Axcel: The World.

"And why isn't this forest safe?" Lorcan added, suddenly feeling Juniper clinging to his side at the comment. Her being there certainly didn't help. He didn't have any access to Hero's magic. Until someone handed him a sword, he was just as helpless as Juniper was. He couldn't even switch between forms to startle any possible threats.


The moment he heard the fear creep into Zech's voice, he began to nervously glance around the area they were. He noticed a moon out of the corner of his eye, and he stared up at it - and its dark backdrop - with growing horror. He had no fear of the night sky, but he knew woods tended to get more dangerous the later into the day it was.

"Oh, no, I'm- thank you." She sighed and leaned her head back against the tree, oblivious to the fear of the blonde boy. "Sorry, I'm just, having a bad day."

"There are...creatures that wouldn't hesitate to rip half your face off for a meal," Rose said, walking forward.
"Yeah. There's stories about people finding...ungodly things that vaguely look like they may have once been a Sentient," Ryder added. He trusted the others to follow.
"By the way, the Aetherborn are some really powerful beings that sort of exist and some people pray to them like Gods," he added, glancing back at the merfrog lady.
"Hey, what's that?" Rose asked, pointing at the tree with the note on.

"I'm having a bad day too," Maahes solemn said, momentarily breaking out of his terrified stupor to give an equally solemn nod in agreement.


"Oh," Juniper said, her voice jumping up an octave. "So this is like Minecraft, then? Like with creepers and zombies and bats-"

"Bats," Lorcan repeated.

"Bats," she confirmed. "Lots of them."

"You do realize how rude that is, don't you-"

"They're scary, alright!"

"You're talking to-"

"Vampires don't count, Lorcan!"

"For the last time, I'm not a vampire! And you know that!"

Zech sat on the ground and crossed his legs. He propped his chin on his hand and took a deep breath. "Agreed," he said. "I have the feeling it's not going to get any better."

Siren hopped over to the tree that Rose had pointed to, and looked all around the trunk. She pulled off the piece of paper, sniffed it, and stared at it, squinting fiercely.

"This paper," she said, very seriously, "has people words on it."

No. No, it was not going to get any better. Because if one were to take notice, the sun would be getting lower on the horizon. The sky would be scattered with shades of orange. Deep in the forest, something moved. Birds chirped and tweeted as they flew away. Something is coming toward Maahes, Zech, and Tamika.



Rose's ears twitched.
"This isn't the time to argue," she said to Juniper and Lorcan, with a firmness she hasn't used before.
"Can you read it?" she asks the merfrog.

"Nope." Siren said, blankly. She handed the note to Rose.

"It says the Artifact of Erel," Rose says, reading the paper.
"Is that what you guys have to look for?" Ryder asks, beginning to walk again. The birds flying up above have worried him.

Zech heard the rustling first. The sounds of birds flying away, followed by an eerie quietness, was just icing on the cake.

"Something's wrong," he stammered, getting to his feet. His fur stood on end as he looked between Maahes and the other person. "We've got to get out of here." He reached an arm out to the other person when he spotted her swollen ankle. Of course he hadn't done anything about it. "I can carry you if you can't walk?"

Tamika's eyes widened as she sensed the atmosphere. "N- no, I can walk myself-"

Stubbornly, she attempted to push herself off of the ground, grinding her teeth against the pain. With a little cry, her swollen ankle twisted underneath her and she once again crashed to the forest floor.

"Yes! Yes, please carry me!" She gasped, tears rising in her eyes.

"I think so," Juniper nervously confirmed, her grip on Lorcan growing tighter as they heard noises coming from all around them. There wasn't anything particularly threatening, but it was unnerving to hear them without knowing what their source was.

Lorcan took a deep breath. "I know this sounds a bit random," he said, looking at the group assembled, "but do any of you have a sword that I could use?"


It was one thing to be haunted by the owner of that scary, disembodied voice. It was another to be threatened by something that was a little more tangible - not much, but enough that he could figure out where it was coming from. So Maahes planted his feet right there in the ground and stared intently in the direction the thing had to be coming from. The goosebumps disappeared. Color began to gradually return to his face, and the fear was replaced by a calmness that hadn't been there before.

He had dealt with scary monsters from other worlds that had ended up in Vuphia before. This wasn't any different, even though he didn't know what the thing was.

Zech wasted no time in grabbing the newcomer by the arms and setting her on his back. He was prepared to run away when he turned around and saw Maahes staring into the forest in the direction of the noise. Maahes looked calm for once. Tranquil. Reposed. Strong.

"What are you doing?" Zech said. His heart felt like it was freezing up. He hadn't known Maahes for that long, but he had doubts that Maahes could fight whatever was coming their way. "We need to run! Now!"

"I'm waiting for it," he solemnly said. He wasn't even sure if the thing was scary - maybe it was friendly. But even if it was dangerous, he could deal with it. It wasn't like he was really Alteran; he was much different. He just looked the part.

Tamika held on tight to the tiger, trying not to pull his fur or choke him. She glanced back at the boy, who seemed to be preparing for a standoff between whatever was coming for them. It reminded her all too much of Sevy, and her heart gave a dull pang.

"Are you crazy? You're going to get yourself killed!" She yelled at him, using a line she regularly used on her companion.