//------------------------------// // CHAPTER 19 // Story: EntiQuest [OLD] // by Sputniik //------------------------------// Oh please, Princess. Don’t tell me Guilt has taken possession of your mind, has it? Your anger is dull, but I can still sense it... What will it take for me to make you furious again? “...” So the Princess has finally hushed, hasn’t she? I’d have asked you what was on your mind, but I’m sure I already know. I hope you know that I am already aware, Precious Stone. You shouldn't hide your secrets from me any longer... “I can’t shake the feeling I’ve...” Twilight stopped, making a face at no one in particular, as she realized that she had been murmuring to Parasite. And being completely honest to herself, she couldn’t possibly think of anyone worse to conversate with. Not in a thousand moons. “Nevermind. It’s none of your business.” Oh, I’m too sure it is. And I’m quite sure it’s about that little ghost that’s been haunting you, hasn’t it? Twilight hadn’t responded, and instead, bit her lip. Parasite had already invaded on her mind, taken control of her body, and her perception of the world. And now, it was feeding on her emotions, and however possible, had grown knowledge about her. Every day, the parasite knew more. That alone, was terrifying. But now it knew about Danny. The first thought that came to mind hadn’t been-- surprisingly enough-- not a proposition to use Parasite to her advantage and solve the impossible riddle that was Danny, himself. But rather, how terrifying anything could be who knew anything about him. And if Parasite could figure out a person from a distance, then what would be instore for Twilight? But then that second idea came, and suddenly, a fog cleared. If Parasite could disconnect from her consciousness-- just for a few days, then maybe... “Perhaps you are correct,” Twilight began, slowly. She felt the Parasite buzz with suspicion. “Maybe if I do shed some light, would that keep you at peace? For just a moment?” I’m not so sure, Princess. A moment seems like a lot of time. Especially with the quick ticking of your clock, you obviously don’t have too much time left. It seemed as if Parasite was playing its games, too. But now the field was even. Parasite may have had advantages, but now Twilight had her share. Later that evening, Dipper had gone out again, while Ivor instructed Danny to keep an eye on him. Of course, after the two boys had closed the door behind them, they’d gone their separate ways. And Twilight only thought ratting on them was a rotten deed to do, especially since she’d already started off on the wrong hoof with just about everyone, already. So when Twilight had hesitantly asked to follow the two, to supervise them ‘just in case’, Ivor had been quick to comply. Wherever Danny was headed was nothing of her business, but Dipper would've needed an extra pair of eyes. So Twilight hurried off after his faint figure in the distance, hoping to catch up before he was completely swallowed by the limbs and brush of the forest. “Dipper.... wait...--” The youngest of the trio spun around, knitting his brows as his eye caught Twilight, hurrying up to his side. “Where... on earth are... you--” “Just... looking around a bit. No need to watch over me; I’m not a kid.” Dipper sighed, tensing at the sudden breeze that swept the woods. “It’s not too far, either. Just a way past Ivor’s territory. That’s all.” “I’d prefer you not going as far as even beyond the river,” Twilight shook her head in disapproval. “It’s getting late-- you know what Ivor said about--” “Why the heck do you care so much about what he says, if you don’t care about the person who said them?” The statement had caught Twilight off guard, and for a second, she’d stopped in her tracks, while Dipper continued trotting further down the pathway. She furrowed her brows in some sort of sense of unamusement. It was a strange feeling, suddenly, and Twilight couldn't help but wander her own mind over what the youngest of the trio had said. Was it just the Parasite again? Playing these rotten tricks on her? Only after her train of thought had passed, Twilight had noticed Dipper missing. And walking up to the top of the road slope didn’t do much more but send her blood running cold. Dipper was completely out of sight, and again, it was all her fault. Dipper had glanced back several times and almost laughed, if that wouldn’t have gotten him caught. He was out of the mare’s sight, and she hadn't even seemed to notice. Of course, she couldn’t teleport, or use any of those spells she’d always been obsessed with. Something about an accident over at the Forsaken had drained her out of it, and now Dipper was absolutely alone. Or at least, for now. There was a haunting place, just up ahead. And if Ivor’s novels were as truthful as they sounded, then he was sure he was headed in the right direction. Only a way in, had he noticed the trees closing in on him, and the tops of the trees had curled over in sickly, dried arches of silver and bronze wood, cobwebs seeming to bring both sides together. These trees were mostly bare, except for the few leaves hanging loose that hadn’t just yet become a part of the earth. But growing hedges and brush seemed to be climbing up the dead trees the more he ventured through, and his attention had drifted off his suddenly narrow and claustrophobic path, to the climbing vines that wrapped around twigs, as if they were suffocating them. Further down, the trees had appeared to shrink, crushed under the strength of the wound vines. Choked, back splintering multiple directions and needles of thorns protruding through the green plant, making thin gaps that stretched along the sides, sputtering rotted wood. Only when he’d jumped at the sharp pain that attacked his shoulder through the thin fleece of his coat, Dipper had noticed how much this part of the woods looked like a dull hallway. And the walls were closing in on him. “It’s okay,” he assured himself, pulling up the sleeve and inspecting the damage. “Just a scratch,” There was only a thin trickle of blood that twisted down his arm that he simply wiped away with the sleeve of his other arm. As long it was concealed and scent-less, he’d be fine. Predators were the greatest of his worries, right now. Ahead, Dipper could see the widened path, which lead to a much more lush looking part of the woods. He picked up his pace, glancing back once more in hopes to catch no one following him behind. And sure enough, Dipper was still alone. “hte yob, teh byo!” The senseless sound came from nowhere; it seemed. Dipper stopped, spinning around once more, only now, there was absolutely something there. “tra utoh ehre to sreaeel su fmro ruo lleh?” a different one had said. These were nothing like the ghosts he’d ever seen. In fact, these creatures didn’t look much human, at all. They looked like the rotten skins of animal corpses, but with eyes. Human eyes on the back of their pelts, and the faint traces of human faces, as if their skulls had indented into it like clay. But the head of each skin was gone. One he was sure, had been a mammal of some sort, but there was nothing but the dry pelt of a headless deer... “ahtw era oyu ingod yuo tiodi? tel mih tor, tel mih srufef! I ehpo teh traeh lssoawlw pu ihs hdie nad guahsl ta mih sa eh flals parat, nad tehre si gionnht felt xeetcp ihs eeys, nad shdar fo sih boen.” Another had babbled. And soon an eerie ringing filled his ears. At that, each of the... skins, had risen from their stakes upon the trees, folding over him so an empty shadow was cast overhead, thicker than the overhead forest canopies. He shut his eyes tight, shaking his head to rid the awful sense of dread that arose. An unusual noise fell over the woods, that Dipper couldn’t exactly place, but when he opened his eyes, he watched the ghostly corpses holler in some sort of cry of rage, prepared to strike him dead. “Uh, w-wait! I come in peace!” Daarin hadn’t been expecting company, today. In fact, he’d decided to spend all day napping inside his little hollow. He’d grown to love it so much, it felt like a chore to have to leave and find food again. But dinner could wait. Now, all he wanted to do was-- “Wakey, wakey, little rat.” Daarin popped open en eye. The momentary burst of adrenaline the coursed through his system had vanished, when he realized the voice didn’t sound like Danny’s, at all. No, it was horrifically familiar. And before he could process it, and hurry off, a large, red-furred mane broke through the hedges, the first sight the mutant was greeted with, a pair of glistening fangs. “Ren...” Daarin muttered in annoyance, quivering as he tried to avoid the mangy paw that invaded his home. “Ren, please don’t--” “Oh, what? It’s supper time, isn’t it?” he bellowed, reaching further through the little hollow hole with another paw. “You know how much I fancy for rat-on-a-stick,” “L-leave me alone, you... bully!” Daarin had shouted, quivering in a corner, far out of reach of the Manticore’s grasp. He gasped audibly when Ren’s claw hitched onto one of the strings that tied to one of the firefly jars, and yanked it loose. The tiny glass container fell violently, and shattered, awakening the little firefly inside before it had been crushed under the pressure of one of the glass pieces falling atop of it. “Bully?” Ren could barely keep himself from laughing. “Oh, no bullies here, kid... just simple predators. Hungry, malicious predators, in the eyes of a measly rat, maybe. The harvest season is coming to a quick close, and I would greatly appreciate you being apart of my prey pile for the Cold Season,” “N-no! Never!” Daarin shouted back, scrambling through the brush behind him as fast as his legs could take him. He’d heard Ren grunt in frustration from behind, but instead of looking back, he only ran further. And with all these leaves in the way, it was really difficult to-- “Gah!” The little mutant had shrieked when he felt hands wrap around his form and pull his loose from the tangle of brush. Heart caught in his throat for a moment too long, before he was pulled close to something that smelled of creosote. Shifting his head up in the most awkward position possible, he gaped up at Danny, who'd set him in his backpack before Daarin had overcome the shock to say anything. "Danny--!" "When we get to the sinkhole," he grumbled in a hushed voice, "Tell me everything." Daarin happily obliged, ducking into the near-empty bag, heart doing backflips all over again. The more he ran over it in his mind, the bigger a smile it set on his face. Danny had saved him from being devoured by Ren? Just the thought alone of the werewolf and the mangy manticore in a tussle burned like a hot fire in his chest. It was a pleasant burning-- one that he'd liked the feeling of, because it only reminded him of Danny. And now, he was in the very backpack of his new werewolf-friend. He giggled to himself at the thought, and thinking back to their cave-picnic where they shared... crackers, it was called. They were heading back to the cave, now, and maybe Danny had more plans to spend the evening together again. A sudden violent shake of the world around Daarin alone had burst a thread, it seemed. Because in a separate, smaller pocket, something heavy spilled out from the other compartment. "Ow! What was--" He shook his head, furrowing his brows at the faintly visible metallic object that made contact with his head. "What is this?" Even the faint glow of the eyes of his tail couldn't dim the pitch black of the inside of Danny's bag. He would have pouted, but stopped once he realized there'd be no one to see it. So he made up his mind to question Danny himself, instead. As if on cue, the pack had zipped open and tilted on its side, spilling out Daarin and the strange object along with him. Taking a brief glance around and an intake of breath, it was clear the new setting he had landed in, was the cave. The scent of nature after a fresh rain, and the familiar murky smell that rose from the surface and the stones that formed just at the mouth. A new feeling of bittersweetness came over, and the stale memories of his old, echo-y home came rushing back. "Are you one-hundred percent sure you want to live out there, still?" Danny had started, setting the lightheaded mutant on his feet. "I mean, I'm pretty sure you said something about--" "Ren!" Daarin had finished, his outburst echoing down the cave. "I should have warned you about him, I'm so sorry! I didn't think he'd come to hunt me this early into the autumn season! He usually looks for me just before Cold-Season, so I thought-- nevermind. I didn't put you in any danger, did I?" "No, you're good." He raised a brow at the metallic machine that earlier clattered onto the stone. It hadn't looked much damaged besides a few thin scratches. "I'm just glad I came on time. You won't want to know how a rat hunt ends, believe me," Daarin had nodded mutely, but cocked his head when Danny had traced his finger over one of the indents on the metal-object. "What's that?" The sudden question had caught him off-guard, and admittedly had to allow himself to process it first. Realization sparked when he glanced into the Inverse Portal in the palm of his hand. "Uh, nothing. Nothing important," he muttered, motioning towards the bag at his side. But his arm stopped midway when Daarin had held his hand hostage. "What's it do? It looks cool!" "Ironic, kinda. It's actually very hot." "Really?" Daarin glanced up, curious. "Is it one of those guns that throw fire, instead of bullets?" "What?" Danny had to process the answer yet again. "You mean like a flamethrower or something?" It was utterly confusing how the thought had come to the little mutant's head. Especially how aware he was of advanced technology, and how to recognize it, when he hadn't even known what crackers were, just a few weeks ago. The IP was certainly nothing of the sort, though. Was he just afraid it would harm him? Though Daarin seemed so upbeat and curious; it certainly didn't look like he was really afraid of anything. "Yeah! One of those things!" Daarin had exclaimed, "I recognized the colors, but it certainly doesn't look like the long stick-thingy attached to it. Now that I think about it, it was kinda stupid to mistake those two. Sorry, it just came to mind!" Danny shook his head, pushing away any other unwanted thoughts. "Uh, no. It's not a flamethrower," "Yeah, figures," Daarin tilted his head nonetheless, still curious. "But... what exactly is it?" "..." "Come on! You always show me all the other cool stuff in your bag!" He looked more displeased than interested, now. His curiosity was certainly lost, and now he only yearned to hear Danny's story, himself. Nothing else right now could've matched such high importance. It was suddenly overwhelming-- the idea that he was being so secretive around him. Daarin trusted Danny with his life, and he had no shame in admitting it. And momentarily, he was almost sure his werewolf friend felt the same way. "Please, Danny?" He breathed out, shifting to his human form to match his height. Only he still had to look up to make eye contact. He didn't stare back, though, and instead, focused somewhere that Daarin wasn't sure where he was looking at. There was a longer silence than Daarin was comfortable with. And every instinct in his body pushed him to leave. He wasn't going to listen; not like he ever cared to, before. "Maybe..." Danny had begun, breaking the silence. "Actually-- it's really just a protection device." Daarin had brightened in interest. "Oh, like a hex dome?" Even in his humanoid appearance, he carried the same bubbly energy unmatched by anything else Danny'd ever seen. "My family used to work in necromancy. Or something like that," "Huh," "It's some sort of dark magic study, I think!" The young mutant continued, "I think it's kinda cool! I know all about that kind of stuff-- If I could wield magic, I'd definitely learn it myself!" "A... Hex Dome, huh...?" Danny murmured carefully, knitting his brows as he picked up the object again. "You know all about fancy advanced tech and weaponry, yet never heard of an Inverse Portal before," "A what?" Dang it, how could you have let something like that slip so easily? "Like I said, it's really nothing. It's basically a transportation device, or whatever," Daarin gaped, "Whoa, seriously! Like, teleportation and stuff-- With that thing? It really looks so small and pointless," He cracked a smile to himself, glancing down at the machinery in awe. His heart lit on fire when Danny had placed it in his hand without warning. And glancing up at him, he had a faint trace of a smirk that Daarin replied to with a huge grin. He traced his fingers over every indent and button, careful not to disrupt anything. His heart ran a million miles, and Daarin fought to keep himself conscious from the sudden burst of excitement. The silky white and lime colored technology-- each and every piece fit in harmony. He'd never seen anything like it; Every bit of machinery his family had back at home was charred up and rusted, and carried a putrid odor of iron and chemical. He was sure it was only phantosmia, though, when he always watched his cousins carry it out into battle, to protect the house from the creatures outside that threatened the lives of their family. It never seemed to bother anyone else. Sometimes his mind wandered over the idea that it wasn't exactly the smell that scared him so much. ::TO BE CONTINUED::