Seth let out a long, defeated sigh as he stood over his adversary.  Lying at his feet was another Faunus with a long grey tail, grey wolf-like ears, and short grey hair. His torn clothes along with his tail were matted and coated with blood. The snow under and around him was stained a crimson red.  Seth let out a frustrated sigh. “Damn Shadow Bloods. We’ve got enough trouble with the Beasts, humans, and now these Phantoms. We shouldn’t be attacking one another just because of a clan war.” Seth let the blade he held drop to the ground as his left arm hung limply at his side. The snow under it was also stained with blood as small droplets of his own blood dripped from his fingertips. A steady stream of blood slowly traveled from the large gash in his shoulder, down his arm and dripped onto the ground.  Seth Brought his right hand to his chest and closed his eyes as he began to recite, “May your guardian spirit guide you through the Between. May you safely travel from the Physical plain to the Spiritual one so you may know peace like your other fallen brethren.”  Seth opened his eyes before he turned tail and walked away from the fallen Wolf Faunus.  Seth stopped in front of a large drum-shaped wicker basket. Using his good arm he grasped the handle and began to drag the basket with him through the forest. 

After an hour and a half of traveling through the forest, he came upon the village of the Moon Bloods and his home. As he walked into the village dragging the wicker basket behind him a few of the villagers saw him approach and trotted over to him to help with the basket.  His mother, a slender Moon Blood with elegant, long pear colored hair walked over to him and huffed, “you leave the village for several hours and then come back injured. Why am I not surprised.” She had grown accustomed to him coming back with a few scratches, bruises, or even a black eye.  However, her joking tone changed to concern when she saw the gravity of his injury. 

“By the Gods Seth you’re really bleeding out,” she said as she rushed over to him and pulled up his sleeve to see the large gash in his shoulder. She gasped and asked, “What happened?” 

“Ran into a Shadow Blood on the trail, but I took care of him,” Seth said proudly before he quickly added, “I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s just a flesh wound.” Seth knew how protective she was of him since he technically wasn’t a Wolf Faunus. 

“Either way we need to have Jinx look at it,” she said before she grabbed his good arm and led him towards the healer’s hut. [i]Great[/i] Seth thought.  He didn’t much like the village healer. She would always try to belittle him and make him take weird medicines that tasted like rotten fruit.  The only good thing she ever did was teach him about Herbology. As Seth’s mother walked into the hut with him close behind she found a short, elderly Faunus crushing leaves in a round clay bowl. Because of her hight, she stood on a stool that helped her see the contents of the table top. 

“What has that idiot son of yours done this time?” Jinx asked as she continued to crush the herbs in the bowl and not look at her newest guests.  

“I’m right here you know,” Seth said annoyed.


“I know, that’s why I said it,” Jinx said again without looking before she pointed a bony, leathery finger at a chair near a bed and added, “Sit there, I’ll be there shortly.” Seth huffed and looked at his mother who motioned for him to oblige. He sighed in frustration and walked over to the chair. As he sat down, Jinx seemed to appear out of nowhere next to him causing him to jump.  Jinx paid him no mind as she examined his gash. 

“And what stupidity caused you to get this?” Jinx asked before she hobbled back to the table. She climbed back on her stool and began to crush and mix herbs and other items into a wooden bowl.

“Hey, I was attacked by a Shadow Blood! Damn asshole came out of nowhere and attacked me while I was gathering your herbs,” Seth said as he put the emphasis on your herbs to make her feel guilty. Jinx said nothing for several seconds as she mixed the crushed herbs with a few liquids.

“Did you make sure you asked the Spirits to guide his soul,” Jinx finally asked before she got down from the stool and hobbled back over to Seth. 

“Yes, I did. Even if we’re at war, no Faunus should be trapped in the Between.  That’s what dad says anyway,” Seth said. Jinx climbed onto the stool next to the chair Seth was sitting in and patted him on his head.

“Good boy,” she praised before she added, “not this will sting a little. You can’t interfere with it going into your wound. Alright?” Seth nodded and waited for her to pour the medicine into his open wound.  She let the slimy purple liquid drip onto his shoulder. He shivered at the cold feeling that accompanied it and he felt it slowly slither down his shoulder and towards his wound. When it touched the tip of his wound he felt a small prick like someone quickly pulling a hair from his skin. 

“That’s not too ba-,” Seth began before the liquid went onto his wound and searing hot pain exploded into his shoulder and down his arm. His right arm lifted up and was about to grab his shoulder but stopped in midair. He tensed up and breathed in through gritted teeth as the pain intensified as more of the liquid poured into his wound. 

“It’s going to hurt for several seconds. Let me know when the pain goes away. Then we’ll seal the wound up,” Jinx said as she hopped down and walked over to her fireplace. She took out an arrow tipped fire poker and placed the arrow-shaped tip into the flames. Seth continued to tense up until the pain started to slowly dim and after a while, he let out the breath he had held in. Jinx turned to him and said, “I’m guessing the pain is gone.” She then hobbled over to the table again and grabbed a spool of white thread and a sewing needle. She threaded the needle before she climbed back onto the stool next to Seth. She pierced the skin and began to sow the wound while the green liquid was still in his wound.  Seth couldn’t feel the needle go in and out of his skin but could feel when she tugged and pulled on the thread. 

“The hell was in that stuff?” Seth finally asked. 

“The usual with an added bonus,” Jinx said. As she sewed she added, “It has spider silk from the Arachnid Clan at Web Canyon.” 

“So basically you poured Spider shit into my wound,” Seth said.

“Seth!” his mother scolded.

“What? That’s what it is,” Seth argued.  Jinx didn’t say a word as she finished up the sewing and hobbled over to the fireplace where the pokers arrows-shaped tip was glowing red. Seth saw what she had and stuttered, “W-what are you going to do with that?”

“You’ll see,” Jinx simply said before she hobbled over to Seth and placed the tip on his freshly sewn wound.  Seth winced as he waited for the burning to start, but to his surprise, he felt nothing.  He heard the sizzling of the poker and the smelled the flesh cooking before Jinx removed the poker and examined her handy work.  She stepped back and said, “All done. You should be good to go.” 

Seth got up and rotated his shoulder and smiled as he said, “Wow, it’s good as new. Thanks, granny.”

“You shouldn’t doubt my skills young pup,” Jinx said before she hobbled back over to her table. Before she could get there, there was a commotion outside the hut. The three looked at each other before they ventured out. 

Outside the Hunters, all stood at the ready as strange people in weird armor stood at the village entrance. In front of the army was a small floating animal with a red ball bouncing above its head. As the three hurried over they heard a child’s voice speak, “Don’t worry Kupo. We mean you no harm Kupo.” Seth looked at his mom and mouthed Kupo? To which his mom looked equally confused.  Seth, his mother, and Jinx were able to push through the hunters and stand between the soldiers with strange armor and the villages Hunters. 

“Now that I have your attention Kupo, I’ve come with an important letter Kupo,” the Creature said as it floated around like it was dancing. 

“A letter? You think it’s for father?” Seth asked his mother.

“I’m not sure,” his mother said as she shook her head. She turned back to the creature and slowly advanced while saying, “The village leader is out. I can hand the letter over to him if you would like.”  The creature cocked its head at her before it suddenly shot past her and hovered in front of Seth causing him to jump back. 

“It’s for you Kupo,” the creature said as it handed Seth the letter.  Seth looked at the letter and back at the creature as he pointed to himself. The creature nodded as the red ball on its head bounced up and down.  Seth slowly reached out and took the letter. He opened it and began to read it aloud. When he was finished he looked at the creature who was joyfully dancing in the air.

“Could this be real?” Seth's mother asked.

“I’m not sure. This could be a trick by the Shadow Bloods, but judging by how these soldiers stand it might be a trap set up by the humans,” Seth said.

“No trap Kupo,” the creature uttered before it added, “Will you come with us Kupo?” Seth looked from the creature to his mother who had a worried look on her face.

“I don’t know about this Seth. If Dagger was here,” She began.

“You Should go,” Jinx interjected. Seth and his mother turned to her as she continued, “If that letter was for Dagger they’d be presenting it to him. I think it is your destiny to go with them.” 

“But what if this is a trap,” Seth’s mother argued. 

“That little plushy thing says it’s not and I don’t smell any malice on it. I do however smell one of the soldiers who forgot to bathe,” Jinx said before a soldier in the back seemed to fidget. Jinx chuckled before she added, “Ultimately it’s up to him Serenity.  Let Seth choose.”  

Seth looked at the letter again and read it once more before he looked to his mother and Jinx. Seth turned his attention to the creature and said confidently, “I’ll go.”

“Kupo!” the creature joyfully exclaimed as it looped in the air. When it finally stopped it pointed to the forest and added, “Our Gummie ship is there Kupo. When you’re ready let me know and we will take you to our ship Kupo.” 

“Are you sure about this?” Serenity asked.

“I can’t explain it, but something in my heart is telling me I need to go with them,” Seth said. He wasn’t sure about this feeling, but something was pulling him towards this creature and where it would take him.

After several minutes of gathering what he needed. Seth hugged his mother and waved goodbye to his village as he followed the creature and soldiers into the woods. As they reached the clearing, Seth marveled at the ship he was being led to. Once inside, the ship lifted off and took him to his destination. 

“Whoa,” Seth said as he stepped off the ship and once again marveled at what was in front of him. The city was something out of a book. As he was led towards the entrance he watched a massive swarm of butterflies swarmed around a fountain. His attention was broken when a soldier let him know the Basileus, Basilissa, and their court are waiting for you. Seth cocked his head and said to himself, “Basileus and Basilissa?” these words made no sense to him, but he followed the soldier's none the less into the chamber. 

Once there he watched as others were led into the chamber and then a group of people walked out in front of them. The youngest looking to Seth then spoke, “My name is Tocsax; the Basileus and Bassilisa on the thrones are Michael XIII Sideros and Maria di Italia, his wife. We are the leaders of the resistance to the Heartless tide and the remnants of the Old Keyblade Order. Or, if those terms do not mean anything, our simple explanation is that we are trying to save the various Worlds from those who seek to end them” Seth’s puffy white tail swished back and forth as he listened. The boy then spoke again, “This is the War Council, and we need you all for a quest, a quest that will bring rewards both material and...immaterial." Seth’s tail swished back and forth as he cocked his head at both the speaker and the king and queen.  Seth then raised his hand and once he knew he had their attention he spoke.

“I have a question,” Seth began before he asked, “Why are you asking a Faunus for help? I thought all humans hated the Faunus. That’s why you drove us into the forests. Why ask for our help now?” Seth was royally confused. He had heard Humans despised the Faunus and would rather die than ask for their help