Charlie sat in the wagon facing Evelynn. She didn't know why she was feeling off. It was a boring day on the road, and she wanted to liven it up a little by showing her new toy. She had passed the head-sized eyeball to Evelynn, attracting the attention of mister Johnson.

Charlie thought they would take a look, smile a bit, and be on their merry way. However, the horses pulling the wagon had stopped. They weren't moving. And both mister Johnson and Evelynn were staring at Charlie in shock.

Evelynn was especially shaken. Face pale. Her fingers were digging into the pretty eyeball, preventing it from freely rotating, squeezing so hard Charlie was afraid the eyeball would pop.

"Um... Evy? What's wrong?"

Charlie's tremulous question unfroze the scene. Both mister Johnson and Evelynn came alive. And almost before Charlie could process it—the eyeball flew.

The pretty eyeball with the black pupil. Especially picked for its vibrant green sclera and yellow striations, had left Evelynn's outstretched hand, soaring in a high arc to splat far from the wagon.

Charlie stared open-mouthed.

"What in the mortal planes were you thinking?! That was a Roaming Eye!"

Evelynn had cracked. Her usual calm facade was gone, and all that was left was a volatile mixture of fear and fury. Staring wild-eyed at the direction Charlie came from, Evelynn spotted the other eyeball stalks.

Creeping and crawling. Poking out of the nearest valleys, and slithering forwards like a grotesque stream. Reaching towards them on extended stalks. A swarm of vines that sent chills down her spine. Where there was one, there were more.

And the numerous stalks were horrifyingly familiar. So similar to the tendrils Charlie regularly wielded. So similar to the tendrils that had slaughtered countless humans with ease—except now turned against them.

There was a reason why the road to Glennworth was curved. There was a reason why everyone avoided going near the Roaming Eyes. Everything that those eyeball stalks caught, would meet a grisly end. A torture so mind-wracking that victims wished for a swifter death.

"Mister Johnson! What are you waiting for? Go!"

The reins cracked in the still air. From a shocked standstill, they were moving once again. Mister Johnson had turned back to the front, face gaunt. But it was too slow. The swarming eyeballs too close. The eyeballs were sweeping forwards. Instead of a trickle between valleys, they were now covering the land as far as she could see. Submerging the hills and valleys in a tsunami of hunger. Closing in. Only a few dozen meters and closing.

There was another crack, and the two horses moved from a canter into a gallop. The wagon shifted and bumped over the uneven dirt road. Jostling the passengers. Charlie and Evelynn clung to the wagon sides, white knuckled and holding on.

The two sorry horses, draft horses used for pulling cargo, not for fast sprints, were foaming at the bit. They strained against the reins. Heaving for every inch under the beckoning of their fear-maddened master.

The wagon was making speed, trying to outdistance the encroaching eyeballs—but the gap was shortening. The gap shrank to two dozen meters.

Slithering and a dry rustling was growing ever louder. Stalks on unending stalks were rubbing against each other. Climbing and lengthening to reach the three passengers. Numerous eyeballs were staring at them. A faint sheen as the sun shone off their slimy surface. But worst of all, regardless of the color of their sclera, their solid black pupil unerringly stared at them. A glimpse to their abyssal origins.

But that changed nothing. They had to flee. Evelynn stared fixedly at the approaching eyeballs, watching the distance shrink inch by inch. No matter how mister Johnson goaded the two horses, they were already galloping as fast as they could. At a speed that was unsustainable. And the swarm of eyeballs showed no sign of slowing.

Evelynn gripped the wagon's side. Grim faced. Ashen lips. She had searched the wagon for anything they could use to halt the advance. Or even just slow down the horde. However, she found nothing that could save them from their death.

Resignedly, Evelynn yanked out her newly bought sword. She held it in front of her with both hands wrapped tightly around the hilt.

Evelynn was smiling mirthlessly. This sword that she bought only a few days ago—that she agonized over the steep price—seemed so paltry to the oncoming swarm.

How could she possibly fight something that submerged the very lands?

This couldn't be how everything ended. They couldn't possibly die so soon after escaping the facility! She still wanted to help Charlie recover her memories. To see that her best friend truly remembered her.

Evelynn felt a tug on her sleeve.

Through blurry eyes, she saw Charlie sitting beside her. Staring at her quizzically. Confused with not a trace of fear over this harrowing situation.

No, there was a tinge. A faint trace of worry in her wide eyes, not for herself, but for Evelynn and mister Johnson. An incomprehension over why the two other passengers were so scared, and worry over Evelynn and mister Johnson's bizarre actions.

"Evy... There's no reason to run. These are harmless."

Over the horses' clipping gallop, the crack of the reins, the creak of the wagon, and the rustling of their inevitable end, Evelynn was stupefied with Charlie's naivety. Even now, Charlie didn't know the danger. Didn't know that if they were caught, the eyeballs would subject them to a mind-shattering fate.

Evelynn swallowed. She moistened her lips and prepared to dispel Charlie's delusion. In stark contrast to Evelynn's emotions and the surrounding panic, Charlie met her with earnest eyes.

"Everything is okay. Stop feeling afraid. They are scavengers attracted to fear—so take a deep breath... And relax!"

Evelynn was incredulous. Stop... the Roaming Eyes... by calming down? What absurd idea was that?! As much as she trusted Charlie, this was taking things too far. Also, Charlie was the one who started this whole mess in the first place!

Her hands tightened on the hilt of her sword. A glance told her that the eyeball swarm was within arm's reach. However, instead of trying to crawl into the wagon, some of the eyeball stalks were extending upwards, close to arching over their heads.

She stood up, and while holding onto the wagon, took a step back. Away from the mass of eyeballs doing their best to block out the sun. The shadow was stretching, nearly touching the wagon's wheels. Some of the closer eyeballs were edging over the back of the wagon.

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Lashing out with her sword, she stabbed the nearest eyeball, which sagged, spilling a viscous and acrid smelling fluid onto the back of the wagon. She felt slightly nauseous looking at the punctured eyeball. The stalk flopped and quickly disappeared under the swarm.

With a backhanded swing she sliced open another three eyeballs, and the gush of revolting fluids pooled at her feet, forming a thick molasses.

Winding up to chop the next eyeball, Evelynn swayed under a bout of dizziness. Distracted, she was unready when Charlie suddenly grabbed her hand. Evelynn tried to shake Charlie off, but her hand was clamped tight. And not only by human hands. A set of tendrils had emerged from Charlie's sleeve—twinned around her sword's hilt and preventing her from slicing the eyeballs that were now flooding into the wagon.

"Silly Evy."

Shaking her head, Charlie tugged Evelynn towards the front of the wagon. Some of the twinning tendrils retracted, leaving just enough to keep Evelynn restrained.

"What are you doing?!"

Evelynn shrieked at her, before wincing as her gorge rose. She fruitlessly wrestled with her bonds, breath coming in harsh gasps. The swarm was coming. They are close—way too close!

Pop.

A cascade of viscous goo rained down onto the back of the wagon, coating the tarp with a carpet of gelatinous gunk. A caustic smell drifted into the air, and Evelynn clamped a hand to her mouth. Her sight was swimming. Reeling, Evelynn could barely make out a handful of stalks falling from the sky. They were missing their eyeballs.

Evelynn felt a tug on her hand and looked beside her.

"Evy, I can take care of it."

Charlie beamed at her. Getting away from the eyeballs, Charlie tugged Evelynn over the bolts of cloth and pile of merchandise.

Alerted by the two girls talking, Mister Johnson glanced back and saw his hired Bronze ranks deadlocked around the sword while the back half of his wagon was submerged in eyeballs.

He missed the black threads entwined around the hands of the two girls, and only caught the tail end of what they were saying to each other.

"-hold them off. Make sure he doesn't see."

"But... how wou-"

He cut off miss Evelynn and roared.

"Take care of the Roaming Eyes—you two slackers! Those eyeballs get any closer, and we'll ditch the wagon!"

Mister Johnson gave a last fleeting look at his wares before bunching the reins in his white knuckled hands. Rising into a crouch, he judged the distance between him and his horses. It would be a short hop. However, his old bones were creaking and the horses were in motion.

Those were horrid chances. But between the possibility of being trampled to death or swarmed, he would hedge his bets.

Looking back to see whether the two girls were coming, he only saw a blur and a spike of pain.

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Charlie worn a sad smile as she saw Evelynn slump down next to mister Johnson. Green faced and with a hand clapped to her mouth. The hilt of her sword was a little bloody, matching the red mark marring mister Johnson's grey hair. Both Evelynn and mister Johnson were at the front of the wagon. Away from the eyeball stalks. They were safe.

Turning around, Charlie beheld a wave of eyeball stalks.

A solid wall of shifting eyeballs and rustling stalks, covering half of the wagon and rising up in a solid mass for a dozen meters into the air. Everywhere she looked was green vegetation and different eye colors. Black pupils staring back at her.

Charlie pouted.

"All I wanted was an eyeball to play with. Was that too much to ask?"

With a slight smile, Charlie spread her arms.

Tendrils crept out of sleeves and from underneath her robe. An unearthly black mass. Writhing and splitting, the tendrils shot into the air, forming interwoven threads. A wall of black ever shifting threads rose up parallel to the wall of endless vegetation, blocking the two humans from the encroaching eyeballs.

The eyeballs mindlessly pushed forward—and were speared through. Threads honed to a needlepoint pierced through the dense mass of vegetation. Rupturing eyeballs and impaling their stalks.

With a thought, the heads of the extended threads jabbed downwards toward the ground, perpendicular to the road. The threads swept sideways, scything through the stalks without resistance. It was easier than a farmer harvesting wheat. After all, their scythes were never preternaturally sharp.

Barely paying attention to the tons of vegetation falling to the ground, Charlie looked back at mister Johnson who was still unconscious. Evelynn was bent over the side of the wagon, probably still nauseous, and the poor horses really needed a rest.

Their pace had slowed from a wild gallop down to a canter. Both horses were fatigued. Foam was dripping from their mouth. A sheen of sweat coated their bodies and they were panting for breath.

Two tendrils extended towards the horses and grabbed their reins. With a hard tug the horses slowed. After trotting a bit, they came to a stop.

Charlie yawned and stretched out her arms. Cocking her head she saw that the eyeballs were still mindlessly swarming towards them. Nevermind that large swathes of their stalks were being scythed, or that the eyeballs were being punctured by the dozen.

There was so much ocular fluid coating the wagon and the ground that even Charlie was starting to fell the effects of their acrid scent.

She got used to their stench in the abyss. There was no telling how Evelynn would react to such a heavy odour. Looking back, Charlie saw that Evelynn was trembling as she weakly leaned over the wagon's side.

Sighing, Charlie sat down. She knew these eyeball stalks were persistent when they felt there was prey nearby, but this was absurd! Sure, there weren't many eldritch beings that could be hunted by eyeballs of all things, but these eyeball stalks should see the situation was hopeless regardless of whether they were mindless.

The vegetation was pilling up dozens of meters behind the wagon and along the wagon's sides. It was even blocking out the sun.

This can't continue.

Charlie got up and walked over to Evelynn. Hunched over, green tinged and trouble breathing in between wanting to throw up.

Charlie winced and put a tentative hand on her shoulder.

"Um, Evy? How about... you lie down for a bit? Calm down a little and the eyeballs will go away."

She flashed Evelynn an uneasy smile. Evelynn somehow managed to give her a deadpan stare. After another bout of dizziness, Evelynn stopped clutching her head and glanced at their surroundings.

She flinched from the walls of both living and dead eyeball stalks. A sharp spike of fear through the overwhelming nausea. More rustling and popping. The eyeball stalks were still trying to get to them.

Charlie saw that their position was being surrounded by walls of vegetation that could collapse any moment. Snapping the reins, the two horses started a slow trot.

The swaying motion nearly caused Evelynn to vomit the rest of her lunch. Trembling, she followed Charlie's advice and lay down. Pushing both arms beside her head, she opened her chest and took deep breaths.

Inhale. Exhale.

In and out. Measured breathing through her mouth. Closing her eyes, she tuned out her surroundings. Focus on her breathing. Nothing else mattered. She felt her heartbeat slowing and her breaths evening out.

Rustle and pop.

Evelynn winced and her breathing faltered. Her heart thumped in her chest, and she cursed her involuntary fear. She just needed to calm down! That was all that was necessary to get out of this mess!

Evelynn felt a warm hand brush against her sweaty brow. Another presence to anchor her. Her best friend was by her side, and Charlie single-handedly took care of the Roaming Eyes. There was nothing to be scared of.

"Evy. Open your eyes."

Evelynn opened her eyes and came face-to-face with blue sclera eyeball. It was a foot from her nose. She flinched and scrambled back. Her heart jumping out of her mouth, and staring wide-eyed at the offending eyeball.

"You see? There's nothing to be afraid of."

Charlie put the eyeball on the wagon floor and rolled it around. She giggled and glanced at Evelynn's dumbstruck expression as the eyeball bumped against the tarp and swiveled around to look at them.

Charlie covered its pupil and spun it like a top.

It whirled around in a blur of blue and black, thudding into the protected merchandise.

Watching the eyeball spin, Evelynn weirdly didn't feel queasy anymore. She looked around and saw that the back of the wagon was cleaned and most of the gunk was brushed off of the tarp.

Not a speck of vegetation clung to the wagon, and the scene of the battle was already in the distance. There were some eyeball stalks trailing after them, but looking at them, Evelynn no longer felt that cloying mortal fear.

They fought against a tsunami of Roaming Eyes and came out without a scratch. It would be laughable to cower in front of these straggling remnants. Not to mention, it was hard to remain afraid seeing Charlie playing with the eyeball.

Evelynn shook her head as Charlie was now cuddling the eyeball. Her tendrils were retracting now that the last of the eyeball stalks were falling behind. After the threat of being swarmed, Evelynn sank down bonelessly and surveyed the messy wagon. Everything was fine once again. Nevermind the ecological catastrophe they left strewn across uncounted miles.

Overall, neither Evelynn nor Charlie could say this day was boring.