Hello everyone, and sorry to say again, but things have gone wrong with the editted file. Rest assured, we'll replace the chapters as soon as we can. In the meantime, enjoy the raw version of chapter 7 of Before KH: Shadows!

In Ryo's experience, never before had a good night's rest felt so wonderful. Even if it had only been a single night out in the wilds, the nighttime ambush and the subsequent search for a different location to sleep for the night had made for a very poor rest, which made the inn's blankets, pillows and mattresses feel like a gift from above.

As he slowly swung his legs out from under the covers and onto the wooden floor, his eyes cracked open and he looked out the window. The sun was still out, and it looked like it was solidly in the west, which meant there was still time to visit the market and get Garren and Barkos sorted out with proper travelling gear. Well, assuming they were awake.

Luckily, Ryo wasn't the only one to have stirred awake as the others were also beginning to sit up on bed. Ryo rose to his feet and went to put on his boots, only to remember he hadn't taken them off when he'd fallen asleep. He winced, hoping that the innkeeper wouldn't be too cross with them when they left. Instead, he retrieved his munny pouch and sighed as he realized that it was going to become a lot lighter.

"Alright, everyone up! We still have time to visit the market and I'd rather get Garren and Barkos sorted out for travel sooner rather than later!" Ryo declared, only to be met with groans and covers being pulled up over heads, with Veris going so far as to actually toss a spare pillow at him!

"Why did you wake us up?" She groaned, to which Ryo shook his head.

"I did no such thing; all of you were waking up already. Now, get a move on! We're burning what little daylight is left!" Ryo replied impatiently as Veris groaned again before she reluctantly pushed herself out of bed and groggily rubbed her eyes, with Garren and Barkos following suit a few moments later.

"Why exactly do we have to do this now? I was so comfy…" Garren moaned as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Because I'm the one with the munny." Ryo replied as he shook his munny pouch before stowing it in his cloak and waited by the door with his arms crossed as everyone finished waking themselves up, then strode out the door while his friends trailed behind him in sleepy resignation, which turned back to groans and grimaces as soon as they stepped out into the sunlight.

"We could have kept sleeping…" Veris groaned as they trudged down the road, looking for the market. A quick conversation with one of the townsfolk quickly set them on the right direction. It took them a few minutes to navigate their way through the town, seeing as it was far larger than Woodfell and more labyrinthine to boot, but they eventually reached their destination. The market was incredibly large, with a mix of open-air stalls and roofed shops, sporting an array of merchandise vaster than anything the traveling traders had ever brought with them, to Ryo's knowledge.

"Alright, we need to get the two of you each a pack, a change of clothes, traveling boots, a decent cloak, a bedroll and… I think that about covers it." Ryo thought aloud before he started looking around the market for one of the items on the list he'd just rattled off.

"What about weapons? I mean, I'm stuck here with just a knife. You've got your sword, Garren's got that axe and Barkos has his bow." Veris pointed out, to which Barkos disagreed.

"Excuse me? Are you forgetting about that chain weapon?" He pointed out, to which Veris glared at him.

"Which I have absolutely no idea how to use and would probably hurt myself if I tried." Veris countered. Seeing an argument brewing and having no patience for it, Ryo clapped his hands to draw attention to himself.

"Quick reminder that I'm the one who has the munny, so any purchases of additional equipment will be my decision." Ryo stated with finality, only for Veris to shoot him a strange look.

"Hey, I've got my munny pouch too." She reminded them. Ryo just groaned exasperatedly.

"Then you can pay for your own supplies and hopefully you'll still have enough for a new weapon, whatever! Can we just get the essentials out of the way before we start talking extra stuff?" He asked pointedly. Luckily, everyone caught on that he wasn't in the mood to deal with this at the moment and wisely kept quiet.

"Alright. First up is cloaks. I can see some over there." Ryo continued before he began striding over to the vendor in question.

Picking out cloaks for Garren and Barkos took longer than they expected, since the vendor was determined to make sure they'd picked out "the perfect fit for their needs," which just so happened to be the more expensive options available. Ryo couldn't deny that they were indeed good cloaks, but he wasn't going to part with more munny that he felt necessary, so they walked away with two perfectly serviceable, if not as fine travelers' cloaks. The next item on the list was packs, which the lucked out on as the vendor they found selling them also sold bedrolls with a small discount if purchased together. That small bit of good fortune helped brighten the mood a bit as they moved on to purchasing a change of clothes that would be more suited for traveling.

It took some time for them to find what they were looking for, but a bit of asking around led them to a tailor's shop named Moira's Needle and Thread. They hadn't made it more than two steps through the door when they were greeted by the presumed owner of the shop, who immediately dragged all four of them inside and started taking measurements before they knew what was even happening! They were almost halfway through everyone's fittings when Ryo finally managed to convince the shopkeeper, and apparently seamstress, that only Garren and Barkos needed clothes. The woman was visibly annoyed by this revelation, given the glances and muttering about their poor choice for travel-wear, but Ryo tuned it out until it was time to pay. It still came out a bit pricier than he would have liked, but it was hardly a major hit to his funds.

Unfortunately, the remainder of their shopping was to be put on hold as a storm was approaching. Undoubtedly, the market would be closing down, and they had no interest in browsing shops amid pelting rain and the roar of thunder. Speaking of thunder, a resounding clap of it made them quick to retreat back to the inn. No doubt because of the rain, more than a few of the townsfolk had opted to visit the tavern early, not to mention how many of the inn's guests had returned in anticipation of the incoming downpour.

That was likely the rationale. In the end, it was mostly an excuse to start eating and (more importantly) drinking early. Of course, Ryo and the others were more than happy to indulge in the former. They'd only had breakfast that day, late as it was, so they were understandably hungry. It took them a little longer than expected to navigate their way through the maze of bodies, but they eventually found a table for four and took a seat while they waited for a server, which also took a little longer than expected. Garren decided to carry all their purchases up to their room while they waited for a server to arrive. Meanwhile, Veris and Barkos were engrossed in their ongoing debate about who needed a new weapon more. As irritating as it was to listen to, Ryo figured it was probably a better idea to just let them get it out of their systems.

"You have a bow and a knife, both of which you know how to use! I effectively have just a knife, for all the good this chain thing does me!" Veris argued, though it did little to sway Barkos.

"My bow is not made for fighting, it's made for hunting! And besides, the moment I run out of arrows it's practically useless to me!" Barkos shot back. The argument was mostly circular from there until Garren got back and took his seat. He didn't look happy.

"You were gone longer than I expected." Ryo commented as Garren took his seat back.

"I would have been back a couple minutes ago, but the corner booth caught my eye on the way back." Garren replied in a low voice, barely audible over the cacophony of the tavern's occupants. Ryo resisted the urge to look for the booth in question and waited for Garren to explain.

"The person sitting there's been watching our table for a couple minutes now. I don't think they were there when I left." Garren muttered. Ryo had to work extra hard to not take a glance at the booth.

"Did you get a good look at them?" Barkos asked quietly, looking like he was having a similar struggle to Ryo.

"Female, long blond hair, probably a couple years older than us. Her clothes looked damp." Garren quickly rattled off. The damp part made sense. The rain had only arrived a couple minutes after they made it back to the inn.

"She's not making any move to hide her face? That's strange if she's planning something." Veris commented, just in time for a server to arrive. They were quick to order before resuming conversation. Still, Ryo couldn't shake the feeling of someone's eyes being fixed upon him and his friends. The fact that they weren't hiding their face did alleviate some of his worry, but it still didn't answer the question of why they were staring in the first place. Ryo's instincts told him that this person knew something about them, or at least suspected. What that was, he couldn't be sure of. However, he could hazard one or two guesses…

Before he could continue pondering the situation however, the smell of hot food being placed in front of him banished his worries and reminded him of his growling stomach. A quick glance around the table told him that he wasn't alone, as everyone was already reaching for their cutlery and Ryo was quick to join them, the group's mysterious observer almost banished from his mind. Only almost, however. They were slower to eat this time, and Ryo was making sure to keep an eye out for any sign of trouble.

However, it seemed that trouble was keeping its distance that evening and they soon finished their meals and turned in for the evening. However, Ryo couldn't sleep. As the sound of snores filled their room, Ryo was sat in the shadows near the window, sword under his arm as he surveyed the street outside. As the rain continued to hammer against the windowpane, he saw someone stepping out of the inn and into the storm. Ryo didn't have much of a profile to compare to, seeing as the stranger had their hood up, but he could assume they were female. When they got to the center of the street, they paused and started to turn back towards the inn. Suddenly thunder clapped, and a bright flash illuminated the street, causing Ryo to squint at the brightness! As quick as it came, the blinding light vanished and Ryo immediately peered back at the street, only to find that the stranger had vanished into thin air. Ryo instinctively tugged his sword an inch or two from its sheath as his eyes frantically darted about the muddy road, trying to locate any sign of the stranger! However, all trace of them had vanished. Ryo's eyes narrowed as he slowly slid his blade back in its sheath and settled in for a long night. He had an inkling as to who, or rather what, the stranger was, and the implications of why they were watching the group had him very much on edge.

Morning eventually rolled around, and Ryo did not greet it fondly. He could go far longer lengths of time without sleep than most people and not suffer many ill effects from it, but temperament was something that was definitely still affected, and it was currently taking the form of an irritable Ryo. The others were quick to notice this when they woke up and saw Ryo still bundled up in his cloak, sitting by the window with hilt of his sword just poking out of his cloak a bit. The moment questions started they were silenced by a glare that clearly communicated that now was not the time to ask.

Breakfast seemed to help, at least. After finishing off the last crumbs, the group began plotting their next move. They'd lucked out in completing their shopping for gear yesterday, though the disagreement regarding equipment had flared up again. Ryo tuned it out this time, too busy scanning the inn for any sign of their mysterious stalker. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he didn't see them lurking around and he turned his attention back to the ongoing argument regarding weaponry.

"Has anyone considered how we're going to make munny back? New equipment is all well and good, but we also need funds for supplies and lodging on the road." Ryo pointed out, resisting the urge to sigh in relief as the argument was swiftly put on hold.

"Maybe this place has a job board like Woodfell?" Garren suggested, though Barkos didn't seem convinced.

"That's unlikely. I could go out hunting and sell game, but there could be a licensing issue or something of the like." Barkos thought aloud.

"We can check around for that. In the meantime, what other ways can we make…" Ryo began to ask, only to notice something out of the corner of his eye.

"… Ryo, you alright?" Garren inquired, only for Ryo to shake his head as if to shake off a fly.

"It's nothing; just got distracted. We were talking about how to make munny, right?" He quickly recovered. Veris frowned at him, but didn't press onward, instead beginning to discuss the issue with Garren and Barkos. However, Ryo wasn't paying attention. Instead, he was checking his peripheral vision again to find what had caught his attention the first time.

"You guys keep going. I just need to check something quick." Ryo suddenly told the others before he turned right and strolled off on his own. The others were confused but decided to pay it no mind for now. They could question him later, after all. Besides, Garren at least had an idea of what Ryo was up to and decided to play along.

Ryo idly wandered the market, occasionally pausing to examine some of the merchandise on display. However, he also kept a wary watch on the corners of his vision, for a certain person of interest had failed to escape it so far. Eventually, Ryo felt he'd taken this little stroll as far as necessary and turned around to join the others. At least, that's what it looked like until he passed a blonde girl and paused next to her.

"You aren't exactly subtle, you know." He muttered to the blonde, who flinched for a moment before turning to glare at him.

"Neither are you and your friend, walking around with a completely unmasked signature. Seriously, it's a wonder you two are still alive." She shot back, to which Ryo frowned.

"So, she does…" He started to say before the screaming interrupted him. It was coming from the edge of town and seemed to be growing louder by the minute. The girl cursed under her breath as she started towards the sounds of distress.

"Of course they're here. You two are probably the most obvious marks in the world!" She hissed angrily as she rushed towards the gates, Ryo following close behind.

"Wait, they can sense…" Ryo started to say before he was interrupted.

"Magic, yes! How else do you think they find you?!" The girl growled at Ryo as she yanked a knife from her belt. They rounded a corner and it became Ryo's turn to curse as he saw a horde of the red monsters that had attacked them two nights ago storming the village! Ryo drew his sword and prepared for battle. The monsters' collective gaze seemed to settle on him, and the savage charge began. Ryo cursed and started to turn to run, knowing that he couldn't take an army that was exclusively targeting him, but the girl didn't even flinch. Instead, she held up her empty hand up in the air as sparks began to dance between her fingers.

"Thunder!" She shouted before several bolts of lightning struck the monsters at the front of the pack, blasting them to pieces! The rest of the horde was noticeably paused by the destruction of the front line, but they weren't deterred for long as several of the mask monsters darted past the grounded enemies and continued the charge towards the duo. However, they too were felled as the girl pointed two fingers at them and shot a narrow bolt at the lead monster. Upon contact, the lightning jumped from one mask to another, leaving only ash behind!

"Well, what are you waiting for?!" The newly revealed mage shouted at him as she prepared another spell.

"All I have is my sword! I can't take on that many in melee!" Ryo shouted back as he cut down two more mask creatures that had charged ahead after the others had been disintegrated.

"Oh, don't pull that with me! I can sense it just as well as these…!" The mage started, only for Ryo to take his turn at interrupting.

"It doesn't matter what you can or can't sense, all I can use is this sword!" Ryo hissed back before he lunged forward and stabbed one of the monsters in the face, turning it to ash.

"What do you me… Oh, you've got to be KIDDING ME!" She yelled angrily before slammed both hands down on the ground and dropping more thunderbolts on the monsters! By now, the town guards and even a few citizens had joined the fray and had taken quite a bit of heat off of Ryo and the girl. With the new breathing room, Ryo rushed in and began cutting down every monster within reach of his blade. Meanwhile, the mage was firing lightning bolts at every monster she could, while occasionally felling them with her knife when they got too close. He had to admit, it was impressive spellwork, even if it was simple on the surface. Chain lightning was far more difficult to cast than one might expect, since you had to be able to keep the lightning from striking allies or bystanders.

However, all the impressive spellwork in the world wouldn't mean anything if they couldn't stop this horde, which didn't seem to be thinning out as much as Ryo expected. He fell back to the mage and cut down a few monsters that had been closing in on her before he began scanning the battlefield.

"Are we even making a dent in their numbers?!" He called back to the mage before cutting down one of the clawed monsters. The girl hissed before she slung a lightning bolt past him to destroy one of the masks.

"We were, until more arrived! They must have a summoner of some kind nearby!" She growled back before she began charging up another Thunder spell. However, three of the bipedal monsters managed to slip away from the pack and were scrambling towards Ryo and the mage. Ryo rushed forward to engage them, but two of them leapt into the air to evade him and continue their charge towards the mage! Ryo managed to catch one of them in an overhead swing before he stabbed the creature attacking him. However, that left the third monster to continue its charge towards the mage unimpeded, something it was quite eager to do as it sailed towards her, claws outstretched for a killing blow!

Luckily, the twang of a bowstring and the whistle of an arrow heralded a premature end to its mission. Ryo glanced in the direction the arrow had came from and felt his heart jump when he saw Garren, Barkos and Veris all standing at the end of the street, weapons drawn. Apparently, he wasn't the only one who noticed.

"So, can she do something with her magic, or are both of you useless?!" The mage growled at Ryo, who grumbled under his breath as he cut down another mask.

"She doesn't know, and I only had vague suspicion that she even had the spark, let alone the knowledge." He replied as he flourished his blade in preparation for the next wave.

"Well, fantastic! Looks like I'm the only one here who can actually finish off the summoner!" The mage complained as Ryo's friends hurried over.

"How did things go this catastrophically wrong so fast?!" Barkos yelped as he nocked another arrow.

"YOU GUYS SHOWED UP!" The mage yelled back before unleashing two bolts of chain-lightning from her hands to destroy at least a dozen monsters in a single shot!

"What does that me…" Garren started to say, only for Ryo to cut him off.

"Save it for later! We need to cut these things off at the source!" Ryo exclaimed as he gutted another of the bipedal monsters and readied himself for the next. However, before the next wave of monsters could reach them, a deep, guttural bellow of pure fury brought the entire battle to a screeching halt.

"Oh no…" The mage muttered before the gates were suddenly blown off their hinges as a massive creature crashed through them! Ryo's jaw dropped as he took in the terrifying sight. The creature easily stood six, maybe seven feet at the shoulder and appeared to be a feline of some kind. Like the other creatures they'd run into, its body was skeletal and looked to be composed of a dark-gray stone, covered in glowing red cracks. Emerging from the gaps behind the skull was a raging torrent of crimson energy, appearing vaporous as it escaped the boney confines. In addition to its skull, there was also a crackling, dark red sphere of energy caged within its ribs, which would occasionally begin to sputter and froth intensely before bursts of the same energy would erupt from holes in the creature's body, transforming into more monsters.

"Please tell me that thing's a lot weaker than it looks…" Garren pleaded as he hefted his beaten-up wood-axe.

"No." The mage grumbled before launching a bolt of lightning into the lead monster's face before Ryo rushed to the side, angling his sword to cut at its leg. Meanwhile, Barkos lined up a shot at its face and let the arrow fly, only for it to skate off the skeletal forehead of the creature and spin off into the battlefield. He cursed as he nocked another arrow while Garren flanked to the right, cleaving the ever-replenishing horde as he went. Meanwhile, Ryo was meeting with as much success as Barkos was, as his sword bounced off the creature's hide the same way it would bounce off of… well, stone. It seemed that this particular monster was made of sturdier stuff than its minions, whatever that was. At the moment, the only meeting any success was the mage, and she obviously wasn't going to last much longer. She'd already spent quite a bit of magic on the small-fry and it was going to take more than a few well-placed bolts of lightning to bring it down.

As Ryo tried to find something on the creature's body that he could damage, he quickly found himself beset by its ever-replenishing hordes and being forced to turn his attention to thinning them out. Meanwhile, Veris was occupied with serving as the mage's bodyguard so that she could concentrate her magic on the greater threat. Her knife flashed as she cut down one monster down after another, though its edge was rapidly dulling. All of their weapons were, in one form or another. Ryo's blade was losing its edge, Garren's axe was rapidly becoming completely useless for its intended purpose, and Barkos was quickly running low on arrows.

The larger monster snarled as it scanned the battlefield with its empty eye-sockets before it suddenly lunged towards Veris and the mage, lashing out with its claws! Both of them managed to dodge, but they were separated, and the giant cat quickly turned its attention to Veris, prowling towards her with a confident and sadistic leisure. The monster slowly swung its head from side to side while snarling, and it quickly became apparent that it was summoning some of its army to its side as it closed in for the kill.

Luckily, Garren and Barkos weren't as occupied as Ryo, and were quick to start trying to draw the horde and its master's attention away from their friend, a task they were soon joined in by the mage, who shot a large blast of lightning into the sky, which rained down as several bolts atop the beast! The magic was what got its attention, and the monster turned and snarled at the mage before it opened its fanged maw, red and black energy beginning to collect within its jaws before it belched forth what looked to be a fireball, colored a deep crimson! The mage let out a curse as she leapt clear of the blast, which missed her by a hair and instead turned the house it did hit into a raging inferno! The mage quickly turned her attention back to the monster and began charging up another lightning bolt, though it was clear that she didn't have much left in her for magic.

Fortunately, it seemed that she'd be getting her chance, though not for any real turn of fortune. The creature turned its attention back to Veris and began charging up another blast. Veris began making a run for it, but the remainder of the attacking force was making that difficult, no matter how much Garren and Barkos were trying to create a gap for her to slip through.

The beast reared back its head as it prepared to unleash the blast, only for it to suffer a violent interruption as Ryo was finally able to rejoin the fray; he used the remains of a collapsed house to leap into the air and drive his sword into one of the creature's empty eye-sockets! The blade apparently hit something important, as the creature let out an enraged roar and discharged the fireball straight into the air, eventually exploding and bathing the battlefield in a red aura.

Ryo was thrown free of the monster's skull, sword and all and he tumbled several times in the torn-up dirt before he scrambled to his feet and readied his sword again, only to see that the creature was acting strangely; its body was sparking in a weird way, and it looked unsteady on its feet.

"Anyone know what I hit in there?!" He called out to the others, quickly getting a response from Barkos.

"I think the energy in its skull is serving as a brain! Your sword disrupted that energy, thus throwing off its balance!" The apprentice hunter yelled back. Ryo's mind began racing as he starting planning his next attack. There was a possibility that if the energies within the skull were disrupted enough, the monster might die. However, given how violently it reacted, it would likely take time before the beast finally keeled over; time that could see one or all of them killed in a confused rampage.

"Wait… That's not the only…" Ryo realized before he yelped as the monster charged at him! He leapt to the side to avoid a tackle and scrambled backwards to avoid the creature literally snapping at his heels!

"Try hitting the second core! The second, ACK!" Ryo called out as he narrowly avoided the jaws of the creature snapping shut scant inches from his face. Barkos immediately began trying to line up a shot but wasn't finding any success as the creature was now moving around far more in its attempts to bring Ryo to a grisly end.

"See if you can slow it down!" Barkos yelled as he tried to find a decent shot. If Ryo hadn't been occupied with avoiding fang and claw, he'd have had some choice words for Barkos's request. Instead, he used his latest leap to plant his foot on nearby crate and leap backwards, blade raised as he once again plunged it into the eye-socket of the monster! This time though, he managed to position himself just behind the head and keep a solid grip on the monster and his sword. The beast shrieked and bellowed, throwing itself about in a frantic bid to remove Ryo from its back, or more specifically, his blade from its eye-socket.

Despite the severe jostling he was receiving as the creature bucked and kicked, Ryo held firm as he tried jamming the sword deeper into the monster's skull. There was an alarmed shriek from the creature and its movements grew increasingly desperate, but the damn thing refused to die! Finally, the creature threw itself forward and managed to dislodge Ryo from its back and throwing him to the ground in front of his companions! Fortunately, the sword stayed firmly where it was, though Ryo was now concerned about what to do now, as he was without a primary weapon. The creature reared back on its hind legs as it frantically pawed at its own face to remove the blade from its eye, an action that Barkos was quick to capitalize on as he shot an arrow right into the energy core contained in its chest! There was a POP and a SNAP as the arrow struck, causing the feline beast to let out a whole new form of horrid shriek before it fell to all fours and barreled towards the group, throwing its head from side to side as it did so!

Everyone scrambled to get out of the monster's blind rampage, though Ryo and Veris weren't successful in the end. The former was thrown to the side and crashed into some wooden crates, rendering him very dazed. Meanwhile, Veris was hit full on and nearly trampled as the creature passed overhead before it skidded to a halt, frantically pawing at its face again before it successfully dislodged Ryo's blade and shook its head before it zeroed in on the group again and began dragging its bony paws through the ground as it prepared to charge once again. Veris scrambled to her feet before wincing in pain and fell to one knee. Ryo had managed to recover enough by now that he could see Veris in the direct path of the monster, had a wounded leg, had lost her knife and none of them had the means to stop the creature from trampling Veris to death, assuming it didn't just kill her with its fangs.

Ryo and Garren both separately began sprinting towards Veris to pull her out of danger, but they were both too far away to reach her in time. The monster roared as it began its charge, loping towards her with murderous intent. Veris's eyes widened as she desperately began searching for some means of escape before he hands fell down to her mother's weapon. The length of chain had come undone from her hip and was now lying about on the ground. Seizing the chain in both hands, she let out a howl as she quickly swung the chain around towards the monster! But that wasn't all.

Ryo's eyes widened as he witnessed a rush of red and orange travel the length of the chain from Veris's hands all the way to the weighted spike, which was suddenly engulfed in flame before it struck the creature in the ribs and triggering a massive explosion! The creature let out a pained and strangled yelp as it was suddenly thrown on its side, exposing the energy core within its chest! The opening was quickly exploited by the mage, who launched a massive lightning bolt from her pointer and middle fingers, straight into the core! The reaction was almost instantaneous as the creature exploded violently, taking what few remnants of its soldiers remained with it.

There was a tense stillness that followed before everyone relaxed at once. Everyone was gasping for breath as Garren helped Veris to her feet and aiding her in hobbling out of the middle of the street. Everyone regrouped at the side of the street, sans Barkos. He was busy scavenging for medical supplies.

"What… was that…" Veris groaned as she began checking her bad leg as best she could. The mage huffed as she glared at the location where the beast had been destroyed.

"They're the fallout of war. They're drawn to magic, consuming it and hording it. They will never stop hunting you." She bit out as she cast a subtle glare towards Ryo before turning her attention to Veris, who looked shellshocked by that last piece of information.

"What do you mean by that? Who are you" She asked slowly, notes of fear in her voice. The mage sighed and bowed her head.

"My name is Leiptr, and I'm a magician; just like you."