Chapter 12: Beneath Lepin
The road to the Kingdom of Reverb had grown quieter the farther they walked from Gage Village. Hills rolled lazily beneath cloud-streaked skies, and forests loomed with thick canopies, casting long shadows across the path. By midday, the trio of Kaze, Atlas, and Kazuki arrived at a remote village nestled near a steep cliff's edge: Lepin—one of the last settlements before reaching the borderlands of Elvon.
Something felt off the moment they entered. No one greeted them. Doors were shut, windows sealed, and the air hung heavy with unease.
"Where is everyone?" Atlas asked, glancing around the empty village square.
Kaze narrowed his eyes. "Something's wrong. This place feels… hollow."
"I hear breathing," Kazuki muttered, tilting his head slightly. "Behind that building. Multiple heartbeats. Fast."
Before they could react, an older man peeked from behind the baker's hut, beckoning them urgently. "You! You're not from here—are you fighters? Please… come inside quickly!"
Inside the cramped home, the man introduced himself as Tarrin, the village blacksmith. A few other villagers sat silently in the room, their faces pale and anxious.
"They're still taking people," Tarrin said. "Every few nights, someone vanishes. Sometimes we hear them screaming. Other times… nothing at all. Then we'll see them the next day—but they're not really them."
Kaze leaned forward. "You mean… something is pretending to be them?"
"Aye," Tarrin whispered. "We think it's the Skinwalkers. Demons wearing our loved ones' faces."
Atlas blinked. "Skinwalkers? I thought those were just stories."
"They ain't stories," one of the villagers snapped. "My brother vanished last week. He came back two days later… but he didn't remember his own name. His voice was all wrong. We locked him up—he broke down the door like it was paper and disappeared."
Kazuki stood. "We're wasting time. Show us where the last one vanished."
The team followed Tarrin toward the western edge of the village, where dense woods pushed against the homes. Half-buried animal bones littered the ground, and the trees grew strangely silent the farther they walked. Then, without warning, Kazuki stopped.
"There," he said, pointing with his blade. "I smell blood."
They found a patch of disturbed earth near a tree trunk—drag marks leading toward a cavern concealed behind a thicket. A sickly sweet stench rolled out from its mouth.
"Alright," Kaze said, fists clenching. "Time to deal with this."
Inside the cavern, the air grew colder. The walls shimmered with moisture, and the floor sloped downward into darkness. The silence broke only by an occasional dripping sound—until Atlas stumbled and nearly vomited.
Strung across the walls were wet, pulsing cocoons, each about the size of a person.
"They're alive," Kazuki said. "Barely. But they're alive."
Suddenly, a raspy voice echoed from the shadows.
"You shouldn't have come."
Six figures emerged from the darkness—vaguely human in shape, but wrong. Their faces were stretched, mouths too wide, and their skin shimmered unnaturally. One of them looked like Tarrin's brother.
"Don't fall for their voices," Kazuki warned. "They're not who they pretend to be."
The Skinwalkers attacked at once, screeching inhumanly. Kaze launched forward with a spinning wind kick, tearing through one, but it reformed instantly. Atlas shouted, casting a flare of soul-infused light, which seared the creature's form. It screamed and crumbled.
"Light hurts them!" he yelled.
Kazuki moved like a blur, slicing through their limbs with his knife. One lunged at him, but he twisted under it and drove the blade upward through its chin.
Kaze caught another by the arm, sending a powerful gust through its torso. "I've had enough of these freaks!"
One of the Skinwalkers reached for Atlas—until a villager leapt in front of him, holding only a pitchfork.
"No—!" Atlas cried.
The creature slashed the man across the chest and throat before being incinerated by a light burst.
The battle raged. More villagers had followed, trying to help, but several were overpowered and killed. Eventually, only the three boys and a handful of villagers remained.
Breathing hard, Kaze looked around. "That was… way too close."
Kazuki moved to the cocoons. "They're weakening. Cut them open."
Inside, they found the missing villagers—pale, dehydrated, but alive. One girl coughed violently and clutched a soggy stuffed rabbit.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Kaze touched her shoulder. "You're safe now."
By the time the team emerged from the cavern, the sun had begun to rise. The village of Lepin gathered to see the survivors returned. Tears flowed freely. Some parents embraced their children. Others stared in hollow silence, mourning those who hadn't made it.
Tarrin bowed to the trio. "We owe you everything."
"We just did what had to be done," Atlas said, trying to sound humble.
As the team prepared to leave, Kaze glanced back one last time.
"This world's darker than I thought," he said.
Kazuki adjusted his grip on the knife. "It always has been. You just didn't know where to look."