Fantasy Kaizoic: Earth Reborn

[Da Doofus]

"That's a very weak maybe." Rufus said, keeping pace with Kairo.

Darrek was ahead of them, admiring the environment. Clearly, this route through the jungle was new to him.

 

[Chai_T3a]

“Hey, least it’s an option right?” Kairo shrugged, continuing to trudge along the route. The ground was still damp from the storm yesterday, and Kairo had to look down occasionally to make sure he wasn’t stepping into a muddy patch. Though the recent rainstorm made it tougher to walk, it did make for a satisfying backdrop. The dew still clinging on the plants, the smell of fresh air, it made the walk worth it.

Looking up, it seemed Darrek was as entranced as Kairo was. He laughed a bit at the way the Irokai carried himself. He clearly wasn’t afraid of showing how he felt.

“Ya know. Now that you’ve asked me about the old world. Why don’t you tell me a bit about yours. How’s life in Drafisl?”

 

[Da Doofus]

"Nice town." He began. "Wasn't really a town until after the Rithians started settling, mind you. They got a few Vindav tribes to start making homes after they made the local ground safe for farmland. Go anywhere else and you'll see Vindav living in the trees." He explained. The Feral glanced back as he spoke. "Anyway, growing up was fine. Had to fetch your own water when it wasn't raining, find the best fishing spots, stuff like that. Every few years, the Kendians come by to partake in the Kaveran festivities. Food, stories, fun stuff.
Part of the reason I'm coming back."

"Part?" The Feral asked with a squinted eye.

"Well . . . Like I was telling these guys earlier . . . " He sighed, defeated. "I have nowhere to go but home."

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo could only nod respectfully. The disappointment Darrek felt was all too familiar. Kairo couldn’t understand how it felt to not know where your parents were, but he know how much it sucked not to have them around. It was a tough reality he had to accept a while ago. He wasn’t entirely sure if Darrek had, but he wasn’t going to mention that to him now.

“Hey. From the way you talk about it. Doesn’t sound like a horrible place to go back to.” Kairo consoled.

 

[Da Doofus]

"Yeah . . . It really is." Darrek smiled. "Be nice to see old friends again.
Wonder who's still there . . ." He mused, unsure of what lay ahead.

"Bom, Cräga, and Crina are still there." The Feral added in as he drank water from a drenched leaf.

Darrek glanced at him. "How do you know them?"

"I've been living in this territory for a long time, boy." He licked his lips. "I know who lives in that town."

 

[Chai_T3a]

So the masked Irokai probably was the Feral. He’d inferred that a while ago, but it felt nice to be right. He make sure to brag about it to Rufus later.

“Crina’s great. Cräga on the other hand.” He cringed, remembering the whole Rufus situation. “Different kind of great. But still great.”

 

[Da Doofus]

"You know them?" Darrek asked.

The Feral chuckled. "They've met."

A clearing came upon the three and the Feral froze.
"This wasn't here before." He said quietly. He scanned the surroundings, and saw fallen trees accompanying their broken stumps near the treeline.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo wasn’t expecting the change of scenery either. The lifeless stumps littered around the empty space offered little for comfort, and he was left wondering who could have been the one who’d done this. No matter what that answer is, it didn’t seem like it would be anything good.

“I don’t like this” Kairo touched one of the stumps. “Looks like something came and just...absolutely destroyed the place.”

 

[Da Doofus]

"Are there still lumberjacks these days?" Rufus joked.

The Feral knelt down and sniffed the ground. Darrek looked at the jungle floor and saw that all four of them were standing in a deformation in the muddy greenery. The twigs and dead leaves were crushed into the ground in a small sloped dent in the ground.

Looking around, Darrek saw that it was, in fact, the imprint of a large five-toed foot. Before any of them could react, a bowling ball sized glob of viscous liquid landed between Rufus and Kairo. It had a powerful odor and had similar qualities to saliva as it soaked into the ground.

"Don't move." The Feral said, not turning around.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo instinctively jumped, backing up a few steps as to move away from the liquid. The smell penetrated the surrounding space around it, causing Kairo to cringe in disgust. It literally took all his willpower to heed the feral's advice, but he stayed still. He kept his breathing controlled and his senses in tune.

 

[Da Doofus]

Gusts of air blew down on the four, like nasal exhales from large nostrils. The inhales were softer, but accompanied by low rumblings like growls. A tree was snapped, and a foot large enough to hold a car like a football stomped in front of them. A great, reptilian shadow moved over them as the four legged predator moved across the clearing it made with its caught prey in its mouth.

A dead female Cerataur dangled from its lizard-like jaws, blood staining its brown feather coat. Before duckinv underneath the canopy, the great reptile turned to look at the four and the morning light revealed its appearance clearly. This was the same creature caught on the drone's surveillance back on the Noah so long ago it seemed. A gigantic monitor-lizard predator with a vibrant asortment of colors across its body. The bright green of its torso and belly were patterned with black stripes, and its head was a mix of red, black, and blue.
The golden eyes stared at the miniscule beings before it, and it turned to re-enter the jungle on ground-shaking steps.

Rufus exhaled in relief at the surprising conclusion to the encounter.
"The fuck was that thing?"

"A Nirothak." The Feral answered.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo dared not to look the thing in the eye, afraid he might end up aggravating the creature. This thing was massive. To the reptile, the four of them must have looked like nothing but rats. It could have easily taken them out without any effort. Kairo silently hoped that wouldn't be the case.

Thankfully, the creature would leave as soon as it had arrived. It didn't seem to show much interest in them, something he was more than grateful for. His shoulders slumped, and he laughed in relief.

"Fuck, another scare like that and I'll die." He exhaled, stepping away from the glob of saliva. "Do those guys usually mind their own business? Or were we just lucky?" He looked over at the Feral

 

[Da Doofus]

"He already had a meal, and even if he didn't . . ." He gestured to them all. "We're too small to be worth chasinh down."

 

[Chai_T3a]

“Heh, first time I feel good about being unimportant.” Kairo joked, continuing his walk. “Let’s get back to Drafisl.”

 

[Da Doofus]

The Feral's claws gripped his shoulder.
"Wrong way." He grumbled and turned his snout to another direction.
"This way is Drafisl." The Irokai turned Kairo to face an alternate route through the hunting scene of forest destruction.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo let himself turned, his face turning red in embarrassment.

“Yeah. I knew that.” He gave the Feral a thumbs up, heading in the direction he was told to go.

 

[Da Doofus]

His red eyes rolled at Kairo's 'confidence' and moved ahead of the group once more to lead the way.
**************

A familiar road of primitive making soon greeted the four, and in a clearing of the canopy could be seen a faint plume of chimney smoke in the noon sky.

Darrek smelled the air.
"Mutton . . ." He smacked his scaly lips.

"Nearing the Traveler's Rest now." The Feral clarified. "You'll need sleep and a decent meal."

Rufus scoffed. "Well ain't you sweet."

"I wasn't talking to you." The charcoal Archo snarled with a short growl in his throat, and started heading for the smoke.

 

[Chai_T3a]

The Kairo paid the Feral's aggression little heed. He wasn't expecting any less of the Irokai, especially not to Rufus. In fact, it would have been weirder to see him being friendly to the other man.

Besides there was more pressing matters at hand. Getting back to the rest being the main course on the menu. His entire body had reached an all time low when it came to energy. The constant walking the past few days absolutely destroyed his legs. It felt like he had bricks tied to his ankles. Not to mention, he really was craving a hot meal right about now.

"Darrek. You still got that coin pouch right?" Kairo asked. "You mind if we use some of it? Just in case Cräga isn't feeling hospitable today."

 

[Da Doofus]

"Well . . ." He tapped his teeth with his blunt claws. "It is the holidays." The young Irokai said with a smirk. "Should be enough for all of us."

"Don't worry about me." The Feral shrugged off Darrek's offer and pushed ahead further, going his own pace rather than lead any more. Being so close to their destination, it was understandable.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo watched the Irokai as he trudged down the path. He definitely made it clear that he wasn’t down to be in the group. The irokai moved further and further away, consistently till his figure was no bigger than Kairo’s palm.

“You think he’s not gonna go to the rest?” Kairo asked the two. “The way he worded it makes me think that.”

 

[Da Doofus]

Darrek looked at the Feral, and then at the smoke above the treeline.

"Well he is walking towards it . . . So I think he is, maybe?" He shrugged. "He always like this?"

"Not always. My experience is him clawing and biting at me." Rufus crossed his arms.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo chuckled a bit, nodding to agree. The Feral was definitely an interesting character, that was one thing he couldn’t deny.

“Yeah.” Kairo admitted. “We found the guy in a room on the ship. Scared me absolutely shitless. He probably would have killed us then if he had the chance.”

 

[Da Doofus]

"He did have the chance." Rufus corrected. "Luckily I shot him before he did."

Darrek whistled in newfound uncomfortableness of the subject.
"Really snagged a safe group to travel with. Archaic and Taroz-Gharm." He chuckled quietly, proceeding to the Rest.

 

[Chai_T3a]

Kairo smiles, rolling his eyes. “You’d better be careful. Us archaic have a tendency to go crazy and attack the first person they see.” He teased. “Don’t wanna get caught up when that happens.”

 

[Da Doofus]

"Ha ha." Darrek mocked.

The Rest was not far ahead past the dense forest barrier before them. Soon, the familiar wooden inn was in sight, with the Feral standing by the door watching the three approach.