"So what's your actual name?" Winter asked, his tone casual—almost lazy—as he trudged forward. He didn't glance back, only gave a slight tilt of his head toward the woman he carried over his shoulder. Her arms and legs were bound with living vines, twisted tight like they had been for the elven children. "Or do I just keep calling you Weeping Phantom?"
The nephilim woman struggled, the cords creaking faintly as she squirmed. "What are you planning to do with me?" she snapped, her voice sharp with fear. "Is this some kind of sick fetish!?"
Winter let out a low, theatrical chuckle—drawn out, ominous, and just the right amount of unhinged. "Maybe it is! Who knows!?"
Behind him, the elves snorted. Despite everything, they were clearly enjoying this. Having been the ones trussed up like game animals not long ago, watching someone else squirm in the same place brought them a strange kind of glee. It wasn't kind, but it was very human—or elven, in this case.
"So, do you actually have a plan," Dae asked, more cautiously this time after he saw what Winter could do, "or are you just going to do the same thing to her that you did to us?"
That made the bound nephilim stiffen. Her gaze darted between Winter and the elves, eyes wide. "What the hell did you do to them, you freak!?"
Winter grinned. The kids grinned too—except theirs were a little too exaggerated, like they were playing along with a very specific, very cruel inside joke.
Vee hugged herself dramatically. "I-I don't want to remember that," she said with a shiver.
"Come on, come on, it wasn't that bad," Winter said with a devilish smirk. "We all got real close after that, didn't we?"
The elves all backed away in mock horror, acting rattled.
"Pl-please don't remind us of that!" Lai pleaded, pressing both hands to his face.
"A-and if you're going to do it again, take me!" Jae cried out, shielding his younger siblings with outstretched arms. "Leave them alone!"
But Dae stepped forward, solemn. "No. I'm the eldest. I'll bear it. Please, I'll be your only victim this time."
The nephilim's skin drained of all color. "I'll answer your questions!" she shouted. "Whatever you want—just don't do to me what you did to them!"
Winter halted. The others did too. Slowly, he set her down, crouching in front of her until their faces were only inches apart. His tone dropped into a near-whisper, low and dangerous.
"Are you sure you don't want to experience it? Just once?"
She shook her head rapidly, eyes wild. "No. No. Absolutely not."
Winter grinned like a satisfied cat and stood back up. "Alright then."
He crossed his arms, towering over her. "Where's the portal you and that imp crawled out of?"
She hesitated—only for a moment—then gulped. "It's... well hidden. You'd never find it on your own." She scrambled to add, "But I can take you there! Just—please—don't do whatever you did to them."
Winter rubbed his chin in mock contemplation. "And how do I know you're not leading me into a trap?"
"I'm not!" she said quickly. Then added with a shaky breath, "And even if I was... would it matter?"
He considered that.
Then shrugged. "Good point!"
With a sharp motion, he hoisted her back up again, adjusting her grip until she dangled in front of him like a lantern. He pointed her ahead like a tool.
"Alright, my personal portal detector. Lead the way!"
Weeping Phantom had never known humiliation like this. Dangling from Winter's grip, arms bound, treated like some grotesque compass—every step deeper into this forest felt like a crawl through shattered dignity. But she forced herself to endure it. Because whatever shred of pride she had left meant nothing compared to what this man might do to her if she resisted.
"That way," she muttered, jerking her head to the left. "It's in that direction."
Dae tilted his head. "That's the same direction we were tracking the monster," he said thoughtfully, shooting a quick glance at his siblings.
Winter paused, then flipped the nephilim around to face him again. He raised an eyebrow. "You wouldn't happen to know a snake with three eyes, would you?"
She blinked. Hesitated. "I do," she admitted, voice guarded. "It's the monster that's been helping us."
Every elf behind Winter stiffened, expressions darkening. The air shifted.
"Helping you?" Vee asked coldly, narrowing her eyes.
Weeping Phantom glanced at her, then exhaled, the fight in her tone softening into reluctant honesty. "It's been gathering souls for us since we arrived here. We... empowered it with demonic energy to make it more efficient."
A ripple of quiet shock passed through the elf children. Dae's jaw clenched. Jae looked horrified. Lai, was stunned.
Winter, however, only gave a low hum, rubbing his chin with a thumb. "That explains it, then," he murmured. "All those victims reduced to ash. It's not just taking souls—it's stripping everything. Body, spirit, essence. The whole damn package. Leaving behind only ash."
His eyes flicked back to her, cold and piercing.
"Let me guess," he said. "You're using the souls it gathers to feed the portal. Keep it open. Or open it wider."
Weeping Phantom hesitated, then gave a reluctant nod.
Without a word, Winter spun her back around to face the path again. "Great. Back to being a compass. Lead on."
Then he turned to the elven kids. His tone dropped, no room for argument.
"And you—all of you—stay close. No wandering. No heroics. Got it?"
They fell in behind him without question.
Winter's eyes locked on the path ahead—the direction the portal supposedly was.
"This is going to get bloody."