Since neither of you have to arrange any responsibilities and you can be away from the hospital for short periods of time, it doesn’t take long for you and Dorian to leave the hospital. Your partner leads the way out of the building and walks to his car, parked in its usual space.

You walk alongside him, allowing your mind to drift to the sensations that came from the shockwave. You’re silent as you get in the passenger side of the car and Dorian sits in the driver’s side, then glances at you. “I’m going to assume we don’t have a way to instant travel?”

“That’s not one of the perks of being a spirit guardian,” you admit. “It sure would be nice if teleportation was possible, though. At least we don’t have to worry about being killed in a car accident.” You pull your seatbelt on even so.

Dorian puts his own seatbelt on and puts the car into gear, beginning to drive. As he pulls out of the car park, he comments, “It’s a pity the car doesn’t have the same ability. Can you direct me to exactly where we’re going?”

“Yes, but there are two areas I’m getting a sense from,” you answer. “One is a bit fainter than the other. I assume because the corruption only touched there, rather than settled. But I think we should go there first. In case there’s anything there I need to see.”

Dorian nods. “Just tell me where I’m going.”

Sitting back in your seat, you begin guiding your lover towards where the fainter sensation is. You close your eyes during the journey, but don’t sleep; instead, you use that time to mentally prepare for what you’ll need to do to fix this problem.

“We’re here.”

Dorian’s soft voice breaks into your thoughts and you open your eyes, taking a deep breath before focusing on what’s in front of you.

There’s a large house, with a neatly kept porch and lawn. A tree stands on either side of the building, both with full leaves. Parked in front of the house is a red car.

“Is this it?” Dorian asks.

“It’s the place I got the milder sense from.” You get out of the car and walk forward, towards the other car.

As you reach the vehicle, the driver’s door opens and a young man steps out. He looks about the same age as the form you currently wear and eyes you warily, arms wrapped around his stomach in what looks like a self-soothing motion. “Who are you?”

“My name is Anubis.” You smile at him, the motion easier than it used to be. A long time ago, so far back you barely remember, you’d been little more than a savage beast. That time is one you prefer to pretend never happened.

His eyes sweep over your form and he mutters, “You don’t have the head of a jackal.”

“There was a time I did,” you answer. “A long time ago.” His eyes widen, but before he can comment, you ask, “What’s your name?”

“Grant,” he responds. “Are you here because of the statue?”

“I’m here because of the curse.” The mention of the statue makes your ears prick up. “There was a statue?”

Grant nods, lowering his head. “I brought the curse here,” he admits quietly. “There was…me and my friend, boyfriend, Paul. We got stuck in this place where the dead kept being brought back to life. But they were cursed to keep reliving their deaths over and over again. It made them different. Mean. Evil, I guess. But me and Paul fell in love with one of the spirits. Martin. And I discovered this statue that was responsible for the whole mess. I got rid of it and it ended up here. And then the same thing started over.”

You frown and glance back over your shoulder, noticing Dorian’s close enough to overhear the conversation. You turn back to Grant. “Where’s the statue now?”

“It’s been destroyed,” he admits.

“Shit.” The exclamation leaves you without conscious thought.

Dorian grabs your arm. “What is it?”

“Someone placed a curse on the other land,” you answer. “The curse was transferred here, but it was contained within the statue. If the statue’s been destroyed, it released the curse. It’s going to be more difficult to fight.”

“But not impossible?” Dorian’s eyes rake over you.

You take in a deep breath. “No,” you agree. “It’s not impossible.” You turn to Grant. “Can you direct me to the exact spot the statue was?”

Grant nods.

You breathe in deep and let it out slowly, then look at Dorian. “If you’re ready, we can go now.”

“As long as you’re all right.” Dorian eyes you with obvious concern.

Truthfully, you’re not sure you can say you’re okay. But you don’t want your lover to worry about you.