Otatso Wetlands It crashed into this lonely town

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Cursed steam, the mambo mentally wailed as she rooted through the foliage hidden under the snow in the swampland. She had only spent a few hours at the hot springs, but that evening and the day after she had been plagued with a queasy feeling, and had drawn the likely source back to the steam. She could not have explained how steam could result in even slight nausea, but her nose was also slightly congested. An illness, she had decided, and had promptly left for the wetlands, where a snap freeze had preserved some wilted plants.

Never had she come this far before, yet Jinx wasted no time in dropping her nose to the ground to rummage through the gloomy roots of trees in search of something recognizable. She found mostly decayed plants, or those ruined by frost and thaw... But there, in the shade of a particularly gnarled tree, she found it. Prairie dock. Disgusting to smell and to chew, but a potent relief for nausea.

The plant looked as nasty as she thought it might taste, and when she took it into her mouth there was a distinct rotting flavour overpowering enough to make her gag. Tears sprang to her eyes as she fought the urge to heave her stomach up, forcing herself to chew the plant, but it was no use; she spat it out and her body convulsed with a dry, hacking cough. Thankfully, she managed to keep down her lunch, but she was quick to draw her tongue over the bark of the tree and across the snow underfoot, whining softly through her nose as she rid herself of the taste. It was horrid; there was no cure for her, not until spring came and the plants returned...

She searched for another hour, to no avail. Along the way, she found a handful of rotted and fermented berries, which she gladly consumed to rid her mouth of the rancid aftertaste. It was approximately one hour after that when she rounded a tree and found a close copse of trees, so tightly packed that their trunks were heavily cast in shadow.

Within those shadows were a pair of ghastly crimson eyes.

Her breath caught in her throat as a wave of mixed terror and relief swept through her. Her intestines tightened with horror at the expression those eyes wore—fury, she suspected, or disappointment, it was hard to tell—and the queasiness of her illness intensified, but only for a moment. A soft gasp of relief beckoned the eyes forth, and from the darkness He materialized: first His wide paws, His heavyset chest, then His mangled snout, the lips hanging open and limned with vile spittle. Then His face, the small cropped ears, the hunch of His shoulders and the thick body. The Dark One was immense, the largest bear Jinx had ever seen... And every bit as majestic as in her visions.

It was the first time Jinx had seen Him in flesh, however. He had often come to her father, to Siku, and to Lecter, but Jinx had only ever seen Him in Visions. He had never walked the living realm to speak with her directly. He wore His guise easily, His body the picture of savagery and power. His gaze was crinkled in what she could now identify as disapproval, and she was cowed by this. She crumpled to her stomach before Him, her nose brushing the snow in supplication as she cried quietly his name in devotion and wonder: "Sos!"

The Dark Lord carried with Him the stink of decay, and the otherworldly smell of souls, an indescribable and sick smell that made her stomach turn. His lips peeled back over yellow teeth as He advanced on her, His shadow falling over her with a coldness she had never imagined. You, His voice roared through her mind as a vicious snarl erupted from His merciless lips, you are lost, little child.

She expected to feel His wrath in the clip of His teeth through her neck, the breadth of His blunt muzzle surely enough to sever it from her shoulders, but as she lay there in silent submission and awe, He did not move. He stared disdainfully down upon her, but at length He swept a great paw forth and placed it heavily upon her head, grinding her jaw into the ground. Listen carefully, He hissed with a wash of rancid breath over the side of her face, His treacherous teeth inches from her ear. Rise, mambo, He whispered, voice mocking, rise and do as you were born to do. No more games.

His weight shifted to push harder and she groaned, her head exploding with colourful lights as the strain popped a joint in her neck. Yoooou are your father's daughter, He proclaimed, lifting His weight from her at last and allowing her a precious moment of reprieve. I demand blood and flesh, He said fiercely, His tone wroth and stormy, and you will rise to the occasion, or you will die. The threat chilled her to the bone, the implication (which she for once interpreted perfectly) stole her breath, but she knew better than to beg for her life. From this point on it was clear Jinx would earn her life; no longer would she dally with these heathen wolves and allow them to make her question her faith. She would rise, as her father had before her.

"Who?" she asked meekly, hoping for one name to come forth. Nooo, Sos sternly answered her silent plea, His eyes crinkled with displeasure. Not my puppet. Another. You will know and you will obey, no matter the cost. His teeth unsheathed once more as He grasped the fur of her face lightly and yanked on it, tearing it out and making her eyes bright with pained tears. Do NOT forget me, Jinx Kesuk. I am DEATH. With that, the Demon Bear receded into the shadows once more with her plush fur hanging from His bloodied lips, but even as she stood and fled the forest with her spirit renewed and her reverent fear of him reawakened, the eyes remained until long after she had gone. At length, He returned to His realm of spirits, taking with Him her fur... The reminder of her unspoken oath.