Volume 1: Episode 5 - The Misty Valley
Ramewet, The Misty Valley
Running, staggering, or perhaps stagger-running, Kat found himself, without meaning to, in the misty valley. He expected to die shortly, but he'd be damned if he'd give the villagers the satisfaction of watching. The boundary between the normal land and the mist-encrusted valley was as clear as if it had been drawn by the finger of a god. Beyond the border was a mass of twisted, dead trees, some straight and tall, others growing at bizarre angles, all caked in a lazy, green mist that permeated everything. In the center of it all was an arch with a monster's head emerging from the middle.
With nowhere else to go, Kat proceeded through the gate and into the valley.
There was no hope. Kat didn't see Dewa amongst the group of villagers, but he didn't know how to find him and Dewa surely didn't know where he was. Winding his way through the dead trees, Kat didn't expect he could go much farther. Eventually he would have to give up. He would die there. Though knowing he would give up eventually, the tiniest glimmer of desperation drove him to keep going.
In the distance, he saw something different from the ever-present green mist swirling around him. Three lights perched above the landscape in clearly-defined squares. It wasn't much, but it was something, and Kat staggered in their direction.
The lights belonged to a tower in the center of the valley. Curious, but it was no help to Kat unless someone lived there and was willing to help. It was as good a place as any to die, for Kat could not carry on further. His breathing was short and his legs would no longer carry him. He collapsed just before the stairs leading up the foundation of the tower. He did not know how long he lay there before hearing the creak of an opening door.
Dewa: Kat?
He must be hearing things, thought Kat, but then came the voice again.
Dewa: Kat!
Struggling to open his eyes, Kat thought he could make out Dewa's form through the glassy wet haze of tears clouding his vision. Could it be that this was real?
Kat: Help me.
Dewa kneeled by Kat's side and held his hand over Kat's chest.
Dewa: Just stay still. This will tingle for a minute.
"Stay still," he says. That would be easy, for Kat was surely not motivated by any enthusiasm to move. Through his cloudy eyes, Kat thought he saw a glow emanate from Dewa's paw just before he touched Kat's chest. Indeed, as Dewa said, there was a tingle, and soon the stabbing pain was gone. Dewa slipped his paw under Kat's back and helped him sit up. Kat breathed in and out freely and heavily, finally able to get air into his body once again.
Dewa: What happened?
Kat took several more deep breaths. He didn't know what happened or why he was healed, but, right now, he didn't feel keen to question any of it. Once he collected himself, fighting back tears, he told Dewa of his decision to leave with him. The finding of the spear. His desperate run to be rid of it. The horror he felt when he was found. The beating he endured. Finally, there was Granny. Without the pain distracting him, Kat seethed with rage upon recalling Granny and what she said to him and the utter contempt in her voice. Backpedalling, he told Dewa of the evening on the hill, when Granny wished for ours to be a peaceful village and then back to what she said after. That was when he finally burst into tears. Angry tears, and he howled his lament to the heavens.
Kat: She lied to me! Wishes are nothing but lies! She knew what she was saying! She just wanted to sound good and virtuous to hide her true self from me!
Dewa nodded solemnly and stroked Kat's head.
Dewa: I know, Kat. I know. It doesn't matter where you go in this universe, people can so easily be corrupted into vice and betrayal. I expected that you were beginning to understand, but it is unfortunate that you were taught this lesson so suddenly.
Kat, now calmer, sniffled and wiped his eyes.
Kat: I'm definitely not going back there now. I couldn't if I wanted to, and I definitely don't want to. I want to go with you!
Dewa smiled and stood.
Dewa: I will be glad to have you by my side. Wait here for a moment.
Dewa rushed back into the tower, leaving Kit alone, angry, but feeling safe again, a circumstance he'd have not thought possible just ten minutes ago. It was then that Kat wondered how Dewa did what he did. He knew of no medicine or healer that could repair a malady such as his. Besides that, there was much to wonder. What is this place? Why did Dewa live here? Kat never knew where Dewa lived, but he hardly expected this. What was that gate with the monster head?
Questions he intended to ask, but would ask later, for a new one recently appeared before him as Dewa emerged from his tower holding a large, spiked crystal, glowing red as though it had a fire inside it.
Kat: What's that?
Dewa glanced casually at the crystal he was holding as though he didn't even realize he had it.
Dewa: This? It is a crystal and a very powerful one at that. It is not a trifle and must be handled by someone who knows how. If two people were to touch this without understanding how to use it, it would explode and its power would be useless.
Dewa sat on the ground facing Kat and very close at that, close enough that Dewa's long legs had to bend around Kat's body with his feet behind him. Kat's breathing quickened as Dewa looked him in the eye.
Dewa: With your permission, I would like to use the crystal's power on you.
Kat hesitated, wondering what Dewa intended.
Kat: Is this something like what you said before, that you do favors for people?
Dewa shook his head.
Dewa: No, Kat. This is not a favor. There shall be no payment. This is my gift to you.
Kat considered only for a moment. This was Dewa, and he trusted Dewa. Whatever the gift was he would receive it gratefully.
Kat: Okay, Dewa. I trust you.
Dewa did not respond besides a sigh, allowing his body to relax as he smiled solemnly at Kat.
Kat: What?
Dewa: You're very sweet, Kat. You don't even know what I'm going to do, and yet you accept it without question. Once I do this, your body is going to change, and there is no going back. I was just thinking that this is the last time I shall see you this way.
Kat: Change? In what way?
Dewa: That's up to you. Before we get started, I want you to know that Dewa is not my real name. I adopted a name of your people so as to blend in better. My real name is Lucifer and I am from a place far from here, farther than you can possibly imagine.
Kat thought for a moment, chewing on the end of his claw.
Kat: Lucifer. That's a strange name. I still want to be with you. Just tell me what I have to do.
Dewa, or rather, Lucifer, gave a single nod.
Lucifer: I want you to close your eyes. Do not speak until I tell you to.
Kat did as he was told and closed his eyes. Soon after, he felt a pinch on the back of his neck where Lucifer touched him.
Lucifer: I want you to think about what you desire most for yourself. Imagine being what you've always wanted to be. Be as detailed as you like, take as long as you like, and tell me when you are ready.
Kat took a deep breath and thought carefully, dredging back every fantasy and daydream he had ever had into the forefront of his mind. There were many. It took time for him to sort through everything and throughout it all, Lucifer's paw never wavered from the pinch it was giving to his neck. There was a common theme to all his fantasies. He would be strong. Feared. His world would be orderly and predictable. He would be the arbiter of justice, given swiftly and without mercy.
Kat: I'm ready.
This time, Kat felt something warm and pointy on his forehead, which he guessed was the crystal. Lucifer pushed it hard into his fur, a bit painful, but nothing unendurable.
Lucifer: Keep your eyes closed and keep those thoughts close in your mind. Now, tell me, what do you desire?
Kat thought for a moment which he should mention first as his body began to tingle all over as though something in him already started to change even before he said it out loud.
Kat: I want to be a beautiful white tiger like Resef.
Kat could feel the fur all over his body like it was electrified, as though he'd walked too fast over a thick carpet.
Lucifer: Yes. Go on.
Kat: I want to be strong. Strong enough that nobody would ever try to to fight me.
Kat's entire body shuddered. It felt like he was growing, but he still kept his eyes closed as instructed.
Lucifer: Yes!
Kat: I will expose everyone's wishes. I will make sure everyone can see their own evils for what they truly are.
Kat drew a sudden breath and almost gagged on it, feeling as though every organ in his body was brimming with energy.
Lucifer: Yes!
Kat: Everyone will fear me and I no longer them.
This time, Kat felt as though something inside him broke. Whatever it was that was holding him back, from being everything he wanted, had finally snapped and his inhibitions spilled away like water exploding from a shattered glass. He said no more and waited for Lucifer to do whatever he planned next. The pinch in Kat's neck disappeared as Lucifer removed his paw, as did the pressure on his head, when Lucifer removed the crystal.
Dewa: How do you feel?
Kat slowly opened one eye to find not the usual narrow, brown snout he was used to seeing in front of him, but a wide, white nose. He felt stronger and more confident than he ever did and he knew exactly what he wanted next.
Kat: Granny wished for a peaceful village. I shall grant her wish precisely as she says. It will be a very peaceful village indeed when everyone is dead.
Lucifer stood and held out his paw, grinning devilishly.
Lucifer: And it is time for me to collect my payment from Resef. I believe our objectives are intertwined.
Rune Lake, New Berengaria, Diner
Jaze: The village was so remote that it was at least 50 years before anyone from the outside visited after it was first settled. When explorers did arrive, they found the village completely intact, but all the residents dead, savagely ripped apart, blood splattered everywhere, but not eaten.
Mitani: Oh, bones and blood. That's my kind of story.
Jaze: It's weird because there was no known animal in that area that could or would do such a thing. The legend also says that one old lady was found nailed to the front door of one of the houses. That leaves the question, if they were attacked, then by who? Nobody else lived anywhere near there.
Kaoru: Maybe it is just a myth, then.
Adell: Maybe with some truth to it. A lot of those old legends did come from something that actually happened, even if just a little.
Kaoru closed the book and laid it on the table.
Kaoru: If the rest of the book is like this, I'd rather look at it later. I'd prefer not to think about this stuff right before eating.
