The Garden

When the body encounters an intruder, it retaliates. Infection is never a debate. It is a matter of survival. It is a war with one inevitable outcome. Victory, even if it means burning down the enemy along with itself.

Ever since his arrival, Lucian has become very familiar with this concept.
Just across the stream, hidden behind ferns and tall grass, he can hear a hunter getting into position. Today will be another struggle.

"Damn it. I didn't even get a chance to drink properly yet. I'm so far away as well. Will I even make it?"

A pair of eyes lit up in the underbrush. Leaves were disturbed by fur and muscle. The hunter was preparing its assault.

"Guess we'll have to see."

Lucian bolted, leaving half-filled canisters behind.
The splashing sound of a thundering charge from behind confirmed his choice had been correct.

Even without turning, he knew exactly what was after him. Only one monster in the Garden got excited enough to giggle while chasing its prey.

Byakko called them Gnolls. At least, that’s what Lilly told him. They had watched them hunt before, but nothing could have prepared Lucian for the terror of being pursued by one.

Young branches and thorny underbrush made movement difficult.
Cutting into his skin, they slowed him down. Meanwhile, the Gnoll, long since adapted to this environment, moved faster as they raced deeper into the forest.
Lucian could hear it clearly.

"He's gaining on me. I won't make it!"

Panic settled in. His thoughts spun between finding a solution and drowning out the ever-increasing volume of that thing's infernal laughter.
It was hopeless. The Gnoll was too fast. Any second now it would pounce on him, slowly tearing him apart as it had done countless times before.
Lucian’s mind began exploring dark corners. His only wish being that it please be a painless death.
As his sprint declined, giving in to despair, almost out of earshot, he picked up on a faint hum.

A fire lit in his eyes as an idea sparked. There was a lifeline hidden on this path.
His will reignited. A second wind carried him toward the sound with newfound energy. Enough that he failed to notice a root in his way.
It snagged his foot, and he came crashing down face-first. The adrenaline numbed the pain. He spat dirt and rolled behind the closest tree.
His breath was erratic, his lungs burned, and his face was covered in soil and leaves.

For a moment, everything was silent. The soft breeze through the treetops gave the place a deceivingly serene ambiance.
But a hushed snickering shattered the illusion.
The Gnoll was close, and it knew he was too.

Lucian was focused on something else though. Across from him, giant claw marks cut into a fallen tree.

"Byakko's trail," he whispered.

The light hum they emitted just might be his saving grace.
Then a familiar, harmful voice crept into his mind, eager to extinguish that glimmer of hope.

"Are you crazy? You've only done it once in practice, and now you want to try it with your life on the line?"

The voice was a knife, and the truth it carried stabbed at his courage.
Cold sweat pulled him back into the moment.
Everything had gone silent.
Gnolls enjoyed their hunts almost as much as the buffet that awaited them after. But in that brief pause between ecstasy and feast, they went mute. Their entire intent focused on ending a life.

On pure instinct, he sprinted toward the dead tree. With his outstretched hand brushing against the ferocious marks, he spun around, just in time to meet a looming shadow.

Supported by its hind legs, the Gnoll’s figure eclipsed him. Its rugged fur was covered by worn leather and steel, scavenged trophies from previous hunts. Glowing, bloodshot eyes radiated hunger, emphasized by yellowed fangs bared in a twisted smile.

"No," he thought. "I've endured so much. Is this how I die?"

Not taking his eyes off the predator, Lucian reached out. The hum from the raked bark began to shift in his hand. He shaped it.
First into static, then into something sharper and tangible. And seized it.

Slowly raising his empty hand toward the confused fiend, as if telling it to stop, he felt the invisible power peak. He closed his eyes and released it.

"Flash."

The sound collapsed in on itself and erupted. Not into a swelling fireball, but a brilliant sphere of intense light.
Lucian’s eyes stayed shut as a searing pain burrowed into his palm. For a second, he feared he had missed.
The wailing screams and loud crash beside him were a great relief. The Gnoll thrashed frantically, rolling as if on fire and clawing at its eyes. Blinded.

Lucian had no time to admire his work. He knew this distraction wouldn't last.
He ran.
Now with a significant head start, he heard the maniacal laughter return. Distant, but still in earshot.

His protesting legs and the bitter taste of gall in his mouth were overshadowed by the rush when the clearing finally came into view.

Their clearing.

Where the trees bent away from the sky.
Where celestial light seeped through unhindered.
Where pawprints as large as his chest sundered the ground.
And where Byakko waited.

The giant white tiger didn't even glance at the gasping, bloodied boy.
A twitching ear the only sign he noticed Lucian at all.
When the wretched Gnoll slithered through the treeline however, Byakko rose.

It froze in fear as it realized its blunder. The hulking tiger approached with regal strides, his gaze the same Lucian had endured just moments ago.

The Garden was his domain.
And this clearing, its inner sanctum.

The tables had turned.
Now the Gnoll was the trespasser.
And the body was once again responding to the infection.

Lucian didn’t watch. Even as he turned away and covered his ears, he still heard chunks of flesh thumping to the ground. Pained screams were drowned out by snapping bones and a final cry, cut short by a heavy stomp.

What was over in seconds felt like minutes and when his heartbeat finally slowed, Lucian fell to his knees.

"I did it. I survived." he said. Unsure if this was a good thing or not.


It was already dark when Lilly arrived. The bulbous fruit strapped to her back was a sign of greater fortune. When she saw Lucian, she panicked.

"What happened to you?" she called, her voice ringing with alarm.

Lucian was a mess. Covered in cuts and dried blood, he did his best not to focus on the stinging pain across his body.

"I... I got attacked at the stream. It chased me, and I'm sorry I couldn't get any water," Lucian answered in guilt-ridden tears.

Lilly’s expression went cold. The precious fruit slipped off her back and cracked as it hit the ground.

"YOU IDIOT!"

Lucian flinched at the sudden outburst. Lilly marched toward him with threatening speed, just to pull him into a crushing hug.
"We can always get water tomorrow. What's important is that you're alive!"

Her hug was so tight it hurt, pressing even more guilt out of him.
Lucian returned the gesture, softer.
"I'm sorry. You're right. Then again, you usually are."

Lilly pushed him away to get a clear view of his face.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Before Lucian could answer, Lilly had already moved on with her inspection.

"What's this!? What was chasing you?" Her voice a mixture of concern and accusation as she pointed at the bloody gash in his hand.

Lucian nodded toward the mushy pile of flesh and fur that Byakko was still observing, seemingly still debating whether it was safe to eat.
Lilly shuddered at the sight.
"Ugh. I hate those things. They make the freakiest noises when they get excited."

Remembering the sensation, Lucian shivered, shaking the echo of its laughter from his mind.
"That was me, though. The cut, I mean."

Lilly squinted.
"What do you mean that was you?"

"Remember how I always told you I can hear something in Byakko's footprints?"

Lilly’s expression flattened. "You mean the sound of a giant tiger stomping through the Garden? Yeah, I think I've been hearing that too."

"Noo. I mean I'm like you. I can use magic! I can sense traces of it wherever he goes, and I was able to use it this time!"

Lilly pondered for a moment.
"So what you're telling me is that you can use magic to cut yourself? That's kinda stupid," she said, clearly unimpressed.

Lucian opened his mouth in objection, then closed it again. Technically, she was right.
"You don't understand. There was this sound, and I shaped it into this ball of—"

"Okay, okay. Tell me tomorrow. It's late, and I need to focus now, so stay still!"

Lilly grabbed his hand, and a warm glow seeped from her fingers. The wound began stitching itself back together along with the multitude of cuts the Garden had gifted him during his escape.
Although it didn't hurt, Lucian still trembled.

"What? I can tell you're thinking about something."

Lilly’s intuition was scary.

"Nothing. I just don't like it when you do that. I feel so numb afterward."

She grabbed his fingers with both hands and pressed down.

"Oh, so you want me to make it worse?" Lilly was delicate, but she knew how to leverage her lack of strength. The pain was immediate and excruciating.
Lucian, now sweating, ripped his hand free.

"OW! I mean... thank you, Lilly, thank you! What would I do without you?"

A smug smile streaked triumphantly across her face.
"Exactly. What would you do without me?"

Caressing the healed but throbbing hand, Lucian spoke his mind.
"I'd probably be dead."

Lilly nodded in agreement, clearly pleased by his insight.
Lucian let himself fall onto the makeshift bed of dried grasses and leaves. Looking at the stars, he reflected on the day.
"I nearly died today. If it weren’t for Byakko, I wouldn't have made it."

Lilly snuggled up against him, sharing warmth as the night air settled over the clearing.
"We've had close calls before, but today was really scary. What if we wake up tomorrow and Byakko is gone forever?"

Without missing a beat, Lilly replied,
"We keep fighting."

Lucian was stumped. Amazed by her resolve, he felt a sting of shame.
"…But what if I don’t want to anymore? I’m grateful to be alive, but I’m so tired of living in fear every day."

Lilly suddenly rolled on top of him, pinning him to the grass. Her piercing eyes locked on his.

"If you’re tired of living for yourself," she said, voice trembling, "then live for my sake instead!"

Her strong words were laced with fear.
"You’re the only reason I’m still alive. So if you’re really tired, then make me the reason you keep going!"

Lucian’s breath caught. She slumped onto his chest, in a failed attempt to hide her tears.
"I… I’m sorry. You’re right, Lilly."

A small fist slammed into his chest in response.
"I usually am."