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My greatest fear, Janis the White

“This is abnormal.” Green Tree’s sentence was accompanied by an expression much less confident than before. They were standing on the penultimate hill before arriving at the temple. They would only have one last break before getting there. Their trip to the under-jungle had been in darkness before, but it would be even worse now. They were reaching the deepest part of the jungle, and there were more than fifty meters of depth between the true bottom and the fake floor of the Hymere. If something broke up there, if a large animal fell, they would not hear it. But, what was worrying the dean of the Cali wasn’t that, it was the lack of weirdness.

“We should have witnessed Hjj or Yttrijjjhs. I haven’t ever seen the Hymere heart so calm. First, that unlucky branch break, now this. Maybe Trayx wasn’t warning us, maybe he was telling us to go back.”

“Isn’t it too late for this?” Lynn asked.

The old man nodded. “It is. We haven’t heard from the Banshee in a while. Either it’s far, either it is skulking around not far from us. If we go back on our tracks…we’ll have to face it, most certainly. Lynn, get the salt ready, just in case, I have a bad feeling about all of this.” He asked.

His granddaughter obeyed him, opening a salt bag with the tip of her traveling knife. It was far from a decent weapon, only used for kitchen work or things like that, and it showed the signs of having been used a lot. Lynn put the knife back in her travel pack, but kept the salt in her hand. The bag wasn’t very big, and she could keep it in one hand while the other held the emergency torch.

Their descent in the under-jungle was longer this time, and as they finally reached its bottom, the oppressive feeling was even worse than before. The Hymere's Rreico was undeniable now, but constantly changing, never exactly the same as the moment before. The rhythm of life of the surrounding animals had mostly vanished entirely, Nay only felt some shimmying things in the dark, that were usually synonym of insects, and nothing else.

Nay had her right hand on Lake since she was feeling anxiety in her guides’ Rreico. She wasn’t that tired, they weren’t walking fast after all, and so deep down, the temperature was even close to nice. The leaves on the ground, lit up by the torch held by Green Tree, had an orange and brown colour, as if they had been Mos in autumn. They had to be months old, but still they didn’t decompose. The ground, the torch the darkness and the Hymère rhythm of life; Nay had the feeling she was in another world, or no, she felt in-between worlds.

Ten long minutes passed until Nay realized she was cold. It wasn’t a big deal, even something she welcomed after those days in the humid heat of the jungle, but it was unsettling.

Green Tree raised his hand, signaling them to stop.

Nay saw Lynn grab a handful of salt, but she didn’t throw it yet. The Legio decided to draw her sword. She had no idea if it would work on a spirit, but if the salt didn’t work, at least she would have a backup plan.

The light emitted by the torch dimmed significantly, and the temperature plummeted.

“I will kill you.”

Nay jumped. The voice was masculine, she didn’t recognize it, and it had come from nowhere.

There were no Rreicos around them.

“You are a Firante. I will kill you.”

She looked around, but there was nothing to see. Except her guides, who were still staying still. She realized they weren’t reacting to the voice.

She was the only one hearing it.

“I will kill them all.”

Nay had to say something. “Can’t you hear it?” She whispered.

Green Tree turned around immediately, his expression a mixture of fear and anger. She should not have spoken, evidently.

The cold became freezing, the orange leaves under their feet scrunched up as a wave of frost covered them, and the humid air of the jungle crystallized in a very fine powdery snow, creating a sort of glacial mist. Their breaths created big clouds, but the voice didn’t. It became even stronger.

“YOU ARE A FIRANTE. YOU NEED TO DIE.”

Lynn threw the salt in the air, some falling straight on Nay, she closed her eyes in reflex.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHH. FIRANTE! FIRANTE! Firante…Firante…Firante.”

It’s as she heard the voice growing weaker and further away that Nay realized that the voice was a Rreico. But it was a broken one, only half-there, sometimes existing and speaking, sometimes not and silent.”

The temperature rose, the mist dissipated and the frost on the leaves melted.

Lynn put her hand back in the bag of salt, and Green Tree signed them to start walking again.

Their pace was much quicker now.

“I will kill you. I am the unvanquished commander. I always win. My army will find you and it will kill you.” The voice was following them.

Nay unsheathed Bubble as well, and watched Lynn throw salt in the air again. But the spirit was keeping its distance, and it didn’t seem to work this time.

“One of my soldiers is close. He’ll arrive soon. But even if he fails, that’s part of my plan! I have dozen others coming, all to kill you.”

Nay squeezed her weapons tighter.

Green Tree turned around, he seemed to hesitate as he looked at her. “The spirit should have gone. Why is it still there? You hear it, right? Speak.” He finally decided.

The Legio had no idea how to explain it simply. “It wants to kill me. And it’s waiting for its soldiers?”

“Why you? Do you know who it was?”

“I will kill you!” The voice repeated, appearing, and disappearing not far from them.

“No.” Nay was certain she had never met this man before. She had had a doubt at first; maybe it was the Commandare? With a transformed Rreico and voice after his death? But when she had heard about the soldiers, she had become certain it could not be him.

“Kahka.” That sounded like a swear word. “It’s probably a spirit thinking you’re someone else. It’s rare. But what does it mean, soldiers, that…?” The old man was interrupted mid-sentence by the most strident noise possible.

“IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!”

“Yes! Kill her!” The voice sounded overjoyed.

“We should not have talked!” The old man was scared now.

“No, it’s the spirit, it brought the banshee here!” Nay understood immediately what was happening.

“That’s impossible, only the vilest of spirits…” The old man shook his head in disbelief.

“Grrrrppp! We need to run. Nay, follow us close!” Lynn cut him off, panicked.

A large Rreico was coming behind them. It wasn’t as fast as a Lesardo, but Nay was sensing the Rreico of the banshee as something similar. Except the Lesardos had felt peaceful, and this thing wanted to eat them.

Nay ran without looking back. But it didn’t take long for her to see that things wouldn’t work out this way. Lynn was fast for her little size, but Green Tree was already exhausted.

The Legio didn’t hesitate, she re-sheathed her weapons, and picked up the old man in her arms.

Fortunately, he wasn’t heavy, but his bag was.

“Get rid of your backpack!”

Green Tree was surprised, but the emotion went away so quickly it only registered in his Rreico, not even on his face. He reacted as quickly, dropping his bag as fast as he could, but by doing so, he also dropped the torch.

And just like that, Nay was running in the dark. By reflex, she looked back to see their only source of light. But it was a mistake. She saw the bag and fallen torch, and then something else. It was the lower part of a thing. Not big, not little. Not of medium size. Those weren’t legs, arms,…

Green Tree forced her gaze away by pulling her head back in front.

She almost tripped, but caught herself just in time, and then ran again, holding the old man in a princess carry.

She had almost stopped running completely, and she had no idea why.

“Kill her! Kill her!”

“Shut up!” She swore.

“You’re drifting left, more to your right.” Green Tree expressed himself as calmly as he could, despite his terrorized Rreico. They had lost Lynn, Nay couldn’t feel her Rreico anymore.

“Biach.”

“Your right.” The Legio didn’t try to argue, it seemed impossible to her that her guide could orient himself in such pitch blackness, but she obeyed him blindly.

“Good, good…stop, you’re going the right way now, straight ahead.”

“But…L…Lynn…”

“The banshee is following us, she’s safe.” His Rreico wasn’t the most comforting.

“IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII.”

Nay grimaced. If she had been able to, she would have put her hands over her ears.

“Lebe’s whore, Lebe’s whore, Lebe’s whore.” Swearing was the second best thing.

The almost monstruous Rreico was slowly gaining on them.

“How long…hill?” She asked.

“…A lot. Leave me, you won’t make it.”

“Out…of…que…question.”

“She wants you, I’ll be safe.”

Nay could not see the old man, even though she was holding him in her arms. But she didn’t need her eyes to know he was lying. Her legs were already shouting in disapproval at the exertion she was putting them through, her steps were heavy on the leaves.

“She may want…me…but…hungry. She’ll…kill you…first. And…need…guide.” Maybe she could create a door? It was a possibility…Nay rejected it immediately. She couldn’t sing while running, and she would not be able to finish the psalm in time if she stopped.

“I swore to Hyn…” He began.

“Stop talking! I’m…Thinking!” And thinking while carrying an old man, while sprinting as fast as she could…

Something in the dark on her left caught her eyes. Which shouldn’t have been possible in the dark. She immediately bifurcated to the break in the nothingness.

And then crouched instinctively. The space above their heads whirred. The Rreico told her she had just escaped death. The banshee screamed in discontent, and it let Nay take a bit of distance again.

“That’s not the right way!”

“I know!”

Nay was getting out of breath, but still, she smiled. She was running towards a pillar of light. She put extra effort to reach the well of white before the creature chasing them.

When she arrived under the light, she threw the old man in the dark, and turned around. She had been rough, and heard Green Tree groan in pain as he crashed on the ground, but there was no time to be gentle. Her gaze fell down. Two metres of visible ground. There was a branch there, the ground wasn’t perfectly even, some of the leaves over there were being covered in frost. She used the two seconds she had gained on the banshee to remember every crevice of the world of light that had been given to her.

“You won’t survive, Firante!”

Nay inhaled. Exhaled. The voice couldn’t hurt her, she phased it out completely. If he tried to lower the temperature, he could try to make her slip, that was it. She inhaled. Exhaled.

Her power entered Lake and Bubble.

Her heartbeat calmed down.

“IIIIIIIIIIIIIIII.” The creature haunting many horror stories screamed as it came into the well of light.

And Nay closed her eyes.

She waited.

“What are you doing? Kill her!”

The banshee was hesitating. Its prey wasn’t acting like the others before. But the voice of the spirit seemed to convince it, and Nay felt a famished Rreico look at her legs hungrily.

She planted Lake in the ground, and something crashed into it. The sword as well as Nay were dragged one good metre to the right. Lake created a big slice in the ground and leaves. She would need to remember that. But she had learned something as well. The banshee was attacking her with something, and her sword had pierced it. Some sort of stick? Was the banshee using a stick? Or did she have some sort of arm?

The Rreico was angry, but also slightly in pain. So, whatever it was Nay had caught with her sword, it had hurt the beast.

She felt the intent of the beast again. It was on its guard now. It was afraid of her sword, but also of her dagger.

This thing wasn’t stupid.

“KILL HER!”

Despite the hesitation, Nay felt the animal almost forced to act. This time, towards her head and legs. Now though, Nay didn’t block. Her sword made an arc down to the left, and her dagger up to the right. She barely felt any resistance as they cut through the banshee.

Two things crashed around her a second later.

“By Trayx.” Nay didn’t listen to the old man behind her.

She heard the banshee twist and scream, but one different than those before.

“IGH IGH IGH!”

It had had enough, it wanted to leave. But the spirit stopped it.

“NO! You die I don’t care, but KILL HER!”

“IGH IGH IGH!” The banshee repeated.

Its Rreico changed. It was in agony, mad of rage. It was going to crash into its prey, a suicidal move, but also impossible to stop.

Nay felt it coming, and she knew she couldn’t let it happen.

So she charged the beast first. Her feet went above the branch and the hole she had created, and her sword went to strike the banshee horizontally.

There was a sound like she was cutting fish, and she felt the banshee's desire to retreat.

But the voice stopped it.

“No! NO! Kill her, at least delay her!”

Nay had no time to lose. She blocked the pained screams out of her thoughts, putting some distance between the banshee’s Rreico and her.

And she didn’t stop hitting it. The animal couldn’t move forward, and it wasn’t allowed to fall back.

Nay felt the temperature plummet, one last ditch effort of the spirit to make her lose balance. Nay was ready. The ground became slippery, but Nay wasn’t bothered, as her whole body was now anchored with the Hymere Rreico.

She spun one last time, heard a slimy sound, a pop, then another thud further away from her.

And then a large crash.

It was the banshee’s body falling on the ground.

“NO! NO!”

The Legio couldn’t feel her fingers anymore, the cold numbing her entire body. Something flashed in front of her eyes. It wasn’t the blackness of the inside of her eyelids that she was seeing, it was obsidian scales.

Then, something like sand fell on her head.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”

The cold vanished, and Nay turned around before opening her eyes. There was salt all over her, and the old man was holding a satchel of it in one of his hands. He also had salt all over his mouth, and the bag seemed to have been very crudely opened.

“We didn’t even have pockets in the past. Really, Leïn’s clothing are so much better than ours.” He was looking a bit frazzled, and Nay didn’t understand what he was talking about.

“Are you all right?”

“I am fine. Is the spirit still there?”

Nay waited for a moment, still not daring to look behind her. “I can’t hear it anymore.”

“Good. I am afraid it will be back though. We need to reach the temple as fast as possible, it is the only place where we’ll be safe. With its strength, I don’t believe the hill will be enough.” Then he looked behind her. “You killed a banshee. It is something that rarely happens even when all our hunters gather together.”

“It’s the spirit. It would have fled long before if not for it being controlled.”

“…You can look at it now. To get used to it. It’s how we manage not to be paralyzed when we meet other ones.”

Nay gulped, but obeyed.

What she saw made no sense.

There was something, obviously. It was scaring her, she was conscious of this as well. And that was it. There was blood all over the ground, but she couldn’t even say it was blood for certain. It could not be anything else, but she would not even have been able to say what colour the liquid was. There was a big piece on her right, and that’s the only thing she knew. A piece of it. Big? Small? A hand, a head? It’s not as if it was too weird to be described. Or maybe it was, she couldn’t say. It was more like she was seeing something, she knew she was seeing it, but she couldn’t recognize what it was, she couldn’t even describe it, even though she was certain she knew what it was.

Five minutes passed, nay unable to look at anything else than the big piece on her right. There were scales, that’s the only thing she managed to gather after looking at it for five straight minutes.

“We need to leave.” The old man forced her out of her trance, and Nay was finally able to look away from the dead beast.

She was out of breath.

“Wha…”

“A banshee. And you are a Dhtr now. Those-Who-Do-Not-Freeze.”

“But…how? There isn’t anything like magic happening and…”

“No magic. No miracles. The banshees are like this, that’s it. Many stranger things exist in the Hymere, but probably nothing more dangerous. Well, before you arrived. You are definitely the most dangerous thing here, you deserve that title, and this explains why your secret is so important.”

Nay raised a hand while pinching the bridge of her nose with the other. “Stop. I do not need more titles, please. And I would never have killed it if the spirit hadn’t controlled it.” Then Nay jumped, realizing something important. “Lynn! We need to find Lynn!”

The old man sighed deeply.

“No. My granddaughter has the remaining torches, and if the spirit comes back with more banshees, it is better for her not to be with us. She knows the way, we will meet at the Trayx temple.” But despite his words, his Rreico was extremely worried.

“We need to worry about us now. We deviated from the way, and I never came here. I do know that the Ghtythrilljghtn is this way.” He aimed at somewhere in the dark. Nay could only believe him. “And we won’t be able to advance as fast as before. It is miraculous we didn’t fall while running in the dark, stumbling on something. Do you have a rope?”

Nay nodded.

“Good. Link yourself to me. Once we’re back in the dark, we’ll need to be as silent as humanly possible, you understand? This spirit had a personal vendetta against you, and is one of the evilest I have ever met, but that doesn’t mean it's the only one that will be interested in us. Others will be attracted, as we are living and breathing. So, we need to be discreet, make the spirits lose interest and forget us.”

“I understand.”

Nay did what the old man asked her to do. He almost took a short moment to teach her a new knot. If she or him pulled it a certain way, the knot would unfold on the spot.

“If we get attacked again, leave me.” Green Tree was more than serious when he said that.

“No, I…”

“Do not worry about the way. Ask Trayx and he will guide you, you are Touched by Him, after all. And I swore to Hyn I would keep you safe.”

“I will not leave you…”

“Then I’ll cut myself off anyway.”

Nay held her tongue for a moment. There was no hesitation in his voice. So she sighed and gave him a glare.

“You can try.”

It brought a short smile to the old man’s face. Then he rose to his feet and entered the surrounding oblivion.

Nay drank some water, then rose as well and exited the pillar of light.

Darkness ate her up immediately. Silence and pitch blackness surrounded her. She could only be guided by the pull of the rope around her belly.

And they walked towards the temple of Trayx.