Cylest and I climbed out of the tree and returned to the ground after spending an hour there.
"Are you set?" He asked.
"Yes, let's move on." I answered.
The fog began to lift as we moved forward. Ahead, I could see a large building. It was dark brown in color with crimson markings.
"What's that?" I asked, In hopes that it was our destination.
"We will be staying there." He answered.
I was relieved to arrive and take a break from my aching legs. A girl with light pink hair with green and blue eyes emerged from the building as soon as we got there and greeted Cylest.
"Welcome Home Cylest, would you like me to get some tea going?"
"That would be pleasant. Maya is our guest; I will show her to her room." Cleo was informed by Cylest.
With a nod, Cleo opened the door and extended her hand to greet us inside. After we entered, I followed Cylest as he led me to my room.
"This room is yours." Saying that, Cylest opened the door.
"This place has everything you need. Your bed and closet are on your left, and the shower and towels are to your right. You can wear some of the clothes in the closet." Cylest explained as I smiled at him.
"I really appreciate it." I said, Thanking him.
"No problem, I'll be waiting for you outside your room." He smiled back at me.
He closed the door behind me as I entered the room. I turned on the shower and let the water warm up, as the water filled the room with steam I got undressed. I washed the blood and dirt of my body that accumulated from the earlier fight.
In an attempt to keep the floor dry after rinsing off all the blood and grime, I reached for a towel to dry off my body before exiting the shower. I placed the towel on the ground and began drying my feet after I had finished drying my body. I dried my feet and went to the closet that Cylest had told me I could look in. I peeked inside the closet after opening it. The clothes are very different from what I usually wear. I picked up an outfit and threw it on. a long, white garment that reveals most of my back and stomach while covering my chest. I was also wearing extremely short shorts and had a rope around my waist with a piece of fabric hanging down in front of me.
My body was visible to everyone. It was a very uncomfortable outfit, but I would have to adjust. I inhaled deeply before moving to open the door, I was met with Cylest's gaze. He was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over his chest.
Knowing that he could see my body made me blush a little. He didn't look down at my body; instead, he just stared at my face. He knew what he should and shouldn't do, and he was courteous. This man is smart as hell, and I like that about him.
"Is everything okay?" When he finished speaking, I glanced up at him.
Shit, is the outfit I'm wearing wrong? I thought to myself.
"Yes, everything is alright. why?" I questioned in a fretful manner.
"I just wanted to be sure. I mean, you're my guest." He paused before speaking again. "Look."
Suddenly, he grabbed my hand and began yanking me toward the living area.
"Are you still interested in speaking with the third soul?" He asked me out of the blue.
"Yes, I do. When can we speak with her?" After a moment, he glanced down at the ground and then back up at me.
"Come." He released my hand and headed back into the forest through the door.
I noticed Cylest has a weird accent and his English is poor. Does he mainly speak another language? I thought to myself as I followed him deeper into the forest. He strolled for a while before stopping and turning around.
"Here is the third soul." Cylest said seriously.
I scanned my surroundings in search of the third soul. I saw a little pond with a waterfall.
"I don't see anything." I said disappointed.
"I'm not sure how to explain this to you." Placing his hand on his chin, he spoke.
"Cylest!" Cleo's scream was heard.
When I swiftly turned to face Cleo, she was sprinting in our direction.
"Cleo, what's wrong?" Cylest asked, startled.
"There are a lot of demons present." She claimed that she began making the exact same hand gestures that Cylest had previously used. Her hands released a polearm. The pink and gold polearm was nearly as tall as she was. She stood firm and prepared to fight. With the same gestures, Cylest raised his sword. I raised my bow above my head and prepared to fire. Numerous demons began to encircle us. Cylest appeared frightened.
"We need to find a way to get out of here." Cylest said, Looking for a way out.
I was tired of running away from these things. Together, we can defeat them if we put in enough effort.
"I'm tired of running Cylest! You need to man up and fight!" I screamed Irritated.
He gave a small laugh. Confused, I turned to face him. Why on earth would he be laughing during this kind of situation?
"That's funny, I can't man up because I'm a girl." She explained.
I looked at her in absolute shock.
Cylest was a girl the entire time? No, how could I have thought a girl was attractive? I really don't have time to ponder all of this at this time. Suddenly, a taller demon appeared in front of the other demons.
"You have two choices: give us the crystals or perish." The demon spoke.
Cylest grinned. "Well, it seems like I'll just have to die."
She had a tail and cat ears and lowered herself to the ground.
The third soul, the panther, was Cylest.
I knew this was going to be a big fight, so I allowed my wolf spirit to take over and give me some more strength.
Either this battle will be my last, or it will be my greatest victory. We are faced with so many demons attacking us at once.
I took an arrow from my bag, held it over my head, pressed it up against my bow's string, and gave it a forceful pull back. With perfect aim, I shot the arrow that passed through the demon's head and doused the others in blood.
The wolf spirit gave me incredible hearing, so I could tell where they were around me. Right behind me, I heard running footsteps. I was aware that the enemy would attack me by the time I turned around and pulled an arrow. So I grabbed hold of my bow, swung it around, and struck them in the neck. The demon fell to the ground after, The impact was so strong that their neck broke.
I turned quickly and grabbed an arrow behind my head as more came sprinting in my direction. After Cylest cleared her space, I turned to look at her. Since I couldn't fight close range, I ran in her direction. When Cylest saw me running towards her, she saw what was wrong and came to address it right away. She shot by me in the direction of the demons. Their knives and claws swung toward her, but before they could strike her, she dropped to the ground sliding past them and used her claws to cut their ankles. In three seconds, five demons were on the ground.
Cleo ran behind her and stabbed her polearm in each demon's head that had fallen to the ground, finishing them off. I couldn't stand here and watch any longer, I pulled the arrow I was holding back on the string and shot the others that were approaching Cylest, giving her less opponents to deal with. I shot everyone I saw and kept pulling my arrows back on the bow string until there were none left.
The final demon fell to the ground and was stabbed by Cleo with her polearm. She raised her head to gaze at Cylest and me. She was panting and her hair was drenched with sweat. I was a little hot, but I didn't feel tired. Cylest didn't appear at all tired when I turned to look at her. I quickly realized it was because we were not human.
When Cleo first began to walk, she was unsteady. Cylest ran to her right away and wrapped her arm around her waist. I was a little enraged at her for doing this. I'm not sure why, but that is how I felt. I shook my head, realizing that wasn't the right way to think given that Cleo was unable to even walk by herself. I sprinted over to Cleo's side and wrapped my arm around her waist as well to support her as she walked. We strolled over to a tree and took her seat. Cylest touched Cleo's chest with her hand.
"Calm breathing; the fight is over now. you can relax." She spoke quietly.
Her English isn't proper, I noticed. I really believed that she may speak another language, I should ask. I turned to leave Cleo and Cylest alone. After a short while I saw Cylest get up and assist Cleo in standing up.
"Cylest, I'm fine; I don't need your help." She said, attempting to reassure Cylest.
"Your walking suggests otherwise." Cylest gave a small laugh.
Cylest turned to face me, and after a few moments of eye contact, she glanced up at my ears and then back down at my eyes.
She said, "Come," and then raised her gaze to the house.
I trailed after them up the hill to the residence. After we had all entered, Cylest turned around, her arms were crossed and her eyes closed, Cleo went into another room. Her panther ears pointed back as she opened her eyes and looked at me. I knew I had some explaining to do.
"Why didn't you just tell me you were the first soul?" She asked, with a stern look.
My ears went back in fear. "I was afraid to reveal who I was because I didn't know you were a soul." I spoke a little shakily. Cylest let out a sigh and uncrossed her arms.
"I see. Why were you trying to locate me?" I knew I would be alright because her tone had now become calm.
"We are not just part animals. I learned we are so much more. We are components of a crystal. The exact crystal that Amelia held." I tried to explain, hoping she would accept it. Her ears perked up and her eyes widened. I could tell she was confused but intrigued.
"What are you talking about?" She wondered.
"Look, we have fragments of crystal in our hearts that were formerly a part of the crystal that Amelia controlled," I sighed. "However, if we possess the crystal fragments, we are the ones protecting the planet, But what became of Amelia?" I questioned.
Cylest gave me a shocked look when I said that, but I could tell she was starting to grasp the situation better.
"All right, I think I get it now, but why are the demons chasing us?" She enquired.
That was a good question that I couldn't even answer.
"Maybe this has something to do with the crystals, but I'm not sure." I said while scratching my head.
After turning around, Cylest went to the table, picked up a cup of tea, and began to sip from it. She gave me another look.
"Why did you come to me?" Confused, she asked.
It makes sense why she was confused. "Maybe if I get all the souls together we can figure out what happened to Amelia since all of us together will complete the crystal." I responded.
She put down the cup and came over to me. Placing her hand on my shoulder, she spoke. "I'll do everything in my power to help."
"We should get some sleep for tomorrow; it's late." After Cylest informed me, I nodded in agreement.
She led the way back to my room, which I entered and closed behind me. There was another door in my room, and I noticed it. Curious, I approached it and touched the door knob, unsure of whether or not to open it. When I opened the door, a balcony was visible. There were glowing plants growing on the railing and vines covering it. I strolled to the railing's end, and the scenery was breathtaking. From here, I could see the bright lights of the city. I raised my gaze to the sky to observe the stars.
We have two souls left, leaving five to go.
-The Next Morning-
I heard a knock on my door the following morning and woke up. I stood up and wiped my aching, fatigued eyes. I got out of bed and made my way over to the door. Cylest was standing in front of the door when I opened it.
"Good morning, how did you sleep?" Cylest asked.
I rubbed my eyes once more before answering. "Good morning, I had a good night's sleep."
She smiled and walked down the hallway into the kitchen. I followed her because I knew it was what she wanted. She asked me to sit down by patting the chair, and I did. Reaching the stove, she grabbed a plate. She carried the plate over to me and took a seat in front of me. There was sausage, fried eggs, and buttery toast.
Cylest said something then bowed her head.
I gave her a perplexed look. She spoke in a language I didn't understand.
"What did you say?" I asked, feeling bad for not understanding.
she repeated the same thing. I didn't understand her when she said it again, I felt embarrassed.
"I'm sorry I don't speak that language." I explained to Cylest.
She said with wide eyes, "Oh, I'm so sorry! I thought you understood. I said "Enjoy your meal."" She smiled nervously.
I gave her a smile in return and began consuming all that she had prepared. Cylest and I made the decision to return to the city after I had finished eating so that I could have a thorough look around. Cylest took me to the barn so I could ride a horse. Cylest promised to meet me in the city, so Cleo got me another horse to ride. I hauled myself onto the horse by grabbing the saddle. The horse had a black nose and was completely white. Taking hold of the reins, I began to guide the horse toward the city.
After a brief journey, I arrived in the city. Cylest was waiting for me at the entrance with my horse, mase, in hand. I got off the horse that Cleo had given me and made my way to Mase. I gave Mase a hug while Cylest sat silently, allowing us to enjoy our alone time.
Cylest guided me into the city after we were done. I clung to the rope that was dragging Mase and Cleo's horse behind me. Cylest gave me a tour of the city and explained the purpose of each establishment. As I turned to look around, I saw that everyone had stopped and was staring at Cylest in shock. Seeing the third soul in the open must be a unique experience. There was a lot of noise up ahead. At one of the shops, we noticed a large group of people.
Cylest gave me a "Let's investigate." look and I gave a head nod. We approached the commotion and were unable to understand what was happening because everyone was yelling at one another.
Cylest took control over the situation right away.
"What's happening here?" Crossing her arms, she spoke.
Turning around, all eyes gazed at her, stunned into silence. "This man kicked a little girl, that's what happened!" exclaimed a young man pointing at a man wearing an apron. He said vehemently.
"Yeah, she was stealing food from my store!" The apron-wearing man responded with a yell.
"Hush your mouth!" Cylest interrupted, cutting the man off. She approached the man wearing the apron after uncrossing her arms. You could see it in his eyes that the man was terrified.
"No matter the circumstance, you have no right to harm a child. You could have easily brought the girl to the guards, but you chose to create trouble for yourself instead." She claimed that then she whistled, two guards bolted for Cylest. "Transport the man to the guard house and imprison him." she said pointing to the man wearing an apron. They approached the man, took hold of his arms, hoisted him up, and made their way to the guard house.
Cylest asked, "What did this little girl look like, and did you see where she went?" to the young man who had just given her an explanation of the situation. The young man tried to remember what he had seen by gazing off into the distance.
"She was extremely thin, with short blonde hair, a green raincoat, and yellow boots. She was bleeding as she fled into the woods outside of the city." Pointing to the small droplets of blood that were exiting the city, the man spoke.
"Thank you, sir. Tell me your name." Cylest enquired.
"Michigan is my name." He stated.
"All right, we'll be heading over to address the situation." Cylest said, lowering her head in respectful bow.
She took the rope of Cleo's horse from my grasp and clung to the saddle, hoisting herself onto the horse's back. Because of how quickly Cylest got herself up, the horse became a little anxious.
"Easy." Calming the horse down, she said.
I got up on my horse and prepared to follow Cylest. Cylest took off after I was given the reins and followed the blood trail out of the city. It began to rain as soon as we left the city.
"We need to follow this blood fast before it washes away," Cylest said as he leaped off the horse. I gave her a nod of the head and followed the blood. We followed the blood deeper into the forest then we couldn't find any more blood.
"The blood is gone, sh*t. Now, what should we do?" Cylest enquired.
"My sense of smell is good. The blood that was previously there is still odorous." I said sniffing around.
"All right, I'm happy to have another soul with me." With joy, she spoke.
I transformed into a full-fledged wolf and began to sniff the ground and move around. I pursued the scent until I detected a strong smell of blood. I noticed the child when I looked up. I transformed back into a human. Cylest and I ran over to the kid. Her leg was bleeding as she sat in a pool of water. Cylest knelt to examine the child for any significant wounds. Her knee was only severely cut.
"Hey, how old are you?" She questioned the young child.
"I- I am five," I say. The young girl stumbled a bit.
"Where's your parents?" Cylest surveyed the area for an adult before asking.
"Mama left me here and promised to come back soon after Papa passed away, but I've been waiting forever." She stated.
Cylest touched her face, and she turned to face me. Cylest eyes were full of pain and disbelief. Her mother had abandoned her here, and I knew that too. Cylest turned to face the girl once more and placed a hand on her head.
"What's your name?" Trying to take her mind off the matter, Cylest asked her.
"Uh, I don't have one." She spoke in a dejected manner.
The rain began pouring down harder and the little girl looked up and held her hand up to the sky and freely said "rain!"
With a smile, the small child closed her eyes, clearly enjoying herself. Right then, she felt safe and liberated. Cylest rose from her knees and took a seat next to the young lady.
"Isn't it beautiful?" Cylest enquired of her.
"Yes! It reflects a rainbow sometimes and is really shiny! She stated.
"Rain. I'm going to call you rain." Glancing back at the girl, Cylest spoke.
With wide eyes and a smile, the girl turned to face Cylest. "I'm Rain. My name is Rain?" She asked in shock.
"Do you like rain?" Cylest asked.
"Yes I love rain!" Cylest gave her a smile.
"Then your name is Rain."
Cylest got to her feet and raised her hands to Rain. Rain extended her arms towards Cylest, who picked her up and held her. While holding rain, Cylest cautiously made her way to her horse, being careful not to slip on the water. Once we made it to our horses Cylest sat rain on the ground and climbed onto her horse. She reached down and grabbed Rain and put her on her lap facing her. I hopped on my horse and waited for Cylest to lead the way. Not wanting to fall off, Rain put her hands around Cylest. Cylest let go of the reins and motioned for her horse to begin trotting. All the way to Cylest's house, we rode.
Rain was fast asleep when we arrived at her place. After waking up Rain, Cylest helped her off her horse. Cylest was holding rain, so I got off my horse and went to open the door for her. Cylest sat Rain on the chair at the table immediately and she checked Rain's leg. Cleo entered to investigate the situation. She gazed at rain then down at her leg.
"Oh dear! I'll return immediately with a medical kit". She bolted out of the kitchen and down the hall. Cylest just sat, calmed by the rain. Returning to the kitchen, Cleo placed the medical kit on the table.
"I can take care of the rest, thanks, Cleo." With a nod, Cleo took a seat at the opposite end of the table.
To find the source of the bleeding, Cylest opened the kit, took out a wipe, and cleaned the area around the wound.
"What is it?" I asked.
"It looks like she just broke through the skin from what I can see." She expressed relief.
She picked up a bottle of alcohol and spilled it onto a tiny piece of cloth. After that, she applied the cloth to the wound.
"Ow!" Tearing up, Rain yelled and pulled her leg away.
"It hurts." She explained to Cylest.
"I understand, but if it doesn't get cleaned up, it will get worse and we'll have to cut off your leg." Scaring the rain into letting her clean it, Cylest said.
Rain immediately gave Cylest her leg. Cylest was obviously trying not to laugh out loud. Cylest cleaned and bandaged the wound after a short while.
Would it be alright if we gave you a bath, Rain? Cylest asked, making sure rain would be okay with it.
After Rain nodded, Cylest took her hand and led her to the restroom. Choosing to go to bed and speak with them all in the morning, I yawned. I made my way to my bedroom and eventually to my bed. Since I was too exhausted to shower, I made the decision to do so first thing in the morning. I settled into the bed, found comfort, and fell asleep. In an instant, I was fast asleep.
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Voice actors-
Maya-katana
Cylest-Kaitlyn/kori
Cleo-Duches
Rain-Ameera
Michigan-Echragan
Baker-Buck
Characters
Maya
Cylest
Cleo-
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