Two Swannes members followed the path uphill, leading to the top of the volcano.

"Are we late?" one asked.

"We still have some time" they huffed, pointing up. "Sir Ton's lenient, I'm sure he'd understand."

"You're right. We still have-" their voice was cut off by a sudden swing from the back.

"Dhano?" the other asked. "Is everything-"

Jyuzou's leg landed on the other's back, and just like that, the two lay on the ground, cold and knocked out.

"Oddly convenient." Koyote clapped her arms. "Put on his clothes, I'll take hers since they seem a little bigger."

Jyuzou gulped. "Will they be fine waking up... naked on the ground?"

"Do we care?" Koyote asked, hastily throwing the white sheets over her clothes, and taking off the hat. "Swannes are the same pieces of shit Wakon are, just with a different coat of paint." She pulled bandages off her face and placed the covered cross on her back. Jyuzou did the same with any sort of heavy equipment or warm clothes, nestling all their stuff in a big bag and hiding it between a couple of boulders.

Koyote cracked her knuckles, before staring forward. "Sir Ton, huh? That's their man?"

Jyuzou pulled on the white sheet, covering his eyes.

"If he's lenient, he won't notice us joining in," she uttered, and with her words, the two stormed up the foothills, eventually hearing chants in the distance.

Chants, which turned into a song of various melodies, but one that always repeated the same words, strangely.

"Nuhg ayi llup uhz kann." one man standing in the front seemed to put a lot of pressure on each word, spouting them in free form. Such prayers were later followed with a similar tone, however, still straying far from his unique pressure on certain vowels. The others joined in, humming.

All except for one. Barefoot, led by two other members, fully covered in thin, white, see-through silk, bearing dried-out bloody marks.

"That's the sacrifice," Koyote commented. "They're going to dump him into the volcano," she whispered.

Jyuzou gulped.

"We need to step closer, but we'll have to join into the song as well. Did you already catch the words?"

"Nun... ay... loop, ah, can?" Jyuzou asked.

"Good enough." she patted his head, subtly speeding up. "Nuhg ayi llup uhz kann."

Her steps led her and Jyuzou into the formation, on the further end of the volcano. She'd sometimes glance down to see how far they went, and how little separated them before the key moment.

Koyote squinted her eyes at one of the people carrying one arm of the sacrifice, pulling on the wooden cradle, and dragging it up the slope, which eventually eased into plain, dark terrain.

There was a hole in the wall, an opening leading into the deep reds of the volcano, illuminating and fighting against the night sky. Sir Ton took one look at Omer Narrows and then turned back to his believers.

"Can you hear it bubbling, Swannes?" he smiled. "It's starting, very, very soon. The rumbles mean it's hungry. Lusting for a chance of that perfection stepping in."

Koyote pulled on Jyuzou's shoulder. He ground his teeth, as two of the same figures led the lamb hand in hand towards the opening.

She, on the other hand, squinted her eyes.

With each step he trod, his movements grew slower, and his lips were slightly open.

"Ah." they made one noise.

"Don't be afraid." Sir Ton uttered. "It's only peace waiting for you afterwards."

Koyote furrowed her brows, right as the sacrifice tumbled to the ashy ground, rolling around and pulling the white sheet off its wrecked, weak body.

The other member patiently stepped away, while the one on his right, leaned in, observing.

His voice grew shaky, and eventually, all noises turned into silent weeps, growing louder and louder with each passing second.

"He's crying," Jyuzou mumbled.

"I don't want to die." the old man uttered. "I don't want to die!"

Sir Ton's lips shifted, ever so slightly, showing bits of teeth. Koyote observed, and Jyuzou was concerned.

It was dead silent except for his pleas.

"I don't want to die! No!" he screamed. "I want to live!" he screeched into the air, and it seemed that every member around took this with stride and calmness. "I don't want to die!" he chanted, pulling on the clothes of the one standing nearby.

They reached their hand out, wanting to help them up, only to be met with Sir Ton's cautious glance.

Jyuzou covered his mouth, shaking.

"Don't budge," Koyote whispered, her words almost weaving into the wind surrounding the volcano.

They stepped away, and Sir Ton reached his hand out to the weeping lamb. "There's nothing to be afraid of. We all die one day."

"No... no." he shook his head. "I d-don't want to die." his words started mixing themselves with tears. "Please."

The member put a hand on their mouth.

"I'm perfect the way I am." the lamb spoke.

"No." Sir Ton added, two palms eventually moving into their headpiece. He reached out, placing his palm on their arm, and their wrists quickly fixed what only one could assume to be glasses.

Jyuzou tilted his head slightly.

"The volcano will save your pitiful life and sacrifice it for a perfect being to come out of this unscathed." he shook his head. "You have to trust me. It's hungry, and I can't keep it waiting." Sir Ton glanced up before his hand ventured into the other's palm. "You'll be saved. You'll be saved and born into a perfect body when it erupts!"

Koyote's eyes widened.

"Ms Koyote. Do something." Jyuzou pulled on her robes. "Th-They'll kill him."

Koyote's finger shook.

"They'll kill him!" Jyuzou subtly raised his voice, and it seemed that the member heard a speck of his words. They turned, hesitantly, but their beating heart suggested that if they bear to turn away, they'd lose faith in humanity.

Genni already carried the body up the volcano. She was this close.

"I don't want to die." the sacrifice said.

There were things Genni couldn't fix. A perfect human won't have such issues, after all. But death... it's never perfect.

It was always sad.

"I don't want to die, either," Sir Ton spoke. "But, it all happens one day."

The other member stepped back, his hand latching onto the sacrifice's back. With one swift move, he lifted his body, reaching his other hand to the member adjacent to the lamb.

Genni hesitated, but Sir Ton's invisible glance seemed so strong.

"Stop," the sacrifice uttered. "Stop!" he screamed, latching onto the mentioned's leg, pulling as hard as he humanly could. The member thrashed, back and forth, trying to rip his sharp, long nails into Sir Ton's hand.

Genni placed her trembling hand on Sir Ton's palm.

"You'll die." Sir Ton spoke.

Although his words were directed at the lamb, their weight pinched on Genni's neck.

Much like fire and water could both kill.

Jyuzou's eyes widened. "Koyote." he pulled, grinding his teeth. "Please... do something!" he yelled, a couple of members turning to the two.

One step forward, the sacrifice stood at the edge of the volcano.

They screamed, thrashing.

Tears went down Genni's face.

Jyuzou huffed.

If it wasn't Koyote, someone else was going to save them.

"Save you?" Koyote raised a brow.

"Like..." Genni gulped. "You usually do." she winked.

Jyuzou ran forward, blindly screaming out, thrashing into the three. The sacrifice tumbled around, and in turn, sent Sir Ton flying towards the edge of the volcano.

Koyote moved out of the crowd, quickly pulling away the duvet covering her face. All of the members observed, and Jyuzou found himself turning. Genni hesitantly took off her headpiece, staring right into Jyuzou's eyes.

Beneath the cold, white exterior, lay a similar face, with the same features. Only now, she squinted, tears obscuring her face. "Genni." Jyuzou's voice was shaky, and interwoven with stutters. "Why?"

Genni shook her head. "I'm sorry."

Jyuzou struggled through gulps, saliva that couldn't be swallowed. He coughed out, collapsing into a strange embrace. Genni wept, with genuine tears, and the sacrifice rolled elsewhere.

The members observed in silence.

Koyote ran between the two and slid across the ash before Sir Ton got back to his feet. When his head was lifted, Koyote's stare quickly met his piercing glance.

She shook her head, breathing heavily, and as hard as she humanly could.

Despite everything Koyote had shown the Morians the past season, the strength, the determination, a will that was never broken, despite the mishaps relating to the cruelty of this world, when Jyuzou's eyes met hers, even for a moment...

Koyote was furious.

"I'll murder you." her words turned into echoes, with a clenched fist ready to punch his face in.

Dakarai smiled, halting half of his breath.

"It's too late, Koyote," he added. "We're already dead."