The Immortal Mist

Ch. 6

Mana slumped against a building, staring at the ground.

He grit his teeth, clenching and unclenching his fists.

His antennae twitched as he heard footsteps, glancing up to see Vira walking up to him.
She looked concerned, ears flat against her head.
"Hey...Are...You alright? You've been a bit...Out of it lately."
She stammered, fidgeting nervously.

"I've just been thinking."
Mana replied plainly, pursing his lips.

"About what?"

"I think...I might know who sent the...Fox thing."

Vira's ears perked up at that, her eyes widening.
"You do?"

"I said I think. I don't know for certain."
Mana frowned.
"It's...Piro Softscale."

Vira tilted her head.
"Should I...Should I know who that is-?"

Mana shook his head.
"No. Only few insectoids still know him. He was an evil dark sorcerer who lived a hundred years ago. He was also...My great grandfather."

Vira's eyes widened.
"O-oh...And how do you know it's him?"

"When it attacked me, I felt his energy. I never met him-he died before I was born-but my father had a similar energy. This one was a lot stronger."
Mana sighed.
"There are rumors that he's still alive, that he faked his death, and...I'm starting to believe them."

Vira leaned against the wall next to him, eyes wide.
"That's...Quite a bit to take in..."

"I know. I...I'm going to go after him."
Mana decided, sucking in a breath.

"Then I'm going too. I'm not going to let you go alone."

Mana laughed at her response, gaze softening.
"Alright."

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They left at dawn the next morning, having prepared for the travel the previous night.
Mana lead them, going off of the energy the fox monster had left behind, Vira assisting him with her sensitive nose.

The trail lead them through a stretch of forest, cool and damp. Vira wasn't actually sure how the fox had even crossed through the forest, but it must have, since both of them picked up on it's trail.

"How is it even that wet down here? The canopy is so thick, you'd expect it to be dry."
Vira complained, shaking off the water clinging to her fur.

"Quit whining. At least you don't have to deal with all my fluff."
Mana argued, smiling softly at her.

"Well, just because my fur isn't as thick as yours, doesn't mean-"

Mana cut her off with a quiet shush, pushing a claw to her lips. They both froze, glancing around and scanning the underbrush.

Mana turned around slowly, antennae twitching.

For a moment, Vira was sure that it was nothing, that maybe Mana was trying to mess with her.
Until something began rustling in the bushes, alerting them of a presence.

A gloved hand reached through, shoving aside a thick branch to reveal Erin standing in the brush, leaves and twigs scattered on his hair and clothing. His injuries were an angry yellow, obviously not fully healed.

"Erin?"
Vira gasped, running over to him.
"How did you find us?"

"Honestly? I have no idea. I didn't expect to actually find you."
Erin confessed, glancing away.

"Why would you leave in your condition? It was very irresponsible."
Mana chastised him, crossing his arms.

"It's nearly healed. I was growing restless cooped up at the inn, can you really blame me?"

Mana held his gaze for a moment, before looking away.
"You're right. I can't criticize you, I'd do the same."
He shrugged.
"As you probably know, we've gone after that arsonist fox."

Erin nodded.
"I suspected as much. But you two can't go alone. Even with Vira's...Abilities, you two are hardly a match for it. No offense."

Vira frowned, flattening her ears.
"About that...I have no idea why it happened or how I can make it happen again. And physical attacks seem to do next to nothing on that thing."
She rubbed her arm nervously, flicking the tip of her tail.

"Well...That's what training is for, isn't it?"
Erin grinned, nudging her lightly.

Vira groaned, crossing her arms.
"And how do I train something I have no idea how to control?"

"We'll find a way."
Erin smirked.

Mana sighed, dropping his bag onto the ground.
"It's getting dark. It'd be best to set up camp here."

A/N - this is-- a very short chapter. There's only like three people who're reading at the moment but sorry lol I have writer's block and don't want it to go too fast qwq