Sparkling Optimism [Chili]

Kanna wasn't one to take jobs alone, yet here she was, in a cave deep in the mystical and frightening.

Despite her horns and lineage that might suggest otherwise, the half-Alpha was very firmly someone who played the support role. On the few jobs she'd taken with members from the guild she called home, her whole focus was keeping them and those that they saved healed up and strong. Sometimes, she even healed their enemies afterward, which had earned her some scoldings. Being a peacenik in these times was rough, but even her worst day one of the weirder members of Luminous Rose was a cakewalk compared to being against violence in her home nation of Sin. Though soft and compliant and many ways, she was stubborn when it came to bringing harm to others.

Another thing she was stubborn about was being helpful. When the rescue request was pinned to the guild's job board, Kanna couldn't resist taking it even though no one else was available to accompany her. A child was lost, and the Sinnite adored children. Her heart squeezed and ached when she read it. The parents must be in so much pain... and the child was probably so scared, if not hurt! The mere thought of delaying brought her to tears. What if hesitating costed the child their life? It was nearby in Sakuramori, which was as beautiful as it was eerie, but not extremely dangerous as far as she was aware. She'd explored there a little on her own while trying to get her bearings in Fiore. Then again, she hadn't been aware that there was a village in the magically haunted woodland.

Impulsive as it may be, Kanna set out immediately.

It was a brisk winter's morning and the gentle soul was still finessing her horns through a modified toboggan with a fluffy white pom-pom as the chill kissed her cheeks. At least she already had her coat on. Though it was the color of ice, it was triple layered and toasty, perhaps too much so. Being from a hellish, lava-rivered homeland, Fioran winters might as well have been a glacier. Even now she shivered, regretting her choice to rely on stockings alone for her legs but not wanting to waste any more time turning back.

After a brief walk, the forest came into view in all of it's shimmering glory. Despite the season, the leaves were healthy and remained rainbow hued. The calls of birds she couldn't name grew louder as she drew near, rustling in the trees and bushes-- or were those fairies?-- as her booted feet took the well beaten path into its spiritual depths. Tiny pink monkeys chased lunar rabbits across the path in crisscrossed patterns, while two-faced deer with glowing twenty-point horns grazed at the babbling brooks. Not much of the ice and snow made it into the deeper parts of Sakuramori. It was warmer, almost humid, but she remained bundled up and focused.

Finding the village had taken enough time to make her truly anxious. It wasn't just hidden in the trees, it was the trees! Her pink eyes nearly missed it if she hadn't noticed what sounded like the twinkling of a wind chime. Turning toward the sound revealed an enormous tree trunk with an oval door and tiny round windows. After a gentle knock and quiet inquiries, she was led to the parents of the missing child. Once she spoke to them, she was pointed in the direction of a series of crystal caves. They also informed her that they'd sent out many requests and others were also searching, but if anything, seemed even more optimistic to have yet another soul looking for their precious little girl.

It'd been a few hours since she entered the beautiful caves, and Kanna had yet to run into another person to team up with. More concerning, she was injured and being chased by a small army of strange creatures! They looked like foxes but were made of the same glistening gemstones as the cave itself. Speaking to them had been a huge mistake! Trying to see if they were friendly had incited one, and her frantic running had alerted the rest! Oh, their teeth and claws were so sharp, and they were so fast! She didn't even have time to heal! Only running, scared, tired, and hurt!

"αρωγή!" she called in her native tongue Dravni, though she only heard it echo back at her to the tune of twinkling crystalline fox feet.

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He was lost. That was the one intrusive thought Chili kept having despite him ignoring it. He had been camped out at the mouth of a cave located somewhere in Sakuramori. He didn't know the exact location. Not that he paid attention to such things nowadays. Having been wandering the many different wildernesses of Fiore ever since what he did, Chili hadn't cared to know his specific location. For 3 years, he lived like this, and as far as he was concerned, he would continue to do so. Not that it mattered much with how lost he was in this cave system!

"Fub me, man," he muttered to himself. He had sworn he heard a scream echo out of the passageway back when camped, and despite his mental debate about how he shouldn't check it out, he did. That had been hours ago, and now here he was lost, lost, and with no idea why he'd come running down this rabbit hole in the first place, all because he heard a scream.

It was as he began to laugh at himself that Chili heard it. A cry from further down the tunnel. It wasn't in a language he could understand, but the emotion in the voice was clear enough. Someone needed help.

It was at that moment he felt their eyes on him. Glaring at him. Gritting his teeth, Chili lowly growled, "It will never make up for it, I know, and I am no hero, but I'll be damned if I am going to sit back and let someone get hurt!"

Rushing down one of the many branching tunnels. Chili was happy for once about his enhanced hearing. The sound of rushing footfalls and something else could clearly be heard by him. He wasn't sure how long he ran, maybe a minute, maybe more. Soon, however, he found the origins of the sound.

A woman with horns rushed down the cave towards him. The crystals that covered the cave walls gave off a small light, helping him to see her clearly. Her and the small horde of Crystal Foxes chasing her!

[wc: 350 || total: 1,103/5000]

So tired. How much longer could she go? Even though she wasn't fully human, that didn't mean what little benefit she had from the demonic beasts would let her run forever. Her legs were scratched all the way down to her ankles, and though her pain tolerance was quite high, it was really starting to hurt. The poor halfling was slowing down, quite literally put between a rock and a hard place. Either she would have to fight the horde of crystal foxes, or she'd be torn to shreds when her legs and lungs failed her. Of course, there was a third option, but she felt if she was going to come to a cave mouth to escape, that would've happened already for how long she'd been running down in this damp, glowing labyrinth.

There was something to be said for sticking it out, though. "Ah!" she exclaimed, rounding a corner and finally seeing another person running toward her. If she'd had any more speed to pour on, she would have. She very much didn't want to hurt these foxes, but she also wasn't quite prepared to be their chew toy either.

"αρωγή!" Kanna repeated desperately, but then, even in her distress, remembered that it was unlikely she'd be understood. "Help!" she squeaked, barely able to dodge the snapping of some gem jaws as she skittered around the yellow haired man to hide behind his back. While she hated to put people out, she'd worry about the guilt later, once they both were safe. "Can you help me? Please?"

[wc: 259 || total: 1362/5000]

Help was the word that repeated in his brain. Help. Memories flooded his head hearing that word. Faces, scenes, cries, and more. Then it all went away. The present was right in front of him. A woman with flowing white hair, onyx horns, and shimmering pink eyes pleading for someone to do something, anything.

He didn't have time to swap into a mode, didn't have time to synchronize his molecular structure. He knew what it would do to him. However, he didn't care. With a wave of his arm, a pair of floating, pulsating, red and purple orbs about the size of cantaloupes appeared encircled by five, foot-long crystalized pillars of darkness.

The pillars pointed towards the lass and the horde and began to rotate around the orbs. Slowly at first, before getting faster and faster to the point where they were a blur. The orbs pulsated faster. In truth, Chili could have fired his Void Blasters from the moment he created them. Right at her and the horde behind her. The old him would have.

Gritting his teeth harder to the point he swore he felt a tooth crack, Chili waited. Waited for the second, the second she was clear. Till she was past him and a good couple of steps behind him. The horde was right on her heels, but Chili was determined to be better than he was in the past. Even if it cost him.

As soon as she was clear, he had his blasters fire their beams of pure abyssal energy which made short work of the mineral foxes, well, the ones they could get. As chunks of crystal and gem were blasted throughout the tunnel by his sentries, Chili gritted his teeth in pain as three of the fox bastards jumped him, a small animalistic growl leaving his tightened lips.

One fox dug its teeth into his right shin, its gemstone teeth easily cutting through his flesh. Right until it hit his bone. Another found purchase on his lower left abdomen, blood slowly starting to stream down his torso. The last one tried to get him in the throat. However, Chili was faster and caught the bugger before it got a chance. Both of his hands, grabbing the top and bottom jaw, Chili snarled at the creature.

As he did, he used his strength to rip the creature's bottom jaw off, the crystal creature going limp as he did. Tossing it to the side, Chili kept his magical energy focused on keeping the Void Blaster materialized so they could keep off the rest. Energy beams continued to cut a path through the small group until the remaining few decided to retreat.

As they did, Chili grabbed the two, biting him with his iron-like grip, and ripped them off of the parts of himself they were biting. As they came lose, so did bits of flesh as blood sprayed slightly from the wound due to the rough nature of the removal.

He was prepared to bash them against the wall, treating them like any other construct that had attacked him, but then he saw their eyes. Even though gems reflected such emotion, such fear.

Chili froze for a second as a flash of memories was triggered. It only lasted a second, but in his mind, it seemed longer. Heaving a heavy sigh, Chili knelt down to place the creatures on the ground, and with that, they ran off to follow the others.

Standing up, Chili planned on turning to see if the woman was still there, "Are you o-" he started to ask softly, but it was then that the repercussion of using one of his elements outside of their specific mode kicked in as he expected. His atoms began to rip themselves apart, and Chili fell to his knees. As he began to cough up blood. The flame that burned above the front of his forehead flickering radically.  

The fit lasted a good minute before it ended, his cells and atoms healing themselves back to normal like always after such fits. At this point, he was on his back, looking up at the crystal-covered ceiling. Its glow was a small comfort to him.

"What the hell do I do now?" He asked himself aloud, his gruff unused voice echoing off the crystalized cave walls. Completely forgetting he had company.

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There was a moment, as his strange magic appeared and powered up, that she thought the worst of him. It wasn't in her nature to do so, but without knowing him or his motives, and given what seemed to be her impending doom, Kanna really thought he was going to fire on both her and the foxes. And yet, she could say nothing, do nothing. It was a helpless thought, as well as a lot of trust to thrust upon a stranger. It'd be her own fault for making assumptions, no matter how desperate and scared she was. For what it was worth, as she braced for his attack, she had already forgiven him in her mind, whether he truly deserved it or not.

All of that added fretting ended up being for nothing, though. As it turned out, the stranger did wait for her to get clear before he released his impressive spell with energy that felt very alien to her, obliterating the crystal foxes. All of them, she thought at first, but was horrified to find herself wrong once more.

She'd fallen to her knees behind him. By the time she spun, panting, to see what became of her savior, she ended up gasping in horror. The scene that played out before her was gruesome. Three of her cave attackers remained and were maiming the poor man. His wounds mirrored her own very quickly. And yet, though she was scared of the creatures trying to kill her, to see one of them be ripped apart by hand... All of it was enough to bring her to tears, for both the stranger and the foxes. Kanna was just very soft in that way.

Her eyes, bubbling with tears at this point, had turned a deep, saddened blue just before her eyelids robbed them of vision. The fates of the other two foxes clamped on him drew near and she couldn't stand watching that again. Wrong again. It was staggering how many times the half demon had been wrong today, but this was a happy time. Instead of death cries, she heard the pitter-patter of paws as they escaped. When her eyes opened again, all the foxes were gone (except the unnerving carcasses) and the tall man with the flame above his head stood victorious.

Until he wasn't.

The stranger fell to his knees, wet coughs staining the glittery ground and the odd flame going wild. "Oh- Oh no! Are you okay?!" she fretted, crawling toward him instantly. Her own bloody wounds and pain were entirely put aside as if she no longer felt them. They could wait. He eventually flopped onto his back and she froze for a moment, terrified that he'd died... and then deeply exhaled when she realized he wasn't because he spoke.

Though he didn't seem to be talking to her, Kanna didn't care. She leaned directly over his face, peering straight down into it with her pale blue waves likely tickling him somewhere. "Um... I could heal you... if you need that...?" she asked meekly, her guilty conscience pulsating off of her with every beat of her hearts. It was all she could do to keep her tears from splashing his face.

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Her voice broke him from his swirling thoughts as her face appeared above his. When was the last time he'd interacted with a person? Not the occasional drunk at a bar who'd try to pick a fight with him, but an actual person. Chili honestly couldn't remember it. It had to have been before his self-exile, he was pretty sure.

Focusing back on the woman above him, Chili noticed her glistening blue eyes, her question ringing softly off the gemmed walls. The rest of the cave was eerily quiet, almost as if waiting for him to answer. She was wounded and offered to heal him first. The aura of kindness showed despite how frazzled she seemed to be. "Hmm, a genuinely good person," Chili thought.

A wry smile broke across his features as his eyes took on a sad softness despite the smile. Chili appreciated her offer. Kindness was rare in his world. The truth, depressing as it sounds, was that it would be a waste to heal him. His fits, his "sickness," couldn't be healed.

As for the other wounds, his uncle had explained that to him once. Something about his atoms not matching the right frequency to heal. Healing spells only worked half of their wonders on him.

He sat up slowly and carefully to not startle or accidentally head butt the lass. Chili sat crossed-legged on the cold cave floor as he turned his attention to her.

His mind processed how to word his sentence to gracefully decline without giving too much away but without lying either. Smile still on his face, his pale yellow eyes still holding their softness. He spoke, his voice gentle but still rough from non-use.

"I am thankful for your kind offer. However, I am afraid it would be a misuse of your magical energy. My affliction, as one may call it, makes healing me a hassle for anyone who tries. Focus on your wounds. Heal, and then we shall see if we can find a way out of here."

Standing up, Chili wiped the remaining blood that stained his lips off with the sleeve of his blazer. As he turned his attention back down the tunnel, in the direction this gal came running from. There was no use in staying in his dormant mode now that there was someone he had to protect. Closing his eyes, Chili deeply breathed in as he focused on adjusting his cellular frequency to match one of his elements.

The flame above his head pulsed as it changed colors, going from a brilliant orange flame to a vibrant purplish black one. When he opened them, his pale-yellow eyes seemed to dim slightly, some of the light going out in them as void energy filled him.

Void mode activated. Chili was not a fan of this one, but it was perfect for the narrow tunnels they would be traversing, not to mention his other modes had the possibility to create a cave-in. Void was a lot more precise. He would have to deal with being connected to the abyss, feeling it staring back at him as he dipped his toe into it.

[wc: 527 || total: 3,136/5000]

Kanna wasn't a fan of his answer, but temporarily accepted it, nodded, and leaned back all the same. She'd become an alright healer since leaving Sin, nothing fancy but enough to keep people alive.

Leaning back against the cave wall, she took a moment to assess her own wounds with a quiet hiss. It was a shame about her tights and cute dress coat. They were bitten and scratched to shreds, stained with her own dark red blood in places. She slipped it off and poked around the deep slashes in her abdomen and hip. Their teeth and claws had been like expertly sharpened knives, slicing even through the dress beneath. Her legs were in even worse shape, to the point that she'd already bled a small pool beneath herself.

This was the rough part. While her healing abilities were average, if not slightly above, she had yet to learn how to keep it from hurting. It stung those she was healing, but was actually quite uncomfortable to use. In this case, it'd both sting and hurt since she was healing herself. Her hands glowed faintly, the icy hue matching the frosty temperature her magic exuded. She pressed against her wounds one by one, grimacing as they closed up into shiny new scars. To distract herself, Kanna watched as the stranger stood and altered the color of the flame over his head to an interesting black light type. She had so many questions. Perhaps later.

It took a bit of time, but she was soon healed up, though tired. With that done, though, she rejected his former answer to her healing question. They weren't moving from this spot until he was in better shape, too. "If I can't heal your affliction, how about your wounds? If not, at least let me dress them," the horned girl insisted, already ripping the clean parts of her ruined coat into strips for bandages. "Those foxes hurt you pretty badly because of me," she added with a forlorn frown. "I'm very sorry, sir..."

Obviously, to stop this from happening, she knew fighting would be the easiest answer. And yet, that was the one thing she was utterly unwilling to do, no matter what. It just kept costing people... she bit her lip, expression troubled and threatening tears again.

[wc: 384 || total: 3520/5000]

Chili remained on guard as he waited, hands in his jean pockets. His senses stretched as far as he could get them to reach. Ears honed into any sounds that may come down the passageway. Ready to be alerted of any incoming foes. The same went for his other senses, albeit in their unique ways.

He was aware of how he would need to proceed from here. Help the woman get out, a small goodbye, and then back to wandering. It was simple. That was until she broke the silence between them. Stubbornly insisting that he allow her to heal him or, at the very least, let her bandage his wounds.

It was the first time he'd gotten a look at her. Petite, barely younger than him, he would guess. In this world, he never really knew if that was the case, she could be older than him. A mixture of determination and guilt swirled about together as the emotions danced across her irises. Her red and black horns somehow added to her overall natural appearance rather than being a distraction. She was a natural beauty, so why the hells was she here alone? Was she a hallucination? A conjured-up damsel in distress for him to save?

"Have I finally lost it?" Chili mused to himself as she continued.

Her apology mixed with her expression and the tears starting to form at the corners of her eyes. It destroyed the doubts that she was real. Chili's mind would never conjure up someone this nice to him, even if he were loony.

A soft smile formed on his lips, "I guess it won't be that simple," he amusingly thought to himself, knowing that deep down, he couldn't allow this mage to beat herself up over him getting injured.

Chili was pretty sure if he thought about it, being injured was normal for him. He appreciated her concern. It was a comfort he had not allowed himself to experience in a while.

As his thoughts continued, Chili lowered himself to the ground. His eyes glinted with a bit of peace. Speaking with slight fondness in his response, "Since you feel so strongly about it, then who am I to argue? You may bandage why wounds," he paused for a moment before continuing, his tone still the same, "However, no need to apologize, you've done nothing. I am a thinking-deciding creature. I made a choice to protect you, much like how I could have chosen just as easily not to. So chin up, okay? Also, sir is a bit formal for my taste so just call me Chili."

With that, Chili sat peaceful and still, letting her proceed.

[wc: 444 || total: 3964/5000]

Kanna certainly perked up once he agreed to some old-fashioned first aid and gave her some comforting words. Though the remnants of tears still lingered in the corners of her eyes, a smile appeared on her lips and she set about tying the ripped pieces of coat together so they'd have enough length to wrap around him.

So his name was Chili. Her smile widened warmly at the sound of it. To her, it sounded a little silly, but she wasn't familiar enough with non-Sinnite names to have much of an opinion. It reminded her of those spicy peppers on her first burger. Was the name and the flame over his head somehow related, or in reference to the spicy vegetable? "Nice to meet you, Chili. My name is Kanna," reciprocated the horned girl with her thick accent, getting right to work. Despite her petite and delicate appearance, her hands and arms were strong. She easily maneuvered his limbs as she needed, wrapping each wound securely and tightly, but not too tightly. It was quick work for her, and soon she was leaning back again for a small rest, feeling a little better about everything.

"I've become too reliant on healing magic," she chided herself, making a mental note to start carrying a normal first aid kit from now on. "Once we get out of here, I'll need to look at those more properly with better supplies or they could get infected. We don't know where those strange foxes' mouths have been or what kinds of... uh... erm, what's the word...--" Kanna searched for the Fiorean translation of the word she wanted, but couldn't nail it down, "--little ickies they have," she shrugged, hoping he knew what she meant. Bacteria or germs would've sufficed, but both eluded her completely.

No sooner had she finished that sentiment did she sit up straighter in alarm. "Oof, but I can't leave yet! There's a lost child that could be in these caves. I have to find her!" she fretted, ashen with worry. "Is that why you're here, too? Her parents said there were several who had answered their guild request, so maybe we could work together."

[wc: 363 || total: 4327/5000]

As the lass introduced herself, Chili let out a light hum.

"Kanna, like how it rolls off the tongue. It's nice to meet you, Kanna, despite the circumstances." Chili commented, friendly, giving the horned woman a warm smile.

The smile that graced her lips put Chili at ease. His words seemed to have the desired effect of lifting her spirits. He didn't feel the need to inform her that within a twenty-four-hour period, his injuries were going to heal. Not the most effective regeneration ability by far, but in battle, it did little sides buy him a couple of extra minutes. Outside of it, it did its job. Injuries that took some weeks to heal took him days. Owing to his cells' reproduction rate, most things would mend or, in extreme cases, regrow. A shiver went down Chili's spine as he remembered the time he had to wait weeks for his dismembered hand to regrow from a stump.

Her comment about small ickies made a chuckle leave his lips. He knew what she meant by it. However, it was so wholesome he couldn't help but feel some mirth run through himself.

As she brought up the subject of a child lost in the cave, Chili kept his composure but mentally facepalmed. "Of course! Of all the things, I ended up running smack dab into a guild job."

Scratching the back of his head sheepishly, Chili let an embarrassed smirk grace his features.
His voice held a self-amused lilt to it as Chili answered her.

"I have no idea about a guild job. I was camped out in one of the cave mouths and heard a scream. I came rushing into this cave system and got lost. The reason I found you was pure luck on your part," pausing Chili let the lilt leave his voice as a look of determination crossed his features, his voice carrying the same emotion, "However, considering this new piece of information. I'd be happy to accompany you in finding this child."

Chili knew saving one kid wouldn't change his past and wouldn't absolve him of anything, but it was at least a step forward. Who would have thought he'd find his second chance in the form of such an encounter?

A smirk of confidence spread across his lips as he stood up and offered a hand to Kanna, "So what do you say? Partners?"

[wc: 399 || total: 4726/5000]

The bluette was grinning properly now, wasting no time hopping up to her feet. She looked a little rough for wear, given the state of her clothes and some minor bruises, but her energy had sufficiently returned. Not so much because she'd rested, but fueled entirely by her drive to save the little girl instead.

"Partners!" she exclaimed, extending her hand to him. Was it to help Chili up or to shake on their team up? Probably the former, since a lot of cultural customs were lost on her, but it could be the latter, or perhaps even both. "Are you well enough to go now?"

Her eagerness was tinged with panic, though she was trying not to show it. Running for her life had seen a lot of time swirling down the drain with nothing to show for it, and every moment a child was missing made it that much more unlikely they'd ever return home. If she, a full-grown adult, had a difficult time surviving the creatures of the crystal caves, then a child had even less of a chance until they were trained to defend themselves. That wasn't an assumption she felt comfortable comforting herself with, nor did she really like the idea of comparing herself to a helpless child, even though it was kind of true in this circumstance.

"I guess I should mention that I can't fight. I'm just a healer..." she admitted, not necessarily ashamed, but also knowing not everyone appreciated a non-combatant to work with, even if she could aid them if they were hurt. "I didn't know there were such sensitive animals down here, or I would have waited to bring someone with me. It's just, I didn't want something bad to happen to the little girl while I looked for someone who had time to come with me. In my ignorance, I thought I could handle it alone, simply looking for her."

[wcL 321 || total: 5047/5000]

Chili wasn't quite sure what spurred him to do so, but when Kanna admitted she wasn't a fighter, only a healer. He saw a swirl of emotion dance across her eyes. It seemed to be concern. Concern that he may find it annoying. So before he could fully process what he was doing, Chili gently reached out a hand to give the horned female a single reassuring pat on the head if she allowed him. Whether she did or not, Chili would continue to speak. His voice was tender and, to an acute listener, filled with a deep sadness.

"Glad to hear it. Too many in this world practice harm. Some do it for the right reasons, some of us for so-called good reasons, others for self-benefits, and others for pure evil intentions. Don't get me wrong, if something or someone tries to take an innocent or a good life. I believe that life should be protected, even with violence."

Chili let a lull pass as he allowed himself to collect the rest of his thoughts before continuing, "However, the world needs balance. People like you, Kana, balance out those who excel at harming. You would try every other option before ever considering violence. That's a good thing. Don't let anyone tell you it's not."

Giving her a warm smile, Chili turned to start heading down the tunnel. His inner voice added a lot more to what he could have said. How he was someone who had excelled in violence, the collateral damage always involving innocents, and his disregard for their lives, too obsessed with reaching his goal. Chili was glad his back was turned to Kanna at the moment because, for that brief moment, his eyes shone with intense guilt, and then, with many years of practice, it was hidden away, buried back deep within.

Looking over his shoulder as he began to walk forward at an even pace. Chili flashed a grin, "Let's get to it then! Time to complete this search and rescue!" he declared; his voice filled with excitement. Some of it was real. Some of it to hide the strain in his voice.

[wc 358 || total: 5405/5000]

His words warmed her and she softly giggled as her head was patted right between her unsightly horns. It felt nice to be accepted-- basically praised!-- instead of ridiculed or pressured to change. Kanna appreciated it and respected him for it, in addition to seeing him as her savior. Of course, it did worry her that he was the type to court violence, as she'd seen just a few moments ago, but she'd be a hypocrite to say anything about it. While she wished and worked for a world that would no longer need violence, it was people willing to fight that allowed her to play the healer and still accomplish her goals. It was an uneasy symbiosis.

Also, her refusal to fight wasn't solely righteous. More selfishly, Kanna wished to keep her barbaric blood buried. She couldn't take any chances.

"Yes! Let's go," she chirped, following along behind him as he took the lead. Hopefully there were no more foxes.

As they wandered deeper and deeper into the cave, Kanna wondered if she was the only one to notice that the crystals embedded in the stony walls were getting brighter. Perhaps it was her shining optimism that made her think this was a good sign. A kid would surely head toward brighter lights when lost, and she'd yet to see even a hint that a child had passed through.

The tunnel they were in at least gave way to a larger cavern so bright that, at first, Kanna thought they'd come to a cave exit. Once her magenta eyes adjusted, they were greeted with a lovely but concerning sight. The cavern had some indications of someone living there, such as furniture, a magical fire with cooking equipment, and a freshwater lake with a fountain. Toward the back, in the center, was a creature floating beside a larger item.

The creature was humanoid, but seemingly made of the same crystals that the cave and its beasts were. She was shimmering and glowing, as if made from illuminated rose quartz, wings and all. Beside her was a translucent gem with its many facets forming a gemstone orb, and hovering inside was a young girl curled into the fetal position.

Seeing this, the horned girl gasped and stepped around Chili. "It's her," she whispered, unsure of the child's status but assuming she was okay, for now. But was the fairy friendly or skittish like the foxes?

[wc: 404 || total: 5809/5000]

Chili would be lying if he said he hadn't been expecting some form of sentient life. After the foxes turned out to be more than living constructs, he suspected that there could be other creatures with a much greater level of intelligence in these caves.
He confirmed his suspicion as Kanna, and he entered the large cavern. The crystal luminescent glow caused him to squint as his eyes adjusted to the new level of light.

Furniture, fire pit complete with cooking gear, fresh water source, and a resident towards the back. From what he could tell, said resident seemed to be a gem creature similar to the foxes, though a lot more humanoid. A list of what the creature could be going through his head. It didn't seem to be a golem. A golem would have dashed the child against the walls. Not an elemental either, not erratic enough. This thing appeared to have captured the child. As for what reasons, Chili could not ascertain, but that ruled out a few unpleasant things that came to mind.

At that point, the thing took notice of the two of them standing at the entrance to its home. It floated in front of the gem containing the girl and spoke. It freaking spoke! Its voice was feminine but heavily crystalline.

"Why have you come to my abode?"

Chili blinked as he processed its words. Chili chuckled to himself as it dawned on him what was in front of him. A fairy. The information added up. Which meant diplomacy might be an option. Bending down slightly so he could bring his mouth close to Kanna's left ear, Chili placed a hand on her shoulder as he whispered in a reassuring tone.

"Kanna, it seems we have impolitely walked into a fairy's home. I don't know much about the ones from here, but it most likely is protecting the child. See if you can talk it into handing over the girl peacefully."

Chili paused as he let Kanna process his words before adding, "I'm going to be preparing something to incase it goes wrong, don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you or the kid. The same goes for the fairy if we can help it. Despite how cheesy it sounds, I got faith in you, Kanna."

Standing back up to full height, Chili gave Kanna a comforting smile before motioning for her to respond to the fairy. In the meantime, Chili was going to work on plan B encase things did go sideways. However, he did, in fact, mean what he said. Kanna was determined to walk in peace, and he believed that she could possibly persuade others of like-mindedness to walk in it as well. She needed practice, and this was an opportunity. Hopefully, she didn't resent him for this later.

[wc: 470 || total: 6279/5000]

Kanna actually jolted when the fairy spoke, especially in a language she understood. Really, she was going to have to learn to do better. If she couldn't fight, then diplomacy became that much more important, and she hadn't even considered saying hello first.

And yet, her first instinct was to hold back. It wasn't until Chili encouraged her to try diplomacy that she attempted to set her fear aside. What if she failed? Normally, the worst scenario would be someone getting hurt, but she had backup now. After seeing what he'd done earlier, she felt a bit more comfortable taking the chance, even if her confidence wasn't very high.

"Sorry for being rude," Kanna said, her voice meek but loud enough. She stepped forward, her hands folded in a neutral position in front of her. "We were searching for that little girl. Her parents sent me to find her. They're very worried, but I'm sure they'll be happy that you kept her safe for them."

The fairy was rather unreadable in countenance, being made of mineral and quartz. It hovered there still, silent, appraising. Kanna started to get worried.

"You escort her out of my cave?" it finally asked, considering it. "Back to her parents?"

"Yes, safe and sound," Kanna replied, smiling.

"How?" the fairy asked.

The horned girl paused, then motioned to her new friend. "He will help me if we get into any danger on the way. While I may not fight, I can heal them both if anything happens," Kanna answered.

The gem fairy paused again, looking between the two. "He killed my foxes," it said, tone turning icy.

"Oh! That was my fault, really. I startled them and they were attacking me. He saved me. I'm very sorry about that," she tried to explain, then decided to take a slightly different route since there wasn't a great way to make the killing of the fairy's friends any less than what it was. "If you release the child, we'll all leave your caves as quickly as possible. We don't belong here and don't wish to cause any more problems for you and your friends."

This seemed agreeable. Without another word, the fairy turned and released the crystal barrier around the child. The little girl floated gently to the ground, woke up, and stared around in growing panic.

"Hi, sweetheart," Kanna called, still keeping a safe distance from the fairy so not to spook it. "Me and my friend here are going to take you back to your parents. Would you like to go home and see them?" she asked, her voice bright and gentle. She held out her arms, hoping the child would take comfort in the lack of fear in her own voice, and also not freak out over her horns. The fairy ended up overriding the horns and the child ran to Kanna and leaped into her arms.

"We're going now. Thank you for being so kind," Kanna said to the fairy, then turned and swiftly walked out of the bright cavern with the child, hoping Chili was right behind her.

"I did it!" she whispered, most likely to herself but easily audible to her friend. That was the hardest part done. The child, much to her relief, was safe. Now... how to get out of the caves...

[wc: 553 || total: 6832/5000]

A warm smile appeared on Chili's face at Kanna's quiet outburst of happiness at her success. He was happy to see her take an important step forward. It was a strange thing, having pride in someone else. As they left the fairy's home, Chili noticed Kanna's look of complexity. It was then that he caught on to why she looked complex. They still needed to find a way out of the cave system.

Speaking up in a calm voice, Chili said, "Kanna hold up for a second. I have the plan to find an exit."

He did indeed have an idea of how to get out. It was just experimental. Pausing for a moment, Chili focused his breathing again and changed his frequency to match another one of his elements. As his flamed once again morphed colors and turned into a glistening metallic silver. His breathing returned to normal, no longer deep and meditative. Cracking his knuckles, Chili cleared his throat and spoke, thinking aloud to himself more than anything else. "I hope this works."

With that, he extended his arm to the nearby crystal wall and laid his right palm flat. Slowly his hand merged into the wall Chili gritted his teeth at the feeling. He had practiced fusing in this mode a few times but altering the molecular structure of minerals on the go was difficult and slightly painful. Once his hand fused with the wall, Chili focused on sending out vibrations to travel along the cave walls. Turning himself into a human seismic telemetry device, Chili followed them as they went out, mapping the cave system as if he was a creature that could see via seismic communication.

It took a moment, but eventually, Chili found a path free of any creatures and led to an exit. Removing his hand from the wall, he tapped Kanna on the shoulder and, once he had her attention motioned for her to follow him, which he hoped she did. He was unsure how long they walked. The whole time Chili made certain that Kanna and the child were close encase something attacked. However, nothing did, and eventually, they reached natural light. As they entered the cave mouth, the moonlight poured in, along with the freezing cold wind.

Remembering Kanna's coat had been torn to shreds, and using those shreds, she bandaged him. Chili sighed amusingly to himself. Taking off his warm wool cloak, Chili brought the article of clothing around and draped it on Kanna's shoulders if she allowed him. If not, he would insist she takes it to stay warm.

"Well, we are out of the cave, and if I remember correctly, you have to get this young lady home. So, it seems this is where we part ways. As for the cloak, it's a gift. You were kind enough to use your coat to bandage my wounds, so let me return your kindness." Chili spoke with a calm, comforting tone. He was a bit depressed that he had to say goodbye to her. It caused him to pause for a moment before he spoke again. Chili's happy tone had a hint of sadness to it, "I have faith we'll cross paths again."

It wasn't a lie Chili did have faith. He hoped that reality agreed.

[wc: 547 || total: 7379/5000]

Though she kept quiet, the demon girl was quite interested in Chili's magic. The ways he could change it, how versatile it was, it really was something. It seemed to have way more uses than just fighting, which was something Kanna appreciated. She wasn't sure how he had communicated with the rocks and gems, but he led them out of the cave without issue. "Wow," she whispered, wondering exactly how the flame over his head could change and how it all worked, but knowing this wasn't the time or place even if this was the one and only time she saw the man.

That last bit made brought sorrow as he gifted her his cloak and she quietly thanked him. Kanna had made and parted with quite a few friends already. She never knew how lonely it could feel, but now it started to get heavier each time it happened. But Chili seemed confident that they'd cross paths again, and her optimism sparkled back to life. Sure, the world outside of Sin was huge, but fate had a funny way of setting things up, just like how he'd been there in the cave to save her. As long as they both stayed in Fiore, they were bound to see each other again!

"Until next time then," Kanna grinned, awkwardly waving at her new friend while still holding the small child. She then turned and made her way back to the tree houses to return the girl to her parents, safe and sound. All's well that ends well!

[wc: 257 || total: 7636/5000 || 5000 - Rescue in the Crystal Caves | 2000 - C Rank Free Form | 636 left over]