They’d left La Brenne behind after the farmers buried their dead. In the days, following the great ritual battle, she’d noticed that her companion and the owl had become more sluggish. They were more prone to yawning and resting their eyes as they walked. The owl has slipped into a kind of half-conscious state as well, its little body barely moved, but it was alive. At least, as alive as she thought such an unnatural being could be. Occasionally, it would mutter the word, “Cunt” under its breath without any real context. It could be in the middle of a long silence or a nightside chat between her and the elf, and the little monster would say it. The first time she’d heard it say the word, she’d hit the cage to no great effect. At night, she sat awake under the light of the moon as the elf slept. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5bhm1bt39r
She wasn't quite sure if it was normal for an elf to remain completely still while asleep. Kailin was laid out on their back, their entire body seemed stiff like a corpse in a funeral parlor. So, Betta sat for a moment and watched her companion in this stillness. She'd erected a fire an hour before the sun fell. It was just a small thing, kindling stacked in the shape of a teepee with a few logs on top, but it was enough to warm the little space they occupied.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNQ4FyZJcz
The snap and pop of the wood as it burned was the only sound in the otherwise silent night. Betta watched the flickering flames, and then her gaze shifted back to Kailin. Despite the pair of bloody scratches that they'd raked just beneath their eyes, the elf's face was mostly smooth but not near their eyes. Their eyes, even while closed seemed to be older than the rest of them.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkobJHkVVUN
“Oi,” she said after a long while of just staring at the sleeping form. When there was no response, she shook them slightly. “Hey, you alive in there?” 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8okmdjeYZ7
Their eyes opened and they stared up at her, for a few seconds, she could see that without their magical glow or the bitter dark fire from the ritual, they were a very vivid emerald shade. But without any real thought to it, the blue glow of magic covered their eyes. The elf rose into a seated position, looking at the now dying fire.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJ1WEdTaPb
“Are you alright?” Betta asked after a few minutes of silence.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzlNMcnka4D
“Yes,” they responded. “I'm just...tired.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpHYXBzSBK
“You look it,” Betta said. “Get some sleep, I'll keep watch.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGKrXOK65F
The elf shook their head, using it as a moment to look around, "No, no. You need rest as well. I can keep watch."
Betta was about to argue, but the elf was already on their feet and moving to sit by the fire. She shrugged and laid down, using her pack as a pillow. It wasn't the most comfortable thing, but it would do. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmaTIVirhg6
"Wake me up in a few hours," she said as she closed her eyes.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7uSkImuqzB
She could hear the elf stirring the fire as her mind was swept into the black sea of dreams.
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As the hours went on, the night became clearer. The air smelled of the coolness of the early autumn weather and the pleasant rot that you could only find in the deep woods. The woods were a wall of dense trees that held nothing but horrible secrets. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6WfJVfQvh
Out along the treeline, Kailin could see a new source of light. It was a faint, white glow that they had not seen since they were a child. But, that did not mean that time had separated it in their mind. It stuck out like a sigil carved into the flesh of a tree. The light split in two and started to come close to the fire. It seemed that all the darkness in the world crept closer. Engulfing everything around them. Before long, there was but the fire. There was no brave knight, foul-mouthed owl demon, or even the woods that surrounded them. Only the faint outlines of trees against the night sky. There was only Kailin and me. Its long neck extended from the darkness that was its body. Its glowing eyes rested parallel with Kailin’s. The Black Goat of the woods was the only goat in the face only. As stated before, its body was the darkness and its eyes were soft white flame, but upon its head rested antler-like horns. From that point they extended up and around, somehow creating the base silhouette of the trees. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6AoM0ol7CW
I was it at that moment. For this final second, I was able to speak down to my creation, one of them at least. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2kw8XL6sA
“You have done well, Kailin,” said the goat. Though it did not speak with a voice. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG0opw9XpI7
Kailin sat frozen there in this dark place. They did not feel like they had not hours ago. Simply sitting before this thing made them feel impossibly vulnerable. They stared up at it, their eyes unblinking as they struggled to find their voice. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2k8jI57dwW
At first, it came up as a choked sound, “I…Yes. Thank you, my lord.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlzHMpwebRG
The Goat chuckled, the sound of it sent a cold chill down their spine. They traced this fear back to when they first encountered the devil in the woods. A child, wandering scared through the dark, in want of a light. Who better to help than the light-bringer?93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXcRFfzQPt
“You have done more than I could have asked, and more than I ever will. For that, I am grateful," Said Old Scratch. "You're afraid, too...Good, fear will keep you sharp as the orc's sword."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGk6jnu8CGh
Kailin swallowed hard, their throat dry. They could feel the weight of the goat's eyes on them.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfxuF3WszVr
"What will happen now?" They asked.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkdAO3aYVlr
"Now you've reached a fascinating stage. You're at the meeting of the goddess as some idiots might describe it. So, for your innovation that you've carried out, I shall gift you will proper rest."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsOfVAYymO
An appalling appendage extended from the black and pressed against Kailin’s forehead. In an instant, the flesh that they’d torn away on their face was healed. The grey skin was stitched together like thread on a loom. There was a pain in the wretched pain of skin being stretched and tied together. Nerve endings wrapped around each other, creating the sensation of lightning along every inch of their form. You could say that this is cruel. Why would I bring this person into being, only to bring them more pain? So they can learn. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdVYSyiUJ8
The Black Goat was gone almost as soon as it had appeared to them. The gentle light of the stars shined upon their little encampment. Kailin didn’t realize how much they missed the sound of animals until it was taken away from them. The fire continued to crackle, Betta remained asleep. Locked within a state of dreaming.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp9C1uk5y94
Kailin looked down at their hands, flexing them as they watched the light play off their skin. They were healed, but there was still some stiffness in their movements. They looked over at Betta, who was still asleep. Kailin couldn't help but notice how different they looked when they weren't covered in blood and dirt. In the moonlight, they looked almost peaceful. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhg01HiScO
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Kailin sat there for a while, just watching the sleeping form of their companion. They looked so different when they weren't covered in blood and dirt. In the moonlight, they looked almost peaceful. Kailin felt a pang of something in their chest. It was a foreign feeling, but not unwelcome. After a few minutes, they shook their head and got up. They had a feeling that they wouldn't be able to sleep anytime soon. So, they decided to continue with their watch.
The black ink that was the nebulous dreamscape gave way to a blue sky. She could see the farm as clear as day. The sun was shining high above it and she could smell the sweet grass in the air. But it was all quickly overpowered by the smell of sulfur and fire. There was a torrential flood of screams and her face felt as hot as the fire in the air. But the most alarming thing was seeing the face of her father, screaming the word “Cunt!” at the top of his lungs.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1HbcE8VDx
When her eyes shot open she was faced with that vulgar bird and she wanted to tear open its cage and roast the little bastard on a spit.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN29J0L0X5a
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