With age came more freedom though maybe Cerberus had always really had freedom. He just was never adventurous to sneak out at night or while he was with Siren. He would have much rather helped her in the green house than walk aimlessly around the island. He guessed having siblings made time go by faster and have a little more fun, but he never really looked overly happy or anything. It was just who he was.

With Moccasin nearby giving him some space just to let him figure things out on his own, Cerberus moved to the beaches but stayed in the tree line in the more grassy areas rather than the sand. He took a seat just admiring the sound of the ocean waves, they were relaxing among the dark moon on the horizon. Whispers started to creep up into his ears, but it was easy for him to almost ignore them. He was used to the voices, they didn't bother him too much.

"Cerberus Klein"

Before the firefly man had come to see him Albion would have considered himself nocturnal. He didn’t like the bright sunlight in his pale eyes or on his sensitive skin. Now that the sun never came up he should have been more comfortable all the time. However, more and more the pup was becoming afraid of the dark. He couldn’t stand to be alone in total darkness and he was inexplicably drawn to the glowing clusters of crystals and fungus even though they were to blame from the beginning for this.

Albion wiped his eyes as he began to cry the fluorescent liquid once more. The bright highlighter green tears streamed down his white fur, staining it with an otherworldly glow. His paws now too where it smeared from face to toes and all up his forearms. Mostly he ignored it, still unsure what was something he just hadn’t learned yet and what was supernatural. The lines were blurred and it was all he had ever known. Nothing was too strange.

The boy shuffled along the beach, finding his brother there. Oddly missing Scylla at his side as Albi approached the older pup. There weren't many times one was without the other. "Cerberusss.” He whispered the name which drawled from his lips as his saliva turned to the glowing blood like liquid.

"Albion Klein"

Cerberus couldn't help the jump he made at the sound of Albion's voice. Chimera had once thought the island was safe from the outside world, but he was very wrong. Though what had made them sick? If they were just locked away in their rooms, would they had been infected?

Cerberus strode closer to Albi, lifting up his paw to carefully wipe away the ooze running from his nose if he allowed him to. He didn't mind much, there was really little that got under his skin or grossed him out. Cerberus looked around, like maybe he should take Albi back to Siren, but within a few seconds this incredibly loud booming struck his head. It was an incredible surprise, the pounding, everything around him seemed to vibrate and blur. Suddenly he was crouching down into himself, shaking because of the pressure he felt all around him.

Just like Albion, Cerberus' eyes and nose started leaking neon profusely. Like whatever was happening to him in this moment had induced it. His eyes rose to look around them to make sure they weren't being ambushed by anything, and his gaze was drawn out to the oceans where he spotted the movement of wolves pulling themselves out of the wave break. It was hard to see from this far away, but the wolves looked decayed and broken, dragging themselves across the sand and out of the water. Still in the head pounding fit, he turned to Albi, struggling to pull out of the throbbing pain that he felt all over his body, "Run Albion!" He took the lead into the forests, turning back to make sure he was being followed by his brother.

"Cerberus Klein"

Albion made Cerberus jump, though that hadn’t been his original intention. He didn’t know how he looked, bleeding glowing blood as his young mind wandered. His eyes constricted and dilated as he looked up to Cerberus, the glowing liquid seeping from nose and mouth. The older boy wasn’t off put, and kindly helped to wipe away a bit of the gunk. Albion had come to refer to it as ectoplasm, because surely it was from the spirits.

Before either boy could say anything else, Cerberus was suddenly stunned. Clutching his head he crouched, as if suddenly attacked by a bug of the mind. Albion looked around, startled, as he tried to find some unseen enemy. A dark spirit or poltergeist there to harm them. There was nothing, just the darkness that threatened to swallow them both up.

Then Cerberus was glowing, bleeding just as he was. Albion’s eyes grew wider, but he remained motionless as Cerb finally looked back up at him. The other boy saw something that Albion did not, though his glass blue eyes followed his brother’s gaze he saw nothing but ocean when the other pup warned him to start running. Cerberus wouldn’t steer him wrong so the boy managed to get his paws beneath him and follow his brother running back into the forests.

"Albion Klein"

With Albion following him, Cerberus ran further inland and towards the buildings they called home, but just as Siren's greenhouse came to view, the monstrous wolves came out of the brush moaning and crawling towards him. He stopped dead in his tracks, flipping over as gravity pulled him and he lost the footing underneath him. The undead ugly creatures grew closer to him, and he thrashed around kicking dirt and sand up at them as if that would help fend them off. It seemed he had sprained something in his leg which made it harder to get up and run. Honestly he hadn't expected Albi to fight off the creatures for him with being younger than himself. He called out for one of the warriors of the pack, Chimera, Viper, even Dalila would have been helpful. But what he didn't know was that the dead, decaying wolves that were after him were just a figment of his imagination, a symptom of the plague.

"Cerberus Klein"

Albion ran light his life depended on it, much more like a sheep than the wolf he was. Ivory paws carried him over the sand and into the forest, through the trees to the point they could see the greenhouse from here. At that point Albion was really running, he was almost home free. Then Cerberus stopped right in front of him for no discernable reason. Albion collided with the other boy right as he called out for the adults and they both went scrambling.

Glowing flecks went everywhere as Albion spun, and his head was shaken and his thoughts tumbled as he struggled to his feet. Serrated teeth bared as he looked around them for the enemy that Cerberus was so terrified of. "Cerberus, what are we running from?” He stood over his brother protectively, much braver without the visions of zombies all around, but also more timid as the dark crept back in.


"Albion Klein"

Firefly Shoppe- Cerberus

The sickness deepens... You feel short of breath, but every breath you manage glows with glowing mist.

Your attention blurs and refocuses. IT feels as if you are in a dream as you find yourself alone in the mist. Fireflies gather and light the way to a table with a figure waiting behind it. On the table lay three items, with their prices beside them. "Choose w̶̢̧͉̥̻̟͈͙̽̉̆̿̈͒͋̓̇̍͌̇̎͠͝ì̵̢̝̄͐́͆̓̚ṣ̶̛͙̟͎̤̞̤͎̹̙̭̪͔̓̐̾̂͆̄͆͌̈̈́̏̚͜͝͠ȩ̴͔̱̗̜̾̉̀̓̀͆͛̊̂̍̕̚̚̚ͅl̵̢̦̲̼̠̖̜̺̮̜̺͋̈́y̴̧̨̧̪̗̥̘͇̾͑͗͜͠, and only choose o̷͕̭̊̃̌̊̏̀ņ̸̼͚͉͔̒͐̊e̵̮̯͛̔̀̑͜," the figure says, looming over the table as his eyes seem to peer into your soul. Are they... moving? "If you can afford it, that is. Beware, however, for there are many d̷̡̯͉̎̊̈́͐͠á̴̬̪̣̝̞̅̀̈́̄ṉ̸̢̠̤̹̥̙̜͋͆̚g̷̛͍̹̣̬̙͖̝̘̃̈e̷͓͕̖͓̝̤̿͐͐͜͠ŗ̵̤͚͔̟̹̳̽̒͝ş̸̛͓͔̩̥̦͛̊̈̾̐̒̓ ̴̺͔̃̇̆ahead." He does not seem like he's in the negotiating mood...


I̵̜̖͎͓͒̑̕n̸͓̗̘̫͉̗̻͐̔̿̊͆̋͝v̵̦̹̠͉̖̼̮̎̌͆ȩ̸͕̦͔̳̩̈́͜n̶͍̝̙̯̣̹̫̩͋t̶̟͈̟̲̜̙̣̋̿̓̆̅͊͝͝ŏ̶̼͊r̶̖͎̙͔̥͎͙͈̊̍͝͠y̴̧͔̭͒͆̉̕͝:

• Firefly's Favor- 1 /
  A firefly in a bottle. Might come in handy if you let him go at just the right time.
  
• Firefly's Favor- 1 /
  A firefly in a bottle. Might come in handy if you let him go at just the right time.
  
• Firefly's Favor- 1 /
  A firefly in a bottle. Might come in handy if you let him go at just the right time. Okay, he's just trolling you now, right?
  

Albion

The sickness deepens... Your health isn't the only thing diminishing. You feel poorer... 90 Gemstones poorer, to be exact.

You lose:

• Gems (x90)- Lucky there's no such thing as negative gems...
  

One minute he was thrashing around in the sand, Albion standing over him ready to defend him. But just as Cerberus' thoughts went over what he was seeing, he was pulled away into some other realm or so it seemed. Had he passed out? Through the darkness, fireflies lit his way and this was no different than his last encounter with the creature in the cloak.

The fireflies lit his way, revealing the same tiny shop and the creature with leering eyes above him. Though this time, he had different choices. Well, not so different as each and every item was exactly the same save for each firefly locked tightly in the bottle in different location. Cerberus squinted up at the entity, but maybe this was some kind of sign that the jar bound firefly was of importance. He placed a mushroom up on the table as payment before grabbing the one in the middle.

"Cerberus Klein"

Firefly Shoppe- Cerberus

You gain:

• Firefly's Favor- A firefly in a bottle. Might come in handy if you let him go at just the right time.
  

You lose:

• Currency (x1)- Used in Firefly's Shoppe, and perhaps elsewhere...