"'And the heroes marched deeper into the woods, tracking down the large monster from before whilst tossing about ideas for their special attacks, which the influence of Spring bequeathed unto them through their leader Maria Wolfe, for whom they had no title but Alpha.'" a yawn broke the silence that followed the stilled pen's scratches after it was laid down, and the writer leaned back in her chair, stretching her arms as she tipped the chair to balance on it's back legs, straightaway she tipped too far and rolled off the collapsed chair, "Ouch! Forget it, writing mood's dead now!"
She turned around and stood over her desk, watching the several floating squares, each a window into another side of the world, "'One thread of fate was wound taut, manipulated by another, yet with a snap it fell limp, the binding-'" she started and searched her desk frantically, then found her pen on the floor, on the other side of the chair, and after retrieving it she brought it back down to the paper, but stopped short and reached for a blank sheet.
She began dictating the words as she put them to paper, "'the binding thread between the two differently patterned fabrics thus severed, it no longer exists as one entity, but'...this is trash! Ugh...'no longer exists as one entity, but as two'...sure they do, Re, you just keep on telling that to yourself! Oh, okay, 'but as two, the past and present, one self freed of the other...yet as itself, can it long be withheld from the other side, or will the severed thread come around to it's beginning, and bind past and further, forgotten past together, remembering and attaching itself to it's point of origin? What is the finished material to be on this spindle of time?"
She stepped back and danced for a few moments, "Ah, I did it, I put down yet another significant moment in history, plus commentary from the author!" she touched a square and it took up the entire space, from it she watched the city's king sitting upon his throne, "Meanwhile trouble brewed across the ocean, in the city! Oh...of...Bad Bullion! So named by the author for it's own story, for it was made from the wicked coffers of King Remulus, and so it was that his own bullion was used to build the city, and was cycled back to him again through shady connections."
She stretched her arms and waved at the image, after it vanished she turned to her vast library and pulled out a book she had contemplated on reading for a while, "Been a while since I visited this chapter of my life, when I met the ancient warrior who felled a thousand ghouls with his summoned monsters, ending it all by stopping the man behind the fusion of fanged spirits and animals, what was his name? Wizard something something...maybe I put down enough of his history in here somewhere."
She started reading less as she remembered more vividly until she was staring at the wall ahead of her, immersed in her memories, "Back in those days, Animen weren't rare to see, they were recognized as gifted warriors, and then...they vanished, the influence of the Wilds faded as machines were created to sap the power right out of the ground, but that was the place...where everyone wanted to be."
She closed the book and wandered her room, which was large enough to serve the purpose of what few rooms she needed, including a rarely used door, but she had no need of it at the moment, she could see what she needed from the comfort of her rarely visited, multicolored home.
She made some tea and sat down, her role as the spirit of history was important, the humans would forget what happened not even centuries ago, but she could remember it all, and would be sure to write for those who would learn of the past mistakes.
"Odd how so many things happen that have happened before...almost feels like I've written everything, but then, there's always one actor that forces the others into improvisation, and from there...things start to get interesting." she took a slow sip and leaned back, "With Spring awakened, and now acting as a Guardian Angel for Maria, it's only a matter of time until someone decides it's time to strike out against the Company...just a matter of time before the seasons are rescued and brought together, meanwhile, the Refractory Construct...stands empty."
Maria turned behind her as she heard a growl, but Kokoso's sheepish smile told her it wasn't the monster, just someone who had gotten hungry, "Alright, lunchtime, then."
"I don't think we'll get back before dinner." Byrd sighed.
"Yeah, well," Spring sat down and looked up at the trees expectantly, "that was if everything turned out like I expected, but I wasn't expecting all that."
"We can worry about getting home later," Kokoso pulled out the basket of food that had been stored in the large pack, and pulled out a sandwich, "right now we're starved, right?"
"Right." Maria agreed, concerned about the monster interrupting their meal.
Lunch passed uneventfully and the band wandered after Spring, who had darted silently ahead and readied her lance, "I hear a river, we're close."
Suddenly the monster crashed through the trees, a little larger than it was last time, and sprang out at the group. Cathryn charged ahead and swung her axe up as she had the first time, but before the hit connected the monster vanished.
"Did anyone else notice how strange it was that time?" Byrd asked wearily.
"Did you see those feet?" Kokoso laughed, impressed and amused.
"You don't think-" Spring turned her eyes to Kokoso, who shrugged, "well, if that is a sasquatch...look out!" she tossed her lance at a shadow on the ground, and it slid away before the weapon struck the ground, from it, the beast emerged with a howl and swung it's claws at Maria, who grasped it's claws with her own.
"I got it!" Maria cried, the screamed as the monster swung it's arms back, "I don't got it!"
"Stop swinging her around," Spring demanded, "I know one of the three of you is in there!"
Kokoso slashed his blade at the monster's shoulder and it stopped shaking Maria, "Hey, see if this is one of the seasons!"
Maria opened her eyes and stared at the dark eyes of the monster holding her, "I-I see orange...is this Autumn?"
"Possibly, I remember her element was earth." Spring lifted Maria up and pulled her away from the monster, who was staring curiously at her.
"Okay, you took away her doll," Kokoso shook his head, "now it's on, I know from my siblings that you do not take a kid's doll."
"Don't-" Maria covered her mouth and swallowed, "don't let her grab you, I still haven't found my balance."
"Oh, yeah, that's Autumn," Spring confirmed, "she has this awesome attack where the ground spins under you and...she loves that attack."
"You guys go on ahead, I'll be fine!" Maria pointed at the monster and leaned against a tree, "Charge!"
"I'll stay between you and her," Noel volunteered, "still don't know how my weapon's array works yet, the user manual says it's functioning."
Cathryn blocked with her axe, while Byrd stabbed at the claws of the hairy beast, which only served to enrage it, "Kokoso, you ready yet?" Byrd yelled.
"First, I'd just like to say," Kokoso panted, drawing his sword and walking along the narrow limb, "that bunnies do not belong in trees! And second, almost...okay, everyone hit the ground!" Kokoso stabbed his blade into the thin branch, which fell in an arch against the monster's head. It looked up and angrily tugged at the branch.
Kokoso watched as Byrd leaped into the air, he flew back and then fell forward, "Falcon's Dive!"
"Lion's Swipe!" Cathryn yelled swinging the axe into the monster's shoulder.
"Lion, falcon?" Kokoso laughed from above.
"Thought you said bunnies didn't belong in trees!" Byrd challenged.
"Oh, we don't." Kokoso hopped down and bounced off the monster's head, "Dashing Draw!" he swiftly turned around and sent the monster rolling backwards as he drew his blade.
"Dashing?" Byrd and Cathryn asked in unison.
"Well, it might not be obvious, but my Animen type is a rabbit...actual rabbits, fun fact, are not carnivorous." Kokoso sheathed his blade while the other two ran with Spring to attack the fallen monster.
"Okay, guys, I'm ready," Maria stepped away from the tree and ran towards the large monkey, claws bent as she pounced forward, "Wolfe Lunge!"
The monster howled furiously after Maria's strike knocked her down, and several softer roars answered back, "Um," Kokoso looked around worriedly, "what was that...a bunch of bears?"
"I think we should attack with fire," Maria sighed, "but we can't burn down the woods."
"Ice will at least slow them down," Kokoso held the hilt of his blade and took a breath, "they do hibernate, after all."
"There!" Byrd yelled charging forward with his spear.
"They're everywhere!" Spring observed.
"There's no retreating from this fight." Noel stepped alongside Maria and looked up at her, "Be very careful."
"Don't worry, we had four wolves that had a reddish glow, just like how these bears look." Maria ran up the one of the bears and leaped over it as it swiped at her, landing between three of them, "Wolfe Whirlwind!"
"Look out!" Noel ran up to the bear Maria landed behind and pulled her arm back, "Titan's Wrath!"
Maria turned around and lifted her claws to block a strike from a bear that had charged at her, but the one behind her suddenly fell in it's path, she turned to find an alarmed Noel staring ahead of her, fist outstretched and covered in yellow sparks, "Noel?"1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOufXeOJlIe
Noel stared at her arm and relaxed it, "We're not done yet."
Maria nodded silently and took a few swipes at the bear monsters around her, turning and ducking and clawing until she backed away to give her arms a break.
"Tough, huh?" Byrd remarked, "I wonder if how much easier they are when their normal."
"Probably way easier." Kokoso panted as he defeated his bear. He turned to find the others exhausted, but the others had finally beaten there's as well.
"The river is near, we'll follow it to the waterfall." Spring put away her lance and proceeded to lead the others through the woods.
When they arrived at the falls, the heroes were presented with a white haired monster. Maria stepped forward and met it's gaze, "It's changed again."
"Okay, so now we've got a yeti, is that it?" Byrd inquired, "No more changing?"
"I think that's it," Cathryn said as they followed Maria, "just like how Spring eventually became a phoenix and stayed that way...but she still changed after exploding."
"I exploded? Wow, phoenix me must have been desperate." Spring laughed.
"Why isn't she charging at us?" Noel wondered, "I don't like this...whoa!" the yeti sunk into the ground and sailed up the side of the waterfall.
"Well, this is it." Maria sighed, "Let's go!"
Spring lifted her and Noel, Byrd took Kokoso and Cathryn, and they flew to the waterfall, where the monster was catching fish that leaped up a waterfall.
"Salmon, huh?" Kokoso yelled, loud enough for Spring and her passengers to hear, "Fun fact: The salmon can swim up a waterfall to reach the place of their spawning in autumn, though they die in the process, unless they get eaten first!"
The explorers landed to find the yeti feeding from a stack of salmon, including one that shone gold, which the monster immediately tossed into its mouth.1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡof4by398oH
"Well, that's peculiar," Cathryn shook her head, "not sure if it's appetizing or...just weird."
"There's actually a story I read about a salmon some guy ate, and he got really wise, really fast." Kokoso took a cautious step forward, "I wonder if this is like that?"1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCVbbcUfcL6
"Of course it would be." Byrd groaned, "That's just our luck."1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmYMk4DNP3H
The monster growled and turned around before howling again. Kokoso darted up to the monster, and it clapped it's paws before jumping back, leaving Kokoso to fall stiffly to the ground1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZwgzJb7YqC
"I've got the rabbit!" Cathryn called out, enchanting her axe with flames and holding it near Kokoso, crouching behind it in case the monster struck again.1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3u7jaXeto
"Flame Volley!" Noel shouted firing several bursts of flame from her gauntlets, the attack exploding on impact, staggering the monster, Maria, Byrd, and Spring launched their attack next, jumping around the monster and landing hits where they could.1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfF1GISdiBH
Kokoso pressed against the ground and climbed to his feet, "Sorry about that."1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsIyzoaJcvT
"It's fine, staying frosty?" Cathryn inquired, helping him up to his feet.1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVkOZyFkvRP
"Ha, good one." Kokoso dusted off and drew his blade, "I think I'm alright, we just need to stay chill against this one!"1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4QlncMVMPD
Byrd shook his head and huffed out a laugh as Kokoso's words reached his ears, "Sounds like he's done hibernating."1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ09phxlu6wJ
"Rabbits don't hibernate," Kokoso corrected, "but I did try to be the exception to the rule once!"1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYAgoBCmBb9
"And so their fight begins in earnest." Re yawned and rolled onto her side, the young heroes were doing well so far, she could only pray they would stand a chance against the threats beyond the seasons running wild, the Company's scheme was underway, and Maria's group would need the aid of the four seasons to put a stop to their activities.1023Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrahzrnAPlV
