Glass or Diamond: Fairy's Wish

Episode 41: The Master of the Demon Ash Plague

"T-... T... oa..." A young girl chokes out a nickname as tears run down her face. She can do nothing about her state of being, and the last name she can manage to say is that of her closest friend.

Behind the girl, seemingly floating in an abyssal fog, is a terrifyingly large and foreboding golden eye, piercing into the souls of all who fall under its gaze.

Presently, five are walking a path through a strange, fog-covered area in an even stranger oasis surrounded by death. Murtoa, the one whose thoughts provided the source of the apparitions, urged them to continue forward.

Lykha studies the face of the girl, who can't see her, as she's only a memory. He once said that he sees both of these images every day, especially when he closes his eyes, and he can draw both from memory with near-perfect realism. She can see why now.

The girl has a cuteness to her, being a very young teenager. According to Murtoa's story when he told it to them in the past, he and his friends, Hondolon and Shyar -the girl he couldn't help-, were conscripted into the army of the north to fight the southern army in open warfare. And, they were conscripted when they were mere children, training in a broad range of infantry warfare equipment and tactics in preparation for their first battles as preteens and teenagers.

The tragedy of that far-gone war aside, Murtoa has been haunted by the image of his biggest fear and his most painful loss for most of his life. Lykha's not sure how old he is, but she's fairly confident he's over twice his age at the time he faced the holgamoor.

Coco's thoughts mostly focus on Murtoa and their friends generating mostly happy imagery and embarrassing future aspirations of a girl who is otherwise crass and rough around the edges. Maerin's thoughts being given form by the strange fog seem to be a back and forth between ingredients she could be mixing for purpose, and steps she would need to take to improve her liquor brews, though occasionally, Vielall's voice tries to whisper her wish in the back of the inebriated fairy's mind.

Lykha's images revolve around her friends as well, but also her village, which is so close, and her anger towards Yanari, who is standing in the way of helping Murtoa. Or, rather, making it more difficult.

Gyrryth's thoughts, ironically, seem to be the most pure and quiet. He apparently recites a mantra in his mind that's in drakyk, and it sounds peaceful and focused.

Surprisingly, Murtoa's mind is the one most exposed. The creepy and intimidating gaze of a titanic monster beams down on them, never looking away, never relenting, and never getting easier to ignore.

Maerin remarks as she tries to face the opposite direction, "Did Ol' Holgamoor never blink? This is really creeping me out."

Mury replies as Gyrryth carries him, "Sorry..."

Lykha hovers close, saying, "It's okay, Mury! It's just..." She looks at the eye, and then at Shyar again. "I..." She fidgets with her hands, murmuring softly, "I guess... she was... really important to you, wasn't she? L-Like..."

He replies softly, "Yeah..."

The young fairy adds tenderly, "I'm sorry..."

"It's fine. I'm used to it."

Coco grumbles, "The whole rock betta no' be like this. How'm I s'posed to sleep with tha'?"

"...human..." grumbles a deep voice, and the girls flinch. It's not the first time, at this point, but it doesn't get easier. Lykha asks, "What is that? Whose thought is that?"

Murtoa replies, "Mine... Sorry. Just a voice buried in my memories. I'm trying..."

Gyrryth offers his wisdom to the human warrior, "I find reciting the Nineteen Proverbs of the Bones can help keep the mind clear."