97th entry

Three survivors. That's all that remains of Stonebough. Of the hundreds who lived there, less than fifty survived the naga to reach the Lake, and forty of those were loaded onto the airship. There were only five left behind in our clinic, too injured to move, the only ones who weren't lost in that crash. Two of those have since died of their burns. Another may not last the night.

Jess has organized an expedition to Stonebough, on foot and by boat, to check for other survivors. She says I should go with them, but they are leaving this afternoon. I cannot go while that man in the clinic struggles for breath. Whatever family he had is gone now. Shadow and I will wait by his bedside. I will hold his hand as he dies. It's the least I can do after what I let happen.

Forty people. I could have saved them. I didn't agree with the Circle. If I had stood my ground

(The entry cuts off here. We know from clinic records - meticulous, even then - that only one of the citizens of Stonebough lived in the end, a fire mage by the name of Alder who later rose to prominence as a sage himself. -AP)

98th entry

It's been ten days. The airships remain grounded, and no word has reached us from the capitol. We can only assume their ships have stopped working as well. I don't even know if the city still stands. Ein thinks he can modify his ship for sailing over water, but the modifications would take time, as would the voyage north should he manage them. There are no answers now.

I've told the Sages to prepare for the worst. If we can't expect supplies from Leifen, we must seriously consider increasing our own crop production. The earth mages tell me it's not too late to begin planting; in fact, they've already begun expanding their own gardens. It's good that they at least saw sense in what I was saying, for the Sages haven't acted on my advice.

The expedition returned this morning. Only fire and ruin, Jess says. A smoldering crater where once the village stood. She saw no sign of the naga, but she also says they were unable to reach the forges. The mountain burns too hot now, even for a fire mage. If the naga is there, it did not come out. Perhaps it is dead after all.

99th and final entry

The moon is full again, and still our airships will not fly. Whatever caused this, I begin to worry it's permanent.

The Sages do not listen. They don't see. They refuse to shoulder the blame for Stonebough. Forty people who would still live now were it not for their selfishness. For my cowardice. I cannot bear the guilt.

I've decided I'm going to the mines. I don't know if I can even reach them on foot, but I have to try. I failed the people of Stonebough; I won't fail Dagmar's Landing. I don't know how long we can last without the airships. It may be that we all starve within a year. But I won't let those people starve alone in the mountains. I will go to them, I will tell them what has befallen us, and if I can I will guide them back to the Lake. Shadow and I will leave in the morning.

(That is the final entry, but taken beside the journal of the Sage Brumlin estimated to have been written during this same period, we can surmise that this writer, whose name we don't know, never returned. Contact with Dagmar's Landing was never reestablished. -AP)

From an undated journal kept in Crescent Lake's library, notes and translation from the original Leifenish by Alistair Pearl.

This wasn't so bad, Kane thought, sitting in the front of the boat to keep the weight balanced. The sky was clear, the bright sun almost warm enough to overcome the cooling weather. The breeze in Kane's hair was pleasant, if a bit chilly. Had it not been for the occasional splashes, it would have been perfect. Awestruck, Kane watched as the water rushed eagerly toward them yet their boat moved steadfastly against the current, forced upstream by Jack's magic.

"Rough spot ahead," Jack called from the back of the boat. "Hold on."

Kane gripped the boat's sides, embracing the thrill as he felt the burst of power pushing the boat along just a little bit faster. He could see the spot Jack meant, an area where a change in depth made the current more visible, choppy as the sea in a wind. He braced himself, smiling as their little boat bounced and surged through it, throwing up a wave that hit him with a shock of cold. Lena squealed, a sound of both fear and delight, and then the boat resumed its course at a moderate speed. Shipman gave an excited whoop as the others laughed, all save Jack who was focused on his spells.

Kane turned, sputtering and wiping his eyes, but still smiling. "Well, that's worn off again," he said, shaking water from his hair. "Really need to work out the timing on that thing."

Lena laughed, leaning forward to take his face between her hands as she warded him with her rain-repelling charm. "That's what these experiments are for, silly!"

They both wobbled as the boat lurched. "How many times do I have to tell you both to sit still?" Jack growled.

"It's fine, Jack," Redden said, as he and Orin, sitting in the middle of the boat with Shipman between them, held fast to the oars, ready to push off any obstacles they came to. "As long as no one stands up."

"It was one time," Shipman grumbled. "I said I was sorry."

Lena blushed, opening her mouth to apologize as well, but Kane spoke over her, calling to Jack and drowning out whatever she'd been about to say. "How is it you're the only one who isn't having fun on this trip?"

"I don't know. Could it be because I'm the only one working?" came Jack's sarcastic reply.

Kane started to sass him right back, but Lena grabbed his face more firmly, muttering, "Kane," in a warning tone that sounded remarkably like his mother. Kane sighed. "Sorry," he said to her, and then louder for Jack's benefit, "You're right. I'm sorry."

Jack only grunted, his eyes glowing eerily blue as he stared past Kane at the river ahead, one hand on the boat's tiller as his other rested in his lap, the light of the water orb sparkling out between his fingers.

"He's nervous," Lena whispered.

"I know," Kane huffed. They both knew Jack expected to find people where they were going. It was the only reason they had agreed to leave Crescent Lake without letting Jack fully recover from his encounter with the Circle of Sages. With the weather turning, both Kane and Lena had been prepared to wait out the winter rather than force Jack into the trip now, but Jack wouldn't have it, too excited by the possibility of finding the village where he had grown up, or of finding, if not his mother still alive, at least the place where she had died. "But he's also cranky because he's tired, and that's his own fault."

"I still wish he'd been willing to wait. If we could have-" She stopped, eyes widening.

"What?" Kane said, feeling her spell resolve and settle over him. It felt... odd. "What just happened?"

"Oh no!" Lena squeaked, leaning forward, her hands pulling Kane's face closer to her own. "No! Oh, I'm sorry!"

He felt another spell, and he was sure he recognized the feel of this one. "Wait. Was that a Cure? Should I be worried?"

"No, no, no!" Lena said quickly. "I just need to-"

"Oh, wow!" Shipman said. "That looks weird! What did you do?"

"I was only trying to tweak the duration! I didn't think it would do that!"

"Did you just kill me? Am I dying right now?" Kane asked.

"No!" she said. "No, it's alright! I can fix this!" She held his face, fingers digging in uncomfortably as a panicked whine escaped her throat. "Oh, sweet Leviathan! I can't Dispel it!"

But Redden laughed, seeming completely unconcerned. He pointed at the front of the boat, where the water splashing up over the prow stopped a half a foot away from Kane's back and trickled down as though it had hit a wall. "She's made you completely waterproof, son."

Lena looked at the splashes and squeaked in alarm, trying to heal him some more.

"Is that all?" Kane asked. "That was the goal, wasn't it?"

"Not like this!" Lena said, voice high with fright.

Redden only laughed harder, shaking his head. Kane didn't think he needed to worry if his father wasn't. Probably. "Should I be concerned that I'm thirsty all of a sudden?" he asked.

Lena cried out in dismay, covering her face with her hands. "I can't believe I did that!"

"It is alright, Miss Lena," Orin said, his voice a gentle hum of amusement. "Every mage botches a few spells along the way. Considering your recent successes, I would say you were overdue."

"Oh, Kane, I'm sorry!" Lena said, uncomforted. "You won't die of it, I swear! I just… oh, tell me if you feel dehydrated, please? I'll heal you through it. I'll stay with you the whole time! I'm so sorry!"

Kane laughed. "Gods, Lena, if you wanted to spend more time with me, you only had to say." The others laughed with him, all save Lena, who made a face at him as she groaned, and Jack who remained focused on his spells.

The sun hadn't even begun to set when Jack reached his limit. He pulled against the aether, feeling it slip away, and their boat seemed to hang in the river for a moment, moving neither forward nor backward. "Let it go, lad," Redden said, nodding at Orin to take up the other oar. "We passed that cove not too far back. We'll stop there." The aether wriggled free, leaving Jack feeling empty. When they finally pulled up on shore, he could hardly walk straight.

He sat on a fallen log letting Lena fret over him as the others made camp. The Cures did nothing for the emptiness, but they did ease muscles stiff from a day of sitting, and he liked having her near. They had fought before their trip, with her insisting he wasn't in any condition to use his magic and him stubbornly insisting he was. It had been a hollow victory when Redden came down on Jack's side, citing the changing weather as a reason to leave quickly, because Jack knew she'd been right: he could feel the aether hurting him as he worked it, hurting him in ways that Cure couldn't fix.

That didn't stop Lena from trying. She knelt in front of him, hands on his knees, eyes roving up and down as though she were inspecting his coat but unfocused enough to show she was looking deeper than the surface, her frown showing she didn't like what she saw there.

"I don't think it's helping, my lady," he said.

"Hush," she told him. "There's something..." She trailed off, Curing again. Though her hands were on his knees, Jack felt the spell like an ache in his chest - not in his body, but somewhere in his soul. She shook her head, growling slightly. "There's a spot there... If I could just reach it..."

They both jumped at a clatter as Kane dumped an armload of firewood on the ground nearby.

"Oh, don't overdo it!" Lena said to Kane. "It hasn't worn off yet!"

Kane rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Lena! Just take care of Jack - he looks half dead."

"Funny, that's exactly how I would describe the way you smell," Jack retorted.

Kane made a rude gesture then knelt to begin building their campfire.

"I'm serious!" Lena said. "I have about enough left to heal one of you."

"I'm also fine," Jack said.

"Nobody asked you!" Kane said. "Just shut up and let her work."

"You're right, of course," Jack said, nodding sagely. "Please, waste your spells on me, my lady. I wish to be in good health when we find Kane's withered corpse in his bedroll tomorrow."

Lena sighed, shaking her head. "I keep telling you all he won't die of it."

"Pity," Jack said, making Lena snort as she tried not to laugh.

He sat on that fallen log as the others assembled a tidy camp around him. Kane and his father managed to build a sizable fire without needing to use Jack's abilities. Thad and Orin erected a pair of tents. By the time darkness set in, bringing a crisp autumn chill with it, the six of them were gathered around the fire, eating flatbread and strips of dried goat meat, along with a type of goat cheese Jack had always been fond of. Bless you, Dahlia, he thought, popping another crumble of the tart cheese into his mouth, swallowing it quickly before a yawn overcame him.

"Shipman, I'm going to laugh if you drop that in the fire," Kane said. The boy had skewered his bread over a thin stick and was trying to toast it over the fire to melt the cheese.

"Oh, let him be," Redden said as he bent over the warded, waterproof trunk that held their supplies. "There's plenty. Dahlia packed us enough rations for a week."

"Gosh, it's almost like she expected something to go wrong on this trip," Thad said.

"Yes, like she knows us," Jack grumbled.

Kane cuffed him in the shoulder, but he smiled as he did it.

Beside Jack, Lena fiddled with a small fishing rod, untangling a bit of line. "There we go," she said, setting it behind her where another rod lay. "Ready for the morning."

"I can't wait!" Thad said. "I've never been fishing before!"

"I'm surprised that you have," Kane said to Lena. "I know white mages are allowed to eat meat that others have gathered, but catching it yourself? How does that work with the 'harm no living thing' part of being a white mage?"

"It doesn't, really," Lena said, blushing in the firelight. "It's, uh, it's complicated."

"I'm not sure fish count, for some reason," Thad said. "They're supposed to be the sacred food of Leviathan, after all."

"Yes, that's right," Lena said, nodding enthusiastically. "It stands to reason."

"No," Kane said. He paused, sucking hard on a waterskin. Lena's spell had worn off enough that he could drink now, but it seemed an effort. He swallowed loudly. "I'm pretty sure they still count as living things."

"Well," Lena said, clearly flustered. "It's just that... I mean... Look, I grew up eating fish; everyone eats fish in Onlac. There are other things to eat, of course, but I'm not sure it's enough to get by without the fish. If you have to choose between killing a fish and starving, or letting your children starve... Does that make sense?"

"And they're delicious," Thad said.

"Yes. No!"

Kane laughed. "Relax, Lena. No one's judging you."

"Except the fish," Jack put in. Even Lena laughed at that, though she hid her face in her hands as she blushed further. Jack chuckled, slipping his arm around her, and she turned her face into his shoulder in an easy way that made Jack's heart flutter with a sudden thrill that she could be so relaxed in his company. He smiled, but he felt the smile falter when he looked up and saw Redden's scowl.

"Jack, we've talked about this," Redden said.

Jack said nothing, but his arm reflexively tightened around Lena.

"Seriously, father?" Kane said with a sigh.

"It's improper," Redden said.

Lena glanced between Redden and Kane, confusion writ plain on her face. "It... it's only a hug, Redden. What is it with you Cornelians assuming the worst about hugs?"

"It's nothing personal. We assume the worst about everything," Kane muttered.

"Kane," Redden said warningly. "Now is not the time."

"I would suggest now is not the time for this conversation either," Orin said gently. "After all, we must all spend the day trapped together on a very small boat tomorrow."

"No," Kane said. "Why don't we have this out once and for all?

"What conversation?" Lena said. "What is this about?"

Redden ignored her, speaking only to Jack as though she weren't even worth addressing. "You're taking advantage of her. It needs to stop."

Lena's eyes widened. "Jack would never-!"

"She's different," Jack hissed.

Lena squirmed in Jack's grip. "You're hurting me." Jack released her, and she turned to look up at him. "Tell me what's going on. Please."

"Lena," Jack said, looking down into her face, her worried eyes. He didn't know what to say.

Kane sighed impatiently. "Lena," he said, drawing her attention. "Father says you don't have emotions. Care to weigh in?"

"What?" Lena said. She chuckled nervously. "I... of course I do! How could you think that?"

"Because you're a soul reader," Redden said, addressing her for the first time that evening.

"I don't understand," Lena said.

"Soul readers don't have emotions," Redden said, enunciating each word as though he were speaking to a dimwitted child.

"But that's silly!" Thad said. He looked at Orin. "Right?"

Orin shook his head. "This is a known phenomena. In all the recorded history of soul readers, none have ever had emotions of their own."

Thad said, "But I've seen-"

"It is silly!" Lena insisted, stumbling over her words now. "That's just- I- I'm certainly feeling emotions right now!"

"Ours," Redden insisted. "Soul readers are little more than mirrors, reflecting the emotions of others back at them. I imagine you're upset right now because Jack is upset on your behalf."

"I'm not upset at all," Jack said. "I think 'smug' is the word you're after. I told you you were wrong."

"I can't feel Jack!" Lena said. "His emotions aren't like yours. I've never been able to-" She stopped, eyes wide with horror as she looked at Jack. "Is that why you hold back from me? Because you don't think I can feel for you?"

"What? No! Lena, I-"

She pointed at Redden. "He told you that, and you believed him?"

"Never!" Jack said. "Lena, I've never believed it. We've been arguing about it since Elfheim!"

"That long?" Lena said, a quiet, heart-broken question. Her voice shuddered as she went on. "And you didn't tell me? None of you? You've all been arguing about this behind my back and no one..." She covered her mouth with both hands, forcing back a pained cry as her eyes filled with tears.

"Lena," Jack said trying to pull her close again, but she shoved him away surprisingly hard. He fell backwards off the log, landed sprawled on his back on the edge of the ring of fire light as she pushed to her feet.

She rounded on Redden, and Jack could hear anger in her voice now on top of the sadness. "Is that why you ignore me? When I said we shouldn't come on this trip, is that why you disregarded my opinion? Because what I say doesn't matter?"

"Yes," Redden said. "You're not the only soul reader I've known. I've seen it firsthand."

"And now? What do you think you're seeing now?" she said, hands on her hips.

Jack pushed up to his elbows to see over the log. Redden's eyes flitted around the campfire, taking in the faces of the others: Thad's confusion, Orin's stoicism, Kane's "I told you so" smirk. None of those emotions matched the hurt Lena showed now, the rising anger. But Redden didn't see that. His eyes were cold, condescending, as he said, "I don't see anything that can't be explained by the facts as I know them."

"Well, you're wrong," Lena said. "You're wrong. White magic comes from love! And I love-" Jack felt his breath catch, "-each of you. Thadius, and Orin, and Jack, and your son... And I love you, Lord Redden, even if all you ever feel toward me is indifference. And at the moment, I'm feeling angry at the lot of you, so don't you even speak to me." Then she turned and stomped away downstream along the beach.

"Lena!" Thad called. "Lena, wait!"

"Leave me alone!" she shouted without looking back at all.

"Let her go," Redden said. "She'll cool off on her own."

"Away from us, you mean?" Kane said.

"But it's dark out there! It isn't safe!" Thad insisted. "Jack?"

Jack shook his head. What could he say to her? He was still a dark mage. How could he explain that it was through no fault of hers that he held himself back? He watched her disappear into the darkness outside of their camp then let his head fall back to the ground. He was so tired.

"Are you happy now?" Kane growled, and Jack knew his friend wasn't speaking to him. "Couldn't just leave it be? Didn't have anything more important on our plates, did we?"

Jack glanced up, not surprised to see Lord Redden looking completely unrepentant.

"What do you have to say for yourself, old man?" Kane demanded.

"It had to come out sooner or later," Redden said. "I'm sorry you disagree."

"That's what you're sorry for?" Kane said, throwing his hands up. "Not that you were horrible to her? Gods, father! She's a human being!"

"She's a soul reader!" Redden ran a hand through his hair.

"She's our friend!"

"I would point out," Orin said, "that young master Shipman seems to be gone."

"What?" Kane looked out into the darkness and cursed under his breath. "You!" he said, wagging a finger at his father. "You sit there and think about what you've done!" Then he hurried away, calling Lena's name. Jack quickly lost sight of him in the dark.

Jack started to rise. He couldn't face her alone, but if Kane and Thad were going... He opened himself to the aether to track his friends, then gasped as the aether seared through him, knocking him prone again. He felt Lena's aura growing farther and farther away as he closed himself off. She was running now, and he couldn't follow her. Every shred of him protested against using the aether for even such a little thing. He groaned, panting from his efforts.

Orin moved in beside him, patting his shoulder. "You do too much," the old man said gently. "Come. Let us put you to bed."

With Orin's help, Jack tried to stand, but his knees shook under him.

"Redden?" Orin said, and Lord Redden jumped at the sound of his name, for he still sat beside the fire, seeming consumed by his own thoughts. "Come now. Do not make me carry him on my own."

Redden hurried to Jack's side, not meeting his eyes as he helped Jack the few steps over to the tent he would share with Redden and Kane. Jack all but collapsed into his blankets, still fully clothed, and Orin left the two of them alone.

"Jack," Redden said, sitting atop his own bedroll. "Lad, I-"

"Don't," Jack said. It came out harsher than he'd intended. Redden flinched as though he'd been slapped. Jack sighed. "Not now, Redden. I'm too tired for it."

Redden nodded. "Tomorrow then."

"Fine," Jack said. "Can you sense them? In the aether? I can't even manage that much."

Redden blinked, startled by the question. "I... yes. Yes, I'll keep an eye on them."

Jack nodded. He laid back, closed his eyes, and fell into an exhausted sleep.

Kane cursed as water sloshed over his boots. The riverside was clear and sandy - free of tripping hazards - but once he'd left the light of their camp behind, it was hard to see where the shore ended and the water began. Lena wouldn't have had that problem, of course, with her uncanny ability to sense the water.

He was surprised when he caught up to Shipman. The boy, with his aether sight, should likewise have had no problems in the dark, but he had waited for Kane. "Too cowardly to face her alone?" Kane asked.

"Um..." Shipman said, shuffling his feet. "Yeah."

"I don't blame you," Kane grumbled. He could still see Lena some ways ahead of them - there was just enough moonlight to make out her white robe - and the set of her shoulders put Kane in mind of Sarah when she was cross with him. Even as he watched, she was moving farther away. Kane cursed again. "Well, come on. Let's get this over with."

Shipman nodded. "Follow me. I can see better than you."

She never slowed, even when they called out to her. Had Shipman not been guiding Kane through the dark while giving both of them a boost of speed, Kane didn't think they ever would have caught up with her. Their camp was a tiny speck of light behind them by then.

"Lena!" Kane called. "Gods, Lena, would you stop already? Are you planning to walk all the way back to the Lake?"

"I don't know," she said over her shoulder. "How far do you think I'll have to walk before I stop feeling angry? I mean, if I don't have emotions of my own, I just have to get far enough away from the rest of you, right?"

Kane rolled his eyes. "Lena, you know I don't believe that."

She whirled on him, and the tears on her cheeks glittered in the moonlight. "Do I?" she said, fists clenched at her sides. "Do I know that? Until today, I hadn't even realized it was ever in question!"

Shipman, hanging back, hiding behind Kane, said, "Lena, I didn't know! Please don't be mad at me!"

"Well, I am!" she snapped. "Contrary to what others may think, I can feel however I want!"

"But that's not fair!" the boy whined, on the verge of tears. "I didn't know and I wouldn't have believed it anyway!"

She stood stiffly, not responding to Thad's plea but staring Kane down as if daring him to speak, and he knew she could sense his guilt, just as she would sense his lies.

So he told her the truth. "I did," Kane said. "I'm sorry, Lena, but I did believe it at first."

"And now?" she asked, voice breaking.

He shook his head. "Not for a long time."

Her lip quivered, and Kane saw the moment when her hurt broke through her anger. Her defiance crumpled like a flower in frost. Thad flew forward now, throwing his arms around her, crying as he buried his face in her robe, and she returned the boy's embrace as she let her own tears overtake her.

Kane stepped forward and wrapped them both in his arms. "I'm sorry," he said. "I should have told you. I just... well, since I didn't believe it anymore, I didn't think-"

"I've been so... so frightened, Kane!" she said between sobs. "Every day since all of this started! How could anyone dismiss that as though it weren't real?"

"It's real, Lena. All of it," he said softly. "It's all real."

"This explains so much!" she said. "The way your father's always treated me... in Melmond, in Elfheim... The way the king and queen treated me in Cornelia... And... and Jack-"

"Lena, don't-"

"I love him."

"I know," Kane said, patting her hair.

They stood that way for a time, Kane holding Lena as she cried, Shipman squeezed between them. The moment broke when Shipman began to squirm. "Did you hear that?" the boy said.

Lena pulled away from Kane, smoothing Thad's hair as she listened to the night. "I don't hear anything."

"Me neither," Kane said. He looked into the blackness around them, hand to his sword hilt, but nothing moved. "Only the river."

"We should probably head back," Lena said, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah," Shipman said, nodding. "Yeah." He began shuffling up the beach the way they had come, still clinging tight to Lena.

She chuckled. "Thadius, I can't walk if you-"

The underbrush crackled as something moved in the darkness.

"I definitely heard it that time," Kane said, drawing his sword. He stepped forward, putting himself between the others and whatever had made that noise. The night was silent. Nothing moved.

Shipman huffed out a breath. "Only a rabbit," he said, relaxing his grip on Lena's robe.

"You can tell that?" Kane asked.

The boy shrugged. "Not really. But it was small and quick. Probably running away from us."

"Fair enough," Kane said, lowering his sword. "Let's head back." He began walking up the beach toward that distant point of firelight where their camp waited.

He was halfway to sheathing the blade when he heard Lena gasp. He tensed and started to turn back to her, ready for a fight, eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of threat, but then he realized she was looking the other way, toward the water. Before he could look in that direction someone - some thing! - had grabbed him around the middle and hauled him off his feet, the motion so sudden and violent that his sword flew from his hand. He heard Lena scream, the sound muffled by the blood rushing to his head, pounding in his ears, as that powerful arm lifted him, turning him upside down with jarring speed.

"Ochu!" Shipman shouted, just as Kane caught sight of a mouth full of thin, pointed teeth, a larger, wilder version of the one he'd seen on the potted Oscar. The beast rose out of the river, water streaming from its slimy, bulbous, moss-covered head as it waved tentacle-vines as thick as Kane's arms and far stronger. He struggled against the one around his waist as it lifted him higher.

"Kane!" Lena called.

"Stay back!" he yelled, dangling above those teeth. The thing lowered him toward that slavering mouth, and he had just enough presence of mind to reach out and grab a jaw in each hand, straining his arms to keep the mouth from snapping shut on his head. The ochu roared in displeasure, its breath rancid. Kane gagged as thick spittle flew into his face.

There came a stinging pain as another tentacle slapped one of his hands with a crack like a whip. He lost his hold. The terrible jaws tried to close on him again and Kane, dangling and helpless, braced himself for the end, but instead the creature bit down with a crunch on the white wall of one of Lena's Protect spells and it shrieked as a section of those needle-like teeth broke on impact. Another flash as Shipman ran by in a blur, holding Kane's own sword in both hands, slicing at the tentacle that held him. Kane fell, his breath rushing out as he hit the wet ground with a squelch.

The angry beast loomed over him, screaming in rage, tentacles arrayed out behind it like a fan as it surged forward, mouth open, Kane on the ground.

"Kane!" Shipman called, throwing the sword.

Kane caught the hilt out of the air, using the sword's forward moment to complete the arc of a swing. The beast screamed as the blade bit into it, slicing deep into its mossy belly. It reared up to attack again, but then the river around it exploded outward with a crash and the ochu shrieked, a whimper of pain. It thrashed in the mud of the river bank, yipping like a kicked dog, and everywhere those tentacle-vines hit, the water rushed away in a frenzied wave. The creature writhed, trying desperately to return to the river, struggling to move its massive bulk without the water to buoy it up. The ochu slithered off into the night, screaming and splashing as the water fled from it.

Kane, panting, immediately rolled over, searching for his friends. "Is everyone alright?"

"Fine," Thad said, voice shaking.

Lena, on her knees nearby, covered her mouth with both hands. "Oh, I didn't mean to hurt it!" she said, absurdly. "I only wanted to distract it!"

Kane sputtered. "You- But- Lena, it was a man-eating plant monster!"

"'Harm no living thing,' Kane!"

"You didn't harm it," Shipman pointed out. "You just made it waterproof."

"But... but I didn't realize it was an aquatic plant! Oh, I feel awful!"

Kane sighed. Only Lena could be concerned about a thing like that. He pushed himself up, meaning to go to her and offer comfort, but he stopped when he felt the weight around his waist and realized the tentacle Thad had severed was still there, wrapped around him double and oozing aloe down his thigh. "Yuck," he grumbled, disentangling himself. He started to throw the thing into the river.

"No!" Lena cried sharply. "I need that!"

"Wh-" Kane started to ask, but then it dawned on him. "Oh, right. Ochu."

There was shouting from their camp, calls of concern. Kane could see a pair of torches coming toward them, his father and Orin most likely, attracted by the sounds of their fight. It had all happened so quickly. "We're fine!" he called back. "Right?"

"Except the ochu," Thad said.

Kane chuckled as Lena groaned. He stood, hefting the tentacle over his shoulders, surprised at the weight of it. Then he offered a hand to Lena and helped her to her feet. She clung to him, obviously still shaken from the encounter. As they began to walk back, Kane said, "Um, speaking of waterproof things... I could use a Cure myself."

"Seriously?" Lena said, rolling her eyes.

"What? I'm thirsty."

"I thought it would have worn off by now."

"Nope. I'm afraid you're stuck with treating me."

Lena chuckled. "Well, I did want to spend more time with you, after all."

"I suspected as much," Kane said. Hand in hand, they followed Shipman back to the light of their camp.

Again, Jack dreamed. This time he dreamed of a village he didn't recognize. He was a child, lost, but he didn't worry. It was a calm place, peaceful. Some sort of market day. There were other children nearby playing with a litter of puppies, but Jack ignored them, intent on exploring. There was so much to see. Jack looked at the market stalls full of indescribable wonders in the way of dreams: pendants and talismans, wands and weapons of intricate design, items of impossible beauty glowing with the spells that were bound within them.

In some of the stalls, craftsmen worked. Jack saw a man hammering steel against an anvil, shaping a sword. The man wore a leather apron over his chest and belly but his arms were bare, his muscles larger even than Kane's. There was no fire, but the man's eyes glowed red, and Jack realized the man was a mage, controlling the heat of the metal with magic. Jack was amazed to realize they were all mages. He watched as a man with glowing eyes waved his hands over a painted wooden shield, pouring aether into it, shaping focus spells as deftly as an artist shapes clay. At another stall, a woman funneled earth magic into the white stone she held in her cupped hands. When the spell faded, the woman held the figure out to Jack: a life-like moogle no bigger than the palm of his hand, carved entirely with magic. The stone glittered.

"Moonstone," the woman said, winking at him. "It brings good dreams. Do you dream, boy?"

I'm dreaming now, Jack thought. But the child in the dream, the child who was him, only shook his head.

"Jack?" someone called. "Don't wander off!" The voice was male, and Jack knew it was his father calling him.

His face, Jack thought. He could never remember his father's face. He turned around, hopeful, but the dream ended there.

He woke in the tent by the river. Every inch of him ached, including his eyes. He squinted against the light coming through the tent flap, groaning a little. At the noise, a face peeked in at him: Redden, sitting right outside.

"Need a Cure?" the bard asked.

"Won't help," Jack croaked. He hauled himself up to a sitting position, tried to rub some life back into his face. It was so bright outside. It had to be approaching midday. "Why didn't you wake me sooner?"

Redden shrugged. "Figured you could use the rest. Besides, none of us slept well. Bit of excitement last night - had to take turns keeping watch."

"Is everyone-"

"Fine," Redden said, holding a hand up to forestall Jack's questions. "Everyone's fine, lad. But we think we've figured out what makes this area so dangerous."

"I'm afraid to ask."

"Let's just say we have compelling evidence ochu aren't extinct."

Jack snorted. "Oscar wasn't enough?"

"'One does not a pattern make,'" Redden said, quoting an old proverb. "At any rate, keep your aether sight up. Watch for signs of life. Big signs."

Jack nodded. He reached for the aether tentatively. It came to him easily enough, with none of the pain it had brought him the night before. He called up his sight, but nothing seemed amiss.

He rolled his shoulders, stretched, yawned, then he crawled out into the sunlight and plopped down beside Redden. He could see Kane and Orin nearby, practicing their hand-to-hand combat. Though Kane was easily twice Orin's size, the old man was quick and limber. As Jack watched, the monk blocked a strike from Kane and followed it up with one of his own, stopping just shy of Kane's neck. Despite his defeat, Kane laughed, then Orin repeated the move more slowly and had Kane copy it.

Farther on, Lena and Thad sat on the riverside, fishing poles in hand. They didn't appear to have caught anything. Thad rested his head on Lena's shoulder, and something in the set of those shoulders told Jack she was sad. "How is she?" he asked.

Redden shrugged. "Still not speaking to me. I heard her tell Orin she was going to stay mad at me just to prove that she could."

"Hmm," Jack said, agreeing with the sentiment. "Is it working?"

Redden shrugged. "If you'd known Lady Aliana, if you'd seen what I've seen-"

"I see her," Jack said, nodding toward Lena beside the river.

"Then I suppose we'll continue to disagree," Redden said, bending over his book once more.

"Yes," Jack said. He yawned, then looked at what Redden was reading and saw that it was none other than Astos's book. "You brought that along?" he asked.

"Hmm? Oh, yes," Redden said. "I couldn't see leaving it for someone else to find. Might raise uncomfortable questions for you when we got back."

"Good point," Jack said, stretching his legs out in front of him and rotating his ankles. Nothing seemed to help his sore muscles. He sighed, folding his legs again. "Found anything useful in there?" he asked.

"Not especially," Redden said, shrugging. "A bit that - I'm not sure of the translation - might be referring to heredity. Are you familiar with the works of Dorgann?"

Jack shook his head.

"Didn't think you would be. He was a scholar about fifty or so years past, but he wasn't a mage so I suspect they wouldn't have any of his books in Crescent Lake's library."

"What did he study?"

"Roses, of all things. He figured out how to breed them like pedigreed dogs. I don't know the details - I believe paint brushes were involved somehow - but the point is he created new varieties, and all without the aid of magic. They still have some of them in Cornelia castle's gardens. Anyway, his discoveries don't just apply to roses." He passed the book over to Jack, open to a page near the middle. "This passage here, it speaks of power passed down through generations."

"Yes," Jack said. He'd read it many times, as it was near the page with the ritual Astos had used, the one that had caused Jack to absorb Astos's power as he died. "I thought the passage was referring to the ritual."

Redden shook his head. "I'm not so sure. This part," he pointed. "'Azduna.' In your notes, you've written 'method'."

Jack nodded. "Method of conveyance, I thought. The means by which the power is passed down."

"What if it's more like 'line' or 'legacy'?"

"That..." Jack skimmed the passage. His high Leifenish wasn't perfect, but he was able to get through it well enough. "That could fit..."

Redden shook his head. "It's only a theory, mind you. I'm afraid I don't know enough about Dorgann's work to do more than extrapolate, but if we can read it that way, then it would mean-"

"Dark magic runs in families."

Redden nodded. "Obviously, not every child of a dark mage would be a dark mage, but one of your ancestors has to have been one, maybe even one of your parents."

Jack stared down at the book, thinking. His mother had been a white mage, but his father... Why can't I remember his face?

"At any rate," Redden continued. "I don't know that that's particularly useful information. It won't help you control your abilities."

"No," Jack said, but his mind buzzed with thoughts. Dark magic had been understood once, in the pre-empire days. The existence of this book proved it. But if it ran in families... A legacy, Jack thought. Passed down through generations. He thought of his dream. Had it been a memory? "Maybe someone in that village knows more..."

"Jack," Redden said, shaking his head.

"If my father was a dark mage, there might still be people there who knew him, people like him! Like me!"

"Jack, I know you're thinking you came from one of those villages, I know you're thinking they still exist, but I'm telling you it's not possible. I was raised a noble, lad. I grew up among the lords of Melmond. I've spent my adult years as a lord of Cornelia. I know how these things work, I understand infrastructure, and I read the reports Pearl had in his library. Without airships, without supplies, those villages - everyone in them - died. They might have held out a few years, at most. Not centuries."

No, Jack thought. He was wrong about Lena. He's wrong about this. "We'll see," Jack said, rolling up to his feet, fighting to keep from swaying. "We should be going. We've wasted enough daylight already."

"Lad," Redden said.

But Jack ignored him, calling to Kane and the others to pack away their camp.

They reached the first village an hour after they broke camp: a small place, only a few houses scattered on the riverbank like abandoned shells. Most of the stone walls still stood, but the roofs were gone and the door frames hung empty - Lena said something about the way the wards clung to stone, but Kane didn't really understand it. All he knew was that the gaping windows seemed to be staring at them. The place made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He also knew, between that and his brush with the ochu, that his father had been right: they would find no people on this trip.

They didn't stop. His father consulted the map and said they were near their destination, so Jack pushed on. Jack's face remained neutral, expressionless, but Kane saw a glimmer in those aether-tinted eyes and he knew Jack had come to the same conclusion he had.

When the sun had just passed its peak, they saw the dock. Even warded wood would have rotted away, but this was stone. It sat in the water at an angle, beginning to sink into the riverbed on one side where the water had eroded its base over the years. The stone was green with age, its submerged sides thick with moss and algae. Despite the dock, Kane had to jump out and pull the boat to shore as nothing remained for them to tie off to.

"Alright," Redden said, helping Orin from the boat. "Let's get this done. The mine should be that way. Stay together."

Kane immediately looked at Shipman, who had a tendency to wander off, but the boy nodded, holding to Lena's hand like a toddler, the ruined village too creepy even for him.

His father and Orin, Lena and Thad, walked toward the first of the crumbling buildings, but Jack remained in the boat, staring at the overgrown ruins. Kane finished tying the boat to a heavy stone, then walked over, standing in such a way that he cut off Jack's view. Jack's eyes, expressionless, flicked up to meet his. "You alright?" Kane asked.

Jack nodded.

"Do you want to stay with the boat?"

"I'm alright," Jack said.

Kane reached down, offering a hand to help him up, suspecting it wasn't only the mud that made Jack's steps unsteady.

Author's Note: 4/2/21 - Last month, I got a pleasant comment from reader HungryHungryHimbo (that name makes me giggle every time, by the way) asking if I minded if they drew some fan art for me. Far from minding, I was ecstatic. I'm so happy with the results! Go have a look at them if you get a chance. (This site doesn't let me embed links, but if you go check this chapter on Ao3, there's a link in the author's note.)

There was a lot of speculation from readers on where I would go next after Crescent Lake. At this point in the game, you're given a canoe and it opens up several options. The route my characters take is… not the most logical, game-wise? But it's the way my brother and I went the first time we played the game. I had to get creative to make it work with my plot (because, let's face it, the game barely had one), but I think I've made it logical. I look forward to seeing what you all think.