Chapter Text
Shadow padded down the grass beneath her. It wasn’t the most pristine place to rest, but it was better than nothing. With spells marked in the stones around our camp, I had masked our magical signatures, albeit I was the brightest star in that sense. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that whoever had stolen Caeli and murdered my own in cold blood would be patrolling around... Waiting for us.
Shzeltis decided it would be best to keep his distance, pacing as close to the magical border as he could, attempting to find a spot to rest. Shawn took to his side, his mutters peaking my ears while he reasoned with the dirtied tom in an effort to have him join the party. I cleared my throat to gather attention.
“It’s simple. Don’t wander past these runes and our chances of being noticed are nearly impossible,” I bragged humbly, knocking on the magical dome encircling the clearing, ”You can leave but… don’t.”
A curt nod was the only affirmation Shzeltis gave, without slightly turning his head as his gaze was distant. A pit formed in my belly, low and heavy. He’d been awfully despondent since we’d arrived, barely looking at me. I wondered if he regretted his decision to join us.
Leaves crackled beside me, signaling the approach of Shadow. She bumped her nose against mine, tearing me out of my doubts with her goofy grin.
“Where are we anyway?” She curiously stared out onto the horizon, where dim orange light shone past the treeline. Despite the silence of the woods, a hazy melody drifted on the wind. Cool, though it carried a light dissonance, setting the scene for an unsettling evening.
This place. I’ve been here before but it was… many, many years ago. Back then it was lush, with foot traffic from here to the north, sunup to sun down. Now, though, it was a barren wasteland - ruins of a once great city state. Why would they hide out here, with nothing left?
“Cerith, a city of Dethidec, a dimension which I condemned centuries ago. I’ll tell you more about it when I destroy it once and for all. Watch where you step, there could be traps.”
“Why didn’t we set up traps?” She pawed at a decayed wooden fence post.
I opened my mouth, a frown set on my features. Truth be told, with my power, I hadn’t thought of th–
An indignant shriek sliced through my senses. Shzeltis shook after his outburst, clawing at the ground beneath him, “Ugh! No! Quiet, please, I can’t think, can I just–” he paused, eyes searching for focus yet finding nothing “--What? No, I’m- no! I’m not thinking about A–!”
Embarrassed panic shot through his pupils as they found my own. There was no solid connection between the two of us, it felt like he was blinded, looking straight through me. It was only for a second or two before heat rose to his cheeks and he snapped back to the scotsman.
“S-sorry! Sorry! I just, just– sorry. I didn’t know how else to get him to quiet down…”
The silence that followed bristled his fur. I knew the stares boring into him weren’t too comfortable, evidenced by his ears pinned to his skull.
“Um I should just–”
“‘S it talkin’ to ya, lad?” Shawn asked softly, “What’s it sayin’ to ya?”
The scientist bit the inside of his cheek, “...Nothing new.” I didn’t overlook the flick of his gaze at me.
“Ya can’t lie to the bartender, lad, but,” he held out a paw expectantly, “lemmie take th’ key. Might be a bit’a ‘elp to quiet the voices.”
The brown tom scrunched his muzzle reflexively, covering the key, “I-I don’t, I don’t kn-”
“Shzeltis Castello,” I finally blurted out sternly.
He flinched, the purple ring around his pupils fading instantly when he turned. This time he didn’t look past me, he looked at me, without the distant sadness and disconnection he usually held in his gaze. Seemingly grounded by my words, color returned to his face, waiting for my next few words.
Pity rushed through me, but my orders were firm, “It’s for the best. Give him the key, for now at least.”
My mate beside me nodded, a reassuring smile spreading across her face. She propelled her fluffy paws forward to stand before him. Even as she stood tall, Shadow only reached up to Shzeltis’s shoulders.
She reached up to put a paw on Shzeltis’s raised one, never minding his physical recoil at her touch. The purple she-cat delicately, slowly, lowered his arm, revealing the dimly illuminated trinket.
Not a word was spoken. For the scientist, a spark of uncertainty flashed free from his frame, focus unwavering from Shadow’s wide, glimmering eyes. As for Shadow, she cocked her head, the beginnings of a nearly unsure giggle trembling shoulders while she weighed her options for persuasion.
“Come join us. Please? Shawn wouldn’t offer to take this on unless he really cared about you. We all do.” Not to mention I’m pretty sure you’re the only one affected by that thing anyway, her thoughts added.
A single apprehensive glance to Shawn gave him enough comfort. The botanist released a breath, “Okay… Yeah, you’re right.”
Shadow huffed out a sprightly laugh, “I was worried you would say no, because I already set up a comfy place for you! It’s in the best spot, so you’re the real winner here.”
She turned to Shawn behind her, “He said yes.”
The bartender nodded, an amused smile present, “Aye.”
“He said yes!” Shadow shouted towards me from across the way.
I raised my head, “Thank you, Shade.”
Shzeltis traded his lab key to Shawn, who in turn tied it around his tail. I thought Shadow would explode where she stood, I didn’t think her smile could get wider.
“HaHA! Follow me, follow me! Look you can see it from here,” she leapt from her position to lead Shzeltis away from the edge of the barrier..
Prior to the key’s removal, I hadn’t noticed the ringing in my ears. Silence punched me like a dying star’s blast. Any noise I was receiving before was coming from Shzeltis’s subconscious; the monster inside of him screaming to be released dulled only to a high pitched whir due to the key’s interference with my magic.
With the control the scientist was finally able to obtain, near silence swept through my senses. Crickets… they weren’t there before. They couldn’t have been. Was I really trying to tune into Shzeltis’s mental state that much?
The botanist settled on a patch of soft grass that Shadow managed to mold into something resembling a bed. I waved food into the center, creamy steaming soup and slabs of fresh cooked meat. The party was composed in a circle, all of us attempting a comfortable position. Despite how our arrangement looked, there was a tension that brewed hot in the humid air.
“‘Ow we feelin’ ‘bout t’morra’?” Shawn inquired through the lamb chop in his jaws before swallowing, “Tha’ monster gonna be a hindrance or a help?”
Shzeltis hummed, poking at the bowl before him, “I’m sure I could convince it to join our team if that means he can get his own body. He’ll be a better fighter than I will.”
I scrunched up my nose, “Not sure how I feel about that.” I have a certain distaste for anyone who touches my bowties. And that monster crossed that line a hundred times over. But the brown tom had a point.
“I’m trusting you here. You’ll be able to take control without the key on?”
My companion nodded, finally leaning down to sniff at his broth, “If history is to be repeated, he’ll either retreat or I’ll have a better chance at regaining my autonomy.”
“Well, if we’re gonna work togetha’ with that thing I reckon we oughta give it a name,” Shawn piped up.
Shadow nodded, “Good point! Even though it tried to kill all of us-”
“-multiple times,” I muttered.
Shadow placed a paw atop my own, “Multiple times. I feel bad just calling it– him?- a monster. He’s part of our team now! He needs a proper name. Let’s name it…”
“Sitlezhs,” I cut in shortly.
Shawn’s brows shot up, “In English, mate? Heh, back near ‘ome I knew a nyaff, gommy bampot gone by Eberhard.”
“In English, mate,” I sneered.
“No, no, boys. I think we should go with something cute like Moth.”
“Cute?” I spat.
“Take the edge off,” Shadow stated simply, shrugging.
“For the record, he’s saying he doesn’t want a new name. He’s begging, in fact.” I noticed Shzeltis’s paws began growing darker and losing shape. He must’ve felt it because he took to staring at the blades of grass, focused on his own heartbeat.
“Did you say ‘new’ name?” Shadow’s eyes widened in disbelief.
I swatted the air with a paw, “We’ve been calling it a monster for this long. And it’s well deserved if you ask me.”
Beside me Shadow puffed out her chest, muzzle set deep in a frown, “Seren, I don’t feel good about calling him a monster. It feels mean… But I guess if he’s okay with it then–”
“I never said anything about him being okay with it, ” Shzeltis finished with a spit. He shook his head, as if to clear it. He hacked up a dry cough, with a wheezy intake of air to follow. A long claw dug through my heart, he looked so miserable.
“Sorry… Again. Aggression is a common trait of his.”
Shawn and I swapped similar looks, “Nary a need to apologize, lad.”
Thunder rumbled across the sky, a mixture of purples and oranges flashing through the clouds above. With no time at all, a torrent of heavy rainfall swept over the clearing. Underneath our magical dome, none of it came close to dampening the ground underfoot. The shining titian drops were outstanding compared to the bleak swatch of decay all around us.
Another flash of tangerine lightning distracted my crew. I cleared my throat, harmonizing with a secondary roll of thunder.
“Alright enough goofing off,” my eyes darkened, “let’s talk strategy.”