Wonderer's Wish World: An Empty Land

River of Death

"Find anything?" Tulip asked them when they first came back, Kipo bounding through the trees in her mega jaguar form, Coraline riding on her back and hanging onto dear life. They had thought that their friends would have gotten further along the path, so when they found the five of them only two miles off from the town, Kipo almost overshot them, having to dig her paws into the ground to stop.

"We, uh... we saw Hurricane," Coraline called out in answer, sliding off of Kipo's back. Kipo listened to them as she curled around herself, surveying her mega jaguar form. She hadn't gotten a chance to look since her fight in the area when she had gotten heavily injured.

It seemed her jaguar form was healed. Or it got reset every time she used it. Kipo had no idea, and, for a second, she wanted to ask her parents before she realized she had no way to do that, and they also probably wouldn't know either.

Kipo shifted back to her normal form, satisfied. No matter how it worked... it was fine now, right?

The others were still in conversation when Kipo approached them.

"He's... dead?" Tulip asked, looking stunned. "And Hurricane killed him?"

Kai glanced at the sky apprehensively while Kipo shook her head.

"It wasn't as direct as that," Kipo told them. "It's more like... Hurricane coerced him into killing himself."

"Which isn't all that different." Coraline insisted. Kipo shrugged.

"That's true, I guess..." she hummed, thinking. "Hurricane seems pretty good at manipulation and getting people to do what he wants."

"And what does he want?" Mabel wondered, frustrated. "What's so important that he's going around and killing people for it?"

'Wasn't it obvious?' Kipo wondered. Outside, she said: "He's looking for the wish flowers. I don't know what he wants to do with them yet, but he's looking for powerful ones. He said the one he took from Arlen wasn't powerful enough."

"He specifically wanted Norman's and another kid's flower," Coraline told them. "A kid from another world like us, probably."

Tulip frowned. "Hey, if they're trying to kill us all off so badly, and they're looking for powerful flowers, does that mean our flowers are more powerful than most peoples?"

"...That's a good question," Kipo said thoughtfully. The who, where, and how were still up in the air, but at least they were finally figuring stuff about those flowers. But still, they needed to know more, they obviously did not have enough. "We can talk about it later. That reminds me actually... we did you all stop here?"

Luz perked up. "We found a boat! One that can take us all the way to the castle so we don't have to walk there!"

Kipo blinked. "Is it that far away? How do you know that, anyway?"

"We found a map, too," Kai explained. "Next to the boat on a sign. It says where all the waterways go, and marks the castle."

"So it is real?" Coraline asked, sounding surprised.

"That's what the map says," Tulip replied. "And... well, not like I was really expecting it, but there was nothing on the map about a way out of this world."

Fei Fei gave her a strange look. "You thought you would find one?"

Tulip flushed. "I just said I didn't!"

Luz looked impatient. "We're going to the castle now, right?"

Kipo smiled despite herself. "I suppose we can talk on the way. I kind of want to see this map, too."