---

Amaya

---

She'd ventured through two of them at this point, having been met with various and unsettling situations and imagery that left her either speechless or concerned for her life.

Two caves.

It was early morning, and after her standard ritual of breakfast, a lap around the territory, and a solemn prayer to the Five, she found herself drawn once again to the eerie green glow of the unknown. Valeska stood at its foreboding entrance, squinting into the murky depths as she puzzled over whatever purpose these great caverns were meant to serve.

Houtu had protected her so far.

She must know.

Valeska huffed, steeled herself, and trotted inside for the final time.

In a matter of seconds, the walls of the cave had shifted entirely and the High Priestess found herself presented with a vast lake stretching nearly a mile across, showing no other way to the other side apart from swimming its length.

She frowned.

Fool me once, she said warily, Shame upon you. Fool me twice, shame upon me.

The water seemed to burble in response.

If I must.

Skill: 「 - 」

---

Amaya had ended up within the cave, though she wasn’t entirely sure how that had come to pass. Her mouth had been filled to the brim with small, carefully cleaned bones. Something was coaxing the shadow to draw further and further into its depths, soon enough she could see nothing but pitch black.

The gremlin blinked her eyes unevenly, one and then the next, a moment later. The blinking intensified, squeezing an eye shut with brute force, as if it would kick start the ability to see. Still, nothing helped.

This wasn’t just darkness, it was advanced darkness.

The little eldritch horror was oblivious to what was to come. Unaware of her mother, unaware of the water.

There were subtle, muffled sounds reverberating off the walls: gurgling, drops of drool hitting the stone, and soon the clattering of bones as she opened her mouth and screeched like a coyote into the nothingness.

Surely, something would answer.

Standing at the water's edge, Valeska sighed. The cave had been clever this time. There wasn't a single inch of land around the lake as water lapped mockingly against high, sheer-rock walls on every side, save for where the she-wolf now stood and the promising other end of it.

She was deep in the throes of contemplation as she pondered her next move, of which there were only two options: take the shorter route plunging straight ahead and swimming like her life depended on it for the better part of a mile, or stick to what she presumed to be the shallower, safer outer edges and take twice as long. Gods only knew what lurked beneath the surface farther out, but...

A harrowing half-wail of the damned pierced through the veil of silence, sending an electric jolt up her spine that just as quickly abated as she recognized it to be her daughter's voice from somewhere far behind.

Amaya!

My dearest! she called out affectionately into the void, Come, I am straight ahead.

Valeska turned to face from whence she came, squinting into the darkness as she struggled to parse Amaya's figure from the rest of the pitch-black - a foolish endeavor.

What are you doing here? she asked, taking on a stern, motherly tone. You should be more careful than to stick your nose in cursed holes in the ground.

Typical teenager.

Skill: 「 - 」

---

My dearest! Come, I am straight ahead.

To be fair, it should have been easy to tell who it was, based on the voice and of course the familiar scent trail she was now picking up. But, the gremlin was still not convinced it was her mother. Was it The Five? Were They calling to her, using a voice she was so accustomed to hearing? Why else would the cave have been so dark, if not to conceal their appearance?

It took little-to-no convincing for the shadow to gather what few bones she could find in the darkness and make her way towards the beckoning. The voice came again, their face(s) still unable to be seen. What was she doing here? She should be more careful than to stick her nose in cursed holes in the ground?

Her bones were set against her feet, a choice to make them easier to find. Are you… not here… too? clearly her “mother” (or The Five) were standing within the cursed hole in the ground too.

Something dark and foul slithered out of the darkness ahead, and Valeska knew it to be her child. Amaya's acrid stench heralded her arrival well before she herself appeared; it was unmistakable, and remained a point of contention for the much tidier she-wolf. How unfortunate the girl had inherited Amaranth's aversion to water - and taken it to a far greater extreme.

The pitch-furred adolescent croaked out a protest, thoughtfully drawing her mother's attention to her own presence in the cursed hole-in-the-ground. Her nose wrinkled.

I am your mother, she said matter-of-factly, And I am on an holy mission to divine the purpose of these caves.

Shifting her gaze out toward the expansive lake, Valeska frowned.

The Five call for us to reach the other side.

She looked back toward her daughter. Amaya blinked back at her, eyes oddly out of sync as they seemed to operate independently of each other, one eyelid closing at a time. It was almost lizard-like.

The way back is closed, Valeska continued. Are you prepared to do what must be done?

Would this be it? Would this be the day? Would her child at last touch liquid that was not from a stinking tar pit?

Far removed from this plane of existence, somewhere out amongst the vast starry skies drifting beyond galaxies immeasurable, Houtu shuddered.

Skill: 「 - 」

---

Her mother, the voice claimed with certainty. Gradually, a small light managed to make the area more digestible to her eyes. A plump, silver figure stating that she was on a holy mission. Valeska’s words began to fall on deaf ears as the shadow finally noticed what was now surrounding them. Water. Everywhere. Even the path she had just walked, was now well beneath the mysterious lake.

Amaya zoned back in as she caught the final words; was she prepared? Prepared for what must be done? Ominously bright amethyst eyes flickered between her mother, the high priestess, and the liquid. Did she mean to swim? To submerge into water that did not contain the slime of seaweed nor the stench of fish and salt? It smelled… off, and undesirable. Sort of like lavender and honeysuckle? Why would the water smell like such a thing? How could it smell such a way? It wasn’t as if the flowers could flourish within a lake, they wouldn’t even survive the cave— so just… how?

The gremlin froze, panic rising. No. No. Nonononono. The bones. Yes! The bones! They were all knowing, they would tell her what to do and where to go. Surely there was another way, there had to be, she was certain.

In a frantic jerk, Amaya flung the bones across the stone, her ears pressed forward as if anticipating a whispered voice to answer. Owlishly large eyes only widened unnaturally more. The bones… they… they were silent. They refrained from saying anything at all, a thing they had never done. Had— Had they abandoned her? Why…? No. What was happening? None of it made sense? Why did they not speak? Why did they not share their answers to her questions? Was this divine punishment? Were the Five serving her a penance? What? Why would they—

The witch.

The witch of the north, the one they had failed to kill thus far. Amaya was now facing atonement for their wrong doing, for their failure of their promise. She was broken, for Amaya could no longer read the bones and was forced to face a sea of sweetly scented waters.

Maybe, just maybe, she will die here.

It was with a healthy curiosity and cheerful patience Valeska observed her daughter gathering up and flinging out a cluster of bones before her. An aura of excitement buzzed about the girl as they clattered noisily against the stone, something the High Priestess mistook for vibrant enthusiasm toward facing the test that lay ahead.

The lake glimmered faintly in the darkness, illuminated by whatever mysterious light source lent its power.

It smelled positively delightful.

Alright, my dear; put your toys away, she said cheerfully, moving to Amaya's side with frightening speed. Her paws hardly seemed to lift off the ground, but suddenly she was there, lips positioned close to the girl's ear as her warm breath rustled the delicate hair within. It is time.

Although the pair were of a similar height - neither was particularly gifted with the long, graceful limbs Amaranth sported - Valeska was a great deal more squat, thick with muscle and a particular plumpness that spoke of many late-night snacks wolfed in secret.

By contrast, Amaya was a leaf in the wind.

Valeska lifted a paw and gave her a merry whallop across the rump.

Amaranth fears the water, she said, But you are of my blood, and Harper is an excellent swimmer. Now: straight across, or would you prefer to circle the edge?

Skill: 「 - 」

---

The Five have abandoned her, it was as simple as that.

Amaya stood stranded, entirely trapped by a floral smelling body of water with traces of steam gradually floating from its surface. Were they going to be boiled alive, perhaps? What type of punishment was this, and what had they done to deserve such wrath? The gremlin stood rigidly, her mother coming to thwack a stubby paw at her matted haunches. Valeska spoke of her mother, Amaranth, fearing the water. But, Amaya was given both genes, and apparently that meant she was built to be aquatic to some degree.

The Shadow stood still, her lips twitching, revealing yellowed teeth at the odd waters. Something did not feel right, as if this was some sort of omen and they would be swimming to their deaths. Amaya took a step back, one eye blinking as the steam continued to waft about the cavern. A subtle rumble made the bone reader glance around, her other eye finally blinking. Did the wall just move?

Stone pressed against her hind legs, gradually sliding her closer and closer to the boiling water of death. She was going to die. This was it, wasn’t it? A screech echoed out, shrill and blood curdling. The water was only inches away.

And then…

It was…

here.

Another yowl as her paws splashed into a shallow section of water, high pitched and manic, as if she was, in fact, boiling alive. Though, it was only warm — warm enough to gradually begin to unknot the clumps between her toes.

What was happening?

Mistaking her daughter's distress for cries of barely-restrained enthusiasm, Valeska's tail wagged cheerfully as Amaya tried to take a step backward and was instead met with the comforting pressure of stone. It had absolutely moved. It was helping! Pushing them along toward the right path, reassuring them that this was, in fact, divine providence at work - and providence had provided them a most luxurious bath in the process.

Valeska's nostrils flared as she inhaled the sweet scent that stretched before them.

I know, she said jubilantly in response to Amaya's howl, I also cannot wait!

It was with great vigor and a horrible splashing that the silver wolf plunged into the water, likely spraying her cowering daughter in the process. She paddled around in a few tight circles, breathing a relieved sigh as she felt the warmth of the lake seeping into her tired, middle-aged bones. Her muscles felt soothed already, as if soaked in an Epsom salt bath, if she'd ever known what that was.

Perhaps this cave was a good one.

It is lovely, she said, beckoning Amaya to join her.

Come! Do not prolong your joyful anticipation!

Valeska playfully sent a large splash of water toward the girl, completely unaware of the hell she was so flippantly unleashing upon her.

Skill: 「 - 」

---

Amaya’s heart was pounding too loudly in her ears for her to hear her mother’s jovial words of mirth and assurance. At least one of them was having a good time. In a matter of seconds, the gremlin had gone from the safety of land to the unyielding bath of horrors. Her mother splashed as she took to the liquid like any other aquatic creature would — did she have webbed toes, as well? Now was not the time to wonder, as shrieking, banshee like screeches rang out like nails on a chalkboard.

The water was clear, fictionally clear, as if it wasn’t even there, but, sadly it was. The longer she stood there, the more oil-like residue began to be sucked from her fur, dissipating in the sickeningly sweet waters. The shallow ground she stood on shifted, causing her to freeze, every muscle in her body tensing, even her heart seemed to stop.

No.

Oh… no…

The stone beneath her feet crumbled, taking away whatever life ring she had left. No more was their sanctuary, no more sanctity, no more… no more….

A gasp escaped as she filled her lungs with aroma filled air, preventing the water from filling them. Gradually, Amaya began to sink. The rigidity never fading away. In terror, the Eclipse watched as the clear waters darkened as it washed away a year and a half of hardly earned grime and gunk. Her lungs screamed, begging for respite. Instinctively, and without a shred of grace, her legs moved.

The shadow rose to the surface, her limbs desperate as they made unnatural and wild movements to stay afloat. The moment she broke the surface, another yowl escaped her, as if she was being flayed alive.

Amaya knew not where her mother was, she was too focused on escaping the Hell that was The Liquid. With vigor, her legs moved as if she were sprinting on dry land, her small frame bobbing up and down unsteadily as she slowly began to reach the other side.

Land. Dry land. Dirt. She needed it as badly as she needed food or air. Akin to a dead fish, Amaya flopped on her side, wide, amethyst eyes unblinking as she stared towards the steamy waters that tried to claim her life. Valeska was still there, wading the waters, her plump build likely helping with buoyancy.

While laying there, it was a foreleg in her peripherals that startled her to her feet. It was not the rich darkness of night, it was pale and almost… shiny? Frantically, the bone reader spun in circles, attempting to look at every inch of her body. No.

No.

Nonononono.

What was happening?

Was the liquid hell of death not enough?

Black, greasy fur was now a flawlessly pristine palette of champagne and silver — if her brother was the Moon and her sister the Sun, then she was the Star, painted in its gentle light. The girl’s mats were gone, in their place lay glossy tendrils the color of star dust and rays of light only worthy of the heavens. Her new, ethereal looks could have even rivaled Violet’s with how radiant she glowed.

The Five saw death as too merciful, it seemed, and had given her an even worse punishment.

She would plead for death, if need be.