No, we didn’t forget about the locket.
Aycenia’s power over her domain seemed to nullify the locket’s curse, allowing us to focus on other things, but the threat of the ghost still lingered. Now that Nakoda was able to reliably tap into my magic to reinforce his lance, he was the best choice to carry the locket. But it was all about timing. None of us had expected being able to overthrow the cannibals in under a day, but it’d happened. We also definitely hadn’t anticipated finding a ship from another world buried beneath their campsite, but we had. And being inside said ship had made us lose track of time. The sun must have just set, activating the curse.
The timing wasn’t ideal, especially since we were stuck between two mutants and a room full of Evil, but the ghost was now here. We had to deal with it. And thanks to Salim’s mental magic, the mutants were keeping each other busy. So, with all that in mind, I turned around so that Nakoda and I were now facing the ghostly captain. Nakoda called upon my magic, made it wrap around his lance.
In response, the ghost exclaimed, “Aeshamara!”
And disappeared with a crackling pop.
“What the?” Nakoda began.
The space around us suddenly became unbearably cold and bathed in blue. I looked back just in time to watch the ghost appear and wrap a hand around the back of Nakoda’s neck. Blue-tinged veins spread across both sides of my brother’s face and steam began to pour from pores of his face. I jerked away, managing to tear him out of the ghost’s grasp. Nakoda collapsed forward across my saddle, groaning in pain. He managed to keep his hold on his lance, and the blue veins were fading, if slowly.
I swung my body around until my butt was facing the ghost and embraced my inner donkey. I poured magic downward, into my hind legs, and smashed my hooves back into the spirit’s chest. He was as good as solid. I knocked him back ten feet, earning us some breathing room, but it wouldn’t amount to much if he just teleported again.
I turned around again, this time igniting my horn with magic, only to spot the ghost kneeling on the floor instead of attacking again. His chest was smoldering. He touched a hand to it, somehow managing to look bewildered.
Behind us, the mutant managed to fight off its possessed friend, but that just gave Alton the opening he needed to cut off and arm and then another. Paco then put a bullet between the armless creature’s eyes, knocking it flat onto its back. Blood and pieces of brain splattered across the floor beneath him.
Now that his comrade was dead, the mutant snapped out of its possession. It leapt at Alton, either out of duty or revenge. Alton parried its javelin with his sword, looking more annoyed than anything.
“Come on!” he snarled. “Enough of this!” His voice then warped drastically, becoming several speaking from the same throat, “I’M HUNGRY!”
The ghost disappeared again (called it) and reappeared up on the ceiling directly above me and Nakoda, standing on it as if it were the floor. His arms stretched and snapped at Nakoda, snatching him out of the saddle. His fingers burrowed into my brother’s abdomen, making him squeal in pain and drop his lance. He threw his hands out frantically and managed to grab onto the horn of my saddle.
“GUYS!” he cried hysterically as the ghost yanked harder. “GUYS! HELP ME! PLEASE! DON’T SET ME ON FIRE THIS TIME, THOUGH!!!”
Lilian was running towards us, but Alton got to us first.
“I got you, little man!”
He kicked the mutant back and rushed over. He leapt and starting swinging his blade at the ghost-
-and something slammed into him, carrying him away as if by a violent wind. It slammed Alton into the door. The impact turned his eyes solid green, matching that of the evil aura all around us.
Meanwhile, Salim strolled on past us (completely ignoring Nakoda’s high-pitched screams for help) and knelt by Alton’s side. “That’s what you get for ignoring your true nature,” he tsked, helping Alton back to his feet. As he did so, he issued a command to his shade. The living shadow flew into the remaining mutant’s mouth and went to work.
At least Paco and Sapphire were trying to help Nakoda. Sapphire produced a silver pistol that made bullets of ice. Both she and Paco shot repeatedly at the ghost, but their bullets went in and out of him harmlessly. Nakoda was now hanging on by the saddle’s horn with one hand. I couldn’t do anything without risking breaking his grip on me…
But then, with his free hand, he pulled the glowing locket from his pouch.
He flicked it open, revealing the portrait inside.
“Here y-you go!”
And tossed it upwards.
The ghost immediately let the little Rider go and slapped both hands around the locket. He then opened them and stared at the woman’s portrait inside. Tears of fire trickled upwards from his eye sockets as he whispered reverently, “My beautiful Aeshamara…”
The flames of his body dwindled until they faded completely, leaving only a skeleton in singed clothes. The entire body then flickered, replaced by that of a very tired-looking, weathered man. He looked up with sky-blue eyes (the regular kind) and smiled sadly at a gasping, wide-eyed Nakoda. “You did good, lad,” he chuckled. “You did good.”
He vanished. That smile was the last thing to go.