Zelrian's eyes remained locked on Oz's silhouette, wider than usual until he finally appeared from behind the copious amount of dust. For a moment, he was frozen in place. His combat stance loosened for a split second, and his once invisible mouth glowed through his mask as a faint smirk. "You're no normal human!" He shouted, lowering his fists and stepping towards Oswald. Zelriane's right hand began to glow with a powerful green, smokey aura. "Perhaps I should quell your hidden flame... But then, what a waste it would be." He stopped several feet outside the barn's entrance and rose his empowered hand towards Oswald. "What would Rajaka do?.. Feh, why am I even asking.."

Oz clenched his teeth and grunted as he scooped up a shattered piece of door and hurled it at the green glow. He followed the piece out rushing forward. He shoulder-charged at Zel, seeking to tackle him if it were possible.

Zelrian followed the shard of debris with his hand and caught it by his side. It dropped to the ground undamaged, but as Oz approached in a tackling motion, Zelriane turned and attempted to use his own weight against him. He made a grave error in judging Oz's strength however, amd was torn from his feet, and launched backwards, but the green energy from Zelriane's hand had seeped into his body in the split moment of contact, and just like that, the end was in sight.

Zelriane spun around backwards, rolling onto his feet once again, but he took no stance. "Agony of the void," Zelriane started, cracking his neck uncomfortably, "My magic will share a reality bending pain with you." As he said, the magic spread quickly through Oz's arm, and prompted a severe sensation of pain, beyond anything he'd ever felt in his life. It did no damage, and it was not dangerous, but Zelriane's magic was meant for nothing more than incapacitation and torture. Zelriane rubbed his glowing hand and the magical aura faded. "Pain that I have grown used to, ever present within my body. Can you even stand? Haha.."

There was a moment of joy when Oz finally hit Zel, slamming into him. It was satisfying to knock the prideful jerk off his feet. That moment was ephemeral. Zel pretty much just spun out of the charge and stood there as if nothing ever hit him.

"Reality bending pain? That glowy crap on your hand?" In spite of the lines he started that pain hit on cue. It was like someone had stuck a giant needle into him and just kept pumping magma through his arm. A kind of pain sufficient to down massive and savage beasts. Oz was just a man. Trembling, he fell to a knee and grunted in pain. A surprised breath escaped before he forced his mouth shut and held his arm tightly with the other. It was as if he was trying desperately to tourniquet it in vain. He slammed the cursed arm against the ground and shouted his frustration in a great cry. The pain washed over him like the tide over a beach, covering everything. Oz fell on knees and hands, clenching his teeth. Involuntary tears came from his eyes as he looked up at Zelrian. The drive and life in those eyes summed up a lot of what he couldn't say.

Oz forced himself up, one excruciating movement at a time. He mumbled something incoherent, barely able to form audible communication. One leg up, then the other. He fumbled over his feet, movements weak and unfocused. Exquisite pain wracked him that he had never experienced before. Oz shambled one step at a time closer to Zel. His teeth chattered until he was finally able to form the words. "I can..."

Pathetically he tried to flail at Zelrian with a strike that fell short. Oz couldn't even see straight, everything hurt. If this other man had such tolerance he must have had a miserable childhood. Frustration, rage and pain overwhelmed Oz so he vented with a furious scream. The bluish aura around him brightened for just a moment before exploding outward, slamming against everything around him. Debris, rock, dirt, wood, glass. It was all blasted away in small shock wave that centered on Oz. He stared bewildered at Zel for a moment as the light in his eyes finally turned off. Slumping to his knees, he rocked to his side on the ground.

Zelriane stepped away as Oz swung hopelessly and exhaled a single breath of air. "Unique. A word that will haunt you in the coming years, I'm sure," Zelriane taunted, watching as Oz struggled to manage his senses. "Nobody had to die. But now, I will kill every last-" He was cut short by the proceeding shout. Zelriane's eyes narrowed briefly before Oz's aura exploded forth with an excessive amount of force. Zelriane braced himself hurriedly, and was pushed back several yards. His feet dragged across the ground and several rocks flew past his naked lower legs, cutting them up slightly, but he held firm. His loose green hair flew back, and stood on point like it was held in place by magic, but Zelriane escaped mostly unharmed, albeit fiercely surprised, even more so when he'd noticed that the backs of his feet were bloodied by the ground he'd dug into to remain standing. "Blue Ki..." He lowered his arms and approached Oz as he tumbled to the ground. Zelriane nudged his cheek with his foot and huffed in disappointment. "I will not kill you here, but all who you care for will most certainly suffer if they resist my hand."

Zelriane looked down at Oswald from his side and poked his cheek again while running one hand through his now slicked-back green hair. "Think on your transgressions while you sleep, and hope that your friends hand over what I desire without complication." With that, he struck Oswald hard across the face with his foot, and in an instant, the brave man's consciousness was torn from him.

---

Oswald came to in the middle of the night, on a bed of hay, surrounded by his fellow workers, half of whom looked dreary, and overcome by a feeling of dread or woe. "Awake at last, Oz?" One of the men asked from his side, already offering him a freshly made slice of blueberry pie.

Oz awoke. That meant he wasn't dead. With certainty he felt like he should be after that ordeal. The last thing he remembered was the feeling, like he were standing in a smelting furnace at full blaze.

Dazed and half asleep, Oz glanced at the rest of the workers in the room. He looked at the piece of pie silently, stunned. Finally he snagged it from his companion and smiled weakly. "Thanks." As soon as he took a bite his stomach reminded him of how drained he was. He ached but it was deeper than that. Spiritually and emotionally he felt defeated. Sunken. Empty.

"What happened?" He asked. "Did Zel find you? Did he get the book? Did he kill anyone?" Oz asked the questions almost too fast to be answered. Last of all was the one he cared most to know. "How are Josh and Angelica?"

Feeling his appetite return, Oz consumed the pie and listened.

There were only 5 men in the barn with him, grouped together and blocking out the wide open entrance, and the door into the main building that Oswald had destroyed earlier. "He found us, but he wasn't too... Angry. I mean, I don't remember him being very angry before, either, but-" he paused and stroked his hair nervously. "Still, Pops wasn't really uh.. Complying. His daughter wasn't too eager to hand over her book either. We told them to just give him the damn book, and that we'd travel across the countryside lookin' for another copy, but Angelica damn near shouted my ear off. Before he came after us, she fled on her own without a word, and left Joshua to explain, but he wouldn't. He just kept sayin' 'don't let 'em get the dang book'. That green feller conjured up some weird green smoke and kept touchin' pops all over. God the screamin'," He turned away for a moment, and then back to oz, fluttering his eyelids, "Shit.. It was just too much to watch.. The old man's heart just couldn't take it, an' he.."

"He?" Ozzie's heart sank. After an awkward silence he swore. "Damn that bastard!" He stood straight up, only to falter and lean against the wood planking on the wall. "I have to go after Angelica. Zel. Zel was his name." He explained. "He wanted that book desperately and his only reason was because his master told him to!" He shouted.

The barn was depressing. Co-workers were all sad and tired. Oz was exhausted, bruised and beaten. Now was not the time to rest. He limped over toward the entrance and leaned against a beam. "I'm going after her. Does anyone know where she went?"

The group collectively stared at Oswald in disbelief. "Yer in no shape to be going anywhere... Or at least, I thought you weren't. We're surprised you can move!" One man urged, placing a hand on Oz's shoulder and motioning back towards the hay. "Besides, aint anyone got an idea where little Angie headed off too."

"What was that blue light Oz!?" A barotone voice wheezed from a hay bail near the entrance. It was big bobby, and he wasn't looking too good either. Guy damn near looked catatonic. If he hadn't spoken, you'd think he couldn't move his limbs. Truth was, it hurt him to breath, let alone walk around. "I aint got hit by no magic, and that psycho only touched the old man with some'o'that green stuff."

"Bobby shut up!" The man near Oz shouted, patting Oz's shoulder. "Let's not hear anymore of this crazy travel stuff... You should be happy and uh... Feel thoroughly damn blessed that you can still walk."

"He aint even broken," Bobby interjected, "You said it yer'self. My ribs are like rotten corn stalks, and he aint even got a fracture."

"I aint sure about any of that!!"

Oz looked back at the man who touched his shoulder and frowned. He was right. Even if he could miraculously catch up to Angelica, wherever she went, there was no guarantee he could do anything more than what he did hours before. Oz let out a heavy sigh. "You're right. You're definitely right."

Oz went back down to where he was laying and instead sat against the wall. Bobby looked pretty bad. How Oz got out of that whole conflict without serious injury was incredible. The men here deserved an explanation. That explanation was something Oz himself could not grasp. So he tried. "Bobby. Everyone. You all deserve to know what that light was." Oz started, looking down at his open palms. "I was so caught up in the fight I didn't know what it was either. I still don't. The only thing I can say is that it was from me." He kept staring at his palms, almost hoping that light would manifest itself again or some miracle would reveal how to control it to him.

Nothing happened. Oz just kept staring at his hands for a long while, pondering. Zel didn't kill him because he showed that power, whatever it was. That madman called it ki. The only thing Oz had ever heard on the subject was by a stranger he happened to share a drink with at the tavern. "I guess we really have nothing to do but rest and go after it again in the morning." Oz muttered. He layed down on the hay, staring at the planks in the ceiling.

Bobby narrowed his eyes and began coughing. One of the other men made his way to Bobby's side to calm him, but the massive man pushed him away. "There aint no 'we' Oz, if you seriously think going after Angelica with people like that psycho out there, I'm afraid you're goin' in alone. Rest of the town's pretty shaken up over Joshua, and we aint got anyone left to lead us. Me an' the boys were kinda hoping, not that Angie's gone, that uh.. You would take up Joshua's responsibilities," He admitted. Truth be told, nobody was right for Joshua's 'job' at all. The guy managed the entire town in his name, and planned to hand over duties to Angelica when the time came. He hadn't even shared most of the village secrets with anyone, and without Angelica, nobody would know what the origins of this town really held.

A series of agreeing murmurs echoed throughout the room. Nobody had any plans to help Oz out if he decided to go after Angelica. Nobody even bothered to comment on Oz's abilities. Maybe they just didn't believe him? "Sorry, Oz."

One after another, the men left the barn, leaving only Bobby, Oz, and somebody to watch them behind in the dark hollow overhang.

"Yer all cowards!" Bobby wheezed, nearly coughing up a lung. The man at his side offered him some water, but he refused. He looked over at Oswald, half expecting him to dart after his fellow farmhands. But they were right about something, tonight wasn't the time to be doing anything. The man at Bobby's side made his way through the doorway at the side of the barn and into the house a few second afterwards.

"I'm gunna catch some Z's, fellas. Hollar if ya need anything," He whispered, closing what remained of the door, albeit nothing more than a small strip of splintered wood.

"They don't believe ya, Ozzy," Bobby said, scratching at where Zelriane had punched him. "I do, and Ah think the old man would've too."

Oz closed his eyes. "Bobby. Everyone is going to have to get through this without me. However selfish this sounds I'm beyond the point of going back. Angelica needs SOMEONE to go after her. I don't care if I have no idea where she's at, I'll start looking in the next town over if I have to. As soon as I've recovered I'm leaving. I've made up my mind." It was still. The crickets were chirping loudly in the absence of talk.

Affirming his conviction he spoke up again. "I failed Josh. I couldn't stop Zelrian. I don't want to fail Angelica too. I don't. Her life is worth more than tradition and history."

Oz relaxed on the hay, slowly slipping back to sleep.

Bobby didn't say anything, only heaving a couple times out of reflex. Moonlight barely lit up the barn's interior, but Bobby could see the determination in Oz's disheveled face, . That was always the scariest thing to see. Bobby knew it well, and so did Joshua. That was the face of a man who wouldn't turn away from his own death. Bobby shuddered at the thought of it all. What if there were more people like that green guy out there? What if some of them were even stronger? What would happen to Oswald? Bobby fidgeted in place and sunk into the hay like a stone. He'd had enough thinking for one day.

Nothing was going to topple Oz, anyways. In his mind, if 'Big Bobby' couldn't do it, who the hell could?

---

Streams of sun hit Bobby's face, waking him in an instant. The pain in his chest was worse, but his breathing seemed to improve slightly. He turned his head to the side and smiled. "Good morn-" He paused, shocked that Oswald was already gone. He shouldn't have been. That stubborn asshole wasn't a liar. For some reason Bobby felt relief wash over him, though. Finally, one of Joshua's old farmhands was going to leave this one horse village and see the world. Course that was probably the last thing on Ozzy's mind. Angelica came first, after all.

The southern edge of the village was where all of the townsfolk lived, all in their individual little houses, built from the ground up using wood and dirt. The log-mesh walls of Oswald's own home, smaller than most others, were clearly visible from atop the hill he stood on, but nobody would see him past the tall grass that divided the hillside from his home. It was just early enough to see farmhands waking to head over towards Joshua's farm. The blacksmith's chimney bellowed smoke and his windows lit up fiercely. All the while, Oswald could only watch as he left the only thing he knew behind him, possibly never to see his friends again.

The road beyond was marked, thankfully, by the men who went into the forest and cut trees down for the village. But Ozzy knew this path only went on as far as they'd gone to forage and gather supplies. It could've gone on longer, but it wouldn't be marked. Than again, it'd been months since he'd been into the woods, and things can change from day to day. Still, without guidance, aside from 'south', how far could he even get? Where did Angelica go? And would Zelriane still be close by? The world was a frightful place, and Oz was about to step into unknown territory that would certainly bring dangers beyond his understanding.

Oz was up with the first rays of sunshine reaching over the horizon. The rest he received was enough to carry him through this day. Time was slipping by and Oz could not afford to let any more go to waste. He had taken the opportunity to take a few things with him, all of which were stuffed into a bag he carried over his shoulder. Spare clothes, some rations for travel, a bedroll; the essentials he needed for travel.

Joshua would be remembered but there would have to be a dedicated time for him later. If ill befell Angelica, Joshua's loss would be for nothing. Oz paused at the edge of town to utter a quiet promise for his benefactor. "Josh. I did all I could last night." He was honest with himself but that didn't stop him from feeling down over the matter, who wouldn't? "I failed and I can't promise I won't fail again." Oz gripped he fist tightly and looked up at the clear, red sky. "Yet I can promise that I will find Angelica and if I can't bring her to safety... If I can't save her.." He paused, looking down at his feet. After a moment of resolve he looked back to the burning sky and spoke with conviction. "Then I will spend my life making it right!" Oz turned away from town and started marching.

Through the forest to the south was his best bet. He could go until the road varied and hopefully not get lost after that. Growing up around farming, logging and hard labor taught Oz the ins and outs of what was needed to survive out here. He had not, however, been down here for quite some time. The forest had a tendency to change when you left it alone. That was good for hunting, bad for most everything else. The sun had ascended but the density of the trees provided much shade. It felt like a relaxing walk. Nevertheless, Oz thought about what Angelica must be going through.

The path was no more treacherous than it had ever been. Wooden fences blocked off dips in the landscape, and signs marks dangerous expanses of swampland, or abandoned sections of the wood that had become overridden by beastly creatures. Oswald's path was simple, forward, and without pause. He made his way forward, up until the point where the trees grew so closely to one another, that their roots were entangles and their leaves suffered from a lack of nourishment. If they were not so tightly packed, sun would've shone through relentlessly.

Unbeknownst to him, somebody took advantage of this covering to sneak up on Oswald. He was walking for several minutes, unable to skew off the tightly surrounded pathway. But every time there was suspicion, the stalker dove into the trees like a termite. It wasn't a quiet sound, and Oswald would hear the scampering of something particularly large from behind. Somebody was following him.

The path eventually became far too over-grown to follow, but the trees were still thick. There was a small shard of wood embedded in the ground, surrounded by splinters that lay scattered across the grass. It read '-nger' just barely legible, and faded to a dull blue.

"Oswald!" A familiar voice shouted from behind, "It really is you!"

It was a shorter man, who looked to be in his mid-late 40's. Oz might have recognized him at Fredrick, or much rather, Freddie, the head woodsman. Well, the previous head woodsman, who lead many expeditions into the forest before the paths were even built. He looked much older, and wore the same work uniform as every other wood-cutter, albeit worn and torn, covered in stains, and a few sizes too large. Freddy smiles and opened his arms, approaching slowly. It was a strange meeting.

Especially since Freddie had been announced dead for over 15 years.

"Fred? It's really Freddy?" Oz moved slowly toward him, narrowing his eyes. There was no mistaking it, it was certainly the man. Fred looked a bit for the worse than he remembered but it had been so long that Oswald was quite a bit smaller back then. He smiled and returned a warm hug, holding him tight.

"Fred, we all thought you were gone. Where have you been all this time?" He questioned.

"Out in the forest, ya idgit! Where d'ya think I could've gone?" Freddie paused and let go of Oz with a guilty chuckle, "Ehehe, right. Dead, haha! Safe to say I'm fine now, though! Been fine for quite a while! Better question is, what brings you so far into the forest?"

"i'm going out to find Angelica. Not sure if you remember her. She was driven away last night by a single man. He hurt a good chunk of the men from town too. Angelica needs us before this man catches up." Oz explained.

Freddy was caught in strange circumstances for sure but something about him bled honesty. "Hey Fred. You've been out here a long time yeah? Can you get me through the forest quickly? I'm not sure how much time I have left to reach Angelica before her less friendly pursuer catches up."