Shadyo stared off into the dark Jungle. Noises could be heard in there...noises that she had never heard before. She grew up in the Jungle...but these noises were unknown to her. It scared her. She didn't like being scared all that much. The noises were low growls, tearing of flesh could be heard. She shuttered only wondering what the creature was feeding on.
She was shaking as she walked slowly up to the edge of the Jungle, looking into the sheer blackness as the clouds covered the sun. Her large brown eyes were even bigger with wonder and fear. She stood there, breathing in and out, only aware of the wind as it moved the trees and rattled the plants. The Jungle was scared as well. She took another breath, and held it. Listening. Breathing. There was deep breathing coming from within the forest. The creature was big. She held her spear close to her.
She was sent from her village to go hunting. They needed some fish and she was sent, alone. Like Usual since the ocean was not that far, but quite a walk. Something had scared her, it was big and black, and it lurked in the shadows. It was dragging something, for blood was seen where it's shadow had been. Shadyo had followed it, wondering what it could possibly be. Now she was here.
She was frozen with fear as the breathing suddenly got louder.
Loki's feline feet hardly made a sound as he ran through the jungle, his wings spread for streamlining. This was too much. There were predators in this jungle; yes. That was the way of life. But this...beast, was tipping the scales a little too far. It ate the predators and the prey alike. It ate everything that moved. He wasn't sure how long it'd been there— he came back from a trip, and it was there. It wasn't a dragon, because it didn't have scales. It wasn't a gryphon, because it didn't have feathers. But it was big, and it was out of control, and he had to stop it before it attacked the villages. Sure, he had no association with the villages...but he still fell asleep to their crooning lullabies...
There it was, feeding on some animal that shouldn't have been hunted yet. Suddenly, it lifted its head, as if it heard a noise, and Loki froze. But it wasn't moving toward him; it was moving toward a shap in the brush...a Yoreiqi hunter! With a scream of rage, he ran and gave the beast a mighty flying kick, with the force and ferocity of an angry lion. Which was stupid, of course. Now he had an angry monster focused on him, and all he had was his legs, wings, and a wild magic he was too afraid to use.
Shadyo gasped as the creature started towards her, but then was shocked to see someone come up from behind the creature and kick it... she watched as the creature turned to face the man, she looked down at her only weapon, a fishing spear. The creature started after the man and Shadyo had to do something quick.
Shadyo lifted the spear and got into a hunting crouch. She started to run after the creature with all of her speed for the creature was fast, and unnatural. She kept the same speed up, hoping to soon have the right timing to throw the spear and hit the creature, at the most killing it, at the least scaring it off and injuring it some. She hoped the most was the winner.
She kept running and then finally saw an opening, and great timing, she threw the spear as hard as she could. She heard a thump and tried to figure out if landed on the ground, or in the creature, but she couldn't tell. She tried to find the man, and hope that he was alright. She unfolded her bright orange wings and took to the sky. The creature was too black to see if the spear was in it or not. She gasped when she saw that man in front of the creature. "Watch out!"
The beast, eyes wild in pain, was shuttling straight for Loki, looking for someone to take revenge at for the pain. Of course, Loki just jumped up into the air. Dumb beast. You can't charge a flying creature anywhere there is room to fly. And, with his powerful leonine leg muscles, he could leapt pretty high into the air... and land with a kick that could break a beasts back. Which it did.
He stood back and watched the beast writhe in its death throes, and bowed his head. When the beast had moved its last, he directed a question at the Yoreiqi, without turning his head, adorned with his mane-like, shaggy hair up at her, and fixing her with his black eyes. Instead, he continued to keep his head bowed as he asked, "Do you normally take such a large hand in slaying such powerful thing, such as this? Or have you never realized your ability?"
Shadyo had watched the creature as it died, the man could really kick. When he lept into the air and unfolded his large wings, she took a small gasp. They were big. She looked at him, he asked her a question with his head down, which made her think he was afraid of her.
"I am hunter. I know how to kill an animal." She swooped down to the dead creature and landed silently next to it. She knelt down and placed her hand on the creature's side, blood covered her hand. She bowed her head and silently started to whisper a thanks for the creatures life and wish it luck traveling to the other world. She opened her eyes and looked up at the man, "You have some strength. Who are you?"
Loki foldedx his arm/wings and looked at the hunter. "I am Loki, son of the Lioness Goddess of the Desert, and The God of Ravens. I have no village." As was custom among the Yoreiqi, he moved to her and pressed his nose to hers in greetings.
"I live alone in this jungle, but I often leave on trips for... learning purposes. After one such trip, I returned to find this creature unsettling the balance. I do not know how it got here, but I have given it time to settle into the rythm of the jungle, but it had failed to do so. Have you noticed that the birds have stopped singing? The jungle noises had dimmed. But hear: they are now back. The monstrocity is gone." He looked down at the corpse. "I don't think its meat is edible. We should let it rot, and give its life to the planta around."
Shadyo touched noses and then nodded as he said to give the creature to the jungle, "Yes, let the jungle reclaim what was lost to it by the creature. The sound of jungle returns and it is music to my ears." As he mentioned that he was from the desert, and the son of the Lioness Goddess of the Desert, her eyes lit up.
"You seem like a very interesting man. I have a village. But, I tend to wander the Jungle. I love to learn more and more about the way things are here. I want to be closer to the beauty of the Jungle and learn its ways." She smiled and looked around her at what she called home.
Her village was deep in the Jungle, but it was still Village life, and it seemed to bore her sometimes. But she never thought about leaving it. They need her help, and her mother would be very disappointed in her if she left her people for her own selfish reasons. She would never do that, as long as she lived. She would just have to enjoy the Jungle as long as possible, before she had to return.
"I have lived in the jungle all of my life. Having been born here, I know this jungle more than I know my parents. One might say that the jungle is my parent. Or my village. " Loki nodded decisively. "Yes, this is my village. I am glad that you care so much about it. I will teach you its ways, if you like. And thank you for your compliment, as well."
Shadyo smiled widely suddenly, "Oh, would you teach me?" She looked at him. She hungry to learn the ways of the Jungle, but then she rememered her duty. She walked over to the dead creature and grabbed her spear. She had to hunt for food. She suddenly stopped, for another roar was heard. She looked back at Loki.
Loki stood completely still. Could there be...more of them? How many were there? "Hold on," he murmered, and leapt straight up in the air, through the canopy. There was a few minuted of silence before he dropped down with a suddeness that terrified nearby birds and animals, and, though they had been hidden, the surprisingly large amount of animals that hadmade there way into that area without being seen made themselves seen fro a flash as the quickly fled. Loki paid no notice.
"It is as I thought. There has been strange going ons in the volcano. Inside. Strange magics and noises. This," he motioned to the corpse," beast is no animal, but a monster, and someone is making more of them. I'm sure of this. If this is not stopped, they will begin to attack villages. This cannot happen." He watched her with his intelligent, serious eyes, then looked toward the volcano, hidden as it was in the canopies and foilage. "I need... find me some hunters brave enough to join me, and we will find out what is happening, and stop it."
Shadyo was shocked as the news was told. Someone making monsters? "But...why would anyone do that.." She she whispered to herself. Loki wanted warriors, she nodded and turned. She unfolded her brilliant orange wings and took to the sky. She looked back down to him, "Loki...Be careful okay." She turned and with one large flap of her fourteen foot wing span, she flew into the air, graceful and quite, almost like she was a fog, misting through the treetops.
Loki nodded at herr, then watched her fly off. It was time for him to leave as well. She would find him when the time came; he was sure of it. That was how these things worked. He spread his arms and leapt up through the air, clearing the trees before he spread his wings and soaring, heading for the volcano. Yes...strange smoke... small, strnge creatures running besides the lava flows... this was not right. He quickly turned wing and headed home.
At the edge of the jungle, he landed on the platform of his treehouse, which was near impossible to reach without wings. Or his jumping ability, but... no one could jump as high as he could. Maybe one of the beast gryphons. Although it was dark, he lit a beeswax candle, and studied the night away. When he oke up the next afternoon, he had to peel paper and vellum off of his face and freshen up before he could fly out to the general area where he had met Shadyo the day before. He flew around, searching for her.
Shadyo had found a couple warriors who were willing to help her, even though they hadn't really believed her. She had gotten almost no sleep during the night, for the thought of more creatures like that out there, scared her. She blinked, trying to wake up some, as she and the warriors headed to find Loki.
She spotted him and swooped down, followed by the strong warriors, "Loki, I found some help. " She looked up and noticed strange smoke rising from the volcano. She looked at Loki with worry in her eyes.
Loki gave Shadyo a reassuring nod before taking to the skies. "I've found a way in. We'll be underground. It will also be hot. I do not know what we will find...but I hope you have said your goodbies in case you don't return. Our primary objective is to stop whomever and whatever is creating the, and the strange gases. If we were to die, but have stopped further growth, the hunters would be able to take them down, although with great sacrifice. If we manage to come out alive, then our secondary goal is to destroy the beasts."
Loki dived, suddenly. Landing in the trees near the base of the volcano, he motioned to a cave entrance that appeared unguarded. "We will go through there," he said. "All clear? Then let's go."
Shadyo nodded. She had said her goodbyes. She didn't know what this journey could mean for her, but she would do anything to save her people. She took to the skies and followed Loki, the warriors following them. She looked back. They all seemed so very eager to serve their people. She sighed, hoping that they all lived.
She landed next to Loki and looked to where he pointed, "Yes. Let's go!" She called to the warriors and jumped out of the tree, she landed silently, and folded in her orange wings and looked up at the sky. It could be the last time she saw the sky.
Stealthily, Loki sped for the cave, body low to the ground. Inside, the cave was dark, and a magic-laden, butbut natural smelling smoke filled the upper portion of the tunnel, forcing them to crouch low. The long, thin cave, like a tunnel, went a long ways into the mountain before it started branching off. From each passageway, fresh air came through, so Loki waved them past: those tunnels led to the outside. They followed the smoke until the went around the corner to find a dragon, the source of the smoke, sleeping.
This was obviously not one of the intelligent races of the earth, but their cousins, similar in look, but far jdifferences in intelligence. This might be trouboe. As long as no one makes a sound...
Shadyo followed Loki, and breathed in the fresh air everytime they came to a tunnle that led to the outside. Some of the Warriors were giving her strange looks, maybe they were starting to believe her that something weird was really going on? She hoped, then they would be on more alert.
When they came upon a dragon, she had to stifle a gasp. Loki's facial expression told her not to make a sound, for waking the beast could be lethal. She looked at the beauty of the creature and longed to study it more, and get to know how it lived. But she knew that she could end up dead trying to do that. Dragon's were not something to mess with. Her mother always told her that. She looked at Loki and wondered what they were going to do. She noticed a tunnle on the other side of the dragon and then waved them over to the side of the cave wall.
She slowly started to walk around the beast, hoping that she was light enough on her feet to not wake the dragon.
Following Shadyo to the tunnel, Loki nearly sighed in releif when they had passed the dragon. He held hithe sigh, wanting to be sure they were scot free, but one of the warriors didn't take that precaution, and his quiet sigh sounded quite heavy in the empty caverns. And, of course, the dragon woke. "Run!" Loki yelled, throwing caution to the wind. Spreading his harpy-like wings as far apart as the tunnel allowed, he streamlined his way in front, and sped down the tunnel. Taking the first tunnel branching off, he didn't even care what awaited them as the others quickly joined him as a burst of flames flew by. Good thing the tunnel was too small for the dragon!
"Well, now..." growled a voice from behind. Out of the frying pan, and into the fire.
The dragon awoke with an angry lust for who ever woke it. Shadyo heard Loki's call and she raced forward. She was grazed but his wings and she followed closely. When they came to the cavern, she stood breathing hard. She looked around to make sure no one was hurt. The heat of the fire ball and singed some of her down feathers, but she wasn't really concerned about that, for a voice had spoken behind her.
Turning, Loki found himself face-to-face with several men. At least, they resembled men. They were parts of creatures and part human: a bulky, furred arm here, scales there, unnatural wings; they, although they mightve been men once, that they were no longer.
"Do you know, you don't belong here. Now, if you come along quietly, we'll keep you here for a while, until the boss wants to speak to you. Alright?"
"...Alright," Loki said. "I don't think there's any way we can defeat tou, anyways." That didn't make since. Him, Shadyo and the warriors; together, they could definately win against the strangers. Without getting much hurt, either. He was just giving up!
Shadyo looked at Loki with a spark of anger, "Loki? You're going to go with them!" She stepped back and glared at the creature like men. She looked at the warriors, they all seemed to be giving up as well! Handing over their swords and spears. This should not be happening. "Loki? What are you doing! They will kill you for tresspassing!"
She was surprised that the boss wasn't already there. Unless...he doesn't care who enters...that would mean that these men could have been expiramented on and turned into these filthy looking things. If that was the case, she wasn't about to let Loki and the warriors go with them to be turned into creatures themself!
"Shadyo..." Loki warned. "Give up. There's no hope. There's just too many of them."
"Yeah...listen to your beau... give up!" After tying up Loki and the warriors, only Shadyo was left. They surrouned her. "Give up your weapons, girlie! Just come with us and you won't be hurt..." The leader eyed her up and down. "Much."
The men-things inched closer and closer, weapons out, inhuman weapons out. Shadyo had no choice: either fight under impossible odds, and likely lose, or give up and hope for a chance to survive. Loki watched, tied up, his dark eyes boring into hers with a determination not suited to those who've surrendered.
Shadyo couldn't belive what she was hearing...they gave up! As she watched her friends get tied up, they creatures came closer to her. She was forced to step backwards, only to find a wall in the way. She looked into Loki's eyes and saw something there that surpirsed her. He was determined about something... Determined to get us all killed?! She felt something on her arm and she freaked. She opened her wings and kicked wildly.
She felt a sharp pain and looked at her right wing, a creature stabbed it. She felt another and her left wing was stabbed. She was pinned to the wall. She held in a cry of pain. She looked at Loki and then back down at her feet that were barely touching the floor. The pain in her wings was almost unbearable.
Damnit, Shadyo! Loki couldn't bear to watch, but didn't dare look away as the creatures, the beasts, the demons pinned her up by her wings. He could see the pain in her eyes, and he despaired. Why couldn't she have followed his lead? Why couldn't she have bound her need for freedom?
"Now, girlie, you're coming with us!" They tied her up, being as rough with her wings and skin as they could without breaking, and they pushed all of their prisoners deeper and deeper into the volcano. It got hotter and hotter, of course, and they saw more people creatures the deeper they went. At last, they entered a cavern filled with row upon row of cages.
Most of these cages had beasts; some were like the ones that had ravaged the jungle. Others were even bigger, scarier, wilder or more twisted. They all fought at their binds, slashing at the metal bars, roaring and hissing, looking for a chance to escape and kill everything in sight.
The prisoners were all stuffed into different cages; some of which still had bones of deceased animal. Loki and Shadyo shared one such cage. They were thrown in, quite savagely, and the cage was locked without untieing their binds.
"I'll come back for you later, girlie," snickered the beast-man. "We all will, before the boss has his turn at you." With guffaws and snickers, the troupe walked away, out of the cavern, and their voices died away. Loki rested his head against the cool iron bars with a sigh.
Shadyo looked down, "I am sorry Loki...I didn't know that you had a plan." She didn't look at him. Those disgusting creatures....she knew what they wanted from her. She pulled her legs in closer to her. Her wings were bleeded and drooping around her. She didn't care, she got them into this mess and she was going to get them out! It was just the way it had to be.
She looked up and then around. The twisted creatures were very grotesque and she had to look away from some of them. But what she was really looking for was a way to escape before those creatures came back. She looked at Loki, then opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
What was she going to say? She didn't know any of this was going to happen..but it was still her fault. She shouldn't have fought, it was just...her instincts to get away from people that could hurt her. Her mother taught her that, and she always wanted to appease her mother.
Loki hardly paid her any attention as he looked around, scanning the area, taking it all in. Then, sliding onto his back, he wriggled until his leonine haunches were by the door, and he kicked. Hard. It only took one kick to knock it off its hinges. Not even bothering to listen in case someone heard, he scuttled out.
"Shadyo. Let the other men out." After all, he didn't have hands. Kicking worked good on the inside, but not the outside of the cage. "Now that they've brought us into their base, we can really see what's going on. If we had fought them, we would have had to continue wandering, and we would have come upon all sorts of things. Now, we already get to meet the mastermind, and possibly discover what is going on."
Shadyo got out of the cage, impressed by his strength. She ran over and opened the rest of the cages. The warriors staggered out. She looked around and noticed a small door. She crept over to it and put her ear to it. Nothing. She grabbed the handle and twisted it slowly. Opening the door just a crack, a large gush of air came rushing through. She looked at the others. It was the only door in the room.
She took a step in and then motioned the others to follow. She walked swiftly and quietly.
Loki followed Shadyo out of the cavern. At least she had the sense not to walk out of the cavern entrance, Loki thought. He didn't think much of her after her little fiasco, but he knew that she had spirit, determination and will. That was vital for growth. If they survived it.
"Um... could you?" Loki's wings were still bound. A warrior helped untie him, and they followed Shadyo, streching out their limbs. Loki didn't bother to be stealthy, although he didn't try to be loud, either.
Shadyo looked at Loki. He didn't like her. She sighed and shook her head, it shouldn't matter to her! She was a warrior and she would prove it. She stood up straight suddenly, feeling a vibration in the ground. Whatever was beyond the wall was huge and moving. She learned to listen for those type of vibrations from her mother.
She couched and slowly started to walk. She stopped at the corner and looked around it. A large tiger type dragon walked around in a circle. It's tail was huge and had large spikes on the tip of it. She narrowed her eyes and looked back at Loki and the warriors. She looked at each of them. Behind them the Guard Creatures appeard, angry. She gasped a little and then jumped up. She jumped behind them and kicked the creatures as hard as she could.
The creatures fell back, though they weren't felled by a kick of hers, though they would be feeled, and not simply have fell if it were Loki's kick. As it was, they recoiled from her savage kicks, and crawled, then stood, away. "You idiots!" The creatures cried. "The boss will be angry that you've escaped! He's going to punish you, and he's coming!" Footsteps, sounding strange, echoed as they approached.
Loki looked around desperately. Meeting the boss was part of the plan. This situation, between a rock and a hard placce, was not. He flung one of his own kicks, breaking more ribs than Shadyo had, but did not continue his onslaught, and motioned with a wing for Shadyo to stop, before she broke more ribs through sheer fierceness. There wasn't any point. Down the way the beast-men came from, were the footsteps. They didn't want to go there. The other way led to a dragon. They didn't want to go there either. The plan had been to draw out the boss... but Loki had expected them to get out farther away from the main base. He waited, tense, for 'The Boss' to come out. The creature men treated the victims od Shadyo and Loki's feet in a surprisingly human gesture, but did not retaliate. It was clear that they wished to, however, in their murderous looks and crude language.
Shadyo looked at the Boss. She was not scared, but pissed off. She wanted to bash the guys head in. His "minions" said that the boss wanted to do things to her. She looked at Loki, and then straight into the eyes of the Boss. "What are you doing!?" She could see the mischeif in the Boss's eyes.
She was silent then. She messed up the last plan, she wasn't about to do that again. She looked down at her feet. She didn't want to be here suddenly. She broke out in a cold sweat, and felt like she was going to pass out, but she kept herself still.
The Boss looked very... humane. He was human, Thanati by the look of him, though he had no tattoos. His eyes were kindly and warmed, and his cronies all relaxed and smiled when he looked at them. When he looked at Loki and the warriors, however, they did not feel relaxed at all. Loki bent low to the ground, wings held out on either side, hissing. He lashed his leonine tail wildly. This animalistic behaviour, completely different from his usual composedness, showed the fear in his heart. His eyes were wild in terror, from just the man's look. The other warriors, too, showed fear from one who stood stoicly, but sweating, and a wet stain spreading on his pants, to one who was panicking completely in terror, shrieking, running around, and trying to fly in the cramped space.
"There is a god," said the man kindly. "A god of misses and matches." He smiled gently as he told his tail. His servants fawned at his feet, and our heroes could feel the fear grow stronger. "When the world was young, he made people like him. They were beautiful. They were good. They lived in peace. Then came another god. He was a god of perfection. He made people who looked like him. The first people, who were beautiful, looked ugly in comparison. The new people called them misshapen and hideous, and scorned them. These new people were evil. Their souls were evil. They caused chaos, and wreaked havoc on the world. The god of perfection laughed, evil as he was, and smote the mis-matched god. That god fell into a sleep.
"In order to reawaken him, we must wash ourselves of the taint of perfection. One must be sacrificed that is good of heart, but has the evil soul of perfection. Only after all the world has been cleanse, shall he be sacrificed, and only after he is sacrificed will the god reawaken and bring peace. To cleanse this world, those perfect must be killed, or their perfection missed and matched. Come, child." He looked at Shadyo, who had the least fear. "I will wash you in my holy waters, and cleanse you of your perfection. Only then will you be able to live in the land of peace that is our future. It will hurt much. That is the cost of purification. But you will go from fear from the evil in your soul," he gestured to the panicked warriors. "To peace from the good your soul has become." He gestured toward the men at his feet. Peaceful, they were, but there face was mixed and matched to create an ugly Picasso of a face, mixed with other human species and animals.
"You have the most evil in your soul, child. Your perfection... is a sure sign. Do you fear me?"
Shadyo had stayed silent through his tale. She was mesmerized by his tale, but something made her feel uneasy about everything. She looked at Loki who was on the ground hissing, obvious fear hung on the air, that made her feel uneasy as well. When the boss asked for her to come with, she hesitated. She did not know what to do, and the fear was growing more inside her. She stepped back away from him, and put her wings out, in a gesture that said, "come any closer and I will rip your face off"
Her wings were still bleeding, so the gesture merely said, "Come any closer and I might tap you." She still held them up proudly.
((Sorry about the absence, real-life got really busy))
The man smiled at her, his own perfection giving him a welcome, friendly cast. He held held out a hand, open-palmed, welcoming. When she didn't come, he beckoned with his other hand to his men. They srpang to their feet (except the injured) and stalked forward. "Is it the pain you fear?" He asked with that calm smile. "Or is it the evil in you, fearful of its demise? Or is it fear for your cohorts? They will surely be killed. Perhaps one or two will join you in your fate, also cleansed and changed, but many will die. Many in the world will die. I have not the power to cleanse them all."
Loki and the warriors dropped back as the Boss' minions advanced. One look into Loki's usually calm and calculating face made it obvious that all of his plans, intelligence and determination were all gone. Nothing was left but the mind-shattering, heart-squeezing, throat-throbbing fear. Shadyo was alone. Only she still had the wit to move a chess piece. The question was... did she have the courage to overcome her fear? Or would she succumb?
((It's okay. I have a lot going on, too! <3))