As I looked around me, I noticed the place couldn’t be other than the Sea of Wills. Yet, I could still feel the warmth of Arlott’s hand. This scared me close to a second death, until I looked at the hand grabbing mine. That made me have a glimpse of the bracelet Cailleach gave me to anchor me to the real world. It was still there, meaning the both of us were taken to the other side, even when we had our living bodies, or in my case the closest to it I could have.

After the scare, I focused on the things around us. They were all kinds of monsters circling us. Although Brand was nowhere to be found, a creature I didn’t know was there. One that talked.

“You will never get this body,” the reddish creature yelled at us, as Breena's body appeared from its shadow. “This is mine, and if you don’t return that mischievous soul you are hiding,” the creature flashed us the scariest grin I’d ever seen. “The next body in my collection will be the one that witch is using.” 

He pointed a crimson hand directly at Arlott, making anger build inside me. I first looked at Arlott. She looked as scared as I was, but then I looked at Breena’s body. It was hiding behind the creature, with a smile that was even scarier than the creature’s.

Then, it hit me like a truck. If the creature said that Breena’s body belonged to them, then that meant he’s the guy that took it in the first place.

“Wait, Brand?!” I shouted back with as much surprise as anger. “You’re that Saxen guy, aren’t you?”

I couldn’t take my eyes from Breena’s body, even as I talked to the devilish looking creature in front of it. Breena’s body casted shadows all around it, as if light couldn’t even get close to it.

“So, you know my name,” the creature said. “That only makes things easier for me.” His tone was deep, reverberating all over the place. It was as if it wasn’t coming from his mouth, but from everywhere at once. “But you didn’t bring me my soul, so I think this is the moment to get rid of both of you.”

The monsters surrounding us began to slowly approach us, as if playing with us. As if we were his prey.

Seeing the monsters getting closer, I attacked them. But then, my body started to flicker in and out of existence.

In that moment of despair, I felt warmth coming from behind me. I looked back and saw Arlott concentrating her will into the necklace that Kiandra gave her. I could feel her Will entering my body through the bracelet that Kiandra left for me.

My body stopped flickering, and it turned into the stronger cat girl form. I roared to the approaching things, making them stop, and  with a speed I hadn’t shown before, I sliced them up.

One after another, mannequins and ghouls dropped to the floor as if they were nothing. But the wraiths got to me quicker than I thought. As they blocked my sight, I heard Arlott scream.

After fighting for longer than I wanted, I managed to defeat the wraiths. I looked around for Arlott, finding her unconscious on the floor. Rage flowed from within and dyed my sight red.

I should be afraid of this change. Huitaca once warned me that if I became feral, it would make my will merge with the Sea of Wills quicker. Yet, in that moment, all my thoughts vanished. All I could think about was Arlott’s safety.

I grew stronger, faster. Not even the wraiths, nor the reapers could stop me. Though, they were still able to harm me. But I couldn’t feel anything besides rage. Not even pain.

As I slashed ghouls and reapers, I roared at them until I couldn’t make another sound. Feeling like an eternity had passed, I reached where Arlott was. But she wasn’t there. 

As I began looking everywhere searching for her, the wave of monsters grew, overwhelming me. I began to feel like drowning. Through what little space I had left to see through, I managed to spot Arlott, almost within my grasp. But Breena’s body was pulling her away from me, and taking her to Brand.

I felt my throat tearing apart as I put all my strength in a roar that was more of a screech. With a newfound strength, I crushed the monsters surrounding me, running towards Arlott as quickly as I could.

I was almost there, when something scratched my face. Breena’s body dropped Arlott and pounced at me with a ferocity akin to a rabid animal. More than an attack, it lashed out wildly, which gave me the opportunity to get a hold of her. I tried to subdue her, but she fought back, biting me. I could feel my body almost vanishing.

Brand approached us, and I began panicking. With Breena’s body under one arm, kicking and scratching, and finally getting a hold of Arlott under my other arm, I made a break for the portal.

But Brand’s monstrous figure got there first, blocking our only way out. Worse, my strength was starting to leave me, as I could feel myself merging with the Sea of Wills. All seemed lost.

But then, I remembered the church; how it protected me from the monsters back then. I turned around, still holding Arlott and Breena, and ran for it. I must have caught Brand by surprise, since he couldn’t catch me on time. Yet, he and his monsters still chased us.

My run was so frenetic, I kept falling to the floor because of the weight of the two girls I was carrying. With my strength vanishing, they were  too heavy for me. I barely made it to the church before the monsters caught up with us, but I was far from being in good shape.

Once in front of the church, I noticed that Breena’s body was strangely quiet. It had stopped scratching and biting me, not even struggling. I slowly walked the last steps into the church, as the fatigue from the fight got to me. 

Step by step, I got closer. But suddenly, Breena’s body shrieked, piercing my ears. I couldn’t hold onto either Arlott or the body for another second, letting them fall on the floor. 

Bracing myself enough so I would stop flickering for a moment, I grabbed Arlott once again, along the still shrieking body of Breena. I tried taking another step, but I could feel whatever was inside the body to make it harder to enter the church. Plus, the screams got louder and louder, and the body began convulsing. But seeing the approaching monsters made me just push through until the shriek stopped.

Suddenly , Breena’s body went motionless in my arm. No scream and no struggling at all. Afraid I had broken it, I stopped to look at the body for a second.

As I did so, some of the monsters entered the church.

I panicked once again. The last time, the monsters stopped at the door. But now, some of the wraiths and reapers could enter without much of an effort. Even if they did move slower, and they were visibly forcing their way in, it wasn’t enough. And I had no strength to fight them either.

Just as panic was getting the best of me, Arlott woke up and looked at the monster standing near us.

“What happened when--” as she was saying that, my body had a big ‘almost vanishing’ moment. Arlott’s eyes clearly showed the fear she felt when she saw that. She grabbed Breena’s body and tried to hold me too, beginning to run out of the church, back to where the portal should be. I guess she hoped Brand wouldn’t be blocking it anymore. At least that’s what I hoped too. I could see she had more resolve than I could ever have while doing so.

But I couldn’t run or do anything other than look at Arlott. She looked back at me, trying to get me to move. Instead, I dropped to the floor and began to cry.

“Please, keep going,” I said, between sobs. “I can't take another step.”

She looked at me, and then at the monsters, with a sorrowful look. But then, for a second, her face lightened up, as if she had an answer.

Arlott grabbed the necklace she used to give me some will before, and used it once again, almost falling as she had given me all her reserves. The Will wasn’t enough for me to bulldoze over the monsters, but at least I could stand up. 

When we got back to where the portal was, I felt the relief of finding it unblocked. Thankfully, Huitaca seemed to be able to keep it open, barely. As we approached it, we noticed it was almost gone. In the split second we were halfway through the portal, Brand appeared again and grabbed Arlott by the arm.

I jumped back at him, biting his arm with all of my strength, making him cry in pain. As quickly as I could, I shoved Arlott and Breena’s body through the portal. But just as I was about to jump behind them, it shut down, leaving me alone with Brand and surrounded by his horde of monsters.

I just closed my eyes, finally giving up. I heard Brand’s laugh as he approached me with his hand up, just like the time he stole my will. I began to feel it leaving me, and myself vanishing.

I expected to vanish quickly, but instead, there was something on my chest. I opened my eyes, finding Arlott crying over me. She clutched me as if I were to disappear at any moment, and when I looked down I saw myself, -i could see through my body on the brink of fading away.

Then, I realized Arlott’s hand was closed in a fist. She relaxed it, letting the ring I gave her fall to the ground. I looked back at her, thanking her for saving me again with a kiss to her cheek. It took a lot more from me than I thought it would, even as short as it took. 

Huitaca came running. She tried to help, but she didn’t seem to know what to do. So, she just came and went between me and Breena’s body until she had an idea.

“Istas, take some of my will to maintain yourself.” Her tone was nervous. “Try praying, that should help.”

I began reciting a prayer Huitaca taught me. I could feel a little thread of will coming from her and into me. It was the only thing that maintained me there.

“Arlott, do you have any more will to share?” Huitaca asked with some haste in her voice.

“Not much, but what do you need?” Arlott answered with a focused gaze.

“This will be dangerous, and I don’t know if it will work.” As Huitaca spoke, you could see the worry on her face. “But I don’t know of anything else that could help now.” She bit her lip as she hesitated and spoke once again. “Let’s hope you have enough faith in me.”

Huitaca gathered some will and cut the thread that fed my will. I immediately felt debilitated from that, but Arlott stood with an iron-like will, ready to do whatever she needed to.

“Arlott, do you give yourself to me as an acolyte and follower?” Huitaca began reciting. “Will you share your will with me, and maintain me with your faith?”

“Yes!” Arlott answered, and for a moment all the will surrounding Huitaca stopped. Then, the same wave appeared around Arlott and connected the both of them.

“Thanks the Will that you do believe in me,” Huitaca sighed as she focused once again on what was happening. “Now, I need you to take the bracelet Cailleach gave Istas from her arm, and put it on Breena’s arm.” She seemed to consider things for a second. “The soul one.”

Arlott hesitated, but did as she was told. Without the bracelet, I got submerged into the Sea of Wills.

There, it was all calm and quiet. I could feel warmth all over. I felt myself flowing into the Sea of Wills, but I was too tired to do anything. Yet, the next thing I knew was that I was on the living world again, inside a circle on the floor. It was like the one Kiandra used when Arlott and I tried to bond.

I looked around, and found Breena’s soul and body laying one beside the other. The soul seemed to be in a state similar to the one I was, flickering as if drifting in and out of the Sea of Wills. But the bracelet anchored her, although not too well as it sported a big crack on its side.

I felt a prick in my finger, as Arlott took a drop of my blood. I saw her pouring it on a disk beside a drop of her own blood. Both drops remained separated, as if repelling each other, but not by that much.

“I, Arlott, witch of Huitaca, with my blood and with her will, I bound this spirit, Istas.”

“I, Istas, accept.” I managed to muster with what felt like my last breath.

“With Huitaca’s will,” Arlott continued. “I bind Istas to this world and her cause. Until the day I die, or the contract is broken.” At last, I could hear these words from Arlott.

The drops of blood on the plate converged, sizzling while doing so. But as soon as the two drops touched each other, all the will surrounding us flowed into me, then  it was sent to Arlott.

As I felt all the will entering me, I stopped disappearing. From the bond we now had, I could feel the warmth and care Arlott fell for me.

That made us happy, but we had other things to think about before celebrating.

Both Breenas, the body and soul, started squealing in pain. Tears fell from their eyes, and the soul one flickered so hard, it even disappeared entirely at times.

“We need to stabilize her!” Huitaca said, frightened. She looked at Cailleach’s bracelet on Breena’s wrist, and then she turned at Arlott’s ring on the floor. “Arlott, I need your ring.”

Arlott hesitated with that order. She looked at me, then at the ring. It had saved me so many times.

But Breena’s screams got louder. With a pained face, Arlott handed Huitaca the ring, tears falling from her eyes too. She then hugged me, saying a muffled ‘sorry’.

“Istas, I need you to be in the Sea of Wills, in case something goes wrong.” Huitaca then focused on Cailleach’s bracelet and on Arlott’s ring. “Please, I know it might be scary after what you had to go through. But you are the only safety net we have while I pass the will inside these items onto Breena.”

I focused, going to the other side. There, I could see Breena coming and going intermittently. But then, she stayed there inside the Sea of Wills, just floating there.

I could also see all the Will Huitaca was using; the glyphs she wrote under Breena. But the Will wasn’t flowing towards her soul.

I focused. Being an acolyte of Huitaca, I got to control her will enough to connect Breena to it. It began flowing and then, with a flash, she disappeared from the Sea of Wills. But the light kept on repeating, until I was forced into the living world. Once there, I could see Huitaca in her human form reciting a chant I didn’t know.

Both the body and the soul of Breena floated up, slowly starting to merge back into one. But then, they separated a little, then merged again.

“Istas, Arlott, please help me control all this will.” Huitaca shouted, making a really big effort to maintain Breena from fully separating again.

We looked at each other, and Arlott offered me her hand, which I gladly held . We then looked at Breena and did what we could.

Suddenly, something came out from Breena’s body, then her soul got in. The thing that came out was a viscous and toxic looking thing. Looking at it made my entire body tingle and want to go back to the Sea of Wills.

“Istas, destroy that thing.” Huitaca shouted. “Do it quickly.”

I let go of Arlott's hand and I pounced at the thing. Gathering all the anger I had towards Brand, I slashed at the thing. After that, the will calmed down and Breena began to breathe as normal. But she didn’t wake up.

“What was that thing?” Arlott asked as she ran to hug Breena. At last, she had her friend fully back.

“That's the will of that evil man has,” Huitaca answered, as she handed Arlott the ring back, now empty of will. “It is corrupted, and it corrupts everything it touches.”

Hearing that, I got scared for a second. I looked down at my claw-like nails I used to slash at it.

“You will be safe, Istas.” Huitaca reassured me. “Your will is strong enough to purify this.” She giggled, in a time like this. “And you also have me to fight it.”

Arlott was still hugging Breena, with tears still on her face. This time, though, they were tears of joy from finally fulfilling the promise she made to Breena.

“When will she wake up?” Arlott asked with a smile on her face.

“I’m not sure when,” Huitaca said with sorrow. “I’m not sure even if she will wake up, ever.” 

Then, remembering something, I got a little hope.

“I’m sure Kiandra can help us. And the letter said she would be coming back.”

With half a smile that showed her worry, Arlott asked me to carry Breena.

I gently lifted her and brought her inside the hut, tucking her in her bed. She looked as if she was just asleep.

Though hoping Breena would wake up, I still began to ponder what would happen if it didn’t happen. But I knew Arlott and I would be able to find a way for her. More so now we were witch and spirit.

Now that we were finally bonded.