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monstrousaffections1 · 6 years ago

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Around Tele Mountain Chapter 1

She gnashed her teeth and shrieked in frustration, hands slipping into her jaws and prying her teeth open as they shoveled that disgusting yellow slop into her mouth. No! No! No! She gagged and coughed trying to do anything not to swallow the GuangGuang. Tinky just hissed and shoved his fingers past her lips, she struggled against Dipsy’s grip but the green one held tight. She started to sob in desperation as she was forced to suck on the nectar coated fingers.

Tinky stood at the end of the line with Laa-Laa and Po as the young ones awaited their daily work assignments.

Ebat was at the front of the line, he was a young black telle who would be a member of the council once he came of age, due to his intellect and charismatic charm. After him there was Tula, she was proactive and playful, farmer in training.

Stone and Feather were best friends, Stone had lost his eyes in an attack from the Wilder Ones. But he made up for it with his strength and sheer size, Feather was ambitious but a bit of a dreamer, she liked to collect strange objects such as shiny pebbles or bird feathers. They worked together best as scouts.

Which also Tinky’s occupation, being a capable young male who was near full maturity. His nest-mate Dipsy often tagged along just for something to do…. Wait a minute! Where was Dipsy? God if he had slept in again!

He groaned inwardly realizing that his friend was going to get them both a tardy again. Tinky would hit him for this later. Laa-Laa giggled and took hold of Tinky’s arm cuddling close as the cold dawn breeze made them all shiver.

“He’s very late.” She whispered.

Laa-Laa was by personality standards, most grown up. She often fussed over her friends, constantly making sure they were safe and clean. It was because of this trait she was given the role of babysitting the cubs. She had a strange beauty about her too, something that most of the girls didn’t have. Tinky thought it must have been something to do with her high cheek bones or unusual green eyes.

Po smirked and gave a small chuckle. She was fierce little thing, but hoped for more than she was capable of. Desperately she wanted to be part of the scouting but she was too little, being a runt, the elders thought it was better if she was under the practice of farming instead of something so dangerous.

“I could beat him out of bed for you?” She asked hopefully, wanting something fun to do. Tinky laughed at the thought but shook his head and gently boxed the little one’s ears.

“No, if he wants be stuck on compost duty then let him be late”.

One of the elders addressed the group of yearlings. Giving them their instructions.

They lived, played and worked in the fields. Made their houses out of mud, each home consisted of two rooms, one for eating and one for sleeping. The homes were more or less communal, friends often nesting together. Unless they found a partner, then they would build their own home, one where they could have cubs. When cubs became yearlings, they left their parents and nested with friends. The layout of the village was a circle, houses were built close together, in a way it was almost like a large maze. Filled with long alleyways, sharp turns and dead ends. If you unfamiliar with it you could easily get lost.

Beyond the village were the fields. One half of the year filled with grass so long you couldn’t even see over, filed with flowers and fruits which was what they ate. The other half of the year covered with snow, the grass dead and their food scarce. At the South of the fields, the grass ended and the forest began. The forest was a rather dangerous place, filled with beasts the size of a mud house! No one went into the forest, even the plants wanted to eat you.

In the middle of the fields was a large lake that flowed down from the mountains that came from the North, they were large numerous mountains, rocky at the base but the further up you got the colder it became. Eventually at the halfway point it was constantly snowing up there. For generations the elders told the cubs legends and stories of the mountains, making sure they knew never to go there for that was where the Wilder Ones lived. Their larger cousins were not like the Field Teles, they towered over them in height and were far stronger. The Wilders were not social like the Fields, preferring the stay alone rather than live in large colonies. If they did live in a group it would be a small group, most likely of three or four.

They told the cubs that if the Wilder Ones caught you, they’d cook you alive over fire and eat you whole. So it was safe to say that no one went into the mountains.

Tinky took arms with spear and shield not waiting for his lazy friend left for patrols of mountain boarders.

Po sighed in disappointment. Sulking as she followed Tula into the fields, it wasn’t fare! She was a lot more capable than anyone else in the village! Why should she be stuck as a farmer just because of her size? Honestly Po could take a beastie. She could! She knew she could….

But nether-the-less she began to pack the basket with fruits and flowers. This was a chore that only needed doing once a week, there were enough farmers to collect enough for everyone. Once harvested it was sorted between all the houses where it would be stored up. For the cubs who had not yet grown their teeth the fruit would be ground up, mixed together with water and left in the sun for a few hours. After a while the mixture would become sticky and thick, the type of stuff that stuck to your fingers and was a pain to wash off, but easy for little ones to eat.

“Don’t look glum.” Po’s fur bristled as she glared at Tula, it wasn’t anyone else’s business what she was feeling.

“I’ll look however I want thanks.” She shot back folding her arms and looking away from the larger female.

“Listen, it’s not your fault your little, but you really do have to understand that at your size you simply can’t protect yourself or anyone else from danger. Your too small.”

Ouch. The words stung and made Po’s heart contract, so she complied with the other females and made herself useful. Fruits and Flowers don’t pick themselves after all.

Laa-Laa laughed warmly as the little cubs played with toys she had brought with her. It was most enjoyable to take care of children. She found their company to be refreshing compared to that of yearlings or adults. They were free, not having to worry about anything, they could be what ever they wanted. Not bound by one life or full of the stresses of keeping up with the life inside the maze village.

The cubs could run as far as they wanted, could lose themselves in their games forget all the troubles of what was really happening in the real word. Laa-laa would sometimes find herself envying them, wishing nothing more than to let herself fade away into her own world the same way they could. Just like she use to….. but that was before, it was unwise to let yourself live in dreams or else you’d be brought back by the harshness of a reality that turns on those who let themselves wonder.

Oh NO!! Dipsy raced through the village. He had slept in again! He didn’t even have time to eat. Late, late, late. His mind filled with possible excuses most of them too far-fetched to be believed. But by the sun he had to give them something other than over sleeping.

This was not good! Why hadn’t Laa-laa woken him? Shooting into the auditorium he snatched up a spear and shield. Quick as his feet could carry him he-

“Dipsy.” Oh come on. He skidded to a stop, hackles raised and flinched at being caught. Sighing he turned around to face the apprentice who was currently crafting a map.

“Yesss… Ebat.” Dipsy struggled with the words, he was in trouble. The black tele didn’t even look at him but rather smirked for a second before letting his expression fall back to one of concentration.

“You were late, did you sleep in again? Of course, you did”

Dipsy rolled his eyes, “Yeah, yeah I’m late ok, now if you excuse me I really gotta go!” He moved for the door.

“You won’t be needing those” Ebat said blatantly, gesturing to the spear absentmindedly.

“You’re assigned for the graves.”

“Oh what!?”

“Yes, Yes. Exciting, I am so happy for you but run along now you are disturbing my work”

Dipsy groaned and dropped his weapon leaving it for Ebat to pick up as he trudged grumpily to the edge of the village.

She climbed down the rocks with haste, constantly looking over her shoulder. Ears twitched and she crouched down, frozen. Nothing. She continued on her journey, her heart was still racing fast in her chest. Adrenaline fueling her veins. Her fur stood on end, and her pupils closed up. Taking a jump, she landed on a bolder. Tensing she whipped around and stared back the way she came.

A low wailing came from the wind, long and mournful as if crying out the pain she could not voice. Slipping down the boulder she quickly jogged downhill, careful not trip or fall. She was careful never to let body touch the rock unless it captures her scent. The ground was becoming less rocky and more like soil. Her breathing grew ragged, this was not familiar. Who knew what lived here.

She crouched down again and this time she began to move on all fours. She slipped further and further into uncharted territory.

Po hoisted the basket up onto her shoulders and joined the line as they walked back to the village single file. The baskets packed full and some even overflowing. It had been a successful harvest; the fields were rich with flavor. She strained to see above the grass, it had gotten rather tall lately. The girls chatted and gossiped about things that Po would never understand. Who was improving at cooking, who they are nesting with, how annoying it was to have to pick up after the boys. Who they wanted for a partner.

The same old conversations that almost occurred every day, with the occasional refreshment of how big their cubs were getting. Po rolled her eyes, looking to the mountains. She stopped. Her ears twitched and stood on end.

“Quit!” She hissed to the other girls. Their needless chatter silenced and then they heard it too. The sound of something running towards them through the tall grass. Po pushed to the front of the line and unsheathed her claws, fur puffing up. Screaming a battle cry she ran straight into the path of whatever it was meeting it head on.

Only to be knocked flat on her back as whatever it was collided with her. The rest of the girls screamed and a high pitched animalistic shriek brought Po back to her senses and she leapt to her feet. For a moment the little red one was confused.

For there growling and shrieking like a wild animal was a white furred girl. Po gnashed her teeth and hissed, challenging the stranger. The girl met her eyes for a moment.

Before charging forward and shoved Po aside and running fast through the grass.

Tula helped Po to her feet, who tried to ignore the fact she had just been knocked down twice in row.

“She’s heading to the village!” One of the girls exclaimed.

Po raced after the wilder thing.

Dipsy quietly stood by the hole in the ground. Blocking out the elder’s voice just pretending he was listening. The graves was at the edge of the village, and was the most boring job to be assigned to, at least in Dipsy’s point of view anyway. But heck some people might like it, if you liked digging holes all day. He had already fallen in twice and it was before noon. At least none of them actually had a corpse in them yet, that would have been really unfortunate.

A white blur speeded past, just missing him and……. Make that three times.

Po leapt over the grave and Dipsy hastily climbed out.

What the heck was that? Shaking off dirt he joined Po in the chase after the white whatever it was.

It was fast, faster than most of them. Gaining on Po, Dipsy looked to the small red one and she looked right back. They were having a silent conversation, one that was only picked up with eyes and not ears.

It went something like this.

What is it?

It's a Wilder One.

It can't be, It's not big enough.

Well what else could it be!

Fare point.

Dipsy pushed himself ahead attempting to attain ground on the white creature. Cursing inwardly as she disappeared into the Entrance of the Maze Village.

Into the mud houses she ran, hoping to lose her pursuers in the confusion. She took a left turn, right, left, left, right, right, left. The turns appeared so fast that she often knocked into objects which fell and sometimes broke upon impact. Cries of alarm sounded from inside the strange structures, others tried to block her way but she shoved past them or took another direction.

Looking over her shoulder she saw the red one and the green one still on her tail. Taking a turn she silently screamed as she came to a dead end, not knowing what else to do she climbed up onto a basket and clawed her way onto the roof of a mud house.

Taking a run and jump she leapt onto a second roof. As she leapt to the third a pair of hand grabbed her ankles and she was pulled down, missing the landing as her chest collided with the edge of the roof, a scream of pain left her mouth but was cut off as her chin met the same fate. Now on the ground she quickly wriggled out of her attacker's grip and ran ahead, three of four others had joined in the chase.

She dodged snatching hands and leapt over a wall, landing in a different part of the maze. She whimpered stressfully, she had to get out of here. Knowing full well she couldn't keep this up forever. She had to hide. Running aimlessly until she saw the biggest building in the village. In through the window she looked around frantically for a moment, the sound of others got closer and so she ran up the stairs, passing several different floors. As she reached the roof she went to escape but collided with another body.

They both scrambled to their feet and for a moment stared at each other. She flattened her ears and her fur stood on end, Ebat slowly raised his hands in a non threatening manor and took a careful step back. Footsteps running up the stairs made her panic.

She ran past the black tele and to the edge of the roof. A group of scouts stopped a few meters in front of her. She was cornered. Taking a breath, she took a step backwards.

Ebat and the scouts rushed forward, a fall at that height would kill her! A screech of outrage echoed off the walls.

Stone had caught the wild thing before she could hit the ground. She struggled in his grip, trying to scratch and bite but he held her at arm’s length, remaining silent despite the damage to his arms.

Tinky scratched the back of his head as he strolled back into the village, ready to turn in his weapons and spend the rest of his day doing recreational activates now that his shift was over. But before he could even reach the Auditorium he stopped in his tracks at the sight of the scouts carrying a screaming and struggling girl through the village.

Po and Dipsy approached him looking quite out of breath. Looking back and forth between the girl and his friends he instead just rooted for looking to the sky with a befuddled expression.

"What happened while I was gone?"

"Nothing. We've just been protecting the village, what about you? Sleeping under a tree?" challenged Po.

The elders all gathered in the Auditorium as the moon rose in the sky. All of them concerned on the matter that everyone had a strong opinion of, what to do about the wilder one. Many voices raised and many arguments strung the question with answers that might be considered questionable to one person’s ears, or considered reasonable if you shared another point of view.

Torches were lit and the Maze Village glowed luminously with fire light. Tinky sat out the front of his house sharpening a stick to a point. They had locked her in one of the empty mud houses, it had been stuff of nightmares. Screams and sounds of things getting broken echoed through the locked windows. After a few hours the wild thing had settled down but the quite was even more frightening than the screams.

Dipsy washed his hands in a bucket of water from the well and moved to lean against the wall beside his friend. Folding his arms, he clicked his tongue at the recollection of the day.

“What do you think should be done?”

Tinky stopped mid carve and looked up at the green one. Dipsy didn’t normally ask these kind of questions, at least not seriously anyway.

Tinky sighed, Dipsy knew what he thought. What he wanted to hear was his own opinion. Because he wasn’t able to voice it himself. They had always been able to tell what each other was thinking, ever since they were cubs.

“I think they should kill her.” Tinky said and went back to his stick.

Dipsy clenched his fists and bit his lip. He didn’t like to think about taking another life but when it seemed as though there was no other option he always turned to his friend for strength.

The older one smiled.

“Well, she frightened the farmers, assaulted Po, knocked you into hole in the ground, broke our stuff, gave everyone a heart attack and could have killed Ebat.”

Dipsy laughed, his normal self, breaking through his somber mood.

“Not like he would be much of a loss!”

“Heh, I guess your right.” They stared at each other for a moment before snorting into laughter at the thought.

“I don’t think that’s funny guys.”

Laa-Laa stood in the door way holding a bowl of GuanGuangs.

Dipsy rolled his eyes and stole a fruit, taking a few decent sized bites before chucking it to Tinky who had his turn of the meal.

“And what do you think the Elders should do then?” He asked wiping juice from his mouth.

Laa-Laa wrinkled her nose a little before eating her own fruits, little bites being careful not to get the sticky pulp on her yellow fur.

“I think they should let her go, it was you and Po who chased her into the village in the first place anyway.”

“Where is Po anyhow?” Tinky inquired, flicking his ears. She was never late for dinner.

“Ebat said she was called by the Elders since she was the first to see the Wilder One.” Dipsy offered as he began to lick his paws clean.

“I thought you hated Ebat?”

Dipsy froze.

“I DO hate Ebat!”

She opened her eyes and stared as the door opened, a black silhouette blocking the moonlight. She moved back and pressed herself against the corner but remained in a sitting position. Everything hurt now that the adrenaline had worn out and she remembered how much pain she had been.

The silhouette came inside and closed the door. Now that she saw him quickly she recognized him as the black tele she ran into on top of the big building. She puffed out her fur and snarled low and threatening. What did he want.

He raised his hands in a reassuring manor and got down to his knees. Seeing he was no threat she pulled her knees up to her chest and watched him as he went about his business collecting all the sharp pieces of smashed pottery and torn fabrics.

He didn’t pay her any sort of mind and pretty much pretended she wasn’t there.

Pausing he set everything down in a pile and picked up a fallen GuangGuang fruit. It was now he acknowledged her.

She tensed up as the male knelt down and held out the fruit to her. For a moment she glanced between him and the food. Before snorting and turning away from him.

This time he didn’t move away but sat down a bit away from her.

“Not hungry? You haven’t eaten anything for a few hours.” He gave her a smile, trying to seem friendly.

She stared at him for a moment before turning right around so she faced the wall.

The black tele frowned as he caught sight of a red stain concealed under the white fur of her side. Sighing he rolled the fruit over to her side before picking up the mess and leaving, locking the door behind him.

Po leaned against the table, watching with no amusement as the Elders continued to bicker amongst themselves. The fire pit lit the room aflame and pints of water sat unfinished. It was comical really. Some of them yelled that they beast was obviously dangerous and should be put down. Others yelled that they should keep it and try to civilize it.

One extremely ancient looking elder didn’t bother joining in with the politics and instead voted just for sleeping with his head down on the table, having eaten too much GuangGuang fruit.

Po didn’t see the point of her even being hear if they weren’t going to talk to her. The only Elder who was still stable and calm was old Bishan, who just sat there patiently waiting for everyone else to shut up.

And as Ebat silently entered the room and sidled in next to him, Bishan cleared his throat loudly and the others drew to a standstill.

Silently the elders moved to their seats, the firelight crackling against wood the only sound. Bishan stood and moved with his usual limp to the front of the room. As he moved Po scrutinized an old scar running up his side. He was a scout when he was younger, the best scout in the history of the Maze Village.

He didn’t just look for signs of Wilder Ones, he fought them. That was something no one else was brave enough to do. His scars were the only thanks he ever got, Po looked up to him a lot.

When Bishan spoke his voice was that of an old warrior who has had many experience, it was always best to listen to him.

“As we know, earlier today a Wilder One came into the village. Po since you were the one who seen her first, tell us what happened.”

Slowly she got up and joined the elder at the front of the room and retold the tale. She felt proud of herself, if they realized how bravely she chased the Wilder One, how she tried to engage it in battle. Perhaps they’d let her be a scout. Perhaps Bishan would teach her to fight them, like he had done.

She would protect the village. Die with honor and be remembered as a warrior.

As the story foreclosed the elders looked amongst each other. Quite worried.

A old female looked to Po and smiled appraisingly.

“Thank you Po, you may go home now.”

The little red one’s heart and hopes sank to bottom of her stomach. Silently she left the auditorium filled with disappointment.

Po slunk back down the alleyways, head down and moping as she kicked a stone along the path. It wasn’t fair! It was her who kept the farmers safe. She was the reason they even caught the Wilder One in the first place. She showed bravery and courage. So why was she always overlooked?

Entering the mud house she stared for a moment as her friends slept among the blankets. Laa-Laa had her head rested on Dipsy’s chest as the male’s arm cradled her shoulders holding her close to him. Po wrinkled her nose and wondered when those two were going to get a home. It was clear they wanted each other.

Tinky stirred as Po squeezed in between him and Dipsy. He gave her a tired smile but she just frowned at him and rolled over the other way. He almost laughed, she needn’t say more. It was obvious why she was upset. Sliding an arm around her waist he pressed his muzzle into the back of her head and licked her ears.

She was tired of always been underestimated cause of her size, he knew she thought she was meant for so much more than what they had planned for her. She may be brave, resilient and determined but he knew she wouldn’t last long in an actual battle. But Tinky never told her this, he let her think she was stronger than she was.

After a few minutes of comforting licks, she turned around and pressed up against him burying her face into his chest fur. Tinky tightened his hold as her body began to tremble slightly. He knew she’d fall asleep soon, and when she woke she’ll have forgotten her moment of weakness.

The meeting was about to fall to a close, they had decided that perhaps it was best if the allowed the poor creature to die. Ebat tapped his fingers against the table, thinking silently. He had been in the room with the white beast and she hadn’t tried to harm him. So he wondered if it was unfair to kill without proper reason. In fact she had seemed more scared of them than any of them had been of her. And she was wounded, she had tried to hide it but Ebat clearly saw the blood on her ribs.

Honestly he wasn’t even sure if she was a Wilder One. But because of the way of things….. it was no secret that there were the occasional loners who lived outside of the village, some of them losing their mind and believing themselves to be animals. So it was as Ebat thought, shouldn’t they help those who need help?

Bishan went to leave but the young black tele grabbed his arm, getting his attention.

“Wait, Elder Bishan… may I address the council? I believe I may have some information that just might sway your opinions.” Ebat gave a smile, trying to win over the old warrior.

“Boy, you may be a philosopher but I don’t think you yet have enough experience or wisdom to make a proper judgement of these things.” Bishan said gruffly and ruffled the yearling’s fur.

Ebat couldn’t form any words…

“Let him speak.” Said Taa-Vee, she was a rather old female who in her youth had been the first to turn to the stars for answers instead of relying soly on the sun. She was his mentor when he was younger. Teaching the cub how to chart the night sky and make constellations and use these to shape their maps of their world.

Ebat swallowed thickly, he didn’t know how they would react to his theory.

“For along time we have wondered if there were any other villages out there besides the loners, we have always assumed that we were the only ones. But that is because the loners are those we already know, those of us that were once a part of our village.”

“And what’s your point boy?” Bishan inquired, wanting to know where this was going.

“Well, the girl that we caught today couldn’t have been a Wilder One, I mean, Bishan you’ve seen the Wilder Ones up close. Doesn’t she seem a bit on the small side?”

The sleeping elder suddenly woke and lifted a hand.

“He’s right you know…. Say Bishan, how big did you say they were…” Before slumping back down onto the table, asleep again. The other elders whispered in agreement.

The old brown Bishan nodded slightly, remembering as he rubbed a rather long scar on his shoulder.

“Most of them are only a few feet taller than us, but twice as wide and thick with muscle.” He said, finally agreeing.

“See, that girl can’t be a Wilder One, she’s too small. But I believe that it’s possible she might be a loner, but wouldn’t we already know who she is if that was the case?” Ebat was quick to point out.

Bishan’s eyes seemed to light up, finally seeing what the yearling was insinuating.

“It is my belief that she could possibly be part of another village or some sort of clan. Think, a whole other civilization hidden from our knowledge! Wouldn’t it be good to at least find out if there are others besides ourselves?”

As he finished Ebat knew he had won. At least for now, they wouldn’t harm the creature.

Taa-Vee seemed to consider this before she told him that they would further discuss the possibility and decide what would be done from there before dismissing him, insisting that the young male get some sleep.

The cubs laughed loudly as they followed their mothers to the river, it was a big day for them. It was the first time they would go to the large embodiment of water and they wondered what adventures would await them, possibly fish! The elders told them stories about fish, how they sometimes came up river to get away from the beasties of the deep dark wood.

Tinky’s mother told him that it was best to remain quite when at the river, for that was where most of the Wilder One attacks happened. But of course, cubs don’t really listen to their mothers when some new and exciting such as this happened.

His excitement faded into awe when the long grass shortened and eventually came to a stop, the river was humongous! It stretched from the Mountain and traveled past their Fields and eventually into the Forest, and across the river you could barely see, but Tinky thought he could see land. Far, far way.

He screamed as he was pushed forward and landed with a splash into the water, growling he looked up and glowered at another cub. Grabbing the green boy’s wrist he pulled him into the water and dunked him under.

Dipsy yelped as he went under and shot back up grabbing the older cub’s head and climbed on top of him forcing him into the water. Only to squeal indignantly as Tinky came back up and pounced on him, tickling his ribs.

Laa-Laa watched unimpressed as the boys wrestled in the river. She stood close to her mother who held her hand and helped the cub wade through the river reeds. Something shimmered in the water, giving off a shine of light.

Reaching down the little yellow cub pulled the object out of the water, it was a whitish pink shell! Admiring the pretty thing, she tugged on her mother’s fur to share the discovery. The older female explained that once, a long time ago that this shell was in fact a living thing, something that either used this shell as a home or was the shell.

Laa-Laa was confused, how could something so pretty like this ever had been a living thing? It simply didn’t make sense.

Tinky pulled Dipsy back towards him as the other struggled desperately but the older continued his relentless assault. The green cub screamed as he suffered another tickle attack when suddenly he was forced under the water, Tinky on having lost all sense of balance and had fallen forwards. They both thrashed desperately trying to resurface but it seemed that something was pinning Tinky underwater and Dipsy was getting crushed by the weight of the other.

Eventually whatever it was, was thrown off by all the struggling. They both rose from the water coughing and gasping for air. A loud laughing made them look around as they saw an unusually small sized, red cub completely unaware that she had nearly drowned them.

Laa-Laa sighed as she felt earth in her fingers, having got up early. She lay in the middle of the fields. Looking up at the blueish purple sky, the golden light of the dawn shimmering against the long grass. She felt weightless and distant. She always woke up before anyone else. Honestly, she couldn’t say why but she thought it might have been because she was the only one alive until the rest of the day unfolded itself.

She could let herself fade away just like the morning fog. In her mind she wasn’t laying in the grass fields anymore, she was laying among wild flowers. The type that grew out of the ground. Like it said in the Ancient Scrolls. She’d never seen them but she imagined that they were beautiful and filled with color, she wondered if they existed. She liked to think they did. After all. The Ancient Scrolls spoke of many things they had no proof of.

The wind blew and petals began to fly into the peach colored sky. Laa-Laa breathed deeply and took in the strange scent. She reached out and caught one. Holding it to her chest she closed her eyes as the wind gently kissed her fur.

“Laa-Laa!”

The yellow female jerked out of her day dream with a wheeze, clutching her chest in fright. She gave Feather an annoyed glance. The lilac female smiled apologetically having forgotten that waking Laa-Laa so suddenly while she was dreaming was dangerous. The yellow one got to her feet and brushed off the dirt.

“So, what is their decision?” Laa-Laa inquired as they walked back to the village. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

Feather sighed dramatically, looking to the sky and pulling on her ears.

“Their going to let her go.”

“That’s good…”

“No. Their going to let her go but they are sending us to follow her.”

Laa-Laa’s eyes widened. What!

Tinky joined Stone and Feather as they took arms. It was time to go. The elders had given them very clear instructions, follow the feral thing and find out if there are more of them. The village was oddly quite as everyone remained inside their houses. Not knowing how the feral thing would act once she was let out.

He hoped she wouldn’t try to kill anyone.

Ebat watched from the window of his house as the scouts began to group up. He was glad that he was able to save her. He doubted that she would do anything to harm them, if his theories were correct then she shouldn’t waste any time in trying to run home. He wondered if perhaps she lived far from them, perhaps over the mountain. It was possible the scouts wouldn’t be home for weeks or even months. Either way he would be eager to document everything.

Po sat at the edge of the roof of the auditorium. A slight frown tugging at her face. When Bishan had asked scouts to volunteer for the task she had immediately raised her hand jumping up and down eagerly. No one even looked at her as usual. Dipsy stood behind her holding his shovel. He smiled as the little red one pouted. To be honest he was kind of envious of Tinky, it wasn’t every day you got to go on an adventure after all. But he wasn’t a scout and it was likely to be a very dangerous journey.

“Oh stop pouting!” The green one tried and ruffled her head. Po glowered and snapped at his fingers.

“Hey, I know what will cheer your up, how about we go and…”

“Go and follow them at a distance and go on a adventure of a life time!” Po exclaimed jumping to her feet and darting past the green one.

“Wait what!! No! That’s not what I said!!” Dipsy exclaimed chasing after the little red one before she could get herself into trouble.

She got to her feet as the door opened. She flicked her ears back and wrinkled her nose baring her canines. The male seemed to stare at her for a moment despite not being able to see. He had a thick bandage around his head, covering his eyes. He was larger than the others, by about a foot and he looked like he was strong, very strong.

“Come on.” He said and stepped to the side allowing her room to leave. She tilted her head a bit, and slowly crept to the door. She paused in the doorway squinting her eyes as the sudden light hit her face. She looked about timidly. As her gaze fell upon the large male, she left the mud house and stepped into the streets.

Looking around she saw two others standing a little bit away, but close enough. Taking a breath, she shuddered, fur fluffing up before flattening itself back down. The lager male began to walk down a street but stopped and looked back to her. Her claws unsheathed a little but she forced herself to relax. Cautiously she began to follow him, aware as the other two crept along behind her.

It surprised her at how easily he was able to navigate the maze, even with sight she had gotten lost when she first ran through here. Eventually they came to the entrance of the Maze Village. The blind male stopped here. As he stepped to the side, he held his paw to sweep over the Fields.

“You’re free to go.” He said simply. A large smile spread over her face and she seemed to jump a little. Quickly she darted past him and into the grass but then stopped.

Tinky’s face contorted in confusion. He expected her to take off as soon as she got out of the village. He was impressed with how Stone had been able to lead her without any need for restraint. But what he didn’t understand was why she was hesitating to leave. He shared a glance with Feather who seemed to be thinking the same thing.

Looking to the Mountains she seemed to make a whining noise, ears falling low on her head and her hand raised to her ribs. Resting there for a moment before she huffed and looked to the forest. Another low whine came from her throat and she suddenly ran for the forest.

They watched as she disappeared into the long grass and waited for a for half a minute. It was then they followed her path.

As she ran through the fields, she could feel the life under her feet. The stir of the air in her fur as she allowed herself to embrace her newly acquired freedom. Glad to be rid from her captors she sighed as a weight dropped off her shoulders. She ran as far as she could, going as fast as she could, pushing herself to her limit wanting to just use her legs as much as possible. Eventually she skidded to a stop, panting slightly.

Breathing deeply, she closed her eyes and felt each individual blade of grass in her fingers. Felt the life of the thousand ants as they climbed to the top of the grass to soak in the rays of sun. Satisfied, she began to walk down the invisible path. The trees seemed a lot larger now that she was closer to them. Much taller as well. It was hear the grass came to an end.

She stared beyond, watching and waiting for any signs of possible dangers. The sound of birds and calls of animals made her relax, and she entered the jungle. Soon disappearing among the trees, ferns and a wide range of other flora.

Tinky shared a glance with his fellow scouts and watched from the grass as the feral girl leaves the light and step into the dark of the forest.

Once they were sure she would be far enough away they left the sheltering Fields and followed her into the forest.

His jaw slightly hanged open as he took in the strange new world, he had seen the forest drawn in the pictures of the Ancient Scrolls but this was something else entirely. Colour filled everything, flowers of all different varieties covered almost every tree, and it was so bright, dark but bright somehow at the same time. Strange plants grew out of the ground. And leaves had turned brown and crunched under each step. Long vines hung down from branches and were hard to navigate. It was most purely spectacular.

A buzzing sound made him draw his spear and hold it at the ready.

Feather gasped and pointed in amazement.

“Oh wow!” A strange creature hovered there it’s wings beating so fast it was almost impossible to see. It seemed to study them for a little bit before shooting off through the branches.

Stone pressed his hand against a tree and hummed in thought, feeling as a incredibly large insect crawled onto his hand and up his arm, these animals were unlike what they were use to, even Stone with his unseeing eyes could see that.

“Ebat would love this.” He said simply and walked forward a little bit, and put his paws to the ground feeling the soil.

“She went this way”

They traveled Southwards, through the world of many colors. The further they went the more alien the forest became. Pink moss grew out of black trees and had a strange glow to it. Unusually large insects often scurried from under their feet. Eventually it became clear that the feral girl had taken this path, Feather noticed by the way the plants had been parted, pushed over and sometimes broken.

Tinky breathed deeply and took in the many scents, tree bark, rain, decay… blood. Bingo.

Giving the others a nod, he took the lead. Crouching down he crept up ahead. The ferns became thicker as he went up the hill, the dead leaves were moved aside. As though they had been swept out of the way just like the mothers swept to sand out of their houses. Further up the hill there was a large tree that had fallen over, now having decayed all through the inside it would be the perfect spot for a place to hide.

As he approached he silently laid down on his stomach and crawled along the ground. He was right beside the log. Pressing himself against it he put his ear to the wood and listened. She was on the inside, he could hear her as she shuffled about, making a nest by the sound of it. Quietly creeping back down the hill, he gave Feather a smile.

“She’s on the inside, we’ll go back a bit further into those bushes so she doesn’t see us.”

“It depends on the wind.” Stone added, looking straight ahead. Feather nodded in agreement.

“He’s right, if it goes up hill we’ll have to change our position.” She said helpfully and Tinky grimaced, embarrassed at having forgotten.

“Fare point, fare point. Ok so at the moment the wind is at our advantage, but if it changes we’ll circle around to the side. Even if it goes up she won’t smell us.”

Her fears folded with the leaves, no longer present as she began to make her nest in the safety of the log. It would be alright now. She wouldn’t be found, just stay in the forest, stay in the forest. It would be warm in hear, shielding from the cold dark nights that lay ahead. Honestly, she considered herself lucky to even be alive at the moment. Considering how likely it was that those Field Tele would have killed her.

She pulled the leaves and put them in place, making a small pile. Not really a comfortable bed but it would work for a few nights. At least it was safe in hear- she felt something crawling over her feet.

Freezing up she forced herself to look down and her fur bristled and stood on end, what the heck was that? Eyes widening a tiny shriek caught itself in her throat as the thing looked up at her and seemed to blink with several different eyes. It may have taken her five minutes to get into that log. Well, it only took her five seconds to get out.

As she broke through the cobwebs and the sunlight blinded her vision temporarily her foot caught on a root tripping her up. Flipping over onto her back she scurried backwards as the creature followed her out. As it reared up she could see how frightening it was.

The largest insect she had ever seen, five or six feet tall, towering above her as it reared back waving hundreds of legs, mandibles gnashing menacingly. She scrambled to her feet and withdrew from the path of the giant centipede.

Seeing no challenger, the old log monster dropped down and suddenly, appeared quite small. Her heart beat slowing down she moved to the side, as it’s eyes seemed to follow her. The log was out of bounds, that much was clear.

Crouching down she crept closer, curious. As the centipede moved suddenly, she darted back. It turned towards her and seemed to wriggle its antenna curiously. She smiled and moved forward again, poking the insect in the head before shooting back with a chirp. The beast clicked it’s mandibles and turned away heading back to the log.

She tilted her head slightly, catching sight of something not quite right. One of the centipede’s plates was lifted, not by much, but enough to be noticeable. Trailing after the creature she found the reason; a sharp stick had been lodged under the plate. The feral girl grimaced as she imagined how painful that would be.

Sneaking up behind she made a rash decision and grabbed the giant splinter, she tightened her grip and pulled. If the centipede could of screamed, it would have. It reared up threateningly, towering over her with full intention to kill. She screamed and curled into a ball, bracing for the worst. The insect seemed to pause, it wriggled itself a bit before dropping back down and clicked happily.

The feral girl sighed in relief as the log monster scurried around her in circles gratefully.

Tinky yawned as he sat in the darkness. Night had finally come to the forest after a long day of remaining out of sight. Hiding in bushes wasn’t as fun as it had been when they were kids. They hadn’t made a fire but she had. Honestly, he was surprised the feral one even knew how. Being well, you know, feral.

He rubbed his eyes in an effort to stay awake, he hadn’t thought it would be this easy to fall asleep. Sighing he leaned his head back against a tree with another yawn. Looking over at Stone it was impossible to tell if he was asleep or awake, as he was unable to see his eyes. Feather looked like she was on the brink of sleep, leaning against Stone and barley able to keep her eyes open. Pulling his face Tinky groaned inwardly. If he had known he wouldn’t get any sleep he wouldn’t have volunteered for this. Why did he volunteer again? Right. Cause no one else wanted to do it. Well… besides the other two anyway.

Stone shifted uncomfortably. His ears twitched as he slowly sat up straight. Feather whined, annoyed at the loss of her pillow. The larger raised a finger to his lips. Quiet. Stone slowly got to his knees and gently pushed his hands into the ground, curling his fingers slightly into the soil. He could feel something, something that came through the ground and sent and odd feeling up through his fingers and into his paws. It was large. Large and heavy, dangerous.

She laid in the earth, the light of the fire reflecting on the trees. The overhanging canopy shielded her from the moons light, except for the delicate shimmers that managed to sneak through gaps in the leaves. The two lights merged. Gold and silver intertwined with each other. The night creatures cried, screamed and sang. She closed her eyes and listened to the voices of the forest, allowing them to fill her with wonder. She could hear every whisper, every laugh. The sound of everything around her. Life, death. Birth and growth. Each flowed into and out of each other in perfect unity. The voices in the trees silenced. Her ears slowly rotated and she pushed her fingers into ground. Something was there.

Slowly she moved to her knees. She could feel it better now, it was close. Too close. In fact, it was right over there. In the shadowed undergrowth, just by the intertwining trees. She remained still, her fingers slowly spread into the earth and she closed her eyes. The feeling curled into her hand and spread up into her chest, from there creeping over her whole body. Her head shot back out of pure reflex and she gasped as the feeling left her body. She knew what it was. She tensed herself, ready to bolt. A pair of yellow eyes shone in the darkness. Her claws unsheathed, her fur rising.

Tinky was on his feet the second the first scream pierced the night air. Quickly he raced up the hill, Feather and Stone right behind him. They stopped by the log and peered over silently. Tinky couldn’t move, not even to duck down. It was a Wilder One.

She screamed and fought, struggling to get out from under him. Clawing at the earth and his flesh in a futile attempt of escape. He snapped at her neck ferociously, grabbing at her wrists as he knelt over her. She kicked at the ground as her adrenaline fueled her to fight and flight. She was screaming in small frightened shrieks. As he pinned her wrists to the forest floor, she gave a wailing cry when his teeth wrapped around her throat.

Feather grabbed Stone’s arm helplessly, what could they do? What should they do? She was torn, help or hide. She drew her spear and went to leap over the log but Stone caught the scruff of her neck and pulled her back down. What!? Why not! Why shouldn’t they try to save her? Feather was furious. Stone never hesitated. Not in battle, certainly not when aide was needed. So why was this different?

“We have to do something; he’s going to kill her!” She hissed at them. Outraged at the two males’ reluctance. Tinky pulled at his head fur, torn between his impulse to rush in and protect the female and his instinct run as fast as he could in the opposite direction. Eventually his desire to protect won out.

“We have to help her.”

Stone’s fur suddenly rose.

“Don’t look down.”

They looked down. A simultaneous shriek caught in their throats as the giant centipede scurried over their feet and darted past them.

With a growl she sunk her teeth into his muzzle, biting down as hard as she could. The Wilder One tore away from her. He gave a savage snarl as he spat out a mouth full of blood. Then his paw was on her face, claws dangerously pricking her skin. She knew how easily he could kill her, how he could tear apart her face with one swipe. She whined, preparing for the worst but gasped as the old log monster reared up behind the big black beast. A hundred legs waving as it lunged forward drilling its mandibles into the Wilder One’s neck.

The whole forest awoke to the sound of an excruciating scream. The Wilder One tried to flee from the gnashing jaws, but the centipede wrapped its body around him. It’s legs inflicting as much damage as its teeth.

Tinky rushed forward and snatched her arms, hoisting her to her feet. Gripping her wrist tightly he pulled the feral one along as the four of them ran through the dark forest, away from the butchering battle taking place behind them.

Eventually the screams faded and the firelight diminished in the distance. They kept running. The forest seemed thicker, the trees tore at their fur, and vines tangled and tripped them. A loud cry of a night creature sent them further into the dark.

The feral one dug her heels into the ground. Tinky turned to face her as her hand slipped from his. He stopped as he finally saw her. Her face contorted into that of accusation. He swallowed, a sliver of moonlight leaked through the trees and shone down, illuminating her white fur. Her blue eyes studying him intently.

“Tinky?” Stone asked. The purple one turned to his friend.

“Why you follow after me.” The three of them stared at the white one.

“You can talk?” Feather asked, astonished. The feral one did not look amused.

“Why. You. Follow. Me.” She said again. Slower this time, ears flicking in annoyance.

“We wanted to see where you came from. If there were others like you,” Stone said simply. His face and tone were steady with the same composure he displayed every day.

She seemed to understand then as her stance relaxed and she nodded, looking through them.

“You no mean others like me. You mean others like you.” She smiled then, almost friendly, but her eyes held a pitying gleam that Tinky found a bit off putting.

“Are there?” He asked. Trying to put authority into his voice. He did not like being condescended. Not by the Elders, not by the adults, and certainly not by a feral girl living like a wild animal.

“Not that I’ve seen with my eyes.” The three scouts shared a disappointed glance. This entire trip had been a waste of time. The feral one turned to leave.

“Wait. You live out here?” Feather asked, stepping forward suddenly. The white beauty looked at them cautiously before shaking her head.

“Then where do you live.” It was Stone who spoke this time.

“… Mountains.” She said after some hesitance. This time her answer left them dumbfounded and confused. How could she survive in the Mountains with all the Wilder Ones up there?

“Then why did you come down here?” Tinky asked.

“He chased me down. I was running from him.” She looked around nervously. As if expecting the big black one to burst out of the darkness at any moment.

“Come back with us. It’s safer in the village,” Tinky had never been brave enough to try and hit Stone, but by the sun he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want to at this moment.

“I don’t think the Elders would like that” He proclaimed, trying to get his comrades to see reason. Feather rolled her eyes.

“Well we can’t come back empty handed saying that there are in fact, no one else out hear. And we know that because she told us so!” She declared, spreading her arms to emphasize. Then she added.

“And we can’t leave her out here, not if he’s looking for her.”

Tinky sighed and pulled his face in exasperation. There was no room to argue, and he didn’t have the heart to leave anyone for dead. She would have to return to the village with them.

“Oh alright fine!” He turned to the white female.

“What’s your name anyway?” She only blinked; her face held no emotion. She was the strangest and most beautiful creature they had ever seen. So what was it about her that made Tinky’s fur stand on end?

“Snow. My name is Snow.”

#teletubbies #Slendytubbies

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