Chapter 26: Funeral Procession

Ever so softly, and gently done so, did the will-o'-wisp move. A hollow lanterned world, where she strove to bring the light with her presence.

Although…

With an audience of corpses that followed her, constrained by strings abound to her flame, one could easily assume that Willow would bring harm to those that crossed her.

But this would not be her goal, no… Far from it, as stated by the wisp herself.

She only yearned to cleanse the grounds of the spilt blood that stained it.

Parading corpses in black, where headless hounds marched and moved despite their deaths– with an innocent flame that led this accursed display.

Her innocence lies in what she genuinely desired; that is to protect him, the figure in black that slept peacefully after the slaughter. No harm would come to him, and he would be spared from the agony of seeing scattered blood.

These were her hopes, to have him refrain from exposing his eyes to this. Her contractor mustn't see what abominable actions she had conducted to protect him, even if it were for his benefit.

Fear would take over, and lead him to dread how the seemingly compassionate creature had slaughtered the wolves in cold blood.

Then she would burn them all, the creatures that dared lay a hand on him. This was her sole purpose in guiding the dead beasts to where they would be ignited. Nothing but ashes will remain of them, as she had promised to do so before.

So this funeral procession, comprised of nothing but beasts– where fear thrived and nothing more, was done so with goodwill, even if it might terrify any spectators. Though in this case, there was none, of course.

For other than the company of vermin, the pair truly were alone in this vast sea of trees; a forest that stretched far beyond what could be seen by them.

By the fallen king, who bore no memory of his past, nor the willow queen that paved the path for another king.

Though it would be through sheer ignorance that anybody would not find themselves terrified, as the leading wisp sung a happy tune in that silvery voice of hers.

☼[Lalala… lala… lalalala]

While followed by the fanfare that was the marching dead.

☼[Lala…lalalala…]

Indeed, no one could be blamed for harboring such thoughts, particularly when confronted with this eldritch sight.

Of how a blessed will-o'-the-wisp had an army of headless hounds; bleeding and dead, at her beck and call.

☼[Lalala… la?]

But her singing would soon come to a halt as she neared her destination.

☼[This is the glade I passed through earlier…]

A place where she would pass her judgement towards the rotting beasts, creatures that she had slain earlier and were now headless unlike before, when they still had to urge to devour the youth.

Though their demise had already transpired, she still needed to rid the bodies themselves; and what better way was there than to burn them to a crisp, so that no trace could be found.

Her acts would be invisible to her companion once she had erased any evidence of the slaughter.

She only needed to accomplish one simple task, and that was to incinerate the corpses, and hopefully the problem would end there.

And so, she led the headless army to this place, where the funeral pyres would soon begin.

☼[This place should suffice for the purpose of my visit.]

She paused before the green expanse, a place hopefully capable of housing the army that would soon catch fire. And with her movement halted, the corpses stopped dead in its tracks as testament to her refrain.

☼[How will I begin then?]

Willow couldn't just pace the army there and then, for the flames would scatter between many targets. Her azure fire would only burn for as long as she was capable of supporting them, and her reserves ran thin of the energy required.

But instead, she could accumulate the dead hounds into a sizable pile; a hill large enough to be accomodated by her flames. With what little power she had left, this was her only option.

Even if time passed while she amassed the bodies in a neat little pile, it stood as a better prospect than simply igniting the bloodhounds where they stood, as that would burn her spirit in an exceedingly wasteful manner. And it wouldn't even be enough to deal with half of the dead if she did so in that way.

So, to have her problems dealt with, this was her only way in doing so, even if it required strenuous effort on her part to manage the bodies into a mountain that would easily burn.

She'd exercised caution in that regard, as her flames might run awry the moment she lost grasp of her dangerous flares.

If, by accident, she did lose control of them… Then the forest might burn, and the monsters within it would flee.

It would be a tragedy once more, as a monster surge would manifest because of her.

☼[I hope it doesn't come to that though…]

She already bore witness to such an event before, and the memories were still clear as day to her even if it was centuries ago.

If one were to be sourced to her, then…

☼[Enough of my pessimistic thinking, I shouldn't falter like this!]

Compared to the looming threat of a monster surge, securing a Replicator proved to be of better importance.

And having her flames falter while she held the reins was something even more laughable, as only her unworldly reserves had vanished when she had trapped her power within the vessels; her dexterity in manipulating the temporal powers she was in possession of never vanished, even if it was relegated to simple tricks.

Instead, she would take advantage of her temporary state and purify whatever remained of the battlegrounds, till the scars of battle that wounded the forest no longer showed.

Then, she would lead him once more, as the wisp had already grown fond of her visor-wearing acquaintance.

Willow wouldn't be done in by such shallow peril. Because, loathe she was to admit, a Replicator's life eclipsed the worth of everything else, even the lives of innocent beings.

If word of his existence were to spread, then a war would occur, one that brought about chaos far worse than what a surge could bring, shattering the already fragile balance between the allied countries.

And yet another war was unneeded.

For the continent she saw authority over, alongside its respective world guardian that is, would crumble from within.

Such a possibility was disastrous, as it would destroy the long-standing peace that had been upheld for countless millenia.

And so, she began to enact the plan within her mind, to eliminate any grim reminder of what occurred in the forest depths.

☼[This should be a simple enough task for one such as myself.]

The wisp ordered the confined beasts to start the mountain of carcasses; they climbed corpse after corpse, and not one step was missed for no body faltered and fell from the ghastly pile.

Soon, the bodies started to amass with ruthless efficiency; a result that could only be brought about by a Replicator such as herself.

These bodies were under Willow's control, and they had no will to speak of.

Hung only by the strings that swept their limbs to move, the headless hounds lumbered forth with no intent but that of the azure flame. The dead could do no harm towards her nor her companion, and it will be as such.

And from below, the grave towered.

Slowly, the mountain grew. And higher were the heights the bloodhounds had to climb. But as they were not alive, their ascension resumed.

Be that as it may, not everything seemed well.

The wisp could sense her companion's stirring as she had tied a string to him earlier, and he was beginning to awaken from the rather short slumber forced unto him by his injuries.

She needed to act faster.

☼[You mustn't wake up, at least not yet…]

Driven with desperation, the puppeteer quickened her tangled twines, movement woven through each plucked string to move the beasts through each other.

The event of his awakening where he would inevitably see the downtrodden path filled with blood, was one to avoid at all costs.

She moved with haste, acting on the precious time that could prevent him from bearing witness to the scene.

An exhibit of her competence that proved what she was, that she were a Replicator, even if her strength was now lost; strings pacing in display, and bodies untimely held over the grotesque hill.

But the dancing strands became abated, slowed down by the puppeteer herself. It would seem that they were no longer needed, not after her recent performance.

As now, the eminent grave was complete, and her current task complete.

The first ordeal was done.

☼[That was… tiring.]

If the wisp could breathe, she might have found herself panting from debility, for the maddening pace in which she proceeded to raise the grave was enough to nearly cripple her reserves.

But as she was no creature of flesh and blood, her flames merely flickered and waned in exhaustion to show how truly draining the behemoth of a task was.

Yet her work was far from finished.

Now, all that was left of her energy were mere crumbs for Willow to use, purely enough to start a fire and guide the flames to burn the bodies.

And it was all that would be left for her to do, as the thin veneer of blood that coated the misty grove required less effort for her to cleanse.

Her battle with the bloodhounds lasted through the forest. And due to that, blood could be found among the trees.

Through the faint light that shone luster from the skies, the luminance could barely stipple past the leaves to reveal the hideous sight.

Bleeding heads, leaves dyed in red, and ashen bark that showed streaks of crimson.

Although she'd already retrieved the heads earlier and were already found amongst the pile, what was of the quiet walk still remained.

As a scarlet path paved with blood, a place where a thousand beasts bled at once, it would surely scare him away.

To finish her duty, all it needed now was a spark.

☼[This mound shall burn.]

A singular, miniature spark…

☼[Till nothing but ashes remain of this grave.]

Until the flames roared aloud to answer her call; beckoned by the will-o-wisp.

☼[And everything is cleaned of this filth.]

In blazing glory, the bonfire was lit. Although, unlike other flames, the fire burned blue.

And the beasts were given a fitting end that lead to their deaths. Fated to have their ashes scatter in the wind, until no trace could be found at all.

As the bonfire burned, a sense of accomplishment rose from within her mind.

And truth be told, this would be the first time she came close to facing death in years. It had been so long since she last felt a sense of urgency, and this brought forth satisfaction and triumph over her tribulation.

Ruling over an entire kingdom was tiring, yes. But her current stature; weakened by her contract with the mysterious youth, had finally broken down the unchallenged self she once possessed.

Her kingdom would fare well without her for she left an adept proxy to deal with problems in her stead. While said proxy was not equal to hers in the skill of administration, the kingdom was currently at peace. This task would not wear down the person she left in charge.

With such arrangements in place, she could focus on accompanying her contractor towards whatever dangers might beset the newly-acquainted pair.

Nonary seemed to be troubled after all…

☼[I still don't understand why he struck me when we first met…]

That act of his was strange, and it also proved that he did not remember anything at all.

It was forbidden to strike down any will-o'-the-wisp, no matter their relative status in a civilized location, and it was a decree long present between the kingdoms for centuries.

A decree introduced by her, in exchange for the services of her kingdom.

For someone to forget- or rather, to remain ignorant of this meant one thing; if the words he spoke were not a lie, that he had no memory to speak of…

Then he could only have been present before the law was set in stone.

That, or he truly knew nothing at all. But his knowledge over certain concepts proved this otherwise.

So, who was he?

She found him in the castle grounds, hidden within the Twilight Forest. It was a place of tragedy, where she saw her companions vanish from her grasp.

Willow couldn't fathom how the youth ended up in such a horrible place, and it seemed that he was plagued with fears that stemmed from being found there.

Then there was the mysterious origins of the forest itself, although she would contemplate about these things later.

☼[I'll simply ask him about these things once I've guided him towards the city. I did promise him that, after all.]

These questions could wait as they had yet to leave the sea of trees.

But currently, she awaited the funeral pyre to burn the bodies to ash. With flames as strong as hers, even bones would burn down as well.

And with these thoughts passing through her mind, she let the flames crackle from beyond her view, as she came to face the path she once trudged past.

A place traversed by dead beings, a path where corpses followed her lead; it all seemed so empty now.

Behind her, the flames bloomed forth till nothing but azure engulfed everything.

Her flames grew to devour blood as well, with scarlet drops burning at the sapphire blooms that shied away from the bonfire.

After this act of defiance against the wolves, she would have nothing else to show when they faced danger once more.

She would need to rely on her contractor now.

It would seem that he possessed some expertise in the usage of the strange knife he carried around. A silvery blade; one that was used in a failed attempt to strike her when they first met.

A blade she believed to be his catalyst, as it was the only thing he carried with him.

Indeed, just as she posed to be his savior, Willow would have to rely on him as well.

☼[Though I can no longer be of much use in battling foes, I can still be of assistance in avoiding the dangers of this place.]

Even if she was in a place of peril, the current events brought her joy. From the covenant formed between them, to saving him from the bloodhounds. Her interactions with the youth had been nothing but interesting.

Perhaps a new age would arise from their adventures, with the pair now together.

It would be like before, from when she joined a king in gold, as they brought forth the gilded age.

A time long past. From when she was still with Him. Before he disappeared, and she was left alone to rule.

When everything was still… Whole.

☼[Then I can lead him past the trees where-]

Her recollection was stopped short, halted by what may have been nothing more than a whisper of the wind.

Silence was broken by crackling flames, but faint gales passed through to reach her hearing.

Leaves that swayed on a light breeze, a faint sound that hummed from within the Eventide Path.

It was just a gust, so there was little to fear and nothing else to remain wary of.

But…

Was there anything else hidden from her sight?

☼[What… Is this?]

Her voice was one of worry; never had she felt so lonely in the depths of this accursed grove.

Her reaction was not without reason, for this vague sense of unease never came without reason. An omen that always preceded danger, and its origin began to reach her.

The flames gave sign to whatever walked the still-crimson path, as she had yet to burn the traces down.

And in the scarlet road, something was truly there.

☼[Was there something I missed? Is there a threat I don't know?]

Her azure bonfire had begun to paint itself red; the sapphire flames no longer burned in her illustrious color.

The flames she once grasped had been wrung free from her control, and now it burned without discipline.

If she did nothing, then the forest would burn.

And if that happened, then-

☼[Nononono…. I can't allow that… I…]

Another sound was heard, far more audible than the faintness of blowing wind.

☼[…!]

She could not find the time to finish those words as now, reality was not something that could still be denied.

What Willow heard from before were quite audibly, the footfalls of a person.

Leaves that broke beneath one's step, mud that gathered and parted from a being's stride. And vestments that straddled on air, a rustle heard from leather.

No other person could produce these distinct sounds; none other than her companion itself, and she recalled that these noises were made by him.

But it had only been a minute since the flames had begun. And even then, she'd lost control over the blaze. Her azure flames were no more as they were strangled by red flares

Kindred flames became infernal; a fire turned stray by whatever presence seemed to be approaching her confines.

And it neared the crimson glade, before the cadavers had been undone. She couldn't hide the frightful sight any longer from a stranger's prying eyes.

And she knew this, for its steps grew closer still.

☼[Its mere presence… changed my flames?]

And yet another concern of Willow was the hidden strength of the unknown beast, where its hidden self contested her grasp over the flames she willed into being.

Was it… Him?

Or perhaps it was a different person, as she had quantified the mysterious being's identity solely on specific noises and relied on sound alone.

Perchance, it was not her contractor and instead, it was of a different creature; one far more sinister than what she could expect.

Those very sounds were only heard by her, and they came from Nonary himself. If it was not him, then it would be an anomalous beast. A creature yet to be catalogued, despite centuries of work directed in discovering the secrets held by this gathering of trees

Were there mimics in this forest? One that followed them earlier?

But that made little sense as everything but certain, monstrous beasts were rejected by the forest itself as if it were alive.

And in a certain sense, it could be seen in that light.

Animals and foreign beasts that somehow stumbled into this place were immediately devoured by whatever dangers they faced, and mimics would fare no better than leaves in a burning world.

And how would a mimic survive the culling of wolves, when the mutts would always turn on any living thing?

Mimics were still creatures of flesh and bone, which would have made them a target ripe for the picking.

So, there were no mimics in this forest. And it was not this possibility that posed itself to her.

☼[But then… What am I going to face?]

So many questions to ask, and so little answers to give…

Her knowledge was worthless in this forest, as its secrets remained guarded towards her even after countless years of probing.

The groups she sent towards this place, they all had lost their lives when she chose to join the fray and search for the lost ones.

She'd given up on prying any further; the allied countries chose to do so as well.

If so, then what was she facing right now?

☼[I still need to help him!]

She cried out towards the world even as she faced grave danger, whilst the scarlet flames chose to burn, now in chilling silence.

And she heard its steps as the mysterious creature moved; a snail's pace it took.

She heard the mud part from its slow stride; darkness beset the ground it touched.

And darkened leather, it rustled and rippled as the wind met its surface; ebon shade stalked its binding form.

With grace befitting its stature, the creature continues. And as for whatever it wished to reach, the unknown soul toiled towards her.

Walk it did, for this being did not care to disclose nor give reason for its untimely appearance.

But its identity was not unknown to her.

The creature that faced her was a looming figure, one that was familiar to her. To whom she enacted the Torched Contract with, thereby binding the pair together.

Did he lie about himself; of how he knew nothing of this world?

With a monarch's indifference, the figure turned to face the funeral pyre; a gaze now lain upon the creature that hovered from above– herself.

But as of this moment, she had no clue as to how the boy escaped her grasp for she had tied a single string towards his arm earlier; one meant to monitor his state after she'd seen him collapse in front of her eyes.

Yet here he was, a grand appearance that announced his presence.

The roaring blaze did not cease to burn and raged even further as he came close. These flames once blue but now burned red, had all but devolved into wildfires that engulfed the crimson glade.

Then he spoke.

★[⨈⫯∟₤⦿⫝…]

In a language whose meaning she could not surmise with the knowledge she possessed.

★[⫒ℹ︎⫒ ⫯ βℇ₤ℹ︎∃√ℇ ⨈Я⦿ηց? ]

Yet the words seemed to whisper dearly into her mind, that they held great power.

And the youth, how did he arrive so quickly?

☼[…!]

In her surprise, she led her gaze towards the blackened's arm, as she saw a sapphire string flicker and fade with his every shuffle.

'The string. It's… fading?'

Such a surprise did not show in her demeanor as she hovered listlessly, though its dimmed state; of the string she tied to him, greatly worried her.

★[⫝⫳∀♰ ⟑𐅾ℇ ⑂⦿⨃ ⫒º⫯∩₲?]

Since when did her powers fail her?

It took great effort to maintain the bond between them, yet it was so easily ignored by her partner.

★[⨈⫳ª♱'ѕ ωї♱ℏ ♱⫲ι∫ Ԍ𐅾⨃ϱ$⦿⋔∃ $ℹ︎₲⫲τ?]

And the worst of it was that he did not seem to be acting out of malice, that he were as clueless as he appeared to be.

A boy with no memory, yet one that bore great power. Unaware of the workings of the world, yet he so easily stripped the steady rules of their pact.

The contract couldn't be more fragile, with how it was cast aside by him. He had done so with great ease.

How could she not worry?

★[₶∑Ⴤ, ª∏$⫝€® ⋔∃.]

Though she was fraught with worrying, the boy continued his approach.

A seemingly innocuous act as he held no blade by his side, and he did this walk in a carefree manner.

But the opression she felt from him had surpassed anything she had seen before.

And yet…

★[⨈ℏ∀⊺ ⫯∩ ⟙₶℮ ⩊ο𐅾₤∂ α®∑ ⴤº⨃ ∂ο⫯ηԍ ⫳ℇ®ℇ?]

Willow sensed no malice from his gaze, and she could easily surmise that Nonary was not hostile towards him.

Instead, she could find harmless curiosity in those strange eyes of his; a pair of lines in red that peered into her flickering form as she bobbed up and down in the air.

★[₩₶Ⴤ α®∈∩’⊺ Ⴤο⨃ ∫∀¥ℹ︎η₲ ⟑∩⑂τ⫳⫯η₲?]

Will-o'-the-wisps were creatures of empathy, so she found it simple to infer the meaning of his archaic words, even if their root could not be known.

His words were foreign to her, a strange language spoken in broken tongue that brought discord to its essence, but these verbal constructs still held meaning in what they sought to tell her.

While the connection was frail, weakened by the oppressive aura that seeped from his looming form, she could still reach out to him through that frailty with some effort.

And Willow was the queen of these empaths, so she knew very well what his intentions were.

He sought an explanation for what ensued in the place paved with blood and the clearing that succeeded it.

★[⫯♰ ѕ⫲⦿⨃լ⫒η’է β℮ ℏ∀®ძ ⟙ο α∩$₩⋿𐅾 ₥¥ ҩ∪ϱѕ⟙⫯ο∩ ѕօ, ⩊⫳¥?]

In other words, an answer to his query.

★[¥օ⨃я $⫯∟⋿∩⊂€ ⫯$∩’τ ⫳⋿₤₱ι∏ց ⩊ι⟙₶ ¥օ⨃ւ ї∏∩º¢⋿∩∁ℇ. ⑂☉µ ძ⦿ ϗηօω ♰ℏ⟑⊺, ®ℹ︎₲⫳τ?]

An answer she could easily give, if Willow was not torn between the words she should let on.

★[ցºο∂ ԍւ⫯ℇ⨍…]

But what was she supposed to say?

The books she read did not help with this bizarre event, nor was she capable of providing a decent explanation that would immediately quell his curiosity.

This situation was strange.

★[⫒ο ¥ο∪ ₱₤α∩ է⦿ ѕ♰αჄ ♱⫲∑Ւ℮?]

And his indifference, what was she to make of it? It were as if the boy did not mind that she had slaughtered the beasts.

That her act of forming a funeral pyre borne of dead wolves did not bother him at all.

Instead, he only seemed curious of her reason in doing so. Disinterested in the massacre that had occurred earlier.

But this was not an act of normalcy.

★[⫳℮⑂ ωιլ₤⦿⫝!]

She held regrets for failing to accomplish her goal, to shield him from this view.

And now, she paid the price of exposing him to this cruel place.

But the reaction she saw was far worse than what she expected.

Instead of fear and concern for his wellbeing when confronting his dire circumstances, he saw it fit to question her instead.

His apathy… was far too unnatural.

★[₩⫲ӱ ⟑Ւ∑∩’⟙ ӱº⨃ ∀η∫₩∃Яї∏ց ⋔ℇ?]

And he still expected answers from her. Answers that she couldn't properly give life to, not with the troubling child before her.

It was disheartening for her, to be incapable of providing the kindness she knew how to give.

And his wish, what was it again?

Or rather, what had she promised to do for him?

'I promised to be his guiding light…'

He yearned to see the light of civilization, and she vowed to lead him there.

The only hardship they needed to face was this forest. Beyond it was a settlement that could provide them shelter from the horrors of this place.

And they were close to escaping, so long as the pair was mindful of the troubling matters that surrounded them.

The worst of these troubles had come to pass, and their vigilance was all that would be needed now.

So she knew what had to be done.

☼[Nonary….] Was her first word to him since their separation.

A voice that conveyed good intentions, a silvery chime that spoke his name and brought no harm. She said his name aloud, and then–

The will-o-wisp lunged at him.