When I felt the cold breath of death on the back of my neck, the only feeling left in me was regret.

Regret for not having bathed my body in the blood of those who destroyed me and my family.

Unknown Authorship

*

Arthur's bedroom door opens, pushed by the snout of a red-haired, youthful-looking lupine. The creak of the wood seems to accompany the movement of the a that floats inside the room.

Quietly and carefully, the lupine closes the door behind him. When he turns around, the room that had been empty is suddenly occupied by the image of a girl with yellow skin, dark hair and black eyes; eyes that shine intensely in his direction.

The apparition does not frighten the wolf, who sits in front of the door and stares at her with a certain amount of curiosity.

-Where's Arthur? – The incorporeal asks, after making sure that the lupine was alone.

-You know where he is. – The answer is delivered with indifference, as if the tired body of the wolf were in a constant struggle against gravity. At this point, Arthur's training weighed heavily upon Galaaz, who felt exhausted through most days. Furthermore, the incorporeal, although unconsciously, continuously took up a portion of his energy. At this distance, it would be impossible for her to maintain that shape without influencing the magic around her. Only Arthur would be able to stay unharmed in the face of such a presence.

Still, unless Akemi actively tried to take his magic, Galaaz was confident he would be able to generate at the speed necessary to stay healthy.

-Rinlia? – Her question is received with a positive nod. Akemi lies down on the empty bed, eyes fixed on the ceiling of the abandoned room. – Honestly, I don’t know what will become of me if things continue like this. What do you think?

-What do you mean?

-It's pretty obvious, isn't it? – The expression of the incorporeal is one of dissatisfaction. – Arthur is comfortable with how life is right now, and soon Rinlia will have fully incorporated him into this kingdom. For him, that's great. For me, not so much.

-Do you intend to get away from the boy? Again?

The incorporeal makes a clicking sound with her tongue. The gesture is unconscious, but it is enough to remind her that it is thanks to Arthur's powers that her body is real enough to produce such a sound.

-I don't have many options. I can't stay here forever. I've told him this before, but since I haven't taken a permanent stand, I don't know if he doesn't care or doesn't believe in me. How about you? Do you intend to stay close to him forever? Here? In a realm built by humans and maintained by humanoids?

The wolf struggles to express indifference.

-I have a debt to pay.

-And I owe my existence to the boy. I'm serious, Galaaz. You know Arthur has no pretense of holding you back by your promise. If you say you want to leave, he'll let you do it.

-Don't underestimate a lupine's word. It doesn't matter if he wants me to keep my word. I will honor it all the same.

-Still, you're not obligated to pay in servitude, are you? You could ask for an alternative payment, like gold, information or future support. - The lupine avoids the gaze of the incorporeal, who understands to be right in her guess.

Galaaz seems to consider his own words before reflexively intoning them:

-I followed Arthur not only for what he did for me, but also for what he can do in the future. I saw his power and now, even more than before, I know about his potential.

-And what difference does it make?

-I didn't stay in the forest because I would have to kill my father to take over the pack. – He answers. – My ambition was not strong enough to make me give in to such rituals. It wasn't strong enough to make me kill him.

-Even though it's tradition? Even if he accepted it?

-Yes. – He wags his tail, feeling uneasy. - It wasn't a problem with him, but with me. So, I needed to find another way to earn my own reputation. Something other than the pack and the rituals of the Forest.

He does not continue, but the incorporeal is able to understand his reasoning.

-You came with the boy in search of an alternative path.

-It was the best option. – He shuts up and Akemi does not ask any more questions, giving him time to compose himself and turn his muzzle towards her. – What about you? Are you going away? Again? He looked for you for a long time before you came back.

-I am not leaving. - She mumbles. - Although he spends every night having fun with the elf and not even care about the welfare of others, I don’t want to leave. At least not now, when he's getting ready to go to war.

-And if we survive? After the war, what do you intend to do?

-That is strange, it seems that you are asking because you need a guide for yourself. – The incorporeal says, with irony in her voice. The lupine does not deny and she continues. – When that happens, I'll leave. During the war, I will probably have an opportunity to leave. I want to go to the desert, to understand what is the barrier of Truth and what dwells in those parts. If I don't find a home in that place, I'll go to the Phantom Continent. I believe now I have enough strength to survive such journey. At the very least, I need to try to find a home.

-You have a home here, with us.

-I need a more definitive place, Galaaz. You know very well what these people would do if they knew about my existence. You attacked me yourself when you weren't even sure what I was.

-That was a long time ago. – He says, embarrassed, getting his body next to the bed and lying down with his snout pointed at the window, allowing the sun to warm his body. – Besides, I think Rinlia is suspicious of your presence already.

-Of course, she is. – Akemi says with a half-smile. - She knows how to use magic, after all. But she will never catch me. I can feel her presence when she is close by.

-For Arthur's sake, I hope you're right. He'd be in serious trouble if they found out he's been giving you shelter and energy.

-For Arthur's sake… - The incorporeal mutters to herself, looking at the ceiling. – Perhaps I’ve been thinking too much about Arthur's sake and too little about my own.

-If that's how you think, I'll take your departure after the war for granted.

-Why?

-If you're hesitating now, wait until you see the battlefield. It doesn't matter what Arthur is trying to protect within this realm of humans and humanoids. The atrocities of war will be more than enough to send you on your journey to find a home. And you will do what you can to make sure such home is as far away from me, Arthur, Rinlia and any war that may exist anywhere in the world.

*

Ohana and Dan ran at the fastest speed they could put on their legs. Despite their fear and curiosity, neither of them looked back. None of them dared to waste a second staring at the image of the stone worm that leapt to the surface before diving back into the rocks for a few seconds before emerging again, hoping to engulf its prey.

All they felt was the ground shaking with each entry and exit of the worm. It was enough to encourage them not to stop.

The chain of stones Dan had indicated was close enough for them to see an entry point. In a few minutes they would be safely placed in a terrain filled with harder rocks, where the worms would have no easy way to attack them.

There, they would have access to an almost mountainous terrain, abundant in caverns where they could rest.

However, they needed to get there. And legs, arms and mind tired from the difficult journey felt the end of the strength during the desperate race.

The ground shakes again and Ohana's heart races. She realized that she was in danger of being hit by the monster's next move.

This time the fear was too much. She had to look back.

And what she saw was that the ground beneath her feet was shaking intensely.

Still in the middle of the race, she draws her bow and arrow and gets ready. With two fingers she draws a dagger and places it between her teeth. She had barely finished the gesture before feeling the ground break beneath her.

The wrinkled body of the emerging creature is approximately twenty meters long and at least five meters in diameter. The creature has no eyes, just a part of the “front” of its body that was beveled, indicating that it was the point used to start the excavations. There are no eyes, nose or ears in its "face". Just an opening for a hideous maw, with teeth like boulders stacked on top of each other.

The creature launches itself into the air and, then, dives towards the dryad. Ohana turns and runs again, diagonally, trying to get out of the direction of the monster's long body.

“There is not enough time…” Feeling the sweat on her forehead and the taste of the dagger between her teeth, she estimates the time for impact and realizes that she does not have enough time to escape.

“Five seconds.”

Dan realizes the dryad's problems. Since he had some advantage at the start of the race, he was now relatively safe while she was on the brink of death.

He hesitates, not knowing exactly what he could do to help her at this point.

“Four.”

Looking around, he only sees the chain of stones he had finally reached. With his short swords in hands, he shakes his head and tries to find the strength to react.

“Three.”

He smiles. It's a crazy smile, the one somebody shows after deciding to throw their lives away in a losing battle. It's the youthful smile he'd learned to show on his face for so long now.

“Two.”

Ohana no longer feels her legs. Her eyes sting from the dust raised by the giant worm. The ground shakes incessantly, as if heralding the end of her days. The monster in the air opens its mouth and seeks the small prey on the ground.

“One.”

Dan runs desperately, but realizes he will not have time to help. He does not even know how he could help if he reached her.

He would be even more certain of his inability to provide assistance when he felt the ground at his own feet shake violently. And, in disbelief, he finds his body pushed forward as the ground suddenly breaks and a second stone worm emerges.

Even from a distance, Dan and Ohana manage to lock eyes for an instant.

And, in that moment, they see the reflection of their own disbelief in the other's face.

Because of Ohana, a monster was still in the air. Because of Dan's run, a second monster had jumped in when it shouldn't.

“Zero.”

Two stone worms collide midair, a few meters above the heads of the messenger and the traveler.

Two huge bodies, colliding and falling violently to the ground, horizontally, kicking up a huge cloud of dust and throwing boulders in various directions.

Ohana's body is pushed by the force of the monsters' impact against the ground. She, however, has no time to remain surprised. With a quick movement, she grabs the dagger and arrow that have fallen. Then, she starts a new run, skirting the body of the nearest fallen monster.

The stone worms are still moving, snaking over the ground and looking for the best position to start digging again. She knew she had almost no time before they started a new attack.

Still dazed, she notices Dan's body lying between the two worms. He has his weapons in his hands, but he does not move.

The dryad ran the fastest she could, feeling one of her legs limping, but still responding with enough force to push her forward.

-Dan? Dan! – She calls, crouched next to the body of her traveling companion.

He reacts to the call, lifting his head and blinking his eyes. The dryad notices, behind his head, the bright red of blood staining the floor. With a gesture, she grabs the back of his head and searches for the wound. When she withdraws her hand, she notices that the open wound is oozing blood on her fingers.

-Come on... Let's go. – Ignoring the pain of her own body, she provides support for him.

Confused, with his mind clouded, Dan staggers and tries to steady his feet, following the dryad's hurried walk. His body, however, reacts slowly to each impulse.

Together they push forward and Ohana realizes that one of the monsters has found its way towards the ground, immediately digging through the rocks.

-It'll be come back... – The dryad's sentence is more like desperate declaration than a statement of a fact.

She places the bow around her shoulder.

-What are you doing? – Dan asks when he notices her arms wrapping his body.

-My leg feels better now. – She pulls the adventurer and puts his entire body in her arms. – This way it will be faster.

In a clumsy run, the dryad carries the traveler's body across the rocky terrain, walking over the boulders and desperately seeking safety in the caves and caverns that could surely be found on the other side.

-This is a little... humiliating. – He says, still having trouble focusing.

-If you want, I can leave you behind. – She says with a half-smile, noticing her partner's unfocused gaze.

-No… – He blinks heavily, feeling his awareness slip away. – I can get used to it. – He smiles slightly and closes his eyes, passing out on the dryad's arms.

Ohana does not have time to call his name or investigate what is going on.

She just keeps running, with Dan in her arms and pain in her leg.

Above their heads, black clouds and lightning announce the arrival of an acid rain.

*

*