To Fight Against Fate

Arnold and Mr. Ordan would be staying in the village while the rest of them traveled up river, as neither of the old men were physically fit enough to safely throw themselves into danger. However, Arnold had dragged a small device out of his luggage when he heard what the plan was. It was a smooth, flat rock the size of a thumb that helped repel water, which he gave to Illnyea.

"I usually use that to keep my workspace clean," Arnold said, crossing his arms, "but it might do you some good in a fight against things made of water."

Illnyea looked touched as she turned it over in her hands. "How do I activate it?"

"It does it automatically, kid," Arnold said, nodding towards Illnyea's sleeve. The wet edge was growing steadily dryer as she held the stone, the water being pushed up and out of the fabric and falling onto the floor in fat drops.

Illnyea watched it with fascination before saying, "Thank you, Mr. Arnold."

Arnold made a face at being called Mister, but Mr. Ordan had finally found the oil he was looking for within his pack and he let out a small sound of triumph. He then demanded Priscilla and her friends to hand over their boots and quickly got to work. When applied properly, the oil made leather boots water resistant, which was probably going to be quite useful as they trekked up into the wilderness.

It didn't take long for them to finish up their preparations once Mr. Ordan declared their boots ready. Priscilla hesitated as she glanced at Perry, who had been sitting quietly on the bed next to Illnyea without moving. She didn't even know if the little guy was breathing, he was so still.

Mr. Ordan caught Priscilla's gaze and smiled warmly.

"I'll watch over the little one," Mr. Ordan said, scooping up the surprised platypus. He cradled Perry within the crook of his elbow, rocking gently like the platypus was a baby.

"Thank you," Illnyea said, a smile so bright that the half-hearted excuses to take Perry with them died on Priscilla's tongue. Priscilla shrugged at the platypus, who looked mildly displeased at his new squished position, but she wasn't going to tell Illnyea to take the seemingly innocent and weak creature into danger. Perry didn't try to free himself, so Priscilla supposed he didn't care that much.

Florent did provide a small snack for them to eat before they left, and a portable meal for later, fretting that he couldn't do anything more. His army of adopted nieces and nephews had returned, ferrying things about for him with barely controlled chaos. There was a lightness to the teens' and children's steps now, and Priscilla caught more than one staring at her party with poorly concealed hope. Her stomach twisted guiltily, and she looked away.

Ferine had returned with a more detailed map of the area along with Illnyea's weapons, showing them their route as they ate.

"Look for the blackberry brambles," she said, gesturing to a spot that was mostly squiggles on the paper, "and you'll know that you're close to the head."

Sulaiman nodded, eventually taking the map and tucking into the single pack they were traveling with. They didn't want to be weighed down unduly by anything that wasn't their weapons, so inside was two blankets to share for when it was dark and enough food to last them until they returned. Sulaiman had his sword strapped to his side and his shield already on his arm, the expression on his face implying he was ready for an attack at any time.

Kavil had opted to forgo the hook and the crossbow, as neither would be useful against water, instead arming himself with a shovel and his pouch of herbs in case anyone was injured, strapping his rarely used buckler to his arm. Illnyea took her weapons from Ferine with a stern expression, cleaning the sword's blade solemnly, and she looked ready to give the water monsters a piece of her mind as she strapped in her last dagger into her sheath.

Priscilla just had her armor, bat, and dagger. While the sword probably couldn't be ripped from her hand if she was holding it with Asha, she still wasn't confident in using it, and it had been a joint decision between her and Sulaiman to leave it behind.

Geared up, they warily walked over a small bridge across the river and began to trek into the forest beyond.

It was quiet as they walked, save for the sound of their breathing and the occasional twig snapping beneath their feet. The silence was off-putting and eerie, as it was devoid of birds' lilting songs and the casual buzzing of insects. It was like the forest had been stripped of all life and it set Priscilla's nerves on end. Each time Priscilla was wound up so tight she thought she might snap, Asha sent a soothing wave of reassurance over Priscilla's soul, letting the knot in Priscilla's shoulders loosen enough to breathe.

The energy between them was tense as everyone kept up their guard, none wanting to give the water monsters the opportunity to ambush them. They were traveling parallel to the river, roughly thirty feet away so they'd be able to see any attack that was launched at them, but even that didn't provide much comfort.

Nearly three hours of unnatural silence had passed before the enemy attacked.

Asha squeezed Priscilla's han, twisting her fingers forward.

"There's something ahead of us," Priscilla whispered and everyone immediately stilled, readying their weapons. Kavil shifted towards the back, as no one particularly wanted the healer to be putting himself in the line of fire if he didn't have to.

For a moment, the silence lingered, and then the sound of branches snapping and something barreling through the leaves echoed through the empty forest.

A giant black bear off all things burst through the woods ahead of them, standing nearly four feet tall at the shoulder.

The bear was charging straight towards Illnyea, its maw opened in a silent promise of death, but Sulaiman interposed himself between them with his shield raised high. He let out a grunt as the bear crashed into it, but he held firm, and then Illnyea darted forward to slash at the bear's exposed flank. Her sword carved easily through the fur, and a watery sort of blood leaked out of the wound.

Priscilla swung her bat at the bear's shoulder, hoping that she might ruin the bear's mobility or show that they weren't going to be easy prey. There was a crack underneath the weapon as the bat shook from the impact.

But the bear seemed unphased, pushing heavily against Sulaiman's shield before lumbering backwards to put some distance between them.

Each step the bear took, there was a crunching sound from its shoulder that made Priscilla's skin prickle with discomfort. Even though the bones were clearly grinding against each other within its body, the cadence of the bear's steps didn't falter, each paw landing heavily against the ground.

There was something wrong with this creature – something off about the vacant gaze it fixed on Sulaiman now, its lips were peeled back in a silent snarl to reveal its teeth.

The bear lunged forward again, this time attempting to use its bulk to its advantage when it slammed into Sulaiman. There was a prickle of magic as Sulaiman reinforced his body, putting his entire weight behind the shield, his legs straining as he fought to keep his footing.

For a moment they were evenly matched, and then Priscilla and Illnyea both darted forward. Illnyea's sword was blinding as it sang through the air, slicing deep into the bear's neck while Priscilla's bat hit it firmly in the ribs.

Again, the bear didn't react to its wounds except to push away from Sulaiman, bones crunching with each movement. Its head twitched in jerking movements, like its neck was no longer listening to it, and the bear's vacant gaze swept across their party.

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The moment it picked its next victim, Priscilla muttered, "Motherfucker got a death wish," and darted so she stood between the bear and Kavil.

The bear thundered towards Kavil, but it didn't make it very far – it seemed Sulaiman had similar thoughts to Priscilla, his lips pulled back in a snarl of his own as his sword ignited, swinging down with force.

Sulaiman's blade hit true, finding the cut Illnyea had made and going deeper, cutting cleanly through the neck and cauterizing the wound.

The bear's head hit the ground with a wet thud, exposing its spinal cord and muscles as the same thin blood slowly oozed past the burnt flesh.

But despite it now missing its head, the bear's paws kept thundering forward, on track to collide with Priscilla. Sulaiman watched in mute horror, his momentum carrying behind the headless bear.

Priscilla swung her bat, hitting the spinal cord straight on with another loud snap.

The headless bear stiffened and Illnyea sprung forward to stab it deep in the chest, her face a mixture of disgust and shock as the beast shook her off to stumble out of their reach with the sword still embedded in its body.

"It feels like water," Kavil said, sounding confused and horrified, "like, like only water – I, I don't think it's alive."

The stump of a neck let out a wet gurgle that made Priscilla want to dry heave, but she forced away the disgust as she tightened her grip on the bat.

"Any chance you could control it?" Priscilla asked as Illnyea took out a pair of daggers, staring at the beast warily.

"I can try," Kavil said, though he didn't sound confident. He began to chant something under his breath, holding out his hand towards the bear.

Priscilla's mind raced as Sulaiman traded blows with the bear, slicing deeply through its back leg, nearly severing the muscle and crippling it, not that the bear seemed to mind. She had to figure out what the fuck this abomination was because it seemed like it was going to keep fighting them until it was literally cut into pieces, and they didn't have time to waste and energy to waste on fighting or risk getting injured.

If the bear felt like water instead of a living creature, then it had to be related to the water monsters and if it was, then surely there must be some sort of physical connection if this was a dead body being puppeted like Priscilla suspected.

Illnyea let out a growl while she kicked the leg weakened by Sulaiman as Priscilla searched the ground frantically. Where was the fucking tether?

The tether had to be here, because if it was being remotely controlled, they were straight fucked.

The bear's attempt to claw Sulaiman came to an abrupt halt and Kavil let out a small sigh of triumph, but then the bear shuddered, ripping free of Kavil's control, claws scraping against Sulaiman's shield instead of his exposed side.

A strangely wet glint amongst the grass caught Priscilla's eye, and she held her breath as she followed its path – it was an unbroken line of water from the bear's paw that headed straight towards the river.

"Sulaiman!" Priscilla yelled as she darted towards the tributary of water, eyes locked onto it to make sure she didn't lose it.

Sulaiman's head snapped towards her immediately.

Priscilla slammed her bat into the ground, right next to the tether.

"Burn from here," Priscilla ordered, gesturing with her bat to cover a wide area to ensure the stupid fucking tether was destroyed, "to here!"

Illnyea darted forward to distract the bear as Sulaiman simply raised a hand towards where Priscilla indicated. Priscilla's calves and feet ached as fire sparked to life at her feet, greedily devouring the grass despite the wetness that pervaded the area.

The bear jerked to a halt, the stump of a neck turning towards Priscilla.

"We're coming for you, you watery fuck," Priscilla said, baring her teeth in provocation.

The fire burned faster and faster, burning farther than Priscilla had indicated, and finally the tether was fully broken as steam curled into the air.

The headless bear abruptly collapsed, the watery blood now gushing out of it, soaking into the ground and immediately turning it into mud. It was like the body was being rapidly dehydrated, the skin growing dry as the broken limbs began to curl in on itself like when a spider died.

At least it doesn't smell, Priscilla thought to herself as she wiped away sweat from her forehead. The air smelt slightly like copper, but it appeared the bear hadn't been allowed to decay as it was possessed. She watched the end of the watery tether ooze back towards the river, and kept an eye on it to make sure it didn't try to attack them.

"That's disgusting," Kavil said, snarling his nose as he looked at the corpse, squatting to get a better look at it. He lifted a loose section of skin and let out a disgusted noise before letting it fall back down. "It's hollowed out inside, no muscles or organs to speak of, like it was just a meat puppet."

"Permission to vomit?" Illnyea asked, looking queasy.

"Denied," Sulaiman said flatly, wiping his blade on the grass. Illnyea sighed, but looked away from the bear.

"What'd you have Sulaiman destroy, Priscilla?" Illnyea asked, as if desperate to focus on anything else.

"A tether, I think," Priscilla said, satisfied that the water wasn't going to attack them now that the tether was half-way back to the river and looked towards her friends again. "I figured that it was being controlled by the water monsters somehow based on what Kavil said, so I was hoping if the tether was destroyed, it'd stop fighting us."

Sulaiman looked impressed by her logic, staring at Priscilla with an odd expression, but Priscilla refrained from calling out his surprise that she had more than two brain cells to rub together as she was extremely mature.

"So we're not just dealing with monsters made of water," Illnyea said, her voice flat and unhappy, "we're also dealing with probably a whole forest worth of possessed animals on top of that."

Priscilla winced but nodded. "I haven't seen a single animal since we came here, not even a squirrel."

"It only changes our strategy slightly," Sulaiman said, his face thoughtful. "I will take on the possessed creatures since I will be able to deal with their tethers most effectively, Illnyea and Priscilla will take on the water monsters, and Kavil will attempt to bend the water to his will."

Kavil looked apprehensive. "I was barely able to stop the bear from doing anything, so I don't think I'm actually going to be that much help."

"Even stopping it for a moment can be the difference between life or death," Illnyea said, the fear in her eyes disappearing as she whirled around on Kavil, "so stop sounding so hesitant! If you think you're going to fail, then you will!"

Kavil was taken aback by Illnyea fierce positivity, blinking and leaning back as Illnyea poked a finger into his chest.

"Tell me that you're going to be useful," Illnyea said sternly, "and you won't fail."

"I'm going to be useful," Kavil repeated, though his voice was weak, "and I won't fail."

"You have to sound more confident than that, Kavil," Priscilla said, smiling as Kavil shot her a brief, betrayed glare, like he couldn't believe she took Illnyea's side.

Illnyea nodded firmly, saying, "Say it again."

Kavil looked towards Sulaiman for help, but Sulaiman just said stoically, "It's best to do as she says, or you'll never hear the end of it."

Completely outnumbered, Kavil sighed heavily, closing his eyes briefly like he was summoning the dregs of his patience. He took a deep breath, and then opened his eyes and said, much louder this time, "I'm going to be useful and I won't fail."

Illnyea eyed Kavil, but looked satisfied as she stepped back.

"You really should believe in yourself more, Kavil," Illnyea said, "and if it gets hard to do so, you can just believe in me because I believe in you no matter what."

A shy smile that stole across Kavil's face as Illnyea turned around, the sort of smile that made Priscilla's heart momentarily melt because it was adorable, but she pushed away those feelings because it was a distraction she didn't need.

"We probably should get going," Priscilla said, glancing up at the sky, "just in case the watery bastards decide to strike again."

They encountered no more resistance for the rest of the day, and they made camp in between two large oaks. The slope of the path had steadily increased as they walked, and Priscilla's calf muscles were glad to finally have a moment to rest. Dinner wasn't bad, as Florent was a decent cook, though the sandwiches were slightly squished from the battle.

As Priscilla settled in to sleep, as she had the third watch, she sent off a small prayer, as the talk with Answe had her mind drifting towards the divine.

Yo, god of cowards, I'm about to go risk my life against an unknown monster, so if you could send some blessings my way, that would be real fucking cool because I don't want to die. If I do end up dying, I can guarantee you I'm going to haunt you for the rest of my life, spreading the tale of the mighty god of cowards who let their most devoted believer die because they were too goddamned lazy to get off their ass and help.

Punches and kisses from your favorite mortal, Priscilla.

There was a rumble of amusement in her bond with Asha, like the artifact had heard her prayer, and Priscilla fell asleep with a smile.