Interlude: The Wolf Without the Pack

They arrived quickly, probably disturbingly so but he buried down the initial pang of envy at the fact the man hadn't even spoken a single word before they abruptly found themselves in the midst of a small clearing.

All around them stood a sea of trees, which actually looked scary when he was standing there. They talked about a forest as though it was an actual sea of green trees or even some sort of mystical looking plant. Basically, anything other than what he actually found himself staring at, his lips curled down and his eyes narrowed a bit as his eyes roamed along his immediate surroundings.

Not just lacking in leaves but life as well, the husk of darkened tree corpses flanked him as far as he could see. Unless there were different sections of the forest which he imagined would have probably been the case. He doubted you would get an abundance in familiar types if everything came out of this dead looking place. Turning his eyes to the sky didn't help much either, the vermillion coated horizon proving to add an eerie feeling to everything.

"...The whole forest doesn't actually look like this, does it?" He found himself asking after a moment of silence between them, glancing towards the man who had brought him here and finding them looking around with a similarly dispassionate glance as they did so. They didn't answer his question for a good few seconds, then released a hum before they spoke.

"No, the forest as a whole does not look like this. It transitions between a variety of ecosystems depending upon one's location." Jedidiah explained, he wasn't sure if he was supposed to feel relief or not at the answer however. Perhaps just the mild confirmation that everything down here didn't look as though it was on the verge of death. "This location is merely the easiest to access and is the one where most of the weaker familiars reside. Further exploration into the forest would be inadvisable."

Kadoc didn't scoff, but he did let out a low hum. Perhaps it stung a touch that they were effectively telling him they were too weak to actually go further but at the same time, that sort of made an awful lot of sense. He wasn't all that aware as to the creatures that resided within this forest, but he knew enough to understand that some of the more powerful familiars also resided here as well.

"Anything I should watch out for?" He found himself asking, probably out of a morbid sense of curiosity as to what would actually be one of the worst things he could encounter out here. He spared Jedidiah a glance before he turned his eyes around himself, adjusting the rucksack on his back to better balance it.

There was a short hum from the man in question as they seemingly debated his question - whether it was because he actually needed to think or because he was just trying to cross some names off a list was something he opted not to think too hard about - and after perhaps five seconds, they eventually answered. "Everything to the south of us will rapidly reach a point where it becomes fatal for you if you should encounter them. Though I would advise you tread carefully regardless."

A strange sense of foreboding now loomed over him at those words, he suppressed a gulp as he glanced at the man and wet his lips, turning to them fully and inclining his head to the side. "Why do I get the feeling you're gonna tell me something that will make me want to leave all of a sudden?"

"...There are far more powerful things in these woods than a hydra." Was the vague but very horrifying answer he received. He felt as though his heart was going to just stop beating in his chest then and there the moment they spoke. In terms of phantasmal, there weren't a lot of things that could beat a hydra. Even some of the Gods opted to stay clear of them on account of their venom and certainly no angel would dare to approach them.

And apparently there was something in these woods that was stronger than one of those monsters.

"...All to the South?"

"All to the South, yes." Jedidiah confirmed with a nod of the head, sounding rather unperturbed at the frankly terrible news he had just given him out. Suddenly heading home seemed like a very appealing idea. He was sure that he could probably find some other method of getting stronger that didn't run the risk of winding up as a melted pile of goo on the floor. Or food for some prehistoric looking monster ripped right from the pages of a fantasy novel.

"North is safer?"

"Yes."

"...I'll head North." It seemed like common sense but he whispered it aloud anyway, nodding his head up and down as he adjusted the bag one final time, nervously fiddling with the straps as he did so, rolling them up into balls and then releasing them to let them fold back down only to repeat the process all over again. "You'll keep the Devils off my back, right?"

"To the best of my abilities, yes." Turning to him, the faint amber coloured eyes of the man locked onto his own with an intensity that silenced him before he could offer another word. "I can prevent them from determining you are present here, but it remains within your hands to avoid further detection. This remains Devil territory and I have my limits in their domain, concealing you entirely will attract attention regardless of my presence."

Kadoc got the gist of it.

"Stay low, keep my head to the ground and don't kick up a fuss, right?"

Jedidiah nodded his head up and down several times as a way of a reply. "That is the simplest explanation, yes. Now then, I will depart and return to collect you within the next two days. Provided you do not signal for retrieval before that time has elapsed." they took a single step backwards, pausing for a moment and then offering a thin smile and nodding their head once. "I am confident in your capabilities. Recall this and play to your strengths."

He grunted back to them, not feeling all that comfortable now.

He assumed that was the moment in which they would vanish, yet Jedidah remained for a moment, a brief frown crossed their face as their eyes briefly roamed over him for a single second. Without warning, they reached into their inner blazer pocket and withdrew what looked like a bottle of clear liquid in a plastic bottle.

Without uttering a single word, they extended it towards him.

Kadoc glanced down at it, then slowly looked back towards the tanned man who still remained silent with the weird bottle in their grasp. With slow and deliberate movements, he reached out and clasped the bottle in his hand and withdrew it. "What is this anyway? Some sort of magic potion?"

The lid of it was plain white, if it was a potion then it was certainly cheap looking. With a flick of his thumb, he popped the lid off and brought it to his nose. Then immediately gagged as a whiff of it rushed up his senses, pulling it away from his face and snapping the lid back down, his other arm came up and pressed tight against his face, he whirled on the man with a bewildered look on his face, the bottle still held an arms length from him.

An expected explanation from them utterly failed to materialise.

"Am I getting punked or some shit?" He pulled his arm from the front of his face, breathing through his nose as he did so. "Daybit has me fill up a water bottle of salt water and you're giving me…is…is this vinegar? Did you give me a bottle of plain vinegar?"

A silence stretched between them, he almost spoke again before they eventually answered them with a tone of voice that sounded utterly uncaring to the weirdness of what they had just done. Acting as though they hadn't just handed him vinegar with next to no explanation. Even then, the answer they gave him was less than ideal.

"Cleaning vinegar. Useful for gardening." A beat, their eyes moved from the liquid back to him before their expression twitched for a brief moment, Kadoc would have called it a smile if he was a stupid idiot, but he wasn't and that clearly wasn't something he was going to take assurance in. He was all but certain they were taking the piss out of him. Just having him walk around with weird things and seeing how much he would take it before he called them out on it. "Given your understanding of animals, I am certain you might find a use for it."

Another pause.

"With that, I shall take my leave and wish you good fortune with your coming tasks."

Jedidiah vanished after that, disappearing in a flash of light and leaving him all alone in the midst of the clearing surrounded by who knew what and with no earthly - or unearthly - idea of where he was supposed to begin in the first place.

It also hit him a second later.

Why would the clairvoyant wish him luck?

Wasn't that actually super concerning?

He turned his eyes to the vinegar in his hands once more, now staring at it with a small degree of concern. Maybe Daybit had been pulling some sort of jape on him or something but he wasn't sure if Jedidiah was the type for that, maybe they were or maybe they weren't but at the same time, the both of them sent him out here with some weird stuff to carry around.

The temptation he initially felt to toss the bottle away started to fade from his mind, replaced by a few seeds of concern that were accompanied by what he now considered to be ominous words from the man in question, he glanced about himself and to the menacing looking woods and then back to the bottle. He let out a short but shuddering breath as he whipped his rucksack around and pulled one of the side pockets open, stuffing the bottle inside and then slipping it back onto his shoulders.

"Don't think about it." A quick mumble to himself did very little to actually steady his nerves. No matter how often he repeated it under his breath.

Fishing through his pockets, he withdrew a silvery steel device and flipped the lid open. The small red arrow on the small glass face whirled around for a moment until it stopped moving.

He was immediately thankful he hadn't started walking straight ahead.

Turning right around, he started to walk in the opposite direction to the one he had been facing, though he quickly paused and chanted under his breath. Masking his scent to the outside world as he did so before he resumed his walk. Hopefully it would be enough for him to keep some of the larger animals off his back.

There was likely no such thing as a 'safe spot' in a forest full of mythical creatures.

Kadoc decided that this forest was weird in every sense of the word, that came after he watched some sort of pig looking thing fly right over the top of his head. He said pig but what he actually meant was savage looking boar that would probably tear him in half. The fact this was where Jedidiah said the safer creatures were was something of a faint terror for him.

With a shudder, he kept on walking.

The further he moved the more the landscape had started to change from the desolate looking burnt wasteland he had been dropped in when he first arrived. Patches of green had started to appear with increasing levels of consistency, a few trace flowers popping through the soil which passed similarities to the same type that you would find in the human realm as well or whatever he was supposed to call it.

If this was the underworld, then the place where humans lived would probably be the overworld or something. That would be weird and he really hoped they didn't call it something like that. At the same time, he couldn't put it past them either, really it was just something that he was thinking of to pass the time.

He paused at the faint crunching sound that reached his ears, turning his head immediately in the direction of it and narrowing his eyes ever so slightly. It wasn't the wind, there was barely any of that in the first place, which meant it was something alive. It didn't sound all that heavy either and it had only been for a moment.

His eyes lingered on the direction the noise had come from, just enough bushes to hide something cat sized but with enough spacing between them that he would definitely notice if anything tried to start moving. Taking a half step backwards, he slowly lowered himself to the ground while keeping his eyes fixed on the bushes, placing his hand flat against the earth and chanting under his breath.

"Blood flows and hearts beat. Be heard and become hunters meat."

There was a short flash of his magic circuits activating, then he could feel it through the vibrations of the ground. At least two metres ahead of him. It was beating fairly quickly but it was small, very small. Rodent sized he would say, nothing greater than the size of a guinea pig at the very least. Good first encounter, something he could actually test his magecraft on at the very least.

Pulling his hand back, he chanted once more as the next spell came forth to his mind.

"Predators hunt, the lone dies. Through the pack there is safety."

A simple enough spell but rather useful all things considered, he tensed as the bushes started to rustle once more and then kept himself steady as something bushed out of the brush and started to walk towards him. He had to blink twice at it before his brows furrowed and he felt himself rather be anywhere else but here.

Good news, it really had been the size of a guinea pig.

Slightly less good news.

It was a giant fucking centipede that was as long and thick as his forearm.

He remained deathly still as it scuttled towards him, immediately rising to his feet but keeping his nerves in check to avoid causing a scene. There was no reason to believe that his spell hadn't worked so until it showed signs of not working, he would stay right here.

With a deep red armoured plate, it was moving ever closer and he had to keep his eyes on the exceedingly large fangs that rested at the front of its shield shaped face. It came to a halt right next to him and then started to move, he turned his body as it circled around him several times, showing no evidence of aggression or trying to eat him which was a nice thing.

Keeping his eyes on it, he slowly reached into his top pocket and pulled out a notebook and pen, flipping it open and writing down.

"First encounter. Big. Centipede. Heartbeat detected without incident. Convinced it that I was a friend. No signs of deterioration in the spell as a result of magical air quality." Clicking the pen shut, he placed both it and the notebook back into his pocket and looked back down at the creature.

It was staring at him while sitting on his shoes.

"Fuck this." He stated aloud, channelling magical energy once more and chanting under his breath once more. The behaviour changed immediately as it surged away from him as fast as it could, he very nearly had a heart attack by the way it looked like it teleported from being on his shoes to being at least three metres away from him in the time it would have taken him to blink.

Watching as it retreated, he let out a breath and brought his hand up to cover his eyes, rubbing them as he breathed in and out several more times and then pulled them away. This was his life now, he was making friends with and scaring something that had been ripped right from the carboniferous or something like that. If there were giant spiders here, he would be seriously tempted to just call it quits and go home.

He wasn't overly scared of spiders.

But he liked to think that anyone would have booked it if they stumbled upon a spider the size of a cat or something along those lines.

With a shake of his head, he continued on his way, trudging through the undergrowth as he did so but now with a bit more alertness to his eyes. If there were giant bugs around here as well as freakish looking animals, then he would need to really reevaluate what sort of nasty creepy crawlies he would be running into.

There were times when he loved camping and times when he absolutely hated camping.

This was the latter of those two times, namely because he could hear the chaos of the outside world from beyond the walls of his tent. Walls being the term used in the loosest sense of the word because those thin sheets of fabric wouldn't even offer token resistance if one of the large nasties decided that they didn't like how close he was to their little territory or something.

Already, he hated this plan and he'd only been here long enough for nightfall to roll around. Of course, that was when the calls had started out, the shrieks and groans of the wilderness outside were matched only by the eerie rustling of bushes outside, he hadn't attempted much in the way of sleep because he was more focused on the small animal in front of him.

Glancing between the strange bird creature with four wings, he kept looking from it to the notebook in his hand as he scribbled down some notes around it. He'd set up a couple of harmless little traps to lure in some of the weaker creatures that could be used as Familiars because those were the sort of things that he knew his Magecraft would actually have a decent shot at affecting most of the time.

Helped to refine it and all that.

Though he would have preferred to do it elsewhere than the middle of the fucking woods in actual hell but apparently this was the best path forwards or whatever. Getting drawn into an argument about the merits of training with a guy who could literally see the future was a battle he was certain he would lose before he even entered. Even if they didn't have that little talent of theirs, there was also the fact that the guy was practically the modern day Solomon. Name excluded in the comparison.

Whatever. He'd just put up with it, so long as it worked out in the end then he would be up for anything.

He paused at the cheaping from in front of him, glancing up from his notebook to the small bird creature as it tilted his head at him and ruffled its feathers. The staring contest between the two of them lasted for a good few seconds before he withheld a small scoff and returned his focus to his work, noting down a few more effects of various spells he had used before he opted to move to the next one.

"Night comes to fall. Predators out to Call. Refuge surrounds and home is found." He intoned, mana flooded through his circuits as he stared at the small creature. It stared right back at him for all of a moment, then it locked up and dropped down to the floor of the tent without even making a single sound. He had to blink at the swiftness of it all.

Reversing the pen in his hand, he moved towards the limp body and poked it twice before retreating from it and making a small noise. The chest was still rising and falling and the eyes were closed, which meant that it seemed as though the sleep spell had actually worked. That was a decent accomplishment at any rate, but it was still minor league compared to what he would have to do.

So he put a bird to sleep, big deal.

All his spells thus far had been to restrict one or more of the senses, either the sight, smell and hearing of the animal had been met with similar levels of distress, he'd kept the alarm to a minimum through an aura of tranquillity being cast upon it so that it didn't register anything as wrong. He was similarly surprised at the ease at which that spell had come into effect.

Flipping the pen, he placed it against his chin as he hummed to himself and nodded his head up and down. From what he imagined the source of his success was that the difference between this animal and a regular bird was nothing more than the excess of magical energy in the underworld leading to a radical shift in the structure of it. In much the same way that one could create a monstrous beast from granting a familiar with an excess of magical energy, he was just applying the same concept of spells to the bird and surpassing its magical energy with his own.

That was certainly one possible explanation, but he wouldn't be able to get more answers unless he delved into further research into them. However he hadn't packed anything that would call upon more complex and intrusive tests because that would have probably attracted some attention with the magical energy he was calling upon. He wasn't going to try and put Jedidiah's skills to the test against the Devils who literally owned this whole territory.

Better safe than sorry and all that.

For the time being, he would need to just gradually work up in principle. He would consider one of those little sprite dragons to be a worthy goal for him to at the very least understand the basics of by the end of it. Though getting near one of those things wasn't something he was exactly comfortable with doing. Anything that had the word 'dragon' in its name was guaranteed to be trouble.

Still, he would need to think about the next animal to lure in. He wanted to keep his attention to a bare minimum and the familiar forest was closely monitored by the Devils who owned it, some of their number turning up missing during a short period of time might raise some eyebrows for him. He wanted to get better, yes, but not at the cost of being alive.

He liked being alive.

Clicking the pen, he returned to the notebook and jotted down the results of his test as he did so. Glancing at the bird and raising an eyebrow before he shrugged his shoulders. He briefly debated whether or not he was going to awaken it but decided against it for the time being, he needed to see how long he could keep them incapacitated in a slumber before they eventually woke.

If he could make it out to be more than twelve hours then he would consider that to be a decent amount of progress, namely because that would put it at a longer period of time than a regular bird slept for and he was just applying that to the Devil birds or whatever they were called down here. Weird four winged things.

Finishing up his notebook, he clicked his pen off and then slipped it into the book, shutting it and placing it off to the side. Rolling his shoulders until he heard them click and then rubbing his eyes with his hand before pulling them away, gently moving his hand to the bird, he slipped them underneath the body and then held it up, almost comical the way it flopped around without waking. Though he was more curious whether the end result was a coma or if they were just a really heavy sleeper. He would probably find out soon anyway.

Crawling to the corner of his tent, he placed them down against the ground, reaching into the notebook and pulling out a small scrap of paper - one with a pre-prepared warning circle drawn onto it - and then slipped it underneath the bird. The moment it awoke - if it did before him - then he would be alerted to it and it would restrain it before it could either escape or start screeching out. He had a bounded field but one could never be too careful.

Retreating back, he flicked the light off the small lantern he had with him and rolled back into his sleeping bag, drawing it over himself as he did so and closing his eyes. Though they barely remained closed for even a second before he heard something rustling and snapping around outside of his tent, they snapped open a moment later and he stared up at the ceiling with wide eyes, only the darkness greeted him back with faint outlines within the black detailing his location.

Whether it was a result of the lack of lighting or his own unease, all the sounds were louder than he figured they should have been, as though they were right outside his tent. With a short turn, he found himself lying on his side and staring at the thin fabric wall with bated breath, he'd seen way too many horror movies to dismiss something like this out of hand. Also the location he was in and the giant bugs he'd spent the day seeing weren't doing any favours to his mind either.

Another crack from outside.

He stopped breathing.

This one wasn't in his mind, it did sound closer and it was coming from behind him as well.

He was facing that direction before he even realised it, the area where he had set his bag down which had most of his supplies inside of it. His eyes remained utterly focused on it as he slowed his breathing, desperately hoping that it had been nothing more than a trick of the mind born of his overactive imagination. Though he knew he wasn't that lucky.

The wall of the tent folded inwards, his eyes bulged and his breath caught in his throat as something pushed against, initially unsure of what it was, it quickly came to him when deep breathing filtered through, rapid pants that were virtually drinking in the scents of the inside of the tent, the noises ringing through his mind like drum beats as what could only be the snout of a wolf retreated for a moment.

He wet his tongue and let out a slow breath, placing his hand against the floor of the tent and chanting quietly under his breath as he did so. "Rat's body in hiding. Cat's byway escape. Let shallow cleverness prevail o'er cunning."

It was slow going to chant the spell and he felt every second tick past him as though they lasted hours, his eyes remained solely on the wall of the tent as whatever was on the other side repeated the same action a couple of times over the course of his chanting, when he finished he felt the spell go into effect. At that moment, the breathing stopped and the snout pulled itself back.

He dropped his head back onto the floor of his tent and closed his eyes, feeling as though he had aged at least ten years over the course of the interaction, he hated going camping in the woods and if anyone ever suggested he do it again, he would be sorely tempted to punch them in the face for it…

Except he probably wouldn't, in all likelihood he'd just end up glaring at them or something and grumbling under his breath before walking away.

Still, it played on his mind though.

He hadn't felt the Bounded Field get tripped by anything, his brows furrowed as his eyes flicked back open and focused on the wall of the tent which had been investigated by whatever had been outside. The only reason the bounded field wouldn't get tripped was because this was either something that could cloak it's presence or it had been within the perimeter during the time in which he had been setting it up.

Neither left him with any real confidence.

The former held the problem that whatever had walked right up to his tent just ignored the bounded field entirely to the point where it could just enter and leave with him none the wiser, which sort of defeated the purpose of even setting one up in the first place and left him rather thankful it was content with just sniffing at his tent.

For now at least, though if it came back again then he might have to try something a little different. Though he doubted he was going to be getting much sleep now, if there had ever been a chance of that before.

He swallowed, then adjusted himself in his sleeping bag and narrowed his eyes. Keeping himself awake for extended periods of time was just something he was used to and contrary to popular belief, it did not relate to his physical appearance.

Rolling onto his back, he pulled his arms out of his sleeping bag-

He froze.

Something was wrong.

He felt it deep in his person, it was as though something was hanging over his head. A tension flooded his body and his heart beat a little quicker. He snapped upright once more, his head whirling left and right as he felt his throat start to go dry. Beads of cold sweat were forming on his brow.

It was like standing on the edge of a cliff and looking down, but he couldn't see where the edge was.

He just knew that there was something wrong but didn't know what, his mind worked with a dozen or so different outcomes which all sounded exceedingly unpopular for him if he was to be honest but he dismissed the negative opinions and started to focus more on what he was aware of.

The wolf animal or whatever it had been, that was likely the cause.

The how was put aside, what mattered right now was the solution to it.

His heart stopped.

His hairs immediately stood on end and it felt as though time was slowing down for him, a knot formed in his gut and his throat closed up. He felt as though he was going to be sick. The air got heavier, if that was possible, and it was like he was on a rollercoaster without a harness on.

The world blurred, he turned his head to the side and found his attention fixed on the closet wall of the tent to him, keeping his eyes on it and wide as saucers. He wasn't sure why, he wasn't even certain what was going on, but he knew he was gripped with some primal terror.

Danger.

That was all his senses screamed at him.

Danger.

Something pierced through the wall of the tent and had him bring up a hand at the sudden luminescence, he jerked back with a silent gasp as he blocked out the new source of light and scrambled backwards, uncaring as to whatever noise he made until he slipped on something behind him, falling back and roughly onto his bag with a faint hiss.

His hand snapped down and he stared at the new source of light, it was above him and shining down through the tent. Bright enough to penetrate the fabric of the shelter with clear ease. It was a surprise, but that wasn't the worst part.

Brilliant green orbs locked eyes with him and in that one moment, he had never been more certain of anything in his life. There was a purity to the single thought that passed through his head, the morbid sense of confidence that came with that sudden realisation.

He was going to die.

Whatever was on the other side of the tent was going to kill him.

A noise rumbled around him, a feeling as though the world itself was trembling as the noise continued on, it sounded vaguely like a wolf but had the volume of a jet engine and was just as friendly. The growl lasted for but a few seconds, yet for all the impact it felt him with it might as well have gone on for years. He would never forget it either way.

There was a ripping noise and then a sudden breeze struck him, a mildly pleasant chill that reminded him a bit of back home. Then a tightness formed around his ankle that nearly had him cry out in pain, it was as though he'd stepped in something that clamped down around his leg immediately and wouldn't let go.

Eyes locked onto the source of his distress. He was certain his heart stopped beating in that moment as he stared at what was now locked firmly around his left leg.

It was a hand.

At least, it looked a bit like a hand, but it was more or less the size of his chest and practically engulfed his entire shin. What further struck him was, ironically, how beautiful it looked. Pristine golden fur coated the limb and he dimly thought what it must have been like to touch it. Though that mildly inviting thought was only in his head for a split second before the weight of his situation fell on his head like an anvil.

The block in his throat opened up, he felt the air rushing into himself as he desperately thought of whatever spell would be worth casting. Whether they had any value at all was forgotten to him, all that mattered was freeing himself from whatever had him and then running away.

Another snarl, this one drummed around in his body, he felt as though even his bones were shaking at the deep tone that was being used. The emerald green eyes narrowed considerably and if there was an emotion in them, he might have been able to guess what it was yet he was too distracted for that right now.

It was a faint tug, that was all he felt, that was all the warning he got that something was going to happen. A simple faint tug, as though someone had just pulled on his sleeve.

The next thing he knew, he was staring up at a black sky with no explanation of what happened. It had been instant, the only sensation he felt was a tug. Rushing wind slapped against his ears as a feeling of weightlessness fell onto him next, a sensation of being utterly without control of his own body as he moved. Dimly aware of something in his hand being gripped tight with an unbreaking hold.

He struck something hard and something rough, it was the single worst pain he had ever felt in his entire life. As though everything in his body just decided that they would announce pain, without even being able to scream, instead a groan rushed out from his lips which dragged all the air from his lungs along with it. His body folded around whatever he struck.

His mind focused on the sudden image of trees being sideways like they were growing out of a wall, then he fell down and hit something cold and wet. Another gasp escaped him as he rolled once more and onto his back, left to stare up at the starless sky as a series of hacking noises built up in him, his side went cold and numb as though it just wasn't there any more.

Unable to even make sense of the sensation that was pooling in his gut as of this moment, like it was bungee jumping inside of his body with all the pain that entailed, it started as a low burn and gradually rose until it felt like his chest was on fire, a single squeaking cough burst out from his throat, he felt something come loose with it and fly into the air before dropping back down onto his face.

It was warm and wet, whatever it was.

A jostling.

His body was jumping up and down with irregular intervals.

Each thump caused him to bounce upwards as they drew closer and closer, even through the ringing in his ears could he hear the sound of what could only be described as a falling trees coming towards him.

With what little energy he could muster up, he managed to turn his neck to the side and found himself staring at the approaching shadow. As though made of light itself, the humanoid figure stood out amongst the blackness of the night.

Blurry, they could just about make out the shine of the green eyes where the head was, in the centre of a messy bush of hair and a decidedly inhuman face pulled back into a snarl as they drew closer and closer to him, he could see the rise and fall of their legs as they almost casually approached, as though they had time to spare.

Another sensation built up in his throat as he let out another small wet cough, spraying something onto the ground beneath his nose but he couldn't see it. Instead he just looked into the eyes of whatever was coming towards him, well built muscle that rippled with each flex and a height which was a little over twice his, as best he could guess.

Fuck sake, it really was just as he expected it to play out.

It was literally the worst case scenario he was expecting to happen and could have told them was going to happen if they dumped him here. Naturally he was about to get gutted by the first actual phantasmal that stumbled across him, nothing like some dumbass little bug or whatever.

North is safer.

What a crock of shit, they probably just sent him here to die or something because they realised how useless he was or whatever. Assholes, he couldn't even be mad at them because it logically made sense. If he couldn't improve then he wasn't worth keeping around and knew too much. a weak link that was too troublesome to keep around.

It made sense.

Didn't make it sting any less though, the least they could have done was just kill him or something in a dignified way rather than becoming wolf chum.

His eyes tracked it as he tried to control his breathing, at this point it was just wheezing exhales in and out as he stared at them, soon the shape of the creature loomed over him and cleared itself in his vision.

The shape of the head was basically a cross between a wolf and a bear, leaning down and extending the same giant clawed hand towards him. His eyes were drawn to the claws which had to be the length of his fingers and were sharp like daggers, a tugging sensation and a faint sting on his chest, the claws pierced through his shirt and slashed into his skin as he was pulled off the ground.

Still unable to move, there was little else to do but surrender himself to the grip of the monster as it pulled him up and towards being eye level with it, hot breath beat against his face and he didn't even have the energy to gag at how foul smelling it was, like old meat left in the sun for days on end, a rather acidic stench.

The best he could manage was a faint scrunch of his face in disgust, a growl from the wolf told him that it didn't appreciate his reaction to it. Not that he was really in the mood for caring. It started to move closer to him, his eyes locked onto the widening jaw and the fangs that hung down from the top of it, glistening with spit and with the obvious intentions on them.

He really was about to be fucking eaten on his first walk outside, wasn't he?

Literally anyone else would have probably been able to kill this thing before it even reached them, they wouldn't have even gotten grabbed or something. Yet here he was, the mug who was ambushed in his own bounded field and somehow overlooked the literal fucking werewolf. Given his own magercraft, this was probably the most embarrassing part of it.

He should have seen it coming a mile off.

Something was still held in his left hand, he wasn't sure what it was but it weighed a bit and at this point, there was nothing to lose. He couldn't breathe that well so casting any sort of decent magecraft wouldn't be possible. Even if he could speak, it would take too long and probably wouldn't achieve more than being a nuisance.

If he was going to die, then he sure as hell wasn't going to let it be without doing a single thing to stop it.

Strength flooded his left arm, he swung whatever was in it up and towards the open maw of the wolf monster, a flash of dark alerted him to the fact it was his bag. Slamming into the back of the throat and practically falling down the throat of the wolf, his eyes moved to the clear bottle on the little pocket at the end. His eyes widened, the logical part of his mind worked in overdrive as the adrenaline rocketed through him.

His right hand thrust forwards, grabbing the bottle and ripping it free and popping the lid off it, drawing his eyes to the slightly widened nostril which had opened up the moment he stuffed the bag in its throat.

If he could speak, maybe he would shoot off a one liner or something.

But he was more focused on being alive.

He slammed the bottle of vinegar directly into the nose, the mouth of the bottle passing directly into the open nostril and getting stuck upside down, watching as the clear liquid started to bubble and fall down into it. He was falling in the next moment, blurring through the air once again.

Unsure of how long passed, then he smashed into the ground with a thud directly onto his face and into a wet patch of mud, barely aware of the noises coming from behind him that sounded more like gurgling shock than pain, heavy footfalls as the beast moved around behind him and then a sound of fabric tearing accompanied by a rather loud snarl, a crumble of plastic followed and then a deep coughing noise.

Whatever strength had been inside of him disappeared just as quickly as it had arrived, leaving him face down in the barely warm mud with his body failing to obey him. Breathing no longer came to him very easily, instead it was staggered and very painful, the burning in his chest had risen to an inferno.

Still.

He probably ruined the monster's day or whatever.

That was something.

What happened?

That thought pushed around in their head, unsure of what had happened in the span of those precious few seconds.

It was quick.

A brief sensation of something being forced into their mouth and then something entering their nose.

It had been for only a moment - only a single instant - but they felt the liquid flood through their senses and for a single instant, everything had burned. It felt like their face had suddenly melted before they regenerated whatever had happened.

But what happened?

There wasn't any evidence of magical energy.

Their magecraft was an insult, they walked through it without even having to worry about it being of the level of a buzzing insect.

So…what happened?

Why did everything change within the span of a few seconds?

They had been hurt.

That had been pain.

If only for a second, no not even a second. A billionth of a fraction of a second but it knew that feeling. There was only one thing that it could be, yet that was impossible. It was utterly impossible. There was no way that something like that could happen. Yet it was the only thing that had happened.

Something blocked its mouth - it might as well have been air for all the resistance it offered - but it had surprised them for a moment, the sheer audacity of the human to take a final desperate swing into their mouth. That was a surprise. Then they put something in their nose.

Then they weren't in their hands anymore.

They had thrown them away, they were laying nearby somewhere but they weren't looking for them. Thoughts and focus remained on repeating the last few seconds in their mind and yet no matter how much they thought of it, none of it made sense. Nothing they considered made an ounce of sense to them.

It would have taken less than a second.

Less than a second, they found the human who intruded in their territory and dragged them from their meagre shelter. They had put up some sort of magical field but it was nothing to them. Less than nothing, the wind offered more resistance or alarm. Then they had cast something again, trying to hide themselves.

It was so pathetic that they had to take a step back.

Like holding a single leaf in front of their face and calling it a disguise.

It had achieved nothing and was little more than an insult to their pride, they decided to have a little bit of fun with this one. They had broken too easily though, a single throw and then they couldn't get up anymore. that was expected, they had caught their scent. Something strange but they were still human, just human. Nothing unique about them, little more than a regular human, without even one of those blessings.

They had been wounded, they were on the verge of death, it wouldn't have taken much to kill them.

But what happened?

How did they made them feel pain?

How did a regular human cause that faint pinch against them for a brief millisecond? How did they do that?

What did they miss?

…No, they hadn't missed anything.

They were a regular human. A normal human.

What happened?

They were about to die.

So how did they do that?

Humans they feasted on before had tried those same efforts but nothing happened when they did, they were human after all. Little more than bugs when compared to him but then what was different about this one? What had they done that was so different? There was nothing in the liquid they used, there wasn't even a hint of mystery about it.

It couldn't have been them, they smelled nothing still.

Had they underestimated them?

No, they assumed correctly. They were fine, there was no permanent damage.

But then…what happened? Why had they felt pain and why had they released them?

How did they do that when they had been on the verge of death?

A scent entered their nose, they turned their head towards the direction of it and soon found the human, face down in the dirt and still alive. If only just, it would take minimal effort to walk over to them and stamp on them. Killing them now would be easy. It would be so easy even a pup could do it, they might even die on their own.

They looked just as pathetic and unchanged as last time.

…They didn't move.

Their legs remained rooted in the ground, staring at them from a distance with unblinking focus.

They had looked like that last time and then they got close and they attacked.

They attacked and he felt it.

What if they did it again?

There was no warning last time, there probably wouldn't be a warning this time either. The human had just attacked them and it had hurt.

If they approached…they would get attacked again.

They remained stood still, staring at the human.

If they attacked, they would be attacked.

What if next time the injury was worse?

It was a regular human, it was impossible for them to hurt him but he knew that he felt pain.

How did they do that?

…What if other humans could do that?

…No, it happened before and nothing.

It was this single human. There was something about them.

If they attacked them, they would be attacked.

So they did nothing. Their posture straightened out and they kept their eyes on the human as they remained on the ground. Watching them with complete focus and unwilling to approach them further, they banished the thoughts of approaching them with hostility. This human was special, there was nothing else that could explain it, but then they smelled nothing unique.

What was wrong?

What happened?

How could this human do that?

It didn't make sense.

It just…didn't make sense.

They froze up, something was rapidly approaching their location at high speeds from a far off location. But they could sense it moving faster and faster, it would be there within the next few seconds. Their mind worked overtime, the scent filled their nose with only a sense of dread at what was approaching. A monster beyond their own ability to combat.

The smartest choice would be to flee.

So that was exactly what they did, barely sparing the human a single thought, they turned and bolted off in the opposite direction to the approaching sensation. Yet they kept the human's scent burned into their mind. They would need to remember it in case they somehow managed to live. But they didn't think they would, yet they could not help but consider the possibility that they might.

It was…strange.

Very strange.

He woke up.

Honestly, that was the biggest surprise of them all.

More to the point, he woke up staring up at the ceiling of his tent, his heart beating at a thousand miles a minute or thereabouts. It certainly felt as though it was doing that given how his hand immediately rushed up and pressed itself flat against his chest, feeling the pulse of it in his chest, the rapid beating.

He woke up.

He was still alive.

Gradually closing his eyes, an almost broken exhale fluttered out between his lips as he struggled to recall his last few moments before he woke. He was certain he would have been dead, face down in the mud and on the verge of being eaten. That was the only conclusion he could have drawn. Yet he felt no pain, a lot of terror to be sure, but he felt nothing else.

His hand moved up the length of his body away from his heart, finding a new home on his face as his breathing started to slow down.

It must have been a nightmare, sure it felt real and all of that but that must have been it. There wasn't any other way he saw himself surviving that experience. Not unless they had somehow come back to save him but that didn't make sense. They wouldn't do something like that, not when they put him in the position in the first place. It didn't make sense in the least for them to go out of their way to save the guy they just tried to kill.

This place was abnormal as well, who was to say that it wasn't influencing his mind. He was in the underworld, perhaps he was an idiot for thinking that his mind would not be similarly affected by its presence. Nightmares should have really been a given to expect. He almost clicked his tongue at his own idiocy, but held himself back. Just content with the knowledge that it was a dream.

Actually, he wasn't sure if that was any more pathetic.

He felt a little cold now, sweat forming on his brow.

Literally his first night here involved him dreaming about being ripped to shreds by some sort of fucking werewolf monster and then slamming an entire bottle of vinegar in it's nose to fight it off. A half chuckle rippled in the back of his throat, though it left his mouth as more of a wheeze without a lot of amusement in it. Was he seriously that pathetic that he couldn't even have a single dream where he was met with success.

Even in his head he was a loser.

How sad was that?

The smile that had been on his lips died an ugly death, the scowl that replaced it certainly felt a lot more fitting.

A crinkle sound, like plastic folding inwards.

He stopped breathing, his pupils contracted and his body locked up.

He heard it now, the faint sound of gulping as though someone was taking a drink. Slowly but surely, his hand peeled away from the front of his face and he gradually brought his head up just enough to flick his eyes downwards to the foot of the tent where the noise originated.

A gasp escaped him.

Cross shaped pupils snapped onto him in an instant, he made to throw himself backwards only to be slammed back down into the floor, a vaguely callous texture pressed against his face and stopping him from opening his mouth, his hands flew up and grabbed at what was pressing down at it, pushing with all of his strength and finding that it didn't budge in the least, as though he was shoving against a brick wall.

Eyes snapped downwards and dilated, finding himself staring at dark grey plate armour which made him think of steel until he saw they were connected to light skin, his eyes moved up the length of the arm until he found himself staring directly into those same eyes once again, is struggles immediately ceased as an invisible force pressed into his chest the moment he made contact with the eyes, peering down into him with an oppressing force.

Sky blue hair dropped down on either side, surrounding his head and leaving his field of vision constricted to the face looming above his own. The eyes stared into his very being, like he was stripped bare and being judged. He moved not even a single muscle, a pull and then his head was slowly turned left and right, the eyes roamed over his features with only a single hum accompanying the movement from the person above.

A rounded face, smooth features with but a sharpness to her glowing blue eyes with pink cross shaped pupils and her thinned lips that was almost animalistic. Not that he would have ever said something like that. The woman continued her examination of him as he lay helpless, the mere look had sent him into paralysis and he didn't even feel the exertion of magical energy upon him.

"Hmmm…Sunken features remain, even after sleeping for so long." A frown from the woman as she pulled at his face and lifted his head up and off the ground, he chilled at her words. "A rather sickly looking human, it makes your presence all the more bemusing to me. When I let you go, do not speak until I ask you to speak. Nod your head if you understand."

He couldn't have nodded faster.

Her gaze remained on him, then she abruptly released him and his head dropped back to the ground with a soft thud, as he fell back he noticed the large curved additions sprouting from the back of her head, crescent shaped horns which curved inwards twice in an 'm' like shape. The hand which had been holding his face returned to the owner as they leaned from him, sitting back casually and bringing a clawed finger across her chin as she did so.

"A human finding themselves wandering this forest is not all that surprising to me…but one wandering the forest without a brand of the Devils and with this…" She held it up, his eyes moved to it and failed to recognise it for a moment. A clear plastic water bottle which escaped his mind for a few seconds, then it rushed back to him with clarity.

The saltwater Daybit had him pack.

"...Coming here with this of all things." A quiet word from the horned woman, his eyes flickered back towards her. A touch of a smile was on her lips, rather amused as her claw pulled away from her cheek and towards him. "It certainly earned my attention, so then - little human - why is it that you have come here for me? And how did you survive against the world spawn?"

The what spawn?

He had no idea what to say.

Her eyes narrowed.

It was enough that he almost voided his bowels at that moment.

"I did heal you so that you could stare at me in silence. If I held interest for the gawking of humans I would pay a visit to a village and put on a spectacle there." The warning in her voice was unmistakable, but it was worse that he didn't know what she was after. "Now I shall ask you again. How did you survive against the world spawn?"

Again, the what spawn?

What the hell was-

"...You healed me?"

"That wasn't my question." His jaw snapped shut with an audible click, his tongue felt like lead in his mouth. The pressure eased a moment later at the fleeting look of exasperation as the woman brought the water bottle to her lips and took a rather greedy gulp of it. He suppressed the shudder of disgust as he realised she was just drinking hyper concentrate salt water.

She pulled the mouth of the bottle away and wiped her lips clean. "But I suppose in light of this little tribute of yours, I can allow you to get away with a lapses." the finger pointed to him once more, more dismissively this time. "Though it should go without saying to not push your luck."

He nodded his head rapidly.

"Now then, yes. I arrived and found you bloodied and bleeding on the ground. I had expected to find you as little more than mush in the dirt once I caught the scent of the world spawn but I was surprised to find you still breathing and relatively uninjured. Especially compared to what could have happened…"

World spawn…the golden werewolf.

He wasn't sure why she called them that, but it meant it was real.

"...I emptied a whole bottle of vinegar down their nose."

The woman paused, her body froze for a brief moment and then her eyes turned on him suddenly. He stilled at her sight once more, then felt it loosen as her expression turned incredulous before letting out a single scoff. "Truly? It would seem as though I missed out on quite the performance…certainly enough that I could see him retreating after that. That little pup dismisses all those they consider to be weak. The fool understands not that all children of the ocean are dangerous."

Kadoc just gulped silently.

"As for this…" She held up the bottle once again. "Why this? I admit, it certainly touched upon nostalgia, but it seemed much too perfect a tribute for me. So then, you have gained my attention. What did you hope to accomplish with this?"

"...U-uhhh…"

Her lip curled down, her brows furrowed. "You had no idea I was here. It is painted across your face. So then, why bring the water?"

"I just got told to take it."

"Ah, one of your betters understood its importance then. How fortuitous for you. If they had not, you would certainly be dead by now. Picked off by the other scavengers who roam the forest…though my presence will keep them from you for now." A moment of silence, the lip of the woman curled upwards as her finger moved to her face, index digit tapping against her chin as she let out a throaty chuckle. "Quite the smart little one whoever lent you this water…I would very much like to meet the one who managed to pull me into this little scheme of theirs…but for another time, it seems."

She took a final gulp of the water and finished it, flinging the bottle back at him and rising to her feet as she did so. He barely paid attention to the rest of her, only that she had a thick bluish scarf around her neck made of wool and a sleeveless blue jumper with black leggings lined with scarlet thread.

The plastic bounced off his face and dropped into his lap.

With a flourish of movement, she tossed her hair back over her shoulders. "If there isn't a need for me to be here, then it seems as though I have served my purpose. At least I found something a little interesting…what is your name, human?"

"Kadoc Zemlupus."

Why the hell did he just tell her his name like that?

Why would he do that?

That was stupid as shit.

"Hmmm. Interesting." That was her tepid response. "My role is done, if you insist on mingling in this land further it will come without my aid. When we next meet, fix your face. It's sickly and makes you appear as though you care little for yourself and the world around you. Hardly an appealing characteristic."

He didn't even get to respond before she just flat out walked through the wall of his tent without even opening the zip. He sat there for a moment, blinking profusely before he spoke the words which popped into his head first.

"What. The. Fuck."

The human was still alive.

The human was still alive.

They met with that thing, that creature that could defeat even them, and they were still breathing after all of that. In fact, their scent was as strong as it had been when they first met. It had arrived just to heal them and then leave.

Something wasn't right, there had to be something more.

Was there something more to the human that they couldn't smell?

That was it.

That had to be it.

There was no way they would have lost otherwise. No human could ever have done something like that to them if they were normal. But they couldn't sense it, it was impossible for them to detect it when they first met. Even on the verge of death they were weak and helpless and they could have killed them with ease.

But they weren't dead.

They were healed.

…What was going on here?

They needed to know.

They needed to know how the human did that.

How the human made it hurt.

…They wouldn't lose sight of this human.

A mere thought, their body shifted and twisted, in less than a second it assumed a smaller, more demure form. Fitting for the human they had decided to follow from now on. Just until they learned what was so special about them, they needed to make sure this never happened again. They needed to make sure they weren't defeated like that ever again.

They paced forwards, their smaller limbs carrying them towards the shelter the human had constructed, swaying their body cautiously as they grew closer and closer before they stood before it. Staring at the front of the shelter, the human lay within. They sat themselves down, staring at it for what amounted to at least ten minutes.

The shelter opened up and the mop of white hair poked out, the face of the human was still sunken with dark bags under their eyes. Looking without rest, they froze the moment they made eye contact. Their face scrunched up and their eyes looked them up and down with shock, but not dismissal. Not even this pitiful form made the human look down. Instead, they still held clear apprehension.

How strange. They recognised the threat they posed even when looking like this?

…The human felt the same, but there was a tension to it now. It wasn't fear, that would be stupid, but there was…something. The human felt the same, they looked cornered. Like they were trapped. Yet they now knew they could do something to them, even if only miniscule. They could do something.

…They would not leave until they found out how.

The human closed their eyes, a breath escaped them. "This is…I'm done…Today is just not my day."

They retreated back into the tent.

A blink.

Was…was that supposed to be the reaction?