Darkness.

Cold. Empty. Unknown and dangerous. It was everywhere.

And Varian was sinking, drowning inside it. Powerless and numb, as with each second it was cutting him loose from the world, from his own body.

However, he could somehow still hear faintly Rudiger's distressed cries in the distance. And with the last ounces of will he had left, he tried desperately to hang onto them. Onto consciousness. Onto life.

But that darkness wouldn't let him. It seemed that it didn't take kindly to being defied. Because it was quick to thwart that attempt, pulling him down harder, away from the now fading cries.

Varian kept trying to resist, to not lose his focus on them and even to scream in hopes that Rudiger would hear him, but it was no use. No matter how strong his will, it was weaker than this abyss, which still kept pulling him effortlessly, until the cries were gone.

And their place was taken by Sugarby's jubilant, ecstatic voice:

"Ohh...! Yes, YES! So much potential! So much power! Gothel surely won't mind me tak-...! After all... deser-... it. I hope she's... can't wait to... agai-..."

But it wasn't long before it started fading as well...

And at the same time Varian was feeling even weaker than he already was, as even his emotions were now slipping away from him, each of them lingering for a long bitter moment before leaving him completely.

The anger and frustration of being unable to fight back.

The worry about what Sugarby would do with Rudiger and the princess, not to mention about what she was going to use him for.

The horror of what would become of his Dad. Of the thought of failing him... Of breaking his promise to him, to set this mess right...

All of them were gone...

And so was the witch's voice... and so was Varian himself. With the last thought on his mind, a single word:

"Help..."

...

...

...

Wi...

...

...

With-...

A voice... A tiny voice... Coming closer, getting louder.

Accompanied by a distant light, that wasn't too bright, but was still pushing gently through the shadows. That wasn't emitting warmth, but comfort and safety.

While the voice filled everything with a soft song, finally clear as crystal. Otherworldly. Haunting. Enchanting...

Wither and decay

End this destiny

Break these earthly chains

And set the spirit free...

With every word of the song, the light kept growing, without being blinding.

And Varian was starting to feel again. He could feel that light, giving him strength, guiding him out of the darkness.

While in the distance, he could also hear something else. Another song in the same melody, whose words were so quiet and incomprehensable that made it hard to be understood.

But soon even louder than that, something more was added... a long, pained scream...


"Wither and decay... End... this destiny... Break th-these earthly chains... And set... the spirit free..." Still as a statue, Varian kept repeating those words over and over, his glowing eyes gazing into the void.

Rudiger was still trying to get out of the princess' grip and run to him, but she wouldn't let him. The little raccoon couldn't stand this. Varian... his friend... he was right in front of him, having something very, very wrong happening to him and he-... He couldn't reach him!

It suddenly was that night all over again. When Varian woke up from his nightmare and found himself in a sea of pain and bright blue light. And Rudiger could do nothing, but just stand and stare in shock, at a complete loss for what he could do to help him. But this time, he couldn't go get Quirin. And he couldn't really count on the princess. She seemed to be as frozen as his friend, staring at him with a bewildered and terrified look. Still unwilling to let the critter go.

In that case, he had to make her.

"Ow!" She cried, as he bit her arm, making her loose her grip and allowing him to escape.

He scampered quickly towards Varian, ignoring the princess, who was coming from behind, calling him to get back. But before he could touch him-

"AAAAAAAAAHHH!" A loud, shrill shriek begun to echo, making him jump back in surprise. And it appeared it was coming... from Varian.

But it couldn't be him. He hadn't stopped reciting, but his voice was getting weaker, and so was the glow in his hair and eyes. Suddenly, it started spreading all over his body and soon he was wrapped in a coccoon of light.

The princess immediately stepped back, her terrified eyes shifting from Varian to Rudiger. There was a part of her that wanted to pull the raccoon back again, but it was quickly silenced by a doubt she couldn't (or probably didn't want to) understand. But even so, she had to admit that it was pretty surprising to her.

How the animal was somehow still moving toward the young alchemist, trying yet again to reach him with his chitterrings, which unfortunately were nowhere near as loud as this unending screaming.

He couldn't even make out Varian's voice anymore. Though looking closer into the light he realised why. He had stopped.

And then all of a sudden he collapsed again, as the light abruptly broke away from him with the most earsplitting shriek, taking the form of a large blue cloud of shimmers. Inside which was trapped the source of the screams: The ghost of the witch, whose form was melting away as the shimmers were raging, gradually drowning out her shrill voice, until there was nothing but silence and darkness.

Ignoring completely what just happened, Rudiger rushed to Varian's side again. Much to his horror, he wasn't moving, and seemed that he wasn't even breathing! He started running around his body in a panic, shaking him, rubbing his face against him, crying out in desperetion non-stop...! But Varian wouldn't wake up...

The little critter froze, feeling like he'd fall apart were he to make another move. He gazed helplessly at Varian's face, praying that this wasn't happening.

Regina walked towards them, hunching her shoulders a little, with her arms around her waist. Her expression was not much different than the raccoons's, but it quickly changed to a confused one, upon noticing something that he didn't in his frenzy.

That light blue streak in his hair... it looked like it was changing. Or maybe, like it was re-appearing.

And before she could react in any way, Varian inhaled sharply, making the other two jump.

After focusing solely on his breathing for a few good seconds, he slowly opened his eyes and immediately jerked up, his expression tense with fear. However, Rudiger quickly jumped in his arms, his quivering frame and loud, pleading cries tethering him back to reality and giving him reasons to calm down.

So he was back... he wasn't trapped in that darkness anymore... He even noticed the vial's soft glow close to him. He brought his distressed friend closer to him, running soothingly his fingers through his fur while holding back tears and reminding himself he was okay.

The princess approached them with a concerned look, reaching out a hesitant, shaking hand. But as soon as the young alchemist turned to look at her, she froze and her face turned red. She quickly withdrew her hand and looked away for a moment, before turning again to him.

Neither of them said a thing, they simply locked their eyes, both reflecting questions and exhaustion and worry and relief all at the same time. But one of them was hiding something. Something that no matter what couldn't be seen.

With a little less hesitation this time, she reached her hand out again, this time offering him help to stand up.

As surprised as he was by that simple gesture, Varian took her hand and stood up.

"Thank you." He said, the calmness of his voice contradicting with the tension on his body.

She gave him only a slight nod, avoiding eye contact. "...Let's just get out of here..."

And here we are! At the end of yet another chapter! I know that at this point we've all seen better days, but let me quote Eugene and tell you this: "Things do seem pretty dark right now, but if anyone can find the light, it's you." So please, everyone stay safe, stay home and remember to look for the light. :) This is where I say goodbye for now! See you all soon! Please leave a review.