She's humming something, but Salem doesn't know what it is she's humming. Salem feels a sense of fear coming from the woman, but with no other choice left, he forcibly moves his legs forward.
Salem tries to take a regular step, but the water slows him down, so instead he tries to just wiggle his feet forward as he gets closer to the woman. THe grass making a path for him as he begins to walk forward.
Salem, continues forward. His legs dragging some grass with him as he continued.
Salem: 'Why would that freaking bird put me here?'
Salem continues forward, he get closer to the woman her humming gets louder and Salem gets closer.
His legs feel like they are about to fall off but he continues forward. He's determined to try and make his way over to the woman.
Soon after walking a very difficult five minutes. His knee hits solid ground.
Salem brings his leg up. Planting it into the ground, then he tries to lift himself. He's unbalanced his bottom foot makes it off the ground, he doesn't balance, and his foot falls back into the water.
He pushes his foot onto the solid ground once more. Giving himself a better hold on the ground, with a push off the ground with his back foot he gets on top of the solid ground, even with its grassy and slippery surface it's a better foothold than the watery, marshy ground.
Salem stands up straight and holds out his arms as he does so.
Once he takes a good step and feels comfortable he continues his pathing toward the humming woman.
Step after step he gets closer to the humming woman, finally getting closer he realized how, grey the woman hair is and how scratchy her humming voice is.
Salem: "Excuse me?"
Salem got close enough to see just over the woman as she leaned down towards the ground to wash out some clothes.
Salem taps her shoulder.
She turns and her mouth is wide open. So unnaturally wide. Her mouth like an endless black void inside. She doesn't have any teeth.
Salem jumps back his arms holding him up as he tries to crawl away.
The woman… Thing, stands tall, hovering over Salem. As he begins to try and get away from her.
His arms digging into the ground and making him slip, he tries to get up while facing her… while facing IT, but his legs aren't moving well.
Again he tries crawling backwards he finally able to his arms grab purchase of the ground and he pulls and pulls and pulls himself backwards, but it feels like a dream because he's not moving fast enough away.
The wide mouth woman gets closer and the clothe that was in her hand is now visible it's a shirt drenched in red, it drips as she drags it behind her.
* * *: "Dead.. There will be death..!"
The woman mouth lets out. It's very loud and horrible. Saliva splatters out continuously hitting Salem's face as he stops in fear.
She reaches out a hand to grab Salem, but the fiery field returns. Covering the ground where Salem is.
Salem immediately gets back, hopping into the flames completely and with a deep breathe and a sigh of fire his body transforms into The Burning Man. His clothes intact.
Salem slams his hands together to try and make the flames comes out, like when he flies, but the flames don't come out. He doesn't know how to do what Wonder did in the fight against The Blur.
The woman moves closer and Salem lifts his hand to throw a punch, but Wonder drops down from above. A heavy wind separates both, Salem and… Whatever the thing is.
Salem: "Wonder, what is that?!"
Salem asked as the flames dropped with a puff of smoke.
Wonder: "She is Bean-Nighe."
Salem: "She's a Bean Knight?!"
Wonder: "No! What?! She's a Bean-Nighe."
Wonders ethereal voice breaks through very confused.
Salem: "What's a Bean-Night..?"
Wonder: "Bean-Nighe."
Wonder corrects Salem.
Wonder: "She's a Harbinger of death…"
Salem: "I'm gonna die!?"
Wonder: "Can you let me explain?"
Salem takes a deep breath.
Salem: "Yes, I'm sorry I was just scared."
Wonder looks back to the woman. Salem follows his vision. And she looks completely different within the few seconds Salem and Wonder looked away. It was like she switched with a different person.
Her skin is clear and beautiful. Her mouth small and with a smile that could make any man love her. Her back no longer a hunched figure and her hair no longer olding and grey, but blonde and beautiful flowing down to her feet.
Bean-Nighe: "I'm sorry, I thought we're going to die. That's usually how they approach me. The walking dead that is."
Her voice now soothing.
Salem: "The walking dead?"
Bean-Nighe: "Well not literally but most of the time they are about to pass on, but don't worry if you have The Great Wonder with you, you should be fine… I think?"
She tilts her head, scratches it then laughs.
Wonder: "Bean-Nighe… I want to know what the thing is that's the friend of Salem's brother."
The now beautiful woman, squints her eyes and straighter out her face.
Bean-Nighe: "Mickey… Or Mouse..? I mean sure but that'll cost ya'!"
She makes a joke then swats her hand in front of her.
Bean-Nighe: "Just Kidding!"
Salem: 'Did she really switch with another person?'
Bean-Nighe: "Nope still same old me! Just prettier!"
Salem, goes wide mouthed.
Salem: "Sorry I didn't mean to sound... mean or anything like that."
Bean-Nighe: "Nope it's okay, I wasn't offended anyway."
Wonder now flaps their wings. The flame and smoke float off its body.
Wonder: "I'd like an answer to my question Bean-Nighe."
Bean-Nighe: "What question?"
Her eyebrows frow in actual confusion.
Wonder: "What is the thing that's following Salem's brother?"
Wonder's voice actually holding some authority.
Bean-Nighe: "Oh Yeah."
Bean-Nighe now's walks over to Salem side of the terrain making her way off the mossy footing into the fiery field, but the flames don't seem to be affecting her.
Salem looks confused as she gets just out of Salem's arm reach.
Bean-Nighe: "Come closer Salem…"
Salem follows her instructions and takes a few steps closer to her. Though unsure he makes his way, step after step, he gets closer until his body is about a few feet away now.
Bean-Nighe puts her hand up and slowly brings it to Salem's face.
Bean-Nighe: "This'll be fast Salem."
Bean-Nighe holds her hand to Salem's cheek...
Her face goes blank as she stares directly into Salem's eyes.
Time then moves. Salem feels Bean-Nighe's soft and beautiful hand on his face.
But it slowly gets awkward, the hand remains stationary and Salem stays looking at Bean-Nighe's face and Bean-Nighe stays staring at Salem's.
Bean-Nighe remains indifferent to this whole thing.
Salem: "So what is wrong?"
Wonder: "Let her think. She needs quiet... Or that's what I've seen."
Wonder chimes in for Bean-Nighe.
Salem: "What's she trying to do to me?"
Wonder turns it's giant flaming beak to Salem.
It's eyes point down to get a clear view of him.
Wonder: "She's trying to figure out what it is that you are being troubled with."
Salem, tilts his head in confusion.
Salem: "I thought it was a Myth..? Just like you or yoor-min-gander, or something like that."
Wonder: "You can just say the giant snake. If you don't fully understand how to say it's name, and right now is what we are trying to figure out."
Salem feels the hand twitch slightly on his cheek.
Salem: "Okay, but how is her hand on my face doing anything?"
Wonder looks at the blonde, beautiful woman, then back to Salem.
Wonder: "She just needs to see what it is that we are asking for."
The entire time they were talking Salem never moved his face from her once.
Salem: "So she's looking for what the tall lady is?"
Wonder: "Exactly. So please keep still."
Salem forgets that Bean-Nighe is staring at him so when he looks back at her he feels. So very embarrassed. His face feel red and that he might vomit from the looks she's giving him.
She looks is like a dumbfounded chihuahua.
Salem: "How long will it take to make her…"
Bean-Nighe: "Okay so the weird thing is that the Hachishaku thing.. is like us but different…"
Bean-Nighe takes her hand off of Salem face and puts it behind her back like a child, then she stands on one foot and tilts herself back and forth.
Wonder now looks at Bean-Nighe.
Wonder: "What does that mean?"
Bean-Nighe: "I'd guess the best way to say it is us but a different generation."
Wonder's feathery, flaming head has a sizzle as the bird tries to think.
Wonder: "What?"
Salem scratches his head as well trying to understand her.
Bean-Nighe: "The thing is something that the humans made up through… what do they call it?"
She looks over to Salem.
Bean-Nighe: "Social medium..? I'm I right? Social Medium?"
Salem gives her a confused look, tilts his head, then pauses trying to understand her.
Salem: "Social Media..?"
Bean-Nighe: "YEAH! Social Media… seems now instead of having to write many stories and stuff they can just make something up and then have another type of being unknowingly made."
She pauses then taps her finger to her lips.
Bean-Nighe: "They are called… Cryptids… I think."
Wonder: "What about the thing that Salem encountered with Stone?"
Wonder and Bean-Nighe, look at each other.
Bean-Nighe: "I'd say their the same thing."
Wonder: "Are you sure?"
Bean-Nighe now looks at Salem with an unassuming look.
Bean-Nighe: "Salem want me to touch you again?"
Salem: 'Why word it like that?'
His face turns red slightly and not from the flames.
Bean-Nighe smiles then laughs, as she turns her face back to Wonder.
Salem looks down embarrassed that he forgot about the "no privacy in his mind thing."
Bean-Nighe: "He doesn't want me to touch him again. So you have to go with my best judgment and listen when I say that it's the same."
Wonder cranks it's bird neck and nods.
Wonder: "I'll take what I can get."
Bean-Nighe: "Okay bye!"
She waves her hand violently, as the fiery field begins to expand into the swampy background.
Salem remembers his want to protect his brother. He takes a deep breath and slowly his color returns.
Salem: "What do I do about stopping her though?"
Bean-Nighe gives Salem a sullen look.
Bean-Nighe: "Do you really want to take away your younger brothers first friend? He already told you he is bullied and the only one to stop him from feeling like that was a girl, or not one. But one that is like us… give it a chance."
Bean-Nighe fades out as the flames take over.
Wonder: "So what'd you want to do?"
Salem looks down in understanding for what she said, but there's something else Salem can't shake off his body.
The overwhelming feeling of Dread that he felt, when she first arrived at their house. The Fear that made Salem not move. The same fear that made him have to overcome his under confidence.
Salem: "I love the fact that my brother has a friend that he can talk to. That he can laugh with… But if my options are a dead little brother or a sad one… I'll choose the sad little brother."
Wonder tilts its head again.
Wonder: "Meaning?"
Salem: "Oh I thought it was self explanatory..? We have to stop that giant."