The moment I returned to Enusia, the thick tides of infernal mana collapsed onto me, drawn like a whirlpool to my soul. As my aura flowed out, the stars clashed against waves of oily black, creating a distortion that lingered for a few seconds before the two forces balanced out. Was that why the infernal mana felt so oppressive to me now? Did it have to do with my blossoming aura?

Luke’s aura wasn’t hard to locate, but as I rode Fable toward his aura, my guard keeping pace, someone called my name. I turned, finding Evla running toward me, tapping into a bit of her mana to catch up.

"There you are. We thought you’d never come out. What’s it even like in there? It must be cozier than this," she muttered, sweeping her hand around the dismal, gray mountains.

"It’s nice," I said, fighting myself to keep it vague. I liked Evla, but there was no reason to trust her with everything. Not yet.

"Figures. I didn’t take you for the type to camp out in the rain and fog. But anyway," she came to a stop beside Fable, who eyed her warily. "I was hoping to catch you before you disappeared again. I had something I wanted to ask, and I’m afraid it’s important."

"About what?" I asked, my tail curling around Fable’s neck.

"Your visions. Luke seems convinced this crazy plan of his will work. Does he get that confidence from you?"

"Not me, exactly," I said, running a hand over my horn. "But from fate? Probably."

"How could you not know?"

I hesitated, letting go of my horn with a sigh. "My visions are...unpredictable, especially of late. Fate flows freely around me, and I can’t always control who it speaks to," I said, dragging my hand through a golden wisp of aura. Stars trailed through my fingers in sparkling eddies.

"Then could it speak to me?"

I looked at her in surprise. "You want to have a vision?"

The tip of her tail flicked once. "There’s something I need to know."

I didn’t answer right away, my gaze turning back to the mountains. The horde was restless, scions warring, demons fighting, and armies marching. But beneath it all was a brooding pressure, a dark, roiling cloud of anticipation.

I shivered and turned back to Evla. "If it’s important to you, then I don’t mind. Try and focus on whatever you want to see, but keep in mind Fate bends to no one’s will, not even mine."

"I understand."

I waved my hand, and my aura wrapped the demonkin, causing her to stiffen, her breath catching. Her eerie black-and-white eyes frosted over with gold, stars filling her irises like the night sky. Vaguely, I could sense fate twisting around her, placing her soul in a world of darkness and pain. I couldn’t resist my curiosity and allowed myself to slip into her vision with her.

The vision brought me to a village built in a small gulley, surrounded by endless rolling hills. Fields of sprawling yellow and brown spread across the hilltops, the dropping crops rippling in the gentle evening breeze. Withered trees sprouted in the valleys between the hills. The village was small, with clusters of timber homes surrounding the village square. A river bed wound across one side, but only a trickle of water meandered through cracking mud.

Townsfolk gathered in the square. The air was filled with shouts and angry mutters. I blinked forward, standing among the angry people, all humans. Except for one, a young demonkin girl with red horns and a tail much paler than mine. She looked no older than ten and wore a ragged gray dress that was torn in many places, revealing raw scratches and bloody scratches across her scrawny body. She carried the entirety of the humans’ ire, on her knees in their midst, shaking, tears running down her cheeks.

"We trusted you, you mangy filthblood!" A man with a graying beard shouted, aiming a kick at her ribs. She coughed, falling onto her side, blood staining her lips.

"Stop it!" She cried, squeezing her eyes shut, covering her head with her arms. "Please, I didn’t do anything. Please!"

"Don’t listen to her lies!" A woman yelled, pulling her child close. "This is punishment from the gods."

"We should have turned her over to the Empire the moment you set foot in our village. You’ve cursed us with this blasted drought!"

Vitriol poured in from every side, and slowly, the violence escalated. A kick here, a thrown stone there. The demonkin curled into a ball, her tail pulled tightly in her arms. A rock caught her on the cheek, leaving a deep gash to the bone. Her breathing became shallow and erratic, and she clutched at her ribs where a man had kicked her, her flesh turning a deep purple as blood spread beneath the skin.

The noise faded abruptly as the day dimmed, everything slowing to a crawl. The girl remained untouched, sobbing with tears streaking the blood on her cheeks, not realizing what was happening. A shadowy presence materialized over the village, looming with the presence of an impending thunderstorm. It was enormous, overshadowing the entire gully, yet without distinct form or likeness. The Oracle of Eternity couldn’t get a read on its soul, insubstantial as it was, but I felt the weight of entire oceans hovering just beyond my senses.

There was no voice, but the demonkin shuddered, her sobs ceasing. She peeked up between her fingers, sniffling, one of her eyes dyed red with blood.

"I don’t want them to hurt me anymore. I want mama, and papa...I want them back."

Another silence, even heavier and more oppressive than the first.

"I will," the girl said, her voice strengthening with resolve.

Power descended from the presence in a torrent, enveloping the girl in a pillar of light. The ground cracked, collapsing beneath her as her wounds melted away, and her soul began to expand. She screamed, clawing at the ground with hooked fingers, as the color began to leak from her horns and tail, melting away until only a stark white remained. Blackness crept across her eyes, dying her irises, leaving her pupils a chilling white.

The light faded, and the presence departed, the world resuming pace. A shocked silence descended on the village as villagers backed away, their eyes bulging.

"Demon power," one whispered.

The girl’s hands clenched into fists, and slowly, she rose. None dared meet her gaze as she looked around, hatred smoldering in her alien eyes. Her soul ignited with power, blasting the villagers back. Her man clung to them, and their cries turned from shock to pain. They staggered, collapsing to the ground, but the earth wouldn’t hold their weight. Houses collapsed, trees split, and the ground buckled. As the pressure mounted, blood poured from the villagers’ eyes and spurted between their lips, leaking out of their ears and nose. They screamed but had no strength to struggle, pinned to the ground by an unseen weight.

And then they went quiet. The whole village did.

I jerked from the vision, my chest heaving as I refocused on Evla, my eyes wide with horror. She stared at me woodenly, her inverted eyes starstruck and unseeing. Slowly, the stars faded, and she sagged, dropping to one knee.

"Gods above," she whispered, clutching her horns, shaking her head.

"I tried to warn you," I said, gripping my tail tightly.

"Y-You saw?" she stammered, her eyes slowly focusing on me.

I nodded, my voice stuck in my throat.

"I’d almost forgotten," she mumbled, taking an unsteady step back, folding her arms tightly. Hugging herself. "What they did. Why I’m fighting."

"That’s what you wanted to see?"

She shook her head. "No, but maybe that was what I needed to see." She forced a laugh, some of her strength returning. "I wanted to see the end of this war. Where I would fight, and who I would need to kill."

"Sometimes, the past has more to teach us than the future. And Evla, I’m, um, sorry. About your family."

She shook her head, but I didn’t miss the glisten in her eyes, though she blinked it away quickly. "That’s old news, almost five years ago. They were among the first victims of the Church’s holy war against the Beast Kingdom. Cut down for not surrendering to the church paladins fast enough."

"And those villagers?" I tentatively asked.

"I managed to escape and wound up across the border in the Cervox Empire. Word of heightening tensions hadn’t reached such a remote place yet, so they took me in. But when the Empire’s messengers eventually made it, they managed to capitalize on the fear, pinning the recent drought on me. It doesn’t matter anymore. They’re all dead."

She shrugged and turned, before pausing, looking back.

"Er, thanks, I guess," she muttered, rubbing her horn. Her tail swished lightly as she pursed her lips and let out a sigh. "I never thought I’d say it, but I’m glad you’re back. Things are a lot...calmer with you around. He really does need you."

She nodded once to herself before walking away, leaving me staring wonderingly after her. My tail curled, and slowly, a smile spread across my face.

"Come on," I said, patting Fable’s neck. "Let’s find Luke."