Bad premonition made Gob run the moment Curan pointed him in the right direction and after a while it was Curan that desperately tried to follow Gob. He chose his own path with no hesitation leaping over forest ravines, jumping over fallen trees and obstacles in his reckless rush.

Curan needed to sprint to even keep up with the crazed greenskin. His backpack was hitting his back with every sudden jump. He didn’t know what made Gob act like this, but he had a feeling that it wasn’t just some random trap goblin made up on the spot. He knew for sure it wasn't a half-assed escape attempt. He would let him go if he wanted to. There must have been a reason.

Viper was left behind near the dungeon. They were traversing the forest alone, rushing so much that Curan constantly short on breath couldn’t possibly utter any words.

Gob felt panicked. The closer he got the stronger the feelings he left shut for those two weeks became. His senses were sharpened beyond his own understanding. His instincts were all shouting that it was wrong. He felt just like in the night when the knight made him walk for so long.

His body was hurting despite him being in a decent shape. He remembered all this fear and his eyes became feral, his pupils slanted and sharpened. He trembled while running, but still kept the insane pace.

It was then when Gob felt like something was behind him. The vision of this hateful human face made him shutter and miss his step. He would have fallen if Curan hadn’t held him up.

Gob needed a moment to recollect himself. His body was trembling. His right hand tightly gripped his new dagger. In this confusion he looked at Curan with blank pale face. He looked ill, like he could fall down at any moment. Curan shook him a little.

“Peter..… Peter found you..”

Curan finally caught his breath and spoke properly to the absent Gob.

“Feels magic... Peter feels it. What spell was cast on you? What are we going into?”

Curan shook goblins little frame, but the moment he regained his consciousness he pushed his arms away.

“We need to… hurry.”

Curan didn’t like this attitude. He tried to reach Gob once more.

“Just tell me what is there!”

Gob responded with a terrifying gargling shout barely spoken in human tongue.

“Lethhh merhh gorhrgh!”

With a slash targeted at Curan he jumped up and continued to run in the direction the of Fishcather’s screams. He didn’t even notice that he cut the human. Some of the blood dropped on the autumn leaves.

Gob didn’t care. The screams haunted his mind. He felt like cutting off his own ears. The howling, pulsating in his head with every step drove him mad. He could see the Fishcather so vividly in front of himself. She was crying in pain holding her severed hand. Dark shadow was looming behind her readying the strike.

He wasn’t powerless.

He could run to her.

He wasn’t lying on the ground.

He could move.

He could act.

He could save her.

As Gob rushed in over to Evie's glade he almost tripped again. In daylight he could see this perfect circle of trees and flowers where Hestia stopped during her escape. The grass was greener here. It was a beautiful place, filled with life, but he didn’t care.

As he frantically looked around his mind slowly caught on.

Where was the body?

He stood in the middle. Shocked.

She was dead.

Why did he came here?

As something moved behind him he turned around alerted. His eyes instantly widened.

From the grass Fishcatcher stood up. Her hand was missing. She held her own head in her small arms. As she stood up completely, she put it in its proper place. She was intensely looking at Gob with her dead eyes.

Gob took a step back. She was dead. She was dead!

Fishcatcher smiled at him revealing bloodied teeth. Gob took another step back. It was then that the vision surrounding the glade finally moved away. Grass was dead. Small grey bunches were dwindling in the wind. The dirt was greyish. There were a few dead animals rotting around Fishcatcher. Even surrounding trees looked ill. Scent of decay and blood hit Gob’s nostrils.

As he took another step back struck with fear, she jumped at him. Her long claw-like fingers. Her bloodied teeth. Her bloodied dress.

Gob couldn’t step back in time. He couldn’t dodge. He would die here! She would kill him!

"I didn't save you..."

Then suddenly an arm pulled him back from the circle. As he fell outside of the glade, he saw Fishcatcher’s corpse hitting the barrier of light surrounding the area. It repealed the undead back inside the circle trapping it inside.

A shadowy substance covered the corpse for a short while. After it dispersed Fishcatcher was left standing near the edge of the glade passively glaring at Gob. Curan moved his bloodied arm from Gob and stood up.

“It was fucking close.”

As he stood Gob looked at him shaken.

“You are bleeding.”

“Don’t worry too much.”

Curan dismissed the wound completely.

“She didn’t cut me.”

It took Gob moment to realize that he was the one who cut him. He looked at his bloodied dagger he still had in his hand. He felt ashamed for a moment but quickly focused back at the Fishcatcher.

She was still standing in place frozen still, waiting for her pray. Curan was the one to break the silence.

"Undead can happen."

Gob still struck with fear looked at him with distressed eyes. Curan didn't expect to tutor this goblin, but this situation... What should he say?

“I do not care enough to ask, but if my word would be of any help, I would suggest to do whatever you need to do right now.”

Gob instantly turned his gaze.

"The undead that remain with flesh are the most dangerous."

Gob didn't seem to react, so he spoke a little harder.

"Their hearths need to be pierced."

Gob looked at him with anxiety so huge that Curan couldn't help himself but approach the goblin. He truly felt sorry for this little greenskin. He resembled a wounded animal or rather a scared child. As he helped him got up he whispered. Words coming straight from his heart.

“The Past is usually better left of dead.”

With this Curan stepped back.

It took an enormous effort out of Gob to step forward towards the undead. Mix of guilt, shame, anger and anxiety was all too clear on his face. As he stood in front of her he trembled. The forest fell silent. The only thing Gob could hear was his own heavy breath. Fishcather seemed docile. As long as he wasn’t close enough for her to reach him she stood still.

Looking at her face Gob felt nothing. A lingering question plagued his mind. He studied her pale body. She looked like she was sleeping. Only her eyes revealed the truth. Those eyes blankly staring at him. Blindly following his movements.

He raised his dagger high enough to stab her in the heart. The undead tried to close the distance between them, but the barrier that was holding her in the glade didn’t let her budge an inch.

He raised the dagger...

... and he stopped.

With shaking hands he held it in front of himself, but couldn’t make the final push.

“Why did you follow?”

“Why did you attack him?”

Gob barely uttered those words. His throat hurt. His vision suddenly got blurry.

“Why.. Did you follow?”

He looked her straight in the eyes, but there was no answer. Fishcatcher was dead. Whatever stood in front of him wasn’t the female he knew.

“Why!!!”

As he shouted, he dropped his head. He would have dropped the dagger already, but his left hand, previously crushed was painfully clenched into a fist.

The undead grew restless at the sudden shout. She was banging both her arms at the barrier creating flashes of light and spots of darkness that engulfed her body in short bursts before turning into black smoke and dispersing into the air.

Curan wasn’t sure what to say. He didn’t know what happened here. He never cared to ask Gob anything beside his tribe. Should he tell him something? Should he push him to kill this undead girl? Did goblins knew love? Did Gob knew? He was sure of one thing. A powerful entity was holding the undead inside the glade. It must have been precisely why Peter found Gob.

Curan was about to approach the goblin once more when a sudden voice made them both look at the Fishcatcher.

“Gob?”

As he raised his head, he couldn’t keep the tears that were finally flowing down his eyes. The glade lit up. It returned to the colorful full of life atmosphere he encountered earlier. And Fishcatcher recovered alongside.

He looked at her eyes brimming with life. Her hair was clean. Bloodstains on her dress were gone. She looked unreal. Almost happy. In this scene of serenity she was the one to reach him. Her hand previously cut was now touching his hands with warmth. It was unaffected by the barrier.

“Gob. I need you to do it.”

She placed her hands on his and moved them slowly. Gob was distressed.

“no..”

“It’s okay. I need this Gob.”

Her voice was as warm as her hands. Gob shook his head in disagreement, but he didn’t force the dagger back.

“Gob please. I need your help.”

With tears still flowing Gob looked her in the eyes. She smiled.

“Please remember me like this Gob.”

With a cry Gob plunged the dagger straight into her heart. He closed his eyes. The light of the barrier was gone.

Curan observed this magic from the sidelines. He couldn’t tell what was being said, but he was certain that it wasn’t meant for anyone else than Gob.

The moment the light disappeared the glade returned to its gloomy decayed look. What was left of the undead fell down at the goblin’s feet.

It was over.

Gob forced himself to look at the corpse. His mind was exhausted. He then looked at the center of the glade.

“Evie!”

Curan watched dumbfounded at a small light emerging from the trees. Did Gob just summoned the..

“Pixie..”

As Curan whispered to himself Gob looked at Evie. She was back as her usual formless self. She said nothing, but Gob felt that she was ashamed of what she did. He didn’t feel any hatred towards her. He realized that it wasn't Fishcatcher's who was talking to him from the start. In fact he was thankful that she was there to push him through.

“Thank you.”

He looked at her happily twirl in the air and then disappear in the grass. The nature was still damaged, but a few flowers bloomed the moment the fairy flew over them. It was a beautiful display of magic.

Still Gob looked sadly at the corpse. As he began to dig dirt with his bare hands Curan threw him a short foldable spade he took from his backpack. Gob didn’t even realized that he made him run all the way here with his equipment still intact.

“Thanks.”

Curan nodded in response. As he watched this goblin dug the grave he was forming a surprising thought in his head. He watched until it got dark. Then he stopped Gob deep inside the hole by placing a hand on goblin’s shoulder.

He looked up at Curan with tears flowing down his face once more assuring Curan of his belief.

“You can stop Gob, it's deep enough.”

As he helped him bury the female goblin, he was sure.

This goblin was just as human as he was.