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He walked on, the squish of blood sap under his feet unpleasant and cold, like congealed gravy. Stumbling over a root, he put his hand out for balance, It touched a tree, the bark rough and slick. His hand came away red and he shuddered. Altair thought he was hearing things, twigs snapping or leaves rustling. He rubbed at the dried blood on his face.

Altair glanced around nervously. It felt weird in this forest wrong. The demise of the other sprites had set him violently on edge and his eyes never ceased moving, searching for anything. "Guys, I think we should stay close." His voice was deliberately light, comforting somehow, and he held out a hand, motioning the green giantess forward. "Here, greenling, take my hand. Edel - perhaps you might grab on to a bit of clothing from one of us? We haven't any sashes left or I'd tether you. This forest... makes me nervous. I feel as though we are being watched. Let's move quickly."

“But not too close,” she murmured as soon as Altair finished his suggestion. “Too close and…and…” She seemed to curl further into herself if that was even possible at all. When he brought out a hand, Edel hurriedly stepped aside to allow the tallest sprite to take it. “I-It’s okay,” she reassured him at first. “I promise not to get lost.”

Her breath nearly stopped as Fjorgyn offered her a pair of gloves. They were big, yes, but exactly what she needed. The star child sounded incredibly touched as she carefully took the gloves from her and slipped them on. “They’re perfect, thank you.” Feeling more confident, she managed to grab a hold of cloth from both sprites. She smiled, timid as always, but not quite as much as before.

Altair has sighed when Fjorgyn had let go his hand. Her hand had been large and warm. He curled his fingers into a fist as their motley group headed onwards, touching but not touching. He would've felt better if they had been skin-to-skin, the bodily heat a reminder that they, at least, were still alive, still real. Despite his confident manner, Altair knew that, if he got out alive, this night would haunt him forever. When he closed his eyes, images flashed on the back of his eyelids: Hajna bounding away and disappearing forever, Sorrel's back - sticky with his blood, and Tomiko's eyes in the instant before she vanished. Their fear and disbelief were etched in his mind. There was death behind his eyelids. Altair tried not to blink, straining his eyes against the darkness, against the horrific bloody trees. Despite feeling the gentle tug of Edel's hand on his robes, he felt alone.

Suddenly, the trees parted and before the group stood a lake, black and bottomless as the sky. Instinctively, Altair looked up, searching for familiar stars. A black void yawned above them; no star shone, no clouds blew across it. It was deep as a black hole and darker than the space between stars. "Where are the stars...?" he whispered, shivering a little. The deep abyss of sky seemed to seep into him until he thought he would be filled with it. His skin was cracking under stress, being eaten from the inside out. Altair blinked. Where were they? He strained his eyes past the still waters.

A crooked house sat on the lake, a odd light flickering inside. His eyes widened. The light danced and he felt it pulling him. They should go to it, they must. Turning back to the group, he spoke. "We can't go back; so we must go on. I think we need to reach that light. I'm sure of it." Gently, he tugged his robe free from Edelweiss' grasp. He smiled rakishly, the expression full of a confidence he only half-felt. "If this doesn't work, try to build a raft." Turning from the girls, he gulped, expression falling. Slowly, deliberately, he began to walk. The cold water sluiced around his ankles, his calves, his knees. Altair threw his body forward, arms stroking out long and quick. He swam as though being chased, body skimming the water quickly. It was a dangerous ploy, but there was little other choice.

She recoiled when Altair opted to wade through the waters. “Will you…?” The wind carried away her voice, unspoken words dying on her lips as she timidly watched the other sprite head for the light. Gloved hands gripped each other tightly while Edel turned toward Fjorgyn. “Should we, um, build a raft?” she suggested, too wary to try swimming across like Altair had. She looked around, searching for any materials that could serve their purpose. Edel shuffled toward a fallen tree, tugging at one of the thinner branches. “Perhaps we can sit on this and paddle our way there? I-I don’t feel comfortable swimming…” Her lips twitched into a nervous smile, hoping the idea settled well with the taller sprite.

Altair's head rose out of the water as the raft neared. He floated for a second, Fjorgyn's voice only dimly registering in his water-logged ears. His skin steamed where it touched the air. It was painful, true, but it had become a constant ache, something hot and strong. Blinking the water away from his eyes, he reached his pale arms out. The wood was rough and cold... or hot. Not like the water. Her hand was large and comforting. As began to hoist himself up, the log dipped alarmingly. Abruptly, he let go of both hand and wood, splashing back down. It filled his nostrils and ears. Altair resurfaced, spluttering.

"If I get on, it'll tilt too much; we'll all fall in." The starry boy shook his hair out of his eyes, rivulets of water streaming from the ends like moonlight. He smiled, a precarious slant. "I'll be fine. Just.. take care of yourselves." He couldn't risk them for a few moments of his own comfort. Pink eyes flickered to Edelweiss, her starlight hair seeming to shine dimly. With one last gulp, Altair pushed his body back into the water. He felt as though it wanted to consume him. It wound tendrils of icy fire around his ankles, his body, and when he gasped again, it stole his air. But still, he swam on, his pale skin glowing luminously under the empty sky.

Finally, staggeringly, he heaved himself onto the shore. The sand scraped into his too-sensitive skin and Altair staggered upright. Clouds of steam billowed off of him. Th hem of his robe slapped wetly against him as he walked until, haltingly, he slumped against that odd house.

As the trio pulled up on the island shore, Fjorgyn refrained from reaching out to gather up the other sprites in a nice warm hug. Edel most certainly wouldn't appreciate the physical contact, and Altair, well... he'd already refused her help back in the lake.

The cabin that stood in the middle of the island seemed almost too perfectly placed, and it made Fjorgyn uneasy. But they needed to find shelter fast, especially for poor Altair whose dripping wet clothes offered no comfort in the newly chilly air. Wordlessly, the young sprites trudged across the barren land. Fjorgyn's boots squished in the decaying grass and fungus that peppered the landscape.

The light that fluttered from cracks in the cabin seemed to grow brighter as they drew nearer. They stood before the door, silently staring at the glowing scratches in the wood.

Altair broke the silence, sounding almost delirious in his misery. "M-A-L-E? Male?" he said, eyebrows drawing together in puzzlement. "As in, boys only?"

Fjorgyn hadn't even thought to look for letters, but now that he mentioned it, there did appear to be some pattern to the cracks. Not 'male' though, that would be gibberish... The light from within pulsed once more and Fjorgyn gasped, letters suddenly falling into place in her mind.

"Move...?" she whispered, unsure what it meant. "Move... move... everyone, move!" She grabbed Altair and Edel by the hand (which was gloved in Edel's case), pulling them away from the door as she took a rapid step back and to the side.