Glyn and Mila walk along the beach under the moonlight with Mila glancing at Glyn occasionally. He, however, looks away from her, staring ahead as he tries to wrap his mind around the situation. The state of the island, the monsters trapped in the mist, and the bizarre barrier trapping them all inside. All the while Mila walks behind him, her heart racing as she tries to work up her feelings as she tries to cough up the words in her heart.

“That has to be it. But where could it be?”

“Glyn?”

“Oh, sorry Mila I was lost in thought.”

She stops walking, pausing. “Glyn, I…” She struggles to speak, trying to force the words out as whatever courage she possesses fails her.

“Mila! Glyn!” Miller screams out, rushing towards the pair. “You’re both okay. I was worried about you two when the sun came down.”

“It’s fine. Although this proves this place is stranger than what I thought originally.”

“I had figured since Mila ran into that barrier.” He turns to Mila and smiles. “I was so worried about you I….”

Mila steps forward, kicking Miller. “Brother!”

“What did I do!?”

Glyn laughs at the pair. “Come on. Let’s rest for a while. We have a lot to talk about.”

Glyn walks ahead as Miller turns to Mila. “Did I interrupt?”

“It… it wasn’t going well.” She says under her breath. “I keep trying. But I just can’t.”

“Well, maybe now isn’t the best time.”

“But when will be? You're right. One day, when this fight is over, Glyn will leave. And if I can’t tell him before that day comes, I don’t….” Tears well up in her eyes, with Miller patting her head.

“Don’t worry. We still have plenty of time. Just build your courage and let out you’re feeling when you feel the time is right.”

She nods. “Okay. Thank you, Brother.”

The trio moves along the beach until arriving at a makeshift hut made of broken chunks of wood in the middle of the sand. Parts of the hut fall away, opening holes in the makeshift building project. Glyn and Miller move towards the hut as Mila walks behind them, confused.

“What is this?”

Glyn laughs. “The remains of our boat!”

“What?”

Miller shakes his head. “Our boat was destroyed in the storm that got us stuck here. We got most of the supplies and we scavenged the wood that washed up to build this ramshackle hut.”

“Well, it’s not big enough for all of us….”

“About that. There’s only room for one or two people. For the past two days, I’ve been camping outside with you while I waited for you to regain consciousness.” Glyn explains.

“Oh!? I’m…”

“Don’t apologize. It’s my fault for letting you try attacking the barrier in the first place. Now I want you to get inside and rest up. It’s going to be a long night and you need to rest.”

Mila nods. “Right.”

“You don’t mind Miller?”

Miller nods. “I don’t mind, but we should ask Sam.”

“What’s wrong with Sam?”

“Oh, well…. Since we washed up here, he hasn’t been feeling too well. We made the hut for him to rest up. But there doesn’t appear to be any effect on his actual condition.”

“It shouldn’t be any problem for them to stay together for the night…. But….”

“But what? Is he getting worse or something?”

“Not exactly.” Miller turns away, trying to avoid the subject. Relenting, he shakes his head and turns to Glyn. “Listen, it’s not my place to say this, but Sam’s condition isn’t exactly a sickness.”

“It’s not?”

“Yes, it’s more of a curse.”

“A curse!?” Mila yells.

“It’s been happening for ages now, ever since he was a child. Every three months or so he’ll come down with a certain affliction that’ll change his body in a way…”

Glyn pauses. “Does his gender change?”

“Huh?” Mila asks. “Something like that’s possible?”

“Under certain conditions, yes. There are species of Lizard-Kin and Bug-Kin that change gender under specific conditions.”

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Miller tilts his head, confused. “You sound like you’ve seen something like this before.”

“Well, I’ve seen similar cases. I don’t know if Sam’s case is similar unless I examine them. If they’ll allow it. They must be in a lot of pain with no treatment, but it’s nothing life threatening.”

Miller nods and walks into the hut. “Let me ask.”

“I never figured.”

“Right. You were pretty isolated back then, weren’t you?” Glyn asks.

Mila nods. “Yes. It was just me, Gramps, Granny, and Brother.” Mila pauses and then turns to Glyn. “Did you have friends growing up?”

“Kind of. Surprisingly, there are a good number of Half-Elves running around. Some come from nice families, while others are just cast aside children born from stupid flings. Somehow, a decent number of us ended up at the Royal Academy and stuck together.” Glyn smiles as his mind goes back.

Mila stares at him and then lowers her head. “Was…. Was there….”

Miller exits the hut. “He says it’s okay to give him a look over.”

“Alright. Mila, I’ll need your help with this.”

“Huh?”

“If I’m right, we’ll need your Mana.”

She nods. “Right!”

The pair move towards the hut, opening it to find a slender woman with long black hair lying in the middle of the hut. She struggles to breathe, sweating as an odd sweet scent fills the air of the hut. She eyes Glyn, forcing herself up as she covers herself with Glyn covering his nose from the smell.

“I was right. Mila, try injecting your Mana into their body.”

“Huh?”

“Their internal Mana is rampaging in their body. It’s built up for too long without a release and is causing the Succubus Blood to go out of control.”

“Succubus Blood!?”

“I’ll explain later. for now inject your Mana to stabilize their body.”

She nods and rushes in. Mila puts her hand to Sam’s stomach, looking black at Glyn, who nods at her. She concentrates on pushing the Mana from her body into Sam, who twitches and writhes in pain from the sensation. A burning feeling spreads through Sam’s body as Mila focuses on her stomach, with Sam recoiling in pain.

The scent weakens and Glyn signals for Mila. “That’s enough.”

Mila stops leaping away from Sam. “Did that do it?”

“Let’s ask them. How do you feel?”

Sam lifts, covering themselves as they adjust their clothes. “Better. But I’m still stuck as a woman.”

“Well yeah. We’ve only stabilized the Succubus Blood in you. It’ll take a while for you to turn back unless you burn off the extra Mana in your body.”

“What do you mean by Succubus Blood?” Sam asks, glaring.

“Let’s get some air first. We’ve got to get all of this smell out of here before it drives someone crazy.”

Everyone gathers around Glyn on the beach as he makes symbols in the dirt. They stare at him curiously, with Sam’s frustration growing by the second. Miller works at calming them down as Mila stares on, confused.

“Will you just explain what’s happening with me!?” Sam screams out, shooting up. “I’ve dealt with this damned curse my whole life and I’m sick of changing genders like this. I want to just be stuck as one or the other without my life being torn upside down!”

Glyn nods. “Sorry. I was trying to figure out the way to tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

“It’s not a curse.”

“Not a curse!? How is this not a curse!?”

“That’s what I’m struggling with explaining. If you’ve gone your whole life with one mindset, it’s hard to tell you differently. Especially if you're riled up.”

Sam breathes and sits. “Fine, I’ll calm down.”

“Just start from the beginning. What do you mean by Succubus Blood? Aren’t Succubi lustful Demons that prey on men for power?” Miller asks.

“No. That’s a common misconception from a while ago. Nothing more than an old wife’s tale just to shame people.” Glyn says. “Succubi aren’t a race per say, but a genetic trait or bloodline.”

“A bloodline?” Sam asks, confused. “My entire family comes from Jubert Island. And I’m the only one afflicted by this.”

“It’s not uncommon for certain traits to stay hidden in the blood for ages before suddenly popping up in a descendant randomly. For example, did you know that Humans once had tails?”

“Really!?” Mila yells out.

“Yeah. Every so often, a child is born with a tail, although it’s not a common sight. Several Tailed Humans are running around out there.”

“So, it’s a trait from one of my ancestors?”

“Yup. According to common theory, the Succubus Blood came from one family who experimented with magic to change their genders at will. They became the first Succubi and then spreading their bloodline all over the place in both ways. Who the original Succubi and why they did this is something that’s been lost to time? Over time, a negative stigma came to those of the Succubus Bloodline, calling them lustful Demons. But in modern times, that stigma has almost entirely died out.”

“So, this isn’t a curse?” Sam asks.

“Let me ask. Have you felt attached to your male or female self?”

“Not entirely. I just hated being forced to change when all I wanted to do was be comfortable as myself.” Sam says.

“Well. It’ll take some time, but with some effort to control your internal Mana, you can learn to stabilize it and control it. Switch genders at will or pick one and stay with that your whole life. That’ll be for you to decide.”

Sam takes a breath and stares at the sky. “This feels strange. I feel like some enormous weight just fell away. I feel so exhausted now.”

“Just rest. We’ve got a lot to work to do so we can get off this damned island.”

Sam stands up and walks away. “Good night, everyone. I have a lot to think about.”

“Thank you, Glyn,” Miller says.

“Oh, what brought this on?”

“I’ve seen Sam struggle with this his entire life. Just this little, I know it put him in a peace of mind.”

“You’re welcome. But let me ask you since you seem close. Are you more comfortable with Sam as a guy or a girl?”

Miller pauses. “It doesn’t matter what I think on the subject. Whatever makes them more comfortable.”

“I think what you say on the matter will impact everything.”

“Whatever you say. I’ll turn it in. I guess I’ll be assisting you with exploration tomorrow?”

“Of course. We need to escape after all. And we have that other King Candidate to deal with.”

“Are you planning to take him out or what?”

“I haven’t decided yet. If he seems like he’ll make a good king, I’ll leave him alone. But if he’s another Fenwick, then we’ll have to take him out.” Glyn takes a breath and looks at the sky. “For the good of this damned country.”

“Whatever you say, Glyn.” Miller stands up and leaves.

Glyn and Mila sit around by themselves as Mila glances at him.

“Um….”

“What is it, Mila?”

“You had a friend at your school with Succubus Blood?” She asks.

Glyn nods. “Yeah. They were an odd duck. But a fun person either way.”

“Did you have a lot of friends?”

“A decent number. I didn’t draw people to me or anything. But I made a handful of friends here and there. Some weren’t even Half-Elves surprisingly. Although many people considered me Fenwick’s lacky back then.”

Mila nods, lowering her head. “Did you have someone? Who was special to you?”

“Special how?”

She pauses for a moment, not wanting to answer. Not wanting to have her questions answered. “Someone you loved.” She speaks.

“Yes,” Glyn says coldly.

Mila stands. “Oh okay. I’ll go to bed now. I’ll see you in the morning, Glyn.” She forces a smile on her face and rushes off, leaving Glyn alone.

Glyn takes his finger and moves it through the sand. “This stuff feels like the real thing.” He says to himself, trying to distract himself. “Don’t force a fake smile. If you feel sad, let me know. Why do I even feel this way looking at her like that? Damn it, what’s wrong with me?”