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By Shik Cottonmouth's crooked bones, Kalokin, what just happened? Wait, I feel... Shou? Shou, can you hear me?

Just a slight tinge of panic leaked into his thoughts, and that bitter edge was enough to shake her from her daze. Numbly, she regarded the empty floor before her that so recently had held the summation of her most prized possessions.

It's me, I'm here. I can hear you... Kalokin did... something... he ate his tail. And.. and space got small, and now Kalokin's not here - but he isn't dead. He's just... misplaced I think? I think...

Anger at his actions and worry for his well-being warred in her mind, but worry won by a slim margin.

Shou, please tell me that you know more about my culture than I thought, and that this is an elaborate joke... Please tell me you didn't just watch him commit Ouroboros.

Worry soured into the first drippings of fear that slid down her down her spine line cold sewage, a bone deep chill that something horrible had happened.

An Ouroboros? A serpent that eats his own tail... Yes, exactly like that... he did it so that I could bring more than just one bag... he took things I had, and now they're not here anymore... Where did they go? Where did HE go?

She could feel echoes through his mind, ghostly sensations that poured through his spirit. She could feel his belly sliding across cool grass, could feel the breeze dancing along his scales... he was getting chilled out in the open, but making a fire would draw attention.

An Ouroboros... In lesser cases, it's a noun to describe any penance done to cleanse the spirit. In more... extreme cases... when a criminal is sentenced to death, he is given the option to swallow his own tail, to commit grand Ouroboros. It is a slow, horrible, and agonizing death, but carrying through with it shows the divines that you regret your crimes.

Guilt shot through her, followed by a small amount of self-righteous anger.

Khaesho, we can ponder philosophy later. I need to get out of this city, link of with you, and hit the road. Do you know where Kalokin went?

She'd spent far too much time standing slack jawed. She was worried, but she'd do him no good if she couldn't even help herself. She gathered bare essentials into a backpack, then tossed in a jar of peanut butter as a snack.

Technically speaking? He's... dead is the wrong word. Shattered isn't quite right... broken? Hsssss, your language has no words for these things. His soul is empty of strength, which means he technically doesn't exist right now. He can draw strength through us to put himself back together, but that will take time that we don't have. You're right... You need to move. I'm on the west side of the city, near that one massive road that leads in a circle around Wheeler Peak. I'll stay safe and warm till you can get here.

With that, she pushed him out of her mind, and was surprised when she literally managed to push him out of her mind. She felt him give an undignified squawk before she was alone in her head.

Kalokin had put on a hell of a light show, there was no way he hadn't gone unnoticed. Her neighbors liked to complain, and that meant she had a time limit before the landlord came to investigate. She grabbed her backpack and one of her training hoodies before she used some of her spray cleaner to erase as much of her scent as she could manage. Spritzing herself down with it as well sounded like a good idea... they were looking for her with noble intent, but she still didn't want to be found.

Her door creaked slightly as she leaned on it to open it, revealing the well-lit hallway she had to cross before she got to the fire escape. It irked her for a passing moment before the building suffered a power outage. Convenient... Kalokin's doing? She didn't know, only that it was her best chance to sneak past the doors. She was light on her feet, so it was a simple thing to pad down the hall silently... at least it was, until the screaming started.

Every door she passed, the darkness seemed to twist, followed by a truly bone chilling shriek. Following the ululation of pure terror, she heard gasping breaths and a racing heartbeat, a voice whispering that it had just been a dream. The first doorway unnerved her. The second one chilled her blood. When she passed the third door and was greeted by yet another wail of pure terror, something in her stirred: something ancient and primal, the soul of a hunter deep into the hunt. Their horror suddenly seemed less unnerving and more gratifying... they should scream. She drank in their fear, basking in it until she realized that she was literally pulling magic through their fear. Then she heard a voice.

It is enough. Leave this place.

It was the same effeminate tone Kalokin had used as he'd gone insane... When she was safe, he owed her some answers.

Not bothering to be quite with all the screaming, she jogged down the hall, clambered out the fire escape, and slid down into the city street side night.

Luck was on her side; as she walked around towards the parking lot behind the building, the wind carried the sound of voices towards her. She heard the landlord talking in a hurried, hushed voice, along with two more she didn't recognize.

"And then she let herself into the room like nothing was wrong! I didn't think much of it at all, she did bear a striking resemblance to the missing girl. Then, I got a call on the building line. A wolf named Tracie was calling ahead, claiming to be Shou's cousin. She was on a plane on the way here, and wanted to know if she could look through Shou's things. I realized that the first was a thief, and a damned good one at that."

"Is she still in the room?"

"Yes, she should be. I've been at the front desk filing my taxes, and I didn't see her leave."

"Thank you for the call, Mr. Elshevik. We'll go arrest her, if she' still there. Go to your office and wait, if you don't hear back from us in fifteen minutes, it means she's armed and dangerous, and you need to call in backup."

A quick glance around the corner revealed the landlord talking to two coppers. Their squad car's lights were still off, and with the conversation concluded, they walked through the building's back entrance towards the stairs.

With her hood was pulled up she remained tucked into the dark, pulling the straps of her backpack tight. Hearing her real cousin was coming brought her up short - they hadn't gotten along. Why would her cousin come? Really come? It had her ears perking, but she shook her head rapidly, and let her eyes take in the sights. When the door closed, she waited. Counting heartbeats... five... ten... fifteen, and she stepped out onto the street. Her apartment wasn't anymore messed up than when she left - or when the police had first searched it looked like, and there wasn't anything missing but her costumes and paints. Hopefully wouldn't notice right away that those were gone. She headed down the street, walking along the sidewalk, with her nose poking from the shadows of her hoodie. The park was the obvious choice, but she couldn't head that way they would freeze her bank accounts soon, if they hadn't already. So she turned to the right, and headed further from the park and the mountain for now. The nearest ATM was at the corner, and she had a big withdrawal to make.

Fully clothed, with hood drawn, the only thing that gave her away was her long tail that slithered along the ground behind her with every twitch of her hips. In a way, she didn't even need a disguise... they were looking for a pureblood wolf, after all. At night, those she passed on the street saw nothing unusual; not a soul challenged her as she walked to the ATM at the corner gas station. Card, key code, buttons, and she had a few grand. It was more than she had realized, and at the same time, standing there holding her net worth in her hands was a humbling experience. Money went into a zip-locking bag, then into a waterproof pouch on the pack: Difficult to find, impossible to pickpocket.

The next thing she did was break the card in two and toss it into the trash. Other gift cards, membership cards, and the like simply fell into the trash, accompanied by everything that was traceable to her name.

Lips pursed, she headed towards the East Street bridge, where she knew the homeless curled up to sleep. On the way she flipped open her cell phone, and made a call. Somewhere across the city a phone rang in Alyssa's apartment. There was no answer, and a machine picked up. At the beep, she left a message.

"Hey, Alyssa, it's Shou. Sorry for missing practice Saturday. I found something new... something better than ballet. I found a purpose. So, without further ado, I quit. Find a new lead dancer."

Then she hung up, dropping the cellphone in the trash as soon as she finished. She continued nonchalantly across the bridge, noting with a mixture of feral hunger and intelligent concern that she could feel the nightmares of every bum beneath the stones.

She could feel Khaesho's fear now too... it was cold and dark and he was alone in woods he didn't know. Every flap of wings was a menace, every whisper of wind on leaves a death threat. Unable to contain his fright, he'd built a small fire and coiled around it, but the flickering light only provided sharper shadows. His paranoia was bleeding into panic, and at first she thought that panic was flowing into her... but it got caught between them, sticking to the places Kalokin usually filled. The bottom fell out of her stomach with a sick lurch as she realized what was happening, but she wanted to wait for his side of the story before she jumped to conclusions.

Shhh... don't worry Khaesho, I just need to steal a car, then I'll come pick you up.

H-hurry Shou... I...

He couldn't even form coherent thoughts through his strange and seemingly irrational mind-numbing panic. It unnerved her, so she quickened her pace. Khaesho was a 700 pound beast of venom and muscle, he could surely outfight anything that tried to bother him even before he started using magic... so what was he afraid of?

A glance left, and then right, and she headed along the quiet neighborhood. As she went, she peered into the cars. Red alarm lights warned her off those that wouldn't do, and she needed one that was large enough to hold Khaesho. She didn't find any, until she walked past a decently sized SUV covered in dents and scratches.

This much, I can do.

The car chirped happily as the locks disengaged and the door popped open. No time to question it, no time to interrogate, Khaesho needed her. It might have been a Junker, but it would work for their purposes, especially because they would be ditching it in a day or two. She was in the clear; no car alarms, no sirens, no search parties. She found the highway outbound of town and put down on the gas... but not too hard. This was NOT the time to get caught in a speed trap.

When she reached the highway, she pulled to the side, turned off the lights and let the car idle for a few minutes - not wanting to risk turning it off. But she knew she couldn't stay there too long, else attention would be drawn to the stopped car.

Khaesho, sweetie, are you alright? I'm at the highway, just outside town. Ugly old brown car pulled to the side, doors are unlocked. Backseat is probably the best idea for you.

Her soul brushing up against his was all the indication that it was time to leave. With an odd inhaling motion, he sucked all the heat from his fire, snapping the cheery flames to cold ashes in a moment. Thus warmed, he turned and bolted towards the freeway as fast as his body could carry him.

Where a bipedal might have been slowed down by the trees and foliage, Khaesho had perfected a special pace of serpentine just for travel through the woods. He slid close to trees, pushing off them as well as the ground to get more force, more speed in his stride. He got to the freeway with the wide eyed panic of a hunted beast, sliding at a breakneck speed. He judged the gap, picked his torso up, and slid right through the open window to coil himself haphazardly in the trunk and back seat. He was understandably panting like he'd slithered a marathon, but his eyes were dilated open to black circles, and his mind was... unsettling. She leaned her soul to the side and managed to see things through his eyes for a moment, but the gut-wrenching panic that spilled from his mind caught her by surprise. Unthinking of anything else, she opened the door and dove in after him, swaddling herself in his coils.

"Khaesho... Shhh... Khaesho, it's alright, I'm here, you're safe. Calm down."

He couldn't focus on her at first, until with a shuddering sigh, he fell unconscious. While this most assuredly alarmed her, it had the unexpected (to her) bonus of momentarily slipping Khaesho's soul loose from his body. Freed from the fetters of fear, he sighed calmly and wrapped his soul around Shou like a warm blanket.

I'm fine, I promise... sorry for worrying you, I just... among other things, I'm scared of the dark, especially when it's a large, open space.

It was a simple statement, but it Shou felt that it wasn't true... at least, it wasn't entirely true. She'd felt his mind... he wasn't scared of the dark, he was scared of something that lurked -in- the darkness.

Khaesho... what is it that you were frightened of...?

His soul trembled, but he didn't answer. He remained silent, long enough that she thought silence was the only answer she would get.

I can't tell you... Kalokin will explain everything... I can't tell his secrets for him. He'll explain ev-

Yes, of course he'll explain everything soon enough.

Back in her apartment, she'd felt a surge of panic, a tidal wave of anxiety as she realized just how little she knew about the god she'd sworn her body and soul to. She'd calmed herself with the mantra that she trusted them, but seeing how often she ran into secrets that Kalokin needed to tell, she started to worry that her initial unrest was well placed. Khaesho didn't have an answer that would soothe her qualms, so she clambered out of his coils and up into the front seat. They drove in silence until Khaesho stirred groggily, waking up from his power nap.

"H-hey Shou... now that I'm awake... could... could you tell me what happened? With Kalokin...?"

That was a whole other can of worms. She wasn't sure what had happened... it remained one of the worries at the forefront of her mind.

"I'm... I... well... Kalokin scared me earlier... In my apartment. He got... weird, manic laughing... like he was crazy. He wanted to do something stupid, and I whapped him on the nose. Told him he was an idiot and not to do it, because to hear him tell it, it was incredibly dangerous. He didn't like me telling him what to do... He tackled me, knocked the breath out of my lungs. He called me a silly mortal, but it wasn't his words, it was... it was his voice. It sounded so... so condescending... Cold and haughty and superior, like he was looking down at trash that had stuck to his shoe. He didn't even look like himself... he was black, dark enough to eat the light, wearing grey gloves that looked like ashes. I'd never been afraid of him... not until then..." The steering wheel groaned under her tightening grip, and her fur fluffed in her unease as she relayed the events to Khaesho. "It was my fault, I get that... b-but..."

Khaesho was chewing his tongue, but after hearing firsthand what had happened, he decided that he could break his vow. Shou needed to know... and he'd only tell her the barest bones. Kalokin wouldn't be that mad then... and even if he was, giving a small secret would only incur a small debt.

"It wasn't your fault, Shouyousei. The only way you could have avoided that was if you had run to go hide in a corner the moment the sun set on the horizon. I never really got a chance to explain how They work, really... but to make a long story short, Kalokin becomes an entirely different person during the dark moon. His light is completely gone from the sky, leaving naught but darkness and stars... the change in him is almost dramatic enough to call him a different person. Any more than that... you'll need to ask Kalokin tomorrow. We both need food, and rest; your entire body has been changing for the past week, and my metabolism got an overhaul as well. We can push our endurance farther than most when we're healthy, but we need to get to healthy before we do that."

He rearranged himself in the back seat until his torso rested on the center console between the two front seats. He gave her a small lick right behind the ear in an attempt at comfort... he really wanted to coil around her, but she was driving and he thought that would be a bad plan.

"He scared me, Khaesho, really scared me..." Her fear of him settled in her even now, made her worry about being near the God, being his vessel. It wasn't something that she expected to feel, and she didn't know how to handle that fear. Nevertheless, she pushed it aside with a sigh and glanced at him.

"The fault is mine, for not warning you sooner. I had hoped that the police would be enough to distract him, but it seems that he fixated upon something else. That... and there is something we did not tell you. It is a secret that Kalokin has tried his hardest to bury, but it is a part of him that he cannot deny. He intended to tell you himself, once things calmed down a little, but he never quite got the chance. There are four greater spirits, each with many associations, but most importantly, each feeds off of a different emotion.

There is Shelandra, the eldest. She is the sun's fire and light, and she feeds from passion... namely, Lust.

Then there is the second eldest, Ghoz, Ocean and Stone. Master of physical magic, he feeds from contentment and satisfaction, the feeling you get at the end of a hard day's work.

There is Bhalzash, lightning on the wind. Keeper of electrical magic, she feeds on joy and elation." He sighed and wrapped his arms around his body.

"Then we have little brother Kalokin, the moon, and the self-proclaimed god of thieves. Master of illusions. His name is spelled with not just one, but two of the hated hard consonants. He is... was... shunned by his family. He enjoys surprising people. What emotion is there left? What emotion is present at every thief's side, from a pickpocket to a burglar? What source of sustenance could be so profane that even a god would be loath to admit it?"

He let the questions hang in the air for a moment as she pieced everything together. Put like that, so many things made sense. His penchant for scaring travelers, his glee when he heard of the police coming after them, but most importantly, the hungry look in his eyes when he'd knocked her down. Khaesho heard her gasp beside him as she puzzled together all the scattered pieces.

"Fear. Kalokin is the god of Fear. He feeds from it, he uses his illusions and hallucinations to inspire it, and he can worm his way into any person's mind to find out exactly what they fear most."

Fear had indeed dogged Shou's steps from the moment she left the caves. Not the paralyzing kind of fear, but the silent thrill of adventure, the sharp spike of adrenaline that made every sound razor sharp and every sight crystal clear as She evaded authorities. She had only recently come down off of the adrenaline high, but the fear of his own Vessel had provided enough for Kalokin to start scraping himself back together. That, and he'd regained his primal urges before his intellect... which was why he'd horrified everyone nearby as Shou escaped from the city. Kalokin was still weak, broken, but he managed to raise his soul to speak.

I'm sorry... didn't mean... to hurt... you... didn't want... didn't want you to find out like this... didn't want you to know... know that I'm a monster... but I was hungry... and your soul... so fragrant... so clean... I'm so sorry Shou... So sorry...