“It’s been quite peaceful around here hasn’t it?” Alta looks up to the sky, watching the clouds drift by. “A few months did go by, it’s already summer,” Odin shields his eyes from the sun’s rays. Areum quietly rests on Fenrir’s lap, petting her hair every now and then. A deer peeks out from behind a bush, and Fenrir signals it over. It trots its way to nuzzle Fenrir’s hand and sets itself down by his side. “Looks like Langley’s recovery will be faster compared to Sele,” Alta mentions.

“Still?” Odin raises his eyebrow, “is it that bad over there?”

“Considering the fact that they have to wait for the soil to regain back its nutrients, they’ve been taking in imported goods so far. Another problem is that there have been pirates roaming the waters, so most of the merchandise gets taken away or lost at sea.” Alta looks to Sele’s direction, “I’ve been sending some of my companions to investigate it, since Bahamut cannot physically do anything.”

“That bad huh?” Odin breathes a heavy sigh, “it’s harder to do anything anymore, we’re nothing more than merely souls. Our manpower dwindled twice in size since the Hallins are gone now too...what a time to be alive.”

“O’ sole survivor from the Hallins, you have suffered so much. I’m sorry that your fate is so cruel.” Fenrir closes his eyes, filled with regret, yet unable to do anything at all. “It’s time we send that child back,” Alta places his hand on Fenrir’s shoulder and the three of them fade away, leaving Areum sleeping comfortably beneath the shade of a tree, beside the deer.

The girl has made a habit of getting out of her bed late at night, another nightmare clouding her thoughts. And with new habits, she’s become better at sneaking out the rooms at night. She sighs, seeking comfort sitting on a couch in the common room. “I didn’t know part of the trip was collecting aeons as well. So far, we have Bahamut, Alta, Odin, and Fenrir...so that makes eight left.” She pulls out her necklace from the inside of her shirt. “I wonder what kind of family I would’ve had.”

She recalls a memory of their meeting with the other aeons back at Jopu and the reports back at Sele without the others present, “to activate the true powers of the Spirit Core the Guardian must find the Protector...right? Then offer blood?”

“Blood isn’t enough darling,” Anima settles herself on a tree stump with a pained expression. A bit irritated, perhaps she needed to think twice about what she reads. “Then what is it?”

“You have to die Areum.”

She opens her eyes briefly, slightly getting up, hugging her knees and crying softly.

“How does your body feel today Robin?” Yixing fixes the bandages of his forearm. “I feel groggy sometimes, but I feel better after drinking a glass of water.”

“That’s good to know, since you’re the only one managing the inn now.”

“No wonder, your skin is looking smooth lately,” Baekhyun grins. Robin lightly smacks Baekhyun’s back, “are you implying that my face was covered in pimples when you saw me.” Baekhyun scoffs, “me? Of all the people in the world, you accuse me, someone who you haven’t seen in years.” He says in a playful tone. Robin snickers at his friend, “yeah, yeah, now shut up.” Yixing can’t help but burst in laughter, joined by the other two.

From above, the sound of a bird meets their ears, it circles around the three before dropping off a paper then promptly leaving. Baekhyun picks it up and sees Sele’s emblem on it. He slips the ribbon off and reads its contents. “What does it say?” Robin tries to sneak a peek. “After notifying the officials of our situation here, we were told to be stationed here until we got a hint of where to go next, but no leads so far. I was expecting that Lan would be the one writing this time--just another letter to report our findings and what not.”

“I think it’s fine for you guys to go, wherever the hell you're going,” Robin thinks, “there’s not much we can do until the village gets their spirit back again. But that shouldn’t be too hard, since we do have three deities overlooking us now.”

“Hm, maybe we’ll talk about it with the others.” Yixing tightens the gauze, “I have to leave now, I have to head to the clinic, I’ll see you later.” Baekhyun and Robin wave goodbye, ready to begin their long awaited chat.

A young man walks through the door, approaching the front desk. “Hello, what can I do for you?” Robin asks, speeding his way to the counter.

“Are you able to house me for a few months or so?”

“Sure, so what’s your stay about?”

“Came from my old town, it’s going through turmoil right now.”

“Why what’s wrong?” Robin wonders if the man didn't get a good look at the condition Langley's in.

“Kilika used to be a good place, but now the weather’s out of wack and I’m tired of hearing superstitious things so I left.”

“What superstitious things?” Baekhyun decides to join in.

“It’s because of Shiva, it’s because of Ifrit.” The man mocks the people, “maybe things would actually grow, if people starting tending to the field than complain about it. One second it’s blazing hot, then it’s freezing cold! I’ve had enough of that place!”

“And where’s Kilika from here?”

“To the east of here,” he bobs his head, “why’d you want to go there? I’m telling you now, it’s a wreck over there.”

“Me and some fellas are you know-- sightseeing.” Baekhyun gestures goodbye to Robin, enthusiastic to tell everyone.

“Thanks for the stay Robin,” Luhan returns the keys to his shared room, “stay healthy yeah?”

“You all too.” Robin smiles, “ah!” He spots Areum, “before you leave, I want you to have this.” Robin places a brooch in her hands. “That’s an honorary badge, proving that whenever you want to stay at this inn, you’re always welcomed.” Areum looks up at Robin, then to the jewelry and back at Robin, “thank you.”

“You remember the location right Jongin?” Kris reminds, and Jongin nods. “Hold on everyone!” Robin waves goodbye. A black haze transports them and roughly drops them to the floor. “Jongin, I think you’re getting rusty.” Sehun complains as Areum lands on his stomach. Jongin nervously laughs, “probably.”

“Are you okay?” The group looks up and sees a pair of elderly women. “Ah yes, we’re in Kilika right?” Tao asks. One of them nods, “can you tell us anything about a temple around here?”

“The temple is past the village, although I don’t recommend it.”

“Why not?”

“In between, there’s a jungle infested with fiends, unless you have someone protecting you--you’re all goners.”

“Don’t worry about us we’ll be fine.” The ladies both exchange uneasy glances, “we’ll take you there then.” As the group walks through Kilika, the eyes of the people are dead, all walking like living corpses. “As you have probably heard, our crops haven’t been growing like they used to and we suffer from drastic weather changes…”

Areum locks gazes with a girl probably around her age, protectively hugging a younger boy. Never had Areum had to go a night experiencing hunger, she runs to their direction and pulls out a fabric holding something. She unties it and it’s filled with bread and cookies, she unhooks her canteen of water and places it down. She leaves quietly and runs back to the group. She eyes at the ground, knowing well that her actions are a little out of character sometimes. “What a nice child,” the two women whisper to each other. “We’re here...are you sure about this?”

Areum stares at the stone gates, heavily guarded with people carrying spears and bows.

“Don’t worry about it.” Sehun bows. The woman sighs, “I tried...open the gates!” The soldiers spin a wheel, as the ropes pull the doors open. “Good luck to you all.” The duo leave, continuing whatever they were doing. The gate closes loudly behind them.

You could hear the sound of water flowing as soon as you step inside the jungle. The humid weather makes their skin feel sticky. It’s awfully narrow as they carefully walk through the jungle. Kris offers his hand to Areum, to which she takes as she jumps from rock to rock. “There should a road around here somewhere if there’s a temple.” Jongdae offers. Tao moves away some leaves, “ah, I found it!” He points at the yellow grass, leading north. “Great, as long as we don’t get distracted we’re fine.” Junmyeon adds and turns to the group, “wasn’t Areum with you just now Kris?”

Kris looks around, “ah .”

“Don’t worry about it, she’s right there.” Jongdae points out. Areum is attracted to something as she squats, they head over to her. “What’s that?” Junmyeon asks. It looks like a small mammal, with blue fur and a crystallized gem on its forehead.

“Oh! A carbunkle!” Kyungsoo yells out. Areum tries to pet it as it grooms itself. The small creature leaps off the stone and walks away from the path. “Come on, let’s go follow the path.” Yixing tries to revert her attention, “Areum? Don’t go after it!” Yixing warnings are useless as she’s already trailing after it. Areum is already deep within the jungle as she chases the carbunkle, it swiftly jumps away from Areum. “Gotcha!” She’s able to capture the carbunkle in her arms, but she doesn’t notice that she’s come upon another fiend’s lair.

“Seriously, where did that girl go?” Luhan crouches to get past the vines.

They can hear echoes of a scream getting closer and closer, and Areum whizzes pass by them with the carbunkle in her arms. They try to call out to her, but notice that an Ochu is on their tail! Ochu is widely known for being the Lord of the Jungle. It’s lethal tentacles is what you have to look out for.

“AHHHHHH!” They all run away from the evil creature and are unaware that they are back on the temple path. They sprint for it and come upon some steps, they quickly travel up, but they hear Ochu roar and it quietly returns back into the forest. They all dramatically fall to the ground, “Areum! No more running around got it?!” Yixing scolds. Areum nods, still startled.

“Oh, guests?” A young woman comes down the steps. The carbunkle’s ears perk up at the voice and escapes Areum’s arms. “Taka!” She says, “so that’s where you’ve been!” The carbunkle nuzzles against her cheek. “As a thank you, please rest at our temple.”

“Gladly,” Sehun breathes. They all get up and gather the energy to climb up the steps. “So, um,” Baekhyun starts. “It’s Menala.” She answers. “Okay, Menala, is it true that people of Kilika are suffering from natural forces or do you believe that it’s something more?”

She’s taken aback, “I see that you’re not ordinary travelers. I’ll explain everything once we get to the top!”

“Omph!” Areum trips on the steps and scrapes her knee, she yelps a little before healing herself and catches up with the group. Kyungsoo helps her up to her feet, dusting off her clothes, she displays a bashful expression as Kyungsoo fixes her hair. “Still not going to talk to us huh?” Areum doesn’t make eye contact with him and walks ahead of him. Kyungsoo sighs, wondering when Areum will open to them a little more.

“Now listen here!” They hear once they get to the top, “I’m not listening! I’m not listening!”

“Now, now,” A man intervenes, “we need to figure out how to help Kilika now.”

“Stay out of this!” The both yell. Menala nervously laughs, “everyone meet my family, that’s my Father, Mother, and older brother.”

“Did we come at a bad time?” Baekhyun whispers to Menala, “ah no, um, how to explain this?”

“Shiva! Ifrit!” Areum runs towards Menala’s parents. They both avert their attention away from the bickering and see Areum coming their way. “Hello my darling!” Shiva greets, but get pushed away by Ifrit, “oh no you don’t!”

“She’s not the only one saying hello to you, you know!” Ifrit exclaims and they both heads and growl.

“As you can see, we have two deities that are housed in this temple. The aeon of ice, Shiva, and the aeon of fire, Ifrit.” Menala points out, “and for reason they’ve possessed my parents and right about now…,” bursts of ice and fire erupt all around, making the radical climate change, turning the color of the sky unnatural.

“Don’t fight!” Areum whines, “sweetie,” Ifrit starts, “we’re not fighting--we’re having some friendly competition. Right, Shiva?"

“Yes, of course, but I’m going to be the one to pummel your nasty face to the Earth!”

“Well go ahead and try you crazy ice woman!”

“Don’t fight, don’t fight…” Areum starts to bawl. The two aeons are taken by surprise and try to calm her. “Oh honey, I’m sorry...hey! We don’t need two people to do this!” Shiva spats.

“Well, maybe Areum wanted a warm hug instead of a cold one no?” Areum cries louder and louder. The brother slowly starts to shake fervently, his hands turn into fists. “That’s it!” He brings out a paper fan and hits both of their heads. “Ouch! What was that for Solan?!”

“Well maybe if you didn’t argue over every single little thing, every single day then you wouldn’t have gotten hit wouldn’t you?!” Solan yells. Areum is a mess, as she struggles to breathe while crying. Shiva frantically tries to soothe Areum and Ifrit pouts, “crazy lady.”

“What was that?!” She screams.

Solan threatenly shows the paper fan, and they quietly stand in their spots. “Really...what are we going to do with you two?”

“Solan!” Menala calls, “we have guests!”

“Oh! Welcome to Kilika temple!” Solan manages to catch his breath and puts on a smile, “I’m sorry about that scene, now what’s your visit about?”

“Solan, they’re not here for that. I think they might be able to help us.”

“How?” Solan raises his eyebrow. “Perhaps you can get us updated on the situation here in Kilika?” Sehun suggests. Solan is taken aback, but believes that this might turn back everything to the way it was. Heck, he was going to accept any help he can get.

“Yes, please come in.” Solan leads the way, “and you two!” They both freeze and look at Solan, “you both better behave as we have guests now. And please bring in our other guest nicely won’t you?”

Ifrit tsks, but heaves Areum up in his arms, with Shiva following behind with her arms crossed.

“Sit anywhere you like.” Solam settles down on a stool, “so what kind of travellers are you all?”

“We specialize in dealing with deities and stuff you could say.” Jongdae answers. Shiva and Ifrit enter the room, sitting away from each other, still grumpy as ever. Ifrit puts Areum down in the empty space beside him.

“Will you two get over it already?” Solam sighs, they’re about to retort, “don’t you dare say anything.” He warns.

“Wait if Areum is here…” Shiva scans around and spots Minseok, an evil smirk shows up on her face. “Oh no you don’t!” Ifrit shouts and gets Chanyeol into his view. Solam quickly gets up, “everyone stop them!” Like on command they block each other’s way, but Shiva’s and Ifrit’s eyes glow in color and Menala’s parents fall to the floor. “Mom! Dad!” Menala rushes to them. “Wah!” Menala screams as Jongin trips on her leg.

It’s a mess and everyone’s sprawled on the floor, with Minseok and Chanyeol unconscious. “Oi! Wake up!” Minseok is the first to get up, he looks at his hands, “yes!” Chanyeol raises himself up from the floor and stands. The two gaze into each other’s eyes, something wasn’t quite right. “Ah, damn it.” Minseok facepalms.

Everyone is confused on what’s happening, while Solan sighs. “What happened just now...was soul possession, instead of my parents, they’ve placed themselves within your friends.”

“So…” Luhan stresses.

Solan rubs his temples, “Shiva is Chanyeol and Ifrit is Minseok…”

“You damn woman! If it wasn’t for you I would’ve gone into the right body!” Minseok yells at Chanyeol. “Me?! If you weren’t the one to make a scene out of it then it’ll would’ve worked out.” Chanyeol growls.

“If you haven’t noticed,” Yixing starts, “Kilika’s been suffering from quick weather changes, they can’t grow anything and everyone’s starving. If this continues, you’re going to have people become sick and dying.”

They’ve stopped grabbing at each other’s shirts, “since when?” Minseok’s expression is grim. “For a while now you two,” Solan adds, “all your fighting is adding more stress that people have started to leave the village and all the blame goes to us.”

“Is that why there’s no one coming to the temple lately?” Chanyeol sits and crosses his legs. “Yes, I believed that you two would settle your differences already by now, taking over my parent’s bodies was one thing but now it’s to the point where Menala and I can’t do much anymore.”

“I see…,” Chanyeol thinks, he waves his hand in the air, ice condensing into a mirror. “Ifrit, come with me.” Minseok nods and they both walk into a room. “What are we going to look at?”

“To see if what those kids are saying is true, once we confirm it with our own eyes, we have to do something about it.”

“Agreed.”

They’ve been in there for a while, should we check on them?” Menala asks, holding an asleep Areum. “I think they’ve got it.” Sehun offers to take Areum off her hands. The sound of the door croaks open and the two deities emerge out.

“Who’s the shorter one now?” Shiva snickers as she enjoys Chanyeol’s height.

“Enjoy it while you can, at the end of the day, I’ll always be taller than you.” Minseok sneers and threatens him with a punch.

“You’ve made up now?” Solan asks.

“No, but--"

"You've made up right?" Solan smiles, smacking the paper fan against his palm.

"Y-yes, we’ve created a sort of weather machine,” Minseok reveals an orb with a fire and ice rings overlapping one another. “We send it up the air and it should even out our powers when either one of us goes into an outburst.”

“Will it work?” Menala rubs her chin, looking at the ice crystal ball.

“If you wish it so, it will.” Areum says, a bit groggy, “or more like what Bahamut would say.” She laughs as she latches herself onto Minseok’s leg. Kris pries her off. They all exit out of the temple and together, Chanyeol and Minseok throw the orb into the air, a gentle light flashing out. A rain of sparkling dust shines softly as it falls to the ground. “Does it feel better now?”

“Yeah, it feels like normal weather we used to have all the time.” Menala breathes in.

“Now that’s done and over with, how about we get to know each other a little bit more?” Shiva and Ifrit spring out of Chanyeol’s and Minseok’s bodies, but they quickly gain consciousness. The two warriors give each other a quizzical look, but they laugh it off.

Two weeks pass by, and their stay is longer than intended, but they wanted to see if the progress in Kilika got any better--and it did.

“Shiva?”

“Yes darling?” She answers as she combs Areum’s hair. “I never got the chance to ask Atla or them last time, can you tell me more about the Spirit Core?” She looks down on her hands that turn into fists.

“Why?”

“Even though we’re getting aeons, I feel like there’s nothing connecting the pieces together, nothing’s making any sense. I don’t want to do this anymore…I want to go home…”

“Aw honey, listen to me--,” Shiva is cut off.

“I mean, if I end up dying, does that mean I was never meant to be born?” Shiva can’t answer and embraces her, Ifrit walks in, unknown to anything. The three of them go into a deep talk, and each reasoning makes Areum believe she was never meant to be alive at all.