Mystic Heart Odyssey

Part 6: In the Shadows of Kryckwood

Chapter 7

Time to go meet a revenant!

-Llox

___________________________________________________________________________________

“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.”