The howling pit, a natural cave expanded by the thorns of judgement. Most of it is simply flooded with perpetually murky water, insect like lost and the faint light from a fracture that opens to the sky.
Luca pulls a rusty lever and lights a fire near a mistle, Louis and (Y/N) stare at the misty, swamp like terrain the group has to cross and Yakumo...
Yakumo snacks on his homemade j̴̡̯̙̀e̸͎̰̐ľ̷͚͔̲́ḽ̷̪̇̕y̴͕͚͊̾̊ͅ-̸̨͚̒̈̚͜f̵̬͖̼̿̌i̵͔͕̅͜l̴͓̗͙̆̂͋l̶̡͔̝̾̃͊é̶̘̘͙̀d̴̳͇͂̎͘ ̷̤͖̀͒d̴̟͉͌o̶̤̩̱͆́u̵̖̩̼̍̕g̵̙̺͗̈̌h̴̢̹͉͘t̸̼̩͂͛n̵̠̅ǔ̶̘t̵̘͐s̷̟͘͝— onigiri.
(Y/N): So the spring is on the other side of this dark, misty and possibly lost filled underground marsh?
Louis: Yes. There is some high ground between here and there, though not a lot of it is convenient for our path.
Yakumo: The lift is right back there if you want to back out.
(Y/N) stares back at Yakumo, who was up until now sharing amazing onigiri facts with Luca.
(Y/N): This little trip will be much easier than watching you and Luca jump down that hole and plummet to your deaths for fifteen minutes straight.
Yakumo: We are grown adults, don't try to shame us on our lack of parkour prowess.
Luca: T-those platforms were really small too, there's no shame in falling from that.
Louis: We should get going before we overextend this expedition too.
With nods of approval from the rest of the group, they set off into the wet environment to reach their weird white tree.
Yakumo: We could have a nice, scary atmosphere if you listened to my story. But nooo, wait for halloween.
Luca: Are you still on about that?
Yakumo: Of course I am! Even Louis abandoned me, the betrayal!
Louis: I just though it would have better impact during the right season. If you tell scary stories during the holiday you sound joyous instead of... childish.
Louis' words hit Yakumo like an arrow to the heart, the gentle giant audibly gasps and looks at his friend as if Louis had called his cooking mediocre. The eyes of an utterly disappointed and defeated man.
Yakumo: You called me childish... that hurts in so many levels I never expected it to.
(Y/N): I disagree, worrying about some folklore while wading in knee deep sewage is the most adult thing I've heard out of Yakumo.
Yakumo: Really? What's next, you don't like my cakes and won't drink with me?
(Y/N): On a different note, I don't hear any howls. That means no lost right?
Luca: Wasn't it the lost howl when they fight? Maybe they are just relaxing.
(Y/N): Yes, because this is optimal lounging situation. Cold water and cracked concrete seats make for the best— Whoa!
(Y/N) stumbles forward, almost falling on Yakumo's back but catching himself before hitting the ground.
Louis: You okay?
(Y/N): Yeah... I just tripped on something. Good thing I didn't fall face first, I don't have spare clothes.
As soon as (Y/N) ended his sentence he was yanked to the side by his foot, taking a mouthfull of water on his way up. He was being held up by his foot and spat the water on his mouth, opening his eyes to find an insectoid large lost.
The lost's mouth sparks with lightning, and a very quiet sound is heard from it.
(Y/N): Wow, they really do howl...
(Y/N) slashes at the arm holding him up, and at the same time the lost is hit in the chest by a bayonet shot and drops the man. (Y/N) falls on his back, being once again submerged in the water.
Sitting up and rubbing the nasty water off of his face and eyes, he can only glimpse the end of the fight as Yakumo slashes the thin beast in half.
Luca: (Y/N)...
(Y/N): Yeah, I'm fine. Wet and definitely need to take some extra vaccines, but fine.
Louis: Well, we're over half way there so going back is a waste of time. Can you handle being wet?
(Y/N): Of course I can. This is fine.
(Spongebob narrator) 5 minutes later
The crew finally arrives at the plateau that houses the spring, somehow even wetter than before. It turns out fighting in knee or waist deep water against big monsters and rolling all over the place gets people wet, very much so.
Lighting another fire by pulling another lever, they revitalize the spring to track the flow.
The golden trail leads... straight back in the direction of the city?
Yakumo: Wait... what's going on here?
Louis: We have to go back to the old city ruins. There must be something we missed there.
(Y/N): Didn't the same happen at the trenches with you guys?
(Y/N) asks as he collects most of the beads from the spring.
Luca: It did. So there has to be another spring in the old city.
(Y/N): I got the beads. So... what's next?
Louis: We go back and search.
Louis has a bit disheartened tone, and Yakumo leads the group back to the lift with (Y/N) taking his place right behind him.
Louis: Anyway, let's get going...
A blur moves past Louis, the clicking of heels fast as lightning suddenly comes to a halt and the figure jumps up in the direction of the leading people.
Louis reaches out to the front and calls out for the only person in range to do something.
Louis: Yakumo!
Yakumo turns around and spots the incoming person/projectile, it was headed straight to (Y/N). And he sat there for a millisecond and thought
Yakumo: Nobody would know, nobody... The last I saw him that things was sitting on him. Yeah, he'll be missed, that quick little bastard. I miss him already.
But no, Age of Ultron memes didn't sit right with him, especially when someone's life was at stake. So he intercepted the person, because that's what heroes do. (I'm sorry)
*Clang*
It was a girl. Blonde, slim and wearing a big, fluffy hat. She didn't waste time in disconnecting her bayonet from Yakumo's greatsword and passing by his large frame in a low sweeping motion, turning around and dashing at Louis this time.
She is once again interrupted before hitting her target, this time by Luca parrying her strike. The girl jumps away and spins in the air, skidding on the rocky ground for a second before taking up a stance and pointing her slim bayonet at the group.
Yakumo and Louis form a line in front of their partners, all to face down this one small girl.
Yakumo: Searching for blood beads on your own? That's awfully bold.
Girl: Listen. No one here wants this to turn violent, so just hand over your blood beads.
The girl had a soft tone, despite the situation she was in. She talked as if she was equal in power as the group in front of her, no fear in her voice.
Louis: What if we don't want to?
Louis used a more intense voice when asking. Luca joins the line as a show of force, as all three of them take up a cautious stance while (Y/N) waits behind them with the bag of beads.
The girl drops her firing stance in response, her black veil assuming the form of a long stinger originating from her back.
Girl: Then I'll take them.
She wastes no time, and as soon as the stinger is ready she launches it at the biggest target, Yakumo, who narrowly evades it and dashes forward to get in striking distance.
Yakumo: You're too slow.
He brandishes his sword, ready to cleave the little person in two as he had done countless other attackers. Or at leas he was until a small rock hit the flat of his blade, distracting him.
Looking to the side, in the direction the pebble came, there was an even smaller boy wearing a slightly less fluffy hat. Minor detail, the boy could barely stand and was panting in exhaustion, not as important as the hat.
Yakumo lets his guard down at the sight.
Yakumo: A kid?
The child looks up at him and a detail becomes painfully apparent. The veins near his left eye were turning black, which could only mean one thing...
Kid: Get away from Mia!
Mia: Nicola!
The girl, or rather Mia, rushes to the child dropping her weapon on her way. She catches him as he falls backwards.
Mia: What are you doing out here?
Nicola: Because you...
The child begins coughing throatily, and just as (Y/N) comes up to the group Louis walks up to the pair on the ground.
Louis: He's on the verge of a frenzy...
Luca was staring at (Y/N) while this was taking place, observing his reactions to the situation.
Louis: That's why you want the blood beads, isn't it?
Mia looks up to Louis, her eyes narrowing the slightest.
Mia: If you lay a finger on him...
Her veil morphs into the stinger once again, pointing at Louis.
Mia: I'll carve out your heart.
(Y/N): Well...
(Y/N) spoke with a quiet voice.
(Y/N): She clearly doesn't want the help. I'll be waiting in the back while you guys deal with this.
He moves away, but bumps into Yakumo on his way out.
(Y/N): Oops, my bad buddy.
(Y/N) pats Yakumo's veil before walking away fro real this time. With a groan, yakumo reaches into his pocket and pulls out a blood bead.
Yakumo: Here, take this.
He tosses the bead to Mia, as a result she stares at the tear shaped vessel of blood in her hands wide eyed and with her mouth agape as her stinger retracts.
Yakumo: That's for him. Give it to him quick.
As the scene unfolds Luca excuses herself and joins (Y/N), who was sitting by the spring.
Luca: Wow, you actually did it.
(Y/N): Whatever could you mean...
Luca: Ignoring people who need help. I doubted you when they were clearly siblings.
(Y/N): They have their problems, we have ours. Sometimes it's better that way.
Luca was about to offer a rebuttal, but the clinking of a blood bead cuts her off.
(Y/N): They're done, but I guess when you three go after them or something I'll have to tag along.
Louis: The symptoms aren't fading. Why?
Those words bring the two people away from them to attention. That is concerning.
Mia: It's not enough. That's all...
Mia and Nicola struggle up, the older one helping the stumbling child walk steadily.
Mia: I-I just need to find more for him!
Yakumo: Hey, come on. Going out on your own is crazy.
Mia: Thanks for your concern, but we'll be alright. Come on, let's go.
She extends her hand to her brother, and his mitten clad hand clasped it tightly.
And the group stood there, just watching the pair slowly walk away in a very uncomfortable 9 seconds cutscene.
Yakumo: You really are committed to your whole "not our problem" thing, aren't you (Y/N)?
(Y/N): Yes I am. But I expected you three to drag me after them, I'm surprised.
Louis: Yakumo told me you slipped him that bead.
(Y/N): You fucking snitch!
Yakumo: Let's get going after them.
(Y/N) had a blank look on his face while Luca looked him dead in the eye.
Luca: You did?
(Y/N): Let's just go after them.
Author's Notes
In case you missed it, I'm planning a corny Halloween special. This chapter had more meta jokes than usual, hope it's still good.
I hope you guys had a great thanksgiving (or whatever else happened to you), remember to eat all the leftover turkey before next Wednesday.
While I have you here...
[Shameless self-promoting, skip if you want]
I have a second story in my profile. It's an original and quite different from this one, the chapters are also longer and take more time to write so it takes me even longer to update.
There's 3 chapters for now, and I haven't gotten any feedback on it yet so if you have the time please give it a try.
The name is Tools of war for those who don't want to go through my profile.
[Shameless self-promoting done]
Now I feel dirty, but that's the early life of writers I guess.
Anyhow, that's it for this chapter so...
Peace