Neska snaked through the woods until exhaustion hit her, and she felt her lungs protesting against any more movement. It was well into the evening, though she could still see somewhat. She’d never had problems finding her way in the dark, and could see objects with bright and dark contrast.
She settled into an exposed root ball of a fallen tree and tucked herself in, unable to travel further. Everything she’d seen, everything that happened, hit her all at once, now that she could no longer will her body to move.
Risha is gone. I couldn’t do anything to help her.
She felt the despair inching in. No. I did everything I could within my power. I was never going to win that fight.
Once more, her normally comforting logic felt like cutting blades. There was nothing she could have done to change that outcome. None of her Paths would have helped her. Helping defend Risha as long as she had in an unwinnable fight was already more than she could have hoped for. She'd managed to kill one of her murderers on her escape. Even if she picked a Path with the ability to heal others? In a burning building, with Marikand right there?
This is a battle you cannot win today. Those words haunted her. Would another path have saved her?
From a standpoint of feasibility? Your survival was already unlikely. Yet you persevered.
Neska’s entire body froze. The voice from the void was back, and seemingly in reaction to her thoughts. Can you hear me?
The Interface acts as a tool of guidance, responding to the user, humans, and monsters alike.
Or people like me, who are both. The voice was still the same as before–lacking inflection, flat, slightly feminine, but not threatening in any way. She eased into the idea that she could reach out to it again. She looked down at her body, noting how her scales itched. Almost as if it were time for a molt. You're not in control of me, right?
No. The Interface is not intended as a shackle or means to direct, only a tool.
That helped alleviate her fears somewhat. Right now, she saw no harm in continuing to converse with it. Can you help me remember what I lost?
No. I do not know the details of your circumstances or how to restore memories. I can confirm your soul is human, however.
She sank into the coil of her body, flicking her tongue out to taste the air. All she could sense was the lingering scent of blood and smoke, tainting all else. So Risha was telling the truth. I already knew, but...maybe I was hoping for something simpler. Easier to swallow. That tracks with the flashes of images I saw. Risha was there in at least one of them.
But who was I, then?
Unknown. But the answer is likely relevant to the current circumstances.
Then, there’s a hole where my past used to be. She flicked her tail out, wagging it through the air gently, as if it were its own limb. Risha used to do something similar, waving her hand gently to some silent beat. Sometimes she hummed as she worked in her shop or her laboratory.
Neska always felt a soothing sensation when she heard it. But…now that song only existed in her mind.
Risha knew what she was doing. She was prepared to die to ensure my escape.
Worst of all…she couldn’t even weep. There was just a clenching sensation in her throat and an echoing void in her mind, of a future denied to both of them. I was someone before, and now, I’m less than nothing. I thought we’d be together. Even if we were on the run or going to the Academy, she’d be there. I never planned on her…not being there.
She let out an internal sob. What do I do without her? Why does this hurt…so much? It hurts like when a hawk grabbed me once…but inside. A stabbing pain that doesn’t go away. Why does thinking about her hurt so much?
She curled her body tightly into a ball, as if such a thing could make the phantom ache go away. It reminded her of the time when Risha would cry, as if hurt…but yet, there wasn’t a scratch on her.
What is this feeling inside?
Loss. Mourning.
She at least had a word for it, now, to match the sensation. I’m alone now. Risha is…she was good to me. She put me ahead of her own life. Why?
The interface remained silent. Perhaps it, too, had a gaping void in the place of an answer.
WHY?!
A nightbird let out a wailing call nearby, temporarily drawing her focus. Neska was unable to determine its origin. The gloom of the nighttime woods hopefully meant that, with her tucked back into this little hollow, she would be difficult to spot. She rested her head on her body.
Not just why. How, and maybe, whom. Were they there for Risha? Or was I the target all along? Why would they come after one snake…me?
These seem to be important questions. Why and how, indeed? Maybe there's a clue you missed somewhere, or the answers lay elsewhere.
The interface seemed to respond to her queries with insight, but no answers. She would have to find them out there, in the world. Do you know of the Academy of the Awakened? I have to get there. Do you know the way?
I don’t have the answers to those; however, given its status as a training center of renown, it should be easy to locate.
She was disappointed, but the answer wasn’t unexpected. Risha traded her life for mine. I need to know why.
A thought forged from tragedy began to crystallize. A desire unlike anything she'd experienced, tempered by everything she learned, everything her witch had helped her become. I need to grow strong to find the answers to who I am. To stop the monsters.
To bring justice to Risha's killers.
But how, exactly?
Defeat foes, consume prey, utilize your abilities.
Like the mimicoid…thing I…defeated. The creature that wore a human body until death. She had felled one foe already. And there would be more.
Monsters like them, yes. Or your yearning to grow into something more. Exert your power on the world through strength, discovery and innovation. Form bonds with allies. Discover who and what you are–or define yourself anew.
She nodded internally at that. Risha's words still resonated with her. There was more than one path to power. Knowledge and determination were strengths of their own. Then I can’t stay here. I have to find the academy. I need to find answers. She knew the road that ran in the opposite direction from town lay nearby. She also knew a few people Risha spoke with regularly, as well as a few who had visited her home.
But she was a snake. The Seekers would likely search the town, assuming that any of them survived that blaze. She had no means to speak to the villagers, even if they wanted to talk to her, except for her painfully slow writing with her tail. She tried a few words, but all that came out was a hiss and something like a growl. She started forming a plan.
Seekers need to be avoided at all costs. They already tried to kill me once for no reason at all.
Warning the academy that some of the Seekers were monsters was a priority. How many men had the monsters replaced? How well could they blend in? There had been a clear distinction between Twitch and Marikand, the latter who had passed flawlessly as a human except for the scent. Risha hadn't picked up on it, which meant it must be a very subtle clue that she recognized later with Neska's help. Marikand had even used class powers, most likely, which made him extremely dangerous.
Even if I get to the academy…and find this Professor Serkin and Melissa, too…how do I know I can trust them?
She thought about it for a good moment and then let out an internal sigh. I have to trust Risha. She gave it all to me. Her snake. She wouldn’t have done it unless it meant something important.
No. The thought wasn’t quite right. Unless she believed…I was someone important.
Exhausted, she tightened the curls of her serpentine form. She hadn’t even taken a good look at herself yet. She knew her body had changed. She didn’t know how. I…need time to plan.
The only power I can believe in is the one I build for myself...and the power I give to others...
They would be Risha's finest words, and the words Neska would live by, now. She felt her conscious thoughts slipping away as her mind finally settled to rest.
“Oh, where did you two go? You’ve got chores to do, you little rascals!”
A young girl suppressed a giggle from the cover of the tree branches she was hiding in, and made a motion to her friend holding onto the tree branches. A woman fretted about down below, calling out to them.
"Shh. Think we gave her the slip." Her tawny-haired friend put a finger to her lips, wearing an impish smirk as they peered down at a newcomer coming out of the wooden log cabin down below. The dark-haired woman wearing a simple pleated shirt and pants peered around, hands on her hips, and looked around the clearing, stamping her feet in agitation.
“She can’t see us,” the young girl whispered with a sly smile. “Your mom will give up if she can’t find us, and think we’re too far away to hear her.”
“Hey, pipe down, you’ll get us caught!” the other girl whispered, pointing down. The girl’s presumptive mother called out again and stamped her boot into the ground in frustration.
“Vivienne, you and your friend are as sneaky as snakes, both of you! You’re gonna get an earful for not doing your chores before play time!” the woman called out, letting out a rumbling grumble. She thrust her hands up into the air in resignation, then marched toward the open door. “Really, Howland, that girl takes after you! A head filled with empty thoughts and nothing but mischief.”
“Oh, don’t be like that, Vicona!” someone called out in protest from the doorway, out of sight. The woman sighed and headed back in, grumbling about kids.
The girl let out a soft chuckle and reached into her pocket for the apple she’d brought up to her perch. “Vivienne, hey, wanna share?”
“You know she’s gonna bust us so hard when we go back inside, right?” Vivienne sighed, but also didn’t hesitate to take a bite out of the bright, juicy red apple. A dribble of juice ran down her chin in the process. “Oh, this is so good. Thanks.”
“Mother put the orchard to good use. She’s always at work on the alchemy bench, mixing, chanting, putting goop in the ground. Guess it must be good for the plants, because it’s the best.” The girl took the apple back in her hands and expertly rolled it from one arm, along her shoulders, to the other, all while balancing on the large tree limb.
“Showoff. Flexible as a snake, my mom’s right,” Vivienne laughed. The girl wiggled her nose as she took a bite, enjoying the crunch and slightly tart flavor of the apple. “Not worried about monsters?”
“This close to home? Nah. Mother does something to ward them away. Either noxious smells or something they don’t like. Only the little ones that can’t really hurt you come close. A few are friendly. When they’re little.”
Vivienne nodded and glanced down at the shadows of the late afternoon sun, still peeking through the canopy of the forest. “I wish I had your bravery. You pick apart things and learn stuff fast.”
“The only thing you fear is the thing you don’t understand. So you study it, pick apart its components, what it’s made of, and why it behaves the way it does. Then, there’s nothing to be afraid of.” She offered the apple back to Vivi, who chomped down on the apple, now little more than a few more bites plus the core.
“You make it sound easy. You sound like your mom, you know?” Vivi said, pointing at her. “When are you joining her in the slaughter of animals in primitive rituals, eh?”
“It’s not like that. Witches study. They study to understand the world, see and connect with what other people can't or won't see. Mom says that they get something called an Interface. A deeper understanding of the fundamental construction and properties of the world, and how we interact with it,” She explained. “We’ll get ours one day, when we’re old enough.”
Vivi chuckled softly. “I wanna be a great warrior, hacking and slashing giant wolves and dragons! Rawr! Taste my steel blade!”
She covered her mouth, having spoken too loudly. Then, she tilted her head. "Hey...why's it so quiet?"
The girl noted the forest had gone quiet. Unnaturally quiet. Not even the birds were chirping now. They were either silent or fleeing with screeches and distant feathers flapping.
The girl peered down, and her eyes focused on something that didn't look right. She put a finger to her lips and motioned for Vivi to look toward the clearing edge. A pair of bright green eyes gleamed in the underbrush, and a low growl echoed across the air.
Shadows wrapped around the pair of eyes, an inky blackness that formed an ominous mist. The vapors shifted around and followed whatever was lurking in the undergrowth. The girl couldn’t see what it was, and she felt her heart beat rapidly in her chest. “Vivi. Stay put. Don’t make a sound.”
The shadowy cloud shifted position, slowly prowling toward the house. Vivi peered at the house–and the open door. She pointed at it agitatedly, her hand trembling.
The girl continued to observe the mist-born creature. It actively avoided the garden out back. In fact, when it approached the various herbs planted on one side, the cloud mass recoiled backward.
But why? She thought of her mother’s alchemy and discoveries. She made protective wards for the outlying folk, made of dried herbs or magical substances sprayed or affixed to their houses. Monsters were afraid of or allergic to certain substances and avoided them.
Newt leaves. Thyme. Rosemary. Witch root. It’s a creature of shadow. Which one is it afraid of? She knew all of the garden plants had special alchemical uses. Some were powerful enough to harm or kill monsters.
Then she saw the glowing pale bulb of the luminary radishes, a slight pink color emanating from the soil. That’s it.
The girl made a split-second decision. She grabbed the apple core from Vivi and motioned her intent to throw it. Then, they’d run inside and lock the door, with a series of swift hand signals.
Vivi trembled with fright, her normally tanned skin looking pale, but she nodded before whispering back. "Okay. Trusting you."
The shadowy cloud prowled toward the door, and the girl could see the vegetation slowly withering in its wake. Whatever went into that mist quickly dessicated. They couldn’t let it catch them. Even her own tensed limbs were trembling, but she understood this thing just enough to know they needed a distraction and to barricade themselves inside. She counted three fingers off, then two…
Then one.
She chucked the apple core deep into the woods, where it burst upon a large elm tree. The shadowy creature snarled, the boiling mist darting toward the sound.
The girl wasted no time. She slid down the tree, with Vivi right behind her, who diverged to sprint toward the open door, screaming about shadowcats.
But the girl knew a creature like this wouldn’t be stopped by walls. She darted over to the garden and heard a screech as the vivid green eyes emerged from the bushes, the shadowy mist trailing behind them. She caught her first glimpse of the predator, even as she dove for the glowing bulbs just below the soft earth. It was a dark, sleek feline monstrosity with too many teeth and too many claws, bounding her way at a breakneck speed.
She grabbed a handful of specialized plants and held them tightly in her hand. Vivienne screamed behind her as she sidearmed the bulbs at just the right moment. The alchemical roots flew into the gaping maw of the creature as it pounced through the air, eyes wide as it received the unwelcome treat.
The girl was hoping this theory would prove out right, or she would only be the first to die.
Don’t be afraid of the things you understand.
“Neskaaaa!”