What happened in the Lerver Woods?

This story is no longer canon to my world as some things have been changed. The elements of this story will be used in other articles however in a different way.

A man knocked on the door.
Inside the hut, someone started to fiddle around with the lock. He straightened his posture and fixed his hair. There were still some stains on his clothes and scratches on his arms, but one could expect that after such a long trek through the forest.
As the heavy doors started to open, a small face peered through them. It belonged to a young girl. She looked thirteen, maybe fourteen at most. She wore a colorful, frilly dress and a pointy hat with a wide brim. Her brown hair was long, almost as long as she was tall and curly. What was peculiar, both her eyes and the ends of her hair were brightly pink. And now, those eyes were focused on the face of the newcomer.
"Yes? How may I help you?"
"Is this the house of the Witch of the Lerver Woods?" he asked. It was plain to see that he was very nervous. Aside from hopping from one foot to another and tapping his fingers on his hips, he constantly swallowed.
"You're looking at her. Although I prefer to be called a Witch of Bonds."
He didn't expect that answer. It surprised him, but he quickly composed himself, "I heard that you know how to control emotions in others, and how to strengthen some of them. I really need your help."
A cat-like grin crept up on her face. She spoke, joy sounding in her words, "Ahh, a customer. Please come in."
She opened the doors wider and went farther inside her hut. Before he managed to enter, she asked him, "And by the way, what's your name, my dear customer?"
"They call me Joachim, miss Witch. I'm the local baker in the near-"
"Please, miss Witch is so cold," an annoyed grimace accompanied those words for a split second. It was so short, Joachim thought he imagined it. "You can call me Faye. And just Faye, no 'misses' needed."
Joachim went in after her.
The moment he peered inside, the explosion of colors hit his eyes. The greens, blues, purples, yellows, and pinks, the overabundance of those hues on every wall, furniture, and floor, were all stunning in their pastel glory. And not only colors seemed to be in excess here, as going through the room proved to be really difficult, with all of the stuff laying everywhere. Even the smell of the flowers in the air seemed to assault his nose with its intensity.
The Witch showed him the seat at the table in her kitchen area. Meanwhile, she started looking around the cupboards.
"So what's your love problem?" she began. For the second time, he was surprised by the things she said.
"How did you know it's about love?" a blush showed up on his face.
She stopped for a second and turned her face towards him, "Please, sweetie, I've been in this business for years, you are not the first one to come here. Now, do you want a black tea or do you prefer one of the fruit ones?"
"Black one."
"Okay, one black one. Maybe I'll make one for myself too. How much sugar?"
"I don't sweeten my tea."
"Really? Enjoying life as it is, without any additional sweetness? Then let me bring some cookies," she put the kettle on the stove. "So, while the water heats up, tell me about your little sugar."
"Well, she's a daughter of the local mechanic. She is taller than me. When she works with her father, she ties her hair in a knot. Her eyes are as blue as the sky on the summer day. She is gentle and caring, smart, and cute..."
"Alright, I understand now," she interrupted him. This flustered Joachim. He felt like he said a little too much. "And how is it between the two of you?"
His face got really serious. First, he looked to the side, next he looked at the table. Finally, his eyes looked again at Witch. "I don't really know," he spoke. "I've loved her since we were little, and I think she likes me too. Our friend, Albert, told me that she's been pretty obvious about that, and according to him, half of the village thinks we should marry already."
"So, what's the problem?" the story seemed to pique Faye's interest.
"As I said, I don't really know. As long as I can remember we were like that. There seemed to be some invisible wall between us, always stopping us from getting closer. Well, in this case, from making the first move."
The kettle began to whistle. Faye poured the water into the teacups and added some milk into hers. Then, she started to sweeten her tea. One, two, three, fourteen teaspoons of sugar. As the tea was steeping, she conjured up a box of cookies from one of the cupboards.
When everything was ready, she brought it all to the table. She sat on the opposite side to her guest and tasted one of the cookies. A satisfied hum escaped her mouth.
"Can you help us?" Joachim pleaded.
"Can I?" she giggled. "Oh, you're so sweet. Something like this is a piece of cake for me. But you know, a service like this, comes with a price."
"A price?"
"Yes, a price. You see, magic isn't some infinite thing. It requires Colors. And the magic that manipulates such strong emotions like love would require a lot of my supply. Right now, I still have quite a bit of them, but in sixty, seventy years, who knows?"
She stopped to take a sip of her tea. Judging by her sigh, it was just the way she liked it.
"So, I have a proposal for you," she continued. "Once you get older and the death will start to loom over you and your soon-to-be wife, I will visit you. At that time, I will extract the Colors from your bodies, so you both pass away painlessly, holding each other in your arms. What do you think about this?"
"That seems... reasonable."
"Right? And you don't have to worry, I'm a very patient person, so if you live longer, I can wait. So, what's your final answer, sugar plum?"
"I... I agree."
"Excellent! So, time for some magic!" she looked at him. "You said you were a baker, right?"
Joachim nodded.
The Witch jumped off her chair and started searching through her cupboards once again. This time, she brought a package to the table. Inside, were six plain cupcakes. She placed one of them in the palm of her hand and got it close to her face. She then gave it a little kiss.
As her lips touched the cupcake, pink swirls started spreading on it. They danced, and they spun, and soon, the whole pastry was pink.
She looked at it. Something was missing.
"We should add some other colors, so it's not so obvious," she said to herself.
She traced her finger on the cupcake, and the yellow and green stripes soon showed up on it.
"Now that's way better," she declared proudly. "So, mister baker. You need to take this little cupcake to your little crush and make sure that only she eats it. Otherwise, you could mess up the feelings of other people, and we wouldn't want that."
Joachim stood up from his seat and bowed down before her. His voice trembled as he spoke, "Miss Witch, no, Faye, thank you, from the bottom of my heart."
"Come on, calm down, sweetie," she reacted bashfully. "We made a deal, so you don't have to thank me like that. Unless you do it to every shopkeeper that sells you something."
He blushed, embarrassed, "Still, I am grateful to you."
"Yes, yes, I know that. Now go to her, don't make that girl wait any longer."

---

Someone was a banging on the door.
"Faye! Faye, you need to help me!" it was Joachim's voice. As he cried and shouted for her, the doors to her hut slowly opened. Just like before, Witch's small face peered out from behind them.
"Oh, it's you, cutie-pie. Did something happen?"
"Layla...Layla..." he only repeated.
"Oh, come on, come inside, I'll give you something to calm you down."
She showed him to the kitchen table again. While he was still muttering to himself, she started preparing the tea. Faye went to the other room. Not a few minutes passed when she returned with a jar of dried white leaves. She put them into a grinder, and after a few turns, she added the powder to the cup. The Witch placed the concoction in front of Joachim.
He took a sip and puckered in disgust.
"Come on, I know it's sour, but you need to drink this."
Joachim blocked his nose with his fingers and downed the drink in one go. Judging by his face, it was a terrible experience.
"Have you calmed down now?" asked the Witch. "So, tell me what happened."
"After you gave me the cupcake, I did as you told me and gave it to my dear Layla. I told her that it is a new pastry I was trying to create and asked her if she could judge how it tastes. She liked it very much, but then she told me she needs to help her father in his workshop. So she bought the bread, as she did every day, and said goodbye.
"But then, a few minutes later, she came back and told me that she loves me and that she wanted to say it to me for a very long time. The next few days were amazing. We started meeting more, going out together, we kissed. She even began to live with me."
He stopped for a second, shook his head and sobbed. "And then it changed. She stopped going anywhere where I didn't go. Even being in another room caused her distress. She started ignoring other people, even her father. And the worst thing, she stopped eating two days ago. According to her, eating would distract her from loving me.
"So today, when she went to sleep, I sneaked out."
He fell on his knees before the Witch. "Please, Faye, help us. Save my dear Layla."
"There, there, don't worry. Like I said before, something like this is a piece of cake for me," she patted him on the head, trying to comfort him. "And I think I know what's the problem."
"What is it?"
"You see, the primary effect of the spell you wanted me to use was to 'break the wall' between you two. It seems like there was no wall at all, so the spell decided to remove anything that could stop you from being together, the distance, other people, and even eating. So, we can fix it by 'untangling' or 'diluting' the Colors of the spell."
She started tapping one of her cheeks with a finger, thinking. "There is just one problem. Undertaking a process like this would cost me a big part of my supply. Unless... you could help me with that."
"Yes! Of course! How can I help you?"
"Since the spell is related to you, if we used some of your Colors, we could make said process more efficient."
Joachim stood up. There was a determination in his eyes. "Whatever it takes, no matter how much it hurts, as long as we can save her, I'm willing to do anything."
She smiled kindly. "Great! Then come with me."
She led him to the room that served as her study.
Inside, there were many shelves covered with various ingredients, jars, herbs, and books on many different subjects. Papers covered with mysterious drawings littered the floor.
Faye took her broom, and in three firm sweeps cleaned the floor. Inside of one of the desk drawers, she found a box with chalk, and she took out two pieces.
"Black, the Color of strength but also the Color of weakness, so we loosen the ties of the spell. And White, the Color of the chaos and the order, so we bring back the peace to your life. Both, they create Gray, the lack of Color, which dilutes everything else."
She then started drawing a circle using those two pieces of chalk. One symbol appeared after another. Their meaning unknown to Joachim. Once the sigil was ready, she took one of the chairs and put it in the middle of it.
"And here we have a seat for the star of the show. Come on, sit here."
The young baker did as she asked him. Meanwhile, she started placing lilies around him.
"What's that for?"
"Lilies are the symbol of purity," she smiled. "They are here to cleanse you from the previous spell. They will also gather the Colors needed for the dilution." She placed a few flowers more, stood up, and looked at her creation. She must have been proud of it, as she flicked the dust off of her dress with a grin on her face.
"We can start now. I need you to sit still at that chair, no matter what happens. You might feel really tired during the casting of the spell. At some point, you might also feel some pain, but you will have to endure it." She looked at him, a fire in her eyes, "Now, Joachim, baker of the Lerver village, will you let me use your Colors for my magic?"
Without thinking, the young man shouted, "Yes!"
The moment he did it, the strength began to leave his body. His fingers and toes went numb, and the sensation was slowly spreading upwards, through his hands and feet. Even if he wanted to stand up, he couldn't anymore. As the numbness reached his wrists and ankles, the pain began. Pain as if thousands of small needles pierced his skin, and each one hit his nerves. As if each one of them was heated up and soaked in the venom that now was spreading through his veins. And it moved closer and closer to his torso.
"You can do it, Joachim. It will only pain a little more," Faye cheered him on.
She was right. He had to endure. For Layla. For their future. No matter how much it hurts now, it will be all worth it in the end.
He gritted his teeth. The pain has reached his shoulders and hips. His heart was beating like crazy. And then it only got worse.
The tips of his fingers began to turn gray and crumble. At the same time, the lilies around him started changing colors, each a different one.
Joachim looked up from the ground, his eyes seeking the Witch, his mouth ready to scream for help. But when he finally found her, he understood how much he messed up.
Her eyes looked at him as if he was trash, her face warped with a horrible smirk. It wasn't the same girl that gave him tea and cookies. Or rather, the one from before was just a mask, a bait meant to lure fools like him.
She stepped into the circle and placed her hand on his cheek. He didn't have the strength to resist.
"Oh Joachim, Joachim. You agreed to all of this. As I said, once you get older and the death will loom over you, I will take all of your Colors. Aren't you older than you were the first time you came to me? Isn't the death looming over you?"
"Layla." That was the only word that escaped his mouth. He didn't even look at Faye anymore.
"Don't worry about her. I told you that I would take both of you. Although I might have lied a little about 'dying in your arms' and the painless part. But do you want to know something?" she asked with excitement.
"Before your body turns completely gray, I want to explain to you a few things." She pulled another chair in front of him and sat on it.
"First, the Colors you are offering to me right now will help me push my research forward, so you should be proud of yourself. Second, you won't die right now. At least not completely.
"I'm going to separate your soul and your body, and then I will attach it to something. What do you think about becoming a teacup? Then your little Layla could become a saucer, and you will be together forever. Isn't that romantic?"
He didn't answer. He didn't have any strength or will to do it anymore. In front of her sat an empty shell.
"And don't worry, Joachim. Severing the connection between a body and a soul isn't that hard. After all, I am a Witch of Bonds.

---

The storm was drawing nearer. The wind was shaking the treetops, letting some sunlight through them once in a while. All the animals hid. The only sounds left were rustling of the thicket and the whistling of the wind.
And the noise of the footsteps.
In the darkness below, a man marched forward. With the lumber ax in one hand and the lantern to light up the blackness of the forest as his only companions, he moved quickly, but cautiously.
He finally managed to reach his goal. In front of him, there was a small meadow in the middle of the woods. And in its center, there was a hut. Its walls made out of dark wood. Near it, there was a small garden, full of vegetables and flowers.
The man knocked on the front door.
He could hear someone moving inside, turning the key in the lock. The door opened. At the doorstep stood a young girl dressed in a colorful dress.
"How may I help you?" she asked.
"You must be Faye, the Witch of Lerver Woods," he said. "I need your help."
She seemed a little surprised that the stranger knew her name, but she quickly composed herself. "Yes, that's me."
"I was told that you know how to help someone who has some problems related to love and other feelings."
"That's right, come on in."
As he entered, the contrast between the gloomy outside of the house and the colorful inside shocked him.
"It's like a completely different world," he said to himself.
The Witch giggled after hearing that. She led him to the kitchen, where she showed him a seat he could take. He placed his ax at the leg of the table, an action, that made Faye raise her eyebrow.
"I'm sorry," he explained. "I was scared of running into wild animals on my way here, so I took my trusty ax with myself."
"Oh, you didn't have to worry, sweetie. The way to my little hut is always safe. I made sure of that. Now, would you like some tea?"
"With pleasure."
"Black or do you like something fancier?"
"Black, one teaspoon of sugar."
"Ooh, someone likes a little sweetness in their life," she joked. "Maybe you could tell me a little about yourself. I don't think I caught your name."
"My name is Albert. Joachim told me about you..."
The sugar bowl fell out of her hand.
"Yes? And what did he say?"
"Oh, it was all praises. As he told me, it was thanks to you he and Layla finally got together. You don't even know how much of a pain in the ass was watching those two not making any moves for years."
She giggled, "It was that bad?"
"Yeah, at some point the entire village wanted to see them married," he sighed, ran his fingers through his hair, and smiled. His smile was full of sorrow. "And then they just ran away. Disappeared without telling anyone. Not even their childhood friend."
"Oh, you poor thing. I'm sure you'll meet them again," she got closer and placed her small hand on his shoulder.
"I'll manage. It also means that whatever you did worked really well."
"I'm glad to hear that, sugar plum." Faye placed a cup full of tea in front of him, then sat on the opposite side of the table. "Now, why won't you tell me why you came here."
Albert leaned back in his seat and started to move the teacup from one hand to the other.
"There's this old guy living in our village. He's a real piece of work. He hated my guts ever since I was a kid. Not that's it without reason, me and Joachim were rowdy when we were younger, and we might have accidentally broken his chicken coop fence, setting all of the chickens free," he laughed at the memory. "But even now, when he sees me, he points his gun at me to scare me off.
"And then there's his daughter. A sweet, sickly girl, he almost never lets out of the house. And one day, when I was going out into the woods to find some trees to cut down, I saw her sitting on a porch. She was feeling a little better that day, and because he wasn't home, she decided to break his rules and breathe some fresh air.
"She waved to me, and I waved back. She called out to me, asking if I could talk with her. I agreed. So we talked for an hour or so. She often saw me walking to the forest. It was a wonderful day." He finished his tea and now was nervously playing with the handle of his ax.
"Since then, we would see each other once in a while. But lately, her sickness has worsened. She can't even leave her bed, and her father would never let me see her."
"Faye, Witch of the Lerver Woods, can you help me? Is there a way to cure her sickness and to soften the heart of her father?" he stood up and looked straight into Faye's eyes.
"How romantic!" she stood up too. "Of course I will help you, sweetie."
She turned her back to him and started searching through the cupboards.
"But you know," she spoke, continuing her search. "Magic like this requires a lot of Colors. That's why I have a proposal for you. Once you and your lo-"
"I know what you did to them," he interrupted her.
Before she even managed to react, something struck her back, knocking her down on the floor. She tried to gasp for air, but the blood gathering in her mouth made it difficult to breathe. She felt something warm spreading on her back.
"As I said before, Joachim told me about you. He did it after his first visit here, and just before he visited you for the second time. When both he and Layla disappeared, I knew it was your doing."
The pain was unbearable, but Faye tried to compose herself. She started manipulating the Colors within her body, preparing two spells. One to heal her, and the second one to kill Albert. But as they were almost ready, he swung his ax again and chopped off her hand.
She could only scream. Her bright pink blood was spilling on the floor.
Albert continued, "I gave you some time, hoping that maybe you took them both to fix it all. But finally, my patience burned out. I came here to see if you know anything about what happened to them."
He crouched in front of her and raised her head with the blade of the ax.
"And you played your role of the innocent little girl. How many people bought that act?"
He straightened his whole body in one swift motion.
"May the Six judge your soul, if you even have one."
He struck. And then again, and again, until she stopped moving. Once her body stopped bleeding, only then he sat on the chair. He was exhausted, both physically and mentally.
He did it. He managed to get revenge for all wronged by that Witch.
As he looked at his ax, he noticed a change. The simple, straight head of his tool changed its shape. It looked like a heart with floral patterns carved in it. Was it because of the pink blood that covered it?
Something moved. Albert assumed a defensive stance. Was there anything else living in this house besides the Witch? He didn't know, and he didn't want to risk it. He backed to the wall, pressed his back against it, and slowly started to move towards the front door. There were only six meters between him and the outside.
One meter, two meters, almost halfway there. And then he heard something. A scratching sound right behind him. He jumped away from the wall. As he turned, he saw something mysterious. Everywhere where his body touched the wall, the wall lost its color, leaving only a gray wood. He looked down, and the same thing happened to the floor in the places he set his feet.
And then, everything started to morph. All of the furniture in the hut warped, turning into a shapeless mass. It began to move, spinning and swirling around him. The whirlpool changed again and formed into a wall of faces.
Albert knew only two of them.
"Joachim, Layla..." he muttered. The two faces smiled, and the others did the same. It was a kind smile, a grateful one.
The wall fell on him, submerging him completely.
It felt as if he was underwater, and yet he could breathe normally. The faces were swimming around him. And every one of them began to speak. They thanked him, for freeing them, for defeating the Witch.
And below, in this liquid mass of souls, something shined. A bright, pink shine, that got closer to him with each passing second. Looking at it filled his heart with uneasiness. He tried to run, and he tried to swim, but he couldn't get away from that light.
It seeped into his mouth, his ears, and eyes, forcing them open. And through them, it invaded his body, slashing, mauling, stretching and reforming it. It caught the faces and tied them to him. It shattered his mind.
And then everything went quiet.
A newly born beast disappeared between the trees.

---

The wagon rattled slowly on the forest road. Old man Kyersen was returning to his home. It was his duty to sell the crops and preserves produced in his village. This year the yields were pretty good, so his cart was filled with new tools and materials. He even managed to buy everything his friends asked him to get. It seems like this will be a good year.
The last few days were a little warmer and today the suns shined warm. Warm enough that he had to take off his sheepskin vest. His old bones basked in the sunshine.
Kyersen looked around. Most of the trees already changed colors, turning the road before him into a beautiful sight. But because of them, he had to drive the wagon slower than usual. He didn't want his oxen to slip and hurt themselves. So the ride would take another few hours before he will be able to rest.
But right now, he could enjoy the warmth and the sounds of animals living in the woods.
The suns were closing to the zenith when he noticed someone traveling in the same direction as him. The stranger wore a gray cloak with a hood covering their head. They walked forward, not caring for the sounds of the cart getting closer to them. It was when Kyersen managed to catch up to them when they finally turned their head.
Old man Kyersen heard many stories about Grays, but it was the first time he had seen one of them. As the name suggested, the stranger's eyes, hair, and skin were gray, devoid of any colors. It was a male, and human, just like him. Judging by the looks, he was in his late twenties.
He greeted Kyersen with a nod.
The old man slowed down so he could talk with the Gray. "Hello, stranger! What brings you here?"
"I heard there is a beast in your woods," he answered. His face remained emotionless.
"In the Lerver woods? Aye, there is a big one," he got silent, thinking. "Seems like we are heading in the same direction. Why won't you jump in here and join me? We should reach the village in a few hours, and sitting here in complete silence is tiring for this old man."
"I accept your offer. Thank you."
"Don't worry about that. Just throw your stuff on the back of the cart. By the way, what's your name?"
The stranger tilted his head, "We don't really use names. Not after we become like this. They escape our minds at some point. You can call me a Gray or a hunter, like most of the people tend to do."
"Then, Gray, I am Wilfred Kyersen. I'm the farmer at Lerver village and the one who they always send to sell stuff to the big city. Apparently, I am good at the whole trading thing. And I'm not going to argue," he laughed. "So, Gray, is there anything you want to know?"
"Tell me more about the beast."
Just like mama said, they're really straightforward, Kyersen thought to himself.
"Alright, I'll tell you what I know. The Lumberjack, as we call it, showed up first a few years ago. It travels through the woods with its mighty ax, taking away anyone who gets too close to it. It doesn't attack unless provoked. However, anyone who gets too close to the beast starts to follow it on their own and disappears with it in the woods. At first, it showed up once or twice near the village, but luckily, we didn't see it since then."
Old man Kyersen shifted a little on his seat. He pulled out a thermos from the bag behind him and took a deep swig of the substance inside. He offered some to his companion, but Gray refused politely. He then continued talking.
"They say it's about four meters tall. That it gives off an unnatural pink glow. That it has faces on its back, which twist and warp as if they were screaming. Everywhere it goes, it leaves that weird liquid, the same color as its glow. And where its head should be, there is a hood made out of leaves that's completely empty inside. Just talking about this monster gives me the creeps." He looked at the young man beside him. "Are you going to hunt it? Like the tales about your people say you do?"
"That's the plan," he leaned back in his seat. "Now tell me about the Witch."
This caught Wilfred off-guard. How did the stranger know about the Witch?
"Alright? She lived all alone in the middle of the woods. As my parents and grandparents told me, she has lived there since always. They always warned me to never go to her. But a few others did, and she helped them in many ways. Just a few years ago, there was a couple that finally confessed their feelings to each other. They ran away together, and we never heard of them again.
"And not long after that, she just disappeared. You probably could still find her house in the eastern part of the forest, but who has the time for something like that."
"Thanks, Kyersen. You helped me."
"No problem, kid. Just don't get yourself killed."
A slight smile crept up on Gray's face, the first time Wilfred has seen him showing any emotions.
During the rest of the journey, Kyersen would talk about many things related to his profession. The upcoming last harvest of the year, preparations for the winter, and expectations for the next year. He complained that the new baker isn't even half as good as the old one.
When they finally reached Lerver, Gray already knew about its inhabitants, various ways to fertilize the soil, and which traders to avoid in the nearby city.
As they were passing through the gate in the village's wall, he asked the old farmer, "Do you have anyone who can repair stuff here? Or even better, someone who knows his way around the firearms?"
"Aye, there is a mechanic here who deals with stuff like that. After his older sister ran away, his father stopped working there. So he had to take over the business. You'll find him in a house with a driveway and a tall chimney on its side in the southern part of the village. It's pretty hard to miss."
"Thank you again for the ride, Kyersen. Good luck with the harvest," Gray picked up his stuff and jumped off the wagon.
"And thank you for keeping me company. Good luck with the hunt."
The hunter went straight to the mechanic. As the farmer told him, it wasn't hard to find the place. Not only there were some carts in front of it, waiting for the repairs, but also both its roof and walls of the building looked as if someone slapped random sheets of metal and antennas on them. The sound of the drill could be heard from the distance.
Gray knocked on the door. Then he did the same with the garage doors, from behind which came the sounds of repairs. The machine stopped, and the doors began to roll upwards.
"I told you, it will be finished in an hour!"
A burly man in his forties looked at the newcomer. He was wearing leather overalls and gloves which were now covered in colorful grease.
"Ah, you're not Rovans. What brings you to my shop, stranger?"
"Do you know how to fix firearms?"
The mechanic smiled, "Come on in and show me that baby."
The inside of the garage looked exactly like one could imagine a workshop to look. There were tools and boxes everywhere, piles of junk, buckets, and canisters with various substances inside them. The floor and the ceiling bore the marks of paint and fire.
The mechanic took one of the boxes and placed it on the ground as a makeshift table.
Gray took out the weapon from his holster. The repairman whistled.
"That's a really nicely modified light gun. You made it yourself?"
"A friend of mine from my hometown specialized in creating them. They gave it to me as a farewell gift. But it stopped working some time ago."
"May I?" the mechanic pointed at the firearm.
"Of course."
He picked up the gun and started to inspect it. He checked the trigger and lens, the condenser and wavelength dial mechanism. Lastly, he looked at the magazine itself.
"Weird, besides the normal signs of the wear, and used up crystals, there are spots of some discoloration on the whole gun. Most of them covered the barrel chamber. I have never seen anything like that, but if I have to guess, it disperses the charge before it is released."
"Is it possible to fix it?"
"If you wait a few hours, I can replace the affected part. Although I don't know what that discoloration is and if it won't show up again after some time."
"I think I might know what it is," Gray pulled out the sword from the sheath on his side. "The same thing shows up on everything we Grays use for a long time."
He was right. Even though his sword was made out of some metal, its blade lost both its shine and hue, making it look gray and unnatural. The mechanic also noticed that it was just a normal sword. No Color-coatings on its blade, no light emitters, no magnetic grips. Just a piece of metal, given shape on the anvil. A relic of the past.
"Can I wait here?" asked the hunter.
"Yes, but as I said, it might take a few hours," he scratched his head, and then remembered about something. "Martha, our local innkeeper was supposed to make some dumplings today, so you could also kill some time there."
"I'll wait," Gray looked at the chairs near the wall. "May I?"
The repairman nodded and returned to his work. Before he could even get to fixing the gun, he had to check the two wagons in front of his shop.
For the whole time, his customer didn't move even an inch. Like a statue, he sat in one place motionlessly, with his rucksack sitting on his knees. Even when mechanic began to fix the gun, taking it apart, and replacing the broken parts, he was completely still.
It was unnerving. It was like he was a machine. No, even smeltsparks were more lively than that.
"It's ready," he placed the firearm on the table. "You can test it out behind my workshop. I had to turn the dial to take it apart, so you'll have to set the wavelength frequency to your liking again."
Gray moved for the first time in the last few hours. He picked up the gun and without looking he switched the frequency setting, something only someone really familiar with their weapon could do. The firearm found its way back to the holster on his hip.
"Oh, and I have to warn you," said mechanic, cleaning his workplace. "If it's true that this corrosion is normal for you, that gun will stop working altogether in less than a year."
"I understand," the hunter paid for the repair. With a slight bow as a goodbye, he left the building and set off towards the woods.
Walking down the main road, he was quite an attraction. Kids ran around him, asking hundreds of questions. Where he came from, why is his skin gray, where is he going and what does he do, were only a couple of them. He answered each with one, two words, even if that only raised more of them from the curious children.
The adults of the village just looked at him from their porches when he passed. No one seemed to bear any ill will towards him here. Just like for kids, he was only a passing curiosity.
Gray reached the border between the village and the forest. He looked behind, the children, either bored of him departing or scared of the forest, ran to find another source of entertainment. He smiled.
"East."

---

The path ended abruptly. Everything farther has been reclaimed by nature. The density of the forest prevented any sun rays from reaching the ground. Because of that, Gray had to light up two of his crystals. One of them has been attached to his rucksack, while the other, held in his hand, served as a makeshift flashlight. Ignoring the darkness, it was a normal forest, full of living beings and the sounds they were making.
The only problem was the smell. Besides the smell of the fallen leaves, needles, and various fruits and mushrooms of the understory, there was something else. Something sweet and yet dangerous.
And he was getting closer to it.
It took him three hours before he found a clearance in the trees. A lone meadow where the sun could reach. And a ruined building in the middle of it. At some point, it might have been a pretty cozy hut with a small garden growing near it. But now it consisted only of a few broken walls, a part of the floor without stairs to reach it, all of them overgrown with moss and ivy. It looked as if something blew it up from the inside.
The smell here was really strong. Gray cautiously entered the remains of the frame of the building.
Weird, he thought to himself. Even though there were still signs of use around the ruins, there wasn't even a single piece of furniture.
Did someone loot this place?
The next thing that he noticed was that almost everything in here, even the grass peeking through the floorboards, was gray, the same color as his skin. Aside from the one big hole in the middle of the building filled with the pink liquid. It was surrounded by hundreds of small spots of the same hue. A small part of them led north.
The presence of the pond confirmed his suspicions and gave him some clues. Clues that will be needed in the upcoming hunt.
Pink, the mix of two Colors. White, the Color of order and chaos, and Red, the Color of safety and danger.
Gray took his gun out of the holster and set the wavelengths so their color would contrast the pink. At least he won't have to search for the right frequency during the fight.
The state of the building and the spots around the hole gave him an idea about the size of Lumberjack. Seems like the old man Kyersen was right.
Let's find the poor bastard that killed the Witch.
He began to follow the spots. The hunt was the only time he and other ones of his kind felt any kind of stronger emotion. Excitement, but also a sadness.
It was those two feelings and his nose that led him towards his prey even when the tray of pink specks disappeared completely in the thickets. Even though the sweet smell was the strongest at the ruined hut, he could still detect its scent. It was weaker, but it felt fresher, so he followed it.
Hours passed, and he still chased it. The forest that already was dark started getting way darker. Gray stopped for the day. He set up a tent. He prepared the fireplace and hung the kettle over it. His water and food supply would last him another few days. Enough to reach another settlement.
He prepared some coffee, opened the can of fish and ate them in complete silence. Then he went to sleep.
It was hard to know if another day already came. Because the treetops were so dense, Gray couldn't see if the sun has already risen. But as he has already woken up, it didn't really matter to him. Gathering all of the stuff didn't take long, and soon he could continue his chase.
It took him another four hours before the trail disappeared completely. Around this place, the beast must have absorbed all of the Color that was covering its body, and instead started radiating it. The hunter finally reached its territory.
All of the trees here were changed. Their bark softened and melted together with the wood, creating jelly-like substance. The leaves turned into bubbles filled with glowing, boiling liquids. The soil here felt spongy and gave way under every step. Everything had the same pink tint to it. Everything pulsated, making a sound similar to that of a heartbeat. The land has been Oversaturated.
Staying in this place could lead to complications for most of people. But not for Gray and his kind. The Colors rejected their bodies, and thanks to that, they were free to travel through those places without any specialized protection. Despite that, he had to move quickly. The longer he was here, the bigger the chance he would attract some creatures affected by Colors.
With each step, his feet sank into the ground. And with each step, he had to gather strength to pull them out. It was exhausting. But he moved forward. Towards the places where the Oversaturation was the worst, where the Lumberjack spent most of its time.
An hour later, the sound of the heartbeat that surrounded Gray from every side only got louder. He was close. Here, the trees were warped. They turned into a randomly shaped mass interconnected with each other, resembling amoebae more than their original form.
Another sound reached Gray's ears. A deep and broken sound. It was filled with grief and sorrow. Something was crying.
The hunter unsheathed his weapons and started sneaking closer. Thankfully, the soft soil dampened his footsteps.
The beast sat on the ground, curled up, its left side towards Gray. Old man Kyersen was right about its looks. the Lumberjack was a giant. Even in its current position, it was taller than the approaching it hunter. Instead of additional faces growing from its back, it had a cape that shifted and warped, taking the shape of the vortex of human heads. The rest of its body was covered with leaf-like growth. And like the old farmer said its head looked like an empty hood, without any facial features.
The only thing Gray couldn't see was its ax, which was probably placed on its other side.
The beast didn't hear him closing in. It looked like it was completely absorbed by mourning over something.
The hunter aimed his gun at its head and started charging the shot. Lumberjack reacted, turning its head towards him. That's when the sphere of green light hit it where its eyes should be.
It brought its hands to the wounded area. A deep, rumbly roar escaped its "mouth". With alarming speed, it stood up, the ax already in its hand. In a matter of seconds, it closed the distance between itself and Gray. He reacted just as quickly, showering its legs with a barrage of shots. This threw the Lumberjack off-balance, giving Gray enough time to dodge. But it also angered the beast even more.
It made two steps, closing the distance again, and swung its weapon at the hunter. This time, he didn't have enough time to react in any offensive way, so he used his sword to block.
The strike threw Gray backward and into one of the trees. Luckily, its jelly-like structure cushioned the impact.
He checked his arms. They went numb for a few seconds, but they weren't broken. Bruises showed up on their entire length. Another such hit could probably snap them like twigs.
Let's not do that again, he thought, still trying to catch a breath.
Before he managed to stand up, the beast swung its ax again. The only thing he could do was to roll to dodge. In the place his torso was a second ago, the blade dug into the ground for half of its length, and bounced up, leaving an opening.
Gray kicked up and thrust his sword into beasts' leg. The blade went way too deep, way too smoothly. It was as if the Lumberjack was empty inside. The giant fell to its knees.
Gray pulled out the sword and swung again. At its side. The back. The hood. The faces on the cape that up until this moment looked like they were screaming in agony, began to smile with content. And then, they started to disappear, leaving only smooth cape.
The beast lost all of its strength. First, its hands touched the ground, then the rest of the body followed them. The pink substance seeped out from its wounds and started to move towards Gray.
He didn't move. The liquid touched his shoes and traveled upwards, trying to cover all of his body. But as it came in contact with his gray skin, it began to dilute and lose its Color.
The colorless fluid dripped down on the soil. Gray's work here was finished. He cleaned his sword and sheathed it. He looked at the corpse of the Lumberjack and bowed.
"May you rest in peace."
He left the Oversaturated part of the forest and headed north. Apparently, there was another beast, half a month on foot from here.