Blank shot a flaming arrow inside the cave to make sure it was safe from the wendigos. It really was, and there was no one there. The traces of the bodyguards camping there were miniscule, so they must have left it for a long time now.
They went inside to settle there for the night, and repeat their routine of searching and traveling at dusk.
It was disappointing for Harker and Joan, but it was still progress as they have returned to where they were originally from. Still, what the little boy said was troubling them.
The little boy was now in a long conversation with his older brother. He was moving his hands around wildly, as if he was truly alarmed by something. He then kept on saying something similar to 'Sasquatch', which made Harker curious. He approached the two and asked:
"Is he saying that the monster we encountered was the Sasquatch himself? Bigfoot?" Harker asked. "But I thought he was an ape…."
"It is sasq'ets, from our neighbors myths. A hairy man, a shapeshifter. I do not know of this Bigfoot you speak of." Blank told him.
He added: "But I do know that from what Ahanu was telling me, you and your not-girlfriend are in grave danger. The hairy man is a spirit that protects the forest. It is beyond a doubt that he would not be pleased with your destruction."
Blank pointed at the fire. "Everything has a spirit. Our interactions with them cause different consequences. That is why when you lit a fire, you must thank the spirit of the flame that gives you warmth and safety. That is why when you eat, you must thank the spirit of the plants and the meat that has given you their energy."
The little boy stood up, and started tapping his feet. Blank explained:
"Ahanu is suggesting that we dance to appease the hairy man. You must make a promise to return the trees you have destroyed in order for the spirits that reside within them to have a new home. Then he might not want to take your blood."
"Might?" Harker frowned.
"It is uncertain whether a promise would appease the hairy man. But you must try. For it is possible that he may not let you pass through these mountains safely for any longer. He would start to hunt for you and Joan."
Harker had no choice but to consider doing this apology ritual dance. He just hoped that the anger of this guardian spirit did not transfer to the bodyguards, and that they were still out there. Ahanu taught them how to make the preparations, and the steps and chants seemed easy enough. However….
"Do we really have to do this at night?" Harker frowned.
Joan agreed. "That's when the wendigos come. Even if we will be dancing around a fire pit, it's still dangerous. And I'd rather you boys to not be out in the open with those monsters that have super strength and super speed. They'd kill you before you can blink."
Ahanu spoke again, and Blank translated it.
"If the spirit feels we are being sincere, he will protect us from the wendigos and let us continue dancing. However, we must stay within the light of the flame just to be safe. Even if the wendigos did come, they will stay in the shadows' reach."
At sunset, they set out to do the ritual. Ahanu arranged the fire pit carefully, and another circle of stones to be the borders of their dance. He reminded them to never miss a step and tread this area carefully.
He suddenly went to approach Harker and Joan, who were practicing the steps together. He pulled on Joan's sleeves and held out his hand.
"What does he want?" Joan asked Blank, who was busy fanning the flames to rise higher.
"He's asking for the leaves you have."
"The leaves?" Joan looked confused.
"The leaves. The one you smoke."
The undead professor was stunned by this. "You want me to give weed to a child?"
Harker sighed. "Just give it to him. Wouldn't want to anger that Sasquatch again now, do we? Besides, you're not really concerned about the child's welfare and more because you didn't want to lose your stash, right?"
Joan grumbled and took out a blunt from her pocket. "For your information, Jones, I do care about the welfare of the child. I am still a professional though I barely act like it. Otherwise, I would have jumped at your dick while you were still my student."
This shut Harker up as he tried to get rid of the mental image of this woman's voluptuous buttocks over his dick.
Ahanu took the weed, but still doesn't look satisfied.
"He's asking for the tobacco too." Blank explained. "He said tobacco is the really important part."
"Fuck, even my cigarettes. Fine, fine." She handed all her cigarettes to the boy.
The boy took all of them and took them out of their blunts. He had seemed to have created a long wooden pipe in such a short amount of time, and placed the cannabis and tobacco there. Then he lit them up and started smoking.
As smoke came out of his lips, he started chanting. He then made two pats on the ground just as the sun had set in the sky.
"It's time." Blank told them. "Let's do this. Follow my lead."
The three started dancing awkwardly at first, moving around the stone circle as they did. Ahanu kept on half-chanting and half-singing with his eyes closed, still smoking the pipe. This made his voice significantly deeper, and each hum he made resounded deep within his chest.
Soon, it felt like they weren't listening to a little boy sing anymore. It doesn't sound like an old man either, but something else entirely. A being that transcends this material plane, one with nature and the spirit realm.
All three of them can't help but be a little distracted by this sudden divine aura. Blank tried to stop himself from looking at his brother by closing his eyes and focusing on the dance. He had good senses to not step on the stone even when dancing blindly.
Harker had such a strong sense of denial that it was enough for him to deny Ahanu's presence. Any normal human would not be able to do that.
But Joan was normal, and it was too late. As she passed over the young boy, her feet pushed the stone ever so slightly out of place…..
And a clawed hand quickly grabbed it from the shadows, finding a way in.
Harker shouted. "The wendigos!"
The little boy made a gesture with his hand.
Blank exclaimed. "He said keep going no matter what, so we must keep dancing!"
"But he's in danger!" Joan exclaimed, as the thin, gray hands of death started to reach towards the little boy's head.
Ahanu was sweating and his voice shook, but he kept chanting. The hands now gripped into his shoulders. Sinking their sharp nails and drawing blood.
Blank was left with a tough choice. But he knew Ahanu wanted them to keep going.
He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.
"Keep dancing! No matter what happens tonight, you must keep dancing until your legs give out in honor of the Sasq'ets!"
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