T.K.

This is completely the writing of my friend.

"Island, dead ahead." Dham announced, standing at the bow of the ship. "Something... doesn't smell right about it..."

Niqi nodded gravely. "I smell it, too. I'd like nothing more than to steer away from that island and keep going, but T.K. is there, and we have to find him."

Ambree lifted a spyglass to her eye, peering through it. "I see something. Hey, it's T.K.! He's right there, at the docks."

The Arcadian boy waved to the ship from the docks, smiling cheerfully, as usual. He didn't look a day older than he had when Raven's Nest had first encountered him on Yochinai. The slightly pudgy Arcadian was sitting atop a large crate, several holes drilled in it. As the ship pulled closer, he hopped off, knocking thrice on the crate's lid.

The lid of the crate was thrown off, the boys hidden inside standing up and climbing out.

Niqi ushered T.K. and the two boys onto the boat, eager to get away from the island.

"I know you guys probably have a lot of questions," T.K. said, "but we need to get introductions out of the way. This is Aizel."

The smaller of the two boys bowed gracefully. He was a small, scrawny creature, his body covered in rich, chocolate-colored fur, the color only broken by the peach of his face and long, pointed ears. Two large, caramel-colored spots laid below his eyes, which were the same unearthly silver as Dham's. His muzzle was somewhat short, his nose flat and just barely triangular. His hair, a darker brown than his fur, was rather scruffy. He was dressed in a pair of black denim shorts and a slightly torn white tanktop, a small green flower tucked behind his ear, which fell to the deck as he bowed. "It's a pleasure." He purred, picking the flower up and returning it to its place behind his ear as he stood back up.

T.K. motioned toward the other boy. "And Cole."

Cole was a bobcat, quite a bit taller than Aizel, with just enough meat on him to be called 'average'. His purple eyes were half-covered by his shaggy black hair. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a hooded sweatshirt, the baseball cap on his head holding his hair in front of his eyes. He nodded in greeting, not speaking.

"Now that we know who our newest recruits are, why haven't you aged since we last saw you?" Niqi asked.

T.K. shrugged. "I'm technically dead."

"... Oh."

 

...

 

Later that night, Niqi found T.K. sitting under the ship's mast. "I know what you want to ask me." The Arcadian boy stated. "You want to know what that strange scent was, when you were coming toward the island."

Niqi nodded. "Do you know what it was?"

"It was Devil's Tar." T.K. said. "Black Water. Something I wish I had never seen..." The boy paused, a humorless chuckle leaving his muzzle. "Gods above... That stuff will devour the entire island within a week. About a month from now, Saikoro will be one big ball of Devil's Tar."

Micah appeared from behind the mast. "Actually, that's not quite true. As soon as the Devil's Tar begins to spread, it'll be pushed back, as it always is. You may not realize it, but that stuff has been around for quite some time." He smirked. "This sort of thing has happened once every ten years for the past six centuries. Each time, the rabbits step forward and push it back."

T.K. raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"It's rabbit magic." Micah replied, shrugging. "Nobody knows exactly how it's done except the rabbits."

"So... it's not something we have to worry about?" Niqi asked.

Micah shook his head. "You guys aren't the only heroes. You don't need to deal with everything personally. Now, if a certain member of your group had ingested some of the Devil's Tar, then it would be your problem." He turned to cast a pointed look in T.K.'s direction. "I'm talking about you, Mister Morgan."

"I-it's not my fault." T.K. said, looking away. "It grabbed me, pulled me under... I panicked..."

"One breath is all it takes." Micah stated. "Soon, something's gonna happen to you. It's not gonna be pretty. All I've gotta say is, you better learn how to control it, and quick. Because, if you become dangerous... I won't hesitate to kill you."