We sacrificed a few healing potions to keep Nakoda from, you know, dying, and we eventually managed to get Turtle to the top of the dam. After that we hurried back into the jungle to seek shelter under the trees’ wide leaves. Belkross wandered off to scout, only to return a short time later.
“We may have a preferable alternative,” he told Lilian. She gave the mercenary a relieved look. With the rain pouring and the possibility of more snakes, they hadn’t bothered to set up the tent. Belkross took the lead, leading us through the jungle. Eventually the mouth of what looked to be a cave came into view, though it was hard to see through the clusters of trees.
“Wait…” Paco called out. “Are those bones?”
I squinted in the dark. I stopped dead. He was right. It wasn’t a cave, but a hut. One decorated with bones. A complete human skeleton hung from a noose just above the hut’s door. I sniffed the air, expecting to smell rot, but didn’t. Maybe the rainfall had muted the smell a little? I squinted harder. The bones were all yellowed, almost brown. They were old, but also clean. I didn’t spot any decaying sections or even pieces of flesh. Whoever had decorated this hut with the bones had cleaned them out first.
“Cannibals,” Lilian murmured.
“My thoughts exactly,” Belkross said with a nod. “But no footprints leading to or from.”
“I don’t like this-” Nakoda began to say, but his statement was cut off by another clap of thunder.
Once it passed, Lilian turned to Alton, gesturing to the sword in his hand. “Alton, try and stab the hut with your sword.”
He arched a suspicious eyebrow at her. “…Any particular reason why?”
“If I’m just being extra careful, nothing will happen,” she promised him.
“You are a strange little girl,” he sighed. He then crept out from behind the trees, hurried to the hut’s side, and jabbed at its exterior with his blade. He then hopped back, sword up, waiting…and waiting…and waiting…
A toe fell from the skeleton’s foot and fell into the mud.
Lilian sighed with relief. “Good sign. Could have been a mimic.”
“What’s a mimic?” Nakoda asked.
“Man-eating creatures that pretend to be random objects. Most of them pretend to be treasure chests or closets, but I’ve heard of some as big as house. Or a hut, in this case.” Nakoda’s eyes bulged. She waved a hand. “It’s fiiiiiiiine. Just being paranoid. Now come on, better this than nothing. Let’s set up camp inside and decide who gets first watch.”
Unlike Pezock’s crab, the hut was actually big enough for me and Turtle to fit inside. It was musty and damp, with streams of water dribbling in through cracks in the roof. Nakoda, Paco, and Alton used loose pieces of wood to block off the worst of them. Meanwhile, Lilian and Belkross hung up a curtain, sectioning off a third of the hut so that Lilian could have some privacy. Paco managed to start a fire at the hut’s center. The fire’s warmth filled the air, a welcome relief after marching through constant rain. I worried that the flames might spread to the rest of the hut, but Paco seemed to have it under control, feeding it just enough tinder to keep it going but not enough to make it burn too high and lick the ceiling.
Eventually, the pounding of rain lessened, becoming more a steady pitter-pattering. Lilian glanced out from behind the curtain. I didn’t spot Belkross. The mercenary was probably resting. “Rain’s calming down,” she told the rest of the group.
“But it’s getting dark,’ Alton called over from his place by the doorway. “We might want to rest here a little longer, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Especially if we want to avoid that ‘Flying Shadow’ thing,” Paco yawned. He’d handed fire-watch duty over to Nakoda and was now lying on Turtle’s back, hat pulled down over his eyes.
“Yeah, and this place looks pretty dusty,” Nakoda said, glancing around. Thanks to the fire’s light, it was clear to see that the hut’s interior was nowhere near as decorated as the outside. “Whoever made it doesn’t seem to come here much.”
Lilian touched her chin thoughtfully. “Which should grant us some reasonable safety. But we should still be careful.”
“Mr. Pezock did say to stay inside, or at least set up camp during night time to avoid the ghosts,” Nakoda noted.
“And the Shadow,” Paco murmured.
“And the Shadow,” Nakoda agreed. He glanced at everyone. “Anybody see anything like that?” Everyone shook their heads. Well, except Paco, who’d fallen asleep. “Alright then. Alton, Don and I will take next watch. You still need to rest.”
“I need to rest,” Alton scoffed, hopping to his feet, nonetheless. “Weren’t you the one recently set on fire, Drake?”
Nakoda shrugged. “I’m okay now. Just itchy in places.” He met me by the door. I laid down and he climbed up onto my saddle. He placed his lance across his lap. He glanced down at it and sighed. It was still covered in flecks of dried monkey blood. He reached over into one of my saddle bags and took out a cloth. “Auntie Oli’d thump my brain a bunch if she saw this, Don. A Rider’s weapon is an extension of our god, Desna’s will. You disrespect your weapon, you disrespect Desna. Or something like that.”
The more Nakoda talked about his Auntie Oli, the gladder I was I’d never met her. Even if she was now my aunt, too, I guess.
Eventually, everyone except me, Nakoda, and Alton (who was on fire-watch) fell asleep. The rain continued, making it impossible to gage exactly when the dark of night fell. Staring outside, towards the jungle, it was impossible to make out anything more than rain and shadow. I strained my ears to try and make up for that, but other than the wind rustling leaves, or the bones jangling against the hut’s roof, there was nothing. Nakoda didn’t talk much, focusing on cleaning his weapon. Sometimes I wish I had human arms so I could hug him. He was my brother, and he’d almost died on me at least three times now!
“Eh?” Alton suddenly cried. “What the f-?!”
His scream was cut off by a roar of fire. I immediately sprung to my feet and whirled around. Our campfire had turned bright blue and was now pouring upwards, across the hut’s ceiling. Alton had jumped back, arm raised to protect his face. Turtle had hurried over towards the wall to try and get away from the fire. Yet the blue and white flames weren’t burning anything. They poured across the hut’s interior, but the wood didn’t catch. And instead of heat, it was a dreadful coldness that filled my body.
“What is going on?!” Lilian threw back the curtain and stepped out just in time to watch a man emerge from the fire. Or really, he’d once been a man. Now he was little more than a yellowed skeleton dressed in a faded blue captain’s coat, black leggings, and charcoal boots. A horned hat clung to his skull by cobwebs. Instead of eyes, two blue flames danced inside his eye sockets. Twitching back and forth, searching…
The ghost’s head spun around. His “eyes” landed on Lilian. A guttural whisper echoed throughout the hut, drowning out all sounds of rain, “Aeshamara…” He pointed a bony finger at Lilian. “…Aeshamara!”
Blue flames trailed behind him as he trudged towards her.
And then he disappeared with a crackling pop.
Only to reappear directly behind her like a blue, undead shadow. “Aeshamara,” he whispered tenderly after his skull spun facing forward again, leaning in by her ear. “…You’ve returned to me…”
Lilian ducked and rolled forward. She then spun around and screamed something. Light poured out of her hands, formed together into the space directly between her and the ghost, and became-
“Mom?!” I gasped.
But no, it wasn’t a unicorn. Just a white pony. The summoned pony reared up. Its front hooves glowed with pale energy as it kicked them at the lovesick ghost. The ghost simply stepped to the side, refusing to look away from Lilian. The flames in his eye sockets expanded, becoming nearly entirely white with rage. “NO! You are not her! You damnable harpy!”
“EVERYBODY MOVE!” Paco’s scream was accompanied by several gunshots. He shot at the ghost, but his bullets just passed through. The campfire had died down, returning back to a normal orange and no longer flaring across the hut.
I snorted and glanced back at Nakoda. He glanced at me and then at Lilian, and then at the ghost. He held up his lance, as if preparing to throw…but then called out instead, “The locket! I think he’s after the locket!”’
Lilian ignored him, or maybe she was just too mentally preoccupied. She pointed at the ghost and ordered her pony to charge. The creature did so.
The ghost sidestepped the charge, and then drove his fist up into pony’s belly. The beast flew straight up, slammed into the ceiling, and then crashing back down with a sickening crunch, ribs sticking out of its chest and its head stuck at an angle.
While that went on, Lilian took the opportunity to retreat and start hurrying toward the door. Paco, Turtle, and Alton had already bolted outside. Only Nakoda and I stayed inside. I glanced towards the curtain. Lilian had thrown it slightly open when she’d come out. Belkross was gone.
“The locket!” Nakoda screamed at her again.
Lilian fumbled for it. She pulled out the locket she’d found in the monkey’s nest. Its metal surface was glowing a faint blue color. She tossed it back over her shoulder. It landed not too far from her whimpering pony’s broken body.
“Nakoda! Don!” Alton called from outside the hut. “Don’t be stupid! We need to run! Now!”
I barely heard him. Both Nakoda and I were transfixed as we watched the ghost kneel over and slowly drive his fingers into the side of the pony’s skull. Blue flames surged out, burning out the pony’s eyes and boiling its blood. The pony released one last pitiful neigh before going pop, disappearing. Clearly confused, the ghost stared at his hand for a moment before then reaching over, grabbing the locket off of the ground.
“NAKODA!” Lilian screamed.
Nakoda turned away. He kicked my side and I bolted out of the hut, leaving the ghost to cradle the locket to his chest. I heard him whisper, “Aeshamara,” one last time.
I ran a few feet, spotted the group hiding a bit into the jungle. Paco still had his gun at the ready in case the ghost made chase. I stopped and looked back. The hut had gone dark. Even our original campfire seemed to have been put out. All was silent except for the rain that continued to drizzle all around us and the skeleton’s bones clacking against the hut, almost as if it were laughing at us. Calling us cowards for running.
Lilian slumped against a nearby tree. “Worst timing ever,” she sighed.
“What do you mean?” Nakoda asked shakily.
“Belkross slipped out a window to go do patrol. We could have used his help against…well, that.” She then slipped away, deeper into the jungle.
“Where are you going?” Nakoda cried.
“Lady business.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“She’s full of it,” Alton grunted, folding his arms over her chest. “Stress is getting to her. She just doesn’t want us to see her cry, mate.”
“Oh. Okay,” Nakoda said again, though he looked skeptical. He then perked up. “Oh! Mr. Belkross!”
Said mercenary hurried towards us. Wiping at her face, Lilian followed behind him. “I heard there was an attack,” he growled.
“Understatement,” Paco grunted. He pulled Shivers out of his coat. The ugly thing looked terrified. “Stupid ghost interrupted my nap and made Shivers piss in my coat.”
“What…is that?” Alton asked, pointing at the creature.
“Shivers,” Paco, Lilian, and Nakoda said in unison.
“But what is it?”
“Does that really matter right now?” Lilian snapped. Belkross touched her shoulder and then approached the hut before anyone could stop him. He entered it, seemed to look around, and then waved for us to come forward. Cautiously, I did so. I poked my head inside. Except for our campfire being put out, it was just as we’d left it. Despite all of the fire, nothing had been so much as singed.
“So what do we do now?” Nakoda asked. He hopped off of me and went over to the spot where the ghost had picked up the locket. He took a knee and touched the ground. “He’s gone. I mean, I think he took what he wanted. Do we stay or do we…I think our only real option is to go back to Mr. Pezock’s.”
“No way we’re making that trip safely at night,” Alton said, staying outside.
“Maybe we can find some cannibals and sleep with them,” Paco offered dryly, absentmindedly scratching Shivers behind its ears. There was another thunderclap. “Seriously, Shivers! Again?”
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