"Stop this!" Kaito roared. His limbs jerked and twitched against his will, his body forced into a grotesque, marionette-like dance by Guada's invisible threads.
Guada's face was pale, sweat beading on her forehead, but her eyes remained fierce. "Why should I stop? You came here to hurt my people. Now... I command you, Merman! Remove the talisman!"
Zac's glassy eyes remained fixed forward as his hand slowly rose. His fingers curled around the glowing stone hanging from Kaito's neck.
"Zac, no! What are you doing?!" Kaito hissed, his voice cracking with rage.
"Now," Guada gasped, her voice straining under the weight of the spell. "Destroy it!"
With a sickening crunch, Zac squeezed the talisman. The magical stone shattered into a thousand dull fragments, the light within it extinguished forever. Instantly, the heavy, suffocating pressure over the village lifted. The citizens of the Barrio gasped, feeling the feeling return to their limbs.
"You moron! Look what you've done!" Kaito screamed at the possessed Merman.
But the victory was short-lived. Guada began to pant heavily, her small frame trembling. The "Puppet Stage" was a high-level spell that consumed the soul's energy at a terrifying rate.
"The child!" an old woman cried out, rushing forward. "The act has drained her spirit. We must help her, quickly!"
The witches of the village linked hands, their voices rising in a desperate counter-spell to heal Guada. But Kaito, now free from the puppet strings as Guada's grip faltered, slammed his fist into the ground. A jagged, dark barrier erupted around him and Zac, shimmering with a violet light. Every spell the witches threw at him bounced off the shield, useless.
Guada's eyes rolled back, and she collapsed into the dust, unconscious. The threads snapped, leaving the village defenseless against the enraged Nogitsune.
THE SUMMONS OF THE SOUTH
In the heart of the Forest of Selvage, the air was thick with the scent of pine and ancient magic as Calista stood before her son for the first time in years.
"But Mom," Ethan started, his voice trembling with a mix of relief and fear. "We have to leave this place. We can hide."
"Son, there is no hiding," Calista explained, her eyes filled with a mother's sorrow. "Even if we run, the Nogitsune's curse is like a tether. He will find us, and he will destroy everyone we love to get to us. We are all endangered as long as he lives."
"Miss Calista," Aki interrupted, stepping forward. "Nana Amelia told us that a Kitsune can break the curse. I can help you."
Calista shook her head sadly. "The Nogitsune is ahead of us, Akihiko. He has twisted the curse so that standard Kitsune magic won't suffice. There is a missing piece to the puzzle."
"Miss Calista, you must send them away now," Daisuke urged, glancing nervously at the dark treeline. "Kaito will be back soon."
Suddenly, Ethan stiffened. His head tilted as if listening to a frequency no one else could hear. "Wait... do you hear that?"
"Hear what, E?" Aki asked, looking around.
"It's a call for help," Calista whispered, her eyes widening. "The Harmonica of Help. It was a gift given to the witches long ago—and not just by anyone. Your father was the one who forged those instruments for the protectors of the South."
Before Aki could reach out to grab him, Ethan's body began to shimmer and fade. In a blink of an eye, he vanished into thin air.
"E! Where did you go?" Aki shouted, spinning around in a panic.
"He's been summoned," Calista said, her voice urgent. "The witches of South-Central are in peril, and the blood of his father has pulled him there. Quickly, follow him! I have a feeling Kaito has already arrived at the village."
With a swift wave of her hands, Calista tore a shimmering rift in the air. "This portal leads to the South. Go!"
"But what about you?" Aki asked, hesitating at the edge of the swirling vortex.
"There's no time! Take care of my son!" Calista commanded.
Aki didn't wait another second. He shifted mid-leap, his body transforming into a sleek, powerful fox as he dove into the portal to save his best friend.
THE SANCTUARY OF THE AMOMONGO
On the misty slopes of the mountain, a towering, ape-like figure emerged from the limestone caves. He was man-sized, covered in coarse fur, with jagged, long nails that could rend steel.
"An Amomongo," Catherine whispered, her voice trembling.
"No way, Monday... that's just a werewolf, right?" Jasmine squeaked, hiding behind Jin Ae.
"Trespassers!" the creature roared, his voice shaking the trees. "You are not welcome in this sanctuary—especially not a Black Dove Bellator."
Lore Note: The Amomongo is a legendary ape-like creature from Negros, Philippines. Its name comes from the word amó (monkey). It is a violent, wild cryptid said to live in the caves of Mt. Kanlaon.
Baekhyun immediately bowed his head in a sign of deep respect. "Greetings, Senior. My name is Baekhyun. We mean no harm. We only seek permission to capture a Sigbin."
"Do you not understand?" the Amomongo hissed, his eyes glowing. "This is a sanctuary for Good Sigbins, protected by the Good Bellators. The hunting season has ended, child. Go home."
"Brother, stop," Jin Ae said, grabbing Baekhyun's arm. "I don't care about the Choi family wealth anymore. We've met creatures who choose peace. We can find another way to save Mom from Grandfather (Hal-abeoji)."
"Why don't you listen to your sister?" the Amomongo added, crossing his massive arms.
Before Baekhyun could argue, a familiar, calm voice drifted through the trees. "She is right, Baekhyun."
"Granny Esther?" Catherine gasped as her grandmother stepped into the clearing. The Amomongo immediately bowed low to the elderly woman.
"Esther?" Baekhyun recognized her as the woman who had helped him enter the portal to find Ethan.
"We have one true enemy," Esther said gravely. "And it isn't the Sigbins or the Witches. Ethan is in the South-Central, and he is facing the Nogitsune alone."
"Ethan!" Baekhyun's heart hammered against his ribs. "Where is he?"
"Go to the coven of the elemental witches. Protect the Sigbinan!" Esther commanded. She didn't open a portal; instead, she waved her hands, summoning a violent, swirling tornado in the middle of the path.
"Granny, no portal?" Baekhyun asked, staring at the debris-filled wind.
"Nope. Now jump!"
"Good luck, Kuya!" Jin Ae shouted. Without warning, she and the girls shoved Baekhyun forward.
"JIN AE! YOU SPOILED BRAT—AAAHHH!" Baekhyun's scream faded as he was sucked into the heart of the storm.
THE BIRTH OF THE SECOND TAIL
In the South-Central village, Ethan stood paralyzed as he faced the intruders.
"Who are you?" Ethan demanded, his eyes fixed on Kaito and the Merman who held the unconscious Guada.
"Finally, the Sigbinan arrives," Kaito sneered. "I am Kaito, the Nogitsune."
"Put that child down and leave this place!" Ethan commanded, his power beginning to flare.
Kaito only laughed. "I don't think I will."
In a sudden, brutal move, Kaito snatched Guada and buried his fangs into her neck. A heavy, mournful rain began to pour as the sky turned gray.
"You failed," Zac whispered, tears of grief falling from his eyes and turning into shimmering pearls as they hit the dirt.
Kaito let out a guttural roar of triumph. A second tail sprouted from his lower back, shimmering with newfound dark energy. "The myth is true!"
As the witches regained their strength and prepared to attack, Kaito signaled to Zac. "Don't want to waste time on you, Sigbinan. We will meet again soon."
In a flash of dark smoke, the Nogitsune and the Merman vanished, leaving the village in ruins.
THE FOX AND THE KUMIHO
Aki and Baekhyun arrived just as the smoke cleared, finding Ethan kneeling by the unconscious Guada.
"Ethan, what happened?" they asked in unison.
"The Sigbinan failed his duty," one of the witch leaders, Nadia, spat.
"Enough, Nadia," Meryl interrupted. "We all failed. We cannot expect one man to carry the weight of an entire coven."
"No... she's right. I failed," Ethan whispered.
"Wait," Aki said, stepping forward. "Let me try something." He placed his palms on Guada's forehead, channeling a wave of pure, calming energy that washed over everyone present.
But as the energy hit Baekhyun, something strange happened.
"Baekhyun, your ears!" Ethan shouted, pointing.
A pair of pristine white fox ears had sprouted from Baekhyun's head, matching the white fur of his new tail.
"A Kumiho," Meryl whispered in awe.
"What is happening to me, Ethan?" Baekhyun asked, his voice trembling as his human facade crumbled, revealing the celestial fox within.
TO BE CONTINUED...