-EXPLOSION- Okay, so now we're back on track!

We return to Conall Curach! And yay! Ray's story is finally revealed! HURRAH!

But there is angst. Dun dun dun!

I guess I won't keep you all waiting with this unneeded author's note. So…get reading.

-SECOND EXPLOSION-


"Look," said Mika, pointing forward, up ahead.

Ray had already seen it. In the beginning of Conall Curach, the land had been lush and green, wet, but growing. But here, the grass was yellowish, and grew in patches.

"The land decays the further we go in," said Ray, nodding. "The more we head in, the deader it will become."

"Yeah…I guess…c'mon, let's stop admiring the scenery and keep going…," urged Mika.

The two Selkies walked on forward until they came to two paths. Ray glanced at Mika.

"Left or right?" he asked.

"Left."

They both moved across the wooden planks. There was a lot less land here, and a lot more water. The Selkies of old must've built these bridges long ago to move throughout this dreadful place.

As Ray and Mika reached a patch of land in between two planks, two sahagin ambushed them by leaping out of the water.

"Be careful," warned Ray, wielding his racket.

"Yeah, yeah, you don't have to tell me," retorted Mika, shooting two rapid shots at an oncoming sahagin. It was knocked backwards, but responded by blow a large jet of cold air at Mika. Mika dodged to avoid getting hit; she didn't know what the chilling breath would do, but she didn't want to find out!

Ray bashed his sahagin over the head with his maul, but the sahagin leaped on top of him, bearing down on him. Ray struggled with it for a moment, before kicking it off of him. Mika ducked, and the second sahagin flew into the first. Once they were both dazed in a crumpled heap, the Selkies killed them.

They moved on in silence. Mika was shivering. It was oddly chilly here. How did the Selkies of long ago handle this?

Ray noticed his cold companion, and wrapped an arm over her shoulder, pulling her close. "Don't worry, I won't do anything perverted," he promised.

Mika looked at him in surprise. Now there was something she never thought she'd hear. Something was clearly troubling Ray…well, at least more than what she knew.

Eventually, after taking care of another sahagin (which took a little over two minutes, because Mika had to convince Ray not to trip one again), they came across some new enemies. In front of a large rock were two Gigan Toads, and a simple yellow flan. Ray sent a fire spell at the flan, and the burning creature slithered towards them, although Mika disposed of it quickly. The toads proved to be more troublesome, as Mika was frozen twice, and Ray was licked by a long, sticky, toad tongue (which he claimed had messed up his hair). But they managed to prevail, with two well aimed fire spells and rapid volley of shots from their rackets.

Ray walked up to the next stone. He kneeled down and began to read.

To those who follow:

We have lost many of our own.

Be ever vigilant as you advance.

Ray looked down, and sure enough, found another piece of bandanna attached to the rock. This time, there was something different…there was a carving next to the cloth…an arrow…and it was pointing to another carving…letters. Ray squinted, looking closely. The carvings were old, but still legible.

F.Z. and B.Z.

"What does that mean?" asked Ray aloud. He tried to think of what the initials could mean. He racked his brain. Then it clicked, and a look of dawning comprehension appeared on his features.

"Mom? Dad?" he whispered. F.Z. and B.Z.

Farah Zul and Beda Zul.

His parents.

"What's up with you?" asked Mika, striding over towards him, her arms full of goodies. Ray got up, silent. Then he spoke.

"Nothing. C'mon…let's go back…this is a dead end."

They began to retrace their steps, until they reached the two paths again. This time they took the right. After another few battles with sahagin, they arrived at another fork.

"Left again," said Ray. Soon they walked forward, but Mika stuck out an arm in front of Ray. She pointed forward.

"Okay…call me crazy, but haven't we seen this wood before?" she asked, pointing at some logs ahead. Ray kneeled down and looked at the wood closely. It was light tan-brown, and had occasional red stripes on it.

"Red, huh?" he asked. "I don't know, but let's keep going."

Mika and Ray continued walking, but then they came across another set of logs, as well as a horrible sight. Mika gagged, and Ray just let out shocked breath, and groaned, trying not to feel nauseated…and failing.

Up ahead, up against the red and tan logs, was the dead, rotting corpse of a lizardman…a big lizardman. Its mouth was gaping open, its eyes glassy and unblinking. But the worst thing about this image was the creature's body, not the head. The flesh had been stripped from the reptiles chest, which was in the water (the neck of the beast was snagged on a sharp twig, keeping the neck and up above water, but the rest below). Ray winced and looked away as he good see bones and ribs sticking out of the remains…

"Dear god…that is disgusting," groaned Mika in a sickened tone.

"So that's where we've seen them before," croaked Ray. "That's that lizardman Garrett fought…Snair…at Daemon's Court. He got caught on the logs."

"That thing creeps me out," said Mika, shivering as she eyed the body as if it was about to jump to its feet and attack.

"Ha! I'm not worried about Snair; I'm worried about what DID this to him," said Ray sharply. "Let's go in this direction. I want to know what happened."

Creeping quietly along the logs, trying to ignore the sight of the decaying remains and overwhelming stench, the Selkies made their way across a bridge of planks. Ray eventually spotted a trail of old, dried blood, and the two began to follow it.

Two sahagin jumped out of the water, tails lashing wildly, hissing and spitting. Ray dodged a swipe of a fin, and beat his sahagin away from him, while Mika fired shots at it from behind at its back. After it had been dealt with, Mika hit her sahagin over the head. Confused, the second sahagin walked right off the edge of the small island they were on, and plunged into the cold water.

"Not very smart, are they?" asked Ray. Mika murmured in agreement. The two Selkies moved on in silence, moving across board after board, still following the trail of blood. Eventually they reached a large island. This island was different than most of the one they had seen before. This island was dark brown and dead-looking. There were small occasional patches of grass, but mostly, it was all dirt and rock. In the center, stood a large monster. He was a darkish grey, tall and lean, and had a long whip-like tail. It resembled a sahagin, but seemed tall, bigger, and meaner. It looked at the caravanners with its large ugly face.

"Oh look…more Selkies are visiting our humble home," he said, a long slimy tongue flicking out of his mouth to lick his lips. "I am the Sahagin Lord, the strongest of all sahagin. What brings you to our lovely paradise?"

"As if you don't know," snarled Mika, gripping her racket tightly.

"Well…I suppose this isn't going to end well for one of us," replied the Sahagin Lord. "You want the myrrh tree…but we are reluctant to give it to you…this presents a problem, doesn't it.

'This guy's smart,' thought Ray. 'I can tell…he's not going to go down as easily as the other ones.'

"Well, I suppose I'm alright with fighting," decided the aquatic monster. "I haven't eaten Selkies in a long time. The last good meal I got was that lizardman we found.

Ray shuddered as he remembered the dead body. So this was the monster that had eaten Snair. Oh boy.

"Yes…it's been forever since I've had Selkie…I saw one recently, but he ran off further into the swamp…"

Ray perked up. "Was he wearing a bandanna?" he asked.

"Yes…a red one…it looked somewhat like yours…," stated the Sahagin Lord. He then struck a thoughtful pose. "But for some reason, you remind me more of that girl that I had seen a long time ago. What could it be…one or two years, maybe?"

Ray stiffened, and felt a cold chill course throughout his body. "Was this girl…wearing a blue bandanna?" he asked, knowing the answer.

"Oh yes…she was a feisty one too…and yet…she had no chalice with her…it makes me wonder how she could have survived."

'Dah Zul got separated from the Leuda caravan in this place,' realized Mika, knowing now why Ray kept asking these strange questions.

"And to think I almost had her to," continued the monster, reminiscing. "But no…she ran…killed two of my best men…and then she jumped into the water…I think she tried to swim away, but she should've known better. It's almost impossible for OUR kind to breathe in there."

Ray's hands were trembling. This had been the monster that had led his sister to her death. His eyes burned with a fiery rage, and his teeth were bared. It was time to avenge her. The Sahagin Lord noticed this change in expression.

"Oh…was she close to you?" he asked. "Then I suppose you're angry, which means talk is most likely over, eh?"

Ray let out an enraged roar and ran towards the Sahagin Lord, while Mika tried to stop him, but thought better of it and ran forward with him. The monster leaped back and snapped his webbed fingers, and four brown sahagin burst out from the ground.

"Nice try…," said the Sahagin Lord silkily. "But your anger and rage shouldn't cloud your vision."

"Stone sahagin," growled Mika with gritted teeth. Stone sahagin were known to boast a mighty defense, and strong attacks. But now Mika was extra worried. If the sahagin could burst out of the ground, that meant that anywhere they walked, there could be an ambush.

Ray didn't seem worried. Leaping over the newly arrived stone sahagin, he swung his racket right at the larger sahagin, only to be knocked back by a large webbed hand. Ray landed next to Mika.

"That accomplished a lot," she drawled. Ray rolled his eyes and got to his feet.

"Gravity?" he asked.

"Yeah…," Mika replied, smirking. Both of the Selkies began flailing there rackets wildly, knocking back all four of the sahagin. Combining their magic, they made a powerful gravity spell that hit all five of the monsters.

"Good…now their health should be down," said Ray. Both Selkies ran forward and got locked into combat. Mika dodged two attacks from the sahagin, and managed to trip one. However, a second sahagin stabbed her in the back with a sharp, icy claw, and she let out a painful grunt.

Ray was doing better, but only just. He weaved between the monsters, trying to get to the Lord, but one sahagin kicked him in the stomach, knocking the wind right out of him. He got up, and raised his arms in what seemed to be surrender. The stone sahagin lunged at him with a claw, but Ray ducked, and it stabbed its comrade.

"What!?" shouted the monster, as its friend fell lifelessly to the ground. At the same time, Mika bashed her monster over the head before whacking it in the throat, knocking it into the water. The stone creature couldn't stay afloat, and sunk downwards.

"Don't think you've won yet!" snarled a sahagin, lashing out with its long tail. The tail wrapped around Ray's arm, pulling him down to the ground. The sahagin proceeded to cut him open with its claws.

"Ray!" cried Mika, but at that moment, the remaining stone sahagin wrapped its arms around her. Mika kicked her legs, but to no avail, as the Sahagin Lord ran up to her, raising a large hand. Mika, thinking on instinct, raised her leg up quickly.

The Sahagin Lord let out a weak cry and toppled to the ground, clutching in between his legs.

"Cheater!" it hissed painfully.

"That's what I always say!" came Ray's muffled voice from the ground. His stone sahagin stomped on him to shut him up. Mika kicked her sahagin in the shin, and it dropped her, spitting. Mika grabbed it by the arm and hurled it over her shoulder, hitting Ray's opponent backwards into the water. But she had forgotten that Ray was bound by the sahagin's tail, and he too plunged into the water. Meanwhile, Mika's sahagin got up, rubbing its head, and moving to stand next to the Sahagin Lord, in a battle position.

Mika gritted her teeth and tried not to panic. That was proving to be difficult. Ray could drown! Well…that was the least of her worries. For one thing, if Ray drowned, he would die. Second of all, he was in miasma water, so that made it WORSE! Oh, and that' not even counting the fact that the Tipa caravan's chalice was tied on his back, so if he died, bye bye Tipa.

Mika tried to make a dive into the water, but was stabbed in the side by the stone sahagin. She cursed herself mentally as she was frozen.

Meanwhile, underwater, Ray was struggling, as he and the stone sahagin sank further into the swamp. The water had started out as a murky turquoise, but now it was getting darker and blacker, as Ray sank into the abyss below. Ray's eyes were bugging out of his head. He needed air now. The stone sahagin leered at him, and it tried to swim up, but its rocky body was too heavy. Ray needed a plan fast.

Ray lunged for the sahagin, and grabbed it by the neck. All sahagin could breathe underwater, but not all of them could swim. Sahagin had gills as well as lungs. And if you breathe air into gills…

Ray positioned his mouth over the gills and breathed hard. A screeching noise emerged from the sahagins throat, along with an impressive amount of bubbles, as the sahagin let go of him. Ray kicked off of the monsters body, and shot for the surface.

Mika felt her body unfreeze, and she dropped to her knees. She looked over at the black water. Ray still hadn't surfaced. No…they had almost lost him once…not again.

But that was the least of her problems. The stone sahagin grabbed her violently, and pulled her to her feet, holding her up. The Sahagin Lord marched towards her, pulling back its webbed hand, preparing to deal a death blow. Mika gave one last defiant glare.

SPLOOSH!

Both sahagin turned to see Ray shoot out of the water, and shoot his racket. He hit the stone sahagin in its brain, and knocked it to the ground. Mika felt her body get dropped, and Ray pulled her away from the remaining sahagin.

"Stay here," he ordered, setting her down gently. He ran back into battle, preparing to fight the remaining enemy.

"So…you've taken out my men…but I shall return the favor," spat the Sahagin Lord.

"You've already taken out someone that was important to me," said Ray, his eyes determined.

The Sahagin Lord looked momentarily confused. Then his eyes gleamed. "Oh…I see…that Selkie girl…I take it she was your mother? No, sister…you are too old, and she is too young. And I can see that this one here is your lover."

Mika waited for Ray to deny this, but he didn't say a word. In response, he flung a rock at the Sahagin Lord, unbalancing him. Ray dashed at his foe, but the Sahagin Lord wasn't done yet. He swiped a hand at Ray, before aiming at him with a kick. Ray dodged and put some distance between him and the monster, before healing himself with a striped apple.

"So now the baby brother comes to avenge his dead sister," taunted the beast. "Too bad this ending will be tragic."

Ray's eyes glowed with rage, and he swung his racket at the Sahagin Lord, but the aquatic enemy simply smacked his weapon out of his hand. Mika swore. Ray had fallen for the bait. He was in a frenzy. He had to calm down and analyze the situation wisely.

Ray was now weaponless, and the Sahagin Lord kicked him down towards the body of the dead stone sahagin. He looked down at him with savage triumph on his scaly features.

"Now for the end," he hissed. Ray's eyes widened, and he wracked his brain for possible ways out of this.

"Ray!" shouted Mika, struggling to her feet.

"Too late!" shouted the Sahagin Lord, swinging his arm.

But Ray was faster. Without even blinking, he grabbed the sahagin corpse next to him, and shoved the clawed arm at the Sahagin Lord's throat. The long claw pierced the skin, and the Lord's eyes bulged.

"You…you…you dare use my men against me?!" demanded the Lord.

"You ambushed us, so this is only fair," countered Ray, twisting the arm. The Sahagin Lord made to reply, but merely coughed, and removed himself from his companion's claw. The Sahagin Lord tried to make a reply, but he dropped to his knees and fell on his back.

Ray stared down at the monster for a moment, before turning his back on it. He went and sat down next to Mika.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking at her.

"Yeah…I'm fine," she replied.

"That's good," he responded quietly. Silence. Mika turned to face him.

"Ray…what's up?" she asked.

"Hmmm?"

"I mean like…what's this whole deal with you…and your sister…and De Nam…there's gotta be some deeper meaning here."

Ray looked at the grey sky, and then turned to face her.

"I'm sorry," began Mika. "I mean- you don't have to tell me if you don't want to-"

"My family was a part of the Tipa caravan," Ray began unexpectedly. "One year they came back…but they had forgotten some things…memories or something."

Mika nodded, listening.

"They went from caravanners to merchants…and researchers."

"Researchers?" asked Mika, puzzled.

"That's right. They wanted to solve the mysteries of the world. And maybe, in the process, find their memory by doing so."

"So they would occasionally go off with other caravans and such, and fight, as well as take notes," said Ray.

"But then one year…it happened."

"What happened?" asked Mika.

Ray let out a long, low sigh. "I was six. My sister was eleven. My mom and dad had raised enough money to buy a portable crystal in the black market, like the one the Striped Brigands have. Our parents went out to explore, heading for a certain place."

"Where did they go?" asked Mika fearfully, knowing the answer.

Ray waved a hand around them. "Conall Curach. That stone I was examining earlier? It had my parent's initials on it, and a piece of my sister's bandanna."

"They never returned. My sister and I waited and waited, but they never came back. So we took over the family business, raised by Roland and the rest of the village. However, we made a vow that when we were both old enough, we'd go out searching for them."

Mika nodded. "But something went wrong," she said.

"Well…not so much wrong as inconvenient. My sister refused to join the caravan, instead staying to raise me. By the time our old caravan retired, I was old enough to head out, but my sister didn't want to abandon the family business. She had grown to get used to it. So we made the decision that I would explore the outside world, and she would try to find out information from customers."

"So…I guess that's it," said Ray. "That's my reason for joining the caravan. To find out what my parents' fate was…and solving their mystery for them."

Mika pulled him into a warm hug. It wasn't one of those gushy, romantic hugs that Sam and Star would have. It was simple, yet Ray felt ten times better.

"So you hide your true self under a mask of wise cracks and sarcasm," Mika figured softly. "All so the others wouldn't worry about you…Ray…you're a very good man."

Ray stood up, and brushed off his dirty clothes. "Nah…I'm still a wise ass…but…I guess you could say I just want to know the truth. I just want to know WHY. I want answers."

"Well…maybe if we continue to head deeper in…you'll find them," said Mika. Ray nodded.

"Hey…Mika…thanks for listening," he said, as they walked back the way they came.

"Heh…I'm not a total bitch...I'll listen to your problems anytime."

"Ha! Glad to hear it!"


Later on, they were advancing across large planks of wood through a giant patch of reeds.

Mika knocked a flan into a magic plant, while Ray finished them off.

"I swear, we've passed that same patch of reeds five times," said Ray, pointing to said patch.

"How the heck can you tell!?" asked Mika, folding her arms.

"I…don't know," answered Ray, shrugging. The two thieves moved on, and met a Gigan toad and a flan.

"Watch this," said Ray, snickering. Ray ran out in between the toad and flan.

"Oy! Blizzard breath! Over here!" he shouted. The toad turned around and glared at him irritably, before shooting out its long tongue. Ray moved out of the way, and the tongue grabbed the flan instead. Mika kicked the flan (and the toad's tongue) back over into the toad's mouth. As the amphibian choked on the yellow goo, Ray lit it on fire with a Fira spell.

"I guess even Gigan toads don't like the taste of flan," said Mika.

"I dare you to eat one," challenged Ray, snickering.

"I'll pass," refused Mika dryly.

They continued to head through the maze of plants, attacking and battling every monster they came across. Eventually, after taking out a pesky magic plant that shocked Mika twice, they reached a fork in the road, guarded by a flan.

The flan slithered forward, and sprayed both Selkies with slow gas. Ray swung his racket, but the flan dodged easily. Its red eyes glittered, as if mocking them.

But flan weren't very smart. They lacked brains, after all. And so the little flan didn't realize that when the slow spell stopped working, it would be brutally killed. So the flan really didn't see Mika's roundhouse kick coming.

Ray ran a hand through his long hair. "Déjà vu. Another fork in the road. What way shall we go?"

Mika frowned, stroking her hair thoughtfully. She looked ahead. One of the paths led deeper into the surrounding plants. The other led down across a river. Mika pointed to the second path. "Let's take this one."

They walked down the long pathway, eventually coming across a magic plant. After a couple of burns, they defeated the plant and continued to move along the river. The two Selkies arrived at the end of the path and stepped on the muddy land. Mika looked around. There wasn't anything here, really. Just a dead end.

"I don't get it…," she stated, turning to Ray. "Why is there nothing here? Why would the Selkies build a path to nothing?"

"I couldn't tell you. I'm not hundreds of years old."

They took a couple of steps when Mika stopped Ray. She made a gesture to quiet him down.

Bzzzzzzzzz.

Ray nodded in understanding. He had heard it too. They looked around, rackets in hand, and moved back to back, ensuring that they had no blind spots. After a few moments, the buzzing stopped.

"Wonder what that was?" asked Ray.

"I don't know, but I guess it's gone-"

Mika was interrupted by a loud screech from above. Both Selkies looked up immediately to see a monstrous creature diving down at them from the sky.

"Shit!" swore Ray. "Mika move!" He grabbed her and dragged her away from the attacking monster as it slammed into the ground. Once they had gained enough distance, Ray looked back at the creature. It was large and green, and resembled an enormous, overgrown insect. It had large wings, and long jagged claws on its hands.

"Crap…isn't that what you call an Armageddon?" asked Ray.

"They're…they're called abbadons…genius," corrected Mika, shivering.

"What's with you?" asked Ray, bewildered. "I know it's cold but not THAT cold."

"I just hate bugs, okay?!" admitted Mika.

"You were fine with the Tiny Worms," pointed out Ray bluntly.

"I'm fine with anything I can crush under my foot," snarled Mika. "But those things…I hate them…and those giant beetles in Selepation Cave…"

"Okay, so you have a fear of bugs, it's not something that's a big deal. But now that I know, I can get you a good birthday present."

"I'll kill you."

"Yea- wait, what about the monster?"

BOOM! A curse spell exploded around both of the caravanners, and they were sent flying. The abaddon roared, flexing its powerful arms. Ray got to his feet slowly. He and Mika looked at each other and nodded. Casting a quick clear spell on himself, he prepared himself to cast a spell, as the abaddon lunged at him again. Ray dodged it narrowly, and stuck it with a gravity spell with Mika's help. The monster plummeted to the ground. Ray ran up and smacked it silly with his paddle, as Mika shot projectiles from afar. Ray grabbed onto one of the arms of the beast as it rose back into the air. The abaddon flung the Selkie off and aimed a giant punch at him. Ray was knocked right back into the ground.

Ray was curled up in a ball, gritting his teeth, gripping his crotch. "I swear…all of those monsters are in on it. THIS CANNOT BE A COINCIDENCE!"

As the abaddon prepared to bear down on him, it let out another screech and a second abaddon appeared. Mika snuck up behind the two insect-like beings, and waved to Ray. Ray nodded, still wincing at the previous blow, and worked with Mika to bring down the two monsters. The second one land crushed the first under it, and Ray moved closer and beat both monsters down.

Mika let out a relieved sigh. "Thank god that's over," she said. Ray didn't answer. He was too busy staring at the monsters.

Mika's eyes focused on him, confused. "Ray? What is it?"

Ray pointed at one of the abaddon's green hands. There, snagged on a long jagged scythe of a claw, was a red bandanna that looked worn, torn, and broken.

"What is it?" asked Mika. Ray was silent for a moment longer. Then he spoke.

"It's De Nam's bandanna," he said quietly.

"So…does that mean he's…?" asked Mika fearfully. Ray sighed and picked up the bandanna. He tied it on his arm.

"Most likely. Well…we've found what happened to him…we can turn back…"

"What!? Are you crazy? We're not leaving yet!" exclaimed Mika.

"What do you mean?" questioned Ray.

"Well we can't just leave empty handed," began Mika. "And you've got a mission to complete, right?"

"Well, yeah, but-" said Ray.

"But nothing. I may be tough, and I may have an attitude, but I'm not gonna be a jerk who makes you leave. You and I are gonna see this whole thing through to the end."

Ray looked away for a minute.

"What is it?" asked his companion.

"Thanks a lot. Really. I'm really touched, Mika," he said.

Mika nodded back vaguely. That had to be the most sincere thing he had ever said to her. She realized that she was blushing. When had Ray gotten to be so…mature…kind…what the hell happened to the sarcastic bastard she knew and loved?

Wait. Wait. Loved? That was wrong. She didn't love him! Did she?

"Uh…Mika. I know I'm gorgeous, but you don't have to remain silent when you look at me," said Ray, smirking.

Ah. There he was.

"Ah, shut up!" growled Mika playfully. "Now come on! We've got a myrrh tree to find- as well as some answers on the way!"


Ugh…that chapter was long…but so AWESOME to right!

Favorite Parts: I loved the entire chapter…I can't really pick any parts. Probably the Sahagin Lord battle, Ray's tale, and the finding of the bandanna.

So De Nam is…dead…-sniff-….-sobs-

And Ray realizes his sister's fate…poor guy…and now we know of Ray's parents! They became explorers, trying to find out the mysteries of the world in order to restore their memory. But they died, and so did his sister…so now Ray is the only one left.

I've always thought the Sahagin Lord was cool…and he was cool in this chapter…I didn't really focus as much on capturing every battle…but I still think I did okay, regardless.

So now, Mika and Ray have decided to continue on, because if they came back without any myrrh, Sam would hang them both. And not-so-subtle hints at romance.

Next Chapter: As Ray and Mika head deeper into Conall Curach, everything around them continues to decay and die around them. But within them, feelings are alive and skyrocketing. As the battles heat up, so does the romance!