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CHAPTER 24

NIGHT OF THE SEVENTH DAY

Above and Beyond

It had been hours after the attack, but the emotional dust had never settled. Time was frozen for those involved, and it felt like it had been dark forever. The injured were on their way to recovery, including the king. And those who had died in the tragedy were being taken care of and their families were being contacted- as hard as that was for the royal guards to have to do. News of the attack brought by the traitorous guard from years back accompanied by a dragalfos had already spread to the village. Deku scrubs were hiding in terror and mourning for those lost. There was no hope left for them it seemed...

The queen remained by the king's side as he slept. She kept those injured company, as did Keaton. However, the other palace guests were scattered about through the palace vicinity. Iko was outraged, trying desperately to stay with them and not hunt Skreemin and Drigos down. Upon Iris' plea, she begrudgingly stayed with the group. But no one was brave enough to speak to her, for she was far too lost in her need to stick an arrow in someone that it was unknown what she'd do next upon interaction. She did at least have her shoulder tended to upon Acacia's prodding.
And Leif was nowhere to be seen... He was more likely out and about in the woods to get away from the intense emotions. The entire palace was in turmoil right now... And Keaton was devastated, for he never saw it coming. He kept beating himself for it! What could he have done? Had they left, Skreemin and Drigos may have dropped by looking for them anyway, then what would've happened? Either way, disaster was eminent.

Iris was currently alone with Iko in the right garden, not saying a single word since she'd been there with her. It was unknown where Ilye was, but she clearly had a lot to think about... Would she have to continue alone? Are Jace and Iris giving up? Has Ilye's presence permanently ruined everything? It was unclear if this were all to happen in the original time, for Jace and Iris never made it this far. One question was certain though; how much time did Jace have left? How much time did Ilye have left? The hole in her hand stayed the same, but what would it look like by morning? This terrified her to no end... And she knew she couldn't abandon her job now. If the Twilight was still here and Ilye still existed, then she hadn't stopped the eminent doom that sat over time's horizon.

Lastly, Jace was by himself off in the training yard behind the palace. Angry grunting and muffled battle cries rang through the yard as he beat a training dummy with his daggers. He looked angry, and sounded outraged, but his eyes were hot with tears. He had no words to say, all he had were internal questions of "Why?" and "How?". What sorcery was the cause? He bore in mind just how hardy the curse was, and how long it took to get rid of it. How was he supposed to rid it now? Who did this? There is no way Skreemin naturally had such a power... But Jacon was seeing red, and he wanted to kill. Left slash, a right stab- the dummy stood no chance against his furious attacks. And as Iris sat in the gardens, she could hear him taking his rage and horror out on the defenseless wooden dummy. Skits sat in her arms, looking up at her as she gazed down without a subject to focus on.

"Ahhhh! Agh! AH!" he threw a few more attacks in, before leaving a dagger stabbed into the chest of the dummy. His sharp eyes focused on the weapon and his heart raced with his hand left on the handle. His leaves were tensed back and he wanted to scream. Instead, he just broke down after a while. He leaned one hand on the dummy and dropped his other dagger and held his face, swearing at the chances. His hand shakily dragged down his visage till it reached the bridge of his snout and he inhaled deeply, and he cried in defeat. It was then a gentle cool breeze blew against his leaves. They felt more sensitive than before, and this was brought to his attention quite quickly. His instincts were actually more awake right now, he seemed to notice.

The lad bristled his leaves to stand up straighter before he brought his head up a margin. His red and yellow soul burned through the dark of his face and he ran his hand across the right side of his head till it shakily reached that curse mark. He dropped his hand and brought his gaze to the sky when the breeze kissed his sun-washed leaves again. He could smell something different in the air. There was storm weather blowing in north-east. A stream trickled down his face from his eye as he studied what he could see of the stars and moon as clouds slowly casted over their light.
"H-how could this happen?" he softly asked himself. He looked down at his hands and he lowered his red brows. "What... What magic can do this? Who created such an unbreakable sorcery?" he continued to question. It was then he was brought back to the moment it happened. All he knew was that Skreemin guy did it and that the feeling was... Familiar.

His eyes widened when his mind played the scene over and over again. Now that he really thought on it, he recalled his life flashing before his eyes. Pretty normal, given he was about to die.
"W-wait..." he uttered. "I... I don't remember those memories at all." he commented in fearful puzzlement. "My visions... Ikana visions... Was that what that was? Are they back, too?"

As the moon was veiled by a large single cloud, he continued to focus his sight downward. He reached his hand up to stop another tear as it barreled down his cheek. He was so distraught, he could only think on the tragedy, or the fact that he was dead hours ago... And he REMEMBERED being dead! He brought his sharpened eyes to his dagger again, which was left stabbed into the careful carved wood of the dummy- which was now littered with deep cuts and scrapes. It looked like an oversized cat had used the training object as a scratching post.
A momentary glare grew across his face as he aggressively tore the dagger out. He didn't have to say a word for it to be clear what he imagined that dummy to be.

Upon picking up his other dagger, he kept them in his hands as he walked around the training yard. He remembered learning how to sword fight somewhat more efficiently here, though the guards didn't quite like it. He would have chuckled had he not been hanging on what happened tonight. He wanted to drop everything and just give up... He continued his way from the training yard which was connected with both side gardens. He entered the empty garden, unsure if he could look Iris and them in the face in the other garden. Every time someone looked at him, they just stared as if he were a ghost. He was having a hard time believing that his body was soulless hours ago and that he was laying limp in Iris' arms. He trembled when he heard himself say "I should be dead right now..."

Most of the garden's flowers were asleep and there wasn't a single guard in sight. He finally sheathed his daggers at his side and unlatched their straps from his belt. He found himself walking to the garden's fish pond to sit on the bench by it. And far from him, he laid down his daggers, as if saying he was done. The garden's yellow weeping willow hung sadly over the bench and he sighed. He leaned over with his face in his hands and he ushered forth a small moan. He was feeling many things right now, and he was remembering scenes that terrified him from the past. But what were they?
"What has been wrong with me lately...? I can't stand this anymore... I can't do this... What am I even going to tell the others?"

Off inside the palace, Silver Keaton came trotting through the throne room looking for the others. The hours were easing into the later times and a storm was coming. They couldn't sit around too long... The fox was aware of the pain everyone was in, but something could still be done, they just needed to hurry. Unfortunately, the only thing that didn't have an answer right now was Jace's new curse. This troubled the fox, because it was clearly not something Iris could help with again because he was already passed that stage. So, what was it? Was there even a cure? Was this even really the same curse, or a mock-up? Keaton grumbled under his breath. "Is it cureless again?" he uttered.

He trotted into the garden that Iris and Iko were in and saw the girls were sitting apart from each other on a bench. Iris was clearly without words, and as was Iko. Leif was nowhere to be seen. Of course, Silver did not hold that against him. He could hear dark thoughts in Iko's mind and this truly troubled the vulpine mindreader. Right now wasn't a time to get lost in a lust for vengeance... Iris had many questions in mind. Could she help? Could she be the answer again somehow? She inwardly blamed herself for wasting time with Jace earlier that day back at home. Keaton agreed that it was a poor time to get lost in fun, but he wasn't going to say that- she already felt bad enough.

The keaton walked over, swishing his tails as he did. He gleamed a soft silver when he passed under some moonlight and this caught Iris' attention. Iko's frustrated eyes gleamed out at the fox in question, wondering what he may be close to saying. Keaton couldn't help but notice that Iko had her hat off- which was unnatural for her. And the cloth collar that was around her neck was gone, revealing a thick mane of leaves around her neck. They were bristled up to show that she was in hunting mode, and this made the fox frown worriedly. Additionally for the info, they were of autumn colors, an assortment of orange and yellow.
"Girls, are you alright?" Silver asked softly. "We mustn't sit here all night, why are you waiting?"
Iris' voice cracked, "I'm waiting on J... Jace. I've been giving him space since he a-asked for it." she looked down and hugged Skits. The bird cawed worriedly.
The fox's face glanced at Iko, grumbling lowly before prying. "Iko...?"
"I'm fine." she replied lowly as she looked over her bow.

He sat down by Iris, seeing that speaking to Iko about her behavior wouldn't do much for the situation. Though he was frustrated with Iko since her "Wanna kill" attitude wasn't helping Iris' worry at all. He released a sigh before looking to Iris and speaking softly.
"I know you are blaming yourself, but don't. No one saw it coming, not even me. What matters is that Jace is alive once more."
"Once more being the freaky part." she chirped sadly. "How, Keaton!?" Iris finally exclaimed, looking him dead in the eyes. Her eyes were glassy and she was trembling. "He was dead in my arms! He wasn't breathing! H-he was gone! A-and now-... A-a-and n-now..."
"Shhhh, everything will be fine." the fox comforted, leaning up on the bench with his paw on Iris' shoulder. Iko looked to Iris, a change of expression on her face. It was concern, seeing as Iris had broken down again. It went unnoticed by Iris given how small of a movement it was. Iris hung her leaves over her face, hiding her tears from the eyes around herself.
"What're we going to do?" Iris asked, "What is there to do? I-I don't k-know what to e-expect anymore-!"
Keaton gave a sigh... "Best thing we can do is continue the course we have set."

Moving back over to Jace, he could hear Iris crying in the other garden and he brought his head up. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but her crying was very clear. This made him pin blame on himself. Had they not hung around and waited, they wouldn't be here... But then again... Had they not been here, the royal family might not, either. He looked over into the fish pond, seeing a clear reflection of himself in the water. He moved down from the bench to sit by the water's edge. He leaned down to look into the water, seeing some fish swimming around. When they noticed how close he was to the water, they peeked their heads above to look him in the face. It looked as if they were asking him, "Are you here to feed us?" and he just smiled at this. He remembered looking at those hungry faces as a child. He gave a silent apology for lacking the food they begged for, watching as they kissed the surface of the water.

He placed a finger into the water to let one kiss at it like he used to. The gold and white fish puzzled at the thing and kept pecking it. But to no avail, there was no food! He moved his finger from the water and pet his hand along its back fin. It startled the fish a slight and it moved away to return to its other swimming buddies.

His focus moved from the fish to his hanging head in the reflection. His head pointed down and his body relaxed, his leaves hung casually downward. He caught a glimpse of his full right eye and took notice to how much bigger the curse mark was than it was three years ago. If you paid attention, you could see the bottom of the X clearly hanging onto his cheek, and it wrapped completely over the top of his right eye. If he didn't have a full head of leaves, that X would be covering a good portion of his head. His eyes fell and his burned-red feather grass eyebrows were softly slanted upward. And he could see this expression on his face in the mirror before himself. His own reflection betrayed him, and this shattered the lad. He was bound in dark-magic chains yet again... But truly, had he ever been free? This question crossed his mind, but he didn't know why. But he didn't care to look into it.

The tunnel scrub brought himself to his feet and he rubbed his head. He caught himself looking at his daggers resting on the bench. He wanted to give up, because he didn't know what to do. Tonight felt like a huge nightmare, and he wasn't waking up. He then found himself momentarily admiring some large white moonflowers by the bench, closest to his daggers. They were in bloom and quite large. Jace liked moonflowers, they were amazing plants for sure... If he were honest, he always felt like he was looking at an old friend when he saw them... He brought his attention back to the situation after admiring them, however.

He walked over to pick up his daggers and he then turned, thinking on leaving the garden. He stared down the side-long row of flowers and plants when his eyes became glued to a rose bush. It was placed outward and away from the others, so it stuck out. He cocked his head to the side, humming in interest. He walked over to it, seeing that it was the only bloomed rosebush in the entire garden. What's more, it had odd coloring... The flowers were as yellow as Jace's own leaves with red-orange speckles under them and inside them. They were beautiful!

But he didn't remember seeing the bush on the way in. Maybe he overlooked it? He stepped toward it and knelt to his knees, running a hand along one of the petals.
"Hello little fella, when did Acacia plant you?" he asked, as if he would get an answer. "I don't remember seeing you before... Yet, you seem kinda familiar."
The Leavance boy admired the lovely plant and found it rather strange. "You have a lovely set up of colors here... Hey, wait... What's that?" he leaned back and his eyes widened. There was something white caught inside the bush. Did someone lose something? He reached into the rosebush and grabbed the object. It was thin and folded. It was caught in the outreaching branches, stuck on the only thorn in the entire plant. As Jace tried removing it, he accidentally raked his hand across the thorn. He recoiled his fat, tunneling arms with object in hand.
"Ooh-!" he exclaimed lowly. "Ow..."

It was dagger-sharp, fierce enough to make him bleed a little. He didn't hang onto that fact for long when he was reminded of his prize. Rotating the strange white thing, it looked to be a card or a note. But the card was very fancy. It was a creamy white with gold runes and design all around it. It was a nice texture of paper. Upon inspecting the front again after seeing the back, he was taken aback by what he saw,

Written on the front now was clearly written "Jacon" on it in gold. He shivered- that wasn't there before! Was it? Maybe that curse mark was screwing with his vision already? It was a card to him? Who put it here? He didn't see anyone... Keaton maybe? He folded it open and there wasn't much written inside. But what was written inside made him gasp softly- almost sadly. Or rather, bitter-sweetly. He read it aloud in a whisper.
"You have come far, but there is still work to be done. You're almost through, so don't give up! Don't be scared, just do what you've always done. Give it your all, above and beyond."

"P.S. You are not alone in this, so go get 'em!"

He pondered over the words, but the phrase, "Above and beyond" rang clear in his mind on repeat... His dad used to say that all the time. This caused the lad to look at the gold-flowered rosebush in puzzlement. Who left it there? It looked more like something the queen would say... Maybe her? He got to his feet, placed the note under his arm long enough for him to put his daggers back on his belt, then opened it again. He scanned it over again, and his brows furrowed. What was he doing? Why was he just sitting around? What was he to gain on just thinking? Why, he should be doing! He looked to the roses again, thanking who ever put that note in there. It made him realize that just because he's cursed again, doesn't mean he has any right to waste that time. He was given time, and that is all that matters! He's not a ghost, he's not a redead- he's alive, and he can still do something. Sure, it hurt, but he'd treat it like he always had it till everything was taken care of.

The lad jumped into a sprint out of the garden and into the other, stopping himself at its doorway. He exclaimed upon looking in.
"Guys! Guys, look at this!" he ran over and stopped between Iko and Iris to open the card. "I found this out in the garden. Weird, huh?
Iris peered into it before giving Jace a soft confused expression. "W-what am I looking at?"
"I know! It's... It's... Just off!" he excitedly replied.
"No, I mean... Literally, what am I looking at? there's nothing there..."
He gave a shocked, "Wha-!?"
Iko peeked at it as well, uttering a small, "It's just paper..."
He looked down at it, and the words were clearly there. He looked between them all, muttering a little to himself. Keaton looked as well, but he could not see the ghost text.
"Jacon, are you okay?" Keaton asked sincerely. Jace looked at him with wide eyes.
"B-but... Don't play with me, Keaton, you can look into my memory and see me looking at the text, it's there."

The fox shook his head. "I think you're exhausted Jace..."
This upset him a little and he folded it up. "But... I-it's there... Ugh, nevermind..." he groaned and stood up. "Where's Ilye and Leif?"

"Leif is out and about nearby... Ilye is... Well... I'm not sure, actually. Probably still in the palace somewhere." Iris answered softly.
Jace put his foot down and stood up straight, his brows furrowed. "Keaton, go find Ilye, we're leaving. Now."
"W-we are?" Iris' head moved up to look him in the face. He nodded quickly at her, before looking to Iko.
"Iko, go fetch Leif." he was quick with his order, and Iko seemed more than happy to finally get moving. She didn't waste time, but she didn't reply. She hurried from the gardens, and Silver ran out as well to head inside the palace. This left Iris, Jace, and Skits in the garden alone. Skits moved aside onto the bench, staring up at Iris.

The ex-hyrulean brought her sight down again and she sniffled. Jace's ordering tone and expression dropped slowly as he watched Iris' expression wilt. Everything they'd been through, everything they worked for. Was their adventure three years ago even relevant anymore? They were back to square one, but... It was harder, because they were far more connected on a personal level than before. Iris could feel his pain, and Jace could see this written all over her face. She was silent and her leaves hung low. He cleared his throat, as if to remind her that he was standing there, but she did not look. She shrugged her shoulders up and she trembled. He just stared with soft eyes.

He finally sat down next to her, hoping she'd look at him. When she didn't, he finally spoke to her. "Babe...?" he began. "Please look at me..."
"Is it really you...?" she muttered, looking at him from the corner of her eye.
He gave a soft chuckle and replied, "O-of course it's me... I mean... D-do you know anyone else this handsome?" he teased softly. His tone wasn't full of jest and jokes however. She rose her head to look at him, and her eyes were squinted and full of tears. This jabbed at him and he dropped his attempt at being cocky and he held his arms out to her, sounding as if he wanted to cry himself when he saw her.

"Oh, Iris, please don't cry... I'm here..." he pleaded. She fell into him and nuzzled her face against his, sobbing uncontrollably. The force of her throwing herself to him nearly knocked him back, but he managed to stay sitting up and he cradled her in his arms.
"You were dead! Y-you were dead, limp i-in my a-a-arms...!" she cried out, holding him tightly as if he'd be swept away if she let go. "A-are you a g-ghost!? A-are you really h-here? I d-don't want to lose you again!"
It was overwhelming, it was too much. He embraced her, pressing his snout into the side of her leaves and he let himself start crying with her. He rocked them back and forth softly and he inhaled deep broken breaths.
"Iris, I was so scared! I know y-you were, t-too... I-I'm sorry...!"
"Don't leave me again..."
He nestled the side of his face into her tassel-leaves hanging from the sides of her face. His arms tightened around her and he rested one hand behind her head. "I w-wont- I wont leave you again... I promise, I wont- I-I c-can't s-stand seeing you h-hurt...! If I did leave again, I-I wouldn't forgive myself."
He pulled her over to rest on his lap and she curled up and rested against his bandaged chest and sobbed against it. "D-don't... D-don't leave... Don't leave... Don't go back there, please..."

He pressed his snout to her forehead as he moved her bangs away. Jace proceeded to lower his head and rest it against her forehead. Their faces rested together under the darkness of their own leaves and he rubbed her back.
"Shhhh, everything will be okay... Don't cry too much, Iris, you'll give yourself a headache..." he himself was still crying, but he was trying to suppress it. It was not for pride, but rather so he wouldn't make her keep crying. She huffed hard and peeked her eyes open to see him looking at her. Their souls lit up the darkened space they had created. She reached for his face to pet her hands across it and she wiped away a falling tear. She gently pulled him close so she could press her snout to his. He returned the kiss and nuzzled his snout over hers before holding her close to him.
"Don't be scared, I'm here... Every single piece of me..."

She rested against him, trying to catch her breath. He just held her before he solemnly glanced off at Skits. The bird's eyes met his deku scrub brother-in-law's sadly. He gave a soft, purring caw and Jace just offered a soft smile. Jace finally pulled Iris from him gently, and she moved herself to sit on the bench. She rubbed her face and said a low, "I'm sorry..."
"Don't be sorry for something that wasn't your fault." he replied with a huff. He moved his hands over the leaves on her head, creating a part in the them and he pecked her head with his snout. "So... Let's go. We're almost there, we have this under our belts! The sooner we go, the sooner we can get rid of the Twilight. Can't you see the sincerity in these spirits, or do they appear uncertain? There's no way we can stop now, I know we can do this." he spoke, looking her in the eyes.

She just offered a solemn smile while piercing her sight into his, flicking a leaf as she did. "I see sincerity and courage, like always. I'm just worried..."
"Don't be. Just keep your eyes forward, alright? Don't look back." he finished. He sniffled before drying his face. With a deep inhale, Iris grabbed his hand. He grasped before placing his other hand over them both. Skits hopped up on Iris' lap then hopped down between them both. Jace released Iris' hand with one of his and pet Skits' head and down. "We'll all do this together one last time..."
"Please don't say it'll be the last..." Iris mumbled lowly. Jace leaned over and nudged his snout up under hers and added on with a gentle jesting tone.
"What? You want us to have to do this again? I certainly hope this'll be the last time we see Twilight."
Iris looked at him, having misunderstood him before.
"This certainly wont be the last time you'll see me. Don't think like that." he chuckled shakily. He pulled away and leaned back as they waited on the others to return.

Iris found herself picking up the note Jace had from earlier as she sighed. She found herself examining it. He then leaned over to look at it with her.
"And you're telling me you can't see anything on there...?" he questioned. "I'm not losing my mind, there is something on there."
"I'm sorry, but there is nothing on this card..." she giggled with a shaken tone- given she was just sobbing moments ago. She was sure Jace was trying to make her laugh and feel better, but he was asking legitimately. He gently pulled the note away to look at it. He pondered and puzzled over the piece of paper, clearly seeing the golden words of inspiration. Maybe this whole night was a dream? But then again... Maybe not. What with all this spirit business, there's no telling where the note came from. But it was clearly enchanted if he was the only one who could read it... Or maybe he really was losing his mind.

He simply sighed before tucking the card in his belt until he got the chance to put it away to mull over later. For now, they had work to do. He sat and conversed with Iris a little longer before they spotted Ilye come walking back with Keaton and Acacia at her side- and a few guards given how protective they were of the queen right now.
"Jace, Silver said you're already having us leave?" Ilye pondered, holding her hand. To him, she looked to be nervously rubbing it, but she was in truth hiding it so he wouldn't see it. It was wrapped in bandages, but she still felt odd showing it. She tried not to show it, but she was mortified that he was currently standing and breathing right now. He could see through that much of her however. He hated how everyone looked at him like he was a ghost, but he didn't blame them.

"I am. We can't sit around and waste time." He replied after standing up. Ilye was about to speak, but he rose his hand to her to stop her. "And no, I don't need rest. If we get any rest, it'll either be after we find a way into Ikana or on the way. If we rest at all, I'd feel more comfortable knowing it was close to our destination."
"Jacon... My son... Please be careful out there..." the queen spoke quietly. "After today, I... I don't know what will happen next..."
"I can definitely assure you that you wont be seeing this Skreemin fellow again. He's been hunting us for the past few days... Somehow he knew we were here. It was our fault he attacked the palace, Cacia. I'm sorry..."
She approached him and brought him into a tight hug. His eyes grew before he hugged her back.
"Do not apologize. Skreemin has... He's had a hatred for us royals for a long time... Whether you were here or not, I can assure you he'd come back one day. I just wish that he'd stop and listen to me..."
Iris stood and wiped her face, approaching the queen. "What was his connection with the palace?"

The queen felt shame, knowing she had let that damage fester into a hatred. In a way, she felt responsible for Skreemin's hatred. "It is best explained at a better time… If he is involved with the enemy, then you best stop things before they get too out of control."
Iris and Jace wore looks of disappointment. They would like to know about him, especially if they were trying to avoid him. they knew already that he'd stop at nothing to succeed in a goal… But what exactly WAS his goal? It baffled Jace why he'd feel such hate and disdain for everyone here. He was trying to see through the enemy's eyes, but what kind of eyes were he trying to look through?
Acacia looked to them, fearing for the group's safety. "I have faith in every single one of you. But please kids, don't go and get yourselves killed. Skreemin has been dabbling in the affairs of dark magic, and that scares me. Verin, child, I have a feeling that what has happened to you tonight is connected to your family curse. And you know well that the curse is linked to Ikana, so... While you're there..."

"I'll look into it." Jace finished for Acacia, a seriousness in his eyes. "Trust me, I already planned on looking into it. I'm planning as I go even now. The Light Spirit there being so old, maybe he'll know... I have a feeling he was around when the Leavance curse started. I wont leave that place without some answers... I promise, mother."
She had a saddened look in her eyes, but Jace's stone-hard determination perked her up a little. He should be dead on a cot right now. He should be cold and still with withering leaves. He should have colorless, gray, dead eyes. But his warm heart beat furiously with fire like the wild heart of a lynel, and his leaves were slicked back and standing alert- alive as they have ever been. And in his eyes, a soul furiously danced with set goals. Iris found herself noticing something different in him. Had he truly found himself? Was he starting to awake a slumbering part of his being? A steadfast fearlessness was seen in his form and he stood straight. She was in awe of this, and she admired it. He did not stumble at all. His previous tragedy seemed to have really kicked him into gear. Keaton himself furrowed his whiskered brows and he gave a toothy smile.
'Amazing!' he thought. 'There you are, old friend! Yes! You are coming alive and you know exactly what to do!'

This uplifting show gave Ilye hope and she softly smiled. Jace motioned Ilye over with Keaton, and the two joined his and Iris' side. Skits landed on Iris' head, nestling himself down into her leaves with a smile across his beak. He gave a hearty caw and cackle.
Leif and Iko then appeared through the garden gate. Iko had a deep expression in her eyes, and she was down and ready to leave. Leif himself was in orb form, and he inwardly groaned at all the troubled emotions he was suddenly near. But he popped up when he looked at Jace. What was that? There was something weird about him! Aside from the dark magic that Leif could clearly feel emanating from Jace's curse. No, there was a very strong presence where Jace stood. And even as Jace acknowledged their presence, it was clear he had a change in emotion. Clearly he was still deeply shaken and in a lot of emotional turmoil, but he did well to push it aside for now. This alone was easier for Leif to be around, giving him some hope that maybe Jace's positivity could rub off on everyone else. It'd take a while, but Jace had the go-getter attitude that was needed to keep them on track. He'll take the time to be worried about himself when everyone else wasn't on the line...

"So when're we leaving?" Iko questioned while standing in front of Jace. He could see the change in her eyes, and this bothered him... Where was she? This wasn't Iko. When they met Iko in that untold tale about a year ago, they'd never seen such a shadow on her face- not like this. Keeping mind her hurt shoulder, he placed his hand on her good shoulder and gripped it softly.
"We're leaving right now." he replied without hesitation. He swallowed his worry, knowing well that action was what they needed... "Everyone, let's get on the road and move out! We're getting this crap cleaned up and settled!" he exclaimed. He began walking out of the gardens. He took a moment to place his new note in his rucksack before turning to hug Acacia one last time.
"Keep this place on lockdown till we are sure that everything is back to normal. And set some guards up at the village, just in case." Jace said.
Acacia giggled, looking at him. "Who made you leader of the royal guard?"
"No one, just speaking my mind on what I think may be best for you guys." he answered softly. "Tell Barum that I pray for a swift recovery on his behalf... And tell Auran not to be reckless... I'm sure I need not tell you more." he was sure Acacia knew that he was sneaking out- and his assumptions were correct. She nodded to him, before she ushered them forward to the palace gates. It was then a quick question came to Jace's mind. He let everyone know to go on without him before he walked back to her.

"I was actually wanting to ask you something!"
"Yes my son?" she tilted her head.
He motioned his hand out to the garden, "Did you get a new rosebush recently?" he asked sincerely. She looked out to where he was motioning and she then looked to him with wide eyes.
"No, I don't believe we did..." she mused. He hummed lowly.
"There's a particular rosebush out there with yellow, orange speckled blooms on it. I'd never seen it here before. I mean... I've seen some around here and there, but not here. See, it's ri-... What...?"

Upon looking out by the fish pond, among all the plants... The rosebush was gone. There wasn't even a place in the soil where it had been planted. As a matter of fact, that earth looked rather untilled and hard. His eyes bugged out and he was scanning the area for any trace of them. Where did it go? He shakily brought his hand back to himself, muttering as he stared. He finally brought his focus back to his surrogate mother... "E-eh... N-... N-never mind... A-anyway, I'm going to go... Love you!" he kicked himself into a sprint out of the palace. Everyone was waiting for him by the palace yard gates. He stopped for only a moment to glance back at the palace... He pondered over the ghostly bush. He looked to his hand, seeing the bloody cut from the thorn- it was real! He hummed before running to catch up with everyone else.

"Jace, are you alright?" Leif questioned. "Are you sure you are okay to leave?"
"Yes, I-I'm fine. Let us be on our way though, we don't have much time..." Jace uttered. "By the god's will, we'll find some answers in Ikana, for everyone's sake."
Ilye looked upon everyone, rubbing her palm nervously even now. The hole was still there... Jace was dying, that was for sure. Of course, Ilye refused to say so out loud. There was enough worry, and she didn't want to make it worse. But it was very clear that time was against them even more so than before. She wanted to cry from how scared she was! Was she going to make it out of this? Was Jace going to make it out of this? What'd be worse than just Jace dying, was Iris witnessing Ilye vanishing! That could screw up existence in this timeline quite easily! She admired Jace's confidence, but it didn't get rid of everyone's shakiness from the mess that occurred tonight. And even he was still bothered. His only upper hand? Was having this curse before. He knew how to pretend he's had it all this time on the outside.

Silver Keaton trotted up next to Jace as he lead everyone by Iris' side. The group was quiet, leaving Keaton the opportunity to have a conversation with Jace. He opened a telepathic connection in Jace's mind and began.
'Jacon Verin Leavance... Is that you?' he asked. The lad's eyes grew before he brought his attention to Keaton. He raised a brow and replied in thought.
'Not you too...'
'No, no... You misunderstand me... Or... Do you? Or are you just playing stupid?'

He furrowed his brows, 'What do you mean?'
The fox gave a small chuckle, before smiling casually at Jace. 'Oh nothing... I seem to have reached a wrong number.' he joked. He then continued. 'I can't help but notice that you are aware that your curse is... Well...'
'Almost through, I know. I saw it in my reflection at the fish pond. Before long, that thing will devour my face. It's already noticeable without me having to move my bangs... I didn't want to say anything because I'd startle everyone.'

'Smart move.' the fox complemented. He glanced at Ilye worriedly... How much time was on the clock? He then faced forward again with a deep breath. 'Your curse being back... Do you know what this means?'
'Aside from the fact that I'll be completely screwed if I don't get rid of it...?'
'... You have the right idea with trying to find answers in Ikana while we're there... This means that the demon that cursed you before is still around and alive...'
'W-wait... But... Didn't my ancestor deserve the curse? I thought he gained the curse because of his crimes? I haven't done anything wrong. And clearly, Skreemin is not some ages old entity from the beginning days of Termina...'
Keaton brought his head up to look at the full moon. 'I am aware... Skreemin is a pawn, just like the dragalfos. They have no idea what they are truly getting involved in. They were given that power by what ever cursed your family name in the beginning. This is an eternal malevolent force. They want your family dead for more reasons than just crimes... If it's the same exact type of curse from before, then that dark magic was supposed to kill you right away. But it seems something interfered with it… Thus becoming the curse again. History is trying to repeat itself.'
'Cut the crap fox, what do you know? Clearly you know something I don't.' he brought his lantern eyes to glare at Keaton.
'... We'll only see once we get to where we're going, if I'm right. Just bare in mind what I've told you. Ask the Spirit Seeker when we find them. It is not my place to tell you anymore. Besides, they will know more about your family name... Just follow your first instincts, they know what they are doing. Do exactly what you are doing right now.'

He gave a small "Hmm..." at Keaton before facing forward. What did Keaton know? This made him trudge on more. That was Keaton's intention, of course. He knew that if he prodded at Jace's instinctual assumptions, it'd encourage him to stick to them. The fox looked to the others, hoping they could be on time... No longer was Keaton going to sit and watch the heroes do their work from the sidelines... No, not anymore. He's done it too much. This needed to end now.

To Be Continued…

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