A few hours later, the light of the morning sun shone down on everyone's bodies, rousing all three adventurers awake. Stretching, Kantuta said in a cheerful tone of voice, "Mmm, I slept great! Sleeping in the outdoors is much more relaxing than I thought it would be!"
Yuchauzh, who was not nearly as much of a morning person, grumbled, "Yeah, yeah, whatever."
Frowning at her associate's lack of enthusiasm, Kantuta sighed and said, "I expected a naturalist such as you to have more vigor." She looked over at Siquioce, who was beginning to rise from his pool, "Good morning, Siquioce! Was your rest pleasant?"
Looking down, Siquioce answered, "Sort of…"
Kantuta cocked her head, "Oh? Is something the matter?"
"It's just this dream I had." Siquioce replied as he crossed his arms, "It was creepy at first, then it got scary, and finally it was inspiring. I just don't know what to make of it all…
Kantuta tapped her chin, her eyebrows furrowed in deep thought, "So, you're having trouble figuring out what your dream means…" her eyes lit up, and she looked over at Siquioce with a smile, "Luckily for you, I'm a dream interpreter."
Siquioce's eyes widened, "You are?"
"Yep!" Kantuta confirmed, grinning, "In fact, I used to do it all the time for Master Tung. The poor man always had the wildest of nightmares!" Sighing in reminiscence, she continued, "Anyway, if I can help him, I can help you. So, come…" she sat down on the grass and motioned for Siquioce to sit in front of her, "Allow me to begin the examination."
Once Siquioce got himself situated, Kantuta asked, "So, first things first, what exactly happened in this dream?"
"Well," Siquioce stated, "It started with me swimming around in this big, dark cave. I couldn't see much until these tiny glowing things that were in the cave started to gather together. Of course, I went to follow that group, and we all swam through the place, finding all sorts of things. Eventually, we…" his face tightened up, the grip on his forearms growing stronger, "We found…my sister, Ulaka's, skull."
Kantuta gasped softly, her eyes showing great sympathy, "Oh…"
Siquioce nodded, barely managing to keep his composure as he said, "Yeah. And just before I could process the situation, a megafin, which I'm pretty sure was the cause of Ulaka's death, appeared right behind me. I was so scared, so fearful until…" he looked up, his face looking less sad, "A heavenly weapon came down from above."
Kantuta leaned forward, "A heavenly weapon?
"Yes," answered Siquioce, "It was this long, powerful looking spear with three points. It was unlike anything I had ever seen…"
Kantuta held her chin, "It doesn't sound like anything I know, either. Did you fight off this megafin with that weapon?"
Siquioce responded, "I did. The megafin stood no chance, too; it fainted in a single attack."
Kantuta nodded, "Interesting. Have you had any dreams similar to this one in the past?"
"No," replied Siquioce as he shook his head, "Other than this one dream I had about Ulaka when I was a guppy, all my other dreams have been small fry compared to this one."
Kantuta looked up to the sky, "So, not only was this dream sudden, but it also involves divine help to assist you with exacting revenge on a creature from your past…" she closed her eyes and pondered a bit before looking at Siquioce, "I think I know what's going on. This must be a sign from the magnificent Peron!"
Siquioce raised an eyebrow, "Peron? Who's that?"
Kantuta smacked her forehead, "Sorry, I meant Tomanil. Yeah, it's a common tactic for gods like him to send messages through dreams. I actually got one from my goddess, Peron, when I was a kid. She's part of the reason why I'm on this journey in the first place. As for what Tomanil was trying to tell you, the answer is obvious: he wants you to find something up here to handle the megafin threat to make up for your sister's death."
"Wait, really?" Siquioce said, "That's what the great Tomanil was saying?"
"I'm sure of it." replied Kantuta, "These megafins likely killed many more of your kind, correct? Don't you think it's about time you did something about it?"
Siquioce looked down and answered, "Well, yeah, but…how exactly do I do that?"
Kantuta smiled, "Easy! All we have to do is continue on our journey through Kodalia. We've got to find something useful on the way, right? Also, if that thing that Skid said about a wish was true, you can just ask for a solution for dealing with the megafins!"
Siquioce's eyes widened as he pondered the idea, "You…might have a point." he glanced at his friend, looking much more hopeful than he did previously, "I guess we can just do that, then."
Kantuta replied, "That's the spirit! I promise, we'll do everything in our power to help you with this task." she looked over to her right, "Isn't that right, Yuchauzh?"
The orc, who was now mostly up, scratched his belly and answered, "Sure."
Looking back at Siquioce, Kantuta stated, "See? You can count on us. Now…" she got up and started walking forward, "Let's not waste any time. We have a quarry to explore!"
Smiling, Siquioce followed right after his companion, with Yuchauzh following not far behind. Hm, he thought, So, this is my calling. This might not be an easy task, but I swear that I'll do my best. he clenched his right hand into a fist, I will make you proud, Ulaka!