“Aunt Omiiiiiii!!!” Goldmi heard surprised.

At the same time, a kind of semitransparent child rushed towards her, which astonished her, especially when she recognized him. It was Pikgro, or, at least, that was what she was able to pronounce from his name, just as Pikgro was barely able to pronounce hers.

In the game, she had never understood that strange tendency of the developers, to make a spirit speak normally, but not pronounce the names correctly, despite being able to pronounce the necessary sounds perfectly.

However, now she knew he was real, as her current memories went beyond the game screen. The truth is that spirits say the same about them, and it is all due to the fact that their perception of names isn’t limited to sounds, but includes the soul.

“Pikgro…” she murmured, while opening her arms to receive him.

The lynx watched her, curious, for she couldn’t see the spirit, but she knew it was there through her sister. She saw how she stretched her arms in the air, but not how the little spirit hugged her neck back, not how he was crying inconsolably.

“Aunt Omi! Aunt Omi! I’m so glad you’re here! I’ve been so scared! You have to help sister one-horn! The little one-horn has to come out! What happened to the bad guys which were out there? Have you thrown them out? Aunt Omi! I’ve missed you so much!”

Totally exultant and excited, the spirit didn’t stop talking and rubbing against the elf’s chest, as if he were a child wanting to be pampered. It was true that he was over twenty years old, but spirits continue to behave like children no matter how old they are. And even when they evolve into fairies, that part of them doesn’t change much.

And Goldmi, after the initial surprise, was simply stroking the head that was intangible to most beings in the world, but not to her. However, she was alarmed at the words of the spirit.

“Who’s Sister one-horn?” What’s happening? Where is she?

“Right Here!”

Pikshbxgro broke away from her and disappeared into the trees. It wasn’t easy to follow him, as he simply was flying through them, although both elf and lynx were agile enough to be not far behind, especially the latter, who nonetheless kept up with her sister. The feline couldn’t see the spirit, but, through their bond, her sister had explained the strange situation to her.

It was when they saw the graceful animal lying on the ground that they associated “sister one-horn” with a unicorn. The mystic animal, whose pregnancy was more than evident, as was her exhaustion, lay in front of them.

Her eyes were fixed on the newcomers without a trace of hostility or fear. Those who had broken through the barrier and were led by a forest spirit couldn’t be enemies.

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For an instant, the elf was lost in those deep blue eyes, which expressed what was impossible to describe in words, and where there was also a plea for help. Not for herself, but for who had yet to be born.

“She’s pregnant, but for the little one-horn to come out, she has to remove the shield. And then the evil beasts will attack,” Pikshbxgro explained.

The two sisters looked at each other, and then back to the unicorn before answering.

“We’ll take care of the beasts,” Goldmi assured.

“They’ll send more. A traitorous brother sends them each time,” denied the spirit.

“We’ll protect her as much as we can. And that traitor may be dead. We killed a corrupted spirit that had sent some beasts. But we don’t know if there are more.”

“Really?! Only Aunt Omi could do it!! That way, he won’t hurt the other brothers anymore…”

The first two sentences were filled with joy, but in the last words there was a deep sadness. Year after year, he had witnessed the consequences of the damage caused by the corruption, and it had been very hard for him

The unicorn only nodded, but the gratitude was evident in her, because she didn’t need words for her feelings to reach both of them.

They rested for a while, to fully regain their strength before heading back to the barrier, to which the spirit accompanied them. But he didn’t dare to cross it, since he was too scared of what was out there.

He was also worried about his “Aunt Omi”, a feeling that contrasted with the absolute trust he had in her, a trust that became stronger, if possible, as the worry diminished.

Although he couldn’t clearly see the outside of the barrier, he could appreciate how the corrupted beings were eliminated one by one. And, more importantly, how their souls were released from their torment.

He felt chills at the realization of how much they had suffered, and immense joy that it had finished, because the unnatural force that had enslaved them had disappeared.

Many hours passed before the two sisters returned, exhausted but satisfied with the work done. They hadn’t gained much experience, but they had cleaned up the surroundings. And since the general was dead, no replacements had arrived.

Unable to free herself from the embrace of the spirit, Goldmi sat down to rest next to her sister and the unicorn, who watched with curiosity the dance of the cybernetic fairies which were preparing some food.

She was curious, but didn’t accept any food. It was strange to her, and she didn’t want to take the slightest risk now that she would have the chance to give birth. In fact, all her concentration was on preparing as soon as possible for the moment when she would absorb the power of the barrier.

It would be her most vulnerable moment, in which she would depend completely on that visitor and her sister, since she couldn’t trust that just cleaning the surroundings would be enough. She knew it was dangerous, but she had no choice. At least, not a choice that she could assume.

And meanwhile, far from any concern, Pikshbxgro had temporarily left Goldmi to inspect the cooking assistants. They were as mysterious as they were fascinating to him, just as he was totally ignored by them.

He fluttered from one to the other, while marvelling at their great ability to cut all pieces at the same size, and at their amazing resemblance to “Aunt Omi.” Only when they had finished their work did he snuggle up next to the elf again.

They ate and rested, and the three of them slept inside the castle-tent. While it is true that spirits don’t need to sleep, that doesn’t mean they can’t.

It wasn’t until a few hours after waking up that the unicorn was ready, and the barrier disappeared.