however. Some mortals are just that wicked on their own, it seems.”

“That’s pretty fucked up and depressing,” Lykou said, frowning. “I hope there aren’t too many out there like that.”

“Few are born wicked. It is usually something one chooses to become,” Elzhan pointed out.

Finally, they saw the entrance to the courtyard approaching. Kuna gently nudged Lykou. The canid nodded and discretely pulled out the potion, then uncorked it and drank it down as quickly as possible. Afterwards, he licked his lips and arched a brow. “Hm… kinda salty,” he whispered to the sereva, then smirked. “You’d probably like it.”

“It has meat broth and your actual blood in it,” Kuna replied flatly. “Pass.”

When they finally reached the entrance, Elzhan gestured to the wall. “Feel free to make yourself comfortable up there again, kuna. But don’t try to interfere this time. I was lenient before, but-”

“Lenient my ass,” the sereva snapped back, glaring at the revenant before turning to climb up the wall. “You said it’d count as a forfeit, so I was hoping it’d end the fight, but you kept going and nearly killed him before he spoke up.”

“I would not deprive him of a warrior’s death, if that was his choice.”

“Yeah well, deprive away in the future. I don’t plan to try and jump in again, but only because he promised not to wait so long to yield this time if it comes down to it.”

Elzhan stared at him momentarily, then turned to Lykou. “And what do you say? If he loses self-control again, shall I consider the match over even without your surrender, or keep him at bay regardless of his protests until that point?”

Lykou glanced between them for a moment, then shrugged. “Forfeit works. But it won’t come up,” he said, then winked at the sereva. “He knows I promised him, and it’ll be different this time anyway.”

“Very well. Then select your weapon and take your place,” Elzhan said as he turned to walk over to the other side of the box. “It is time to begin the challenge… again.”

Chapter Text

With a loud crack, the battered, cracked wooden shield Lykou had been holding shattered as his skeletal opponent slammed a club into it. He winced as Elzhan’s main body cut him a moment later with a long knife. Fortunately, the canid also had his bracers active, so the angry red line quickly began healing as he backed away from them. Now down a defense and momentarily disarmed, he quickly retreated to the other side of the courtyard with the corpses in hot pursuit.

So far, the potion didn’t seem to be having any noticeable effects, much to his chagrin. He’d been trying to stall for time, hoping to feel some kind of change any moment. And unfortunately, the revenant didn’t appear to have as much patience as before; he’d started using two bodies at once early on. With all his focus on biding his time and protecting himself, Lykou hadn’t even tried to smash a single skull yet. He was worried the revenant would become suspicious of his entirely defensive tactics, so finally he lured the skeleton into closing in on him, then suddenly spun around and dropped to the ground, sweeping its legs out from under it.

Even as it fell, the skeleton took a clumsy swing with its club, narrowly missing the konuul’s knee. The moment its skull hit the ground, Lykou slammed his foot down on its skull with all his might, causing it to crack severely, but not quite shatter. He suspected that the dark magics animating the thing made it stronger than usual, though he didn’t have much time to ponder it. Elzhan’s main body managed to stab his shoulder through a gap in the armored pieces of his padded shirt, just as he was turning to face him. The woody natural armor covering his body limited how deep the blade sank, but it was still a successful stab, and caused him to cry out in pain as he quickly stumbled away.

Lykou sucked air in through his teeth as he tried to continue backing away from the advancing revenant. He nearly tripped on a spear laying on the ground. But rather than falling over, he instead feinted doing so, only to tumble over and grab the spear just as his opponent was closing in on him. With a quick swing of the spear, he knocked Elzahn off his feet momentarily. Rather than taking the opportunity to press the attack, he quickly bolted away to the other side again, trying to keep some distance from him as he clutched at his wounded shoulder with a grimace.

The bracers’ magic was quickly healing the wound, but pain still lingered. He had no doubt that if it wasn’t for the enchanted Sylthean artifacts, he would have had to admit defeat right there. As it was, he was getting frustrated with how long it was taking for the potion to kick in. As the skeleton whose skull he’d nearly crushed started shambling towards him again, he braced himself and prepared to fend it off with the spear in his hands. His instincts barely saved him as a second skeleton suddenly burst out of the nearest alcove and charged at him with a pair of hatchets. He blocked both swings, but one managed to cut the spear in half in the process.

Across the way, sitting on the wall, Kuna was watching the battle with an increasingly anxious look. Other than occasionally shouting warnings at the canid, he was trying to stay relatively quiet. For one thing, he didn’t want to risk distracting him or throwing him off, and he didn’t want to inadvertently give Elzhan any warning about what the konuul was already planning on doing. He also had to struggle not to tell Lykou to quit after the stab wound. It was obvious that the revenant was attacking more aggressively than their first encounter.

Lykou backed away from the hatchet-wielding skeleton as it advanced on him, flailing its weapons at him repeatedly. He could sense the other skeleton advancing out of the corner of his eye, but did his best to make it seem like he hadn’t noticed. He knew that if he tried to dodge any further backward, he’d end up getting cornered in another alcove. When it swung its club down at him, he instead bolted down low at its legs, flipping it over his back just in time for the other skeleton’s hatchet’s to lash out again, causing them to hit the club-wielding one’s arm and ribcage.

He had no time to celebrate the deception though. Elzhan’s primary body caught up to him and he immediately had to dodge away from several knife-jabs. He tried to grab his arm in the middle of one of his attacks, but as soon as he managed it, the revenant kicked him back with a shocking among of force, knocking the wind out of him and sending him tumbling a few yards backwards. If it hadn’t been for his woody armor, he was sure he would’ve broken a few ribs.

Suddenly, as he struggled to catch his breath and get back to his feet, a strange feeling washed over him. He couldn’t explain it, but his instincts were telling him to do something that seemed foolish. He looked down at the bracer on his arm as he felt a strange urge to deactivate their magic. It wasn’t a voice, exactly, but it was like something was specifically telling him to get them out of its way. He was so distracted by the thought that he wasn’t aware of Kuna shouting increasingly dire warnings at him. He ultimately decided to heed the strange instinct and deactivated the woody armor. Luckily, he just barely noticed the revenant closing in on him and ducked out of the way just in time for his blade to narrowly miss his now unprotected jugular.

As he tried to bolt off to the side, Elzhan’s leg caught him in the gut, again knocking the wind out of him as he was sent tumbling over forwards, landing on his head before flipping onto his back in a very vulnerable position. He didn’t waste any time getting back to his feet, flipping again to do so, but he ended up stumbling around dizzily in the process. He immediately prepared to defend himself, expecting the revenant and possibly one or more of his skeletal puppets to already be in his face again.

When his vision cleared, he realized something seemed off. The dust and dirt kicked up from his latest fall and subsequent recovery had still not fully cleared out of the air, and while his opponents were charging at him, they suddenly seemed a bit… slow. On top of that, he suddenly felt a lot… better. His injuries no longer hurt much at all, and he felt more energized. And not only did he catch his breath, he felt like the air itself somehow felt more refreshing as it entered his lungs and revitalized him. It was like the crisp, cold air on a chilly morning, waking him up.

But there was more to it than that. He caught a glimpse at his hands and everything seemed to pause for a moment. Kuna had described his strange ability to him after the fact various times before, but this was the first time he caught a glimpse of the faint glow himself. For the first time, he was fully conscious of it in the moment- and more. As he focused his attention on it, he noticed faint focal points of light in different spots, not only on his own body, but on Kuna’s in the distance, as well. There were similar ones in Elzhan’s main body, though they looked dim and somewhat wrong, somehow. They seemed to focus around the same points though- at certain joints on their limbs, and on the hands, head, throat, chest, and belly. He thought he could make a few others out as well, but they were fainter, so he couldn’t discount them being imagined.

And then there were the lines. He struggled to focus on any of them, but he became aware of faint glowing lines of light that seemed to flow through everything around him, especially living things- or things that once held life. It was blurry and he had no idea what he was seeing, and any time he tried to look too closely, the lines would fade. After a moment, the same instinct he felt before told him to just… breath.

So he did. He took a deep, slow breath- slow from his perspective, anyway. Suddenly it felt like he was breathing more than just air. The lines feeding into himself seemed to glow a little brighter, then dim a little more in sync with his inhaling and exhaling. He relaxed his muscles for a moment and things seemed to become clearer. He looked down at his hands and marveled at the faint glow around them, as he felt something flowing through him. After marveling at it briefly, he reached up instinctively as if to shoo away a fly.

But he quickly recoiled when he felt a sharp prick on his finger. He looked up and realized that in his reverie, his assailants had gotten a lot closer, and Elzahn was lunging in for another attack. With a faint grin, he realized it was his time to shine.

From Kuna’s perspective, things looked very dire for a moment, and then even worse. His friend had inexplicably disabled his bracers, only to narrowly avoid being stabbed in the throat. And when he’d bolted to escape again, Elzhan had sent him tumbling. His shouts of warning and disbelief transitioned to demands that he end the fight, worried that the konuul had lost his mind. But then he saw the familiar faint glow as the canid got back up. Only this time, it wasn’t as faint as usual. And he could sense… something. He tried reaching out with his magical senses and could tell something was going on with his life energy, but things were happening too fast for him to try and make sense of it.

The next few moments were even more of a blur than the rest of the fight. One moment, Elzhan was lunging at Lykou again, about to stab him in the chest. Then with a flash of movement, his arm was swatted aside with such force that the blade embedded in the ground over a dozen yards away, and the revenant was somehow trapped in a headlock. A moment later, he’d been flipped around just in time to catch the other skeleton’s club in the face. Then both of them collided with the hatchet-wielding skeleton just as it was bringing its weapons to bare on the konuul. Before the three even hit the ground, the hatchets had gone missing- as did Lykou.

Elzhan recovered quickly and spun around, searching for the konuul. He only spotted him when the hatchets flew across the courtyard and buried themselves violently in the skulls of the two skeletons rising behind him, knocking them off their spines in the process. The revenant narrowed his eyes and picked up another knife laying on the ground nearby, then began stalking towards the konuul.

“Finally taking this seriously, I see,” Elzhan remarked. Suddenly, the two remaining caskets opened in their alcoves, releasing their skeletal inhabitants to join the fray. One was near Lykou and immediately charged at him with a heavy war-axe.

The konuul dodged out of the way right in the nick of time, tripping the skeleton along the way. Paired with the weight of its weapon swinging down, it went tumbling over forwards and lost its grip on the axe in the process. Lykou spun around just in time to catch Elzhan’s arm as he was coming in for another stab, then jerked him to the side just in time to use the corpse to catch one of the hatchet’s being thrown back at him.

Over the next few minutes, all five corpses swarmed him. But despite being outnumbered and out-armed, he managed to smoothly dodge every attack, often manipulating them into one another’s path. After one such redirection, he sprinted out through the gap he created and made for the box holding the mythical magic axe.

But when he was halfway to the box, a torrent of bones flew through the air and reformed into all four of the skeletons, standing guard around it. Elzhan leaped impossibly high into the air and flipped over, then landed squarely on top of the box, brandishing his blade at the konuul. “Impressive, but not impressive enough.”

“Guess I’ll just have to try harder, then,” Lykou retorted with a grin. Just as the skeletons were starting to charge at him again, he suddenly surged forward himself, directly into the fray, without a weapon in hand. Again, time seemed to slow down from his perspective. He watched as the lines of light seemed to pulse and move subtly around him. Following subtle cues he was only barely aware of, he weaved between the skeletal limbs and weapons closing in on him without ever receiving a scratch along the way. He moved in a whirling, fluid-like motion, blending evasion and retaliation together as he made his way towards the Revenant’s main body. Bones popped loose, fractured, and shattered along his path. When he emerged from the chaos at the other side, he charged at Elzhan.

For a brief moment, Kuna got a metaphorical glimpse of what was happening. Everything was moving so fast, his physical senses struggled to keep up with the fight. So instead he began focusing on his mystical ones more, intrigued by the odd change that seemed to be happening within his friend. When he couldn’t figure it out, he’d realized he’d been meaning to try sensing others’ soul energy more as well. And that’s when he made a stunning discovery- they were fusing. Or at least, that’s what it seemed like. He only just started to feel it build up as he was approaching the revenant again. But both energies were strengthening and flowing together through his body and soul, forming something new and different.

Lykou didn’t know any of this, but he could definitely feel something flowing through him and building up. It seemed to be growing stronger as he followed the shifting lines that he kept catching glimpses of. Something was gathering inside him, and getting harder and harder to hold onto, and he had no idea what it was. And then he felt the moment arrive. As he neared the revenant, he spun around just as the blade was being thrust at him again. He moved deftly around the attack, feeling like he was being carried by the wind, and landed his own, slamming his fist into the corpse’s chest.

All that strange energy he’d been feeling build up inside him suddenly seemed to flow out of him all at once through his hand and into his target. The result was a blinding flash of light and a brief, but thunderous burst of sound that echoed all the way out of the ruins to the edge of the bog, sending the few crows lingering nearby flying off in a blind panic. For a brief instant, before the light temporarily blocked his vision, Lykou saw what looked like an ethereal blur fly out of the corpse and vanish into the air.

The other skeletons immediately fell limp. When the light and dust faded, he saw Elzhan’s limp, devestated corpse laying on the ground in front of him. Somehow, it was still intact, although the clothing and rags it’d been wrapped in were completely shredded. Any preserved flesh had been completely burned away, and the bones underneath were riddled with numerous cracks. And, importantly, there was absolutely no soulfire light in the eye sockets. The ground below the point of impact was cracked and looked slightly charred. The canid stood there silently for a minute, panting to catch his breath. Although he still felt that charged, incredible sensation of having his senses and speed increased by… whatever it was, he was also starting to feel worn down again.

Over on the wall, Kuna gawked breathlessly at him, trying to make sense of the situation. Being farther away from the point of impact, he’d caught a slightly better glimpse of the revenant’s spirit go flying out of his body before disappearing. On the one hand, he was amazed at whatever Lykou had done, and struggling to make sense of it. But on the other, he had a bad feeling the fight wasn’t as over as it initially appeared. That feeling was reinforced when he tried to hop down and hurry over to the canid. A familiar invisible barrier blocked his way.

“What the-?! ELZHAN!” he shouted angrily, fear growing inside him again. “I thought we had an agreement!”

The barrier muted the sound, so Lykou didn’t hear him. Still, he did feel something was off after a moment. He ducked just as a stream of bones whipped over his head and formed a swirling torrent in the air in front of him. The sky seemed to darken a bit more and the wind whipped up all around the courtyard. All the bones flew around in a vortex around the revenant’s tattered body as it began to lift up into the air. A hazy apparition started to re-form above it.

For the first time, they got a glimpse of what might’ve been closer to Elzhan’s original form. He was definitely canine-like in appearance, albeit with a dark mask-like marking across his face. The colors were faded, as with most ghosts, but it seemed like most of his fur was a dirty brownish-yellow color, aside from the black bands on his face, ears, and arms. However, there was a large glowing red mark across his throat. There were unnaturally long claws on his fingers, and a hazy dark aura surrounded him. And his eyes were still deep black voids filled with those familiar soulfire pricks of light. And they were staring intensely down at the konuul.

“Well done. You have come farther than anyone else,” Elzhan said, his voice even more distorted than usual. “Surrender now and go with my respect and admiration.”

Lykou narrowed his eyes and smirked, clenching his fists again. “Nah.”

The revenant glared at him. “...a true warrior’s death it is, then.”

The bones all splintered into sharp fragments and started hurling themselves at the konuul. He ducked and weaved with the amplified grace and agility that he’d displayed before, but even with his enhanced abilities, several managed to leave cuts and scrapes in their path. He managed to ignore the pain, but it made him realize he wasn’t going to be able to win by just relying on raw power that he didn’t even understand. His mind raced as he took in his surroundings while dodging through the grim storm of bones.

After a minute of pelting his opponent, Elzhan brought the fragments back together around his body, which his spirit then returned to, wearing them like a thick suit of armor. A flickering white light manifested around his hand as he knelt down by the box containing the axe. When he touched the top, the lines all lit up and the lid slid open, allowing him to retrieve the axe. The lines on the axe similarly began glowing as he tightened his grip on it.

Kuna began beating on the barrier frantically, desperately calling out to both of them. But Lykou couldn’t hear his words, and the revenant ignored him. He tried using his magic, but again he couldn’t find any plantlife to latch onto. And in any case, he felt like he couldn’t even touch anything beyond the barrier with his mind any more than with his actual hands.

“Consider yourself fortunate. I have not had to use this axe’s actual magic in centuries. You’re the first in generations that will bare witness to its power,” Elzhan declared. “When it strikes you down, your soul will depart from your body before it even hits the ground.”

Lykou seemed to realize the weight of the situation and began backing away as the revenant slowly started to advance on him. But then he got an idea and smirked again. “You know, I didn’t care about it before, but now you’re kinda making me want to give it a try.”

“Forget it. You will never wield it,” the revenant declared, then swung the axe through the air towards him.

Luckily, even though they weren’t actually close to one another, Lykou’s instincts saved him. A nearly invisible blur in the air was projected from the axe in mid-swing and soared right past where his head had been a moment before, then left a thin, clean hole in the wall behind him, all the way on the far side of the courtyard, by the entrance.

“Oh I’m gonna use it alright,” Lykou taunted. “On you.”

Again, the revenant took a swing at him, and he leaped out of the way just barely fast enough to avoid having his arm likely severed. Just then, the bone pieces clustered on his torso unraveled themselves and formed an elongated arm, reaching out to grab the konuul as he was dodging away. It just barely missed him, but then inverted itself to snatch him up in the opposite direction.

“Laughable,” Elzhan retorted. “You aren’t attuned to it.”

“I’ll make it work,” Lykou replied, struggling in the bony grasp.

The revenant just shook his head, then brought the axe down at the konuul again. At just the right moment, Lykou suddenly managed to twist around, lurching the bony limb into the path of the axe’s swing. The blur projected from the blade subsequently not only severed the arm attached to the hand holding him, but the magic holding the fragments together in the first place- for a moment, anyway. Without the magic to bind them together, Lykou quickly broke free and darted off to the side.

It took Elzhan a moment to recollect the bones with his magic, though he continued periodically hurling deadly axe-swings Lykou’s way as he did so. Luckily for the canid, without the bones to worry about, he was able to more easily dodge the nearly-invisible projectiles with his enhanced abilities. Still, he could feel himself starting to wear down, and knew he couldn’t keep at it forever. He tried gathering together whatever strange energy he’d felt before again as he tried circling in on the revenant.

The undead warrior was keeping a close eye on him, however. Suddenly, when Lykou was within a half dozen feet of him, he lashed out with another bony tendril. Halfway to its target, the bones suddenly split up and turned into a cloud of sharp projectiles again. Lykou winced as they stabbed and cut into his flesh. He managed to avoid any serious injuries, but it still left him bleeding and in pain.

He pushed the pain down as he circled around the revenant as fast as he could. He narrowly avoided another pair of ranged attacks from the axe, with one of them shaving a small tuft of hair off of his head. Finally, he caught up to Elzhan and reached out for the hand holding the axe. But with a sudden burst of speed, the revenant instead grabbed him by the throat with his other hand, lifting him up with an immense strength that defied his frail, skeletal appearance. Lykou grunted and gasped as he felt his windpipe being choked off by the bony grip. He frantically grasped at the arm, but it was no use- the revenant was not holding back at all anymore.

“Farewell, Lykou,” Elzhan said as he hefted the axe up in his other hand. “It has been an honor.”

But just as he began swinging the axe, the panicked look on Lykou’s face suddenly vanished. “...likewise,” he choked out. He may have been struggling to breath the air around him, but his soul had been drawing in a deeper breath of sorts. And this time, rather than using it to strike him, he instead pulled him straight out of his body and, with the fastest movement he’d managed yet, twisted around and brought the specter right into the path of his own axe swing.

Again, there was a bright flash of light- albeit without any thunderous sound this time. Everything was deadly still for a moment, with Elzhan’s body frozen in place with the axe seemingly somehow wedged into his very surprised-looking incorporeal form hanging in the air, its lower half still slightly attached to the corpse’s torso. Then the bones whirling around in the air dropped to the ground, the light in the axe faded, and finally his body slumped over, lifeless for the last time. Lykou slowly lost his grip on the revenant’s soul as the last of the strange energy he’d managed to harness left him. The change caused him to stumble back slightly as he felt the weariness begin settling in.

Elzhan’s ghostly form floated slowly down to the ground, where he then stood silently as the aura faded from around him. The claws faded as well as he stared at Lykou with a shocked expression. Gradually, his eyes transformed as well. The voids filled in and the flames vanished, leaving behind normal, even somewhat pretty green eyes. Overall, his form became a lot less intimidating- almost natural, even, other than the semi-translucent appearance, and the large, ornate axe wedged into his chest. After a moment, the axe suddenly fell and clattered to the ground as the apparition started slowly fading from his feet up.

“I…” he said faintly, then slowly smiled as a ghostly tear formed in his eyes. “I… yield.”

“Damn right you do,” Lykou said, panting a bit and rubbing his sore neck. Despite his close brush with death at the hands of the very being he was facing, he couldn’t help but grin. “Told you I’d beat you with it.”

“So you did,” Elzhan replied, then crossed his hand over his chest and gave a small bow. “Thank you.”

“Y-”

Lykou had no time to form a reply, as he was suddenly unceremoniously tackled to the ground by a very distraught sereva that finally no longer had an invisible barrier keeping him away. “HOLYFUCKLYKOUPLEASETELLMEYOU’REOKAY!”

Lykou gasped as he tried to regain his breath. “Gck! Ku, I’m f-fine jus-”

“And YOU!!” Kuna said, whirling around to face the fading specter with an intense, fiery hate in his eyes. “WE HAD A FUCKING DEAL!!”

Elzhan stared at him with wide-eyed surprise, actually somewhat thrown off by the sereva’s intensity. “I…” he started, then hesitated for a moment. Then he sighed and lowered his gaze shamefully, rubbing his arm. “I apologize. You are right, I acted dishonorably. This long undeath has clearly tainted me after all these years.” He glanced back up at Lykou after a moment. “All the better that the axe finally has a new owner.”

“Uh, Ku?” Lykou spoke up, grunting slightly as he tried to sit up with the sereva on top of him. The glow had faded from around him and he was suddenly feeling a lot weaker- not to mention the pain from all the cuts he’d suffered was starting to catch up to him. “Mind uh… scooting back a bit?”

Kuna spun back around and glared at him with his arms crossed. But eventually, his expression softened and he rolled his eyes as he slid off to the side. He tried to mask it with frustration, but his eyes were slightly teary again. “I guess I can’t be too mad under the circumstances, but dammit Lykou,” he grumbled. “I swear you’re trying to worry me to death.”

The konuul frowned and wrapped his arms around him after sitting up. His grip was a bit weak, however, and he felt slightly dizzy. “Hey, c’mon, it worked didn’t it? I had things more in control than it probably looked.”

Kuna side-eyed him for a moment, then sighed and embraced him back. “I know, I know… but I can’t help it,” he replied, then noticed the cuts on his arms. “Uh, need me to patch you up?”

“Um… yeah, that’d be nice actually,” Lykou replied, wincing a bit. “I… don’t think I’ll be going anywhere anytime soon. That… took a lot out of me, to say the least. And now that the… whatever it is, is gone, I’m starting to feel…” he paused to suck air in through his teeth, tensing up a little. “...everything.”

“About that,” Elzhan chimed in. “I must say, I’ve never seen anyone do anything like the things you did. What was all of that? I’ve never seen such magic or skills.”

Kuna shot him another glare. “Shouldn’t you be faded away by now?” he snapped, arching a brow. “You know… from the magic spirit-slaying axe to the chest and all?”

“...I used powerful magic to bind myself here, and I’ve lingered here for centuries. My soul is still tangled up with the weave here,” the revenant replied flatly. His legs had largely faded away, but the rest of him was still floating there. “It’s going to be a few minutes at least before I can actually pass on. Believe me, I’m more than ready to be done with this place now that my duty is done.”

Kuna eyed him for a moment longer, then returned his attention to Lykou with a faint ‘hmph’ and started using his magic to patch up the worst of the canid’s cuts.

“To... answer your question,” Lykou chimed in. “I… really don’t know what it is. It’s just kind of something I instinctively do sometimes without thinking about it. This was the first time I’ve ever been fully conscious of it at the time, and I still couldn’t begin to explain what I was actually doing… or seeing,” he explained, then looked over at his companion. “Ku, it was amazing… I actually felt it this time, and there was more to it.”

“Obviously, given that whole… magic-punch, soul-grabby thing you did,” Kuna responded. “I was trying to sense things a bit more this time, and… I don’t know how to explain it, but I think you were somehow combining your life energy and soul energy into something else.”

“Amazing,” Elzhan commented. “You could do all that, and it was all… instinct?”

“Well yeah, but like I said, somewhat less so this time,” Lykou said, then grinned a little sheepishly. “I uh… had a special potion that helped.”

Elzhan arched a brow. “...the sage?”

Lykou nodded. “She’s also the one that gave us the potion that let us get by the other, uh… ‘guardians’ out there the first time.”

“Oh, yeah… those things won’t be a problem anymore now, right?” Kuna asked, glancing back at the revenant for a moment.

“That’s right. They’re just ordinary bodies now. Nature will… take its course.”

“I’m hoping that means any kind of burial or something isn’t necessary?” Lykou asked, his eye twitching slightly at the thought. “There were… kind of a lot of them.”

“No, their souls have long since passed on.”

Kuna glanced back towards the arch at the back of the courtyard. He frowned, noticing the gate still barring the way to it- and the way the walls had been built up around it, there was no way of climbing over it. “And, uh… what about that?” he said, pointing to it. “Gonna lower that for us while you’re still here?”

Elzhan glanced back at the arch, then shook his head. “I was bound to guard it as part of my duty here, but unfortunately I am not the one that put up that gate. Some of our mystics oversaw its construction even before my time. It should have a key stone somewhere, similar to the one at the new entrance to this place, however.”

“What??” Kuna blurted out in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Lykou frowned for a moment, then glanced over at the axe. “Hmm…”

“I know what you’re thinking,” the revenant said. “And yes, in theory that might work- but only after you’re well enough attuned to it. And given that those bars are also enchanted, it would take you a while to have that level of mastery over it. I suggest you go speak with Algrytha again, she may have some idea where the key stone resides these days.”

“I sure as fuck hope it’s not in the Wraith’s territory again,” Kuna grumbled, facepalming.

“Possible, but I doubt it. Unlike the other one, he’d have no reason to have it. It would have been taken with the surviving mystics all those years ago, among any other nominally magical items that weren’t the axe.”

“So it’s probably… in a village somewhere outside the Kryck?” Lykou asked, fidgeting a bit from the feeling of the magic being used on his wounds.

“Hey, at least it’s better than somewhere in the Kryck, especially the Wraith’s turf,” Kuna pointed out.

“Either that, or perhaps Algrytha herself somehow came to possess it, although I doubt it,” Elzhan said, then rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Of course… you did say you met a more recent ghost out there, correct?”

“Marja, yeah,” Lykou replied, perking up. “Maybe we could find her again and ask her if she knows anything about it. If nothing else, I’m sure she could give us a better idea where we could start looking.”

“It’s worth a shot,” Kuna agreed with a shrug. “I just hope she’s still… you know, herself.”

“It is unlikely that she would have changed to a great degree in such a short time,” Elzhan pointed out. “Do be careful, however. Once I am fully gone, the magic guarding these ruins against outside spirits will begin to fade as well. And I am sure that Ji-… the thing that Jingrayl has become will sense that something has changed and go investigating.”

“Oh. W-wonderful,” Kuna quipped, his eye twitching as he paused in the healing. “Just the m-monster whose attention we w-wanted.”

“Make sure to keep the axe in hand while you are out there. It cannot fall into his hands- and you can use it to protect you.”

Lykou glanced over at the axe and arched a brow. “I thought I had to be, uh… ‘attuned’ to it first?”

“For most of its powers and to truly wield it effectively, yes,” Elzhan confirmed. “But even without those powers, it is a very high quality weapon. And its latent magic qualities will still have some effect on spirits- just not as potent as they will once you are attuned.”

“That’s… good to know,” Lykou said, eyeing the weapon curiously. Prior to their fight, he hadn’t given the idea that he’d become its new owner much thought, and now he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it. From the sound of it, the thing brought trouble with it- but at the same time, he could see how it’d be a very useful tool for their journey. “Hmm…”

“Do not fear it,” Elzhan said, seemingly reading his thoughts. “The only thing you need to fear is letting it fall into the wrong hands. As long as it is in your possession, and especially once you begin to attune to it, it will be your greatest tool.”

“Yeah, um… exactly how do I do that, anyway?” Lykou asked.

“Hold it in your hands, meditate, get to know it. It’s not really something that can be explained or taught,” Elzhan responded. “You’ll get a feel for it, though.” He glanced down at the axe, then gestured to it after a moment. “You may as well start now, while you’re recovering. Go on, take it. You’ve earned it, after all.”

Lykou glanced between him and the axe, then at Kuna, who was finishing patching up the last of his most egregious wounds, almost as if asking his permission without saying anything. The sereva looked back up at him after a moment, realizing he was being stared at. “...hmm?”

“Er. Just… didn’t want to throw you off or anything,” Lykou said, then glanced back at the axe again. “And… I dunno…”

“Hey, you heard him, start getting familiar with it,” the sereva said with a shrug, then smirked faintly. “But I swear, if you start getting intimate with the damn thing-”

Lykou snorted and snickered a bit. “What, you gonna get jealous?”

Kuna immediately blushed brightly, then dismissed his magic and gave him a light, playful swat on the side. “Right, the rest can heal naturally for that comment.”

“Ouch, hey!” Lykou whined, though he couldn’t help but continue smirking as he rubbed his side. “What, you gonna just me bleed out?”

“You’re not bleeding anymore,” Kuna retorted with a small eye-roll. But after a moment, he gave in and hugged the konuul again. “Better make sure you don’t go changing that again, though.”

Lykou chuckled, then, reached over slightly awkwardly and pulled the axe over with the sereva clinging to him. “Oof… heavier than it looks.”

“It’ll become lighter once-”

“-once I’m attuned, right?” Lykou cut the revenant off, then grunted as he pulled the thing into his lap and started looking it over. “Yeah, I think I get the idea now. I just hope that doesn’t take too long. I can barely lift it right now.”

Elzhan arched a brow. “I do not understand that… ability you were using, but it seems to have left you quite drained. Your mystical energies are a bit faint. No doubt your strength is reduced compared to normal.”

Kuna nodded a bit. “Seems to happen whenever he uses it. Guess it’s just a tradeoff- a short burst of amazing abilities in exchange for a lot of weakness later. One time he straight-up fainted afterward.”

The revenant stroked his chin slightly, though his arms were looking a bit blurry by that point. “Perhaps, but if you could find someone to teach you more about this power, learning to control it more might leave you less weakened afterward.”

“Well, we’ve been told that we should find someone or something that’ll help with that at some point on our journey,” Lykou said as he ran his hand over the axe, admiring the lines and patterns on its side.

“Mm. I’d have liked to hear more about that, but,” Elzhan said, his voice starting to grow fainter as he glanced down at his fading body. “It seems my time is nearly up.”

Lykou glanced up at him, then over at the battered skeletal remains a short way away. “Should we-?”

Elzhan chuckled slightly and shrugged. “After all this time, that thing has no more importance to me than dirt you’re sitting on. Do with it what you will,” he replied, then appeared to take a deep breath and stared into the distance. “For the first time in centuries, I feel… at peace, yet truly exhausted.”

“Wonderful. I’m so happy for you,” Kuna snarked, clearly still a bit bitter. “Enjoy the afterlife or whatever.”

“Hey, c’mon Ku,” Lykou said, gently squeezing him a little.

“I broke my word to him. I would not forgive me either,” Elzhan said, bowing his head again.

Kuna glanced between the two, then sighed and squeezed the konuul back. “Whatever. Important thing is Kou’s still alive,” he said, then narrowed his eyes at the revenant. “I’ll forgive you only because you’re about to be gone anyway.” After a moment, he glanced around the courtyard, thinking about the ruins they were sitting in, and his expression softened a bit. “...I am glad you’re not stuck here anymore,” he said, then let himself smile faintly. “Go on, join your family on the other side.”

Elzhan slowly smiled back, then nodded slowly as he finished fading away. “...finally…”

Once the specter was gone, Lykou and Kuna sat in silence for a few minutes, with the sereva looking around the courtyard thoughtfully while the konuul contemplated his new magical weapon. Eventually, Kuna turned to look at it as well. “So that’s the thing that all the fuss in this area’s been about all this time, hmm?” he mused aloud. “...have to admit it does look strangely pretty, for a weapon.”

“Yeah,” Lykou agreed, running his fingers over the flat of the blade. Suddenly, his stomach rumbled and he grinned sheepishly at the sereva. “Uh… would you mind grabbing our stuff? I think it’d be good to have some lunch now.”

Kuna chuckled and got to his feet. “Sure. I imagine you must’ve built up quite the appetite,” he said, then glanced over at the gate with a sigh. “And you’ll need at least some of your energy back before we go back out there to find out how to deal with that.”

Chapter Text

“Do you think it was the weave?” Lykou asked. After he’d ravenously devoured some of his lunch and slowed down a bit, Kuna immediately started in on the questions about his experience. It was just as well- he had plenty himself. They were both ever more fascinated by the konuul’s ability now that they had new elements to add to the puzzle.

“No idea,” Kuna replied, scratching his head thoughtfully. “It certainly sounds like it could be, but that’s just a guess.”

“Maybe we should ask Zen next time we see him. Even if he doesn’t understand it, he obviously at least knows a bit about the weave in general,” the canid suggested. “Maybe he’s even seen glimpses of it. He’s got that weird… vision thing he does.”

“He admitted he doesn’t know anything about that ability of yours, but I suppose it’s worth a try,” Kuna pointed out. “For that matter, Aelana and Daisy might be able to tell us something, too, if we tell them what you experienced.”

“True. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to ask them soon,” Lykou said, then sighed and took a sip from his waterskin.

“I’m starting to think maybe one of us should contact them soon regardless. It’s been a little while,” Kuna mentioned. “Don’t want them to think we’ve forgotten about them or something.”

Lykou folded his ears down and frowned. “Yeah, I do feel bad about that…”

“Hey, I’m sure they’ll understand after they hear about everything we’ve been through these last couple of weeks,” the sereva assured him. He paused to think for a moment as he nibbled on his own lunch. “...you know, even if you were somehow seeing glimpses of the weave, that still leaves a lot else to explain. Like how the heck you were fusing two kinds of energy together, when you normally can’t even sense them, let alone manipulate them.”

“Yeah, and now that it’s passed, I’m right back to not feeling it at all. Believe me, I’ve been trying while I’m eating,” Lykou said. “That feeling was just… kind of indescribable.

Kuna smirked and arched a brow. “Pretty sure meditating and multitasking aren’t compatible. Not exactly the type of thing you do while eating or… anything else for that matter.”

“Hey, you do your magic in all kinds of chaotic situations!”

“Yeah, but that’s only because I’ve practiced with it so much and gotten so used to feeling and grasping those energies now,” Kuna pointed out, then fidgeted uncomfortably. “Plus, y’know… the whole… cracked-soul thing.”

Lykou cringed slightly and nodded. “Right, right…”

“Trust me, when you want to focus on that kind of stuff, you really have to focus,” Kuna continued. “No distractions. When Inkari first started teaching me, I had to try and completely forget the physical world even existed just to start getting a feel for it, and that’s even with my, uh… ‘advantage’.”

Lykou tensed very briefly at the name, but decided not to let himself dwell on it. “Hmm… guessing it’ll be the same for this axe, then,” he said, looking down at the weapon at his side. “Which is a shame, I was hoping I could at least start ‘attuning’ to it right away.”

“You can try, at least,” Kuna said. “I’ll make sure to keep quiet so you can focus if you want.”

“Aw, but I like chatting with you,” Lykou said with a small pout.

Kuna blushed and rolled his eyes with a small grin. “That’s very sweet, but I’m sure we’ll have plenty of other time for that.”

Lykou chuckled a bit and gave him a side-armed hug, which the sereva happily reciprocated. “Yeah, but we can’t just sit here in these ruins forever. We need to get back on our feet soon, and I’ll need to help keep an eye out for trouble while we’re hiking.”

The sereva shrugged. “I guess. I can do a pretty decent job keeping watch on my own, though.”

“Sure, but this is the Kryck we’re talking about,” Lykou reminded him. “Tell you what, I’ll at least look it over while we’re walking. Hey, if nothing else, this’ll be even better for cutting wood than that hatchet we lost.”

Kuna frowned and nodded slightly. “I still hate that we lost that thing. And that spear you had. Damn ghouls…”

“Well, no sense dwelling on the past,” Lykou said with a shrug, then rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment. “...you know, if you want a weapon to hold onto, just in case, you can have my knife while we’re hiking.”

“Nah, I’m not great with knives at the best of times,” Kuna said with a slightly awkward smile. “Besides, I think I’ll hang into this stick for a while. I can swat things off with it in a pinch, and otherwise I stick to my magic for that kind of thing anymore anyway.”

“Fair. Sure is a nice one,” Lykou said, looking over the walking stick. It may not have been carved in any way, but the way it’d been shaped definitely more than made up for it. The curved top above the hand-hold almost looked decorative. “Was pretty nice of Algrytha to, uh… I assume grow it for you.”

“Probably,” Kuna agreed. “You know, it’s funny, if I didn’t know any better, I could swear I could still feel faint life energy flowing through it.”

“Maybe there is?” Lykou suggested. “She’s some kind of powerful Sylthean… witch or whatever, and she surrounds herself with weird growy stuff. For all we know it’s still a living plant of some kind.”

Kuna arched a brow and looked over the walking stick. “...yeah I dunno how I feel about that. It’s possible, but if it is, the energy’s so faint I can’t even be sure I’m feeling it. No leaves on it or anything either.”

“Well, that’s one more thing we should ask her about when we see her again,” Lykou said.

“Yeah,” Kuna agreed, then looked up at the sky. All the cloud-cover always made it tricky to figure just how late in the day it was, but he got the impression it was a little past noon. “And on that note, like you said, we should probably get going soon. Unless you want to stay in Algrytha’s home another night before we set out for wherever we have to go next, assuming she doesn’t have the stone.”

“I’d rather not. For one thing, I feel like we’ve already relied on her hospitality and kindness an awful lot,” Lykou said, then finished the last bite of salted, preserved fish. “And for another, if she doesn’t have it herself, the sooner we head out to find it, the better.”

“Yeah… and honestly I’m kind of suspicious now,” the sereva pointed out, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Why did she leave out the bit about her being the sage that helped Elzhan? Why’d she make it seem like she wasn’t part of the very story she told us?”

“That… is pretty strange,” Lykou admitted, then grunted as he slowly got to his feet. “I have to wonder what else we don’t know…”

“My thoughts exactly,” Kuna agreed, helping him up. “You sure you’re alright to go? We can rest up a little longer if we need to.” He glanced around briefly. “And honestly, as… unpleasant as it is, this area might be one of the safest places to set up camp for the night now, if we had to.”

Lykou arched a brow and looked around. “I’d rather not. I guess it’s worth keeping in mind, but for now I’ll be fine,” he replied, then bent down and started gathering his things up. He let out another brief grunt as he hefted the axe up last and turned it over in his hands a few times. “...yeah, even without the magic, I can see this thing being useful.”

*****

Away from the ruins in her own corner of the Kryck, Algrytha was shuffling around her garden, tending to its various occupants while mumbling and humming to herself. Her cheerful humming and occasional not-quite-singing were at odds with the rather morbid task of feeding stray squirrel carcasses she’d somehow obtained to the toothed flora that Lykou and Kuna were all too familiar with. When she came across the remains of the ones Lykou had ended up cutting down, she shrugged it off and cleaned them up without much thought. When one of the remaining ones hissed at her faintly, she shooed it away dismissively. “Don’t try ta bite off more than ya can chew, then,” she idly chided. “That way ya don’t end up like yer buddies here.”

She finished gathering up the remnants and looked them over for a moment, before musing to herself, “Hmm. I suppose I may as well hang onto these in case them boys come back again. I’m sure they’ll appreciate a good stew after another rough day in the ol’ village.” She paused to chuckle to herself, then absent-mindedly nudged one of the plants with her elbow. “Assumin’ they escape again. Can ya believe they really went back a third time? Wonder if that potion paid off. Wouldn’t that be somethin’? After all these years bein’ stuck-”

Suddenly a large shadow passed over her, and she paused to look just in time to see a large avian visitor perched on her wall, sporting curled horns on its head. She arched a brow and turned to face it fully with her arms crossed after it made an eerie, hollow-sounding hooting noise. “What? Can’tcha see I’m busy? I thought you were s’posed ta be sleepin’ anyway.”

Suddenly an enormous slug-like creature with an equally large maw and two rows of eyes began crawling its way around the corner, dragging itself forward with a pair of broad, webbed claws. When it spotted her, it paused and let out a low groaning, reverberating sound.

Algrytha narrowed her eyes and glanced back and forth between the two visitors. Before she could say anything, a multi-limbed, wormlike monstrosity suddenly burrowed out of the ground right next to her, sporting multiple mouths and jagged claws on the end of each of its dozen or so arms. She nudged it out of her personal space, then looked around at the creatures that’d gathered around her, as well as a few more that started arriving, either climbing over the walls, burrowing up from the ground, or landing from up in the air. Some loud noise signaled the arrival of something that was no doubt making an aggravating mess of her garden elsewhere, and a few moments later, a certain blood-thirsty arboreal menace arrived, peering over one of the walls at her.

She narrowed her eyes. “...right. One’s curious, two’s strange, three’s a mess, more’s a Change. What’s happenin’?”

A creature resembling a cross between a humming bird and an oversized dragonfly, with a scorpion-like tail flew up and landed roughly where her shoulder should be, then leaned in and made a faint whistling sound in the approximate area of where her ears should be. She listened carefully, her eyes gradually widening in the process. Then she slowly grinned. “Well, how d’ya like that. Someone finally went ‘n’ did it.” She turned to look at the creature perched on her. “I take it since yer all here, they’re headin’ this way, yeah?”

One of the creatures warbled at her.

“Good. Wouldn’t want ta have ta send you lot out ta… convince ‘em,” she said, cackling briefly. “Well, guess I better start gettin’ ready. No doubt that other old fool’s runnin’ out ta meet ‘em. About time. I been waitin’ on this harvest way too damn long.”

She looked around her garden, at the various terrors that now lurked around it, watching her intently. “Right. You know what this means,” she said, then pointed at a vaguely bipedal creature seemingly made of twisted, rotten wood covered in vines and large eyes. “You. With me to my house.” She looked around at the others, then waved them off. “Rest of ya know what ta do. Make sure they succeed. Remember, the boy with the axe has ta finish Jingrayl. The rest’a the pests are fair game.” She paused and thought for a moment, then rolled her eyes. “’n’ I s’pose ya may as well keep the other one alive, too. Used some good ingredients to keep ‘im breathin’, no use lettin’ ‘em go ta waste.”

“Yeah, after sendin’ that sorcerous shit-muncher to rob us!” a certain nasty little imp cried out, nudging its way to the front of the gathered monsters. “Ya coulda just asked us directly!”

“I didn’t feel like walkin’ out there. ‘sides, you were gettin’ too cozy without visitors, so I figured I’d send ya one. Made fer a fun story,” Algryth retorted, then snickered. She looked back around at all the others, then cracked her knuckles. “Now go on, git. Run amuck, ‘n’ have fun with it! Let that fool know he was never as in control as he thought,” she shooed them off, then trudged towards her house with a dark grin. “Time at last fer ol’ Dark Aggy ta pull up ‘er roots again.”

*****

“I wonder if it’ll help if I try cutting some wood with it,” Lykou mused aloud as he and Kuna trudged through the woods.

The sereva just rolled his eyes a bit and smirked faintly. “Still not quite grasping this whole ‘meditation’ thing are you?”

“Hey, it’s just not something I used to,” the konuul replied faux-defensively. “Not my fault I don’t have proper ‘mystical training’ like you do.”

“What, you want Ink to train you now too?” Kuna teased.

The canid bristled and frowned at the comment. “Only if I can use her for chopping practice.”

Kuna snorted and snickered a bit in response. “Doesn’t sound like a very ‘honorable warrior’ response, you know.”

“Don’t care,” the konuul grumbled. “Maybe I can ‘convince’ her to take us home with this thing.”

“Easy, Kou,” Kuna replied, a little concerned about the sudden tone shift. “I get it, believe me. What she’s put us through… well, I have no words for it. But uh,” he said, then gestured to the axe. “That thing’s sensitive to your attitude, remember? Don’t want to get obsessed with revenge or something.”

Lykou looked sidelong at the sereva, then sighed. “...I know. I won’t. Just...”

Kuna gently wrapped an arm around him. “Yeah, I know.”

“I hate her so much, Ku,” the canid said after a minute, returning the side-hug. “I know there’s supposedly some… ‘greater good’ angle to it and I don’t regret helping the people we’ve come across, but it’s just… not fair, you know?”

“It isn’t. You know I’m completely with you there,” Kuna agreed. “Just… try not to let your resentment overwhelm you.” He gave the konuul a gentle squeeze. “You’re a sweet guy. I’d hate to see you eaten up by negative thoughts.” He smirked. “Leave that shit to me. I’m the experienced expert, afterall,” he joked with a wink.

Lykou smiled faintly. “...hey, you can’t hog it all the time,” he retorted, then chuckled. “But point taken. It’s probably better if we both try to stay positive.”

The conversation fell into a lull as they continued onward. But it was a comfortable enough silence, as Lykou looked over the axe while Kuna kept an eye out for trouble, both physically and mystically. Soon, however, they both started to feel uneasy. The air started to turn chillier, despite the breeze coming to a complete standstill. And whereas they’d previously been startled by the odd dark squirrel darting among the trees or creaking branches overhead, there suddenly wasn’t a sign of movement anywhere as far as the eye could see. The odd plants of the Kryck seemed to be actively wilting as they passed by.

Suddenly, they came to a stop when they noticed something floating down from the sky. At first they thought it might be snow- which was odd. It was chilly, but not nearly cold enough for that. Then Kuna reached out to collect some in his hand, and then immediately tensed up when it didn’t melt. “...ash,” he said in a hushed tone, clearly frightened.

They shared a knowing look, then Lykou tightened the grip on his axe. “Fuck.”

“Y-yeah,” the sereva agreed.

They noticed that the fog in the distance, so common in Kryckwood, had grown denser and darker. The sky overhead was growing darker as well. Lykou gulped. “...get that crystal from Whironui out. I… think we’re going to need it.”

Kuna nodded and nervously dug into his bag to pull his beacon of light out. “Shouldn’t you do the s-same?”

Lykou thought for a moment, then shook his head. “I… think I should keep both hands on the axe,” he said, then looked over at the sereva and took a deep breath. “If… if you-know-who shows up, just keep shining it at him. I’ll try using this thing on him whenever he gets too close, and take out any ghouls that get too close, too.”

The sereva nodded again, then gulped. “Are… are you sure you have enough energy for that?”

Lykou looked around warily. “...much as I hate to admit it, let’s just say we should keep trying to get to Algrytha’s as soon as possible,” he pointed out as he resumed walking, with the sereva joining him. “I’d love to take that bastard out, but as it is, I think a couple ghouls alone are going to be a challenge. This is gonna be all about just surviving...”

“R-right… don’t forget to use y-your bracers if it comes to it,” Kuna pointed out nervously.

Lykou thought for a moment and shrugged. “I… guess,” he said, then glanced over at his companion briefly. “I don’t know if I can even do it again right now, but I think those things interfere with my… whatever that power of mine is.”

“Really?” Kuna asked, arching a brow. “So that’s why you undid them in that fight?”

The konuul nodded. “Seems to, uh… block something.”

Kuna thought for a moment, and was about to respond, but the words died in his throat when he noticed everything suddenly and rapidly darkening around them. His eyes widened and he started to shake as he recognized the unforgettable greyscale effect starting to rapidly cover the world around them. “...f-fuck, I think he’s coming…”

Lykou quickly nodded. “B-brace yourself-”

Suddenly, they stopped again when they felt a presence approaching them. As the shadows surrounded them, a familiar pair of enormous, glowing eyes lit up in the darkness, following by a matching sneer. “Well well well, if it isn’t the two little-” the familiar monstrous voice began, then abruptly stopped as the eyes fell on the axe. They widened in disbelief and the face drifted uncomfortably close. “WHAT?!”

Kuna, initially paralyzed by terror, snapped out of it and clenched his eyes shut as he gripped the crystal in his hand tightly and raised it up, trying to focus on the mental image of the sun high in the sky. It immediately lit up, causing the Wraith to recoil and hiss at the light.

“DAMN your little trinket!” the ghastly entity snapped, backing away. It then glared down at Lykou. “How… HOW did you get that?!”

“N-none of your damn business!” Lykou retorted. “Back off or I’ll start practicing on your ass with it!”

The Wraith hissed some more and narrowed its eyes. “In all these centuries, none of have defeated Elzhan. How have you succeeded where all others fell??”

“Like I said, n-none of your damn-”

“Wait,” Kuna suddenly interjected, his fear momentarily interrupted by confusion. “How… how do you know that name?”

Lykou shot him a sidelong confused expression, but then it slowly dawned on him. “...wait, yeah… I… thought you lost your memories?”

Jingrayl rolled his eyes slightly. “I may have shed the pitiful trappings of the natural order, but there’s no reason to shed my memories. What gave you such a stupid idea?”

Lykou and Kuna shared a bewildered look. “...you… remember everything?”

“W-we thought that w-was part of becoming a w-w-wraith?”

“No, that’s the fate of a lesser wretch, like… well, them,” the Wraith retorted, gesturing with a large shadowy claw behind them.

Lykou and Kuna spun around and stumbled over backwards as they spotted a cluster of ghouls slowly stalking up to them.

“Only those with a strong enough will and ambition can successfully align with the forces of chaos,” Jingrayl continued, hovering over them menacingly. He immediately winced and backed off again when the sereva shined the crystal up at him again. “Damn you!” he cried out swiping at the air in front of him for a moment. “Ugh… yes, my memories are just fine, thank you. In fact, I remember more than you’ll ever know! You think I’m some mindless fool like them?? Where did you get such foolish ideas?”

“Uh… Al… Algrytha?” Lykou hazarded, looking confused. “I’m… starting to guess she may not have b-”

“WHAT?!” the Wraith blurted out, enraged. “THAT wretch?! Of course… I might’ve known she’d have a hand in all this!” He narrowed his eyes and glared at the axe for a moment. “Let me guess, she helped you get your hands on that thing somehow too, didn’t she?”

“Uh… y-yes?”

Kuna winced and nudged the konuul, then shook his head subtly.

“Er, I mean…”

“You fools, you’re playing right into her hands!” Jingrayl snapped. “She’s a manipulator, a schemer… she never helps anyone unless it works for her own goals!” He snarled. “No matter… with the axe, I’ll finally be able to deal with her once and for all! Give it here and I’ll make your end quick!” He grinned. “Who knows? You were strong enough to beat that self-righteous idiot back there, you might just have what it takes to join me and rule over-”

“Yeah, no,” Lykou interrupted, lifting the axe threateningly in both hands. “Not happening.”

“Why you little-!” the wraith angrily growled, lunging at him. But then he winced and recoiled with a growl yet again as Kuna raised the shining crystal towards right in his face. “I… will not… fail… AGAIN!” he snarled, then surged forward through the light as it visibly boiled away at his shadowy form, smacking the sereva aside.

Kuna yelped as he was knocked to the ground, scrabbling to grab the crystal as it fell a few feet away and lost its light.

“KU!” Lykou called out, then turned to the Wraith just in time to block his claws with the axe. His eyes burned with hatred and rage. “...don’t… you dare… lay your FUCKING claws on him!” Suddenly, he felt an intense burning sensation boil up from inside him. The axe briefly shimmered with a red glow along the edge of its blade as he hauled back and swung it with a primal fury, immediately severing a few fingers from the Wraith’s hand.

Yet again, Jingrayl drew back, even further this time, and let out a loud half hiss, half snarl of anger, and pain. “You’ll pay for that!” he snapped, then lunged forward and clawed at the konuul again, his claws sparking against the axe. “GET THEM!”

The ghouls suddenly lunged forward towards Lykou and Kuna. Luckily, Kuna had recovered from being knocked down and raised the crystal with new light. The ghouls stumbled and fell over one another as they winced and hissed against the glow, clawing at the air at their attempt to get past it. Still, despite the protective light, they kept getting dangerously close as they surrounded the two.

Lykou did his best to chop off any clawed limbs that got too close, but between the ghouls and the aggressive, determined Wraith lashing out at them, it wasn’t looking good. Try as he might, despite his burning desire to protect not only himself, but also his dear friend, he was still drained from his fight with Elzhan. He and Kuna pressed themselves together and did their best to keep the encroaching undead at bay. As much as they tried to reassure one another, they couldn’t deny that the situation looked dire, as the ghouls and the Wraith managed to keep getting closer with every swipe of their claws, despite the divine light and Lykou’s vicious swipes with the axe.

Suddenly, it all changed when… something huge barreled out of the woods and chomped down on two of the ghouls at once, then swallowed them up whole. A moment later, an enormous owl-like creature with horns swooped down from the darkened sky and began mauling another ghoul. A fourth ghoul was tossed up into the air as an enormous worm-like creature burst out of the ground underneath it, then snatched it out of the air and began tearing it apart with its numerous clawed limbs as it thrashed and struggled in its clutches.

Lykou and Kuna gawked at the bizarre sight of arguably even more nightmarish-looking monsters than the undead they were facing began showing up and ripping their enemies apart for them. Some of them turned to lash out at the Wraith as well, managing to slowly drive him back even as he repeatedly eviscerated them with his own massive claws. Lykou raised his axe to cut down a ghoul that was charging at them, only for an all-too-familiar kind of tree monster to barrel out of nowhere and snatch the walking corpse up in its clutches, then begin devouring it with an ferocious hunger.

“What the…??” Lykou said, watching the scene unfold around them with confusion.

Kuna’s eye twitched. “I… I’ll s-second that…”

Jingrayl looked around in angry disbelief, then snarled. “So the old forest has gotten uppity, huh?” he shouted in the distance, then slashed his claws through the air, immediately leaving huge, glowing-orange gashes in several of the monsters that had arrived, killing them on the spot. “Need I remind you who’s in charge of this forest?!”

The gathered monsters shied away from the shadowy menace a bit, but continued their war on the ghouls that were clawing their way through the forest in ever-growing numbers. Deranged ghosts began flooding in and squabbling over the bodies of the fallen monsters, making them jerk around awkwardly as they began to rise up from the ground. Lykou and Kuna continued to watch in stunned silence for a moment. Then a weird, disturbing bug landed on the konuul, making him yelp and thrash in a mild panic- until it started speaking to him in an airy, high-pitched voice. “Slay the abomination, free the wood… slay the abomination… free the wood!”

His jaw hung open for a moment, until the strange creature took off and started floating away again on its many wings, staring at him and continuing to repeat the phrase as it left. “Slay... the abomination… free… the wood….!”

Kuna looked around at the chaos surrounding them as he hovered close to the canid. “...could s-stand to be m-more specific there…”

“Pretty sure it means the Wraith,” Lykou replied, then swung the axe at a shambling mess of undead flesh that’d started getting a little too close.

“Well yeah,” Kuna agreed, then eyed the looming shadowy menace that was busy swatting off a dozen or so giant insectoid nightmares. “But… even ignoring the f-fact that you’re not attuned to that thing y-yet, there’s n-no way you can safely get close e-enough to use it!”

“...yeah, doesn’t look like it,” Lykou said after a minute. “He’s way too dangerous even on his own, and even if these… things look like they’re on our side right now, we can’t be sure about that and I don’t want to find out otherwise the hard way.”

Kuna nodded, shivering nervously as he continued shining the glowing crystal towards anything that got too close. Much to his chagrin, the non-undead monsters didn’t seem particularly bothered by it. Fortunately, even if some occasionally got too close for comfort, they didn’t seem interested in either of the boys. “M-maybe we should use this a-as a chance to get away…”

Lykou frowned and shot a glare over at the raging Wraith for a moment, then sighed. “...as much as I wish we could end that guy once and for all… yeah, we probably should.” He looked around until he found what looked like the safest path away, then gestured towards it with his head and started leading the way. “C’mon, I’ll lead, you cover us from behind.”

“S-sure… the quicker the-” Kuna began to reply, then yelped and instinctively smacked a crawling half-torso that snuck up on them and grabbed his ankle with his walking stick. Its grip loosened, but didn’t release him until Lykou’s axe finished the ghoul off a moment later. “-better.”

They slowly started making their away from the fray. Most of the slavering, blood-thirsty ghouls were held off by the glowing crystal or threatening swings of the axe. One particularly persistent one, however, managed to get closer and lash out at the canid. Fortunately, the claws caught the armored part of his shirt, and he immediately retaliated with the axe. For a brief moment, he thought he caught a glimpse of a faint shimmer along the edge of the blade before it made impact. The strike ended up cutting straight through the ghoul’s torso, slicing it in half. At the same instant, he saw the ghost reeling as it immediately left the bisected body. Its own torso seemed to have a fresh gash in it as well. For a brief moment, the two stared at one another. The wild, deranged look in the ghost’s eyes suddenly started fading into confusion, then recognition, as the rest of its body began disappearing as well. Just before it vanished completely, Lykou thought he saw a hint of a tear form in the ghostly stranger’s eye, accompanied by a faint hint of a smile.

Kuna was too busy watching their backs to notice much about the encounter, as a few others were stalking behind them intently, yet unable to bring themselves to get any closer to the light. But eventually the prolonged stop made him start to worry, so he looked to see what the hold up was. All he saw was two halves of a corpse laying on the ground in front of Lykou, which made him wretch slightly. He turned to look up at Lykou after recomposing himself, noting the thoughtful expression on his friend’s face. “Uh… Kou? W-why are we still stopped?”

“...the axe can… free them,” Lykou murmured, looking over the weapon in his hands. After a moment, he turned to looked back at the sereva. “After… after I cut that one down, it… the ghost, it… they kind of looked normal right before they disappeared. I… I think I sent it to the afterlife or something.”

Kuna blinked a few times, then widened his eyes. “Well that’s c-certainly… good to know. Elzhan did s-say it had some abilities even w-without being attuned.”

“You know what this means, don’t you?” Lykou asked, looking around at the various dead things waging a battle with the most unnerving creatures he’d ever seen, aside from some of the denizens of T’nari’s realm. “I… I could free them, even without taking out the Wraith.”

The sereva eyed the battle nervously, then yelped and swatted away another approaching ghoul with his stick before holding the crystal up in front of him like a shield. Lykou whirled around and dispatched it a moment later, causing its ghost to momentarily come to its senses before fading away as well. Kuna had to admit he could see where the konuul was coming from. But still, that was a tall order. “W-well… yeah, I guess. But… there’s s-so many, and-”

“I have to at least try. At least for some of them,” Lykou said, tightening his grip on the axe. “If nothing else, maybe we can find Marja again and keep her from becoming one of these things.”

Kuna frowned. “I… guess? But- gah!” he started, then ducked as a severed limb from one of the grotesque monsters battling the ghouls went flying past, narrowly missing his head. “-that’s assuming w-we can even find her. And it f-feels wrong to help her by a-attacking her, especially if she’s s-still, y’know, s-sane.”

“Well, it’s bet-”

“I’ll fucking take it,” a slightly familiar voice interrupted, startling them. They both looked over to see a certain ghost they’d seen before starting to manifest in the air a few yards away. She was looking around with a bewildered and mildly frightened expression. “If it gets me out of all this shit, by all means bury that thing in my damn face if you have to.” She turned to face them with wide eyes. “But damn, you actually went and did it. I’d say congrats, but it looks like it unleashed a whole new hell on this place, somehow.”

“Yeah, it’s… kind of a complicated story and we’re not even sure what the truth is anymore,” Lykou explained, then quickly fended off another ghoul as it tried to tackle him. Marja watched its ghost fade away with a mixture of apprehension and strange desire.

“Wow… that thing really works,” the ghost mused. “Guess the legends were true after all.” She looked over at the rampaging Wraith as he slaughtered monster after monster. Somehow, there seemed to be no end to either the undead or the nightmare-beasts. “You, uh… gonna try to take him out? Looks like the forest is trying to help you, somehow.”

“Are you kidding??” Kuna retorted, staring wide-eyed at the Wraith. “L-look what he’s capable of! We couldn’t even get close w-without risking what these… c-creatures are getting done to them!”

“Well, I mean… if you beat the revenant, you must be pretty damn good,” Marja pointed out. “Certainly better than a bunch of wild animals, even Kryckwood ones.”

“I uh… m-may have had some help from a potion that’s since worn off,” Lykou replied with a sheepish grin.

“Oh? Potion, huh? From the witch?” the ghost asked curiously. “What kind?”

“It helped him use some w-weird power he’s got that he n-normally only sometimes uses instinctively and otherwise can’t r-really control,” Kuna explained. “It’s… pretty a-amazing when he does it.”

“Yeah, it was the first time I was actually conscious of using it,” Lykou said, then ducked as a flying monstrosity zipped past. “Wish I had another one of those potions, but I used it all for that fight. Still kind of worn out from it, too.”

“Damn, that sucks,” Marja said, then shivered as another monster stumbled through her. “Hey watch it, dumbass! Eugh,” she complained, then rubbed her arms a bit. “You’d think I’d be used to these things by now…”

“The f-fact that you aren’t is probably a good s-sign,” Kuna said.

“True, true,” Marja agreed. “So you don’t have any other potions that might help?”

“Not real- WAIT!” Lykou blurted out, then turned to his companion. “Ku! The draught of the dead stuff! It might trick them!”

Kuna arched a brow. “I dunno, I-I think that only w-worked because of the s-specific magic Elzhan used on those corpses…”

“Hey, it’s worth a shot,” Lykou said. “Think you can dig them out real quick?”

The sereva looked around nervously. “Uhh… I w-won’t be able to hold the crystal up then,” he warned.

“Don’t worry, I can fight off anything that gets too close,” Lykou assured him, then looked over at the friendly ghost again and arched a brow. “Actually… kind of surprised it isn’t bothering you.”

Marja eyed the glowing gem for a moment, then shrugged. “It definitely gives me kind of a weird feeling, but I guess I’m still ‘normal’ enough that it doesn’t hurt. What is it, exactly?”

“A gift from a god,” Lykou answered nonchalantly with a grin. “No biggie.”

The ghost blinked a few times and stared at him in disbelief. “...man, you two are really something else.”

Kuna sighed and knelt down to dig around in his bag. The lowered light led to one opportunistic ghoul charging at them, but Lykou quickly disposed of it by beheading it with a quick swipe of his axe.

“So… what’s this other potion do, anyway?” Marja asked. “’draught of the dead’ is kind of a weird name.”

“Well, it kinda makes us look sickly and stuff, and apparently it can trick certain things into treating us like we’re dead, too,” Lykou explained, then grunted as he fought off another shambling corpse. “We used it to get past the undead things outside the ruins the first time, but they were apparently just moved around by magic, not ghosts.”

“Huh… wouldn’t have thought of that,” she said, rubbing her chin. Suddenly she spotted something out of the corner of her eye and became enraged. “HEY! That’s fucking MINE!”

Lykou looked over and suddenly saw a fresher, more familiar looking corpse shambling awkwardly towards them. Marja swooped over and started trying to tug the ghost animating her old body out. The ghost inside was clearly fighting back, struggling to hold onto its find while also trying to reach Lykou to sate its insatiable hunger on his flesh. “Get OUT! That doesn’t -ngh- belong to you, asshole!”

The sight was both disturbing and, much to Lykou’s surprise, mildly amusing in a twisted sort of way. “Hang on, Marja. Let him get closer and I’ll knock him out for ya.”

The friendly ghost reluctantly pulled back after a moment, giving him a nervous look. “Ugh, just… try to make it, I dunno, clean, alright?”

Lykou shot her a dubious look, then shrugged and waited for the clumsy new zombie to approach. When it was within reach, he swiftly planted the axe squarely in the body’s lower torso. The ghost inside immediately evacuated the corpse and stumbled around before seeming to come to its senses. They looked down at the body they’d just left as they began to fade away, then over at Marja as the crazy look started leaving their eyes.

“I… th-that was… oh,” the new specter said faintly. “...s-sorry, I didn’t-”

Marja rolled her eyes a bit and shrugged. “Whatever,” she replied as the other ghost finished disappearing.

“H-here they are,” Kuna announced as he stood back up and passed one of the vials to Lykou. “Y-you sure this is a good idea?”

“Like I said, it’s worth a shot,” the konuul announced as he took the vial and opened it, then tipped the contents into his mouth. Kuna followed suit after him and they both waited. After a moment, the changes began to take effect, and they both shuddered slightly at the odd feeling.

Marja stared at them with a strange expression. “I… you-… what’s with-” she stammered, then rubbed her eyes and tilted her head at them. “...oh fuck ME that’s weird.”

“Heh, it feels weird,” Lykou said. “Definitely not something I would want to have to use often.”

“I dunno, it feels kind of… weirdly relaxing, in a way,” Kuna said, his jitters fading notably as the potion took effect. “You don’t feel as… well, anything, as you normally do.”

“And it’s really messing with my head trying to look at you two right now,” Marja said, rubbing her head as she continued to give them a weird look. “I can see why it’s useful for you guys.”

The three of them looked around and noticed the ghouls suddenly seemed to lose interest in them, other than one or two close ones, that stopped their approach and were instead shuffling around, eyeing them suspiciously.

“Hey, I think it’s working!” Lykou said with a grin.

“No shit,” Marja retorted. “I still have my wits and even I don’t know what to make of you two right now.” She shook her head after a moment, trying to shake off the weird feeling. “So, uh… you going to try to take out the big guy now?”

“...that still seems too dangerous,” Kuna said, shooting Lykou a nervous look.

Lykou glanced back and forth between him and the Wraith. “...I dunno, he has a point,” he replied to the ghost. “But I can at least try and free as many souls as I can before we leave.” He turned back to the ghost and gestured with the axe. “Uh… starting with you, if you want.”

Marja eyed the axe, then her body, then the Wraith in the distance. “...yeah, but… tell you what,” she said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “What if I… helped you two first?”

Kuna gave her a surprised look. “Huh? Really? How?”

“Welllll…” Marja began, then trailed off for a moment as she tried to think it through. “...eh, I guess I could help distract him or something? Most of the mindless ghouls around here treat him like some kind of god or something, so he’d probably be pretty thrown off by one attacking him.”

“Uhh, you mean…” Lykou said, glancing down at her body briefly, then back up at her. “You… sure that’s a good idea?”

“Hey, I want to keep any other-” she began, then stopped to snag another ghost that suddenly barreled past her to try and grab her body. “ASSSHOLES from taking -ngh- my body for a walk! Get away from that, you!”

Lykou hefted the axe and stepped forward. “Let ‘em go, I got it.”

After a brief hesitation, Marja released the thrashing, gibbering ghost’s hand, letting it surge towards the body. Just as it was almost within reach, Lykou swung the axe straight through it, leaving a glowing trail temporarily in its head. The struck specter stumbled around in confusion, then started to fade away as it came to its senses.

“Thanks,” Marja said.

“No problem,” the konuul responded. “But are you sure it’s a good idea to uh… do that? Might start to lose it a bit yourself once you… go back in there.”

“That’s basically how hungry ghosts get started, isn’t it?” Kuna pointed out.

Marja eyed the corpse uncomfortably. “...I’m definitely not thrilled with the idea, but if it’ll help give you two an edge that you could use to kick that bastard’s ass, it’s worth it.” She shrugged. “And hey, if I do start to go all crazy with it, just do your thing like you were planning to eventually anyway. Win-win.”

“I… guess,” Lykou said. “Ku’s right though, the idea of using this on someone as nice as you feels weird, to say the least.”

“Heh… ‘nice’, that’s… not a word I’ve heard said about me much,” Marja said, then looked around. “Although I guess if you’re just comparing me to the locals…”

“Well you certainly seem nice. It’s a shame we couldn’t meet when you were alive,” Lykou said, frowning.

She shrugged. “Trust me, I wasn’t this sociable then. I was a prickly loser with trust issues. Being dead was honestly kind of a relief until I found out I was stuck here like this.”

Kuna couldn’t help but smirk faintly, even under the effects of the potion. “Gee, that sounds familiar,” he remarked, then nudged the konuul lightly. “Ever met anyone like that?”

Lykou smirked back at him. “...once upon a time, maybe. Not a loser, though.”

“Oh come on, I didn’t even know how to start a fire,” the sereva said, then chuckled slightly as he turned back to Marja. “Trust me, this fluffball has a way of bringing the best out in people.”

“Well this is all lovely and whatnot,” Marja retorted as a dozen smaller ten-legged monstrosities suddenly stampeded between them, briefly startling Lykou and Kuna and causing them to stumble backwards. “But in case you forgot, we’re still in the middle of a battlefield of nightmares.”

“R-right,” Kuna said, grabbing his walking stick to steady himself. The whole situation was beyond surreal- he had to keep reminding himself it wasn’t just some wild dream threatening to turn into a nightmare at any moment. “Good point.”

“At least nothing’s paying us much attention now,” Lykou pointed out. He then looked over at the Wraith and narrowed his eyes. “...alright, I say we do it. You two keep him distracted while I try to take him out.”

The sereva sighed and glanced between his companion and their ghost-friend for a moment. “...well, at least if we fail, we’ll die together.”

Marja couldn’t help but grin a bit. “I like your optimism.” She then looked down at her body and stepped closer to it with a more uncertain expression. “W-well… here goes.” She nervously knelt down and started to fade from sight. A few moments later, the body started to twitch and move around eerily, then finally sat up, with Lykou and Kuna watching uncertainly.

Finally, the eyes shot open and the corpse let out a long, raspy croaking sound, then it shuddered and made a very awkward expression. “Fffuuuuccck me thish feelsh… weird,” she managed to say with what was clearly some strange combination of her ethereal, ghostly voice and a very rough, forced earthly voice from trying (and mostly failing) to make her body talk like normal. Even if her body was comparably in much better shape than most of the others around, certain things clearly weren’t functioning the same even with her spirit trying to forcibly animate it. Somewhat clumsily, she tried to get to her feet, wavering around a bit as she did so. She shot the boys a look. “I… cantshee ‘ow othersh puh up with thith.”

“Probably takes… practice?” Kuna suggested uncomfortably. “Can you, uh… walk?”

Marja looked around a bit and tried taking a few experimental steps. At first, she nearly fell over. But after a few moments, she seemed to more or less get the hang of it, though it was clearly still awkward. “I… thinnnk ahm goob. Goob. Nngh... GOOD,” she groaned, then pointed towards the middle of the fray. “Letsh go!”

Lykou nodded and checked on Kuna. “Ready?”

“No, but let’s go anyway,” the sereva replied, taking a deep breath to steel himself. He did at least appreciate that the potion was muting his fears a bit. He looked down at the crystal in his hand for a moment, then tucked it away. When his companion gave him a questioning look, he shrugged. “No need to draw attention before we’re close, you know? Will throw him off more if I pull it out suddenly right in front of him.”

Lykou nodded. “Good idea. Let’s try to blend in as much as we can, as long as we can,” he said, then looked down at the axe for a moment. “...can’t exactly hide this much, though.”

Kuna thought for a moment, then knelt down to dig through his bag again. “Hang on, got an idea,” he said. After a rummaging through his things, he pulled out and unrolled his beat up old makeshift poncho. “Use this to cover it up. S’fine if you tear it a bit.”

The canid looked it over for a moment, then slipped it on awkwardly. It did tear a little bit, but, more importantly, it was long enough to conceal the axe as long as he held it the right way. “Good thinking,” he said, then nodded towards the Wraith. Marja was already a good bit ahead of them, but at her slow pace, they’d overtake her in no time, so it was probably good that she’d gotten a long head start. “Right… let’s do this.”

Both of them started shuffling forward, doing their best to take slow, steady steps and avoid drawing attention as they stalked through the bizarre battlefield of monsters fighting monsters. Kuna dragged his walking stick at first, but then lifted it off the ground a bit in an effort to make less attention-grabbing sound. A few of the hideous monsters fighting the ghouls paused to stare them down, making them nervous. Fortunately, the other actual ghouls were still keeping them occupied, so they ended up ignoring them. It was a slow and nerve-wracking walk, and got even more harrowing as they approached the center of the chaos.

When they got close enough, Marja looked over at Lykou and gestured awkwardly to get his attention. When she had it, she nodded at him, then over to one side of the embattled wraith, then to the other. Lykou nodded in response and started slipping around to the one side while she moved over to the other, while Kuna braced himself and prepared to jump in at a moment’s notice.

The sereva watched nervously as the other two carefully moved around under the thrashing claws of their enemy, who was too distracted by relentless monstrosities assaulting from all directions. It occurred to him that it almost looked like the forest beasts themselves were also simply trying to keep him distracted, though it was hard to be sure. He could only imagine how terrifying some of them would be to end up on the wrong side of, given how some of them didn’t even seem to die right away from what at least looked like horrifyingly lethal wounds. Some started visibly regenerating lost limbs after a few moments. The claws, teeth, stingers, and other strange appendages were also as nightmare-inducing as they were numerous. Any more mundane foe would have been no match for even one or two of the things, but the Wraith’s claws, frequently brimming with red-orange energy whenever it struck one of them, were the nastiest of all.

Finally, when she was close enough and in position, Marja suddenly, if clumsily, charged at him. Much to her chagrin, she didn’t contact anything very solid when she tried to bite and awkwardly claw at the Wraith’s shadowy body. It wasn’t quite nothing, but it was like trying to bite onto an especially dense, almost liquid fog. Still, it got his attention.

Jingrayl looked down with a confused expression at the unusually-fresh zombie flailing around fecklessly at his lower body. “What the…?” he said, swatting away one of the wretched wood monsters absent-mindedly as it started charging at him. He then plucked her up in one of his clawed hands to look her over. “Are you just dumber than the others, or what?”

Then, Lykou struck. He leaped at the Wraith’s turned back and swung the axe with all his might. Unlike Marja’s attack, this one had a more solid impact- like a hot knife through butter. The immediately dropped the zombie girl and roared in a mixture of pain in anger as a deep red line appeared down his back. He immediately spun around to face the konuul with a hateful glare. “YOU LITTLE-!” he shouted as he took a swipe at the canid, which Lykpou parried with the axe.

Kuna charged up as the two traded barbs. When he got close enough, he started focusing on the mental image of the sun again, then jumped between them and raised the crystal right in Jingrayl’s face, causing him to hiss and flail around aimlessly. Lykou took the opportunity to strike again, after first parrying a few swipes that got a little too close to both him and the sereva.

The Wraith shrieked again as the axe left another deep red wound on his shadowy form. More of the forest’s monstrosity’s joined in, stinging, slashing, and biting at his semi-corporeal body alongside the awkwardly flailing Marja. By that point, she was practically buried inside of him and surrounded by darkness. Not that she cared- she was already dead, anyway. But all the attacks only proved to annoy him, since only the axe had any real effect.

Jingrayl snarled, then lashed out with a particularly forceful swing as the glow in his eyes intensified. Lykou tried to parry it, but ended up getting knocked back, tumbling several yards away. Kuna intervened again with the crystal just as he was rearing back to try and land a killer blow. The distraction gave Lykou enough time to get back to his feet. But just as he was about to charge back up, Jingrayl angrily lashed out at Kuna, slapping him aside much harder than before. The sereva went tumbling over a dozen yards away, yelping as he finally landed and dropped the crystal.

Lykou was overcome with rage as he held the axe tightly in his hands. But then he caught himself and tried to remember what it was like under the effects of the potion, when he’d been conscious of his strange ability. The Wraith was preparing to strike again, but fortunately several large beasts managed to briefly get in the way and stall him. And although clearly in pain, Kuna was slowly starting to get back up with the help of his walking stick.

Lykou took a long, slow breath to calm himself and focus. He still couldn’t feel the weird energy he felt before, so instead he just focused on his breathing. Then, finally, he felt it at the edge of his consciousness- a glimmer. It wasn’t even a tiny fragment of what he felt before, but it was something. So he took another breath and stared the Wraith down, trying to watch for patterns in the movement all around him.

Finally, he went for it. He charged forward with all his might and leapt into the air right at the Wraith’s face. Jingrayl looked up just in time to see the axe coming down towards his eye. At the last moment, as he frantically tried to reach up and block the canid, a shimmering white light appeared on the axe’s edge. It flickered along the lines on its side and seemingly right into the konuul’s hand before vanishing in the blink of an eye.

The impact was profound. When the axe struck the Wraith’s eye, there was a burst of light and a crackling sound as dozens of cracks began forming and spreading through his body. Lykou, somewhat disorientingly, fell into the flailing darkness of the Wraith’s body. For a brief moment, when he landed, he was in a very frightening situation where he couldn’t see anything, yet could feel a dozen… things thrashing around nearby. But soon, the darkness began shrinking away and dissipating as a deafening roar filled the air.

He stumbled out of the shrinking darkness as the various monsters all around him suddenly turned and began fleeing in all directions, alongside whatever ghouls remained. Kuna rushed over to meet him, having apparently recovered and momentarily panicked at the canid’s situation. After first stopping to check on one another, they looked back into the slowly shrinking, flailing shadow-body of the Wraith, which was covered in glowing cracks. Marja stumbled over a moment later and, much to their dismay, tried to grab and bite onto Lykou. Luckily, she stopped herself at the last moment, just as Lykou was raising the axe.

“Ggh… shorry, uh…” she said, then looked back at the collapsing Wraith. “….we shhhould gebt gonng… going… ugh, ffuck thith!” Suddenly, the body slumped over limply, and a moment later, her ghost appeared. “Eugh. That’s better. Fuck being a zombie.”

Kuna watched the former Wraith as a flickering light started to shine from the middle of the swirling, destabilizing shadow. There was no more sign of the crooked face that once adorned it, and the roaring, snarling, and cursing had faded, replaced with something like a continuous, dull rumble of thunder. “I… think you’re right, s-something tells me we need to get as far from that as possible.”

“Exactly what I was thinking,” Marja agreed.

Lykou nodded and all three of them bolted away as quick as they could. Marja hesitated briefly after a moment to look back towards her body with a mixture of disgust and sadness, but then shook it off to catch up. There was a sudden explosive burst of wind and sound behind them a few minutes later, and despite moving as fast as they could, they could feel a wave of something quickly catching up to them. Then, suddenly, everything went dark.

Chapter Text

Lykou and Kuna both groaned as they woke up some time later- slowly at first, then quickly snapping to their senses when they remembered their previous situation. Much to their surprise, they appeared to be in a slightly less ominous looking version of Kryckwood. It was still a creepy, not entirely normal forest with half-dead trees and perpetually cloudy skies, but there were no signs of dead bodies, shadow spirits, hideous monsters, or floating orbs. And there was a lot less fog than before. The Wraith’s greyscale effect was completely gone, too. Oddly enough, the trees were spaced out as well, leaving larger open areas in the spotty wilderness.

“What… the…?” Kuna said quietly as he slowly looked around.

“I… I think we did it,” Lykou said, leaning on the axe as he got up. He looked himself over, then reached over to help Kuna up. “Looks like the draught’s effects are gone, too. How long were we out?”

“No telling,” Kuna replied as he slowly got to his feet, wincing at the aches and pains as he did so. He suddenly hugged the konuul, then furrowed his brow, glancing around a bit. “Everything looks a bit… different, now.”

“I… guess the Wraith’s gone, and the curse is lifted?” Lykou suggested, returning the embrace, then scratched his head as he looked around. “Wait, where’s Marja?”

“Or all the ghouls and… whatever-the-fucks, for that matter,” Kuna pondered along with him. “N-not that I particularly want to see them again.”

“Yeah, why would they all just… vanish??” the konuul asked, then frowned. “If nothing else, I hope Marja’s okay…”

“She dead, Kou,” Kuna remarked, arching a brow. “Can’t get much less ‘okay’ than that, generally.”

“You know what I mean,” Lykou retorted, then sighed. “I… guess I just hope she passed on alright. Still, would’ve been nice to at least say goodbye.”

“Not like we knew her very long, but yeah,” Kuna responded. “Would have been nice to thank her for helping us out.”

They both stood in silence for a minute, examining the quiet forest around them. Finally, Lykou slung the axe over his shoulder and nodded towards the southwest. “Well… with all that out of the way, hopefully the walk to Algrytha’s will be safer.”

“Yeah,” Kuna said, then nudged him lightly as they started walking. “Which means you can focus on that thing a bit more. Did the fight give you any insight about it?”

“Maybe a little. I kind of tried to remember what it was like fighting Elzahn,” the canid replied. “I think it actually helped a bit at the end. At least, I definitely felt something. It was super faint, but better than nothing.”

“Well it looks like it worked, either way, and that’s the important thing,” Kuna said.

Lykuou smiled and nodded. “Yep. Looks like we freed this place after all. Feels fucking good.”

“...it does, doesn’t it?” Kuna agreed. “Still not the kind of place I’d want to live in, though. Can’t wait to get out of here.”

“I’ll second that,” the konuul said.

They hiked through the woods quietly for a while. After some more nudging from Kuna, Lykou started looking over the axe more and trying to recall what he’d felt before, while the sereva kept alert for any signs of danger. If anything, it was eerie just how quiet and empty the forest felt. Other than a stray crow or the remaining odd squirrels, there wasn’t much around. Whereas before the woods had a vaguely ominous atmosphere, it now felt almost melancholy and forlorn.

Eventually, Kuna paused to get Lykou’s attention, then pointed up ahead. The konuul looked up and squinted at the large masses in the distance. The worn down, crumbling stones definitely didn’t look entirely natural, but they also didn’t resemble the walls they’d come to associate with the Aberrant Garden. The two shared an uneasy look.

“...this feels… bad,” Kuna commented quietly. “Something’s definitely not right.”

“Tell me about it,” Lykou agreed.

Kuna fidgeted with the walking stick a bit. “After everything Elzhan and Jingrayl said, I’m not sure I even trust her anymore.”

Lykou thought for a moment, then pressed forward, waving for the sereva to follow. “Well, she’s done nothing but help us so far. And she’s still the best chance we have to find that key stone right now.”

“… I guess,” the sereva said, following him nervously. “But still, we should be careful.”

“No argument there,” Lykou agreed.

As they got closer, the difference was more noticeable. The walls were in shambles, covered in a mixture of rot and decay. The garden grounds themselves were largely empty. Occasional puddles of still water were scattered around, with the larger ones holding a fair amount of pond scum and algae. The only other living plants that remained, besides the patchy grass that covered most of the empty space, were scattered, malnourished-looking weeds and a few patches of unhealthy-looking moss. There were no footprints or any other signs of recent activity. It looked like the place had been abandoned for a very long time.

Most surprising of all, they ended up at the old hut surprisingly quickly, compared to their previous visits. In fact, they found it while being distracted by how worn down and abandoned everything looked, spotting it when they rounded a corner. The wooden portions were heavily rotted away, and most of the roof was gone, with the remnants having long since collapsed.

They both spent a few minutes gawking at the ruins in disbelief, then Lykou cautiously approached and looked inside was was left of the place, despite Kuna tugging on his arm and trying to convince him not to. The canid peered inside, then, after making sure it was reasonably safe, urged Kuna to follow him and look around. With the roof gone, they had plenty of light, though there wasn’t much to see. The tables and other furniture were destroyed and rotten, and the ground had scattered fragments of old pots and tools laying around under all the dust and decay.

The two looked around, taking it all in. Then Kuna gasped and covered his mouth as he stared into the area where Algrytha’s little bedroom would have been. Lykou came to see what had caught his attention, then stared, dumbfounded at what he saw. On what were probably the remains of the bed, sat the strangest skeleton he’d ever seen. Besides the odd shape, the most striking oddity was that the bones were seemingly made of petrified wood. There were ancient, rotting scraps of plant matter still hanging off some of them. And while he couldn’t be sure it wasn’t just his imagination, he could swear the skull had a perpetual, familiar-looking mischievous grin on it. He almost expected it to turn and look at him or start snickering any moment.

Kuna started backing away, trembling. “...w-what the fuck…”

Lykou walked away with him. “I… I’ll second that…”

The sereva turned to him after they left the ruined cottage. “D… did we get help… dealing with ghosts and shit…. FROM a ghost??’

“It… certainly looks that way,” Lykou replied, looking around the abandoned garden again. “What now?”

“… I dunno, l-let’s just get out of h-here,” Kuna said after a moment, clearly shaken. “W-we can go back to the ruins and m-make camp, then figure it out from there. We could... h-head south to l-look for one of the villages tomorrow”

Lykou sighed and nodded. “I guess we don’t have much choice.”

They wound their way through the garden again, noting that nothing seemed to move this time around. They just followed the same path they took in, and before they knew it, they were leaving the crumbling walls behind.

“N-none of this makes sense,” Kuna suggested after they’d been hiking in silence for a bit. “Why did everything l-look like it’d been abandoned for ages?? And why did she hide things from us?”

“She was… strange, sure, but she seemed perfectly alive,” Lykou replied, trying to wrap his head around the situation.

“You know… does it seem to you like the forest itself is older now, too?” Kuna asked, eyeing the landscape around them warily.

Lykou looked around, then gulped. “Now that you mention it… m-maybe it does. Trees in different places, some bigger looking and others missing. I wonder how much that curse affected?” he pondered out loud, then looked over at the sereva. “What the heck is going on around here?”

“I don’t know Kou,” Kuna replied, shivering as a brief, chilly breeze momentarily blew over them. “I just don’t know…”

*****

A hunched figure stalked through the dark forest. The sky, nearly always grey to begin with, was starting to show signs of an approaching storm. She could feel the charge in the air. It was perfect, in her mind- a great way to signal her farewell to the twisted place. She’d enjoyed herself quite a bit in a forest nearly as twisted as her own heart, but she’d spent altogether far more time there than she’d have liked, and it was at long last time to leave.

“C’mon, it’ll be bloomin’ somewhere around here any time now,” she snapped at the pair of shambling monstrosities helping her search the woods for the fruit of her long wait. “After all these years, there’s certainly been enough death ta feed it. I’m ready ta be done with this place, now that the fucker’s gone fer good.”

Finally, she spotted something standing out in the dim forest floor- a single sprig of vibrant green, with a single white flower blooming at the top. It was small, and surrounded in a faint sparkling light. Its petals were shaped like teardrops, and twisted, thorny vines surrounded the plant’s base. Its glow clashed strongly against the grey, dismal atmosphere of the Kryck.

“Ah, there you are,” she said with a grin as she sauntered over to the blossoming flower. “Aren’t you lovely? I’ve been waiting a long time fer this,” she said as she bent down to carefully pluck the flower. The vines seemed to shift and move around the base of the plant, even rearing up to snap at her with jagged little mouths full of prickly teeth. But she ignored them, swatting them away nonchalantly when they got too close. She was, after all, used to larger and more dangerous flora. She squeezed at the base of the bud, then plucked it off, then stood up to marvel at the small thing. “Ta think, hundreds, if not thousands’a lost souls over all these years, just ta make one pretty lil’ bloom like you,” she mused aloud. She then turned to talk to the beasts that’d been helping her. “Well, with this ingredient, I’ll be able ta…. Uh…”

She trailed off when she realized she was alone in the shadowy forest. She’d been so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she’d failed to notice the fading noise around her while she was harvesting the flower. “Where the fuck did ya go?” she asked, turning around on the spot. She wasn’t used to being the one thrown off. Ordinarily, she was quite perceptive and attentive to details, even if she didn’t always immediately show it. “Well fine, stay here for all I care,” she snapped after a moment, then smirked and looked at the flower in her hand again. “Once I make this potion, that damn exile won’t matter fer shit. I’m comin’ fer ya, Sylthea!”

She let out a long, loud cackle which echoed through the forest. Then she stopped abruptly and stared in a mixture of confusion and anger as she noticed the flower fading from her hand. “What the-?! NononoNONO WHAT DO YA THINK YER DOIN’?!”

“Silly little witch… did you really think you could escape your fate?” a strange voice said from all around her.

“What?!” she retorted, whirling around to try and find the source of the voice. But she didn’t see anyone around. “Who’s there?! Don’t toy with me! I’ll eat yer dreams fer breakfast!”

“Even you can’t truly return from death, Algrytha,” the voice continued. “Not in the Kryck. Or have you forgotten… again?”

“The hell I’m not!” the angry witch replied, conjuring up a sickly green glow riddled with sparkls around her moss-covered arms. “Show yerself if ya think yer so mighty! I’ll teach ya ta mess with ol’ Dark Aggy!”

Suddenly, she realized she couldn’t latch onto anything with her magic. She noticed the glow fading- and so, too, were her hands. “W...wait… WAIT! No, dammit! I overcame this!” she snarled as the moss on her body started to darken and crumble, then fade away into thin air. “That damn fool was defeated! I ain’t trapped here no more!”

A faint glow slowly appeared in the mists that had started to build up thicker than ever throughout the forest. “Now, now Aggy… you were never here at all. You’ve been gone a long time. Remember? ...oh, of course you don’t.”

“What the fuck are ya talkin’ about?!” she said, stalking forward to try and meet the glowing light. As she got closer, she slowed to a stop as her eyes widened at the hovering ball of pale flame. “Wait… no, no! Not you! Not this again! I’m real, I’m still here!” she said, clutching her head and tearing at the mossy vines that made up her ‘hair’. She then tried to take several swipes at the floating ball of fire, though it had no effect other than to make her start fading away a bit faster. “DAMN YOU! Someone actually beat ‘im this time! With my help!! I deserve ta come back!”

“Tsk-tsk… farewell again, Aggy.”

“No! I refuse! Not this time! I won’t… stay… dead….” the witch’s voice faded away into silence as she vanished completely. The forest was silent, aside from the occasional breeze and some very dim, distant thunder as the hovering flame began to disappear.

*****

When the boys reached the bog, they realized it, too was affected by the changes that’d occurred to everything. None of the bodies that previously gave the place such a foreboding atmosphere were present. There were also a few more insects buzzing around, though it was by and large still almost as quiet as the rest of the Kryck. The watery patches were also a little murkier, and occasionally disturbed by the odd tadpole, waterstrider, or even a frog or two. And while they were sometimes strange colors- most of the frogs were jet black with vibrant green eyes, for example- none of them seemed particularly large or dangerous.

The ruins also looked a lot older and more worn down than they remembered. In fact, they didn’t even need to find the entrance they’d previously used; rather, they were able to enter by one of several large gaps in the outer wall where it had collapsed over the years. Vines, weeds, and trees had reclaimed much of the place. Even when they passed near the scene of a certain horrible, bloody battle from the distant past, the ruddy reddish-brown marks left by the terrors of that day were long gone.

Lykou and Kuna looked around with wide-eyed confusion and disbelief at how things had changed. They found themselves wondering if the last couple of days even happened, but the axe stood as a testament that they hadn’t somehow hallucinated it all. Kuna’s shoulder, though almost completely healed, still attested to that as well with its occasional twinge of pain.

When they rounded the corner of the courtyard entrance, they made several important discoveries. First, the bodies- including Elzhan’s- were gone. The tombs that once housed them were also worn down and cracked from the ages. The box that once house the axe was missing completely. But most importantly, the gate that had previously blocked the arch was gone as well.

They stared at it for a moment, then checked with one another to see if they were dreaming. After confirming that they were very much awake to the best of their ability, they began to slowly approach the arch, worried about being ambushed by some fresh new terror at any moment. So they nearly jumped out of their skins and whirled around when a voice spoke up behind them.

“Ah, hello there,” an elderly individual said as he slowly came walking into the courtyard behind them. He was bent over slightly, leaning on a cane as he walked. They could only see the lower half of his face, given that he was wearing a slightly oversized cloak with its hood drawn up and hanging over his eyes. “Not many other folks visit this place.”

“Who are you??” Kuna immediately demanded to know, huddling up to Lykou warily. He found himself wondering how the stranger could see with his eyes obscured like that.

“The name’s Wodryck,” the old man replied, pulling back the hood. It looked like he might be the same species as Marja had been. More importantly, he looked completely alive and normal, albeit fairly old, and lacked any visible weapons. “Don’t mind me, I just visit this place from time to time to sit and think. Places like this have a sort of… spiritual feel to them, you know? Good for meditation.”

Lykou kept a tight grip on the axe’s handle, ready to wield it at any moment. Ordinarily, he’d have tried to be friendly and not so prone to suspicion, but after their adventures in the Kryck, he was on edge. And after Kairangi, he knew to be wary of even friendly elderly folks from time to time. “Spiritual? You mean all the ghosts??”

“This is hardly what I’d call a good meditating spot,” Kuna added, arching a brow at him suspiciously. “Where’d you even come from?? There’s no villages anywhere near here.”

“Easy, now. I mean no harm,” Wodryck replied, holding up a hand as he finally slowed to a stop several yards away. “I’m a bit odd, I’ll admit. But there’s something to be said for a place as quiet and somber as this for sorting through old memories and thoughts. Every now and then I take a walk out here on my own. It’s a long hike and gets longer for me every year,” he explained, then looked around as he leaned on the cane. “But every year I have more to think about, so it’s worth it.”

“It’s dangerous out there!” Lykou pointed out. “Or at least… it was…”

“Yeah!” Kuna agreed. “How the heck do you survive the hike, with all the ghouls and shit out there??”

Wodryck stared at them in silence for an uncomfortable minute or so before replying in a quiet tone. “...ghouls, you say? There haven’t been any such things around here in a long time.”

“Bullshit! I know better, one of them bit me!” Kuna retorted irritably, rubbing his shoulder lightly at the thought. Overhead, the cloud cover grew a bit denser. “If hadn’t been for Kou here and that witch-”

“Ah, I see,” Wodryck interrupted, nodding. A light breeze started to pick up and become a bit more frequent. “It seems you’ve been shown a story.”

“Story?? What??” Lykou asked in confusion, then brought the axe around to show him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but this is real. I fought the revenant for this!”

Kuna nodded and joined in, growing increasingly frazzled. “We met a strange witch named Algrytha and she helped us with some magic potions! Lykou had to brave the terrors of the night to get ingredients for one of them to save my life!”

“And then another one helped me beat the revenant! Then we fought a terrifying wraith with the help of a friendly ghost girl and… and...”

“Mhmm,” Wodryck replied patiently as the konuul trailed off. A few tiny droplets of rain started to fall from the sky. “The Kryck is a strange place. Countless stories have been made, retold, and eventually forgotten about it. It has a mind and soul of its own. It remembers everything that happens within its shadows, and sometimes it chooses to drag visitors into one of the old tales. If someone is brave enough and strong enough to survive, it may leave them a few trinkets of their experience there in return.”

“W… what?” Lykou asked quietly, struggling to understand, let alone accept what he was hearing.

Kuna shook his head slightly. “That… doesn’t make sense. We… we were there. We have the bruises and cuts to show for it. We nearly died numerous times. It was terrifying!”

“I’m not disputing that,” Wodryck assured him. “I think I recognize the story you’re talking about. I congratulate you for surviving.”

“I… I still don’t understand,” the konuul said, rubbing his head in confusion. “Are you saying we… we went into the past or something?”

“Yes, no, maybe? Who can say? The Kryck works in mysterious and strange ways.”

Kuna stared off into the distance, lost in his thoughts. “What the fuck…”

“W… well if you know the story, what the heck happened?” Lykou asked, desperate to make sense of things. “Whatever happened to Algrytha? Was she lying about the story or what??”

“Hmm… the details have been lost over time, but there’s an old rhyme,” Wodryck said, pausing to think for a moment before reciting,

“A noble warrior stood watch, never to grow old,
‘til overzealous duty turned his heart cold.

A traitor’s heart filled with powerful ambition,
‘till he lost his pulse, his mind, and his mission.

A trickster’s tangled web ensnared those two,
But her hubris doomed the false sage, too.”

The old man cleared his throat. “I think there’s more to it, but I can’t recall it right now, I’m afraid.”

“False sage? Trickster??” Lykou asked, bewildered.

“So she was hiding something,” Kuna remarked, frowning. “But why did she help us? That rhyme just raises more questions…”

Wodryck shrugged. “There’s no telling, I’m afraid. Just one of this place’s many mysteries.”

“Wait, how have you been able to visit so often without it pulling you into one of its stories??” Kuna asked suspiciously.

“It probably wouldn’t find me a particularly interesting participant. And anyway I’m already at least somewhat familiar with some of its stories,” Wodryck replied, then looked up at the sky briefly as a distant, dull rumble of thunder rolled across the sky. Rain was starting in earnest, albeit still very light. “I’d tell you a few, but it looks like we should both get going. I’m sure you have places to be, and I suppose I’ll have to save my meditation for another day.”

“Y… you’re just going to hike back in a rainstorm? You village must be miles away from here!”

“A little wet never bothered me,” the old man replied, chuckling lightly. “Besides, I know a few places I can shelter along the way if it gets bad enough. You best get goin’ though… before the Kryck decides ta keep ya,” he added with a wink, then pulled his hood back over and turned to walk away, pulling something out of the bag he was carrying with him. It appeared to be some kind of crude gourd-based lantern. “Safe travels, you two.”

Lykou and Kuna exchanged a look, then glanced back at the arch. “...fuck it, let’s just go while we can,” Kuna said urgently.

“Yeah, sounds good,” Lykou quickly agreed. They both rushed over as the rain began to pick up. Kuna summoned up his magic and opened the magical portal, and they both wasted no time rushing through it, eager to leave the eerie realm of Kryckwood behind before it decided to involve them in any more stories.

As they vanished behind him, Wodryck looked back for a moment with a small smile, momentarily lifting the edge of his hood, then turned and chuckled some more. He lit his lantern by unknown means and lifted it up to guide the way through the growing shadows brought by the approaching storm. Lightning danced across the sky as he began reciting another poem to nobody in particular while he walked:

“Once, a village thrived in defiance of fear.
Then a traitor with a dark heart appeared.
A mysterious voice made him feel blessed,
And gave him dreams of great conquest.

He stole their hope and returned with ambition,
And a bloody, selfish, and wicked mission.
A great fight ensued, many innocents were slain,
And the villain soon fled, his bloodshed in vain.

But the temptress returned with new tricks and lies,
And convinced him to make a choice most unwise.
For revenge, the village warriors soon came,
Though they found naught but a husk bearing his name.

For the axe, a noble bearer was chosen,
One whose heart was neither twisted nor frozen.
He would stand firm and keep it from evil hands,
For as long as he walked and breathed in these lands.

But the deceiver ensnared him with fear too,
For when he perished, who might the axe fall to?
She gave him a spell, to guard it after death,
Which he bound himself to, upon his last breath.

For centuries he guarded and watched his home,
As would-be thieves defiled his family’s bones.
Till bitterness cooled his honorable heart.
Never more would he allow the axe to part.

The false sage led them both astray from their goal;
She brought chaos and ensnared many lost souls.
But in her hubris she became trapped as well,
In the curse laid by the one who she helped fell.

She sought a rare bloom fertilized by much death,
Hoping to survive even her own last breath.
But Kryckwood is not home to anyone’s hope,
Only bold fools bound to hang from their own rope.

Fortunate you are for seeing your way out,
With your predecessors corpses all about.
The Kryck collects tales of mysterious woe,
And it is reluctant to ever let go.”

As he walked off through the ruins, the pale, flickering soulfire flame of the strange old man’s lantern was unbothered by the rain, until he and it both gradually began to fade away into the misty shadows of Kryckwood. And the forest awaited another chance to begin a new dark tale.