PvP Dungeon Hunter

The Witch's House

Evanora was many things Fowler had said while saying nothing  of substance in the end. His attitude had changed  since coming here. He didn’t seem like the man, Akuji had met in the beginning or maybe he was opening up more, or maybe he was more concerned about that strange wolf. The word Evanora had called, Akuji struggled to remember how to pronounce it, but he knew what it meant a werewolf. He had an exact image in his mind and what it would turn into on a full moon. Where exactly had they taken the wolf and were they trying to cure her? He had asked, but was met with blank stares. Had he done something wrong?

He contemplated this while seated under a tree, the cats sat around him, and above his head in the branch was a raven. Evanora was watching them constantly it made him feel uneasy. Every time he wanted to check her level, he found himself acting strangely around her almost like a long lost friend. Was it a spell she was using on them but why? He couldn’t understand the reason. He only knew when they were far apart, he would ask himself why he said or spoke in such a way. Why did he reveal information about himself or Canta? If it was a spell why didn’t she blank his memories completely after?

Today just like the other days Fowler or Evanora had not been seen since morning and the afternoon sun was in full swing. The house was almost the ones taking care of them and it felt at times kind of creepy even Canta, despite the first time, was a bit creeped out by the objects in the house doing everything especially waking them at the same time every morning.

He looked at Canta who was sleeping under another tree a short distance from his. She had scribbled papers in her hand that she had been reading. She had told him those were songs that the bard had scribbled for her to learn.

 Evanora had changed her clothes and given her new ones it resembled her old ones, but had no patches at all in them. Canta had initially refused to take it, but after constant speech about it and persuasion, it would be an insult if she refused, she wore them along with shoes that Fowler had made.

Akuji stood up as he wondered what he should do for today. A loud thundering howl came from the hut, then an explosion swiftly followed. It shook the ground, causing him to fall.

“What was that!?” Canta shouted, as she struggled to stand.

“I don’t know,” Akuji replied.

They both rushed towards the house. There in the middle of the house were both Fowler and Evanora. They were so deep in conversation that they were not focused on the pair as they watched. Opened books flew around them frantically turning pages as they spoke; it was loud, but their voices were even louder.

“It seemed like that was also a failure.”

“You are not trying hard enough!”

“You think it’s easy to cure someone that is in this state, I am not a witch doctor!”

“You must know something.”

“They are certain requirements to be met and different people respond differently to the effects. It’s surprising that she’s not dead.”

“Shut up! You keep talking about her as if she is just another one of your experiments.”

“It’s probably hard for you to stomach, but these things usually start as experiments with trial and error. I can’t guarantee that she will make it through or that I can cure her. It’s not every day someone cures a person in this state and I wouldn’t give you any false hope.”

Fowler grimaced, his face looked at her once. “Then I will go and find it.” He stormed out passing Canta and Akuji without addressing them. The look in his face was one that felt familiar to Akuji that of hurt, pain, and anguish it seemed, however, so foreign to Fowler a man that seemed to be able to solve any problem that popped up so far and for a man that had a skull above his head.

“What happened?” Akuji asked.

Evanora seemed to regard him for a moment before she finally spoke. “Our first test failed, she rejected the process half way. I am not sure if it can be done. There are only two ways that I can think of one is the Remove Curse, an ability that I do know exists and the other is the Belladonna plant.”

“Is that what Fowler is going to look for?”

“Yes.”

Canta interjected, “ We have to help him Akuji, you saw the look on his face. He has been helping us straight through we must be there for him through this task.”

“Canta, we are not strong like Fowler, we could---.”

“Agreed, you could end up dying in the process of going there.”

“See?!”

“But I don’t think that will happen, I implore you to go for his sake. He will need help not physical, but mental even though he won’t show it and I will be watching as well. Now then, to look at this girl again.”

Evanora left the room, heading deeper inside. With that, Canta headed outside and Akuji followed closely behind. Outside perched beside a tree was Fowler readying himself and checking his weapons.

Canta spoke without hesitation, “We are coming with you too.”

Fowler turned to look at her and smile. “Thank you both, sorry about just now. I am a bit tense this road that we are going on will be a bit more dangerous but don’t worry. I will keep everyone safe.”

“Where exactly are we heading anyway?”

“It’s an area known as the Spider Planes. Do you remember I mentioned an area two weeks ago that was crawling with them? It will be there that we will be going to pick the flower known as Belladonna.”

“What is a Belladonna?” Akuji asked.

“A Belladonna is a purple and poisonous flower. It’s supposed to help her. I have it in my book, I’ll show you it once we get there. For now, let’s go, I don’t know how much time we have left.”

 Fowler started to walk back into the forest following the trail they first came from. Canta and Akuji followed slowly behind under the watchful eyes of the birds and cats. Moonlight had been quiet all this time and he trailed next to Canta as we got deeper into the forest. The forest came more and more alive.

Akuji was watching Fowler’s back as he decided to ask him another question. “ Is this really going to help the wolf, her?”

Fowler didn’t come to an immediate halt as he walked on for a while before he stopped. “I don’t know, maybe it will work or maybe it won’t. I have to try, its better to do something than to do nothing at all.”

The walk onwards was quiet until what emerged before them from the outline of the trees was a road. It was well maintained and paved, it held what appeared to be street lights going straight up and down the road for as far as Akuji could see.

“What are those?” Canta asked in amusement.

“Street lights?” Akuji asked.

“They call them magical lamps never run out of light and absorb the sun’s rays to recharge the glowing balls in them. It’s the work of Cenventia mages. We will be taking the road there, for now. We will camp in the forest just for safety. Bandits sometimes stalk the road, but we don’t have much of value. His eyes shifted to Akuji, those clothes, though, are an eyesore. They might think you’re a mage or a rich lost noble.”

“What, aren’t these clothes normal?”

“Still doesn’t matter, I would be able to sense them before they sense us.”

The road they walked for the longest while was quiet but Akuji couldn’t get over how well done it was compared to the roads he had seen at the village. Further, he didn’t see any roads connecting the village to anything else almost like they didn’t exist.

Trailing Fowler’s back, a few carriages passed them on the road carrying what looked like fruits, meats, and a variety of products. Akuji was able to read some of them as they popped up, but others which he was unsure about were registered with question marks. The people on the road seemed quite friendly as they spoke when they passed, but Fowler had cautioned them about speaking and did the speaking for them.

Everyone was a potential enemy and you must see yourself as a potential victim in order to not take risks. Having an accent that wasn’t Ceventia made you far more likely to be targeted, to be kidn*pped, or to be robbed. These words stuck in Akuji’s head as they continued walking even Canta’s humming went down a notch when someone popped into view.

They would have to take Fowler at his word, Akuji didn’t know much about this world and he wouldn’t want to create or get them into danger, if he could avoid it. Still, the last carriage that passed them was filled with people smiling before they headed back into the woods. He wondered were they really that dangerous.

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Akuji swore his legs were growing muscles from the amount of walking that he did, they had to be right from the time they were in this forest. Again, Fowler’s paced had accelerated like he was immune to the shrubbery and bushes around them.

How many times had he watched the sunset and rise again to repeat this exercise over and over? They were now on a rest break seated by a river and on the other side were some old spider webs; they were huge. It made a shiver run down Akuji’s spine. Canta had gripped his arm from the time that they sat here, which was aching him now. The atmosphere here was different. There were no birds singing in the trees and he hadn’t seen an animal in two days. A disturbing whistling noise came from the trees as the leaves rattle in its wake. Moonlight’s behaviour had gotten erratic as he growled and stood in front of Canta; Fowler, however, remained calm. He had sat there looking through a  book that contained several drawings of plants and had not said a word. None of us had but for far different reasons. How were they going to eat if they couldn’t find any animals?

“Fowler?” Akuji called.

“One minute,” he said, his head still deep within the book.

There was silence before he spoke again.

“Done.”

He got up and handed the book to Canta from the glimpses I got it was a plant. She eased up off my shoulder as I took it in my hand.

“This is what we are looking for.”

“Fowler, who exactly is this girl to you?” Akuji asked.

Akuji’s question seemed to catch him off guard and he slumped back down onto the tree as if he had been given a deadly blow.

“It doesn’t make sense to me, you were supposed to bring in the wolf that killed the villager’s wife. You caught her and stopped and now your trying to cure her from being a werewolf. Your reactions at---.”

“Akuji stop!” Canta shouted, giving me a slight shove. “Can’t you see he is hurt and that whoever it may be its affecting him to such a degree. I don’t know the whole situation, but I can tell whoever or whatever it is. It means a lot to him.”

“It’s okay Canta,” Fowler said, “ I did take you here with me.” His eyes looked around and then above at the trees before he sighed deeply. “The wolf is not a wolf, she use to be with me together with some others when I was back in Ceventia. We both were very close and I ended up leaving and becoming a ranger. I no longer liked the life that we had, some things I saw first hand made me give it up. I knew it was her because I saw the transformation first hand. She doesn’t have control over it and I don’t know if she is aware or if she can even turn back. Knowing that there are people looking to put her down and the time to help her is waning, my reactions weren’t the best. I apologise Akuji, for leaving you in the dark when you both offered to help.”

“No, it’s no problem. I may have pushed too deep, but thanks for explaining that. I just wanted to know what was at stake.”

“It’s fine,” he  got up firm again. “Let’s go and don’t worry, I will protect you.”