Bam, wham, alakazam a new chapter! Turns out orientation was booked this weekend so we're going nextt, so please stay tuned for our regularly scheduled program. Also, thanks for spending your summer sticking around! I appreciate it immensely, and I try my best for all y'all. Enjoy!


Kenny wasn't entirely sure why the locker room was actually a pathway into a giant, wintry forest, but it was. That must make showering really awkward for the football teams. Luckily the showers seemed to have turned into a confused row of sevenbark hydrangea. Kenny sat on the one remaining bench, that was half-way a log, and placed his head in his hands. He pouted as he watched snow drift lazily down between the trees. Of course Karen and Hemlock weren't just in here having a tea party. No, there had to be a magical gateway to another world. Kenny debated whether he should try and find a different room, it was possible they hadn't gone through here. Possible, but highly unlikely.

"I guess I'm going back into Narnia." Kenny sighed. Last time he'd gone into Algrid it hadn't ended well. He had kinda died. But he'd died at least ninety times in South Park.

Kenny was tempted to grab a stick and write a pro-con list in the snow, but there was one pro that outweighed every con. Karen.

Kenny pushed himself up and steeled his nerves as his feet led him to the icy forest. Cold blasted through his jacket and jeans like they were made of paper. He would have to find shelter quick, or maybe a Burlington coat factory. The locker-room disappeared behind him shortly.

"Sweet j-jesus." Kenny rubbed his arms. His feet picked up the pace, winding through niveous shrubbery and foliage. He attempted to walk in as straight a line as possible, in case he needed to return to the locker-room. He stopped and nicked small marks in the trees every now and then as back up. After a while, Kenny stopped and did a full circle sweep of the forest. No sign of Karen or Hemlock, or life in general. Why had Hemlock even brought her here? That can't be a good sign with all the shit happening in South Park.

Kenny started back on his path. Wait, he stopped. Isn't that the direction he came from? Kenny looked down at the snow for his tracks. A pure, pristine blanket of whiteness sat at his feet.

"What in the-?" Kenny took a few steps and watched as his footprints filled in almost magically. Okay, well he still nicked a tree with his knife just a few feet ago. He could find it again and get his bearings. Kenny searched every nearby tree, unable to find the mark. He stomped his foot into the snow and puffed out an annoyed breath. He was lost.

"Well that's what you get." An airy voice spoke up. Kenny turned around, unable to see anyone. "Who's there?"

"Maybe if you'd open your eyes." A small woman appeared before him. "You could see."

Her petite features were very angry and scrunched up. Kenny lowered his weapon and stared at her. She was short, probably not even five feet. Her white hair flowed behind her almost as if trapped in it's personal bubble of water. She had pale blue skin and bright eyes that stared angrily at Kenny. Overall she was absolutely stunning.

"Hey, the name's Kenny." Kenny cleared his throat and grinned.

"I don't care. You hurt my tree!" Her silver bell voice didn't successfully convey her anger. She walked over to the trunk of a tall pine and soothed her hand over it. Kenny noticed a faded mark deep in the wood.

"You're a nymph?" Kenny asked as his cheeks flushed. He must've angered a lot of nymphs on his way here, hopefully they wouldn't all decide to beat him up.

"Yes. And you're a jerk!" She stamped her small foot.

"I didn't know- I'm not from here." Kenny motioned to his clothes and face. He gave her a stupid smile.

She frowned and examined him with crossed arms. "Well, you shouldn't hurt trees no matter where you're from."

Kenny reframed from telling her about deforestation. "Yeah, I'm sorry. Say, can you help me…?"

"You may address me as Nettle." Nettle kept her defensive position.

"Well, Nettle, I'm looking for my sister. She came in here with a fey dude. About yea high, blue hair. Evil face." Kenny made the scariest face he could. "Kind of a dick."

"I saw them. The nice man did not cut my tree." Nettle smiled slightly. "He was quite handsome-"

"Yeah, yeah. Did you see where they went?" Kenny brushed back his ragged bangs. He could swear frost was forming in his hair.

"I did." Nettle brushed down her flowing gown.

"... Can you show me?" Kenny asked.

"I will do so for a favor." Nettle raised a slender eyebrow as she anticipated Kenny's response.

"A favor?" Kenny didn't have such a good feeling about this. "What kind of favor could you possibly need?"

"I do not know yet. But when I know I shall call upon you." Nettle held out her hand. "Do we have a deal?"

Kenny rubbed his hand, this was definitely not a good idea. Being in the mercy of a beautiful wood nymph who could essentially make you do anything. Actually… that didn't sound that bad. There were definitely worse fates, and Kenny's hormonal teenage mind couldn't imagine anything non-sexual coming from this.

"You show me where Karen went and I owe you a favor. Deal." Kenny shook her tiny hand.

Nettle nodded and started walking to the left. Kenny followed. As they traversed through the icy terrain he bit at his lip. He was in the company of a stunning lady and he wasn't even making conversation.

"So, nature's pretty cool." Kenny noted as he pushed a tree branch out of his way. "There's lots of trees. And snow."

"I wouldn't recommend saying anything stupid here. You never know who's listening. Like those pesky pixies, or those annoying gnomes. Don't even get me started on the mermaids." Nettle shook her head causing her hair to swish around.

"A-ha! There are mermaids here." Kenny grinned to himself. Although he couldn't image getting into any body of water here without freezing his ass off.

"Of course. They're terribly nasty, they always leave their half eaten carcasses on the riverbanks. It stinks up the forest!" Nettle angrily frowned, her cheeks flushing deep blue in rage.

"Wait, carcasses?" Kenny never had thought about what a mermaid would eat. He assumed it would be something like moss or fish.

"Yes, they like to eat men and women they charm into the water. If you're easily swayed I suggest we avoid any rivers or ponds." Nettle carefully stepped over a fern.

"You don't eat people, right?" Kenny slowed down.

"My life force is connected to my tree, I don't need to eat, per se."

"So like you're immortal until your tree dies? You know I've been known to be immortal myself." Kenny caught up to her, which wasn't difficult.

"No, if I die my tree will die too. Which is why I don't plan on dying." Nettle gave Kenny an annoyed look.

"Oh."

"Why is your hair so bright? It's like the sun."

"Thank you-"

"It's very hard to look at." Nettle ducked under a thick mass of conjoined branches.

Kenny pulled up his hood and followed her. The sun was considered beautiful and worshipped in many past religions, Kenny took her insult as a compliment.

The woods seemed less cold on their small pathway, it was due to the trees being so thick that hardly any snow or wind could get in.

"Along this path, the trees tell me they're not too far ahead." Nettle ran her hand along the rough bark. She stopped and pointed down the trail they were currently on.

"You're not coming with me?" Kenny stopped and watched as she began to head back to her tree.

"I have shown you where they went. If you do not make a deal with the wrong fey or fall into a kelpie's pond, you should be fine." Nettle gave him a small smile. "Although I wish you luck, you're certainly different."

Kenny opened his mouth to reply, but she took a step towards a large pine and disappeared. Kenny stared after her, strangely forlorn. He shook the feeling from his shoulders and continued on. The lonely path winded around soft bends and led through the thickets. Kenny could make out soft footprints in the dirt, more than two pairs certainly. They must have company. The thickets that enclosed either side of the path like iron walls often moved with small rustles. Kenny couldn't decide whether it was small creatures or simply strong wind attempting to blast through. He wasn't tempted to find out, if he got lost again he doubted he'd run into another Nettle. More likely something hungry.

"This beats school at least." Kenny slowed down as he reached the end of the path. A large cove sat in front of him, hidden to the world and absolutely ethereal. With the thickets blocking the light to this small sanctuary, all the light was provided by bioluminescent mushrooms and flowers. A large pond, filled to the brim with Lily pads and tall reeds, surrounded a ginormous tree. Kenny had seen California redwoods on a documentary once, but this tree was bigger. It wasn't red either, instead it's bark was a deep beryl. It shot up into the sky well past Kenny's eyesight. It's hundreds of branches was littered with throngs of different objects; from dangling moss with glowing red bulbs, to hammocks and hanging walkways, and everything in between. Kenny could even swear he saw people walking across some of the thicker branches. He squinted, unable to make out the shapes. Kenny stepped forward and turned to take in the fullview. Everything slipped his mind for a moment as he walked around the length of the pond. The songs of frogs and crickets filled his ears as he watched fireflies and small fairies chase each other across the water. He stopped and crouched by the water. Multi colored lights reflected off the surface, but further down he could see brightly colored fish swimming idly through the kelp. His hand reached out and ran over the smooth stones that separated the water from the dense grass. He couldn't image why Nettle hadn't accompanied him, even if she wasn't fond of Kenny this place was stunning.

"Turn around slowly, hands up."

A sharp point dug into Kenny's back. Kenny breathed out through his nose and raised his arms. Of course. He slowly stood and turned to face whoever was stabbing him.

A plump, squat man holding a wooden spear frowned up at Kenny. His face looked akin to an old spud that was growing smaller spuds.

"Oh, you're just one of the humans. You can call me Grimley." Grimley muttered and lowered his spear. "I know it's pretty out here, but Hemlock wants y'all to stay inside."

Kenny lowered his arms. "O-of course. I just couldn't resist." He smiled nervously. Humans, as in more than one?

The man grunted and waved his thick hand. "Come on. It's just about dinner time."

Dinner? Kenny's ears perked up. Food. His stomach growled at the thought. He eagerly followed the short man across the thin, cobble path to the tree. Grimley had short legs and took strides about half the length of Kenny's. Kenny nearly shouted, "Come on! Dinner is waiting!" but held his tongue. Grimley still had that sharp spear and probably wasn't tolerant of sass.

After an agonizing walk down a bewitching pathway, they reached a large door in the tree. Kenny hadn't even noticed it, his attention had been drawn to its height. The interior of the tree was carved to look like a grandhall, complete with a winding staircase and an alpine ceiling. A wooden chandelier with glowing candles hung fifty feet up and brightened the whole room. The floor was covered in beautifully weaved rugs, the walls hung with carved statues, painting, and animal furs. It was like a five star ski resort in Norway. Kenny felt an overwhelming wave of disorientation as they walked up the staircase. How could a tree possibly be that big? It was a castle inside. A whole city with the tree branches.

Kenny craned his head back and stared up. While they exited on the next level, the staircase looped up and up into darkness.

"Holy shit." Kenny breathed as they entered the feast hall. The entrance hall looked much smaller now. Kenny wondered if he'd stumbled into a elven version of Hogwarts, just several times larger. He looked around for the other humans, as in plural, yet all he could see were fey. Tall fey with high cheekbones and silvery hair. The majority looked different than the winter fey Kenny had seen. They looked more earthy with darker skin tones, no icy blueness. They wore greens, browns, and lighter colors.

"The humans are sat up by the front with Hemlock." Grimley grunted after all those stairs, he leaned against his spear and took a breather as Kenny started towards the front. Fey were dancing to music that drifted through like the breeze, Kenny had to resist the urge to join them. A fey boy with dazzling brown eyes and warm hands attempted to pull him in, mischief dancing across his freckled face. Kenny flushed and politely pulled himself away, it took all his strength as the boy pouted.

"Hey, hit me up later though!" Kenny grinned as he backed up and wandered off. The tables had lines of dishes and foods that almost pulled Kenny off his path many times. Stews, roasts, pies, fruits, vegetables.

"Kenny!" A small form tackled him, knocking him into a nearby chair.

"Hey there." Kenny grinned as his back throbbed with pain. He hugged Karen as tight as he could, relief flooding his veins.

Karen smiled up at him in disbelief when she finally got free enough to. "I told Hemlock you weren't dead, but he wouldn't listen."

"Yeah, hey about that we should get going before Hemlock sees me." Kenny wrapped an arm around Karen's shoulder. He began pulling her back the way he came.

"Wait, don't you want to hi to your friends?" Karen glanced over her shoulder.

"What are you talking about?" Kenny nearly stopped. Did she mean Tweek and Craig? Kenny would be up for seeing them again.

"Kyle and Stan, they're back there with Hemlock."

Kenny frowned and pressed his lips together. He hadn't planned on saving the entire town, but they were his closest friends. "First I have to get you back."

Karen stopped, "Kenny it isn't safe in South Park. You saw all those monsters."

Kenny hadn't exactly planned on where he'd take Karen to keep her safe, he was too preoccupied with getting to her first. "I'll get us a car and we'll leave town for a little bit." Kenny nodded to himself, he knew how to hot wire. And drive, even if he was one of the few kids without a license. "Like renegades, wouldn't that be fun? We could hunt monsters or solve mysteries."

"I can't go. We need to help these people." Karen gave Kenny her best puppy eyes.

Kenny sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He wasn't good at saying no to her. "Fine, but you don't leave my sight."

Kenny felt like he was walking Karen to their doom as they approached the front of the hall. The peaceful flute music failed to soothe Kenny's nerves, despite its best effort.

Kenny could easily spot Hemlock out of the crowd. While he looked so pale in the darkness, tow that he was in the warm light his skin actually had a bit of color. His blue-black hair was still extremely dark, but it reflected the soft candlelight. He was chatting with a short, stunning woman with a magisterial aura. Kenny stopped, it looked as if they were deep in conversation.

"Maybe we should just sit down." Kenny found two empty seats, he hesitated as they seemed to be cushioned by moss. It acted the same as a pillow surprisingly. He surveyed the table and reached for a plate to fill up with food.

"Hemlock said he was really sad that you died, because you're special, like us." Karen sat down next to him.

"That's nice, let me make you a plate." Kenny scooped some strange looking vegetables, squash and eggplant, onto a plate.

A breezy spirit floated up to them with a jug in its airy hands, its white hair floated around its head like small clouds. "Water? Wine?" The aurai nodded to two wooden mugs on the table.

"I'm up for some wine." Kenny picked up a mug and held it out gratefully. The aurai tipped its jug, deep red liquid bubbling out to fill Kenny's cup.

"Water." Karen gave Kenny the stink eye. "Should you really be drinking that?"

Kenny sniffed the crimson liquid and took a sip. "It's just wine, not vodka or rubbing alcohol." Warmth trickled down his throat and spine. "Mmmm…"

A cold hand gently took the mug from his hand. "No, you really shouldn't be. I don't need you getting drunk and embarrassing me."

Kenny blinked the dizziness from his eyes and frowned. One tiny sip already had him tipsy. What was in that wine?

"I'm glad to see you're alive." Hemlock said with a stoic expression, his posture rigid.

Kenny's head fog lifted and he cleared his throat. "I can tell." He stood and glared at Hemlock. They were roughly the same height, so Kenny didn't have to embarrass himself by craning his head backwards. Somehow he didn't feel like immediately murdering Hemlock, he must be fuddled from that wine.

Hemlock sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you are ready to jump on me like a mad dog, but I would like a chance to explain."

Kenny's eyes drifted from Hemlock's face as he saw another aurai drift by with a pitcher of wine.

"Shall we go somewhere less… Distracting?" Hemlock snapped in Kenny's face. "The wine will still be here, tonight's a celebration after all."

"Fine, come on Kare-bear." Kenny held out a hand for her.

"Karen can stay with Stan and Kyle. God knows they need a supervisor." Hemlock rubbed his temple as if humans were the bane of his existence.

Karen nodded and jogged off to the table Hemlock had been seated at. Kyle was alive, and not too worse for wear. Dark bags under his eyes gave away his exhaustion, but any injuries he had were purely psychological. And that's why South Park had a therapist. Stan had his head down on the table, looking as if he'd drank about as much wine as Kenny had intended to. He was staring up at Kyle with a slight pout.

The next thing Kenny knew he was seated on a balcony in a fur covered chair way above the ground. He didn't even remember how they'd gotten there, Hemlock could just abandon him here and he'd probably die of starvation before finding his way back to the mess hall.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Hemlock waved his hand across the banister. Kenny could barely make out the large pond below.

"Yeah… It's surprisingly nice here, last time I was in Algrid it was Frosty the Snowman's wet dream." Kenny struggled not to sink into the warm animal furs.

"We aren't in Algrid. We are currently in Arcadia. There's as many doors in Algrid to this place as there is to South Park." Hemlock surveyed the ground, his outline illuminated by soft flowers that grew on the walls of the balcony.

"Why don't you guys just live in Arcadia? Algrid kinda sucks butt." Kenny asked truthfully. Paradise or wintry hellscape? It really wasn't that hard of a choice.

"The High Fey live in Arcadia, I'm sure you didn't assume there is only one race of fey? Besides, Dark Fey were born from the cold. Algrid is beautiful to us." Hemlock raised his eyebrow at Kenny. "Can you not fall asleep while I'm talking."

Kenny snapped his head up. "Dude I haven't gotten sleep in like two days. And I've died twice, that takes a lot out of you."

"South Park is special, being on the border between worlds. Many citizens have abnormal abilities, some like Tweek can see fey and resist magic. Others can resurrect themselves, there's a plethora of possibilities." Hemlock locked onto Kenny's eyes. "I've rounded up as many as I could find and brought them here."

"Wait, so Kyle-"

"As far as I can tell, no. I just felt bad after what happened to you. I'm going soft." Hemlock muttered.

"Is that why you brought Karen here?" Kenny bit his lip. The universe was truly merciless if Karen had the same curse as him. It all started when he was young, the deaths. The earliest he could remember was in kindergarten. It was like the universe realized its terrible mistake and tried to eradicate Kenny at every possible chance it got. Had Karen died before?

"She is quite good with animals, not as powerful as self resurrection, but magnificent in its own way." Hemlock picked at the vines that crept around the banister.

Kenny scoffed. "Yeah right, those hellhounds were ready to tear her apart."

"She was scared and unfocused, when you got hit and that manticore went crazy they attacked it to protect her. Rest in peace, Spots and Bucky."

Kenny stood up and joined Hemlock at the balcony. "The world is fucked up." He ran a hand through his hair, locking his fingers around the strands tightly. "South Park is fucked."

"Yes. We should return to the feast, the leader of the High fey will be addressing the party soon." Hemlock steeled his eyes. "I am sorry to tell you this, but tomorrow we go to war."

Kenny swallowed, he wasn't surprised. Finality sat in his stomach. "So this is a death party? One last shebang before we all die?"

"It is better than contemplating life and death throughout the long night." Hemlock quickly reasoned. "Any last wishes you have should be taken care of soon. Or not, I suppose if anyone is guaranteed life it is you." Hemlock gave the scene one last sweep and nodded to Kenny. Time to head back.

Kenny sat across from Kyle and wrapped his jacket around Karen, even if it was a bangin 67° in the hall. All the bodies dancing and laughing, all the alcohol running through veins made it seem warmer.

Kenny greeted Kyle and quickly went about making himself a plate stacked high with meats and vegetables. If he had one wish it would be to sleep on a full belly, surrounded by his friends and family. Stan raised his head and gave Kenny a lopsided grin. His trademark blue and red hat had been lost at some point, and his black hair stuck up at odd angles.

"D… Dude, we haven't talked alllll week." His words slurred out slightly as he reached over to pat Kenny's face.

Kyle pulled him back. "I told you to stop drinking!" he sighed and tossed Stan's wine into the floor. He set the glass back down and poured water into it. Kenny could see fear underneath the guise of irritation.

Stan shrugged with tears on his cheeks. "It's gonna be a bloodbath." He pressed his palms of his eyes. "I can't stop seeing it."

Kyle leaned Stan against his side and rubbed his shoulder. "I know, buddy."

"Hemlock says Stan is a seer." Karen whispered to Kenny as he bit into a chunk of ham. "He hasn't stopped drinking since we got here."

"Maybe he should get to bed." Kenny yelled over to Kyle through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"I know, but Hemlock hasn't shown me where we're sleeping. I don't want to fall down a flight of stairs or run into a dragon." Kyle responded as Stan hiccuped against his shirt.

Kenny glanced around. Where was the dark fey anyways? The only fey Kenny could see were more brightly colored and smiling.

"May I have your attention." Hemlock's voice rang across the hall. The chattering eventually stopped, but music still faintly carried on. The woman he'd been talking to earlier stepped up beside him, her grown swishing in hypnotic patterns. "Queen Verenestra will now speak."

The Queen was definitely the most unearthly woman Kenny had ever seen. She was petite, silver hair intertwined with flowers and intricate braiding flowed down her back. Earthy gossamer robes hung loosely around her form, down to her bare feet. Her large eyes scanned the crowd with warmth. She looked kind, but also powerful. Like she could topple entire kingdoms with a smile and bring emperors to their knees.

"My people, tomorrow will be no easy feat," Queen Verenestra began, "But we must help our brethren into a new age of prosperity. Our world will only fall to ruin under the vicious rule of the Dark King. The next in the bloodline shall rule Algrid, and bring peace to the countryside. Tomorrow we fight for freedom, life, and happiness. But tonight, we feast!" She raised her arms, as a grin crossed her face.

The crowd cheered, drinks raised in response. The music picked up tenfold, most Folk heading to the groups of writhing bodies and leaving plenty of messy dishes behind. Kenny spotted a few other humans; some were sitting, some were passed out, and some seemed to be having a really good time in the arms of fey lovers. There were also a couple of Dark fey. Just a couple tables away sat a fey woman with a frown, she had a black eye and more than enough battle scars. Her companion, a smaller fey with pale white hair, seemed to be giving her different potions to drink.

"I hope you're enjoying yourselves." Hemlock sat down next to Kenny, a smile across his lips. Not cruel or mocking either, a joyful smile. Someone had gotten into the wine.

"Hey, where are we sleeping?" Kyle nodded to Stan, who had fallen into a drunken sleep during the Queen's speech. Kyle struggled to sit up straight as all Stan's weight leaned against him.

"I shall show you." Hemlock stood, a spring in his step. Kyle grunted as he lugged Stan up. Together they staggered through the throngs of people.

Karen giggled and covered her mouth.

"What?" Kenny asked as he stuffed his fifth roll into his mouth.

"That boy's staring at you." Karen pointed all to obviously.

Kenny looked up, annoyed that someone was distracting him from his food. Yes, a boy was staring at him. To be fair, Kenny had told him to 'hit me up later'. Kenny choked on his roll as the fey boy started to walk over and quickly chugged down some water.

"Smooth." Karen laughed and ran her fingers through her ponytail.

"Are you trying you get me to flirt with this boy?" Kenny shout whispered in surprise.

Karen shrugged. "If it keeps you out of trouble."

"I think it could get me into a lot of trouble." Kenny flushed. "Besides, I'm trying to spend time with you."

"Kenny you always spend time with me. I haven't ever seen you with anyone but your friends or me! You need a social life." Karen smiled and stood up. "I'm going to bed, so you don't have to worry about me."

"I'm still gonna." Kenny said stubbornly. He didn't need an expanded social life, he had friends. Even if they made fun of Kenny's poverty and forgot every time they saw him die, they were still his best friends.

"G'night!" Karen ran away with a small laugh.

Kenny took another gulp of his water as the fey boy slid into Karen's seat. His hair changed from chestnut to cherry under the candescent light.

"You've been over here eating all night." He pointed out with a grin. "There's more to do here."

"I like food." Kenny pointed out in return, although he was getting extremely full.

"You're one of the humans, right? I'm Bas. I've heard you have crazy magical stuff in your world." Bas leaned forward, seemingly more interested in learning about Kenny's world than anything else.

"Magic? You guys do the magic. We have phones and junk, which are pretty cool." Kenny patted himself down, and finding his phone, pulled it out. He pressed the on button, but the battery must've died at some point. This wouldn't have happened with a Nokia.

Bas took it when Kenny offered up the useless piece of technology. He turned it over and looked at the screen.

"What is this?" Bas asked as he pressed the on button.

"It's a phone, but it died. Usually I can connect to the internet and look at- nevermind." Kenny cleared his throat as Bas frowned at the phone.

"I.. It's dead? Like deceased? Should we bury it?" He looked at Kenny with the saddest expression ever.

Kenny didn't have the heart to tell Bas otherwise as he looked back down at the black screen. "Y-yeah, sure." It's not like he really needed it at the moment. If they buried it inside a container, Kenny could just dig it up later.

Bas held the phone in his arms as they walked down into the main entrance and to the landscape below. Kenny wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to make it back up the flights of stairs, but he'd never attended a funeral for a phone before. He felt under dressed in his tattered jeans and hoodie. Meanwhile Bas had on brown tights and a soft blue tunic that glittered down to his thighs. Kenny had never felt more emo. He pulled down his hood as they stepped out into night. Or day. It was really hard to tell when you were in a cave of trees that was dark no matter what.

The scenery hadn't changed, but now Kenny could still faintly hear the music from upstairs.

"Should we give it a casket?" Kenny asked as they stopped a ways from the pond.

"Usually fey decompose quickly, we turn into new life when we die so we don't use caskets. Do humans do that?" Bas asked with shining eyes.

"Well, no. Humans kinda just spend a few years rotting inside of boxes deep in the earth." Kenny shrugged. It sounded really bad when he explained it, but he couldn't really put a positive spin on human decomposition. "Some people decide to have themselves put into a giant fire. Then the family keeps their ashes." That's worse sounding somehow.

"Oh. Will you be turned into ash when you die? I think I'll become camellias when I die." Bas smiled at the thought.

"Once I was cremated. It took forever to come back from that." Kenny shuddered.

Bas made a small 'O' with his mouth. "You're like the Phoenix! Self resurrection!"

Kenny flushed as Bas grabbed his shoulders. "I'm not that cool. It's actually a curse."

"The Phoenix is one of the most righteous entity's in Arcadia. I believe you are blessed, even if you do not." Bas dropped his hands as Kenny shook his head.

"Fey are weird." He muttered to himself.

Bas kneeled down and ran his fingers over the grass. The grass extended, flower stems joining into to weave a small box. Bas set the phone inside and the box sunk into the earth.

"Wow." Kenny breathed. There was no way he'd remember where the ground ate his phone. He was expecting them to dig a hole. Now he'd have to explain to his parents that his phone was in a different world, probably several feet underground.

Bas smiled at him.

Kenny helped him up and reluctantly turned away from his phone's grave. Bas led him around the yard, small paths in the grass were lit up by bioluminescent mushrooms.

"You know, we can still have a dance." Bas grinned at Kenny. "The music is beautiful."

Kenny couldn't think of a valid excuse. "Okay, just don't try to eat me." Bas had taken them to a semi secluded courtyard next to the edge of the water. Maybe he was a mermaid in disguise.

"Can you teach me a human dance?" Bas asked hopefully as he twirled around the courtyard.

"Ummm, sure." Kenny licked his lips and thought for a hard moment. He didn't dance. He couldn't ballroom dance or tango. "So this is called the macarena. This is an extremely popular human dance." He tried to keep as straight of a face as possible. He was teaching Bas all the wrong lessons about humans.

If the macarena didn't meet Bas' expectations, he didn't let it show. He watched Kenny intensely as he slowly danced the macarena.

"And this is the YMCA." Kenny wanted to stop, but kept going for some reason. Even if the music wasn't the YMCA theme song, he was still having an easy time doing the dance.

After several embarrassing dance moves, Kenny fell onto one of the benches and let Bas do much more graceful versions of the dances. He felt like he was back at a middle school dance, where kids danced about three feet apart with their awkward, prepubescent bodies. At least there wasn't any teachers hovering.

"Don't look so glum. I will teach you some of our dances in return." Bas pulled Kenny up and grasped his hand. "Dancing shows a lot of emotions." He led Kenny with two steps to the right. "Happiness, sadness, anger, hatred, and even love." They spun around. "But choose your dance partner carefully here, some dances are bonding." He grinned at Kenny as they looped around the small courtyard. The music surrounded them. "Some will only dance with their chosen one, it's hard to know who you're meant to be with though." Bas closed his eyes and they spun around again as the music struck a chord. Kenny somehow didn't step on Bas' feet, or his own for that matter. The song slowly faded away, replaced by a new movement. This one faster, meant for jigs or Irish dancing probably.

"I should be getting to bed." Kenny muttered through a yawn.

"Yes, a long day tomorrow. Most of them won't sleep at all." Bas stared up at the magnificent tree. Kenny couldn't help but feel sad for the second time that day. He didn't want to see any of his friends go into battle, it'd be hell. The fight was inevitable though.

Kenny's body forced him up at dawn, despite him getting little sleep over the past few days. He turned over on his soft mat, a furry blanket slide off his body. There were several other people in the cozy room. Kyle, Stan, Bas, Karen. Kenny moved carefully as to not wake any of them. He staggered over to the window and peaked his head out. Sparkling sunlight shone down into the cove, the trees that had entrapped their shelter had pulled back their branches. Kenny sighed, the morning looked so peaceful. Aside from the fey running around down below, preparing. Kenny got dressed and sneaked out of the room. The main hall was in a frenzy. Weapons being prepared, armor donned. Some went without either, just their own deadly magic and a hint of madness. Kenny wished he had a cup of coffee, all the loud noise was making his morning crankiness even worse. Breakfast was short, as the fey were ready to fight after their night of fun. Kenny made sure to stick by Karen's side as they marched out. A few small animals and birds would greet her every now and then to break up the continuous boredom of walking.

"I believe we will meet Prince Craig on the battlefield after this is all over. In the heat of the fight I doubt we shall see him." Hemlock confided in Kenny as the scenery faded from warm to cold. "The King has been pushed back by militant civilians, but I'm afraid they've been slaughtered."

"That's really motivating." Kenny muttered back, his nerves on fire.

Queen Verenestra rode in front of the troops on a white steed, silver armor covering the most vulnerable parts of her body. To her flanks were Knights with their faces covered by helmets.

Even from far away the dark army was easy to spot. Trolls, ogres, wendigos, boogies, drakes, and other malicious soldiers withered in the distance.

Kenny gripped Karen's hand as the Queen stopped. The Dark King stood in front of his troops, his fist raised.

"You stand in the way of progress! We shall inhibit the earth!" His voice boomed across the field and struck fear into Kenny. Tweek and Craig were nowhere in sight.

"For your tyrannical reign you will be held accountable, you are no King!" Queen Verenestra demounted from her steed and unsheathed her sword. It sparkled with yellow light, even in the bleak weather.

"You brought your people to a slaughter. Attack!" The Dark King roared.

Queen Verenestra raised her sword, the armies surgered forward.

A deafening screech roared out across the field, jarring Kenny's head and making him stumble against Karen. Both armies stopped.

"It's a dragon!" Karen gasped, her eyes ablaze with wonder.

A giant blue dragon appeared on the Dark King's side and Kenny cursed. They had a dragon?

The dragon landed on the battlefield with a thud, its body snaking around between the armies.

Queen Verenestra gaped, her body falling into a kneeling position. "Great beast." She lowered her head in respect.

The dragon's pale eyes narrowed. The Knights wrapped their hands around the hilts of their swords, prepared to protect their Queen.

The Queen motioned them to stop as the dragon turned to the dark army. The monsters cheered at the dragon, fully expecting the dark beast to slaught the High Fey with ease.

The dragon batted its wings and landed in the middle of their army, its claws tearing through a row of trolls with a screech. Screams erupted from the Dark Army as their ranks broke. Hell broke loose as the armies charged again.


Wow, I wrote this so high on life. Hahaha, just kidding. We all know that my writing gets done at 1am while I'm lying I'm bed and badly singing along to music. I also happen to be really sleepy at 1am so my grammar goes out the window and I'm more likely to add bad puns. Just thought someone out there might enjoy learning about my process.