Yrlith had flown them to a small, nearby isnd. As luck would have it, it was not on their map. There was the beach where Toshie woke up. There was also a deep, dark forest. Despite Yrlith’s warnings, Sally headed within it to find a spring, ke, or anything.

  “There are trees, so there’s got to be some form of water,” she had told Yrlith. She had dashed off despite Yrlith’s pleas. But with Toshie unconscious and Brot tending to her wounds, Yrlith couldn’t stop her. She wished she had.

  The forest canopy was thick and let in little light. Toshie hoped Sally would pop out and say “Boo!” at any second. The silence was terrifying.

  “Sally!” No response. “I shouldn’t have let her go alone.” Yrlith’s voice shook.

  “You know you couldn’t have stopped her,” Toshie reassured Yrlith. She had only known the pair for a few days, but Sally’s stubbornness was outstanding. “Plus, how far could she have gone?”

  A few minutes of walking convinced Toshie Sally could go far. The ground was less firm with each step they took.

  Sploosh.

  Splunch.

  Splurk.

  Each step was less confident than the st.

  “Sally!” They each took turns calling out. No response. Each step brought them further into darkness. The canopy hung overhead like a storm cloud. Toshie was beginning to worry.

  A bit ter, Brot was having trouble wading through all the muck. “Want to ride on my back?” Yrlith asked. He gave a bashful nod, and Yrlith hoisted him onto her shoulders.

  Toshie’s stockings had soaked through. Dead leaves and other debris she did not want to think about seeped into her boots. After a few more minutes of walking, the trees thinned out, and they found themselves in front of a ke. Sally was in the middle of the ke, caught in a giant spider web.

  Sally was unconscious but seemed unhurt. There were no signs of a spider, either.

  “Yrlith, can you, uh, sense monsters or anything?” Toshie asked.

  Yrlith shook her head.

  “How about you, Brot?”

  Another no.

  Well, here goes nothing, thought Toshie.

  “Sally!” she yelled out. Sally did not move. “Sally!” she tried again. Still nothing. “Can you transform, Yrlith?”

  Another head shake. “I’m still too drained from the flight.”

  “Can Sally swim?”

  “What? No, Princesses don’t spend much time near water.”

  “Can you?”

  Yrlith stared at the ke. “Yes. But what are we going to do?”

  Toshie struck a pose. “Improvise.”

  Yrlith swam out to the middle of the ke.

  “How’s the water?” Toshie called out.

  “Freezing.”

  “Wait, aren’t you cold-blooded?”

  “What?”

  “Never mind!” Toshie looked up. “You see anything, Brot?”

  “Nothing as of now,” he said from a tree branch.

  Toshie took a deep breath and pointed each of her hands at the edges of the web.

  Three, two, one.

  “Fireball!”

  A tiny ball limped out of Toshie’s hands and floated toward the web. After what felt like an eternity, it struck the web and fizzled out.

  Toshie stared dumbfounded. The whole Mana thing must be true.

  Suddenly, there was a snap, and one strand of the web broke. Unable to support Sally’s weight, her body fell into Yrlith’s outstretched arms.

  “Yes!” Toshie shouted.

  “The spider is coming!” screamed Brot. “Make haste, Master Yrlith!”

  Yrlith swam with all her might.

  “Come on, Sal, wake up,” she said as she pulled her through the water. Sally said nothing. Her gentle breathing against Yrlith’s neck gave her the energy to keep swimming.

  “That’s the spider?” Toshie screamed. “Why is the spider so damn big?”

  Its legs were like redwood trunks, and its body took up Toshie’s entire field of vision. Its eyes were going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

  “Fireball!” Toshie screamed, her hands extended.

  Nothing happened.

  “You’re out of Mana!” Brot yelled at her.

  “What do we do?” Toshie yelled back.

  Brot went silent. What could they do? What could he do? He looked down. Yrlith was getting closer, but the spider was as well.

  Toshie felt useless. But she had to do something. Anything.

  “Brot, get down here!”

  “Yes, Master Toshie!” said the Goblin as he scurried down the tree.

  “Get ready. We’re going in.”

  “The water?” Brot looked confused.

  “No,” said Toshie as she pulled out her sword. “Come on, you bastard. Get a snack!”

  “Have you lost your mind, Master Toshie?” Brot yelled at her. “You pn on going into the mouth of the beast?”

  “Yeah?”

  “This creature would obliterate you with one bite!”

  Yrlith had closed in on the shore, but the spider closed on her. Toshie was out of ideas.

  “Can’t you do anything?” she said to Brot. “Some, I don’t know, anti-spider spell?”

  Brot’s eyes lit up.

  “No, but I can do this! Close your eyes.” Raising his hands, he closed his eyes and mumbled a prayer. A dazzling light fshed in front of the spider’s eyes. It screeched and stumbled backward. Opening his eyes, Brot noticed Yrlith was back on nd.

  “Run!” Brot screamed. “This is our chance!”

  Toshie grabbed Brot’s hand and ran. Yrlith, carrying Sally in her arms, followed after them. She ran. Tears streaked down Toshie’s face. She ran. Every single muscle in her body burned. She ran. Everything was numb. She ran. Despite holding his hand, Toshie kept checking to see if Brot was behind her. She ran. After what felt like a lifetime, they reached the beach.

  Toshie colpsed as soon as her feet hit the sand.

  She dreamt.

  She was back in grade school, eating lunch alone in the cafeteria. ‘Finish your meal or no recess!’ The words burned in her brain as the tears rolled down her cheeks. She did not want to eat. She was not hungry. She stared at the fish on her pte. She hated fish. The slimy texture. The taste. The smell. That damn smell. She poked at it with her finger. Blood poured out of it. The blood covered the fish, then the pte, and overflowed onto her skirt. She stood and screamed. The blood continued to flow until she was drowning in it.