Midnight Eternity

An unsettlingly eerie yet refreshing breeze swept through the veins of the large-bone-filled ravine as Shroud marched through its many interconnected/interwoven maze-like passages. Shroud raised a hand to his face to rub his eyes but was interrupted by his fingers tapping his mask, making him groan in frustration.

"Am I really considering using the thing left behind by great grandpa just to get out of here sooner?" Shroud muttered before he swung his fist back and sucker-punched a large thorn-covered bee monster in the face. The large bee's face cracked and fell apart as its body swung backwards before flatlining on the sandy ground.

"No... that'd be cheating," Shroud said mentally as Kuika stared at the spot the bee landed and watched as it sunk beneath the sand.

"I feel dumb now...," Kuika murmured as she lowered her ears.

"Why's that little one?" Gold asked. Kuika pointed at where the bee's body sank into the sand. Shroud halted his walking as he reached a section of the ravine with an abrupt drop. Shroud stomped his foot on the ground, causing it to rumble before the sides of the drop slammed together and made a path. Shroud glanced his eyes to the top right before he continued to walk.

On the top section of the ravine, a pair of kid-looking humanoids poked their heads over the ravine and watched Shroud walk away.

(Zallithivo is a female six-year-old humanoid crow-type kitsune visage[crow wings and tails]; she has dark silver hair with pale lime tips, pale lime eyes, pale white skin to the point it's faintly cyan, Four large crow-like wings on her back with the same colour gradient as her hair, and six feathery tail wings with same colour gradient as her hair)

(Zallithivo is wearing a black sports bra with a golden feather attached to it, baggy ripped sports shorts, and silverwood crocks)

(Zalmino is a feminine-looking seven-year-old humanoid phoenix-type kitsune ego[phoenix wings and tails]; they have long sand-textured dark silver hair with white glowing tips, flat pale white eyes with glowing white ring pupils, pale white skin to the point it's faintly cyan, has two large phoenix wings with white tips, and eight tails with white tips)

(Zalmino is wearing a white hoodie with an oversized hood, metalic flower bracelets running upright arm, and silverwood crocks)

"I think they noticed us, Mino," Lilithivo uttered as she glanced over at Mino before sighing when she saw Mino sleeping on the ground. Lilithivo pouted and huffed before she crouched down next to Mino's ear.

"Sleeping on the job again?" Lilithivo sternly said while mimicking Zalrotho's tone of voice as much as she could muster before violently dry coughing, "Yeah... not doing that again.". Lilithivo rubbed her throat as Mino rolled over.

"You say somethin'?" Mino mumbled tiredly.

"I said: I think the one with the mask noticed us," Lilithivo stated as she wrapped her wings around her body into an oversized feather hoodie. Mino pushed themselves to their feet and yawned.

"Why are we even being sneaky? Master Zalrotho asked us to investigate not stalk the... guy?" Mino uttered as they slowly closed their eyes. Lilithivo rapidly clapped her hands in front of Mino's face until Mino reopened their eyes.

"Don't you fall asleep again, and... actually you make a good point," Lilithivo said before placing a hand on her chin. She closed her eyes and muttered aloud as her feathers rustled in tandem with her muttering. Lilithivo scrunched up her face before angrily groaning and throwing her arms in the air.

"Fine! Let's just go talk to them," Lilithivo proclaimed before she grabbed the sleepy Mino by the collar of their hoodie and marched off, dragging Mino behind her in the process.

A little bit later, Shroud stared at the dead end ahead of him while Kuika nibbled on the leg of a human-sized ant monster. Shroud pulled the bottom of his mask forward slightly and itched his chin before putting his mask back on.

"Good grief... this ravine is almost as confusing as the layout of any creature's blood vessels," Shroud muttered. Kuika tossed the ant leg away, climbed up Shroud's back, and sat on his shoulders.

"Why don't you just jump out of the ravine and walk on top of its walls?" Kuika asked as she pointed upwards.

"Sunken cost fallacy," Gold said.

"Oh... ok, whatever that means.". Shroud sighed and gazed upwards.

"I believe you should concede, Master," Gold stated, causing Shroud to sigh again.

"Very well," Shrould uttered with a hint of disdain before he lept upwards and parkoured up the walls of the ravine. He lept out of the ravine and landed on the ground. The group gazed around until they spotted the lights of a city surrounded by a tall medieval wall far in the distance.

"So, we were closer than I imagined, but first...," Shroud said before he spun around and stared down Lilithivo and Mino, causing Lilithivo to freeze in her tracks and unintentionally drop the sleeping Mino like a sack of potatoes. Lilithivo blinked at Shroud like a deer in headlights before she stood up straight and nervously rubbed the back of her head.

"Erm... hi?" Lilithivo said nervously.

"A female Zalvivo?" Gold remarked telepathically to Shroud.

"You're lucky you didn't say that vocally, but you're probably right," Shroud uttered telepathically. Lilithivo pressed her spread-out fingers together and quietly hummed to herself as she wondered who Shroud could be telepathically talking to, given that Kuika's focus was on Mino.

"Um...," Lilithivo uttered. Shroud glanced at Lilithivo, and she jumped on the spot.

"Yes?" Shroud asked, causing Lilithivo to flinch at hearing Shroud's deep voice from up close. Lilithivo shuffled on the spot and twiddled her fingers as she collected her thoughts.

"A-are you the otherworlder w-who appeared a few hours ago?" Lilithivo asked. Kuika gasped in shock, almost falling off Shroud as she leaned back before swinging her head in front of Shroud's face.

"How does she know? I only guess because I saw you fall from the sky," Kuika exclaimed in bewilderment as Shroud asked her to not block his view. As Kuika moved away from Shroud's face, Lilithivo shivered and rustled her feathers.

"So, I take it... you are then?" Lilithivo asked.

"I am, and I take it you and your sleeping companion's names start with zal?" Shroud asked. Lilithivo gasped and froze up before slowly falling backwards like a statue and crashing into the ground, flinging sand into the air. Shroud walked over to the side of Lilithivo and crouched down next to her.

"Just to let you know, that was a guess," Shroud stated.

"That doesn't make it any less surprising... it's like, in a manga, a reverse trap character being revealed to be a girl cursed to be a guy... or would they have started as a guy and turned into a girl?". Lilithivo continued to mutter to herself about her comparison as Shroud rubbed his face under his mask again.