Animal Instincts (hal7283 & wolfdog12) (18+, private)

[hal7283]

"Sure, let's take a break.." Ekichu said as he looked around, and found a relatively open spot under a big tree for the two to rest under. Ekichu gather some fallen leaves and started a fire. After that he laid his belly down and began to rest. To be honest he could keep on going like this for days without rest, and could easily do so while carrying Suteneko on his back. But there was no need to rush things, as the journey ahead of them was still very, very long.

[WolfDog12]

Once Ekichu settled in, Suteneko began to go a little farther in. "I'll go get us something to eat. I function well in the dark." He smiled a bit before disappearing into the shadows. The young Kokuei wanted to do something for Ekichu since everything would be left to the arthroplon once spring hit. The dragon had to go out quite a ways to find some food.

 

He found one large deer with a baby deer near it. Once they were a bit apart, Suteneko jumped on the buck and fought it. His wings flapped as a distraction and the dragon bit and broke the deer's spine. It fell to the ground instantly dead. The baby had run off but Suteneko could still see it as it ran. He shot off like a hunting cat and chased down the deer easily catching up. He grabbed it in his jaws and yanked it back killing it from sheer force. The young Kokuei hurried back and pulled the parent on his back and began making his way back to Ekichu, baby still in his mouth. It took some time to get back but when he did, Suteneko dropped the adult in front of his friend and took the baby for himself. "This was the best I could do. There isn't much to eat in this forest."

[hal7283]

"Thanks." Ekichu said as he reached out his claws to the dear Suteneko was carrying. He tore off the head from one of the dear and threw the head into his mouth, crushing, chewing it easily as if it was a nut of some kind. "I'm okay for now. You can go ahead and eat as much as possible. After that we should take turns to stay on guard. I'll take the first half of the night."

 

Ekichu then turned his attention to the surroundings. The forest was quiet, only the sound of insects attracted by the fire and flew to their death could be heard, while the more intelligent creatures have all decided to keep their distances from the two, which was a relief for Ekichu. He didn't want to trespass into the territory of some large predator and end up having to fight off the thing like with the forest spirit earlier.

 

Now certain they were safe, Ekichu's thought began to drift, to the past, and to the future. Meeting with Suteneko and talking with Bob had made him think about his situation, the past of the Arthroplon species, and the future of it. He was only partly honest when he told Bob that he didn't remember the reason for Arthroplon's reluctance of procreation, in fact he remembered part of it: the choice of a proper mate. While the Arthroplon could mate with their own, they prefer to mate with other species and in terms incorporate new and strong bloodline.

 

But the problem was such worthy mate are rare. And even if one showed up, the fate of such mates involved were usually...unpleasant. The Arthroplon didn't cared in the past, but Ekichu was different. Having met, and befriended Suteneko, someone of a different species, plus meeting and interacting with creatures like Bob, had made Ekichu hesitant. Is the future of the Arthroplon, a species might as well be extinct, and a species which existence alone seems to cause harm to others, worthy of jeopardizing the future of another creature?

 

Ekichu shrugged the thought off quickly, not wanting the dwell on it too much. What matters now is to find a cure of Suteneko's predicament, and if possible help him get his revenge. This is the least Ekichu could do for the kindness he'd received from the small creature.

[WolfDog12]

Suteneko looked at Ekichu and watched him eat just the head of the deer. Of course the young Kokuei could easily eat both the baby and it's father in one go but it was probably best to hold onto the food for a while. Still, the dragon ate the baby not wanting to spoil it and walked over to the larger deer. "Maybe we should preserve the meat for now? If you're not hungry then we should save it until you are. It took a while to even find this so who knows when we'll find more." Suteneko poked it with one paw before pulling out some salt he had been given in town. "I told them I didn't have any and he gave it to me incase I felt like preserving more meat to sell them.... no idea what he meant... guess he didn't know we were leaving."

 

The dragon had no idea what he was doing so he just gave it to Ekichu with an apologetic look. He walked back over to his spot to lay down after being told to get some rest. Suteneko was a bit of a nocturnal creature, it was sager that way, so he had strange sleep habits. He wasn't exactly tired yet but knew he just had to reverse his sleep pattern to the night being the morning. "Alright, just be sure to wake me up when it is my turn." The dragon watched his friend for anot her minute before he lowered his head and closed his eyes. The Kokuei couldn't help but think about Ekichu and what happened but also how Suteneko would stop being the last of his kind.... unless he wasn't the last of his kind yet....

[hal7283]

Ekichu stayed on guard for the first half of the night, and it was quiet and uneventful. Then Ekichu suddenly felt the presence of something. At first Ekichu thought it came from the animal from the woods, but quickly realized it wasn't since their presence was weak, too weak to be anything natrual. Ekichu couldn't hear any breathing, smell any scent, feel any vibration of footsteps coming through the ground or the change in current of the air. But the fact that he could feel nothing was a sign in itself, since the forest is filled with life anywhere and everywhere there was always something, which made the sudden "void" the more alarming.

 

Ekichu lifted his body from the ground while extending his tentacles and pushed Suteneko slightly to wake him up, in the meantime the "void" increased in number, in fact surrounding the two. As the "void" drew near they eventually showed themselves: a group of strange beings completely shrouded in black cloak, which made them look more like lumps of black fabric than anything else.

 

"Who are you? And what do you want from us?" Ekichu asked, his claws and tail ready to strike in any second.

 

The beings had no respond, and for a moment there was only silence. As a large cloud moved over the moon covering the world in darkness, the strange beings showed their two hands from the cloak, each holding weapons of some kind, and in a blink of an eye the group rushed towards the two with stunning speed, agility, and strength.

[WolfDog12]

It took a very long time for Suteneko to start falling asleep. It was almost midnight by the time he managed to get some rest only to be woken very quickly to point out that something was wrong. The other tried to hear or see what it was that had Ekichu on the edge but he didn't sense anything. The young Kokuei began to wonder about what could be wrong until the silence really took hold. There was nothing around. The dragon was on guard now wondering what was happening when a strange group seemed to just appear from the nothing.

 

As the world became even darker and the other's attacked, Suteneko temporarily spread his wings for an intimidation affect. "You're messing with the wrong creature in the night." The Kokuei moved just out of the way of one of the attacks and disappeared into the shadows. Kokuei were known to vanish in darkness. It was a defense against bigger creatures. After mumbling something quietly, a great gust of wind burst through the trees and pushed the strange figures back a bit. They had something under those cloaks that nulled the effects a bit.

 

Suteneko began moving out of the shadows for a more direct fight; however, when he did, one of the creature's attacked him. He thought he dodged it but somehow it still slashed his chest just slightly. "Be careful Ekichu these weapons aren't normal." Suteneko didn't doubt his friend but it was best to be warned.

[hal7283]

"Suteneko!" Ekichu shouted as he saw some of the attackers began their assault on the Kokuei, but he was soon met with his own share of problems, as the creatures attacked with such strength and precision that it send a chill up Ekishu's spine. Ekichu used his claws trying to strike at the attackers but they were extremely agile, and dodged his attacks easily.

 

But the attackers didn't get much luck themselves, as Ekichu was like a living fortress, every single part of him was coered in hard armor and had the strength to crush other creatures with ease, which prevented them from venturing too close. One of tried to attack Ekichu from the back, only to be sent flying by the strong swipe of Ekichu's tail, breaking several trees in the process.

 

Yet even with one of their comrades down the rest continued the assault with the same ferocity, in not greater. Ekichu managed to grab one of them with his claws and he tightened the grip, the sounds of bones crushing echoed in the darkness. But just then one of them sneaked close and thrust his dagger against Ekichu, its tip digging inside Ekichu's shell slightly. Enraged, Ekichu let out a deafening roar while raising his body up with the back four legs, and slamming the front legs down on the attacker, crushing him.

 

And as a gulf of wind blew the cloud away and moonlight shines over the land again the group of attackers disappeared into the woods, picking up their wounded and dead along the way, and soon the forest returned to normal, with only the sounds of nocturnal insects breaking the silence.

 

"Are you alright Suteneko?" Ekichu said as he turned to look at the Kokuei. During the battle he was too occupied to see how Suteneko was doing.

[WolfDog12]

Suteneko found just as hard still getting use to battling with his magic. He had an advantage being able to vanish in the darkness but it wasn't much since he had to keep fighting and talking to cast his magic. These strangers may be quick and agile but that was something Kokuei were known for. Suteneko managed to kill one of them and injure a number of others. His wind magic was doing more with the clouds then it was with these strange creatures. Suteneko even tried shadow magic that did quite a bit of damage, however it came at a horrible price.

 

Luckily, before Suteneko wasted all of his energy turning into a cloud of darkness slashing at his enemies, the clouds vanished and brought back the light. The Kokuei calmed down a bit as the enemy fled, but remembered hearing Ekichu roar during the fight. He ran over just as his friend called out. "I'm fine just small scratches here and there. What about you? Are you alright Ekichu?" The young dragon began looking at the injury trying to see just how back it was on Ekichu. "This was a bad idea..." He mumbled silently to himself. The smaller creature began locking the wound. It was an old concept that cats would heal wounds by liking them.

[hal7283]

"I'm fine. Just a little scratch." Ekichu said as he was relieved seeing Suteneko coming at him, but was saddened to see the wounds on his body. He panicked as he saw Suteneko began to lick his wounds, which in truth was nothing but nothing serious, as the dagger only managed to penetrate the surface of his armor and didn't came close to touching his flesh. Nevertheless he could feel the Kokuei's tongue on his body, and he wasn't sure how to react.

 

"I'm fine really! It didn't penetrate my shell. " Ekichu said as he used his hand tentacles to pick Suteneko up, and laid him a bit further from himself: "Now let me see your wounds. We've bought some medicine back in the town." Ekichu then reached for their luggage which was untouched during the fight, and took out a small jar filled with a green paste. "Let me help you apply these on your wounds."

[WolfDog12]

"Don't you worry about me." Suteneko was shocked when he had been moved and placed away from Ekichu. The dragon was laid down and Ekichu was already pulling out the supplies for taking care of the wounds. "I'm fine! Wounds like this will heal in the moonlight. I am a magical creature after all!" He laughed a bit but cringed a bit since one of the cuts was in a bad place for him to be laughing. It was still nice of Ekichu to be thinking about his young friend like that.

 

It wasn't in him to put up any more of a fight and Suteneko was just helped. He got the medication on his injuries and it looked like a horror film gone wrong. The dragon's black body, skin and fur, were stained a bit with bright red almost firey blood and now with a strange green paste lathered over the worst of the red areas. Still, Suteneko didn't say a word and just left it as it was. He did get up to go stand watch.

 

"It's my turn now to stand watch so get some rest."

[hal7283]

Ekichu thought for a second before looking around, the forest had returned to its normal state. Nevertheless Ekichu was alarmed, since he had no clue who the attackers were and why they were attacked. It might have been a unfortunate encounter, but they also could have entered the domain of some dangerous force without knowing it. And the fact that the attackers appeared and disappeared within a blink of an eye made Ekichu more uncomfortable.

 

"No, the attackers may still be nearby. We should get out of this forest as soon as possible." Ekichu said before picking Suteneko up and laid him on his back, and began to venture through the forest in haste.

[WolfDog12]

Suteneko seemed to relax to the sounds of the forest returning but he quickly noticed that Ekichu wasn't all that settled by the retreat. Of course the Kokuei was confused on what those monsters were and what they wanted but he'd always been ok living day by day and didn't expect them to attack again tonight. Plus, Suteneko knew they didn't like even the light of the moon so he could use his wind magic to get rid of the clouds.

 

Despite his calmness, Ekichu wasn't thrilled and pulled the Kokuei onto his back and took off. "Ekichu?! We can't just head back!! We already decided to take this route didn't we? What's wrong?!" He held on tight as to not fall off but he couldn't understand what was going through his friend's head. They clearly didn't know each other enough.

[hal7283]

"I know. I'm not heading back, I'm rushing through this forest as soon as possible!" Ekichu said to the creature on his back as he cleared a path across the forest, bringing down countless trees in the process. As the sun was about to rise above the horizon Ekichu and cleared the forest and reached the bottom of the mountain. Seeing the line of trees behind him Ekichu finally relaxed and regained his calm.

 

"Sorry... I was..." Ekichu turned to look at Suteneko on his back and found no words at first. He lowered his head pondering what just happened and said: ": "Those who attacked us, their weapons were able to penetrate my shell. It was a dagger so it didn't went deep, but what if it was a spear? Or a sword？ It could have gone deeper and actually harm me! I've never, never met a opponent who actually stand a chance of harming me. Even though I've inherited memories of my ancestors, and 'remember' times when the Arthroplons met a strong enemies and was injured. It's quite a different thing to experience it myself. I think... I got scared."

[WolfDog12]

The faster Ekichu ran, the more Suteneko tried to hold on. He was afraid of falling off and at this insane speed, he'd no doubt get hurt and thrown all around. It was hard to hold on but after a couple hours, the dragon got the hang of it and was able to handle the running, still, the moving up and down over the falling trees was hard to handle. What was wrong with Ekichu? Surely someone as strong as he was shouldn't be afraid of being attacked... Could he? It was strange, that's for sure.

 

When they finally came to a stop, Suteneko carefully and slowly relaxed but didn't get off. Even without being able to feel his muscles relax, Suteneko could sense Ekichu calming and relaxing more. The dragon watched his friend, still not getting off, until he explained why he acted they way that he did. The young Kokuei listened to the story and when Ekichu finished, Suteneko understood completely what the problem was. "I see. I guess it would be hard for me to understand that too much because I don't have armor like that. I've been injured and I get hurt all the same but for someone who's never really been hurt I can see where this would be so scary." He smiled up at his friend before jumping off his back. "Now you should get some rest. I will work on a protective barrier."

[hal7283]

Ekichu fell silent for a moment before nodding to Suteneko, and laid down his body on the ground for rest. He wasn't physically tired, but psychologically he was a bit worn out. He had some difficulty falling asleep as sense of fear, mixing with regret filled his mind. But after sometime he finally fell asleep.

 

And during that sleep he began to dream. In the dream Ekichu was in a strange room, glittering with strange lights, filled with strange objects and instruments. One side of the wall seemed to be built out of countless cells of various sizes, and strange creatures could be seen through a transparent wall. But the strangest thing of all was that, in the dream Ekichu was very different., not covered in the hard shells, not having the strong claws and tail, not having the red eyes that glowed in the dark, not even the six legs.

 

Ekichu heard the voice of someone behind him and he turned around, a strange creature unlike anything he has ever seen looked at him with a worried look. The language it spoke was strange and alien, but somehow Ekichu knew exactly what it.... no, what "she' said:

 

"Do you think it's going to work this time?"

 

"I don't know. But even if it fail we just have to keep trying." Ekichu found himself speaking the same strange tongue to the other creature. "Everything depends on this!" Ekichu found himself picking up a strange object from the table nearby, and pressed something one it. The next moment the cells in the walls began to be filled by some sort of green gas, blocking the view through the window, and the agonizing screams of the creatures could be heard from them, many began to slam themselves desperately against the transparent wall, but it was in vain. And soon all the creatures in the cells fell silent. Ekichu pressed on the strange object in his hand again, and all the green gas inside disappeared, revealing all the creatures inside once more, and none of them was moving, not even the ups and downs of breathing could be seen.

 

"No life signs......." The other creature said as she looked into one of the strange objects. Ekichu and the other creature fell silent, he could see disappointment from the other creature's face, and somehow Ekichu felt the same. In fact he almost felt like he was in despair.

 

Then suddenly he heard something from the cells, and Ekichu turned to look at the cells carefully, and one of the creature stumbled back up, then another, and another, until all of the creatures inside turned back to life like nothing had happened.

 

"It worked.... It worked!" Ekichu found himself somehow excited, almost ecstatic and reached for the hand of the other creature on his side. "It actually worked!"

 

"Yes, you've finally did it." The other creature said with a excited voice. "We're saved!"

 

Ekichu hugged the other creature tightly in his arms, and for a moment his heart was filled with hope, then suddenly a large bang came from the cells, then another, and another. Ekichu turned to look at the cell wall and saw the creatures began to slam themselves frantically against the transparent wall, and as they do their body began to twist and turn, deforming, swelling, shrinking in random. Cracks began to occur on the walls and with another large bang the wall broke, and the transforming creatures flooded out........

 

Then Ekichu woke up, having his shell, his claws and tails, his four glowing eyes and his six strong legs once more. The sun has risen to right above his head. For a moment he almost forgot how to work his body. He thought about the strange dream he had and couldn't understand one bit of it. Then he remembered where he was and why he was there. He looked around trying to see if Suteneko was around.

[WolfDog12]

Suteneko was about a hundred feet away sitting on a rock. He seemed to be really trying to concentrate on something. He had his head down, eyes shut and not even his tail was moving. The dragon had waited a bit for Ekichu to start dosing off before he began working on the barrier. He had to draw a huge circle around them so he had something to focus on more then just winging it. A round or any barrier that guarded all sides was difficult and without some type of training, one could seriously hurt themselves and damage their brains.

 

Luckily, when he was little, Suteneko's mom would show him just a few things with her magic to keep him occupied and one of the things she showed him was the "Invisible Bubble". His mother would draw a circle to show Suteneko where the bubble was and then create a small barrier for the young Kokuei to jump on and try and break into. There were lots of times that he tried to make the bubble himself and would run to his parents crying that the bubble didn't like him and wouldn't come. Of course his mom had to deal with it.

 

Originally, his mom explained it as every kokuei had their own special bubble and they were the only ones that could walk right through it as if it wasn't there and that if she tried to go through Suteneko's bubble, she would feel it. It was a great lie that kept Suteneko occupied for hours and hours sitting in the small circle in the dirt pretending he was in his own bubble. even the guards would play along and pretend to hit the bubble every time Suteneko was in it. It wasn't much but the visual did help him with his magic.

 

Still, He was untrained and so it was still a lot of stress. At first the dragon didn't hear Ekichu waking up but when he got up and called out, Suteneko snapped out of it and released the barrier. He looked exhausted when he let go and just turned to the Arthroplon. The young Kokuei went to get off the rock and slipped stumbling around before he got his legs a bit and walked over. "Did you sleep well?" he questioned.

[hal7283]

Ekichu saw Suteneko coming near him and was able to get a better grasp on reality. Yes, this is what's happening right now, this is the reason why he was there. Suteneko, his old friend. "Yes, I've got enough rest." Ekichu said as he waved his claws around swiftly, showing he had regained his strength. "I'll go and see if I can find something to eat, after that let's start climbing up that mountain."

[WolfDog12]

"Alright. You sure you don't want me to go get the food?" It was pretty clear that Suteneko wasn't going to be getting up again after he laid down so he was trying to stay on his feet. The dragon knew he wasn't going to be allowed to go so when Ekichu left, Suteneko laid down and curled up. He fell asleep almost instantly and without bothering with any kind of protective barrier. The young Kokuei didn't remember any dreams since it was too short of a sleeping time. He woke when Ekichu returned.

[hal7283]

Ekichu traversed the forest as quiet as a huge armored beast could. This forest was abundant with lives of all kinds, but after last night the they have grown to be more cautious of the strange intruders, hiding, fleeting from Ekichu as soon as he approaches.

 

"This isn't working" he thought to himself. Normally he could burrow underground and wait for days to ambush the careless animals walking by, but they're on a journey, and they'll need some food supply to go across the mountains. He sharpened his senses and noticed a large animal some distance away from him. The next moment Ekichu began to sprint, moving like a mudslide breaking all the plants in his wake. The creature noticed it almost the moment Ekichu started to move and began to flee. But Ekichu was much faster as he ignored all the obstacles in front of him, and with a large jump he descended upon the large creature, thrusting his claws into the creature's body before it could even resist. It was this moment Ekichu actually got to see the creature he had hunted, it looked like a large Rhino with horns on each side of his head, then he noticed the clothing it was wearing, and a large sack strapped on its back. Ekichu remembered seeing one of these creatures back in the city they've just visited, and he remembered it behind the counter of one of those shops, talking and bargaining with others. It wasn't a simple animal, but actually one of the "civilized" races.

 

But it made little difference to Ekichu, "civilized" or not, a hunt is a hunt. He picked up the corpse and began to travel back to the camp site. Once he saw Suteneko he showed him the hunt and said: "I've got a big one. It should be enough for the trip across the mountains. Well, at least this one."

[WolfDog12]

Suteneko looked over at his friend and noticed the clothes on the kill. "Wasn't that-?" The dragon cut himself off realizing it was probably best that he didn't say anything. He knew it would be hard for Ekichu to sneak up on anything so he must have become a little desperate. Either way, a kill was a kill and not eating it would be even worse, so the Kokuei got up and walked over so he could take some of the meat.

 

He took a small piece to help open up the meat to be prepared and so he could have himself a snack before they got going. The dragon was clearly still exhausted from using so much magic but he stood tall and was ready to keep going. They had clearly gotten farther then expected but at least they were on track. The journey was a bit ahead of schedule but that was helpful since Suteneko was going to be the cause of them falling behind schedule.

 

"Are you ready to go? Once we get into the mountain I doubt those strangers will return so we should be safe from them for the rest of this trip. We now just have to worry about the other dangers that lie ahead." Suteneko smiled at his friend and began walking forward.

[hal7283]

Ekichu noticed the moment of hesitation when Suteneko saw his hunt, but didn't put too much thought on it. After they've processed the meat they were ready to climb the mountain. As they climbed higher and higher the vegetation around them changed accordingly, from large trees with flat leaves to tall ones filled with needle like leaves. There were also less and less sign of animals roaming about.

 

During their climb Ekichu began to think about the attack happened earlier, those strange hooded creatures wielding deadly weapons. Ekichu didn't share the same optimism Suteneko had when it comes to them not returning. He doubted those attackers were indigenous to that forest. But it raised new questions: if they're not from the forest, where did they came from? Why did they attack the two? Was it just a unfortunate encounter or were they after the two from the beginning? If so, who exactly were they after? Suteneko, or Ekichu?

 

As they climbed, and his thoughts drifted here and there, the sky gradually darkened. Ekichu looked up to the sky and saw dark clouds gathering above. Ekichu turned to look at Suteneko and said: "It looks like a storm is about to come. Perhaps we should find a place to hide."

[WolfDog12]

At first, as they started to climb the mountain, Suteneko was able to keep going without any real issues. He eventually began to get very tired and he was running out of energy fast the farther they climbed. When Ekichu said they should stop, the young Kokuei was a good ten or more feet behind his larger friend clearly struggling to keep going up. "Good... Idea," he panted.

 

The dragon continued to move as they searched for a cave. It wasn't too hard to find one but by the time they did, the rain had already set in; slowly at first but then all at once. Ekichu was just able to get in the cave as the rain picked up but Suteneko ended up getting soaked a bit. He didn't care though and just walked into the cave and laid down. Actually, it looked more like he collapsed and hit the ground thankful to be able to rest. Instantly, the dragon fell asleep even changing into his smaller form showing just how tired he was.

[hal7283]

Ekichu glimpse at Suteneko who had fell asleep reverted back to his smaller form before turning his gaze at the entrance of the cave. The climb seemed to have taken a bigger toll on Suteneko than he expected. He looked at the rain outside, which had gathered even greater force since they got into the cave, and it looked like it wasn't going to weaken in anytime soon. Ekichu sighed and got closer to Suteneko, laying his body near the small dragon. He circled his tail around Suteneko as if creating a barrier. For a moment he wanted to tug wrap the tail closer but figured his hard shell wasn't exactly good pillow material. He wondered what would it be like to have a coat of fury skin, so he could wrap himself around the little kokuei to keep him warm. Then he looked at the mark left on his shell from the dagger, which was already sealed up, leaving only a slight mark on the surface, and decided a hard shell is better at the end of the day.

[WolfDog12]

The small cat slept until about noon the following day but when he woke up, it was still raining hard. No one had warned them that this mountain gets a lot of rain at once. Still, what the feline really noticed was the large protecting wall that surrounded him. The small cat looked up at his friend and smiled. "Thank you for protecting me!" He was quite happy to have Ekichu there. Suteneko sat up and looked out the opening of the cave. He could hear the rain earlier but was now watching as large streamed formed outside and ran down the mountain. Suteneko looked back over at his friend. "We're going to be stuck here for a couple days it seems. This rains not going to let up for a while and by the time it does I won't even be able to walk anymore." He looked down sadly.

[hal7283]

Ekichu nodded at what Suteneko said and answered: "In that case we might as well make this cave our home for the time being. Good thing we've got a big hunt beforehand so we could wait till the storm ceases. And then I'll be able to go down the mountain and hunt for food while you hide here."

 

Then he fell silent looking at the storm outside. Come to think of it, ever since the two met in that forest it was drama after drama, and they didn't really have peaceful time like these. For the first time in his, and perhaps generations of Arthroplon's life, he was feeling the awkwardness of silence. He thought about what he should say to break the ice, and after a while he asked:" My memory of my time with you when I was a larva was... blurry at best. I remembered getting flushed out of the valley by mud slide, I also remembered getting picked up by you and you took care of me.... But what happened next was... lost to me. What happened? Did you release me back to the wilds or something?"