I walk a lonley road....

Aku-Aku chuckled. "Why, of course I expect you to eat it," he said. "It is for you, that is what it is. I don't really have a name for it yet, because I don't like to name things... Perhaps I will call it Raven's... Oh, now what would you call that? Perhaps a potion? No, no, it doesn't really do any restoring of the sort... Medicine? Nah, that involves a healing of sorts... Food? No, slurp is more like it... Oh, vulture necks..." He turned away and then started making lines in the ground with his tiny paws.

Angie couldn't help but raise a brow, a paw still covering her nose. "I don't think you really have a choice," she whispered above a cough. "And I don't think you'll get a straightforward answer outta this guy... Try it, I guess? It could just smell bad, but taste delicious... Y'know, like elk liver." Angie wagged her tail, hoping that Raven would eat the stuff, even though neither of them knew what it was... But Angie couldn't help but put some amount of faith in the strange little fox. She looked out at the desert, now a dark, cold landscape. Had it only been hours ago that they had traveled through the same place, but with blinding heat? And hopefully, there was nobody on their tails...

Angie hid her gaze as Raven forced herself to eat the muck. She was happy that she didn't have to eat any, for the very thought of it made her stomach churn. She glanced over to the fox, who now appeared to be doing a little dance. As Raven ate the... stuff, Angie sidled up to him. He had made very strange markings on the ground that resembled bird footprints in the sand. She was careful not to step on these markings, and wondered how he was able to see what he was doing. The way he hopped around, for such an old fox, suggested that it was a ritual he had done many times. Angie cleared her throat. "So, uh... What is Raven eating? I'm just wondering... It's not poison, is it?"

She had put her blind faith in him... He was supposed to be a doctor, afterall. And neither she nor Raven had any clue about the mixing of herbs. Aku-Aku did not interrupt his dance. "A simple medicine, Angela. One that will heal her broken heart," he replied. Angie's brow shot up, wondering how in the world this fox not only knew her full name, but what exactly Raven had come for as well. She smiled nervously, tail wagging, even though he couldn't see it. "Are you, like... a psychic or something?"

"I'm a doctor, my dear. You know that."

"But... How did you know...?"

"I don't need the power of sight to tell me the things that you already know."

"Um... Okay then," Angie backed up, walking over back to Raven. Her own stomach still churned at the thought, seeing the tortoiseshell empty, but it very well could be if Raven couldn't keep it down. But now, the smell was gone, so she wouldn't have to bite her lip to keep her own bile down. "So... How is it? Is it working?"

Aku-Aku padded towards her. "That will happen at first, yes," he said. "It is a special medicine meant to cleanse all of the bad things inside you. If you feel the urge to retch, do so on the markings I've made over there. You will find that afterwards, you will feel much better than when you first came here." He motioned a paw to the bird-like markings he had made on the ground. He then moved out of her way, as if knowing that she was going to puke her brains out any minute, now sitting at Angie's side.

"How did you know what she was sick with?" Angie asked.

Aku-Aku chuckled. "Do you know how many come here wishing to be healed of a broken heart? Sometimes I think I should be a medicinal therapist instead of a witch doctor. Now, I sense that she's here for more than that... What about you?" He looked up at her with big, silvery eyes. Though Angie knew that he couldn't see out of them, it sent a chill through her soul. She dropped her gaze to her paws, a heavy feeling swelling in her gut. Perhaps she should have taken the medicine along with Raven...

"I..." Angie hesitated... "I'd rather not say."

Aku-Aku shrugged. "Well, know that one day, destiny will seek you out."

Angie's ears pinned back. "Yeah..." she said to herself. "And I think I'm starting to see how."

Aku-Aku tip-toed over to Raven's side as she trembled, her pile of yuck now steaming in the moonlight. He covered it with the dirt he had dug up from making the markings, eliminating the awful smell. "If I had told you it would do that, you wouldn't have eaten it," he said with a wise smirk, silver eyes glinting. "But I didn't do it to trick you, oh no, no, no. You see, although I don't have a name for the medicine yet, it's both a physical and mental cleanser. You'll feel better in a few minutes, probably better than you've been in the past few days or so."

Angie followed, standing beside Raven as a guardian would. "How do you know that?" she asked, sensing that Raven was in no way pleased with how she had been tricked. "You don't seem to know half of what you do. How can she - or me - trust you?"

"Half the wisdom comes from not knowing," Aku-Aku replied. "And the other half is certainty from trials past. You two have made a long journey, and I sense that it is for more than a broken heart. There is a follower in your midst, a threat, I suspect, from the way you run from him. But if you are looking for a way to vanish into the world or erase your scent from the earth, I am no mystic, I am no magician. I am a witch doctor, a voodoo specialist, an herbalist of wonders... I think you get the point. So, what brings you two here, if not for a way to become invisible?"

Angie's gaze turned to Raven. She nudged her with her nose again, this time in comfort, and in hope that the bad feeling from the medicine was wearing off. Angie had brought them here, but it was ultimately Raven that was seeking his help. Angie knew that she didn't like the fox, but in order to keep her safe from Tyrone, perhaps it was the only way.

Aku-Aku's expression softened at Raven's words. His large ears folded back and he shook his head. "I am sorry," he said. "I cannot heal a broken heart. I could make you a love potion, but all it does is induce heat... That kind of strength comes from within, the kind that soft paws and magic herbs cannot heal. Many kind words, like ones that Angelica has said to you, help you gain this strength, but you must be the one to rise from the ashes. Understand?"

He laid down across from her, looking into her blue eyes, though he could not see them. "There is, however, something I may be able to do for your mate... Yes, I can sense that he is your mate. You still love him very much, broken that love may be. Tell me of his symptoms, if you do not mind. Sometimes, even the sanest wolf can go mad in this desert..."

Aku-Aku's furry brows raised at Raven's description. He rubbed his chin with the backside of his paw, thinking hard. "Peculiar... Very peculiar indeed... Tell me, Raven, did his eyes ever change color? How about his voice? I know it's painful, but if you could tell me every detail... I might be able to figure out a way to save him," the old fox said. His milky gaze turned up to Angie. "Did you ever see this bru? Tyrone?"

Angie shook her head. "No. I've been traveling with Raven since I found her after he... had abandoned her," she replied, ears folding back. It wasn't the best choice of words, but they were true; Raven now had the strength to say it, and that was a good sign. She still stood at the femme's side, for what reason she wasn't sure, but somehow, she felt connected to her. It was a strange connection, unlike any she had had in the past, like she was a family member instead of a complete stranger. She continued to watch silently as Aku-Aku implored Raven for information.

Aku-Aku turned away, deep in thought. He crossed to the edge of the mountain, where down below was a sheer drop, but he stood towards the moon and against the wind, the cool night wind brushing through his sandy coat. He inhaled the scent of a sleeping earth, as if able to draw wisdom from the whispering voices of the wind, an ancient knowledge lost long ago. His eyes of the moon then turned down to the rolling sand dunes below, as if seeing something they could not. "Oh my..." he said to no one in particular, closing his eyes and dropping his head. "Oh dear Fenrir and the lords above him..."

"Well?" Angie said, his voice out of earshot. His silence had unnerved her; they were here for answers, and she was growing tired of his cryptic messages. "Can you help us or not?" She had seen him looking out to the desert, even though he couldn't see; she wondered if maybe he could see, but not in the same way they did... It didn't make much sense, but Angie could tell that he had been watching something out there. She shivered in the cool wind as it ruffled through her tri-colored coat. She was used to the desert, but it felt as though something wicked had been carried on that wind. She didn't like it and swallowed a whine in her throat. "Because I don't mean to be rude, but if you can't help us, I hope you understand that we have to keep moving."

Aku-Aku turned around, head hung low. His features, once chipper, now hung with utter seriousness. "Raven, your mate... Something is wrong with him. Very wrong... I have listened to the winds, and they have told me your tale once more. I have listened to the sands, and they have said of all the places wolven kind has traveled. And I have listened to the storms, not yet here, but they are on their way. We will have one chance to save Tyrone from the evil that swallows his soul. But in order to do that, he needs to be with us, here. He needs to be standing before me, alive, so that I may perform the Ritual of Storming Souls."

Angie perked a brow. "Uh... Wait a minute. I thought you were going to help us get away, but you want us to lead him to you? I hope you know how crazy that sounds," she grunted. "And what does this 'Ritual of Storming Souls' do? What's wrong with him?"

"You should know what's wrong with him," Aku-Aku replied, turning his gaze upon her. A chill quivered down Angie's spine. He smiled, but the gravity of the situation remained on his face. "It is a part of your blood, too."

Angie's ears flattened in anger. "What are you talking about, you old man?" she snapped, defensive, but she knew that attacking the decrepit fox would do her no good. "I'm not a rapist or a killer. I'm not evil. How dare you try and compare me to - "

"To your father?" Aku-Aku interrupted. "Yes, you are of the same blood. You are his kin. And you should know, that as creatures of the desert, of the spirits that reside here as well. This is the desert of lost souls, and these souls are both good and evil, varying in power and strength. Sometimes, a lost soul will latch onto a living one; in this case, an evil, lost soul latched onto Tyrone when he was but a pup, and has used him as a host to feed off of."

"So what!" Angie snarled, trembling, but standing her ground. "I don't understand why it's such a big deal that I'm... that I'm a part of him. That evil isn't a part of me."

"But it could be! You, as a desert wolf, are far more susceptible to these lost souls than Raven or I. You and your kin have been the residents of these lone lands for centuries; you are the only things familiar to the lost souls beside the sands of time. A lost soul will recognize you before any other creature in existence. Do you understand what I am saying?"

Angie bit her tongue, her spitfire attitude swelling, but she did not ignore what the little fox was saying. "I do, and I don't believe any of it," she muttered, looking away from him and Raven. Who knew what Raven would think now? Her paws itched; she had the urge to run away again, as she had always been on the run. Perhaps it was because of some lost soul trying to latch onto her, feed off of her energy and make her evil, twisted, insane. She didn't know, but she knew that soon, she would have to run...

She could feel Raven's eyes upon her. Angie turned her back on her, her head down, ears flat against her skull. She had done nothing but help the fem, and her blood had betrayed her. She was ashamed - ashamed of her ignorance, ashamed that such a bad thing could be in her blood, ashamed that she had fooled Raven without knowing it. And with all that Raven had been through, with and without her, Angie knew that it was unlikely to be forgiven...

Behind her, Aku-Aku nodded to Raven's words. "If that chance does not work... I have methods to put him out of his misery. Understand that this attached spirit is eating his own... It is better that he be killed if things do not work than to let him live," Aku-Aku replied. He placed his small paw on Raven's larger one. "And I may be small, old, and blind, young fae, but trust me when I say that I have the ability to free Tyrone from this evil that consumes him. I, personally, have faith that your loved one will return to you... I sense that the love for him you have is strong, though broken. Hold onto that love you have, and he will come back to your howl."

Angie held her breath, listening to the witch doctor speak. She wanted to stay. Her heart screamed at her to stay, to help Raven, to keep doing what they had been doing, because... there was nothing left for her. She had fled from the wars of her pack, fled from battle and had let her brother die, and now there was nothing but the very moment she was locked her. She couldn't look at the stars and think of the future, as most wolves did; instead, she looked to the earth, for she knew that one day, she would be lying down in the desert sand beneath a burning sun and accepting her fate...

But for some reason, her paws turned around, walking towards the two even though she had walked away. She didn't look at Raven or Aku-Aku and kept staring at the ground. "I'll go," she said, her voice hard. "I'll go get Tyrone."

Aku-Aku's auds moved forward, listening to what the two had to say. He nodded. "Then it shall be done. I will remain here and prepare for his arrival. You have three days and two nights to fetch him. When you have done so, meet me at the bottom of this mountain, near the trail that you came up. I will be there with the necessary items and practices. You may spend the night here and begin your journey in the morning, if you'd like. There is a cache of small rodents on the far ledge over there if you are hungry," he said, and turned into his den, rummaging through the potent herbs once more. Angie watched him, knowing that they now had a task to set out for, however dangerous it was. Aku-Aku looked like he was already at work, and it only made sense that once they were ready, they would get to it as well.

Angie looked over to Raven. There was distrust in the fem's eyes, and Angie's stomach felt heavy with remorse. "You don't have to come with if you don't want to. I know how much he scares you, and how much I will probably scare you if something goes wrong," she said in a soft voice, ears flattened against her skull. "He may be my father, but I've never met him. He probably doesn't even know who I am. The only father I had growing up was a bastard named Darrel, but I left that life behind after my brother died in battle. But I'm not afraid of Tyrone, or this thing that's infected him." She now looked at Raven with hard, burning yellow eyes. "And if worst comes to worst, I'll kill him if he tries anything, to you, me, or the witch doctor. Evil like that has no place in this desert or this world."

Angie stared at Raven. It was strange... She was forgiving her... She looked down at her paws, auds still pinned back in shame, tears welling in her amber eyes... She had never been forgiven before. She had always been punished, reprimanded, disciplined, and even ignored. But never forgiven, especially by one that had every reason to be cross with her. And Raven said she knew Darrel... and that was only more of a reason for her to hate her, but she didn't. "Thank you," she said in a quiet voice, tassel limp. She nodded and followed her to the cache and pulled up a few pieces of the jerky, eating until she knew she would be tied over until the next morning. The meat was salty and she drank from the water hole as well, and then laid down a few feet from the edge. She curled into a ball, her plume resting on her nose, closing her eyes. There were only a couple of hours until sunrise. Not long to rest at all...

Angie raised her head at Raven's words. She was still very tired, and the night had been sleepless and unpleasant. But she stood and stretched, looking over her shoulder at the dark fae beside her. She had heard her words before she had drifted off to sleep. She shook off any fatigue from the days before and turned her gaze east, towards the rising sun. "Yes, we should. Let's cover as much ground as we can," she said, and headed down the trail that curved along the side of the mountain.

At the bottom, the sand was cool from the night before, but Angie could already feel the heat of the desert sun on her tri-colored pelt. She turned to her companion. "Is there any place in particular that you and Tyrone used to go? Other than the valley we had met in? Like... Where did you first meet? I'm thinking that he might head to places that you're familiar with..." she asked, trailing off. To think that they were going after a monster... and that monster was somehow her father. By blood, anyways. When she really considered it, a father was nonexistent in her life, even her childhood; Darrel was everything but a father, she hadn't cared what the rest of the pack had thought. It was just one more reason why she had left. "What do you think of that?"

Angie nodded, tailing after the dark wolfess. Aku-Aku's meat cache had sated her for only a short time, and now her stomach rumbled for breakfast. Her cream-colored paws raced over the desert sand, heating up with every minute the sun rose in the sky, and instincts told her that the summer day would be merciless upon them. Hopefully, the oasis wasn't too far; the closer they were to the mountain, the less they would have to travel. The sound of distant howls rung in the morning air - howls that were neither of the Blood Pack she had grown up in, or the Graves Pack. No, these were new clans, rising from the dunes and looking for land to claim. Angie stretched her legs and eased into a faster lope. The last thing they needed was to be captured by one of these clans...

Food in the desert was never an easy thing to find. She raised her nose, inhaling, searching for any kind of scent through the sand and the sky. If they hadn't been so tired the day before, it would have been better to hunt at night, when most animals were out. Now, they were all crawling back into their dens to escape the heat or fleeing to the trees and disappearing into the woods. Perhaps there would be something waiting for them at the oasis that Raven mentioned...

Angie paused and watched as Raven darted for the scarce underbrush. The fem had caught a lizard and dropped it at her feet, ordering her to eat it. Angie raised a brow, but decided not to protest. Something had come over Raven that she hadn't seen before, and was curious as to what would happen. Raven walked with a sort of... confidence, now. It was then that Angie knew that she was seeking revenge, if things with the witch doctor didn't work out as they planned...

Angie swallowed the rubbery creature in just a few bites, the tiny bones snapping in her powerful jaws, and auds perked when Raven said they were close. She made a few bounds to catch up with her, the breeze blowing in their favor and smelling of water. They hadn't been traveling for long, but the lizard had been salty and Angie now found herself thirsting. They climbed over a mounted sand dune and then below them was a bright green oasis, an emerald gem in a sea of gold. They were downwind - Angie inhaled, hoping to catch the musty scent of a male, but none came to her nares. Regardless, she began the descent, yellow eyes wary for anything lurking in the bushes, be it Tyrone or a prowling leopard, or perhaps even their next meal...

Angie watched Raven for any sign of alarm, but none came. They traipsed through the brush and came upon a pool of water headed by a small, bubbling waterfall. Tiny fish scattered as Angie plunged her paws into the silty depths, cooling the hotness of the desert sand they had traveled on. She turned to her companion. "Now what?" she asked. Raven knew more of Tyrone than she did. Angie could also smell the pigs, their sweet scent rising above the dusty earth. She flicked her tail, impatient since they had been moving so much and everything that had happened in the past few days, but Raven was the one leading them this time.