Listening to her words, Mathis looked around the room carefully. Feeling around the cabinet, there was nothing left to find thus far. "What did you glean from the story, Lila? If you were to place yourself in it, how would you respond?" Mathis understood the tale well enough from his own experience. Even with the psychology of nature and nurture, habits were another thing entirely. Forged in the daily routine and often second nature, to know oneself enough to cease a habit is rare. Given the chance, when she went back to her classmates, would she continue the high horse stance she had with him? Would she gain a dash of humility?

Sauntering to the bed, he turned the sheets and pillows over and out, finding nothing of use. "Feel the inside of the closet yourself, tell me if you feel or find anything I may have missed." With her small hands, perhaps she might find something he might have missed. Two sets of hands always worked better than one, just like another perspective was necessary. Waiting, he gazed at the floor, slowly bouncing on the balls of his feet, testing the planks to see if something might click or shift.
 
Lila looked up as she considered the two questions before her. One of them she didn't want to answer at all. Did he not think she could read, perhaps that literacy was lost on humanity when the grea Devhani empire fell? She looked back at him, glaring at his great horns limned only by the fainest of moonglows. His white hair outlined his form better than the moons could within the perfidery shadows.

"If it's in my nature to kill," Lila said, stalking over to the closet. "Then I kill. To me, it's the same as eating. Surely you can relate to that. And stop telling me what to do just because you're bigger than me." She huffed as she placed her hand inside the dirty closet. What a surprise, dirt, dust, more dirt, spider web, nothing and more nothing. Lila stepped into the small closet, turned to look at Mathis and crossed her arms over her chest.

"There's nothing here," She began, stomping her foot. Forget about being quiet, this was a dead end. They most likely needed to find a way out of here, head into another forgotten home, and then rinse and repeat. What a lame night, especially with the weird puppets on the loose. "This is an absolute waste of time. I don't need some old dusty, smelly book or broken ugly artifact, I need a hot bath and a warm bed and -- " Lila kicked the wall at the corner before stepping out, a hollow sound echoing out. The woman paused, tilting her head in question. She kicked another part of the closet.

The sound was different, more solid. She knocked on one wall, compared it to the other, frowning at how the sounds matched. Getting down on her knees she started rapping her knuckles to confirm her suspicions. Maybe the deva had a point that there was something going on in this closet, he was just too big to inspect it. She stuck her head out of the closet doorway.

"You got something that's good at prying off a wooden plank?"
 
Mathis nodded at her statement, giving her a quirked brow when glaring at his horns.
"To answer you, it is in mortals' nature to either doubt or trust, and instinct or common sense. Under the guise of "Maybe this time it will be different." Not all are so disciplined nor practical in approach." Mathis said, slowly approaching her with what appeared to be a sort of wedge, but thin enough to get in between the boards at an angle.

"I guess it wasn't a waste of time after all, aye?" Flashing his toothiest smile, he chuckled as he watched her work. As expected, the closet was a sacred space for some and a dual storage for others. Traps, too, if one wasn't too careful. Honestly, he was hoping for something a little more lively. He had another idea he wanted to try.
 
"If all I find is a dead rat then it's a waste of time." She took the tool offered to her by the deva, jamming the edge of it into a opening. As she tried prying the board loose, wiggling the piece of metal back and forth, Lila grunted as it dug into the soft flesh of her palms, sharp and brutal, threatening to break her skin the moment she lost focus. A nail popped off, clattering to the ground and rolling away.

Not long after another nail was torn off and Lila was pulling the plank off with her bare hands. She broke a nail while doing so, cursing the piece of wood as it creaked and groaned. She was red in the face was she ripped it off from the wall, throwing it out the closet. Lila didn't consider if it might hit Mathis, but luckily it went through the space between his legs. Heaving, Lila looked at the space, dark and ominous. It felt wrong to stick her hand in there, as if a pair of teeth would chomp down at any moment.

Instead, her fingers grazed at a box. She pulled it out, held it up to Mathis with both hands. The box was simply made, a top and a bottom, no lock. It was stained with a red varnish that made the wood resemble the inside of an overripe yellow peach. It smelled of dust and shadows and murk. The box was longer than it was wide, no engravings anywhere on it to give either of them a clue as to what could be inside. All they knew was that it had been hidden.

The ground beneath trembled for a moment, the forgotten furniture in the house shifting against the wooden floors but became still soon enough. Then another tremor, a little stronger than the last.

Lila was quick to stand up, holding onto the doorway.

"Earthquake?" She asked, looking towards Mathis as if he might have a better idea.
 
Chuckling lightly, his eyes never left her progress. Attuned eyes watched her work in the darkness; nails shifted, wood creaked. And yet the lapping of the waves in this broken village lapped calmly. The first nail popped off, followed by a thrown plank that skipped between his legs and into the slanted darkness. As the darkness yawned open, his eyes adjusted, seeing the box, the eerie feeling of misfortune clung to the darkness. His gut lurched as he reached out to stop her; it screamed danger.

"Wa-" Mathis began, but it was too late, even as he leaned into the closet, the Box sat before him. The tempo changed subtly; the first rumble coupled with an audible slap of waves on wood. Reeling back calmly, he gestured to the door. "Get outside!" Another thump and the stands groaned beneath the moldy dead weight. It was time to go, or be buried in a murky depth.

Mathis made sure to bring up the rear; his mind clearly slotted two things: their enemy would be rather large, and whatever was in this box was what called it. There was no other reason for this sudden shift. What the hell was in that box?

Swearing under his breath, he would be asking for a raise once he got back to camp. He had some questions for Sixth.
 
Mathis looked at the box like it might be the problem. Lila was taught that there were times it best to listen to a deva - after all, their instincts were akin to a sixth sense compared to her dull human senses. With the ground shaking beneath her, she didn't doubt that Mathis knew it was better to be outside than inside. Clutching the box tightly to her chest, Lila wobbled out of the abandoned building. Her instincts were telling her to hide, to not go outside.

Stomach flipping, bile rising, Lila used the walls to help spring her forward, every step unsure, shaky. She only propelled herself forward because Mathis was behind her. Looking weak, looking untrained, looking human, was not part of her plan. Her thighs worked harder than usual, she could feel the burn as she lunged across to the door, one hand reaching out.

"DYR!" Lila shouted, small lilac blast bursting through the rotting door. Wood chips sprayed back, falling victim to the wind and sea. The hole was enough to shatter most of the door, even to get Lila and Mathis through without much issues. Especially for Lila, flying out the broken door like it had never been whole before.

The horizon sea collided with the dark night, merging into one, indistinguishable from each other. Two lovers melting into a smear that spread across Lila's sight. She stopped, mesmerized by the sameness, unchanging hue that purged her into an entirely unknown world. Hues of blue and green and violet streaked across, shadows no more. Lila was turning running away, whatever as reflecting that light, she didn't want to see.

The box felt warm across her chest.
 
Behold a wonder of the sea. It is whispered that oftentimes, Sailors documented meeting a mirror unlike any other. While unnatural, it was something of nature's creation. It wasn't until the ship had to deviate course that they realized what was before them. A shell. Not just a shell, but one of inhumane size.

'THUD' 'THUD' 'THUD' CRRRAAACCKK!!'

Water that once lapped now sloshed into waves. The lagoon homes' foundations shuddered, falling further into ruin. When Mathis looked over his shoulder, he lost all notion of words. His pace increased as hands scooped up Lila, and off they went. Faster than her own legs could carry her at a sprint.

'OH SHIT OH SHIT OH SHIT! GIANT CRAB!'

If Lila were to look, she too would notice how the sky never seemed to break until the limbs and eyes became more apparent. Such a lovely shell for a crab, damn near magical one at that. Whatever was in that box had best be worth this trouble."Lila, please, regale me on your abilities when it comes to the arcane. Our foe is large.." Mathis said as he quickly touched down on the shore, wood splintered and disappeared as the creature grew closer. The houses helped bring the crab into perspective. It wasn't too big, but big enough to crush through one of the homes with relative ease.

"As you know, I have a more hands-on approach. I will be trusting my back to you." Mathis turned to face the crab as it neared the shore. Watching the water rush up the shore, Mathis wrinkled his nose in disappointment. Now was not a time he really wanted to get wet. Poor footing to boot, and something off about this crab here. Was this thing the reason why the village did not prosper? Were the Cazadores aware of this creature? Brushing the thoughts aside, his left hand flexed as shroud energy poured out as if pulling something. Several heart beats later, it came, whistling through the air and into his grip.

Rubbing the handle gently, his fingers tingled with anticipation. Big tools for big creatures, perhaps they would cook it up later?

"If we win, we're definitely cooking it up. That shell has gotta be made into something." Mathis smiled wickedly as his stomach and mind burned with anticipation for loot.
 
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"Hey!" Wide eyes and bared teeth, for a moment she struggled in his grip as she held the wooden box all the more tighter against her. "Put me," the crab came into view and suddenly all the breath left her lungs. "Down." Lila whispered, in awe of the size of the creature.

One of the crab's claws was much bigger than the other, round and brightly colored. Mostly orange, there were spots and smears of color, blue, purple, yellow, green and a hint of pink that was only illuminated by the moons. The other claw was rugose and smaller, yet long and slender, coral and barnacles being scraped off. The old homes shattered easily beneath it.

It approached them, ever slowly, and sideways, truly unhurried no matter how fast Mathis ran. The moment her feet were on the ground, she was digging into a puch tied around her waist, pulling out grease-stained paper tied with twine. Her fingers shook as she untied it, the rest of her only quaking when the giant crab moved.

"Moon magic," Lila told Mathis. She glanced up at the sky. The Wayfarer was plump and round, at the height of its power. "The wind and it's speed will be on our side." But that wasn't going to be enough to crack through a shell that size. The twine was undone, and as Lila unwrapped the paper to reveal a cut of meat that looked much like a doll sized human thigh. She ate it quickly, eyes momentarily flashing gold as she swallowed.

A wind blew the paper out of Lila's hand and before it fell to the ground, she had pulled out a weapon with a double blade made with no steel. Under the night sky it reflected back the Mother and all her glorious rings. She pointed the sharp, curved side towards the monster crab raising up it's massive claw.

"I got your back." Lila agreed, a bend in her knees. She could feel the power in her thighs, a spring waiting to be released.

"Hurron."The word was full of magic, and from Lila's blade a chain materialized, shooting out to wrap around one of the spiky joints of the crab's arm.
 
Dig deep, son of Omin; defeat is not allowed. If you fall, who shall carry the standard of Revival?

Mathis listed and watched her out of the corner of his eye. She was indeed an adaptable and reliable ally here. Inhaling once more, Mathis redirected the shroud flow through his body as he set off to strike their foe. One claw bound the merc moved to intercept the swiping slender. Parrying it off the flat of the greatsword, Mathis turned, rotating their torso; the blade blurred upcut the jointed spot that Lila shackled onto. The slender claw landed roughly into the sand off to Lila's right side by several paces.

The blade itself did not fully strike the joint, but it struck near it, forcing the limb back to give Lila room to release and advance as she saw fit. Within the folds of his jerk, the chain and knives remained ready to go at a moment's notice. Mathis willed his body to remain relaxed and loose so that he could respond with ease. Eyes quested upwards, looking at the crab's own eyes.

Perhaps the face would be the best target.
 
A successful hit by Mathis, the crab reacted from instinct, not a calculation. Lila hoped that meant this were more beast than a being with a mind too great for humans to understand. Those always tended to be the trickiest of kills, and while a challenge could be welcoming, on this night, Lila hoped the fight would be over soon.

When the broken piece of the crab landed near her, Lila leapt up into the sky, chain clattering back into her blade with a flash of violet light, as fast as two blinks of an eye. The wind began picking up around them, coming from the sea, clouds still dark and heavy with rain.

With a spin of her body at the highest point of her leap - nearly face to face with the gigantic crab now, could see her figure reflected in it's beady black eyes -- the chain was hissing out back to the crab, catching on a square knuckle of its arm and wrapping around it. She swung herself right underneath the crab, the world a blur of colors, wind making her lighter, faster.

Magic sizzled on her tongue, sparking behind her teeth, more of a nuisance than an issue. The taste of the Wayfarer was like the aftertaste of a good gin. Lila angled herself up then under another leg, trying to get the crab to trip and fall over itself but before she could get a third part of its body tangled up, it began vibrating, all of it's pointy legs stabbing at the ground below in a frenzy.
 
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