“Yo, thish ish shome good food!” exclaimed Lucia as she took another bite of the steamed rice and lentil cake. It was filled with a variety of spices, including pepper, ginger, and black mustard seeds. Without taking the time to swallow, she began to lick the red chili oil the cakes were soaked in off her fingers.

  “Thank you,” replied Jayaka, taking a bite of his own meal, a piece of flatbread stuffed with a mix of strong smelling leaves and herbs. “My wife made it for this trip.”

  Lucia took a big gulp, washing down her food with a swig of water. “Ahh. She sounds like a great lady, I’d love to meet her when we’re done here.”

  “You will,” he smiled back. “But we need to stop the Rakshasi first. It’s starting to get late, so we must move quickly before nightfall.”

  “What happens then? I mean besides it being too dark to see. Do these Rakshees have night vision or something?”

  “I would not be surprised if they did, but my concern is that their powers grow once the sun sets.”

  Several caws echoed through the foliage while Lucia took a second to absorb Jayaka’s words. She took one last bite and sip of water before letting out a long groan.

  “Damn, I forgot they have powers. I mean, all the last one could do was turn himself into a tree, so how bad is this one on a scale from Ent cosplayer to exploding your head with a thought?”

  “The two are apparently siblings, so their powers are most likely very similar.”

  “So I guess we should be fine?” Lucia chuckled.

  “As long as we keep our heads straight,” nodded Jayaka.

  The two got up from their seats and washed their hands in a nearby stream before breaking out into a brisk walk.

---

  A scattering of fallen yet otherwise verdant gooseberry leaves wrinkled beneath the duo’s feet as they continued the trek towards their apparent target. Crows and monkeys began to caw and holler with an increased fervor, as if to warn the two of an oncoming danger, yet maintaining their distance from whatever lay ahead. Half an hour had passed since their meal and the sun had noticeably begun to set, bringing forth a light blanket of shade that settled over the whole forest.

  “Hey, if it’s getting late, why don’t we just make camp for the night and fight the rakeeshee tomorrow?” asked Lucia.

  “I would love to, but it would not be wise to pick a fight on an empty stomach,” replied Jayaka.

  “Hold on… was what we ate the last of your food?”

  The man nodded.

  “Mierda, I didn’t know! I would’ve let you have both of them if you told me.”

  “It is fine, you would be a prime target for the rakshasi if you approached it with an empty stomach.”

  “I guess so.” Lucia looked over to Jayaka with a soft smile. “Thanks.”

  “It was no problem, I couldn’t bear to let a lady starve while I feasted like a king!”

  “Such a gentleman.” Lucia rolled her eyes, but the smile remained on her face. That too soon faded when something new caught her attention. “Hey, what’s that?”

  The duo approached a large clearing devoid of vegetation, with a wooden structure placed squarely in its center. It was the size of a hut, yet the construction was nowhere near as shoddy as any hut had the right to be. A mix of richly finished wooden beams made up the outer walls, and a sturdily built brick chimney stood stoically at the back. Light puffs of smoke were rising from its tip.

  “Someone is still inside it seems,” mumbled Jayaka. “We should warn them of the rakshasi.”

  Lucia looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “Yeah, let’s go warn the stragglers who’ve been living conspicuously in the demon-infested woods for a whole month.”

  “You truly are a kind-hearted woman,” Jayaka nodded before walking ahead.

  “I- ah, nevermind.”

  The archer made his way to the front door, a solid slab of dark hardwood, and quickly rapped on it. He was greeted with skittering and muffled curses while he waited patiently outside.

  “Excuse me, I have come to warn you of a nearby rakshasi, a demoness, who has been reported to feast on the flesh of men. You should make your way to the nearest village for safety in numbers, it is dangerous to remain out here while it lurks in these woods.”

  “Just a second!” rasped a vaguely feminine voice from the other side. After the sounds of tumbling and sweeping echoed through the cabin, the woman on the other side cleared her throat and spoke up again. “Please, come in!”

  Jayaka opened the door and was greeted with a gust of warm air and a rich interior. Despite the plain hardwood walls and stone-tiled floor, the fireplace in the far corner of the room roared with a bright red flame. Several large straw baskets were filled to the brim with a variety of sweet smelling fruits. Green guavas, orange mangoes, and ruby red pomegranates.

  Lucia caught up to Jayaka by the time he took the first step inside. After staring at the cabin’s contents for several seconds, she hesitantly joined him. Her eyes immediately darted to the most striking thing in the room; the woman who’d invited them in.

  Beauty was the only word that could describe their host. She had a head full of jet black hair that flowed well past her shoulders and almost down the full length of her back. Her face was well chiseled, but cushioned with a layer of fat that created a gentle facade. Her eyes were a striking green, and her skin had a very light tan.

  Jayaka clasped his hands together and bowed his head to the woman. “Thank you for inviting us in. We simply wished to warn you of the danger lurking these woods.”

  “Oh my,” the woman said in a sing-song voice. “Such a brave young man coming all the way out here for me? And is this your wife?”

  “No,” both Jayaka and Lucia said simultaneously.

  “Well then, no matter,” said the woman, her lips curling into the faintest of smiles. “I was sure someone as strong and good looking as you would be married.”

  “Worry not, I in fact am,” smiled Jayaka. “My wife is a wonderful woman who I’m lucky to have!”

  “I see, but perhaps I can be wonderful to you too? If you would stay here for some time, I’m sure I could treat you well in ways your wife could only dream of. In the meantime, could I at least offer you a meal? Some fruit, perhaps?”

  “Your kindness is very much appreciated, ma’am,” replied Jayaka with a soft grin. “I would love to enjoy some fruits.”

  “How wonderful!” she cheered, before looking at Lucia. “And you, miss? Would you care for some of this bounty?”

  Lucia frowned and replied with a glare. “No thanks, I’m good.”

  “Are you sure?” asked Jayaka, who looked like a puppy at lunch time. On the surface, at least. “You looked like you were starving when you were eating my wife’s cooking.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure.”

  “That’s too bad, but very well,” replied the woman. She let out a long sigh and looked towards the ground. “This hut has been my home for many years, and it gets quite lonely out here. So I apologize for bothering you, but your company has been a great boon.”

  “Think nothing of it,” beamed Jayaka. “But we are the ones who should be thanking you for your hospitality!”

  “You are too kind,” the hostess blushed. After her feelings recovered, she reached for a piece of orange fruit and handed it over to the archer. “Right, here is your mango!”

  Jayaka accepted the fruit and lifted it to his mouth. Before he could take a bite, he was interrupted by a hard nudge.

  Lucia directed her glare towards Jayaka. “Alright, I’ve gotta ask. Do you actually have some big plan in your head, or are you really about to fall into her trap?”

  “E-excuse me?” stuttered Jayaka, looking back at Lucia with a mix of confusion and disappointment at being denied his meal.

  “Seriously, if what you’re thinking of is so complex that I haven’t already figured it out for myself, then you should’ve at least let me in on it first.”

  The hostess darted her head between the two. A single bead of sweat began to form on her forehead.

  “Plan? Trap? I do not think I understand.”

  “Oh, come on! I mean your plan to ambush the rakashasi by pretending to fall for her ‘feminine wiles’ and taking her out when she least expects it! But you totally looked like you were about to take a bite of that… oh. Oh god. You actually fell for it.”

  “Fell for who? What do you mean?” asked Jayaka.

  “Yes miss, what do you mean?” added their hostess with a nervous smile.

  “I mean you, puta!” exclaimed Lucia, pointing at her. “A lone woman living in the middle of a demon’s hunting grounds for over a month looking happy when a guest warns her of a man-eating monster prowling her back yard?”

  “She said she was lonely,” defensively replied Jayaka.

  “Ok, so she’s desperate for human contact. But what about those fruits? I’ve seen nothing but gooseberry trees around here, and two of those fruits only grow in the summer while the other one only grows in the fall!”

  “But then what am I holding?”

  “I don’t know, maybe a human heart?”

  “A human h- h-” Jayaka began to look queasy. “Why would you say such a thing?!”

  “She’s got fucking illusion powers! She probably killed the actual people who lived here, and used her abilities to conjure all of this shit. What else could that be?! I thought you knew all this before we walked in here!”

  “I- I have been nothing but accommodating, how could you say such terrible things about me?!” shouted the hostess as tears began to streak down her eyes. “Did I do something wrong? If so, I am oh so terribly sorry!”

  “For starters, you were flirting with a married man, and kept it up even after he told you he was taken. Seriously Jayaka, how does that not ring any bells that this is the rakshasi we’ve been hunting?!”

  “L-Lucia…” suttered Jayaka.

  “What?”

  “You pronounced ‘rakshasi’ correctly!”

  “Huh, I guess I did. So are you going to kick her ass or wha-”

  Their hostess let out a shrill roar, catching both of her guests off guard. Her teeth began to elongate, skin crack, nails grow into sharp tips, and hair take on a monstrously frizzy whirlwind of whites and grays. Her irises turned blood red and pupils morphed into vertical slits. “How dare you disrespect a princess like me! You two will be punished as my next meals!”

  The shock the two demon hunters felt only compounded when the mango Jayaka held began to morph into a mass of black feathers surrounding a long dead crow. The archer dropped it in a hurry as the rest of the room began to morph. The rich hardwood floors turned to a plain and barren stone stained with dried blood, and the baskets of fruit morphed into the propped up skeletons of a trio of men. Many of their bones were snapped in two with the marrow sucked out.

  Before either of the two could react to the actual threat, the rakshasi jumped with the force of a charging bear and slammed Jayaka through the wall, leaving a massive jagged hole as the two flew out of the cabin.

  Lucia slowly peeked through and saw Jayaka kick the creature off of him. She let out a sigh as the archer slowly rose to his feet and dusted himself off. She cleared her throat and shouted, “Told ya so!”