Of Ice, Death & Monsters

Rook began to take deep breaths, composing himself as the entire day repeated in his head like a horrible video on loop.

“What in the Abyss was all that…” Derek exhaled out loud as he lay on his back, nursing his wounds as he winced every so often.

Everyone, even Marian, could mentally agree that the entire journey could be summed up in those seven words. There were too many close calls and too few stops for rest. It was one problem after another, and what did they have to show for it?

Mollie got out their flasks, shaking the contents a little as she noticed it felt a little stuff before opening the cap and drinking a little. “Aw, man, it’s freezing up. Drink it up, guys, before it’s literal ice.”

She handed it first out to the magi before giving it to the other volunteers, who all collectively downed it as fast as they possibly could. It was so cold that any temperature lower and it would have been worse than the snow water from earlier.

Topher looked up at Henry as his stomach rumbled. “How much do we have left? Those berries, I mean?”

“Aside from the ones we found here, not much left after we lost a sack full trying to get away from those water monsters.”

Derek sighed internally and stretched his arms out. “Shit, man, and we don’t even know where the others are.”

“I think it’s safe to assume that they’re most likely dead unless they had a native with them to help out.” Rook pointed out as he made sure to stay far, far away from the cave entrance.

“The problem would be in locating them. They seem to be masters of being extremely elusive; either that, or they constantly travel and manage to not gather any attention to themselves.”

Marian used her tail like a stick, tracing along the dirt on the ground as she tried to figure out what to do next. Where to go next, how to survive out here. They wouldn’t survive another day outside, so they had to find a way to either repel the monsters or get more powerful.”

Rook sighed and rubbed his face. Jane really did screw them over. If it weren’t for her, then he would have sided with the Descendants and their insanity. Although he hoped she somehow died in some sort of freak monster attack.

Henry simply sat by the corner, staring at the wall as if it could change anything. He didn’t know what to do, but he trusted the Magi to actually make a decision, or at least was able to direct them somewhere better.

Mollie, at this point, was just along for the ride. She knew she was gonna die here, but at least for the first time in her life… It was fun, so much more fun compared to living in Phorash. That shithole was way too drab and lacking, for a better term, completely life-draining.

Derek and Topher were just hungry and thirsty. They were starting to get so desperate that they wondered what monster meat would even taste like now. Surely it can’t be that bad? I mean, exotic and all… But where would they even get a fire to heat and cook the meat? They can’t make one in these conditions unless they get deep into the cave, and even if they did, it might attract monsters.

With so many swirling thoughts in the air, all of which compounded over and over again into an intense atmosphere where none of them talked, a single pin drop could have startled them all. So they continued in their silence for some time until Marian spoke out.

“We go deeper into the caves for tonight. We need to lessen our chances of getting caught, and we need to find out who made this outpost.”

Rook narrowed his eyes as he sneered. He did not want to go on another wild goose chase, trying to barely survive as he already has. “How are you so sure that the answers lie deeper in the cave?”

“Because if we go and find the answers outside, we are not going to survive. It’s best that we maximize our survival first and foremost. And, judging from how we managed to live through the night in one of these caves, I can safely concur that it is the safest place to explore.”

“Simply because the entrance of the cave is safe, does not mean that further along its interior would provide the same value and effect of the safety. It could be that further within lies a danger much worse than that we saw outside.”

Marian chuckled a little with her tail curling up. “But Jameson, what’s worse, the horrors we know, or the horrors that might not even be there. We have essentially three options.”

She raised her hand and counted them off. “We stay here, do nothing, and starve to death. We go outside, maybe find the natives, or get killed by the monster. And lastly, we go deeper into the caves and explore as much as we can. We can get killed by monsters, die of starvation, or find what we need.”

Rook gritted his teeth, scales standing on end as she said his Name. What was he even to do now? He glanced at the Volunteers, and already they seemed to agree with her. There was an unease in him, one that didn’t seem to go away no matter how long he thought about it. But she made some good points, and there was no reason at all to argue with her.

So he sighed and simply nodded along. “Alright then, but let’s at least catch our breaths first and rest, and perhaps we officially start tomorrow.” He turned to the rest of the Volunteers. “Does that sound right with all of you?”

They all nodded along and murmured in agreement while Marian gave a wolfish grin. “Then it’s settled~ Have a good rest, all of you. I’ll be checking it out first to make sure it’s safe.”

And without another word, she stood up and walked away from the group, heading deeper into the cave with her tail wagging right behind her.

Marian wandered alone into the cave. The only thing providing any illumination was the strange glowing moss that radiated some light.

She needed some time away from them all. Some time for her thoughts to collect. It was all so sad with them there. They all were trying their best, and she appreciated that, but they were simply missing something, a spark of some sort.

“Oh, Adrian… If only you were here with us now, if only those bastards didn't take you away from me.” She hugged herself and scratched her claws across the wall, baring her fangs like a rabid wolf.

She laughed like a maniac, grinning ear to ear as her eyes became all watery. “If only I were faster… If only I had simply killed them all when I had the chance, this would be so much easier.”

Marian sighed and slumped over by a wall, tracing her claws across the stone wall. “That whore is probably out there, living the life she doesn’t deserve, praised by lunatics all around her while she gorges herself on power… Why us? We suffer like this? Why?”

Everything was wrong in the world. Why were the ones she loved taken while those who desire destruction and chaos still live? Why do they deserve life while those who only wanted what was best for the world are reduced to less than nothing?

She began to carve a symbol on the wall, that of a tree with sprawling roots and a wide canopy. On the branches and trunks leading down were several nodes, each of which had smaller sigils upon them containing laws of the old world.

“Symbols of Balthalem… I know that they aren’t quite of Galfania, but there should be some traces of this world across this land, even for just a bit.” She hummed a little and tapped the symbol ten times over.

“Come forth, whether spirits, laws, gods, or whatever have you be in this land. Grant me what I need to erase the filth of this world. Grant me what I need to save my land and my people. Grant me what I need to grasp my revenge with mine own hands!”

Yet nothing happened. Of course, nothing happened. She laughed a bit at her own stupidity, closing her eyes as she let her weariness begin to take over, completely enveloping her as she took in a deep breath.

“It was worth a shot.”

And thus, Marian fell asleep.

Darkness. That’s what awaited all who sleep, but those who dream never stay in darkness for long. As Marian unveiled her perception in the void, the inky blackness that covered creation, a space that was nothing at all. She didn’t even have a body, no eyes, no nose.

What she was instead was light, much like a star in the sky. She illuminated nothing, yet she felt so whole, so wonderful, a shining representative in the darkness of the void.

Soon, she was joined by dozens, then hundreds, then thousands, millions, billions, and so on and so forth lights that scattered throughout the void, like fireflies through the night. Each one of them morphed, changing into something else.

One became land, solidifying into earth. Another into water, which covered the crevices and cracks. Another into a bird that flew across the air, and yet another became a wolf to chase the bird, and on and on, filling up the world itself until it became beautiful.

For a brief moment, it seemed as if everything could have been perfect, but, as all things in the world, as if it were a law of creation, something went wrong.

Her light grew hungry, her light wanted more. It was insatiable and began to move towards the others, wrapping them in her light until they merged and became one.

It felt amazing, as if she just ate a three-course meal from a five-star restaurant, filling her up completely as euphoria oozed from her body. Yet it wasn’t enough, so she continued, moving to each and every being that was once a star, each and every light, consuming them bit by bit, growing larger and larger until it was only her in the sky, becoming all things at once.

Then, at the very peak of it all, when she felt all the other lights join her… She exploded, sending forth all the stars out back into the void, streaming across the sky as they reformed back into their respective natures.

She was left alone, hungry, wanting for more, wanting to be more, needing to be more.

But that wasn’t her. Marian knew it wasn’t herself, and in that instant, she managed to appear outside of the light in her own body, patting herself down as she realized that this must be a dream.

“You are right, of course, Marian Monroe.”

A soothing voice called out from behind Marian. She turned to face it, only to find… Herself? Or rather, a taller version of her with a longer tail and braided hair, wearing a simple sundress as she stared down at Marian.

“Who are you?”

“I am the Fallen Caretaker of this Land. The Spirit that offers life, nourishment, and fulfillment. Sadly, my presence here has since faded. But, you managed to call upon the last few remnants of it in a spot that still holds importance to me, so I have come, even if it’s only just a memory.”

Marian’s mouth curled into a grin. Was this it? Her chance? What she had been waiting for all this time? Her heart pounded, and she radiated glee throughout her body as a bulb does to light. “Oh? You’ve come to answer my prayers? I can’t believe it… Looks like it does actually work.”

“You and I have goals that connect to each other. You wish to protect your people, and I wish to ensure life in this land flourishes beyond mere monsters. However, to accomplish both of our goals, we need to do one thing.”

“And what would that be?”

“We need to kill the Harbinger of Flames, their Unifire: Jane Marcellus.”